January 19, 2019, 5:32 pm.

As it turns out, cleaning the forest floor of vomit does give me an increase to my cleaning skill. Or maybe it's from helping the others clean off. Either way, everyone is clean and we seem to be in the clear, at least for the moment.

Tipan's teleport worked precisely as we'd been hoping, depositing us outside of the mountain dungeon. A dungeon whose entrance is only a few metres away. Smoulder pops her head out and immediately begins sniffing around, investigating this strange new area.

This wasn't their original destination. We're further inside the Aetherium's territory than the elemental puzzle dungeon she and Beth were originally planning to use. But they made that plan back before we entered the training dungeon. Which was also before we suspected Ivicka might know about our exit plan. So, they decided this was better than the more obvious dungeon on the coast.

It's definitely a better choice than the dungeon she completed that's next to their capital city, Aethire.

Since this is one of the only dungeons Tipan has completed, Ivicka knows about it. Apparently, you can't enter a controlled dungeon unless you're given permission by the owner. So obviously, we won't be going inside. Besides, while it might not be Ivicka's first stop, Tipan is sure she'll either come here herself or send another flight. And that means we need to move.

Unfortunately, we haven't decided on a destination, since we thought we still had a few days of planning/training ahead.

"Okay people. We can't stay here and we're down to a single glider. Luckily, this forest will make it harder for them to spot us by air but we're going to need to hoof it. Tipan, suggestions?" Beth requests, helping Roberts to his feet while I deposit their filth in a nearby bush. It'll make great fertilizer.

Tipan pulls a piece of thick leather from her inventory, unrolling it for Beth to see.

"Okay. Uhm. One second," Tipan mutters as she struggles with the map, trying to fold it. Noticing how awkward it is for them to hold it, I decide to fashion a floating table out of metal. It takes some time, but I even add little clips to hold the map in place. Even as I'm forming this table, we start down the forest path away from the mountain.

Tipan isn't even fazed at this point, simply setting the map in place with a polite, "Thank you."

Then she continues walking, pushing the giant floating clipboard in front of her. "We're here," Tipan starts, pointing at a mountain with forests at the edge of it as Smoulder hops on the corner of the map to see what all the fuss is about.

"As we've discussed Beth, this is the core of the Aetherium, which we want to avoid," Tipan continues, petting Smoulder with one hand while pointing to a large area that includes the entire yawning pit. The one I mentally refer to as 'the giant hole in Akilo's backside'. Tipan also indicates that the core area includes a great deal of land to the southwest of that pit. These 'lowlands,' run almost all the way to the ocean, only stopping fifty kilometres from the coast. Our little mountain is on the south side of this territory. We're clearly inside their borders, but not by much.

"This is the effective reach of the Aetherium," she continues highlighting the whole freaking continent excluding a small area at the Northernmost end. "They're much less likely to find us in these areas, but if they do, they can reach us in a matter of hours. Unfortunately, I don't know if it's just Ivicka who will be after us, or if the minister has more allies amongst the council."

"When we were talking about the academy, you mentioned it was outside the Aetherium's control," Beth notes as we all look at the map. Except Smoulder. She decides it's boring, hopping to my shoulder for head-scritches and treats.

"Yes. The academy is located here, on the isle of Yellow Winds," Tipan says, pointing at an island that I'm pretty sure I recorded. I think it had a…. Yep, there's a volcano.

"So, how long would it take to fly there? If we could get more gliders?"

"To the coast, it would take a week, at most. That's assuming we only fly at night, run into mana-storms and get attacked by wild mana-borne," Tipan answers, drawing her hand across the map in a straight line west, leaving a visible trail behind.

"A week doesn't seem that bad. Do you truly expect we'll have to deal with all of that?" Beth responds while scanning the forest around us.

"Flying at night would greatly reduce the chances of being spotted by the Aetherium. Mana-storms can strike at any time. Especially, since we haven't seen one in a week. And once we're outside of the Aetherium's core territory, the mana-borne will no longer be kept in check," Tipan explains as we round a corner that leads to another short path before turning in the other direction.

All these twists and turns make it feel like this was a wild forest once. I suspect they only added the neatly packed path afterwards.

"But we only have a single busted glider. We'd be carrying them, which would be slower and more dangerous. Especially if we drop them," Rufka counters as we make the next turn, moving further away from the mountain. "Besides, we wouldn't be able to keep flying once we hit the coast."

"Why not?" Josh asks as I start analyzing the nearby trees. Oh hey, some of these are fruit trees. And they're in season.

While I'm grabbing several peachaples, which taste like peach but resemble a blue apple, right down to the crispness, Rufka explains, "cause of the Lords of the Deep. Mum says they're not too keen on the Aetherium flying over their oceans. And they're more of a cast first, ask questions of the corpse kind of people."

Tipan nods as I give Smoulder her own entire peachaple, before adding, "They're the reason the Aetherium's borders don't reach the ocean. Then again, they're also the only reason the borders are anywhere near the ocean, as they are open to trade."

"Yep. But only with approved captains. They prefer to avoid allowing Aetherium loyalists to be in charge of their vessels. Heard they encourage tourism to their dungeons though. That'd be something to experience."

"It's true, they only allow licenced captains to sail their waters. If we want to go to the academy, we'll need to book passage," Tipan agrees, her lower hand idly tapping the island.

"Do we? Want to go, I mean?" Roberts questions Beth, who stops studying the map to meet his gaze.

"I don't know. What we truly need, is access to a Nexus point and a whole lot of food. Then we can safely spend all the resources we received."

She's right. I have a grand total of 42, hmm, nope. Just gonna spend a point on Perception and Resolve, so let's make that 40, integration points. And two levels to gain.

Hmm. I've still got the summoning device for Raz's. With that, all we need is a Nexus point. In fact, couldn't I….?

Flying up to collect more fruit, I open my spell list to check on my Return spell's cost.

What the hell? Why does my return spell indicate it would only cost me one facet to return? We're way further away. Did I improve it that much?

I could go to the standing stones right now. But I'm not sure mentioning that would be helpful. Not until I can transport everyone.

Damn. I need to upgrade this spell to full-on teleport. I might have to purchase the ability from the shop. Except, checking my pad, I see that the cost was two iron progression points. Two levels or unlock teleportation, that's an expensive choice. Either way, I decide to mention Raz's device.

Beth responds from below, "That's good, kid. That means all we need is a Nexus point."

"Unfortunately, the only Nexus points I know of are all controlled by the Aetherium," Tipan complains before taking a bite of the peachaple I hand her. Then she creates a grid of glowing dots that are mostly within the Aetherium's core territory.

"Kid. Do these look familiar to you?" Beth asks, tracing her finger from dot to dot.

"Kind of. But I don't remember…" I trail off while staring at the map, trying to picture it.

"When we were looking at the filters. You asked me to go back to the mana-faults. Don't these correlate to several of the brightest points?" Beth reminds me, pointing at a small cluster around the edge of the giant hole. Crap, she's right. And I have a better copy of that map than any of the others because it's part of the rune that I keep tweaking.

Following Tipan's example, I create an overlay out of twilight. It takes some adjusting since her map is flat while my rune is round, but after a few minutes, I have it mostly aligned. I think.

Then I spend half a minute getting rid of all the lines between points. This is made easier by the fact they're thinner than the spots Tipan indicated. This still leaves us with over a hundred glowing points, over half of them outside the central area.

There are only three which appear to be within a few day's travel though. One of which would have us heading the opposite direction from the academy.

"Wow. That's amazing. The Aetherium would kill for a copy of this map," Tipan exclaims once it's finished.

"Literally," Rufka adds, floating above the others on her stomach while carving pieces out of the peachaple I gave her.

"Yeah. Probably," Tipan concedes, her body deflating alongside her enthusiasm as if Rufka attacked it with an entire box of needles. Gathering herself, she continues, "this one is the coastal Stronghold of Mithan. There's guaranteed to be an Aetherium presence but they're not in control. It's a settlement governed by the Lords of the Deep."

"Who are these 'Lords of the Deep' you keep mentioning," Roberts asks as I gather even more of the peachaple after having given several to the others.

We seem to be in an orchard. And since it's available, I've decided to fill my stock with fruit jerky, dehydrating it then storing it away. Free food is great when you're an outlaw on the run and don't know where your next meal is coming from. Which I think we are.

"They're like the Aetherium, but instead of controlling the skies, they control the oceans," Rufka supplies, not telling us anything we hadn't already gathered from context.

But Tipan continues the explanation without missing a beat, "The Lords of the Deep are a powerful species who live below the waves. I've never seen one, but I've heard them described as massive creatures the size of a dragon. They have long tentacles that can squeeze the life out of an iron ranker in seconds. And that's before they receive their class."

"Mum says their command of storm and twilight magic is unparalleled. Especially amongst the K'tharn," Rufka interjects when Tipan pauses for half a second. Rufka is also following my example, plucking fruit from the trees as we continue walking through the forest. Though she doesn't have a greedy little mana-hare stealing a quarter of it, does she Smoulder?

"Kind of sounds like an octopus or squid," Josh notes, using the English words. There isn't really a Vausian equivalent.

"I've heard they have cities the size of mountains buried beneath the waves," Tipan notes dreamily while staring off into the trees.

"There's no guarantee they'll be any happier to see us than they are to see the Aetherium, is there?" Beth remarks, gesturing to me and the guys.

"They're unlikely to care about outlanders as long as you follow their rules. And if we're not going to the coast, we need disguises. You four stick out like a Zanbia in mating season. And the skyborne is nearly as bad," Rufka answers, pointing at Tipan.

"And disguises means magic. Powerful magic if we want to circumvent the Aetherium's detection measures," Tipan sighs.

"Yep. Too bad all my friends who know magic like that are locked away in an Aetherium prison. Or back in the reaches," Rufka states before adding with a smile, "These are sooooo good."

Then she gobbles down another peachaple while Tipan droops her head. I squeeze Tipan's shoulder in what I hope is a reassuring gesture but she doesn't respond.

"So, what are our options then? Book passage to this academy and hope they can teach us powerful illusion magic? Any other ideas?" Beth asks, clearly hoping for one of us to say something.

"Isn't your resource made for deception?" I ask Beth while bringing the relevant section up.

Description: Drawing on extensive knowledge of the system’s understanding of that which exists between, Umbra is incredibly destructive to standard matter. It can also be wielded to counter any sense which relies upon standard matter.

Yep, there it is. Counters any sense that relies on standard matter.

"Hmm. You might have a point, kid. I haven't experimented with that part much outside of my camouflage."

"Well, it would be a start. At least then you and Rufka may be able to venture into an enclave to trade. Maybe buy some gliders so we can get to one of these Nexus nodes," Tipan nods excitedly, though it almost seems like she's forcing it.

"Yep. Shouldn't be too hard. If you're able to maintain a decent illusion. Rather not go solo."

"Okay. I'll start…" Beth stops mid-sentence when a loud rustling noise issues from the east, back the way we came.

"Maybe we'll save this for later," Beth suggests, handing the map to Tipan while I reclaim my metal, folding it into a thin slat before attempting to store it in my pack. My pack which is so full thanks to the dried fruit I've been gathering that it doesn't fit. I end up tossing a bunch of stone on the ground to make room as we continue away from the crashing noise that's getting louder.

By this point, everyone is moving as quickly as they can down the path. Breaking away, Rufka flies above the trees for a second before returning, her fur standing on end.

"There's a mana-warped Zanbia headed our way. We need to move faster!" Rufka exclaims, grabbing Josh by the shoulders, not giving him time to react before rocketing away through the canopy.

Tipan scoops Roberts up with nearly the same ease while I attempt to follow their lead. I try to wrap my arms around Beth, but I'm unable to hold her with my own strength. Even as I'm struggling, Smoulder makes her way into her pocket. At least one passenger is secure.

Grabbing ahold of me, Beth jumps on my back, arms and legs wrapping around me before yelling at me to fly. I struggle upwards through the forest canopy, branches slapping against my face until I summon a shield. The second I'm clear I make the mistake of glancing back.

There, behind us, is one of the gentle giant dinosaurs I saw the day we arrived. I pause time the second I see it because it's only three metres away from engulfing Beth and I in its massive mouth. A massive mouth filled with an impressive array of sharp, pointy teeth that are also crackling with electricity. Because why not.

Several of the teeth are at strange angles, protruding through the creature's lips or into the roof of its mouth but there are more than enough in their proper position to tear us to pieces.

As I zoom away, taking full advantage of the extra speed I can get while paused, I analyze it.

“Creature analyzed: Lightning-Zanbia. Gene-seed D."

"This unfortunate creature now feeds solely on mana-attuned creatures seeking the brief respite that consuming them provides. This is a devolved form of the uncommon Zanbia, a large herbivore found all across the surface of Akilo."

"Name: (The complete but agonizing understanding of torment created by a perpetually overcharged nervous system)"

"Attributes: Physical; Extreme, Mobility; High, Magic; High, Awareness; High."

"Attacks: Electrical discharge, Extreme Blunt Force, Stomp, Crushing bite."

"Defences: Physical: Extreme. Magical: High. Immunity to lightning."

Well, an analysis that actually makes me feel a little better. At least none of its description is restricted. And only one of its attribute groups is extreme. Practically a cakewalk.

Since time is paused anyway, I let loose a few torrents and arrows, trying to gauge how strong it is. Every attack splashes against its hide in a colourful but ineffective display of power.

And, oh look, it destroyed several trees when it made a hundred-metre lunge while trying to swallow us. It misses by dozens of metres, so it's fine.

I keep flying away as fast as we can. It's kind of exhilarating. I know I should probably be more focused on the escaping part, but skimming over the trees with a five-storey dinosaur chasing behind me is kind of epic.

I'm seriously considering spending the resources to be able to revive from death instead of levelling though. If we're going to keep running into stuff like this when we're just walking around, having a safety net like that is going to be critical.

After another few hundred metres I realize it would be much simpler to fly up. That's when I spot the others who are behind us, but they're much higher. Once I've gotten above its head height, plus an extra few hundred metres to be safe, we regroup with the others.

It's still staring at us balefully as Beth says, "Well, that was horrific. But at least we're in the air. What direction were we headed?"

Tipan doesn't respond, still staring down at the mana-twisted creature below.

"Should be that way," Rufka instructs, pointing past where the forest ends along a large body of water.

"Tipan?" Beth prompts gently as I float closer to Tipan and Roberts.

"Huh? Sorry," Tipan responds, turning to Beth.

"You okay?" Beth asks as I look away, trying not to embarrass Tipan.

"What? I'm fine. It's… there shouldn't be anything like that here. We're inside the Aetherium's core territories. Hunting down monsters like that are why the Flights exist."

"Which probably means a Flight is on their way," Rufka observes, flying back to us after she realizes we weren't following her.

"Good point, let's move people," Beth commands, before muttering, "And let's hope that thing doesn't chase us."

"Don't you know better than to say things like that?" I ask Beth as we fly off into the sunset.

"It's fine, kid. If it does chase us, we'll use it as a distraction when the real trouble shows up."

"Oh," I respond, wondering how in the two worlds she intends to do that.