Chapter 138: book 3 chapter 39

“So, it's finally time.” Hecatolite stood beside Amethyst as she watched the crew move the final sacks of cargo onto the ship. “Last chance to join them.” she said, nudging her sister.

Amethyst shook her head, “Weren’t you the one who wanted to walk home?” she asked, causing Hecatolite to smile.

“Yea but saying it and doing it are two different things.” Hecatolite let out a small huff as her tail sagged into the sand. “It’s a long walk, and a lot can happen. Are you sure you want to be away from home that long?” Hecatolite cocked an eyebrow as she looked up at Amethyst.

“It's the whole world.” Amethyst said solemnly, “and I am sure a lot will happen. But… I think it will be good for us.”

“What about your cute little girlfriend? I mean I can still talk to Saffron but poor little kitty cat…”

Amethyst let out a loud squeal as she turned to face her sister, “She isn’t my…” she stopped when she saw Hecatolite’s smile. Her sharp teeth on full display as her eyes fixed on the horizon, towards home. Amethyst shoulders slumped as she turned to look out to sea as well, “I… it will be hard. To be away from everyone for so long, I already miss everyone, and we have barely even started…”

She could feel Hecatolite take her hand, “But it’s not like we will be gone forever. Together, we will make it home.” She said weakly as Hecatolite gave her hand a reassuring squeeze.

“Together.” Hecatolite repeated, “Well a grand adventure awaits, and when we get back, we will feast!”

Amethyst laughed, “For once dad won’t have the best stories.” She didn’t know why she was smiling, the painful throb in her chest definitely didn’t feel happy; but something still compelled her to grin alongside Hecatolite as they watched as Wolf and Saris made their way towards the two of them.

Wolf looked strange to Amethyst, something about the man felt… different. Not his appearance but he stood taller, his shoulders square as he escorted Saris across the sand. 

“Ahoy captain!” Hecatolite called out cheerfully, giving Wolf a mock salute that caused Saris to giggle. “How are preparations for departure?” 

Wolf for his credit didn’t miss a beat, returning her mocking salute with one of his own. “Ahoy, just lashing down the last of the cargo. We will be out of your hair within the hour.” He said with a nod.

“And you got the letter I gave you, right?” she asked, her tail betraying her emotions as it lashed behind her. 

Wolf nodded as Amethyst gave her sister a quizzical look. “I got it safe and sound locked away in my cabin.” 

Amethyst had given Wolf a bunch of letters and “cargo” to transport home, not that it was necessary, but Hecatolite insisted that if their ship got stopped, they needed something to show for it. After getting permission from her mother, she had even used their family seal on several of them, putting “sensitive” information in a few letters in case they got captured. As to what that information was… well their mom had sent her very specific instructions as to what to write, though Amethyst was sure it was some sort of code… or not. Whatever it was, she was positive it was fake.

That being said, she couldn’t recall Hecatolite giving Wolf anything like a letter. The other night under the watchful eyes of Eryl and Hecatolite, they had summoned a terminal to contact their family and give them an update which is when Amethyst, with the help of Himari, had written the bundle of letters Wolf now carried. She was sure Hecatolite hadn’t contributed anything to the pile, even after her look out duty was done, they just went to Wolf and handed them over. Along with a decent sum of gold Amethyst had in her storage, to act as a down payment and help them actually make the journey to Crown.

“Good!” Hecatolite nodded before turning to Saris, her tail thrashing harder as she bound up to the woman, “Ohh it looks so good on you! He did such a good job picking one out.” She beamed as, with amazing care, she took Saris’s hand and held it up. 

On her finger sat a simple gold band encrusted with a shimmering green stone that matched Wolf’s eyes. Something Saris had been insistent on when picking out the rings, apparently it was a custom where she was from to get rings that match one’s lover's eyes, a small reminder she had called it. 

But it wasn’t the ring that caught Amethyst’s eyes, it was the silver bangle hanging from her wrist, “Hecatolite,” Amethyst hissed as she looked around conspiratorially, “Eryl will be very angry if she sees that.” 

“What are you talking about, I found it like that, right Wolf?” Hecatolite turned to the man who nodded.

“Yep, saw her take it off Jack’s arm just like that.” He said, causing Amethyst to roll her eyes.

There was no way Hecatolite just found the intricately carved bracelet, the clear enchantment rings packed around it making that point very clear as it physically vibrated a little. Hecatolite tapped the bracelet with her finger causing it to stop as Saris smiled.

“He was so shy when he gave it to me too, stammering like a young boy. Then again, at least he didn’t have Rigor deliver it.” Saris smirked at Wolf causing the man to blush as he looked away, only causing her smirk to grow into a full-blown smile as he did. 

Hecatolite turned her head to face Wolf, “Can’t say I blame him. A smile like that could warm even the dead.” Saris blushed this time as Hecatolite laughed.

Wolf broke the awkward moment with a cough, “Well then, I guess it's time.” He said with a nod.

 Both the girls fell silent as they watched Wolf take Saris’s hand, “This isn’t goodbye.” Saris said with a slight smile.

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“Of course not.” Hecatolite nodded, “You take care of him, he’s a bit weird but in a good way.” Hecatolite said, turning to Wolf. “And you,” she leaned back, lifting herself on her tail to look the man in the eyes, “Wolf, you be sure to take extra care while getting home. Saris making it safely to Crown is your top priority. Understand?”

Wolf took a deep breath as he met Hecatolite’s eyes, the man looking surprisingly relaxed to Amethyst as she watched the interaction. “You don’t have to tell me that, Hecatolite. I’ll even try to get your ship there in one piece.” 

Hecatolite smiled as she took his hand in a firm handshake. The two of them parted moments later as Amethyst stepped forward to wave at the two as they left.

“Last chance.” Hecatolite said and Amethyst actually considered it.

Their current path would take them over a year to get home, a year walking across the entire world while war raged, though potentially hostile lands and unknown dangers. If they took the ship, they would be home before winter, could see their family and spend their time in safety. Spend the summer sailing the seas and be back in time to spend the holidays in warmth with loved ones. Be present for the solstice, all the important holidays… “We made up our mind. To see the world, travel exotic lands and meet interesting people.”

Amethyst wanted desperately to say she was certain of her decision, that traveling the world would get her to her goal… but she couldn’t. She was nervous that nothing would change while they traveled, but she knew if she got on the ship nothing would change. She would go back to living in her family’s shadow, always being protected by her sister and her family. It had become painfully clear in such a short time just how much she relied on Hecatolite, and returning home quickly would not help that. She needed to become stronger, become more confident, learn more about the world as a whole so someday, eventually she could stand beside her sister, not behind her. 

I am Amethyst Lapidary, the Singularity, the lucidity of Bedlam. One of the Twins of Twilight and I will overcome this world. and someday I will live up to that, just wait, Hecatolite. I will catch up to you, this is just the first step. Amethyst took Hecatolite’s offered hand, “Besides, what’s a little bit of time to a Deity?”

Hecatolite laughed, “Well then, let's get going. I think Mr. Face toucher is bothering Eryl again.” She turned pulling her sister with her, “Are you sure I can’t eat his hands? just one?”

Amethyst laughed as Hecatolite pulled her along, “Maybe wait a little bit until you start eating people’s hands.”

“That's not a no.” Hecatolite’s smile grew as she broke into a sprint through the empty town.

 

Astari tapped his finger on his leg as he impatiently waited for the two “sisters” to finish with their goodbyes. Annoyance was clear on his face as glanced at Eryl who stood beside the human woman who he hadn’t bothered to learn the name of.

He ground his teeth as he cursed in his mind. Every day for the last week he extended an invitation to Eryl and every time she refused him, now finally the humans were leaving and here he was being forced to wait for the two girls as they ran around doing gods know what. Him, the Elder of this village, being forced to wait on the whims of children! 

He let out a low grumble, looking up to the sun as it lazily made its way up into the sky. It was nearly noon, and they were still just waiting for those two girls. It wasn't so much that he was forced to wait, though that did not help his mood; what really annoyed him was the incompetence of those around him.

For a week his men have been trying to gather any information on Eryl they could only to find that even the captain of the ship, Wolf, knew very little about her. Only having praise for her was obvious, she was a high elf after all, but they couldn’t even identify her magical abilities outside of the single voice enchantment she used to issue orders. How can someone travel across the sea with someone and know so little about them? 

The crew seemed much more knowledgeable about the other two girls, his information making Astari reevaluate the two girls he was now waiting for. Apparently Eryl had been teaching the two of them whatever high powered suppression she used given the stories from the man; most notably was the space mage. Astari had been surprised to find out the dark haired sister was apparently a very well versed mage able to teleport unbelievable distances with relative ease; a fact supported by her disappearing during the scuffle a few days ago with the crew. 

And there was the other one, the creature. She had a weapon he wished to see yet somehow even his best men had been unable to get close to the girl, all the reports stating the girl would just vanish if they took their eyes off of her for a moment. The one time someone managed to get close to her they couldn’t identify any storage items on the girl outside of an old, ragged bag that the girl apparently never let out of sight. That and the fact she seemed to cling to Eryl, making it impossible for Astari to approach the elven woman without the creature's interference, was high on his list of annoyances currently.

The captain had claimed the two of them to be of some noble family from the Empire of Crown, not that Astari paid much mind to that. Even he had heard of the Lapidary family, world renowned enchanters headed by a dragon slayer; it was a powerful name that would demand respect in any civilized nation. A family watched by anyone of power worldwide, meaning anyone would know the Lapidary’s are a “human” family, sure there was a very slim chance the two girls were somehow tied to the family; humans are known for adopting stray creatures as “servants”. But he doubted the strange creatures were part of the family. Even more so now that he knew the two girls were of the same race, one that was definitely not human; if the Lapidary family really wished to make contact with his people, they should at least have the decency to arrive in person. 

Hell, Astari might have even greeted them if they had. They were a powerful family of mages, for humans that is, they could have been useful allies if only for the items they could create. But these two creatures that claimed to be part of that heritage…

Then again here he was, Astari the Elder, waiting on some human noble’s potential pets. He clicked his tongue again. It’s fine. They have no reason to refuse my hospitality any longer. And I can even get that “thing” away from Eryl once we get back to the village proper.

He couldn’t help but grin as he saw the two running up the street, “I see your companions have returned…” was… was that girl not slowing down….

With a thud Eryl caught Hecatolite who had jumped… it jumped at me? No, clearly it was jumping into Eryl’s arms... Astari thought as he watched the white creature smile innocently up at the tall elven woman as her sister spoke frantically to her between labored breaths. 

For a moment it did look like the creature was lunging at him, arms held out with its mouth hanging open… it had to be his imagination, he didn’t feel any hostility from the creature as it flew through the air. And he was standing behind Eryl when it lunged, it was clear the creature was jumping at Eryl… right?

He couldn’t help but wonder as he felt a strange cold sweat forming around his collar, his body shivering as he rationalized it in his mind. And though Astari himself didn’t notice it, as he took a shaky step; in that moment as the glimmering red eyes bore into him, the gaping maw lined with razor sharp teeth, a small part deep inside of him had been… afraid. A deep primitive fear he couldn’t even begin to understand, his body knew that had not been the playful greeting he passed it off as, his very soul shook as he nearly died, and it knew there was nothing he could have done to stop it.

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