by B A Simmons
Before dawn the next day, Jacob arrived at the Entdecker, requesting permission to board. Tom smiled and stepped down from the quarterdeck to help him.
“No no! I can do it,” Jacob said.
He allowed his good leg to collapse slowly beneath him, placing himself in a seated position on the edge of the dock. The crutches came next, tossed into the hold, followed by his satchel. Jacob steeled himself for the coming pain and launched himself into the ship. Using his good leg to balance himself on the deck, he found objects to take hold of with his hands. The new water barrel became the perfect anchor upon which he could guide himself to a safe seat. The rest of the crew watched with amusement at Jacob’s acrobatics and applauded his success.
“She looks no worse for wear,” Jacob said, examining the deck and hull.
“She’s been through a lot, but she’s still as yare as ever,” Tom said.
Rob and Malcolm walked from the barracks to the docks together. They ended their discussion before coming within earshot of the others. Once again, they embraced and Rob walked the rest of the way, leaving Malcolm to watch them.
“Oh good, I’m glad you made it, Jacob. Since we’re all here, we can set out before the sun comes. We’re ready, aren’t we?”
Tom nodded. “We are. What course Rob?”
“To Copper Isle. We have to check on a few friends and see if Edwin has left any messages for us. Then we’ll head north.”
“I love a good sea voyage,” Jacob said. “It’s much better than that infirmary. Tom, you tell me what to do, and I’ll learn to do it.”
Rob laughed at the change in Jacob’s attitude. If only Trina had realized what being at sea could do for him. “You just let the salt air cure that leg of yours for a while. Then we’ll put you to work.”
The Entdecker made her way out from the harbor with the west wind filling her sail.
19: The Birthing Cave
Anna opened her eyes to see the familiar sight of the Birthing Cave wall. Her dream had taken her back to Hellhound Isle, only this time it had been only Mark and herself. It was a pleasant dream, full of the hopes and fantasies she’d once allowed herself to keep.
She dropped her eyes from the cave wall to the baby snuggled at her chest. Little Mark had fallen asleep during his feeding and now lay snuggled against her. Sarah Engleman had not left the cave in the eight days since the birth. The new grandmother also slept, though in a sitting position; her neck would feel the strain when she awoke.
In the week since her delivery, Anna had not left the small room of the Birthing Cave. The sisters of the Matriarch’s Circle attended to her every need but forbade her from going anywhere else. Their insistence on Anna following their strict rules became an annoyance that grew in intensity each day. She’d never felt so confined, not even when first aboard the Entdecker, whose twenty-eight-foot length and ten-foot beam gave little room for physical movement. At least then she had the open air and ever-shifting view of the waves. Surely, these older women understood the need to see the sky.
She knew why she could not leave the cave. While other new mothers were sent home with their children within a couple of days, Anna had to stay with Mark. Her son was still too weak to endure the outside world, and as he must stay, so must his mother. Why she couldn’t go into another part of the cave, even to the place the sisters took Mark to sleep, she did not understand.
Anna lifted herself from the bed, still cradling her son. She began the familiar pacing again. The room measured twenty feet by ten feet and contained Anna’s bed, two chairs, and an ancient, but well-maintained trolley. The sisters used this trolley to cart food, medicine, and clean linen into the room from somewhere else in the cave. The door behind the bed led into these forbidden sections. They also used it to take out scraps of food, dirty dishes, and used bandages. These, Anna figured, went out from the cave through the door she faced when laying on the bed. Whenever they opened this door, Anna felt fresh air come in, whereas the other door gave no such refreshment when opened.
As she paced, her eyes fixated on this back door. It stood ajar, left open by Sarah when she brought Mark in for his feeding. The temptation to sneak out and discover what lay beyond the door tugged at Anna’s brain. There was little else to occupy her waking thoughts.
Anna had heard no other noises from the other side of the doorway. Soft light came through the small window and blended with the light of her room, but there was no indication that anyone else was in the cave.
She turned back toward the front door, reaching its foot in mere seconds, even with her narrow, shuffling gait. When she turned again, she made up her mind to escape through the opposite door. She stepped with determined softness; her bare feet making no sound on the hard floor. She passed Sarah, checking that her breathing was still deep. However, when she reached the door, she hesitated. The room on the other side was visible through the narrow gap. More shelves filled with bottles and a glass box with lights on it.
The gap was too narrow to fit through. She needed to open it more, but worried that if it creaked, Sarah would awaken. Yet, determined as she was, she reached out with her foot and nudged the door. It did not swing out as she expected, just widened the gap a few extra inches, but neither did it creak. The hinges must have been well oiled.
She used her foot again and sustained the push until the gap was wide enough for her to easily pass through. The room she entered was a copy of the one she came from, with the exception of its contents. Along one side, the shelves and cabinets stored more strange medicines and equipment. But on the other, a large wooden wash basin, raised on a pedestal, stood in one corner. Next to it was a small table with a glass basin connected to something that reminded Anna of the Duarve tablet Rob had taken from Hellhound Isle. A large cone made of something like tin hung from the ceiling above the basin. At the bottom of the basin, a linen blanket was laid. The silver cloth they had wrapped Mark in for the first few days lay folded on the shelf next to this basin.
Anna reached out to touch the blanket, realizing that this is where her son slept when he wasn’t with her. Though her touch was light, it triggered something on the glass surface of the tablet. Red numbers appeared, displaying several zeroes followed by a one or a two. Their appearance startled Anna, and she retracted her hand. After a moment, the numbers disappeared.
Curiosity got the better of her, and she applied her hand again, this time with more pressure. The numbers reappeared with fewer zeroes. To Anna, they looked like tiny stained-glass windows with the sun shining directly through them. Yet how they could change so much and so quickly, she did not understand. The more pressure Anna applied with her hand, the more the numbers increased. If she lessened the pressure, so did the numbers.
Only after thorough testing did it occur to her to lay Mark down in his bed. The numbers fluctuated as she carefully placed his small frame into the basin. Afterward, they remained steady; displaying two zeroes followed by a one, then a decimal point (Anna had learned of these from Rob) and a ninety-two.
“It’s his weight.”
Sarah’s voice from the doorway made Anna jump and let out a small cry of alarm.
“If Missus McClain finds you in here . . . never mind. Just don’t touch anything.”
She moved to the basin and touched a small knob on the overhanging tin cone. A new light appeared from inside the cone, shining a pale blue light on the sleeping baby.
“What kind of cave is this? How are these numbers made? What makes these lights?”
Sarah held up her hand. “There are many secrets to the Birthing Cave. The sisters of the Matriarch’s Circle know about some of them; others are unexplainable even to us.”
“You won’t tell me unless I become a member of the circle, will you?”
Sarah sighed. “You and Rob are so alike. I can see why he loves you . . . and why Mark loved you. For Rob, secrets are discoveries waiting to be made. Just months before you all first left on the Entdecker, he asked me about this place. It tr
oubled me to deny him answers.”
Anna stood looking at her son under the strange light.
“The light helps him somehow. Because he came so early, he needs the light?” she said.
“His body did not develop fully before birth. The light helps his skin adjust to being outside your womb. In some of these jars, we’ve mixed a special formula left to us by our ancestors, which we feed him. That, along with your milk, gives him the best chance at gaining what he’s missing from two more months inside you.”
“Our ancestors. You mean the first people to come to Engle Isle.”
Sarah nodded. “They made this cave. Or rather, they converted one of their vehicles to make it. The source of the lights lies somewhere within the walls. None of us know where exactly or how it’s made. We do know that it is a limited supply. The first Matriarch left explicit instructions for its use. Only for births. If we extended the use of this power beyond that, it would be gone within a year or two.”
Anna was lost in contemplation for several moments before looking at Sarah again. “If Mark is the exception, does that mean you are using extra power from this source to save him?”
“Yes.”
“Do you know how much power is left?”
“No.”
“But if I took Mark away from here, he would die?”
“That is likely. He’s a strong child, but having been born so early, he stands a greater chance of catching a fever. His immune system needs to be strengthened before we let him leave.”
“Why? I mean, why are you allowing him to stay when the power needs to be conserved. You haven’t been this generous to every child, have you?”
“No. Not every child,” Sarah paused a moment. “I asked the Reverend Mother to make the exception. I . . . I couldn’t bear the thought of losing Mark’s son so soon after losing Mark himself. I also . . . don’t want to lose you, Anna.”
Anna watched the tears flow down her mother-in-law’s face. She felt an ache, deep inside herself, but she did not understand what it was. There were no tears in her eyes, and her sense of compassion seemed to have died months ago.
As Anna looked past Sarah in an effort to avoid eye contact, she focused on a familiar object—familiar, though she hadn’t seen it in almost a year. Sitting atop one of the upper shelves on the far side of the room was a fist-sized sphere. It was opaque and seamless. She recognized it as having once belonged to her brother. The sphere she had ridiculed him for buying during their first visit to Alimia.
She pointed to the curious ball and asked, “Is that Edwin’s sphere?”
***
Edwin stood, his annoyance at the interview had come to a rolling boil.
“I demand you tell me what this is about! Why do you need to know about Doctor Morris?”
Pavana looked at him with placid eyes. He seemed neither surprised nor threatened by Edwin’s outburst. Instead of returning with anger, he simply restated his question.
“I know you are acquainted with the man. I wish to know how well.”
Edwin’s gumption rose still higher. “You cannot be serious. I’m here to sell my wares and nothing more. I will not be made an informer for the empire!”
“Mr. Johnson. The empire doesn’t require you to inform about your associates. They already know more than you realize. I am asking for other reasons. As the advocate for all aliens in the empire, I have your best interests at heart.”
Edwin took several deep breaths. He felt his heart rate return to its normal pace. Then he spoke, the stress still found a place in his voice.
“I don’t know Doctor Morris well enough to tell you much. He’s been teaching on Engle Isle since I was a boy. He’s sort of an odd one. Only Rob really gets along with him.”
Edwin knew as soon as he said it; he spoke awry. He’d just confessed to an agent of the imperial government that Doctor Morris was associated with Rob Engleman. Yet, if Pavana hadn’t already known this, he was expert at hiding his emotions. He gave no hints to his thoughts or feelings on the matter, but continued writing notes.
“So, as far as you know, Doctor Morris is still on Engle Isle?”
“Yes, as far as I know.”
“Thank you, Mister Johnson. You’ve been most helpful in answering my questions.” Pavana rose from his seat and handed Edwin a form. “Here is your permit to do business in the Falcon Empire.”
Edwin sighed, as much in frustration as relief. He accepted the paper with resignation rather than joy. His mood had not improved any by the time he reached his ship.
“How’d it go?” Eugene asked.
“I’m beginning to hate this place,” Edwin said.
“What?! Why? What happened?”
Edwin did not answer but left his crew standing on the deck and went below to gather his samples. His intent had been to visit as many apothecaries as he could find in the city, discover which was most popular among the nobility and high-ranking socialites, then use this as his exclusive distributor. He knew that he needed to calm down before contacting any of them and hoped that fuming below decks would be enough to accomplish that.
Above decks, the crew gathered around James as he retold of their experience at the Office of Alien Affairs.
“So this Mister Pavana knows Doctor Morris. I got the feeling he may want to use Edwin to contact him.”
“What about?” Duncan asked.
James shrugged. “Maybe their old friends and he just wants to catch up.”
“Or maybe Doctor Morris is a Falcon spy,” Eugene said.
“That’s ridiculous!” Duncan said.
“Is it? We know he opposes the war. He didn’t want Rob to take over after Mark’s death. How well do you know Morris?”
“He’s been on Engle Isle for more than ten years, teaching. Just teaching. If he’s a spy, then why didn’t he make contact with the empire in all that time?”
“How do you know he didn’t?” Eugene persisted.
“Before the Englemans got the Entdecker, there was only one Engle Islander who went anywhere. Isaac Rutherford, he’s a merchant and . . . well, he’s no spy! I can tell you that!”
“He wouldn’t have to be. All Doctor Morris would have to do is ask Rutherford to deliver some personal letters to someone. He’d be none the wiser to Morris or his plans. For all we know, Morris might be behind everything the Falcon Empire has done in the last year.”
“I still can’t believe it,” Duncan said.
“We don’t know if any of that is true. Pavana is an advocate for alien—foreigners here. Why would he be trying to help the people the empire wants to conquer?” James said.
“I’m not saying it is true,” Eugene countered. “But from what you just told us, James, it’s something we have to consider. This Pavana fellow just extorted information from Edwin. Why would he do that if he wasn’t some kind of spymaster?”
“Are you going to tell Edwin?” Duncan asked.
Eugene shook his head. “No, this stays between us three. Edwin’s got enough on his mind.”
As if on cue, Edwin reemerged from below, a box of elixir in his arms.
“James, I want you to come with me again. We’re going into the city to find our distributor. Eugene, you can take Ches and go into Alien Town for some relaxation. Stretch your legs.”
“Thank you,” Eugene said with a smile.
“Don’t be too long, because when you get back, Duncan gets to go with Ian. Take care of them. This is all strange and new to their minds. Don’t let them get overwhelmed and don’t let them get lost.”
“We’ll take care of them,” Duncan said.
With James carrying the box, Edwin left again. As he made his way through Alien Town to the gate leading into the rest of Deep Port, he felt a sense of calm settle over him again. He was going to work, doing what he loved. His elixir would be a hit among the Falcon upper-class; he assured himself. Along with the money it made him and the consortium, it could potentially weaken the Falcon’s resolve for war.
The clerk nodded at James. James didn’t know what else to do but nod back.
20: Sulfur and Steel
The Alphina swung south and led the Quillian ships on a merry chase. Or at least, it would have been if the entire crew had not been more worried about suffocating in the poisonous cloud they approached headlong.
Despite the confidence they felt for Pete, they knew the perils of the world they lived in and recognized the fact that he could not protect them from all. They also recognized the difficult choice he had to make. To face the Quillian in battle, even against just two of their small boats, was a risk with many possible outcomes. To sail around a vaporous danger, fewer outcomes. As long as the wind continued to work in their favor, they could avoid entering the cloud itself.
Joshua climbed up to the quarterdeck and addressed the crew. “Listen, all of you! Shout out if you feel any sensation of burning in your mouth or nose! Watch each other. If anyone starts to choke, you shout it out!”
They carried on with their duties, though the tension on deck was palpable.
“As long as the prevailing winds stay westerly, we should be alright,” Pete said to Joshua. “We drive south and then east around the volcano, and the Quillian will either think we’re meechers and leave us alone or be meechers themselves and follow us through the danger.”
“I’ll take the first option. If they’re meecher enough to follow us, then they’re meecher enough to attack us while we’re passing the cloud. This gives us little room to maneuver.”
Pete offered Joshua a wide, confident grin as consolation, but the Punisher wasn’t having it. He continued to pace about on deck and scowl as the cloud grew bigger ahead of them.