Jackal Among Snakes

Argrave had never been on a boat for an extended period of time. That didn’t change, really, because Lira had installed a feature to his boat that allowed him to go back to land whenever he wanted. It did somewhat undermine the purity of such a thing, but that was already thoroughly marred by the underlying purpose of the Sea Dragon’s long voyage across the sea. The constant vigilance of the accompanying gods ensured they would not be accosted by enemies without warning.

Admiral Tan Shu guided them most of the time. She was a fierce fighter, but her true talent was hinted at by her title. She could read the stars far better than any other sailor. Her skill was such that she could often estimate how far they’d travelled just by looking at the stars each night. She had a great ability to predict weather, wind, and how both might affect the voyage. Perhaps these abilities were supernatural.

But both Admiral Tan Shu and Emperor Ji Meng were tightly watched by countless guards. The reason for that was Sophia. Argrave felt he needed to be near the Sea Dragon to keep watch on things, and at the same time he felt Sophia needed to be far, far away from civilization when they tested her power in case it truly was as dangerous as the Alchemist said.

But progress was not immediate. As a matter of fact, to call it ‘progress’ implied some had been made. Argrave and Anneliese gave the best tips they could to help Sophia grasp her power. Argrave once again borrowed the lens that bestowed [Minor Truesight] when empowered by magic, showing Sophia the turbulent forces that lie within her… yet nothing proved easy stimulation. This sent Sophia into a little bit of a depression. That depression helped her act more like Elenore, but hurt her everywhere else.

She never gave up, though, to her credit. Argrave and Anneliese tried countless different angles to help her grasp her power during the long voyage. They tried to teach her magic to give her a basis of the supernatural. Sophia was magically blessed, and managed to complete a simple F-rank matrix after a few days… but that proved more a distraction than a help. Visualization techniques caused nothing more than a headache for Argrave and Sophia both. For all the countless experience Anneliese and Argrave had calling upon powers other than their own, this was proving beyond them.

Until one peculiar night, that was.

#####

Sophia sat in her bed. She couldn’t sleep. Her throat hurt badly as she tried to cry in silence. The reason? Herself. She hated herself. She was useless, and even after two weeks, couldn’t be of any help to Argrave. He had taken her away from her father, had made nice people look after day after day, and the first thing he truly asked of her she was useless at.

She hopped off her bed, seeking the only thing she felt could comfort her. She opened her trunk and saw the toy knight that had once been her brother’s. She didn’t want to get tears on it, so she wiped her face away with a wet towel the nice people provided for her, took Mr. Knight, and walked back to the bed. She set him there, then stared as she crouched.

fighting, keep going. He would repay anybody, even Argrave. As she tried to harden her resolve by peering upon Mr. Knight, an idea came to her. A good knight

weeks. ‘You have the power to create, Sophia,’ Argrave had told her. Your power can create life. We’re not sure how, but we do

had placed up to her eye. Something beyond Sophia’s imagination had lurked within her—but rather than lurk, it was her. But if

he was. He was supposed to protect her and her brother. He had metal armor, could defeat anyone, and even though he always listened, he never said anything. She closed her eyes, thinking. Despite everything, she knew Mr.

against metal made her open her eyes in panic. And

need

#####

stared at a half-foot tall armored knight kneeling before

be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road.

fallen into a fairytale,” Argrave told Anneliese

She studied Mr. Knight—who was truly a mister, now, instead of a mere child’s fantasy. He looked like a very small person, well and truly. His armor was metal, his sword was sharp and functional, and his manner was impeccable enough

he speak?” asked

a vow of silence until the world is at peace. But he’s always listening if

the midst of her explanation, they looked at each other. A breakthrough had finally been found, after two weeks of painful struggle. And what they found was utterly frightening, yet completely fascinating. Just like

#####

intelligence was constrained by its small size. His strength wasn’t quite at the level Sophia bragged it at being. In simpler terms, he was constrained by physical laws. He could not be far stronger than his size, nor more intelligent than his brain feasibly could be. His personality, though, was precisely as Sophia dictated. Before everything else, Mr. Knight

princess who could make her toys come to life—not a wholly unique phenomenon in stories, certainly. It gave both Argrave and Anneliese tremendous trepidation about what was to come. Sophia quite literally created a life. Ethically, morally… what were these creatures? Should creation come so easily? It made life itself feel valueless,