Battle at Sea

The tail end of Shiki's shout of "Attack!" was still spinning in the night wind when the clouds above the Aedes Sea split apart to either side.

The clouds themselves seemed to be driven away by some invisible force. Starting directly above the narrow channel, they slowly receded north and south, opening a straight, blade-cut gap.

The cloudbanks along the edges still churned, backlit by moonlight and shining with a cold, almost metallic silver-white sheen.

Within that gap, a ship made entirely of gold slowly descended.

Its prow emerged from the clouds first, like the tip of a golden spear pointing down at the sea from above.

Then came the hull. The rows of Dials along both sides of the bulwarks emitted an extremely faint blue glow in the night, as though some living thing inside the ship was breathing.

The nozzles of the large Breath Dials beneath the ship continuously expelled white vapor. The airflow pressed down upon the sea, forcing the already narrow waters between the reefs on either side of the channel even lower. Seawater squeezed from the gaps in the rocks, letting out a deep, mournful sound like a whale surfacing for air.

"That is..."

Gaban removed the pipe clenched between his teeth. The dim red ember in its bowl flickered once in the darkness.

His gaze locked onto that golden ship, then onto the figure standing at its prow. His jaw tightened for an instant before relaxing again.

Rayleigh stood by the bulwark, his right hand having rested loosely on the hilt at his waist. His fingers unconsciously tightened.

The Ark Maxim descended to the same height as Shiki's flagship. One ship stood to the left and the other to the right, sealing off the air above the narrow channel completely.

Annus stood at the