There was nothing Sylvester could do to make the voyage faster. It was a ship, and to force it on the ocean waters was inviting trouble, knowing that formidable creatures lurked in the depths, making even the mightiest castles seem like dwarfs before them.
So when nothing eventful occurred, there was only one thing they could do on the stolen ship, which had been taken from pirates who had themselves stolen it from the Holy Fleet—Barbecue!
"Haiyaa! This is life." Miraj sat near the ship's helm while Sylvester learned how to steer a ship from Avanss. The fluffy and 'not fat' cat had eaten a few plates of tasty meat and was now in the midst of sunbathing.
Sylvester also ate occasionally with Avanss while talking and navigating the ship. The sea was calm, and the weather was sunny, so there was nothing special to care about. Sylvester tried to gather as much information about Beastaria as possible, things that weren't in the books.
"What's with dragons and elves having animosity? As far as I know, the two species live at the extreme edges of the continent." Sylvester questioned.
Avanss sighed and answered. "There is no particular reason. Elves and dragons are simply the two biggest powerhouses, surpassing any other species in Beastaria. We're rivals by nature, not choice. Only recently did the rivalry escalate into a war."
Sylvester nodded, silently remembering the discussion he had once heard in the Holy Land. From what he knew, the Holy Land had a Cardinal in Beastaria whose job was to create chaos. The war between elves and dragons was orchestrated by the Church somehow.
"You should come to Alfia with me. My brother will be delighted to see you finally." Avanss invited him. "I was away for almost a century, but I remember him quite well. The last time I saw him, he didn't have the same spark in his eyes."
Sylvester shook his head softly. "I'm not sure, Avanss. He tried to kill me once; sent elven assassins to kill me when I was in Broken Bay."
"What?!" Avanss exclaimed, taken aback. "That's impossible… The way he spoke about you and Xavia… No, I can't believe that."
"It is what it is." Sylvester shrugged, not elaborating any future. Meeting his father was at the bottom of his list of priorities for the time being. The first goal was to become the Pope; everything else would have to wait.
The smooth wind on the salty sea brushed past their hair. The delightful sunlight shone upon them, not causing any sweat. Avanss fell into contemplation, why would elves come to assassinate Sylvester? However, being away from his home for so long, he couldn't come up with any reason.
One thing was clear—he needed to have a long conversation with his brother.
…
While the ship sailed on the long voyage, a certain someone, at last, received an important message.
Far in the North of Sol, past the Pentapeak mountain range, there lived an Emperor Lich, as powerful as a Supreme Wizard. Having lived for over four thousand years, he had yet to lose his sanity and still remained a man with morals—refusing to terrorize the innocents of the South.
"Noooo! Why? Why can't you grow just once?!" Being powerful didn't mean one didn't have mundane problems. Poor Emperor Lich also suffered through the harsh, deadly cold of the north. But rather than his body suffering, what suffered was his favorite hobby—growing flowers.
Defeated, the lich, with heavy thick robes on his ancient magical armor, watched his beloved flowers wither away under the intense cold. His golden crown-clad skull looked down in gloom.
"Four thousand years—I'm ashamed to call myself a son of a farmer." He talked to himself, as he was the only sane man in the entire north. His armies of undead were as good as his dead flowers.
Clak! Clak!
Just then, an undead naked skeleton arrived with a missive in one hand and the other arm missing. The paper looked torn and dirty from any angle he looked.
"What is this?" Raz Mi'ul Naseer asked.
The undead were unable to speak, so their method of conveying their thoughts was by either clacking their jaws or mentally communicating with their overlord.
"For me? This looks quite old," Emperor Lich Raz muttered and walked back into his ice castle with the undead behind. "Why am I only hearing about this now?"
Clack!
The undead skeleton began speaking by clicking its jaw, telling his tale. Its remaining arm moved to articulate the feeling better, and it was enough to express how wild the story was.
It all began with an awful day almost a month ago. The skeleton undead was working outside the Emperor Lich's castle to dig the ground since there was nothing else to do in the cold, harsh north.
Tap!
Just then, an undead bird came flying from the sky and sat down on his shoulder. It held a paper in its claw, so the undead skeleton took it to hand it into the castle. However, something unexpected happened after that, and just as the poor skeleton was walking to the castle, an eagle came from the sky and snatched the skeleton's arm along with the missive.
Worried, the skeleton undead followed and dived into the frozen sea. He swam all the way toward the north, nonstop, and finally found the nest of the eagle. Sadly, it was on the island of the undead dragon.
As expected, he was captured by the undead dragon and made to participate in a game of life and death with other captured undead. The dragon was bored.
Injured, battered, and still firm with emotions, he won the game but then was betrayed by the damn dragon. Having no other choice, the skeleton undead opened the special seal placed on him by the Emperor Lich. The seal contained such powerful magic that the undead dragon died, but along with it, the poor skeleton's chest got cracked.
Yet, there was a triumph. The undead skeleton got the letter and returned to deliver it.
Clack! Clack!
"Enough!" Emperor Lich vocally cried from his ice throne. "Enough, my child… my good son. You have made this old man feel emotions I never knew still lingered within me… such loyalty, such fervor—this earns you a promotion! From today, you shall be a General of my one-thousandth brigade—I baptize you as General Bob."
Woosh!
Magic emanated from Raz's claw-like hand, and the black mist enveloped the white body of the damaged skeleton. The undead shined, regrew the missing limb, and also grew bigger. Clothes appeared on his body, along with armor, all in black. A black crown also grew on its skull, and its skeleton's color turned golden with a crimson hue in its eyes—the black cape on its back fluttered without the wind.
"Come, let me see the missive you worked so hard for." Emperor Raz called his newest General.
The armored General Bob took heavy steps and handed over the paper while kneeling. He didn't click his jaws again, for it was beneath him now.
"Let's see…" Emperor Lich looked, and soon enough, a gleam flickered in his own hollow eye sockets. "It's from the Lord's Bard. This is… I think I'm late. Did the Bard survive? Perhaps I should confirm before making any moves."
Quickly, Emperor Lich Raz wrote down a new letter and handed it to his new General. "Go and give this to our friends in Sandwall—The missive told of a new city being developed there. Wave the flag of Solis when you reach it."
Bam!
General Bob thumped his chest and rose before leaving the castle. Without wasting a minute, he hastened his trek toward the South on an undead horse.
Woosh!
Screech!
But just as General Bob proceeded under the blue sky, an eagle dived down from above. And before he could react, the bird took away the new missive.
Thud!
General Bob fell from his horse in shock since he recognized the bird as the same one from before. For the first time in history—that day—an undead sweated… profusely.
It seemed the quick rise of a general was a bit too short-lived.
But the game was yet to end. For he rose and gave a chase to make amends.
…
Two days went by on the long voyage. Sylvester mastered the skill of steering the large vessel. The Beastkins also eventually learned how to fold or set the sails quickly.
Once they passed by Libertia, the hearts of Beastkins found some solace as the Holy Fleet from Sol didn't patrol those waters. As for the pirates from before, they were captured, chained, and tied to the lower deck. They were not just humans. Some folks from Beastaria were pirates too.
"See that green mist? Stay left of it, and we'll enter Hydra Bay soon enough." Avanss pointed his hand toward the horizon, where they could notice some landforms.
Sylvester nodded and turned the rudder wheel. "What should I expect after getting off?"
"Nothing troublesome," Avanss assured. "You're with me, a nobility of the elves. I can easily reveal my status to them and bypass any safety checkpoints. But if you want to enter Deca Imperia, it's going to be tough. The city is surrounded by an invisible rune system that alerts the soldiers if anyone tries to enter the city from locations that aren't main entry gates—where everyone is thoroughly checked."
Sylvester expected that much. "Not even from the sky?"
"It's a dome-shaped defense. I believe it goes into the land as well since dwarves helped build the city." Avanss added. "But I'll find a way to enter, so don't worry. For now, what do you want to do with the pirates? Do you want to let them go, let them continue pillaging?"
Sylvester shook his head. "When I made the plan to come to Beastaria, from the start, any pirate ship we were going to take was doomed. Hydra Bay is full of five-headed snakes—it will be enough to hide our steps and any mistakes."
"Then… do you want to—"
"Yes." Sylvester finished his words. "Let it sink into the annals of history."
"I'm relishing the way you think, nephew." Avanss chuckled and smacked Sylvester's shoulder before going to set the explosives. "I think you might be the greatest addition to the Eldaron family in thousands of years."
Sylvester merely smiled and looked at the landmass growing closer. After all, to him, it was simply the standard procedure of silencing the witnesses.
'Beastaria… let's see what songs you'll make me sing.'
_________________
[A/N: See the map of Beastaria here.]
Thank you for reading. GT votes are much appreciated.
Updated from fr𝒆ewebnov𝒆l.(c)om