To Fly the Soaring Tides

Finding the river to Uru wasn’t a difficult task, but Cira was regretting giving up her boat for the greater good. After the excruciating boredom settled, she ended up enhancing herself with magic and running the rest of the way there. It still took a couple hours and Cira was exhausted. By her estimate the artificial stars of Nymphus hadn’t yet risen, but Uru looked the same as always.

She looked down on the endless night from above and contemplated the best way to get down. The stairs were not an option, she’d already come too far. That said, she couldn’t find too extravagant a solution. If a giant salt ramp appeared, the citizens may panic as they did when she moved Breeze Haven to Uren. Standing out was not in the cards for her today. Not yet at least.

In fact, she’d prepared an outfit for this occasion, as any sorcerer of moderate caliber would. This time she wouldn’t look like a sorcerer at all. While she didn’t like wrinkling her clothes, she had a few outfits stuffed into her bag of holding—this worked like the barrel but was much smaller.

She threw up a salt screen in case any nosy ghosts wanted a show, then changed out of the haunted robes and into a pair of tight, dark pants with tall leather boots and a white blouse. Of course, she had multiple leather belts with plenty of buckles, including a leather corset. She wore a flowing red sash around her waist and over it all was a thick coat. On her head was a tall, black hat with a wide, tattered brim that folded in the middle—one that the owner of a pirate ship might wear. For added effect she put a skull and crossbones on the front.

How would a strapping young pirate lady get down there? She would have a glider on her back, or rappel down with a grappling hook. That’s it.

Cira had to hide Conduit and her father’s staff, but Aquon could stay on her hand. She moved the hidden jewel inside her coat so Nina was out of sight. With just a little bit of mana, she conjured a saber at her side to complete the image. Then, a hook in her hand with a rope-like cable that shot out the backside.

“Here we go!” Staying in character, she jumped off the cliff and spun around, tossing her grapple at the edge as she fell. It hooked on easily because she used geomancy to cheat, but no one would know unless she told them. Cira deftly rappelled down as the rope just kept extending, following one of the many staircases down.

On her way she noticed somebody far below that seemed to be going down the stairs. Getting closer, she noticed it to be a woman with dark hair who looked up with confusion. She slowed until she was parallel and looked her in the eyes, “’Ello, love!”

“Um… Cira?” The woman had long eye lashes and blinked them in confusion. She had a face like a painting, “Is that you? What are you doing? And what even was that?”

Cira shrugged, which was a full body gesture when one’s hanging from the wall and didn’t quite get the message across, “A pirate said it to me once. I’m not sure what it means.”

“Ah, I see…” Delilah masked her confusion quickly, “So are you a pirate now…? What brings you to Uru?”

“No, no, still a sorcerer. I have to mingle with degenerates to find what I’m searching for, but there was one other thing I came here to find.”

“Oh? And what would that be?” Her expression was just a little uneasy.

“You, of course!” Cira smiled.

“Huh…?” Her long eyelashes fluttered again, and she started to look embarrassed.

“Want to show me around town like you promised?”

___

I wonder whatever happened to that witch… Delilah absently wondered as she made her way back home. It’s a shame I’ll probably never see her again.

She sighed. Daydreams were one thing, but she knew the woman was far above her. A lofty witch who probably just saw her as part of the rabble. She was a peerless beauty who had the air that she could do anything. Delilah was just your average small-town girl from the depths. Her fate was to wander around the caves until she was withered and brittle.

It was unclear what she wanted from the witch, but it was hard not to be restless after seeing such a distant star shining so bright through the endless night she’d known for years. She looked down to the bag at her waist and let out another sigh. It bulged, stuffed full of herbs.

Today was good—I found more than I usually do in a week. So why doesn’t that make me happy like it used to? I would skip home whistling a tune and rush in the door to show Father how well I’d done. How many more hundreds of times will I have days like this?

It helped the people of Uru. A lot of people actually relied on Delilah’s work, as they did her mother’s—a woman who spent well over a hundred years picking herbs in the catacombs and turning them into medicine. She died with a smile on her face. Can I? I feel more useless by the day as plague victims pile up. Even if this passes, won’t that just make me more useless? I help the people of Uru avoid the common cold. What a pitiful purpose.

Delilah was walking home to bring one more mere day out of countless more to a close. Tomorrow she’d awaken and head right back up the stairs to do it again. She was going to let out another sigh when a strange noise from above caught her attention, then a few pebbles of salt fell beside her. As she looked up something was sliding down the sheer cliff face.

That’s a person… Dark colors with red. Is that a saber?! Pirates! I have to warn Father! Delilah started panicking and was about to run when she saw the pirate slow down. She was being targeted, and running wouldn’t help. She started shaking as the pirate stopped to face her.

“’Ello, Love!”

No way… She couldn’t believe her eyes. It’s her. But why? “Um… Cira?”

The witch was dressed like a pirate, boldly wearing a hat that made her look like some captain from up the Noose. It made no sense to Delilah. She wracked her brain but couldn’t think of a reason the witch would dress up like that and appear sliding down the walls of Uru.

“I have to mingle with degenerates to find what I’m searching for, but there was one other thing I came here to find.” The witch had a playful smile on her lips. Just the other day she had spoken of looking for a cure and healed everyone in Uru before disappearing just as quickly.

Even with her explanation I don’t get it. But it makes sense that she’s here to accomplish something so far over my head. She’s off curing the plague and saving the island. I couldn’t help her find what she’s looking for if I tried, but I am curious. “Oh? And what would that be?” She just wanted a little taste of excitement before returning to her boring eternity.

“You, of course!” The witch smiled at her, and it was so dazzling it nearly threw Delilah off her feet. Her piercing green eyes held none of the hopelessness and despair she’d grown accustomed to in Uru. “Want to show me around town like you promised?”

The dreary girl was dumbstruck, “You… you’re looking for me?”

“You told me to come find you, didn’t you?” Cira said these words like it was the most natural thing in the world.

“Oh,” She managed, “I suppose I did say that. I was just heading down.”

“That’s great, come on!” The witch raised her palm up and Delilah felt her feet lift off the ground. She managed a yelp before feeling an arm wrap around her and hold on tight. “And down we go!”

“Ahhh!” Delilah screamed for a couple hundred feet, her hair blowing straight up. In the midst of their plummeting, she looked over and saw the witch’s golden hair that shimmered like dawn’s light, denying all reason and resting perfectly on her shoulders, as if she’d just visited the salon before jumping off a cliff. Her beauty was out of place nestled in the grungy pirate garb, but her smile was too radiant to complain. Delilah thought she looked lovely.

“And we’re down!” Laughed Cira, “Sorry, I had to. You looked so dreadfully bored when I found you.”

Delilah caught her breath and couldn’t help from joining her in a laugh. Her face was lifted up in a natural smile and she’d gone red. From all the excitement, that must be it.

“So…” She nervously asked, “What do you need little ol’ me for?”

“No need to rush,” Cira waved her off, “We can talk once we’ve found a place to drink. All this salt has made me quite thirsty, yargh!” She made a hook with her finger and leaned into it.

This made the homely Uru herbalist chuckle bashfully, “I’m not so sure you’re going to fool anyone like that. Do you mind if I stop at home to change first? I’ve got to get out of these clothes.” She picked at her shirt. It stuck to her arm with sweat, and she frowned.

She doesn’t seem to have noticed how disgusting I am right now. I bet she’s immune to it. This is a stroke of luck.

“I understand you likely don’t have an ensemble such as my own,” Cira looked back at her with thoughts in the clouds, “but do you have something that may fit the part? I think I’m pulling off the elegant yet intimidating pirate girl well, but a charming young smuggler would do fine.”

I don’t understand how I’m supposed to help, Delilah grinned despite herself and stifled a giddy laugh, but she dropped out of the sky and said she was looking for me of all people.

“I think I can throw something together.” Delilah’s cheeks felt hot, and she followed the witch attentively.

Hey, I clean up alright. Maybe I can be the one to dazzle her this time. I still have my old uniform from when I was a barmaid. It’s a little small on me now, but I bet I still look good in it.

And so, the two set off into Uru to enjoy an evening with intentions that weren’t so aligned. The Hidden Witch’s mind was pure, intent on saving the masses and having a little fun along the way. Meanwhile, an exotic and untouchable bird had just flown into Delilah’s roost and her heart was set on strutting her feathers while she had the chance.