Quick question here. Were you all busy this weekend? I know I was semi busy in terms of homework and going places. But anyways here we are with another chapter. Oh and don't worry about We Stand Alone. I will most likely be writing the next chapter during the ride home. But this chapter we see a group of people that I enjoyed thinking about.

Note that I model the nations in this after real life empires. The Garlan Empire is supposed to reflect the Ottoman Empire to some extent and the Angkol Kingdom represents The Holy Roman Empire. And as always with countries on the western continent, they reject magic as heresy and demon work. Also you will see some strange terms to describe what the Angkol soldiers wear (because I like to describe things in huge detail). Look up Great Helm and Frog Mouth Helm to get a visual of what Angkol soldiers wear. Anyways, here is the chapter.

The Fog King sailed towards Derlados, the western continent. Derlados was a strange continent. It was the most populated continent but none of the inhabitants were magical. Reason being, the people of Derlados reject magic as heresy and kill any mage on sight. But otherwise, the people of Derlados are kind to foreigners. The western continent is covered mostly by pine forests and little patches of frosty land.

However a trait separates the people of Derlados from the rest of the world. They are extremely religious and are willing to die in the name of their god. One kingdom in particular (the kingdoms of Derlados are separated much like the tribes in Asarabia), Angkol, is the most religious and is leaning towards conflict with the Garlan Empire. The Angkol kingdom seems stretched thin, controlling all the coasts of Derlados and only a little bit of the interior but they control all goods entering and leaving the continent and that is their greatest advantage. They also support a strong army and hire mercenaries from the Knights of Sar and Hunter Pride.

But has something been manipulating events so far? War would be perfect for those who oppose Lidia and Hyde and perhaps, evil has set things up perfectly.

"Aga…suna." Raymond said slowly, receiving a nod from Meredy who was tutoring Raymond on how to say 'Hello' in Angkolian.

The two were sitting on the deck of The Fog King, enjoying the sun and the cool salty sea air as the ship sailed towards the Derlados port. Asura and Azami were also looking out into the ocean and Waldo was steering the ship and the other crew members swarmed the riggings like ants. It had been a peaceful two hours since they left the Fiore. So far, nobody had tried to attack them and it was a nice change of pace.

…

"Do you think they can handle it?" Ultear asked Jellal worriedly as the ship travelled to Derlados.

Jellal looked at the black haired mage and he sighed. Jellal hated deceiving people especially after the life he used to lead.

"I don't know. I think they can. I hope they can. Hiding magical power can be difficult at first but it can be a quick process. I didn't want to tell them about the people there because not a lot of people visit anyways." Jellal said, having regrets about not telling Asura and Azami a few key details.

Ultear just looked despaired as she turned to look out the porthole in the wall.

"I'm sure they can handle it Jellal. They aren't children after all." Ultear said, half scorning Jellal.

"Well what was I supposed to say? That these people kill mages upon detection? I didn't want to scare them away! We need their help Ultear. We really do. Something is going on and it isn't good." Jellal said as he answered Ultear's question, a grim look coming to his face.

Ultear just sighed. It was true. They did need Asura and Azami for this mission. But something was lingering in her mind. Would the Witch Doctor even help them? He was known throughout legend as a man of evil but one could only hope.

…

"Bleh…." Azami said, nearly turning green as she vomited over the side of the ship.

Asura was leaning on the railing, looking concerned. Who knew she had such bad sea sickness? They had been talking about where they were going for quite a while but Azami kept getting sea sick.

"Land ho!"

The shout was a big relief to Azami as she looked up from the side of the ship to notice that the colors of the world. They weren't as lively as the colors in Magnolia. In fact everything looked like there was grey mixed in. Even the water seemed greyish as the ship headed towards the docks.

And finally they made it. The ship docked at the port and the crew began unloading the crates that had been stored underneath. Asura and Azami looked around the port with wonder. They had arrived at Derlados!

It sure did seem like an entirely different world. Pine trees grew from the rich soil and there were several brick houses not too far from the port. Several ships were docked at the port and they all seemed to be part of the Skull and Bones fleet. Waldo had gone to talk with some of the other sailors and Jellal and Ultear came up from below decks. They greeted Asura and Azami as they came over and Raymond and Meredy joined them as well.

"Well, we finally made it to the western continent." Asura sighed as he looked across the port.

"Its beautiful here but why does everything look like it has grey mixed in?" Azami asked, looking at all the people moving across the stone harbor and unloading crates.

"Its because of the clouds. The clouds here seem to be incredibly dense and they filter out color from the sun. But I have something very important to tell you." Jellal said seriously, looking at the group.

Everyone nodded and Jellal pointed across the port to a group of armored men walking in. There were four of them. Two of them wore Great Helms with chain mail covering their body with thick cloth underneath. The two other men wore huge and bulky metal plated armor and carried double bladed axes and had on a helmet that had no eye holes, just a small opening at the top edge of the helmet so the soldiers had to lean forward to see out of them. Azami shivered when she saw them.

"Those guys," Jellal said as he looked back at the group. "are Angkol soldiers. Don't, and I repeat, don't EVER talk to them or even look at them. I don't know if you guys know this but the people of the western continent aren't kind to mages and will KILL any mage they detect without hesitation. You should be fine if you stay away from them because ordinary people can't detect magic that easily."

Asura and Azami nodded nervously as the group moved off the ship and headed towards the inside of the city that was right next to the port. As they passed the stores and houses that lined the streets of the city, the group noticed that there were soldiers EVERYWHERE. Standing on street corners, walking down roads and even eating food at cafes. This made everyone nervous as they passed through small city, trying not to look 'magical' if that was even possible. They soon headed out of the city and towards a dirt path that led to the Unh Forest but Asura and Azami couldn't shake a creepy feeling they had.

…

"Who were they." asked an armored soldier who wore a Great Helm with gilded sides and wore heav metal plate armor.

The soldiers who stood next to the armored soldier strained to see the group of people leave the city and one of them, a pale young man wearing a metal safari helmet and holding a rifle looked at the armored person.

"I thought I saw them come from a ship. Is there something wrong generalia*?" asked the rifleman.

The foot soldiers that stood around the general drew their razor sharp swords and growled towards the city's entrance.

"Should we give chase generalia?" the asked, ready to chase after the group.

"No. Let them be. Just keep an eye on them…they seem to be…different." The general said as the group left the city.

The soldiers nodded and the soldiers signaled to a group of lightly armored, lanky men. They took off running after the group. The general watched the scouts leave and turned away to view the harbor.

Sorry there wasn't much action in it. Next chapter will be more action packed I promise. I just wanted to show you the Angkol and stuff. There was supposed to be a special scene at the end but I took it out for next chapter because it's a bit…foreshadowing filled.

References for this chapter: *generalia means general in Angkolian

Anyways, I hope you liked it and I will see you in the next chapter! Action shall be it's middle name! FF