Ada sat and watched the girls wracked their heads for a moment. As usual, during these moments, her mind turned contemplative. How odd was it that she had all this power and yet had to constantly keep it hidden! Can’t she just throw down her version of a Mjölnir and consequences be damned? …but on second thought, that was hardly the way to form alliances or garner followers. Any follower she would acquire would be doing it out of fear of her or a desire for power like that Yuano guy. She wanted people to follow her because they respected her and wanted to.

Sçæaisøh had been quiet like the girls but he suddenly busted out laughing. Either he just went insane as Ruciella probably already assumed he was or he just had an interesting epiphany. Ada looked at him curiously. After his chuckles died away, he uttered a few words to which Ruciella immediately angrily retorted.

“What’s going on?” Ada asked in concern.

Leanne explained. “Sçæaisøh suggested that we just break the device and the problem is solved. Ruciella said that no mage would ever destroy their own Compass. It’s priceless and irreplaceable. She said that it’s completely out of the question.”

There was another heated exchange and Leanne translated. “Now he is suggesting that they just throw the Compass overboard or drop it off somewhere. She can just pick it up later. Ruciella is saying that no mage would ever separate herself from her Compass. It is unthinkable.”

“I guess it’s like the intense romantic bond between smart phones and the teenagers,” Ada muttered to herself. “Or social media. Or Instagram filters.”

Sçæaisøh laughed again while Ruciella gritted her teeth. Ada sighed internally. Time to put out another fire. This group really could use some training in teamwork or a group therapy session. She loudly proclaimed, “Alright, no one is going to do any tampering with the Compass. Sçæaisøh, stop trying to provoke Ruciella. If you’ve any other ideas which doesn’t involve breaking the Compass, spit them out now.”

The man froze for a moment at the sudden reprimand and then spoke at length for a minute. Leanne’s face broke into a smile and she nodded. Meanwhile, Ruciella’s face slowly blanched. Unlike the previous obvious burst of anger, now it was an odd expression that could be interpreted as a mixture of fear and annoyance. Before Leanne started translating, Ruciella cut her off. “No, that’s a terrible idea!”

“What did he say?” Ada asked impatiently as she tapped her fingers on the table. Her lack of understanding of the local language was increasingly frustrating to her. The Academy mages would likely be able to speak the Divine Tongue well which was a relief.

Leanne summarized. “I actually like his idea. Aside from certain profanities which I would not go into, his plan is a solid one. First, we drop off Ruciella in a secluded place away from people. The Compass is only attached to her. I suggest that we land as quickly as possible, possibly in the forests just ahead of us. We do need to develop a convincing story on how she was able to travel so rapidly through the air.”

Ruciella protested. “I’ll start with saying that I don’t like the part where I’m completely alone in the middle of nowhere. Also, that forest ahead of us as a drop-off point is a very bad idea.”

“Aren’t you familiar with the valley?” Ada asked curiously.

“No, much of the valley is just uninhabited forests. The founders of the Academy left most of the original vegetation here to grow uninhibited since they wanted to harvest wild magical plants. To this day, no one has cut down a single tree.”

Ada simply nodded. “No forest then.”

Ruciella opened her mouth to launch another protest. Leanne ignored her and continued. “Afterwards, we continue flying and land in a flat field far enough away from the Academy but not too far from Ruciella. We would still need to meet up with her.”

“How about we land in a forest instead of a field instead? That way the Divine Cloud can be safely on the ground and hidden for quite a while.” Ada suggested.

Ruciella rebuked her suggestion. “Another bad idea. This Palace would have a difficult time landing in a heavily forested area without drawing attention due to the sound. Also, I have to add the vital fact that the mages here including myself don’t take kindly to our forests being partially destroyed.”

“I’m not sure about the part about noise but I do concur with the second rationale,” Ada agreed. “I definitely want to respect your property here. In a way, this really reminds me of the goat, cabbage and wolf riddle in a way.”

Leanne looked at Ada in curiosity. “Is it similar to the three doors riddle with the same goat?”

Ada was about to expound on the topic but stopped when Ruciella took a deep breath in. Before she started, Ada already knew that the girl was going to go into a rant. “I know I’m a mage but I’m still human! I’ve been awake since yesterday morning and haven’t had a single minute of shut-eye! We’re short on time and the only plans suggested so far that has drawn some attention from you two has come from a fishbrain thug. Sorry but excuse me for not wanting to hear another riddle.”

She added with a whisper which no one else but Ada audibly heard. “Even though I’m sure it’ll be interesting. Definitely later.”

Ada smiled to herself. Curiosity was in the girl’s genes. Ada looked around the room and for the first time noticed that the three mortals looked utterly exhausted. The energy from the start of the meeting has dwindled in the last hour. Though there were heated exchanges, they were all slumped in their chairs. As if on cue, Leanne yawned and Sçæaisøh shook his head to stay awake.

Ada smiled sympathetically. “Sorry, I should have realized how exhausting this whole day must have been for everyone here. I’ve a suggestion. How about we all just stay up here and get some rest? We can think about this after we’re all refreshed.”

Much to Ada’s surprise, Ruciella firmly shook her head. “No, now I actually think dropping me off is the best idea given our circumstances.”

“I thought you didn’t want to be by yourself in the middle of nowhere in the middle of the night?”

“I still don’t but I don’t think we have a choice. I hate to admit it but the thug there has made a good point. You have to stay with the Cloud and you can’t hide the Cloud. Since they’re only tracking me, I can’t be in the same place as you when they meet up with me.”

Ada sighed. “There must be a better way.”

Ruciella smiled encouragingly. “It won’t take long for them to find me, especially if you drop me off in an open field.”

Ada asked. “But here’s a question. How will we find you?”

Ruciella pondered aloud. “You’re right. I’m not down for the idea of you two gallivanting around in a valley of mages. You’ll stick out like a fish on land. The only people who ever come here are mostly Academy mages with the occasional trader that we allow in. If you’re an Academy mage, you’ll have to register your Compass at the local office so you can be tracked at all times. Academies are frequently paranoid of other mages even though we’re supposedly all working together.”

“I am sure Ada can materialize a wagon or two.” Leanne said with a smile. “We were already pretending to be merchants.”

“No, your cover will be blown almost immediately. I neglected to mention that the traders who has any dealings with the Academies all deal with magical goods. We’re not really interested in purchasing mundane materials and we grow most of our own food here. These traders are not mages and can’t cast their own spells but since they deal a lot with artifacts, they’ll know a good chunk about the practical aspects of ether manipulation. If you pretend to be a trader, they're going to ask you questions about your wares. No offense to your intelligence but I think none of you here possess much knowledge in that.”

Leanne sighed. “I thought we hit a solution for sure just now.”

Ruciella followed suit and sighed. “Yeah, if only there was a way for you two to have Compasses. Since only Academy mages would have Compasses, no one would doubt you.”

Suddenly, an idea struck Ada like a thunderbolt. “Did you just say that if Leanne and I both have Compasses no one would suspect us as mages?”

“Well, you might be asked a few questions but yeah, most people should leave you alone if you tell them that you have important business with Master Arbon. He does have the occasional outside mage visiting him, usually for some business with mages that are also part of the Galacia Club.”

Leanne’s eyes grew wide. “Do you mean to create Compasses for us?”

The mage appeared shocked as well. “Wait, what? You can do that? But every Compass for every individual requires a ridiculous amount of ether and an equally ridiculous amount of time and concentration to create. Even gods usually take over a month to create just one.”

“I don’t know if I can do it but I might as well try. When you say Compass, what do normal people call it? In other words, is there a special name for it?”

“Hmm, I just call it a Compass but I guess you can call it an Academy Compass. Most people know what that means.”

“Does the Compass have an identifiable marker? Like a name attached to it which identifies who you are?”

“Yeah, each Compass has your name and an unique ID which is composed of the numeric representation of your true name in the Divine Tongue. So for instance, A will be 1 and B will be 2. The last one would be Z will be 26. So for me, with the name Aurian Silvera, that would be 12118911419912225181.

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Without any fanfare, a small golden flat cylindrical Compass emblazoned with the name Ada Newth and the series of numbers below the name materialized on the table in front of them. Ruciella appeared speechless and so did Sçæaisøh. Leanne smiled and spoke for the others. “As expected of my goddess.”

Ada returned her Seer's smile and commented. “Well, looks like it worked. Now it’s Leanne’s turn.”