Chapter 334: Intercepting the Exchange

For the first week, their travel went exactly as smoothly as the first time. Zae Zin Nim grumbled that they had to walk or catch rides, but they couldn't justify drawing attention to themselves and needed to save the diamond star for emergencies. Even in its modified form, it might still be remembered by one of their many enemies.

Until they acquired the lizardkin queen egg, they needed to keep as low a profile as possible. Zae Zin Nim had strongly pushed for them to reach the Kama Altar early, but it simply wasn't possible to make it work given the distances they needed to cross. Instead they spent the time investigating the region again.

The Commonwealth wasn't quite as peaceful as it had been before, with fewer merchants and far less foreign trade. What worried him more were the new fortresses that seemed to be run by freshly-created demonic arts users. Unlike the true demons, who didn't care about most people, these new predators were happy to prey on the civilians around them. It frustrated Kai to ignore so many injustices and he had to remind himself staying secret was his only way to make a difference.

By the time of the supposed exchange, they were in range and had a strong sense for the region. At least there was no question of the exact location: the queen's egg was being exchanged under the guise of a normal mercantile transaction, so they could see it being set up. If he hadn't heard from the elven spies, he never would have known anything strange was going on.

Well, maybe there was too much security. The exchange was happening in a small town, yet both sides had armored flying wagons. One was dressed entirely in white and gold Commonwealth armor that didn't fit exactly right - presumably the buyers.

On the other side he saw a group of demons, demonic arts users, and merchants from the CTG. He thought none of them were particularly strong or dangerous until he saw Anaelina among them. Damn, he just couldn't get away from her. Kai considered trying to target her if it came to a fight, but he wasn't sure if she'd prepared anything new to use against him.

Meanwhile, Omilaena had been examining the buyers more carefully. Eventually she whispered "Damn" and lowered her goggles.

"What is it?" he asked.

"The ones posing as soldiers? They're a faction from the Flaeren Dominion, or doing an amazing impression."

"How can you tell?"

"They're wearing Commonwealth armor, but they have specialized Flaeren armor in their souls. It's not just like cheap equipment you could steal, it's an ability they build up over time." Omilaena waved the question aside. "That doesn't matter. What's worrying is that they shouldn't be here buying the egg. Either they want to use it against the lizardkin or, worse, they want to defect from the Dominion and join them. Either would be just cause more chaos."

"But what we need to do doesn't change either way, right?" Kai asked. "We grab the egg and run."

"Right, but wait until you know for sure where it is. The demons have a hundred identical spatial rings and I'm betting they're all traps except the real one. The plan should work, but we need to hit at the last possible second. I'll go get ready."

Despite all the spycraft and preparation that had led them to this moment, the actual plan wasn't complex. Basically smash and grab thuggery, just at a very high level. As soon as they had the spatial ring, they'd escape into the Commonwealth and lead everyone after them. That should definitely spread chaos, especially as both sides learned more about what happened.

Ideally they were supposed to get the lizardkin queen's egg back to her, but Kai didn't think the elves actually cared about that as much. That was just grim politics, he guessed.

Zae Zin Nim prepared the diamond star at a safe distance while Omilaena sneaked through the perimeter to plant her trap. Kai didn't have another role in the preparations, so he watched closely as the two sides came together.

From a distance he couldn't hear what they said, but they seemed to be negotiating. The Dominion side started by putting forth a large number of Crests, then increased the number several times before placing them back in a spatial ring. That apparently wasn't enough, because they added some chakra fruit and other items before the deal was finally struck.

One of the many spatial rings on the other side was brought forward and a large egg removed from it. The Dominion side seemed very excited and used some sort of identification ability before returning it to the ring. That meant the deal was almost done and Kai worried that Omilaena had been too late.

Then one of the wagons crashed to the ground, acid burning through its outer layer. Both sides jumped and accusations began flying between them. In the center, the negotiators started to withdraw the spatial rings to hide them amongst the decoys.

It just looked like a potion to him, albeit one in a fancy curved flask with an unusually strong seal. But both of the others stared at it immediately.

"What is that?" Zae Zin Nim asked.

"It's called the Ape Titan's Ambrosia." Omilaena took the flask almost reverentially. "Chakra, qi, and mana in perfect balance. It can expand the soul beyond the 999 Power barrier, but what's exceptional is that it's not limited - it can help anyone break through."

"If we stole something that valuable," Kai said as he put everything into his own spatial ring, "then we should get moving."

They ditched the unnecessary rings in one direction and began walking due west, trying to put distance between themselves and the theft without drawing attention. Yet it seemed obvious that his companions hadn't moved beyond thoughts of what they'd stolen. Both of them were still in the 800s, but they had to be thinking about the next steps. Given some of the major jumps they had ahead of them, the 999 Power barrier might be coming sooner than they thought.

"I'm closer," Zae Zin Nim argued. "It only makes sense for me to take it."

"Only with your Heavenly Sash, and I don't think that counts," Omilaena said.

"But we're in the middle of Rosemount, with chakra on all sides. Where else am I going to find intense enough qi to break the barrier?"

"Let's not fight now," Kai told them. "Neither of you need it immediately, so can't we wait?"

Zae Zin Nim regarded him thoughtfully. "I suppose there's an argument that you should take it. Both of us know sources of chakra or qi that can break the barrier - they're rare, but they exist. Whereas we don't know what you need. This might be your best chance."

Kai considered the argument carefully and looked at the golden flask in his spatial ring. But in the end he shook his head. "My human side is still a long way from the barrier. If we can't find this sort of thing more easily by the time I reach that point, we're not advancing fast enough. We'll save this for whichever of you needs it more."

Neither seemed happy with that compromise - apparently their cooperation reached its limits before it came to extraordinarily rare advancement materials. Kai hoped that they'd be able to find more resources or come up with a better solution by the time it became relevant.

For a day it seemed like they'd gotten away with their theft and had free rein in the Commonwealth. But then Zae Zin Nim sensed a pursuer on the horizon and their concerns focused down to their grim situation again.

"I think I sense Anaelina with them," Zae Zin Nim said. "Could she still have a link to you, Kai?"

"I severed that in Rayakan," he argued, "and she never tracked me again. What are the chances that they're just spreading out to look everywhere?"

"I doubt it," Omilaena said from behind her goggles. "They followed us - not our original path, not the decoy rings. I don't see how they could have a tracker in anything we stole, but we have to assume they're able to track us somehow."

"Then what are we waiting for?" Zae Zin Nim had summoned the diamond star again and was already leaping into it. "No choice but to escape."

They began to fly again, low to the ground and zigzagging in case their opponents hadn't really identified them, but their pursuers kept pace. Eventually they had no choice but to push straight west as fast as they could... and the demons were still gaining on them.

Of course it couldn't be that easy. Kai grinned as he realized the elves were going to get way more chaos than they had asked for.