"I don't have the Arcana capacity to bring us back to the mainland." 

That's... not good. Verala said.

That wasn't something Naya wanted to hear.

Sophia had pulled her aside for a discussion and left Rula with Borp watching over the Frigach. Although, Naya didn't expect them to have to do anything. With her enhanced state, she could reach them again instantly.

They couldn't get much more out of them; they simply refused to speak because of Naya's presence. Unless they wanted to resort to torture, Naya had to give up. 

But now, to hear that there wasn't a way to get back had her feeling distraught.

There wasn't often a challenge that left Naya unable to come up with a solution, and this was one of those rare occasions. She hated the feeling.

"What do we do?" Naya asked, which was a rare thing for her to do.

Sophia sighed dejectedly and sat on the rocky edge of the cliff overlooking the sea, "I have somewhat of an idea, but it would take me a long time, months even."

So it's not hopeless.

This woman... Lia released a relieved sigh.

Why did Sophia not lead with that? Naya thought that meant they were trapped here forever.

Sophia patted the ground beside her, "Sit with me." 

Naya was dubious. 

"Come on, I'm not gonna do anything, not with those guys back there anyway."

"The last part wasn't necessary."

"I got my fair share already." 

Naya's ears twitched as she recalled the feeling against her chest.

"You were plenty embarrassed." 

"It caught me off guard, is all!" 

"Fine." Naya didn't want to keep it going. She wasn't nearly proficient in conversation to keep the jabs going, and it would only end in her embarrassment. She sat beside Sophia, "What do you want to discuss?"

"Hm~" Sophia was staring downward toward the crashing waves. "To get off this island, I would need to spread my awareness as far as possible in every direction, one at a time, and hope to find an island. Even then, we have to hope it's in the right direction."

"That's... not feasible." 

While, eventually, it could be possible to get home that way, that would require months, even years. Sophia would have to send her awareness out, which could drain her dry, then repeat until she gets the proper direction. 

"Well, worst case scenario, I think the ship wreckage down there means that there is something in that direction." 

"Are you not angry?" 

Naya was upset. But not as angry as she imagined Sophia would be. The whole thing had been a plan to get her out of the picture. Whatever Arcanum wanted to do needed her gone, and regardless of how Sophia got back, they would succeed by the time it happened.

No matter how Naya looked at it, it seemed their plan worked.

"I think I can safely say I am the most powerful human alive," Sophia said calmly, though with a noticeable darker timbre in her tone. Gone was her smile. In its place, a cold glare gazed at the distant sea, "Seraphine, the Queen famous for her gargantuan fireballs? I could kill her in a second. Ameril, the strongest and fastest swordsman of all the races? I could kill him before he unsheathed his blade. Though you may disagree, I don't think any of your people could beat me, either." She paused.

Naya didn't want to argue, so she didn't speak up, likely what Sophia was waiting for. To see if Naya would say anything.

Sophia continued, "Nothing in this world has ever made me feel threatened. Have you ever wondered why I have a sharp tongue? Well, it's because it's the only type of battle I could lose."

"Where are you going with this?" 

Sophia softly chuckled, only for a second, and still, it felt cold. "An unnecessary tangent, forgive me. But the point is, I don't really broadcast my power, lest every step I take be watched by the world. I couldn't imagine being in your shoes, Naya." 

"It isn't pleasant; I prefer them differently." Naya was honest. She didn't like the stares as if she were a beautiful pet, but she loved the ones filled with admiration, awe, and respect.

"I noticed." Sophia shook her head, "But anyway, sometimes my lax attitude makes people forget just who I am. I am not Sophia, Paragon of Sanctum, a mere political pawn." Sophia paused and turned toward Naya, "My name is Sophia Vasiliak, the keeper of the endless Void. And when we get back, I will remind Arcanum of what that means."

Naya was tongue-tied. Sophia had never looked more beautiful to her than in that moment. Rather than the silly human who always wore a teasing smirk, this one was like a seasoned warrior who had been called back into battle. It made her heart speed up. 

The moon rays on Sophia's cold face painted a picture she would never forget.

Suddenly, the illusion broke when Sophia's expression changed as if it never happened. A calm, almost teasing smile returned. "So yes, I am angry."

Damn, she's a badass. Verala said admirably. You know, I was thinking about it a lot. She could have erased everything I had in mere moments.

Lia hummed her agreement. True. All she had to do was envelop that whole place in the Void.

It's a ridiculous power.

Verala chuckled. In a strange coincidence, I think you're the only person alive who can fight against it.

Naya closely watched Sophia's side profile, "If they were telling the truth, then there has to be something on the island the Elves used to get back."

That's not a good idea, you understand-

I know.

Sophia turned toward Naya with a shocked expression, "I thought the same, but if such a thing existed, it could even take us to Aleria." 

"I know."

"You're okay with that?"

Of course, she wasn't, not because of Sophia and Rula's race but because of herself.

"We don't have a choice."

"It might not even be on the outskirts, either; it could be dead center." 

Naya nodded, "We would try to leave immediately... but I doubt it would work." 

"Would you fight your own kind for us?" 

"I..."

I don't know.

Naya wanted to immediately say no, but she knew the answer would be false. Her sense of Elven pride had been diminishing greatly over the last few weeks, and such a thing didn't seem as outlandish as it would have a month ago.

But truthfully, that wasn't even what was on her mind.

No, it meant she would have a convenient excuse to see her mother again. She missed her so much that it hurt to think about it sometimes.

Sophia warmly smiled, "I already know the answer: sorry for the curt question." 

"It's fine."

No matter how much Naya tried to remind herself that she was an exile and shouldn't be excited about breaking her banishment, she couldn't stop the happy feeling that bubbled in her chest.

"You know, I-" Sophia started

Naya's ears perked, and she heard footsteps behind her.

"Naya, Sophia! Go ahead and thank me!" 

Rula's voice got their attention, and they simultaneously turned toward her. Her voice carried a deep, excited arrogance as if she had accomplished the impossible.

She didn't... right?

"What?" Sophia asked.

"Heh~! I got them to talk! Call me Rula, the Adventurer, Painter, AND Interrogator!" Rula patted her chest and had her nose held high.

 Naya felt dubious. That wasn't within her expectations, and she couldn't understand why they would want to say anything to her. 

Sophia had her brows quirked, the doubt clear on her face, "Are you sure they didn't just lie to you?"

"They would never! Borp was there, and she's pretty scary. Plus, we're friends now." 

"Wait, wait, what?" 

"Friends?" Naya asked.

"That's right!" Rula patted her chest again, "Turns out they're actually not that bad; they're just really, really, REALLY scared of Elves."

"Did you find out anything important?" 

"Yes, right!" Rula tried to put on a serious face, but the beaming smile seemed to refuse to leave, "They've been living here in a small village for a long time after their god abandoned them, probably the Elf, and we aren't the first to end up here, but the rest either stay forever or they help make a boat for them to leave."

Naya's heart sank, "Is there no other way out?

"There is! But only Elven blood can activate it."

Relief surged through Naya, but along with it came trepidation since that meant it was nearly assured they were going to Aleria.

"Did they mention the others?" Sophia asked.

"I covered everything! They said we were the only ones here, and they knew of all foreign presences immediately, so they're pretty confident."

"That doesn't make sense..." Sophia muttered.

Naya nodded.

Teleportation shouldn't be able to connect different places simultaneously through a single gate. Maybe if it were something like Sophia's Void, a place in between, but her teleportation was instant.

"It means they were only targeting you," Naya said toward Sophia.

Sophia had a light gasp of realization, and her brows furrowed. "Right, that could be a possibility... But would they really do that with so many witnesses? 

Naya sighed, "Nobody will know it was them, and even if they did, what will they do about it?" 

From what Naya understood, Arcanum was more militant than the other major powers. Even if Rilious, Gregory, and Thorn knew it was them, all Arcanum needed to do was deny it. 

Still, Naya did have an idea. "Perhaps their goal wasn't a distraction but to get rid of you for the next step."

Sophia spoke through grit teeth, "War."

Ask how many paragons there are. Lia said.

"How many other paragons does Sanctum have?" 

"We only have 10 and will never go over or under."

"And Arcanum Saints?" 

"Far more; the exact number is a mystery."

If they are comparable in strength, then unless an outlier like Sophia exists, Arcanum may very well wipe Sanctum out.  Verala said.

Furthermore, why was Arcanum even out there in the first place? Nobody thought to ask that question, but perhaps they were after Sophia from the beginning. Lia added.

Naya felt surreal. I was just dragged into a stupid human war?  

Yep! Verala sounded excited.

"Uh... I don't get it." Rula said while rubbing her head.

Sophia ruefully sighed, "It means we need to get out of here as soon as possible. Also..." Sophia suddenly dipped her head in a bow, "I'm sorry, Naya, Rula."

"Wh-what?" Rula stepped back in shock.

Naya's brow quirked. It only took a second for her to realize why Sophia apologized.

Sophia sighed, "The teleportation circle was only targetting me, and the only reason you guys were brought is because we were touching."

"Hey, hey, it's fine! No harm done, and we can leave quickly like we just took a small outing!" Rula assured quickly with her hands waving around.

Naya agreed with Rula. She felt that it was a silly thing to apologize for, but even that she did highlighted a trait Naya respected, "It's fine." 

Sophia rose and smiled warmly toward the two of them, "You know, I think meeting you guys was the most fortunate thing of my life."

When she said that, Sophia's gaze focused a little longer on Naya, but only briefly enough that she only noticed because of her heightened senses.

"Do you think they'll speak with me, Rula?" Sophia asked.

Rula thought about it for a moment, "Hmm~" 

Naya rustled Rula's hair, "Don't play coy." 

"My hair!" Rula looked aggrieved and harrumphed, "They... will, but Naya can't be with you because they will just become messes again."

"Sorry, then," Sophia smiled apologetically at Naya, "I just want to ask a few questions."

"Go on." Naya gestured. 

It was annoying that she had to stay back. But if the alternative was hearing them become a bumbling mess and constantly referring to her as a betrayer, then she was fine with it. 

Sophia headed back toward the trees, a slight detour from the cliff ledge they chose to wait. 

Rula ran up to Naya and sat on the cliff ledge.

Naya reacted instantly and nearly reached out to pull her back but settled on sitting beside her.

"You worry too much!" Rula watched all the while, but it looked like she wanted to say something.

"Stop giving me a reason to." Naya retorted.

Rula giggled in response and then summoned her sketchbook from her spatial ring.

"Why?" Naya asked. If anything, there was a risk of her dropping it, given the wind and how close they were to the ledge.

Rula didn't answer. She flipped it open toward one of the last few pages, and Naya noticed that every page before it was filled. 

"You were probably mad that I didn't summon something last night when I got lost, right?" Rula asked.

That was sudden, and it seemed her tone dropped instantly into one of melancholy.

Naya nodded, "Especially given what you placed yourself into."

If Rula knew what she was signing up for, which she did, she should have summoned something. Even a weak drawing would have been enough for the common gang member. 

It was something Naya intended to cover when she officially trained Rula.

"I'm not stupid, you know." Rula smiled bitterly, her eyes still glued to her sketchbook. "It's just... it hurts way more than I thought it would to lose one of these." 

Naya looked at the painting Rula flipped to. It was yet another grandiose suit of armor, only this time it had a massive battle axe behind it. The axe towered over the tall armor. If that thing was summoned, the weight of that axe alone would probably decimate the opponent.

It was that painting that made Naya appreciate Rula's ability. If she understood it correctly, the paintings, when summoned, did exactly what it looked like they could do. That one looked like it could cleave forests with a mere swing.

Yet Rula only looked at it sadly.

Dwarven magic is... a bit unfortunate. Verala explained. Almost a curse as much as it is a blessing. 

What? Many would sell their soul for such power.

Did you forget who I was? Verala asked, though unoffended.

I get it. Lia said.

I don't.

She'll tell you.  

That was annoying, but Naya wasn't about to rip into her head while Rula spoke. 

Naya wasn't entirely dense; she figured it was because Rula didn't like getting rid of the paintings to summon something. But she mentioned that before, so it had to be something else.

"Why does it hurt?"

"Because..." Rula paused and pulled out her drawing pen, "I figured out that my ability only works if I have a connection to the items I use."

"Is that bad?" The pen wouldn't break. If it did, Naya would help her get it fixed.

Rula nodded, "I thought it was just the pen, but it's the sketchbook too."

Naya's eyes widened slightly. That was a problem. 

But Naya came to a realization, "Oh. You didn't want to have to only use the paintings in that book."

Rula nodded.

It really is almost like a curse.

It was likely without loopholes, either. Even if Rula did come across a sketchbook she formed a connection with, she probably wouldn't be able to use it. Like a swordsman refusing to switch blades unless he has to.

So Rula has no choice but to completely empty her prized sketchbook, which, if she wanted to stay an Adventurer, was a matter of when not if.

Naya wasn't sure what she could say. Though it did give her a new interest in Dwarves, their abilities seemed cruel. Why couldn't Rula's artifact just be her pen?

Such a thing is common, but their secrets are closely guarded, so I don't know.

Neither do I.

There weren't any words Naya could think of to say. It really was unfortunate. 

Naya couldn't imagine having to give up something painstakingly created for only a short burst of power. She also felt bad for demanding Rula use it more often.

Rula didn't say anything else, and Naya decided to stay in silence with her until it was time to sleep. 

They had a busy day coming up, and Naya had her own troubles to worry about.