"Yeah, I don't think I wanna be doing that anytime again anytime soon."
Calen's voice pierced the silence as the group anchored the boat to the coast and leaped out. They were all weary, beaten by the storm and the battles that preceded that.
Reve helped Ren to a rock where she rested. The time on the boat wasn't helpful for her injuries.
She glanced at Calen with a musing expression. 'How is he still fine after everything? The Ghost literally plunged its claws into his chest.'
She couldn't fathom the resilience of a cambion.
Reve told them, "Let's take a break. I'm just gonna look around."
He left the coastal region and wandered around as his mind sunk into deep thoughts.
'We are finally in Frostholm Isle, but why do I have the feeling that things are only going to get difficult from here?'
Frostholm Isle was the last island in the Green Archipelago. It was the only regulated zone in the archipelago–a lower zone so popular that it possessed a stargate.
That was why Reve's first thought after hearing about this mega town was to head there right away. While he was trying to get back to Arcadia, his main priority was to survive long enough to get the chance to do that.
For that, he needed a safe location to hide.
Reve ruminated, "The Green Archipelago is surrounded by the Devil's Sea. I won't get out through normal means. Hence, my intense desire to use the stargate."
As he wandered around, he came across a dirt road that led a path past the rocky hills and sturdy trees.
He realized, "That's the road to Havenfell. I'm glad I found it early."
He decided against pressing forward and regrouped with the others. He told them about what they found and they agreed to follow the path once Ren was ready to begin another journey.
As Reve rested against a tree, his senses flared as the heterochromatic light in his eyes brightened. He saw wisps of grey matter rising from the earth and flowing in the air.
The substance changed colors as they left the ground. They weaved around Calen and Ren, but never initiated contact. However, when they got closer to Reve, they shot into his body, infiltrating it as subtle spasms of pain assaulted him instantly.
Reve gritted his teeth as a moan of pain escaped his lips.
Confused, he questioned himself, "What is this?"
A tingle of shock suddenly erupted in his right palm.
Reve held down a scream. Immediately, the strange substance floated out of his skin and danced around his palm.
They reacted to his mind. Every time he felt a pain, they would coalesce around that region, bringing a chilling sensation along.
Reve realized, "Is this what I think it is? Is this Ether?"
The more he delved into the sensation of this strange energy, the more baffled he became. It was unlike anything he had ever come into contact.
It felt deadly, yet earthly at the same time. It held consistently contrasting attributes, and most of all, it seemed sentient… almost as if it chose whose body to infiltrate.
Ren's voice interrupted his rapid thoughts. "Hey, let's go. It's getting dark. Who knows what lurks in this region?"
He turned to her with a pensive expression.
Wisps of ether concentrated around her body. Yet, unlike his situation, they refused to infiltrate for some reason. However, this wisps radiated an ethereal wave that constantly affected Ren's body. Her aura slowly changed, gradually bearing hints of grey hue.
'Its mutating her… saturating her body with its radiation.' Reve turned to Calen.
The ether around Calen's body acted the same. However, Calen's body seemed to have almost reached the saturation point. Most likely, he would gain ether channeling in the next coming days.
A thought hit him. Did ether also do that to his body?
He was about to focus on his body when Ren shouted. "Hello, Earth to Ren? Are you okay?"
Reve turned to Ren and said, "Sorry, I was lost in thoughts. You said you are ready to leave, right?"
"Hell yes. I do not want to continue sleeping on a rock. I need a fucking comfy bed."
Calen nodded, closing his eyes as he imagined. "You speak my mind, Ren. Ahh, what I would do to have a heavenly sleep for even one day."
"Oh… ok," Reve replied and straightened his posture.
He put the thoughts about ether at the back of his head and began walking towards the road he found.
.
.
.
.
.
The town of Havenfell was quite like he expected. It was beautiful with neon lights present everywhere and holographic advertisements banners at every corner of its streets.
Situated between two hills, it had no need for large barrier gates.
They had walked into the town quite easily. However, it didn't take long for them to encounter patrol guards who stopped them for questions about their origins.
They quickly came up with a lie: they were from Ghostbay and their ship crashed before they could arrive here.
It wasn't the most solid lie, but it worked on the guards. Or perhaps the guards weren't interested in what they were hiding.
However, before the guards let them continue forward, they seized their weapons and issued a threat–it was more of a warning… if one ignored the guards' gesture of pointing guns at them.
Anyway, the guards left them alone and allowed them to enter unharmed.
"Wow, this is really a sight." Ren remarked as she beheld the inner sight of the town.
There were skyscrapers at every corner with both strange individuals and regular humans roaming about. From the corner of his eyes, Reve caught more than a few with cybernetic enhancement. He stopped counting as they were almost too much.
"What you looking at, mutant?" One particular man spat at them.
The man's lower jaw was completely mechanical. It invoked a funny sight that only became funnier when the man's mouth moved, dangling like a puppet.
Before Ren and Calen could burst into laughter, Reve dragged them away to a corner. Immediately, they shared looks and began bawling.
Ren cackled, "Hahaha, he looks like the aftermath of my favourite doll. Forgive me, Cray Cray… wherever you are."
"How did that happen?" Calen said with a questioning look.
"Hey, I was young!"
Reve shook his head and focused on the sight of the town.
He noticed the regularity of fast cars zooming past the street. They seemed expensive, and some of them even glowed.
Havenfell appeared more like a megacity than a lower zone.
It made him wonder just how the upper zones were.
At the corner of his eyes, Reve caught the holographic advertisement of an inn on the walls of a skyscraper.
He said, "That's where we are going. Hmmm… Skyfall Inn."