Old Pains and New Injuries

Farmer concentrated all of the chaotic energy on the tip of his right index finger. Then, he struck out with a simple motion. However, that casual strike carried enough power in it to shake the void with such intensity that cracks began appearing in space. A beam of bright red arcane power shot out from his finger and headed straight for the space between Shallock's eyes.

Shallock, however, did not realise any of this. Its mind had been turned into ephemeral mush by Farmer's mystic gaze. Hence, it was completely oblivious when the beam perforated its forehead and destroyed its brain. The beam easily went through the sea-dragon's skull, killing it completely, and continued travelling unhindered through the water, eventually touching ground in the far distance.

An explosion followed. One which levelled the entire system of gorges into nothingness. Farmer sighed at this, for he didn't need to send out his spiritual sense to know that the sea-dragon's abode had been destroyed; and also, by extension, all the resources within it.

Nonetheless, he had still obtained a large bounty. Just the carcass of the sea-dragon could be harvested to obtain astonishing treasures. Looking at the now-lifeless Shallock, Farmer began coughing up blood uncontrollably.

The power of the primordial chaos was extremely hard to control. Even with his ability to manipulate arcane energy almost flawlessly within his body, the backlash caused him grievous internal injuries. Add to that the gaping hole in his chest, and Farmer was in a seriously sorry state.

That wasn't the worst of it.

As soon as the power of chaos surrounding him disappeared, a series of exhilarated voices began echoing in his head. "You used us! Yes… Without us, you are nothing… Chaos, disorder, madness, entropy, us, together, forever…" Chanted the voices.

Farmer sighed to himself. Part of the reason he hated this invincible power of his so much was that with every usage, a little bit of his mind would leave him and fade into nothingness. Yes, it was powerful. Yes, with it he could overbearingly dominate any empire. But, at the same time, his body and mind would suffer the side-effects of chaos and fall into a deep darkness that he couldn't escape from.

Pushing those thoughts away, Farmer grabbed Shallock by one of its horns and swam to the surface.

As soon as he broke out, he was surprised to see that the Sun was already rising. His battle had lasted longer than he'd imagined. However, this was a huge problem. He'd wanted to use the stars to figure out in what direction Alana's Regret was. Without the stars to guide him, he would struggle to find his bearing.

"Fuck this serpent." He cursed to himself loudly. "If you'd just been nice and left us alone, I wouldn't be in this mess."

Picking a direction at random, Farmer opted to start making his way and just play it by ear. After all, this was how he'd typically solve a problem when wandering the continent.

With each stroke in the water, Farmer would feel a heart-wrenching pain exploding in his chest. In addition, his mind was exhausted from using the primordial chaos earlier. But he was stubborn and determined, and refused to give in to the pain. Drinking the only two healing elixirs on his person in one gulp, Farmer readied himself for the agony that awaited him.

After an hour of aimlessly swimming, he realised that the wound on his chest wasn't healing properly. In fact, he could feel it gradually worsening with each passing moment. Then, he discovered he couldn't keep the wound closed any longer and it began bleeding profusely.

This was the worst possible scenario. At this rate, he would lose consciousness long before nightfall, and he would drown or be devoured by any random passing beast. Could this truly be the way he was fated to die?

In that moment, Farmer turned to face the Heavens and shouted out in defiance. Why did they always go against him?! The frustration in his heart was so great that he lashed out with a fist containing as much strength as he could muster.

Perhaps his intention was to challenge Naosh and her entourage with his strength. However, how could his measly punch bring the pantheon down? Ripples of energy rose from his fist and climbed high up in the sky. Yet there was nothing for those ripples to clash against, thus turning back to oblivion before long; returning the world to its natural state and previous calm.

Farmer felt dismayed. His body was in tatters, he was losing more of his mind with every new day, and his spirit was growing wary. How could he not feel dismay? Not knowing what to do, he stared at his fist pointed upwards. Then, a flash of intense happiness crossed his eyes and he couldn't help but exclaim in elation.

What had he seen? The tattoo of the compass he'd obtained on the back of his left hand!

With all the excitement and tribulation of facing off against the sea-dragon, he had completely forgotten about it. Now, with a renewed mental state of calmness, he summoned the compass to him.

The compass landed in his palm and flung itself open. Just like before, there was no arrow pointing anywhere, but the circle surrounding the space where the arrow should be turned to point North. At least now he could navigate!

However, this still wasn't enough to get him back safely. Unless he found a way to deduce his position, he would still drift aimlessly and eventually die. Nonetheless, he had a hunch that if he sent his spiritual sense into the compass, a path of life would be revealed to him. He trusted his instincts and so, gambling on this slim hope, he sent a part of his consciousness into the compass.

Instantly, he felt the familiar presence of the compass' spirit rub against his own. No words were exchanged between them, but they communicated perfectly and in complete harmony. This was the true advantage of befriending a treasure of such calibre.

The compass had been watching everything that had happened through Farmer's eyes. It was delighted to witness the fight between him and the sea-dragon. And it was exhilarated at witnessing the vastness of the sea. At the same time, it was aware that its owner was facing terrible peril and needed its help. Thus, it begged for Farmer to instruct it as to what it should do to aid him.

Farmer was genuinely surprised at how willingly the compass offered its services. He guessed that he'd underestimated the extent of its loneliness all those years spent in isolation. In the future, he told himself, he would make sure to bring the compass out more often so that it could experience the world first-hand instead of just spectating through his eyes.

Still, his current predicament was truly dire and he informed the compass that he needed to find a way back to his ship. The compass replied that this was easy, and all that was needed was a drop of his blood mixed with a tinge of his arcane power. Farmer obeyed the compass and sent a drop of his blood into it. He didn't know what to expect, but he trusted the compass.

Immediately, the compass reacted to Farmer's stimulation and the drop of blood began twisting on itself. In the blink of an eye, it formed a blood-red arrow that was pointing to the South-East. Farmer was stunned and questioned the compass as to why this was happening. The compass responded that it would always point in the direction of what its owner desired.

Farmer had to take in a breath of cold air at this information. If it was true, then this arcane artefact was truly heaven-defying. Nothing would ever be hidden from him; no matter how heavily concealed. This would change his life completely!

Tying the compass to his waist, Farmer grabbed the sea-dragon's corpse and headed in the direction indicated by the compass with a newfound sense of strength. He wasn't depressed anymore, and was able to soar on the water's surface with astounding speed while ignoring the pain in his chest.

--

On Alana's Regret, things weren't going so well for Farmer's crew.

Everyone stood at their battle stations, ready to jump into action at a moment's notice. However, after an entire night of standing in attention, the crew was growing weary. Furthermore, it had been too long since their captain had set out to face the oncoming danger. Some felt that Farmer might be in serious peril and begged Lampa to sail in the direction the captain had left in.

Lampa, despite his strong sense of loyalty, was feeling inclined to agreeing with these people. In fact, he would have rushed out long before were it not for the fact that the ship was his responsibility when the captain left.

At the same time, Serena was pacing anxiously on the deck of the ship surrounded by all her warriors. Sitting nearby was Raven, who was observing the increasingly tense atmosphere quizzically. In her childish mind, Farmer was an invincible being that no one had to waste time worrying about. After all, he had saved her easily.

After a while, Oulong could keep his silence no longer and called out for Serena. "Young Mistress." He said as sternly as he could. "There is nothing to be done here. Let us go below and patiently wait for Farmer's return."

"I know that we're not useful here…" Replied Serena, stopping in her footsteps. "It's just that… just that…"

"Just what?" Asked Oulong, somewhat losing his patience. "Young Mistress, Farmer is just a pirate. To have you worrying for him is his greatest honour. You cannot lower yourself further than that!"

"Say that again, if you dare!" Suddenly shouted a voice from the helm of the ship. Turning upwards, Serena and her warriors saw Krill looking down on them with intense hatred shining within his gaze. "Come on. Tell us all just what you think of our captain!" He said loud enough for everyone to turn around curiously.

Seeing this, Oulong couldn't help but turn pale. Although he despised these pirates with everything he had, he was no fool. Almost any one of Farmer's crew could cause Serena's side heavy losses if a fight broke out; not to mention all of them put together. Krill, himself, was a third-dimension sorcerer proficient in wood-type arcane arts. Between Krill and Oulong, Oulong wouldn't stand a chance even if it was true that they were in the same realm.

This was because, simply put, each one of Farmer's men had gone through several life and death experiences throughout their lives. They were accustomed to fighting against the odds and finding a way of prevailing. Compared to the relatively relaxed lifestyle Serena's men had lived in the capital city, their life experiences placed them in a completely disadvantaged position.

And Oulong realised this well.

Thus, he just began slowly turning around and eyeing everyone with apprehension. Serena wanted to say something to appease the mood but was interrupted before she could do so.

"You don't want to say? Worry not, I remember each word perfectly." Remarked Krill. "Everyone, listen up! According to this man, our captain is just a lowly pirate and these great warriors are lowering their status just by being on this ship!" Krill carefully enunciated each word, making sure that every member of the crew could hear him.

Instantly, the faces of every pirate darkened considerably. Some even started grinding their teeth in fury. Serena's warriors glanced at each other and they could all see the fear in their companion's eyes. In this moment they hated Oulong for his rash words. They could very well perish because of his stupid sense of pride!

Oulong himself was shaking from a mixture of fear, regret, and fury. Yes, fury. He was angry because he genuinely believed in what he'd said. Their Young Mistress was a member of an important aristocratic family with nearly one thousand years of history! How could a mere pirate compare to her?!

Yet, he dared not say these words aloud. Not because he was afraid for his life, but rather because he feared for his Young Mistress' wellbeing should these boorish pirates decide to attack them. Similarly, Serena was distressed at the twisted turn the situation had taken; she knew full well how loyal these men were to Farmer. Right now, all she wanted was for things to deescalate as swiftly is possible.

Thus, she searched for Lampa with her eyes but was surprised to find the stern lieutenant staring off in the distance. Clearly, he had taken great offence at Oulong's words and would not involve himself in this matter. This put her in a delicate position and, once she thought things through for a moment, she decided on a solution.

Moving quickly, she slapped Oulong as hard as she could, leaving a bright palm-print on the side of his face. Oulong looked back at her blankly. This slap of hers had thrown away any and all respect he could ever garner on this ship. Still, he didn't blame her, or rather, he couldn't bring himself to blame her. In his mind, all this was Farmer's fault and he hated the pirate lord because of it.

"Apologise." Rigidly commanded Serena.

"Young Mistress, but…"

"Be quiet! Your words have utterly humiliated me and the entire Tael family! Since when do we speak like this of those who are helping us? Since when have we become so disgustingly despicable?!" Her words were harsh, but a big part of her genuinely believed Oulong was in the wrong, even if she didn't like chastising him in such a public manner.

"Young Mistress, you are right." Apologetically said Oulong as he bowed deeply. "I spoke out of place. Please forgive me."

"It is not to me that you should ask for forgiveness. Ask the men on this ship, and then ask the captain when he returns. That's an order!" She commanded.

Instantly, Oulong tensed up. The last thing he wanted to do was to lower himself to such a level. But his Young Mistress' commands were absolute. Hence, he turned to face the pirates around him who were still glaring at him hatefully. Thankfully for him, a sudden shout saved him from his disgrace.

"Something's coming from portside!" Exclaimed Myk up from the crow's nest. "Something big!"

Alana's Regret's crew sprang into action and manned their battle stations, readying themselves for an attack. All of them had a shadow cast in their hearts, however. If this was the thing their captain had gone to fight with, didn't that mean that their captain had suffered some misfortune?

"What do your eyes see, Myk?" Questioned Lampa loudly. He was having similar thoughts as the rest of the crew and decided in his heart that if Farmer was dead, he would fight until he could fight no more. "What's coming?"

"I see a large shape. It's like an island coming this way! Fifty, maybe sixty, miles from us!"

"So big?" Mumbled a few of their men under their breath.

"What is it?" Asked Lampa. "Is it a beast, or man-made?"

"Beast, definitely a beast!" Replied Myk. Seeing the shape rapidly coming towards them, he began describing every detail he could spy without being prompted. "I see lots of thorns, a winding body coiled like a snake! Naosh save us, it looks like a dragon!"

Instantly, everyone's morale fell to an all-time low. Even Serena and Lampa were no exceptions to this. Members of the draconic race were legendary beings capable of slaughtering thousands of people with a single bite. If one was approaching them with anger in its heart, then they would surely die.

However, Lampa had no other choice but to quiet his restless heart and force himself to man up to the situation. As such, he began bellowing to raise the men's morale. "What are you all, land-loving cowards? Where has your pride as the captain's crew gone?! The captain has got us through much worse before! Remember, our captain has never failed! How could he not come when we need him the most?! Raise your weapons, men! Hoist the captain's banner and roar to the Heavens because we, today, will prove once and for all why the captain trusts us so much!"

Lampa's voice was imbued with his arcane power and echoed over a long distance, rumbling in each crewman's ears like thunder. It was like a trance had suddenly come over them. In unison, they struck their swords at the sky and cried out in mad excitement! Their battle cry soared to the Heavens itself with the might of a massive explosion. After a short while, they stopped shouting with newfound determination shining in their eyes.

It was then that Myk called out again. "Lieutenant!" He screamed with excitement in his voice.

"What is it?"

"I… I can't believe it!" He replied with his voice. "You need to come see this!"

Before Myk's words had faded in the wind, Lampa had already jumped the distance separating them and landed beside him. Without waiting for an explanation, Lampa took the spyglass from Myk's grasp and looked into the direction the dragon was coming from.

At first, he didn't know why Myk would so urgently call him over. However, he started laughing joyously when he saw what had startled Myk so much.

"It's the captain! The captain has returned victorious!" He exclaimed between laughs.

Cheers erupted from Alana's Regret so loudly and with such might that even Farmer could hear them from the distance. Smiling to himself, he doubled his efforts to rush forward.