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Locke stepped aside from Enrique's wooden blade, countering, only for Enrique to parry the blow, drilling the end of his own blade into Locke's chest. Locke grunted, staggering back a couple of steps, then smiled proudly, nodding.

"You've been training hard," Locke acknowledged. "Well done."

"Thank you," Erique smiled. "I wanted to ensure I was of some value when I joined you."

"You don't need to be an expert swordsman for that, Enrique," Locke smiled, looking over at the Delphinus. "Even if it was just the ship and the Crystals, you've already proved your worth."

Enrique nodded. "Even so, I have no intention of relying on any of you to keep me safe. I can look after myself, too."

Locke smiled, nodding. "Yes you can."

They had docked at Crescent Isle, the same abandoned island where Vyse had been marooned after the Little Jack was shot down, and had gathered a few crew members on the way. They'd recruited Centime's adopted son Hans as an engineer and an Ixa'takan with exceptional vision as a watchman alongside Locke. An orphan Vyse had made friends with during their first trip to Valua had stowed away and now worked as a sailor on the ship, keeping everything clean for them, and they'd hired a man named Lawrence as a helmsman to take over whenever Vyse had something else to do or otherwise couldn't take the helm. They took on a cook named Polly from Sailor's Isle with a promise to help her look for her long lost husband and a young boy named Pinta as a message runner and to run things around the ship when needed. They'd even gotten Vyse and Aika's pet Huskra from Pirate Isle. And as soon as they'd landed at Crescent Isle, where Enrique had spent nearly a full day recovering from his airsickness, they'd met a pair of old men, Barbham and Izmael, who had promised to upgrade the Delphinus's plating and engines as well as turning Crescent Isle into a proper base. In total, however, they needed one hundred thousand gold, so they'd have to make a detour to sell their discovery intel to the Sailor's Guild and collect some Black Pirate Bounties to raise the funds.

"We've assembled a decent crew already," Locke mused.

"Yeah," Enrique agreed. "We still need a few more, but Vyse has done well so far."

Locke nodded in agreement, then stopped, staring at Fina, who was standing on the edge of the island, gazing out into the distance.

"Go," Enrique smiled knowingly.

Locke sighed, nodding, and passed Enrique his training sword before heading over to talk to Fina. She smiled as he stepped up beside her.

"It's beautiful here," Fina smiled

"Yes, it is," Locke agreed. "And it's almost peaceful enough to forget we're being hunted by Valua."

Fina nodded in agreement. "Thank you for saving me again. No, even more than that, thank you for staying safe. After you fought Ramirez...I was so scared that you would..."

"If I hadn't fought him, he'd have killed me anyway," Locke said. "After you healed me, he let me live. You saved my life."

"It didn't matter," Fina said. "He told me he sent guards to execute you in your cell."

"Those were probably the same ones I killed in order to escape," Locke said. "They were never going to be able to kill me."

Fina nodded, smiling in relief. "I know, but I was so scared. But then, you came for me, and I was so happy."

Locke smiled, then considered how to ask what he wanted. "Fina...I...I want to try something."

"Okay," Fina nodded. "How can I help?"

"I just need you to close your eyes," Locke said, turning toward her, Fina doing the same.

She closed her eyes as instructed, and Locke took a silent, steadying breath and leaned in. Almost instantly, he knew that she had realized what he was about to do. He could feel her warm, stuttering breath against his lips, and her head instinctively tilted just slightly to avoid bumping her nose into his. He leaned closer, but just as his lips brushed hers, before he could actually kiss her, an alarm shrieked on the Delphinus. Both of them jerked back as though stung, spinning toward the ship as Vyse sprinted into view on the deck, pointing into the distance. Locke turned to look, seeing a ship coming, and zoomed in with his monocle, only to groan. A wooden ship with blue sails.

"Piastol," Locke warned.

Fina nodded, and they hurried to the deck of the Delphinus with the others, Locke warning Enrique about what they were about to face on the way. Then, Piastol sailed down next to them and boarded the Delphinus with her pet.

"I finally found you, Vyse," Piastol intoned. "I assume that you remember me. I am Piastol. I am the hunter of Air Pirates. I am...the Angel of Death!"

"Yes, you're not exactly easy to forget, Piastol," Lock assured her.

"I have come to deliver death unto you," Piastol informed them. "This very place shall become your grave."

"You followed us all the way here, and then you start spouting all this nonsense?" Aika asked. "You have problems, lady. And so we beat you once...Who cares!? Just give it a rest already, will ya? Why are you being so persistent!?"

"You speak as if my search for you has been a recent phenomenon, oh red-haired one," Piastol mused dramatically.

"What's with the dramatic vocabulary?" Locke asked. "Can't you at least talk to us normally?"

Piastol shot him a glare, but the look she gave Vyse was purely murderous. "These past seven years...I have been searching the world for you. Looking for any trace of your passing I could find...Vyse."

"Huh?" Vyse frowned. "What are you talking about?"

"I have no other words for you!" Piastol declared. "Today I will have my revenge! En garde, Vyse!"

And then, she struck. Unlike their last encounter, this time she held nothing back. Actually recognizing Vyse this time, it seemed, had opened the way for a terrible rage that fueled her skills in combat. As her pet charged at Fina, Piastol hurled herself at Vyse, her scythe shining with Blue Magic Energy. She flipped and spun, lashing out over and over with her scythe and her shoes' talons, and Vyse could barely keep up. Locke cast Quicka on Vyse, saving him from getting his head removed, but no sooner had he done that did Piastol's scythe blade slam into Vyse's crossed blades and explode, hurling him backward. He crashed down hard, bouncing off of his upper shoulders and flipped onto his feet, skidding to a stop and glancing at his shattered blades.

"Swap them out!" Locke instructed as he cast Quicka on everyone before he and Enrique both swept in to strike at Piastol.

Locke was happy to see that Enrique had finally followed Locke's example with his rapier and had traded his Purple Moonstone blade for a Yellow Moonstone blade. That meant that either of them would be able to subdue Piastol without seriously harming her. Of course, that was dependent on their ability to actually beat her, but as their blades clashed with Piastol's scythe, it didn't seem like that was going to be easy. She flipped and spun, her scythe and talons lashing out over and over. Locke and Enrique worked as a perfect pair, ducking and weaving around each other as they lashed out again and again. Locke gained a whole new respect for how well Enrique had mastered Locke's teachings, because when Piastol slammed the top of her scythe into Locke's chest, Enrique snatched Locke's rapier out of the air and took up the slack himself. And then, Vyse had returned, his Blue Moonstone blades replaced by Yellow Moonstone blades.

"Locke!" Fina called out.

He looked back at her as Cupil flew over and transformed itself into a rapier. He caught it, nodding, then lunged back into the battle in time to deflected Piastol's scythe up over Enrique. She spun instantly, her left foot flashing up and slashing at him and Enrique with her left foot's talon, but they both stepped backward before Vyse's sword began to shine with Yellow Magic Energy. Piastol swore harshly as he began his Cutlass Fury, but even as he struck out at her again and again, she managed to fend off every blow, then met his explosive final strike with an explosive strike from her scythe. Both of them sailed backward, both of their weapons withstanding the blast this time, but as Piastol landed on her feet, Locke and Enrique closed in from the sides. Piastol spun, slamming the base of her scythe's shaft into Locke's side as the blade slammed into Enrique's blades, sending both staggering to the side. She lunged at Locke instantly, only for Locke to catch his own rapier as Enrique tossed it to him then resume the same lethal dance he'd shared with Piastol last time. She spun and ducked and slashed rapidly, but Locke's two blades deflected and parried hers constantly. She spun aside from his Yellow Moonstone blade and swept her scythe around. He deflected the strike with Cupil, then slashed downward with Cupil before rotating into a thrust with his own rapier.

Piastol knocked his sword aside with the center of her scythe's shaft and spun, bringing her foot up to slash him with her right foot's talon, only for Vyse's right blade to slam into it from below, throwing her off balance and making her miss. He spun, slashing with his left blade, but she flipped backward, deflecting it with her left foot's talon. And then, as she landed, she propellered her scythe to deflect Enrique and Locke's rapiers. Aika hurled her boomerang, and Piastol spun, slashing it hard enough to shatter its Green Moonstone blade. Then, Piastol shouted in pain as Cupil, now a hammer floating above her, slammed down on her head. She shouted in pain, staggering forward, and Vyse moved to meet her. She snarled, her scythe beginning to shine, but before she could begin her seeming favorite technique, Vyse spun, his blades grazing her thighs, then the backs of her arms. She shouted in pain as the Yellow Magic Energy in his swords numbed her body the same way Locke and Enrique's blades could, and Piastol crashed to the ground. Locke took her scythe and tossed it back to her own ship, then glanced to the side at her pet, which was currently chewing on a bone-shaped Cupil, wagging its tail like a dog. Locke grinned, shaking his head, then turned back to Piastol as Enrique stepped forward, pulling his rapier back.

"Don't kill her," Locke said.

"But...she's an enemy, isn't she?" Enrique frowned. "And she claims to be hunting Vyse. Why should we spare her?"

"She's already lost," Locke said. "She can't beat us, and she's not hunting us because she's evil, or because she works for Galcian or Ramirez. Something happened in her bast that she blames Vyse for. Right?"

"Wh...Why?" Piastol panted, eyes watering as she glared at Vyse. "Why is it that I finally fight the man I have been searching for all these years, and yet...I cannot win?"

"H-Hey..." Vyse frowned. "Okay, seriously...what're you talking about?"

"Yeah!" Aika agreed. "What exactly were you talking about when you said that you've been chasing us for seven years? That's a really long time, you know!"

"S-Silence!" Piastol snapped. "You could never understand my pain!"

"Then help us to," Locke urged her. "Tell us what happened. They clearly don't remember, or maybe whatever happened wasn't exactly what you thought."

"No!" Piastol snapped. "I will kill you, Vyse! I swear that someday, I will defeat you! Don't think you can escape your fate! I shall never forgive you!"

Locke sighed, nodding. "Fine, have it your way." He knelt, lifting her into his arms. "Time to get you back to your own ship."

He carried her off of the Delphinus and to the bridge of her ship before setting her down next to the helm gently. Then, he knelt in front of her, inspecting her injuries.

"The cuts aren't deep, so they shouldn't scar," Locke informed her. "But, it'll be an hour before feeling returns to your limbs, so let's take a minute to talk."

"I have nothing to say to you!" Piastol spat.

"Your parents are dead, aren't they?" Locke asked, Piastol freezing.

"How did you..."

"Because mine are, too," Locke said. "Mine left to see if they could find...more of our family, but they never came home." He considered for a few minutes. "Piastol is, while uncommon, a Valuan name. Couple that with your extremely expensive scythe, and you'd have to be an Admiral's daughter."

Piastol's eyes widened before she dropped her gaze to his uniform. "You're Valuan?"

"I am," Locke nodded. "I'm the personal Bodyguard of Prince Enrique. You just fought against him, as well."

Piastol's eyes widened.

"I won't pry any further into whatever happened to your family," Locke said. "You claim to have met Vyse, and you blame him for what I can only assume is your family's death, but Vyse clearly doesn't know that that's why you're hunting him. The next time you come for us, I suggest you explain at least this much to Vyse. Maybe it'll jog his memory. And like I said, maybe there's more to the story that you don't know. You'd have been about ten, then, so maybe it's not as simple as you believe." He cast Sacri on her, healing her injuries and removing the numbness. "I hope you'll follow my advice, Piastol. I'd like to think you're not a bad person."

Then, he left her ship, finding her pet sitting by the gangway. He stroked its head for a moment before walking over to the Delphinus. Piastol stood at the window of her bridge for a moment, then turned to the Helm and began to sail away.

"What'd you talk to her about?" Vyse asked.

"I tried to figure out what she blames you for," Locke said. I think it has something to do with her parents dying, but you'd have been ten or so, so I don't think it's quite what she thinks."

"Her parents?" Vyse frowned. "Who are her parents?"

"I'm not sure," Locke admitted. "I have a guess, but..." he shook his head. "I'm not sure."

He suspected it may have been the former First Admiral of the Armada, Admiral Mendosa, who had supposedly been murdered by Air Pirates. It would fit, but not as far as why she'd blame Vyse.

"I see," Vyse nodded. "I'm not sure how we have anything to do with that, but it could just be that she has us confused with some Black Pirates or something, then."

Locke nodded slowly. "It's possible."

"Alright, if we're finished with the interruptions, and if Enrique is recovered enough, let's go raise some money for upgrades," Aika said.

"Yeah," Vyse agreed.

Enrique sighed but nodded, and they gathered their crew and set off for Sailor's Isle, since it was the easiest place to find the Sailor's Guild.

Locke smiled as he inspected the three flag designed that Vyse, Fina, and Aika had come up with. Vyse had created a flag with a blue background with the design being a white cutlass with a skull on the forward arm of the guard bearing a Moonstone Eyepatch like Vyse and Locke's and three wings that faded from blue to white spreading from the back of the skull. Aika had come up with a car wearing goggles on top of its head, a pair of braids that looked a lot like her own hairdo, and a gold coin in its mouth, all on a red background. Fina, on the other hand, had come up with a winged dolphin with the blue of its back matching the background.

"Well, Vyse, you're the captain," Enrique said. "Which do you like the best?"

"Hold on," Locke said, picking up a pencil and a piece of paper. "Why not something in the middle?"

"What do you mean?" Vyse asked.

"Hold on," Locke said, sketching quickly. "Now, bear in mind, I'm not the best artist, but why not...something like...this?"

He held up his admittedly poor drawing, but Vyse, Fina, and Aika all grinned and agreed readily. Locke's drawing was of a fully skeletal cat wearing a Moonstone Eyepatch riding on Fina's winged dolphin while holding a sack of gold and a cutlass in its hands, both held up proudly. It was cartoonish enough to not be scary, like Fina wanted, and yet incorporated both the skull and sword motif that Vyse wanted and the cat stealing gold motif that Aika wanted.

"Hey, I like that!" Aika grinned.

"It's perfect!" Vyse grinned.

"We just need to decide on the colors," Fina agreed.

"I'd go with a blue flag, the gold colored realistically, and maybe white with blue highlights for everything else," Locke said. "We need people to know at a glance that we're Blue Rogues instead of Black Pirates, after all."

The others all agreed enthusiastically, and set about making the flag for real. As they did, Locke walked out of the cave and to the edge of the island, looking south. He couldn't see the Dark Rift from there, but he could feel it, if he tried. Like a slight pull. A tingling at the back of his mind, drawing his gaze. They were going to try to pass through it once the Delphinus was finished being upgraded. It was time. He had to face his own past, like he wanted to help Piastol to. He wasn't sure why he was so dead set on helping her. Maybe his intuition telling him that her suffering was because of the loss of her family had made him feel some kinship with her.

"Are you scared?" Fina asked.

"No," Locke said, shaking his head, then sighed. "Yes. I'm not sure I'm ready to find out what really happened to my parents. Or to get there and find out they never made it."

"Do you think the rest of the Black Civilization is there?" Fina asked.

"I do," Locke nodded. "One way or another, they're there. They just aren't going to be very welcoming."

Fina nodded. "I'm sure everything will be okay."

"I wish I had your faith in us," Locke smiled.

"Of course I have faith in you," Fina smiled, taking his hand. "Ever since I met you, you've done nothing but protect me."

He smiled, squeezing her hand lightly. She looked like she wanted to say something else, but eventually she seemed to decide not to. They stood there for a while before heading to the beach of the small pond where they'd be sleeping for the night, as the cave was being turned into their base and the ship was being worked on.

"Hey, Fina," Aika said. "There's something that I wanted to ask you. That admiral...um...what was his name? Ramirez? How do you know him?"

"What?" Fina gasped.

"When we met him in Nasrad, you seemed to know an awful lot about him," Aika said. "And then after he beat Vyse and Locke, he only decided to spare Locke after you healed him."

Fina closed her eyes, her expression pained.

"If you don't feel like telling me, it's okay," Aika promised. "Don't worry about it."

"No, I'm sorry," Fina finally sighed. "I should have told all of you about him sooner. I will tell you everything I know about...Ramirez. You know that I am a Silvite...a descendant of the Silver Civilization." She took a steadying breath. "Ramirez is a Silvite as well."

"What!?" Vyse gasped.

"Ramirez was our best warrior," Fina explained. "He can channel the power of the Silver Moon through his blade, making it sharp enough to cut through light. We grew up together. A long time ago, he was one of my best friends. He didn't used to be so...so heartless and cruel. He used to care for me like a little sister.

"When we heard that the Valuans were trying to reawaken the Gigas, Ramirez volunteered to come down here to stop them. He went on a journey to search for the Crystals...alone. Shortly after he started his quest, we lost track of him. We never even dreamed that he would join forces with the Valuan Empire. Those were the people that he was sent here to stop.

"I don't know why he changed. I hope that the Ramirez I knew isn't gone forever."

"Admiral Ramirez," Enrique mused. "Not only is he one of Valua's greatest swordsmen, but he is also a master strategist. He used to be Galcian's Vice Captain, but I don't even think Galcian knows Ramirez's past."

"Fina..." Aika breathed.

"Fina...I'm sure we'll find out what happened to Ramirez," Vyse said confidently, standing. "What's important now is to keep pushing forward. Don't ever forget that."

"Vyse..." Fina smiled appreciatively.

"Don't give up, Fina," Vyse smiled. "You aren't alone. We're with you now."

"Yeah, Fina!" Aika smiled. "You're one of our friends now."

"I've only known you for a short while, but I, too, consider you my friend," Enrique smiled.

"Vyse, Aika, Enrique," Fina smiled, Locke giving her hand a gentle, supportive squeeze, which she returned. "When I came here, I was all alone. Now I have so many wonderful friends. Thank you so much!" She wiped her eyes. "Thank you all. I...I will do my best."

"Alright!" Vyse nodded, smiling. "So, tomorrow-"

"Sit down, Vyse," Locke said, his tone dark and making everyone look at him worriedly. "There's something else about Ramirez you all need to know. I only realized it when he used the technique he nearly killed me with."

Vyse hesitated, then sat.

"Ramirez possesses more power than only the Silver Moon's," Locke said. "His sword is made entirely out of pure, Silver Moonstone, like Cupil is. However, the technique he used at the end of my fight against him wasn't a Silver Moonstone power. He wasn't just cutting through light."

"Yeah, I remember he disappeared and then you were suddenly hurt, and then he was back," Aika recalled.

"He used the power of the Silver Moon to cut open a portal in...let's call it the fabric of reality," Locke said. "It's a very complicated concept to explain, and harder still to understand, but for now, let's just call it that. But the portal led outside of reality, where light, including that of the Silver Moon, can't reach. But once he was there, he would have had to use a separate power to survive, and to attack through dimensions in order to affect me. He was able to strike faster than light, allowing all of the strikes to be virtually instantaneous, but that is the nature of where he transported himself."

"But, wait," Vyse frowned. "If he was in a...dimension where he couldn't have affected us and couldn't have used the Silver Moon's power, how did he hurt you? What power did he use?"

"The Black Moon," Locke said gravely, Fina's eyes widening as she covered her mouth. "Somehow, Ramirez was able to wield the power of the Black Moon, which was...removed from the system, before the Rains of Destruction, and without having a Black Moonstone to channel the power of the Black Moon through."

"There's a Black Moon?" Aika asked.

"There used to be," Locke nodded.

"How do you know?" Enrique asked.

Locke held out his rifle. "This rifle is made entirely out of Black Moonstone, compressed into a metal by gravity. That is the Black Moon's power. Or, at least, the majority of it. The Black Moon's sphere of influence is Gravity. My parents said that it also possesses the ability to turn positives into negatives and vice versa, but I never understood what they meant, until now. And, there's one other thing the Black Moon controls. Darkness.

"Once Ramirez had passed through the portal, he was entirely within the Black Moon's sphere of influence. A sort of inverse, or negative version of this world. And using the Black Moon's power, he was able to make his strikes interact not with that world, but with this one. It's a horrifying power, and if he'd wanted to, he could have simply decapitated all of us then and there. But he's bloodthirsty. A clean, efficient kill isn't his style. I don't know what he was like before, but since I've known him, this is who he is."

"But, wait, how do you know all of this about the Black Moon?" Aika asked.

"And your parents," Vyse frowned. "And where'd you get your rifle?"

"From my parents," Locke said. "I am the last living member of the Black Civilization. The knowledge of the Black Civilization's history and technology was passed down through the generations, ensuring that we all knew exactly what we used to be, and why we were wiped out."

"Wiped out?" Enrique asked.

"Before the Rains of Destruction, there was a Black Gigas," Locke explained. "It's power was to weaponize Gravity. Increase its effects to crush its targets, lighten its effects on itself and Black Civilization ships. At its strongest, it could create black holes, points of such massive gravitational effects that it tears apart anything within range at an atomic level, completely consuming them. It was too powerful to be allowed to live. The Black Civilization was a highly militarized and very dangerous civilization. We had every intention of conquering the world with our Gigas, and it had more than enough power to wipe out all of the others, except the Silver Gigas, Zelos.

"The Silver Civilization was the one rival of the Black Civilization. They didn't have as advanced weaponry or combat-oriented ships, but they were the only other civilization capable of facing the Black Civilization. But even then, they knew they couldn't defeat us so long as we had the Black Gigas, Cosmos. So, instead, they used their Gigas, Zelos, to blast the Black Moon out of orbit, sending it out of the system. As a result of the Black Moon's power being cut off, the Black Gigas's power became unstable, and it self-destructed.

"The Black Continent was ripped apart, and the skies around them became corrupted by gravitational distortions, forming the Dark Rift. Those who survived the destruction of the Black Continent were spared the Rains of Destruction by the Dark Rift, and they continued to live there. However, they began to...mutate. Their bodies became stronger and more durable, they could survive longer without food or water, and they began to develop innate Magic Energy. Using this innate Magic Energy, they were able to refine and rejuvenate Black Moonstones they found themselves. Black Moonstones never need to be replaced, because being exposed to gravity replenishes their power, once they've been rejuvenated." Locke stopped, staring at the fire for a long few minutes.

"Eventually, a divide formed among the surviving Black Civilization," Locke continued. "About half saw their mutations as unnatural, and decided to leave the Dark Rift. Their mutations remained, but slowly faded over time. But even then, our numbers dwindled. Eventually, it was only me and my parents. They decided to return to the Dark Rift to see if anyone there had survived, and they never returned. Now, I'm the last."

"That light when you hold the Moon Crystals..." Aika began.

"It's my Innate Magic Energy harmonizing with the crystals and being strengthened by them," Locke said. "Ever since the first time I held the Red Moon Crystal, I've been capable of casting all of the Red Magic spells, and the same is also now true of the Green Magic spells. I hate it, but it's simply a part of who I am. However, being a member of the Black Civilization has one good thing about it. I'll be able to guide us through the Dark Rift. It's a complicated explanation as to how and why, but once we're there, if you trust my instructions, we'll make it through safely."

The others all nodded silently, digesting the information. Finally, Fina spoke up.

"If you're right about Ramirez, how can he use the Black Moon's power?" Fina asked. "And how do we fight against it?"

Locke considered. "The Black Moon and the Silver Moon were always twins. One represents light, the other darkness. It's possible that in the other dimension, his Silver Moonstone sword allows him to channel the Black Moon's power. Whatever the case, I could counter his ability if I had enough Black Moonstone. We may, possibly, be able to find some in the Dark Rift. If not, I don't know how we can face him."

"What about your rifle?" Vyse asked. "It's Black Moonstone, right?"

"It's already been processed and attuned for the specific purpose of being used for my rifle," Locke explained. "It along with my Black Moonstone Monocle are explicitly for the purpose of firing blasts of magic and controlling them with gravity trails so that I can direct them to whatever target I choose. I can't use them to counter Ramirez. I'd need to make a new Black Moonstone weapon."

"Okay," Vyse nodded. "Then we'll have to hope there's some in the Dark Rift."

Locke nodded. "One more thing. Absolutely no one can know about the Black Moon. Until now, only three people besides me have known. Belleza worked out what my rifle and monocle were, and from there worked out who I was and agreed with me that the Black Civilization and the Black Moon's power were better off forgotten. I explained to Fina who I was shortly after I met you all, and then in Ixa'taka, I found out that Isapa knew exactly who I am and had met my parents. So, from here on, none of you can ever tell anyone about any of this."

"What's so bad about people knowing about the Black Moonstones?" Vyse asked.

Locke considered how to answer. "Black Moonstones, while not on the level of the Black Gigas, still possess the ability to form black holes. My rifle forms a microscopic black hole, which focuses the Black Moonstone's Magic Energy into blasts and propels them using gravity, which is also why I can use gravity trails to guide them." He hummed thoughtfully. "Let me put this in perspective. A black hole the size of a fist, lasting for five seconds, would consume an entire city. However, black holes are uniquely difficult to control, because without being completely contained even before being formed, they will expand the more they consume. A black hole the size of your head would consume nearly all of Valua. My rifle forms microscopic black holes, meaning it forms one small enough that you couldn't see it even if you zoomed your monocle in all the way, Vyse. But even that, if not contained, would consume everything in a ten-foot radius."

Vyse nodded seriously.

"Black Civilization Airships formed contained black holes the size of the head of a pin and used them in place of engines," Locke continued. "To go forward, they would allow the black hole to pull the back of the ship toward the black hole, and as the back of the ship was drawn in, it would push the rest of the ship forward, and the black hole would move with it, allowing the ship to move. Their ships could move in that manner in any direction equally. However, consider if Valua got their hands on Black Moonstone and tried to recreate that technology without first understanding how to contain a black hole. They'd accidentally wipe out entire islands, if not more, before they even knew what had happened. Black Moonstones are too dangerous to be reintroduced to this world. They cannot be allowed to be brought back."

The others all nodded in agreement.

"Anyway," Locke sighed. "We should get some sleep. It's going to be a long trip to the Dark Rift."

The others all agreed and lay down around the fire, but after all of the heavy conversations they'd had, sleep wasn't exactly easy to find.

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