Grunting a little laugh, Sebastian said quietly, “Oh, I wouldn’t sell her so short. A woman knows how to get to a man in more than one way.”
Yara nodded before smiling up at him. She knew about getting at least one man to like her.
After five days since leaving the Siren Isles, the Sea Dragon was well into the Glacien Ocean. The islands surrounding the North Sea were hundreds of miles to the north and the red dot continued to the taunt the mage with its promise of the next step in the trail.
Sebastian wondered how much farther they would need to go. The Dark Emperor’s forces had shaken up the world, but when everything settled they had set down roots in the mountains north of Southwall. To think that they would have hidden the Grimnal much farther seemed wrong. The Quardi islands were to the southwest and beyond them the continent of Taltan where established countries would have easily noticed the black sailed ships of the emperor. They were still being pointed southeast and the only known lands were thousands of miles away.
Yaroma and Naoromi appeared as the mage contemplated the fate of the mission. Dripping on the deck, the mermaids had hurried to him without waiting for any towels. Olan followed as soon as he realized the mermaids had returned, but they were more interested in conveying new information to their leader.
“What is it, Yaroma? I assume you have found something,” Sebastian questioned as he watched them approach in an unusual rush.
Naoromi exchanged a glance with her sister before the elder mermaid replied, “There are signs that we head into a new clan’s waters.”
Trying to understand, he asked, “Are these signs warning you against anyone entering their territory or something?”
A look almost of shame washed over both women at the question and again they exchanged looks. Naoromi took over for her sister. Even without the magic of her siren voice, the pretty girl’s speech was musical as she replied for Yaroma, “I am afraid that we aren’t as knowledgeable about the clans beyond our isles. We have only had verbal teaching from our elders and they from theirs, but of course much of the knowledge was stifled by the pirates.
“In places we have seen markers. The seas we just passed through held only broken and long worn stones, but here they are new. It must be a strong clan and large because the markers extend from east to west beyond where we looked.”
Yaroma nodded, “We wanted to warn you first. This ship will cross the markers in just a little while.”
Sebastian sighed as he understood the importance of the mermaids’ news, but a ship on the surface was presumed beyond the influence of the warning. The mermaids swimming into an enemy’s territory worried him much more however. “If you think that it is unsafe for the two of you to swim here, then stay on the ship until we are safely past their territory. I don’t want you being attacked for entering their land,” he made a face at the word land. Being from the land, Sebastian was unsure of how to reference the underwater world.
“If we stay near the ship, we should be safe,” Naoromi assured him quickly. Like her sister, the dark haired mermaid seemed to need to repay him out of indebtedness for his freeing them. He could see it in both of their faces that they would rather risk punishment from the rival tribe, than let him down in a perceived way.
“I have enough air wizards to keep scouting in any direction for miles,” he reminded them without trying to undermine their worth as scouts for him. If he made them think they had been of little use, Bas was sure that they would find another way to try and repay him, but he feared it would bring more danger to them to try. “If you want to try and keep an eye out for more markers below the water, we can keep on looking for the island we’re looking for. After all, a man from our world wouldn’t be under the water. He will be somewhere that he can stand on earth.”
Yaroma’s eyes were unreadable as she answered, “These markers also have unusual writing on them. There are the usual marks that I was taught as a girl, but there are others as well. I could show you if I had something to write on.”
Sebastian led the women into the steerage cabin and found both waterproof paper and a piece of bound charcoal used by the sailors of Malaiy. Yaroma drew out both the writing of the merfolk and the marks that they hadn’t recognized. Naoromi put her hand in a few times correcting her sister much to the elder girl’s annoyance. When they were finished and stepped back, Olan let out a low whistle as he had followed the three into the cabin after handing the girls their towels.
Sebastian agreed with the sound of surprise. While he didn’t know the merfolk writing he did recognize the letters common to Southwall and much of Taltan. “Father’s People,” the mage read the words aloud. “What do the other markings mean, Yaroma?”
“I am not strong on our writing, but I think that it is something like Elder Picked, I think.”
Naoromi shook her head and corrected, “Father’s Chosen, sister. You never were one to learn our language, but it says ‘Father’s Chosen’. So perhaps the two together mean ‘Father’s Chosen People’?”
Sebastian pondered the idea and asked, “Do your people have gods and perhaps a father of gods in your mythology?”
The two thought on the idea a moment before Naoromi took the lead, “We have gods. The shark god, a dolphin god, the whale god, and even other dark gods that we believe in and some say that they have seen, but most say that we come from the mother sea. I suppose that there must be a father if there is a mother, but no one in the clan has ever told a story of a father god.”
“If Naoromi doesn’t know of the reference, then I am afraid we can not help you with that question,” Yaroma admitted knowing that her younger sister had paid more attention to the lessons given by the elders while they were children. “We all have mothers and fathers, but a ‘Father’s Chosen People’ is both a strange name for a tribe and an unknown name.”
He thanked the two women dismissing them. Olan followed the girls after checking with Sebastian before leaving. Once more his owl side was put to the test of thinking this through and one thought kept coming to his mind. The legends of his people were often tales that could be confused with certain historical figures. The brother moons were gods, but some said there were chronicles of men with great power long ago. Their names might merely have taken on grandiose proportions and been declared gods over time.
A man who couldn’t be killed and lived beyond any normal lifetime like the Grimnal might be considered almost as mythical to normal people. As it was, many people of Southwall no longer believed that he was an immortal. The idea of someone living a thousand years or more was impossible to their minds. He was a legend, a myth, and someone like that might be used for a name like this. If he had been in the area for almost two hundred years and associated with the merfolk like his people had, then perhaps they looked to him as a father of them all.
These markings might actually be telling them that the man they pursued was as close as the dot on the compass told them. Sebastian would have to increase the range of the wind searches and start looking out for signs of the merfolk as well, if they were in an active clan area. A little excitement crept in as the man thought that maybe the end of his mission was closer to hand than he had originally feared.
Late on the fifth day, Themenor returned from his search looking more excited than he had when he had left. Normally very businesslike, the wizard had taken to Sebastian’s lead easily despite his being a mage, but that also made him a bit quiet around his new crewmates. To see him excited made Sebastian hopeful.
“There is an island ahead with huts and people living there straight ahead. Perhaps two more hours sailing will bring us to it. There are also a few other small islands nearby, but I spied no signs of life beyond some plants,” the wizard said restraining his excitement. He had picked up the desire to help Sebastian accomplish his grand mission. It was an excitement that he had never had just pursuing the Sea Dragon for Lord Romonus, an act he had apologized for allowing numerous times.
A slight frown as Sebasti
an processed the information stilled the wizard’s face as he tried to read his leader’s expression. “Our maps don’t show any islands, so it is uncharted. That would be the type of island I would think Gerid would be exiled to if the emperor wanted him removed from the rest of the world, but kept close enough to be brought back through a portal on a ship.”
Darterian had joined them and overheard the conversation. The man interjected, “My grandfather has discussed the Grimnal many times both recently and in stories throughout my life. He has been concerned at his disappearance, but never believed the emperor had killed him.
“One other point that has confused the issue was the immortal’s power that seemed opposed to magic. Certain kinds can’t be used on him and I am not sure portal magic would work.”
Sebastian tried to think of the legends he knew of the Grimnal. So many were just stories, but one leaped out at him and he asked Darterian to clarify by saying, “Isn’t the whole Cataclysm based on the theory that the emperor came to our world as revenge for the Grimnal and your grandfather going to his world to defeat him? He would have had to pass through a magic gate to accomplish that, wouldn’t he?”
The other man was silenced by the thought as he mulled the idea over. He had heard more stories and from a man who had lived through them besides. “I hadn’t thought of that,” Darterian admitted in quiet surprise.
Beginning to pace as he thought the problem through, Sebastian thought aloud. “But if they were using him for experiments at one time, the emperor might not need him there anyway. They could just cut samples from his flesh. The ships sent could come and go as they pleased if they placed some form of barrier to hold him. The curse barrier on Maldus’s prison had been enough to restrict us, so what is to say that another barrier designed for the Grimnal isn’t around the island.”
Sebastian left the men in the steerage cabin and hurried down to his room. He brought the axe and ring to the deck and placed them on the wood surface a few feet from the wall supporting the rear deck. If there was a barrier designed to trap the man who was unique in that he could resist most magic, then perhaps his personal weapon and the ring that mimicked his power would react to that barrier.
An hour passed and the sun barely remained clear of the horizon. The Sea Dragon wouldn’t find the island during the day, but Sebastian wondered if that wasn’t a good thing. A ship approaching the island by day might be seen as an attacker, but during the night they might not be seen until the morning light returned. The islanders might view them the same way, but it meant the Sea Dragon would have the advantage of a clear path in the night.
Yara and most of the team stood nearby waiting. Even the mermaids had remained onboard since Themenor had brought word of the island. Ashleen stood to one side holding the rail searching for the black ships while the rest waited.
“Liam keep watch over the water ahead of us,” Sebastian warned as the look out above spotted some stones jutting above the waves to one side. He could see the first of the little islands that were little more than raised rock as well.
Themenor pointed to the east and west reporting, “The main island is centered between the lesser islands and points of rock. It may have been the heart of a volcano raised by the quakes.”
Nodding at the air wizard’s appraisal, Sebastian waited only a little longer before the ring and weapon of the Grimnal acted like they had been kicked against the deck wall. They struck so hard that everyone jumped as the crack of metal striking wood shattered the air. He feared that they would damage the ship, but they only pressed against the wood for a moment before releasing onto the decking in front of the wall. The force that had acted on them seemed to be gone and Sebastian nodded again.
He hurried over to the ring and picked it up. Gathering the two mermaids, Sebastian requested, “Yaroma, I need you and Naoromi to use the ring to look for the barrier. If you use the ring, I think that you will find it easily enough. Once you’ve tested to see if you can go through it, come back and let me know.”
Yaroma gave him a dubious look before nodding. Before the mermaids dove over the side, Sebastian stopped them a moment. “Try using your magic with the ring on first.”
Again the woman gave him the look. “If I change on the deck, someone will have to catch me.”
Chuckling at the worry, he nodded motioning Olan closer to help him as she tried the amulet. A flash of light from the amulet failed to do more. The ring blocked the magic of the amulet.
“It’s as I thought. The ring is too strong to use your magic while holding it. Naoromi, go ahead and jump in. I’ll just have to throw it to you two. Then swim with the ring to the barrier. If it breaks your mermaid magic, we’ll just have to abandon the idea all together,” the mage stated as he took the ring back from Yaroma.
Both mermaids leaped over the side changing as they went. They were faster than the Sea Dragon at full sail and the ship was only moving at half speed to avoid the rocks, so the two women were in easy throwing distance in moments. He threw the ring to Yaroma and the mermaids turned back to find the invisible barrier.
His team of wizards pulled him aside as the rest of the crew went back to watching out for more of the jutting rock. Collin asked, “How did you know the ring was powerful enough to block her amulet?
“I didn’t. That was why I made sure to have her test it before leaping over board. If it had happened in the ocean, they might have panicked and drowned.”
Serrena gave a wry smile with one side of her lips as she stated sarcastically, “A mermaid drowning. Now that would be ironic.”
Frowning at her attempt at humor, Sebastian continued, “They can test to see where that barrier runs and maybe we can find the way to break it.”
“Why not use your light spell like you did on the island?”Olan questioned as he listened to them. “You and Yara were able to break those barriers several times.”
Sebastian nodded as he turned to look ahead of the ship. The main island was in sight now as they closed on it. Light was changing to night as the sun dipped beneath the western horizon. “This one is different. It is designed to hold the Grimnal, but to the rest of us it isn’t there at all. There is nothing to focus on to try and break the spell.”
His words made the team lapse into silence as they realized things were not as simple as they had hoped.
“Themenor, where was the village that you saw on the island?”
The air wizard pointed and answered succinctly, “On the south west side of the island. There was no noticeable harbor that I could make out, so we will have to anchor where it is deep enough for the ship and row the rest of the way.”
“We’ll anchor on the north and walk to the village then to avoid causing any hostility. We have no idea what their reaction to outsiders will be.”
“That will leave the Sea Dragon vulnerable if the enemy ships come for us,” Themenor quickly warned. “They caught the Carnivore while our wizards were checking the castle.”
Sighing at the thought, Sebastian nodded, “It’s a risk we’ll have to take or we might end up fighting both the islanders and the black ships. We also don’t have a harbor to hem in the Sea Dragon. She can run if they show up by sail at least.”
Portal magic could throw his plan off of course, but the mage had to play to what he knew.
Chapter 32- Baiting the Bull
Stifling a yawn, Sebastian led his team down the beach towards the island village that the air wizards had scouted from the wind. The eastern sky had begun to brighten with dawn, but the crew had been in motion since before the sun had crested the eastern horizon. Gelinas, the third moon and harbinger of dawn had yet to fall completely in the west.
He had made the decision, as they anchored at the northern point of the island, to wait until morning to visit the village. The light of day would hopefully show the locals that they brought them no ill will as a late night arrival might have inferred. It had also given the mermaids time to check the barrier for him.
Yaro
ma had returned with her sister shortly after nightfall to share what they had found. The two had discovered that the ring would not allow a wearer to pass through the barrier though they had each tested the barrier without the ring and managed to swim through without problem.
After finding that out, the mermaids had swum east and west using the ring to feel for the barrier. Each direction had found a corner held by an island. The mermaids had even changed to look for something acting as an anchor for the magic. A large stone pole with strange runes running up the height of the stone sat centered on the island. These they could not approach for the strange purple barriers erected around the poles.
Matching monuments stood on both of the small islands and with or without the ring, the women could approach neither stone. Rather than follow the invisible walls to the south, Yaroma and Naoromi returned to the Sea Dragon just before the ship set its anchor near the northern point.
That left the other worry which kept Sebastian setting a watch of air wizards scouting around the islands continuously for the black ships. Annalicia took the first watch on the winds looking around the islands surrounding the Sea Dragon. Themenor and Ashleen covered the rest of the night leaving Sebastian to try and rest for the early morning walk.
A night of worry did little to let the man sleep, however, but it did give him time to decide on the best use of his resources. Liam, Ashleen, Hyren and Themenor would stay as a rear guard along with Anna and her wizards. He had even convinced Maura to leave Vewen with the ship. The abilities of the air and water wizards could protect the Sea Dragon best and even the stubborn research mage could see that leaving their only means of escape unprotected might mean being stranded on the island indefinitely.
Battle Mage: The Lost King (Tales of Alus) Page 41