7.1 Landing In Illea

The voyage to Illea had not been a pleasant one. In an attempt to enter the island nation as secretly as possible, the group traveled by boat in with the cargo. It was rather cramped and the three were forced to breathe through their clothing in an attempt to avoid the smell. There was something very rotten, though Remiel couldn't guess at what it was. Three days they stayed on the ship, quietly waiting for the signal of sighting the shore so that they could jump off the boat into the sea.

Finally someone shouted 'land ho' and the time came for the stowaways to jump ship. Remiel and Annique both used a small amount of magick so that their jump wouldn't make an audible splash. They stayed underwater for a few minutes, each with a water magick bubble shaped around their heads to allow them some air. After they were sure that the boat would be far enough away, they began to swim towards the shore.

Remiel signed to his teammates to stay behind him for the illegal entry to the island nation. He had a plan.

***

No stowaways were found aboard the ship, as the harbor guard finished their check of the last boat scheduled to dock that night. The salty night air chilled them and they were ready to go back into the dockhouse for the rest of their shift. As they walked back up the dock, however, the water in the air thickened around them, making their hair stick to their faces and making it impossible to see much in front of them. They heard a shout from the boat, which said "got here just in time, eh?" The guards laughed and made their way slowly back to the dockhouse.

***

Through the mist, Remiel could see everything. Though it put a large amount of strain on his body to make a mist large enough to be believeable as well as to see everything the mist touched with his water vision. The two girls were holding onto the back of his cloak as they walked down the main street. "We're looking for a temple on a hill that has a statue of a fish above it." Annique said. "I have a contact there who can put us up for the night, but we'll have to leave in the morning."

"I can see it. Follow me." Remiel responded. Through his water vision, he could see that the main road was split down the middle by a river which flowed through the center of the town to the sea. On the other side of the river was the temple, and the three crossed over on the next bridge that they came to.

Remiel lessened the density of the fog so that Annique could see where they were going, and she finally pointed out the building where they would be staying. She knocked on the door, and immediately the door swung quietly open. A voice softly said "come in quickly and without a sound."

There were no lights turned on in the house, and the group was sent straight up to the attic. No formal meeting happened, the only reaction between those in the house was that Annique handed the owner of the voice several bills and receiving a thick rolled paper in return.

In the early morning, before the sun had fully come out, Remiel began using his magick to create a mist, starting from the sea and rolling over the city. It was a much lighter mist than the one he had created the night before, but enough that the team would be able to avoid being seen.

Remiel slowly lessened the thickness of the mist until it was nearly gone. They found a park, and entered under a large archway. They came to a pond in the middle of the park and sat on a bench, where Annique finally found the right time to speak.

"Our mission is to take place in Berma Castle, nearly twenty miles from the city. It was once the capital of Illea, but has mostly fallen to ruins. Our spies have tracked the thief's movements to the castle grounds."

Hoisting their bags, the group began the trek to the castle. As they headed out of the city, they noticed that most of the doors were brightly colored. When Jade asked why this was, Annique conjectured that it likely had something to do with the fact that the sky was perpetually gray in Illea. "In fact," she said, "Illea is often called the land of Green and Gray. The grass here is much more brightly colored and beautiful here than almost anywhere in the world, but the sky is always incredibly bleak."

The group made notice that it was simpler to travel with just the three of them, but Remiel guessed that when it came time to fight, they'd be wishing that Klaus was with them. They found a small town and stopped at a pub get something to eat. While they waited, Annique and Jade began talking about love, and Remiel's mind suddenly went back to Winter.

How was Sakura doing? Had she succeeded in her efforts to use her Wind magicks to heal? Would she be able to prove that the elements weren't simply a fighting tool and that they could be used to better the world? What would Rytel be doing by now? Was he still mourning Reise, or was he back in the midst of things, fighting new battles? The fortune-teller, what was she doing now that she had driven Xavier out of Winter? What was little Monique doing? And what became of Rytel's brother, or of Daisuke the Wanderer? Remiel had been so busy with his training that he hadn't entertained thoughts like these in a long time.

Remiel suddenly thought of something that he had promised Rytel before leaving.
"I will have faith in you all. I'm going to take this time to better myself and I know that by the time I come back, we'll be ready to take on any new challenges."

Remiel smiled as the waiter brought them their meals, and it seemed that the smells had grown stronger, he could breathe easier, and he felt ready to take on the mission more than ever.