"Have you guys seen Nev around?" I asked, stepping into the passenger quarters.

In the corner, Gemma sat with her head stuffed between a bucket. Halfway through our weeklong journey had yet to help her adapt to the sea. In fact, her nausea seemed to be growing progressively worse. I assumed she didn't have the answer between fits of retching and heavy breathing. On the other hand, Berthold had acclimated quite well to the sea.

Books stacked one another on a large table in a fashion I'd grown to expect from Berthold. He stood before the table with a grown third leg for balance.

"Haven't been topside today, sorry," he replied, without even looking up from his books.

"Try to get some sunlight today, Bert," I advised, heading above deck.

"We have windows!" He shouted back.

Above deck, Reika and Callin effortlessly performed their duties. Cutting-edge winches, levers, and pulleys enhanced by my abilities leveraged weight to allow this skeleton crew to function as if it had quadruple the manpower.

"Have you guys seen Nev?"

"The Captain spoke to them not too long ago. He went to take a cat nap, but he said they were climbing to the crow's nest last." Reika replied.

"Great, thanks. Think of any clothes you guys might want before we disembark. You know the drill," I reminded before heading off.

"Wait, Magus Hood," Callin said, stopping me before my ascent. "I'm fine with clothes for m'self. But my daughter would be over the moon if I could get something made for her."

"Magus?" I laughed. "Stick to Mersault, please. As for your daughter, I can't do much without knowing her sizes or seeing her in person, so I'm afraid I can't do much for you."

"I understand," Callin replied, disappointed. "Sorry for wasting your time."

"How about next time I'm in Freesport, I can visit your family. Make everyone something special like I did for Peanut and Chip. Maybe something for the missus too?"

Light immediately poured through the old sailor's face.

"That'd mean the world to her. Thank you, sir,"

"Mersault, please," I corrected.

I climbed up to the crow's nest with less effort than I had imagined. Admittedly, I was not in peak physical condition, but being on the run for months had forced my body into a leaner frame. Undoubtedly I was still the weakest member of our team, at least physically speaking, while the strongest was looking out of the crow's nest above.

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They stood leaning over the railing and looking over the sea. The wind whipped their shoulder-length blonde hair back and off their face. A blade of grass was held to their full lips, revealing a chorus of tones more beautiful than any one instrument could typically provide. The setting sun provides a warm tone to their smooth olive skin. I paused, hanging from the top of the ladder at the crow's nest, unsure how to start. Someone else took that away from me.

"Hey, dude, how's it hanging?" Leif asked.

He hung suspended in the air on clouds of his own making, thanks to one of the artifacts we recovered from the DeBrazier vault. At first glance, a hempen anklet that lets the user walk on anything with a high enough moisture content isn't the most useful. But combined with the ability to make and control smoke, this gave the user an almost infinite flight ability. I was jealous, not for his levitation but for the time the two were spending together.

"Hey, uh, Nev, I was hoping you had a second to talk."

"Whoops gotta bounce. Three's a crowd," Leif laughed before floating down to the deck, patting me on the back before his descent.

For a moment, I considered breaking down his anklet and letting Leif take the fastest way down. But the thought passed quickly. I didn't want to hurt him even if we were potentially pursuing the same thing. Nev looked at me with curiosity and amusement, like they had figured me out.

They smiled, waving me towards them. I had only noticed then that their other hand held the iridescent seed pulled from the husk of their former friend. The destruction of which only came because people were trying to harm me.

"So I was talking to Captain Sprin about Cliffhome, and it seems like a fascinating place."

"Yeah?" They replied.

"Yeah!" I confirmed. "Apparently, they have great food and a lot of live performances. So it seems pretty easy to have a good time."

"Fun," Nev replied, distracted. "I'll have to check it out when we get there."

"Well, that's actually what I wanted to talk to you about."

I took a deep breath, trying to muster all my courage for what had occupied my mind since escaping the vault together. Every moment since I told myself the timing wasn't right or that ignoring these feelings was the safest thing for them, talking myself out of happiness was my default mode, and I needed to break the cycle.

"Nev, it's just-" I started before Nev's fingers stopped on my lips.

"I'm sorry, Mercy," Nev replied. "I feel the same way. It's just..."

They paused, looking down at the iridescent seed in their palm. Then they took a deep breath to calm themself.

"I can't afford to be distracted right now, and neither can you," They continued. "A Numen with the resources of the most powerful city in the world is trying its hardest to capture you. Constantly sending soldiers, wizards, or mercenaries, and each time we manage to slip away, but what about when we can't?"

"Durella and Daburu..." I replied, unthinking.

They nodded in response as I seemed to answer their unasked question. "You and I both have goals. We both have people we want to protect. I like you, Mersault. I may even love you. But I can't afford to split my focus right now, and neither should you."

"You're right," I replied. "I don't want to be responsible for holding you back, not when you have friends to save."

I turned around, ready to climb back down in defeat. Before I managed a couple of steps down the ladder, Nev called back out.

"That being said, I would love to go on a date with you, Mercy."

"Wha?"

"I needed you to know how I stand before we proceeded. It only seemed right." They replied. "Would you still be interested?"

"I'll find a good show... and dinner?" I asked.

They nodded, but before I could appreciate the moment, explosions in the distance caught my attention. These blasts were followed by splashes in the water, forceful enough to rock the boat.

"Wake the Captain!" Reika shouted from above deck. "We've got Ravagers!"