The morning sun peaked through the curtains, casting a new light in the room. The golden hue of the sunrise peered its way onto the naked bodies of the pair who remained sprawled in the silk sheets of their bed. The light finally made its way to the face of the man to awake him as his eyelids gradually started to open. He then slowly turned his head to glance at the woman who remained asleep. As the man sat up in bed and massaged his scratched back while yawning, he noticed an unfinished drawing of the naked woman on the table nearby and reached for it.

The woman slowly awoke and became aware of the man drawing her. She smiled and seductively lowered the silk sheet to reveal her fully naked body. The man grinned and focused intently on his drawing as the woman started to giggle.

Later that morning, the pair walked down a private alleyway from the home they slept in near the ports. The woman wore a hooded cape that draped down to the floor on top of her white dress as the man was dressed in royal apparel. They stopped towards the end of the alley as they wished not to be spotted together.

The woman told the man she was to continue on her voyage and reminded him of the open invitation to join her, but the man refused after again explaining his promise to marry another. She gifted him a gilded pendant and gracefully wrapped it around his neck. The betrothed man’s eyes glazed over hers as they both went in for a long kiss. The woman slowly unsealed her lips from his and pushed herself off his body. She began walking from him with her eyes still gazing at his, until she finally looked away, turned the corner, and disappeared.

The man stood, stunned with what had happened since the last sunset. Moments went by until he finally unfroze himself and sped towards her direction. As he turned the corner of the alley, he was stopped by a cavalcade of people who rushed down the streets to make their way to the port for the departure of the new giant vessel. There were all types of people from different classes dressed in different clothing, as men, women, and children clamored to get to the boarding dock. A child in a yellow dress wept as her parent pulled her along through the busy horde. The man quickly gave up searching for the woman in the midst of everyone and stared out at the ship which towered over the entire port. Even from a distance, the fine details were on display for the entire city to see.

The man decided to break his promise and continued his way towards the ship, which read on the side: METAXIS.