The Zoya Chronicles Boxed Set

by Kate Sander

  Ujarak would love to imagine the treasure, but his stomach heaved with the waves. "I thought you said this would go away in a few days."

  "It usually does, lad," Captain Jimmy Spring said. "We are well beyond the farthest anyone has sailed. I've never seen someone hold on to the sickness as long as you."

  Ujarak wanted to respond, but instead, he had to vomit over the side of the ship. Captain Jimmy Spring laughed.

  "Captain!" The sailor in the crow's nest yelled in her shrill voice. "We are coming up on something!"

  The Captain smiled, "It seems an adventure has caught up to us." He winked at Ujarak, whose nausea seemed to be worsening. "What do you see?" he yelled at the sailor.

  She had a spyglass to her eye. "The sea... It ends, captain. Just sky."

  "Pull down the sails," the captain yelled. The sailors immediately began attending to their duties. "Is there any way around it?"

  The lookout took her time, scanning the horizon. Captain Jimmy Spring waited patiently. "No," she called. Her voice wavered a touch. "No, sir. The sea ends in a haze. I can't tell if there's anything beyond. Only sky, as far as the eye can see."

  "We're picking up speed, sir," the first mate yelled from the wheel.

  "I told you to tear down the sail!" the captain snapped, tearing his eyes away from the horizon. The sails were tied to the mast. The ship was, indeed, picking up speed. It was being sucked by a current towards the end of the sea.

  The Captain smiled. "Raise the sails! Point it directly ahead. Men, this is what we signed up for. We will meet this adventure head on!"

  With the sails raised, the ship barrelled straight ahead towards...

  "Nothing," Ujarak gasped. "Captain! Turn it around! There's nothing there!"

  "Bravery, my dear boy, bravery," the captain said, slapping Ujarak on the shoulder. "We couldn't turn this ship around if we tried. We are trapped in the current. Our only hope is to gather as much speed as we can and meet this unknown head on."

  "Grab on to something!" the sailor in the crow’s nest called.

  The men and women on the ship, faces white, but trusting their captain, grabbed on to the nearest part of the boat.

  The sky rushed at them, the vast emptiness more terrifying than any monster, human or otherwise.

  The captain skipped to the wheel, relieving the first mate. "It's been an honour serving with you all!" he cried.

  Ujarak grabbed the side of the ship. Why, Tory? Why did you send me all the way out here just to die? He closed his eyes and thought of his Tory, his woman, his love.

  The ship tilted forward and fell over the edge of the earth.

  "The last thing I heard was the Captain hollering something. Then I woke up here," Ujarak said, gesturing around him. It was dark and they'd moved outside to a fire that the villagers had lit for them. They hung back respectfully, eyes averted. "They tell me I was on a piece of driftwood, floating in the middle of the sea. A small fishing boat found me."

  Senka was sitting silently, staring at the flickering of the fire.

  Ujarak ended his story and slipped back into his familiar and preferred state - silence. A young man, probably in his early twenties, seemed to decide something and ran up to Ujarak. Gasps followed him and his mother called out quietly. The man bowed at Ujarak and started babbling in a language Senka didn't understand.

  "I'm sorry," another man, this one older, said. He kept his eyes averted from Ujarak. "He should not have interrupted. He will be punished."

  Ujarak held up his hand. "What did he want to tell me?"

  The older man snapped the younger man a silencing look. "Tuk wanted to tell you of the last Gods to enter Nerane'I."

  "Other Gods?" Senka said.

  "Yes. This is a legend of our people. Only the great Ujarak is a God, the others are only legends. Tuk thought you should know but it's not his place to interrupt."

  "What is your name?" Ujarak asked.

  "Po," the man said.

  "Po, tell me about these other Gods."

  "Three Zoya were found over a hundred years ago. The elders tell the story. They were cruel and unjust Gods. Not like our Ujarak. No, they ruled and commanded with iron fists, killing and torturing. They demanded conformity, and destroyed anyone who disobeyed. But only legends, not real."

  "What were their names?" Senka asked. She had a nagging feeling.

  "I cannot speak them. Bad omens."

  "But they are only legends," Senka responded. "If it wasn't real why are you afraid?"

  Ujarak held up his hand. "I am telling you to speak their names," he said.

  Po took a deep breath and glared at Tuk, who was averting his eyes in embarrassment. "The white witch Malin, the mind wielder Roald, and..." He drifted off. "The titan of worlds, Freudman."

  Senka jumped up, "How long ago did you say this was?"

  "Generations," the man mumbled. "Before my grandfather's time."

  "That's impossible," she snapped. She grabbed the front of his shirt and he all but melted in fear before her. "When exactly was this?"

  "I don't know!" he sobbed.

  "Senka..."

  Senka shook him, "I asked you when this was!" Po's head flopped around and his feet left the ground.

  A rough hand on her shoulder stopped her from killing him. “Senka,” Ujarak said calmly next to her, “I need you to calm down. Put him down.”

  Senka seemed to gather herself. She dropped Po. He scrambled away to the villagers, who helped him stand and brushed him off. Embarrassed, Senka turned away from them.

  "I'm sorry," she said. Annoyed by his sobs from behind her, she snapped. "Oh suck it up, I barely touched you."

  Ujarak stared at her, confusion on his face. "What happened to you?" he asked.

  A howl of pain erupted from the edge of the woods. Senka abruptly turned around. The villagers started wailing and rushed to their huts.

  "Bad omens! Bad omens!" Po called as he ran.

  The howl sounded again, wretched and shrieking. Senka's heart sank.

  "Kai," she gasped.

  She ran towards the sound, leaving Ujarak standing alone and utterly confused.

  6

  Senka

  Senka ran as fast as she could, leaving everyone in the village confused. Ujarak barked orders to the fleeing villagers behind her but she neither stopped to listen nor did she care.

  Kai's scream of pain erupted again from the top of the cliffs in front of her. So loud she was able to hear it clearly over the thundering of the waterfall.

  "I'm coming!" she yelled as loudly as she could, hoping her voice would reach him. "Hang in there, Kai, I'm coming!"

  She scrambled up the slippery, rocky path, self-preservation completely out the window. Closer to the top of the cliff, she heard the scuffles and snarls of a raging battle.

  "Kai!" she yelled and, with a bounding leap, crested the top of the cliff.

  Skidding to a stop, she took in the bloody scene. Kai was locked in battle with what looked like a giant wasp. It darted in the air above him, wingspan easily over eight feet long. Its foot long stinger jabbed down at Kai's back and he barely was able to get out of the way. Kai's injured shoulder was slowing him down, and he snarled and batted weakly at the wasp.

  Senka looked around in a panic. In her hurry to respond to the desperate call of her friend, she’d forgotten to bring a weapon. A rock the size of her palm stood out to her. She picked it up and heaved it at the wasp, following the rock as fast as she could. The rock missed the target, because why wouldn't it, she thought as she launched herself at the wasp, who wasn't as distracted as she needed it to be. It dodged her easily and she landed in a roll, coming to a skidding stop on her back against Kai’s shaking legs.

  "Hey buddy," she said, gasping. "You alright?"

  Kai collapsed next to her and licked her hand weakly.

  "I'm going to get you out of here, don't worry."

  The wasp darted in for another attack. Kai was fading. Senka knew she had to kill this thing fa
st. It darted towards her, stinger extended, pincers snapping at the air.

  Senka only had one chance. Leaping as high as she could (a considerable height with her speed and strength), she jumped up to meet the wasp. Surprised at her bravado, the wasp pulled up its head a little bit. Banking on that reaction, Senka reached forward and grabbed the giant pincers. They were slimy and sticky in her hands but, gritting her teeth, she managed to keep hold.

  The wasp let out an odd buzz. Senka held on to the pincers and pulled the wasp with her to the ground.

  With a guttural "umph", she landed on her feet and flipped the wasp over her head, smashing it on the ground in front of her. The stinger grazed the top of her head but didn't break the skin. Stunned and on its back, the wasp tried to flip itself over with a buzz of its wings.

  "Not likely," Senka said as she lifted up her foot and stomped as hard as she could on the wasp's head. Bright green brains exploded over her foot as her leg sank to her knee into its head. The wasp gave a final twitch and died.

  "Ugh," she mumbled. Her foot was stuck in the brains of the wasp. Moving her leg side to side, she managed to break the suction and free her leg from the foul smelling, green goo.

  "Kai," she said and she ran to her downed panther. "My boy, what happened to you?"

  Kai was lying on his side, breathing heavily. The wound from the Azreal was still open on his shoulder and was emitting a white pus. There were tiny cuts all over his body. Senka ran her hands all over him and confirmed that, thankfully, there were no stings.

  His eyes opened and Senka gave him a hug around his neck. "I got you, Kai. I'll get you to help." He licked her hand gently, love and pain coming from the eyes of the four hundred pound cat.

  A low buzz hit her ears, coming from the forest a few hundred yards away.

  "Senka!"

  Ujarak crested the cliff. He was carrying his warhammer and puffing from the climb. Leather wrapped his forearms and his long hair was tied back away from his face.

  This was the Ujarak that Senka remembered. Hardened and battle ready.

  Jogging to them easily, his eyes went wide when he saw Kai and stopped a few feet away from the panther. Kai lifted his head painfully and growled at him.

  "Shush," Senka said. "He's a friend, rest while you can." The big cat’s head fell back to the ground.

  "Friend of yours?" Ujarak asked.

  "The best," Senka said.

  The low buzz was becoming louder, Senka could feel the ground start to shake under her feet. They both turned at the same time.

  A swarm of giant wasps emerged from the trees. They flew low, buzzing together, only a foot gap in between their eight foot wing span.

  Ujarak squared his shoulders.

  "My count is fifty-seven," Senka said.

  Ujarak set his warhammer down with a thud and tossed her a couple of things off his belt. Senka caught them gracefully. Two short swords in leather sheaths. She quickly unsheathed them. They were well made with wooden hilts and had good balance.

  "Stole them off Po for you," he said.

  Senka smiled wide. This was heaven. Side by side with Ujarak fighting against overwhelming odds.

  This felt like home.

  "Nice to be here with you," she said.

  Ujarak grunted his agreement.

  With a yell that made the birds fly from the treetops, Ujarak and Senka charged the swarm head on. Spinning the swords in her hands to get the feeling of their weight, Senka easily outpaced the massive Ujarak and leapt gracefully towards the leader.

  The swords were sharp and easily cut the head off from the wasp. It fell to the ground with a thud. The wings kept buzzing awkwardly and kept the body flying for a few seconds until they slowed to a stop. The body slanted to the side and crashed to the ground in a puff of dirt.

  "One down," Senka mumbled as the rest made a direct line for her. Ujarak roared something as he caught up and ran by, smashing his hammer into the nearest wasp's head, sending a fountain of bright green brains into the air.

  The wasps buzzed louder, seemingly angered by the death of two of their swarm.

  Can giant wasps get angry? Senka thought as she dove, rising to slash the wing off the closest wasp. It careened into the wasp next to it and they crashed to the ground in a mess of legs, stingers and pincers. Ujarak finished them both off with a massive swing of his hammer.

  Or is this just a natural defensive reaction that they aren't in control of? She swung upwards with her swords and cut open the abdomen of a low flying insect, causing it to spill green goo all over her arm and shoulder.

  "Yuck!" she yelled.

  Ujarak roared again. He was standing in the middle of a circle, wasp bodies rising around him.

  Senka couldn't let him kill more wasps than she did. She was a Zoya, after all. Smiling with the excitement of competition, she dove, cut, swung, twirled and slashed her way through the swarm.

  Kai let out a moan behind her, distracting Senka for a split second. That's all one of the wasps needed to gain an edge. It swooped down, pincers first. Senka turned and tried to get a sword up to block it, but missed. Its pincer scraped over her face, leaving a burning, bleeding gash. Senka gasped and fell backwards, holding her face. Blisters formed around the edges of the cut running from brow to chin across her face.

  The wasp reared back, ready to sting her in the stomach. Senka pulled her hands off her face and rolled, barely getting out of the way in time. The stinger missed her by an inch. Scrambling on her hands and knees, trying to ignore the searing pain in her face, she tried to put some distance between her and the wasp. Other wasps sensed her weakness and swarmed.

  Senka heard them swoop and, turning quickly onto her butt, got a sword up to block the first of the pincers, but the sheer weight of the wasps were going to be too much.

  "Aaaaargh."

  Ujarak to the rescue. With an earth-shattering roar, he leapt into the descending horde. Hammer swinging, he caught two in the head, making them explode in a splash of green brains. The rest of the wasps retreated upwards, giving Ujarak a moment to heave Senka to her feet.

  "You'll live," he grunted, giving her face a quick check.

  The buzzing grew louder. The final wasps were on the attack. Ujarak and Senka stood back to back. Senka flipped her swords and cracked her neck, trying to ignore the burning in her face and attempting to see through the blisters forming around her eye.

  She'd had this injury before. Ujarak was right. She would live.

  The wasps attacked, a coordinated and timed assault. Senka dove forward, a stinger barely missing her. Ujarak nailed the wasp in the head with the end of his hammer. The wasp fell to the ground and Senka finished it off by slicing off its head.

  Ujarak was being pulled backwards by another wasp, a shocked look on his face. Senka ran and jumped, slicing the wasp from head to abdomen. Landing in the middle of the eviscerated carcass, she gagged a little as the green goo splashed into her mouth.

  There were maybe five wasps left. Ujarak rolled his shoulder.

  "Pincer got me. Fucker burns."

  "You'll live," she said slyly back to him.

  Laughing, he charged the rest of the wasps. Senka joined him. They killed the rest of them in a dance of weapons and green guts.

  Only after the last of the wasps lay dead on the ground did she turn back to Ujarak, who had so many dead wasps around him he had to climb his way out.

  "Twenty-eight," she yelled at him, gasping.

  "Twenty-nine," he grunted back once he was over the line of wasps.

  "Fuck."

  "You've gotten slow in your time away," Ujarak said. "You're awkward with those swords."

  "Used to guns," she muttered, spinning a sword in her hands. The truth stung.

  "What is a gun?"

  "Never mind, not important. You're right, I'm slow." She felt her face. It burned to the touch. "Ow."

  A low growl reached her, completely distracting her from her injury.

  "Kai," she said, turni
ng away from Ujarak and running to her panther. He had gotten worse. Blood was pooling from his wounds in a steady stream on the ground.

  "We have to get him back to the village," she said. "Do they have a shaman or a healer? It's the only way."

  "They fear these creatures. Call them the "black death", they will not help him."

  Senka turned quickly, fire in her eyes and grabbed Ujarak by the front of his shirt, making him wince. "You're a god to them, command them to help him."

  Ujarak patted her hand, "Of course. I wouldn't have it any other way. A friend of yours is a friend of mine. I'm surprised you'd think less of me."

  Senka let go and turned back to Kai. "We're gonna get you help buddy, don't worry," she whispered to him, giving him a scratch behind the ears.

  Ujarak went to his hind quarters. "We work together and take our time," he said, bending down to pick up Kai.

  Senka's anger softened. Of course Ujarak would help without request or hesitation. He was a good man. Senka didn't know how she'd forgotten that.

  "One," she said.

  "Two."

  "Three."

  They both heaved up at the same time. Senka was stronger than any human but Kai was still heavy in her arms. They worked together, grunting and groaning as they managed Kai down the steep cut backs of the path on the cliff face. Senka's face felt terrible, the pain intensifying as the adrenaline wore off. Doubting that Ujarak was faring any better, she toughed it out. The sun was setting, and with the low light and rocky footing, their progress was slow. It was well after dark by the time they made the village, puffing and sweating.

  Screams and gasps greeted them as the villagers poured out of their houses.

  "Stop staring and help us," Senka snapped at the nearest group of men. They didn't move, making a symbol with their hands and pointing at Kai.