The instant Aria was able to see the ocean, she’d completely frozen.

  “Lass?” Zareb asked with concern.

  He looked in the direction that Aria was staring, then nodded in understanding. He turned to face her again with a smile, “So? Considering this is your first time seeing the ocean, what do you think?”

  Aria didn’t respond right away. Her blue eyes were wide with astonishment and wonder. Her mouth fell open, yet no sound came out. She was utterly transfixed.

  The ocean was far more massive than she’d ever imagined. Her mother had described the seas as an endless body of water stretching out as far as even her eyes could see. Aria hadn’t fully believed her, but she now saw the description was completely accurate. She felt a fool for ever having doubted.

  The size of the ocean was mind boggling, but what truly took her breath away was just how beautiful it looked. The way the sunlight glittered off the waters, the gentle flow and waves that seemed to her a mesmerizing dance… it was far more than she’d ever imagined.

  “Magnificent…” she gasped out.

  Zareb’s smile widened. “Yes, it truly is. You know, it’s so easy to forget nature’s beauty. What with everything going on in our lives. But stopping to admire the natural wonders the Maker made… it’s soothing to the soul. Really, we ought to better appreciate the little things we take for granted.”

  Aria shook her head, shaking herself out of her wonder induced stupor. Noticing Zareb’s smile at her reaction, she flushed deeply. “L-let’s keep moving…”

  “Are you sure you don’t want to take a closer look?” he asked.

  She frowned, “I’m sure. There’s no time to waste. We need to find and rescue Galen, and then we need to steal that airship.”

  “Not sure I’d agree that there’s no time,” Zareb argued. “We have just under two days before that airship gets here. And then we’ll have to wait for all the maintenance work that it needs to be done before we can take it for ourselves.”

  “That time would be better spent planning and scouting the area,” Aria argued back.

  “What do you think Komdar has been doing?” he pointed out.

  That made her pause.

  Zareb smirked. “That’s right, lass. It’s not like the dwarf has been sitting around doing nothing while awaiting our arrival. Don’t forget, he is one of the leaders of the Rebellion.”

  She scowled. “I suppose.”

  He sighed. “I hope you’re not doubting his abilities simply because he’s a dwarf, lass.”

  She looked away from him. “I’m not doubting him because he’s a dwarf.”

  “Really now?” Zareb asked, sounding like he didn’t quite believe her.

  “Yes… mostly…” she admitted. “Most of my doubt comes from the fact that I don’t know him. I’ve seen what you and Lusha can do, Zareb. I haven’t seen what Komdar is capable of.”

  The general nodded. “Fair enough. In that case, lass, I simply ask you to trust in MY judgment of the dwarf. He’s one of the most capable among us.”

  She hesitantly nodded in response.

  She frowned, however, when she saw the glint in the older human’s eyes, “What?”

  “Nothing,” he smiled, “I just couldn’t help but notice that you called me by my first name.”

  She flushed. “Th-that’s… so what?! I’ve called you by your first name before!”

  “That was because my wife was with me,” Zareb pointed out. “Lusha, being my wife, shares my last name. When the two of us are together, you can’t just call us ‘Barus’ since we wouldn’t know who you were referring to. Don’t forget, lass, that I know a fair bit about your people’s culture. I know the exception to using first names is when you are talking with two people who share the same surname.”

  Her blush deepened, and she couldn’t bring herself to look at the general.

  He chuckled, then pat her on the head.

  She let him.

  “I appreciate the sentiment behind using my first name, lass,” he said with an almost paternal tone. “I want you to know the feeling is mutual. Though we haven’t known each other for very long, I can say with honesty that if I ever had a daughter, then I’d hope she grows up to be a bit like you.”

  Now her blush reached her ears, but a depressing thought made her sober. “No… you don’t.”

  The general paused.

  “Zareb, I’m… Void I’m a wreck on the inside. I’m… I’m broken. You wouldn’t want your daughter to end up like me…”

  “Is that how you see yourself?” he asked. “I have to argue with you there, lass. I’ve seen broken people before. You’re not like them. There are traces, yes, I admit that. With worry, I admit that. However, you’re not broken, lass. Not yet. And that alone is commendable given your youth and all that’s happened to you in your short life. You have a remarkable strength of will, and for those you care about, you have an unwavering sense of loyalty and compassion. That is what I mean when I say I would like my daughter to be like you. THAT, lass, is what I see when I look at you.”

  Aria’s blush returned, stronger than before. Her entire face and ears felt warm at the praise.

  For just a moment, she leaned into his hand that remained on her head.

  “Thank you…” she whispered.

  He smiled at her, patting her head for a few more moments before she pulled away.

  “So, lass? Would you like to see the ocean before we find Komdar?”

  She hesitated, before ultimately smiling and nodding.

  ***

  Aria felt like a child as she leaned against a railing, taking in the close view of the ocean. She took in the salty, moist air, breathing in deeply. The air felt moderately cool due to the sea breeze, and she even found herself shivering. She was so used to the excessive heat of Axis Mundi that the air here close to the seas felt chilly.

  That didn’t stop the wide smile of wonderment on her face.

  Nor did it stop her from hopping lightly on her feet every now and again in excitement.

  She and Zareb had gone downward towards the sea, though they couldn’t go to the beach itself. Keeping their hooded cloaks on down there would make them stand out quite a bit. She found her gaze wandering to that beach, seeing the humes prancing about, playing, and socializing.

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  She flushed at seeing the female ashborn wearing what was essentially no better than underwear.

  “Harlots!” she hissed under her breath, more out of second hand embarrassment than anger. “Do they have no shame prancing about practically naked?!”

  Zareb laughed next to her. “I mean no offense when I say this, lass, but the prudishness of your people is amusing.”

  She shot him a glare. “Don’t tell me you APPROVE of what they’re wearing?!”

  He shook his head. “Oh, void no! If I had a daughter who wore something so revealing… I think I’d have a heart attack…”

  He shuddered.

  Aria returned her attention to the ocean, and quickly forgot her irritation towards the promiscuous humes. She fell back into her reverie, the wide smile from earlier returning.

  A memory from when she was younger came to the surface:

  Six year old Aria stared with awe at her mother as she regaled her with stories of something called an “ocean.”

  “Is that true, momma?!” she asked with wide-eyed, childish wonder.

  Anila giggled. “Yes, Aria. The ocean is a vast, seemingly infinite body of water, stretching farther than the eye can see.”

  “Even farther than your eyes?”

  “Yes. The oceans actually cover most of Avani. There is more water than there is land, and even I can’t see that far.”

  “But that’s impossible! You can do anything!”

  “Even I have my limits, Aria.”

  “Are you sure?” she scrunched up her brows in doubt.

  Anila laughed quietly, which elicited a bright grin in Aria. It was nighttime at the moment, and mother and daughter rested on a hole riddled blanket spread on the floor in a tight corner of the slave quarters. They were both hungry, tired, hurting, and filthy, yet being able to make her mother smile and laugh gave Aria unparalleled joy.

  It made her forget her own troubles and pains.

  “Tell me more about the ocean, momma!”

  “Very well,” Anila continued, smiling. “But after this you must go to sleep. You need rest to regain your strength.”

  Aria nodded eagerly.

  “The oceans not only stretch out extremely far, they are also unfathomably deep. You could stack several mountains on top of each other and still not reach the deepest depths.”

  “Whoa…”

  “The ocean isn’t just a flat body of water either, little one. It is filled with ever moving underwater currents and waves on the surface. At times the waters can be tranquil, but at others they could be violent, such as during a storm.”

  Aria paled, growing frightened. She hugged her mother tightly. “I don’t like storms…”

  “I know, my daughter. I’m sorry for bringing it up,” Anila stroked her long, tangled, dirty hair, “ah, why don’t I tell you of the living creatures you can find in the sea?”

  Aria looked up, surprised, “There are animals in the ocean?!”

  “Yes, little one,” Anila giggled. “Most of them are called fish. There are some that still breathe air, but can hold their breath for staggering amounts of time. There are also some that can only breathe underwater, however, and cannot breathe air.”

  Aria frowned. “How does that work? Are you making things up, momma?”

  “Of course not.”

  She wasn’t convinced, though she still wanted to hear more regardless. A thought occurred to her then. “How do you know all this?”

  “I’ve explored the seas before, little one,” Anila smiled with nostalgia. “I remember flying above the oceans of Vindanna, admiring the creations of the Maker, and studying the life and various phenomenon that can be found there.”

  “When was the last time you saw the ocean?”

  Anila paused, a forlorn look passing through her eyes as she answered, “Sometime before the Great Fragmentation. Before I got involved in the Human-Elf War…”

  Aria felt guilty then. Her mother always look so sad remembering that event and the time that came before it. Still, that guilt couldn’t quite stop the childish curiosity within her from leaking out. “Did the Great Fragmentation change the oceans?”

  “That, I do not know,” Anila smiled at her, though she could tell it was a little forced. “I haven’t been to the ocean since the Realms were separated. It’s possible it could have changed, but also not.”

  “Will you show me the oceans one day, momma?” Aria asked.

  “Of course, my daughter,” Anila’s smile widened a bit, becoming genuine. “I look forward to seeing your reaction. Particularly when you see that I was right and wasn’t simply making things up.”

  Aria pouted for but a moment, before nodding excitedly and hugging her mother tightly.

  Aria in the present time smiled warmly, turning as she said, “The oceans are just amazing as you said, Mom-”

  She froze, remembering then that her mother wasn’t there.

  She was gone.

  Dead.

  Because of her.

  All the wonder she’d felt vanished, killed and replaced with a deep sense of guilt and grief.

  What are you doing…? she reprimanded herself. You don’t deserve to feel happy…

  “Lass?” Zareb asked, perhaps sensing her sudden drop in mood.

  Aria was quiet for a long moment.

  “Lass?” he repeated, taking a step closer to her, brows scrunching in concern.

  “…I’m fine,” she whispered. “Come on. We’ve wasted enough time…”

  She began to walk away.

  Zareb grabbed her and pulled her into a hug.

  She tensed in his arms.

  “It’s not your fault, you know,” he whispered to her.

  Her eyes widened. “How do you-”

  “I recognize that look in your eyes, lass. Void, I saw it in the mirror every day when I found out my younger sister died at the hands of Athanasius and the Dominion. Your mother’s death wasn’t your fault. She did as any respectable parent would and protected her child.”

  “That’s why it’s my fault!” she hissed, tears welling in her eyes in spite of her attempt to smother her emotions. “If I hadn’t been there-”

  “If you hadn’t been there, would your mother have lasted as long as she did being a slave to the Dominion? Would she have lasted long enough to even make an attempt to escape and seize freedom in the first place?”

  The question jolted her. She recalled Anila’s words from back when she’d announced her intent to escape with her. “As you know, I’ve been a slave to the Dominion for a long, long time, Aria. For over six hundred years… I’ve seen too many of our people, too many of the other races enslaved by the humans, be tormented and die over those long centuries...

  “There have been several times where I’ve been close to just trying to kill as many of the humans as possible before they inevitably kill me. Things changed, however, when I had you…

  “When you were born, Aria… It was simultaneously one of the happiest moments of my life… and one of the most terrifying…

  “Then, I knew with certainty that you were the last thing keeping me sane and stable.”

  “…No,” Aria answered truthfully.

  “Lass, let me tell you something Lusha once told me. Please do not sully her memory by blaming yourself when she did not.”

  Aria didn’t respond. She pulled herself away from the general’s embrace, whispering, “I’ll try…”

  Zareb nodded. “I’m not expecting an instant change, lass. These sort of things, unfortunately, don’t work that fast. Trying, however, is the first step. What matters now is that you don’t stop trying.”

  She nodded.

  The two remained in silence then, standing side by side and looking out into the sea.

  “Well now, I didn’t expect to run into the two of ya here of all places,” a heavily accented voice spoke towards them.

  Aria tensed, turning quickly, prepared to either fight or run.

  She frowned as she had to look down to see a very short, but wide with muscle, man with a familiar, long, dark beard and hair.

  His eyes twinkled as he smiled at the two of them.

  “Well, this is a surprise,” Zareb chuckled. “I didn’t expect you would find us so soon.”

  “Neither did I, mate. I came to relax by the ocean side, and find you two here. Bother. I was hopin’ for a bit more relaxation before it was time to get back to work.”

  “Iron-” Aria began before stopping herself.

  “Easy there, lassie. Don’t go sayin’ my real name now. Come on, I got somewhere private we can talk. We have a whole lot to discuss now, don’t we?” Komdar Ironheart asked.

  “That we do, my friend,” Zareb nodded, “lead the way.”

  Next chapter will be released Monday, February 9th, 2026 at 3:00 PM PST.

  A huge thank you and special shoutout to my Page Turner tier Patron, LOOKOUT, and my Lore Master tier Patrons, Mountain Knight, Conman2731, ThoMiCroN, MCE 2 Munchen 2, and Voltrus. Your support is sincerely and greatly appreciated.