As Sunny already knew, water was the optimal way of transporting cargo — and people — across vast distances. Human civilization had always made use of this property to its benefit.
The earliest paths of trade and cultural exchange, and therefore progress, were situated along great rivers, and later shifted to seas and oceans. That had led to many prominent civilization centers being situated along various coasts.
However, humanity had regretted that fact dearly when the water slowly crawled forward and devoured all those beautiful, important cities. Even worse, once the Nightmare Spell appeared, seas and ocean became infested by terrifying Nightmare Creatures.
For that reason, very few populous settlements were situated near water. The further inland they were, the better. Humans still needed to make use of the convenience that only the ocean could provide, though. For that reason, there were many fortified ports in each Quadrant.
Sunny was looking at one such port.
Even after experiencing the dread and grandeur of the Forgotten Shore and the Chained Isles, he could not help but feel a bit of awe. The port itself looked like an unassailable fortress, with tall walls rising from the water and various fortifications protruding far into the bleak waves.
Colossal cannons were aimed at the horizon, ready to bring down hell on anything that would dare to approach the crowded harbor. Various spelltech defensive measures brimmed with energy. He had no doubt that even more were hidden underwater.
…Much more impressive than the port itself, however, were the ships.
Sunny froze when he saw them.
Around forty metal leviathans were anchored along the shore, each more than a kilometer long and as tall as a castle. Their hulls bore such thick and heavy armor that it seemed strange for these mountains of steel to stay afloat. Some seemed shiny and new, but most bore deep, giant, ugly scars. Many armor plates were bent and corroded, while some were deformed by some unknown titanic blows.
Each ship possessed a plethora of armaments, ranging from heavy artillery cannons to rapid fire anti-air guns and snub-nosed mortars. Rows of rockets, missiles, and torpedoes could be seen in the hidden nests. The main cannons seemed especially fearsome, most of them resembling oversized railguns that stretched the whole lengths of the vessels.
Each of the railguns was capable of propelling a heavy kinetic round with such ferocious speed that barely any human structure would have been able to survive the impact. Maybe not even a whole district would.
The ships rested on the water like slumbering giants. Looking at them, Sunny couldn't help but shiver.
Humanity was accustomed to regarding the Awakened as their most deadly weapon, so it was easy to forget how mighty and destructive mundane people could be with the help of the right technology.
…Sadly, the technology grew less and less reliable against Nightmare Creatures of higher Ranks.
Fallen abominations could more or less shrug off the most devastating of bombardments, while Corrupted ones were capable of surviving nuclear blasts. Science couldn't explain the principles at work in these instances, but plenty of empirical evidence had been gathered, to ruinous results, during the early days of the Nightmare Spell.
So, despite how impressive the forty steel leviathans looked, Sunny knew that the ships alone were not enough to brave the ocean. Unless they were complimented by Awakened fighters and guided by a Nightwalker navigator, even these floating juggernauts weren't capable of surviving the journey to a different Quadrant.
Still, Sunny couldn't help but admire the silent majesty of them.
'One thing is certain… that train is nothing, as it turns out.'
As he stared at the fleet, a familiar voice suddenly called out to him:
"Hey, Sunny! Welcome to our small port."
He turned his head slowly.
Master Jet had not changed much. She was still the same — confident, beautiful, with raven black hair and cold, icy blue eyes. Her usual uniform was gone, though, replaced by a deep blue military trench coat.
There was a satisfied smile on her lips.
The crowd of people parted as she walked closer and glanced at the anchored ships.
"Impressive, aren't they?"
Sunny lingered for a moment, then nodded.
"Yeah… now that I see them, I am starting to understand how we are going to evacuate eight hundred million people from Antarctica."
Soul Reaper shook her head.
"Don't be so sure. This is just one of the several convoys that is going to sail to the Southern Quadrant. They are going to deliver the First Evacuation Army to Antarctica, load up a few millions of refugees, and sail back. If everything goes well, by the time the ships return, the mobilization would have already started.
The fleets will bring us reinforcements, take more civilians aboard… and repeat the process as many times as it takes."
She sighed.
"Of course, there's more or less zero chance that everything will go well. Even if it does, it will take us at least a year to gather everyone… if we are still alive by then. Who knows, maybe we will be all overwhelmed and devoured by abominations in the first few months."
Sunny glanced sideways at her, his expression bleak.
"...You really know how to raise morale, you know?"
Master Jet grinned:
"Ah, don't be so serious. In any case, I am really glad that you decided to join the party, Sunny. I really need someone who I can trust by my side. Don't get me wrong, my other subordinates are all honorable and accomplished warriors… but they're not you."
He blinked a couple of times.
"I didn't know I was so special."
She looked at him, then shrugged and started walking away, prompting Sunny to follow.
"It takes a certain kind of person to face the very depths of despair, and still continue to fight. You are one such person, Sunny."
Soul Reaper glanced at him, then added in a voice that was devoid of any humor:
"...And we will all experience a lot of despair in the coming months. I have a feeling."