Chapter 159: Chapter 228 – Important Jobs

“Your friends mentioned something about transporters and the Delivery Corps. What are those exactly?” Grea asked as Bryn led them to the sky port, unable to hide her curiosity.

“Well, the former is like building-sized versions of the ARKs. Those flying platforms operate on a similar principle but their Heart has only one task, which is to fuel the gravity formations. Those moving storages are used to transport bigger amounts of goods between our cities, or something so heavy that an entire squad of the Delivery Corps is unable to handle it,” Bryn answered.

“That means you could literally travel inside a house, without worrying about anything?” Silvia raised a brow at her.

“You aren’t wrong. We do use them to transport the weaker valkyrjas sometimes. Usually, two or four members of the Delivery Corps escort the payload and keep its course in check. But, their main role is to fly in groups between the ARKs while tied to massive shipment platforms which are like flat metal sheets with rail guards all around. There are various variations but that one is the most common,” Bryn continued.

“Wait. So they are literally tied to the thing full bondage style?” Grea’s brows rose in surprise.

“I wouldn’t really call it that but… they do wear durable and pretty comfortable harnesses which are then connected with ropes and hooks…” Their Valkyrie friend smiled wryly.

“It sounds both amazing and dangerous at the same time,” Asterios commented. “But, I guess I can see it working well if those Delivery Corps members are arduously trained for such a task. I can’t imagine myself flying for hours or days while bound to a scarily heavy shipment.”

“They wouldn’t have to if we had many more transporters but their numbers are unfortunately limited.” Bryn shook her head. “Our scholars and engineers are still working on figuring them out. They are much simpler than the entire ARKs but still not that simple to recreate. Most of them were moved to Heimdall while all the other cities left only a few for their own operations.”

“Speaking of the ARKs and the power cores and so on, what kind of work is the maintenance duty around the Heart?” Tina asked. “If it’s alright for us to know, of course.”

“It’s not a secret or anything.” Bryn smiled softly. “The Heart is a reactor located in what we also call the core chamber. It’s a big spherical room with the ARK's main energy source in the very middle. As it keeps operating, it emits some kind of particles that gather on the walls over time, creating a gluey sludge of rainbow color. It’s very spiritually toxic, thus extremely dangerous for our wings. The people taking care of it are tasked with removing that sediment regularly to ensure that there are no issues with the Heart.”

“That sounds like the worst job ever.” Miria shuddered, rubbing her arms. “I wouldn’t be able to withstand dealing with so much slime and it can even kill you with ease!”

“It seems that your friend received a very harsh punishment for her misdeeds. Are you sure that it’s adequate?” Asterios glanced at Bryn.

“It is quite physically taxing and difficult job, that is true, but everyone knows how important it is for the rest of us to live on without a worry. Therefore, the people tasked with such maintenance are greatly respected, especially when they volunteer,” Bryn explained. “She will have to do it only for a few years. It could have been much worse. I feel like the Council decided on a moderate punishment like this because of my connection with Rota. I am a little worried about her but that has to do with her specifically and not the Council or the job. Rota should understand that they are letting her off quite lightly too. War Games are very sacred to our people.”

“You should make sure that she’s doing fine whenever you can, then,” Tina suggested. “Have you met up with her after the verdict? I’m not sure if you’ve forgiven your friend for what she did, but I think you should at least let her know that you don’t hate her for it. She seems to care a lot about you so the guilt can affect her greatly as you have said before.”

“I planned on visiting her around the given month… but I think you are right.” Bryn sighed heavily. “It might be better to talk to her early. If you don’t mind, I shall do it before we depart. I promise not to take too long.”

“It’s alright. We can wait for you.” Asterios patted her on the shoulder. “It’s better to make sure than to regret later.”

“Thank you. If you continue walking this path, you will arrive at the sky port in no time. I’ll be back before you notice.”

And with that, Bryn hastily took off, hitting them with a blast of air. They chuckled together and watched their friend fly off back toward the center of the ARK. As instructed, Asterios and the girls continued ahead while looking around and admiring the sharp, metal architecture.

After about five minutes, they found the sky port. Numerous valkyrjas flew all around while moving boxes, crates, bags, and plenty of other containers. Warehouses dominated the sight and there was a hanging dock peeking over the edge of the ARK. They were in luck as one of the transporters that they had heard about was currently being unloaded and the winged women escorting it rested next to the floating building.

While waiting for Bryn to return, Asterios and the others watched the valkyrjas work from a distance not to disturb them. Their attention was soon stolen from the transporter and moved to a group of women who walked up to a pile of goods set on a secured platform. They observed them gearing up and equipping special belts and harnesses while already at their positions.

In just ten minutes, eight valkyrjas surrounded the platform and the one in the front discussed something with another worker on the side. After their conversation was finished, everyone saluted and the eight ladies rose from the ground. They gradually gained altitude until the thick cords tensed properly. It took some effort from all of them to lift the load up, but these women seemed to be pros at it as their cooperation and synchronization were top-notch.

About fifteen minutes later, Bryn returned with a delicate smile and thanked them again for waiting for her. She took them to a different section of the port and they spoke with someone who was responsible for charting the course for the departing individuals and groups. 

After Bryn shared what their destination was, the other valkyrja tweaked some device for a moment and handed it to her. At first glance, it looked no different from a compass, but their winged friend explained that it would point toward their target, their starting ARK, or the nearest ARK from their current position. The directional needle would also change colors depending on the remaining distance they had to cover. It additionally had an emergency signal function, which certainly added the feeling of security.

Since they had taken care of everything in Tyr, everyone in Ast’s party agreed to depart. The girls would of course stay behind and wait for him and Bryn to arrive at the closest ARK, which was Brage, the home of the Valkyrie’s scholar friend. Technically, just one of them needed to reach the place but neither Asterios nor Bryn wanted to leave it just to the other one, so they compromised on going together.

Silvia suggested a nice meal before they split and they went to grab a bite while chatting about Brage. Bryn tried her best not to leak any interesting and curious information or nuances related to the ARK of scholars. It definitely wasn’t easy when Miria grilled her for answers without a moment of rest.

But, she somehow survived and the traveling duo left the diner first, sharing their goodbyes with everyone. The girls wished them luck and refocused on their meals. Bryn made a few more last-minute checks and they walked together to the far end of the metal pier. Exchanging a nod, they readied their wings and began the journey.

Since Bryn didn’t have to worry about running out of energy with Asterios by her side, she flew at her best speed pretty much all the time. Asterios had no issues keeping up with her, which made her smile joyfully at him. They soared through the clouds while keeping themselves above the fluffy carpet.

The reason for that was quite simple. Whenever they dove under the white clouds, their gazes naturally fell onto the extremely pitiful ground. Everything as far as their eyes could take them was just a mix of different shades of gray. The land, the dead flora, and even the earth in many places. Some sporadic buildings and ruins riddled the unending path of destruction.

It was a sad sight, especially for Bryn. There was no need for them to travel while having to gaze upon it all the time. Asterios cheered his companion up by assuring Bryn that her plan would definitely work splendidly and the area around the Spire would soon recover, becoming as beautiful as it had been before the cataclysm.

They flew for hours while talking about many things, losing track of time quite early in their journey. Neither of them felt any tired or exhausted yet so it was hard to judge with just white and blue moving all around them with barely any changes. 

But, Bryn showed a surprised expression when their magical compass changed colors, announcing that they were already halfway to their destination. A short talk with the girls back on Tyr revealed that they had been out for eight hours. It was hard to believe but the sky was starting to turn darker to accommodate the time of the day too. If they kept their pace, they would get there in less than a day, which was amazing according to Bryn.

Asterios suggested taking a short break to replenish Bryn’s energy if she required it but she politely declined, promising him that she wasn’t overexerting herself. Therefore, they continued flying during the night too, with Asterios moving a bit closer to the Valkyrie so that he could rejuvenate Bryn a little and share more of his scorching hot energy with her.

She appreciated the gesture greatly and kept shooting gentle smiles at him. Besides Ast’s efforts to keep her in good condition in shape, Bryn loved every second of their aerial journey. Flying together with Asterios felt very enjoyable and relaxing. They didn’t have to worry about almost anything and could just relish in the calm experience while breaking the silence with some small talk from time to time.

About three-fourths in their trip, they crossed paths with the Delivery Corps heading to Tyr. The ten valkyrjas kindly offered them a place to rest on the platform they were tied to but Bryn politely refused, explaining that they weren’t tired in the slightest. 

Not wanting to leave their goodwill unanswered, Asterios spent one of the lower-grade Runic Chips on a fatigue-recovering spell, targeting the winged women, and offered to share some satiating food with them. They were quite confused about how he would do that with no luggage anywhere near him and Asterios sent Bryn back to Tyr to order some takeouts, surprising the members of the Delivery Corps greatly with his summoning gate.

Bryn brought some great food in a flash and they talked briefly while the women ate their fill, deeply thankful for their assistance. With renewed vigor and rejuvenated bodies, the working valkyrjas resumed their delivery and parted ways with Asterios and Bryn, promising to bring the word about the duo’s help to their superiors.

Eager to reach their destination since they were pretty close, Asterios and Bryn also headed out, raising their pace a bit. Less than three hours later, they spotted a shape in the distance, recognizing the mysterious floating object as an ARK. Bryn confirmed from afar that it was Brage and he could notice the clear difference in just a moment as his draconic eyes picked up more details.

The first thing that made the obvious distinction was the general feel of the ARK's structure and architecture. While the general layout and the external shape of the flying island remained more or less the same, everything that rose up from the base platform had its own style. While Tyr was dominated by sharp, spiky, angled architecture, Brage chose a more regular, rectangular fashion.

Everything was still made of the silver-gold mix of metal but Brage consisted of massive and tall blocks of different sizes, shapes, lengths, widths, and such. When they arrived closer to the sky port, it became clear that the streets and the ground level were made in a similar fashion, assuming square and rectangular patterns. Instead of curving around, up and down, the roads turned into stairs or slight ramps.

“It’s a very peculiar design,” Asterios commented as they landed on the pier.

“Each ARK has its own style if you can call it that,” Bryn replied with a quiet chuckle. “Many buildings here are actually libraries or storages with various artifacts and manuscripts, thus plenty of the visible public structures look somewhat important or even official. The rest are just stylized to match them.”

“I now wonder what styles dominate the other cities,” he mused.

“We may visit them one day if you will be interested in sightseeing at a later date, Master.” She showed a soft smile.

“That will certainly be helpful in collecting all the tokens.” Asterios smiled back at her and a fair blush tinged Bryn’s cheeks.

“In any way, let us regroup and head deeper into the ARK. I’m not exactly sure where my friend currently is but I can guess.” Bryn glanced around just as a crimson gate arose next to Asterios.

Miria, Selene, Tina, Grea, and Silvia all walked out of it and spread out a little. The panthergirl had a thoughtful expression, which quickly captured everyone’s attention. She also noticed them turning to look at her and Miria giggled shyly.

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“I was wondering about one thing after you met the valkyrjas carrying the delivery platform earlier. What do they do when… Ummm… They have to… You know… Take care of a thing… Or two…?” Miria fumbled with her words a little with a delicate blush.

The others had to think a bit harder to decipher what she wanted to convey and Grea was the fastest out of all of them. Her brows first rose in understanding, then a devilish grin took over her soft lips.

She stepped closer to the panthergirl, glancing between her and their winged companion. “It’s not like they have a lot of leeway while being bound to their cargo. We’ve seen how complex getting attached to it is so it’s pretty obvious that they can’t or would rather not release the locks and clasps mid-mission. That could definitely make the platform unstable.”

“Then how?” Miria knitted her brows together and adorably tilted her head to the side.

“Have you seen their outfits?” Grea asked, gesturing at Bryn’s waist with her eyes.

“I mean, yeah. They are quite similar to Bryn’s, just made a bit lighter, I think so that they can travel long distances more easily. The main difference is the lack of the capes attached to their belts,” the panthergirl replied. “And?”

“It’s really not that hard to guess.” The mischievous researcher snickered. “Since their hands are more or less free, all they can do is move one or both down there, wedge a finger under the material, pull it to the side, and…”

As Grea reenacted the movements in front of her with one hand, adding a quiet whistling noise while using the other one to signalize a falling motion, Miria finally realized the implications and her face turned as red as a tomato.

“Just like that? Right out in the open?” She glanced up at her and Asterios with an upturned, embarrassed gaze as her tail swished behind her butt.

“It’s not like there’s anyone else around except for the rest of the delivery squad, who are definitely used if not trained in such situations.” Grea snorted.

“But… What if there’s someone below…?”

“As you said, they are right out in the open, in the middle of nowhere, away from any civilization.” The demon lady shrugged. “Well, worst case scenario, some ugly monster is going to enjoy some golden nectar or chocolate muffin on its head.”

The other girls chuckled quietly while Asterios shook his head with a wry smile. Miria turned even redder and directed her questioning gaze at Bryn, looking for some clarification.

“Grea is correct. It might appear a bit shameful but it’s just an everyday thing for the Delivery Corps. Physiological needs can’t be ignored. That’s also part of the reason why there are no tail capes in their armor, to reduce the risk of things getting a tad… dirty,” their Valkyrie friend explained.

“That’s certainly an extremely interesting piece of trivia, but let’s focus on learning more about the matters at hand now,” Asterios said with a small smirk, brushing through Miria’s hair to help the embarrassed panthergirl calm down a bit after she had imagined things too deeply.

“Ehhhhhhhh, you are no fun.” Grea pouted. “What’s more fun than shit and giggles?”

Tina stood on her tiptoes and bonked her frivolous ex-professor on the head in Ast’s stead. “Getting to know the secrets of an unknown race from an unknown realm, I think?”

“You got a point there, shortie.” Grea snapped her fingers at her. “Onwards, then! Secrets await!”

They all chuckled once more as she marched away for a few steps before coming to a stop after realizing that she had no idea where to go. Bryn quickly caught up to her and they headed into the town, leaving the sky port area. 

Another detail that they noticed soon after getting to a more busy and lively sector of the ARK was the common apparel amongst the winged women on the streets and in the air. 

They could still spot some valkyrjas in durable armor flying or walking around but the majority of the population wore thin white robes which seemed to take the form of a single sheet of material neatly wrapped around their bodies. That offered some individualism in what parts of their skin the wearers wanted to cover and expose but everyone had that scholarly and wise look to them.

And, as expected, the attention Ast’s group was getting wasn’t small. Brage’s residents were clearly much more curious and inquisitive than the people of Tyr. Plenty of valkyrjas outright stopped to gaze at them and discuss the sight amongst themselves. They didn’t seem that uncomfortable about Asterios and the girls, which was definitely a good sign.

Bryn hastily led them through the geometric streets, leaving more detailed sightseeing for after they came in contact with her friend. They passed by many marvelous buildings and finally stopped in front of most likely the grandest piece of architecture in the entire ARK. The building with numerous square columns resembled a temple from Selene’s hometown. Still, it was clearly a grand archive of some sort, with plenty of women standing in front of it with various books and documents in their hands, not even noticing the arrival of the peculiar guests.

“Damn. It’s huge. And I rarely get the chance to say that.” Grea snickered to herself, shooting Asterios a sneaky glance. “I would love to go on a date with all the books in there. I’m getting all hot and bothered just thinking about them…”

“We might need to spend a few days here anyway so I’ll try to procure you permission to access most of the records,” Bryn replied with a kind smile. “For what we want to look for, though, it won’t be as easy. My friend is our best bet.”

“Let’s hope that she will be willing to help us, then,” Silvia said and they entered the building.

The grand library was as impressive on the inside as it was on the outside. The ceiling was so high that the winged ladies could comfortably fly around from chamber to chamber, hall to hall, passageway to passageway on many levels, without disturbing each other. 

Every archway had a fan of signs just above it meant to guide the knowledge seekers to their destination. Just the main lobby was as busy as a lively market square while lacking the characteristic noise. The visitors moved in almost pure silence, broken only by the flutter and whooshing of wings and occasional whispers between two people or small groups of scholars.

Bryn skilfully led their group through many corridors and rooms of various sizes. Grea basically salivated at the sight of so many unknown records, especially when they were passing shelves clearly filled with books on magic and similar topics. Asterios couldn’t hide his curiosity either, especially about any potential information on Summoning Magic that the valkyrjas could have.

They visited a few bigger halls and a bunch of smaller libraries while Bryn was on the lookout for her friend. She’d described her to everyone, of course, so the others did their best to point at any person somewhat matching the given image. They had to find a shorter Valkyrie with dark caramel hair woven into two thick braids running down the girl’s back, light green eyes, apparent freckles, and charming round glasses. The issue was, to them, it didn’t feel that unique to accurately guess the owner of those features.

“This place is so huge we will spend our entire lives searching the entirety of this.” Miria groaned quietly while throwing her arms into the air after about two hours of searching. “Don’t you have any means of contacting your friend, Bryn?”

Bryn smiled apologetically at the panthergirl looking at her pleadingly. “Unfortunately, I don’t. I apologize. Let’s just check a few more spots she usually shows up at and we can take a break before moving to wait in front of her house.”

“It’s alright. There’s nothing to apologize for. It’s not like everyone can talk telepathically like we—”

“A god?!”

A loud squeal interrupted Asterios and they all looked toward the source. The perfect match of the description they had received stood on the far end of the library segment they were in, holding a massive book to her chest. The girl quickly realized her actions and smacked her mouth shut as literally everyone turned to her.

She rushed forward and sprinted to Asterios and the others, arriving by their side in a flash. The short woman grabbed her much taller friend’s wrist and pushed herself into Bryn while looking up with eyes wide as saucers.

“Where did you find him?!” she asked in a hushed whisper but with a quite mighty tone.

“Him?” Bryn furrowed her brows. “Do you know about men?”

“SHHHHHHHHHH!” The girl shushed her down frantically while looking around like a spooked animal. “Come with me!”

Without waiting for a reply, the small woman dragged Bryn away as fast as she could. Bryn didn’t resist as they hastily flew out of the room together, nodding at Asterios and the others to follow them. 

After quite a few hard turns and stairs leading further down, the caramel-haired girl sped into some common-looking chamber and shut the door moments after the last person followed. She started jumping around the cozy workshop while activating numerous formations on every wall, out of which Asterios recognized at least a few that blocked any sounds from escaping the inside of the barrier.

Finishing with her preparations, she stopped in the middle of the room, trying to catch her breath.

“So… Are you aware of the true origins of our race?”

 

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