"..." = Speech
<...> = Thought
---
"Feel like we ma~y have moved quickly with this whole relationship thing…" Once again the genie found herself sat upon the ginormous bird with Sky sat behind her. The bird tamer guiding Hatchet while, as a result of their position, at the same time hugging Shantae around the waist.
What was different from their last journey was the fact Sky also got hugged with a big green pair squishing against her back. From anyone else anywhere else she may have taken it for the wonderful blessing it was - although being hugged by Rottytops hundreds of feet above the ground? That ruined a lot of the pleasantness since she refused to let the zombie win at anything.
Though, hearing Shantae, the zombie couldn't help add her own commentary. "An older mature partner impregnating a teen on their second date isn't fast but borderline criminal~!"
Immediately Sky's entire face contorted.
"It wasn't intentional - plus I'm not that older than Shantae. If anything you are the borderline criminal; who knows how old you could be." Purposefully not turning to look at the troublemaker as she knew she wasn't going to like whatever face the zombie was pulling.
Not that it helped calm her nerves when that zombie leaned toward her ear. "Certainly felt intentional~♥"
That pesky flirt grinding against Sky.
She even found herself forced to move her focus from Hatchet in order to catch a hand that was getting far too ambitious considering they were mid-air.
"Y'know I am practically sitting on your lap, right~?" Genie looked over her shoulder with a smirk.
Immediately causing the warbird tamer to go ramrod straight.
Well, more than she already was.
Strangely it was the zombie that cut through her embarrassment with that voice as annoyingly carefree as it always seemed to be. "Oh I should probably say this ahead of time but I have no interest in getting all mushy with you. May be popping out your chick in 9 months, bird brain, but only casual fun for me~."
"Yeah I feel the exact same way with you as well as… Risky I guess." Nodding at first only to tremble as she remembered the first one she had actually done it with. There was a chance that the pirate queen was on a safe day yet (with her brief complaints added to consideration) Sky believed that was wishful thinking.
Shantae just shrugged. "I'm sure it'll all work out; what is more important is making sure we fix the island."
Gaze falling to the current location of Scuttle town with a frown.
"As well as maybe getting my job back from the mayor…" Scratching the back of her head with an annoyed groan as she recalled that annoying boss had abruptly laid her off. Possibly for the dumbest reason since the gods first decided Genkai should exist.
The mere mention of mayor Scuttlebutt even got the always smiley Rottytops to frown.
With that they hurried back to see what they could do.
---
"So you just… Found this?" Shantae asked Bolo who, in response, just shrugged his shoulders as he squatted beside the machine they were discussing.
The three girls looked at a machine that was all but identical to the one Shantae had used to reveal the temple which the Muck Lord called Mishmash had hid the relic hunter. "Just looked about the old man's place and found this atop his roof. Was busted up but I think I fixed it; have no idea how it works though."
"If you don't know how it works…" Sky began while resting her thumb and index against her forehead as she continued asking the obvious question. "How do you know it works?"
He just shrugged.
"Looks like you just jump atop it but I'm apparently an old lady so it'd be elder abuse if I did it. I vote that the spry Sky clambers up on top of it since she is both youthful and also heavy!" A big grin on Rottytops face as she did everything within her ability to try to make Sky lose her shit.
She was also great at it.
"Have you looked in a mirror you rotten headed troll; if anyone is heavy it'd be you!" Giving a piercing glare that easily matched up to any of her birds of prey.
Rottytops gasped while clutching her stomach. "Is that how you talk to the mother of your child!"
That one caused Sky's head to immediately explode as she could only gawk.
Caught so off guard that she didn't notice Rotty's shit eating grin.
Meanwhile, Bolo just stood there while scratching his head.
With his mind set on his mission he wasted no time abruptly standing up; causing all the girls too look directly at him. A cold sweat formed down his back yet there was no turning back. Pivoting before walking away with his limbs as straight as steel beams - his robotic movements surprisingly working quite well.
Mostly because none of them knew what to comment on first.
"Huh… Well that happened." Shantae decided that (as funny as it was sitting back and watching the two tear into each other) it was best if she just took the plunge. Jumping up to activate the plunger which almost immediately sent a familiar rumbling over the sleepy fishing town.
---
"Should we not just pull up ashore?" Aria asked her husband with a cute tilt of her head.
As much as Albert wanted to reaffirm her adorably proposed question - he could only be honest and shake his head while continuing to study the pointy stone filled waters ahead of them. "Our boat would likely have its hull torn apart by the rocks before we even get close. We could definitely get to land from this distance but after that, well, we'd be a boat down."
Rubbing the back of his head with a sigh.
"Guess that would make returning back to our continent harder." Her words were followed up by the land in front of them suddenly trembling. The lingering vibrations caused their boat to violently sway on the now chaotic waves - Albert hurried to hold his wife so even if they got thrown off it would be as one.
Although this time the shaking lasted for far less time; what was more shocking was the scene in front of them had abruptly changed.
Gone were the pointy spikes as in front of them was…
A lively fishing city.
There did appear to be some damage to the town, especially the docks, but it was easy to guess why such damages had happened. What was harder for Albert to understand was just how it happened. Not that the same could be said for his adorable wife whose face didn't so much as twitch..
"Oh… It looks like we can land now, Albert." Pointing her finger while looking up at Albert in a way reminiscent of a child wanting praise for their macaroni statue.
Seeing his wife so happy was easily enough for him to throw the strangeness aside.
"Yeah, that is the Scuttle Town I remember…" Softly mumbling half to himself in a nostalgic haze.
He began to sail toward the nearest empty dock; a fairly hard task since nearly the entirety of the town had suddenly exploded into action. Already having lost the morning; the fishermen were eager to make up for their losses. At the very least it actually made docking easy once he got past the swarm of ships sailing away from the town.
By the time they made it to a dock they were almost entirely empty aside from those that had the unlucky ships that had been badly damaged due to the geological revolution. Albert quickly stepped atop the pier to moor their ship before reaching back out toward the deck. Helping the fae dismount from their vessel.
"I feel powerful magics nearby." Gaze falling down the main street as Albert followed her lead.
That was when he saw her.
A figure he met long ago; back when he had pretty much just started on his journey to become the mercenary king and now the strongest mortal to walk Genkai.
It was difficult to forget that long purple hair tied up into a ponytail likely longer than she was tall. Nor the toned, well-trained body. Her stance was one of clear technical experience while those hips practically never stopped swaying - though she was less voluptuous than he remembered.
Also noticeably shorter due to being stood between two other (taller) girls; each of them having a head over the short-queen genie. There was also a noticeable lack of sword on her back. At that it felt as if everything snapped into place - especially feeling the touki/sword aura freely flowing through her hair.
Quite like his own technique.
"None of the people here are human… Not far from it, and to different degrees, yet they are far more like elves than humans." Aria's words instantly snapping Albert back to attention.
Looking around at the often darker skinned people who were hurrying about.
Some of them were already repairing various infrastructures while others still studied the damages.
Turning back to the purple haired genie just as the blonde haired woman with a hood sly moved a hand to sneak into the back of her satin pants. That girl flinched for a moment at a sudden squeeze yet soon continued talking with the two as if it was natural. Letting the blondie feel her butt up.
Meanwhile Albert, who had suspicions about the identity of that girl, felt heat rise from his depths as blood abruptly spurted out from behind his lips. A weakness he's never felt before overcame him. His wife hurried to capture him as she exclaimed his name over and over in a display of emotion she rarely gave.
Although he couldn't really understand much as darkness soon overtook his vision.
---
When light returned to his world he heard a spirited laugh followed by an annoyed rant.
Rubbing his head to try soothing the remnants of a headache.
Looking around to see he was lying atop a sofa within a room which had a vast array of unique blueprints haphazardly pinned up around the room.
Deciding there was no reason to stay there, he pushed off the seat, instead following the boisterous chatter that was happening in the next room over. Pushing aside a curtain to meet with the purple-haired genie girl talking animatedly to Aria. Meanwhile the other two girls were arguing about something.
Or at least the blonde was - being red in the face - while the green skinned & haired one appeared to be having the time of her life. There was also a pair of old men who were discussing something among themselves with a younger man between them. Although it was a push to say he was part of their talk.
His head falling backwards with a gormless look upon his face.
"So if I just paint some divine script with my blood it will unlock their potential and even help them slowly grow closer to godhood!?" Shantae's excitement bubbly out of her every motion.
It warmed his heart unexpectedly to see a passion she seemed to put into everything.
At the same time he found himself unable to do anything but just… Watch.
Aria calmly nodded. "Only you can know what to write, and it needs to be on the back, but that is how it works from what I've heard. They even get a skill from the one who blesses them. Although there are some other details - I'd prefer to explain it to all of your sisters at once."
"Sure~ I have no problem taking you to the palace to speak to the Sultana; I haven't spoken to her since I'm a child but I'm sure she'll be more than happy to call back all the guardian genie. That way we won't need to go hunting them all down individually!" Slapping her palms together with a confident grin.
Albert blinked repeatedly at the mention of Sultana.
"Nn." Although her conversation partner simply made an affirming grunt.
Honestly he was surprised she had been so chatty up until that point.
It was at that point that the hooded blondie (with a colourful hawk on her shoulder) walked beside them to interject with her own thoughts. "That is assuming the palace is still where we thought it was with Risky shifting everything about the place using those devices. Then there is also the issue of finding any genies in the mainland when their own towns could also have been switched around."
Hearing that made Aria deflate like a scolded child yet the zombie immediately took the chance to disagree with the bird woman. "Maybe but it doesn't change the fact we'd need Shantae to go there to fix those switched up locations one way or another. The only difference is if we get extra support this time~!"
"I suppose that is true… Sigh I just want to laze about while maybe in Shantae." Sky grumbled…
Everyone could tell she wasn't happy to agree with Rottytops, though.
The comment did get a playful giggle from the genie who brought her hand down on the blonde girls fairly noticeable skirt/sash bulge.
Although there was one man who struggled to not cough up blood while glaring at the bird tamer.
"Then we have our next destination in mind - if we get the palace to help it'll be even easier to find the remaining relic hunters!" Shantae threw her fist into the air as she announced.
Bird tamer nodded along while adding her own opinion with a soft gravel to her voice due to the adventurous groping of the genie. "Even easier than you'd think as the palace keeps track of them."
"Then why didn't we just go there in the first place?" Rottytops' question was immediately met-
"""..."""
-with silence.
"You guys are thinking too big; you don't go to an monarch of an empire to fix the potholes between two small villages so you wouldn't bother the Sultana with the issues around a town." It was at that moment when Albert decided to make his presence known. "Any other nation maybe but for Sequin Land?"
Shaking his head with a faint chuckle as he remembered just how large the place was.
He also made sure to stealthily move between Shantae & Sky.
Putting a stop to their vulgar display.
"In terms of land mass, as well as maybe population, your palace rules over more than any empire I've ever visited and is the only nation who doesn't bend to Risky Boots. Although you can't blame the others since they aren't ruled by… Her." Shivering as he remembered that monstrous monarch.
Shantae didn't care so much about the politics but the fact he was now awake. "Are you sure you're feeling alright mister Albert, I healed you but it didn't cost much so I couldn't have fixed much, so it's unlikely I healed anything that could cause you to just pass out while puking blood. Could be I just haven't mastered the healing dance enough to heal you yet?"
Her worry caused Albert to immediately feel guilty.
Especially if she was who he thought she was.
"Ah, no, I wouldn't worry about it too much since it was just from staying awake for so long." Instantly coming up with the best excuse he could come up with.
Making sure to avoid all eye contact with them.
"Huh… If you say so; guess humans tire quickly." Shantae was fortunately easy to believe his explanation as she didn't know much about getting tired. Although it did cause her to once again remember the other conversation she had had.
About the fact that the people of Sequin Land were no longer stictly human.
Sky didn't seem particularly worried about it.
If anything she seemed far brighter than she had when they first met the duo.
Rolling up her map as she focused back on the group. "Okay, no time like the present, let's go ahead and take off while we still have Hatchet's help as it'd take days to get to the palace on foot."
Wrench immediately squawked in agreement.
If Sky was happy then it was fine.