“It would have been essential to know of this animal communion of hers before, Oswin.” Caeden slammed his armoured fists on his desk, glaring at his Magic Advisor.

His jaw tensed tightly, and it fed into the headache he was developing. He was still incapable of fully lending credence to what Ava reported after she emerged in another massive wave on the snout of a Leviathan. A battle below the ocean and sea serpents keeping them safe! It was preposterous!

 And yet, the giant sea serpent did not attack and disappeared back into the depths after she climbed from it onto the poop deck before his disbelieving eyes. The seemingly benign serpentine shadow now trailed below them, creating waves in the water to guide the ship in the directions it wanted, much to the chagrin of Knight-Captain Shael. It soon became clear why when the ship skirted around a battle between a smaller sea serpent and the frogmen that eventually broke to the surface.

Wraiths in Spectermere, whispers of wights at the Wyvern Jaw, the appearance of frogmen and a dark plague spreading among the living and the dead. What did it all mean and where did Ava and the Spirits fit into it all? There were so many questions Caeden needed answers to. He needed something to snap into place.

“Well, I did – It is not common – I noted she spoke to the Saber Cat but assumed it stemmed from loneliness rather than from any magical ability she possessed. The ability is simply unheard of in the Age of Man, Prince Caeden.” Oswin stammered out.

“The girl is lying then.”

“Unheard of does not mean outside the realm of possibility, Ser Morley. I will need time to ascertain its nature and workings. The knowledge we can acquire from Miss Ava would be invaluable, Your Grace. She could be the key to unlocking information previously unknown and inaccessible to humanity!”

“Even so, we have only that girl’s word of this so-called conversation with the Sea Serpent, for all we know this all could be some elaborate ill-intentioned plan. It will be safer for all if she remains where she is.”

“There is no evidence to suggest such a thing. I agree that there is a greater plan afoot that we cannot yet see, but she may simply just be caught in the middle of it rather than its root cause.”

“Supposition, mage. You risk much.”

“Are we to ignore that the Frost Spirit follows her of its own free will? That is not an achievement those of ill intent can so easily accomplish. I am not saying Miss Ava is entirely trustworthy, but I would advise not corroding the relationship further until we know more, Prince Caeden. Spirits are capricious creatures and the one in her possession is extremely powerful. It will destroy us if it finds the need to.” Oswin interlaced his fingers, and his hands disappeared within the bronze sleeves of his robe.

Caeden looked to his Knight-Commander for a rebuttal. Ser Morley grunted in defeat. “Oswin may be right,” He touched his fingers to the bridge of his nose and frowned before continuing, “but I still think it would be wise to keep her imprisoned until we know more.”

“Alright.” Caeden waved them to silence. “I need to speak with her to determine what my final position will be.”

He exited his cabin and crossed the deck with Oswin and the Knight-Commander trailing briskly behind. His men scuttled about, preparing for an attack once they entered the seas surrounding the Casimir Empire. They had abandoned the ballista and now scanned the ocean waves with crossbows, their true targets clear. He stepped below deck and stopped at the door to the brig.

“I will go in alone,” he told his entourage.

“Prince Caeden, I must protest! This is most unwise!” Ser Morley blustered.

“I have spoken, Knight-Commander.” Caeden reiterated, taken aback slightly by Ser Morley overstepping within earshot of someone he considered an enemy.

“Yes, forgive me, Your Grace.” His Knight-Commander straightened ready to take up his vigil at the door with Oswin.

Caeden entered and walked down the stairs. The brig was dim and musty. A shallow pool of water rippled from one side to the other as the ship swayed and lurched. Cages lined the walls, and both the girl and Beast occupied the central one facing the door. The Saber Cat sat perched upon the prison cot, its tail swishing at its back with an agitated stiffness, its ears forward and its pupil’s thin slits in its menacing yellow eyes. It was not happy at being drugged and caged.

Ava on the other hand sat next to him, leaning against the wall, calmly petting Beast with one hand, and nursing the bandaged wound at her waist with the other. The bruise from his grip peaked out from beneath her shirt sleeve. Her right leg was folded beneath her while the left swung back and forth over the side of the cot. Next to Beast, she seemed to look relaxed, but the stilted movement of her leg and her intense glare belied that fact.

“How is your wound?” he asked, ignoring her insolence.

“It is well-tended too. Oswin is a fine healer when he is not secretly feeding his patients sedatives and then hauling them off to prison.” She answered through gritted teeth, giving him the answer that he was expecting. She was not going to make this easy.

“Miss Ava…”

“You have no right to keep us here, I know the laws of your Empire. You cannot imprison someone without due cause,” she stated. There was a hint of desperation in her voice. From what he gleaned from her stories and how she enjoyed the freedom to wander, this was not a comfortable place for her to be in.

“Lest you forget, you assaulted a Royal Prince of the Casimir Empire,” he replied holding up the wounded hand in question. “Our laws could call that treason.”

“Bahg, it was only a tiny bite. Hardly something to complain about.” She got up and started pacing the cage, thinking before stopping before him. “You are angling for something else. Why are you here? Say it plain, royal Prince.”

“You truly have no manners, but – fine.” Caeden gritted his teeth, trying to lead the conversation to a more civil place. As much as her bold nature amused him, it could grate on his nerves just as much. No one would ever dare speak to him in that manner, no one except some savage outlander orc. “I want the whole truth, all of what the Sea Serpent said to you.”

“I already told you and it landed us in here,” she responded exasperated, going back to pacing the floor.

“No, it was the information you omitted that landed you in there,” he countered and smirked when she fell silent and gawked at him. “People who speak their minds tend to make terrible liars, Miss Ava, whether through omission or not. I may not know much about Sea Serpent intelligence but asking you to jump into the Dark Ocean during a storm and amid battle seems foolhardy. You are special to it, so why would it endanger you so?”

“It’s not like you gave it much of a choice at the time. You were trying to kill it.” Ava paused, thinking.

She fidgeted nervously and looked at the Saber Cat. Its ears twitched to the sides, and it readjusted its weight on the cot. Ava seemed to wave something away and shook her head. Caeden assumed the conversation between her, and Beast was over. It seemed so obvious now that it was difficult to fathom how he had missed it before. Ava moved in front of him, gripping the cage door before her.

“Will you release us if I tell you?”

“That depends.”

She stared at him dubiously, trying to determine his intent.

“There would be no reason to keep you here if you are not a threat, Miss Ava.”

She sighed in resignation and told him everything she knew. The message from the Maker, the failing power of the Spirits, the evils that now roamed free and what she was tasked to do. Her golden eyes were so earnest. There was no doubt in his mind that what she was saying was the truth.

“Can you release us now?” she asked when she was done, pointing to the cage door.

“Why you?” Caeden asked, mulling over the information.

“Because I am the Keeper of Spirits?” she replied, confused by the question.

“Yes, I understand that, but why were you specifically chosen?”

“Are you asking me to explain the reasoning of a god I have never heard of before? Because I cannot.”

“We do not even know where some of them are, how will you find those that are lost to us? What are you to do with all the Spirits once you have collected them all? Will they help at all with the evils that are unleashed? How are we to deal with them once the Spirits are gone?” Caeden had so many questions, and so many contingencies to plan for. This quest, if true, will not only pose a danger to every land on Archaicron from creatures they know very little about, but it would also be near impossible to accomplish.

“Well, I do not know,” her words broke.

She picked at her fingernails nervously, a flicker of frightened uncertainty entering her eyes. She clearly did not think that far ahead, and the full gravity of her task seemed to be dawning on her as well. This will indeed be difficult.

Ava herself was another conundrum altogether. Having a single person wield all the powers of the spirits could at best make them a target for control, or at worse become a threat all the armies on Archaicron combined could not equal. It would be dangerous to allow her to wander alone, she would need a high level of oversight.

“Prince Caeden! Are you going to release us or not?” she asked, almost desperately.

“One more question,” Caeden replied.

“What? I told you everything I know. I just need to get out,” she whined, shaking the door of her cage in frustration.

“Why would you want to do this?” Caeden watched her intently.

“What?” She blurted, surprised by his question.

“This mission. What are you planning on getting out of it? Your endgame? What is in it for you?”

“Is saving Archaicron not good enough for you?” Her eyes narrowed suspiciously.

“Is it enough for you, Miss Ava? You know nothing of Archaicron beyond Spectermere and what your wizard has told you.”

“His name is Minervin! I see what this is now. Because I am a hybrid, raised by an untouchable and lived among criminals, I cannot have noble intentions.”

Gods damn it, Knight-Commander. Caden heaved a sigh. “This has nothing to do with what you are or how and where you were raised. This is all – extremely bizarre, Miss Ava. For whatever this is to succeed I need you to trust me.”

“I do trust you – as much as you trust me.” Ava pointed to the cage door and backed away from him. There was hurt in her eyes. “Do not ask for something you cannot give in return, royal prince.”