Depthless Hunger

Inafay had been happy to have Kai back, and she'd been glad to meet Zae Zin Nim and Omilaena. But there had always been part of her that knew it couldn't last forever and that this massive advantage that had carried her so far had to disappear eventually. That day came sooner than she expected.

For once there was no emergency or disaster to call them away: they simply finished their training. The elites were all impressed that these outsiders had learned so much of phases in three months' time, but Kai seemed to be impatient. Now that they had mastered the basic principles, he seemed to think they didn't have any more reason to stay on the continent. But with all the planning and organizing, she didn't get a chance to really talk to him until they were standing on a pier at the northern coast. The Water Union docks extended north, then beyond them nothing but ocean.

Twice before she'd watched him go helplessly, first when he was exiled and second after the incursion. This time she should feel reassured that he would come back, but it still felt very final. The two old friends stood quietly in the salty breeze for a time.

"So... you're all going on that ship?" Inafay asked lamely. It was a massive Water Union vessel, one of the few that could survive the deep waters. The deck was topped by three vast sails, balanced by the massive hull painted with wave patterns.

"There was an argument for splitting up," Kai said, "but last time that separated us for too long. If we haven't shaken the attention on us, we're going to have problems anyway."

"I forgot to ask, what phase did you master in the end?"

"Well, I'm still paying for my overambitious start, so I just have half-phases in everything. I mastered the basics for all of them, so I can build them further to full phases, I just need more time and strength. Hopefully it'll be enough for Rosemount."

"I'm still not sure exactly what you're going to do over there," Inafay said. She stared out over the water, trying to truly understand the complexity of another continent with all its own peoples and nations. "There's a war or something?"

"It's more like I feel I still have responsibilities there. I've enjoyed being back, but I've finished my training now and I feel like I've done everything I can for the Frontier nations. So it's time to go back, if that makes sense."

"You sure build new loyalties quickly." Inafay tried to smile but it came out bittersweet. "I admit, I kind of want to go with you, so much that I talked to Orotaisin about it. But it sounds like Rosemount is really dangerous and there's still so much I need to do here..."

"You have responsibilities too." Kai settled one massive hand on her shoulder and turned a somber gaze on her. "I have this lingering fear I'll end up trapped and won't make it back in time for the incursion. But I'll come back to help, no matter what I have to do."

"I'll hold you to that and see you then." Inafay first punched his chest, then just hugged him. He squeezed back before they let go, and when they parted it didn't feel right to say anything else.

It was strange to watch the trio making their preparations, since they were all using absurdly massive spatial storage items. They were preparing for a long journey without apparently carrying anything, yet occasionally entire boxes just disappeared into rings or bracelets. She wanted to throw out advice even though they knew more about ocean travel and were presumably ready. It just hurt that she couldn't do anything else to help.

Inafay wandered closer to the others, less confident with them and hoping they'd cross the distance or reach out. She'd gotten to know both women a little, but sometimes she wasn't sure how deeply she knew them. There were a lot of scars and defensive shells around those two.

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Zae Zin Nim separated from the others, took Inafay's arm, and pulled her a little further away. "Goodbye, Inafay. Thank you for everything you taught me about mana."

"You were a great student," Inafay said. "I have a feeling you'll have an Advanced Class when we see each other again, so I'll have to work hard to catch up."

"I understand you want to defend your home, but you should come to Cloudspire sometime. You'd grow faster there."

"Maybe, but this is my home. I'm committed here for now. But if you want to help, we had some more questions about advanced dual cultivation techniques..."

Inafay tried to ask the questions as gingerly as possible, but they clearly still embarrassed Zae Zin Nim. Somehow the cultivator overcame her discomfort and gave reasonable answers that Inafay hoped would be useful for years to come. Occasionally the other woman's dark eyes flickered to Orotaisin, but more often they turned toward Kai and then darted away as if burned.

So it really was like that. Kai had said very little about the relationships within the trio and Inafay hadn't been sure she was properly reading between the lines.

"Umm..." Zae Zin Nim's eyes darted over to him again. "I suppose it's late to ask this, but... what are Goralian marriage customs like?"

"Well!" Inafay raised her eyebrows but resisted the urge to tease. "The two people, and sometimes their clans, make a commitment to one another. Usually they exchange some sort of token, like rings, to show their unity. But how much celebration happens will depend entirely on how wealthy they are and how big a deal the match is."

Zae Zin Nim nodded somberly as if these were martial arts secrets and then asked more detailed questions, which Inafay answered as well as she could. It got her thinking about her own eventual wedding, but she felt much more comfortable with that than the cultivator did.

Did Zae Zin Nim have the courage to be more forward, and would Kai get the hint if she was? Inafay decided that she wasn't going to get in the middle of such a challenging relationship, since they obviously had a lot to sort out. At least she'd been able to say her farewells and exchange some final answers, so it felt more appropriate to let them leave.

"You better work hard." Omilaena appeared behind her suddenly, poking at her side. "You'll give me great experimental data if you keep synergizing those abilities, so you need to be a good little experiment."

"I'll do my best!" Inafay executed an exaggerated salute. "My highest aspiration in life is to be a data point in someone else's experiment."

"Ha. But if everything goes well, by which I mean we don't all die, I may be able to help you more next time. What we've been able to uncover so far may be just the beginning."

"Given how nasty things are out there, I hope so."

They lingered in the awkward space of people who only partially knew one another before Omilaena lowered her voice to continue. "This is a much more trivial question and I will poison you if you reveal I asked it, but do you know where Kai got his ideas about relationships? I know you have multiple marriages in Goralia, but he seems uptight."

Inafay was sure her eyes had widened... so she had seen that look Omilaena gave during training. "Uh, I think that's just how Kais are. I understand he had some sort of bad experience in Rayakan, but you'd be better off asking Zae Zin Nim about that."

"Damn." Omilaena's expression was completely serious again and she jabbed a finger at her. "Build those wind powers, though. We'll pick this back up if we see each other again."

"Sure," Inafay said with an awkward smile and then watched as the other woman went to join the others.

How had Kai gotten himself in the middle of that mess? He was a decent-looking guy and he could be very kind, so she got it, but hadn't the three of them been traveling together for years? She wondered how much of it was the danger, how much was Kai's naivety, and how much was just the bizarre knot of emotions in that group. She wanted to help Kai, but what could she even say?

He was helping some of the sailors load the ship, completely oblivious. Even though they'd already said their proper goodbyes, Inafay marched over to him and put a hand on his shoulder.

"Good luck," she told him.

"What's this about?" Kai said, blinking cluelessly.

"Trust me, you need it."

Soon enough the three of them were off on their ship, cutting through the water toward continents unknown. Inafay watched them go and soon felt Orotaisin beside her, then he took her hand and they interlaced their fingers. She hadn't really appreciated how lucky she was, finding someone who was so compatible with her, and squeezed his hand tighter.

There would be far too much to do soon, training and politics and battles. But for now, they stood and watched the ship disappear into the ocean.