King Of Limbo

Little time had passed but Aron was quickly losing patience and he had already began to squeeze Kaira's throat to the point where she could no longer breathe or even mutter words.

Her struggling grew weaker and weaker forcing Aella to charge forward in an attempt to save her but her speed was far too lacking and he grabbed her the same way he did Kaira.

"Then die together." Aron strengthened his grip and brought even more panic to Aella's face whilst Kaira's consciousness was slipping.

"Wa-it... plea-se." Aela pleaded desperately trying to get the words out. Aron glanced at her for a moment before throwing her to the floor and loosening the the grip on Kaira's throat.

"Explain and if I sense you are lying to me... Jagu will be the only member of your clan still alive by sunrise. Clear?" Aron tilted his head and looked down at Aella who was on all fours gasping for air while nodding hurriedly.

"We... weren't planning on harming you. We-we just wanted... your seed, to produce a stronger next generation..." She explained slowly but maintained her look of worry as she looked at Kaira practically dangling in Aron's hand.

"Is this some sort of joke? If so I am highly unamused." Aron couldn't detect any lies but he still felt so irked by her explanation that he felt like popping Kaira's head there and then.

"It-It's the truth! This has nothing to do with her or my clan.. I am responsible so if you wish to kill anyone kill me!" Seeing that Aron was still not backing down, Aella grew more desperate.

"Was it not you who said that the actions of one member can greatly affect everyone else?" Aron asked and Aella failed to reply as those were indeed her own harsh words towards Jagu.

Aron could only conclude that she was someone obsessed with the clan to the very core, caring only about maintaining it's traditions and increasing it's power no matter the cost, even exiling her own son or bearing the children of outsiders.

"All this can be overlooked, one life for the life of thousands. What do you say?" Aron's tone shifted slightly and he let Kaira drop to the floor before walking over to Aella and asking this.

"What do you mean...?" She asked while doing her best to maintain a strong expression but her shaking palms betrayed her. Aron only showed a sinister smirk upon hearing this question before grabbing her by the hair and lifting her up into the air.

"Listen very carefully..."

...

"Hey, wake up."

Jagu awoke confused some time after to Aron shaking him on the shoulder. "Hm? What happened... are they still not here?"

"She says they won't be coming due to some issue that required their attention." Aron replied before casually pointing at Kaira who stood by the entrance her face still pale from the earlier experience.

But she could only not her head and play along. "Yes... it's nothing major but mother says it's best to hold the trail another time." Kaira explained in a slightly shaky voice and would occasionally glance at Aron which didn't go unnoticed by Jagu who assumed she feared him after his display with the creature. "Okay, I will await your word at the airship."

Jagu didn't want to start another conflict so he thought it best to leave with Aron as soon as possible. Kaira only nodded weakly before leaving first without saying her goodbyes.

"She fears me now huh." Aron muttered casually as he stood up from the mat along with Jagu who wasn't surprised he caught on to that observation as well. "I'm sure she's heard or even saw what you did and worries you hold a grudge."

"Perhaps." Aron only said this before leaving the main hut with Jagu in toll.

...

The next morning all seemed normal in the now rainy region of the Komi Islands, much of the crew was sound asleep or still recovering from the effects of the feast's delicacies.

However Jagu's clan awoke to some rather angering news.

"The acting chief has been murdered!? How?! Who?!" Jagu's reaction was the same as many of his clan when the news was brought to him by his sister as noon was drawing near the following day.

p "His throat was slit in his sleep, we only found small traces of fur belonging to the crimson forl of the north east. Mother and the rest of the council have declared war, your trail will be on hold till then but you may join to earn merit and show your care towards the clan." She explained carefully as if reading from a script and Jagu who was currently in a state of anger didn't pick up on this subtle irregularities from her sister.

"Thank you for telling me. Please wait here so I can announce my departure." Jagu was determined to help but he knew very well that conflicts between clans were long lasting and that Aron wouldn't wait.

His whole reason in joining Aron was to get stronger for the sake of his clan so choosing to go wasn't even something he needed to ponder on.

Upon reaching Aron's door her he knocked a few times before he heard Aron's voice on the other side grant him permission to enter.

"Is it time for the trail?" Aron feigned ignorance to what was happening but Jagu shook his head to this question before proceeding to explain what happened and what he intended to do.

Aron who was currently seated by his desk leaned back slightly before turning his head towards a drawer to his right. He casually opened it and took out a vial that was familiar to Jagu before tossing it over to him.

"Your clan has already lost many lives, pour that vile into your enemy's main water source and wait three days. By the end of the fourth day you'd have won without a single casualty." Normally Jagu would have refused to depend on such a thing for success but if it meant less of his people would suffer then he was more than willing. "Thank you."

And with that Jagu left to join his clan in their fight. It was easier to implicate a clan that was already on very bad terms with his so no room for negotiations was even present.

It was almost as if either clan was looking for a reason to attack the other.

The days began to fly by and Aron was unsure of what exactly was going on as he didn't pay attention to this conflict. Aron gave Jagu a piece that could bring him victory and that was enough, wether he chose to use it to the fullest or not was something only he could decide.

The rest of the crew seemed much more on edge about the matter. Aron after all hadn't given them many details and only said that they would be leaving after six days time.

In the meantime Aron decided to use this time to plan his next move after leaving the Komi Islands with Lady Rose in her room since no signs of other possible ruins could be found.

"According to what that strange elven woman said to me they may be something of interest in the Aethel Empire. I've tried reading up on them before but not much knowledge is available it seems." Aron began the discussion bluntly but left out exactly what it was he was seeking, Lady Rose more less knew that Aron was looking for a way to Limbo but he still never directly brought up the matter and neither did she.

He saw no reason to suddenly become fully open about his thoughts just because of a verbal agreement saying they'd be partners. Caution was still very much necessary in his opinion when it came to Lady Rose.

She was currently seated in a comfortable arm chair facing Aron's direction but with her gaze focused on her note book. Aron on the other hand simply chose to lean against the wall with his arms crossed.

"Ever since the two nations had a falling out knowledge about the elven empire was either destroyed or manipulated so that the people of Ettenheim and future generations would grow to hate them. I'm sure the situation in Aethel is similar."

"If any recent knowledge does exist then it's probably been obtained from spies of larger families who wish to keep tabs on matters occurring there." Lady Rose shared what little she knew or rather claimed she knew about them but that was enough for Aron to get a general idea on how to proceed.

Luckily for him he had two sources of information that would likely bring him some more clarity on the matter so he didn't ask more on it.

"Then it's best we return to Galos Academy until we come up with a solid approach or do you have any ideas yourself?" Aron wasn't about to go into a territory he knew so little about without adequate preparation so he needed to be patient.

First of all there was no guarantee that what he sought was actually there and in the end it could have been a trap set up by the elf. Secondly on the off chance it wasn't he still had little knowledge of their capabilities, strengths and weaknesses along with their social structure and such.

Lacking information in all these areas left Aron very few reliable options so he could only return to Galos Academy and try to gain more information on both Aethel and Aldra.

However Lady Rose shook her head to the question of having any ideas on the matter. "No but I may be able to learn more once we return to Drotzi. It will also be a good chance for us to experiment on the captured creatures from the Newman Highlands." She reminded with a small smile on her face.

Aron let out a sigh but he did agree that it was also an opportunity. Which left only one problem now. "What punishment would we have to face for breaking academy law? Last thing we need is dealing with anything constricting our actions and or freedom."

As far as Aron was concerned according to the written rules the offense his faction committed was rather light but he was sure they were some infractions here and there that would be added on to make matters more unfavorable for him.

"Worry not Aron, no such thing will happen. The preparations we made beforehand shall be adequate." She eased Aron's thoughts with these words as he nodded in agreement and said no more.

She began to grow accustomed to his overthinking nature. He was someone who didn't like not knowing what an outcome would be or depending on luck. His mind would never truly be at ease unless he had a certain level of confidence on a matter.

This had always been his nature but when compared to before it had reduced considerably. "Then I suppose I have nothing to worry about, I'll leave you to your work then."

Aron's demeanor seemed more relaxed after getting the clarity he needed so he had no reason to linger around any longer. However just as he was about to leave Lady Rose stopped him.

"Rude of you to assume I was working but not completely wrong I suppose. Regardless, now that you and I will formally be working together to achieve greater knowledge why don't we converse... normally that is." Lady Rose suddenly suggested and caused a rather confused look to appear on Aron's face.

"I think you and I lack the qualifications to hold such a conversation. Both our lives seem rather mundane don't you think? And I doubt our pasts are of relevance." Aron replied rather bluntly as he truly didn't see the point in holding a normal conversation.

"And I think you misunderstand, I mean rather than us discussing and fretting over future matters why not discuss the knowledge we currently hold? Who knows, it may just ignite an idea." Aron now began to see the sense behind her words and it would be indeed useful to discuss what knowledge he does know and get a second opinion on it from someone he considered rather intelligent.

In that moment Aron remembered those evenings he would spend listening to lectures from Argos about numerous sometimes eccentric topics which he seemed truly passionate about.

He gave Lady Rose a glance before deciding to take a seat on the opposite side of the table she was seating around. "Right, then since we'll be dealing with research involving creatures let's start by talking about physiology and the origins of all life..."