Dream of Empty Crowns

by M. J. Sewall

  “How did you meet…?” asked Gordon, trying to keep his balance as the boat rocked. The waters had grown rough with the wind.

  Aline didn't answer, just looked around, like she'd heard something no one else could. The sun was completely down, and the dark clouds had arrived with their wet gifts. The wind gusted harder, and the rain started to sting their eyes. Gordon and Aline almost fell over as a large wave rocked the small vessel.

  The crew was running around the deck, tying things down with heavy rope. The pilot was standing at the back of the ship with a long spy glass in his hand, looking backwards instead of forward. Gordon tried to follow his line of sight. Gordon saw a small shape. Another ship, he thought. It seemed to be moving very fast, and right toward them.

  The pilot collapsed his spy glass and turned around, yelling orders to his crew. The ship was rocking wildly back and forth. Gordon had a hand on the railing, surprised at how high the waves had gotten. The wind threw seawater in his face.

  “Get below deck, now!” demanded the pilot. Just then a flash of lightning lit the sky directly behind them. As Aline and Gordon made their way toward the ladder below, Gordon saw how fast the other ship was approaching. The thunderclap came quickly after the lightning just as the boat was hit by a very large wave. Gordon flew back. He might've gone over, but he caught a rope at the edge of the railing.

  Aline, trying to make her way over to secure Gordon, was hit by water coming over the side of the ship. She was thrown down the ladder and below deck. Gordon still had his hand around the rope, but struggled to stay on the boat. There was a lot of water on the deck. Gordon thought they were riding lower in the water, but he couldn't be sure. The waves seemed nearly as high as the boat. Just as Gordon thought the next wave would push him overboard, another wave came the opposite direction and threw him back on the deck right next to the pilot's feet.

  “Get below deck! Damn you, you won't survive out here!” Gordon didn't need to be told again. Gordon got to the stairs and below deck. Aline was at the bottom of the stairs, holding her head. There was blood pouring from a cut on her forehead.

  “Are you all right? What happened?” asked Gordon.

  Then Gordon realized there was several feet of water on the floor.

  “I'm fine, I hit my head on the stairs. We need to find our gear.”

  “Wait, should I get something for your head?” asked Gordon.

  “No, I'll be fine. If the ship goes down we need to hang on to our gear.”

  Gordon stood there for a moment, frozen. If the ship went down? He'd never imagined the ship might actually sink. Aline trudged through the water, grabbed Gordon's arm and forced him to help her find their gear. Gordon groped for the metal box with his sweets and sour cakes. He breathed a sigh as his fingers found them. He made sure the metal lid was closed tight.

  The water was very cold on their legs and it was nearly pitch black below deck. The boat was rocking and they could barely stand, but they found their things. They heard an ominous creaking sound in the ship.

  Aline grabbed some rope. “Here. Use this to tie your sack and your gear to you. Make the knot tight.”

  As Gordon complied, and Aline did the same, he said, “I don't care what the pilot says. We shouldn't be down here.”

  The deluge was deafening as they climbed the stairs. Another flash of lightning lit the sky. Gordon could see the mouths of the sailors moving, but he couldn't hear anything.

  Gordon glanced at the pilot, who had tied himself to the wheel. The other ship was faring no better. It was rocking just as wildly and looked like it was also riding low in the water, probably in trouble too. Gordon could not even see any men on board the dark shape.

  Aline grabbed Gordon and pulled him to the mast. She tried desperately to use nearby ropes to tie them both to the mast, but the wind and the rain were too strong. Just as she secured Gordon with the ropes, a large wave came over the ship and she was gone.

  Gordon tried feverishly to undo his knot and find her. He couldn't tell which side of the boat she has gone over, or even if she was somewhere still on deck.

  Another cold wave came over the railing of the ship, salt water getting in his mouth as he tried to yell Aline's name. The cold water had numbed his hands, but he continued to try and untie the knot. The ship was leaning badly to one side as he heard a loud crack. His ears began to ring and he realized the mast he was tied to just cracked in half. Another wave came straight for him. Gordon felt the boat tip farther as the mast and sails crashed into the water. The broken mast led the boat down towards the cold, dark waters. Gordon didn't even feel the shock of the cold sea as everything went black.

  Chapter 24: Much to Learn

  The two airships were making good progress. They had stayed away from the coastline, but soon they would be headed out over the open waters. There was no other way to get to Thure. Trunculin had wanted to wait until morning, but Brenddel insisted they leave at night, “Those things wouldn't dare attack me again. We'll fly as high as we can manage. Besides, these two ships are fully armed with large arrows and rain makers. I'm ready this time.”

  Trunculin wanted to get to the old kingdom as soon as possible, so he agreed. He knew the small contingent of soldiers they brought with them all knew their jobs. The only one he worried about was the new king.

  “Firstcouncilor. Look over there, I think that's lightning!” shouted King Asa.

  As it turned out, the new king was the least of his worries. It seems the king was fascinated by everything he saw. They had been up in the air for hours already, and the boy wasn't tired of pointing out every little thing that he discovered.

  Trunculin heard the faintest roll of thunder. He got up from his chair, and tried to seem interested for the boy's sake. He pulled his blanket around his shoulders. “Yes, my king, I can just see it way over there. It looks like large dark clouds, probably over the water…”

  “Oh! Look at that!” The king had already lost interest, and had run to the front of the ship. The firstcouncilor followed dutifully and now the king was pointing at a large trail of lights along the ground. “What is that? Are they fire bugs?”

  Trunculin said, “Oh, let's hope not. That many fire bugs in one place could be trouble. No, those little lights down there, looks like some sort of celebration or maybe a farmer's feast.”

  “You mean, those are people down there? They look as small as bugs,” said Asa excitedly.

  Brenddel walked up and said, “Yes, my king. Those are people down there. We are the only kingdom that can see people from this high up. The people look like little bugs because they are so far beneath us. Just like if your friend was far away on a hill, he would look very small to you. It's the same thing.”

  “I thought Extatumm has airships too. That's what my friend Skyler says.”

  Brenddel stiffened a little. “There have been rumors for years that they have airships. The people that took over the kingdom of Dard, and renamed it Extatumm, are very secretive. They let in no one from outside their lands. But I'm sure they don't have airships. Those are just rumors and lies.”

  Trunculin took this opportunity to fade back to his chair, leaving the firstman and the king alone.

  “Oh! Is this the fire gun? How does it work?” asked Asa.

  Brenddel put his hand over Asa's. “Better not touch that, my king. It takes a lot of training to operate one of these. But I will show you the basics. We call it a rainmaker because it rains fire downward. You see this pipe here releases the oil. As it drops, it is caught on fire here,” he said, indicating the wick hung near the pipe. “The fire spreads down, and the fireman has a snuffer so that the fire does not travel back up the pipe, you see?”

  Asa said, “Wooooah. So, can you aim it at other airships?”

  Brenddel replied, “We are working on that. So far, we can only drop fire downward. Why would we want to aim fire at our own airships, anyway?”

  King Asa shrugged, “I don't know. I haven't really been taught abo
ut the airships yet. So… I still don't get how the ship stays up in the air, or how we go down. A councilor started to tell me but… I got confused. What's in there?” The king asked as he pointed to the massive floating body of the ship above them.

  Brenddel smiled and said, “A while back, some men in our kingdom discovered a different kind of air. It comes from deep in the ground, and we have found a way to capture it. It is lighter than the air that we breathe. We call it the sun gas, because it escapes back to the sun if we don't capture it. But, if we capture enough of this light air, like in the skin of an airship, the whole ship floats.”

  “So, no one else has discovered this light air, except us?” asked Asa.

  “No, my king, it was found in our kingdom, and we believe that it only occurs here. It is a jealously guarded secret how we get the sun gas out of the ground, and how we build the airships,” Brenddel said secretively. “You will keep this a secret, won't you, my king?

  Asa smiled, “Of course. So why is the ship so big, and the deck so much smaller? Wouldn't it be better if we had more weapons and stuff?” asked the king.

  Brenddel smiled, “I wish we could. The problem is that the gas can only lift so much. This is not magic. We have to deal with realities. It takes a lot of this special air to lift even one person. We plan everything we load on the ships very carefully. It's a good thing you're so skinny, or we may have left you behind.”

  Asa smiled. “But, how does it go up and down?”

  “I will show you,” said Brenddel, leading him to the controls. “It is a little like a watership. This wheel steers the ships side to side. The wheel controls the rudder. When the air passes around the rudder, it turns the ship in either direction. This other wheel does the same thing to give us height or make us go down. If we have to go up very quickly, we can throw sandbags or water overboard. If we have to go down very quickly, we can let some of the gas escape, you see?”

  “Wow,” said Asa.

  “There is a lot more to being a pilot, but those are the basics. Are you excited about seeing the world outside of our kingdom?” asked Brenddel.

  “I've never been outside the kingdom before. Is Thure big? I hear it's really old.”

  Brenddel replied, “Yes. Very big and very old.”

  “I've never talked to a queen before. I don't know what I'm supposed to say.”

  “I wouldn't be the one to tell you. I'm just a soldier. That's the firstcouncilor's job. I'm sure he'll tell you all you need to know,” replied Brenddel.

  Asa shifted uncomfortably as he leaned on the railing. He looked back to see if anyone was listening and said, “I don't… I don't think Trunculin likes me.”

  Brenddel leaned in close, and with a very serious face he said, “The firstcouncilor doesn't like anyone.”

  Asa started to smile too. The two of them stood there, looking down at the line of lights, imagining what was happening so far beneath them. Asa looked up and saw a giant kingdom approaching far in the distance. Even from this height in the dark, he could see how big it was. It made Asa feel even smaller.

  Chapter 25: Lost

  Gordon's eyes shot open to a world of light and pain. He immediately put his arm over his eyes against the bright sunlight. He realized he was, at least, alive. He felt something next to him and realized it was his lumpy sack still tied around his body. He hurriedly searched for his metal can. He found it, and opened it to find only a little water got in. He ate a sweet as he looked around.

  There was not a cloud in the sky, almost like there never had been. He was lying on some large leaves, surrounded by sand. Did I crawl here? I don't remember, he thought. He could hear the waves break on the beach.

  With some effort, and more than a little pain, he managed a standing position as he tried to figure out where he was. The only land he could see was the small bit he was on. Beyond that, it was just blue sea everywhere. The beach was narrow and led to lush green plants and trees three times as tall as he was.

  He started to walk along the beach, looking for Aline. He was worried to call her name out until he figured out where he was, and who else was around. He saw bits of wood that had been washed ashore that were clearly pieces of ship.

  The sea was gently playing with a large pile of clothes and tangled ropes. It got tugged out a little, then the next wave gently put it back on the sand. He went to it, and pulled back quickly when he saw a face. The eyes were closed and the man was wrapped in a jumble of ropes.

  He choked back his fear and got closer again. Gordon could tell that the man was dead. The rope that carried him away from the sinking ship had also wrapped around his neck long before he got to shore. Gordon got up uneasily and walked away, not knowing what else to do.

  He had to find Aline.

  There was more wood on the beach as he walked, and a few barrels were washed ashore. Some of the things he recognized from the ship, others were just unrecognizable ruins. No Aline. He walked for some time, squinting his eyes in the hot sun, when he spotted someone else lying on the sand. It looked like a person, faced down.

  He fought the urge to yell as he ran toward the person. It had to be Aline. We haven't gone through all this to… but Gordon couldn't let himself think like that. He slowed down as he approached the shape on the sand.

  He was afraid the unmoving shape was dead as well, but he had to make sure. As he got closer, the body appeared to be moving slightly, maybe breathing. He bent down. It was a man and he was alive. Gordon turned him over. Gordon looked at the man's clothes. He was dressed in the bluish green uniform of a thurian guard. Gordon was just about to bend over to see if he was unhurt when he heard a noise from behind him. “Bhuta?”

  Gordon spun around, startled. Standing only two feet away from him was a man like no one he had ever seen. The man said the strange word again, pointing to the man on the ground. The man was carrying a long wooden club, and had ink designs all over his body. To Gordon, they almost look like numbers.

  As Gordon tried to figure out what to do next, he couldn't help but stare at what looked like a number eight on the man's neck. He had no idea how the man had gotten so close without Gordon hearing him. The man on the sand moved and let out a groan.

  Gordon turned around to see the man was trying to sit up. He was coughing and sputtering as he pushed himself upright. Gordon turned around again to face the man with the number eight, and suddenly there were ten others standing there. He had not heard them approach. They all looked at Gordon and down at the man, saying nothing.

  Gordon instinctively tried to protect the men and drew his small knife. He realized instantly how foolish he must look. The one with the eight on his neck smiled. Gordon stood over the man with his knife drawn, not knowing what to do.

  The men with ink all over their bodies all smiled and then… dropped their clubs. Gordon was surprised. That was the last thing he expected them to do and Gordon simply looked at them, mouth open. They all began to laugh as their weapons laid silently on the ground. The Thurian guard coughed on the sand and stared at them.

  Gordon slowly put his own knife away. He helped the man on the ground get up. The man with the eight on his neck walked up to Gordon quickly, still smiling, and did something entirely unexpected: he hugged Gordon tight. All the men standing behind him began laughing.

  Chapter 26: Old Woman's Plan

  “Disaster. How could this happen?” said the queen as she paced back and forth.

  “You must stay calm,” said the old woman sitting a few feet from her, both hands on her cane.

  “I lose the boy king and my best guard all in one day, just after my husband…” the queen began sobbing and sat down in her chair.

  “You have to focus now. The firstcouncilor and his new boy king will be here soon with those damned airships of theirs. We don't have much time, and you have things to decide,” said the old woman.

  The queen stopped crying. “I know. I know, it's just that things are happening so fast. One disaster after another. An
d that damned Denogg. I am going to have his heart cut out.”

  The old woman got up with energy and went to the queen. “Good. Anger will focus you. But forget about Denogg right now. You have immediate problems. First, you need to secure your place of power before anything else. You didn't have any children, so that helps you, but…”

  “… But my husband has a brother. Yes, I know. I'm surprised he hasn't shown up at my door already, demanding to be crowned.”

  The old woman reasoned, “He will make his move soon enough. He'll speak at the funeral and if it's a good enough speech, the people may crown him right there and then. We both know the ancient laws of acclamation; if the crowds demand it, he will be king. You need some protection before then.”

  “Yes. But my main card to bargain with is gone. It's not the young new king I'm worried about upsetting,” said the queen. “It's what his firstcouncilor will do when he finds out I've lost Gordon.”

  “It's also important to decide how honest you're going to be with your new potential ally,” said the queen's grandmother. “Trunculin may partner with you now that you have Denogg's fortune behind you. But that will not protect you from the king's brother Darion. He's an idiot, but he has soldiers that are very loyal to him. He's wisely kept them out of Thure and somewhere safe, but they could be here fast enough. And your most loyal guard is probably lost at sea by now, along with Gordon. We would've heard something by now… and that storm was terrible, so I'm told.”

  “Grandmother, I know how dire my situation is, thank you. But what will the firstcouncilor want in return? He's from the richest kingdom. He doesn't need my new fortune. We can't buy him,” said the queen.

  “I wager the firstcouncilor is not a man who values coin. I'm guessing he values power. The lines between our kingdoms have been strong in the past, you just need to make it an active, friendly alliance once more. I'm sure he will have some demands. The boy's uncle is one card you still hold, but he's expecting Gordon. What would you tell him?” asked the grandmother.