It feels like swallowing glass to agree with Nicholas, but my logical mind recognises his reasoning. I clench my teeth, aching to pay back Torrent in kind for the kidnapping and treatment of my companions – but any half-cocked action on my part will just see me do Torrent’s work for him. Even if I somehow killed him, his heir would make sure that I paid heavily for it. And where would that leave my Bonded?

  No, as frustrating as it is, I’ll need to take a longer view here. It seems like poetic justice to target Kyrian when Torrent’s own actions targeted my companions. But at the same time, I hesitate to plan to kill him – the young man isn’t his father. For all I know, he’s an innocent in this matter, even if not in others. The sins of the fathers shouldn’t be visited upon the sons.

  Maybe I should give him a chance. One chance. If he can prove that he isn’t his father then maybe, instead of destroying him, I could turn him. I bet that would cut Torrent to the quick even more – to see his son and heir as a friend and ally of the Titanbends he hates so much.

  And if Kyrian turns out to be just like his father, then I can just go with Nicholas’ original suggestion. If even one of my companions had died, I wouldn’t be satisfied with anything other than Torrent’s death or subjugation. Since they all survived, though, I’m willing to accept crushing Torrent’s presence on the Lost Continent and depriving his House of its resources as my revenge. And maybe his hatred will make him less careful later – if he leaves enough evidence for the courts….

  “Alright,” I say finally. The corner of Nicholas’ eyes relax; the lines in his face soften. Was he worried that I was going to hare off and attack Torrent without any thought? “So, how are we going to make sure that we utterly destroy the Torrents in the competition?”

  Nicholas nods, a hint of satisfaction flickering across the Bond between us even as the wolfish smile tugs at his lips once more.

  “That, Markus, is what we shall discuss now.” He pulls several scrolls out of his Inventory. Unrolling one, I see that it contains several diagrams of a ship from all different angles.

  “That’s one of the ships I saved from the fire, right?” I ask curiously.

  “Correct. Specifically, your flagship. Pevril has had three others built – they’re not quite as big, but the majority of the features are the same.” He gives a nod of satisfaction. “Honestly, Pevril has exceeded my expectations. The ships were taken for a test-sail yesterday and they cut through the water like sword blades.”

  “They’re repaired then?” They were looking pretty singed the last time I looked.

  “The interiors, not entirely. The exteriors, yes. Pevril’s dockmaster assures me that they will be repaired within the tenday. Then they will need provisioning. Given everything to be done, I estimate that you should aim to leave in three tendays’ time.”

  “That’s good to hear,” I comment, nerves briefly flashing through me at the sudden deadline. I distract myself by peering more closely at the diagrams. “Are they sailing ships, or do they have engines?” I ask curiously, not quite sure how to interpret everything I’m seeing.

  “Sailing ships, however, the cloth is enchanted to capture and store wind mana when winds are above a certain speed. This allows the ship to continue sailing even through rough weather, and provides a source of mana to propel the ship even if the wind drops to nothing.”

  Now, that’s an interesting application of enchantments – something like a battery, but only for a specific purpose.

  “Does that attract the attention of beasts?” I ask, remembering that that was an issue with cloudships – and the reason why no one will be attempting to fly to the Lost Continent.

  Nicholas hesitates for a moment.

  “It’s a new feature and tests are inconclusive,” he replies after a moment. “The test sail didn’t go too far from the coast so it’s possible that there were few beasts around to potentially detect the charging and discharging of the sails. There were no problems yesterday, at any rate.”

  “I see,” I comment levelly. I suppose we’ll just have to hope for the best and prepare for the worst. “What other features do the ships have?”

  “Every plank is magically enhanced – strengthened to steel’s durability but with alfa wood’s lightness. The hull’s repelling runes let it glide smoothly and resist leaks unless it’s a significant hole. Inside, fire-dampening spells prevent ordinary flames from catching, though the arsonists used alchemical fire that bypassed them – I have already launched an investigation into whether they had inside knowledge. The masts are designed to minimise drag when the sails are folded, and the decks stay slip-free and fireproof even when wet.”

  “Impressive,” I comment, but my mind is still on the ocean beasts – I have an image of a kraken rising from the deep and wrapping its tentacles around us. Much good the enchantments will do us then. “Are there any offensive features, though?”

  “Of course! Ballistas will line the decks on three levels on the flag ship, two on the other ships.” Nicholas points out some marks on the bird’s eye view of the ship. “Fortunately, they had yet to be loaded so we didn’t lose any in the fire. They will be supplied with a variety of bolts – enchanted and plain. You will be able to defend yourself, I assure you.”

  This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

  “Alright, good,” I tell him with a hint of relief. “So you’ll see to the…provisioning of the ship? Can you just go over what that entails?”

  “I’ll see that you have all resources, tools, and weapons for the journey and to establish your foothold on the Lost Continent. You, however, will be responsible for choosing who will join you on the ships – your crew, your fighters, your support personnel, and any allies.”

  “Layton will be an ally for sure,” I tell him. Nicholas nods.

  “Make sure that you have an agreement either in writing or sworn before a deity,” Nicholas advises. “Especially if you plan on letting him take a ship – I doubt he has one of his own. I know you chose to trust Heir Fell previously, but for a matter of this importance you need more certainty.”

  I nod after a moment of thought. I’m not sure about swearing another deity-backed oath, but I can go for a written contract easily enough. Actually….

  “Are there any restrictions on offering other humans an Alliance Bond?”

  Nicholas frowns.

  “A what?”

  “An Alliance Bond. I used it with the dragon-like alcaoris and the carnivorous trees. And it facilitated the relationship between Raven and Kalanthia too.”

  Nicholas’ frown deepens.

  “I thought you used a Tame Bond with them,” he says slowly. I shrug.

  “Well, it’s a sub-Skill of Tame. You’ve never heard of it?” I’m a little surprised if that’s the case. Isn’t Nicholas supposed to be the expert in these matters?

  He shakes his head.

  “I will need to consult the family grimoires when we return, but I don’t remember ever having heard of such a Bond. Can you describe its features and limitations?”

  I do so, summarising as succinctly as I can. When I’m done, Nicholas taps the table thoughtfully.

  “I doubt there’s a law forbidding it – it’s essentially a slightly more tangible contract. But if an ally protests to their Great Lord, the council would have to review it, and that could delay you for tendays.”

  “I’ll be careful who I offer it to, then.” I agree, acknowledging the point about bureaucracy – it figures that it’s no better in a fantasy world.

  We continue discussing recruitment for a while. Nicholas makes some very good points about ensuring that I have the means of repairing the ship on board – it’s going to be a challenge to balance those I’ll need for the journey and those I’ll need for the colonisation. But the dockmaster should help.

  “Yes, start there,” Nicholas agrees when I voice that thought. “Then we shall visit Azaarde – the territory capital. It is a good place to seek recruits. And, if you wish, there’s an excellent enchanter there who can give you some tattoos – not only to connect your Bonded to you, but for other purposes as well. But you may not have as many places to fill as you think: as well as Lord Heatwave, Elarion and his retinue will be coming.”

  “Wait, what?” I ask, startled. “Does he know this?” Nothing the other heir said during our dinners in the palace indicated that he was preparing to join me in the competition. In fact, one of the other heirs had jibed about him still waiting for orders.

  “I presume his father has told him or will soon do so,” Nicholas offers with a casual gesture.”I’ve just sent word to Maxence to have a meeting when we stop in at our country seat on our way to Azaarde. We will discuss it then.”

  I shake my head, dismay going through me at Nicholas’ highhandedness. I don’t deny that having the support of another Great House heir – and one who is apparently a talented plant-mage – would definitely be useful. But a reluctant one who is only there because the Binder of his father ordered him to come is another matter.

  “I see,” is all I say, dreading the meeting. The first time we met, Elarion was hostile – I suspect that this time will be far worse.

  Nicholas makes an impatient gesture and then unrolls one of the other scrolls. It turns out to be a map of an unfamiliar coastline. I’ve seen maps of Iseria, the continent that includes Moriax, and this definitely isn’t that.

  “Is this a map of the Lost Continent?” I ask curiously. “I thought I needed to be the one to retrieve that?”

  Nicholas shrugs with an elegant hand.

  “Great Houses enjoy certain privileges. Your entry convinced the map-keeper to release a few copies into my hands. As you can see, little is known of the lands you’ll be venturing into.”

  Indeed, the map is pretty blank. The coastline itself is fairly well filled in, and extends from the top of the scroll to the bottom, implying that they only visited a small section of the continent. There are trees marked almost all over the map, and a few areas close to the coast have a little more detail.

  “The scouts report the Lost Continent as being densely forested. They noted the position of some rivers,” he points to them, “and one of the rivers apparently had traces of gold.” Nicholas takes one of the two other scrolls and unrolls it. It turns out to be a close-up of the river in question, and shows it winding up towards what look like mountains.

  “The scouts inspected that one a bit closer, huh?” I comment wryly.

  “Of course,” Nicholas agrees. “Though they were unable to find the source of the metal due to the dangerous beasts in both the river and the forest around.”

  Lovely.

  “Did they indicate the tier of the beasts?”

  “Large numbers of Tier twos, with several very territorial Tier threes – though the forest Tier threes wouldn’t enter the river, the Tier three in the river itself made it impossible to take advantage of that fact. They suspect there may be Tier fours present as well.”

  I chew lightly on the inside of my cheek. Tier threes…certainly a challenge, but also an opportunity, potentially. Tier fours are another question.

  “So there’s a river which probably leads to a literal goldmine inside the mountains. Are there any other interesting spots?”

  Nicholas unrolls the final scroll.

  “One of the scouts found a dense grove of magically-enhanced trees – an excellent source for high-quality wood.” Well, that sounds good. “It seems to be protected by a Tier four, however, and the scout barely got away with her life.” Scratch that then.

  “Are there any areas that aren’t infested with powerful beasts?” I ask with a hint of exasperation.

  Nicholas shrugs again.

  “Most of the coastline is fairly safe – relatively speaking. There are beasts from the sea which might attack from time to time, but the scout ship was able to sail mostly unbothered and their camps weren’t attacked as long as they didn’t go more than a hundred paces inland.”

  Setting up a literal beachhead it is, then. Hopefully we won’t be caught between a rock and a hard place….

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