Nez

Where was Nil? We knew he was alive thanks to Lux. If he was alive, Luna might be alive too. Despite our best efforts, we couldn’t figure out who set the trap. Those were the best I had ever seen; they completely erased themselves from existence. Why they targeted Nil with such powerful was still a mystery. If you went through that level of effort to kill someone, why do it relatively quietly? It was the part none of us could understand. It was overkill to use such an on a child. The slightly more unsettling part was no one claimed credit. There was not even a whisper of who organized it. It was someone with an objective, and didn't care if no one knew they did it.

Empress Senna latched onto Ein and Riva to a terrifying degree after Nil vanished; she never let the two out of her sight. Her son had been missing for nearly three weeks, so I needed to cut her some slack. Nox was scouring every source he had looking for the two of them. Azzeck sealed a large portion of the borders in an effort for a semblance of containment. It felt so fruitless. We were all on edge. Sleep was not something any of us had been getting. That was a highly targeted attack. As much as I hated to admit it, I was surprised Nil was still alive. There was no ransom demand either. It was a cold comfort. All we had were cold comforts. Where could they be? I had the nagging suspicion a lot further than we thought. That was in a league of its own. I sighed. If any set of kids stands a chance of returning, it’s those two oddballs.

I was currently walking Senna her food. The instant I touched the door I could feel her get aggressive. She was curled around Riva at the moment, sword in hand. Senna slightly relaxed when she saw it was me. Her gaze was still furious. I wish I noticed that blasted . I set the food down and left the room as Senna just glared at me. She still refused to talk to Nox and I. I just hoped the two of them were safe and able to find a way back. I knew Senna wouldn't even begin to calm down until Nil was safe. Honestly, I didn’t know who was more stressed between Lux and Senna. Lux stayed by Senna and Nil's siblings, cleaning herself excessively. She was barely keeping it together, but we all knew she'd spend hours crying and panicking. None of us could blame her. Knowing Nil could die at any moment, killing the two of them did not sit well. Just please return safe you two.

*

Luna

The four of us were walking down the street, which was as busy as ever. I loved seeing all the colors again. The people. The ocean. Avon was truly beautiful. As we walked, there was a massive argument taking place, which was not unusual. There was a small throng of people gathering to watch which was crowding the street. Ailla and Lilas quickly found a way around for us. It was not our problem; lovers yelling and screaming at each other was a fairly common sight in Avon.

This place is beautiful. Nil quipped, looking around. The sea breeze was so pleasant as it gently swept across the city.

Avon was a place I spent a lot of time. I informed Nil. Avon was a place I dearly missed. So many memories were coming back as I saw it again.

Was it because it was a safe haven? Nil inquired in a guilty tone.

Kind of; I left Umbra after my dad died. It also is where I began training to learn to oppose you. I confessed. He was shifting a bit as he thought of what to say.

Do you know why the Burgomaster decided to be two faced? Nil asked, looking out over the port. It was a stunning sight; I wanted to go visit the Amant Hill. The view there was my absolute favorite. It would be nice to bring Nil there, but I doubted we would have time today unfortunately.

Nil, you were an incredibly unpleasant individual at best once your family started dying. People were torn between opposing you and facing your wrath or falling in line under your rule. She was in a difficult spot. Granted, the Burgomaster was no saint. She was a backstabbing, conniving shrew that basically controlled a powder keg. I told Nil. His face was hard to read.

I’m sorry. Nil apologized. I stroked his horns a little.

Stolen story; please report.

It’s fine Nil; that’s not the you of now. Current you is way better than the Eternal Emperor. I assured him. Nil looked a bit red after I said that.

What do you think our chances of finding a ship are? Nil deflected. I thought about it for a few moments.

It shouldn’t be too difficult; Avon was generally pretty reasonable. I told Nil. This honestly should take half a day at the most.

It took a while for us to reach the port as Avon was barely smaller than Umbra. The port was as bustling as I remembered. We had to weave through an incredibly dense crowd. A familiar scent of fish and sea filled the air as we reached the sea side. I missed this; I didn’t realize how much I had missed Avon until we were here. As we reached where a lot of the captains and sailors were, hearing the number of expletives increase immensely. The number of swear words in the air was impressive. Why did they swear so much? It didn’t matter, we needed a way to sail to Speranza. I looked over the ships, hoping to see a crest I recognized. Come on, come on. Unfortunately, I didn’t see any.

Not really. Of course, now there are a lot more independent sailors, merchants, and organizations; the consolidation isn’t for a few more years. I thought to myself. As much as I wanted someone I knew or heard of, despite that probably not being possible at the moment.

We went to one of the guild halls, clearly to begin interviewing potential captains. I recognized the building; it used to be the Auxiliary Office of the Grand Fleet. That was not its current name at the moment. It was the Deep Blue Guild. I chuckled at the name a little. The Deep Blue Unit. They were reputable, and competent. It gave me hope at least. Reality, however, was a bucket of cold water to the face. One thing became apparent almost immediately: why were all of these so forling expensive? They were blatantly charging us way more than the trip would cost. It wasn’t even close to what it would cost. Did Speranza suddenly require sailing through fire? The cheapest so far was five thousand gold. It was utterly ridiculous. Nil was looking a bit dismayed as Ailla and Lilas were helping us by acting like the clients after our few initial attempts. Something was off. Why was this request getting such an egregious upcharge?

Why are they charging us so much? Nil inquired after the twelfth failed prospect. I could feel how much he was seething; it was hard to blame him, this was blatant.

I don’t know. Speranza might have a few tariffs and somewhat strict sailing rules, but nothing that warrants this degree of being price gouged. I informed him. We’re going to need an alternative, or more money. The idea of paying the ridiculous price made my blood boil.

Part of me wanted to complain to the Guildmaster. Unfortunately, there was no way to do that without admitting I was a noble or Nil was royalty far from home. That would also be begging to get kidnapped and ransomed. The growing frustration was clear on all of us. It wasn’t like we could force them to be reasonable and they knew it. Ailla and Lilas were maintaining their composure better than Nil and me. To be honest, I was surprised Nil didn’t start screaming at a few of them. At least I understood the consolidation better now. It’s to avoid garbage like this. The four of us kind of looked at each other. Our morale definitely took a major hit from this. It should have been a relatively easy task to get bids and simply sort through them for the one we liked the most. I sighed in frustration. Even if Nil spent a bit of his reserve gold, he should have had plenty of gold to afford a trip to Speranza with a lot to spare. Why? What was causing this?

“Come on, let’s go eat. Take a break. Then let’s see if a different guild is more reasonable after we take a breather.” Ailla suggested. Nil and I nodded in agreement after sighing a bit.

We began walking for lunch nearby. It was likely we were going to discuss a new strategy or alternate method of getting back to Speranza, but sailing would be the fastest and likely safest. There was a crowd gathered around another argument in the street. You had to wonder why everyone enjoyed watching the fights so much. It wasn’t like they were all that uncommon. It didn’t help that a lot of the sailors that came through Avon were notorious for their whoremongering, which led to some entertaining gossip. Still, this crowd seemed to absolutely enjoy whatever yelling match was ensuing.

“You’re a pig Nautilus!” I heard a woman yell. I instantly stopped moving. There’s no way. That would be a massive stroke of luck if that’s who I think it is. Nautilus wouldn't care about something like sailing laws. Or regulations.

“I gotta say, I didn’ think that ya’d catch me.” Nautilus retorted. I’d recognize her voice anywhere. The rough tones with the surprisingly clarity that unnaturally carried. It is Captain Nautilus.

“Why did you stop Luna?” Ailla checked, clearly annoyed that I suddenly stopped in the middle of the crowd.

“We found our ship.” I answered. Now Nil looked confused. I was feeling ecstatic at our change in fortune.

“The yelling woman?” Lilas inquired, sounding confused.

“Who is this bucknarl?!” a man roared, sounding enraged. It was definitely the Captain Nautilus I knew.

“Don’ act like ya don’ know me; ya slept wit’ me too. It’s how I met ya wife. She saw me in the ga’den after I shimmied out th’ window.” Nautilus retorted. Still as promiscuous as ever. If Nautilus was a man, I wonder how many children she would’ve fathered; it might’ve been a small nation.

“No, the promiscuous one.” I explained. Ailla and Lilas both looked flabbergasted, but Nil knew better. Now, how do I explain to Nil that last time, Nautilus killed all of his grandparents after he killed the Burgomaster?