Arrival at Mare

Even with the Blue Sky's engines running at maximum capacity, it took them almost two weeks to reach Mare. It didn't help that they needed to make a few stops to gather necessary supplies.

None of which could be doing any wonders for Fia's peace of mind, but Theo couldn't find many opportunities to talk to them. Not when the whole crew was busy with preparations. Cay went into overdrive brewing potions, enlisting Theo and the others to help stir. Meanwhile Nevy and Kress had dragged out a massive cannon from the storage and puttered around on the deck mounting it to the cabin roof and servicing its parts.

The few times Theo did see Fia, they seemed as preoccupied as everyone else. In particular, they'd spend hours sparring with Ryllis and even Zenith. And when they weren't, strangely enough Theo often encountered them together with Ryan.

Theo had no idea when those two had gotten so friendly, but he figured he had more important things to do than wonder why. At least Fia seemed gung-ho and ready to fight, so Theo needed to do his part too.

As they headed north, the air grew colder and the cracked earth of the wasteland turned hard and rocky, lined with rugged mountain ranges. It was similar to the area around Mount Neym, but harsher and more unwelcoming. Icy gales buffetted the Blue Sky at all hours, forcing the crew to tie themselves to their beds if they wanted to sleep at night.

Eventually they left land altogether and spent several days flying over open sea. Theo should've been more excited about his first glimpse of the Tielan ocean, but the somber mood made it hard to summon much enthusiasm, and the ocean itself was far from inviting. Waves surged and crashed across its storm-tossed surface, blasting freezing spray all the way up to the Blue Sky's deck.

One early morning, Amaro announced through the pipes that he'd sighted Mare. The craft erupted with activity as everyone hurried to the deck.

Once there, the crew gathered near the bow. Amaro stood at the wheel, holding a scope to his eye. Even with its help, Theo wondered if he'd be able to see anything through the heavy fog and the faint drizzle that had begun falling.

Well, he must have, because otherwise he wouldn't have called them here. After a long while, Amaro lowered the scope and nodded solemnly. "That's Mare for sure."

"Really?" Fia scampered to his side, grabbing for the scope. Amaro quickly handed it over.

As Fia pointed it ahead, Theo tried to focus too. Obviously he couldn't see as far as them, but if he strained with all his might, he glimpsed a smudge on the horizon a little darker than the gray sky and sea around it.

Trembling all over, Fia pulled the scope from their eye. "I...it looks like...."

"What do you see?" Darian demanded, stepping forward.

Fia passed the scope to her, but kept on talking as she took a look. "Can't see much, but...but it looks like there's a skycraft. Huge – I've never seen one so big. On the north side."

They shivered harder. Sam moved toward them, only for Ryan to reach out and pat Fia's shoulder before she could get there.

"Well, it's good we're approaching from the south," Darian said as she lowered the scope. "Otherwise they would have already sighted us. Still, we need to get closer if we're to have a clearer understanding of the situation."

"Maybe we could manage it if we got some height?" Amaro suggested.

Darian slowly shook her head. "I don't want to risk it when we don't know how good their sensors might be."

"Blue's Levia is suppressed," Cay spoke up. "So at least they won't be sensing us that way."

Just yesterday he'd painted her bell and tentacles with a suppressing potion; another task Theo had helped him with. Thanks to it, her usual gentle glow had died down to almost nothing.

"That's true, but all bets are off if they see us," Darian said, rubbing her chin. "And I can't see how we can avoid that if we want to get close enough for decent visuals."

"How heavily guarded is the southern perimeter?" Meg asked.

"Do you have an idea?" Darian asked as she handed over the scope.

"It depends...." Meg leaned forward, squinting into the scope. "Well, I don't see any craft on this side, and there aren't enough soldiers to make an impression at this distance."

"Ah, I see." Lodo snapped his fingers. "So would you say one little cat might escape their notice?"

Grinning triumphantly, Meg turned toward him. "That's the idea."

Come to think about it, that made a lot of sense. Not only would Lodo in cat form avoid attracting attention, but this way he could get direct, ground-level intel – a lot more valuable than anything they could glean from a distance.

"Sounds good to me," Amaro said. "We can send him off in the skiff, drop him at one of the rocks near the island. You able to swim a couple hundred meters?"

Lodo lifted his chin. "Hardly a problem."

"Wait, wait!" a high voice piped up, and Jin darted out from behind a startled Ryllis. "I want to go too!"

"What?" Ryllis shouted. "No way, it's too dangerous."

"But I can help!" Jin protested, tail wagging furiously. "Two of us can see more than one, right? And if they won't notice a cat, they won't notice a fox either!"

"Jin, this isn't a game. If you think I'll let you anywhere near the Infernal Legion – "

"I'll just be looking around! I won't be fighting them or anything. C'mon, please, Ryllis? I wanna help too. I don't always want to be protected."

Jin clasped his hands, fixing Ryllis with pleading eyes. Theo's heart twisted. Didn't he understand exactly how Jin felt? But at the same time, he was just a kid....

"If I may, Miss Ryllis?" Lodo spoke up, to Theo's surprise. "Young master Jin does have a point; we'll certainly accomplish more if we are together. And you have my word, I will not allow any harm to come to him."

He bowed to Ryllis, hand pressed over his chest. Ryllis scowled back. "If you need help, why not get the chicken?"

"Why!" Guntar sputtered, flapping his wings indignantly. Before he could work himself into a real rage, Darian stepped forward.

"Unfortunately, that won't be possible. Guntar's unable to change the size of his form."

Ryllis scoffed and turned away, arms folded. "Fine. Suit yourself. But – " She whirled back around, this time pinning Lodo in place with a ferocious glower. "You'd better bring him back."

Lodo bowed again, low and solemn. "I promise."

Looked like they had a plan ready to go. Theo breathed out, though he couldn't suppress the faint discontent stirring in his heart. If only he could do more – but that would come later, he told himself. After Lodo and Jin finished their scouting. Right now, they were the best choice for the job, so Theo would have to trust in them.