Many weeks later, Noah had learned to navigate the cruise ship without an escort. The ship's bridge was near his new living quarters. It was always empty as they had no means to power the ship after arrival.

Noah was currently standing in the bridge, watching the flecks of light slowly descend like rain outside the window. The colourful aurora borealis in the sky appeared to ignite the aurora's dancing light as a wave of fire beginning on the horizon washed over the clouds. Signalling the start of a new day as the cruise ship came to life down below.

The survivors from the ferry were outnumbered ten-to-one by the original crew and passengers of the ship. Still, they were afforded peace as the two groups avoided each other except when exchanging labour for food or clothing. Mister Kim remained in charge, with Josh and Alex acting as his right-hand men to help keep order among the ferry survivors.

Ronan and his subordinates isolated themselves on the far side of the ship, away from the blank survivors who didn't trust to be near them. They were only interested in associating with the ability-users. Chloe had failed to gain an ability after absorbing her ex-lover's ability original crystal, causing her to lead a life of misery. Ronan now considered her a waste of space and treated her no better than an abused dog. He would beat her as an outlet to vent his frustrations. Craig had become a loyal dog to Ronan, willing to do anything to garner his approval.

While Noah watched the 'sunrise', he heard a slight cough behind him. Noah turned to find Sophie leaning in the doorway as she offered him a familiar smile.

"Hey there, handsome," Sophie greeted Noah.

Sophie had reached grade two. She had grown only slightly taller with her chest becoming larger and perkier, her waist also became narrower with wider hips. Her face was even more attractive, her skin appeared younger with a flawless complexion, and her lips had become fuller and more seductive. Noah could also see subtle flashes of orange-lifeforce beneath her exposed skin as she moved towards him.

None of the cruise ship ability-users had advanced because they didn't know of the existence of origin crystals before Noah and the other survivors arrived on board the Poseidon. So they lacked a supply of their own. If Sophie had advanced, it was likely that at least Ronan had as well/ That was a concerning prospect, as it tipped the scales of power in the Fallen's direction.

"Hello, Sophie. What do you want?" Noah asked.

"I've come to offer you an invitation to join us. I feel you know why," Sophie replied.

"You and Ronan have advanced to grade two," Noah stated.

"Not just me and Ronan, but Craig as well."

"Craig did too? How did he manage to get enough crystals? Oh, that's right. Before Ronan threw the survivors as bait, he extorted them into paying Merit or crystals to not be selected. I remember hearing about that now." Noah said with disgust.

"Then you realize that it would be smarter for you to join us. You're no longer the biggest fish on board, and it won't be long before the offer expires. You're in Ronan's way, and that is never a good place to be. He respects your abilities and would rather see you as a friend instead of an enemy. Plus, there are perks involved..." Sophie said as she leaned up against Noah, suggestively showing him her cleavage.

"The answer is still no." Noah rejected her offer as he grabbed both of Sophie's arms to push her away from him.

"Haha, no wonder you're special, Noah. Once you make your mind up, you never waiver. A word of advice is that you need to get stronger. The peace won't last forever. Once the food runs out is when there will be chaos," Sophie laughed as she spoke over her shoulder and she turned to leave.

Sophie hesitated at the door before she turned back to face him with a serious expression.

"The perks, you can still have them. I find you very attractive, Noah. I believe you feel the same about me. Just let me know when and I'll come to pay you a visit." Sophie disappeared as Noah was left stunned behind her, processing what she had just said.

What was that about?... Who knows, I need to go and give Mister Kim and the other survivors a warning about Ronan and his gang all reaching grade two. If we don't prepare well enough, it will become a disaster.

***

Noah arrived in the crew quarters a short time later to find them all gathered to receive food being unloaded by a few cruise ship crewmen.

"Why are they suddenly giving you all food?" Noah asked Mister Kim, who was approaching him to offer greetings.

"David informed us that they are no longer able to store the food without electricity to keep the cold storage operating. The food would be considered inedible before the arrival. But now it's a godsend. Many of us are malnourished. The survivors now consider the maggots infesting the food to be extra protein," Mister Kim informed him.

Noah moved closer through the crowd of gathered survivors to inspect the food being unloaded. He could see that the meat had white maggots squirming through it, while the bread and vegetables were in varying stages of mould and decay.

"Craig was responsible for keeping it all frozen with his ice abilities. But less than a week ago, he suddenly stopped performing his duties to lock himself away with Ronan and his people. We don't know what they're planning," Josh informed them as he arrived with the towering Alex in tow.

"On that note, that's why I'm here. Sophie just tried to recruit me. She's advanced to grade two and claims that both Ronan and Craig have as well. It won't be long before they try something. I don't think that I'll be able to fight them all if it comes down to it," Noah got to the reason for his visit.

"This is not good! What can we do?" Mister Kim replied.

"If only we had more grade two ability-users. I can give you some crystals to advance, but you will need to decide among yourselves who will get them. There isn't enough for both you and Alex," Noah told them the harsh reality.

"I think it would be best for Mister Kim to receive them. Alex's ability only allows him to grow larger, whereas Mister Kim's fire whip would become more powerful. He's also trained in martial arts for a lot of his life," Josh suggested.

"We'll do that then, I hope there's enough. Otherwise, you'll need to gather more on your own." Noah reached into the swimwear bag on his shoulder to mask his withdrawal of the grade one crystals from his [Zero-Space Dimension Ring].

"Noah, are you sure? You could use them for yourself, you shouldn't give us your crystals," Mister Kim hesitated before taking the hexagonal origin crystals.

"This is the best way. I'm only one person and those crystals wouldn't even be enough for a person to advance all the way from grade one to grade two. I feel that I'll need about ten times as many to advance to grade three. So it won't make any difference. You use them." Noah insisted.

"Bless you, Noah. We won't let you down!" Mister Kim earnestly promised.

"I'll wait here while you advance. You'll lose consciousness as the changes are made." Noah stated.