We didn't stop, not at all. Our boat moved through the water at speed day and night; while I rested Chien drove it, while he slept I did. Isha might not have been too good at propelling us but she still pulled her weight, we didn't want for tasty snacks or a properly set up sleeping area. Her skills might not excel in combat, but when it came to supply she beat me soundly.

  “Do you think they'll be okay?” Isha asked me as I lay down to rest three days in.

  “Probably,” I answered. “With only one leader left most people should fall in line now.”

  “And those that don't?”

  I frowned a bit, unsure what exactly would be the right answer. There were a few options, a few ways things could go, but honestly I didn't really care. That in mind I decided to go with the truth.

  “Might be bad for them. If they're smart they might leave, or they might fight, but honestly I hope they manage to find some peace regardless. We should leave it though, it's not our business unless they decide to come and make it our business.”

  “Hmm, people do like to stay near where they were born,” she observed.

  Thinking back on it I realized she was right. Even now I hated being away from Atal and my home, hated it with every fiber of my being. That was odd wasn't it? Back on Earth I hadn't had such worries or concerns, it had seemed normal to me, going off to college or moving wasn't that big a deal, but it was here.

  Chien and Isha weren't as vocal, but I got the feeling they didn't love it either, and there were almost no merchants, even fewer that went between regions. Each little country/city-state were independent, unwilling to spread. Even those elves that had been stuck in the far north hesitated to run south when a spot opened up they could easily take.

  “What's that look,” Isha asked.

  “We hate moving around,” I muttered. “That's bad.”

  She quirked an eyebrow at me. “Why?”

  This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

  “My inventions aren't going to spread at any real rate, nor will new things come back to me.”

  “How horrible, you'll just have to do more inventing yourself.”

  “No, we need people to trade, to go out and think of new ways of doing things, and to bring those new ways between cities.”

  “Justin, you're hardly making any sense. Why would we need that?”

  “Imagine if no traders ever came to a village,” I said.

  “Okay, that would be unfortunate, but it's not like they're really needed.”

  From her perspective she was right, a village could live without others coming, or coming very infrequently. The village where we were born didn't get them often after all, at least not before I began working copper. Most of them could make the basics themselves.

  “But copper never spreading, nor steel, nor new ways to do magic.” As I spoke she shrugged. “We need to do something about that.”

  With a frown she closed in on me, her face right next to mine. “You made a promise to me,” she growled. “We're not going off on another fool trip for some time.”

  I nearly laughed at her reaction, but checked myself quickly. If there was anything I'd learned about women over the years it was that not taking them serious when they were was a recipe for disaster, that and telling them to calm down.

  “No love, we're not, but I need to keep that in mind. Maybe set things up for other people to do it.”

  Isha gave a jerking nod. “Good, just regulate those ideas of yours.”

  Regardless of what I told her the thought concerned me. I needed to know if this was something ingrained in our race or merely a function of the fact that we aged weirdly and so became a bit sedentary by the time we were strong enough to move about. Because it was a fact that the transfer of information built societies, and I certainly had a society to build.

  “So,” I asked, trying to change the subject to one she'd prefer. “Been thinking of names?”

  Isha blushed. “Well, a bit, if a boy after my father, if a girl after your mother, how does that sound?” she asked as she cuddled up next to me, nibbling at my ear.

  “Works for me,” I replied as I kissed her.

  “I swear,” Chien added from the front. “If you two start fucking while I'm trying to steer I will stop this boat. It's one thing if you're in private, but quite another when you're out in the air.”

  We both had a good laugh at that, but he seemed serious. Perhaps the fact that we'd been a bit separated from the populace in our last city had irked him a bit.

  “We need to find you a girl for yourself,” Isha said.

  “I'm quite good just borrowing them thanks. Whatever would you do if I came home all silly in the head because some girl had gotten me like a bird in a snare?”

  “Laugh?” I suggested.

  “Exactly, not really the most useful thing for us to be doing now is it? At least one of us needs to keep his head on straight.”

  “And you're the voice of reason now?” Isha teased.

  “Darling Isha, I've always been the voice of reason. Now sometimes that reason will laugh at you, and sometimes it likes to chase skirts, just to relax. That's just for fun though, not for anything more.”

  “Chien, if you give some girl a child and abandon her...” Isha began to threaten.

  “Then I'll be just like my father, but don't worry if I find out I've fathered a child I'll make sure they don't starve or suffer.”

  That response hardly inspired confidence in me, but it was something. No family courts here, no child support or anything like that. Honestly I wasn't even aware of anyone around who could trace family lines, though that should be possible with magic if I was understanding the bio-magic people like my mother had.

  “If you do let me know, I'll be happy to make sure the kid gets a proper education,” I offered.

  At that our current skipper looked back and nodded slightly, looking thoughtful.