EG Monster Island Chapter 5

The party was in full swing when I walked up the stairs to the main deck. Violins and flutes were being played on by four people standing on boxes near the bow. The area right in front of them was cleared of obstructions and I saw a couple dozen people dancing. Ashkhas and humans danced apart, with each other, and with others unlike them. On either side of the ship massive tables had been set up. Fried fish, steaks, vegetable platters, fruits, and cheeses dominated the one closest to us, followed by a smaller table manned by a sailor who was doling out mugs of beer or wine to a line of people.

“Captain Alborz would like you to join him on the poop deck,” Farah walked up and bowed to us.

“Lead on, thank you,” I said, smiling at her. She winked at me, turned, and bounded gracefully down the deck to the stairs up.

We hurried after her, though Vaya pointed at the dancers. “At least one,” she asked, giving me a puppy dog face.

I smiled, “Yes, we can dance at least once before the night is over.” Just then a new song started, ringing throughout the ship and causing a cheer from the dancers. The tune was catchy enough I found myself bobbing my head to the beat as we walked. The sound didn’t deaden as we got farther away. I flipped on my Aether Sight and saw a massive working covering the ship. I think that is enhancing the sound and that rune is about temperature. It's a heater and air conditioner in one too. That’s so cool. Hmm, it looks like it is also blocking light and sound, I guess to keep us hidden? I wonder who set this up.

Two Askkhas guarded the stairs up, but just nodded to us as I approached. I pounded up the stairs, eager to see what else this party had to offer. Three more tables were set up in a u shape here. However, they all had chairs set next to them and places set out to eat at. Three carts with stacked dishes were behind each table, watched over by two people each. Seated at the rightmost table were the rest of my friends. Jamila and Aleks were talking animatedly, while Hanna listened in. Xiao was trying to flirt with Lilianna. Ming, Milenna and Lea were having a discussion at the other end.

Vaya grabbed my hand and dragged me over to an open seat next to Jamila. Jon and Bridget moved together to find a seat by Ming. “Good evening, ladies,” I said, bowing to Jamila, Aleks, and Hanna before taking the seat. “What’s on the menu tonight?”

“Sia, Zim, and Knight Kaminski worked together to capture a level five Bluefin Tuna,” Hanna gushed. “I cannot wait to taste it!”

“Captain Svik also gave several level four Rock Crabs he had been planning on selling,” Aleks said. “Or that is what he told us anyway. Now that you are here, the servers should be ready to bring the food over.” She looked over her shoulder at the human sailor waiting next to the dishes.

“Not quite yet, Princess,” he said with a grin. “Captains Svik and Alborz want to make a speech first, I believe.”

“But we are hungry now,” she said plaintively, giving him a pouting lip.

“Sorry ma’am, captain’s orders,” he said, resisting the cuteness.

“Humph,” she turned back to us, crossing her arms and sinking in her chair.

“Not used to not getting your way?” I teased her. Even with all the time we’d spent together, the other girls gave me askance looks at my tone.

“No, and I do not like it,” Aleks continued to pout.

A few seconds later, a ringing came from the head table, and I looked to see Captain Svik standing behind the head table. “Thank you all for joining us,” he announced. “Though I am sure the free food and drink brought you more than my company.” I joined my friends in laughing at that. “I sponsored this feast to give thanks to Ambassador Saf’Ir, Captain Alborz, Master Narwan, and all the others who saved my ship, and more importantly my crew, from the depredations of the vile Illyrians. On top of the food and drink, I am gifting the crew of the Muhit Zhara two dozen casks of ale. Each crewmember will also get a level one Core of their highest Affinity.”

Some of the servers cheered, and the Ashkha half of the other table joined them. “There were those directly responsible for saving my people,” he continued on. Two humans, a man and a woman, walked out from behind the table, pulling another cart behind them. “Master Narwan, for preventing the destruction of my ship, I gift you a Bird of Paradise Flower.” The gasp from Aleks let me know how valuable that gift was. The woman carefully pulled a small pot out of the cart. Peaking over the top of the pot was a bright orange and blue flower, shaped whimsically like a bird. She reverently handed it over to Librarian Narwan.

“You have done well in caring for this beautiful specimen,” Librarian Narwan said, nodding to the servant. She smiled and bowed deeply to him before heading back to the cart.

Captain Svik turned to Captain Alborz and Ambassador Saf’Ir. “Captain Alborz, Ambassador Saf’Ir, thank you for letting the Craesti delegation talk you into helping my people, and for risking your people to save me. For you, I gift you each a silver eagle, the symbol of the Craesti Trader’s Guild. This will let all my compatriots know that you have performed a great service for us, and grants you a ten percent discount at all of our stores, for life. Additionally, I will allow you each to purchase eight separate items at cost! Please speak to me later so we may discuss what my clan can provide you, for I do not know enough about your people’s gathering techniques to provide specific gifts.”

“That is very generous,” Captain Alborz said, standing to take the silver eagle from the male servant who handed it to him. “And I will not try to take too much advantage of your generosity.”

“Spoken like a true merchant,” Captain Svik laughed. He then turned away from the head table and looked squarely at me. “Lastly, my specific thanks goes to the Craesti competitors, and most especially to Knight Kupiec Aiden and the Firebird Siarczysty. It was your urging that spurred the others on to save us, and without you many more of my people would have been injured or killed. I spoke with Master Narwan and Knight Kaminski about your training and needs, and together we came up with this.”

The servants started the feast then, setting plates full of expensive meats and vegetables that complemented them excellently. “A feast full of high level meat to strengthen your bodies and foundation,” Captain Svik continued, “and these two pills each. The first is called Obzartuch’s Delight and you should take it immediately.” The two servants who were handing out the gifts came over and gave each of us. “These are used to absorb and process high level food easier and quicker. So make sure to dig in and eat until you cannot anymore!”

The servants moved back to bring another pill bottle to each of us. “The second pill I merely provided the resources to make, and even then had to borrow from Master Narwan. These are called Foundation Firming Pills. Master Narwan assured me that these are the best things for you at your tier, and he will be helping you process them soon. You all will also receive the silver eagle, and my undying gratitude. Your Bonds have been given a special treat as well, and they are enjoying spending time with my own. Now, eat up! I am already at a loss on this expedition, why not make it worse?” He bowed with a flourish, and then walked back to his seat.

I was about to get up and thank him when Aleks shook her head. I leaned over, “Why not?”

“The others' claims to authority are higher than Captain Svik’s here, while yours is not,” she answered me. “We will get a chance to thank him later this evening. Also, make sure to thank him profusely. Those pills are extremely expensive.”

“Will do,” I smiled at her, then looked down at the plate of seared tuna steak, crab legs, and kelp-wrapped rice balls. On a whim, I switched to Aether Sight and saw the Bluefin Tuna glowing with Water and Ice Aether. The Rock Crab legs were full of Earth with a smidgeon of Metal. The Seafloor Kelp was almost entirely Wood Aether, while the rice was Air and Lightning infused. A condiment placed to the side was glowing the red of Fire Aether. Huh, fully rounded out meal, I thought before throwing down the Obzartuch’s Delight. The pill’s Aether flowed into my stomach and digestion system meridians and seemed to coat them in a thick layer. Immediately, I was starving.

I stuffed my face, not looking up to talk or even check out the other happenings in the party. I only concentrated on eating whatever the servers placed in front of us. Apparently this was expected, as plate after plate of food was placed in front of me. Everything I ate turned into Aether, processed by the pill, and dumped into my Aether Pool. The pill’s Aether kept pushing down on the food’s Aether, and my Pool stretched to match. More!

After ten minutes, the food changed to more mundane Yellowfin Tuna and Green Cod. The condiments changed to keep the Aether types balanced. Finally, after an hour, the gluttony pill finally stopped driving me to eat. The last few bites I took were much more relaxed, and I finished the meal with a feeling of satisfaction. I looked over at Vaya to see her leaning back in her chair, stomach slightly distended from all the food she’d eaten. A loud belch sounded behind me, and I turned to find Jamila slouching down in her chair, covering her face with her hands.

“That was impressive,” I commented, and she glared at me from behind her fingers.

“Do not tease her, she is trying to learn to be more ladylike,” Aleks said, reaching over Jamila to smack my arm.

“Okay, I’m sorry,” I said. “I want to say that it was enjoyable, but I’m more worried about eating my body weight in food. I think. Honestly, the last hour was a blur.”

“Yeah,” Vaya sighed, “I kinda wish we had saved a single plate of the Bluefin so I could remember how it tasted. My Aether Pool did increase by almost a percent, though, so that is pretty neat. I have just about doubled my original depth. It has been less than a month since we started to work on that. Librarian Narwan’s technique is amazing.”

“Yeah. I wonder what the Foundation Firming Pills will do for us too,” I said.

“Speaking of which, here comes Captain Svik now,” Jamila pointed him out.

I stood, with others following my motion. “Captain Svik, thank you for the generous gifts. Really, we didn’t rush to save you for rewards.”

“Tut, tut,” he waved off my thanks, “It is I who needs to thank you again. You saved my people, healed the injured, and drove off the pirates who would have taken us as slaves. Losing the profit from this venture is a small price to pay to reward my heroes. I will be on Monster Island for a little over a week delivering goods and arranging return cargos. Come find me if you need assistance with anything, and I do mean anything.” He finished that statement with a frank look in my eyes, and then bowed low to us before walking off to mingle with the other guests.

The rest of the night passed in a blur once Vaya and Jamila dragged me to the dance floor. Everyone danced with everyone else, glasses of ale were passed around, though I made sure to stay with those for Aether Gathering level people so it didn’t affect me, and more food was eaten. We didn’t go to bed until late in the evening, or early in the morning.

I woke the next morning to pounding on the door. Jon and Xiao groaned from their beds. Not enough sleep. Gotta stop doing that. Maybe they have coffee? I thought as I got up and stretched. “Rise and shine sleepyhead,” I shook Jon’s shoulder. “I keep thinking you’ll learn not to drink too much, but so far your head has proven harder than that. Come on.”

“Don’t wanna,” he whined.

“Hey, that’s the first time I’ve heard you use a contraction!” I exclaimed, then dragged him out of the bed.

“Meanie,” Jon grumbled, stomping his feet and glaring at me as he sullenly put on his training clothes.

“Hey, maybe Ambassador Saf’Ir will start giving us tattoos today,” I said.

“I am not so sure I want that. The one I got hurt,” Jon said.

“Speak for yourself,” Ming laughed. “I will take a bit of pain for a permanent upgrade to my gathering ability, or to my damage potential.”

“I cannot wait,” Xiao gushed, ever the more expressive of the brothers.

I laughed and opened the door to find Knight Kaminski waiting for us. “You guessed correctly,” she said. “Xiao, go up to the main deck. Farah is waiting to escort you into the Ambassador’s quarters. You three, galley.” She turned and knocked on the Princess’s door again.

Jon, Ming, and I hurried to the galley and quickly ate breakfast. It was a simple porridge made of Sky Oats and Skopic Berries. I ate three whole bowls, my body starving for some reason. I ate a massive amount yesterday. Why am I so hungry? Everyone else ate as much as I did. Librarian Narwan sat down across from me as I polished off the third bowl.

“Confused about something?” he asked, a smug grin on his face.

I bet he knows what I’m going to ask. Stupid mentor, I grumbled internally, then asked about the hunger.

“You are hungry because of the pill you took yesterday, of course,” he said. “It reduced all of the food you ate into Aether and strengthened your body and Aether Pool with it. This left you with a deficit of nutrients, so you will be very hungry for lunch and dinner as well. This morning’s training is simply to recover from yesterday. Take time to process and relax. Gather and eat. This evening I will instruct you on how to process the second of your rewards.”

“Thank you, sir,” I nodded.

“Also, be ready to discuss what type of tattoo you want,” he added as I stood.

“Uh, do you know the options?” I asked, sitting back down.

“Not all of them,” he answered, then held his hand up. A small flicker of Aether pressed on my senses, and a tattoo of an Electric Eel became visible wrapped around his hand and wrist. “This is a projection enhancement tattoo, and it strengthens any attack I send through my hand that I make with Air, Lightning, or Fire Aether. It is of limited benefit now, but was quite useful through Complete Core.”

“Wow. How did you hide it?” I asked, staring at the cool design.

“Hmm, I was going to teach all of them once everyone had received their new tattoos,” he mumbled to himself. He spoke louder, “Now I can teach you and have you teach the rest! Hah, I have much to do and little time to do it. Now, watch closely.” He held his hand up and I activated Aether Sight and enhanced it as much as I could. Aether flowed through the tattoo and then seemed to reverse its path. A small amount of Wood and Earth Aether flowed out over his skin, and then the colors faded away. If I looked closely, I could just barely make out the outline of the Eel, but even that faded quickly. He repeated the vieling three times, then said, “Now, show others. I will have surprises for you all tomorrow.”

“Yes sir,” I said, bowing as he vanished. I looked over at Jon, “Did you get that?”

“Not really. We will figure it out, I guess?” he said uncertainly.

“Good. I’m not the only one confused. Well, I’m going to make more Inscriptions so I can pay for these tattoos,” I laughed, standing up to go.

“Thank you again,” Ming said. “Also, XIao and I are willing to contribute goods to help pay you for this generosity.”

“Thanks,” I said. “I think I’m good, for now. We’ll see what happens in the future.” Ming nodded, then he and Jon started a conversation on an Air technique they’d both started to learn.

I spent the next two hours carefully constructing three more Shield Inscriptions after tracking down some square plates of metal to insert the gems into. After finishing those, I needed a break, so I headed up to the main deck. It was awash in sailors performing their respective tasks, keeping the ship moving. Off the starboard side of the ship I saw Captain Svik’s sails. I hurried up to the stern of the ship, finding a clear space on the poop deck to stare out into the ocean.

A thump next to me heralded Sia’s landing. “Good morning,” I said to him cheerfully.

“Good morning,” he responded. “Notice anything?”

I looked closely at him without seeing anything different, then I activated Aether Sight. The normal flowing of red and yellow Aether twined around his wings, with small amounts of the light blue of Air Aether at the very tips. Only a second later, though, and the dark blue of Water twined into the mix, followed by purple Ice. “Woah! When did you evolve?” I nearly shouted mentally at him.

He laughed, “I have not yet evolved, though I am closer than I expected to be for at least fifty years. Thanks to you and Librarian Narwan. Gather with me. It will help.”

“Gladly, my friend,” I said, sitting down and letting Sia land on my shoulders. Another hour passed quickly. Just after we stopped gathering, leaving me brimming with power, Jon came jogging up.

“Your turn for tattoos,” he said, holding his arms out to the side. Both forearms were covered in spirals and loops of a series of runes. “I will tell you about them later. Ambassador Saf’Ir wants to be done. He has been working on all of us all day. Farah is waiting on the rowing level for you.”

“Thanks,” I clasped his wrist, then hurried down the stairs. “Talk to you later, Sia. Let me what else I can do to help you evolve.”

“Get Librarian Narwan to fix the Affinity Powders for Beasts,” Sia sent back, prompting me to slap my forehead.

“Will do!”