The mood was gloomy around the campfire. The earlier event with Joseph and the centipede was enough to make them lose their appetites.
Unable to endure this suffocating atmosphere, Oscar tried to rally everyone by changing the topic momentarily. "How do we want to split the spoils we gathered?"
Continuing Oscar's momentum, Celestina said, "We should divide the four heal elixirs amongst you. I don't need it."
"As for the cores, we can divide that five ways. They've hunted quite a lot." Philip suggested. "The armament should go to the princess since she defeated its wielder."
Everyone nodded in agreement except Celestina, who held the spear with little interest. She had no use for this spear, and neither did the others. The best she could do was sell it.
The previous silence continued for a while before Oscar tossed more wood into the flames.
"We might be in danger. There is no telling who might have been alerted to Joseph's group's death. We might be hunted by whoever these people are." Oscar said gravely. "I read about the Black Heart Centipedes. The mother can see what her children see. It can certainly relay the information to the person who ordered Joseph."
The camp returned to silence. Only the crackling of the fires was audible.
"Princess, do you have a protector nearby?" Phillip addressed Celestina respectfully.
"A protector?" Oscar and the others brightened up. If the princess had a protector, they wouldn't need to worry about this unknown enemy. They could focus on the Thousand Serpent.
But against their hopes, Celestina dropped her head in embarrassment. "I don't have a protector. Usually, a protector would be alerted when I go out on missions, but since this is a secret one off the books, no one is here. Not to mention I sneaked away from the one at the Pavilion."
It was an oversight on her part. She was so excited about this mission that she did not want the protector to watch over her. If they were in grave danger, it might as well be her fault.
"I do have this." Celestina took out a sky-blue coin with gold engravings of a dragon stretching out its wings. "If I break this coin, my family would be alerted to my position and send someone out. But I don't know how long it will take. It would be easier if they placed a tracking spell on me, but I vehemently argued against that."
"Would the City Lord not be alerted? If the royal family knows, they could contact the City Lord." George asked.
"That's no good. The City Lord is only a Knight Exalt, and they would have to wait for the next set of winds to start up. Even though Knight Exalts can fly through the air, the islands put pressure to stop them from flying in between. Only Marshal Exalts can bear the pressure." Phillip knew about Edin's eccentric behaviors from his family.
"The winds start every six days. A forward draft from the first island and a backdraft from the last island. Since the winds started on the first island today, the closest backdraft winds we can ride backward is on the seventh island." Oscar lamented.
The Floating Islands of Edin had two streams of wind, one forward and one backward. The forward winds started from the first island to link to the second island for an hour. Then the next day, the winds linked the second to the third.
Similar behavior was seen in the backdraft. Oscar and the others would have to wait five days for the backdraft to make its way to them on the second island.
But the danger lurked in this unknown party. If they were on the third or fourth island, they could ride the winds to Oscar's group before they could make their escape.
"So our backs are against the wall. Either we stay and wait for this enemy to come for us, or we push onward and complete our mission." Emily asked.
If it were just the Thousand Serpent, then Oscar would have continued since it was what they signed up for. But with this unknown element added in, the circumstances have changed.
CRACK
Celestina broke the blue coin. A wisp of Ein scattered like smoke out of it.
"With any luck, a Marshal Exalt will come to our aid. But that will take a few days. Let's hurry to the edge and wait for the winds tomorrow."
"The princess can be quite stubborn." Phillip sighed at her highness's behavior. "We have no idea of the enemy's power."
Stolen novel; please report.
"Since we're waiting a few days, we might as well push onward." Celestina spoke clearly, her conviction resounding in everyone's heads. "We agreed to come here to help you, Oscar, and we're getting good compensation. A mission isn't always clear-cut. Let's finish this."
Oscar locked eyes with Celestina and got up to his feet. He stretched his back and picked up his buckler.
"I agree. Let's focus on the mission." Oscar declared to his group.
The rest got up with their things and killed the fires. They pushed onward until the edge of the second island. In the distance was a large island full of rocky terrain, ravines, cliffs, flat rocky hills, and barely any greenery. It was the third island.
"The winds will blow in the afternoon. Let's get a good night's rest."
…….
The next afternoon, Oscar and the rest were standing near the edge, waiting for the winds to begin. In their hands were the windstriders they purchased in Windroc city.
"Here it comes. Be careful when we land. The third island contains Greater Apprentice Exalt and a small number of Elite Exalt Beasts." Celestina, back in her disguise, yelled out to the rest. Her hair was blowing forward as the winds rapidly formed.
They leaped off the edge and rode their windstriders across the great divide between islands. Each wore somber expressions, knowing the grave danger that lay ahead.
Oscar landed on the third island with heavy steps and scanned the surroundings with great scrutiny.
The ground and rocks were a brown-white color, and the thorn bushes and small shriveled shrubs were a dull yellow. The island itself was stuffy, like a dry sauna.
Oscar felt like his lungs were being dried.
"The third island is a system of rocky hills, cliffs, caverns, and ravines. We have to be careful of any ambushes by the Exalt Beasts." Celestina graciously accepted a cup of water from Emily and downed it in one gulp.
"According to the records, the Thousand Serpent sleeps during the day. As one of the few Elite Exalts on this island, it terrifies the other beasts when it goes out." Oscar found nothing out of the ordinary outside and was relieved. "It makes its home in caverns."
"George and I can look around for the tracks. Which way are the caverns?" Emily said. Her eyes shone for the opportunity to contribute.
She and George were good hunters and knew how to follow tracks better than the others. The previous times when she stood by the sidelines and could not fight well against the enemy made her ache for a chance.
"Hang on." Celestina pulled out a map they acquired in Windroc city. "The wide system of caverns are this way."
With their direction pointed out, the group moved carefully through the craggy environment. Occasionally, they would run into a Greater Apprentice Exalt Beast, but their group had no issue in dispatching them.
All manners of beasts like the Stone-beaked Avisers and Boultoises were either sent scurrying away or killed and harvested.
"Wait!" Emily stopped the group. "Here are some tracks. It's strange, but it resembles the slithering of a snake."
"How far are we from the caves?" George also looked carefully at the tracks. "These tracks are old, probably from last night."
"We should be close to them. Across those small hills." Celestina checked the map again.
This place was a winding maze of crevices and openings surrounded by rocks.
"Let's follow these tracks. That serpent should be resting." Emily and George led the group, stopping every now and then to reassess the tracks. They made smooth progress until they finally reached a cavern.
Though rather than a cavern, it was more a crevice that led somewhere.
Oscar and the others sneaked through the crevice, walking down a narrow path until they reached a large open area. The rocky walls of this area reached far up, and the view of the sky and two suns was on full display.
"It should be in there." Emily pointed to a small hole in the walls. It was only as tall as Oscar and half his arm span. "I don't think going in there is a good idea. We would be in single file and unable to fight as a group."
Oscar pondered for a moment and asked George, "Can you shoot a powerful arrow straight inside? This is a good place to fight it. Everyone, let's be ready for anything. It may be the Thousand Serpent, or it may not be."
George drew back his bow anima, condensing an arrow of Ein. As he did, the rest brandished their weapons to be ready.
'Airstream'
The powerful arrow shot out with incredible speed, bolstered by the concentrated wind of his spell. It disappeared into the darkness of the small cavern.
THUD
They heard it crashing into something hard, most likely the cavern walls. But soon after, a different ear-piercing sound rattled their heads.
Hisssssssss
"Here it comes!" Phillip shouted.
Out of the darkness of the cavern, a large gray serpent broke out, breaking off some rocks from its surroundings. It had murky yellow eyes and three large fangs. Two fangs extended out from its upper lip and the last protruded from the lower lip.
The one fang from below looked like a small horn when the snake had its mouth closed.
Everyone tensed up, seeing this great serpent. It was exactly as described, the Thousand Serpent.
The Thousand Serpent hissed and opened its mouth. Its jaw seemed to unhinge as it opened up incredibly wide as if half its body was its mouth. The large tongue wasn't a normal tongue but a small snake that hissed.
The large fangs dripped down a bright green liquid that bubbled and smoked up when it hit the rocks below.
"It's a Lower Elite Exalt! Be careful." Celestina warned as her silver Ein flared up like crazy in an attempt to deter the Thousand Serpent back.
However, as one of the top beasts on this island, the Thousand Serpent held great pride in itself. It regarded the little mice around it with great hatred and arrogance. Though, it felt like this silver mouse before it had some power.
"I'll grab its attention. Take advantage of the openings I'll make."
Her silver Ein focused and formed a large shape. Oscar looked on in awe as the Ein manifested into a creature.
It had shiny, clean, brilliant silver scales. Its four claws looked as if they could trample and tear apart anything. As it formed, it unfurled with great wings that shined well under the two suns.
The head was like a lizard with two horns and teeth like an array of knives. Its long neck and tail were like the trunks of trees.
The mere presence of this creature made even Phillip forget to breathe.
"Amazing." Oscar murmured.
The Anima of Celestina Lovre Dragnar, the princess of the Brilliant Drake Empire–the great silver dragon looked imposing and dignified as it stared at the Thousand Serpent like a bug.
It wasn't as big as the serpent but was three times as big as Celestina.
"Now then. Follow my lead." Celestina smiled brightly and confidently as her dragon anima roared.