by Arlin Fehr
Vosco nodded. ‘No comment about being a Princess. Very well.’
Vosco looked back forward, and was quiet for a long time.
‘What did the beast do to you that has you so adamant to kill it?’ Kia asked.
Kia saw Vosco grimace at the question. He stopped walking, and stared out over the horizon. Kia stopped next to him and looked around, a gentle breeze tugging at her blonde hair.
‘I was not always a bandit,’ Vosco said, distantly.
Kia looked at Vosco, his face was strangely calm.
She wasn’t sure what to expect.
Old Stories
‘Being single-minded is a single pathway, to a single end... I do not tell you if this is good or not... decide for yourselves...’
-The Wisdom of Zug Twill
VOSCO’S HIDEOUT – DEADLANDS – MILLA
Standing quietly in the wasteland around Vosco’s base, near the Ash Sea, Kia waited for Vosco to explain himself.
The thought that this intense, and obviously troubled, man had once been something other than a bandit had made her curious. She supposed that much should have been obvious though, no one was born a bandit, but there was also something else about this man that made her curious to learn more about him.
He stood, looking out over the sparse vegetation around them, and said softly, ‘I used to be a merchant. I had a few ships under my payroll. We made cargo runs from ports in Halli to ports in Milla. Few ships wanted to make that run, due to having to pass next to the Ash Sea, but it was very lucrative.’ Vosco made a sour face, adding, ‘Its danger was high. We had been lucky. We made the run for many yehvs, and we got rich. Rich enough that I bought a villa in the Kingdom of Nedin. There were many retired merchantmen from the surrounding independent trade ports under the kingdom's protection. I felt at home among them.’
Vosco’s face relaxed again, as he said, ‘I felt like it was where I wanted to be. I had a place on shore to come back to, and nothing but the finest ships in the world at my fingertips. I realized that I could be expanding my operations, become even bigger. With the money I got from the route from Halli to Milla, I could have a whole fleet of ships plying the waters all up and down the coast. Maybe I could even trade with the Zhakim Island!
‘In my hubris, I never once thought that I could be hurt enough to stop me. I always expected to lose a few ships here and there – that’s just the cost of the business – but I lost the one ship I couldn’t afford to,’ Vosco said bitterly.
He started to slowly walk again. Kia followed after him.
‘I had decided to move my family to my Villa in the Kingdom of Nedin. I had my finest ship come to port, and had my household, my family, and all that I held dear, loaded onto the ship. We set out with fine weather and high spirits, but as we passed by the Ash Sea, all went quiet. Not a whisper of wind. We were dead in the water, but still close to shore, so we weren’t too concerned.
‘But then, out of nowhere, a storm began to grow from out over the ocean. It came out of nowhere with furious force. I tried to use it to get us to shore, but we were attacked by the beast. It came from the sea, grabbing onto the ship with its tendrils, and pulling it apart one piece at a time. I fought it. My whole crew fought it, but we were no match for it. It pulled my ship apart, and, in the confusion, I lost sight of my wife and children... my son and my daughter...’ Vosco pulled out a lock of hair, the same one Kia had seen him holding when they first met. ‘All I have left of them is this lock of my wife’s hair,’ he said in a quivering voice, ‘a memento given to me to remember her with when I went on long voyages.’
Silence passed between them for a moment.
‘I’m so sorry,’ Kia said, seeing the pain in Vosco’s face.
Vosco shot a look at her, his face briefly flashed with a terrible fury. ‘I don’t want sympathy,’ he spat, ‘I want revenge!’
Kia took a step back. Vosco calmed down, and kept walking.
‘When the ship had sunk, I found myself clinging to a piece of the vessel, no one alive around me. The storm vanished just as soon as it had come, but it was replaced by an unnatural fog. I heard the crying of my son through the fog. I paddled towards him until my arms burned. Every time I heard him, his cries were coming from a different direction.
‘I kept at that for days. I was weak and delusional, but still I paddled after his sounds. I did it until I didn’t hear him anymore. I don’t know what happened after that. I passed out in exhaustion and sorrow. When I woke up, I was on the shore of Milla, the Ash Sea nearby.
‘Something changed that day. I supposed I could have gone to Nedin and tried to start over. I could have tried to resume my business as though nothing had happened. But I didn’t. I spent the first week hunting for food and spending time floating at sea on my piece of the ship, waiting for the beast to show itself so I could try and kill it.
‘In hindsight, I know it wasn’t a very good idea. When hunting a beast such as it, a little planning will go a long way. But never forget, I only have one goal in life, and that is to kill that Hell-spawned monster before I die,’ Vosco said firmly.
‘What will you do if you do kill it?’ Kia asked.
‘When, not if,’ Vosco said with some venom. Then he went on, ‘What will I do? I don’t really care. Maybe I’ll go to Nedin and see what happens from there. Maybe I’ll stay a Pirate. I don’t really care. I’ll cross that bridge when I come to it,’ Vosco said dismissively.
‘Now that I’ve told you more than I had ever planned too, why not answer my own question. What’s a Princess like you doing with a snake like that?’
Kia felt turmoil within her. She wasn’t naturally violent, but Azra was missing because of the beast and despite how hard she tried, there was that part of her that never expected to see him again. There was a coldness within her that had been gnawing at her since the ship had sunk. The sailors lost would never see their families ever again either. If anyone could give them justice, it was Vosco.
‘It was forced upon me by an enemy of the Kingdom of Minna.’
‘I see, Princess Kia.’
‘Why do you insist on calling me Princess?’
‘Just because I am a bandit doesn’t mean I’m without connections. I know who you are, which would make your Uncle royalty too. Minna is in a tough place if the two of you are so far away from home. Why can’t you be rid of the snake?’ Vosco asked.
‘It’s held to me by some Mahgic. It won’t let anyone touch me, it won’t let me touch other people, and it won’t let us be deviated from our mission for long. It is instructed to kill me or kill whoever tries to touch me. It’s made me a prisoner without any jail,’ Kia said.
‘How... tragic,’ Vosco said absently.
Kia frowned at his dismissive tone. Vosco raised his hands up, palms out, in a defensive gesture.
‘Don’t get me wrong, it is tragic, but it’s also a tool. It seems to me that snake would protect you from harm,’ Vosco said.
‘It has protected me before, but the cost is not worth it,’ Kia said.
‘Cost? You mean the prison without a jail?’ Vosco said.
‘No. The snake is the reason were out here. My Uncle is trying to get rid of it.’
‘Would that be the important mission you’ve got to get back to? It simply wouldn’t do for a royal Princess to be under the influence of a Mahgic snake now would it?’ Vosco said, grinning slightly.
Kia frowned again. ‘I can’t say I’m enjoying this walk too much.’
‘I’m sorry if I’m prying – well actually I’m not sorry, but it seemed like the thing you wanted to hear. I feel like you want some sympathy. You won’t find much of that out here. I’ve decided to not be a foe, but I’m still not a friend. Right now we are someone with a common goal.
‘The beast attacked your ship, and creatures that were following it then stole away your Uncle. Your Uncle, who is trying to remove that snake,’ he said, pointing at it meaningfully, ‘will probably be with the creatures still... or dead.
But that said, so far the only thing we know about the creatures is that they’re somehow tied to the beast. I think it’s in your best interest to hunt it with me.’
Kia looked at him, her mouth hanging open in disbelief.
Vosco stopped and looked at her intently, waiting for a reply.
Kia blinked a few times and exhaled, words fighting to find their way to her mouth. ‘I... Is there anything else you think about?’
Vosco laughed heartily, and then took a big breath calming himself. ‘Ahhh, of course I do. Of course I do. But I feel an opportunity, and I see a common goal. Your friends would rather go fleeing back to your home and leave your Uncle for dead, but you don’t want to do that, do you? You don’t want to leave him here, never knowing if he’s all right or not. Even if he’s dead, you deserve to know. If he’s not dead, then you can rescue him, but none of this will happen if I take you to Nolmi and you get passage back to Minna.’
Kia bit down on her lip, thinking hard. She was torn. She wanted to get away from Vosco, his bizarre intensity and quickly changing moods were unnerving, but he was in control, and he was offering something Kia wanted, the chance to get her Uncle back.
The desire won out.
‘I’ll join your hunt Vosco, on one condition,’ Kia said.
‘You aren’t in much of a position to make conditions,’ Vosco chuckled, raising a hand, ‘but, I will humour you. Your plight is tragic. Name your price young lady.’
‘Those I’m travelling with must be able to decide of they will stay or go, and if they choose to leave, then they get passage to Nolmi,’ Kia said firmly.
Vosco pursed his lips, and looked thoughtful. Kia wasn’t sure what was going through his head, and didn’t know what to expect.
‘Hmmm... that’s a very tall order. Making trips like that isn’t cheap and it isn’t easy. To have to make two trips would be even more costly... but I suppose if we succeed I’ll be in a very good mood, and if not, we may well be dead. Very well, Princess. We have an agreement.’
END OF VOLUME III
VOLUME IV:
Water and Sand
Escape of the Snake
‘Those who work in the shadows, who use selfish evil people as their minions, are foolish, for the selfish and the evil can always be counted to turn on you, when they see no more use in you...’
-Vareez Starsinger, a Verin Warrior in the Loute Empire, teaching young Verin at the Academy on Loute
ZHARIN FORTRESS – BAZRA DESERT – HALLI
The Raiders had had enough. It was apparent to Shakla that he had worn out his welcome. He stood in a stony room of the Zharin fortress, his scaly powerful hand wrapped around the throat of one of his former allies. The man was clawing desperately at Shakla’s arm, his struggles getting weaker and weaker.
Shakla looked around the small room he was in. There was only one door and a window. He had been prowling the hallways of the fortress while the Raiders tried to hunt him down. He felt no threat from these people, though he did feel anger at their betrayal.
The man stopped moving altogether. Shakla released his grasp and let him fall to the ground. He sensed that the man’s life had been extinguished. He had grown bored with his hunt. For a full day the Raiders had tried to hunt him down. For a day he had evaded them, catching them off guard and ambushing the stragglers.
He’d killed at least a dozen, maybe more, he couldn’t recall. His mind was aflame with his more primal instincts. Everything else was a dull ache at the back of his mind, pecking at his awareness.
He placed a hand against the wall, breathing in deeply. His tongue flicked out, testing the air, the scent of the dead man filled him with a longing to continue his hunt.
He stepped out into the hallway, and took another breath. He heard noise to his right. He was near the top of the fortress, far away from the main hall. He didn’t remember coming this way. His instincts had taken over after his encounter with the spectre of Azra. After he had scattered the Raiders, he had begun to hunt them.
He had lost hold of his intelligence.
He fought to bring it back. Shakla tried to focus on the dull ache near the back of his mind.
Another sound caused his focus to waver.
He hunched over and started down the hallway, moving swiftly and silently. There was a Raider. His back was turned to him, and he was walking slowly down the hallway. Further down the way, more Raiders were checking doors. There was a staircase to his left. He heard more sounds from down the stairs.
Shakla stopped his prowl and reversed his direction. Another group was coming up the stairs. He went back to the room where he had killed the lone Raider. Once inside, he closed the door silently, and looked around again. He went to the window and peered outside.
It was night time in the desert. A half-moon hung in the sky, just over the horizon. He climbed out the window, using his clawed hands to force handholds into the masonry of the tower. He was high above the ground, on the outside of the central tower of the fortress. Beneath him, a few smaller towers jutted out from the wall that surrounded the fortress.
Shakla climbed slowly down the tower. Above him he heard shouting as the body of the man he killed was found. Someone peered out of the window and looked down. Shakla stopped moving and clung to the side of the tower, hoping the dark would make him hard to see.
He saw the man look right at him and duck back in. He wasn’t sure if he was seen or not, but he was growing tired after a day of hunting. He needed to get out of the fortress. He had work to do yet.
Scurrying down the tower, he got half way down when an arrow smacked off the stone next to him. Turning his head, he saw an archer leaning out of a window in one of the smaller towers on the wall, pulling back on another arrow.
Shakla crawled sideways to another nearby window, as another arrow smacked against the wall, narrowly avoiding him. As he grew close, he heard voices waft out from the window. He fought his hunter instinct and grabbed hold of his intelligence once more. Another arrow flew towards him; he flicked one of his fingers, and a gust of wind blew it off course. He looked down, he was still high up, but he was running out of options. Turning himself around, and feeling the blood rush to his head, he began to bound down the side of the tower, slamming his claws into the stone bricks and tearing a path downward.
Arrows whistled around him as he tore his way down the tower speedily. Below him the tower was widening as he approached his base. It was still in the centre of the fortress, and the courtyard was surrounded by walls. He coiled himself tightly, and leapt off the wall. As he fell towards the sand, a furious up-draft of air whipped up around him and slowed his descent. He thudded to the ground in a cloud of sand.
There were a few scattered Raiders in the courtyard with him, but they were confused by the sudden flurry of sand and wind. Ignoring them, Shakla ran across the courtyard towards a building the Raiders used as a stable. He ducked inside and found rows of horses in corrals. Near the end, waiting for him, was his black skinned reptile mount – the same one he had ridden when he attacked Jarridon. It let out a hiss as he grabbed the rope it was tied up with. He raised the rope up and held it between his hands. With a deft strike of his jaws and teeth, he bit through the rope.
He got atop his mount and they bounded out of the stables. Outside, the sand had settled, and Raiders were gathering in the courtyard. Many had bows drawn and upon seeing him, were pulling back to fire.
Shakla and his mount surged forward. The archers let fly their arrows. Sweeping his arms to sides, a wall of wind blew most of the arrows off course, all but one. The archer who was wise to Shakla’s tricks, had been waiting until after he had used his Mahgic, and then let his arrow fly.
Shakla saw it coming, and brought his arms back to try to bat it aside once more, but was too slow. The shaft buried itself in his shoulder. The Sorcerer let out a roar, and grimaced. His mount was still moving towards the gate to fortress, but the door was shut.
Fighting back his animal instincts onc
e more, Shakla focused a blast of wind and shot it at the gate. The wooden doors, ancient and dry, blew apart in a torrent of splinters and sand.
Shakla and his mount rushed off into the desert. Arrows from the wall thudded into the sand next to him, but no more found their mark. Shakla looked down at his chest and saw his dark blood causing his scales to glisten in the moonlight. He reached up and felt the wound gingerly, letting out a strained hiss as he did.
The long, quick, strides of his lizard took them swiftly away from the fortress, but each step caused a fresh flash of pain.
Shakla’s beast marched on in darkness for a long time, and Shakla worked at erasing their tracks with a gentle wind. Wanting desperately to rest, he found an outcrop of rocks and went towards them. He found a cave, and found shelter inside.
Lying on the ground, he closed his eyes and slipped into sleep, his mount watching the door.
Strange Bedfellows
‘Some say my enemy’s enemy is my friend... that is short-sighted at best. Know your enemy, and know his friends, I say...’
-From the teachings of Valt
ZHARIN FORTRESS – BAZRA DESERT – HALLI
Amahl, the current leader of the Raiders, stood in the arch of the shattered gate leading to the fortress, gazing out with his crisp, blue, eyes.
Shakla had escaped, and at a terrible cost.
‘Amahl, the envoy returns,’ said a figure behind him, in the courtyard.
Amahl turned around, his sand coloured robes fluttering with his movement. He lowered his face covering, and looked at two figures in the courtyard. One of them was one of his Raider companions, and the other was an old woman in blue robes, holding a staff.
‘Amahl of the Zharin, I am Ahaki of the Mahgic council. I came as quickly as I could,’ the woman said.
‘You honour me by learning the name of me and my people... it is more than could be said for the devil that escaped. I only wish you could have come sooner.’