From her vantage in the water, Aiva watched in horrified-awe at the massive creature wrapping itself around the ship. It was incredible to behold. Tentacles clasped the sides like colossal hands. Squeezing it. Crushing it under the strength of its body. The ear-splitting shriek of the monster filled the air around her. A victory call. Aiva could only hope that the others had made it onto the lifeboats. She couldn’t see from where she was if the boats were in the water. All she knew was that the deck was silent. No longer filled with Edric’s desperate cries. Somehow she knew he was alive and safe. Gadiel was a brave soldier. He would see his Prince to safety no matter how much Edric might argue.
A bright flash of reddish light erupted from around the creature, engulfing its nose in the glow. Something about the light angered it, causing its head to crash backward into the water, slowly slipping away from where it held the ship. It was changing course. Seeking the new enemy that had disrupted it. Callum. She could see him now, a good distance away, standing in his boat with his bow drawn, arrow loaded, firing repeatedly into the water where the beast approached. In that moment she saw him, a noble soldier, sacrificing his life for the sake of his people. Refusing to stop fighting until the very end.
In a spray of water the divastru rose from the depths, towering above Callum, unaffected by his arrows. It twisted its head to the side, slamming into the boat with a terrifying crunch, Callum’s body soaring through the air. Clinging to the sides of her makeshift raft Aiva felt the tears streaming down her cheeks at the sight. Sickened. Her agonized cries echoed through the night air. No! No, this couldn’t be happening! Not again. Not Callum.
Rolling onto her back she clutched at her stomach. An overwhelming desire to retch came over her. What was she going to do? She couldn’t give up on Callum. But if he was dead, she would be lost as well. The lifeboats were too far away. She had to do something.
Overhead the stars were visible in the sky, twinkling brightly. Tiny flickers like burning candles in memory of the ancient kings and queens. The heroes of their people. Fallen soldiers. Kaemin was up there somewhere. Watching her. Did he weep with her? The thought of his friends dying there in the ice-cold water. “What do I do, Kaemin?” she whispered quietly into the darkness. “I don’t know what to do.”
The cold was excruciating. Her body was racked with shivers, trembling uncontrollably on the remains of the ship which now served as her only hope of survival. Gazing at the stars, she could swear she saw something flash. As if in response to her stricken pleas. It couldn’t be right. The cold was making her delusional. Yet there it was again. Pulsing brightly. In awe she reached toward it. If she closed her eyes, she felt certain she could touch the light. But no. She couldn’t let herself do that. Kaemin wouldn’t want her to do it. He would want her to keep going.
With renewed determination she turned back onto her stomach, listening intently to the water around her. It was quiet. Calm. Masking the true terrors that lay within. How long had she been lying there? It felt hours, though she knew it couldn’t have been so long. Behind her the remains of the ship were sinking into the blackened water. Over half submerged now. Battered. Destroyed. She could see the tattered fabric of the flag slowly disappearing under the surface. The Levadis crest would lie forever at the bottom of the sea. She was obstinate in that the crest would be the only part of her family that would find its home there. Steeling her resolve, she lowered her arms into the freezing water, inhaling sharply at the sensation. With careful strokes she floated along the surface, scouring the area for Callum’s body.
It was hard to see anything amongst the rubble. Several times she thought she’d found him, only to discover it to be nothing more than a large chunk of shattered wood. She refused to give up hope. He had to be there. He had to be!
Up ahead the light of the moon reflected across the still water. In the glow Aiva could see what looked to be the outline of a person slumped over something, floating gently along the surface. Her arms were becoming numb from the cold, harder to maneuver as she forced them to push her onward. With every stroke she could feel her heart flutter with excitement. It wasn’t just scrap like so many others had been. This was a person. A man. Bearing the colors of the Tanispan military upon his doublet.
Stiff and frozen, she slid off the support of the wood, flopping into the water with a loud splash. “Callum?” she whispered hesitantly. “Callum, can you hear me?”
He gave no answer. Swimming to his side she pressed her fingers against his neck in search of a pulse. He was ice-cold. Arms draped over a long section of what had at one time been part of the ship’s mast, keeping him afloat. She could sense a vague flow of energy still within his body. Alive. Barely. She needed to get him out of the water before they both froze to death. But where? She had no idea where they were. Land couldn’t be far, though based on their travel during the day, she knew it was at least a few miles. And without the sun to guide her, she would be swimming blindly into the night.
Afraid to move him, Aiva positioned her hands on either side of Callum’s still form, kicking her feet behind her to move them forward. The support was small enough for her to maneuver, but it wouldn’t provide her a way to get him out of the water.
Releasing her hold, she turned to seek out the wood that had kept her afloat for so long. She could see it move under her direction, hands settled on top of it, unable to feel it against her fingertips. Pulling it over to Callum, she grabbed onto his waist under the water, lifting his legs to position him on top, arms still dangled over the broken mast. It acted as a handle, allowing her to push Callum’s body forward without applying pressure to the thinner wood that supported his weight, keeping most of the water from touching his frozen skin. She would worry about herself later. There would be time to think about the lack of feeling in her fingers and toes once she had gotten them to dry land. She just had to pray that Irisus didn’t claim them first.
Aiva clung to consciousness by a mere thread. She couldn’t feel her legs. Callum remained motionless atop the ship debris. Through her foggy vision she saw something up ahead. It looked to be land but she didn’t dare hope. Pausing in the water, she hung onto the wood, focusing her energy in attempts to push it outward to provide a minimal amount of circulation through her numb limbs. It had been easy to accomplish at first, but her muscles were weak. Exhausted. The energy within her body could only do so much for so long before it would start to fail her. Without it she would have surely frozen to death by now. If she didn’t get to land soon, the same fate would find her despite the efforts she took in avoiding it.
The image was coming closer. A beach. Could it be? Had she found her way to Luquarr? There were no boats. No torches lit to guide sailors to the cities. Only a long stretch of darkened sand along the shore, lined by massive trees stretched high into the early morning sky, blocking out the remainder of the stars that hovered behind their reaches.
She thought she would weep tears of joy, feeling no moisture come to her eyes. Her face was numb. When she heard her voice cry out in relief at the sight of land, she didn’t recognize it as her own. It was cracked. Strained. Movement of her lips was impossible, the surface frozen and unfeeling. Swinging her body around she took to pulling the makeshift raft toward the shore, aware that her body was on solid ground, not able to sense where it was. Convinced that they were close enough, she tugged Callum’s hands from where they dangled limply over the broken mast, dragging him off the raft and onto the cool sand.
Movement was torture. She groaned with the effort of lifting Callum’s body, finding him deadweight in her arms. Lying him on his back she rubbed her hands along his arms to try and generate blood flow through his veins. He was still alive. There was still hope. She would just need to work fast in getting him stabilized.
But how was she supposed to do that? Her own body ached and screamed from fatigue and cold. With every brush of her fingers over Callum’s arms, she couldn’t be sure if her hands even made contact with him. “Wake up, Callum,”
she urged desperately, the sound nothing more than a broken whisper. “Open your eyes. I need you to wake up!”
Desperate, she slammed her fist down on his chest. Why wouldn’t he wake up? They had come so far! He was out of the water now. He could come back to her. It would be so simple to just open his eyes. She placed her hands on either side of his face, rattling it back and forth between her palms. Whatever state of consciousness he was in, it was deep. There had to be some way of warming him. To provide cover from the cool breeze that rushed over the beach. Sobs escaped her though no tears fell. It was an unfamiliar sensation. One she hoped to never experience again after this night.
Laying across his motionless form Aiva pressed her ear against his chest, listening for the gentle pounding of his heart. It was there. Faint. Even that was enough to comfort her. He wasn’t dead. She refused to let him die. There was too much left unsaid. Unfinished between them.
The quiet thud was unusually soothing to her senses. Hypnotic. Stretched over his chest she laid there, listening to the sound until sleep overtook her, drifting into restless unconsciousness. Her dreams were filled with images of the divastru. Terrible, broken pictures of that wretched creature. The screams of the crew struggling to keep it at bay and failing. She could see Edric’s face, his silvery-blue eyes staring at her from where he lay on the floor, reaching for her hand desperately, unable to get to her. Edric. Was he alive? Were the others safe?
With a twitch she awoke, coughing in surprise. She drew in a deep breath, frightened by the unfamiliar surroundings, forgetting where she was in a moment of panic. Gradually it started to come back to her. She didn’t know where she was, but she recalled how she got there. And Callum. Glancing down she swallowed hard, fingers pressed against the side of his neck in search of a pulse. Yes. He was still with her. Alive.
To her joy she could feel a slight tingle in her fingertips where they touched Callum’s skin. The cold was beginning to dissipate despite the shivers that continued to rack her entire body. Although minimal, feeling was returning. It would be enough to help her carry Callum onward in search of some nearby civilization that might be able to help him. He was injured badly. Beyond her abilities to assist, even if she was healthy. Enervated from the terrible events of the night, she would be worthless to him. He needed a doctor. Someone whose mind functioned with more clarity.
Unsteady, she tried to climb to her feet, finding the task more of a challenge than she hoped. Her legs were still somewhat numb, fighting against her attempts at positioning her weight over her knees, sinking again into the sand with a scream of frustration. Stand up! Palms flattened against the sand, she tried again. Slowly. It took great pains to accomplish, eventually finding herself upright, staring out over the sea. The sun had broken over the horizon, casting an orange glow along the surface of the water. There was nothing there. No boats. No monsters. She was stranded on this island. What if there are no people here? What if there are no doctors? Shaking her head she forced the thought away. They couldn’t be far from Palinon, and along the islands, there were bound to be settlements.
Staggering over to Callum, she bent forward, groaning under the burden of his weight as she tried to lift him from the ground. She wouldn’t leave him behind. If she abandoned him to find help, there was no way to know whether or not he would still be there when she returned. Anything could happen. That had been obvious since starting this journey. There could be pirates. Thieves. Unknown creatures hidden amongst the cover of the trees just waiting to descend upon his helpless body and feast on him for breakfast. She shuddered at the thought. “Work with me, Callum,” she mumbled, adjusting her hold on his arms to support him by her shoulders. “You’re too heavy. Why can’t you just wake up?”
She stared at him as if expecting a reply. Instead she was met with only silence, his head dangling forward at an uncomfortable angle. Sighing heavily she trudged onward, dragging Callum along into the dense trees. This was nothing like she’d pictured Luquarr. The landscape was all wrong. With every step she took, her heart fell to think that she was mistaken about their whereabouts. Several islands dotted the sea between Palinon and the jungles of Tunir in the south. They could have washed up anywhere along the way.
The terrain reminded Aiva of Tanispa. Forests. But these trees were different. Taller. The leaves were in strange shapes and lush greens, vines strung from the branches at varying heights. Plant life covered the ground that brought no words to mind with which to identify the species. Some with budding flowers of vibrant reds and oranges while others appeared nothing more than a strange breed of grass which stood taller than Aiva, concealing her and Callum in their massive leaves. It was grueling work to make progress through the forests. She had no compass to direct her, relying only on her eyes to search out any sign of civilization.
Strange noises could be heard throughout the trees. Birds. Frogs. Crickets. It came from all around. She pressed on, managing to keep a somewhat steady pace for a few hours before she gave in to the desire for rest. She needed to sit. Her legs were ready to give out. Knees shaking uncontrollably. Laying Callum in the grass she took up watch at his side. Why had he not awoken yet? He appeared almost comatose in his peaceful slumber. Leaning forward she lifted his eyelid with her thumb, peering into his eye. It was blank. Devoid of any response to her prodding.
Frustrated, she sat back, wiping the sweat from her brow. As the day progressed, the heat was becoming more intense, ridding Aiva of the tingling numbness that had plagued her since plunging into the frigid waters of the sea. It was reminiscent of the desert temperatures but with a moisture which lingered in the air, affecting her lungs with every breath she took. Surrounded by lush greenery she was somehow more miserable than she’d felt at any time while in the desert. The humidity was torture. And it only grew worse with the later hours of the day. She wasn’t sure how much more she could take while exerting herself the way she was.
Overhead in the trees she heard a low cackle, unlike any sound a person was capable of producing. Tilting her head back she gazed up into the branches. There was something there. High in the trees, beyond her view. Ignore it. She didn’t want to focus on the local wildlife. She wanted to find a city. There had to be one somewhere.
The noise came again. Closer this time. Frightened by the thought of what it could be, she reached toward Callum’s waist, drawing the sword from his belt. She didn’t want to fight, but it was comforting to know she at least had a weapon if given no other choice. Scanning the trees, she tried to locate the source of the sound. It didn’t seem particularly large. Or menacing. Though the Feh Noq were a relatively small people and had shown themselves to be some of the strongest warriors Aiva had ever seen. She couldn’t discount a possible threat simply by size.
Something cracked a few feet away, drawing Aiva’s attention to a low hanging branch off to her left. Turning her head she let out a cry of surprise to find herself face-to-face with a furry animal hanging from the tree, its long tail wrapped around the wood, lazily swinging in front of Aiva’s face. At her outburst the creature gave a loud shriek, its long, slender, fingered paw slashing fiercely at her neck, a sharp sting sending Aiva into a sudden shock. It stared at her. Wide-eyed. The pupils were large, seeming to cover most of the face, their round sockets stretching from the top of its head down to the mouth. Long fur coated its body, striped along the tail which now released its grasp on the branch, dropping to the ground in front of Aiva with a menacing hiss.
It stood barely three feet high but with its teeth bared Aiva feared it the same as any large beast they’d come across on their journey. Her neck ached. Burned. Like fire coursing through her veins from where the creature struck her. She was on her feet instantly, positioning herself between Callum and the animal, not wanting to let it anywhere near him. She had to protect him. He had risked his life for everyone else aboard the ship. He deserved to have someone do the same for him.
“Get back!” she shouted, swinging her sword at the creature in a t
hreatening manner, hoping to frighten it away. To her dismay it only sat there, staring at her, head cocked to one side in curiosity of her strange behavior. “I said get back! Go away!”
Opening its tiny mouth the animal let out another cackle, louder than before, sending chills through Aiva’s spine. Was it calling for others? She didn’t know how to defend against one, let alone a large number of them. Kill it. If she could kill it, then she could get Callum and move him away from there before anymore could come. Before she could think to strike, it leapt forward, wrapping its long legs around her waist, clawing wildly at her torso. Forgetting all technique Aiva hammered the hilt of her sword against its face. The long toes were like fingers gripping the fabric of her dress, impossible to pry loose. Another sting came from under the creature’s hand, something feeling to puncture the skin between her right shoulder and breast. What was it doing? Her shoulder flared with intense pain, dropping her to the ground in agony.
Her hand reached for its neck, easily grasping the slender animal to try and pull it away. She had a longer reach than the creature, maintaining a steady hold, its arms slashing at her, unable to make contact. Nothing she did could break the grip it had on her waist. In a final effort she tightened her hand on Callum’s sword. Metal pierced through flesh on its side, a pitiful cry escaping the creature as it released her, twitching painfully under her fingers. Disgusted, she tossed it aside, eyes locked on its discarded body as it came to rest.
Overcome by the fire that raged through her veins from her neck and shoulder, she stumbled forward to investigate the creature. It had stung her. But with what? She saw no indication of anything capable of penetrating skin. Lifting one of the long arms, she wrinkled her nose in distaste. The hand displayed four fingers, long and slender, blackened like those of the Feh Noq, only covering the entire length instead of merely the tip. This animal was adapted to the trees. Covered to allow protection from the rough bark as it swung through the branches. Further down on the wrist she could see what looked to be a fifth digit. A seeming thumb midway between the palm and the elbow joint. There at the tip was a sharpened claw. Reddened still with her blood.
The Myatheira Chronicles: Volume Two: Beyond the Veil Page 45