Ocular to the Dying Sun

Forgive Me; part 1

Running around the clunky engine room, helping the crew adjust and fix several steaming machinations was all Uran did once he finished helping clear the number of Dire-Eater Sprouts from the top deck. His purpose had diminished once they were manageable enough for the remaining fighters of his crew and the just-arrived hired escort mercenaries that adds to their fighting power. His next instinct was to place himself in the presence of the captain’s quarters and deck but sensed that the engine room will need all hands as the newly fixed machine core still needed time to get acclimated running a burden three times it can manage.

Meaning, it hasn’t been used at speeds above ground that have an opposing wind running 2km per knot. The Shroud gleamed under the night sky as it showed signs of being overused in acquiring energy from the Slitark’s moonlight. Though no one can assure how fast or long the Shroud-cable sail can go and support the distribution of the core’s energy, Uran figured that they needed to get away from this battlefield. Knowing the Dire-Eater Sprouts and the whole clan of this monster will float in the air and land, pestering everything it can grasp wherever they can sense a Slitark’s presence and shard.

The creatures may be short-sighted with their detection of the Slitark shards, but once they do sniff it out, they deliberately ruin everything around them. They can be the most graceful in the air but ugly and disgusting, like wriggling blood worms.

Entering the main deck was filled to the brim with smog coming from the engine, hindering the sight of most that are in the position of navigator and the first mate, Lotois usually sits in that spot as he holds the helm and steers the wheel whenever Uran was out of his seat. If Uran was in the main deck, Lotois works his role as his second in command. As of right now, all Uran could see is the defeat of Sunflora’s endurance.

Going to the right corner where several notches, a hand size square shape locked by a small hook latch with a simple shard in front, and knobs are connected to cables of varying kinds. Uran turned one knob and opened three separate hook-latch; sounds of chaos and varied voices entered the room and flooded them with harried voices of panic. He turned another knob before three simultaneous voices could be heard responding through the notches seconds after he turned the knobs.

Rona’s coarse and deep voice spoke through, drowning the chaotic sound from where she is, saying, “Rife! Don’t keep me away from my side of the engine, the core’s suddenly overheating and taking in too much magic from the outside.”

“What now???” Said a shrill grizzly small voice, enough to be effeminate but one can tell she is easily annoyed by the inflection of her tone. This was Luri, speaking, “it’s no joke keeping these pieces of trash away from our ship. The Sprouts are everywhere, they’re running amok! Rife, what is the hell are we doing???”

“Hey! I’m listening Rife.” One other voice that belonged to Lotois spoke in the last notch.

The three notches are the main communication Uran often used, one leads to the core engine, the other to the weaponry, and the last one to the top deck.

“My estimate was bad,” he said then hastily continued, “but we’ve got no choice. What we need is time to rest Sunflora but remain near this place. Rona, how much longer can the core take before it overheats?”

“Shutting down won’t happen any time, but if we continue trying to retain our speed against the magic and winds outside, we’ll be pushing my baby’s limit within half to an hour, tops with a distance to run…look the knots won’t matter. As long as she won’t fly upward and past the scale of the sky.” She said as a whistle is heard behind her. “Don’t mind that, my baby’s just singing. Bless the exterior but the Shroud’s doing too much eating, I’m going to shut it soon to avoid overworking the core.”

“I’m interjecting, there is more damage in the hull than you think.” Luri’s voice interrupted. “Make your time lesser if this continues. The clunking and shaking are no joke.”

Hearing the status of the two areas, Uran checked the map behind the navigator, a nervous young woman named Pemmi. The map is showing an eagle’s eye view of a wider area with the lay of the land outlined without further details. This is mapped out with the help of a modified Slitark-shard that helps scan the exterior land onto a monitor to show what is where on the surface. Seeing the curve and crevices, Uran had to decide the best place he could place the Sunflora so that it can rest.

Seeing an area just east of their ship, he saw the distance can be enough and reachable. Uran shouted, his face looking toward the notches, and said, “Luri, use one of the Silencer-Pulse* to confuse the Sprouts, timer starts from five minutes. Rona, you have approximately that much time to kick the overdrive energy from the Shroud into the core.” Pausing to heave a breath, he continued. “I’m stirring the ship east between a narrow nesting. The mountains can be a good cover, so once we get there after five, kick the spell then rest the core until we’re fairly hidden in both magic and physical presence.”

When he finished, he patted Pemmi on the shoulder as a sign asking if they understood. The goggles-wearing Pemmi nodded before looking back at the map and pulling out a tiny crystal from the side of the monitor. They placed it above the location until a small bright residue of light left its mark on the screen.

Inside the monitor showed small bright shards lit up following the light and humming sounds entered the system of the monitor. Pemmi, who held onto the desk with all her might and sweaty palms, felt the warmth of the desk as they moved to the left side and flipped several switches.

Rona and Luri both took seconds before they stated their agreement with the plan. Satisfied, Uran moved to the deck notch and said, “Lotois, sweep the deck clean.” He didn’t wait for any response as he went back to the steering wheel and shouted. “Let’s get my Sunflora safe.”

Pemmi, tensely sitting on the edge of her seat, turned to the left where there are five levers and several knobs and switches, all the lights are turned on while others are off. They held one lever with one arm and the other busily adjusting several knobs and buttons.

“Captain, confirmation of mapping.” Said Pemmi before Uran looked at the compass on the center of the steering wheel.

The steering wheel is not a full wheel like normal ships have, it’s two iron carved arching handles poking from the side of a chest high panel where three orbs are in the middle, one large one and two small ones. The large one contains liquid and a copious amount of tiny shards within it with the base showing penchants of the cardinal directions. The two small ones are orbs that could turn and serves like knobs adjusting the amount of liquid within the middle orb. For the steering handles, the appropriate term can be turned to only the left and right direction, but the middle orb as the compass indicates the proper face where the front bow should go toward or face forward.

Pemmi entered several prompts to ascertain the right coordinates to each sector of the ship, especially the compass for the steering wheel. Once the correct coordinates are rightfully entered, Uran moved one side of the steering handle to the appropriate angle he needs to meet. There was a bit of fight as he clenched his hands and flexed all his arm muscles to manhandle the rightful angle according to trajectory. Simultaneously pulling up the other handle so that it would indicate the forward motion.

Clunking sounds came from the floor of the room, not including the rattling on the walls that brought panic to Pemmi’s face. Shaking that could topple down a chair almost untethered several pipelines with loosening screws and bolts. Though none of this can shake Uran with the way he stood one hand on the left steering handle, while the right one held a railing that surrounded the area of the steering wheel as if to serve as either a guard rail or a stabilizer for the driver.

Though it’s not something to be concerned about, somehow there was something different about this in an instant thought as if their ship was hit by something. The location of its steering wheel is on a raised part of the floor that can shake or turn due to the springs underneath the metal flooring.

Tight coils are mounted under this small platform that serves to eject certain panels of the flooring where inside are items that can help them in crisis. Tough, the locks on these compartments are tightly secured, a certain level of force can pop it off to access below, and in this case where the shaking was beyond what they are used to, some of the tiles lifted in millimeters making a small opening to these compartments.

Steady footing saved Uran, due to experience and his own capable body from his old profession before taking the helm as Sunflora’s captain. By using his gained muscles, Uran’s arm pulled efforts to steady the other handle, as it would indeed move if left unattended due to the retaliating force of the rudders on the other side.

Once their direction was secure, he partially turned his head to the notches and said, “Luri! Lotois! Are there any other creatures within and outside the hull?”

There was no answer except for the voice of Pemmi, they are reporting all the views the monitor is showing, at least in a shifted view of the crystals mapping of the land. They reported at least growing altitudes of trees that could potentially damage the exterior of Sunflora, which to Uran was already expected with the attempt he was making.

Not waiting for Lotois or Luri, and trusting they would handle the creatures, fighting them off as best so that their partial escape can happen. He touched one of the smaller orbs on the panel and started shifting the water inside that contained the crystals, this time it spewed more Slitark shards. This was a signifier that the energy they were using to levitate themselves are growing exponentially lower since they needed to hide their presence in a location that is risky by chances to pull through.

Sweat broke out from Pemmi’s neck when they saw the number of shards within the compass and started praying, while the other person within the room which was an engineer, Jaaron, that is assigned and assist with the bearing just silently did their best to adjust according to how Uran steered their ship.

“Luri!!” shouted Uran.

“Bullcrap! Almost all the Sprouts are off the god-forsaken keel! But—” Luri was going to interject something when a blast from her notch completely deafened the room.

No other sound could be heard from Luri’s side letting Uran dismiss that and look at Jaaron, saying. “The machine rooms state?”

“Gauges are stabilized sir, except for ten minutes ago before we took the east. The silencer was shot out at exactly five minutes since the distance, but there seems to be something wrong with a part of the exterior.” They said, their calm demeanor was a glaring contrast to the shaking navigator at the opposite chair from them. “Sir, there is a section of the ship that has received a breach.” They finished, but now facing Uran with a concerned face.

Heaving a breath, he looked at Pemmi, and on cue, she said, “the—the route is established with the speed, uhm…we’re going to enter neutral velocity in approximately…uhm…sir?”

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