Loud noise and a flash of light up on the hillside caught the massive blacksmith's attention, but by the time they arrived, there was little to see, aside from a scorched spot in the grass. Jeon knelt down and rubbed the spot, taking in the carbon and the curious sour smell.

"This... I would learn as well," J'eon replies. Truly, the humans were a font of knowledge.

---

It was the beep from his phone that woke him, linked into the time server of the ship. Jacks' fingers fumbles for it on the desk, silencing it quickly. He signs, rocking slightly in the makeshift hammock, his bed occupied by some of the involuntary guests they picked up, a music group that was supposed to be performing before the shooting started.

"Didn't expect this gig," he muttered softly. Apparently, they didn't object to sharing a bed.

Gripping the sides of the hammock carefully, he rolls his legs slowly over the side and leans forward, slowly tipping his feet to the cold deck. He changed quickly, slipping on a pair of crew's coverals and his boots, then grabbing his toiletries kit. Softly crossing the room, he slid open the curtain and spied the three lumps in his bed, softly snoring still. Giving his head a shake, he pressed the door button and it slid open, revealing an otherwise empty corridor as he made his way to the ship's head.

Grabbing a ration bar and a cup that audaciously tried to pass itself off as coffee, he made his way to the bridge.

"Good morning," Jack muttered, taking in the compact bridge with a glance. "So, what happened in the night?"

”We’re not exactly hairless. These sketches were made for anyone who found them to get an idea of our shape, so they are depicted without body hair. Although after our ancestors started making and using clothing to keep warm, hair became useless and we’ve lost most of it over millions of years. In addition to the hair on top of all our heads, most men can still grow facial hair and both are styled to the aesthetic preference of the individual or practical considerations. Some body hair is still left over, but it’s for all intents and purposes useless.” Vigdis rolled up her sleeve past the burn scars to demonstrate vellus hairs. ”To our understanding it never served a defensive role, but we have ways to keep going even after suffering harm. Sometimes humans are able to perform complex physical and mental tasks in a fight, like flanking or reloading weapons, even after suffering lethal injuries for some time. A doctor would explain that better.” If anyone would talk to any of the locals about how to best kill a human. Which they definitely shouldn’t.

”I can’t give you any specific numbers, but I am familiar with the mechanism behind our endurance. We have small… organs you could call them I suppose, across our skin, which secrete a liquid called ‘sweat’ in response to increased core temperature, such as when we’re in a hot climate or during intensive physical activity, like running. I won’t get into the details of how it works, we’d just get bogged down in sciences you may not be familiar with, but this serves to cool us down, allowing us to keep going where species without this ability will overheat.” Thermomechanics of heat transfer and evaporative cooling better wait. ”What drove the Driisu underground? Hiding from someone?”

As Kareet was scribbling, Vigdis got up again and risked a social faux pax by looking over Kareet’s shoulder, having never seen K-A writing aside from digits during their initial contact on Crash+3.

“Good morning, sir.” Clara Anselm replied from the comms desk. She didn’t turn or look at Mallory. She was leant toward one screen, controlling a spider droid as it inspected a crumpled tangle of metal that had been partially embedded in the mud.

“More aliens arrived down the slope.” She reported, carefully teasing what could have been a comms dish out of the pile.

“Silbermine went and visited them just now. Looks like some of them brought buttresses to install - Cap told me to flag if they start coming closer. Armament is hot. Fuck!”

The spider drone had flipped the devastated comms dish over to find not just a gouge down the middle, but a large, squishy caterpillar type bug stuck to the metal. Anselm flicked the joystick and the spider drone squashed the dish hard against the ground.

A light blinked on Mallory’s console and a message from Zey blinked up on screen:

“Good morning!

• Wodan has finished programming the live-fire sim. Start weapons training regime for passengers and crew round the clock
• Prepare bodies for external cremation
• Circulate list of passenger work assignments, designated supervisor and rota

Ta
ZK”

Wodan chimed in straight away after its eye tracker concluded Mallory had finished reading.

“I would recommend using the Recreation Room to host VR simulations. I have programmed a step by step weapon handling tutorial and three hundred and sixty degree firing range sim. I’ve also mapped every weapon in the armoury for use as a ‘controller’. I would recommend unloading the weapons before allowing untrained supplementary personnel to handle them.

@EliteCommander @Catharyn

Kolvar Stilmyst

Arancini Barberio

During the course of the night and morning, Kolvar was Ixtaro trying to learn more about humanity. This mostly consisted of being told a brief summary of human history. Although he felt bad about his consent questions, he was keen on learning as much about their history as he could. He was surprised by how fast they evolved from primates eating berries into modern humans that build flying ships. He pondered if one day if the races in Kanth-Aremek will be able to build such machines. Although he was appalled when he learned of the many atrocities humanity has committed. And over such petty things as money, power, or over religious beliefs. Although the people he had spoken with didn’t seem religious fanatics, nor did they seem bloodthirsty. To him they seemed more like explorers than conquerors, so they seemed relatively harmless to him.

Kolvar, unfortunately, could not get into the medical bay. The reason being they were afraid that Kolvar would disguise himself as a human. He was not going to spy or do anything nefarious, all he wanted to do was to study the human anatomy. The scholar never the less learned as much as he could about these travellers he could. Taking a lot of mental notes in the process of what he was told.

He oddly enough seemed more focused on learning than the incoming conflict with Sibermine. Currently, he was outside of the ship watching Arancini fixing something outside of the ship. Standing beside Arancini he started chanting something in Kriliteran. Hoping that the great creator would watch and protect the humans from harm. He had his eyes closed and was doing some strange hand signs with his clawed hands.

Meanwhile, Arancini was doing his best to try and fix some security outside of the ship. “WODAN how much of the security system is up and running outside the ship?” He was frantically moving from computer to computer, typing away madly trying to protect those inside the ship. So far he could get the security up and running. However, the ship was far from safe from Sibermine’s forces. The peaceful method he was trying didn’t seem to be working. He didn’t think Sibermine was looking to be peaceful trying to take the ship. His main concern was trying to get power back to the ship, and to get the turrets up and running. Arancini was giving Kolvar a strange look, he was not sure what he was chanting but it did not sound very good.

“Signore Kerchek what is it you are chanting? Is it some sort of prayer?” He felt he should focus on the task at hand but he was a little curious about what Kerchek was saying.

Kolvar looked like he was deep into his chanting when he opened his eyes. Turning his attention toward Arancini. “It is a prayer to my gods to protect your people from Sibermine.” He answered curtly.

“Is that a Tekerian prayer?” Arancini asked as he moved to another computer so he could keep working.

“Yes it is, I was afraid you would be caught up in the petty politics of the land. I am hopeful that the great creator will bless your people.” He said now walking behind Arancini. “What is it you are doing if I may ask?” Kolvar said his beak touching Arancini’s shoulder.

“I am trying to get the power working and to get the security system up and running.” Arancini said. “Accidenti.” Arancini cursed under his breath because his current methods were not working as planned. He took a moment to stop what he was doing to look over at Kerchek. “Do you know someone who could help us defend the ship? I know Nellara was trying to contact her people. I don’t know if you know anyone with an army to fight Sibermine.”

Kolvar shook his head, “No unfortunately I do not. I am just a healer I do not have friends in politics. Especially ones that would be interested in defending this ship. I apologize.” He didn’t know anyone that would want to make an enemy of the Sibermine. He knew his master and the council would not want to get involved in this political quagmire. Getting involved would not only ruin his disguise, but it would also bring into question the known extinction of the Kriliterans.

He soon walked away wanting to leave Arancini alone to do his work. Walking over toward the person named Zey. Being told by Arancini where she was and that she was the captain of this ship. He was hesitant when he noticed Zey speaking one of the robotic golems, not knowing that Ezra was inside of it. “Hello miss, I was told by Arancini I was to speak to you about studying the specimens you have. I was thinking I could offer my services to help heal your injured crew, in exchange for letting me study the human anatomy properly.” He said now watching Ezra with a careful eye.

---

“The Kolodon Empire.” Kareet answered, still not raising her gaze up from her notes. Their writing had not yet been translated, so Vigdis would not be able to make sense of what she saw. Aesthetically, the language she was writing in appeared to be made up mostly of short, straight lines of varying lengths in different arrangements. They were almost like claw marks, in appearance.

Kareet elaborated without delay. “The Driisu Houses were quite stubborn. None of them capitulated to Kolodon, and they all fought until they were destroyed. All but one. House Nabarask was also stubborn, but in a different way. Rather than live under Kolodon, they fled to a land harsh enough to shield them. The northeastern edge of the Tekairr mountain range was inhospitable, or so we thought. There were no Tekeri tribes who called it home, not when there was much more favorable land just to the south. But they managed to survive there through the Kolodon Empire’s reign. I believe there were some substantial cave systems that allowed them to establish villages that could at least survive. And after magic was discovered, it gave them the power to expand. They fared well, all things considered. There were others who did not prove so resilient. The Kriliterans, for instance, were wiped out entirely. They came from the northern part of Kanth-Aremek, same as the S’tor, so they were among the first to face Kolodon’s conquest.”

Eventually, Kareet finished her basic sketch of the Human form. “Hmm, going to need more detail when I get to the anatomy chapter.” She muttered, though quickly shifted her attention back to Vigdis. “I believe I am starting to get a picture of what you are. The only intelligent species on your world…at first I thought that would make your world especially peaceful, but you are clearly no strangers to warfare. A few of you have mentioned it frequently in our conversations, and your Captain Zey certainly made sure to make a strong statement. Out of Kanth-Aremek’s people, my first impression is that you have the most cultural similarities to the S’tor. I would be interested to compare the cultural values of the two.” Despite her words, Kareet did not have anything approaching an accusatory tone. Indeed, her description of the Kolodon Empire’s conquests had been quite impersonal as well. “What role does warfare play on your world? Do you venerate your warriors in any particular ways?”

“Realistically, how long do they need in the sim?” Zey asked Ezra. They stood in the shallowest part of the trench around the Jotunheim; overlooking the marshes and trail of destruction the ship had left as it spun. At this point, it was only knee high, you were only covered if you sat down.

“Minimum, so I'm happy they have a gun around me? Thirty hours. But becoming a soldier is more than just hitting targets. They have to learn to manoeuvre as team. Use comms effectively. I did say it is best to train people from day one but…”

“Yes, I know. I don’t want to get the civilians involved because they’re fucking terrified, Ezra. I’m only doing this because I have to. It's my crew who will get the flak from them, not you.”

Zey watched the rapidly expanding camp of Mythadians down near the bottom of the hill. More of them were arriving all the time. The Ascendency had sent more troops as well. She sighed.

“The sim is going to be too slow, isn’t it? If we bring them outside, how many can you train?”

“You have the guns to teach twelve people Tironut at a time.”

“Sorry, what?”

“Tironut. Israeli army training. My team trained militia in Kenya.”

“Fine. I’ll talk to the civilians and reassure them first. I’m not looking for an armed mutiny.”

They were interrupted by a Tekeri. Zey glanced down at her tablet and Wodan informed her that this one was Kerchak, the shapeshifter. They asked about helping the wounded in exchange for studying anatomy.

“I will be honest with you, Kerchak. I don’t like the idea of anyone of you impersonating a Human, at any time. However, we could use some help with the wounds our people have sustained…"

Zey had a thought.

“Can you only turn into an exact copy of the things you study? Also, do you study your subjects at the same time as healing them? Or is that a separate process? The reason I ask is that we are going to cremate…burn some of our dead today as a…mark of respect. You may study those corpses, because then we’ll know it's you if you ever shapeshift."

With Zeynep's arrival, most of the issues, at least regarding the interaction between the Jotunheim crew and Nellara's group was quickly addressed, from Kerchak's suggestion to mimic the human's appearance in order to not alert the crew to Kareet's offer to help the humans with electricity and ending with the rather urgent issue of a second group of Tekeris having approached the area. Nellara couldn't help but be a bit impressed with how calmly and efficiently Zeynep seemed to deal with the situation.

"Certainly." Nellara said, nodding towards Zeynep as she got ready to meet the Tekeri hunters.

The moment she was about to leave with Zeynep though, a loud, strange cracking noise echoed through the hills, Nellara immediately began looking around, alert. If a conflict had started between the Tekeri hunters and the humans, even if the Tekeri weren't soldiers or weren't formally allied with the Ascendancy, such event would certainly make things even more difficult.

Fortunately, the situation didn't end up being as grave as Nellara previously thought, with both the humans and the Tekeri hunters being completely fine and apart from that rather 'intense' meeting between the humans and the hunters, there weren't many noteworthy incidents for the rest of the day. Much to Nellara's relief.

Following that issue with the Tekeri hunters and the tensions between Silbermine and Nellara, the humans quickly ended up creating a 'neutral' space in front of Jotunheim, as to better mediate any meetings and deals between the Ascendancy and Mythadian forces. Especially since the arrival of armies from both nations was already expected and the possibility of a war was very real.

It wasn't really a secret that Nellara was incredibly irritated with the disrespect from the Mythadians towards the Ascension. Every single time hers and Silbermine's eyes met, even if from a distance, the hostility in Nellara's eyes was evident. While she did make it clear she wouldn't be the one to throw the first stone, if any of the Mythadian soldiers as much as gave a single wrong step, she wouldn't hesitate in acting.

Luckily for the humans, due to the arrival of soldiers from both sides, neither Nellara nor apparently Silbermine had enough time to visit the neutral area the humans had created yet, leaving that area to the ones that were more focused on learning whatever they could from the humans. One of the main examples was Kareet, which seemed to be incredibly eager to learn, joining the human neutral camp early in the morning to meet with Vigdis. Even though Nellara herself was very curious about the humans and would love to join the conversation, not only her duties prevented her from doing so, but she knew well that if Silbermine saw her near the humans, he would probably feel the need to intrude... Which would definitely hinder Kareet's efforts to study and understand the humans better. Due to those reasons, Nellara could only hope Kareet would be able to tell her what she had learned with the humans afterwards.

In another note, the news that reinforcements from Lenkik were starting to arrive were very welcome news to Nellara, enough to bring some relief to her and clear her mind, especially since she wasn't able to sleep much due to the tense situation. What Nellara wasn't expecting was who exactly was the reinforcements she would receive, according to one of the soldiers. The moment the soldier told her, Nellara couldn't help but show a satisfied smirk. Knowing that no one other than General Kvarr himself was coming was definitely incredibly good news to Nellara. Such fact meant that the Ascendancy took her report very seriously and saw fitting to send reinforcements matching the seriousness of the situation to assist her.

"Wonderful news. Please guide the General and his forces to our encampment as soon as they arrive." Nellara said nodding her head and silently thanking the soldier for his efforts before she got out from her tent and started to prepare for the arrival of the General and his forces.

”Why would we be peaceful just because we are currently the only intelligent species around? Are you trying to say you’ve never had a war between two groups of Tekeri, or two groups of Glen? Resources, land, religious and political disputes are still going to be a thing. And we didn’t need someone to be completely different to decide we don’t like them either, sad as that is. We’ve moved past that at least, save an odd degenerate or two. And oh my, can we fight! One of the most destructive, if not the most destructive conflict in our history was waged over 350 years ago, lasted six years” Vigdis quickly recalculated the times to a number of K-A days for Kareet’s benefit, as that was the only known local unit of measurement. ”spanned the entire world and took over 70 million lives. That would be…“ Another wristpad-aided conversion, ”at least 413 016 600 dead to put it in base 8 as you use.” She wrote the numbers on the large tablet in case orders of magnitude didn’t translate properly. Vigdis remembered Kareet writing down the explanation of numbers she wrote on the shuttle bay wall, so that should be understandable, even if she might have to look up the reference chart.

”We have a holiday to commemorate the fallen, regardless of which side they fought on, but we don’t exactly ‘venerate’ warriors. There were at times cultures and religions who held martial prowess in high regard - the island my family comes from was discovered by people whose faith claimed only those who fell valiantly in battle would go to the good part of their afterlife - but not anymore. That was, what, 1200 years ago?” She made a guess, once again converting the time to K-A days. ”But pretty much every nation has a standing army. It’s better to have it and not need it, than need it and not have it, plus an army is a lot of fit people with useful equipment who are used to working together, which is useful if you need to clean up a natural disaster, like a flood or a volcanic eruption. A few nations still retain conscription, but most human soldiers are volunteers, joining up for one reason or another.” Vigdis chose not to let Kareet know most humans instead venerated celebrities and online influencers, not knowing where to begin explaining those to a late medieval bird.

”But for all the bad things about war, it would be dishonest not to mention how conflict drives innovation. I don’t mean to promote warfare, but for example, the technology that enables us to leave a planet began as an alternative to our alternative to a catapult during that war I mentioned earlier. Flying machines, weather forecasting, machines that allow us to see heat given off by objects an let us see in complete darkness, ships that sail underwater, countless medicines, computers…“ She tapped her wristpad and the tablet to indicate the last one, having noticed the locals calling them ‘golems’, ”All were initially developed for or had its development accelerated by military use, sometimes by accident.” She still couldn’t help but chuckle at the thought of microwave ovens being invented when a technician working on a radar antenna noticed a chocolate bar in his pocket was melting.

---

Vigdis may have expected Kareet to understand the reasons for warfare that she gave, but Kareet showed genuine confusion for a moment. She blinked, staring straight ahead at her before jotting down a few notes. “You…say these things as if they are inherent and obvious truths. That killing over these things is normal, but that is not the case for us. I can think of times in history that tribes or other groups have conflicted over such things, but very rarely to the death. There are always exceptions, but in history in general, Tekeri do not war with Tekeri. Glen not with Glen. And Iriad certainly do not kill one another. Even now, as nations have become more connected with members of different species giving allegiance to one another, it is a well-known problem among armies that we have difficulty striking a killing blow against our own kind. It takes considerable training and…teaching to be rid of such limits. Only S’tor are known to have such ease in killing one another. I think I am right; you are quite like them.”

Kareet had a hard time wrapping her head around the scale of the examples Vigdis used. Seventy million deaths in a war was a nigh incomprehensible figure of her. She was not even certain that there were that many people on this entire continent. If that many deaths was not enough to destroy their whole civilization, then what did that say about the sheer scale of their society? For a brief moment, there was a pang of fear in her heart. What kind of power was it, exactly, that lurked on the other side of that hole in the sky the Jotunheim had fell through?

Nevertheless, there was nothing that broke Kareet’s impersonal calm. “And you say it was conflict that brought you such strength? Your challenges against one another inspired you to invent and improve to where you are now?” She sat up straight and gave a slight laugh. “The Archmagister will like you…as will the S’tor.”

---

---

For the moment, General Kvarr did not bring a large force too close to the crash site. After making contact with Nellara’s soldiers, there was a brief exchange of a few messages to confirm the situation. From there, Kvarr himself was joined by an escort into Nellara’s camp. He insisted upon meeting with their commander right away, and so was taken straight to the Castigator’s tent. He left his escort to stand guard outside and entered the command tent alone.

As he had flown in from Arcaeda with the assistance of Life mages, Kvarr was not wearing his usual armor that would have bore the insignia of his station. Rather, he was simply wearing the plate armor of a normal officer. It did not seem to fit him perfectly, but it was serviceable enough. Regardless, he was unmistakable the moment he removed his helmet. He had been a major figure in the Ascendancy for centuries, and his visage was one that could be found on a few statues in Arcaeda, and beyond. Even still, he held out an aluminum medallion with the Archmagister’s seal for her to inspect: a formality to help confirm his identity. Aside from that, he had little desire to stand on ceremony. “Before anything else, Castigator Nellara, are there any imminent dangers that require my attention, or do we have time to discuss the situation in detail?”

"Will take that under advisement," Jack replied to Woden's suggestion of unloading the weapons for the sims. "Make a note that all weapons in the sims are to be checked each time to make sure they are not loaded before being handed to one of our trainees."

The X.O. signs, then turns to face Clara.

"Ms. Anselm," he says formally, "Thank you for your report."

He then turns and studies the order the captain left.

"Right, let's pull up the roster..." he sighs.

It actually took less time to assign the teams than he thought it would.



He took a sip from his cup despite what his taste buds were telling him about the brew, reflecting that undoubtedly someone would be complaining when they saw this.

As to supervisors - he was going to supervise the Command team 'volunteers', and leave it to the department heads to select who they'd want to assign as supervisors.

"Ms. Anslem, please inform the department heads that I need a meeting with them at 10 AM in the conference room so we can finish hashing out these assignment details."

”I’ve spent four years in the military, never had to fire a shot in anger.” Vigdis spoke after a noticeable pause when Kareet said soldiers of the same species had trouble killing each other, conversions of human time to K-A days becoming standard. ”I salvaged shipwrecks, killing another being was never something I gave much thought to, even less so after I got out. Until the Jotunheim’s dock got attacked a week ago. When the situation devolved into a ‘kill or be killed’ scenario, you’d be surprised how quickly I came around to the idea. Every animal just wants to live, and humans are no exception. But when someone else is determined to end that life and bullets are whizzing by your head, the most effective way of preventing that is to end theirs. Whether you can or can’t live with the guilt is a question that can only be answered once you’ve ensured you will be alive to feel guilty.” She shared her view somewhat melancholically, having postponed figuring out her answer to that last question until the more pressing source of existential dread had been dealt with.

”I’m saying this as if they are inherent and obvious truths because throughout a large portion of our history that we have written records of, they were. Despite a relatively peaceful time around 300 years ago, circumstances once more led to resource shortages and squabbling over land. When things such as lumber or fertile soil become scarce, people will do desperate things. I’m not saying it’s right, I’m saying that’s the way it is. Give it a thousand years and you’ll get there too. Maybe two thousand, magic and all.” She was by no means an anthropologist or biologist, but as an engineer she knew nothing worked for free. Unless the locals forever froze on their current technological and low enough population level, they’d one day be facing many of the challenges humans did, since even living beings were essentially engines burning oxygen and fuel, complete with their own emissions.

”Anyway, onto more pleasant topics.” Vigdis made a proverbial full stop behind that topic, her demeanor returning to her usual self. ”What’s next in your encyclopedia? Anatomy? History? A second opinion on some of your non-magical knowledge of the world around you?”

---

“I never said you were right or wrong. I also never said the S’tor were right or wrong.” Kareet said, glancing up for just a moment from the notes she was jotting down. “What I am saying, is that you seem to be living proof of the Archmagister’s philosophy. You are everything she wants us to become. Perhaps a bit more…enthused about warfare than she is, but the fact that you have found such strength through challenge is encouraging.”

Even Kareet picked up on the fact that Vigdis wanted to move on from the topic, which in itself was interesting to note. The way she described her own people, they were a warrior race much like the S’tor. Yet, she was strangely defensive about that description. If there was one difference she could note between the two, it was that the S’tor took much more pride in their ways.

“Of course, of course. I just have one piece of advice. Be careful who you tell those sorts of things to. Not everyone on Kanth-Aremek is as accepting of certain realities as we are. If the Mythadians were to get the impression that a more advanced version of the S’tor had appeared on their border, they may react poorly. If they were to start seeing you as a threat, rather than an opportunity, then you could be left with no choice but to take sides.” Kareet suggested, speaking softly. Strictly speaking, it could benefit her if the Humans were to give the wrong sort of impression to Silbermine, as it would leave them with no choice but to ally with the Ascendancy. However, a war could also end up damaging or destroying the Jotunheim, which would be an unacceptable loss of potential knowledge to her.

Once she got through the notes, Kareet briefly put down her pen. “Since you are the one in front of me at the moment, it would probably be wise to ask about that which you are most knowledgeable. Anatomy will probably be the second chapter, but I think I can ask Kerchack about that, if he is allowed to study you. If I may, I would suggest that you try to convince your Captain to allow it. I do not know the capabilities of your medicine, but Life magic can heal nearly any injury, short of the death of the brain. Any broken or lost limbs, any injuries no matter how severe, from the crash or before. Any member of your crew, as long as they are still alive, can be made whole again.”

"General Kvarr, thank you for coming." Nellara said, with a respectful greeting as the General entered her tent, acknowledging his position as he showed the medallion that was symbol of his position.

Nellara's expression and body language were stiff and tense as she sat down and offered him to sit down as well, which already told a lot to the General about the situation they were in, before she could even say anything. Not exactly dangerous enough so they couldn't sit down and talk, but the situation was definitely far from calm and tranquil...

"The situation is very complicated, General... Fortunately, it's exactly thanks to it's complexity that war hasn't broken out yet." Nellara said, before giving the General a small but brief explanation about the entire situation. From the origin of the humans, their technology and Nellara's first contact with them, including her intention to establish a friendly, peaceful relation with them focusing on trading and finishing with Silbermine's invasion of Ascendancy territory and his intentions regarding the humans.

"The humans have already stated their intention of being a neutral party, taking what can almost be seen as the role of 'mediators' regarding the ongoing conflict. With that said, despite their efforts to appear as neutral as possible, their ideals, rules and society seem to be much more similar to our own than the Mythadians and some of the humans, seem to clearly favor us instead of the Mythadians. Regardless of that, due to their intentions of maintaining peace, it is very likely that the humans will refuse to ally themselves with whatever side starts a conflict." Nellara said, with a serious expression.

"Given how Silbermine's first intentions were to steal and take the human's ship to himself, it's quite evident that their image of him and the Mythadians isn't exactly good. Which will definitely play on our favor." Nellara said with a smirk.

"Their technology is... incredibly advanced. The full extent of their military might and their weaponry is still unknown, but observation shows that a direct confrontation must be avoided at all costs. As incredible as it might seem upon looking at their technology, the humans do not know about magic. Their entire society seems to focus solely on technology, with a great emphasis on electricity... Or Lightning as we know it." Nellara explained.

"There is much to be gained with having the humans as allies, general. Their knowledge is enough to change our society as a whole and might even be able to open new ways for us to develop our magics... But it is also incredibly dangerous if it falls on the hands of a nation such as Mythadia." Nellara said, looking to the General with a grim expression, especially when she mentioned the last part.

"The good news is that the humans themselves seem to be very aware of that fact and seem to give great importance to choosing correctly whom they will share their knowledge with... And on this aspect, I can say with certainty that we are definitely ahead of Silbermine and the Mythadians." Nellara said with an exhausted sigh, betraying how tired she was from all the tension and not being able to rest at all.

"Still, there is yet one threat to deal with... As I mentioned before, regardless of Silbermine's intentions to pillage the Human's ship and technology, he still invaded Ascension territory with a regiment of armed soldiers and established a military encampment, going as far as gathering a small army..." Nellara finished, looking towards the General, awaiting for his input on the complex situation they were facing.

“Not just a stoneworker—I’m a force mage, my lord, and I also am learned in the practice of surveying.”

Damn, she thought, ever so slightly biting her lip, maybe a bit curt. Oh well. Reflecting on the previous days’ events, she considered Silbermine’s verbiage.

“Is it really a temple? What would a deity be like to invoke such a temple…”

She briefly lost herself in thought. There were, no doubt, grand religious edifices across Kanth-Aramek; working in construction, she was familiar with a few of them, particularly those in Mythadia’s capital whose intricate stonework never failed to grab Subira’s attention. Great ogival arches, daunting ceiling heights, and immaculate jointing were near universal in these especially public places.

“My lord, if there’s one thing that I’m certain of, it’s that their… temple is not of a structure that exists anywhere on the continent, as far as I know. What is falling apart about it? I made a couple rounds, admittedly at a distance, and it is simply like nothing I’ve ever seen.”

She paused.

“It would seem that these humans have devised a way to build with metal,” she announced wearily, scrunching her eyes up, “and that just… eludes me. I could probably begin to get an understanding of what’s going on in there if I had, uh, access or, could talk to them or…”

Her eyes flicked upwards as she scratched her temples.

“In any case, my lord, buttresses are doable, without a doubt. How far beyond bare necessity do you want that project to go? Is there an urgent deadline?”

Subira suppressed the urge to either roll her eyes or grimace at the way she was talking. At least I’m not dealing with those Ascendancy dolts… although at this rate it looks like my hand will be forced. All the same, she was far below Silbermine, and was a total stranger in Mythadia. However silly she found it, she knew her place.

“Again, I can also offer my services as a surveyor and a force mage.”

---

For the entire time that Nellara was laying out the description of events, her opinions, and recommendations, Kvarr did not speak a word. He had taken his seat and was clearly listening intently as he rested after a long trek through the mountains. Despite all that had transpired, he did not show any signs of becoming upset, or even especially worried. Regardless, he did not hide a respectable amount of concern for the severity of the situation. “If Silbermine has requested help, reinforcements…” He leaned forward slightly in his chair. It was hard to tell, but it felt like there was the slightest hint of a grin in his expression. “…then the Warden is coming.”

Kvarr rose to his feet, towering head and shoulders above Nellara. He could hardly stand without rubbing his head against the tent. He walked towards the table at the center of the tent bearing a map of the region, though as he passed her by, he gave her a pat on the shoulder with a short, approving look. “You have done well in maintaining the interests of the Ascendancy here, Castigator. You took initiative and acted to contend with a potential threat. You did not leave these…Humans uncontested to outside influence; you stood your ground admirably.”

The S’tor walked around the table and leaned forward onto it, looking with a neutral gaze down towards the Castigator. “You specify that Silbermine invaded our territory and is gathering an army. Could you elaborate on this, from your perspective?”

”Don’t worry, I have no intention of telling Silbermine or Nellara anything of the sort without clearing it with the captain first.” Vigdis reassured Kareet, ”You seem trustworthy enough. Either that, or you’re at least a competent spy, time will tell.” She chuckled. ”Bet Silbermine won’t be happy when he learns we have a lot in common with the Ascendancy though. When, not if. Some things are impossible to keep a lid on.”

”We’ll end up having to take sides eventually anyway.“ Vigdis sighed, ”Those two can’t be anywhere near each other without clawing at each others’ throats and Silbermine seems convinced he’s the best thing since sliced bread and thus no one should be able to say ‘no’ to him. I can’t really see a peaceful way out of this, not unless Silbermine’s reinforcements include someone higher ranked and more reasonable than him. I just hope someone will force our hand, that way I will have tried my best to avoid it and won’t have to feel too bad about the mess it will bring.”

She listened intently to Kareet’s sales pitch of life magic, the descriptions of ‘Cure Wounds’ and ‘Regenerate’ spells from DnD popping into her mind. Some of her injuries didn’t bother her. Her hands retained almost full functionality and although people who knew her learned to look out for her tic to know if she was getting agitated, she learned to mimic it to get people to get out of her hair if she didn’t feel like dealing with them. But the idea of being able to run up seven flights of stairs under a minute like in her university days was a tempting one. ”Why take second hand information? If Kerchak’s allowed to study us, you could join him. Saves our doctors time by explaining it once to more people at once. That is, if you’re allowed access to that knowledge in the first place. You can understand how teaching everyone where to stab us, not to mention potentially mimic us, is something we might not want to do.” Now maybe Kareet, Kerchak, or even the Ascendancy as a whole wouldn’t misuse that knowledge, but in absence of a better reference point, she’d continue to play things safe and judge based on the worst leadership humanity had to offer.

---

“I am merely thinking in terms of efficiency. I do not know how much time I will have to speak to you all, given the political situation, so I want to use my time effectively. As a Life mage, Kerchack could give me detailed information, or shapeshift to give me a living example to sketch.” Kareet explained. It would be of benefit to both her and them for them to be willing to accept Kolvar’s offer, so it would be to her benefit to convince them to accept Kerchack’s offer. Or at least some Life mage’s.

At the moment, Kareet felt like it would be prudent for her to try to allay their fears over Life magic. Fortunately, she would not even have to lie to do it. There was a reason that Life mages were among the most well-respected across Kanth-Aremek. “I understand your fear of something new and unknown, but Life magic has been a great boon to us. We live longer, healthier, and crippling injuries are no longer permanent. There was a time, not all that long ago, when an infection from a simple cut could be a death sentence, but now Life magic can help a victim survive. Now, shapeshifting spies are something we’ve had to deal with for the last few centuries, but it is more difficult for them than you might think. Shapeshifting does not give you knowledge. Kerchack could easily transform you into a Tekeri if you asked, but could you imagine trying to pretend to be one of us? Even if I sat here and explained to you every detail of our society that I could think of, there would still be countless little social norms you would break, or customs you would not understand. Not to mention, we still do not speak one another’s language. We still rely on that thing to speak for us. If a Human walked around your ship relying on one of those, I think it would stand out.” She said, pointing to Vigis’ translator.

”Swear loyalty to the captain and you’ll get all the time you want.” Vigdis grinned under her mask, ready to explain she wasn’t being serious in case the joke didn’t carry over. ”Many of the ailments you speak of haven’t been much of a problem for hundreds of years for us, though I agree that it’d be good to have another alternative even if our stores should last years, in addition to speeding up things we can’t heal quickly.” There may have been twice the number of people on board, but the Jo was still an exploration ship. She’d been fortunate to avoid any notable encounters with the infirmary, but surely the ship’s original mission would’ve had it away from resupply points for extended periods of time. Unless all of their medical gear fell out of the shuttle bay, but she had a feeling that would’ve been mentioned in one of the daily briefings. ”We might also need your help with local diseases, if we can catch any. There’s still a lot of unknowns about what the local conditions might do to us in both short and long term.” Another reason she preferred to wear the breathing masks, even if it wasn’t the most comfortable thing ever made. ”Out of curiosity, has your life expectancy increased as people aren’t dying of mundane injuries and diseases, or has your lifespan increased and people actually live longer?” If life magic had a regenerative effect on the whole organism in addition to fixing damage, that would be a big boon on top of the near double increase of lifespan since 300 years ago.

”Fair point on the infiltrators. Again going on nothing but your word though. Either way, not my decision to make.” Fortunately, screw having that sort of responsibility. ”So that’s the anatomy chapter skipped until a more qualified person has time, what’s next? History? Where we came from?”

As General Kvarr mentioned that the presence of a Mythadian Warden was possible, she couldn't help but let out a worried sigh. A Warden was a very powerful and influential figure on Mythadia. Enough that the very presence of one would boost the morale of the Mythadian soldiers... and their religious fervor as well...

"Knowing how the Mythadians are, the presence of a Warden will only inflame their religious fanaticism even further... It might become very problematic to deal with them in case a Warden arrives..." Nellara said.

"Still, we can use that in our favor, depending on how the situation progresses... After all, the humans' also don't seem to think that fondly of the Mythadians." Nellara said, looking to the General with a subtle smirk.

"Thank you, General, but I did nothing more than my duty as a Castigator." Nellara said, replying to the General's words of praise with a respectful expression.

When the General asked for her to elaborate about her comment that Silbermine invaded their territory, Nellara expression became serious as she began explaining her opinion.

"Even though the borders between our territory and Mythadia isn't controlled or enforced, the treaty clearly divides our territories according to natural characteristics. Mythadians thrive on plains and marshes, while the mountainous regions are better suited for the Tekeri. The very fact that the Mythadians aren't exactly in their most comfortable terrain here where they are should be more than enough proof." Nellara began explaining.

"Unlike the political borders, the natural borders between our kingdoms are very clearly defined and even if they weren't, gathering an army and establishing a military encampment on the border between our nations would be more than enough to see that as a demonstration of hostility." Nellara said with a harsh expression.

"We all know how the Mythadians are, how they think their gods give them the right to get whatever they want. If we let the Mythadians disrespect the Ascension like this without any consequences, even if it's merely a political or economical one, they will most certainly test our tolerance... Until they are basically making a camp in front of Arcaeda." Nellara finished, her expression clearly indicating how offended she was with the disrespectful actions of Silbermine and his soldiers.

---

“Most people live longer now, yes.” Kareet answered. “Life magic can also stall aging, with regular treatments. It is how people like the Archmagister have lived for the hundreds of years since the technique was discovered. I started treatments two years ago, myself. As long as I keep them up, I will not age, no matter how much time passes.”

Kareet picked up her notebook once more and pulled her pen to her. “Anyways, I think your recent history would be a good place to start. The history of the Jotunheim, and its crew. Who are these people who have come to our world?”

---

---

Despite everything that Nellara described, it was with a simple calm that General Kvarr continued to regard her. He let her speak without interruption, taking in her perspective and opinions fully before giving his own answer. “Lord Silbermine, in his show of force, has attempted to make a mockery of the Ascendancy. To attack our national pride. It is a powerful thing, our convictions. Our pride in our purpose. It drives the morale of citizen and soldier alike, and can motivate our people to do what is necessary. But when it comes time to step into the war room…we leave the pride at the door.”

Kvarr let out a soft sigh and leaned forward onto the table. His posture dropped any of the formality he had been carrying. His voice did not carry anger, or even frustration, but rather had the same kind of weight as a caring father instructing his child. “You are right that I know what Mythadians are like. They are a passionate and determined people. When they find a cause that is worthy and just in their eyes, they will fight for it with the sort of conviction that we should all strive to match. Between Mythadia and Acanata, they represent the most powerful united military force on Kanth-Armek; one that we cannot defeat, if we were to try to face them outside the mountains. That is the reality, beyond the pride and propaganda, and we must give that reality the respect it demands. That is who stands behind Silbermine, but how we handle this situation will decide if they stand with him.”