‘And just as hideously ugly,’ croaked a voice behind me.
I jumped. ‘I thought you were asleep!’
Varu stepped towards the Crone. ‘How can I see that other me? How can he see us?’
The Crone peered into Varu’s eyes like she was trying to see through to his brain. ‘Your mind is fragmented. Broken into shards. It might be that the shards have been scattered across time. Perhaps the fragments of your mind are calling to each other.’
Varu frowned. ‘My mind is … broken?’
‘That would explain a lot,’ I said, and Varu put out a leg and tripped me to the floor, pinning me under his foot. ‘Let me go!’
‘Who would break my mind?’ Varu asked.
‘I’m not sure,’ said the Crone. ‘But it has done great damage to you. It’s why you have so few memories. I suspect it has also made you much weaker.’
‘Yeah, weakling!’ I said, batting against Varu’s foot.
‘You will struggle to control your powers,’ said the Crone, ‘until the pieces of your mind are restored.’
Varu looked at the Crone seriously. ‘How?’
‘I don’t know,’ she said. I stopped bucking and squirming.
‘So if I get my mind back together,’ said Varu, ‘I’ll be able to remember my brothers and sisters? Will I be able to quieten the people out there, the voices in the sea?’
The Crone took a deep breath. ‘My boy, if you can restore your mind, then your powers will be so great you could reverse the Drowning itself.’
The First Queen of Shipwreck Island
Ellie peered down the dark alleyway, seeing only a starved-looking rat, twitching its nose inside an empty honeypot.
Viola and Kate were carrying Seth between them, hoisted on their shoulders. ‘I didn’t even see them hit Seth,’ Kate whispered, nudging Seth’s head away from hers. ‘They’ve knocked him out cold. Any sign of them?’
‘Nothing,’ said Ellie. ‘Why did they want to kill us so badly?’
‘That book,’ said Kate. ‘It contained everything. All the spies working for Loren, and the secrets he has on them.’
Ellie fished out the ink-smudged paper from her pocket. ‘But what should we do, now we have the names?’
‘Figure out what they’re up to, of course!’ said Kate. ‘Whatever Loren’s planning to do next, it will involve the informants in that book. They’re the army he used to destroy the fields, and the grain. We need to catch them in the act!’ She grimaced. ‘How is this boy so heavy?’
She and Viola lugged Seth up the final staircase through the Shambles. Ellie noticed that Viola kept glancing at Seth with a wary, worried look. Above them, the branches of the Vile Oak rattled in the night breeze.
Molworth’s tiny head appeared from his bedroom window, a white nightcap flopping over his eyes. ‘Thieves!’ he shrieked. ‘Stay away from the beer cellar or I’ll empty my chamberpot all over you!’
‘It’s us, Molworth,’ Viola said, dragging Seth through the door. Archibald came skidding across the floorboards, tumbling over in his excitement then leaping up on to Viola’s shoulder.
‘What I don’t understand is where those whales came from,’ said Kate.
‘Oh, yes, that was … very strange,’ said Ellie, meeting Viola’s gaze.
Molworth appeared behind the bar. ‘You did get into the beer cellar,’ he said, eyeing Seth suspiciously.
‘He’s not drunk, Molworth,’ said Viola.
‘He needs leeches,’ said Kate. ‘That’s what the Royal Physician always recommends. Molworth, do you have any?’
‘Of course,’ said Molworth. ‘Hundreds! Follow me, loyal servant.’
Kate leapt over the counter and vanished, while Ellie and Viola heaved Seth up to the bedroom and dropped him on to his bed. Ellie knelt down, panting. Viola hadn’t even broken a sweat. She watched Seth carefully, touching a finger to his skin.
‘Those blue marks,’ she said.
‘Please, Viola, you can’t mention them to anyone. Even Kate.’
‘He called those whales. Didn’t he?’
Ellie looked at Viola sharply, then swallowed.
‘I’m not stupid, Ellie. I spend every day with him on the boat. The sea and him … they’re like twins – twins that don’t always get on. When he’s moody, the sea gets choppy. When he’s happy, the boat glides along smoothly, and the fish swarm round us. He’s like Varu.’
‘Who’s Varu?’
Viola sat down, and Archibald hopped on to Seth’s pillow. ‘He’s from a story my mum would tell me when I was little. He moved the seas, and could turn into a whale. He was a friend of Leila’s, the first Queen of Shipwreck Island.’
Ellie’s eyes widened. ‘Leila becomes the Vessel?’ she said, but Viola didn’t seem to be listening, just staring at Seth with a faraway look. Archibald curled up against his neck and began to purr.
‘He’s a god,’ said Viola. ‘He’s an actual god.’
She snatched Archibald up in her arms, causing him to mewl in protest.
‘Seth’s not dangerous,’ said Ellie.
Viola looked at the tiny kitten in her arms, then at Seth, and seemed to realize what she’d done. ‘But … he controlled the sea. He swept those men away, like toys.’
‘To save our lives. He’s still just a boy, really. He’s still your friend.’
They watched Seth in silence, the sound of his breath like a chill wind. Ellie was struck by an idea – Leila had known Seth, or at least one of Seth’s previous manifestations, so maybe she knew how they might make Seth better. ‘I don’t suppose that Leila, uh, wrote any books about her life, did she?’
Viola shrugged. ‘I dunno. Maybe your so-called friend has some in her library.’
‘Kate is my friend.’
‘She’s a Queen, Ellie. They don’t get to have friends. Queens aren’t people.’ She looked at Seth. ‘Gods aren’t people.’
‘Look, I trust Kate,’ said Ellie. ‘She wants to do what’s best for the island, but Loren doesn’t. That’s why we have to stop him.’
Viola chewed her tongue, rubbing Archibald’s head. Kate’s footsteps clattered up the branch towards them.
‘Please don’t tell Kate about Seth,’ Ellie whispered. ‘I don’t know why, but I get the feeling she wouldn’t understand.’
In fact, Ellie had a strong suspicion Kate would be jealous of Seth’s powers.
‘If you trust her,’ said Viola, ‘then why can’t you tell her?’
The door smashed open.
‘Okay, I got the leeches,’ Kate said, holding up a jar. ‘Hold on! These are pickles!’
‘Kate,’ Ellie said, trying to sound casual, ‘do you know of anyone called Leila, who lived on the Ark when it was still at sea?’
Kate jerked upright, taken aback by the question. ‘Course I do,’ she said. ‘She’s my ancestor. Why are you asking?’
‘Um, you know, just, um, Molworth mentioned her the other day. Makes sense – you know how obsessed he is with the Royal Family.’
Kate cocked her head to one side. ‘It never ceases to amaze me how little you outer islanders know about your own history. Leila’s diary is one of the most prized volumes in my library.’
‘Oh,’ said Ellie. ‘Can I read it?’
‘Ellie, I think there are more important things to worry about at this moment. Now help me put this pickle under Seth’s nose.’
‘LEILA!’ Seth jerked up in bed, gasping for breath.
‘Seth! Are you okay?’ said Ellie, hugging him in relief. He felt a little warmer now.
‘Did he just say “Leila”?’ Kate asked.
‘He must have heard us talking about her,’ Viola said, catching Ellie’s gaze.
Seth looked around through tiny, tired eyes. ‘Where … what happened?’
‘One of those guards must have bumped you on the head,’ Ellie said quickly, before Kate could start asking difficult questions. ‘Are you okay?’
Seth nodded.
‘Good!’ Kat
e said, punching her fist in the air. ‘There’s no time to lose – we need to follow Loren’s spies, and find out what they’re up to. Any ideas, oh Great Inventor?’
Ellie blushed slightly. She watched Seth as he rubbed his eyes, then rolled them around as if to get them working again.
‘What?’ said Seth, catching her staring at him.
‘I have a plan,’ Ellie said slowly. ‘But, Viola, I’ll need your help. For the good of the people.’
Viola gave Ellie a sour look, then glanced at Kate, who smiled back uncertainly.
‘I guess the Revolution can wait. What’s the plan?’
‘Well,’ said Ellie, ‘I’m afraid you’re going to have to lose some sword fights.’
Viola shrugged. ‘First time for everything.’
A Seam of Seawater
The mood in the Vile Oak that afternoon was tense. Viola circled her opponent, a bead of sweat on her brow, a flood of sweat on his. She let out a cry and leapt forward, wooden sword swinging in a wide arc. But she’d left herself open; the man’s sword tapped her waist, and the crowd yelped in shock.
‘She’s really off her game today,’ Janssen grumbled, readjusting his eyepatch.
Seth grunted.
‘You look terrible, son,’ Janssen said, clutching Seth’s face in both hands.
‘Maybe he’s possessed by the Enemy,’ said Molworth. ‘Like Ellie was the other day.’
‘I was not possessed by the Enemy,’ said Ellie, shifting in discomfort.
‘She was too,’ Molworth said, raising his chin authoritatively. ‘She had red eyes and white skin, and worms and rats burst out of the floor.’
Janssen’s eyes bulged. ‘Just like the old rhymes!’ he said, inching his chair away from Ellie. The sailors next to them picked up their table, moved it several feet away, then sat down again, eyeing her suspiciously.
Ellie’s mouth was dry. ‘That’s not what happened. And there weren’t any worms or rats.’
Molworth grumbled. ‘You’re no fun.’
Viola clapped her opponent on the shoulder and presented him with his prize – a golden bracelet inlaid with a single sparkling crystal. He shoved it on, grinning smugly and rotating his wrist for all his friends to see.
Viola swaggered back to the table, swishing her sword. Seth pulled out a chair for her, and she glanced at it, then sat down in the chair next to her dad. Seth’s face fell.
‘You can cross Aaron Pulis off the list, Ellie,’ Viola said proudly.
They’d spent the day travelling to all the pubs on the island, from the Laughing Octopus by Shark-fin Tip to the King and Whale Inn on the Rioli Coast. Viola had lost fights at every one of them. Ellie scanned the sheet of ink-smudged paper, striking a line through Aaron’s name. Then she turned, yelped, and fell off her seat.
‘Am I really that frightening?’ said Kate.
‘How do you always sneak up on me like that?’ said Ellie, clutching her chest as Kate and Seth helped her back up.
‘I have good news!’ Kate announced. ‘I just held a royal ceremony, where I rewarded Loren for “Official Services to the Island”.’
‘That doesn’t sound like good news,’ said Ellie. ‘He poisoned the farms and the grain, and he’s certainly planning worse. Why would you reward him?’
‘Well,’ said Kate, reaching into the box on the table and pulling out a golden bracelet, waggling it meaningfully, ‘what do you think I rewarded him with? He shoved it straight on his wrist in front of me. How do these work, anyway?’
‘Oh,’ said Ellie, swallowing. ‘You know. Complicated inventor stuff.’
In truth, threaded through every bracelet was a seam filled with seawater. Just enough, Ellie hoped, for Seth to be able to sense it with his powers, like he’d done with the vials of seawater in Kate’s chambers. After Viola’s amazing run of ‘bad luck’, each bracelet was now on the wrist of one of the informants from Loren’s book.
That night, Ellie and Seth wandered the island, hooded and cloaked.
‘Feel anything yet?’ Ellie asked, as they walked beneath the Revival Archway.
Seth kept swiping his hand through the air, like he was trying to swat a fly. The voices in the sea tormented him constantly these days.
‘No,’ he said, then kicked a clamshell, scattering a flock of seagulls.
‘Um … are you okay?’ said Ellie.
‘I think Viola knows about me.’
‘Oh,’ said Ellie, rubbing the back of her head. ‘Yeah, she does. She saw the marks on your skin, and figured out it was you who made those killer whales rescue us. She … she knows you’re a god. But it’s not like she’s stopped being friends with you or anything – you spent the whole day with her!’
‘And she didn’t say a word to me.’ His face fell. ‘She’s acting strange, not making jokes like she usually does. Like she’s … scared of me or something.’
‘I think it was just a bit of a shock. Give her some time.’
Seth crossed his arms fiercely and marched off. Ellie hurried after.
‘Maybe … if you talked to her about it, you could help her understand?’
Seth stopped dead in the middle of the street.
‘What?’ said Ellie. ‘I think that’s a good idea.’
‘No,’ said Seth, pointing. ‘Two of the bracelets are down there.’ He darted along an alleyway.
‘Seth!’ Ellie whispered. ‘Wait for me!’
Two men were dragging a burlap sack out of the door of a faded blue wooden house, a tiny dog yapping at their heels. A woman hurried after them in her nightdress.
‘Please, I’ve been saving that! It’s all the grain we have left!’
‘Consider it a service,’ said one man. ‘You’re going hungry so your betters can be fed.’ He pointed at his accomplice’s wrist. ‘Hey – where’d you get that?’
The man grinned. ‘Won it in a sword fight. Against a woman ten feet tall, arms thicker than my head.’
‘Ha! Me too.’ The other raised his wrist to reveal another golden bracelet, crystal glittering in the darkness. ‘Pretty, isn’t it?’
‘I’ll … I’ll call for the Wardens!’ said the woman.
‘You do that,’ said one man, raising his boot over the tiny dog, ‘and we won’t be so genial.’
The woman sank to her knees, hugging her dog close.
‘Give it back,’ said Seth. His voice was deep and strangely emotionless.
One man smiled, like Seth was an infant who’d said something profound. ‘Run along, boy. You don’t know who you’re dealing with.’
‘You’re Loren’s men. You think you have his protection. But he can’t protect you from me.’
The two men shared a look, then dumped the sack of grain and drew knives from their belts.
‘Seth!’ said Ellie, hobbling forward and grabbing a smoke bomb from her pocket.
Seth cocked his head to one side.
Both men were yanked sharply away from each other, by an invisible force that seemed to have gripped their wrists. Seth cocked his head again, and the men were pulled back together, their heads colliding with a heavy thunk. They collapsed in a pile, mouths open and eyes half closed. Ellie crouched to inspect them.
‘They’re fine,’ said Seth. ‘I can feel their pulses through the seawater.’
He picked up the sack of grain and handed it back to the woman. ‘Here you go,’ he said gently.
The dog growled at him, and the woman snatched the grain from Seth’s hands.
‘Get away from me, monster!’ she snapped, dragging the sack into her home.
Seth turned back to Ellie. Blue mists swirled across his skin.
‘She’s just frightened, Seth.’
‘I know,’ Seth said, his voice slightly broken. He let out a long sigh, then looked at the men. ‘Let’s find some Wardens to deal with these two. Wait.’
He closed his eyes, brow furrowing and unfurrowing.
‘What is it?’ said Ellie.
Seth’s head snapped up, bl
ue mist still swirling on his arms.
‘I can feel them,’ he said, then clamped his hands to his ears. ‘Quiet!’
‘I didn’t say anything!’ Ellie protested.
‘Not you, the voices in the sea,’ said Seth. ‘I can feel more of Loren’s men. All of them.’
‘Where?’ said Ellie, looking around and holding up her cane like a sword. Seth touched her elbow.
‘No, Ellie,’ he said, and pointed down.
‘What do you mean?’ said Ellie. ‘How can they be underneath us?’
‘I don’t know. But they’re all heading in the same direction.’ He opened his eyes wide. ‘And I know where they’re going.’
~
Ellie slapped the huge crumpled piece of paper down on the table.
‘Seth and I have been following Loren’s men these last few nights,’ she announced, pointing to the lines she’d scrawled over the map. ‘They’re using tunnels to move around under the island.’
‘What tunnels?’ said Kate, eyeing the map suspiciously. ‘There are no tunnels there.’
‘Well, they’re not moving through solid stone,’ said Ellie. ‘Now listen, this is where it gets really interesting.’
‘Evening, loyal subjects. What’s this, a map?’ said Molworth, peering over Seth’s shoulder.
‘Molworth –’ Seth wrinkled his nose – ‘are you wearing perfume?’
‘Absolutely not, why would I do such a thing?’ He bowed to Kate. ‘Evening, Oh Handmaiden of the Queen. Would you care for some orange-peel pie? I don’t have many oranges left, but I’ll gladly spare them for you.’
‘Yes, Molworth,’ said Ellie, shooing him away. ‘Please go and make a pie. And take a long time about it.’
She jabbed her finger down on the map, on the edge of the island.
‘The volcano?’ said Kate. ‘What about it?’
Ellie grinned. ‘Loren’s men gathered there last night.’
‘Inside the volcano?’
‘It’s not an active volcano,’ said Ellie. ‘But that’s where all the tunnels lead. I reckon that’s where Loren’s meeting his informants, to give them their instructions. Like … his very own council. He’s destroyed the fields and the grain, and now his men are robbing homes and spreading fear. Next, I think he’ll probably try to attack you, Kate. Maybe not to kill you, but to show everyone how weak you are. To make the people think you’re not fit to protect them.’
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