Heliola. It was the only floating city in the sky, back before the apocalypse happened. A settlement in the clouds that overlooked Zenthos, its grand position fit for its benevolent ruler: Ignis. People from all corners of the world lived peacefully under His rule. That is, till an evil force opened Pandora’s Box, releasing the Four Horsemen into the world and spawned the Pandora’s Citadel, which sent Heliola crashing out of the sky.

“Wait a minute,” Ren interrupts. “Ignis used to be a whole guy?”

Betty hums. “What do you mean?”

“He’s a spirit, right? But you said he was a… a ruler?”

“That’s right. He was the emperor of Zenthos. A human. Spirits used to be humans too, you know?”

Ren nods. It’s a forgettable fact, to be honest, not when he’s seen the spirits and their majesty for himself. He’s met Gaia and Aquarius now. All that’s left is Sylph and Ignis—if Ren’s memory serves him well—although if Ignis is dead, then…

Does that mean that there is no colony in Ruk’vahn, the last quarter of Zenthos ruled by a Horseman?

“And that’s the legend of Heliola,” Betty says. “Now, why wouldn’t you know it?”

Ren swallows thickly. They never did tell Betty about his and Penny’s arrival in their world. Then again, there never was a chance to mention it till now.

“From another world?” Ren can hear the smile in Betty’s voice. “I think that’s awesome. I’d want to travel to another world someday.”

“Aren’t you, I don’t know, sceptical, or something?” Ren asks. Betty may be several hundred years old, but to take this all in stride…

“Zenthos is huge,” Betty says wistfully. “There are so many things out there that we don’t know about. If you say you came from another world, I don’t have any reason to suspect that now, do I?”

Ren nods, though she can’t see him. She’s got a good point there.

“And besides, I’ve heard of this before. There’s a forest in Frosgott that’s rumoured to swallow up everyone who enters. The adventurer I met said that these people could have been whisked to another world, never to be seen again.”

Hope flutters in Ren’s chest. A forest that sends people to another dimension? Could that be their way home?

“It’s all just a hearsay, but all rumours have some sort of truth to them.” Betty yawns. “Oh well. I’m going to sleep. Good night.”

“Sleep?” How can she sleep at a time like this?

“Yeah. It’s not like we’re getting out any time soon, and if they wanted to kill us, they would have done it already,” Betty says. “So, I’d say we’re good for the time being. For now, let’s wait and see what happens, yeah?”

Ren leans against the wall, tilting his head back and resting his crown on the stone. He shuts his eyes and takes a deep breath. As sis muscles slacken, a wave of tiredness washes over him. As much as he hates to admit it, he’s exhausted.

Before Ren knows it, he’s drifted off to dreamland. Now, all that fills his and Betty’s cells are their quiet, droning snores. Soon after, their saviour will arrive, with jangling keys in hand and steps so silent it’s as though she were merely floating on water.

*

“Ren? Wake up.”

Ren rubs at his eyes, vigorously shaken awake by hands on his shoulders and an insistent voice in his ear. He blinks, staring right into Penny’s worried expression. She breathes a sigh of relief, and rises from where she knelt beside him.

“What? Penny? What’s going on?”

“We have to go, now,” Isla says, who is standing just outside his cell. “The celebrations are about to end. Soon, the guards will return, and then there will be no escape.”

Oh. Escape. Right. They were kept prisoner. Ren isn’t waiting around to be locked up here for all eternity. He scrambles to his feet and smoothen his robes. Another figure appears by the door, holding something familiar in his hand: a sight for sore eyes.

“Master Ren,” Vane says. “Here you are.”

He tosses him Ifrit, and Ren snatches it from the air. He runs his fingers along the shaft of his staff. Oh, to feel every groove and every bump… it ignites a sense of security and protectiveness in him. How dare those Selkies lay a finger on his trusty companion?

“Gridel and Clemon have gone on to check ahead,” Penny says. “Come on, we’ve got to start moving , too.”

“What about Betty?” Ren asks. “She’s in the cell just—”

“I’m right here.”

Ren glances over at the chirpy voice. Betty at the doorway, hands on her hips, looking mighty chipper given their situation.

“Chin up, Luminary,” Betty says. “It’s high-time we get out of here.”

“But how?” Ren asks. They’re deep in the ocean, and Calysso’s Soul has been destroyed. There’s no way they’re leaving the way they came.

“That’s of no concern,” Isla says. “We have Hippocampi to ride, and they’ll impart unto you the same immunity to the perils of the ocean as we do.”

Hippocampi? Ren vaguely remembers having heard mention of them before, presumably from one of Penny’s lectures on mystical creatures, but he doesn’t actually recall what they are.

“Come on. This way. Before we are spotted,” Gridel whispers from the entrance to the dungeon. Penny is the first to follow, then Ren, and then Vane and Betty. Isla leads them, running up the stone stairs, meeting with Clemon who is crouched behind a wall at the top. He lifts a finger to his lips at their approach.

“Guards,” Clemon whispers.

Ren needs only to look to see them. Selkie soldiers stand guard in the corridor, dressed regally in blue and silver robes, and armed with javelins and tridents. How are they going to get past these guys?

“Gridel,” Vane says.

Gridel doesn’t need telling twice. She nocks a bolt and pulls the string back.

Upon hearing the creak of wood, one of the soldiers lifts his trident, glancing around. “Huh? What’s that—”

Before he can continue, a bolt strikes him in the helmet, and he goes toppling to the ground with barely a sound. The other guard spins on his heels, but he also goes down with an arrow to the head, the blade stabbing into his helmet as well. Ren winces at the clatter as their weapons drop to the floor. He can only pray that the noise doesn’t summon more soldiers.

“Come on. Quick,” Isla says, and she hurries past the guards. The rest of the party follows, stepping over the fallen bodies.

At the end of the corridor is another flight of stairs that takes them up to the main hall. Security is light here, and Ren can hear why. Raucous laughter bursts from behind the set of double doors on the far end of the hall. That must be from the celebrations that Isla was talking about.

“We need to sneak by those guards,” Isla says. She gestures to a smaller door by the larger set. “That’s the way to the stables.”

“Gridel, can you pull that same trick you did?” Penny asks.

Isla shakes her head. “No, it’s too risky. Almost the entire tribe is in that hall. If we were to attack anyone now, the moment they scream is the moment we’ll be discovered.”

“Then we’ll just have to sneak past them,” Clemon says. “There are only a few.”

Vane nods. “That’s a thought.”

Indeed, there are pillars and walls that they can hide behind—blind spots they can make use of in order to reach the stables. Surely, none of the guards would expect to look for the prisoners, whom they probably believe to still be locked up in the cells, to be skulking about. If they move in pairs, they might be able to stay concealed.

“I’ll lead,” Vane says, never once taking his eyes off the guards. He and Gridel dart behind the first pillar. Ren glances over at the patrolling Selkies, and he takes a sharp breath when they turn. Vane and Gridel only have mere seconds to proceed. That one is a little wider, giving them more room to breathe. At Vane’s beckon, Isla and Clemon are the next to go, followed by Ren and Penny, then Betty taking up the rear.

It’s as if they’re moving to the beat of a silent tune. With Vane and Gridel leading, then Isla and Clemon, Ren and Penny running with each inaudible call. The only noise that Ren hears is the rush of blood in his ears, and the mad pounding of his heart. If any of them slip up, they’re so dead.

When Gridel makes it first, Ren breathes a sigh of relief, his entire body sagging. Vane is the next to reach the door, both of them pressing their backs against a partition that separates that door from the main hall. The guards spin on their heels, and they continue making their rounds. To be honest, Ren is rather impressed that those guards haven’t yet noticed them.

However, for them to continue moving, Vane and Gridel are going to have to enter the stables first. Gridel presses a palm flat on the door. With a slight push, the door swings open.

A trident shoots out.

If she had been one second slower, the trident would have pierced her arm, and taken the limb with it. Caught completely off guard, Gridel can only stare at the weapon that stabbed into the wall on the far side of the hall, just above the staircase they were just at.

The clanking of metal boots against the marble floor has Ren glancing around, his stomach dropping when he realises just how many guards have gathered. The double doors are now open, and more tribesmen storm from within what must be the banquet hall. The guards surround them, jabbing their spears at the direction of the prisoners. Ren holds up his hands in surrender.

Oh, now they’re really dead.

“I thought you would have tried to help them escape. When you told me that you would be awhile.” A man steps out from the Hippocampi stables. This man is Isla’s father! What is he doing here? He holds out an arm, and his trident shudders. It dislodges itself from the cracked concrete, and it returns to him like a loyal dog. “As it turns out, I was right. Isla, how many times must I tell you that fraternising with humans is unbecoming of a Selkie?”

“And I have told you time and time again that they are guiltless,” Isla snarls. “They don’t deserve this treatment after all they have done for me.”

“They have corrupted your mind,” Isla’s father says. He shakes his head. “’Tis a terrible state of affairs.”

“You always had a way with words, Kai. And a way of erasing anyone who didn’t agree with you.”

Stepping forward, with a voice that is completely calm, is Betty. She holds her hands behind her back, her short stature hardly lending her any intimidation points; she barely comes up to Kai’s waist. Betty meets his gaze with a sort of subdued ferocity, as though that rage is like a pent-up beast waiting to be let loose. Simmering just under the surface.

Kai raises a brow. “And you are?”

“My name is Bethany van Calysso the Eleventh,” Betty says, and draws her cutlass. “One and a half centuries ago, you slew my sister, Carmen van Calysso, and I am here to exact revenge.”

“Your… sister?” Kai frowns, genuinely confusedD. “Apologies. I have never heard of that name.”

“Despicable.” Betty shakes her head. “You don’t even remember the people you killed.”

“Of course not. Many have died under my hand, and—”

Betty swings her cutlass, pointing the tip of the blade straight at Kai. The soldiers tighten their grip on their weapons, but Kai remains unfazed. He stares down at her, the frown on his face deepening, creasing the skin around his lips. Ren does not like that look—like he’s looking down on her, like she’s nothing more than a bug.

He hates those kinds of faces.

“I challenge you to a duel, Kai of Triclaw Isles,” Betty declares. “A duel to the death.”

Ren’s jaw drops. To the death! How can Betty hope to…?

“Betty, this is insane!” Penny shakes her head. “You can’t let your anger get a hold of you!”

The tiny captain shakes her head, her glare trained on Kai. When she speaks, her voice is uncharacteristically icy. “Don’t butt into matters that don’t concern you, Luminary. This has been my whole life’s purpose.”

“What? To avenge your sister?” Kai harrumphs. He stabs his trident into the ground. “Well, if it is death that you seek, then I have no choice but to deliver. If it is a duel you want, then it is a duel that you will get.”

“I cannot allow this!” Isla cries, standing between the two of them. She turns to Betty, spreading her arms out. “I cannot let you kill my father, nor can I let you die!”

A smirk spreads across Betty’s face. Ren glances from her to Penny, then to Vane, Gridel and Clemon. None of them seem to want to speak, instead watching the whole event unfold with contemplation in their expressions.

“You don’t know anything about the grief I’ve endured, Isla,” Betty says. “If I win, then I would have fulfilled my only goal in life. Carmen will finally get justice after all this time.”

Betty’s sister… Ren didn’t even know that she had a sister. It happened a hundred and fifty years ago—how long must Betty have searched for Kai, only to find him here? The leader of a tribe of Selkie, the father of one of their friends.

And to challenge him to a duel to the death…

Kai raises a fist. “Prepare the battlegrounds. We shall commence the duel there.”

The battlegrounds? Like a Coliseum? One of those places where the ancient Romans used to hold gladiator fights?

“And these,” Kai says, pointing at them, “are to observe the match. Let them watch as I utterly destroy their friend, and their hopes of ever getting home.”

A chill travels up Ren’s spine. Well, it’s not like they have a choice. But… if he’s feeling the trepidation, even when he’s not even directly involved, how must Isla feel? Torn between her friend and her father, both sides bearing an immutable hatred for the other. Does it shred her in two?

Two soldiers grab his arms, one on each side, and begin their rough escort towards the battlegrounds. Betty herself follows Kai, her cutlass still out, its blade glinting in the light. She shoots them a wide grin, one that hardly befits the situation at all, and that is the last Ren sees of her before he’s led away.

He has no idea what in the world could happen in this match. But he knows that no matter the outcome, it would leave a bitter taste in his mouth.

*

The battlegrounds ring out with cheers and jeers both. The place is a small arena, much like a school’s stadium. Participants in the match would fight on the sandy ground of the seafloor, and spectators would watch from the stands. Ren finds himself sitting with the others in the seats in the centre of the stand, alongside Isla. It feels almost as if he were a guest VIP at a school’s sports fest, but…

This time, it’s not for sport, nor for fun and games. This time, it’s for life or death.

And Ren has no idea how this is going to turn out. He’s seen Kai in battle, summoning lightning with that trident of his, but surely that lightning won’t work here, considering they’re so far underwater. Moreover, he’s never seen Betty fight, although she must be pretty skilled if she dared to challenge the leader of the Selkie tribe to a fight to the death.

A slight pressure squeezing his palm has Ren looking down. Penny grabbed his wrist, but she does not once turn to look at him. And yet, he can almost see the fear radiating from every pore of her body.

Betty and Kai stand in the centre of the battlegrounds, each with their own weapon in hand. They stare at each other with the most menacing glares, and neither of them are smiling, or even smirking.

“At the sound of the Leviathan’s horn, we shall begin the match,” Kai says. “You may be a child, but I will not go easy on you.”

Betty remains silent. She tightens her grip on her cutlass. Ren curls his fingers around the edge of the bench. The entire stadium has gone silent, the audience waiting in anticipation for the sound of the horn. Ren scarcely dares to breathe. Every single neuron in his brain screams at him: that there’s still time to stop this, that they needn’t fight and kill the other. If this is not the will of the Horseman, if this is not the will of the embodiment of War and Conquest, then what is? Is it not their duties as Luminaries to prevent their influence from spreading further?

A low rumble startles Ren from his ruminations, and the shriek of metal pulls him from his trance. Already, the battle is underway, the two opponents naught but mere blurs and shadows in the wake of their speed. They sidestep each other, ducking and weaving past each strike, each jab. Caught in a deadly dance of screeching blades and harried feet.

Betty drops to a squat, Kai’s trident stabbing thin air above her head. She pounces, driving her cutlass towards his ribcage. However, Kai merely steps back and parries the blow with his trident’s shaft. Betty grits her teeth, her sword trembling as it pushes against Kai’s tri—

Kai sidesteps her, and Betty stumbles forward. Kai raises his trident, and with a single swing, sends her flying with a blow to the head.

“No!” Penny screams.

Betty soars through the air, crashing into the ground, her limbs sprawled across the sand. However, she keeps her cutlass clenched in her grasp. Rolling onto her back, she lifts her blade fast enough to meet Kai’s next attack. However, he is much stronger than she is, and he wins the deadlock easily.

Well, he would have if Betty had not kicked him in the groin. He reels from the impact, giving Betty the space to roll away and hop to her feet. However, Kai doesn’t remain incapacitated for long. He leaps away from her, brandishing his trident. Betty holds her blade out, her chest heaving with the force of her breaths. She’s not the only one who’s panting, though. Kai’s lips are parted, and his forehead glistens with sweat.

The battle is nearing its endgame, and Ren is perched on the edge of his seat. The tension rises amongst the crowd. Their cheers are bordering on shrieks, and some of them have stood up and are screaming with their fists punched into the air.

One last strike, Ren thinks. The next strike will decide the winner.

A flash out of the corner of Ren’s eyes snaps his attention back to the fight. Betty moved, and so has Kai. Weapons raised, both staring ahead.

In a single moment, the fight is over. Kai’s body falls back and to the ground.

And that, was that.