The Seedbearing Prince: Part I

by DaVaun Sanders

  “If it were as cold as you say, people wouldn’t live there.” Dayn suspected the pair just meant to nettle him, so he gave their words little weight.

  “That may be true, but your thin Shardian skin is what troubles us,” Samli replied. “You see, there’s a wager in the transport bay. Some of us think you'll manage all the way to the stronghold. Suralose flight decrees won't let us take you right outside the front door, foolish as their reasons are. So you walk.” He chuckled. “Most wager you won't get two steps past our hold door.”

  “Personally, I think those two―” Cedrek nodded at the two Ringmen “―will spend most of the day thawing you out.”

  Dayn dug in his pack for his bag of gems. Mother always thinks of everything. He pulled one out without looking at it and tossed it to the navigators. With a muffled oath, Samli pulled a hand from the vapor array to catch it. The transport pitched slightly to one side.

  “By Tu'um's shadow, Shardian!” Cedrek barked. “Don't ever do that if you want to see ground again!” The navigators glanced nervously into the hold, but Nassir did not even look up.

  Dayn shrugged apologetically. “That wager says I'll last outside as long as the Ringmen. Is it enough?” Samli stared down into his palm. “Or is it too late to bet on myself?”

  “I could live like a Regent with this,” Samli said slowly. He shook his head before tossing the gem back to Dayn, a clouded ember-eye.

  “But it’s bad manners to give back a gem,” Dayn protested. “Even if it’s just a bet.”

  “We gamble for bits and favors, Shardian,” Samli explained. “Better to not flash your treasure around so freely, especially where he plans to take you.” He nodded meaningfully at the Defender and looked as though he might say more until Cedrek harrumphed loudly.

  “Mind your nose, tenderwing. The torrent looks odd today.”

  “Yes, sir.”

  What could worry them so? Dayn thought. Nassir appeared to be highly regarded, although the Defender clearly disdained this quest. Dayn imagined that a general must rank highly.

  “What about you, Samli?” Dayn asked, deciding not to press the matter further. “Where’s your bet?”

  “Well, I don't think you’ll buckle in the cold, not after what I saw when we first picked you up,” the navigator replied, ignoring Cedrek's snort. “In fact, I'd stake my flight badge that the first person to go is the Pre―”

  Cedrek removed a hand from his vapor cloud just long enough to cuff Samli in the ribs. Samli wheezed and snapped his mouth shut.

  “Every world lends some special strength to its people.” Nassir spoke so suddenly Dayn jumped. He fixed Dayn in place with his somber gaze.

  “Suralose began as an outpost, dedicated to mining and replenishing ice for the World Belt. Once, the worlds cast lots on who would send new overseers every ten years. Over the centuries, the different groups intermingled through marriage and friendship, until they eventually chose to stay and govern themselves. Suralosans exist due to generations of service, ensuring the World Belt will never suffer drought.”

  “Not quite the same tradition as Shard, but the closest by far,” Lurec added, finally stirring from his own thoughts. “Suralose water rations may not save as many lives as your Pledge, but they are no less important.”

  “Yes.” Nassir said. His eyes bored uncomfortably into Dayn. “Do you see why Lord Adazia chose this world as your first destination?”

  “We are both covenant worlds,” Dayn said, recalling his trade lessons. “If voidwalkers threatened us both, the whole Belt would stop to listen.”

  “Simply put, but good enough for our purposes.” The expression on Nassir's face reminded Dayn of his neighbor Grahm, once he finally taught the dullest puppy of a new litter to fetch sticks. “I suppose that’s what the Force Lord intended.”

  Lurec nodded placidly as though Nassir had just proclaimed that water was wet. “I hope Lord Adazia is right, I truly do.” He frowned at the Defender's contemptuous snort. “How many of the Seed’s secrets could I be unlocking this moment? We leave the protection of a thousand Defenders to fly naked through the torrent for this unwarranted effort at diplomacy. You know my words for truth, Defender―admit it!”

  The navigators both stared back into the hold with concern.

  Nassir's voice frosted the cramped interior. “Do you question the Lord Ascendant’s gesture of goodwill? Would you choose where the Seed is gifted, Preceptor?”

  Lurec's face colored red. “That’s not what I intended, I―” he stopped with a sullen look.

  Dayn sighed as the silence descended once more. Even the navigators' high spirits faltered, their banter replaced by mutterings.

  “By the Mandrel Tower, they never said it was valuable!” Samli whispered fiercely. “They can put that Seed on top of his staff and call it a scepter for all I care! What about the Eadrinn Gohr?”

  Dayn's pulse quickened. He bent down to scratch absently at his boot so his eavesdropping did not look too obvious. The Eadrinn Gohr were the peoples of two separate worlds in the Belt, whose inhabitants refused all trade or contact, even Shard's Pledge. They were said to kill anyone who ventured to their worlds, and pirated transports they captured in the torrent.

  “Quit your nattering,” Cedrek murmured. “Look at our route.”

  Dayn wished he could understand the bright points of light in the vapor surrounding the two Ringmen. The display reminded him of the leap point in Terabin Round, but much more complicated.

  “We’re going around Feralos. Against the turn? It will take weeks to get to all of the worlds he means to reach.”

  “Maybe, but it’ll be safe from Eadrinn Gohr raiders. So find your ease.”

  Dayn began to daydream about Suralose, and meeting a leader from another world. Will he truly listen to some Mistland farmer's son? Dayn Ro'Halan, the Seedbearer. The notion seemed ridiculous.

  The transport shook. Dayn's stomach took a nervous somersault, and a moan rumbled from inside Lurec's cavernous overcoat.

  “Sorry about that,” Cedrek called out. Nassir watched the navigators calmly as the transport pitched. Their hands moved precisely within the suspended water droplets of the array. “The torrent is strange today, I've never seen it drift so close to a world. Sir, it would be wise for the Ring to dispatch a Guardian to watch it more closely.”

  “Very well,” said Nassir. “Do so upon your return.”

  “Is it dangerous?” Lurec asked.

  “No,” Cedrek said, peering intently into the vapor array. Dayn edged forward, straining for a glimpse of the torrent through the navigator's crystal viewport. For the hundredth time, he wondered why they built no windows into the transport holds. “Sit down, Shardian,” Samli said sharply.

  “I just want to see,” Dayn complained.

  “I would Shardian, but...rules are rules.” The navigator shrugged. His eyes flickered to the Ringmen before returning to his steering.

  What could it hurt to watch? Dayn thought. If they won't even trust me on the transport, how much worse will it be on a new world?

  Dayn marveled that the Defender allowed him to carry the Seed at all. He would rather the Preceptor kept it, especially after realizing the Seed mirrored his own heartbeat, and somehow swept away a month’s worth of injuries in just a few days. He did not like not knowing how it worked.

  “We're through the worst of it, Preceptor. A few erratics broke away from the detritus stream for a moment.”

  “Could it be a resonance wake?” Samli asked.

  Lurec shook his head. “Those fall near Ara this time of year. The ripples wouldn’t range so close.”

  “He's still a little green, Preceptor,” Cedrek allowed.

  “Surely, he'll be as trusted a navigator as you,” Lurec replied absently.

  “Time will tell.” Dayn detected a wry note in the navigator's response.

  The inside of the transport began to glow with harsh light, until the stars were all lost to the glare. Dayn felt a tug in his stomach
, the pull of Suralose’s worldheart.

  “Our placedown is coming up soon, sit easy.” Samli gave Dayn a wink. “We'll land as close to the front door as we can for you, Shardian.”

  “Watch that vector,” Cedrek barked. He scrutinized every move his charge made now. “She’s through the upper air currents, you can ease back. You’ve flown the clouds over Badai, right? These winds aren't half so fierce.”

  After one last shuddering rumble, the transport came to a rest. The rear hatch opened and the crystal door slid aside. Glaring light poured into the hold, accompanied by a piercing wind. Cold bit through Dayn's coat and set his teeth to rattling, like he had gooseflesh fever. Peace, but it’s cold!

  Nassir stood, motioning for Lurec and Dayn to follow. The Suralose air tore into Dayn's lungs with every breath, making him shiver even more. A particularly strong gust of wind rushed into the hold, making both navigators yelp an oath. Nassir's eyes flickered in the briefest mirth before he disappeared into the harsh light. Dayn braced himself and stepped out, the Preceptor followed reluctantly.

  The hold door began to retract before Lurec even passed fully through. Samli shouted to Dayn through the closing gap, exultation in his voice.

  “I'll collect large back at the Ring, thanks to you. Wiggle your toes while you walk, that’ll keep them from freezing! We'll be back to pick you up before nightfall.” The transport lifted smoothly, angling forward as it climbed into the sky.

  Dayn took in the foreign landscape around him. They stood upon the slope of an enormous mountain that reached so high the peak disappeared into the overcast sky. Clouds were a curiosity upon Shard, but here they spread in every direction as though the world’s mist had chosen to leave the ground for good. Ice blanketed the surrounding mountains, stretching for hundreds of leagues in every direction.

  “This whole world is frozen!” Dayn exclaimed. His very breath had turned white in the cold.

  Several deep fissures stood out in the nearby ice. They glowed a vivid blue, cleaving the mountainside with exotic stripes. Frozen brown stone jutted into the landscape as if the mountain fought mightily to rid itself of ice completely.

  “Must we be so far away?” Lurec asked. A mile down slope, an unadorned, dome-like structure blended meekly into the massive expanse of surrounding slope. Men stood in front, dark specks at this distance.

  Guards, Dayn realized. Lurec gazed toward them unhappily.

  “To prevent accidents,” Nassir replied. Dayn could see tendrils of white frost beginning to form on the Ringman's armor. Nassir set off down the slope and he hurried to follow. Lurec trundled along after them like a plump little bear with gray fur. “Our navigators are the best pilots in the Belt―except for the raiders of the Eadrinn Gohr―but Suralose would still blame the Ring if some reckless liftrider collided with a transport.”

  “What’s a liftrider?” Dayn asked.

  “Do they not teach the barest knowledge of the worlds in your village? You’ll see one soon enough.”

  “There’s no need to insult him,” Lurec said, scowling at Nassir as best he could from within his furry hood. “An underground river flows in the tunnels beneath the mountain. The Suralose ice melters guide it to the stronghold below. They use liftriders to fly themselves to the top. Defender, I trust you’ve already dispatched a Sender to announce our presence?”

  “There’s been no Sender assigned to this world for months. Their numbers are too few, and Lord Adazia has need of them elsewhere. That will change, with the voidwalkers stirring.”

  Lurec nodded thoughtfully, but said nothing as he focused on his next step. Dayn's staff proved useful for balance on the slick ground. He could not imagine anyone braving this mountain day after day. They saw no one nearby, though Lurec pointed out more guards gathering to watch their approach below.

  When Dayn saw his first Suralose folk up close, he nearly tripped over his staff. Thickly bundled men floated through the air, propelled by a strange device strapped to their backs. A harness fit around each man's waist and shoulders, reminding Dayn of his coursing gear. The harness attached to three pearl-colored rings on each man’s back. A column of shimmering air, like heat rising off the ground in summer, poured through the bands and pushed the men into the air.

  Dayn waved at one of the closer Suralose men despite Nassir's scowl. The man waved back, watching them curiously before his liftrider carried him further up the slope and out of sight. “I’d freeze stiff, waiting for that thing to take me anywhere. Better to bound. Why do they move so slowly?”

  Nassir produced a strip of fabric and proffered it to Dayn, then wrapped another around his own face and neck. Lurec grinned smugly at them both from the depths of his furry hood.

  “Frostbite will claim your tongue with so many questions, Shardian. This will keep your face from freezing,” the Defender said. “Keep your thoughts on completing the Lord Ascendant's task.”

  “Thank you,” Dayn managed. Maybe he’s from Suralose, the cold fits him. They trudged closer to the stronghold below. Dayn remembered the navigator’s advice and wiggled his toes. It actually helped against the cold.

  He twirled his staff through Eddies in the River to keep warm until the Defender's sharp admonition halted him. “Your height is bad enough, Shardian. Stop drawing attention to us.”

  Dayn gritted his teeth, but he obeyed. He felt often in his belt pouch for the Seed as they walked. His mind might be playing tricks, but it felt warm whenever he brushed it.

  They were only a quarter of the way to the stronghold when the ground trembled beneath Dayn’s feet. He looked down to see steam hissing from a hole in the ice a span across. He backed away as the melting edges rapidly widened, showing vibrant hues of the older blue ice beneath.

  “Well that is curious, isn't it?” Lurec leaned interestedly over the hole, which continued to emit steam.

  “Find cover, now!” Nassir shouted. The Defender shoved them both toward an outcrop that looked more ice than stone. Steam filled the air as the hole continued to hiss. He sprinted off toward a smaller overhang as though death itself were melting out of the ice. The Defender pressed himself into the rock twenty spans away, but paid no attention to the ground. Dayn followed his eyes to the sky.

  Oily flames spiderwebbed along the transport's angular hull. Even at this distance, Dayn could make out the shattered crystal surrounding the navigator's hangdeck. It glittered weakly in the sun as the transport plunged toward Suralose, spewing dark smoke as it burned.

  “What happened to it?” Dayn cried. More wreckage seared through the sky, leaving purpled streaks on his vision. He barely covered his face in time as ice fragments showered him from every side.

  “The torrent is brushing against this world!” Lurec shouted, his eyes round with terror. Debris continued slamming into the ground.

  Distant screams sounded faintly between impacts. Craters wide enough to swallow buildings bloomed everywhere, and the mountain groaned beneath their feet. Lurec and Dayn cowered against the rock, pressing themselves into the shallow bluff.

  “The transport!” Dayn shouted to be heard over the tumult. “We have to see if Samli and Cedrek are alright!”

  “Don’t move, Dayn! See how the rock burns from falling so far? The transport's sheath has failed. Even if our men still live, the crash will end them. Remember the Seed!” Lurec grabbed Dayn as if to restrain him, though Dayn could easily free himself from the weaker man's grasp. He could not so easily escape the Preceptor's logic. Rock hissed through the sky as though the torrent meant to pound Suralose to dust. A sharp, acrid tinge filled Dayn's nostrils, and he feared the very air might burst into flame.

  Peering between his fingers, Dayn saw that Nassir fared no better where he crouched. He caught glimpses of the Defender making smooth, methodical motions down his arms and over his chest, like someone covered in dirt wiping themselves clean. He donned his mask.

  “That man is equal parts foolish and dangerous, but today I fear the fool sits greater.” Lurec sh
outed across the slope. His words did not carry well, with the deafening reports around them. “Stay there, Nassir! The sheath may not be enough to protect you!”

  The barrage lulled for a moment, and the Defender took advantage. He ran toward them in a low, careful sprint, dodging around hissing craters and steaming blue fissures in the ice. Blinding light flashed around the Ringman's frame as falling rock struck his layer of sheath. The pieces exploded brilliantly, threatening to drive Nassir into the ground as he advanced toward them.

  On the horizon, the surrounding mountain ranges were covered in dust and powder. Dayn spotted smoke on a far distant slope, though he doubted anything could catch fire on this world. His heart sank as he realized the transport must have finally crashed.

  “Are you injured? The Seed is accounted for?” Nassir demanded, his voice oddly muffled behind his mask.

  Dayn nodded fearfully as the Defender examined him intently from head to toe. “Is it over?”

  “Far from it.” Nassir looked impassively at the trail of smoke left by the transport. Dayn whispered a prayer of final peace on the two navigators. Lurec was right, they could not have survived.

  A deafening boom shook the mountain to its foundations, sending all three of them sprawling. Lurec slid on his back like a flipped turtle, yelping in alarm, and would have gone further if not for Dayn's extended staff. Nassir immediately regained his feet, staring intently up the slope.

  “Thank you, young Shardian,” Lurec panted. The Preceptor pulled himself upright and scampered back to safety, looking fearfully at the sky.

  Rock pummeling you senseless, moving faster than you can see coming? Eriya's words echoed in Dayn's panicked thoughts. I cannot imagine a worse way to meet my end.

  Suralose folk poured out of the stronghold below, their confused cries echoing weakly up the slope. Great clouds of powdered ice and steam clung to the pinnacle above, overshadowing the mountaintop. A cacophony of murderous shouts billowed in that haze, making Dayn's heart leap.