Preparations (Part 1)

The 25th chapter of the Crusaders of the Constellations novel, it is the first part of a long chapter. It's about the students going to explore the Realms.

## Story

After January, the students are all abuzz with the excitement of defeating the Devourer of Worlds. Samson and the students in technology and engineering were at work on the Dimensional Shuttle and the Dimensional Wayfarer for the last two weeks. The two groups of the Sun and Mercury have recently come back from dimensional volunteer work, namely, being medics to the inhabitants of the 458th dimension. Some of the students who joined were Asclepius, a top student in medicine who was chosen by King Athos to be the medic for the expedition. Ranald received some medical training from him during his volunteer time.

"Are you worried about the mission at all?" Asclepius asked Ranald. "I have my worries, but I don't dwell on them too much," he said. He talked to Baby Little, which intrigued Asclepius. Heike walked up to the young doctor and said, "That's a coping mechanism for those who have suffered from the pain of a lonely childhood. He has forged great connections with his friends. Now, call him to follow us to meet the king," Asclepius called Ranald to join Heike and him to meet King Athos. They walked to the Research and Development Labs, where the miniature teleporters were being researched on and tested, and things were made. There, King Athos told them about how he intends to spearhead the expedition. He planned for the Dimensional Shuttle in Train Mode to carry all twelve student guides of Ranald, Asclepius, and of course, Ranald and Mayari, as well as the camping tents (each is for a Solar System Planet, with the Sun and Moon included), food and supplies. The rest will go onboard the Dimension Wayfarer, with Husdent and Cerynitis being the guards or assistance or something, and those who can sail ships at the helm will steer the Wayfarer. Athos told them that they will get to see what the Realms look like. "You have heard of them in class, but this is your chance to be there in person," he said. Ranald's eyes filled with wonder at what the Realms would look like. He imagined himself wandering them, and was reminded of his second home in Dreamland.

At the Cosmos Observatory's garage, Bai Tu and Delmare wished Ranald and Mayari a safe trip with his friends. Ranald wished their time on the Dimensional Wayfarer well too. Now the Dimensional Shuttle has upgraded to laser cannons, as well as an in-built energy shield. Before boarding the Wayfarer, Husdent went to the principal's office and activated the defences of Aether World Cosmic University, forming a sapphire-blue energy shield around it. Asclepius also has a pet robot snake that he carried to the Dimensional Shuttle. When not in use, it wraps around his neck, like a steel necklace. Ranald sat behind the Shuttle's seat, with Mayari, Kanya and Aqua. As the journey's long, they decided to take a nap in the car. Mayari at least carried her schoolbag, and took out an iPod, and listened to classical music with it. Perhaps Ranald would practise against nightmare monsters in Dreamland first before facing the Devourer of Worlds and his servants. "Ladies and gentlemen, we're going to them Realms for a tour first before heading off to the Dark Side of the universe to defeat the Devourer of Worlds, or the Void Serpent if you want. We will see amazin' sights and explore, and remember to stay close to the king and anyone old enough to lead you. Maybe we'll find some treasure. So let's take off!" Samson announced. Meanwhile, at the Dimensional Wayfarer, Autahi and Kohi turned on the ship engines, and Schiff went to the steering wheel, and on the steering wheel, there is a holographic map of the university and the Realms, just like in the Dimensional Shuttle's driver's seat. He steered the ship's wheel

At least the island where Aether World Cosmic University is near the Realm of the Sun. The Realm is bathed in eternal sunlight from the time the founder of the kingdom of Aether World led his people here, to the time of the students. Samson woke the passengers up, for the Shuttle and the Wayfarer have arrived on the Realm of the Sun. Ranald woke up and walked out from the spacecraft into a bright land full of sunlight. "That's Golden!" he exclaimed. "And beautiful too," said Mayari. The other students walked around after pouring out from the ship. King Athos told them about the landscape of the Realm of the Sun, and that there used to be a castle there, but it is now in ruins. Ranald asked him if he can go there. "Why yes of course, just be sure to be back as soon as possible, and bring someone along with you," Athos said. Ranald and Mayari went to explore the castle ruins, while the others went to explore the forest there. Bai Tu, Phrixus, Chyrsomallos, and Delmare went to Adlaw Forest. inside, there were deer, lions, rabbits, and a lot of animals. Bai Tu upon seeing the lions hid in the bushes,  but Phrixus calmed him down and assured them that they are harmless. "They aren't man-eating, at least." They went to the Plain of Dreams where there were sheep grazing. Phrixus and Chrysomallos were glad, and watched the flocks, while their friends just watched. Kibahime went to the Claritas River and met Azar playing with a phoenix by its banks. "A new friends you have here, eh?" the fox spirit asked. "Of course. He's quite lonely in here. I wonder what can I call him," Azar spoke thoughtfully. Kibahime turned into her nine-tailed fox spirit form and approached the phoenix carefully, eyes brimming with curiosity. The phoenix flew past her, moulting some feathers, which Azar picked up and placed in her embroidered bag. "Phoenix feathers heal both light and grievous injuries," the nomad girl said, "They will be useful in the journey." Kibahime nodded and ran off to meet the rest of her friends.

Ranald and Mayari though explored the castle ruins. They went to the library, the hospital, and now, they were in the main hall. Ranald saw a huge stele borne by a stone turtle. It's blank save for the carvings of two griffins at the top of the stele. "Perhaps for Aether World, the griffin is the symbol of the Sun," Mayari whispered. Ranald looked at it and touched the stele, which glowed goldenly. As soon as his hand touched the surface of the stele, his head was filled with visions of warriors in fantastic armour with Chinese characters on their chests and wielding celestial weapons, fighting monsters and demons alike. "My Dear Father's wings! What is going on in there!" he gasped in shock and fell to the ground. Mayari helped him up and told him that he may be seeing visions from the future. They went into the observatory, the only part of the castle left standing, and looked around for some artefacts. Ranald saw a broken box and wondered what kind of objects could fit in there. "Perhaps the Devourer of Worlds stole them, and we will get them back," he said. The two students went to meet King Athos, who told them that the students will camp on the Realm of the Sun, and after that, they will do the same thing, and so on until they end up at the Devourer's base.

The tents were set up, and the students rested in there. Ranald looked up from the tent window and asked Baby Little if he ever tried to count all the stars. 'No, only God can. Besides, have you ever wondered what it was like in here before their civilization was destroyed?' Baby Little asked. "It's probably like any city on Earth, but way more advanced. But it was unfortunate that such a disaster fell upon it," Ranald said. He thought of what King Athos told him about the visions he saw when he touched the stele in the castle ruins: Not to be too confident or too disheartened by what he saw.

The next day, they packed up, and the two spacecraft sailed past the Mountain of Hope, which is the source of Claritas River. "The river flowing from there nourishes the other realms," Husdent said on the Wayfarer. Now the Wayfarer's deck was protected by a bubble that gives air to those within it. They went to the Realm of Mercury. They saw the ruins of the palace of brass that Odin went to explore, while the rest explored the Canyons of Wit, and the ruins of a post office. There was a river flowing from the nearby Claritas River into the Realm, splitting into a delta. Ranald met his friends to explore the brass palace ruins and went back with some old books. "We must never let this knowledge disappear. I will copy it all down in a book and put it in the university library," Athos said. Asclepius found some herbs in the palace gardens and placed them in a container, for he planned to make some healing potions when they came on the Realm. "Be careful, the environment can change in a sudden moment. We'd better hide in the tents," the doctor said. They went into the tents to rest for a while, only for a storm to broke out after. They saw that Bai Tu was drenched in the rain, with Delmare forming a water shield over Kibahime and Phrixus. Chrysomallos followed along, his golden fleece being drenched in the waters too. "That was unexpected," Phrixus said panting, as he met Ranald. "Yep. The weather can change all of a sudden. Adapting to it is the key to survive," Ranald said. He handed his friends a towel to dry himself and the rest with.

After their camping at the Realm of Mercury, they went to the Realm of Venus. It was so beautiful that when they stepped out of the two spacecraft, they were dazzled. King Athos allowed them to explore the place, provided that they don't stay there for too long. Delmare went to the Lake of Beauty and Splendour, which is near the ruins of a marble and white brick palace, to rest with the other females. Argus went to the lake to admire his reflection there, only for King Athos to tell him that it reveals the inner beauty of anyone gazing into it. Huang He joined the elf by the lake, and soon both students squabbled about who's more handsome and smart. "If I drink the waters of the Lake of Beauty and Splendour, will I be more beautiful?" Delmare asked Anahita. There's also a forest, called Most Beautiful, where the rest could relax and walk around. Nearby the lake was a mountain called Venusburg. "Has anyone lived there before?" Ranald asked Cerynitis, who was eating the grass near the mountain. "I don't know for sure, but there's a grotto in there," she pointed out. He went into the grotto and found some precious stones. Mayari took a huge moonstone and kept it. Ranald declined to take the gems found in the grotto, though he offered to explore the castle ruins with Mayari. "Alright then," she said cheerfully. They went in the castle ruins, and can't help but notice that it still smelled of perfume even after being destroyed. They found some well-preserved paintings and went out with some treasure, such as a preserved lotion, and some jewellery. Ranald could only find rats and weak nightmare monsters in there that were killed off by them. They went to meet the rest of the students. Anahita was given some jewellery by Ranald as he preferred his golden locket above them all. She was happy as a nymph could be. Samson found some crystals and told the students that too many of them could slow down the Wayfarer and the Shuttle. Husdent found some rare metals such as Glitter Gold, White Pearl Steel, Celestial Copper, and more they can use to upgrade the spacecraft. They decided to camp in the Realm of Venus before setting off.

The next day, the students packed up, taking care not to leave anything behind. They boarded the spacecraft, which flew to the Realm of Earth. As Claritas River, which flows beside the Realms is quite big, the Dimensional Wayfarer sailed on it. The Shuttle remained in space. They flew to the Realm of Earth, above the planet Earth itself. Once they stepped on its soil, the students felt invigorated by the super-fresh air they breathed. The Realm of Earth is a floating island resembling untouched nature in all its splendour and wonder. Dinosaurs and other wildlife that are either on Earth or were extinct can be found roaming the Primal Woods. In the sea called Thalassa, many fish and sea creatures can be found. Wallfisch went with Delmare there to go fishing. "Biodiversity in this place is high," Onuava explained to her group. Yeomsoo spotted a mountain and went climbing it to get a good view of the Realm. Ranald and Phrixus explored the ruins of the Tellurian Palace. "King Athos said something about the Realms taking on the qualities of the planets they float above. Like this one. The Realm of the Moon even revolves around it," Phrixus said. He and Ranald went to the ruins of the Tellurian Castle. It was a huge fortress before the fall of the Aether World reduced it to rubble. Inside the fortress, there was what used to be a garden, but now overgrown with weeds. There were also ancient trees in the garden. Ranald picked some fruit from some of the trees, and Phrixus went gathering some papers found in the abandoned greenhouse. On examination, they were found to be on botany. Ranald advised handing the papers to bring Athos upon exiting the ruins.

The Tellurian Palace Ruins also has an interesting layout, for the garden is at the centre of the palace. It is arranged according to the four seasons of the planet Earth. The throne room, where the duo found some Emeralds of Life, was decorated with cobwebs and cow statues. When Ranald and Phrixus exited the ruins, they headed to the camp, where they shared the spoils with the rest of the students. Asclepius's robot snake scanned some of the treasure and the doctor discovered that he can make some potent drinks that the students can carry on their journey and that he can teach Ranald to make, such as the Energizing Coffee, the Bittersweet Healing Drink and more. Bai Tu brought some plants he dug up in rabbit form, while Wallfisch and Delmare brought some fish. They camped and rested for the day.