"Valkinvar..." I say to myself quietly after I passed through the barrier around the camp. A lingering sigh carrying the sadness that left me as I placed a hand on the scar under my left breast. Soon running a finger along its recently cut yet healed surface through the clothes I was wearing while I pondered my life.

Slowing down until I wasn't moving anymore as I thought back on what happened when I was in the hive... Of how my failure led me to break the oath I swore. The failure that made me lose what belonged to a divine being...

To be a Valkinvar one must've kept themselves untainted by another so that they may serve Waionr when they themselves were laid to rest. The events that lead to it hopefully having foundations in the field of battle... I had undergone the initiation, the training and the doctrine, I did it all. All to join one of the four Valkinvar Ordoars, and yet now I had failed the core rule for female members.

How could I even hold myself tall and proud if the very reason I gained the right to do so is now gone? The signs of my broken promise to Waionr staining my thighs and soaking the dirt of that damned hive!

Putting both of my hands against my face as I backed up against a tree. Despite being a soldier, one of the greatest ones in the land by virtue of my arcane strength, trained up over many decades of service. Despite the horrors I faced on the battlefield over the cycles and the scars I had to overcome... I just couldn't summon the strength to fight back my own tears.

Mentally chastising myself over the course of the following moments as I slid further and further down the tree trunk. Finally letting the tears flow freely with no resistance once my rear hit the soft ground below. My mind being filled with nothing more than messages of 'You should've been better than this!' and 'Your payment for failures not long ago!' and other derogatory commentaries that while fictional... Had a basis in what was true.

Looking up from the pit of pity I was digging for myself when an increasingly familiar tune entered my ears, "You alright, Vapooliar?" Nin asked in concern as he squatted down in front of me. His face slightly unnerved as he awkwardly tried to find a way to drum out this nervousness. With finger drums against his legs and other forms of hand gestures is how he did it.

Rubbing the tears away with my hands and nodding as I tried to hide my puffy eyes from him. Turning my head back towards him when he took one of my hands into his, gently rubbing his thumb on the back of it in at least some attempt to soothe me. Only for him to retract his hands when he applied a bit too much weight to his backside, causing him to fall over from his squat and into a sitting position. A ghost of a smile forming on my face when I saw that, smiling a bit more as I decided on assuming that he did that to cheer me up some.

Silently watching him as he spun his ankle bracelets around his shins, steadily moving them up until his leg got too thick for them to keep moving up, "Nin... Do you have the time to listen to a few questions?" I asked him timidly as he played with the dull, rusty bracelets that were around his ankles. Their jingling coming to a halt as he turned his attention towards me.

"Sure, not much else to do." he quipped out in an attempt to lighten the mood, his hand gesturing out to how little stuff we had in the camp.

I know I should have really kept this to myself but, I just couldn't help but drag him into my problems and I didn't know or couldn't figure out why, "Nin..." keeping silent for a short pause as I thought on how to word it, "If you spent a large part of your life focused on one role... But then you made a huge mistake that... Do you still have a right to refer to yourself as that role...?" curling up to hide my features as I was ashamed to have just forced such a question on him. I shouldn't get him invol-

"Hm... I guess it would depend on how bad the mistake was and what it was." he answered cautiously as he likely wasn't particularly sure how to answer it. And I didn't blame him, my unwillingness to be open only made the proverbial drowned lands worse.

"A very big mistake... One that spat in the very face of what the role stood for..."

"I'll be honest... I don't know." curling up more as I shouldn't have expected a good answer, how could I have? He has no idea how to answer such questions!

A quiet gasp of surprise leaving me when he then pulled me in for a hug while I was stuck in my thoughts, he might've not had an answer, but he did know the basics, "But, what I would tell this person is that no matter the mistake they made, no matter how badly they might've messed up... Be it their fault mainly or not, I would tell this person to simply distance themselves from this role. It may be hard, but there will be someone always close by to help them cross that gap. And when they were done helping them, I'd let them stand on their own so they could choose their own path. For what will be better than just letting them explore on their own, not bound by a previous problem..." he told me before fizzling out as he got to the end, his gaze firmly locked on his ankle bracelets.

Simply smiling in thanks at him as I left his hug, soon glancing at his bracelets too as I wasn't sure what they were. They were far too dark and dull to be decorative yet held no signs of chains so they couldn't be the signs of a prisoner... "What are those bracelets for?" I asked him in curiosity in an effort to try and change the topic, he noted why I was actually doing this and humoured me.

"The signs of the insignificant." he apathetically shrugged out as he began to play with them again. His fingers lifting them up and underneath the trousers he was wearing, them being the same colour as the overalls he gave me in the hive. And, for some reason, I began to happily lean against the collar of the overalls as I repositioned myself. The strange and exotic smells that were stained into the cloth doing much to soothe my mind, somehow.

Even if all it did was serve as a distraction.

"I am sure that's not true..." I say somewhat optimistically as I was sure he was just not having pride in himself. A simple headshake being my answer at first.

"No, very much so I am afraid. I haven't been working my trade long enough to be an expert nor did I do particularly outstandingly during my schooling years when I wasn't bound by these." he elaborated as he lifted up a leg and shaking it about before putting it back down.

"How long have you been doing it for?"

"About five years of my twenty-one years of life." tilting my head slightly at that answer. Did he come from a place that still used the Dietic Calendar? Month of Thurnmourer and Undwote and all the others blessed with a section of the year?

"Year?" I ended up saying to myself, but he seemed to take it as me being confused.

"Um... Y'know... a set number of days over the course of the four seasons?"

"Days...?" I ended up saying in real confusion, I only had a passing knowledge of the Dietic Calendar and this was getting more confusing than Heiya and Vadei speaking about the so-called 'guns.'

He too was confused, but his gaze seemed to be of the more insulting kind, as if he was bemused by my ignorance, "Sunshine in sky, Day. Sun gone, night." he answered slowly with a grin forming as a scowl formed on my face before it disappeared in favour of realization as it slowly came together.

Years were grand-cycles in the calendar that I used and knew. And, he said there were four seasons in his so that meant they were what quarter-cycles are in the calendar I used most likely. With day and night being his words for what an orbit and or cycle was. Soon nodding in understanding once such a thing became clear to me.

And now my mind lingered on his age, five years of his twenty-one... A year was equal to a grand-cycle and I was more than a hundred grand-cycles old... My eyes widened slightly at the fact I was much older than him. I did not expect him to be this young!

"Ah, okay. So that would mean I would be one-hundred and thirty-three in your 'years' if I am understanding this correctly." soon struggling to prevent a laugh from leaving me when he just twitched about in utter disbelief and surprise.

"No wonder you're called Vapoo-liar... You're quite the liar." he said with me holding a hand to my chest in joyful shock at this comment.

"I'll have you know that I am telling the truth." I tell him with a smirk as I revelled in his disbelief.

"If you are telling the truth I am going to be annoyed." he commented with an agitated point of his index finger as he fell down onto his back with a sigh and spread himself out. An angered fist slamming into the dirt by his side while the other just rested on his chest. A joyful little moment ruined because I forgot about how much was on his shoulders that would just be a casual afterthought for me. But, now that I was out of the depressive hole I made for myself and the tone was more stern...

It was time I actually brought up why I went back to camp to begin with.

"Nin... I need to know... Are you a warrior or soldier of any sort?" I pointlessly asked as his rather slim frame came to dominate my mind more and more.

"No. By the god's no... I'm just a wall-engraver, someone who works with metal and makes pretty pictures in or on stone..." he admits as he brought himself back up off of the ground and back to his feet.

"I see..."

"Why? Oh..." he asked just moments before the answer became clear as the formal arrival of the God of Thunder. His expression growing fearful as he looked me in the eye, "The only way out of this is back through... There...?" his voice trembling at such thoughts as his eyes broke away from me.

"It would appear so I am afraid. We will need to fight our way through the hive. Vadei managed to find some weapons we can use in addition to what we already have but there is no guarantee that we will always be in a position where gunning the osibindah down will be practical. So I need to know if you can defend yourself." I explain, his expression becoming one of frustration and anger.

"Gunning...? You expect me to be able to know how to use a gun now as well...!? You saw how I did when we finally got out of that cave! All I could do was a mere tackle before I was pinned underneath that things foot! I would've died if it weren't for you! Surely with this information on hand you more than anyone should know that I'd just be a burden to such a plan!" his voice full of panic and despair as he broke down at the mere thought of having to be a firm link in our efforts. Bringing myself onto my feet as well and returning a favour as I caringly grip his closest wrist and tried to soothe him.

"Then let me help you. I might not be able to teach you much but I can at least pass on what I know and get as much of it as I can into the days to come before we are hands are forced into action." tightening my grip to emphasise the fact he wasn't alone as he tried to pull away. And while I wasn't going to put more pressure on him than necessary. I really wanted to hold him closer and reassure him of how much I thought he was capable of if we honed his edge even just a little. If all the details about Nin were correct, then the sheer wildcard factor of his rapidly surging power could help us more than he knew.

Even if it wasn't as refined or as powerful as mine, simply having him be there to help would've gotten us further than if he wasn't with us. The quicker we acted the easier it would be for him as his body would still be getting used to the sudden surge of magic in his system... Our lack of food was a boon in that sense, it allowed us to strike when the heated iron within him was still hot. All we had to do was give him that little push so he could bear our burdens of which I and the others couldn't sufficiently carry.

And in exchange, we could do the same for him, ease up on the load that was and would be bearing down on him.

"I'm... I'm just going to find somewhere quiet for now." he said as he pulled away, unknowingly using that newfound strength of his to force his way from my grip. The gap between us meant I didn't need to be so firm with him to get him to do as I wanted, but the fact he could get out of my grip was more than enough to reaffirm my faith in his capabilities.

To refer to his former role in life a little, he would be the metal, and I'd be the engraver who would work it into the beginnings of a beautiful mural. I owed him that much at the very least, that was a debt I would pay to the best of my abilities.

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.

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"Alright, Nin. Show me a stance." I asked him while tapping a large stick against the floor which I had recently spent a short while trying to repurpose into a more fitting training sword. It was actually rather embarrassing that it took me so many tries to make one without it snapping. All because I was too strong and applied just a little bit too pressure while removing any barbs or twig stumps.

"You'll need to clarify..." he answered back in a hopeless tone as he looked at his arms and legs. Completely clueless on what to do with them. A hidden sigh leaving me as I tried to bear in mind how lacking in depth he was when it came to combat-related topics.

"Alright, help me first," I begin after a short pause, "If you were to end up in a fight for whatever reason, how would you behave?" he mentioned how he was what equated to a lower-class ravineer so maybe he might do things in a more... Fancy way... A less refined and well-recorded way...

"I'd grapple with them for a few seconds before inevitably getting a personal Mesofunderod to either the ribs or head. Again, not a fighter." he reminisces with agitation while rubbing what might've been the places he would often get hit in a situation like that. Resting both of my hands on the hilt of my 'sword' while I tried to think about how to deal with him now. Approaching him once I had looked his general build over from the more professional perspective of a soldier.

Placing my 'sword' against a tree not far from the thick fog of smoke and standing behind Nin before I began the process of spreading his legs and moving his arms about. Occasionally leaning back to see if it was coming along alright while he just twitched when my grip moved him about. It would've been nice if he kept still but it was understandable. It wasn't usual to get an easily digestible combat training routine and it being fed to someone who has supposedly never digested such information.

Sorting myself out once I was done and walking around him before hitting him with my 'sword'. Not enough to cause any pain but enough to show that we had begun. And, well, his reaction was less than pleasant. He didn't react at all, even after registering the blow!

"Nin, try to intercept the blow before it hits you, the shorter the distance the bugs have to work with the less it'll hurt and the safer you'll be." I explained to him as I gave it another go, carefully observing him and leading him into a pattern. Interrupting that pattern and being rewarded with a stunned and swearing man who rubbed his nose in annoyance. If he was hurt by that blow or if it was instinctual would remain to be seen.

"Avoid patterns, we may be facing bugs that are more for simple slugfests with little room for finesse but if I can get you to understand the basics even just a little then you'll have a big enough advantage." Vadei might've just dismissed that as wishful thinking and sweet lies to build up a false confidence. But what she doesn't see with her jaded eyes I could, just making him confident in keeping himself safe to even the slightest degree would be good for us and especially Nin himself.

Once again beginning the process of striking him and letting him get used to the pace and steadily increasing it. We did this for a while, long enough for the sky to begin to go orange as the halo prepared to enter low-orbit. By this time I wanted to move on to something else but he had been very insistent on trying to get used to dealing with attacks from one angle.

His argument had merits and a point. It was true the hive was mostly narrow tunnels which were maybe a few people wide at their greatest. But, it was also true that there were a lot of large, open chambers. So simply getting him used to one angle wasn't going to cut it.

And while I had no right being as disappointed as I was... I was very much so. I know it was unreasonable to be disappointed in him but I suppose that was my fault for building up a romanticized version of him. Rather than accepting the reality that he just lacked the instincts and reflexes of even an inexperienced fighter.

So before I let my frustration boil up into words I dismissed him for a few moments to he could rest for a little. Even though he didn't look like he needed one. I just needed to make sure that he had some time to become less tender. His forearms were beginning to show the wear and tear I had been dealing to them, after all.

Just hitting him with a stick wasn't working so I began applying some magic across the 'blade' of it. Steadily increasing the amount applied over the course of the orbits I did around him so he could get familiar with blows he would most likely experience. But, now I had to complete the circle and not just target his arms or areas where he could respond with his arms. He needed to learn that his legs played a part and staying mobile.

"Nin, that's long enough. We're going to try something else now." hovering to my feet as I said that. His eyes almost immediately being enthralled by the faint emerald aura that surrounded me as I seemingly glided across the grass and whatever else was scattered about it. Hiding back a professionally-driven cringe as he slowly lumbered about to keep his front-facing me, "Nin. Adjust your distance, if someone is able to get around you quickly while being close to you then you'll be finding yourself exposed." I told him as I shot around to his front which had become lax during his attempts to follow me.

Driving my stick deep into his gut and letting him stagger back while he dealt with the sensation of his stomach feeling the need to evict itself. It didn't matter how tough you were if you were caught exposed, a precise blow in such an area could be crippling. Especially if you had eaten or drunk a lot in recent moments and in Nin's case, drinking quite a bit of water. So I was soon after letting him cough up what little did make it through before helping him get to his feet.

"Keep moving as well, try to match the movements of your opponent and draw them into a position that favours you. Keep them guessing." I said to him as I began the process of circling him again. Frowning when he spent more time figuring out what to do than doing it. Coming to a frustrated halt and letting him catch up.

"Don't think, act!" my voice stern as I tapped out a little magic into the ground to emphasise my annoyance. He caught on quickly with a shamed look boring into the ground.

"Well, how do you expect me to do that? I am not used to this!" he told me as he patted his chest, "You can't just expect me to get used to it just because we spent most of our day drilling it into me..."

"And what about the osibindah, Nin? Do you think they'll care if you haven't learned the ins and outs yet? Hm!? You think they'll care!" my voice rising in volume with each second that passed.

"Don't start getting angry at me because I am no prodigy at this!" he snapped back in a louder tone to make up for the fact he had so few teeth to back him up in this situation.

"I'm not expecting you to pick it up quickly... I'M EXPECTING YOU TO UNDERSTAND THE BASICS! NOW QUIT BEING A BUMBLING FOOL AND DO AS YOU ARE TOLD AND FIGHT!" I yelled at him as both my hands found themselves tightened on the hilt of my 'sword'.

Launching forward at a pace we hadn't practised at and slamming the sticking into him over and over again with clear grunts and winces of pain being heard as I did so. The grass and leaves around us vibrating as the force of my blows mixed with my bubbling aura and disturbed their peaceful swaying. Ending this little barrage of blows with a hand on the back of his head that brought it down to my knee which went to his chin.

Coming to a stop as he flew back a couple of meters and watching him as he slowly got up with a tremble vibrating throughout him. It wasn't one of pain but one of fury which was made evident by the snarl his face displayed as his fingers seemed to spaz about as they dug into the earth below him as he dragged himself back up. His voice a little more than growls and incoherent noises as he turned to face me.

If he was to say anything, it better have been, "Very well... I'll fight!" but no, it wasn't, all it was growling in the prelude to him charging me. Narrowing my eyes as I magically slid out of the way of his heavily telegraphed blow. Snapping my gaze towards him when the sound of breaking metal and dug up dirt entered my ears. My eyes following the piece of airship debris he just sent flying through a few of the thinner trees near us before it crashed into the rocky walls of our little all-natural cage.

"Good, you're learni-" I began to comment before being interrupted by him attempting to claw me... Claw me! My instincts immediately began guessing that something was wrong when I got caught up in the rhythm of backpedalling as he animalistically swung his arms at me. He just wanted to land solid blows, as if he were possessed by an osibindah itself.

Freezing up completely once I saw his eyes, they weren't the usual dark brown, but a sickly yellow patterned with a hexagonal frame. This would prove problematic for me as a magic-bolstered fist forced its way onto my exposed cheek. The resulting blow turning my head slightly before a heavy blast of wind washed over me when he stopped the movement in its tracks. Standing still as my heart raced at the mere thought of those eyes while Nin just breathed heavily before backing away.

A complete one-eighty of his prior behaviour as he adopted a fearful look laced with timidity. Like a child who just realized that their mother wasn't willing to ask them to again to behave themselves. It didn't hurt as it was still a meagre blow by my standards but for Nin that must've felt like something else. Reaching out to him once my bearings returned so I could check if he was okay only to watch him run off towards the camp.

His hands clutching his head as if he was experiencing a major migraine, "Nin..." was all I could say as I watched the last of him disappear into the smoke. Turning my attention to the little hwardgon that came rushing to me with its rifle at the ready.

"Whaaat waaas thaaat!?" they asked in worry as they scanned the area, most likely looking for any bugs that might've been attracted by the racket we just made.

"It was nothing..." I said dismissively to her as my 'sword' finally broke under my grip. Rubbing my fingers along the palm to clean it of any potential splinters.

"Keep it quiet in future! The smoke only does so much!" Heiya complains as she gestured for me to follow her, "Aaanywaay... Fallaw me, the axfuine gat the gaaap big enaugh sa we need yau ta get the guns naw." she informed me as we came upon the gap with an exhausted Vadei huffing and puffing as tried her best to not get dirt on her sweaty body. As pointless as it was.

"This better have been worth the effort..." she wheezed out as she tried to hand me my actual sword back. Planting my sword into the stone and glancing at the distance to the ground, I could in theory try and get us down to the ground below by carrying everyone one at a time. But the potential problems that could lead to stalled any speech on the topic.

I could easily just put us in front of a bigger more watched entrance of the hive... But, I shook my head and dismissed it before going on down to get the weapons I was told about. Tilting my head at their design while I got a good grip on the crate. Sighing to myself before heading back up.

Maybe Nin would have an easier time getting used to these... It would've only been common sense to try and train him to use one.

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"Aaalright, Faaailed Delivery, pick ane of them up. Yau taa, Daaamaaaged Returns." I quip out at the male human and the only oxfuine in our group while I looked over the gun I had picked up so I could get familiar with it. It was no bolt-action smoothbore like my usual nor did it have a very customisable ammo chamber. As such, I hated it immensely, but I couldn't deny its quality of make. Revelling in their responses to the names with a small smile as Vadei glared and Nin just gave me a disapproving look.

Moving away from them and holding the gun before me, its brass colouring and the small cog decorations that were engraved in the stock of the weapon. Detaching the rather weighty and bulky ammo drum at the front of the gun and peaking down the barrel to get an idea of what sort of firearm it was. In the case of this gun, it would seem to call it a firearm would be a little more literal than normal as it was clearly a magic-based munitions gun. What made it distinct from other magic-based firearms however was the ammo drum.

It was a frame with six wide sockets being spaced about its face. The rims of the drum being covered in a much darker material that seemed to gently nibble of the light around it.

Soon putting the drum back into the weapon and rubbing a thumb along the slope that hid the angled material that put the stock lower than the main body. Looking at the five exposed sockets as they stared back at me. Then choosing to point the weapon at a nearby piece of somewhat clean airship hull and placing a finger on the surprisingly stubborn trigger. Finally firing once I got my hands into a position I felt would be best.

One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine and ten...

That was the number of shots the weapon let out before the drum then automatically rotated and locked in a new socket. Slowly nodding as I glanced at the formerly locked-in socket, a vicious cloud of steam leaving it as the area around it grew suddenly darker.

"That was a lot of orange... Is this some kind of fire-shooter...?" Nin incorrectly guessed while I turned my gaze upwards along with the gun. Eyeing it carefully as the area around the exposed socket grew somewhat lighter. It would appear this weapon did some form of light conversion for its munitions. This, of course, would leave me frowning as that would make this a terrible weapon for fighting inside of the hive.

While I can't fault the makers of the gun for building a weapon that would work damn fine up on the plateau's where the wind-peoples lived. I could fault them for making a weapon that was useless if used in a fight against a problem that wasn't exactly rare. Even if this weapon was not intended for underground warfare. I just hated the idea of little standardisation.

"Na... Arbitaaal-Haaala gun. Shaats cancentraaated light." I answer as I put the gun down and approached the hull piece I shot at. It felt weird shooting it, recoil was practically non-existent and its slow rate of fire did not mix well with the thickness of the trigger. It was more like a thin button in that regard. But I suppose that's because my paws were not really the intended user.

Stronger, larger fingers were needed, both of which the human and oxfuine I was tutoring had in abundance this peak-orbit. Crouching before the piece of now extra damaged hull and running a paw in its entirety across the damage I did to it. Cautiously keeping to the dull and not glowing parts as I did so. A bad burn was not desired right now.

It wasn't much, but I was more interested in how the magic acted upon impact. In this case, it would seem to rely on superheating the material it hit. From then it would either be killing the target by cooking them or leaving them with useless armour if they were lucky. In the orbits before I could be sure our camp was secure as I did spy many a dead bug with now hardened spots that were deformed by shots from these guns.

So it was clear they would serve us decently enough, it was just ammo that had me concerned at this point.

Six sockets and ten shots before a rotation meant we had sixty shots in total per gun provided nothing was wrong with the drum. Also, these sockets were most assuredly not going to be reloading in a timely fashion. So either we took it incredibly slow and let the guns charge after each engagement... Which was a terrible idea...

But, the only other option past that of note was to carry an excess of these guns and slow ourselves down that way. Or, we find a way to get the pair to carry many spare drums and just drop the spent ones...

A quick nod finishing my thoughts as I turned back to the pair, "Aaalright! I waaant yau twa ta hald thase guns up aaas if yau were aaabaut to fire." I tell them so I could inspect the direction they went with should they have been put in a position in which they would've needed to shoot. Nin was fine, even if he had never used a gun before he had clearly seen one be used before in a professional manner. But, obviously, was still subpar when it came to the finer details. Vadei, on the other paw, looked more like she was going to run off while shooting wildly into the area around her.

Even if I was to ignore the fact her gun was not really designed for such handling, her grip was far too loose, to put it bluntly. I even decided on making my point as blunt as possible by slapping the end of Nin's gun and letting it go down a bit in response before then knocking the gun out of Vadei's supporting hand when I did it to her.

"Hey!"

"Tighter grip." I simply told her as if I was Paps as I began setting up a few targets, "Shaat these, Nin. See haw maaany shats laaand as yau switch taaargets every twa shats." I tell him while holding up two digits to emphasise it in case he somehow might've missed the clear direction I gave him. Then I turned to Vadei so I could focus all my attention on her and get her sorted out. I needed her to be able to hold the gun properly before I even attempted trying to teach her about reloading and sorting out the drums. Which, depending on how we went about this, would be the most crucial part of the plan once we left the camp.

"Vaaadei, yau caaan't be halding it like thaaat." I tell her as I try to readjust her grip and the weapons overall positioning, only to get shoved away in the process.

"Don't touch me!" she hissed at me after I staggered back a little, "If you want to pass your annoying little commentary then do it without putting your grubby mitts on me!" rolling my eyes at this response to me doing my assigned task. A task that existed because of her... So it would've been nice if she kept that in mind and paid attention.

"Hald the gun claser ta yaur chest, in aaa pasitian thaaat feels like yau cauld rest your chin on it." I explain to her while giving a demonstration with my bolt-action. She was, however, too prideful or stubborn to admit to the fact she was holding it wrong.

"Why? All that matters is that the barrel is pointing at the 'sibs!" her tone was sharp and her finger quick to prove a point. Only this point missed the target by a few feet and just ended up spooking Vapooliar while she rehearsed some form of... Dance. That was the term that could best describe it.

A dance of various swings and acrobatic movements that just rubbed in how polished her skill was with the blade.

She passed no comment on the far-flung shot though, perhaps for the better. She just carried on and changed to a different dance. One of defensive manoeuvres while her eye kept itself trained on Nin whenever the opportunity presented itself.

"Aaas yau caaan see, it helps ta be aaable to see where the shat might laaand." I point out while letting Vadei grumble about the shot.

"Don't speak down to me, you're the one who made our targets smaller than the 'sibs themselves!" she correctly points out in what I could only assume to be her usual tone at this point.

"True. But do you know why?"

"To rub in how many times better you are?" her voice bordering on venomous when she said it. Shaking my head at her and directing her towards Nin who had managed to ignore us the entire time. He wasn't doing too bad, could've been faster on the switch and not lag on the following target for so long. Yet, in contrast to Vadei's incompetence, he did quite well as I could only count what seemed to be thirteen directly missed shots and about nine shots that were let out just a bit too early leaving a clear cut in the target.

Almost as if a soot-covered jaw bit into the target and took out a fine chunk.

"Na. If I waaanted ta da thaaat I wauld've set taaargets smaaaller thaaan my paaaw." waving said body part at her, "I gaaave yau taaargets this big sa yau cauld leaaarn ta be precise. These guns will kill aaan asibindaaah, yes. But unless yau scare aaa shat to the heaaad which yau're unlikely to get or aaa salid tarsa shat then yau're waaasting aaamma. We caaan't aaaffard thaaat." I inform her sternly as I pointed a finger at her. I could only wish she'd lose the chip on her shoulder until we at least made it through the hive. Because I am close to the point of having it with her as she has been like that since I pulled her from the wreck that trapped her formerly caged self.

Keeping that stern look as she just faced the floor, "Sorry..." the wind seemed to barely say once I turned my attention back to Nin. Ignoring her as she started to imitate Nin's movements. I let this go on for a few before taking Nin to the side when he had spent all of the charge in his sockets. It would also give Vadei some time to get used to it on her own without losing track of where her shots were going because of Nin.

"Yau getting aaa haaang af it?"

"Mmmm... I've seen a few guards back in Tobaballe use their guns in security runs or raids on the lower floors so I just thought I'd copy them." he tells me while he tried to get the drum out. Moving my paw in the way and unlocking it before he broke it trying to brute force it off. Taking the drum off of him and bouncing it up and down.

"Haw maaany of these da yau think yau cauld caaarry?" I ask as I gestured at the drum.

"In my hands?"

"Na, an yaur clathes if I warked up same kind of caaarrier." then tapping the holster I was wearing which contained the ammo-tubes for my bolt-action.

"Honestly, I feel like that is a question better suited to your harness than me." he said as he casually picked up the hull piece I had shot earlier. A single nod being my response.

"Ga aver ta the rest of them, I waaant yau ta taaake aaa few drums and see haw quickly you caaan relaaaad." I told him as I returned to Vadei. I was confident in Nin's ability to shoot competently enough. Now all I needed him to do now was reload competently.

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"So do I need to do anything with you?" the Ho asked me while rubbing his eyes, eyes that went back to annoying me with their gaze. My feet kicking against a nearby tree while he did so with my kicks getting more violent as his gaze continued to annoy me. Only stopping the kicks when I ended up seething in pain after kicking the bark just a little too hard. Gently squeezing the injured foot in question before moving on to answering his question.

"No, I do not have to teach you anything. It's not like I have the skills to pass on anyway, just go and do something with the other two." I told him while a hand of mine furrowed my brow. Reducing the amount of hand I used until it was just a finger and its attached claw that was going along my upper face. It was not advisable or healthy, but, sometimes it was just relaxing to feel the scrape of hard, but thin bone go along one's skin. But, it would be even better if I had the opportunity to sink all my claws into the slavers and their buyers...

"You move around quite well, not as smoothly as when Vapooliar goes," the Ho began to say before his hand glided about the air just above the grass, "But you move your feet quite well... And your arms..." his voice sounding like it had a developing confusion tumour within it.

"What are you getting at?"

"Maybe you could teach me how to move better...?"

"You look like you are about to fall over dead, so no, I won't be teaching you anything."

"Not even show me?"

"You wouldn't even be able to use what I showed you, you stupid, hairless, Ho." I bitterly remark to him.

"I got hair up here, hair along here, hair down here and hair rig-"

"I don't need to know about that, thank you!"

"Then you show me something."

"What good would it be anyway? We are going into narrow caves and tight tunnels where the God of Smells just drops all his worst creations!"

"Well, there are a lot of trees there, maybe you could show me how to quickly move around them and then I can have a go?" his hand gesturing at a collection of tightly packed trunks.

"Fine, just keep quiet and don't say a word." I sneer to the gently wobbling human as he nodded at me. His eyes barely looking like they were focusing on me or the trees! My own eyes rolled before I shook my head in disbelief. I was about to give a brief lesson on movement to a good for nothing who was barely keeping a steady focus!

Snorting harshly to get some of the annoyance out before I lowered my body down and straightened my tail out into a more rigid shape to serve as my counterbalance. Actually, now that I acknowledged my tail, why in the name of all the gods and goddesses should I even carry on with this!? He can't even mimic the movements of a tail so it was pointless! But, at the same time, watching him fail might bring me some joy.

A chance to see him humiliated as a form of small and insignificant recompense for what his people did to mine!

"Pay attention!" I bark out to him before I started, gently digging into the dirt below before I began to move. My tail moving along with the wind and gently changing course as my legs and arms bent at various angles while I seemingly sprinted and crawled. My claws digging into the bark and serving as hooks with my flexible legs taking and dealing with most of my centrifugal force as I went about the trees. Even going as far as to seemingly climb the trees when the distance got tight enough.

Once I was up, I then started showing off even more by using my more flexible body to get through spots he wouldn't be able. And then, once I was done showing off to him, I properly climbed the tree and hung upside down from it with a smug smile, "Did you get all that?" I ask him pointlessly. I knew he wouldn't have, but maybe he was too prideful to admit to such failings...

His head slowly nodded and shook, switching between the two gestures before he then stood up properly. Getting back into the tree and then going towards the edge of the branch, letting its bend carry me down before dashing off. A smile on my face after the branch whacked his arm sharply on the way back up, he did not care and it did not seem to have hurt him. But, I got to hit him, so I was fine either way.

"Hurry up then!" I urged as I was getting impatient with his idleness and lack of movement. My annoyance at his behaviour only getting worse when he started off extremely slow, there was no fluidity or speed to his movements... He was just walking... A twitching eye being all I had to say on the matter as he stopped before the trees I went through.

"I can't get through here."

"Force your way through."

"I don't want to..."

"You don't want to...?" I repeated with a clear voice devoid of any emotion except what it put a lid on, "You don't want to... Well, guess what then? I don't care! I don't want to go through a 'sib hive yet I got to! I don't want to share a camp with a Ho and two slavers! But I got to!" I told him angrily as I got close to him and began jabbing at his chest.

"Stop being so mean..." he mumbled as he walked off back to the start with a yawn. His lethargic body resisting the urge to sleep or sit down by instantly restarting his movements the moment he got there. Hopping out of the way as he began to move with greater speed and haste. Sniffles and soft noises leaving him as he just partially uprooted trees on his way through the gaps between them.

Shaking my head at this as it was not putting the information I gave to him to any use before I sat back down. My face resting in my tail before I myself yawned. Being up here doing nothing but training had been exhausting and seeing him just made me feel tired. Even if moments ago I did not feel tired much if at all.

"Where did he go...?" I let out in confusion once I stopped rubbing the remaining soft patches of my tail against my face and nose. My ears shooting up and snapping into different positions when a loud boom came from within the smoke. We were not training and neither were the slavers so I did not know what could have made that noise. Yet, I also could tell that it was not the 'sibs as my body was not going haywire with danger signals.

So I got up and headed towards where the bang was most precisely heard...

Frowning and looking about frantically when I entered the little pocket of disturbed smoke that had been made. My mind ablaze with thoughts of how I was going to choke him blue when I found him for doing this. Only to nearly jump in fright when a light smack hit the back of my head, "WHA-" I began to yelp out.

Quickly moving to lash out at the Ho as he stood there with a little grin on his face. As if all of this was worth it just to have a laugh. No, no it wasn't funny... It wasn't clever and it most assuredly wasn't going to get us anywhere!

He chuckled as he rubbed his eyes and shook his head while I glared at him, all while we still had this little pocket. Then, the smoke soon had started to fill it back up but I wasn't going to wait around for it to do so. I would just get into camp before I blew a casket at his behaviour. So I moved on and just started grumbling as I and then him entered the pocket of smoke-less air that would actually last.

Ignoring the other two as I sat down before the dead campfire and just started prodding the charcoal with a stick that had only partially been eaten by the flames.

"Nin? Are you okay?" Vapooliar asked the Ho in the moments before he just collapsed, eyeing the Valkinvar as she rushed over to help him. I didn't see much except that he was clutching his head as if it was about to burst, what was causing it however I didn't know. Nor did I particularly care so I just sulked to myself and did whatever I could to keep my time occupied.

"There, better, Paps?" the younger slaver said to her terrible excuse for a father as he steadily got up stretched about. His eyes clearly wincing whenever he strained his injuries. He sure was acting spry for someone who took the brunt of the impact when those two fell off the platform we were formerly on. But, I was no expert on hwardgon physiology to pass comment.

For all I knew they had weak skeletons just so they could get the benefits of a faster recovery... Or it had more to do with the fact they typically lived underground and probably evolved to deal with collapsed earth with as little issue as possible. A glance at their direction, however, just led me to guess that the father had been drugging himself with the tranquillizer lubricant on the capture-sacks. The fact he wasn't out cold seemed to allude heavily to the fact he has done such a thing before.

Being a drug-taking slaver, that is.

"Today's our last day of living. So what is for dinner?" I asked hopelessly, much to Vapooliar's disdain. Disdain I couldn't particularly care for right now as I just wanted to fill up my stomach and die with dreams of wishing I had better food.

"Same meaaat I faund aaand same haney from Paps' aaamma cantaaainers!" the Slaver said with a spring in her step as she pulled out a cracked cylinder of some sort. It was buzzing, it was just filled with angry buzzing... So I simply sighed at her and just grimly wishing for this honey or mystery meat to be hyper-deadly poison. As her saying the honey came from the ammo to a gun did not do a good job in making me enthused to be eating.

It wasn't gruel, though, so at least I could be joyful at that.

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"No awake?" Heiya's father asked me as I stroked Nin's sleeping head. Hoping dearly that he was okay as he had been spending the last few hours just shivering and moving to clutch his head. No one seemed to have any real idea about what was wrong with him. But, I could only guess what he might've been going through.

"No, and it doesn't seem like he will be for a little bit longer." I comment, he wasn't twitching about as badly as he was earlier. Yet it was clear that it won't be gone for at least another few angles.

"He better not be like this when we have to go into that accursed cave..." Vadei spat out as she returned with some sticks to serve as firewood. All for Heiya's latest attempt at becoming the best chef this side of the osibindah hive. It smelled interesting, even if her father was smacking her repeatedly for how she was handling the ammo container.

What even was in those containers...? They mentioned honey so I could only assume some form of small insect one might've found near an aelenvari caravan. I might have even been familiar with it as the window-mounted gardens in Thurn's Forge often had little insects buzzing through them. And, one of the heads of the Valkinvar Ordoars was a fan of going through them. Eurultus-Valkinvar Pymonsia was her title and name, a nice and quiet woman that did not mind me following her through these gardens.

Back when I was still training and in Thurn's Forge, though.

"Don't worry... He won't... He won't disappoint us... Just you wait." I finally say to Vadei after my mind finished its tangent about Heiya's current recipe choice. I was still trying to keep myself positive about how much Nin could do for us but the little things were just piling up. It was becoming more apparent as the orbits went by that I was to be the central pillar to the plan rather than one that got a supportive one accompanying it.

I could at least hold solace in the fact that Heiya and her father both knew how to handle themselves. It was interesting to hear as they had been quietly discussing details during dinner or early into the rising-orbit. Vadei would at least be useful in the fact she had her natural senses and as such would prove effective in figuring out a safe path when we finally went into the hive...

Nin... Nin was the issue, for some reason I held him up to a standard that I just didn't hold the others to... Maybe it was because he was the one whom I got out of the hive which initially that seeded such behaviour in me... Maybe it was that I just expected more from him when it became apparent that he would be our second strongest team member...

Even if it was from what could only be described as a fluke in how magic worked...

"Heiya, how many people were you shipping before all of this?" I asked the hwardgon out of what must've been the blue for her.

"Aaabaut... Samewhere aaapraaaaching thirty?" she answered with a scratch of her head, clearly having forgotten about such information. If it was apathy to the job or a lack of care didn't matter to me, but Vadei was bothered by it. I couldn't blame her given her history with individuals such as Heiya but I wasn't going to pass judgement on such topics. A soldier had no right to when they've done far worse with a sword than she might of with a whip.

"And how many have you counted as dead?" was my next question which I also attached a hand gesture to. My finger idly pointing at the broken pod that was partially inside of our camp as a barricade and partially outside of it.

"Haaalf if we ga by the aaamaunt af pads I faund. Passibly less aaas same didn't haaave badies in them." this was a somewhat useful answer as if we managed to come across the other fifteen if we were generous then we might've been able to use them to our advantage as well.

"You think we can use these other slaves to help?" Vadei asks bluntly while she began digging her nails into the dirt beside her. She was being a bit touchy, but it was expected, she needed to keep a cool head through this, however.

"I do. If Nin managed to go through Sudden Induction without dying then surely a few of the others did as well?"

"No. Small chance, boy unexplained luck." Heiya's father answered as he picked up one of the ammo container's for the weapons I picked up an orbit or so ago. His hands gesturing for me to pay attention to it as he clearly had more to say, "S.I.T mostly apply to non-living. It make gun shoot bigger." he explained somewhat with his hands making a gesture that alluded to an explosion.

"Magic weapons are more dangerous in low-magic areas?" he nodded in confirmation once I asked that. I was left frowning because of it, if living creatures from low-magic areas usually died when taken into high-magic areas then how was Nin still alive? What did those bugs do...? Or was he just in a position of where he could steadily adapt? That would've made more sense however if he didn't find me after... A certain incident happened to me...

Did that mean I was responsible for his current state? Did the desperate burst of my magic somehow endanger him more than the osibindah?

"So we're on our own then?" Vadei asks, clearly depressed by the outcome.

"No. Hive have others in it. We give these creatures spares." Heiya's father pointed out. Placing my spare hand against my chin as I glanced at the aelenvari seed Nin was given before we got out. If we were to somehow find the aelenvari who gave it to Nin then we could, in theory, convince them to fight alongside us as we fought our way out of the hive. Or, even better, any aelenvari as if we could rouse them into action by showing them the seed then we would have both a distraction to take the majority of the attention off of us should our actions get noticed and help in general if they decide to directly follow us.

But, the latter option may be less helpful as such gathering would clog up our efforts to leave and it would leave us extremely vulnerable to any archers they might've had. My eyes looking up at the 'arrow' that I could partially see in the wreck above Heiya's father. But referring to it as an arrow might've been dishonest... It was more akin to a lance in size...

I could only wonder about such a weapon as its size would suggest heavier equipment was in the employ of the osibindah. They knew how to and could cast their own lore of magic so them having the capacity to build primitive ballistae wasn't too far out there. It did however not match most recorded cases of the osibindah, however... It did not in the slightest.

Unless...

"When the Earth-Shaman brought your airship down, did you notice anything peculiar about it?" both of the hwardgon shook their heads. The father was suddenly pinching up some dirt granules after I asked it. An odd behaviour to exert but I could only guess he had at least something to contribute.

"Rust. Lot of it." he finally said as his actions were made clear, he was trying to find a few flakes of corroded steel!

This did not fill me with particular joy as only one documented osibindah hive showed any notable association with metal. Tightening my free hand into a determined fist once the name finally came to the forefront of my thoughts...

"What you're describing sounds an awful lot like Alxxcron." I let out much to their confusion. I guess it made some sense. This earth shaman, in particular, gained its reputation by destroying one of our forts out in the ravines and valleys by seemingly making the earth swallow it whole.

"What I am hearing is that we're unlucky enough and ended up in the territory of one of the more dangerous hives run by the 'sibs?" I just nodded in response to Vadei's question as she clutched her head and began to hug her tail. Her eyes and pride clearly not caring that we saw her trying to hide herself as if she was still a pup.

"Do not despair too much, Vadei, this one made be a cut above the norm but it is by no means comparable to a... Valkinvar." I told her with some hesitation as I wasn't particularly in a position to refer to myself by my old title. Slowly moving the hand that I had been stroking with closer to his hands only to stop when I reached the forearm.

"Even when you aren't in your armour?"

I couldn't let a mood of defeat beset the camp so close to our chosen cycle so I just puffed out my chest and tried to murder my growing anxiety about the situation, "My dear, our power comes from our training, not our gear." this was a half-truth... Yes, our training in controlling our internal and external magics made us very powerful but our gear also put us a cut above what could be considered a trained witch.

I really didn't want to dwell on the topic, so it was a good thing Nin began to stir when he did.

"This smell better not be lying to me..." he groaned out as he sat himself up, still clutching his head in pain and shaking it in a measly attempt to dull whatever was causing him such distress.

He did have a point, it did smell nice even if we were rather ignorant of the ingredients in use. I think it may have been the juices mixing with the honey that made it smell like that.

"What is it?"

"Meat and honey!"

"No clue what 'honey' is but what meat are we having? Been chugging gruel down for so long that I want to savour it..." he said while smacking his lips, even though he has done nothing but complain about how he wasn't hungry since we got here.

"Human." Heiya casually said as she began dishing it up.

I felt like I misheard that...

"Did you just say..."

"Yep, human." she repeated, this only made me shiver in disgust once the food was put before me. I understood some cultures outside of the mountain-states simply ate whatever meat they could get or raise but surely they must've drawn the line at eating intelligent creatures bar circumstances of the extreme kind...?

"Hm. Tastes better than I thought it would." Nin said after he scoffed the meat down with unnatural fervour before holding out his bowl for more, "I'll eat that if you won't." he said to me as he tried to grab my portion with juice soaked hands while he teethed the leftover bone in his bowl.

I was considering giving it to him on the principle of the situation but I was hungry... So I reluctantly took a bite from meal I was provided with. Only to be left angry at Heiya as this was very much not human, it was white meat, not a red one like humans have.

"You dare lie to me about such a thing?" I tell her with slight wisps of emerald appearing in my pupils. All of it because I was not fond of being led to believe that I had potentially deprived either Waionr or Undwote of a body that was rightfully theirs.

"Y-Yep!" Heiya laughed out while Nin simply let out a disappointed moan.

"Way to kill the suspense..." he groaned out at me before he continued to gnaw on the bone. It was only kept moist by his saliva yet he was insistent on picking it clean of every tiny morsel and string of sinew.

"Don't you speak so casually about nearly eating one of your own kind!" I snap at him before carrying on to finish my lot.