The vacation lasted exactly forty-five minutes.
Jiang Fan was dozing in the hot spring, Empress Zhao Ling floating peacefully in his arms, when the water made a rude noise.
GLUG-GLUG-GLUG.
Like a bathtub with the plug pulled, the water level dropped rapidly. In ten seconds, they were sitting on wet, sulfur-smelling rock.
"My spa day," Jiang Fan whispered, staring at the empty pool with genuine heartbreak. "It's gone."
"The ground is shaking," the Empress said, gripping his shoulders.
She was right. The entire floating island was vibrating. Not the gentle sway of the wind, but a deep, rhythmic thumping coming from deep underground.
Gu Ling hovered over the edge of the inn's balcony in her flight-mode chair.
"We have a parasite," Gu Ling announced calmly.
"A parasite?" Jiang Fan asked, wrapping a towel around the shivering Empress.
"A Sky-Kraken," Gu Ling projected a hologram. "It has latched onto the underside of the island. It is draining the hydro-thermal core. If it finishes feeding, the island loses buoyancy."
She looked at them.
"We will fall out of the sky."
THE VALKYRIE HARNESS
Ten minutes later, on the launch deck.
"The tank is useless," the Empress said, looking at her massive war machine with frustration. "It's too heavy. If we drop it, it'll punch a hole through the island."
"Correct," Gu Ling welded a metal bracket onto a leather strap. "You need to be mobile. Jiang Fan will be the vehicle. You will be the turret."
Gu Ling presented the upgraded gear.
[ Item: The Valkyrie Harness ]
Core: Reinforced leather strapping connecting the rider's chest to the carrier's back.
Leg Braces: Rigid metal splints locking the rider's paralyzed legs to the carrier's thighs (preventing flailing during high-G turns).
Weapon: A Spirit-Railgun mounted on a gimbal arm attached to the shoulder, transferring recoil directly into Jiang Fan's spine instead of the Empress's weak core.
"It looks like a torture device," Jiang Fan noted, putting it on.
"It is a combat saddle," Gu Ling corrected.
Jiang Fan lifted the Empress. She was dressed in flight leathers to protect her skin from windburn. He backed her into the harness.
CLICK. SNAP. LOCK.
He secured her legs to his. He tightened the chest belt until they were essentially one organism.
"Can you breathe?" he asked, checking the buckles.
"Barely," she gasped. "But I'm locked in."
Gu Ling handed her the control grip for the shoulder-mounted cannon.
"The Kraken is underneath us," Gu Ling warned. "You will be fighting upside down. Disorientation is highly probable."
"Great," Jiang Fan sighed, stepping to the edge of the cliff. "I hate cardio. And I hate heights. Let's get this over with."
"Ready, Pilot?" the Empress whispered in his ear, her arms wrapped tight around his neck.
"Ready, Gunner."
Jiang Fan dove.
THE UNDERBELLY
They plummeted into the blue void. The wind screamed, tearing at their clothes.
Jiang Fan waited until the last second, then flared his Qi.
[ Sky-Walk: Active ]
He kicked off the air, spinning them around so they were flying up toward the bottom of the island.
The view was nightmarish.
The underside of the floating island was a jagged landscape of roots and rock. And clinging to the center was the Sky-Kraken.
It was massive—easily the size of the palace. Its skin was mottled grey and blue, blending with the sky. Ten massive tentacles were dug into the rock, pulsing with stolen red energy.
"Target sighted!" The Empress yelled, her voice vibrating through Jiang Fan's spine. "It's huge!"
"It's just calamari with an attitude!" Jiang Fan shouted back. "Hold on! Evasive maneuvers!"
A tentacle the size of a redwood tree swiped at them.
Jiang Fan banked hard left.
Because her legs were locked to his, the Empress didn't swing out. She moved with him, her body tilting in perfect sync. But her stomach lurched violently. Without the ability to feel her lower half, the sensation of spinning was nauseating.
"Focus, Ling!" Jiang Fan yelled. "Eyes on the target! Don't look down!"
She gritted her teeth, swallowing the bile. She gripped the cannon control.
"Eat lead, squid!"
ZZZ-CRACK!
The railgun on her shoulder fired. A beam of blue light tore through the sky, slicing into the Kraken's main body.
The monster roared—a sound felt more than heard. It released two tentacles from the rock to swat at the annoying fly buzzing around it.
THE DOGFIGHT
"Dive! Dive!" The Empress screamed as a tentacle came from above.
Jiang Fan cut his Qi. They dropped like a stone, the tentacle missing them by inches.
"Pull up!"
Jiang Fan engaged Sky-Walk, stepping hard on the air. Thump. The sudden stop drove the breath out of both of them. The recoil of the harness dug into the Empress's hips, but the padding held.
"I can't get a clean shot at the head!" she yelled. "It's protecting the beak with the tentacles!"
"Then we have to get closer!" Jiang Fan grunted, dodging a stream of black ink. "I'm going in!"
"You're crazy!"
"I'm the Lazy King! I want to go back to bed! The fastest way is through the middle!"
Jiang Fan accelerated. He flew directly into the writhing mass of tentacles.
It was a dance of death. Jiang Fan dodged left, right, up, down. He spun, he flipped.
The Empress held on for dear life. Her world was a blur of blue sky and grey flesh. Her paralyzed legs were just dead weight dragging on Jiang Fan, but he didn't complain. He compensated for her mass with every step.
"Now, Ling! The eye!"
They broke through the wall of tentacles. The Kraken's massive, yellow eye was right in front of them.
"Locking on!"
The Empress squeezed the trigger.
Click.
[ System Alert: Weapon Overheated. ]
"Jammed!" she screamed. "Jiang Fan, the gun is jammed!"
The Kraken saw them. It opened its beak—a gaping maw lined with razor teeth. It lunged to swallow them whole.
"We're too close!" she cried.
"Hold on tight," Jiang Fan said calmly.
He didn't retreat. He reached back with his right hand—the hand that had punched an Emperor.
He grabbed the Empress's thigh to brace her.
"System. Gravity Punch."
He didn't punch the monster. He punched the air in front of them.
BOOM.
A shockwave of compressed gravity shot out. It hit the Kraken's beak like a physical hammer.
The Kraken's head snapped back. It shrieked, releasing its grip on the island.
"It's falling!" The Empress shouted.
The massive beast peeled away from the rock, tumbling down into the endless clouds below, taking its stolen energy with it.
THE CRASH LANDING
"We got it," Jiang Fan panted, hovering in the air. Sweat was dripping down his face. "Now... the climb back up."
His Qi was low. Flying with a passenger during combat was exhausting.
He slowly, painstakingly climbed the air-steps back to the top of the island.
He crested the cliff edge and collapsed onto the grass of the inn's lawn.
He didn't land gracefully. He stumbled, knees buckling, and they both went down. Because she was strapped to his back, he twisted in mid-air to land on his side, protecting her from being crushed.
Thump.
They lay there in the grass, chests heaving, tangled in straps and leather.
"We..." The Empress gasped, staring at the sky. "We killed a Kraken."
"We annoyed a Kraken until it left," Jiang Fan corrected, trying to catch his breath. "Big difference."
He sat up. "You okay? Did the harness dig in?"
He began to frantically unbuckle the leg braces. He pulled up her pant leg.
Her knees were red where the metal had pressed against them during the high-G turns. The skin wasn't broken, but it was angry.
"Just friction burns," he assessed, touching the skin gently. "You didn't feel it?"
"I felt the wind," she whispered, her eyes shining. "Jiang Fan... I was upside down. I was spinning. And I didn't fall."
She grabbed his hand, pressing it to her cheek.
"You held me. Even when we were diving."
"I told you," Jiang Fan smiled, wiping grease from her cheek. "You're my backpack. I don't lose my luggage."
Gu Ling hovered over them.
"The thermal vents are restabilizing," she reported. "The hot spring is refilling. Also, you two look ridiculous."
THE AFTERMATH
An hour later, they were back in the hot spring.
The Empress was exhausted. The adrenaline crash had hit her hard. Her body felt heavy and unresponsive, more so than usual.
She leaned back against Jiang Fan's chest in the water, his arms keeping her buoyant.
"Jiang Fan?"
"Hmm?"
"My legs are jumping again."
Under the water, her legs were twitching—faint, rhythmic spasms caused by the intense physical stress of the flight.
"I know," Jiang Fan murmured. He moved his hands under the water, resting them heavily on her thighs to damp the tremors. "Just relax. The water will help."
She closed her eyes.
"I'm glad we came here," she said softly. "Even with the Kraken."
"Why? Because we almost died?"
"No," she turned her head to kiss his jaw. "Because for twenty minutes... I forgot I couldn't walk. I was just... flying."
Jiang Fan tightened his hold on her.
"Then we'll do it again. Next time, I'll install a cup holder on the harness."
The Empress laughed, a sleepy, happy sound.
"Deal."
[ System Alert: Relationship Level Up. ] [ Trust: Maximum. ] [ Title Acquired: The Sky-Bound Lovers. ]