Mistaken for a Returnee

Aldritch caught up to Sophia in no time but made sure to stay some distance away to avoid laying undue stress on the creature.

While she was less wary of him with his mana suppressed, he knew it was a temporary fix at best. His presence still made her uncomfortable and from the way she was eyeing him, he knew if he got too close, she'd take a swipe at him.

He'd never thought squids were cute before, but Sophia was growing on him.

"You only find it cute because she reminds you of a cat."

"Is that why?" He took another look at Sophia's behavior. She was watching him while pretending not to. Looked like she didn't care that he was there, but would attack if he got too close. Her tentacles swayed back and forth, curling and uncurling in time with her emotions…

"Huh. She really is like a cat."

"Told you. You've always liked cats- though I can't possibly imagine why."

"Perhaps they remind me of you, my Lord?"

"... I get the feeling you're manipulating me… But that's fine, compliment accepted. I am the cutest thing in the galaxy, after all."

Aldritch laughed and shook his head.

Continuing to watch Sophia, he found the way she moved through the air to be rather fascinating.

Its body moved up and down, almost as if she was using a large fin to propel herself forward- like a dolphin or a whale. However, the rest of her body bobbing up and down, her center of gravity somehow didn't shift an inch.

He guessed it had to do with her unusual method of movement: the capsule keeping her center of gravity stable as it pulled her along a predetermined path.

If that was the case, was the swimming motions a conscious decision of Sophia, or were they done out of habit?

Squids, even giant ones like Sophia, had instincts ingrained within them from birth. They moved a certain way, swam a certain way, and even had a specific method of fighting.

Compared to the millions of years of evolutionary memory, the act of flying is something that happened fairly recently- only within the last millennium or so.

And taking into account the Kraken's legendary longevity, it was possible Sophia was only the second or third generation able to leave the ocean for the skies.

"Remember the pufferfish we saw the other day? It was much larger than the pufferfish I remember and could also fly through the sky."

"Yes, I remember… That makes me wonder: what did that pufferfish use to inflate its body? A normal pufferfish would use water, but that one wasn't bound to the water like the rest. Did it use oxygen? Hydrogen? Perhaps it could create its own gas that'd allow it to float upon the air?"

"Wouldn't it be easier to fly like the squid?"

"Easier, yes. But nature doesn't always do things the easy way- especially when it concerns mutations. Their primary concern would be survivability, then efficiency, comfort would- theoretically- come after that."

"... Fair point." Oakairo sighed. "I wonder if any aquatic predators also evolved to fly; sharks, whales, fish… imagine the chaos if a dolphin learned to fly. Oh! Or a massive jellyfish colony." At the thought of ten thousand jellyfish floating through the sky, Oakairo couldn't hold back a sound of disgust.

One of his siblings swore jellyfish were delicious. He'd go on and on about the endless ways you could prepare a jellyfish for eating; stews, soups, pot pies, the tentacles were supposedly a great noodle topping if you fried them.

But no matter how much his sibling tried to cajole him, Oakairo could only ever see the brainless creatures as floating snotbags.

"Do you think she feels any discomfort from that?" Aldritch asked, his eyes tracing the line of her tentacles. He'd found the reason the sun was reflecting off her tentacles- ice crystals had formed along the parts of her body not protected by the capsule, which caused the reflections he'd seen earlier.

"If it does, it doesn't hurt much. Krakens normally live in the darkest depths of the ocean, away from the sun and many other forms of heat… Come to think of it, I faintly recall a Kraken variant that lived beneath the ice caps of the northern ocean." Oakairo tried to remember the name of that particular variant.

He'd tried some of their meat once upon a time. It was a surprisingly delicate taste for such a robust creature and left him feeling like he'd swallowed something so cold it burned his tongue.

"Of course, I'm not entirely sure those things were actually Kraken. They were more like Kraken people, since they'd already developed a rudimentary language of their own and could project their thoughts directly into your mind… Come to think of it, I stopped hearing about them around the same time that pompous Beion and his crusaders started the Mind-Eater witch hunts. I really hope he didn't drive them to extinction. They were quite tasty."

Aldritch quickly rotated his body to the left, spinning away from a densely packed cloud formation so he could maintain his visibility in the sky.

His sightlines extended for miles in every direction, but while he was fairly confident there was nothing in the air besides him and Sophia, he couldn't be certain about the clouds. What if there were animals who'd evolved to sit and wait inside the cloud layer?

He could think of several types of ambush predator who'd thrive with a nest in the sky- but Sophia didn't bother, and barreled through the clouds at full speed.

Apparently, he was the only one concerned about hidden predators.

How disappointing.

-------------------------------

While everyone else was watching the sky and the passing clouds, Sulika was watching Aldritch.

She'd recognized his wings immediately- after all, she'd seen the real things only a few nights prior. And logically, she knew clerics could temporarily borrow certain aspects of their God's power… Knowing it and seeing it happen evoked two entirely different feelings.

Evoking the form of a God was something that only happened in fairy tales and old legends- at least, as far as she could recall.

She glanced over at Ralocan, then at Jarome. Both men were staring out the window at Aldritch, seemingly transfixed by the sight of 'his' wings.

And yeah, judging by the way they were acting, they'd never heard of someone pulling a stunt like this either.

What did she remember of the old stories?

Wasn't there something about a saint borrowing the hand of a God to slay an ancient evil?

Hmm… She'd have to look into it once they returned home. There might be- they suddenly emerged from the final layer of clouds and could see the island for the first time… What they saw couldn't really be called an island anymore.

It was a ruin, plain and simple.

When it was whole, the island was probably three or four times the size of Azuris. But now, broken as it was, the only piece they could likely use was also its largest.

It alone would possess enough bedrock to survive the reclamation process, since the smaller pieces would collapse under their own weight the moment they left the water.

But looking at the island from above, she wasn't sure if it was worth the effort or resources to reclaim it anymore.

A huge ravine sliced the island's largest piece almost completely in half, and was now partially filled with water.

They were lucky it appeared to be relatively shallow, or it really would have been a lost cause.

Even more good news; it seems scattered wildfires had overtaken much of the land in the last few days, purging the miasma tainted flora and fauna from the island- which left only the burned-out husk of a destroyed city and the ruptured, ash covered landscape.

"Gods…" Ralocan muttered, breaking the horrified silence that filled the compartment.

"Sulika," Max said in a low voice, so only she and Faeyra could hear. "When we return to Azuris, I need you to convince Aldritch to come to the guild so we can evaluate him." He finished, staring down at the island with a disbelieving look in his eyes.

Most of the people present didn't know the whole story. How could they? They weren't there when Garr was explaining how Aldritch unleashed his personal brand of hell on the demon occupiers.

But Max, Sulika, and Faeyra were, and they did know the whole story.

They knew the island's current state was almost entirely due to Aldritch's involvement… And that scared Max, more than he'd ever admit- even to himself.

This kind of destruction wasn't something a person could cause on their own, it just wasn't.

"I can ask him to head to the guild. But that doesn't mean he'll go." Sulika replied, laughing nervously to soothe herself.

The sight of the island had shaken her as well. Not too long ago, she struggled to fight off a few cultists and she was utterly exhausted the next day.

Yet Aldritch had done this in the same length of time and came back the next day like nothing had happened- like he'd just gone for an early morning jog and enjoyed watching the sunrise… Sulika's heartbeat sped up.

Stolen story; please report.

Could he show her how to acquire this level of power?

Would he teach her his ways if she asked?

"Don't give me that, Sulika." Max hissed under his breath. "You may not control him, but he does listen to you. If you ask him to go, he'll go."

Sulika blinked at Max two times before responding. "I don't know what kind of relationship you think we have, but you're wrong. Yes, he does listen to my suggestions. But not to the extent you're implying."

Now it was Max's turn to blink at Sulika in surprise… "I assumed you were dating. Was that wrong?"

"Yes! Very Wrong!" Sulika shouted. Her voice thundered inside the compartment, surprising everyone- especially herself.

Max's ears folded back in a show of regret, then he looked to Faeyra- "Nope. I'm not dating him either." Faeyra responded, conveying her unspoken thoughts with a look and a slight shaking of her head.

"I see." Max replied, moving only his lips and not projecting his voice at all. "Then I apologize for jumping to conclusions. I assumed since you were forming a guild with someone you'd only known for a few days; you were in some kind of 'whirlwind romance' situation." He explained.

Max looked properly embarrassed with the situation, a sight none of the hunters had ever seen before.

"The captain's not looking for a whirlwind anymore… But I imagine she might help the giant make a little bedrock." Oladi muttered.

She was trying to hide her grin behind the book she'd been reading, but Sulika saw it, and she sent the Druid a look of unfiltered annoyance.

Oladi's grin grew into a full-blown smile, and she stepped behind Zarud and Derrik, using their bodies to shield her from Sulika's piercing stare.

"Hold on everyone!"

Sulika rolled her eyes and turned away from the three of them- Faeyra wrapped her arms around Sulika's shoulders and pulled her into a tight embrace, causing Sulika's brain to freeze at the unexpected contact.

However, before anyone could react to the sight of Faeyra hugging Sulika, Sophia's body hit the water. A small, fifty-foot tidal wave spread to every direction- part of it even crashed into the island, destroying and pulling down a few rundown buildings along the southern coast.

The Kraken's body shook violently for eleven seconds before finally settling down and resuming a smooth forward motion.

As Sophia swam up the southern coast, Max stood up from his seat and moved to the door without a word- The moment Sophia hit the beach, he released the wards and popped open the door.

"Shake it off and get a move on, everyone. Sophia can't stay here long-"

There was a loud thud behind Max as Aldritch landed a dozen feet away; the impact sending dozens of pounds of sand flying in every direction.

Some even made it through the compartment door.

"My apologies." Aldritch said before dismissing Oakairo's wings.

After a few seconds the hunters snapped into action and began filing out of the compartment at the behest of Max.

Derrik was the first to launch himself off the Kraken's back; his short legs and bulky arms flailed as he fell towards the sand.

He landed with all the grace of a miniature donkey.

The weight of his body caused his boots to sink through the loose sand almost without resistance, which was unfortunate, since he'd tried to mitigate the damage of falling by tucking his head down and rolling at the moment of impact… The result was the dwarf losing his footing and falling onto his beard in the sand.

Aldritch hurried to Derrik's side but stopped just before reaching him. "Thank the Gods above and the Lords below for land…sweet, sand-covered, land." Derrik cried into his beard, his arms working to grab as much sand as he could pull it towards him.

"Ah." Aldritch chuckled; he'd forgotten Derrik's fear of heights.

Grabbing the much smaller man by his belt, Aldritch pulled Derrik out of the sand and sat him on his feet with his back to the Kraken.

"Is he okay?" Sulika yelled from the compartment doorway.

"Yes." Aldritch replied before patting the Dwarf on the shoulder and guiding him a short distance away.

"Gorhem, nor-Kharrn. (Thanks, kinsmen.)" Derrik muttered.

It took him a few seconds to get his emotions under control and straighten himself up. But thanks to the distance he and Aldritch had walked from Sophia, that was all the time he had before the next person leapt from the Kraken's back.

As soon as Captain Reszu hit the sand, she quickly rolled out of the way so the next hunter could land- though Zarud landed almost as gracelessly as Derrik had, at least his height allowed him to catch himself before he left a faceprint in the sand.

Which was a good thing for Zarud; as a half orc with long teeth, it was almost impossible to fully close his mouth.

Face planting would've been much more uncomfortable for Zarud than it had been for Derrik, whose magnificent beard kept most of the sand away from his mouth.

Faeyra and Oladi were the next duo to leap from Sophia's back. And unlike their Dwarven and Orcish friends, the elf ladies leapt like a pair of acrobats: Oladi crossing a distance of almost fifteen feet before she started to lose height, while Faeyra did the same for eleven feet.

Both women landed without stumbling and easily transitioned from landing to walking without so much as a break in their stride.

Aldritch watched this with an interested eye and wondered about the difference between the four.

Sure, it was a widely known idea that Elves were often more graceful than other races. But that wasn't always true… "Wisdom of the Great Sage." He glanced at the members of his guild, choosing to focus only on the system information and ignore the medical screen for the time being.

He focused on Derrik first.

A second later, after memorizing Derrick's ability scores, he switched his focus to Oladi.

"Oladi's dexterity is five points higher than Derrik's. If I'm reading this correctly, then each point causes a much larger change in athletic ability than I first assumed… Strange. I didn't think the Thaniea system was capable of such drastic leaps in ability. But I guess I underestimated it. I need to run a few experiments once we return to Auris and see how each score reflects on the body."

As more and more hunters leapt from Sophia's back, the members of Mag Ársa, plus Max, formed one group around Aldritch while captain Reszu beckoned the third scouting team over to form a second group around her.

This pattern continued until the compartment was emptied and every hunter was ankle deep in light brown sand-

Wasting no time once the hunters were safely ashore, Sophia flipped her body and quickly disappeared beneath the waves; her large body soundlessly slipping away with practiced ease.

"Where's she going? Is she going to come back for us, or…" Faeyra asked while staring after Sophia's retreating back.

"She's going to hide." Oladi replied while shaking sand from her robe.

She hated sand; you couldn't look at the stuff without it getting everywhere.

"Hide from what?" Aldritch asked.

"Predators, most likely. The ocean is brimming with mutated wildlife who'd love to make a meal out of a Kraken her size." Oladi explained- realizing what she'd said, Oladi looked up to see Aldritch staring down at her with an intrigued look in his eyes.

"Yes?" He said, prodding for her to continue.

"Sorry, um… The main reason we mainly use flying creatures to travel from one island to the other is due to how dangerous the ocean has become over the last few centuries.

There are these creatures, most simply classify them as 'Sea Beasts', that grew to humongous proportions after the miasma began mutating them.

Now, they rule the ocean, and the smart people stay as far away from it as we can." Oladi explained before shooting Sulika a concerned glance.

"Interesting." Aldritch muttered and looked out over the ocean. A part of him wondered if he dove into the water and made some noise, would one of these 'Sea Beasts' come to investigate? "And these creatures are larger than Sophia?"

"Some are smaller, most are far larger." Max replied. "Occasionally we also see Kaiju class beasts…" His body shivered slightly at a memory. "We usually redirect the island's flight path to avoid passing over one of those."

"Sounds like you've seen one." Aldritch said while looking down at him. "I'm fascinated by the existence of such creatures, but I'm curious to know what you mean by 'Kaiju class.'"

"It means," Max said with a smile on his face. He patted Aldritch on the side as he walked past him, towards the scouting team. "If you ever find yourself looking at a mountain and it starts to move- you're about to come face to face with a very angry, and likely hungry, beast who won't care how sparkly your wings are."

"Sounds incredible." Aldritch muttered with a smile across his face.

"Sounds like dinner." Oakairo agreed.