Vision Voyage (The Weatherblight Saga Book 2)

by Edmund Hughes

  He led them across the ship’s deck as they spoke and then down the stairs leading below decks. The first thing Ari noticed was something he should have been expected. The galleon, despite its size, had been built in mind of the short stature of the people inhabiting it.

  Ari, being the tallest of the group, had to stoop the most to accommodate the low doorways and ceilings. The Sailmaster led them through a common room with a thin lane running down the center that required them to walk in single file, turned slightly sideways, and in Ari’s case, crouched at the knee.

  The next level down was the crew quarters, which packed hammocks and bunks against walls so tightly that it left Ari wondering what happened when someone had to expel gas during the night. There were a few members of the fleet asleep in their tiny beds, looking surprisingly natural and comfortable.

  “We took on a couple of unexpected passengers out of the kindness of our heart, so I’m afraid we only have two guest chambers open,” said the Sailmaster. “Don’t worry, they’re a touch more spacious than what you see here.”

  Spacious was apparently one of those concepts that existed in the eye of the beholder. The Sailmaster opened a door and proudly gestured for them to cram into a room with two thin beds that was barely larger than the storage closet in the tower had been, and with a lower ceiling.

  “I must be attending to other matters,” said the Sailmaster. “This level and the ones above it are open to you, as is the main deck, assuming you can stay out of the way of the men at work.”

  He gave them a small bow and then departed, leaving Ari and the others to consider what their sleeping arrangement was going to be.

  CHAPTER 34

  “I have no issue with maintaining my sword form for the duration of the voyage, milord,” said Eva.

  Ari furrowed his brow. “You might not have an issue with it, but it doesn’t feel right to me.”

  “What’s the alternative?” asked Rin.

  “Simple,” said Ari. “I don’t really like the idea of all of us collectively letting our guards down. We rotate sleeping times, always keeping at least one person awake.”

  Rin and Eva both nodded. Leyehl raised an eyebrow, clearly not adept enough at Subvios to follow along. Kerys folded her arms and glowered at him.

  “That would also lead to us shuffling rooms around,” she said. “On a journey of this length, you’d probably be alone in a cabin with each of us for a night. Including Rin.”

  “It’s rather hurtful when you phrase it like that,” said Rin.

  “Don’t play innocent,” said Kerys. “I know that you have an ulterior motive, and I know it includes Aristial.”

  Rin smiled and said nothing. Ari let out a sigh, running a hand through his hair.

  “Fine,” he said. “How about this? I’ll see if there’s an open bunk in the crew quarters and sleep there.”

  Kerys hesitated, frowning a little.

  “It matters that much to you for me to maintain my incarnate form?” asked Eva.

  “You shouldn’t have to make a sacrifice like that just for the sake of comfort,” said Ari. “Let’s put the idea of you staying a sword aside for now, unless it’s necessary for you to preserve your essence.”

  In truth, he still remembered how anxious he’d felt when Eva had shifted into her sword form and refused to come out of it, even if it had only lasted for a short while. The more he grew to know and care for her as a person, the less comfortable he was with treating her, or letting her treat herself, like a mere weapon.

  “We are going to be at sail for a week,” said Eva. “It may end up being a consideration if…”

  She trailed off. Ari knew what she’d been about to say. Outside of the tiny, cramped cabins, there weren’t really many places where the two of them could have the alone time necessary to keep their bond strengthened. Though, possibly if they sneaked away during the day…

  “We’ll worry about that if and when it becomes an issue,” said Ari.

  “It’s settled then,” said Rin. “Can we move this conversation above deck, now? I’m not a fan of the ambient smell down here.”

  They reconvened on deck, as close to the prow as they could get without being in the way. Ari had never been on a ship before, let alone one sailing out to sea. The last vestiges of land were fading behind them, and he was fascinated by the way the galleon shifted and swayed across the waves.

  “Rin,” said Kerys. “Can you tell us about Cliffhaven? What’s it like?”

  Rin shrugged. “I haven’t seen it up close myself, but Leyehl has. Let me pitch the question to her and see what she has to say.”

  Rin and Leyehl spoke in the Ravarian language for a few minutes. It had been a while since Ari had heard them talking amongst themselves, though from their easy posture and friendly demeanor, he got the sense that it was mostly due to Leyehl being a naturally quiet person.

  “She says that it’s very different from Varnas-Rav,” said Rin. “Perched on cliffs, true to its name, with ancient Saidican ruins littering the valley around it in almost all directions.”

  “Has she been within it before?” asked Ari.

  “She only flew overhead,” said Rin. “She says that the one thing that stuck with her is that the city did not seem to have been built in harmony with nature.”

  “What does that mean?” he asked.

  “The land was stripped of trees with no real consideration,” said Rin. “Also, I think she refers to the way they’ve chosen to live. There is a wall surrounding Cliffhaven, and they are very choosy about who they let in.”

  Ari resisted the urge to point out that Varnas-Rav also had a wall and was similarly wary of outsiders. That aspect of the surface seemed to be a common theme amongst all populated and relatively safe communities, and he wasn’t sure it was worth passing judgment on just yet.

  The sandy-haired man from earlier made his way over to their group. He waved a hand and smiled at them and then pointed at Rin and Leyehl. He made a show of flapping his arms and pantomiming flying and pointed to the sky and surrounding ocean.

  “Mimicry,” said Ari. “The universal language.”

  “I think he’s asking if Leyehl and I would scout for the ship,” said Rin. “It’s a good idea. My wings could use a stretch, anyway.”

  She spoke a few words to Leyehl, and then the two of them departed, following the sandy-haired man toward where the Sailmaster was directing people from one of the galleon’s upper levels. Ari leaned back against the railing, letting his mind wander as he stared into the spray.

  “The way these people live reminds me so much of Golias Hollow,” said Kerys.

  “I was actually thinking that very same thing,” said Ari.

  “It’s so strange that they worship the ‘Octavium,’ or whatever it’s called,” said Kerys. “The Sailmaster said Dormiar was a part of it, meaning they worship him as a god.”

  “Apparently so,” said Ari. “It’s weird, but not that different from venerating him as a prophet with visions from the future. Especially given that they also seem to acknowledge the Endfate.”

  Ari chewed his lip. After hearing about the Trium from various mesmers, and now the Octavium, and the fact that the Ravarians seemed to disavow all gods, he wasn’t sure what he believed anymore.

  “I wish I could tell everyone back in the Hollow about this,” whispered Kerys.

  Ari put an arm around her shoulder. “I noticed you haven’t been talking much about your family as of late. My ears are open, if you ever want to. Well, they’ve got a thin layer of wax in them, so mostly open, I should say.”

  Kerys shook her head but flashed him a smile.

  “I’ve been thinking about them as much as ever,” she said. “It just seems so pointless to talk about them. It only makes me miss them more, and have to face the fact that I… probably won’t ever see them again.”

  Ari gave her a squeeze. Kerys leaned her head against his shoulder. Eva had split off from the two of them and was in the process
of doing a slow, almost soldierly patrol around the railing of the ship.

  “I had this horrible realization the other day,” said Kerys. “My mom, my dad, and my brothers… they all think I’m dead. They’ve probably shed tears over me, over poor little Kerys, thrown out onto the surface to die a horrible death.”

  “Of course they don’t think that,” said Ari. “They know that you’re with me, remember? I promised your brothers that I’d keep you alive.”

  “That’s just words, Ari,” said Kerys.

  He shifted, setting a hand on her cheek and turning her face to meet his.

  “But you are still alive, aren’t you?” he whispered.

  He kissed her before she could answer, feeling his heart swell and pound in his chest. She was alive, and that fact brought him more comfort and satisfaction than he could properly put into words. He’d managed to keep her safe, and it was one of the few things that he took real pride in.

  “I love you, Ari,” whispered Kerys. “I really do. I’m not sure I’ve ever… told you that, in words.”

  “You could always tell me with your body,” said Ari. “Speaking of which, both of the guest cabins are empty at the moment…”

  Kerys rolled her eyes and slapped him on the shoulder. “Pervert.”

  “Sooner or later, Kerys Weaver, I am going to bed you properly,” he said.

  “Emphasis on the later,” she said. “I still care about what my parents would think. Dormiar too, of course.”

  “Just because he’s apparently now a god doesn’t mean you have to defer to him on which pleasures are acceptable,” said Ari.

  Kerys sighed. “You are too much sometimes.”

  CHAPTER 35

  Rin and Leyehl returned close to an hour later, and dinner was served shortly after. The galleon was still in close proximity to the collection of rafts that the Sailmaster had referred to as ‘Seaspray Village,’ and a group of petite, older women carried pots of food across a gangway temporarily connecting them.

  The food was a rich vegetable and fish stew, with big hunks of crusty, salt-studded bread to go with them. Ari and the others ate on deck, feeling a bit out of place as the rest of the sailors headed over to the village to eat their meal. The Sailmaster had made it clear with a small, somewhat reluctant explanation that the village was off limits to them, which Ari had already guessed.

  After dinner, the sailors returned to the galleon, and an odd, nightly ritual took place. From somewhere deeper within the fleet, a low-pitched horn sounded. It was followed by what, to Ari’s ears, was a long, shifting song composed of whistles and wordless shouts.

  The performers were the lookouts in each crow’s nest. They each took their turn, booming out sounds with a volume that Ari almost couldn’t believe. It was beautiful, especially with the setting sun smearing purple and orange across the ocean’s dark blue horizon to set the ambience.

  “My sister told me about this,” said Rin. “It’s impractical for all of the ships to send people to report their status at the end of each day, so it falls to the lookouts.”

  “It sounds like a song,” said Ari. “It’s beautiful.”

  “That’s just a characteristic of their language, I think,” said Rin. “The order in which they report each detail is regimented, which is what makes it sound like a… hmm… what is the word? A song which repeats over and over, with a small overlap?”

  “A canon,” said Kerys. “It does sound a lot like that.”

  They were sitting against the railing, and Ari let himself drift as he listened to the accidental music of the lookouts and watched the stars slowly appearing in the sky above. It was a peaceful moment, which made what he spotted on the other side of the ship that much more jarring.

  Jarvis climbed up the stairs leading from below decks, followed immediately after by Bloodrose, his sword construct. Ari blinked, at first unable to believe and fully recognize what he was seeing.

  Even if he’d mistaken the face, he still recognized the red salamandros armor that his fellow Chosen had stolen from him during their last encounter. Bloodrose, too, was dressed in an outfit almost identical to Eva’s, though it was black in color, which gave her a vaguely demonic presence when paired with her flame-red hair.

  Eva moved before Ari had completely risen to his feet, sprinting across the deck with little care for the spots that the ocean spray had made wet and treacherous. Ari took off after her, reaching Jarvis and Bloodrose a few seconds after she did.

  Eva stood, her posture tight with anger and tension. Bloodrose was laughing at her, shaking her head as though the sudden appearance of her fellow sword construct was a delightful surprise.

  Ari saw Eva’s face shift, morphing from the stoic expression he was so used to seeing into something ugly and violent. He reached a hand out to grab her shoulder an instant too late. She threw herself forward, attacking Bloodrose.

  It wasn’t the same as the surprise attack she’d launched the last time the two had encountered each other outside the tower. Bloodrose was ready for Eva, blocking her first punch with a sweep of her arm.

  The two women attacked each other with movements that were too fast to follow, neither of them managing to score a direct hit. They moved so fast and fought with such ferocity that it made the sparring bout between Eva and Leyehl look like, well, a sparring bout.

  “Eva!” shouted Ari.

  She couldn’t hear him. It was like she’d been with the Ravarian whose arm she’d broken. She had slipped into the mannerisms of her old self, the half of her that lived and breathed violence and acted solely on impulse.

  Eva swept her leg into a punishing kick aimed at Bloodrose’s ankles. Bloodrose flipped backward, slamming her shoulder forward as soon as her feet regained traction. Eva twisted, looping an arm down to attempt a headlock. Bloodrose rolled to the side, slamming a punch into Eva’s jaw. Eva retaliated with a blow that struck the other woman in almost the same place.

  For an instant, the fight devolved into brutal offense, both sword constructs more concerned with doing damage than defending. Ari reached his hand out, summoning Eva to her and pouring his will into the gesture to overrule her own objection to being called away from the fight.

  Azurelight appeared in Ari’s hand, and he swept the sword in a cut to the side. Jarvis had apparently had the same idea, and a second later, he held his own sword in his own hands, the only difference being a small curve to the blade and a ruby for the pommel stone.

  “Aristial,” said Jarvis. “What a welcome surprise.”

  “I figured you’d be dead by now, Jarvis,” said Ari. “What happened to your companions?”

  A cold smile spread across Jarvis’ face.

  “The bird girl was right about that desert,” he said. “It was far more dangerous than I’d been expecting. Not enough to kill me, of course.”

  Jarvis started circling, and the implication was clear. The deck was silent aside from the sound of a single set of pounding feet belonging to a sailor hurrying down into the lower levels.

  “What are you doing here?” asked Ari.

  “I could ask you the same question, but the answer is obvious,” said Jarvis. “I’m getting passage to somewhere new. I can’t communicate with these imps well enough to know where, exactly, but they seemed willing to offer me passage, for whatever reason.”

  Jarvis lifted his sword. Ari gave a small shake of his head.

  “I’m not going to fight you,” he said. “Not now.”

  “Azurelight,” said Jarvis. “She was made from an imprint of Mythril’s niece, wasn’t she?”

  Ari felt a sudden tension, almost like a gasp, or a flinch, come through the bond. He’d learned that fact through one of the visions he’d had of Lord Mythril’s memories. Eva had politely refused to discuss or even hear it when he’d tried to tell her, and he doubted she’d known until right then.

  “You’ve been remembering too, haven’t you?” asked Jarvis. “The dreams and memories. I’ve been piecing it together w
ith Bloodrose’s help, figuring out the truth of what happened to her, and to this world.”

  “What do you know?” asked Ari, feeling curious despite the circumstances.

  Jarvis laughed.

  “He was an interesting man, that’s for sure,” said Jarvis. “Tell me, have you seen what he did to her, yet? How Lord Mythril rewarded Azurelight for her loyal service?”

  It was the tone of Jarvis’ voice that set Ari off. It had a knowing, mocking edge to it, and he could sense the pain that alone was causing Eva through the bond. He feinted forward, testing Jarvis’ reflexes with one of the moves he’d learned recently.

  Jarvis deflected with a quick block, immediately swinging his curved sword around into a downward counter. Ari knocked it aside with ease, and the two of them proceeded to exchange a quick series of sword strikes, each landing against the other’s blade.

  The ship swayed under their feet. The stars and both moons were out overhead. People had begun shouting on all sides. Ari attacked at the same time as Jarvis and their blades locked together, both of them tensing in exertion as they tried to use their strength to overwhelm one another.

  “End this nonsense this instant or you’ll both be thrown overboard!” boomed the Sailmaster. “That’s after we’ve chopped your hands off in punishment for fighting!”

  Ari saw Jarvis smirk and almost wanted to brush the threat off and keep going. He forced himself to pull back, reaching his hand to the side and letting Eva assume her incarnate form once more. The sailors seemed more concerned about the fact that they’d been fighting than whatever magic lay behind her shifting body.

  “Never again!” shouted the Sailmaster, as he moved to stand between them. “If I so much as catch the two of you talking to each other over the rest of this journey, I will flay you both alive.”

  There was a cold certainty to the old man’s words that made Ari suspect that he would actually do it if he had to. He gave him a small nod, as did Jarvis. Kerys and Rin took Ari and Eva by the wrists and roughly began pulling them away. Jarvis returned below decks, carrying Bloodrose, who remained in her sword form.