by Gerard Bond
In the back of his mind he knew Dark was coming, he had heard the mental sound of her call about a week ago. He couldn’t call back, couldn’t do anything, as he still felt the full effects of the drug then. But even now he couldn’t put a call out. If he did, the sorc would know.
It had come as a surprise the day before when he felt a question come up in his mind, not the question itself but the source. The feeling of 'Where do I go?' had come through to him. The signature was unmistakable, it was Dark and she was mentally searching for him. He had always known she had the ability, but for so long they had tried and nothing had come of it. She had some sort of block in her mind at the time and try as he might he was unable to break it down. But now, somehow, she had managed to get past it. It had excited him.
Now he was able to do something. It wouldn’t be much but it would make all the difference to his situation. So he had sat there building his passive mental beacon. It could only be activated by outside mental waves, none of its energy was generated from him so the sorc would not be aware of it. Dark’s own mind would make it glow and she would know the way.
That left him with the problem of how to help in his own escape. There weren’t too many crew on board, but he was sure that with the sorcs help they would be able to repel any boarders. Wollfen also surmised that Dark would have to approach in the dead of night, which would be the most logical thing to do. If he could somehow be on deck at the right time and even manage to jump overboard well then that would make it easy indeed. To do that, to set it all up, he would have to start talking to the sorc, there was no other way. So what would he say to her? Care for a stroll around the promenade deck? Hardly, well he would just wing it once he had her in front of him.
Later that afternoon a man came down with a bucket of fresh drinking water for him. As the man approached, Wollfen looked up and made eye contact. Interestingly it made the sailor back up a little and hesitate before bringing the bucket close.
“I need to talk to your sorceress, bring her to me.”
The man just stood there unsure of what to do.
“Tell the sorceress I want to see her!”
The man made a quick retreat. Now that was different, they seemed quite wary of him. So what was the fuss?
It was only a few minutes before another sailor came down the far steps with a stool in hand, gray robes descended behind him. The stool was placed before his cage and the sailor left, it was the just sorc and Wollfen now. Wollfen watched as she approached quietly and smoothly, sitting in one fluid movement. It was interesting just to watch the grace with which she moved. As she pulled her hood back, black flowing hair spilled out and her beauty was revealed. Dark eyes and alabaster skin a perfect contrast Wollfen thought.
The sorc looked into his eyes and noted he wasn’t taken aback by her appearance; most men were at first when she revealed herself.
“Good day, allow me to introduce myself, I am the High Priestess Madeira.”
That took Wollfen by surprise.
“Pray tell, may I ask what a High Priestess is doing with the lowly task of escorting a prisoner?”
The priestess looked at him with a little smile.
“It is certainly not a small task at all when we have the likes of you in custody my Lord Wollfen.”
She bowed her head as she addressed him by that title. What was going on here? How did she know of his hidden title? Eldoron he understood and acknowledged, but a stranger from a far away land? She knew his name. He thought back right to the time of his capture. No one had talked to him, no one had asked him any questions and he had offered no answers. And yet this priestess sat here knowing a lot more than she should have.
“You are a bit confused I see. You have many questions, a lot more since I spoke, yes?”
Wollfen nodded, he was losing control of the situation fast. The Priestess looked him up and down. He was a fairly good-looking man by any standards. She supposed if she felt that way about men she might even be attracted to him. But that sort of thing was for normal women not Priestesses.
“Have you eaten enough? Are you for want of anything?”
Wollfen contemplated what he might get away with but decided to keep it simple,
“A set of clothes and a good meal containing meat and fresh vegetables wouldn’t go astray.”
The sorc smiled again.
“I’m afraid you eat just as the crew does. The food has to last six months. Be grateful you get as much as you do. As for clothes, I am surprised you are so modest as to need to cover such a well endowed body.”
She nodded towards his legs, Wollfen instinctively closed his legs to cover himself a bit better. Men were funny beings,bragging about their own attributes one moment and pretending an air of respectability the next. She wondered if he was any different.
“So, you called me down here, now I am here, what is it you wish?”
Wollfen thought fast. He was unsettled and wasn’t really thinking about what to do. Too busy trying to analyze what he had heard.
“To tell the truth, I was after some sunshine. I really do need to stretch my legs.”
The sorc thought on this, what could he do? They were in the middle of an ocean where no land was to be found for at least two weeks in any direction.
“You will behave yourself and not simply be a nuisance will you? No you won’t, you are a smarter man than that. Anyway I think it will do us both a world of good to spend a little time together talking and I certainly don’t want to do that down here.”
The sorceress moved forward, releasing the bolt of the cage and swung it open. Turning, she walked back towards the stairs and Wollfen followed. Once out in the light Wollfen had to practically shut his eyes the glare was so bad. His eyes hurt badly and it gave him a headache. The sun too hit him like a furnace. This wasn’t going to be pleasant at all. Squinting he moved off and followed the sorc who slowed down for him, it took a few minutes before he felt any better.
“So my Lord Wollfen, we are happy to find you. It is such a pity that at this moment we seem to be at odds over human affairs. Your cooperation would be of great help to our common master.”
His head spun now, what was she saying? Were they followers of the same truth? He had to hear her say it from her own mouth.
“Common Master? I am not sure I understand who you mean.”
Madeira laughed.
“Come now, Lord Vincent would laugh at that too.”
Wollfen felt himself sick. This wasn’t happening, he wasn’t here. He wasn’t hearing her words. But he was and the awful truth of it was hitting home, he was fighting his own kind.
“I have to sit.”
Madeira looked at him and thinking he was feeling the affects of the sun motioned him towards a railing bench. He sat and spent a little time regaining his composure. Madeira went on,
“I am surprised that you allowed your pride to keep yourself down there for so long. Did you really believe you could go the distance fighting us?”
It wasn’t pride that kept him down there till now and it wasn’t fighting them that made him speak up. He had simply wanted to set the wheels in motion of his rescue. He decided not to tell her what was going on, a part of him still warned him to caution so he simply shook his head.
She looked at him in the sun now, he looked even more attractive than he had down in the cage. Firm body with defined muscles, it made her wonder.
“I have a question for you.”
He looked at her and nodded for her to go on.
“As all those that have the power must remain virgins to keep the power they use and where I come from, it is one of the core teachings of the order. Without it the sorceress clique would collapse, tell me how you managed to keep your virginity all these years without any teachings? Is it why so few practice the power in the Kingdom? We have found hardly a soul with any talents n that land and we sent out sorc patrols specifically to find use of the power but it all came to nothing.”
Wollfen sat
there dumbfounded, was this some sort of test? Virginity as a source of power? This was not of Vincent and not of his teachings. He decided not to tell her of his own lack of virginity, it might come in handy later.
“I will have to say that as a lone figure walking the land I have been sorely tested over the years. And it is true I have not found any others with the power.”
He hoped that sounded good, because he sure as shit had no idea what was going on. Wollfen studied her reaction, she seemed satisfied with his answer.
“High Priestess Madeira, I know this may sound strange but I need to take rest below again as the sun is taxing me.”
He needed time to digest all that he had heard. It wasn’t much but he needed to be very careful with each step he took now and he wasn’t prepared to field anymore questions.
“I can see you need to be out of the sun, maybe you should come out more in the evenings. And please, you may share my quarters, there is a proper bed and you will find clothes suited to your rank too.”
Madeira stood and beckoned him to follow. They moved to a cabin area at the rear of the ship and they entered a small but well laid out room. It had two single cots and a table with a bench. Laid out on the second cot was a large gray robe, obviously for him. The cabin was surprisingly cool as it had good ventilation through the roof, it was such a wonderful contrast to the hold below.
Wollfen stepped over to the cot, pulled the robe aside and fell down onto it. Turning himself over he looked up at the ceiling. Madeira sat at the bench and watched quietly. Wollfen lay there his head racing, he was too worked up to sleep. So many thoughts going through his head, so many questions as to how this was turning out. He thought he was too wound up but within seconds he was asleep, his breathing slowed and became deep, he was lost to the land of dreams. Madeira watched for a few minutes more, then she rose and took a dagger from a fold in her robe.
Walking over she cut the thong holding the loincloth in place. Removing it slowly, she tossed it out the porthole window into the ocean. She then sat back down looking at him, studying every part of his body, her eyes lingering at his groin. She realized that she found him quite attractive and that it stirred her sexuality. She had noticed that the first time she had walked into the hold and seen him leaning against the side of the cage. ‘I wonder what it's like to make love? Stop it, I’m a 28 year old mature woman, I do not delve into thoughts of the flesh.’ She wondered, ‘Does Wollfen think the same things?’
Time enough during the voyage to find out she guessed. They would be here sharing their ideologies and thoughts for the next five months. It was plenty of time to find out what he thought and whether he was on their side. This was to be a slow subtle interrogation taking months. She would make friends with him, even share personal secret desires to get him to open up. It didn’t really matter; after all, he was only a man.
That evening Wollfen awoke with a start, looking about in the darkness he remembered where he was. He sat up and found he was naked so he grabbed the robe and slipped it on over his head, the hood falling in place. He had fallen asleep so quickly, obviously the time in the hold had taxed him more than he had realized.
Wollfen thought about what he had been told and what it all meant. The part about her revealing a common lord, that had been a big one. He was troubled though, it didn’t make things simpler at all. What he had seen to date was not of anything to do with the teachings of Vincent. But why were they accepting him so? That too didn’t make any sense. Madeira had already acknowledged that they were working to opposing interests, and dabbling in human affairs? Did she think she wasn’t human?
The last comment about virginity being necessary to practice magics certainly confirmed in his own mind that these Sorceresses weren’t on the right track at all. He needed to find out more before he could come to any conclusions on their place in the world and why they had such an interest in him. He simply had too little to go on. The fact that they knew of Vincent and spoke of him as a Lord just made it so strange. Another thought occurred to him too, Dark would be close by in a week, so that meant he had one week to pick Madeira’s mind before jumping ship, literally.
With that thought in mind, he decided on a plan, be as open as he could be with her and hopefully she would return the favor. He would have to play it cool for a couple of days, but then not just open up but also seek knowledge from her. He would ask her about her land and her teachings, become the avid student. That wouldn’t be hard to do.
Personally, he was very interested in learning all he could anyway. Looking around the room he couldn’t see any books or diaries or anything in the way of personal belongings at all. It certainly showed that the sorcs were used to a spartan life and obviously they didn’t keep much in the way of written notes or record anything, which in itself was strange too. There was nothing for it but to go straight to the source and start the process of bonding.
Walking outside a couple of sailors moved past but gave him a wide berth. The stars were out and it was a pleasant enough evening. Madeira was sitting down towards the bow, he moved and sat by her.
“Good Evening Priestess.”
Madeira looked at him in his robe, even fully covered his presence was felt. It was like an aura and it intrigued her.
“Please, call me Madeira when we are alone, there is no need for formalities where it serves no purpose.” Wollfen nodded.
“You may call me Wollfen too.”
She smiled at him and made him feel welcome but still stayed aloof. She didn’t want to seem too cozy with him as yet. That would have rung alarm bells for him she was sure. He may be an ignorant man but that didn’t mean she should think of him as stupid, she knew that was not the case.
Wollfen looked at her calculating what to say next, everything was a gamble right now.
“You must forgive me for being somewhat confused. I have been in the hold of your ship as a prisoner for two weeks only to have you open the cage and show me a consideration one would expect shown that towards a compatriot. From what I have seen of your soldiers and seen what they do, I find it difficult to understand how it is you can treat me with such magnanimity.”
Madeira thought on this and she could see no harm in telling him the truth at this point.
“That is simple. Before we even set out on this quest of ours we were made to know that another of our kind would be found in the Kingdom and that person would be male. Of course we didn’t believe it at the time as no males have ever carried the power that we have come across. But since we knew little of the Kingdom other than what we could gather from traders and history books, we made preparations in case such an event came about. All of our sorcs were informed of such a possibility so when you held our sorc in your mental grip in Port Cholandra you inadvertently signaled your presence to us. The sorc in question simply enacted prearranged procedures in dealing with you. I was immediately informed and handed over authority to my subordinate at the Port, then came on board for this journey. Up until that moment we were still of the opinion it would be a female we would find.”
Wollfen thought on this and what it might mean.
“So you are saying that I have some importance to your quest?”
Now it was Madeira’s turn to think fast, how much should she let him know? Enough to keep him very interested she decided.
“Some importance? You have absolute importance. Without you there is no quest, without you, all will turn to nothing You are the key.”
Wollfen couldn’t believe what he was hearing, was all this true?
“And may I ask what the quest itself is?”
Madeira hesitated, things were balanced on a knife-edge. If she revealed too much at this early juncture then this man could still decide against them and if he did they would have to kill him. That would mean the quest would be over before it began. This was not something she was ready to risk, time to stall.
“I am afraid that I am not at liberty to say. I have been sworn to secrecy on this point
and it is for the Queen of Sorceresses to decide when you are ready to know.”
That last part was all lies but he didn’t need to know that.
“Very well then, we shall leave that for another time yes?”
Wollfen wasn’t going to leave it lie and he was letting her know.
“Yes another time perhaps, but that doesn’t mean we can’t discuss other things.”
The two of them were dancing around each other like predators, feeling each other out. Gauging each other warily, there was no trust at all.
“Tell me about your land, the people and its ways, I am interested to learn.”
“Hmm, having been in your country for over a month I can say that there are many similarities though it is a lot colder. We know you will have snow over the winter months whereas in my own country it will only be cool. You would probably think it is still warm if you were there. The buildings are built differently because of this too. A lot of the population live in houses built up off the ground to allow ventilation. Yours have funny pointy roofs compared to ours while still peaked are not so pronounced. Let’s see, well design of things is a bit different too and I have noted in the walls of the castle at Port Cholandra you people do focus more on the display of arts. In my country we don’t tend to waste our time on that so much though there are some exceptions.”
Madeira thought of some of the ghastly sculptures she had seen in the internal courtyard of the King’s residence.
“And your people? What are they like?”
That was more what Wollfen wanted to hear about, the way the people were and how they were treated.
“I would have to say from what I have seen in comparison to the people we made slaves of in Port Cholandra that our own people and slaves are much more hard working and compliant to our wishes.”
Wollfen stared, his mind went blank for a second.
“I’m sorry, you make slaves of your people?”
Madeira thought that to be a silly question.
“Well of course we do, those that are considered subhuman are made into slaves. Those that resist are put to death as they are of no use. I find it curious that your armies are so small when you are not fighting. How do you keep the population under control and keep them monitored?”