As part of a plan to make traveling the islands easier, Glyn commissioned a second dock to be built on the back under the gaze of the Manor. A small path was also built that leads from the manor to the dock. Now Glyn leads his group to the docks, where three boats sit. One was Tisha’s boat. She sailed to Jubert Island and served as the group’s main ship for the time being. The second was the ship the blacksmiths of Fenwick’s Island arrived on as they set up shop on Jubert and began their work. And now a third craft sat larger than the other two boats attacked to the dock.

            “Impressive, isn’t it?” Glyn asks.

Everyone stares at it.

            “I don’t think I’ve seen a boat that big before!” Fiona yells.

Tan nods, flying up towards the ship. “It’s so wide!”

            “All of us could get on this one,” Ivar says excitedly. “With this, the battles to come should be easier to pull off.”

Tisha stares at the ship. “Wait, is this what you were working on last week?”

            “It was a pet project for them. But I decided with a few upgrades it’d be an essential item in our arsenal.”

            “How did they make a boat that fast?”

            “The craftsmen and the blacksmiths worked together to make this baby. I supervised, of course, for the more magical applications involved.”

Pepper steps forward, putting her hands on the boat. “It’s impressive. I can feel Mana flowing through this craft. A truly magnificent ship.”

            “So, we see the Boat part. But where’s the Warp part of Warp Boat?” Faye asks.

Tan lands next to the group, sitting on Zanrit’s shoulders. “There’s some sigil in the middle of the boat.”

            “Let’s all take a tour!” Glyn yells excitedly.

 

Glyn shows the group the boat, taking them all to the captain’s room, where a crystal sits on a wooden pedestal. Everyone stares at it cautiously as a magical aura radiates from the crystal. Glyn approaches it putting his hand on the crystal and, in a flash, he disappears. After a minute, in another flash of light, he reappears before the group.

            “Tada.” He bows.

            “A teleport spell?” Tisha asks.

            “More like a teleport rune etched into the crystal. Using a fraction of the Dungeon Core, some of the magical implements Fenwick left behind, and a little ingenuity, we made a Warp Crystal. And we can mass produce them.” He laughs. “Well, mass isn’t the right word. Anyhow, we have one on this boat and I put one in the manor's basement. They’re also setting one up on Fenwick’s Island so we can get some ore for the blacksmiths.”

            “A teleport network, I see. Impressive. Normally it’d take a ton of Mana to power something like this,” Tisha says.

He smirks. “That’s where the Dungeon comes in. We’re harvesting crystals from the Dungeon that’ll maintain their connection after being removed. As long as we keep the Dungeon healthy and the core functional, the crystals will be supplied with mana.”

            “Meaning our trips to the Dungeon for training will have more purposes besides training,” Zanrit says.

Glyn nods. “Right. The best way to maintain the Dungeon is to occasionally clear it out. As the Dungeon is also the source of monsters for the island, it’s a great way to hunt and help create a network across the islands. As long as we can station a crystal on islands, we pass along the way and we can increase the range of our network, too.”

            “Interesting proposal. But wouldn’t this give an easy way for enemies to sneak up on us?” Miller asks.

            “True. That’s why, for now, we’re only setting them up in noncritical defensible locations. After it becomes more widespread, we’ll look into making it more of a public option, but that’ll be something for someone else to work on.” Glyn looks over at the distance. “This way we can travel and come back home whenever we need to with this boat as our rallying station.”

            “I see that’s the plan for now?”

            “Right. We lack information. We were lucky Fenwick was close. But with the war now in full swing, the other candidates are sure to be on the move. We can’t afford to be sitting around doing nothing while the enemy gathers more power.”

Everyone looks at each other and nods.

            “Well, it’s as good a plan as any other,” Fiona says.

Faye nods. “Maybe we can find some really exciting island!”

            “I can always swim back if I need to,” Ivar says.

Rufus looks around nervously. “This’ll mean more fighting, right? I have to get ready. I don’t want to disappoint everyone.”

Tan nods. “I can fly. But having a nice roost is always great.”

            “Well, maybe this’ll be good. But who knows?” Otso says.

            “Well, it’s untested. We’d need to run a field test first.” Sam says.

Miller nods. “I agree with that.”

            “Good, then you two are volunteering.”

            “What?” They ask in unison.

Glyn leans on Miller. “You’re right. We need to test the ship. Make sure it is sea-worthy and can withstand the storms and all that kind of stuff. So, I was going to look for some volunteers, but you two just agreed to do it.”

            “Fine,” Miller says.

            “No complaining?”

            “Only if you and Mila come with us.”

            “Huh? Why?”

            “You need to learn how to captain a large vessel, correct? The ship you had before was small and you’ve been leaving it up to Tisha to direct the ship when sailing, correct?”

Glyn looks away. “You have a point there. And I can understand Mila. Her magic is useful for most combat scenarios.”

            “Really?”

            “Of course. If we run into a sea monster, you can burn them up and we can eat them after.”

She nods excitedly. “Then I hope we run into a ton of them!”

            “Don’t be that eager. A trip without sea monsters is preferable.”

            “Oh right.”

            “Alright. I’ll get some stuff and we’ll all prepare supplies. This’ll be a short trip, nothing too major, but we should still prepare for anything.”

            “Right.” Miller and Sam say in unison.

 

After everyone disembarks Glyn rushes ahead as the group disperses. Miller takes Mila aside as Sam follows the pair. The three stand under a large palm tree close to the beach with Sam keeping look out as Miller stares at Mila.

            “You understand the plan, right?” Miller asks.

            “What plan?” Mila asks.

            “The plan is for you to finally confess your feelings to Glyn,” Miller says.

Sam turns back. “We’re doing that now?”

            “The sooner the better. Glyn’s bound to leave and go back to his family when the war is over. So, do it before he can meet his conditions, understood?”

She shudders. “But I’m….”

            “When Glyn goes back to the mainland, you’ll lose any opportunity to do it ever again.” He says. “It’ll be like he disappeared from the world and it’s likely you’ll never see each other again. Do you want that?”

She pauses, lowering her hands and her shaking stops. “Your right. I have to tell him. I have to confess my love here and now!”

Sam stares at Mila, amazed by her courage, and then glances over at Miller. He lowers his head. “It takes a lot of courage to fess up to your feelings.”

            “Sam?”

            “But Mila….” He rushes forward, grabbing her hands. “I believe in you with all I’ve got!”

She smiles. “Right! I’ll tell him how I feel.”

Standing nearby, Tisha leans against a tree, staring at the sky. “Confessing your, huh? That’s too much for a coward like me.”

 

After a few hours, the group gathers around the boat as Sam, Miller, Mila, and Glyn embark on the supplied ship. In all, the trip would be to the nearest island and back, which would take a few hours. They had planned to return by sundown and hash out plans for what to do next. At that, they waved them off, and the ship disappeared from view. But after a while the sun set and they didn’t return. As the sun rises on a new day, everyone gathers around the docks, just expecting them to have been late, but once again no sign of the ship or its small crew. As if the four of them all disappeared from this world, leaving nary a trace.