Lance's Role

by Thrudgelmir2333

A 'shonen' fic that sequels Next Dimension and Lost Canvas. In 1960, the Pope of Athena receives three prophecies from an old enemy that irremediably set the course of his reign over Sanctuary's tragic history and almost two decades later a Saint of Pegasus finds himself put through the unfolding of a new age of violence caused by the Pope's actions. Please enjoy and review.

85. 3A: From Mountains to the Seas

Notable OCs: Pegasus Lance's Saint Generation, Civil War Saint Generation, World War Saint Generation, Daemon Lucifer's Specters, Maiden Elisa, Priam's Black Saints; Cyrulian Refugees; Genbu Atlae; Patrician Mariners, Shamballa Muvians;

Notable Original Concepts: Mount Olympus Training Ground, Sanctuary Court, Teos Cloth, Athenian Empire mythology, Isle of Gardens, Stardust Prison, Hades' Dark Princes; Desert Beyond, Sanctuary Town Layout & Buildings; Kido Mount; Pact of Seven; DQI Geography; Shamballa;

Recurring/Cameo OCs of Jenny DeVic: Mrs. Schafurwatt, Cyrus

Recurring/Cameo Concepts of Jenny DeVic: Great Bodyguard Legend, Golden Line Heritage, Sanctuary Orphanages, Andromeda Island's Geography & Tests, Sanctuary Nobility, 88 Knights Festival

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Author Notes:

-This chapter has been betaread by Zebullon_Wallace;

-Reached 300k words published on AO3 (and about to cross 1.9 Million on fanfiction net);

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Please enjoy and review ^_^

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January, 1974

Shamballa

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Three years had passed since Atlae joined the Turtle School. Winter time had come, coating the legendary city of the Muvians in snow, and many houses hanged since late December big paper lamps of many colors from their roof tiles over the windows, turning the streets into a celebration of warm lights. Most lamps were marked with some kind of symbol of a turtle, as Winter was the season of Genbu and thus a special time for Shamballa, which hosted the deity's only surviving school.

While Muvian children ran in the snow to collect samples for alchemy class, adult artists drew dreadful angels of Zeus in the dressed grounds to ward off Olympian spirits. Other more seasoned Muvians took their craft a step forward, creating artistic golems of frozen water in honor of the great warriors of Mu's sunken past, many in poses of battle or death, even employing branches and vegetables in the golems to capture a greater abstraction of the Muvian form.

It was a wonderful time in the Muvian calendar, welcoming the final cycle of the Gods seasons. It was also a time of contemplation over one's year, as, by being the cardinal opposite of Suzaku, the God Genbu represented, in a way, both Mu's final era as a civilization and also the purification of its old vices that led to its downfall. As such, many bells softly rung throughout town, from the small ones in the Buddhist households to the bigger ones in the squares and forums in honor of Genbu, creating a gentle lyric of rings everywhere you went.

There was one bell, however, that did not ring, even during this time; the golden bell of Genbu at the top of the Sun Temple.

To visitors to Shamballa during this time, it was a rather sad sight that in a season of bell ringing, the greatest, shiniest, and most impressive of all would stay silent. Why is it not rung, they ask? To the local Muvians, however, the Golden Bell being silent was the normal, and it had been so for a thousand years.

The Muvian couple stood back from their house to give the young Muvian man space to shovel the snow out of their doorway in one great swing to his cart. They marveled, seeing him speed out into the street, turn and clear the rest of the road like a Muvanoid snowplow, piling up one big frozen snowball many times his own size. Then, with a braking screech, the youth lifted it up unto his hands and tossed it into his huge cart, leaving behind a pristine road.

They clapped. "Thank you, Atlae! Wonderful job!" the woman, a middle aged dark-haired Muvian, praised. "Now my husband can take his laboratory cart to the workshop again

The fourteen-year-old Muvian cleaned the sweat off his brow and felt his arms burn after the hundredth street block cleared, but smiled nonetheless, proud of his work. "No problem!"

The husband, a slightly older Muvian of lilac hair, adjusted his glasses and took out his wallet. "Atlae, you really helped us out. It would have taken me a fortune in sodium chloride to do this myself. Here, I know the Turtle School practices austerity, but let me pay you."

Atlae shook head. "There's no need, sir. Clearing snow is good exercise." He flexed his arm proudly. "All the pushing trains my arms and my legs and it's way more fun than lifting weights."

"I'll say; you didn't even look like you were using any cosmos to shovel all that up!" the woman awed. "You're as strong as our daughter, incredible!"

"Oh, shucks!" Atlae swooned. He wished the girls at the school were as nice to him as their mothers.

"Let us fix you a meal, then, Atlae." The woman offered. She had noticed nothing made the teenager happier than fill his stomach. "You love food, don't you? We're having some lamb shank and potato curry, if you'd like?"

"Oh BOY! Lamb?!" Atlae celebrated, feeling his stomach rumble. He could picture the sweet curry powder mixed with onions and chili over the leg and drooled. "That's my third favorite dish! I'd love to!"

The father chuckled. What an interesting Muvian boy. "We prepared some for the festival, but our daughter has to stay at the school for the parade. Would you like some?"

But the blonde Muvian slumped, his mood depressed. "Oh, wait, I can't. I have to be at the Sun Temple today. Master Yuzuriha will be upset if I am late."

"Oh, that's right. Today's the temple event. Are you and the girls ringing the shrine bells?"

Atlae smirked. "Something like that, yes." He looked at the time. "Oh, speaking of which, I have to go! Will you save some of that lamb for me later?"

The couple laughed. "Of course! Enjoy the festivities!"

Atlae took the huge snow cart and waved goodbye, speeding off at a shocking pace for someone not burning cosmos.

The couple went inside. "What a nice young boy. A straw-hair, too! I haven't seen my cousin's tribes in years. He must be one of the few still left around."

"Yes, it's extra surprising considering he was raised by Mariners." The husband added.

The wife widened eyes. She surveyed her cleared garden with a sudden terror, wondering if Atlae found her family gemstone's shrine. Was that why he refused payment? "What? Why didn't you say something? I-"

"Don't worry, your mother's sapphire is safe and sound. Atlae wouldn't touch it in a million years," The husband assured as he got his things for the lab. "I don't know if Elder Yuzuriha taught him better, or the Mariners failed to teach him their rapacious ways, but that Atlae is as pure-hearted as they come. Zayah says so. Then again, she also says he's a bit thick-headed, so maybe he just doesn't understand how much family stones sell for among humans."

She sighed in relief. "Don't frighten me like that! I thought…" She shook head to herself. He was right, it was silly to suspect Atlae. How shameful of her. "Nevermind. I'm going to save some of the lunch for him."

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The Sun Temple

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Leading the Turtle School's parade, Elder Yuzuriha slowly marched up the stairs to the massive, nine-floored Pagoda palace that centered the city. She was dressed in her religious robes of red outlines over white fabric, with a crown of a radiant sun over her grey hair and her hands eternally folded into sleeves, while her students wore their Turtle School Gis and carried various banners of the school's virtues, such as balance and peace of mind.

Crowds of Muvians stood in the flanks, hoisting lamps, throwing rosemary branches and cherry petals at their feet and praising the coming season. Many parents waved at their daughters, who had the honor of following in the footsteps of their beloved High Elder with a set of extremely heavy turtle shells on their backs.

"Hey, honey! You look adorable with your blue belt and shell!" one cried.

Mia's face reddened and she hushed, trying to keep her banner up straight and burning cosmos to support the weight on her back. "Mom, stop! I look like a reptilian hunchback!"

Yuzuriha's eyes glanced sideways, seeing a heftier turtle discreetly joining the back of the parade. "(Welcome to your school duties, Atlae. You're only a bit late this time around. Exemplary progress to the first years, if I must say.)"

The teenager, wearing his clear Gi, blue belt and shell, kept his banner up with an embarrassed frown. "(I'm sorry, Master. The people at the snow dump needed help. Their ploughs had a huge accident when they tumbled over each other like dominoes so I volunteered to put them all back in place.)"

Yuzuriha smirked to herself. Knowing Atlae by now, it was probably true. "(Mm, if only you could beat up your tardiness, and be a bit easier on the food budget, you'd make a wonderful student.)"

Atlae beamed, the sarcasm lost on him as always. "(Thank you, Master! I'm so proud you'd say that!)"

The High Elder crossed the Temple's gateway and stopped at its plaza, where three years earlier she had humiliated the Black Saint Rasputin. This made the long line of students stop in disciplined synchrony. Before her stood the monks of the Sun Temple, who greeted her with a respectful bow.

Yuzuriha bowed back and approached to hand over the scroll of that years' students. "Bless our school, oh wise disciples of the great Buddha. This season we plant new seeds to guard our blessed city."

The two armored, masked monks took it and nodded.

"They are blessed, oh High Elder, says I, Saint Peacock." The left one with the greenish blue armor with feather tails granted. "And they have arrived with great tempo."

"As per tradition, before we proceed to the shrine bells, I, Saint Lotus, now ask-" the right one spoke, sporting a reddish purple armor with petal-shaped plates. "-has this year grown any of your seeds into a mighty tree, such that it can ring the Bell of Genbu?"

"These two and their bad rhymes." Yuzuriha cringed. The answer came mechanically from her, just as it had from Elders over the past thousand years. "No, wise disciples, they have n-"

Atlae rose his hand above the class, keeping the banner up on the other.

The two armored monks shared a look.

"We have a volunteer?" Peacock asked. "Buddha and Genbu rejoice!"

"Is it the same as last year?" Lotus rhymed. "Who is the school's choice?"

Yuzuriha breathed deeply and resigned herself. "Very well… Step forward, Atlae."

The Muvian teenager, left his spot and bringing his banner.

"Atlae, what are you doing?!" Mia sneered, grabbing his shoulder to stop him. "Stay in the parade line! Haven't you learned your lesson yet?"

"The first year you tried this you smashed yourself on the floor." Jeanna added. "And the last year you broke your foot kicking the Temple, trying to make the bell come down!"

He gently removed Mia's hand, frowning. He knew better by now than to think these two were being his friends. "Thank you for the concern. I want to give it a shot, though. If I fail, there's always next year, right?" Ignoring their growls, he planted his banner on the garden and presented himself to the monks. "Wise Disciples of the Buddha, I am Atlae, of the Turtle School, and I am going to ring the bell."

The monks shared a look.

The left monk stepped back, giving him space. "Go with Genbu, son. May your thoughts be balanced and let you reach his shell."

The right monk stepped back, getting the medical bag ready. "Go with Genbu, son. May your Cosmos be strong and let you ring it twelve times."

Atlae bowed head respectfully. "Thank you." And placed himself in the center of the garden.

The Muvian parents pointed. "Look, the boy of the school is going to try to ring the bell this year too!"

The shopkeepers joined curiously. "Last year he reached the 5th floor before he fell back down! I remember he made a big bloody splat."

"Place yer bets, folks! Place yer bets!" a Sanctuary human visitor shouted, attracting a bit of a crowd. "Guess how far up he'll make it! How big a splat! How many weeks at the hospital! It's your guess! Only 10% commissions on winnings!"

A nerdy looking Muvian raised cash. "Ooh! I want ten thousand drachmas on Atlae cracking a ten-foot area of the temple ground when he falls! I have studied his body mass distribution and am 78% sure!"

"Umm, of course, whatever you'd like, sir!" The grifter saw another wager approaching. "And you good sir?"

The Muvian dropped a bag of splendorous gems on his stand. "I'd like to wager on him landing a kick on the bell, but I only got these worthless diamonds on me from the lab. Are they worth anything in Sanctuary?

The grifter gawked, his eyes turning into drachmas. "Y-YES! Absolutely! One bag of diamonds on hitting the bell!" He started dreaming of the Bahamas. "I'm gonna be rich! I knew fleecing these freaks would pay off someday!"

The Elder shook her head. Every year it was the same. She admired Atlae's persistence and even encouraged him to believe he could ring the bell, but was starting to worry about the ridicule this caused him.

Master Yuzuriha couldn't really stop him, but still tried. "Atlae, I know I first encouraged you to ring the bell, but isn't it too soon? I taught you that you can do anything with Cosmos, but… well, a bit of a plan would go a long way? I don't want you to hurt yourself again."

Atlae spun his arms and flexed his legs, cracking muscles and focusing thoughts on the bell. "Master, I do have a plan. Like you said always; keep my thoughts balanced so I can jump really high, maintain offense and defense so the bell won't bounce me back…. and kick the thing really hard. It's easy!"

One of the blue belts scoffed. "It's easy, he says! Don't count on us catching you when you fall."

Atlae shook head. "No, not at all. That would be cheating. Please don't."

Yuzuriha rubbed eyes. Atlae's social awkwardness wasn't making this easier. She stepped back resignedly. "Alright, fine. Good luck, Atlae."

Emboldened by his Master's faith, Atlae huffed like a determined bull. Now he could not afford to fail. The blonde Muvian looked up and focused on his target; the big golden bell hanging up there atop the nine-floored temple. He then closed eyes, spread feet, clenched fists, took a deep breath and focused.

He started by expelling thoughts of hunger and frustration, his biggest sources of suffering, breathing it all out in one calm sigh until his chest relaxed completely. He casted away the pleasant smell of cooking spices filling the air and the sweet rosemary filling the ground and he abstracted away all the myriad noises surrounding the temple. Then, he focused on his cosmos, letting his mind swim in the vastness of the universe. His body warmed up and a brim of green emerged around his body, making his blonde bangs flutter and the ground vibrate slightly. Atlae then slowly charged it, thickening this energy.

The ground vibrated slightly as he did.

Yuzuriha took note. "He unlocked the Earth element six months ago when he cracked that rock of stardust. Everyone thought an earthquake was happening. But that crazy power, even boosted by your Chi base, won't be enough, Atlae. The Bell could take Leo Kai's Lionet Cannon and not vibrate in the slightest." she looked up and tried to think of what she would do, if she was fourteen and in his shoes. "Structure of cosmos, not power, is required, like picking a lock of a safe. All brute force will do is make the Shell of Genbu bounce you back even harder. What will you do, Atlae?"

Atlae grabbed his Gi with both hands and, with a loud shout, ripped it off into pieces in every direction, stripping himself bare!

The crowd gasped and the girls covered their faces. Only the two masked monks stayed passive.

Yuzuriha was horrified. "ATLAE!"

"Master, please, I can't lose focus now." the half-nude boy begged. He relaxed his muscles and thought only of the touch of nature in his skin, letting his mind melt into the Cosmos completely. His aura swelled at this, raging like a dark green fire. In his mind, he reached out and communed with his God.

That was when Yuzuriha saw it; on his back, the tattoo of the turtle chimera forming!

The ground cracked beneath Atlae's feet as force concentrated. He looked up fiercely, flexed legs "Now…BURN, MY COSMOS!" and jumped, blasting off!

The crowd gasped, pointing at the boy flying up.

One floor. Two floors. Three floors!

The weight of his body began increasing exponentially the closer he got to Buddha's realm, but Atlae kept his thoughts sharp on the bell.

Four floors! Five floors! Six!

The first Muvian wager cursed his luck, surrendering his cash to the grifter. Yuzuriha followed her student intently, realizing he wasn't slowing down at all. Had he figured it out? But even if he did, that was just the first part of the puzzle!

Seven! Eight….

Atlae's body slowed its ascent, barely reaching height the ninth floor, where the highest state of Buddha's enlightenment was reached, his body burning with strain. Just a bit more!

"… Nine floors!" he thought, seeing the golden bell right in front of him. Immediately, his body reached elephantine levels of weight, giving him only a fraction of a fraction of a second to something, anything! Twisting his body aside, he shouted "ROZAN!"

"No way! Did he… discover the secret technique?!" Yuzuriha wondered, seeing the green cosmos vortex around Atlae's foot! "No, he needs to get in closer!"

"He's gonna do it!" another classmate suddenly cheered. "GO, ATLAE!"

The Muvian onlookers dropped jaws and pointed, wondering if something amazing was about to happen.

Atlae, however, gasped and dropped, feeling the weight overcome him! The bell began distancing!

Yuzuriha stepped, getting ready to jump and catch him. "ATLAE!"

Suddenly, his foot, where all his Earth cosmos was condensing for a mighty kick, then darkened so much that a mist of shadows burst out, swirling around Atlae's foot like a whirlpool!

The Master braked. "A second element! Darkness?!"

The twisting whirlpool spun faster and faster, all in that single instant, trapping the former Earth cosmos inside to form a gigantic wrecking ball of cosmos twice the size of Atlae on his foot. Trapping the tectonic force of the Earth element inside a hardened shell of Darkness, a true capsule alike the shell of a turtle was now around his foot.

"B-BLACK SHELL KICK!" Atlae shouted, swinging body as hard as he could before gravity robbed him of his target.

Macing into the bell, the two 'shells' collided, if only by a graze, unleashing a scream in the Cosmos! The dark balloon cracked and shattered, defended Atlae from the impact with the stardust while simultaneously releasing the Earth cosmos inside, striking the bell offensively in perfect counter balance. In an trapped time instant of cosmic catastrophe like that of two black holes colliding, the reflective force of the Shell of Genbu and the explosive vortex of the Black Shell Kick interacted in a loop of shock, reflection, absorption, and re-release of forces, looping a million times within a millionth of a second. The result was akin to a paradox between two opposite, yet mirroring, worlds spiraling in symmetrical directions, one that could only build up violence in its point of contact until one of the sides caved in.

No one, including Atlae and Yuzuriha and the two monk Saints, could perceive it. It was all happening in a realm of Cosmos beneath any of their 7th senses' reach.

Time resumed and the actual physical shock actually happened, triggering the impossible; the bell being truly and fully struck. Atlae fell, screaming from the aftershock of his own tremors.

The golden bell swung back and rung!

DING….

Yuzuriha leaped and caught her student, sparing him of the crash with a soft landing. Everyone beheld the swinging of the massive bell.

DING…. DING…DING… DING…. DING…. DING…DING…

Many cries of anticipation and disbelief were heard, witnessing something none of them had seen even in their long Muvian eyes. The Sanctuary grifter cursed, now deeply in debt to the Muvian who betted him a bag of diamonds that Atlae would, at least, touch the bell. Across the lengthy streets of Shamballa, many ran to the rooftops, seeing the Golden Bell of Genbu ring clearly from their houses.

DING…

DING….

The crowds murmured. That was a slower ring ninth and tenth ring! Would the bell stop before reaching twelve?! Atlae in particular held breath, his green eyes watching the bell make its eleventh ring even slower.

Ding…

The people of Shamballa's tempers cooled, seeing the bell slow almost to a halt. A vast disappointment overcame the streets. They should have known; it was impossible to fulfill the ultimate test of the Turtle School. It was impressive enough a student had reached eleven dings, though-

Thonk!

A cheering gasp coursed through town at this final, deeper ringing from the bell's clapper landing one final sound. The sun rays began piercing through the winter clouds, shining on the bell like a new day had risen, and the temple itself seemed to radiate in celebration.

"N… no way! Is this a dream?! Does this count?!" the Peacock Saint gasped, pointing at the bell. "The boy hath really reached a twelfth ring?!"

"Yes, He did it! Look at the light of the sun! It was the correct amount!" the Lotus Saint added, tossing out the medical bag "A happy year to all this will bring!"

"The bell of Genbu has been rung! TWELVE TIMES!" a Muvian in the crowd cheered. "After a thousand years, the school of Genbu has a new champion!"

"The High Elder has raised a great defender of our people!" another cried.

Atlae jumped, tossing out the heavy shell on his back and throwing arms up in celebration. "MASTER, I DID IT! I DID IT!" He shouted. "I've earned the black belt!"

Yuzuriha could only gawk. All her life, she had only seen the bell rung by ropes when Shion came to visit. And now, after all these years, she not only got to live to see it be rung for real, but by her own student!

Her stunned look turned to a happy smile. She hugged her cheering student tightly, concealing tears from her face.

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Chapter 85

Third Arc

Episode 13

From Mountains to the Seas

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Turtle School

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Following the twelfth ringing of the Bell of Genbu, the city of Shamballa became in uproar in a very Muvian fashion; with polite, quiet crowding of curious citizens around the school that most had come to see as a place to prepare their daughters for the defense force. There was no pushing, no hooting, and no calls to see the new champion trained by the high Elder; just an almost academic curiosity towards the news that someone had figured out the lost legendary technique, with many Muvians trading theories on what happened and debating the significance of it to their new future.

"Personally, I think the theory of quantum resonance is more likely." One workshop teacher suggested. "It is clear to me based on the sonic resonance that the High Elder's student employed subatomic frequencies to circumvent the bell's alchemy. How else could he move an immovable object?! He must have operated at a level beneath alchemic structures!"

"Of course you would say that, your workshop LOVES subatomic frequency theories! You'd think every math problem could be solved with a big enough collider!" another countered. "But NATURALLY the student must have used instead the black hole theory of cosmic withdrawal! It's the only thing that explains how he countered the bell's reflection!"

"Doctors, please!" a third one interfered, bringing in his chalkboard out into the street and scribbling on it. "As you can see from my calculations," he drew a boy kicking the bell and a series of equations on the contact point. ",the most likely explanation is that time-space itself was shifted by the mix of Darkness and Earth cosmos. Gravity and mass were altered by the two elements, creating the illusion of motion! Young Atlae did not kick the bell, for the Bell of Genbu cannot be moved. Rather, he kicked time-space itself!"

An onlooking clan warrioresses watched the argument escalate and multiple alchemists try to draw on the chalkboard.

One shook her head lamentingly. "Ugh, men. All they do is gossip about each other."

"The answer is so simple; the boy just used cosmos." A friend of hers commented. "Why do they need to complicate it that much?"

"Forget it, when they get yapping about math, they never stop." The first responded. "This is why we are the warriors around here, because it doesn't take formulas to punch a Specter in the eye."

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Inside the school, whole classes of students cornered Atlae against the wall with questions of their own.

"Atlae, how did you do that?!" a third-year girl queried.

He scratched head nervously. Were they angry? They seemed mostly just surprised so it was hard to tell. "Um, well, it wasn't that amazing. I just followed up on Master's teachings about the bell-"

A fifth-year girl named Zayah, whose parents he had help earlier, threw her arms up. "What are you saying?! Atlae, that was phenomenal! You rung the damn bell no one has in a thousand years!"

"You even figured out the lost technique of the Turtle Shell Kick! How did you do it?!" another named Beatrice questioned, beaming in excitement.

"Yeah, you looked like your foot turned into a big black hole and then BAM! It made the bell ring! Was that a laboratory trick you learned from the boys? Or did you find a secret scroll somewhere in the school?!"

Atlae gawked. Was he suddenly becoming popular? "Um, no, I just… kept practicing my kicks and tried to figure out on my own how cosmos could make me ring that bell. The rest was as Master said, keeping my thoughts balanced so I could jump that high."

Another girl raised a brow. "Okay, that part makes sense. Why did you rip your clothes off, though?"

The blonde Muvian beamed, seeing a chance to geek out. "Oh! That's part of the trick, Anna! See, in order to use Darkness and Earth Cosmos just right for what I needed, I had to focus really hard and make my Chi strengthen my body, so I could take the strain of using both elements at once!"

Zayah banged fist in palm. "Ah, I see! Of course! Darkness and Earth are the two heaviest elements. You'd need enormous physical strength to shape both at the same time and swing a black hole in your foot!"

Anna was still confused. "Okay, but seriously, what does the stripping have to do with it?! Master never taught us to do that in combat!"

Atlae scratched head. Wasn't this obvious? "Well, I needed to make it easier to push my Chi to the max before I burn my cosmos and, well, clothes and armor kind of make me feel constricted… I realized it that summer when Master made me meditate in the mountain spring." He shrugged and threw an hypothesis. "Maybe it's the hotblooded excitement of ripping them off, like a martial cry in a battle to the death! Isn't chi just adrenaline, in the end?"

A girl scoffed and pointed at his Gi letters. "Or maybe Atlae is such a hungry gorilla that he must discard all clothes to commune better with nature?"

The group laughed. Atlae smiled, feeling that, for the first time, it was a laughter of enjoyment instead of mockery. He found himself laughing as well, even.

It felt good. Was he finally feeling accepted? "Yeah, maybe."

Nearby, a pair of rivals scoffed. "Ah, I bet you think you're a big shot, don't you, Atlae?!"

The smile vanished from Atlae's face. "Hey Mia…. Hey Jeanna."

The girls crowded around Atlae defensively. Anna took the lead "What do you two harpies want? Leave him alone!"

Mia just casually pushed her off. "Who are you calling a 'harpy', loser?! Shut up unless you want to get tossed out the mattress for real, next class!" she then tapped Atlae's chest with her pointy finger. "And you, hungry gorilla, what's with that inflated chest of yours? Do you think ringing the stupid bell changes anything?"

Atlae breathed deeply, keeping his thoughts balanced. He tilted head and smiled. "I thought you might be happy for your junior? It's the dream of every student of the Turtle School to ring the bell."

Jeanna laughed. "Ah! Get real! Do you still live that fantasy?!"

"It's called a 'dream' for a reason, Atlae!" Mia added. "If you think ringing that bell means that much, how come you don't have a Cloth? Students of Master Dohko earn the Dragon Cloth if they reverse the waterfall, so where's yours?!"

Atlae grimaced. He glanced at the empty armor stand where Master once told him the Genbu Hide used to be at, but didn't say anything.

Jeanna folded arms triumphantly. "Thought as much. You know, I'm glad you're gonna get the black belt for this. This way I'll get the honor of being the first student in a thousand years to beat one in the ring."

Mia pointed finger in deject. "And don't think Master will be 'proud' of you for this or anything. She told you not to try so recklessly! All that ringing that bell will do is remind everyone how meaningless it is without a Cloth to go with it! Now she's probably getting all sorts of calls from Sanctuary about what happened and has to explain to the Saints that our new 'Champion' is just a straw-haired weirdo that eats like a polar bear."

"I feel bad for all the first years." Jeanna confessed. "Now they're all gonna get in their heads that they should waste their time and train to that bell. Come on, Mia, let's go. I can't stand the sight of this tomgirl."

The other girls watched the two older students leave, laughing.

Beatrice turned to him. "Atlae, why didn't you say anything?! You let those two walk all over you!"

Anna shook head. "It would have been so easy to shut them up, they're nothing but a pair of resentful bitches. Why did you just stand there?!"

"Ah, thank you, you guys." A warm happiness filled his chest, reminded him of Marianne's worried shouts. "But that's okay. This is just another test I have to pass."

They blinked. "What do you mean?"

"Mia and Jeanna don't realize it, but they helped me get where I am. You're not going to find better accidental teachers to keep your thoughts pure than those two." He then smiled. "Besides, I didn't ring the bell to impress them, or Master. I rang it because I wanted to be able to. That's my dream, to be the best in the world at beating adversaries up. I wanted it for myself. And I did, without cheating, too. They can't take that joy away from me."

Beatrice cringed. "Man, Atlae, that would have sounded beautiful if you didn't call it 'beating people up'."

"Ah, ah, yeah! That's what a bad guy would say!" Anna added.

Atlae never quite understood this. "But… it is beating people up, right?"

They shook their heads. "Don't be so literal, Atlae. Call it 'defeating enemies' or 'surpassing' them. That's what a hero would say, or a Saint. You sound like a Sun-Wukong cartoon character."

"Maybe his directness is part of his thought purity method?" Anna theorized, finger in chin. "Perhaps I should start calling it 'beating people up', too."

Beatrice groaned. "Next thing you're going to say is we should all start stripping our clothes off in combat, too!"

Atlae didn't really see the problem in this. Then again Marianne always told him human female nudity was considered very private, so maybe Muvian girls were the same? Perhaps they could use some of those tight chest wrappers the class used in balance exercises to keep their bumps covered, and that way they can strip the rest just fine?

He looked up at the school's upper floors, where Master's study was. Master Yuzuriha had rushed straight to her office after the parade.

"Say, do you think Mia and Jeanna were right? That Master might be upset?"

Beatrice put hand in hip. "Mm, it's hard to say. She DID hug you at the end, but perhaps she was trying to hide your nudity, so our parents won't think the High Elder is teaching us weird things."

"I don't think she's taking calls from Sanctuary or anything, but I bet she is from our parents." Anne conjectured. "Mia and Jeanna were right about one thing, Atlae; everyone is gonna pay extra so their daughters are trained to ring the bell too, now. Plus, those two rhyming Saint monks have been asking to see you cause you might be sacred or something. This not to mention all the lab rat boys demanding answers for their scientific debates. Master is going to have to deal with all of that."

"Yeah, I guess when you think about it…what Atlae did is kind of serious, isn't it? Literally a once in a millennium event." Beatrice saw Atlae look spooked. She patted his shoulder. "Hey, don't let that worry you. Master is gonna have to give you the black belt, at least, right?"

Atlae slumped on a seat, his mood sinking. When it came to the School, he never really cared about the belts, just honoring Master with his ambition. If this was just going to cause her problems, then was it worth it?

{======================|A3|======================}

School of the Turtle,

Master's Study

{======================|A3|======================}

"I could not believe it when I heard the news!" Shion spoke through the special phone line. "The Bell of Genbu?! Rung twelve times! By a student of yours?! Yuzuriha, this is incredible!"

Sitting at her desk with her feet up, Yuzuriha laughed out loud in her aged, coarse voice, phone pressed against ear. "That's right, you old goat! I, Yuzuriha of Crane, have trained a warrior to do what twelve Gold Saints combined couldn't! Grovel in your insignificance, Shion! Despair in the indisputable evidence of who is Master Hakurei's best heir!"

Shion laughed happily from Greece. "Congratulations! I definitely will!"

Yuzuriha sneered. How dare he be happy for her?!

"You sniveling old man! Be a bit more envious of me!" She shouted. "I have accomplished what no Master of the Turtle School has in 1000 years! The bell of Genbu has been rung not by a student of our master, not by that silver-haired assassin you trained, but by a pupil of me! And he's just a Bronze Rank, too!"

The Pope grimaced from Greece. "Please don't call Leon my 'assassin'." And put the topic back on rails. "Yuzu', I've remembered since our days together in Jamir that even you wanted to have rung the bell yourself. This is like your own dream come true. How could I be anything but happy for you?"

The former Crane Saint growled to herself. Her eyes glanced at the framed tintype picture she had of herself, Shion and master Hakurei when they were young. Even after two hundred years, this sheepy nerd had a special touch in ruining her triumphs with the cold-water bucket of his empathy and kindness! No wonder she gave him so many Jamir swirlies back in the day.

Her lips curved up. Those were good times, weren't they?

Sensing her pensiveness through the call, Shion continued. "Besides, I might be the wrong person to cast that envy on, Yuzuriha. I am not a Rozan Master, after all. Perhaps you should call up Dohko, instead? He's always been quite competitive."

Her smile died instantly. "Ugh, I refuse to dignify that old purple dwarf! To this day he still treats the Turtle School like it isn't a real Rozan School." Yuzuriha argued. "And why the arrogance? Because I don't spend my days sitting alone in front of a waterfall or swimming naked in a river, like he did? I have responsibilities! An image to uphold! And at least I've had students! That makes me more of a Rozan Master than he'll ever be!"

"You raise a good point. I've sent him candidates for years, but Dohko has turned down every single one. You would think at some point he would take someone on. He keeps responding to me that they're too boring, which I would understand, but… I've vetted every single one with my personal personality tests. They should pass his standards with flying colors!"

Yuzuriha grumbled. She had half a mind to explain to Shion that this was exactly why Dohko kept refusing them. If Shion wanted Dohko to get interested, he had to send him someone with the opposite of the Pope's personality, a true diamond in the rough.

"In any case, we should celebrate as soon as I visit Shamballa! I would very much like to meet this boy. You haven't even told me his name? When can we arrange a get-together; I'll bring Mu and-"

The High Elder snapped. "WHAT?! Absolutely not! Number one, he's already getting too much attention from having rung the bell, and number two; you're not stealing my Atlae to be one of your dullard Saints! I won't allow such a waste of potential!"

"Yuzuriha, no, I would just like very much to meet him. This is a joyous occasion to any and all Muvians."

The old lady squinted, looking out her window. "I know you, Shion! I can see the shine in your eyes even from all the way here in Tibet!" she closed its shutters. "But rest assured; my student's destiny is well taken care of. He will become a great warrior of Shamballa and make his loved ones proud."

There was the sound of chuckling in the call. "You sound very certain."

Yuzuriha scoffed. "I am. Unlike the sloths you dress up as hoplites, this boy has ambition… a folly ambition, but ambition nonetheless. And I've taught him well."

"And I suppose Atlae has uses for you and Arthur as well?" Shion confronted.

Yuzuriha tensed quiet.

Her eyes narrowed. "Mph, so you figured it out? Make me look like a fool, why don't you?"

"Like a fool? And what, perchance, were you trying to do to me so far, hiding his name and keeping this little project a secret?" Shion contrasted. "My Muvian mind is still sharp, despite what some might think, Yuzuriha." Shion spoke. "The word that the Mariners were raising a Muvian boy spread quickly a few years back. I never believed the trade deal from three years ago between our people and the Mariners came out of the kindness of everyone's heart, especially just as Arthur ascended to Julian's place in the pact. I deduced some kind of bridge was built between you two. It seems I was right."

She bit lip, feeling caught. "You speak of it as a conspiracy, Shion…"

"No, no, not at all. I could never accuse you of that. I find it quite noble, in fact. I pray to Athena that Mariners and Muvians may indeed one day hold hands." He assured. "As proof of support, I will respect your wishes for your student and not have him recruited to be a Saint. As far as Sanctuary's ranks are concerned, young Atlae does not exist."

Yuzuriha had to widen eyes. "That is… quite generous of you."

"Ah, ah, well, I confess that right now I may have my eye on another project."

"You mean 'Mu'?"

"No, someone else. Have you read today's paper, by the way?"

Yuzuriha turned to the Sanctuary newspaper brought to her desk that morning, particularly its opening headline.

"Former Silver Saint student attacks teacher at Coliseum, seized by Holy Father. MMC takes disciplinary actions."

She wasn't sure yet what all this business was, just that Sanctuary Town was in such a ruckus over it that the ringing of the Genbu Bell went unnoticed by the humans. Yuzuriha also knew Shion had a soft heart for the 'lost puppy' type, just like Pope Sage did. It was something Master Hakurei had always criticized in his twin brother. What was it with Popes and their crappy instincts for picking protégés?

But if it got Shion's attention off Atlae, she could only be glad "I see. Just don't let it be another 'Leon', Shion."

"No, I've learned from my mistakes, just like every Saint does. I think my approach won't be so… direct this time. Time will tell, though. Speaking of which, I must go to my Gold Saints. We'll talk more later, Yuzuriha."

The Master shut the line.

And then sighed through her nose. "Mph, liar. I'll be lucky if I hear your voice again before I buy a new calendar." She looked at the Pact of Seven flame dial in her office. "I should give Arthur a call soon. I bet his chest is puffed like a balloon, too."

There was a polite knock at the door. "Master?"

"Come in."

A female student peeked her head in nervously. "I'm sorry for interrupting, but the Temple has received a call from the Sun Temple. An emergency meeting has been assembled by the Low Elders. They wish to speak with you."

Yuzuriha rubbed temples. "Blast, they found out already? I guess it can't be helped." She reluctantly rose. "Well, guess this old woman has to walk all the way back there! This better not be a waste of my time."

{======================|A3|======================}

Later,

Sun Temple,

Second Floor Meeting Room

{======================|A3|======================}

Unfortunately, it was.

"This is unacceptable, High Elder!" the old Muvian from the eastern colonies protested. "We cannot have him running around free after what happened, especially with the Mariners!"

Sitting at her chair in the council, Yuzuriha folded arms. "I don't see the problem. It's in Atlae's full right to go home, especially now that he's a blackbelt."

"But to the Mariners?!" a distraught Elder from the south gasped. "The first Muvian to have rung the Genbu Bell in 1,000 years will be handed to Arthur Solo?! Forgive our outrage!"

She breathed out exasperatedly. "Have you all learned nothing these past three years? Yes, we have a bad history with Poseidon's worshippers, but that was back when the Continent wasn't at the bottom of the sea, and Atlae is at the center of Arthur Solo's efforts to repair relations between our people. Or have you forgotten the generous deals his envoy Ithaca brought to all your villages three years back?"

The many aged Muvian exchanged hesitant looks. It was difficult to argue against something that alleviated so much of the post-war famine and devastation.

"Besides, Atlae has spent his whole life with Arthur." Yuzuriha added. "It wasn't Shamballa who took him in, nor any of your villages, but the Solo manor. They're his family, for good or ill."

"High Elder, with all due respect, circumstances have drastically changed. You know as well as we do that ringing the bell doesn't just mean earning a special graduation from the Mount Rozan Turtle School." An elder spoke.

"It also means the awakening of our great guardian mechanism, Talos!" another added, pointing out the window to the mountain tops, where more golden bells laid. "As we speak, the sound of the Genbu Bell resonates across the Himalayan range through the mountain bells. Soon, it will echo all the way to Mount Kailash."

Yuzuriha palmed her face. "You all really believe that?!"

There was a tense silent response from the Elders.

She widened her eyes. "You do, don't you? You all think a giant golem will come rampaging out of that mountain because a bell was rung!"

"High Elder, with all due respect, if you do not believe it yourself, why guard the excavation site?" Elder Kang, of the colony of Malachite, spoke. "I wish no ill will on the boy, but until we are certain Talos will or not awaken, we should not let Atlae free, because if Talos does rise… it will need a host."

"And we don't know who that host might be." Another elder added. "It could be the person who rung the bell… OR it could be the first person it lays eyes on, like one of the diggers."

"Worse yet, iff we send him back to the Mariners, Arthur Solo might do it instead and turn Atlae into a weapon against us!" a third Elder, Sung of the southern colonies closest to India, said. "He seeks to restore the Thalassocracy of his ancestors, just like every Head of Houses before him. What better way to do it than steal our greatest weapon?"

She squinted. "That is complete hysteria, Elder Sung. What proof do we have of that?!"

"Why else would they raise a Muvian boy?" Elder Sung questioned. "He must know of Talos and seeks to deprive us of our greatest weapon, the legacy of our ancestors, at the same time he earns a loyal servant!"

"I do not agree with Sung's suspicions-" Kang mentioned "- but Holy War will be upon us within the next two decades, High Elder. To not have Talos ready at hand to protect us would be ill-advised."

She stared between them, jaw-dropped. "Is that all it takes to reduce wise Muvian elders such as yourselves to the level of human politicians slugging mud at each other? To mention the Holy War? How many of those have we survived as a species?!"

"This one is different. Our numbers are dwindling like never before, High Elder. We do not have the bodies to protect ourselves should the Pope neglect defending Central Asia." Kang reminded her.

"While some like Elder Kang of Malachite might argue we have resigned ourselves to our extinction, we still wish to protect what we have left." Elder Sung added, earning a dirty look from Kang. "High Elder, you fought in the last one, have you not? You saw with your own eyes Dark Angel Michael burn down Jamir, an event that Sanctuary insists to censor to protect its reputation as our guardians! Awakening Talos would allow us to get a real protector, something that won't let our villages fall prey to the whims of Sanctuary's countless enemies! You should know the danger better than anyone else."

Yuzuriha gritted teeth. How dare they bring up such an argument? It is precisely because she lived through the last Holy War that she knew the devastation that setting something like Talos loose would cause.

But even if none of these factors were at play, she would still refuse. "I will not cede to this shameless pressure. As High Elder I have decided; Atlae will do as he wishes and remain ignorant of these paranoias. He is far too young to be burdened by them."

"But High Elder-"

"I will be fair to you all… and personally monitor the Mount Kailash excavation." Yuzuriha assured. "Hopefully having the High Elder's time wasted by this will set all of your minds at ease."

It seemed to calm some of the moderates like Kang, but others like Sung looked still nervous. Yuzuriha had to contend herself with this, though. She knew Atlae ringing the bell would trigger strong reactions, but at worst she expected the Jamir nerds, like Shion's new student Mu, to come demanding to meet Atlae and study the technique he used. At best, it could even be a celebration of the success of her project with Arthur to create new bonds between their people.

She never imagined that, instead, a political circus would blow up in her face. Sometimes she felt her species was not that distant from the humans they stayed so distant from.

{======================|A3|======================}

The Next Day,

Turtle School Dormitory

{======================|A3|======================}

Dear Atlae,

I received news from your Master of what you did yesterday. I am proud beyond words.

Sitting on his bed, Atlae smiled again, rubbing his humid eyes. He kept reading.

From the moment I took you in, I knew you were special, but now you've accomplished something that has made even your own race recognize, without a shadow of a doubt, your incredible talent and heart. I want you to always remember you rung that bell not because you were strong, but because you had faith in yourself and you honored your teacher's creed, just as you would Poseidon's.

I have been telling everyone in the other Houses that my protegé, the one boy I would hug as if he were my own, has done the Muvian equivalent of cutting the Gordian Knot. Seraphina keeps asking when we'll see you after this and, for my part, it can't be soon enough. We would all like to see you again, especially Marianne.

On that point, Atlae, I also have good news on the request you made; I have spoken with a dear friend of mine and have obtained what you asked for. Enclosed in this letter you will find a pass to board the 'Chrysaor', a sailing school ship docked in Sri Lanka, where we had our vacation all those years ago. You can find your way there, correct? The captain will be waiting for you at the port. They are about to begin their yearly circumnavigation, so you better hurry there after you finish your graduation.

Signed,

Arthur Solo, Head of Houses

PS: It makes me even happier that you would choose to spend some time learning the art of my people, after three years spent learning yours. The Solo Household does not forget loyalty, Atlae. And I do not forget those who honor us so.

The teenager found the boat pass glued to the letter. It had a picture of a schooner with boar tusks on its front hull, a reference to the myth of the sea prince. He read the paper all over again, just to experience Lord Arthur's kind words.

Getting dressed right next to him for the graduation ceremony, Zayah noticed Atlae was reading the same letter over and over again and looking emotional. "Hey, Atlae, who's that from?"

He enclosed everything carefully. "A letter from…" He then restrained to say it was from Mariners. "From people who love me very much."

The Muvian girl tilted head. "Aw." She put on her new bluebelt over her Gi. "Looks great on me, doesn't it?"

He nodded. It was quite cheery looking. "It does. Congratulations on graduating too, Zayah!"

She put fists in hip and sighed. "Shame you'll get to try the black one, though… Say, Atlae?"

He noticed a strange, hesitant stare in her, "Yes?"

"Are you, like,… doing anything tonight?" she asked, tugging her Gi folds anxiously. "You must be getting all sorts of free time now that you're ending your training here, right?"

Atlae tapped his letter. "Actually, I might be getting a job soon. I might even leave Shamballa altogether."

The Muvian girl froze. "…Oh. Uh, I guess you're going back to your family, right?" She should make her move now, then. "Listen, Atlae, wouldn't you like to stay? I, um, we could…do something? Together."

"Something together? Like what?"

Atlae blinked. Zayah was indeed nice girl, one of the ones that bullied him the least, if at all, but he really didn't have time.

"This is hard, so…. so I'm just going to be upfront!" she suddenly asserted, looking away. "You're… different, Atlae. You're not like the other boys, so… um, and I've always been nice to you, unlike the other girls. I thought that someday, maybe you would, um, respond?"

He stood up hesitantly. "Respond?" He started feeling really embarrassed. Did he miss something? "What are you trying to ask me, 'Zay?"

Zayah quivered, beginning to feel mortified. For years, she changed clothes in front of Atlae every day, along with half the class, and yet now couldn't do something as simple as ask him out.

He turned to leave. "I'm sorry, I have to-"

Zayah jolted, grabbing his wrist. "Wait!" She tensed. "J-just give me a minute."

He tensed, feeling her harsh grip. "'Zay, you're hurting me." He saw a strange look in her eyes and panicked. "Zayah, I said stop!"

"YOU stop! I'm just nervous! This… T-This isn't easy, okay?!" She eyed him angrily. "I don't know… how to talk this way to boys."

Atlae felt the sweat in her hand and looked up, remembering the special classes Master had with them when he turned twelve. Realizing what was happening, he felt his chest tighten in fear at what she might do if he didn't handle this carefully.

"Zayah," he repeated, tensing her name. "You're hurting me."

"Hurting you?! You're stronger than me! How am I hurting you?!" She saw the sudden shock in his eyes and let go. The sight of him stepping away in fear filled her with greater terror even as her actions dawned on her. What had she done? "I… I ruined it, didn't I? I'm sorry. I didn't mean to! I'm not… I'm not a bad girl. You know that. So…"

Atlae took his things aside carefully. As the only boy in the school, he had gotten an unexpected confession of interest or two. Normally they felt quite flattering and he'd settle them easily. It wasn't that the girls in the school weren't attractive; he had in fact considered accepting a dating request or two if it wasn't for training, and things would always settle down peacefully enough.

But this one felt different.

What was that look she gave him? It didn't feel endearing, but rather… possessive? When she said she was so nice to him all this time and that so he should….? Should what? Why was she talking like he was obligated to do something for her?

Zayah sat her dorm bed angrily, covering her tearing eyes. "W-Why are you even here at the school? Just… teasing us, showing yourself off all day? What, do you have a human girlfriend already or something? Or are you gay? Why not stay away from here, then, or be with the other boys?! What do you want us to think of you, being here?! You… you teasing pervert!"

Atlae looked away, feeling cold. He had no idea Zayah was feeling this way. He should just pretend it was his fault and move on, so things would be okay. "I'm sorry, Zayah. I didn't mean to hurt your feelings. Let's just pretend this never happened. I'll see you at the graduation, alright?"

{======================|A3|======================}

Graduation Ceremony

{======================|A3|======================}

"Congratulations, Atlae. With the passing of your last test, you have become the school's official blackbelt." Elder Yuzuriha spoke, sitting on the pillow, legs crossed. "You are now not merely Atlae, but Genbu Atlae, heir to the Turtle School's teachings."

The small class composed mostly of female students clapped. There was a mixture of emotions in the room, from casual sympathy, to rival resentment, but none of these were expressed, for the Turtle School encouraged harmony even with those that defeated you and the expulsion of all impure thoughts.

Atlae sat there pensively. He glanced at the dorm room. Zayah hadn't come out.

"Atlae?" Master called again.

The Muvian youth beamed and nodded "T-Thank you, Master!"

Yuzuriha gave a rare smile. Maybe the boy was just overwhelmed. She had to confess she felt quite happy for this moment, too.

"As the new blackbelt, I want you to understand you're more than a skilled fighter of this school, but also a carrier of its wisdom."

Atlae nodded humbly, trying to put aside what happened in the dorm for now. "I understand, Master. It's a great honor." He touched chest. "This school didn't just teach me to punch or kick, but also to control my strength and respect others. I will carry that for the rest of my life."

Yuzuriha curved lips approvingly. Maybe now with the weight of his achievement on him, Atlae had refined his vision for his future a bit more.

"Tell me, Atlae, what will you do with the teachings of the school, now that you're my heir? Will you spread its wisdom to a new generation? Or will you guard the survivors of Mu against any and all threats?"

Atlae frowned. "No, Master, that's far too boring."

"Is that so? Then what do you envision for yourself?"

Atlae raised a determined fist. "I'll travel the Earth and beat people up! In the name of the school!"

The entire room let out a mixture of groans and sighs. Yuzuriha herself exhaled tiredly.

"Still on about that." one student whispered. "Is he really our blackbelt?"

"Unbelievable. I can't believe that brute became our champion when he's saying stuff like that." another student girl groaned.

"How did a brick head like him defeat all of the fighting clans in Shamballa?" an exasperated male aspirant whispered. "He didn't even get more than a C in his examinations!"

"Atlae was raised by the mariners. They must have taught him this." An older girl commented.

Yuzuriha sweated and cleared throat. "Atlae, to pursue martial perfection is, um, an allowed goal, yes. Atlae, have you considered perhaps doing something more…. pure-hearted? With your great strength and skill you could do a lot beyond just fighting people."

Atlae, however, shook head. It was time to put this to rest. "Master, this is my pure hearted desire, to become the world's strongest. How am I supposed to do that if I don't beat strong people up?"

"I truly wish he'd stop calling martial art matches that." Yuzuriha fumed to herself.

"One day I will return to this school as the world's best martial artist, better than even the legendary warriors of the Dragon Cloth. To do that, however, I still have a long road ahead of me. I must see the world and put my skills to the test." Atlae firmly swore. Marianne's face popped in his mind. "More importantly, there is someone I want to measure up to."

The mood in the room seemed to shift, with the girls making less pronounced whispers and some even nodding, as if inspired.

"Well, I suppose it could be worse." She reached for her treasure box and unlocked it. "Atlae, I have a graduation gift for you."

The blonde Muvian accepted the turtle shell on a fang necklace to his hand and studied it, admiring its craft. "What is this, Master?"

"It was made by my old friend I had you named after, a young Muvian from the Lost Canvas War." Yuzuriha explained. She missed Atla almost as much as she did her husband. Atlae himself looked like a blonde version of Atla when he was young, which made the coincidence even more remarkable. It seemed fit for him now to have it. "Click on its shells."

Atlae did so and smiled in delight when it opened orifices.

"Oh, it's an instrument! A Xun flute!" He had seen this type of egg flute in the stores a few times. Atlae felt his chest warm. He had never seen Master Yuzuriha give anyone anything, even on their birthdays, and now she offered him a dear friend's heirloom. "Thank you, Master, I will treasure this with my life, though I don't really know how to play."

"You will learn. Class, thank you for coming, you're all dismissed." Yuzuriha sternly asserted, triggering a disciplined, simultaneous reaction of all the other students picking their things up and heading out to town. She rose off her pillow and guided Atlae out to the garden. "Let's talk a bit, Atlae. I'd like a final heart to heart with you before you leave Shamballa."

The blonde Muvian followed his Master into the garden. It was a carefully maintained place of which Atlae had memories of digging the ground and clearing the big rocks as one of his first lessons. The boulders he moved were later fashioned by the artisans into a big Genbu fountain, with the water springing out of the God's snake-head mouth.

Yuzuriha put hands through sleeves, something Atlae had noticed she loved to do to look wiser. "So, Atlae, how do you feel, becoming the first male champion of the school? It's quite an achievement."

"It's a dream come true, of course!" Atlae then hesitated. He scratched head. He didn't want to insult his colleagues, but everyone fought the same in Shamballa. "Although… I was serious when I said I need to seek out more, Master. Everyone's really strong here, but the past few months have been… a bit boring."

Yuzuriha scoffed bemusedly at his all too familiar hunger. "I understand. When I got kicked out to Jamir, I was feeling the same way. You'd probably hop on a cloud and fly away if I tried to chain you." Yuzuriha confessed. "However, as the Turtle School's blackbelt, Atlae, you have now also obtained a great responsibility. Not just to us in Shamballa, but potentially to Sanctuary."

Atlae sweated. This was the scary part, where he had to disappoint Yuzuriha. "I understand, Master. I just don't think my place is among the Saints, though. I mean, they don't allow fights among themselves even, unless it's at the Coliseum games. And they won't allow me into those, because I'm an 'endangered species. I keep telling them I'd be perfectly fine! But that just seems to make them angrier."

"That's because you keep acting like you can defeat any of them, Atlae. Saints are quite proud; they tend to take offense to that." Yuzuriha explained. Atlae only blinked at this like he didn't find it strange to point out such demeaning things. "Is that why you're heading back to the Solos instead?"

Atlae nodded. "Yes. I know Muvians are supposed to dislike Mariners, Master, but I think it makes the most sense. Lord Arthur raised me, and now he's offering me a job in one of his sailing ships. I'll be able to see the world and meet many fighters that way!" Atlae could barely wait. All he wanted was to see the sea, climb new mountains and encounter new fighting styles. "Also…"

Yuzuriha saw him hesitate. "Yes? Go on?"

Atlae looked away, frowning.

"Why not stay away from here, then, or be with the other boys?! What do you want us to think of you, being here?! You… you teasing pervert!"

He feigned a smiled. "I think… I should meet other people. For now."

The Master rose a brow. This time of unenthusiasm was rare in Atlae. "He seems upset. I'm sensing an energy in him I haven't felt since he put Mia and Jeanna through the wall. Did something happen?"

The teenager tried to think of the one person he wanted to go see the most and suddenly, the positivity returned to Atlae's face. "I'd also like to see Marianne again. She's the whole reason I managed to stay and push myself so hard. I got a huge stack of letters to return, too."

Even Yuzuriha's jaded, crusted old heart melted a bit at this. "Ah, young love…"

Atlae beamed, "I do love my best friend, yes."

The old woman shook head, exasperated. Muvian men tended to be quite air-headed, but even Shion wasn't this thick-skulled. "Well, Atlae, I wish you all the best luck. And remember; you're always welcome back in the Turtle School."

{======================|A3|======================}

Two Days Later,

Sri Lanka,

Trincomalee Port

{======================|A3|======================}

The sun was high in the island of Sri Lanka and Atlae arrived at the long beaches of the harbor city on its east coast with a supersonic dash, having nothing with him but his clothes, his new Xun Flute, and a backpack of his things; mostly extra meat sandwiches for the journey. Leaving the woods surrounding the city, he covered his eyes from the sunlight and sweated.

"Phew, it's so hot!" he exclaimed. After three years in Shamballa, he forgot the heat of sunny coasts. Yet, he beamed, recognizing the long line of pristine beaches riddled with sun bathers and sailing ships. "But this is the place, for sure! I remember from when Lord Arthur took us here on vacation!"

Rushing into town, he quickly stuck to the coast and searched for the harbor. He kept the name of the person he was supposed to meet memorized, but he didn't speak any Sinhala or even English, other than his techniques' names anyway, so he was having a hard time finding information with the locals. Deciding to search in the marina, he looked through the various dock boat names for the person's boat.

"Let's see, umm… Chrysaor, Chrysaor, Chrysaor…. What a strange name for a sea prince." he hummed. Most of the names he found were in Sinhala, though, and he couldn't read any of it. He frowned, feeling lost amidst dozens of boats. "I wish I hadn't tossed Mr. Chola's yacht that one time. Maybe if I didn't force us to go back to Greece, I could have learned these words."

Feeling he was starting to stand out among the locals with his slightly paler Central Asian complexion, Atlae rushed along. Hopefully if he surveyed the docks long enough, he'd run into his captain?

Eventually he found the tall sailing masts of a small schooner with the carvings of boar tusks around the front of its keel.

"This must be it!" Quickly, he rushed into it and searched the side for the name, but it was also in Sinhala. "Darn it… how am I supposed to tell if this is the 'Chrysaor'? It's not like I can ask the docks if they know this is a Sanctuary ship or not." He rubbed chin and saw the metal gangway into it. "Maybe I can check the inside out? If no one's around, what's the harm?"

Leaping into the boat, the blonde Muvian searched. He smiled, recognizing all the familiar items like the ropes, the three sail masts, the lifeguards, the small round windows in the cabin and even the shrouds that just made him want to climb them up like a spider all the way to the top1. These classic sailing school ships were so charming. They just made you want to sail right into the adventure.

He walked past the outhaul and still didn't find anyone. Maybe he should check the cabin? He headed for the small compartment and knocked on its door.

…

Mm, nothing. Maybe louder? Atlae clenched fist and banged on it, practically shaking the vessel.

There was a stirring behind him by the lifeboat. "U-uh, ah, what?!" a young red-haired man in sailor outfit popped his head out the covered boat, looking dazed. "Who the hell are you?!"

Atlae beamed. "Oh, finally! Can you help me? I'm looking for-"

The man widened his sleepy eyes. "THIEF!" and jumped out, launching a surprise kick right at Atlae's face. Struck, Atlae got knocked aside, rolling down.

"Ow… w-WAIT!" Atlae pleaded, guarding himself.

"SAVE YOUR WORDS FOR HADES!" the man shouted, jumping high in the air till the sun covered him to Atlae's eyes and descending with a vicious dive kick.

Atlae screamed and dodged with a roll, letting the man crash into the piled-up crates, shaking the whole clipper. The men came storming out like an angry wolverine, assaulting Atlae with a series of jabs. The Muvian defended himself with grit, crossing arms and parrying each blow, but still forced back. Whoever this sailor was, he had cosmos.

Feeling his adversary focus cosmos for a heavier right punch, Atlae rolled in and caught his arm, bashing the man with his own back against the cabin wall. "STOP, you'll sink the boat."

The sailor gritted teeth, pinned. "Why you…. I'll show you!" His left hand burst out a flash of cosmos light. Atlae screamed, blinded, and the sailor landed a knee bash that floored the Muvian before pinning him with his foot.

Atlae coughed and rubbed his eyes. "O-OW! You cheated!"

The sailor laughed. "Look at this guy! I cheated?! Big fucking whoop! You woke me up from my nap and tried to rob us! Just wait until the capta-" But the man paused. "Wait a minute! Atlae?!"

Rubbing his eyes, Atlae's vision unblurred and he gasped, recognizing the sailor. "C… Caça?!"

The red-haired teenager growled. "What are you doing here?! You were supposed to be off with your Muvian family or whatever!"

Atlae laughed happily. It's been so long since they've seen each other. "Oh, I'm done with that. I'm a black belt now, look!" and he pointed at his training pants, which sported the black sash belt with a turtle emblem. "I came here because I'm the new sailing student. Are you my captain-"

Caça kicked his stomach in, silencing him. "You little freak! I could have killed you! Don't you know how powerful I am?!"

"Ow, ow, ow! Okay, stop!" Atlae demanded, throwing him off by the foot and getting up. "It was an honest mistake. I didn't know anyone was inside."

Caça got up, dusting himself. "R-Right, right. Still a bull-headed moron, like always! You don't just walk into someone else's boat! That's trespassing!"

Atlae scratched head, embarrassed. "Yeah, you're right. I'm sorry… But wow, Caça. I can't believe you're a sailing school captain now. Baian always said you would flunk out of Delphi." He smiled honestly. "I'm so happy for you. You sure proved him wrong!"

Somehow, the red-haired youth seemed even more frustrated. Atlae was an idiot, sure, but he hated Baian even more. "Ugh, this… shut up, you don't know anything! I'm…not the captain."

Atlae rose brow, confused. "You're not? But you were sleeping on the lifeboat, right? If you're not the captain, wouldn't he be mad you're sleeping on the job-"

Caça rushed in to cover his mouth. "SHUT UP, I don't know if he's back already! He could hear you!"

"Too late. I already have." someone spoke.

The two turned. Arriving on the gangway with nets over one shoulder and a crate of supplies under the arm was a tall young man of brown skin and white hair in a mohawk. His feet and his muscled torso were completely bare, he had a watch on his wrist and a set of jeans tied by a belt with a symbol of a legless man hoisting a bidental spear. His narrow eyes were tense on the two of them.

Caça froze and saluted. "Captain Krishna!"

Krishna, who didn't seem any older than the two of them, deposited his things and confronted his underling. "Did you finish loading everything, Caça?"

"Y-yes! I was just distracted by this intruder here!" Caça assured, pulling Atlae to the front.

Atlae frowned and pushed him off. "You know my name, Caça!"

"I do as well." Krishna assured. "You're Atlae, the boy under Lord Solo's care, correct?"

The blonde Muvian gulped. No wonder Krishna was captain; he looked so intense. "Y-yes. How did you know?"

"I know because you flipped my uncle's yacht a few years back, if memory serves correctly." He clarified. "My full name is Krishna Chola."

Atlae paled, mortified. "I can explain!"

Krishna folded arms. "Do tell."

"Y-You see we were on vacation here and Marianne yelled, because your uncle's yacht was about to run into dolphins near the beach!" Atlae panickily explained, triggering evil chuckles from Caça. "He had a spear and everything with him! I thought he was going to hurt them! Marianne loves dolphins, so I… did the first thing that came to mind."

Krishna rose a brow. "And the first thing that came to your mind was piledriving my uncle's boat?"

"AH! I remember that! There were photoshoots in the school of the wreck!" Caça recalled, laughing to tears. "You can't trust this kid, Captain. He's a total klutz, can't control his strength at all and barely speaks Greek! If we sail with him, he might crash the ship into a rock."

"That's not true!" Atlae defended himself. "I've spent the last few years training in Shamballa. I can control my strength way better now, I swear!"

"I'll be the judge of that." Krishna asserted. Even if it wasn't for not trusting Caça's word for anything, Krishna could tell by looking at this Muvian that he was more capable than his easy-going outlook suggested. Besides, anyone who became a blackbelt of the Turtle School had to be something special. However, that didn't mean he wouldn't be a disaster out in the sea. "Do you know our route, Atlae?"

The Muvian shook head embarrassedly. "I don't know the details, but Lord Arthur's letter said you would go around the whole world." He assured, excited. "That's why I signed up."

Krishna pulled out his map and laid it on a rest. "There's a reason for that, though; the Chrysaor is both a sailing school and part of Sanctuary's merchant fleet. We aren't just sailing around the world for funsies; we'll be doing our part in keeping our comrade Saints and Mariners supplied throughout the world."

Atlae turned at the small crates inside the boat. "Oh, is that what's inside the boxes? Food?"

The mohawked captain smirked. "First mate?"

Caça took a crowbar and opened one of the crates, letting out a refrigerating hiss. Atlae peeked inside and saw collections of hoplite spears, armor parts, small guns, electronics approved by Sanctuary, winter clothes, and many other supplies that had nothing to do with anything that had to be kept cool and fresh.

"We loaded these in from Shamballa at Port Muhammad, before sailing down here to my beloved island." Krishna explained. "Make no mistake, we will be filling these with fish. We need something to put on top of all these in case Coast Guards inspect us. I expect you to learn the fine art of tuna netting as thoroughly as that of sailing."

Caça, who came from a fisherman culture, snickered. "Yeah, mountain boy, we're gonna whip you good! Fishing is even more dangerous than fighting Holy Wars. Still wanna come aboard?"

Atlae beamed. "Are you kidding?! This is great! I love tuna. Can we have some for food, captain?"

Caça sneered, thinking he was gonna get a peaceful trip. "Ugh, this is why I hate him, Krishna! He's enthusiastic about everything!"

By contrast, Krishna laughed. "I'll find it a welcome change from you." He pointed at the Sri Lanka island on the map and dragged his finger through their route. "First, we're heading down the Malacca Strait. We'll be making an eastward circumnavigation so we can milk-run all of our supply targets."

"Oh, so we're delivering milk, as well?" Atlae asked. Caça groaned and slapped Atlae over the head. "O-Ow! What the heck?! What did I say?!"

"See, Captain? He's an idiot!" Caça said. "Atlae, doing a milk run just means we're combining our delivery routes into one big circular journey."

Krishna hummed. "He'll have time to learn the terms. Like I was saying, after the Malacca Strait, we're crossing Indonesian waters into the Pacific through the Sulawesi Strait. We'll then take care of our higher risk customer straight away." He then tapped a single island near the Equator. "Right here… Death Queen Island. They need a food shipment. Are you familiar with it?"

Atlae tensed, his eyes squinting. "I do." And he kept the rest in private thoughts. "Master taught me all about it. That's the last vestige of my people's continents… and home to the Phoenix School."

Caça laughed, familiar with the first half of the lore. "It will be like coming home to ya, right?" he saw Krishna squint and gawked. "S-Sorry, captain."

"Needless to say that any trip to Death Queen Island is a dangerous one. Your duties will include protecting the ship, Caça and me, though if we act with discipline and respect the Master's rules, I doubt it will come to that." Krishna enforced. "It will also be our foray into the Equator, before we turn northwards, to the North Pacific."

Atlae saw Krishna trace his finger up to a group of islands and beamed. "We're going to Hawaii after?!"

Caça laughed. "That's right! After descending into hell, we rise up to heaven! Nothing but coconut milk and pretty ladies with flower necklaces playing the ukelele." He then sneered at their captain. "Or so you'd think!"

"Our stop at Honolulu isn't for leisure, there's a small Sanctuary outpost there." Krishna specified. "Can you guess why?"

Atlae banged fist in hand. "The volcanoes! Is there a Muvian workshop there?"

Krishna nodded. "Correct. It's a minor one that makes hoplite equipment, away from everyone's eyes. Those will be the weapons we'll be taking to our next stop." His finger then traced the map along the South American coast then around Cape Horn. "Crossing the South Pacific and then entering the South Atlantic, we'll stop in Argentina, where several Saint missions are undergoing. There are civil conflicts going on in South America that have made it a hotbed to Black Saint activity, so they need our help."

Atlae wasn't sure how he felt about smuggling weapons, but he supposed this was something Sanctuary had to do regularly. He then realized "Wait, this route is also taking us through all the seven pillar seas, so is our next stop should be!"

Krishna guessed his thoughts. "Afterwards, we're crossing the North Atlantic, entering the Mediterranean, make a quick stop at the Isle of Gardens and…"

Atlae saw the captain trace his finger further up through the Gibraltar Strait and then to the Corinth Gulf. He smiled. "Greece!"

"We'll be visiting home, yes." Krishna smirked. "Well, even though none of us three are Greeks."

Atlae clenched fists up excitedly, smiling in happiness. "I'll be able to see Marianne and her family!"

"After that, we're taking the Suez Canal down to the Indic Ocean, stopping in Andromeda Island to deliver the last food shipment, and then back here, to Trincomalee, completing our journey. All in all, this will be a tough voyage for a beginner, easily several months long, so I hope the Turtle School has taught you more than just breaking rocks, Atlae."

Atlae shook head. "Whatever I don't know, I'll learn with everything I got, captain!"

If anything, Krishna had to agree with Caça in this new cadet being enthusiastic. "Alright, get to work, you two! Caça, teach Atlae the ropes and get the Chrysaor ready for sail."

The pale youth gawked and pointed. "What?! Are we really taking him on? Captain, this is a terrible idea. Lord Poseidon won't like a Muvian sailing his seas with his own men. Atlae is going to bring us bad luck!"

"Don't tell me what our god wants or not." Krishna asserted. "Poseidon is as merciful as he is harsh, like the sea itself. If Atlae wishes to learn, and remains fair and faithful, we will have a blessed trip."

Caça saluted with a skeptical grit "Y-Yes, Captain!" and he led Atlae out. "Come on, dummy! And pay attention! I don't wanna waste my time teaching you obvious things over and over!"

Atlae followed excitedly. This was great! He was going to sail around the world, visit all sorts of interesting places, meet Saints, learn cool stuff, eat tuna and, best of all, get to see Lord Solo and Marianne again and show off the Turtle School diploma he's earned. What could be better?

Plus, it was such a magnificent day, full of sun. They were sure to have a smooth journey to Death Queen Island.

{======================|A3|======================}

Thunder cracked in the dark sky and rain poured, rocking the Chrysaor. The small fishing sail boat curved up and up, then down and down over the swelling ocean and salt water sprayed all over them.

"CURSE YOU, ATLAE!" Caça sneered, holding on to dear life as they sailed over a large swell. He threw arms up at the rains. "Spare us, merciful Poseidon!"

Atlae, with much strain, pulled a set of ropes ordered by the captain with all his might, causing the boat to turn diagonally through a high rise, sailing over its curve. They had been fighting the storm for hours, just the three of them. He wished he could employ cosmos, but the captain forbid it, saying he risked burning the ropes.

The steep up and down tossed his stomach contents around like the insides of a laundry machine and Atlae held on to the rails after getting tossed a bit. Even with the ropes keeping them from being hurled out, he felt like he could get tossed into the sea with the force of the storm.

Krishna laughed, pulling him off the rail and unto his feet. "Don't you love a good monsoon rain, Atlae?!" he shouted, knowing he was barely heard in the storm. "It's not exactly as firm as being in the Himalayas, right?!"

The Muvian tried to answer but the rest of his lunch tried to use the opportunity to crawl out his throat, forcing him to cover his mouth.

Seeing a huge breaking wave form ahead from his spot at the steering wheel, Krishna spun it and ordered them into action. "Caça, Atlae, hard to starboard!"

"Yes captain!" The first mate practically hurled Atlae to the other side of the boat to a set of ropes. "Pull those!"

Atlae only nodded and obeyed, causing the sails to twist and help steer the ship away from the mass of water, making it miss them.

Krishna laughed, soaked head to toe by the rain. "AH, AH, AH! Nice work!"

Atlae had to admire their confidence, but the water accumulating in the deck was frightening. "C-Captain, aren't we going too fast with the sails?!"

"Poseidon is with us, Atlae! We have nothing to fear from the Indic! These are my waters!" Krishna assured, giving the wheel another spin, making the boat toss Caça and Atlae aside.

The experienced Caça was able to quickly hold on but Atlae almost got tossed out, thrown into the rails again. Caça laughed. "I guess one of us isn't a Mariner, anyway!"

Growling, Atlae stood back up and wrapped his arms around the ropes, letting him keep balance.

Still, seeing the confidence in Krishna's face, he had to awe. "It's nuts, the captain is sailing us into the areas of bigger waves and stronger winds, instead of away! Mariners are incredible!"

Caça looked ahead and gawked. "C-Captain!" he pointed at the huge water wave rising ahead of them. "ROGUE WAVE!"

Atlae awed, seeing how big it was. It blocked off the thunderbolt light and began pulling the ship up even at hundreds of meters away.

Krishna sneered, seeing no way around this stunningly large swell. "Ugh, are there Saints battling in nearby islands?!"

"I'll break it apart!" Atlae swore. Burning cosmos, he formed a mass of darkness and earth on his foot and jumped. "ROZAN! BLACK SHELL KICK!"

Swinging his foot, he tossed out the dark capsule of tectonic force at the wave, aiming to explode it onto nothing. His vortex collided with the tidal wave, but the mass of spiraling darkness was merely eaten by the water, possessing no solidity with which to crack it. Roused by the enormous special distortions, the wave got even larger, now towering high above the Chrysaor like a skyscraper.

Caça facepalmed! "YOU IDIOT! YOU JUST MADE IT WORSE!"

Krishna pulled him up. "ATLAE, take the helm!"

Obeying, Atlae grabbed the steel handles and awed, realizing even his great strength was struggling to keep them from turning by themselves with the storm's force. "The captain was holding these?!"

"Captain, here!" Caça shouted, tossing him his spear.

Atlae saw Krishna brandishing a two-toothed lance that was being kept with the weapon supplies, spinning it around like an artist before assuming a challenging stance at the wave. He saw the incoming mass dwarf Krishna. "Captain!"

"Stay back, you two! Keep sailing ahead!" he ordered. His cosmos burned, forming a greenish brim around his body. His eyes closed and he focused. "Align my chakras… burn, oh kundalini…"

The wave reached its full height and began falling down on them, sending Caça and Atlae into a panic.

Without even looking, Krishna jumped, brandishing his spear. Lightning coursed in the air, blinding the skies, and he swung his bident. "FLASHING LANCER!"

In an instant, the air itself seemed to split with the golden green swing of Krishna's spear. A ear-shattering sonic boom sounded, wind blasted everywhere and the tidal wave parted right down the middle in a colossal explosion of liquid that sprayed walls of seawater everywhere. Atlae gawked, seeing a massive opening cut through the huge tidal wave and enormous tuna schools flying everywhere.

Caça grabbed the net and jumped into the air, hurling it. "Come to papa!" and with a big toss caught a huge number of hurled fish before landing back down on the Chrysaor. The sailing ship then descended through the path into relative safety, missed by the cut tidal wave and now rich in fat, fat tuna.

Totally amazed, Atlae's jaw dropped. Even his Black Shell Kick wouldn't have been able to so perfectly part such a huge mass of liquid.

As the Chrysaor tumbled through the collapsing tidal halves, the boat rocked fiercely, making its entire back side furiously flip up, sending Atlae flying. Leftover slicing force from the Flashing Lancer flying all over the storm cut his safety rope, causing Atlae to fall aboard into the water.

Krishna saw him splash into the darkness. "ATLAE!"

The Muvian gargled underwater, helpless.

"IDIOT! Burn your cosmos! Get out of there!"

Krishna saw the Muvian sink. "He must be in trouble! Caça, quick!"

And in the midst of raging seas, Caça took out his clothes and jumped into the water. His long arms paddled furiously, he grabbed the Muvian and he headed back. Burning cosmos, he tossed Atlae out of the water into the boat, before lifting himself up.

Atlae coughed out water.

Caça stood triumphantly over him. "Ah, you owe me your life now, dotted freak!"

Krishna gritted teeth. "Atlae, what's wrong with you? Why didn't you burn your cosmos?!"

"I-I tried… but I can't swim!" Atlae explained, coughing out the rest of the seawater. "Ugh… Marianne tried to teach me, but I always sank."

Krishna only shook head. "I guess it makes sense. If you don't know how to paddle and float, burning cosmos just tires you even more."

Caça laughed so hard, his belly ache. "AH, AH, AH, AH! Must be from his dense fucking head weighing him down! I suppose even a Muvian raised by mariners is still a Muvian."

Atlae bowed head at the red-haired first mate, feeling humbled. "Thank you, Caça. You saved my life."

He tapped Atlae's chest with his pointy finger. "Well get ready, cause I'll work you like a dog to pay that debt now!"

Krishna lifted Atlae back up. "Anyway, back to work, Atlae. And don't worry about owing Caça your life. I'm sure he'll do something stupid that will let you pay it back."

"HEY!"

{======================|A3|======================}

Just as the captain predicted, it wasn't long before Atlae got a chance to repay his debt. During the final hours of the storm, Caça got a bit overzealous with the netting and got dragged out the boat by a large hammer shark. The Mariner began panicking, thinking he was surrounded by them, and Atlae simply pulled him out by the collar with the gaff pole, repaying his debt in full.

Krishna laughed, seeing his first mate hoisted up high in the air. "I guess cosmos also doesn't do you good when you're terrified of a few cute sharks."

"Are you okay, Caça?!" Atlae asked, concerned.

"LET ME DOWN RIGHT NOW, YA FREAK! And I ain't afraid of no stupid sharks!"

Atlae squinted. Caça could stand to be a bit less hostile. "Really? How about another swim, then?"

Caça panicked. "On the boat, ON THE BOAT!"

After the storm subsided, a gentle breeze filled the air, carrying the Chrysaor softly eastwards for days on end. This allowed the three passengers to take a small break for the day and just gently steer the ship with minimal involvement. Things got so smooth that Caça took the chance to get his fishing rod and cast it out to sea, while Krishna spent the morning teaching Atlae some more things about the ship's instruments.

"…and this is the sonar. With it, we can track schools beneath the ship." Krishna flipped the switch and showed Atlae the pulses giving off markers on the screen of fish schools.

Atlae tapped the screen with his finger. "Cool! No wonder we've been catching so much. This must make fishing much easier."

Krishna clicked tongue. "I suppose. Personally, I'm not a big fan."

Atlae turned. "Why not?"

The Sri-Lankan squinted. "Because of what you just said, Atlae… This will make overfishing by us humans a much bigger problem. The creatures of Poseidon can't even count on the sea to protect them anymore. I'm only using it because the sooner we get the supply crates under a nice covering of fish, the better."

"Oh, I didn't think of that." Atlae confessed, grumbling sadly. Now he felt bad for having complimented the system. "I'm sorry, captain."

Krishna shook head and turned it off. "That's alright, Atlae. Sea life is more of a Mariner concern. You're a Muvian, so I imagine it's natural you'd be interested in technology, even the human one."

"Actually, I was never that big of a nerd." Atlae confessed, scratching head, even more embarrassed about this. It seemed to surprise the captain. "I know, Muvian boys are usually in the labs, but you can ask Caça, I was never… normal, even for us."

Krishna hummed. "Let me apologize, Atlae. When Caça told me you were different, I just assumed my first mate was being prejudiced again. I should have been more considerate to you. It seems I was the one operating on assumption."

"It's alright, I'm used to it." It then occurred to Atlae. "Captain, why do you have a sonar on your boat, anyway?"

Krishna chuckled. "Well, for one, it helps me convince coast patrols that the Chrysaor is a real fishing boat. There's nothing weird with pretending you're fishing the traditional way, but we ARE technically smugglers. If an Argentinean or Sri Lankan inspector checks my baby for weapons under our fish crates, I want as much plausible deniability that Sanctuary doesn't exist as I can have on hand. For two…"

Atlae saw him hesitate. "Yeah?"

Krishna tensed suddenly. He flipped it on again and let it run a couple of cycles, as if to set his mind at ease over something, then flipped it off.

"Well, sonars were created to find enemy submarines at high sea… Sometimes that's useful to us in Sanctuary too." He then checked his watch. "Mm… that hour already? Atlae, do me a favor, mind the steering wheel for an hour or two? You can even use the sonar for a while."

Atlae's heart jumped in excitement. "Of course! If I need help, I'll ask Caça or scream for your name."

"I'll be below at the crew deck for now." Krishna assured, opening the hatch by their feet and jumping in. "One thing, about that scream of yours, do not disturb me unless it's vital. I need to concentrate."

While he was curious about this, Atlae just nodded obediently and focused on the wheel. Immediately he flipped the sonar switch on and smirked, watching it mark all sorts of fish in the water.

Caça's rod shook and he reeled it up. "AHA! Gotcha, ya little bitch! Come to papa! It's heavy, too!" and then groaned loudly, seeing his hook pull a big tire off the water. "WHAT?! Oh, come on!"

Atlae laughed. "I think you discovered a new species."

"You're not nearly as stupid as you act like, are you, Atlae?!" The red-haired teenager growled, tossing his rod out and kicking the tire back into the Pacific Ocean. "Ugh, forget it! I'm not hungry anyway! Where did the captain go?"

"Below. He said it was 'that time'."

Caça smirked. "He did, uh? Maybe you should check out what he's doing. Aren't you curious?"

Atlae squinted, staying focused on the wheel and the sails. "I'm not falling for that. You just want me to get in trouble!"

The red-haired scoffed and rose chin, impressed. "Learned a few things since our sign-up-for-janitor-duties days, uh? Not bad at all…"

"I learned more than that." Atlae assured. He eyed him challengingly. "Like beating even stronger people up. Without cheating."

"Right, right, you were always very fair, weren't you, Atlae?" Caça mocked. "And I bet that at those Kung Fu schools they taught you all sorts of dumb rules, like not to kick your opponent in the crotch?"

The martial artist hid a smirk. Actually, kicking an adversary in the crotch was considered a high-level technique by Genbu students, especially since it was mostly a girl school. Atlae just wasn't a fan of it, not to mention Master Yuzuriha forbid him in particular from using it, saying the humans he'd be living with considered it to be also cheating.

"But let me ask you this, Atlae; what's fair about me having to spar with a roided-up freak like you?" Caça challenged. The words were harsh but he lashed them out like it was nothing. "You were born strong, but I was not. It's easy to say you dislike cheating when you're born good at the game, Atlae."

Atlae grumbled. He had to concede this. "Okay, you're right, I hadn't thought of that. But still, it's not like we both don't have to work hard, especially when we can just practice our cosmos if our bodies aren't the same, right?" He countered. "So when you think about it, there's no real excuse to cheat or mistreat opponents unless you're a big loser or just plain evil."

Caça squinted his beady eyes. "Wise guy, ah? Guess someone taught you to be a bit more argumentative as well? I'll get you yet, though, dotted freak."

Atlae snickered amusedly. "He always looks like a lizard when he does that glare. It's kind of funny. I wish we could just be friends."

{======================|A3|======================}

Weeks later,

Death Queen Island

{======================|A3|======================}

After a long northeastern journey through Indonesia and the Philippines, the Chrysaor took a sharp turn fully eastwards, entering an area where the air became progressively hotter and the clouds darker. At first, Atlae thought it was just the effect of approaching the equator, but before long he began noticing the waters themselves to be strange. The vague feeling of the lifeforce of fish and dolphins below the boat became slowly scarcer, the air became difficult to breath, Caça seemed to get more and more anxious and Atlae himself felt like he was sailing into an area of danger, where no one could protect them.

"We are entering the South Pacific." Krishna warned. Even the brave captain seemed tense, eyeing the horizon like he half expected an enemy boat to pop out of the water. "We will never be further away from our Gods' homeland in Greece than in these waters. Be on your guard, you two."

The two sailors nodded and focused on their tasks, silent. Perhaps it was a budding seafarer instinct Atlae was developing, but he could feel sharing in the uneasiness of Krishna and Caça. He clasped his necklace. With some free time, and perhaps some practice, perhaps he could play a soothing tune, but alas.

In fact, he felt his green eyes pulled to the horizon the Chrysaor headed towards as he worked. It was a strange sensation, like the energy pumping into you when you knew a long journey home was about to end. Shamballa and Nea Delphi, his two homes, were thousands of miles away, though, in the opposite direction. Then perhaps this sensation was his Muvian blood burning in anticipation at their next stop?

Eventually, it emerged out of the horizon line; an orange glare held up by teeth of black rock.

Atlae gulped. "Death Queen Island… the lost home of my people." He fixated his eyes on the volcanic flare. "And where the Phoenix lives."

"Ugh, dreadful place, ain't it?" Caça questioned. He pointed at the slave carcasses floating away, making Atlae gasp "See that? Those are criminals brought here by Sanctuary. I don't envy the Scylla Mariner for having to guard these waters. Thank Lord Poseidon for sinking the rest of that place. Can't imagine what the rest of this shit-continent might have been like. Why are we even here, captain?"

"We don't typically stop here, for obvious reasons." Krishna confessed. "But it seems we've suddenly received an unexpected call to deliver it crates of extra food, something odd of them to ask. Since my journey was already going to take us across the Pacific, Sanctuary kindly asked us to take care of it. We will do it quickly and professionally, understood?"

Caça saluted with a scoff. "No need to ask, captain!"

Krishna turned to Atlae. "It's okay if you want to stay aboard, Atlae. I know that island means… something more to you than it might do to us."

The Muvian shook head. "No, I'll help. I'd like to set foot on it at least once. Plus, I'm here to lift weights. Caça might drop the crates on his foot if he does it on his own."

"HEY!"

Krishna rubbed chin. "Good point, Atlae. Very well, but keep close to us. I've heard the Master is very cruel and that you can't trust the guardians living in Jangotown."

{======================|A3|======================}

Hoisting the big crates of supplies practically by himself, Atlae walked out the gangway and deposited them on the pier, wiping a sweat. He surveyed the environment of the island, seeing nothing but waste and death.

"It must be incredible to train here. We're on the dock and it already feels like I'm meditating on Master's hot coal beds." Atlae concluded, gently dropping the last crate of food and seeing the incredibly dangerous environments even from their pier. "The volcanoes, the heat, no food around… I bet anyone who walks alive out of this training ground must be super strong guys."

"Hi, hi, hi, we'll be taking care of that, thank you very much." Black Hydra assured, dragging the food crates away to Lionet and Bear. He couldn't wait to see the look on the slaves' faces when they were told they'd have to fight for these.

Dragging the heavy boxes away, Black Lionet groaned. "Man, these are heavy! Was that Muvian really just carrying these by himself?! Also, I don't understand, we didn't call for any food! Is this a trap by Sanctuary to inspect the island?"

Black Bear hushed him. "(Quiet! Let Black Dragon handle this. Sanctuary knows better than offend our Goddess. Besides, I get the feeling I know who called these.)"

Black Dragon took out a bag of drachmas and tossed it at Krishna. "There, full payment."

The captain caught it and, with a single squeeze to calculate its weight, was satisfied. "It all seems in order. Do get all of this food to your workers."

Black Dragon smiled charmingly. "Of course. This will keep them… motivated."

There was a collective chuckle from the black-armored men that unnerved the three sailors.

"Ugh, I hate dealing with these guys! They give me the creeps!" Caça thought, trying to focus on his papers. "They keep asking us weird creepy things, like if we want slaves or if we brought toys. Why the heck do they want 'toys'? Are they running a daycare or something?"

Atlae, too, started feeling anxious, but for different reasons. He stared at these men in black armor, trying to understand what the void he sensed felt.

"Why can't I sense their Chi?" He turned to Caça and could perfectly feel his. Caça's breath, his heartbeat, even his nervous sweating and butt shivering were all apparent, especially when he had to talk with these guys, yet the Jangotown saints themselves were giving his 0th sense nothing. "I've never seen anything like this, especially this up-close with someone. It's like we're standing in front of walking shadows! And why are they wearing Bronze Cloths?! Marianne said in a letter that her cousin Patrick had the Bear Saint as his bodyguard and everything."

Black Dragon turned and hummed interestedly, seeing the bident Krishna brought with him. "Nice lance. Is that for sale as well?"

Krishna tucked it close warningly. "Not for all the money you could plunder in your life, Black Saint."

Dragon's companions jeered at the challenge. Dragon himself only scoffed.

"How about a duel for it, then, Mariner?" He showed off his black buckler. "Your spear versus my shield? The first to break gets claimed."

Krishna wasn't sure if he was talking about the weapons just now. "Some puny buckler? Even if I was interested, what kind of trade-off is that? Not in a million years."

Atlae, as a student of a Rozan school, recognized it. "Wait, it can't be! But if he's really wearing the sacred Dragon Cloth?" He felt his blood pumping, wishing to challenge this guy. Master Yuzuriha would be furious with this, but "Captain, do you mind if I do it?"

The captain rose brow. "These are some treacherous guys, Atlae. You better not. Is that shield that big a deal?"

Atlae nodded. "If it's the real thing, it's the Dragon Cloth's shield, the strongest piece of armor relative to its class in all of Sanctuary!" he explained. The captain looked again, his interest renewed. "How about it?"

But Dragon recoiled, raising nose in disgust. "Duel? With you? Mm, alright then. What do you got to offer?"

The Muvian searched himself but realized, with some embarrassment, that he didn't have that many possessions to gamble off.

Black Hydra cackled. "What, are you having trouble? Even slaves got something to offer us for duels. Their children, for example."

There was a collective grimace of discomfort from the three, even Caça.

Atlae shook head, frowning. "Nevermind, I have nothing to offer. Even myself. I have a journey to complete, after all."

Black Dragon squinted, displeased, and pointed at his neck. "Yes, you do. That's a Turtle School fetish, isn't it? Wager that."

Atlae clenched his shell flute protective. "Master's gift? I… I can't!"

Somehow, Atlae demonstrating an emotional attachment to it only seemed to pique Dragon's interest. "Mm, mm, it's a fair trade, if you want my shield. Generous even. One simple musical instrument against a piece of my sacred armor. Consider it a prize handicap for my obviously superior abilities."

"Why is he so interested in it?!" Atlae wondered, gritting teeth. "And did he just call me weak?!"

The other Death Queen Island Saints that came with Hydra and Dragon began gathering, their attention piqued. This included Black Lionet, another powerful looking one. Krishna and Caça didn't like it one bit and eyed them warningly, ready to fight their way out.

Black Dragon laid out hand in offering. "Are you nervous? It should be a small price to pay. The Turtle School is so… bereft of materialism, after all? What's one flute next to the hardest shield ever crafted for a Bronze Saint? My Goddess, on the other hand, values emotional treasures as much as golden ones."

Atlae sweated. "Your… Goddess? Athena?"

Dragon laughed. "Not exactly. So how about it? We can do it at Jangotown. We have an arena there."

Hearing this, Krishna stepped between the two of them before Atlae got dragged off to their beehive. "Didn't you hear my cadet? He's not interested! I also won't allow it."

Black Dragon scoffed. "Why not? Because Sanctuary forbids fights between Saints?"

"No, Atlae is not a Saint, so you two can fight just fine, for all Sanctuary cares." Krishna explained, clenching lance cautiously. "I simply disagree with this value exchange. It's against Poseidon's creed."

"Fuck your stupid God!" Black Lionet suddenly intervened. "If he finds it unfair, how about we all kill you, three-on-three, and wager your worthless lives as collateral?!"

The three sailors stepped closer together, feeling the tension spike. Was a battle going to happen?

Caça stepped up. "Hey, back off, you freaks! Remember, Lord Poseidon sunk the rest of this forsaken continent!"

Black Hydra cackled. "How about we make it even, then? And sacrifice your guts to him?"

"Insult our God further with your bloodlust- " Krishna added, pointing bident warningly "- and we'll finish what he started! It will be quick, like a flash of my spear. So how about it? Do you want to finish our business properly or what?"

Black Dragon gritted teeth and glanced at Atlae, who in turn felt a great demon, rather than a dragon, peered into his soul like a predator denied his prey. He nodded, though, not wanting to mess with a warrior he suspected to be a Gold Ranker.

When things cooled down, Caça dragged Atlae off by the arm. "Atlae, go take a hike before you cause more trouble. Guard the boat or something!"

"B-But-"

"No buts! Just do it!." Caça assured, heading back. "Freaking dotted dolt! Challenging these bastards into a fight, I swear…"

Resigned, Atlae obeyed and headed back to the dock, wondering if he made Krishna and Caça upset. Still, the feeling he got from these Death Queen Island Saints didn't leave him. He knew there were many mock groups around the world wearing similar armors to the real thing, like the fabled Ghost Saints, but the ones on this island seemed like a whole new level of creepiness.

The change of interest Dragon showed in him when Atlae showed he didn't want to wager his flute was so strange. It was like all of a sudden, Atlae showed Dragon some kind of alluring weakness to prey upon. What was that Saint going to do? Take his flute and toss it into the lava? Or make Atlae fetch it from some dangerous or humiliating thing, like a pool of urine? And would he really risk fighting a Turtle School black belt just to do that?

"Hey, psst!"

Atlae turned and saw a shadow hiding underneath the pier beans. When the Jangotown Saints weren't looking, he jumped down into the water and approached.

He gasped, seeing a pair of red eyes staring him back. "You… you're a student?"

A brown-skinned hand full of scars reached out pleadingly out of the shadow, trembling. "P-Please…You're the one who came to give us food, right?"

Atlae nodded. "Y-yes. How did you know, who are you?"

"I'm the one who called you." The boy argued. "Don't shout, they think I'm with Master. But now they're gonna take it all away. Quick, give us some of the food, before they inspect everything."

Atlae shifted eyes. "I don't understand. Aren't they your guardians? Why don't you ask for it?"

The boy in the shadow stiffened, his eyes locking into a glare of hatred. "G… Guardians?! Is that what they tell you?!" The boy banged fist on the wooden pier beam, shaking it and bleeding his hand. "Those l-liars! They're not our guardians, they're just a bunch of murderers! And now they're taking Nina's food, too!"

Atlae blinked, utterly lost. "Who are you? What's going on?!"

"They won't give it to us! Not even to their slaves! Usually, I can scavenge enough to feed the two of us, but…" the boy whispered harshly. He sounded angry, but also afraid of raising his voice. "…The island has been getting crueler. There are barely even any rats or bugs around to eat. P-Please! It's not for me. Nina… she will starve if she doesn't eat soon."

Sweating, Atlae took a step forward to try to see him better, but the boy recoiled. "Okay, take it easy. I won't hurt you. Tell me your name."

"G-Guifi!" a female voice cried, arriving from around the shadow of the pier.

The boy turned in alarm. "Nina? Why are you here?! I told you to stay with Master! If he knows you snuck out-"

"I don't care, Guifi! I was worried so I followed. I thought the Black Saints might catch you!" she explained. Nina turned to Atlae. "Who is your friend?"

Atlae paled and shook. His heart pumped like a drum and he stepped back, splashing the sea water.

Guifi blinked, seeing Atlae shake like a leaf. "He's with the Mariners." He showed Atlae her bony hand. "Please, Muvian, will you give her food? Nina hasn't eaten in so long. She's down to her bones."

Atlae, however, found himself trapped in a surreal nightmare, his 0th sense letting him perceive the truth in front of him. Rather than holding an emaciated, bruised girl's hand, Atlae saw a blazing inferno with wings, squinting red eyes and a crooked and an anxious smile in its fiery beak, just standing there with its fiery light drowning out everything else. With one clawed foot standing and the other firmly grasped around Guifi's hand, drawing the boy's blood with its talons, its wing closed around Guifi in phony protectiveness and its crooked smile stared curiously, inviting Atlae to say anything, do anything, act upon whatever he wished in light of this horrible sight

"Who is he, Guifi? What's his name?" it asked again, it's voice distorting in the void and several mysterious onlookers cackled in the darkness, entertained. "Is he from… Sanctuary? I've never seen a Muvian before."

Somehow, this last phrase struck Atlae's heart like an outrageous, cruel lie. It was felt in his very blood, like a generational curse boiling to the surface. Even though he had never encountered this horrible creature, somehow, he felt haunted by what it just said from some dark place across the stretches of time, beyond his meager lifetime, or that of his parents, or that of his grandparents.

Atlae then felt the warm pacific water getting cold.

He looked down and let out a mute scream, seeing it crimson red. It bubbled, popping flesh-shaven corpses all around him, their bones exposed and their faces locked into expressions of burning and screaming. The pier was gone, the Mariners were gone, the Black Saints were gone, and Nina and Guifi were now surrounded by an island bursting with buildings and streets flooded in blood. It looked like a great acropolis, yet spanning a continent and flooded with red. Their palisades and roofs were covered with dangling bodies of branded human sacrifices, the plaza torches burned with great flames powered by piles of bodies and the mountains screamed with fire, raining death everywhere.

And beneath the rain of fire, his people, the people of Mu, danced and laughed, naked and ecstatic. Their faces were painted in blood and their bodies dressed in foreign organs. Their leaping and twirling feet stepped on skulls, their bodies fell upon each other in seXunal intercourse over murdered slaves and their teeth sunk into small bodies, reddening them as they ripped the meat off in delirious hunger.

All this while, at the island's center, a massive queen of fire dressed in silver sat on a throne of bones. Her face was locked in ecstasy and her hair was pure, blazing fire, while her hand rested on the head of a child, whose blue hair was burned off, whose hands and feet had been cut off and whose lips were ripped off, yet suckled against the monarch's groin lavishly.

The Queen's red eyes looked with his, licking her lips deliciously. She released the child's head, letting her turn to see him.

It was Marianne!

Atlae roared, exploding his cosmos, and he launched himself at the cackling woman over Marianne. Catching her by the throat, he smashed her through her throne and pinned her into the mountains of corpses. Blood flooded all around them, soaking them both, and Atlae rose a clenched fist.

At that moment, blinded by rage and raging with cosmos and chi, he felt immense and animalistic, like a berserk giant. He should crush this monster, whatever it was, before more suffering and destruction of innocent souls was caused! It couldn't be true! None of this could be true! His people couldn't have murdered and hurt so many! This all had to be a lie! It had to be this person's fault!

"WHAT DID YOU DO TO HER?! WHAT DID YOU DO TO MARIANNE?!" he screamed, eyes tearing.

Yet the queen laughed in his face, staring at his maimed knuckles with an anticipating licking of lips. She laid out her arms at him opening, inviting him to hammer it down with every furious bit of force he had. He then he felt arms around him. Looking over, the shaking Atlae saw several Muvian women embracing him, touching him, caressing his body as he was about to kill their Goddess, their Queen.

"Show me, Atlae." The voices whispered all around him, aroused. "Don't stop now, show me how strong you are!"

One in particular wrapped her severed arms around his leg and looked up adoringly. "Do it, Atlae. Show me how much you've grown."

He breathed hard, seeing Marianne's blue eyes were gone from her skull. "Ah…AAH!"

Her stumps reached up. "Don't you love me, Atlae? Don't you love me?"

"Love me." Another asked, shoving her hand inside his trousers. She had Mia's face.

"Love me." Another pleaded, kissing his chest. She had Zayah's features.

"Love me!" another whispered, licking his ear. Her face was like that of a young Master Yuzuriha, and her hair yellow like his instead of grey.

"Love me, Atlae!" The Queen asked again, beaming in lust and opening her legs. Her face was a mystery of fire, taking many beautiful shapes one after the other, but always with the same flowy hair of flame, and her presented underbody bled endlessly. The fires of her mouth, eyes, nose and forehead then seemed to finally shape, reflecting the contents of his heart.

"M-Marianne?" he asked, utterly lost. The child one from earlier was gone. The only one left was the woman in front of him.

"You're of Mu… you're going to live such a long life, Atlae… but I'm human." She lamented, writhing on the ground amidst the corpses in ecstasy, covering herself in red for him. She even gnawed on her hand in bliss, thinking of her fate. "One day the darkness will swallow me, won't it? I'll be gone… and you will stay. Won't you miss me when I'm gone? Won't you… love me while you can?"

"L-Love you? But I already…You're…" Atlae gawked, horrified. He felt the hands around seducing him in various ways, pushing him closer unto this woman. He resisted. Even if she felt this way, Marianne would never be this upfront. "Y-You're not her! Don't TOUCH ME!"

The Queen laughed endearingly, dressing herself with the dead arms around them, biting fingers of one hand until blood came out and widening her pink passage generously with the other. Her blood-drenched chest breathed anxiously, waiting for him to advance on it. "Won't you LOVE me, Atlae?"

The teenage Muvian breathed hard, feeling his body boiling and the hot air asphyxiate his lungs. He felt the others ripping his clothes. The Muvian screamed, tossing himself away from them as hard as he could!

{======================|A3|======================}

*SPLASH*

Guifi gasped, seeing the Muvian knock himself into the water. "H-hey, what are you doing?!"

Atlae gasped out, drenched and coughing out sea water. He breathed heavily and turned to the two of them, his brain racing a million miles an hour. He held his chest and felt hot, like he just ran around the island three times, and his forehead hurt immensely, like a hot nail had been hammered into it.

Yet his mind was a blank about what caused this. "W-what? What happened! Why did I… do that? She arrived and… what happened next?!"" He blinked, feeling something wetting his eyes and burning his forehead. He rubbed it, saw blood on his knuckle and winced. "My head's bleeding? Did I hit it? Why does it sting?"

"Atlae!" Krishna shouted.

The Muvian gasped, brought back to reality. The blood at his feet was sea water again and the corpses and Muvians were gone. He saw Guifi and Nina normally again, staring pleadingly for food. Captain was standing in the pier right above their heads, oblivious to their presence.

"What are you doing down there, come on. We're leaving."

Atlae shook head. "Y-yes."

"W-wait, please!" Guifi begged in whisper, holding Nina against chest and reaching out. "Just something! A small box of food, a fish not from these waters, a-anything."

Atlae reached into his pocket and took a plastic bag of beef jerkey he brought from Tibet. He was going to eat it if he got extra hungry, but they had been fishing so much he completely forgot. "Here, take this. Use it sparingly."

Guifi nodded. "T-Thank you. Goddess bless you." And he dragged Nina out by the hand. "Come on, Nina, before Master finds out!"

The black-haired girl waved at Atlae, smiling happily, and ran off with her sweetheart. Atlae shivered. He could swear he saw a flash of red in her eyes just before she disappeared around the corner.

{======================|A3|======================}

Departing from Death Queen Island, the Chrysaor sailed ever northeastwards, heading for Hawaii. Thankfully, as distance from the terrible place they just stopped by grew, the waters became lighter and calmer and the air less asphyxiating, letting Krishna and Caça lightly guide the ship with light hearts. Krishna thanked Poseidon, for any trip to Death Queen Island that went without incident was a blessing of the Gods, indeed.

Still, none of them dared to fish anything until the island's volcanic shroud was well out of sight.

Yet, out of the three, Atlae conducted all his tasks with a certain strange mechanical motion since they left. Keeping the helm steady, Krishna watched the boy heave the net up and barely catch anything, then proceed to absent-mindedly wrap it up in the wrong container.

Locking the helm, he headed to him. "Hey, Atlae?" He widened eyes, seeing the teenager ignore him and about to shove the tuna refrigerator crate inside the nets. "ATLAE!"

The Muvian snapped. "Oh, c-captain!" He saw what he was doing and dropped his things. "Oh. Umm…"

The mohawked captain rose brow. "Are you alright? You've been out of it since we left the island."

The Muvian shook head and sat. "No, Captain, I think I'm sick. My head hurts, too."

Krishna folded arms. "Uh, no, Atlae, you're supposed to say you're fine, that you don't need to talk, that you're a damn man." He saw the Muvian staggered and clarified himself. "That was just a joke. I keep forgetting how straightforward Muvians are. Do you need something for your stomach? You only ate two servings this time, instead of three."

Atlae held stomach self-consciously. "No, thank you, Captain. I just feel…unbalanced."

Passing by, Caça gawked comically. "What? He doesn't want to eat more? Quick, captain, he must have gotten the dreaded Death Queen Island plagu-"

"Shut up, Caça." Krishna cut. The mariner frowned worriedly at the Muvian boy. Perhaps he should give Atlae his own turn in the lower deck to meditate a bit. "Listen, Atlae, maybe bringing you along to that island was a bad idea."

Atlae shook head. "No, I offered to go, it's my-"

"Even if you're a Muvian, that place is wicked. People say those who spend any time on Death Queen Island always change. I certainly had a hard time keeping my cool with what I sensed there." Krishna folded arms. "It's fine if you don't want to talk about it, but I'd like to ask if something happened after Caça sent you away."

The Muvian's head sunk. "There was a starving boy there. I think he asked for the food."

Krishna rubbed chin, trying to think of how a child would do it. "Quite a feat. It certainly explains the request we got. He must have snuck a message out somehow, perhaps on a passerby boat fleeing the Island's saints."

Atlae clenched fists. "But those men are going to take it all… I think they're going to destroy it instead of feeding people." He just wanted to go back and make sure it didn't happen. "It's… it's not right!"

The mariner sensed Atlae's anger boiling beneath the surface. "Atlae, it upsets me as well, believe me, but don't think of it. It's none of our business. Lord Poseidon sunk the rest of that continent, but that island survived for a reason; because that kind of evil is beyond any of us to kill."

"But…!" Atlae protested. He could think of nothing worse but to let food go to waste deliberately, especially with starved children around. "I don't understand, captain! Why does Sanctuary allow those people… that place to exist?! Can't the Gold Saints do something? Why won't they blow it up? They're evil!"

Krishna rubbed his own nape. "Um, well…."

Caça scoffed disdainfully, just glad they could cross that checkbox off their route. "Oh, they're evil?! Boo-hoo. What difference does that make, Atlae? All of humanity is evil, so when Lord Poseidon ends this stupid world, everyone will get the justice you want, including those black armor guys!"

The Muvian gawked, horrified. He thought of his loved ones drowning. "What?! How could you say that?! You and the captain are human! So is Lord Solo and Marianne!"

But the beady-eyed first mate laughed. "Yeah, but we're good ones! We are mariner folk!" Caça explained. "You don't know what the world is like out there. Why do you think Poseidon's creed is a thing? Cause there are many 'Death Queen Islands' all over the world, just covered with a coat of paint."

"Caça!" Krishna warned.

"What do you mean by that?!" Atlae asked, getting up. All his life he had been taught to do good, not to judge others, a lesson reinforced by both Lord Solo and Master Yuzuriha. "Are you saying the people who train me are just like those black armor men?! Well, you're wrong!"

The dejected first mate sneered. "Oh, I am? Then tell me, Atlae, how well did those Muvians treat you? Did they welcome you as their own? Or did they treat you like the distanced freak you are?"

Atlae froze, remembering all the terrible things Mia and Jeanna had done to him. He still very painfully remembered when he tried t apologize to them and they instead doubled down and even insulted Marianne.

Caça cackled. "Or maybe they saw you as a pet, an oddity. Look at the Muvian raised among the mariners, I bet they said." He mimicked, with a surprisingly accurate Tibetan accent impression. "Maybe some of them even thought you'd make a cute something-else."

The Muvian cowered further, remembering the last words Zayah, someone he thought was his friend, threw at him.

{======================|A3|======================}

"W-Why are you even here at the school? Just… teasing us, showing yourself off all day? What, do you have a human girlfriend already or something? Or are you gay? Why not stay away from here, then, or be with the other boys?! What do you want us to think of you, being here?! You… you teasing pervert!"

{======================|A3|======================}

Seeing the pain in Atlae's face, Caça doubled down. "Well, guess what, Atlae, you got off easy in Shamballa, cause if you had been raised by anyone but Lord Arthur, you'd have been put in a circus cage!"

The blonde Muvian fumed, remembering all the nights Lord Arthur's father had him sleep outside, but he focused on the ones who treated him kindly.

"Shut up! You only say that because you never try to be friends with anyone, Caça!" Atlae bit back. "If you always treat everyone like they're evil, evil is all you're gonna get in return! Don't you understand that?!"

The pale mariner did not. "How karmic! Is that one of the balance lessons you were taught at your school?"

At this point, Krishna was ready to stop the discussion himself, but when the topic of Atlae's lessons on balance was brought up, he too paused, wanting to hear Atlae's response.

And the response came. "Y-YES! And you know what?! It's served me well! I made friends in Shamballa I will never forget, and a Master I now love as much as Lord Arthur! Things you never got because you never bothered to work so damn hard to get!"

The captain smiled proudly. "Nice. That's a true man's response, Atlae."

Riled, Caça brought out the big guns. "Fine. Then tell me, Atlae; what milk of human kindness did you witness, coming down the damn Ganges from the Himalayas to meet us? I mean, do you even know what goes on out there? The famine, the disease, the fighting and the raping? What humans have you ever even met outside the Mariners, Atlae?"

The Muvian bit tongue, remembering he spent most of his life either with his parents, Lord Solo or Master Yuzuriha. In fact, the closest he's gotten to meeting groups of regular humans was when that Black Saint Rasputin attacked Shamballa.

"I… not many, no, but that shouldn't matter! Master Yuzuriha and Lord Solo both work with Sanctuary, so we all in a way serve humanity, don't we?! Why can't we just consider humans and Muvians as being on the same boat, then?" he questioned. He was taught, after all, to use his powers for the good of the vulnerable, to balance their weakness and ignorance with his strength and wisdom, or the little he had anyway. And there were vulnerable people both among humans and Muvians.

"You call leaving that island above the surface serving humanity?" Caça spat out to the sea water. "In my opinion, Lord Poseidon left that bit above water on purpose, so we'd all remember why he drowned the rest of it, and why he will one day drown the rest. That's the only explanation possible! At the end of the day, Sanctuary is just as bad as Muvians who used to live in that continent, just another group of bullies enslaving others to their superiority."

Atlae gasped. For some reason, the sensation he felt when Nina's strange eyes met his popped to his mind. "S-Shut up! Or I'll hit you!"

Caça cackled confidently, standing straight up in a rare display of confident posture. "A Muvian reliant on violence. You've always been a lot more like us humans than to your own…Or maybe you're just more honest about what you dotted freaks are really like. When the chips fall down, you and the rest of the Jamir hermits only stay in your huts because you're outnumbered, or you'd treat us humans like slaves and animals, too!"

Atlae's eyes reddened. "That's… that's not true!"

Krishna saw Atlae breaking. He wanted to put a stop to this, but also felt he should give Atlae a chance to shut Caça up himself or Caça would never respect him.

Caça's poison continued. "It is! That's why my people and yours were always at odds! Us servants of Poseidon believed in his creed of fairness and cleanse, while Muvians did nothing but act like angels on their tech paradise, lording and judging the rest of us and shitting all over the planet with your alchemy! And you never thought twice of it! Why? Because you had dots on your face!" Caça laughed. "But the tables sure have turned, haven't they? All it took was for our God to flick his fingers and your stupid damn empire of technology fell to the seas! You're nothing but pets to us humans now, playing Buddha in your mountains."

Gritting teeth, he grabbed Caça by the collar. "You take that back! NOW! Who do you think you ar-"

"GET OFF ME!" In a surprising feat of power, Caça overpowered Atlae with Cosmos and punched him off, throwing the Muvian back and nearly throwing him overboard. "Do ya think your freak strength scares me?! Against the cosmos, it's nothing! And I'll tell you who I think I am; I am born to the Cabral Household. And one day, I might even have the honor of guarding the South Atlantic Pillar from the world's filth."

Enraged, Atlae cleaned the blood off his mouth and launched back up.

But the captain stepped between them and held him back. "ATLAE, STOP! That's an order!"

"Do you see?! I was right!" Caça accused, pointing a frightened finger.

"Caça, you too! Or I'll have you scrape the ship clean of barnacles for the rest of the journey!" Krishna lambasted. It silenced Caça in a way none of Atlae's words could. "Now you both go blow off some steam on your own! I want each of you at my cabin tonight!"

{======================|A3|======================}

Night came down on the Pacific. Atlae was waiting for his turn to meet the captain outside, but he could hear vague arguing between Krishna and Caça.

"Ugh, of course you'd take his side!"

"And you should ponder on why that might be, instead of causing more conflict. How would you feel if you heard someone talk about how everyone you love should be killed by Lord Poseidon?!"

"I'm just having a bit of fun! That guy just takes himself too seriously!"

"Do you even hear yourself, Caça?! This is Atlae we are talking about! I'm not going to let you do your usual pathetic act of I-was-just-joking-around! We have four to five months left on this voyage and I'm not going to let you turn it into a nightmare of animosity."

"GEEZ! Alright, captain, I understand! I'll be extra nice to him now."

"I don't want you to be nice, I want you to be a man!"

The Muvian was practically sitting on the opposite end of the Chrysaor and he could still hear it. "Maybe they're so used to being alone on the boat they don't realize how loud they get."

The sound of the cabin door opening was heard and the Atlae saw the two come out. Caça looked like someone just spoiled dinner for him and captain Krishna appeared his usual calm self, not even looking like he gave Caça the earful of his life. Atlae just focused on his tasks.

Krishna waited for the mariner to go take care of his duties and then turned to Atlae. "Don't worry, Atlae. Caça doesn't mean what you think he does."

Atlae felt tears budding in his eyes. He didn't remember the vision he experienced when he saw Nina, but a painful burn in his head persisted. He also remembered Marianne's words.

{======================|A3|======================}

"Your ancestors were kept out, because you were different. They were 'dee effs'. Some even thought they were evil."

{======================|A3|======================}

Everywhere he went, it was the same thing. Someone always reminded him that his people and Marianne's were at war.

"Is he right? Was that why? Why Poseidon sunk my people's land?" he asked "Cause Muvians like me were like those black armor guys?"

The Sri-Lankan shrugged. "Who knows, Atlae? It's ancient history, from the Age of Myth, and during war there's always all kinds of propaganda. Greeks say the Trojans stole their Queen, Trojans say the Greeks invaded their land. Maybe there's some grain of truth to it but, having met Muvians myself, I can't imagine your people being dangerous, much less anything like those Death Queen Island Saints."

Atlae cleaned his face. "You certainly seem to think differently of us, Captain…"

Krishna clicked tongue. "Well, it helps that I wasn't raised in the same circles as rich boys like Baian and Io. The Chrysaor is, after all, a ship for outcasts."

The Muvian awed "What do you mean?"

"Why do you think we never met, Atlae, even though Lord Solo put you at Delphi?" Krishna questioned. He laid out his dark brown arms. "The Cholas don't study in Greece. Of all the seven big families, we are the poorest, and unlike Baian and Caça, we don't pass for natives."

He looked over at the first mate. He was fairly sure Caça was European, not to mention the whitest guy Atlae's ever seen. "But Caça… why is he here, then?"

"Caça talks a big game, but he flunked the year after you left Greece, Atlae. He's not here of his own choice." Krishna revealed. "The Cabrals were so embarrassed of it they sent him all the way here. I was the only one with the patience to wage him."

Atlae then remembered how he met Krishna's family. "But the Cholas have means, don't they? You even had a boat."

Krishna laughed and sat next to him. "That yacht you flipped when you were young was actually a gift from Lord Solo to my uncle, for his services in the war."

The war. The one Atlae's parents supposedly died in, according to Lord Arthur. To him it was always this strange event of his past that caused such a big impact but he didn't fully understand. "I didn't realize it."

"Yup. They were going to sell it to get funds for a new business after enjoying it for a vacation. It was a way to start everything over with that money, after enjoying a single ride around with it. Then you broke it during its maiden voyage."

Atlae paled, mortified. "Oh…"

Eavesdropping, Caça laughed out loud. "Did he really do that?! Wow, I thought I was the only one whose life he made miserable!"

Krishna folded arms. "Not to press the wound, Atlae, but I do remember my father laughing about it. He thought you were a curse sent by the Gods to punish my uncle."

The Muvian froze up, horrified by his own act. So he ruined a precious gift from Lord Solo to Krishna's uncle?

Krishna looked off to the dark waters nostalgically. "He and my father don't get along well. They argue over whether they should pray to Poseidon or Shiva to the point they got estranged, so I had to forget about getting any kind of education with the Mariners. Instead, I learned to sail right away on my own, from my island, doing odd jobs to Sanctuary, fishing for them, escorting their VIPS and what not. Eventually, Lord Solo met me and sponsored the Chrysaor. He said I could even stay faithful to my father's religion if I wished… He's a good man. Without him, I'd still be at the bottom of the mariner food chain."

Atlae nodded silently. He owed as much to Arthur as he did to Master Yuzuriha, if not more.

Krishna turned up. "But you see, Atlae, not every one of us is like Lord Arthur. Humans may not treat Muvians very well, but we can be just as cruel to each other when we want. If anything, your particular looks are appreciated among us more than mine."

Atlae touched his yellow hair self-consciously. Marianne once told him Adriana, who had similar colors, was considered attractive for it. One of her letters even mentioned her cousin Patrick was becoming interested in Adriana. In Shamballa, however, he felt treated like a country bumpkin since straw hairs like him and Master hailed from distant northern colonies, which were seen as outlying cultures.

He clenched fists determinedly. "I want to see Lord Solo again to thank him for all he's done for him when we're in Greece, captain. I'll be sure to throw you in, too. And then-" he remembered Black Dragon's provocations. "-I'll become the best at beating enemies up, so guys like that Dragon won't mistreat people anymore."

Krishna sweated; what an odd way to express your ambition. "Remember, Atlae, Poseidon's creed abhors disproportionate violence as well. Only ever deal it in fair exchange, like the currents of the sea responding to a tremor of the earth."

Atlae nodded. "It's not just about what's right. I have another reason; a person to impress."

The captain rose a brow. Was it a teacher of sorts? "Oh? Who?"

"Lord Solo's daughter, my best friend Marianne." Atlae exclaimed, beaming at the memory of every letter she sent him. He still remembered their last conversation and kept all the letters she sent his way in the meantime. "She's a super determined person and even stronger than me, at least on the inside. I don't want to fall behind when we meet each other anyway. The worst thing I could imagine is if I felt she left me behind or forgot about me. When Marianne sees me… I will definitely be on her level."

The captain scratched his mohawk. "Oh, you might want to get a move on, then…"

Atlae blinked. "W-What do you mean? Is she okay?"

"Okay? Atlae, this is Vice-Admiral Marianne we are talking about, right? Lord Solo's daughter?"

The Muvian gawked. "V…Vice-Admiral Marianne?!"

Krishna nodded. "That's right. She's head of a whole squadron of the Sanctuary fleet. You want to be on that one's level? Atlae, she's not just okay, she's leaving you in the dust! She's even a gold-ranker now."

Atlae staggered. Marianne had the 7th sense?! "W-WHAT?!" He was barely going past Mach 1, even with his powerful Turtle School techniques. "What else do you know, captain?!"

Krishna scoffed and folded arms. "Don't you get Sanctuary newspapers at Shamballa? Your friend is like a reborn legend right now. There's barely an issue that doesn't talk about Vice-Admiral Marianne Solo doing something truly outrageous, like capturing some dangerous enemy of Sanctuary or even win outright battles."

"Oh! Did someone say Marianne Solo?" Caça joined in. He swooned. "That's my morning star, my inspiration! She's amazing. I wish my family would send me to work on her crew instead…"

"Forget it, Caça. Arthur Solo's daughter only admits the best in her crew. You'd fold like a twig before you even stepped on the 'Sea Dragon'." Krishna added. He turned back to the Muvian. "Atlae, your friend has been racking up feats like Poseidon reborn these past few years. She destroyed the Black Saint kingdom holed up in the Amazon River, protected the Cape Sounion Temple from the Nile cultist raids and even annihilated the Ghost Saint armada off Madagascar last year."

Atlae awed. "The Ghost Saints?!"

Caça shivered. "Ugh, those creepy guys. They were causing all sorts of trouble up and down the Indic Ocean coasts, like killing Bronze Saints and blowing up tankers. Even the Civil War Gold Saints couldn't pin those pirate bastards!"

"And now they will take decades to recover from what Lord Solo's daughter did to them. Sanctuary is going to hold a Triumph for her and everything." Krishna finalized. He saw Atlae's bewildered look. "Oh, sorry, Atlae; a Triumph is an old Roman tradition that Sanctuary has picked up. After a great victory, they have you parade down the Herculean Road in Sanctuary Town, all the way to the temples. They carry you in a chariot, sound trumpets, throw flowers… It used to be that Athena would crown you with laurels at the end of it, but the Pope does it in her place, just like when you win an important Coliseum game."

The Muvian felt his head hot. This sounded like an amazing celebration. Was Sanctuary really going to throw all this for Marianne? Krishna just compared it to a Coliseum victory, but it actually sounded like a much bigger deal. He thought about all of his letters. How disappointed would she be, when they met, and he was just a Turtle School graduate? Sure, he was the first in 1000 years to ring the Sun Bell, but that was just like solving a tricky puzzle. He was still just a Bronze Ranker.

A cold sensation of shame filled his stomach. "Have I… fallen behind that much?" He thought about all the correspondence he's gotten in the meantime. "Marianne never said a thing about this. I didn't even know she went past Mach 5. She just talked about regular things and asked how I was doing. Was she… protecting my feelings?"

Krishna sensed his mood and laughed amicably. "If you want to be on her level, you got a lot of work cut out for you, Atlae, far more than what you can do just from this humble sailing school boat. People say they haven't seen this talent from such a young Mariner Folk since Artemisia served Xerxes."

Caça exhaled pitifully. "Baian's dad is so lucky; Admiral Vancouver gets to have her as his direct underling. Some families get all the fortunes."

Kirin shook head. "You've said it yourself to Atlae, Caça; Lord Poseidon preaches merit. You could have become her crewman if you had applied yourself in school, just like Io did."

The pale first mate irked, feeling hoist by his own petard. "Right. Instead, I get to serve under you. Yuck."

"You'll live." Krishna disdained. He saw Atlae look away in shame. "The same goes for you, Atlae. Lord Arthur has helped all three of us so far, but ultimately, your potential is yours to seize. You know that, don't you?"

The Muvian shook head to dispel his dark feelings and glowered determinedly, a rare sight in him. "I do! And I will!"

Krishna smiled. "That's the spirit. Now get to work you two. Next stop; Hawaii."

{======================|A3|======================}

Mount Kailash

Lemurian Excavation Site

{======================|A3|======================}

The Immortal Guards escorted Yuzuriha, guiding the Elder through the external shrine, into the cavern, down the excavation site so as to enter the hollowed-out mountain's inner space. Alchemic lanterns were hung up everywhere, lighting their way, and a chilly, rhythmic breeze was felt.

Yuzuriha sweated, suspecting this wasn't just the wind. The rhythm was too unnatural.

They reached the darkened main chamber and one of the Guards led her to the digging hole elevator.

"The workers shut down the lights before leaving. They were in a panic, so they used cosmos to jump out of the digging site and destroyed the generator by accident, but we restored the power in the meantime. We have to go down and reconnect the lights, though."

The High Elder saw him slide the lever all the way to its other end and felt the elevator gently go down. "Did you try investigating yourselves?"

The Guard shook his masked face. "No, Elder, we waited for you, as ordered."

"Good, there's no need for baseless assumptions to spread."

She patiently waited for the elevator to reach the bottom, but they just kept sinking lower and lower and lower.

…

Looking up, she saw the cavern exit lights fade out. Looking down, all she saw was darkness.

"How far low does this go?" she questioned, alarmed, feeling themselves going down the throat of Hades himself.

"The diggers reached 200 feet deep before they fled." The Guard reported. "For reference, the excavation is about half that much in radius."

Yuzuriha staggered. She knew the Mount Kailash archeology project had been going on for a long time, not to mention with cosmos users, but they had dug this much?

Eventually, the elevator slowed to a halt. The Immortal Guard with the torch searched for the broken connection in the lights and found a snapped cable lying on the floor. Taking it, he burned a bit of cosmos and melted its copper tip. This caused a pathway of lamps to ignite ahead of them, guiding them in the dark. Most of the area was still shadowed, something that couldn't be helped since the lamps were small and they were walking deep inside one of the biggest mountains in the world. At least they had a path though.

The three marched silently.

…Ba-doom….

The Elder stopped, widening eyes. "Did I just hear…?"

…Ba-doom…. …Ba-doom….

This time, even the two guards were unnerved, exchanging swift looks, but kept going.

"The workers found a softer patch of earth around here and hoped it would lead to a finding." The Guard spoke. "But they kept finding more metal junk ahead, so they decided to bring in the power tools. When they dug through here, however, it seems the drill suddenly hit something and the path opened up to something loud from above their heads."

"Something loud?"

…Ba-doom….

The other guard fidgeted. "I still think they may have caused a slide, but… they called it a scream."

"Whatever it was, it scared them. They almost trampled the two of us running out of the mountain." The first guard added. "But as you can see, there's no lack of strange sounds here. There are many water rivers born in the Himalayas that eventually enter the Ganges. They can cause all sorts of sizzling sounds and rock turns. Chances are a pressurized gas pocket was released when they dug in and it created a screaming-like sound."

Her Muvian mind agreed, but after what happened with Atlae, they needed to be sure. She saw a power drill abandoned ahead, on a wall crack.

She pointed at the narrow passage it created. "Open it up."

The two of them nodded. "Yes, Elder." And shoving their fingers into the rock crack, the two pulled, burning just enough cosmos to make a difference but not enough to cause a cave in around them. Yuzuriha widened eyes, feeling a red light from inside.

The noise got slightly louder.

…Ba-doom….…Ba-doom….

The two Guards widened the passage just enough for a person to cross. Peering in with their torch, they widened eyes. "Dear Buddha!"

"Let me see." Yuzuriha ordered, stepping in. She too, however, froze in place at what laid ahead in the dark.

…BA-DOOM….…BA-DOOM….

Lit only by the torches they brought laid a vast, wide chamber past the rock cracked by the abandoned drill. Its walls were distant, yet curved, possessing creases and bores leading out of it like sinking tunnels for liquid to flow in and out. And at its center stood a huge, beating object, the source of the noises they had been hearing all along.

…BA-DOOM….…BA-DOOM….

It was round like an upside-down pear, with a pronounced lower tip and connections coming out the wider top, yet the total size of a large chamber room. Its walls looked made of a black, muscle-like material that radiated a dark crimson flare and flexed rhythmically, creating the sounds. It hung high in the chamber air, connected to the tunnels by vast, distended cables that looked made of something between rock and metal.

A frightened Yuzuriha gripped her chest, feeling her own old heart beat as strongly, yet absolutely diminished by the sheer mass of the one in front of her, just to grip herself on reality.

It couldn't be a real organ in front of them, even if it was made of flesh, because if it was, it had to belong to a creature vaster than their Muvian minds could comprehend. Its feet and hands would have to be as big as house roofs, its body would have to tower alongside that of skyscrapers and its teeth would have to be as tall as adult Muvians. They would have to, right then and there, be peering inside the chest cavity of a colossal existence, hidden from the world inside Mount Kailash. The tunnels around them would have to be artery passes.

And yet, it beat!

…BA-DOOM….…BA-DOOM….

Was this the heart of Talos?!

"CLOSE IT!" she immediately ordered, to which the guards happily obeyed, pushing the cracked rock together. "Seal this site immediately and let not a word out! From this moment onward, no one enters this mountain without direct permission from me!"

"Y-Yes, High Elder!"

"We swear on our vow as Immortal Guards!" the other assured, banging chest. "Lest our mask fall off our faces and our masculinity be exposed!"

Yuzuriha left in hidden panic, guided out back to the elevator by the guards, yet the Elder spared the darkness one last look. Everything was still invisible, but now she imagined what laid in it much more vividly. She pictured its vast scale, visualizing the giant heart she just saw being small inside its chest. She pictured it being created, crawling with thousands of tiny Muvians installing each tiny element, slowly working towards one of the grandest scientific achievements of her civilization. She pictured the sounding of its roars and the stomping of its feet as it walked the earth, guarding Mu from all who threatened it and its colonies.

Finally, she pictured its great Hand closing into a fist that would tear the earth and its great mouth unleashing cosmic fire that would split the skies. The power of a Gold Saint made into an artifice; a mechanism to be used, a weapon!

Was it awake already? Were the stories true; had it heard the ringing of Genbu's Bell and opened its eyes? Had it watched them go down the hole it rested inside of, in complete silence, just enjoying their ignorance of its awareness? Or was its destructive mind too uncontrollable for such calculated pettiness? Would it chase after Atlae to get its new host, to complete itself? Would it grab the first person it could, instead? Or would it lay there, harmless in the dark, too emptied out to escape this mountain?

Whichever the case, unless she acted fast and wisely, the future of what was left of Mu, and perhaps the Earth itself, could be put in danger. At the very least, both Muvians and humans risked being returned to the chaos of the Age of Myth and have the fires of global extinction burn forever.

{======================|A3|======================}

Chapter End

{======================|A3|======================}

Next Chapter: Chapter 86 – 3rd Arc – Episode 13: Journey to the East

Release Date: July 25th

Description: The journey through the Pacific continues, with the Chrysaor stopping at Hawaii, then later making its way down the South Pacific, then across Cape Horn into Argentina. There, Atlae meets an interesting Silver Saint who asks the crew for their help against a local threat.

Author's Comments:

I really enjoyed writing this chapter. Atlae's little pseudo-side story as a whole has been quite refreshing for a number of reasons, in particular that it's letting me figure out some important things about him, but also revisit some Saint Seiya and even some old LR characters. I don't know if my readers want things to get back to the present cliffhanger, cause you guys don't say much these days, but if you want a reference, I predict this trip to the past might last two or three more chapters. In fact, I might end the last piece of this flashback puzzle with a return to the battle in Andromeda Island.

At the time of the Finishings phase of this chapter, I already wrote a couple of scenes for chapter 86, including a fun Hawaii scene with some Saintia Sho characters, but my beta-readers Elly and Zeb finished their Betas of chapters 84 and 85 at around the same time so I basically spent a week editing them back-to-back. As a result, I'm a bit out-of-sync with my writing work but at least I had a chance to iron two whole chapters out together.

Today on etymology, we discuss Krishna's Household name, the Cholas. The Chola dynasty was an important Tamil dynasty that established a large maritime empire in southern India and Sri Lanka. The Cholas themselves were not from Sri Lanka, but rather the mainland, but the power of the dynasty was certainly at the confluence of the two territories, which gave them a distinct edge in controlling the Indic Ocean during Medieval times, before the Pandyan Empire snuffed them out. The Cholas would continue to be figures of intrigue and attempts to regain power during the Vijayanagar Empire era, even briefly holding Madurai in a mysterious insurrection, but eventually their last line fell into obscurity after a battle where it's unsure if they were killed or put to death afterwards.

There are countless reasons to list why the Cholas are the ideal name to give to Krishna's Mariner household beyond just the mystery of their demise; from martial arts they developed based around pole weapons, to their focus on navies as tools of conquest and diplomacy, to their worship of Shiva and more. Krishna and the Cholas just seem like a match made in heaven, headcanon-wise.

Anyway, be sure to leave a review or share the story if you enjoyed this chapter, or if you want to criticize it even. Like it on Twitter/Tumblr/Reddit and generally support this project if you enjoy it. You can find me in all those places under the Thrudgelmir2333 name.

Also, make sure to check out the Saint Seiya Reddit Discord server, where I'm currently one of the co-admins. Other writers like Jenny DeVic also can be found in it. You can hang out with the rest of the English-speaking SS community and we host several weekly events, like episode streams, live streams and games.

See ya \owo