by Jeremy Dwyer
Zarren then led Felix and Lalla up the boarding ramp and onto the Coherent.
~~~
“We have our catch for the day, Admiral,” Zarren said.
“Good. I have received a message regarding our next assignment, so it is time we return,” Admiral Erisinni said. The telepathic message from Lieutenant Skender had reached him – that man was quite extraordinary in his telepathic distance, if nothing else, and that long range was rare, even with the purest Elanatin waters.
Admiral Erisinni then ordered the anchor to be raised. He drank anew of the waters of the Atrejan Ocean from his vial and was energized. He listened for the sounds of the stars to learn their positions and movements. By this information, he plotted a path southward across the Lujladia Ocean toward the Jeshirinko Barrier. He then directed the deckhands to orient the ship’s sails accordingly.
“Who are these new trainees?” Admiral Erisinni asked.
“Stand at attention when Admiral Erisinni addresses you,” Zarren said.
Felix and Lalla stood up straight and were nervous, even though they had been told about interacting with military men.
“My name is Felix, eighteen (18) years, Atrejan drinker since birth,” he said.
“My name is Lalla, eighteen (18) years, Atrejan drinker since birth,” she said.
“Chief Petty Officer Zarren, take them below deck and have them chart a course for us to the north central coast, so we can test their potential,” Admiral Erisinni said.
“Yes, Admiral,” Zarren said. He took both Felix and Lalla to a cabin below deck where he began asking them questions.
~~~
Pasha did not immediately leave the Port of Reliance, however. First, she inspected more of the city’s perimeter, and then she toured the area to the north. The width and length of the city made for good exercise, both for her body and her mind. What interested her was the constructor as much as the city and she was looking for it. Soon, she found the cluster of pillars that were not part of the city proper, but must have been constructor components. She did not understand how it was assembled, and the Medathero waters that flowed through her gave her no insight into its low-level material structure. She could reason about evidence, if she had any, but the internals of the machine were not obvious. This was infuriating, but it now posed a challenge to her intellect.
She walked back towards the eastern coast, went through the city gate and headed out onto one of the piers. From there, she purchased transport on a ship heading northwest across the Pirovalen Ocean, toward the Farmer’s Road land bridge. After disembarking there, another ship took her northwest across the Trerada Ocean until reaching the Glivoran Trail land bridge. A third ship took her west across the Kazofen Ocean until reaching the Road of Kovoxotu land bridge. A fourth ship took her north across the Zovvin Ocean until reaching the Jeshirinko Barrier land bridge. The four (4) platinum coins for her journey were part of her payment as a scholar.
Pasha traveled on a riverboat through the land bridge until reaching a dock near the military base where she lived and worked. She disembarked from that ship and returned to the office of General Tiglath. Not finding him there, she went out to the training grounds. There, she saw General Tiglath, with Lieutenant Delfina and Lieutenant Skender on either side of him. A squad of ninety (99) troops stood at attention nearby.
“Lieutenant Pasha, do you have a report?” General Tiglath asked.
“Yes, General,” Pasha said.
“Urgent, Lieutenant?” General Tiglath asked.
“Not urgent, but informative,” Pasha said.
“Then tell me on the way. The Coherent will be here soon,” General Tiglath said.
~~~
Zarren eyed the youthful Lalla, and was not terribly interested in her navigational abilities, nor capable of evaluating them in any great depth. Still, he knew what to do.
Lalla watched the military man’s probing eyes and was nervous. She suspected that the man was interested in her intimately, whereas she had affection for Felix.
The young man, Felix, was waiting to be questioned and feared for himself and for Lalla. It was clear that the military man was strong, and could kill both of them with ease.
“Chart a course for us to the Jeshirinko Barrier’s north central coast, as per the Admiral’s orders,” Zarren said. He handed them maps and pencils to write out their courses.
Felix and Lalla each drank anew of the waters of the Atrejan Ocean from their vials, becoming energized. They listened to the sounds of the stars, learning of their positions and movements. By these, they both began making charts of the course on their maps. They did this without comparing notes. Zarren was able to see that the results were the same, which was not surprising. Had they been different, it would have been a matter of either poor training or the wrong waterbinding, and might result in a change of assignment.
“The charts match. Either you’re both right or you’re both wrong. The Admiral will decide that. First, however, I’d like to learn a little about you. Tell me, why are you here,” Zarren said.
“To work as navigators,” Felix said.
“To navigate the oceans, and do whatever else the Admiral requires,” Lalla said.
“Now that’s the right answer. So, tell me, why are you really here?” Zarren asked.
“I told you the truth. That’s all there is,” Felix said.
“You come from a religious society. That’s well known – every child in Nataloridivu is raised to believe in sun worship. They send you out to sea under the cover of working as navigators. In truth, it’s to preach your religion,” Zarren said.
“They told us about the religion, and that we had to preach it to save our souls from an eternity of punishment after this life. The Countess said we might be persecuted, but we had to do it anyway,” Lalla said.
“I told her that was unfair to us. I’m not living my life that way. I don’t want to die. She got mad about it,” Felix said.
“Smart young man. If you’re a good navigator, you might live a good life. The Admiral can teach you a lot about working on a ship. You’ll learn how to control the sails, repair sailcloth, even set the altitude correctly,” Zarren said.
“Do we stay on the ship the whole time?” Lalla asked.
“Mostly, for a few years. We stop at some ports, purchase supplies, inspect the hull of the ship, and report to the General for orders,” Zarren said.
“Is that where we’re going now,” Felix asked.
“Yes. Let me take your charts to the Admiral for inspection. If he approves, you’re good. Otherwise, we’ll have to correct your training…or your assignments,” Zarren said. He then took the charts and went up on deck.
~~~
Admiral Erisinni steered the Coherent southward across the Lujladia Ocean and the north central coast of the Jeshirinko Barrier was now in sight.
Zarren approached the Admiral with the charts and said: “Admiral, these are the charts made by the new apprentice navigators.”
Admiral Erisinni briefly looked at them and said: “Chief Petty Officer Zarren!”
“Yes, Admiral?” Zarren asked.
“Throw them both overboard. I’ve never seen a sloppier example of work by anyone that age in my life! Did nobody teach them how to adjust from perceptual to visual coordinates? Or did they just not bother trying?” Admiral Erisinni asked.
“Can we train them, Admiral?” Zarren asked.
“I don’t have time for that! We can find better navigators at almost any port,” Admiral Erisinni said.
“They’re young. We could use them for menial tasks, and pay them little,” Zarren said.
“If you can find them something to do, and keep them from bothering me or interfering with this ship’s duties, then I don’t care. They will not work as navigators on this ship. Do I make myself clear, Chief Petty Officer Zarren?” Admiral Erisinni asked.
“Yes, Admiral,” Zarren said.
“We will be heading into port soon for our orders from
General Tiglath. Get your subordinate officers in order,” Admiral Erisinni said.
“Yes, Admiral,” Zarren said. He then left the side of the Admiral and began organizing his experienced officers and readying the ship.
~~~
“The Coherent is in sight, General,” Lieutenant Skender said. His vision was ordinary, so the ship was truly close.
General Tiglath turned to his squad of ninety (90) special operations troops and said: “Forward march!”
General Tiglath led the way, followed by Lieutenant Delfina, Lieutenant Skender and Lieutenant Pasha, then the ninety (90) special operations troops.
They arrived at the pier and waited only minutes until the Coherent docked and dropped anchor. The boarding ramp was immediately lowered. General Tiglath boarded the ship, followed by his lieutenants and the ninety (90) special operations troops.
“General Tiglath! Welcome aboard the Coherent” Admiral Erisinni said.
“Admiral, chart a course and set sail for Javanda, in the Grand Redwood Bay of the Ikkith Tar Ocean,” General Tiglath said.
“Yes, General. Immediately,” Admiral Erisinni said. He drank anew of the waters of the Atrejan Ocean from his vial and was energized. He listened for the sounds of the stars, and used their positions and movements to plot a course. Then, Admiral Erisinni ordered his crew to raise the anchor and adjust the sails.
Admiral Erisinni sailed the Coherent northeast across the Lujladia Ocean toward the Wandering of Shadows land bridge. He pulled levers to convert the ship to its airship configuration, pivoting the masts and sails from the upright position to the sides of the ship, so that it ascended to one hundred twenty (120) feet of altitude. He steered the airship through a low-lying area between the mountainous regions of the land bridge, and returned to sea level in the Ikkith Tar Ocean.
After returning the masts and sails to the upright position, Admiral Erisinni steered the Coherent northeast across the Ikkith Tar Ocean. He periodically refreshed his senses by drinking anew of the waters of the Atrejan Ocean from his vial, listening for the sounds of the stars to learn their most recent positions and movements and adjust his course. Traveling across the dark waters was still risky, but he was an expert in the matter.
~~~
Zarren returned to the area below deck where Felix and Lalla were waiting. “The Admiral is very disappointed in your work. Why were your charts not accurate? Did you not know how to translate from perceptual to visual coordinates?” Zarren asked. He knew about the concept – that the eyes and the ‘star-sense’ worked on different coordinate systems, and adjustments had to be made, but he didn’t know how to do it, either. However, that was the responsibility of anyone who drank the Atrejan waters. This hadn’t been a problem before, and these weren’t the first apprentices recruited from Nataloridivu, either.
“No one ever told us to make an adjustment,” Felix said.
“We were able to find our way across land,” Lalla said.
“That explains it. You need to make adjustments for ocean travel. There’s a distortion that takes place, and it’s very noticeable. I think this can be fixed with training…maybe. However, the Admiral is most displeased with you. He wanted me to remove you both from this ship immediately,” Zarren said.
“We’ll learn whatever we need to learn. The Countess was a religious lunatic – she should have taught us a useful skill instead of wasting all that time preaching,” Felix said.
“She doesn’t care about us at all. Just her sun gods. She doesn’t care if we die,” Lalla said.
“I know. But I do care. I’m the one who asked the Admiral not to punish you. He was going to throw you overboard. You wouldn’t have survived. Disappointing Admiral Erisinni is dangerous,” Zarren said.
“We’ll work to get it right,” Felix said.
“Thank you…for looking out for us,” Lalla said.
“You will thank me. That’ right,” Zarren said. His eyes scanned her feminine form many times, but this wasn’t the proper moment for what he wanted. There was a mission underway and he had to be responsive to the Admiral’s orders.
~~~
Admiral Erisinni skillfully sailed the Coherent over the open, dark waters of the Ikkith Tar Ocean toward the southern coast of the continent of Javanda. Getting lost was always a risk – good fortune was also needed, besides skill. He would have prayed, but he didn’t believe in deities of any kind. The Admiral continued steering on this course, following the Javanda coastline up into the Grand Redwood Bay.
As the ship neared the northernmost latitude of the bay, General Tiglath approached Admiral Erisinni and said: “Dock the ship at the northernmost latitude, Admiral. I need to take my troops inland for training.”
“Yes, General,” Admiral Erisinni said. He steered the Coherent into a small port town and ordered his crew to drop anchor and lower the boarding ramp.
“Provide me with twenty (20) shadow guards – all Ikkith Tar drinkers – from your crew, Admiral,” General Tiglath said.
“Yes, General,” Admiral Erisinni said. He called to his crew and directed the shadow guards to follow the general.
Pasha approached General Tiglath and said: “General, we never got a chance to speak about my report.”
“I have other things on my mind, Lieutenant. It will have to wait a little while longer. Wait here on the ship,” General Tiglath said.
General Tiglath gestured toward the shadow guards, who drank anew of the waters of the Ikkith Tar Ocean from their vials to become energized. They generated cloaks of darkness, extending these to reach over General Tiglath, Lieutenants Skender and Delfina and the ninety (90) special operations troops. Joining hands with General Tiglath, they disembarked from the Coherent and went into the port town unseen. From there, they hiked north into the woods.
~~~
Pasha went below deck and found Zarren, who was accompanied by a young man and a young woman, both of whom were wearing vials marked with the symbols of the suns, denoting the Atrejan Ocean waters. These were apprentice navigators, obviously, but what she found surprising was that they were not on deck providing at least support services. They weren’t even working on making new charts. Instead, Zarren’s eyes were on the young woman.
“Zarren, I see you have new young navigators on your crew. I trust you’ve worked on their conditioning,” Pasha said.
“Their religious disposition exceptionally good – they are nonbelievers, and see mythology as a waste of time,” Zarren said.
“Do you have a moment?” Pasha asked.
“Yes,” Zarren said.
Pasha took him by the hand and led him into a private room, where she closed the door.
“You leave her alone! Don’t you dare throw away what we have!” Pasha said.
“I still need comforts away from home. It’s not often we’re close together,” Zarren said.
“I’m here, now. Love me, not some little thing you happen to pick up along the way,” Pasha said.
“I can do what I want. I just happen to want you, too,” Zarren said.
“Loyalty is the key to a good relationship. I need to know I can trust you, and that you’re mine…mine alone,” Pasha said.
“We all work together for the common cause. We should all play together. And love together. There’s no need for this loyalty. You’ve taken other lovers,” Zarren said.
“No. I haven’t. I love you,” Pasha said.
“Why just me?” Zarren asked.
“You’re a truly good man. You defeated the religious zealots in battle as a warrior of truth. You’re strong enough to stand up against all the mythology and its murderous lies. I want that good man. I want to be with him,” Pasha said.
“Yes, religion’s a lie. So is loving just one person. Religions invented that idea. We all have needs, and opportunities. We should enjoy them. It’s religion that takes away our freedom. That’s why we work to get rid of it,” Zarren said.
“Freedom to betray those we love? That’s not freed
om! That’s self-destruction. I actually love you. Don’t do this to me,” Pasha said.
“You say you love me, so let’s love each other right now. I’m here. You’re here. This is the moment of opportunity. Ready?” Zarren asked.
“You’re not understanding me. I mean love, affection, tenderness, between us. Knowing that we’re there for each other. And when we’re apart, we’re thinking of each other. Having someone else fill the time and help us forget who we truly love isn’t the answer. It isn’t right,” Pasha said.
“It’s all physical. If I can’t have you for a while, there’s usually somebody else,” Zarren said.
“Make it just me. Don’t look at anybody else or think of anybody else or touch anybody else. That’s what makes our relationship special,” Pasha said.
“You ask for way too much. You want my everything, like some of blind devotion. Isn’t that the same diseased state of mind that makes religion so dangerous?” Zarren asked.
“Religion is about myths – believing in and loving things that don’t exist. This is different. I’m real. I do exist. I do truly love you,” Pasha said.
~~~
General Tiglath found a location in the forests of Javanda that appeared suitable for training his newest squad of ninety (90) special operations troops. He stopped their forward march and said: “Out of the shadows.”
The twenty (20) shadow guards each eased their powers of darkness, so that there was no more cloak over them, the General, the lieutenants or the special operations troops.
“Here, we will test your abilities. Drink up,” General Tiglath said.
Each of the ninety (90) special operations troops drank anew of the waters of the Medathero Ocean from their vials and were energized. They awaited the General’s orders.
“Lieutenant Skender, do you sense the wildlife? Their inferior animal minds should be easily detected by your telepathy?” General Tiglath asked.
Lieutenant Skender drank anew of the waters of the Elanatin Ocean from his vial and was energized. He probed the area for signs of animals and found several.