"What sort of deal did you have to make to get invited back in there?" Derrin asked pointedly.
Red paused and turned back. They had nearly reached the sand pit, and he was hoping that Derrin could give him some answers. Everything was coming to a head. In a day's time, the Pirate King would return, and Silas would be going into the lion's den. That was likely their last chance. If Silas's summon failed, then all hope was lost. Whatever that meant.
"You're assuming that I had to make a deal?" Red retorted, "How do you know I didn't just show up?"
"Even you're not that crass."
"I wouldn't count on that."
"Me neither."
"So, this is going to end soon, isn't it? I mean, after Silas gets a message out, then it's only a matter of time. Right now, the pirates are trying to buy time, but if we flip that situation, then we win, right?"
"That's assuming we don't die first," Derrin agreed, "It all comes down to this deal that was made."
"Speaking of which, I've been meaning to ask you, what did Zara mean by trading marks? I heard her conversation with the pirate king, and I still don't understand what they're talking about."
"Oh, so that's how you got back in there…"
Red gave him a flat look.
Derrin sighed, "To explain it simply, marks are the power that comes from Montrel. As you already know, each sea gives a person different powers. In Valencia, those powers have to do with your body and enhancing yourself. For example, Zara can enhance her eyes to do things no ordinary person can. That's why she can see in the dark as well as other things."
"That makes sense, I guess. And then, are there different ways for a person to manifest their power?"
"Exactly. In Valencia, you are manifesting your powers within your body. In Montrel, you are manifesting your powers in someone else."
"In someone else?" Red laughed, "How does that work? Zara would steal someone's eyes or something."
"Yes," Derrin replied plainly.
"Wait, you're serious? That's a dumb question."
"When you mark someone, you are able to directly affect that person with your power. So your guess about Zara is mostly accurate. I don't know the details, but yes. These can be friendly effects, such as being able to enhance an ally's sight. Or, in Zara's case, they can be used to spy on an enemy. Either way, they are both extremely beneficial."
"That being said, marks are often subtle. While it's fairly obvious when someone is using an enhancement from Valencia, when someone is marked, it is very hard to tell. You might not even notice that you have been marked until it is too late."
Red sniffed, "Compared to Valencia, this all seems rather convoluted."
Derrin chuckled, "That's probably exactly what they would think about your own powers. You would be the convoluted one. Regardless, marks are far more applicable when you have people working with you than if you are fighting by yourself."
"So can you mark people?"
He shook his head, "That is one of the unfortunate aspects of my disability. Without a heart, it is impossible to hold a mark on anyone because the mist wouldn't have anywhere within me it views as home. For a normal person, their mist returns to them because it views them as home. My mist doesn't do that, and therefore, I can't utilize marks."
"Maybe you could use an enhancement or something like that?" Red mused.
"Who knows, I doubt I'll ever be unlocking more layers to my mistheart though."
"Okay, then one other thing. Silas mentioned something about a summon. Is that another ability?"
Derrin nodded, "Summons are a manifestation of your own mist. They are much less known about because they aren't from one of the big three seas, Valencia, Montrel, or Gaelic. The ability to manifest your mist into a summon comes from StormVale."
"Isn't that the sea that is constantly raining?"
"The very same, yes. Why do you think barely anyone lives there? Those that do hardly ever venture out of the sea, and I have heard that most of them are half crazy. Don't quote me on that, though, I haven't actually been there."
"Anyways, summons. Summons can be pretty much anything. I know Zara has one, but I've never seen it. However, I have seen Silas's, and it is the best example I can give. His summon is a massive rock golem. It's like ten feet tall and is just a monstrosity. That is a summon."
"That seems like an exaggeration. How does that even work? Wouldn't that drain a huge amount of his mist?"
"It does. That's why he only uses it in desperate situations. Like this one. He should be able to summon the golem as a miniature thing. Then he can send the thing to activate the monitor and send our message. It'll be difficult, that's for certain, but I have seen that thing in action, and as long as Silas's doesn't die before the mission is complete, then it'll be fine."
"Well, it does seem like we actually have a chance for the first time since we've arrived on this island. We might actually win this entire thing."
"Don't say that too soon," Derrin reprimanded as they finally reached the sand pit, "You already have experienced enough war to tell how chaotic things can get at a moment's notice."
"Well, by the time that happens, I should actually be prepared."
"Finally finishing up on that weird thing you've been making, are you?" He asked.
Red narrowed his eyes. Derrin was many things. However, an engineer was certainly not one of them. Of all the things Red had spoken with him about, he had practically gone cross-eyed at the mention of engineering.
"It's a shielding device. It is pretty self-explanatory if I do say so myself…"
"That's why you're not talking to me about it, isn't it. You don't think I would understand."
"There is no thinking about it, Derrin. I know that you wouldn't understand. It's the same thing with me and swordfighting. Everything goes straight over my head."
"Hey, I wouldn't say that. You've definitely improved," He said half-heartedly.
"Definitely improved…my ass. The only thing that changed is that I don't almost cut my fingers off when I swing the damn thing."
"That is still an improvement, though. I took me years to understand the way of the sword. You need to understand that the blade belongs to you, it connects to you, it is part of you. You just need to focus on your honor…"
"I've heard enough!"