by Leah Putz
I smiled and bowed once more before exiting the cabin and shutting the door gently behind me, feeling a little odd about the pleasant interaction with the prince.
“All wrapped up?” Jion asked when he saw me step out into the broad sunlight on the deck, shielding his dark eyes with his hand.
“Yes, Prince Viktor assisted, well, actually, he did all the cleaning and wrapping. He told me a bit about the history of the blade I’m working with as well, Gaisgea.”
Jion cocked his head, and a surprised look came over his face. “Did he really? How is he doing in there?”
I shrugged. “He seems okay. He got up and moved around a bit, but when the ship lurched a few minutes ago he went pale and had to lay back down. He almost looked green-ish.”
“Well, he must be feeling a little better if he was helping to bandage you up. I’m surprised he told you the name of the sword. It’s something he holds dear to his heart, and I don’t think he shares it with many.”
I wrung my hands, feeling awkward and unsure how to respond. “I feel honored.”
Jion smiled, sensing my unease. “As you should. Now, ready for lunch?”
At the mention of food I brightened, realizing just how hungry I was after hours of sword fighting without any breakfast. I also hoped some food in my stomach would give me the strength needed to reinstate my walls before a migraine came on. “Kelps, yes. I’m starved. What’s for lunch?”
“Nothing as glamorous as what we had last night, that’s for sure. Biscuits, salted meat, and a little bit of cheese, at least until it goes bad. But on an empty stomach it can taste like heaven,” Siofra came up from below deck carrying three small packs. She handed one to each Jion and I, keeping another for herself. “Well,” she said. “Let’s dig in!”
“Does the prince need one as well?” I asked.
“He’s got food in his cabin, though I doubt he’ll eat it for a little while. It’s hard to eat much when you’ve got travel sickness,” Jion explained, taking a big bite out of a piece of bread.
“Hopefully he will adjust. It would be a shame to have to spend the entire voyage abed sick,” I said. I was also hoping he’d adjust so I wouldn’t have to stomach his illness whenever I was in his presence.
Jion and Siofra both shrugged.
“He’s resilient,” Siofra said. “He’ll get tired of being cabin-bound and will power through it. I’m sure it’s driving him crazy to hear all the excitement out here on the deck without being able to join in.”
“I give him until end of day tomorrow. He’ll be out here with us,” Jion added.
We continued chatting quite aimlessly until we had all finished with our lunch. Jion left to help the crew- apparently he knew a bit about sailing and enjoyed the work. I was beginning to succumb to the overwhelming emotions of everyone around me. My head swam painfully, and the brightness of the sun was making it difficult to keep my eyes open. “Is it alright if I go lie down for a bit? Just to rest my head?” I asked.
“Certainly. You’re done with your fighting lesson for the day. The rest of the day is yours to do with as you wish,” Siofra replied. “Are you feeling unwell?”
“No, but I think I need some time away from all these people.” I gestured around the deck, where about a dozen crew members were scattered about doing various tasks.
“Ah, I understand. Rest well!”
I smiled and headed back into my small room.
Chapter Six
Viktor
I slept through the afternoon and straight on til the next morning, waking just as the sun was beginning to peak over the horizon, it streamed in through the windows of my cabin. Though nausea was still clouding my head, I couldn’t stand being cooped up in the cabin any longer, so I got dressed and stepped out onto the deck. Closing my eyes, I revelled in the feeling of the cool, sea-salt air as it hit my face and soothed me.
“I knew you’d be out of there today.” Jion’s voice had me snapping my eyes open. I was surprised to see him up and about so early.
“What are you doing awake? You’re not an early riser.”
“I’m not usually. It’s hard for me to sleep without Hope. Five years of sharing a bed with my husband makes an empty one feel foreign,” he said, and though I knew he was fighting it, I noticed his brows knit together and a sense of longing on his typically jovial face. I opened my mouth to reply when Lisalya stepped out from below deck. Her black and white hair was pulled back, and she wore the riding clothes she’d had on when she first met us at the inn. Sleep was cloudy in her brown eyes, though she smiled as soon as she spotted us, and I noticed that as she did so the slight cleft in her chin disappeared.
“Good Morning,” she said. I handed her my Gaisgea, and as she held my mother’s sword I was struck by how lovely she was. I felt a little dazed, and shook the thought from my head, trying to remember how mean she could be when in a foul mood to distract myself from her beauty. I also remembered her ability to sense others’ feelings, and shifted uncomfortably, a blush rising to my cheeks that I couldn’t fight. I need to learn how to protect my mind from her somehow. The idea that there could be someone out there that could sense my thoughts and feelings was unsettling, be they friend or foe. If I really wanted to be the best king I could be, I had to acknowledge and ward myself against anything that could be a threat. Taking a seat near the edge of the deck, I decided to observe the day’s fighting practice.
“Good morning, Lis. I want to focus on your footwork today, and your ability to block. Are you ready?” Jion asked.
She nodded, then winced as she raised her blade and said, “Your husband. What is he like?”
“The tenderness in your muscles will dissipate as we begin. They’re stiff right now,” he said, grinning. “So you heard that, did you? Yes, my husband, Hope. He’s a surgeon in Capital City. He married me, so you know he’s handsome and has great taste. He’s also brilliant. We met when I became injured during my training to become a guard. I was only seventeen then, but I knew right away that he was the one. He, on the other hand, took some convincing.” He chuckled, eyes dreamy with the memory. I couldn’t help but smile, remembering Jion rushing to the palace immediately after and gushing about the ‘entrancing’ student he’d just met.
“What do you mean?” she replied as she parried his first blow.
“He was still studying at that time. When we met, he was shadowing the surgeon in the infirmary. He was so focused on learning, on becoming the best medical professional he could be, he saw me as a distraction. We became friends, but he had no room for anything more until he was finished with his schooling. I was in love, so I waited.” Those were a long couple of years, listening to Jion pine after Hope on the daily. I’d considered asking my father to extradite Hope’s medical badge in an effort to cure my friend’s heartsickness, but I’m glad I didn’t. Knowing Hope as I do now, he never would have accepted. He had to earn that badge fair and square.
They pranced around the deck, and I admired how quickly Lisalya was learning the craft. I’d had several years’ worth of lessons from expensive tutors, and she was picking it up easier than I ever did, her movements lithe and swift. She stumbled occasionally, biting into her plush bottom lip in concentration. She’s overthinking her footwork, I thought. I jumped into the conversation though I knew the story well, hoping it would distract her enough to allow her footwork to come naturally. “How long did you wait?”
Lisalya shot me a relieved smile as Jion answered, speaking to her even though I asked the question. His father being my own father’s personal guard meant we’d known each other since we were toddlers. That length of friendship lends itself to some sort of psychic connection. He knew I knew the answer to the question, and was asking for her benefit. “Almost two years. They felt like the longest two years ever, but the night that he received his badge of qualification was the best night of my life, and he’s well worth the wait. We were married only six months later. Good footwork! You’re already improving and it�
�s only day two!”
Color rose to her dark cheeks at the praise, and she swept Gaisgea to the side, blocking another hit. They continued like that until it was clear that Lisalya could hardly lift the blade any further. The sun had fully risen and was now high in the sky, beating down on us mercilessly. Siofra, who had come up from below deck at some unknown time during our training, tutted at Jion’s russet hair, which was sopping wet with sweat and clinging to his face. “You sweat too much. You’re disgusting. Go bathe.”
He cackled, mirth dancing in his eyes. “How? We’re on a boat.” He turned back to Lisalya. “We can be done now. That was about three hours, which I think is plenty for today. I’m getting hot.”
“Thank Kelps,” she said, breathless. Her chest was heaving, and her hair had come undone, falling in loose waves around her face. She lifted her hand to her head, pressing onto her eyebrows as she murmured, “I’m going to go lie down.” Briefly I wondered if I should ask if she was okay, but she was gone before I could get the words out of my mouth.
“Feeling better?” Jion asked, taking a seat beside me.
Shielding my eyes from the sun, I replied, “As better as I can while we’re on this god-forsaken vessel. I hope she’s alright.” I nodded to where Lisalya had stood moments before. “She seemed as though her head hurt.”
Siofra joined us, leaning against the side of the ship. “She isn’t used to being in such close quarters with so many people, and she doesn’t really know yet how to control her powers.”
“And they hurt her?” I asked.
Siofra nodded. “She gets migraines.”
“How do you know?”
“I asked.” Siofra shrugged. “She told me.”
‘Well,” I said. “How can we help with that?”
She shrugged again. “From what I gather, being separated from everyone as much as possible helps. But, I think that’s a question you should ask her, not me.”
“I don’t think she likes me,” I said, trying to keep the pout from my voice.
Jion laughed. “Tons of people don’t like you. You don’t usually care.”
I socked his shoulder, frowning as I tried not to laugh. “Thanks for the encouragement, Jion.”
Siofra ignored us and continued. “You might consider learning to hide your mind from her, Vik. I know she’s on our side, but I don’t think it’s safe for anyone to be able to read your mind.”
“Yes, I had thought of that this morning, actually. I’m not sure where to start to be honest. I don’t fully understand her power, let alone how to mask myself from it.”
“She said she can block people out by building walls in her mind. I don’t know if that would work in the reverse, but it may be somewhere to start…”
I stood and stretched. “I’ll work on that. Jion, did you bring your father’s map?”
He leaned on his sword, huffing and sweating, “Yeah, it’s down in my bunk.”
“Will you grab it and meet Siofra and I in the cabin in a few minutes? I want to try to pinpoint where to land, and what areas or towns we should try to hit. I know we won’t be able to make a rigid plan without knowing how the people feel in those areas, but it’s a start.”
“I’ll be there,” he replied as Siofra and I turned to head towards the cabin.
We heaved a collective sigh of relief as soon as we were inside and out of the scorching rays of the sun. I sat down at the table, my leg bouncing anxiously as I began to think about everything we needed to accomplish in order for this journey to be a success. The weight of it all was crushing, and my fingers danced along the table.
“We’ve been onboard for two full days now, which means we’ve got over a week and a half still to prepare,” Siofra said gently, joining me at the table and trying to talk me out of the hole I was falling into.
I shot her a small smile of gratitude. “There’s just so much I don’t have control over. We’ve gained the empath, which is fantastic, but it appears even she doesn’t understand fully how to use or control her powers. What if she can’t do what we need her to do? What if we can’t find anyone sympathetic to our cause? We could be offering ourselves up to Siglind by going to Bushand.”
Siofra shrugged. “You’re right, we could be. That is the risk in any mission of stealth such as this. But do you really think the whispers of discontent with Siglind could have reached us in Doctsland without having any truth to them? On the contrary. It must be truly widespread to have reached our ears. And Lisalya, she is trying. Just as we all are. If she uses this time on the ship to strengthen both her mind and body, which I know she will, I believe she will gain control over her abilities. I have faith in her.”
I raised my eyebrows. It wasn’t often Siofra had so quickly grown to trust and care for a person as she had Lisalya. Her faith, and her words, were a great comfort, and I was just about to tell her such when Jion entered.
“Thank Kelps you cleaned yourself off a bit before coming,” Siofra said as he plopped into a chair beside her, rolling the map out onto the table. He seemed to have dried off a bit and had changed into a fresh tunic.
He grinned at her wickedly and leaned towards her a bit. “My hair is still wet with sweat. Do you want to smell it?”
“No!” she screeched, causing a burst of laughter from him. “Can we just focus?”
Jion had a knack for switching from goofing around to becoming serious in a startling amount of time. He put that skill to use now. “If I remember correctly, when we came all those years ago we went directly to the port in Nul. Obviously, that’s not an option in this case.”
Siofra leaned forward, examining the map with her brows scrunched together. “Green Marsh is a rather large city, correct? Second to Nul? Perhaps it would be best to try to land somewhat near there, close enough that we can easily ask for their help if Lisalya gives the okay, but not close enough to be easily caught by them should they be loyal to Siglind.”
“It’s also near enough to Nul. We don’t have much time to try to rally troops. I think we should try to stay as close to Nul as we can whilst remaining secret. The longer we have to march, the more likely we’re caught, and the longer it will take to reach the city. If the fleet arrives and we aren’t there, it could prove disastrous. We have to stick to the timeline,” I said.
“I agree,” Jion said. “It’s best if we can land somewhere between Green Marsh and Nul. It looks like there’s forest and the river, we may be able to make a camp somewhere hidden in the woods and with the sound of the water hiding up somewhat.”
“That’s provided Siglind hasn’t cut down the woods, yet,” Siofra pointed out. “It may be difficult to hide the boat, and ourselves. But those are issues we can deal with when they come. That is most definitely the best place to land to stick to our timeline and give us access to the most people.”
“Great,” I said, happy with the decision and the fact that we were able to come to it so quickly. “It’s a plan.”
Chapter Seven
Lisalya
As the journey progressed, both the prince and I seemed to be growing accustomed to the sea voyage and the close quarters of everyone onboard. The journey itself was easy, though long, and I used the time to continue to practice building and maintaining my mental walls, as well as becoming familiar with each person I was traveling with to ensure I could recognize their mind compared to someone else’s should the need arrive. That is, until the storm hit.
We were only a day or two from reaching our destination when it began, overnight, though the crew had been expecting it all day, sensing it in the thick, still air and the darkening sky. I woke up when the ship lurched so hard I was thrown from my bed. Sore already from the training I’d been doing daily with Jion, I winced as I pushed myself to standing. I stumbled around my room, pulling on my trousers and running out to see what was going on.
When I arrived on deck, fear doused me. Waves larger than anything I could ever have imagined barreled into the ship, nearly knocking it on its side.
I held on to the railing near the stairs to anchor myself and avoid getting swept into the sea. In my terror, I allowed the barricade on my mind to slip, and I was instantly overwhelmed with the unique mixture of fear and determination that was swarming throughout all of the crew members, including Jion, Siofra, and even the prince, who I saw attempting to secure a sail by tying it to a mast, with the help of another crew member. Another wave crashed into us, and I saw a man tumble over the edge of the ship. Despite the devastating influx of emotions mingled with my own fear, I rushed over to where he’d fallen and found him gripping the side of the ship and trying to pull himself back onboard. Grabbing his hand, I braced myself against the side of the ship and tried to heave him back up. It was difficult to keep my footing on the slippery wood of the deck, and just as I was about to stumble forward and be pulled down with the man I was trying to save, I felt a steadying pair of arms grab me. Without looking, I knew it was the prince due to the proximity of his mind and my lack of mental walls. After helping me get back onto my feet, he grabbed the man’s other arm and helped me haul him up.
“Thank you!” I yelled, hoping he could hear over the wind and rain.
“What are you doing out here?” he hollered back. His light eyes burned between tendrils of silver hair that whipped around his face in the wind. “It’s dangerous!”
“I could say the same about you! I’m trying to help!”
“Both of you should go into the cabin!” Siofra intervened.
“Why? I can help!” the prince countered, a stubborn fire in his eyes.
She shook her head. “Vik, it’s too dangerous! We can’t afford to lose either of you. I know you want to help, but your safety is imperative. So stop arguing and just do it!” she shouted, pointing to the cabin.
The prince glared at her for half a moment before wheeling around and stalking to the cabin. The look on Siofra’s face warned me not to argue with her, so despite my desire to stay and assist to the best of my abilities, I instead turned on my heel and followed after the prince.