Tales of the Pearly Kingdom (Pearly Tales Vol. 2)

31. The Captain's Power

Shayley chewed on her lip. She was excited to see her man in true action. Everything from storms of fire and ice to a blazing light and explosion. 

This is the power of Calloway Calphius. 

How much destruction could he wield?

The world had gunpowder and the sounds of both cannons and guns could be heard as they fired at Cal. It was used more exclusively in naval warfare or large scale battles since learning gunplay took just as much talent as swordplay. It hadn't replaced bows or crossbows since the developers had balanced it into the world. The main mechanic was that the size of the projectile determined the strength of the magic that could be harness. Long wooden shafts could contain more magic. And the only way to put a decent amount of magic into bullet was to use more expensive metals or gemstones.

Larger things like ships and city walls were more susceptible to the quick cascading attacks of cannon fire. Guns had their place too, but was more or less monopolized by the dwarves who had the most access to gunpowder and precious metals. But the noise from the cannons played a beat of destruction and every once in a while a rouge cannonball hit the barrier set up by Kadoka. Since she didn't have to maneuver the ship she could put up a minimum shape to conserve her magic.

Shayley wiped the perverted blood pooling from her nose so that it wouldn't drip onto Ophelia in her lap. It had been the better part of a day and still Cal fought. His reign of destruction had slowed to a crawl now that the weaker enemies being used as fodder had been destroyed.

"So this is the power of Brother Calloway?" Seamus mused playing with his staff.

"No," Shayley corrected. "This is the power of an adventurer. Back in the day I saw others who could do the same. Cal's power is truly frightening, but in the brightest days of North Wind Guild Cal was a drop in the sea. I knew wizards who could bring down fields of enemies with a single meteor spell, or warriors who could bring down giants with a single slash of their sword. I even knew of archers who could strike a speeding drake from a mile away through dense forest. Every one of them had a certain specialty in that regard. From the flashy to the precise. I faced and killed every one of them and slayed them all but one. He just happened to be a drop in the sea of conquerors in our small corner of the world. Imagine hundreds of thousands just like Cal, in the age of the guilds the culture of the world fate ebbed and flowed at the whimsy of the guilds."

"What was master's specialty?" Seamus asked. 

Shayley smiled. "Beasties. He took on the baddest most dangerous enemies from Great Ones to monsters, gods, dragons, you name it. Even me. He's the only one I've ever lost to, and he's beaten me twice in a row now. That Jackass." She giggled.  

"Is Master trying to start a new age of guilds?" Seamus asked.

Shayley giggled. "I guess if there were a man that could, it would be Cal. But I truthfully don't know what he is planning. But I do know it's going to be an adventure." She smiled.

"An adventure? Is that all he cares about?" Seamus sighed.

"Cal is a man of many masks, don't assume anything with him. In the same breath he can say he is a man of no consequence and change the very destiny of millions. And that's what I love about him. I think, that is what adventure is. Never really knowing the answer, but choosing who you want to traverse the storm with."

Shayley placed her hand on Seamus's leg. "Cal told me about you too, Timid."

Seamus's eyes widened in panic.

Shayley giggled, "but you are Seamus now. You will always have us. We are a family. I know you are looking for a familiar, but you might want to start thinking about finding your own companions soon." She teased. "Cal also tells me that you have the ladies lining up already." She poked his leg. "Or are you shy?"