April the 9th, naval time 12:25PM, Maki's perspective.

      Maki was still half asleep. Despite this she had limbered her way to her clothes basket and thrown on some clothes. With the heat she had planned not to wear a shirt, but the oddly modest male was there to whine at her some more. So she had dawned a shirt over the complaints of a small man over decent modesty, a concept she felt was hilarious.

      Ignoring him, she had left her room and descended the main branch of the tree until she came  upon some fisherman's quarters. The fisherman were always up bright and early, something Maki never wished to be a part of. Those girls would ready their spears and catch fish in the beginning of the day. Often their daughters would stay around and sell fish for their mothers. With the barter system being the main sense of economy amongst the Ryujin, Maki would have to trade for her breakfast.

      Shouta had been nearly ignored as he still sat hungry in the middle of his large cage. His talks on decency only seemed to rile a smile from his capturer. So he sat their waiting for the giant girl to come back. Taking his time he cleaned his pistol and sung a song his mother used to sing him.

      Maki enjoyed her breakfast completely forgetting about her guest. Spending time with her sisters was a good way to kill time. She often ate twice a day, it was common for the Ryujin to eat in morning and before bed. Sometimes one might skip breakfast though. Maki often did so due to her inactive life. Weaving was her job, but unlike fishing or fighting, or tree working, it required skill and little labor.

      When she finally returned an hour had already passed. She was still tired to an extreme, and was hot tired, and generally half awake.

      "Hey let me out of here already!" Yelled Shouta as the giant girl stumbled back in. His voice was muffled when a giant hemp like shirt landed atop his cage sealing him in darkness.

      It was so hot, Maki hated the morning, sweat trickled down her chest. Why had she chosen to wear a shirt? Her thoughts were still fuzzy and the food was making her even more tired. Peeling down to nothing she hoped back into her hammock bed.

      Shouta was still yelling when he heard another thing hit the top of his cage. This started to increase the heat of the cage quite considerably. The aroma and musk also started to hit him as the hemp sweat stained closed raised the humidity of his prison.

      Shouta stripped down to try and stay cool, and stopped even bothering to shout as he heard his capturer start to snore again. He doubted she could hear him through her clothing anyways. What really bothered him was she had left him now for nearly thirteen hours with no food or water since he had been caged. He had drank his canteen and food pack leaving his only source of water was bitter refuse. Collecting water from the larger beads of sweat which would drop down from the giant girl undergarment was his only source now. He wasn't even sure if it was safe to drink due to its sweaty smell.

      April the 9th, naval time 5:30PM, Sakuya's perspective.

      Sakuya and her sisters had been trudging through the sea as they made their way north to where she had first seen the demons appear. She was still only half way there. They had made idle conversation, but Sakuya was keenly interested in her sisters' tales. It had been a few years since she had been selected to go north with a bunch of her other sisters to live with her new mate. Yet there was no jealousy by her sisters, in fact some she had not seen since they were infants. They would never have been selected as infants. Even though she had been selected, she had yet to get the opportunity to mate with her mate. To this point it saddened her that she did not have child of her own yet, but as a warrior, it was expected. A male was more often likely to keep his richer girls closer to him. She was an extra he chose for his protection, not so much for her mating. Still she would eventually have her chance, she hoped.

      Traveling nearly over five and a half hours, or about five Ryujin miles the equivalent of five hundred human miles, Sakuya and her group had decided to take a break and visit a village to ask for gossip. In this case Sakuya was just being cautious with her mother's warning of the tree burning man that was spotted.

      With her sisters in tow Sakuya met the Wife of the village. She was much older than herself. She was a little heavy and appeared to be still in shape, but lacked recent muscle refinement. Her husband was not very close to be seen, but she could see his presence. Little men's clothing and other such faculties littered a side of the room, flowers adorned his current empty palace.

      "I'm currently heading north, and was wandering if you had heard any rumors about the north?" Asked Sakuya.

      The older woman grumbled as if it was not her place to ask.

      "Even if you did come north by Otohimes word, what right do you have to come straight to me, surely one of my daughters would have sufficed."

      "That might be true, but as the Wife of this village, surely you must here all the rumors?" Said Sakuya with both flattery and whit.

      "That is true." She blushed.

      "Just look at all the nice things you were able to afford your husband, surely you keep tabs with all your daughters for such things." Continued Sakuya's flattering attack.

      "My husband has an eye for such things, he's quite pretty." Gloated the wife.

      "Where may I ask is your husband right now?" Asked Sakuya with real interest.

      "He is out with one of his harem girls, he had a rough night last night."

      "Oh." Replied Sakuya, wandering what she meant.

      Before she could ask further a panicked knock tapped on the door.

      April the 9th, naval time 5:25PM, Maki's perspective.

      Maki awoke roughly lying on her stomach. It was very hot in her room, but she felt the wind on her exposed flesh. It was late morning. Going through the motions she hoped down from her bed with a creak from her cabin. She easily weighed 2000 tons on earth, but here a mere 1000 tons because of the gravity. Looking around she spotted her underwear draped over her man palace. She gasped a moment and pulled down her clothes unto the floor.

      "Are you alright?" she whispered down to the naked unconscious man. Opening her palace, she pulled out Shouta. Putting her second hand to her nose. He reeked like old dirty sweaty clothes. With no response from the small man, and feeling how hot he felt in her palm, she quickly spit into her hand rubbing the cool salvia all over his body nervously.

      Scared, and unsure what to do, Maki could only turn to her mother's experience. Shoving his things into her undergarments she cupped Shouta in her hands. Then carefully she made her way out of her room.

      April the 9th, naval time 5:30PM, Kenta's perspective.

      Kenta couldn't help but be bored with the Ryu no Yo's scenery. Every half hour or so they would see a tree in the distance, but otherwise it was just sea and tree pillars. Once he swore he saw a women with a spear off in the distance, but he largely ignored that. The fleet had traveled over two hundred and twenty miles without a single drop of land. For fresh waters sea's were concerned it was unheard of. Kenta doubted he would see land before the fleet turned back. Thankfully no hostiles had shown up either. A bird had been spotted once, but it made no hint at coming towards them.

      Still him, and other man included, kept on their guns. This world was dangerous, and unknown to them, and most of all to Kenta, exceedingly boring. The scenery never stopped getting duller for him. What he wouldn't do for something exciting to happen.

      The surveyors and navigational crewman found their jobs nearly as boring. Thankfully onboard compasses worked, and they were able to draw some fairly accurate maps, even if they were pretty rudimentary. This was their mission.. Some had even spent the last night mapping the stars, some couldn't believe the changes there. Yet some constellations seemed quite similar, it was like they were somewhere far away in the globe of the sky from home, yet somewhere nearby.

      April the 9th, naval time 5:35PM, Momo's perspective.

      This morning had been rough on Momo. She had to stay up a majority of the night to calm her husband's plight. With little sleep she now was being forced to attend to Othime's guard faction. They were lead by a very calm muscular woman named Sakuya. They had unknown business north and were being very nosy. She was glad her husband was staying with another woman today. Of course it had been arranged previously and even Jiro wanted to cancel. Mating with one of his harem girls in exchange for their meals was important, so Momo waved Jiro's rights.

      Getting ready to respond to Sakuya, Momo heard a panicked knock on her door.

      "Who is it now?" Asked Momo in a harsh tone.

      Sakuya stood there in silence, wandering what this was about.

      "It's me Maki, I think the man I saved yesterday is sick!"

      Momo tried to hide her anger. That man was not in her good graces, and she nearly wanted to kill him for how he treated her husband. Current company being the soldiers who might execute her for such thoughts or actions, had calmed her however. "Come in and show him to me."

      Maki stepped into the room, steeping around her mother's company. The room was crowded with eleven other girls. Many wielding crude spears and bark armor. Placing Shouta in front of her mother, Maki worried.

      Even if she didn't particularly like this odd male, if he died while under her care, by Ryujin law she would be executed. It didn't help matters further that she longed for a mate, even a pushy one like this.

      Momo carefully examined the young man poking and prodding him in front of her audience. Carefully she would gage his responses. "Maki have you even bothered to properly feed him and given him water?" Maki avoided eye contact with her mother like a small child would.

      "He suffered a heat stroke. Carefully let him rest in cool water until he can awake and eat and drink." Turning her head from her daughter she looked at Sakuya. "Don't you think Othime might be able to place this lost young man in his proper home again?"

      Sakuya looked at her, fathoming the thought a wife would give up a potential son, even if he was not really hers. Perhaps it was her presence, but it seemed like deep down that wasn't the case.

      Momo still wished to get rid of this human, but at best she could now only send him away.

      "I'm sorry but I'm unable to go back to Othime until after I fulfill my duty. So I cannot take the young man." Responded Sakyua.

      "Then one of my strong daughters.." Momo was interrupted.

      "I'll do it, let me do it please." Cried Maki.

      Momo looked over her weak daughter, a weaver, not a fighter, not even a fisher. In other words, she was not a high asset to the village.

      "Fine you can take him alone Maki." Maki jumped and clapped her hands.

      An audience with Othime and a chance at becoming a part of his harem was all she needed.

      Sakuya tried to interject. "It is unsafe for a single person to travel to Othime's, surely you must have stronger daughters you could send!?"

      Happy and slightly angered Momo responded to everyone in the room.

      "My husband will be coming back shortly so I need to tidy his palace, so everyone get out and go your ways!"

      With a slam of a door, the twelve girls exited Momo's room.

      All leaving their separate ways.

      April the 9th, naval time 9:30PM, Explorative fleet perspective.

      The explorative fleet had now traveled nearly four hundred miles. There had been no attacks, and the boilers had had zero problems with the whale oil. To those aboard the three ships in the fleet, it had been pretty boring. A cruise of sorts where everyone got a tan.

      But as they looked towards the sunset, a hulking menacing figure cast a looming shadow. Some seemed only able to speak a single word in response to it. Oni, the demon. The two horns on the figures head gave alarm to all as the smell of burning tar and oil wafted through the air. The black smoke billowing ahead of them.

To be continued.