"I-In any case. We're glad you're feeling a bit better now, since we're about to go on another journey," I said with a dismissive wave. "So soon? I feel like I've only just woken up from a horrible night of sleep, and I don't have any traveling gear," Meliss said, noticing we'd packed lightly as if we were only going away for a few days.
"Oh, that's an easy fix," Ysevel said, waving down Lisai, who was approaching alongside Aurae, Anwill, and Syldir from the far end of the hall. "Are the others not here yet?" Anwill asked as he approached with a slight amount of frustration. "I was merely keeping Meliss company, but it's still too early for the others to be here," Leona said, offering him a greeting, while Ysevel pulled Lisai away to speak with her.
"I see. You'll stay true to your word, then?" Syldir asked Leona, who bowed. "I could never go against Ryfon's will like that. Besides, he's only ever wanted the best for me," Leona said, confusing the ever-living shit out of me.
What the hell did I miss? I mean, I know Ryfon helped her reach the fifth stage, but was there something else I'm not aware of? I wondered, although Syldir raised an eyebrow at me, having heard my thoughts.
Lisai drew my attention when she quickly nodded, and the moment Ysevel turned around, she gave me a cunning smirk. What are you planning this time? I asked her with a raised eyebrow. You'll see soon enough, she smiled as she came back over toward us.
"How are you feeling?" Anwill asked, turning to Meliss. "Much better now, though my memories are still a little foggy," she replied in a much more cheerful tone than she'd used with us. "I'm glad to hear that. I hope this journey won't prove too difficult for you," Anwill said, but Meliss raised a hand placatingly. "I'll be f-..." she cut herself off as Mom appeared right beside her, having used the odoruki technique, causing Meliss to flinch.
Did you stay up all night learning that? I sent Mom with a mental chuckle. How could I not after that demonstration yesterday? I'd felt it during your fight with Mideia, but I needed Kalia to explain it to me in more detail after Aurae and I helped the others reach the fifth stage, she sent back with a wry grin.
To say that I was surprised would be a complete lie. I'd always known Mom to put in a ridiculous amount of work whenever it came to training, but to have learned the odoruki technique in a single night was beyond astounding.
That, or Kalia gave her all the memories from when she'd trained Ysevel and I, which would have exponentially sped up the learning process. Either way, it was still an impressive feat.
Trailing behind her were the other members of Nightfall's Blade, as well as her strike team, who seemed to be anxious to get started; however, I noticed Ren was still missing. "He'll be here soon. I almost feel bad for him, what with how far he had to go last night," Thorn said, jutting his thumb in the general direction of Soule.
"Ah, so he did leave last night. I thought I felt his presence grow distant," Kalia said with an understanding nod as Eirenne walked over and leaned in toward me. "Soooo, are you going to fill us in on your plan, or keep treating us like mushrooms?" she asked with a scrutinizing look that I found much harder to avoid than I realized.
"Not yet, but congratulations on reaching the fifth stage. All of you," I said, looking past her to see Vyra flicking her hair, Haldir giving me a nod, and Derion… well, being Derion. "Ooooh, no. You're not changing the subject that quickly," she said quickly as she shifted her gaze to the side. "Thank you, though. It's been a tough time to get here," she muttered.
I smiled and put a hand on her shoulder. "Don't worry, it's about to get much harder," I said cheerfully, causing the others, even Derion, to flinch at my words. As she opened her mouth to speak, Syldir's voice came from my left to interrupt her.
"Well, the moment Rennyr arrives, we will depart. I've already sent Taegin and the others on their way back to Hjalfar, so he is the last member we're waiting on," she said, adjusting her grip on the box that held Ed's core.
Shit, is Lisai going to make it in time? I asked Ysevel. She's never missed a deadline in nearly three centuries of service. She'll be here, she sent me with a wink. As I gave her a nod, it almost felt like Lisai had heard me mention her, since she showed up not more than half a minute later with Maikell close behind.
"Waaaaait!" he called out as he trotted alongside her, holding something in his large fist that I couldn't quite tell what it was. I felt a tinge of expectant, yet nervous joy coming from Ysevel as she heard him call out, and I knew that whatever she had in mind was likely more than we'd bargained for.
As he approached, he reached Meliss first, and gave her a greeting which she returned promptly. "These are for you. I didn't have a lot of time to make adjustments, but thanks to the technique Kalia bestowed upon me, I was able to get close," he said, gesturing for Lisai to step forward to present her with a green leather satchel with silver highlights.
Meliss's eyes widened at the sight, and she forced herself to blink a handful of times before accepting it. "T-Thank you, kind sir. I don't know how to repay you," she said, graciously taking it from Lisai. "You can repay me by not dying in it," he said with a tone that, while I knew he was playing around, sounded more like a warning than anything else.
Her look of shock, however, was priceless. "It's okay, Meliss. It's just his way of saying that you don't have to," Kalia said, giving him a nod of understanding. To my surprise, and possible chagrin, he blushed.
No. No. No. Nooooo fucking way. Gods above, did you just do what I think you did? I sent Ysevel in a mild panic, as I felt a warm sensation emanating from her. Do what? What are you two planning? Kalia asked nervously. Nothing! Ysevel and I sent in unison, though I held an intense stare at whatever it was he had in his hands.
"A-Actually, Lady Kalia. There is something I brought for you as well," Maikell began, drawing everyone's attention to the two of them. Kalia, starting to grow a little flustered with all the attention, stepped forward as he held his hands out. Are his hands shaking, or is it just me? Mom asked, but neither I, nor Ysevel for that matter, had a good enough response.
"For me? Maikell, I've told you already, you owe me nothing for the kataki binding technique," she said, but he still held his arms out firmly, growing increasingly more shaky the closer she got.
"But I do, Lady Kalia, and I figured that while Ren has yet to arrive, now would be the best time for me to give this to you," he said, opening his cupped hands to reveal a stunning, scarlet zinnia flower at the center of a larger lotus made of pure kataki. The small, yet meaningful gesture was encased in a thin glass case, containing the mana the zinnia gave off inside it.
"T-This is for you, Lady Kalia. I hope you will accept it with as much care as I gave in making it," he said, nearly tripping over the first half of his sentence. Kalia's eyes widened, and for the first time since our training in the dome, her features flushed a red that matched the flower before her.
"Smooth son of a bitch," I heard Athar's alternate mutter, followed by a quick slap from Irun, who shook his head and rolled his eyes. Devyr, on the other hand, put her hands to her mouth in absolute shock, much like Bernar and Leona had when they realized what was going on.
As for me? Oh, I was doing my best not to punch the air in excitement.
"Maikell, I-I don't know what to say," Kalia said as she gently took it in her hands. "You don't have to say anything, but I hope you take this with you when you return home," he said, his hands trembling as she took it from him.
"I will cherish it and put it in a place where no one can harm it," she smiled, offering him a much smoother bow than any I'd seen her give before.
Ysevel, you sneaky little… Kalia cut herself off when she saw the two of us smiling from ear to ear. Thank you, she admitted, offering us a small nod of her head.
As the rest of us were reeling from Maikell's beautiful arrangement and proof of his skill as a craftsman, Ren appeared in the doorway hardly out of breath. "Oh, good. You're all still here," he said with a sigh of relief. "Here, I brought these. This was almost all I had left, and didn't have time to make any more," he said, handing me a leather satchel that I slung over my shoulder.
"Just, uh, don't forget to use them this time, okay?" he said, giving me a pained smile. "Don't worry. I won't let them make the same mistake I did," I chuckled nervously, recalling that his gift had sat in my satchel for over a year before I thought to use it.
"Well then. With that, I think we're ready to go," Syldir said plainly, though whether she was moved by Maikell and Kalia's display, I couldn't tell. Ysevel hugged her mother briefly, while the rest of us bid Anwill and the others farewell.
"Watch your back out there, little monster," Anwill said with a nod. "You, too, Master Anwill," I replied with a smirk, getting an uncharacteristic snort in return. "Don't worry. Taffy's always been a tough bastard. He can handle himself," Bernar chimed in, causing Anwill to roll his eyes while I stifled a laugh. The old master sighed and shook his head.