Soulship Book Three: Anchor Knight
By Nathan Thompson
CHAPTER ONE
We came down from our respective rushes of power simultaneously, maintaining eye contact the whole time. Nova's eyes changed from silver back to their normal sky-blue, a sign that she had fully Advanced to the silver stage of mana. Beyond that, I couldn't focus on her at all. My brain was too full of all the changes my own body had just made. My mind, muscles, and heart all felt like they had just compressed, stretched, and doubled in mass. I felt taller, stronger, sharper, all at once, and it was almost too much.
But unlike the Advance I had experienced when I had last faced the menacing shadows, I could handle it. Slowly, but surely, I adjusted to the increase in power. I stopped blinking long enough to realize that Nova was breathing almost as heavily as I was, and the knowledge made me grin.
"Jasper," my blonde, beautiful friend asked me, "are you okay? You're not hurt, are you?'"
"No," I answered, scanning myself for damage, "not that I am aware of."
"Then stop," Nova panted, "grinning. You look like one of those annoying people that enjoy exercise."
"Apologies," I said, smiling as wide as possible. "Is this better?"
"No!" she snapped. "I just finished worrying about you! Don't ruin it by annoying me on purpose!" Then she closed her eyes, inhaled again, and calmed down. "I'm sorry. I'm glad you're okay. It was terrifying seeing you deteriorate like that before, and a huge relief to see that you've actually grown instead. I shouldn't be annoyed by the fact that you handled this transition even better than I did… and I should be grateful that I Advanced as well just now…"
"Wait," I suddenly asked, "are you alright? I didn't make you skip any substages or anything, did I?"
Vessa had explained to me that Advancing too rapidly was actually dangerous if a person didn't stabilize their gains. That had been part of the injury my soul had sustained in the recent standoff with the shadows. I had gained about fifteen substages total in a short span, and had burned a part of myself to perform such an act. Such a feat would have destroyed me, if not for Grandmother Mara. As I thought of her, I realized I should probably check on her as well.
"No," Nova said as she shook her head. "It took me by surprise, but other than that, it was the smoothest Advancement I've ever had. I don't understand how that could have been possible."
"In your defense, you've only had a total of two Advancements," I pointed out dryly. Nova had gained much of her power when Vessa had awakened her dormant abilities as a Beacon. Thanks to Vessa’s awakening, she had started on a higher level in all of her Sources than I had reached at that point, and I was just now barely catching up with her in essence and qi.
"Well, yes," my friend said in annoyance, "but based on the knowledge I inherited from Vessa, I know it still shouldn't be possible. My substages all stabilized perfectly. Probably better than I could have done myself, in fact. The fact that I Advanced just after you did is both convenient and suspicious," she said as she narrowed her eyes at me. "Do you know anything about that, Jasper?"
"Not yet," I answered, turning my attention to the world floating inside my soul. I looked for the three dragons still resting inside. I found Grandmother Mara's large, sapphire form spread in a wide circle and resting contentedly on the pile of treasure I had absorbed into my Soulscape from her palace. She surrounded her two grandchildren, the newly hatched Dimali and Topa. Dimali, the white dragon, was carefully stacking coins, watching them intently to make sure they were balanced, while Topa, the black dragon, was growling at a small statue he had somehow dragged out of the pile, dancing around it as if it was his enemy. He was wearing a small bronze cup on top of his head, as if it were a makeshift helmet, and every now and then, it would slip over his eyes, ruining his attempt at looking fierce.
We are fine, dear, Mara told me with a calm, happy voice. Everyone has gotten through your Advancement marvelously. Do you see how they are already playing?
Senior—I began.
Grandmother now, dear, she corrected me gently. If you're going to adopt us, you should go back to using proper names.
Right, I said, bracing myself to say the still-unfamiliar word. It had been much easier to say in the moment, back when I had teetered on the edge of nonexistence. But making a habit of the word, of the idea that I was no longer an orphan, was… difficult. Grandmother, everyone seems to have changed at the same time I did. Is that some freak coincidence?
Of course not, dear, the dragon-woman said with a chuckle. We are connected to your very soul, just as the vessel-saint is. She raised a claw to point at the small boat and exploding star just beyond the world's atmosphere. Your ancestors were successful in their craft. The sight makes me rejoice.
Craft? I asked her, realizing that Nova was still staring impatiently at me. "Yes, it's apparently my fault," I told her. "Or my great-great-grandparents’. Please hold on."
My friend did not seem remotely appeased by my response, or by my request for more patience.
Yes, dear, Grandmother Mara continued, still contently watching her newly hatched grandchildren. Soulcraft. An art the first Anchor Knights strove to perfect. Do not worry. I will help you rediscover it. I suspect you will be a natural at the art.
"Jasper?" Nova asked, reminding me that I was apparently supposed to come up with some kind of explanation for what had just happened. But I shook my head helplessly.
"My power has somehow been tied to yours, and the rest of Vessa," I finally answered. "I do not understand how. My new grandmother says she will teach me more in time."
"New grandmother?" Nova cocked her head, before suddenly understanding. "Oh! The dragon-woman adopted you. Good," she said, with a bright and sudden smile. "I'm happy for you, Jasper!"
I suddenly remembered Nestor, and looked frantically around for my bonded lifemouse. But even as the thought struck me, a bright-yellow blur suddenly darted up my arm and began dancing across my shoulders.
You-safe! the little mouse shouted excitedly. You-safe! You-safe!
I realized just then how worried my little friend had been for me. I reached up to try and scratch behind his ears, but he was moving too quickly for me to catch. He was still in his new battle form, with thick patches of sharp yellow fur spikes covering his head, tail-tip, and upper torso.
I am, I told my bonded friend. I am much better now. Thank you for your help. How are you, brother?
Nestor paused his run to look at me. As he did so, he returned to his old, fluffy form, looking far less fierce the next moment.
Feel-good, he answered, whiskers twitching as if he was carefully considering my question. Feel-smart…smarter? he said, considering the two-syllable word. Smarter! Feel-smarter!
The pronunciation made him happy, and he began dancing across my shoulders again. Nova giggled at the sight. Then she blinked, and looked serious.
"Jasper, something's happened to Vessa. We need to get back."
I was reaching for the mental link to the Soulship before she had even finished speaking. I faded from Grandmother Mara's fantastic Sourcepalace and reappeared onto Vessa's cold, dark ship, standing inside her sanctuary. I felt Nova appear behind me in the very next moment, but my attention was focused on the capsule holding the frail, beautiful ship-woman, and my feet began pulling me toward her.
I saw that she was already sitting up in her capsule, panting heavily. Her gray eyes were open wide, and her dark hair hung down her face. But other than the surprised expression on her face, she looked… healthy. There was another hint of definition in her arms, and a sense of sturdiness to her body. It was hard to tell in her white robes, but I still felt that she looked less breakable now, where before I had always worried about her badly hurting herself fr
om something like a fall.
"I'm… okay, Jasper," she panted as I raced over to her side. She looked at me now, gray eyes taking in my body. "And you're okay now, too. That's a huge relief."
"I am," I answered as Nova walked next to me. "I'm better, in fact. But what happened to you, Vessa?"
"I'm better, too," she answered. "I got stronger all of a sudden. In fact," she said, slowly moving her legs, bending them and pulling them closer to her body as she gripped the sides of her capsule.
"What are you doing?" I asked worriedly. It looked suspiciously like the gray woman was trying to get up on her own power, and that had gone rather badly so far. But, once again, the ship-woman was determined to use her body again.
"Hang on, Jasper," Vessa said firmly, tensing her body as she prepared to stand. "I need to try and do this."
I nodded, understanding her desire to have a working body, and clamped down on all the protective instincts flaring up inside me.
"In that case," I replied, walking next to her capsule and holding my arm out. "I will wait right here, so that I can help or congratulate you."
The dark-haired woman looked at me for a moment with an expression I couldn't read, then frowned as she started to wobble.
"No distracting me!" she snapped, then winced at her own tone. "I mean, thank you. Just… wait right there. Please."
I remained quiet so that she could concentrate, and Vessa returned to the task of trying to rise on her own power.
"Okay," she said to herself, "okay so far…"
I had seen Vessa try to exit her capsule two times before. The first time, she had allowed me to help her, and had actually been successful, though she had been unable to walk afterward. The second time, she had tried to climb out on her own, while Nova and I were away on reclaiming another part of the ship. We had returned to find her fallen halfway out of her capsule.
But this time, she was neither asking for my help nor trying to hide her efforts to be independent. I told myself it was an adequate compromise, and did my best to wait patiently, instead of hovering overprotectively.
Vessa had managed to pull herself into a complete crouch, her weight resting entirely on her legs and arms. She gritted her teeth, closed her eyes, let go with her hands, and began to push herself to a standing position. She wobbled several times in the process, but in the end she stood tall with a victorious expression, standing completely on her own power.
"I did it," she said to herself, looking all around her. "I did it… I did it… I…" She suddenly looked at the distant floor beyond the edges of her capsule. "Didn't think this through."
She would either have to lower herself back down to the capsule's edge and climb down it, take a standing leap and aim for the floor, or break down and ask me to lift her up by the waist and lower her to the floor.
She didn't look confident about being able to do the first two, and something told me having to do the third now would shame her, even though it was the safest and wisest course of action.
I wondered if Nova might be able to help her instead; if perhaps another part of Vessa helped her main body, it would be easier for her to accept. But Nova stood far away from us, watching us carefully with her arms crossed. I had no why, but she was clearly refusing to intervene.
So I sighed, and did the only thing I could think of. I removed my shoes, and climbed into the capsule with her.
"What are you doing?" the ship-woman asked, narrowing her eyes in what I guessed was concerned annoyance.
"I have no idea," I admitted, taking a moment to find my footing. I realized that it was in fact, rather hard to stand up in Vessa's capsule, even with a healthy body. Vessa had accomplished more than I first realized. "I thought that this would be an alternative between offering you help you did not want and watching you fall after making it this far."
"Jasper," she said in a patient, neutral tone, with slowly reddening cheeks, "if I'm already having trouble taking your arm, I'm not going to suddenly become more comfortable by your climbing into my bed. That is a step in the opposite direction, and I want that fact to be very, very clear to you in the future."
"Right," I said with a wince, "but now that I'm here, I figured we could help each other down. Because I actually don't see a way to get down myself without help or using Source energy. How about I help you climb down first, and then you help me climb out?"
The gray-skinned woman tilted her head as she looked at me, then looked away sharply. Then, she slowly looked at me again, and sharply looked away once more. I had no idea what was going on, until she took a deep breath and spoke.
"Yes," she said shortly. "That works, Jas. Thank you."
"Okay," I said, carefully kneeling down and holding out my hands. It was an awkward experience, but Vessa was able to take my hand to kneel back down safely herself, then pull herself slowly and carefully out of her capsule. Unlike the first time I had helped her, the ship-woman managed the act without me exerting any force whatsoever. Other than using my limbs for handholds, Vessa left her bed entirely on her own power. She realized that fact in the end, silently pumping a fist in triumph as she reached the floor. Then she looked back up at me, and frowned.
"Right," she said, "we have to get you down now…" Her eyes drifted upwards to my face, and she frowned. "Why did you have to get so big?"
"Apologies," I said with a wry grin, "I neglected to watch what I ate."
She rolled her eyes at me, then held out her own hands. "Alright, let's see if I'm strong enough to do this, too. Just… don't put all your weight at once…"
This was, perhaps, the least intelligent facet of my plan. If Vessa had so much trouble leaving her capsule on her own, it stood to reason that she should be unlikely to help me down.
But she managed it. She was careful, and limited herself to just giving me careful pushes and pulls, which was exactly enough to help me maintain my balance and climb out of the capsule. She let out a triumphant hiss when I reached the floor, clearly pleased to be the one helping this time.
"I feel so much stronger now," she said, still standing on her own power, holding out her arms. "I haven't felt this well in ages."
Her smile broadened even more as she took a slow step backwards without swaying. "Yes!" the gray woman suddenly shouted. "I can walk!" She took another, less careful step back. "I can walk!" She held her arms even wider and began to spin slowly in place, as if she was in some picturesque field of flowers. "I can—"
She slipped on her next step, and caught the side of a terminal with a trembling arm, just in time to prevent another fall.
"…still fall flat on my face, if I'm not careful," she gasped, suddenly looking both tired and surprised. "Let's go back to taking it slow. Nova, could you give me a hand?"
My blonde friend smiled and walked forward, as if she had been waiting for this exact moment. "Sure thing, Vessa. Glad to help."
The Beacon's smile widened as she looked at me for a moment, then lifted Vessa’s arm over her shoulder as she looped her arm around the thin gray woman’s waist to help her walk to the water console. When they reached for one of the water pouches we had left there, I felt a nudge in my spirit from Grandmother Mara, and cleared my throat to get the Soulship and her Beacon's attention.
"Forgive me, ladies," I said carefully, still not certain whether I should treat the multi-bodied being as two women or just one, "but Grandmother Mara has reminded me that we have actual drinking vessels now."
You should technically say stemware, dear, since you'll be using goblets, the dragon-woman inside my soul said as she pointed at several golden cups at the edge of the pile of treasure. These will be suitable for drinking, and should provide you minor benefits when you drink liquids out of them.
I accepted her advice and summoned the large goblets out of my Soulscape, pleased that I could now transfer larger objects from my spiritual world. Then, as I passed one goblet to both Vessa and Nova, I examined them in detail, and realized just how opulent our new drinkware re
ally was.
"Wow," Nova said as she examined the garnets set along the side of the cup. "Thank you, Jasper… but does this almost feel as inappropriate to use as the pouches we were using earlier?"
"Nope," Vessa said firmly as she stuck her jeweled goblet under the water dispenser. "It's been bare in here for centuries. Any kind of upgrade is long overdue." Then she brought the cup to her lips, drinking with a pleasured sigh. "Mmm… this reminds me of so many favorite vintages right now…"
Grandmother Mara, I said as I gave the gray woman a worried glance. Is a faint taste of certain alcoholic beverages supposed to be one of the benefits you mentioned earlier concerning these goblets?
Of course, dear, she said in a perplexed tone. It would be rather uncivilized of me to neglect owning such a thing, wouldn't it? Especially regarding guests of my Sourcepalace, ones that were likely to bond with my grandchildren.
Both of the smaller creatures looked up to chirp in oblivious agreement, and I lapsed into concerned silence as the two women drank their supposedly safe beverages in front of me.
"Speaking of upgrades," I finally said after an extremely careful sip of my own, "can we discuss the changes we all went through, as well as our next goals?"
"Yes," Vessa nodded, "in one more moment." She took another sip from her goblet, and sighed with possessive pleasure. "Gosh, I've missed that taste. You're not getting this back, Jas. I mean, thank you," she corrected quickly. "But yes. You all have grown in strength. Especially Jas and Nestor," she said with a smile, and my lifemouse companion let out a happy squeak. "I was very, very pleased with how you both handled your second encounter with that affluenza-addled idiot."
Nestor squeaked again, this time with pride.
Big-jerk. Showed-him.
"That you did," Vessa agreed. "And Jasper," the gray woman began, taking a deep breath, "I owe you an apology. I have continuously underestimated you, ever since you've gotten here. But each time, you've surpassed my expectations, from saving me from the first eaterling, to driving off my mysterious attackers, to reaching a level of power I had not thought possible, at least in this short amount of time. You have consistently proven that you can keep up with Nova, and may even be her equal now in some areas. It's been terrifying to discover just how much danger you've had to go through on my behalf, and painful for me to admit just how badly I've needed your help. You are probably long tired of me saying this, but I will work on trusting you more. This time I will task you, along with Nova and Nestor, with recovering more of my ship-body. Because this is the perfect time to do so," she finished, looking off into the distance with a tilted head.
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