Chapter One: Part Four

It was time.

Astraea had come to terms with it and had the appearance of calm. She was dressed in a long-sleeved red and blue dress with leather straps, with black leggings and black boots. She was a princess and she needed to look presentable no matter where she went. The king made sure to send a carriage ahead of the party that was filled entirely with her possessions.

I will be gone for a long time, so I will need my possession, she rationalized.

It was difficult to say goodbye to her siblings, especially when Sigrun locked her in a tight hug and wouldn't let her go. It almost made Astraea want to cry but she kept her composure.

We'll see each other again. I know we will.

Denzel wasn't much better; giving her a hug so big that he lifted her off the ground. "Stay safe, Little Sister," he told her. "And if anyone messes with you let me know. I'll cross the sea and come straight to Crystal Valley to set them straight!"

Astraea laughed as he set her down. "I will, Denzel. I promise."

Her other siblings were neutral about her departure. Philomena gave her a stiff hug, and Vahan shook her hand. But neither Brendan nor Kion really reacted. They didn't hug her or even touch her. Brendan simply nodded and said, "Take care" and Kion was harsher. "Don't bring shame to the family." Which did hurt because Astraea had never done anything to embarrass her family. But she was no longer surprised by how her siblings treated her. She knew for her own mental health that there was no point in trying to get answers why. She had already tried, and none of them were forthcoming.

King Franz was there to see her depart, along with everyone else. Astraea did not expect much from her father, and so when he spoke and treated her no differently than he did his bastards or the noble children, she wasn't offended. Rather…she felt like a weight was being released from her chest. A thought whispered across her mind that made her feel guilty, but…at the same time, she knew that it was true.

I'm free of him…for now.

The prospective students would be traveling in a large armored carriage to Niebieska Brama, and at the king's insistence all goodbyes were done in the capital. There were seven boys and three girls. Ritta and Barrett had no one to say goodbye to, but neither seemed bothered. Astraea, Sigrun, and Denzel made sure to spend time with them as the other students said goodbyes to their family members. Astraea was amused to see Lady Sarka psyching Milo up; the older woman almost jumping where she stood as she spoke excitedly to her younger brother. "You've got this, Milo! Return home a better and smarter warrior than me!"

"I will!" Milo laughed.

The other nobles spoke to their children using a lot of the same phrases about making their family proud and coming back in glory. One particular noble, Reilly Krieger, spoke in a very pompous tone with his son Darko. Reilly was a man who looked to be in his early forties, with long graying black hair tied in numerous braids that ran down his cloaked back. He was a stark black goatee and piercing green eyes, and Astraea saw by the way he squared his shoulders that he was trying to make himself look larger than he was. But by the way the sword on his belt swooshed back and forth with the motions of his body, Astraea knew that he didn't wield the sword often.

He must be a warrior, as all Zelantans are. But he is a noble first.

Darko Krieger himself was a boy of seventeen years just as pompous as his father; he wore black armor that was too large for his body's frame and black clothing, and a hood that covered most of his black hair. Astraea found herself not liking him very much, which made her feel guilty as she wanted to get along with all the students who would be going to the Academy. She wanted to be friends with all of them.

He will surely fit in at the Academy, though.

But after the long goodbyes, it was finally time to go. Astraea led the way into the front courtyard of Eisenblütig, where their armored carriage was waiting for them. A large crowd had gathered and cheered, and colorful confetti rained from the sky. Many of the students were enthused by their sendoff and happily waved and shouted goodbyes. Astraea however maintained her dignity; a smile frozen on her face as she waved to the people around them. As they neared the carriage, she saw someone standing beside the doors and she almost faltered in her steps in surprise. But she recovered before anyone noticed. "Sir Albert," she said respectfully. "I pray that you continue to help His Majesty while I am gone."

"Of course I will, Princess Astraea," Albert said. He opened one of the double doors to the carriage and held his hand out to her. "Allow me."

Astraea reached for his hand with her left. As he guided her up the stairs Albert's gaze dropped to her hand. "Do you have any runes equipped, Your Highness?" he asked.

Astraea paused, and looked at him in surprise. Somehow, his question made her uncomfortable. She pondered if she should answer the question or not. After a moment she swallowed thickly and met his gaze. "No," she said, keeping her tone low.

"I see," Albert said, and he finished helping her into the carriage. The interior of the armored carriage looked like a building; it was dark with slits for windows, and two benches facing each other. Astraea moved down to the very end and sat down on the side facing the direction of the door. Her hands gripped the underside of the bench and she tried to steady her breathing. Why did he ask me that?

She did not have a rune, but she had been tested for rune proficiency by Lady Norma herself—the Mistress of the Magic Guild—just a year prior. Lady Norma had found that Astraea had incredible affinity towards runes. "You will one day be able to carry three runes on your body, Your Highness," Lady Norma had told her with a smile so bright that it could light up a room. "But for now, your body will only be able to handle one rune on your right hand."

Astraea quickly covered the back of her right hand, though she was wearing gloves. She had thought once of getting a rune that would enhance her skills with the knout, but she hadn't been able to find a rune that focused on whip weapons. So her hand had remained bare.

I hope no one else heard Sir Albert's question.

Unfortunately Milo confirmed her worst fear when he took the seat across from her. "Why did that man ask you if you had a rune?"

"Sir Albert, Milo," Astraea corrected him. "And—" she shrugged. "I don't know."

"Are you guys talking about runes?" Ritta asked, taking the seat beside Astraea. "I have a Hawk Rune, see?" She showed them the golden symbol on the back of her right hand.

"I have a Water Rune," Milo said, showing them the blue symbol on the back of his right hand. "Sister said it would be useful for me."

"I have a Hunter Rune," Barrett said as he sat beside Milo. "How come you guys are talking about runes?"

"Princess Astraea, will you be given special accommodations at Soldedt Academy?" one of the noble boys interjected, leaving across Barrett and practically blocking him from view.

"I…don't know," Astraea answered honestly. Truthfully she had no idea what her life was going to be like once they reached Crystal Valley. Was she going to be treated differently because she was a princess? Or would she be treated the same as everyone else from Zelant?

I don't know. No one has explained anything to me.

Once all ten students were seated on the benches, the carriage gave a huge lurch and they felt it start to move. They could hear the deafening cheers outside, and Astraea's heart ached as she realized once again that she was leaving Zelant and would be gone for a long time.

But I will be back.

"Oh thank God," Darko announced, standing up despite the shifting carriage. "I don't have to hide anymore."

"What do you mean?" another boy asked.

"This." Darko grabbed his hood and yanked it back, revealing a long black ponytail spilling from his collar!

"OI!" another boy shouted, standing up. "How do you have long hair?!"

"Relax, it's just an extension," Darko huffed, pulling it free. The ponytail (?) swooshed back and forth against his back. "I'll wear it until my hair gets this long naturally."

"…Why?" a noble girl asked warily.

"Well, foreigners know that true warriors from Zelant have long hair, right?! This will show everyone in Crystal Valley that I am a true warrior!"

A prolonged period of silence followed Darko's proclamation before everyone except Astraea erupted into hysterical laughter.

"Oi, knock it off!" Darko snapped. "It's a brilliant idea!"

"I-It's a stupid idea!" another boy laughed.

"DON'T CALL ME STUPID IN FRONT OF HER HIGHNESS!" Darko bellowed out.

Astraea ducked her head and rubbed at her eyes, sighing heavily. She was seeing a preview of what their voyage to Harmonia was going to look like and she didn't like it.

But…the antics of her fellow students provided a much-needed distraction for her.

The armored carriage protected them fully and completely from monster attacks and bandits on the road, but it also moved incredibly slowly. It took them nearly two days to reach Niebieska Brama, but during that time Astraea got to know her half-siblings and her future classmates. In addition to Milo, Barrett, Ritta, and Darko, there were also Nils, Moza, Oskar, Andrej, and Annalenya. All of them were between the ages of sixteen and eighteen, and most of them were excited to be traveling to Harmonia. While the nobles seemed put off by Barrett and Ritta's presence as they were fosterlings, it did not take long before all ten of them were conversing and laughing like they were old friends.

Astraea discovered during the trip that she was no alone in not having a rune. Both Oskar and Annalenya did not have runes, either. "I'll wait and see what my professors say I should get," Oskar said.

"Damn, I should have done that," Nils muttered.

"Zelant wears black armor," Moza read from a notebook in his hands. "Bianca wears white armor. Caelum wears amber armor—"

"How does that help us in Harmonia?" Andrej asked him.

Moza shrugged. "I'll distinguish between their armies as well."

Darko spent most of the trip moping, as one was impressed by his ponytail extension. On the contrary, Milo and Andrej couldn't stop laughing at it. Astraea had a feeling that he would not have a good time on the trip.

But they arrived to Niebieska Brama without incident and with a lot of fanfare by the citizens. Niebieska Brama was the largest of Zelant's three port towns, which was appropriate as it was the primary port to the rest of the world. A bustling city of fifteen thousand, and all of them turned out to greet their princess, and the youths who would be her fellow students at Soldedt Academy. When she enthusiasm of the people and their smiling faces, Astraea started to finally feel good about the trip. She could see that so many people had faith in her and were happy for her opportunity, and they wanted her to succeed. It then didn't hurt so much to part from her family and to leave the country she loved so much.

But transversing Niebieska Brama proved to be difficult, as she was hounded by people who wanted to touch her and give her gifts. Thankfully the guards who had come with them rescued her and took her to a nearby inn with the other nine students. "Pardon us Your Highness, but the ship is not yet ready to travel," one said as they stood in the inn's dining room. "We are still loading cargo into it."

Still? Astraea blinked with shock. But all of our stuff arrived two days ahead of us!

"This is your fault, isn't it Darko?" Barrett laughed, grabbing the other boy and giving him a noogie.

"Stop, DON'T MESS UP MY PONYTAIL!" Darko shouted, shoving him away.

"What is that thin made out of, anyway?" Ritta asked, making a face.

Darko scoffed and checked his fake ponytail. "I don't owe you any explanations!"

"You can stop taking that tone with my sister," Milo said harshly, folding his arms over his chest. "Or do you have a habit of speaking to all His Majesty's bastards like that?"

"I—!" Darko was about to snap at him but also saw Barrett glowering at him. He seemed to remember himself and bowed to Astraea. "I…apologize for being rude to your kin, Your Highness," he said respectfully.

"Your apology should be directed to Ritta and not me, Darko Krieger," Astraea admonished him, though her heart warmed to hear Milo refer to Ritta as his sister. We really have all become so close, she thought.

Darko tensed, and visibly flushed, but he turned his body and directly his bow to Ritta. "…I apologize."

"Apology accepted," Ritta said coldly. Then she looked at Astraea and smiled. "Since we have time, can we do some shopping?"

"Oh, can I join you?" Annalenya squealed, hurrying over.

"Maybe it's not such a good idea for all ten of us to go out together," Oskar said, looking around the room.

"Right," Astraea murmured, stroking her chin. "I…I guess a group of six should be okay."

"Then I'm coming," Barrett said.

"Me too," Ritta said.

"As am I," Milo said.

"Me, me!" Annalenya cheered, waving her hand.

"So that's one more," Nils said with a smile. Darko perked up when he said this. "Who will you choose to round out your party, Your Highness?"

Astraea looked at the other boys for a moment before deciding on one. "Moza."

"Thank you, Your Highness," Moza said with a bright smile.

"Then Oskar, Nils, and I will be in another group," Andrej said cheekily.

"Wait, what about me?!" Darko demanded.

"Let's go," Milo said to Astraea.

Astraea went outside with her group. She was thankful that the people of Niebieska Brama had resumed their daily routines. She turned to look at the others. "We have two other brothers here," she said to her half-siblings. "They're shop-owners. Would you like to meet them?"

"Oh, I think I know one of them," Milo said. "Gopal. He runs a trading stand near the harbor."

"That's right. And there's also Erment, who's an armorer somewhere here in town."

"You know a lot about your bastard siblings, Your Highness," Annalenya observed.

"They're all my siblings," Astraea told her. She thought she saw her three half-siblings brighten out of the corner of her eye and she smiled towards them. "Where should we go first?"

She suddenly felt a tug on her arm and she looked down. She sucked in a sharp breath when she saw a child—possibly no older than seven years old—standing beside her. Her hair was dark green, short, and very curly like springs with two yellow bows tied on either side of her head. And she had the biggest rose-colored eyes Astraea had ever seen. She wore a pink pageantry dress and she held a deck of cards in her hands.

"Hello," Astraea greeted her, smiling and kneeling down. "How can I help you?"

"Your Highness?" the girl asked, her voice low and shy. She held up the cards. "Can—Would you like to play a game?"

"A game?" Moza echoed behind her. "What kind of game?"

"H-High/Low," the girl stammered, her eyes darting around the teenagers before looking back at Astraea. "I—You guess the card," she stammered. She quickly shuffled the cards and took two cards off the top facing down. She turned one over to revealed a 7 printed on the card. "A-And then," the little girl continued. "You guess if this card—" she indicated the one still faced down. "Is higher or lower than this one." She held up the 7.

"That's easy enough," Barrett asked. "Does the princess need to pay to play?"

The little girl blushed and ducked her head. "…It's 300 Potch to play," she mumbled. "S-So—So if you win, y-you win 300 Potch. But if you lose…you lose 300 Potch."

"Then I'll take the bet," Astraea said, pulling out her coin purse. She counted out 300 Potch and gave it to the child. "And I say "High"."

Astraea had a feeling of what the outcome was. And when the little girl flipped the second card over, she got the confirmation.

"Oh, you lost!" Ritta groaned, slapping a hand over her eyes.

"I-It's a 3!" the little girl exclaimed, her eyes wide.

"That's right," Astraea said with a smile. "So you keep the 300 Potch and get 300 more, right?" She counted out 300 more Potch and gave it to the girl.

The little girl nodded enthusiastically. "I-I—thank you for playing with me, Your Highness!" She bowed repeatedly before running away.

"Tough luck, Your Highness," Annalenya said.

"How did you know the number was lower?" Barrett asked.

"Wait, you chose the wrong number on purpose?" Ritta asked.

Astraea shrugged and stood. "It's fine. She won fair and square."

The group went to the market district of Niebieska Brama to find Erment's shop first. She spotted the sign for the armor shop and waved to the group. "There it is!"

"Step right up, folks!" a man from a tent stall shouted, swinging a yellow baton. He was a man in his fifties with a shifty demeanor; a tan complexion with varying scars on his face, a mostly toothless smile, brown hair so thin that it looked brittle, and dark eyes that did not match his smile. Despite his fancy stall and confident demeanor, his clothes looked shabby. "Don't miss this opportunity to be the proud owner of a dragon's egg!"

Dragon's egg?! Astraea stopped in her tracks and looked at his table. On the surface of the table she saw a large amber-colored object that did in fact look like an egg. It was resting on an elegant blue pillow with a sign over it that read "DRAGON'S EGG".

"…Is that a real dragon's egg?" Milo wondered aloud, looking over Astraea's shoulder.

"A bonafide dragon's egg straight from the Dragon's Den in the Toran Republic!" The salesman said proudly. "For 5 million Potch it could be all yours, Your Highness!"

Astraea's mouth dropped open in shock. She may have been a princess, but she didn't carry 5 million Potch on her person. She could never dream of spending 5 million Potch at once!

"If this is a dragon egg from Toran, how did you get it all the way here?!" Moza demanded.

"Ah ah, that's a tradesman secret!" The man said, waving his baton at him. "I must ask that if you do not have the money to purchase this egg that you be on your way! Except you, Your Highness," he quickly said to Astraea. "Take all the time you need!"

"I…will have to decline, sir," Astraea said, straightening. "It wouldn't be practical of me to bring a dragon's egg to Harmonia."

"True," the man said. "Have a lovely day, Your Highness."

The group hurried to the armor shop. Astraea saw a man in his late twenties standing behind the counter, and though she had never met him before she knew his blue eyes. His hair was black and worn in a single braid that was draped over his right shoulder, and he was dressed in a white shirt with a blue vest and matching tyrolean hat. She knew that this was Erment, her half-brother.

Erment for his part looked stunned to see the group and he came out from behind the counter to see them. "Y—Your Highness," he gasped, bowing. "I'm honored—"

"I'm honored to meet you Erment," Astraea said. "Especially before we leave."

"Y-You know me, Your Highness?" Erment looked stunned.

"Astraea knows us all," Barrett said with a smile.

"What do you have for sale?" Moza asked him.

"Oh, right!" Erment hurried behind the counter. "I will give you all a discount."

Astraea wanted to refuse and play full price, but she didn't want to speak for the group. "T-Thank you, Erment."

Erment proved to be a man with a quiet tone of voice but he was also kind. Astraea purchased a new pair of boots for her speed, and others in the group made purchases.

"Hey Erment, is that a real dragon's egg out there?" Ritta asked, pointing towards the door.

Erment blanched and shook his head. "That's Typhon. Don't trust him, he's a thief and a scalper."

"'Scalper'?" Annalenya asked.

"He sells bootlegged items for absurd prices," Erment explained. "He's no better than bandits who rob travels. Technically he's not even supposed to have a stall here anymore. I'll let the authorities know."

"We didn't buy the egg," Astraea said.

"Good, Your Highness."

Astraea wanted to stay and speak with him longer, but she knew that they were short on time. "Thank you, Erment."

Erment nodded. "Best of luck to you, Your Highness. We all know that you're going to do fine at Soldedt Academy."

Astraea smiled at him. "I appreciate that."

They fast-walked past Gopal's stand and hurried towards the harbor. She saw a massive ship waiting in the harbor that was larger than any other boat that was docked. She knew that this would be the boat that would take them to the Western Continent. But then they found the trader's stand, and she laid eyes on Gopal. Her other half-brother.

"Here you are, Lauretta," Gopal said, handing Potch to the same little girl Astraea had played with earlier. "You won fare and square."

"T-Thank you," the girl, Lauretta, said, bowing and hurrying away.

"Hello, Gopal!" Milo called out, hurrying over and clapping a hand to the twenty-one year old's shoulder. "How's commerce?"

Gopal looked up and Astraea saw the familiar blue eyes. His white hair was short and slicked back (not surprising for his age) but Astraea was impressed to see him as a business owner so young. But she knew many of her siblings owned business before the age of twenty three. He wore a slate gray shirt with an orange vest and pants. His posture straightened when he saw Astraea. "Y-Your Highness!"

"It's nice to meet you, Gopal," Astraea greeted him. She looked at his wares. "What's trading high today?"

"Salt," Gopal said. "Spices are down. I wish spices were doing better. Hey why don't you buy spices today? It may do better in Harmonia."

"I'll do it," Moza said, pulling out his wallet.

Astraea debated if she should invest in spices, as she was unfamiliar with trading, but she saw Gopal's eager expression and pulled out her own coin purse. "To get started," she said. "I will buy one bundle."

"Ah, it's good to play it safe," Gopal told her with a smile. "But it's also good to get a start somewhere. Well done, Your Highness."

Astraea, Milo, and Moza purchased some spices but they all stayed a few minutes to talk to Gopal. "Do you know that little girl?" Astraea asked him.

"Lauretta?" Gopal asked. "Yeah, she's an orphan part of the Monarch Orphanage. Qamaria tries to bring the children up here every now and then to get them out of the orphanage."

"Monarch?" Ritta asked, her brow furrowed. "I've never heard of it."

"It's the best in the country," Gopal said. "Qamaria is wonderful with children."

Astraea looked around to see if she could see Lauretta or any other children, but she didn't see them. She felt a pang of guilt; as though she hadn't done enough for Lauretta. But she knew in the moment that there was only so much she could do.

I'm not Queen and I'm about to leave.

"Oh, are those your guys Your Highness?" Gopal asked suddenly. Astraea turned and saw two soldiers hurrying towards them. She nodded, knowing what their haste meant. "We must be ready to go now," she mused.

The ship was luxurious and spacious; all ten students had their own rooms, though Astraea suspected that hers was the largest. She stood at the rail on deck with everyone else and waved to the citizens of Niebieska Brama goodbye. She craned her neck, trying to see if she could see her brothers or Lauretta, but she couldn't distinguish faces in the crowd.

Once the ship left harbor everyone started to disperse, but Astraea stood at the rail and watched Niebieska Brama—and Zelant by extension—become farther and farther away. The further she got, the heavier her heart got. Her hands gripped the rail and her vision blurred, but she kept hold of her composure and did not leave the rail until the coastline of Zelant was on the horizon.

Now, out on the open water of the sea, she exhaled sharply. It's done. I can only look forward and make the best of my situation.

The Sun was low in the sky, and she didn't feel like talking to anyone at the moment. Astraea went below deck and entered her suite room. She collapsed onto the large bed, not caring that her boots were still on, and rolled onto her side. She suddenly felt exhausted and her eyes fell closed. She let the gentle rocking of the boat soothe and lull her, and she started to drift off to sleep.

She didn't know though that she had fallen asleep until there was a sharp knock at the door. "Your Highness, please come to the deck!"

The urgency in his tone made her sit straight up and she scrambled out of bed. Her eyes caught her knout on the desk and she grabbed it and attached it to her hip as she opened the door. "Yes?"

"Please come with me, Your Highness," the crewman said, and then hurried away. Astraea followed after him, and she saw the others hurrying up to the deck. When they reached the deck she saw that she could no longer see Zelant but she saw that the Sun had not set yet. She had not been downstairs for long. "What's wrong?" Astraea asked the captain.

"Forgive me Your Highness, but we ran into a complication," the captain told her. He was an older man but she saw concern in his eyes. "We need to land and disembark the boat."

"A-Are we returning to Niebieska Brama?" Oskar asked.

"No, there's a remote island just over here," the captain said, pointing to northwest of their position. "It will be safer to land there."

"Safe to land on a remote island?!" Darko demanded. "How is that safer?!"

"We need to stop the boat and get off the boat," the captain said, looking at Astraea. "For all of your safety."

Astraea swallowed hard. "If the ship isn't safe, then shouldn't we deploy lifeboats and abandon the ship?"

"Hey, that's right!" Milo said. "If there's an emergency, then we shouldn't wait to land with this boat!"

"Once we get to the island it will be fine," the captain said firmly. "In the meanwhile, gather warm cloaks and some supplies if needed. We will try to get this situation sorted quickly."

Astraea felt uneasy. She didn't know why the captain was handling the "complication" by continuing to sail, even if it was just a short distance. It didn't feel safe to her. She wondered if she should go along with what the captain said, or pull rank and exercise her authority to what she felt was best.

After a moment she decided. "Captain," she said, her tone authoritative. "I'm ordering you to deploy the lifeboats and abandon ship now."

The captain looked stunned by her command, as did the other crew. A few men made a move towards the lifeboats, but the captain raised his hand. "Stop!" he said sharply. "I am in command here! I will give the orders!"

"I told you what you needed to do, captain," Astraea said harshly. "We need to—"

The captain fixed his gaze upon her. "Princess Astraea," he said coldly. "We are now in international waters. As such, I have the authority here. Not you. I will decide what is best in this situation. And the best course of action is docking at the island."

Astraea felt the heat rush to her face. His words humiliated her and didn't make an ounce of sense. How did she not have authority over him?! She was a princess, and he was a Zelantan subject! She opened her mouth to say more, but then she felt a tug on her arm. "Astraea."

Astraea looked over her shoulder at Milo, who wore a grim expression. "Let it go," he told her. "Send a message to His Majesty later for this man's disrespect, but for now it's not best to argue."

Astraea gritted her teeth, feeling her anger rise. No wonder Sir Albert said that I'm not a good leader. No one listens to me!

But she did not argue further. Silence swept over the boat as it changed course to the island. Thankfully they reached the island a short time, but that period felt harrowing. It did not feel right to stay on the boat when there was an apparent danger. Astraea and the students stayed near the rail in the event the situation escalated and they needed to abandon ship by jumping overboard.

Thankfully it did not come to that. They reached the island and the anchor was dropped as close to shoreline as the ship could get. "All of you in the same lifeboat," the captain said. "I will go with you."

They climbed into the lifeboat with their supplies and the captain, and the lifeboat was slowly lowered. As the lifeboat was lowered, Astraea scrutinized the boat as closely as possible. From her angle, she could not see anything wrong with the ship. That further added to her confusion.

Why are we stopping?

The captain sat at the back of the lifeboat, and he dipped his hand into the water. Astraea knew that he must have a Water Rune, and would use it to propel them to shore. The island itself did look small from the bow of the ship; the side that they were landing on had a gray beach in a crescent shape that was line but a thick grove of trees. Astraea could see that the island was very hilly, and there appeared to be steep cliffs to both the east and west. She could understand why it was uninhabited; it didn't look like a comfortable place to live.

They reached the shoreline shortly, and the ten disembarked the boat. "Go inland into the trees for now," the captain said. "We'll be right back."

"Wait, what?!" Darko demanded. "You're leaving us here alone?!" But the captain said nothing more and made his way back to the ship.

"I'm reporting this to my father," Andrej fumed, shaking his head. "This is ridiculous treatment!"

"Well, we may as well go inland," Annalenya sighed. "Hopefully whatever it is they have to fix they will fix it quickly."

Astraea wanted to stay put on the beach, and was about to vocalize this to her comrades. But when she turned to tell them so she saw that all nine of them were already up the beach and following a small worn path into the grove. "Come on, Astraea!" Barrett called to her.

Astraea looked back towards the ship and scoffed before running after them. Her heart was pounding in her ears. She couldn't shake the feeling that something wasn't right.

She found the others still walking along the path. There was no branching path, and the trees were thick around them. "Guys," Astraea said, trying to get their attention. "Guys, we should—"

"Hey, I see a light up ahead!" Oskar shouted, and he took off running.

A light? On a deserted island?! A spike of alarm filled Astraea's body and she took off running after them. "Everyone, WAIT!"

They ran deeper into the trees, and Astraea saw the light that Oskar referred to. She looked behind her, but she could not see the beach. She gripped the hilt of her knout as she found the group in a large circular clearing. The sky was turning pink from the setting Sun but there was one lone torch burning in the center of the clearing. Astraea moved to stand with Milo, Ritta, and Barrett as everyone looked around in confusion. "Who left this here?" Darko wondered.

"Don't let your fake hair get burnt by it," Nils said snidely.

"Everyone," Astraea said, waving her arm. "Everyone, we need to get back to the beach!"

"But the captain—" Moza said.

"Forget the captain!" Astraea snapped. "Something is wrong!"

Everyone looked at Astraea in shock. "…What do you mean?" Ritta whispered.

At that moment there was a rustle from the trees, and Astraea instinctively unrolled her knout. "LOOK OUT!" she shrieked.

No sooner did the words leave her mouth before there was a whoosh of air—and a knife swiftly lodged in Darko's throat.