Lintang and the Brightest Star

by Tamara Moss

  ‘Who’s spoiling the fun?’ someone complained.

  Governor Jani addressed the vigil. ‘What, exactly, is the point of this?’

  Bear, clutching a stitch in his side, squinted up at her. ‘Just a bit of a laugh, Governor.’ He gestured casually to Lintang with his sword. ‘She’s got excellent skills, and the locals like to see one of their own do well. She’s not just anyone, either – she was selected by Admiral Moon for a stint on the Glory.’

  ‘I’m well aware of that.’

  Bear winced. It seemed he had momentarily forgotten that the captain of the Glory was Governor Jani’s missing son.

  Governor Jani switched her sharp gaze to Lintang. ‘This doesn’t look like a performance to me. It looks like training. What are you training for, Lintang of Sundriya?’

  She had thrown in Lintang’s registered name as a sting. Lintang didn’t react to it.

  ‘Bear just told you,’ she said instead. ‘I had a contract with the navy. I might get another one. It’s good to be prepared.’

  ‘You don’t use the traditional vigil fighting style.’

  ‘I prefer my own.’

  ‘You’re too arrogant.’

  Lintang twirled her sword. ‘That’s because I’m good.’

  People were shooting Governor Jani annoyed looks. They had come to see a show of skill and strength, and they had been robbed.

  Governor Jani addressed the whole village. ‘This girl is one of many across the Twin Islands who are refusing t go to school. She’s breaking the law, and as such she will not be putting on displays with representatives from Vierz.’ She stared steadily at the spectators. ‘Any child under seventeen who does not attend school tomorrow, or any other required day, without good reason, will be spending six months in prison!’

  And, just as she pointed a threatening finger towards the mines, Malakai Mountain erupted.

  Fire burst out of the mountain, flaring orange and red against the indigo sky.

  ‘It’s the volcano!’ someone said over the cries and shrieks from the villagers.

  ‘No!’ said Ramadel, who used to be head of the warrior’s guild before the vigil took over his job. ‘It’s the mines!’

  He was right. Smoke and fire poured out from the mine site.

  Maxie of Manse jerked forward. ‘The people!’

  ‘There wouldn’t be anyone inside this time of the night,’ Bear said, scratching his balding head. ‘But I wonder how it happened? It’s only non-flammable gemstones up there.’ He snapped to attention when he realised Governor Jani was already shouting orders at them.

  Lintang checked for her family on the schoolhouse balcony. Their faces gleamed in the merry lights. Their expressions matched everyone else’s – fear, horror, confusion. Questions rustled through the crowd like wind on the forest canopy. This wasn’t a cave-in, not with that fire.

  It was almost as though there had been an explosion –

  Bahatsi powder.

  Lintang had seen explosives in action before. And she only knew one person who used them.

  She turned swiftly.

  ‘Where are you going?’ Maxie said, but Lintang sprinted away without answering. She dashed down the hill, back to her house, and thundered up the steep steps to the porch.

  ‘Oh please,’ she whispered to herself as she burst into the house. ‘Please, please, please –’

  She stopped. Just as she’d hoped, someone was already inside, illuminated by the soft glow of the half-shuttered merry light.

  It was jarring seeing Captain Shafira standing in her house. Lintang’s two worlds, together.

  Captain Shafira had visited the island before, but she’d been inside the temple then, which had felt more fitting. Now the captain’s tall, dark figure – donned in leather armour, her braids tied back in her red kerchief, black sword at her side – was leaning against the chopping bench, her head slightly bent due to the hanging pots and pans, and she looked totally out of place.

  ‘Hello, Lintang,’ she said.

  ‘Thank the Gods,’ Lintang said breathlessly.

  ‘Pack your things. We don’t have much time. Yamini’s getting Bayani and Pelita and is meeting us at the rowboat.’

  ‘Yamini?’

  Lintang couldn’t believe Captain Shafira would trust the awful cabin girl with something as important as getting Bayani and Pelita out safely.

  ‘She blends in best among the Vierzans,’ Captain Shafira said. ‘Pack. Now.’

  Lintang grabbed a sack from the larder and started stuffing it with her sarongs. There was no point packing her shisea. She’d learned during her last trip that they were too constricting and cumbersome for adventures.

  She fumbled a lot, and dropped things. Every action felt too slow. She was overly aware that Captain Shafira was watching her.

  ‘What did you do to the mines?’

  ‘Mei and Xiang are up there now, freeing the prisoners. The Vierzans are about to find themselves dealing with an unpleasant rebellious uprising.’ Captain Shafira grinned. ‘Much like they’re dealing with in Kaneko Brown.’

  Kaneko Brown. Their next stop. They would be finding allies to help Allay stand up to the United Regions.

  She would be travelling again.

  Even though she had been waiting for Captain Shafira to figure out another plan to get her off the island, it still felt surreal. In just a few heartbeats, she would be leaving Desa. She would be free.

  Heavy footsteps thundered up the stairs and the door burst open.

  ‘Lintang!’ Mother caught sight of Captain Shafira and her face twisted into a scowl. ‘You.’

  ‘Hello, Aanjay,’ Captain Shafira said calmly.

  ‘I knew it!’ Mother’s Vierse had improved since the UR had taken over the islands, but her voice was still heavily accented. ‘I knew you would take her away again!’

  ‘Mother –’ Lintang started.

  ‘Do not even try. Do you think I am stupid? I know where you went when you disappeared from the Glory. Kidnapped, pah! You were with her!’ She pointed a formidable finger at Captain Shafira.

  Lintang’s breath hitched. She hadn’t expected anyone to figure out the truth.

  Captain Shafira was unfazed. ‘Yes, she was with me. We went to Allay. We saved the Zulttania and restored peace in my country. Now we need to go again.’

  Mother slammed the door and stormed forward. ‘You will not take my daughter a third time.’ She stalked right up to Captain Shafira. Lintang was taken by how much smaller her mother was compared to the captain, and yet how unafraid she seemed. ‘She belongs here, with me.’

  Captain Shafira met her gaze in silence, as if considering her answer.

  ‘I’m going,’ Lintang said. ‘I have to. We’ll stop the Vierzans once and for all.’

  Mother whirled to face her. ‘What does that mean? Stop the Vierzans? How are you going to do that?’

  ‘By finding friends,’ Captain Shafira said. ‘By standing up to the UR, and asking them to leave our countries alone.’

  Lintang stepped forward. ‘Mother. I can’t stay here. There are things I have to do. I’m going to make a difference in this world.’

  ‘She’s protected by the lightning bird – she’s safer on the Winda than anywhere else,’ Captain Shafira said.

  ‘We can’t let the Vierzans destroy Desa any more than they already have,’ Lintang said. ‘Someone needs to stop them.’

  ‘Why does that someone have to be you?’ Mother demanded.

  ‘Because this is my home. Because I have the opportunity. Because I am mahpyalo, and look forward to the future with stars shining brightly in my eyes.’

  Captain Shafira’s lips twitched.

  Mother swung her gaze from Lintang to Captain Shafira, but rather than looking angry, she looked lost. Like she knew she had been defeated but didn’t know how to step aside.

  Lintang dropped her sack, hopped over her straw mattress and cupped her mother’s face in her hands. It occurred to her that she and Mother were
almost the same height now.

  ‘I’ll come home,’ she said softly. ‘I promise.’ Then, as an echo from long ago, she whispered, ‘Because you are my most precious thing.’

  Mother sobbed, and Lintang pulled her into a tight hug. Ever since the last time Lintang had gone away, she had made sure to hug her family – especially her mother – whenever she could. Now she was painfully aware how much Mother smelled of home. Of warmth and comfort and safety. Of pepper blossoms and timber.

  Of days before the Vierzans.

  Lintang released Mother in case she lost her nerve. Captain Shafira was already heading for the door.

  ‘Say goodbye to everyone for me,’ Lintang said. She took Mother’s hand and kissed her knuckles. ‘Tell Nimuel and Father I love them. Don’t tell anyone else where I’ve gone. Just … say I’ve run away or something.’

  ‘You are running away,’ Mother said through tears.

  Lintang turned to Captain Shafira. ‘Not running away. Running to.’

  ‘Lintang!’ Mother said as Lintang grabbed her sack and started for the door. She wrung the sash of her shisea. Her eyes were wet. ‘Come back quickly.’

  ‘I will,’ Lintang said.

  She gazed once more around her home and stepped out to the porch.

  ‘When?’ Mother said.

  Lintang couldn’t bear to look at her. She didn’t have an answer, though she wished she did. She jogged down the steps after Captain Shafira.

  ‘When?’ Mother called out again, this time in their native language.

  Lintang clenched her teeth against tears.

  Mother dashed onto the porch as Lintang ran, ran as fast as she could after Captain Shafira, across the road and into the rainforest, but not fast enough to miss her mother’s final cry.

  ‘Lintang, please! When?’

  Captain Shafira didn’t go towards the lagoon, like Lintang expected, but deeper into the rainforest. When they were in the shadows of the trees, the captain took a merry light from her pouch and let its glow guide them.

  It hurt to leave home, more so than any other time. It was like Lintang was being torn in half. It wasn’t just the goodbye to her family, and her mother. It was goodbye to the smell of her timber house. To the fire pit outside, where they cooked all their meals and sat each night to eat, their laughter joining the crackle of the kindling. To the rain moths, and the dry season, and the cool mugs of burbleberry juice. To scaling fish next to her mother at the chopping bench.

  It was lucky Captain Shafira moved fast – Lintang had to concentrate to keep up, which meant she wasn’t tempted to stop and gaze back the way she’d come. She focused on her destination. She would see the rest of the crew soon. She would be back on the Winda.

  When they reached the rushing Lamali River, the canopy opened, revealing a star-studded sky. They followed the river towards the ocean. Lintang was starting to understand – Captain Shafira couldn’t dock near the lagoon or every Vierzan around would see her ship, with its Allay writing on the hull and its black sails. She had to hide in less safe harbours, and the waters around the mouth of Lamali River were rough, full of rocks. No one would dare sail in that area. No one but Captain Shafira.

  They had to move slower along the riverbank. Lintang climbed over a large rock, slick with water, and a breeze touched the back of her neck. It was chilly, not at all like the winds in Desa. Their surroundings grew darker. She looked back to find a thick black cloud hugging the canopy like a mist, swallowing the tops of the riverside trees and covering the stars as it snaked towards them.

  ‘What’s that?’ she said.

  Captain Shafira glanced over her shoulder and stopped. They watched as the cloud rolled nearer.

  ‘Mythie?’ Lintang said at the same time someone giggled behind them.

  They spun around. Captain Shafira put her merry light away and drew her sword.

  There was no one there.

  Or – yes, a glow through the trees. White, and bobbing towards them. Lintang relaxed. ‘It’s just a pixie. Got any Curall?’

  Captain Shafira reached into her pouch for a vial. She didn’t lower her sword.

  ‘It’s all right, Captain,’ Lintang said, ‘it’s just –’

  The giggling came again.

  Lintang stopped. Pixies didn’t giggle. They didn’t have a voice. Was this a fey from another country, like the gnome had been? With people from all over the world flooding Desa, there were different types of mythies around now.

  But the white light drew nearer, and Lintang saw it wasn’t humanoid at all.

  It was three glowing dandelion seeds.

  Lintang’s heart whooshed to her throat. ‘The propheseeds.’

  Panic curled in her stomach. She stepped back.

  Captain Shafira stayed where she was. ‘There’s no point running. They’ll follow.’

  ‘Captain …’ Lintang’s throat closed up before she could finish her thought. The propheseeds would say one of their names three times, then sentence them to death.

  But which name would they say?

  Captain Shafira lifted the Curall as the glow reached them. She sprayed it once, sharply.

  The seeds rotated in circles around each other.

  It would take too long for them to turn human. They were still going to say their prophecy; still going to doom Lintang or Captain Shafira.

  Lintang’s pulse pounded in her ears. She was starting to feel lightheaded. When the three voices spoke, she almost fell to the ground.

  Shafira, Shafira, Shafira.

  ‘No,’ Lintang groaned.

  Queen of the seas faces king of the earth

  On Marjin’s day, skill has no worth

  Devoured whole, darkness and woe

  Your star is lost where Mratzi can’t go.

  ‘What does that mean?’ Lintang’s voice was a shriek. ‘What does it mean, where Mratzi can’t go?’

  If the Goddess of Death couldn’t get somewhere, was that a good thing, or a bad thing?

  Captain Shafira stared straight ahead.

  ‘What’s Marjin’s day?’ Lintang said. ‘Who’s the king of the earth? Captain? Captain!’

  She grabbed at Captain Shafira’s arm, already planning on ways to stop the prophecy; maybe Bayani could help, he’d done it before –

  Unless

  She and Captain Shafira snapped their gazes back to the propheseeds.

  Unless?

  Since when had there been an unless with the propheseeds?

  Ten days from grief

  Your second pays the price

  And is willing to make

  The greatest sacrifice.

  Captain Shafira stiffened.

  Lintang was starting to feel sick with hope as the propheseeds bobbed away, still giggling. ‘There’s an unless. There’s an unless. Thank the Gods, we can stop this. We have to figure out what it means. What’s your second? How can it pay a price?’

  ‘It doesn’t matter, Lintang.’

  ‘What are you talking about, it doesn’t matter? This is the most important thing we’re ever going to have to do! Come on, help me think. We should –’

  ‘No.’ Captain Shafira seemed to break from whatever trance she was in and spun to Lintang. She held up her empty vial. ‘It doesn’t matter, because I medicated them. The prophecy won’t come to pass.’

  Lintang stared at the vial. She could barely see it in the darkness.

  The darkness.

  She glanced up. The clouds had completely covered the sky. ‘Go,’ Captain Shafira said. ‘Quickly.’

  They scrambled along the river. They couldn’t move as fast as they wanted, with slippery rocks and jutting tree roots to trip them up. The riverbank rose and fell, and widened and narrowed. Lintang’s palms were soon scraped and bleeding from all the times she’d stumbled, and the knees of her sarong were muddied. She couldn’t get the prophecy out of her head. What if the captain was wrong? What if it didn’t matter that they’d medicated the propheseeds? What if it came true anyw
ay?

  Your star is lost where Mratzi can’t go.

  She caught glimpses of the beach through the trees. The mouth of the river flowed out to sea, and there in the starlight, past the clouds and more dangerous rocks, bobbed the Winda. They were so close.

  ‘Captain. Captain!’

  Yamini’s voice echoed through the trees. What was that silly gnome doing? She’d give away their position, screaming like that.

  But then she kept yelling.

  ‘Captain, run! It’s a trap! It’s –’

  She cut off abruptly as Lintang and Captain Shafira burst onto the shore to find Yamini, Bayani and Pelita.

  Along with all ten of Desa’s vigil.

  THE MYTHIE GUIDEBOOK ENTRY #18: Cloud Beast (Kaneko Brown)

  The cloud beast (nupenlai ) is a predator mythie of assorted animal parts that differ according to various regions of Kaneko Brown. It is so named as it travels in a low-flying rain cloud.

  Diet: Meat.

  Habitat: Rain clouds around the Kaneko Brown islands.

  Frequency: Moderately rare.

  Behaviour: Cloud beasts roam the Kaneko Brown islands looking for food. They often attack cattle and wildlife, leaving carcasses drained of blood. Occasionally, they will kill humans.

  Eradication: Cloud beasts can be killed with an ordinary sword, though depending on their different body parts, some types are more easily slain than others.

  Did you know? It is said a cloud beast can be caught and controlled by tricking it into looking at its reflection in a polished bloodstone.

  Danger level: 2

  The vigil had merry lights hanging from their necks, casting eerie glows on their faces. They parted for Governor Jani to walk through.

  ‘Captain Shafira,’ she said coldly.

  Yamini fought to break free from the grip of old Lei of Zaiben. Yamini was a scruffy, bony thing, her arms so skinny Lei struggled to hold her. ‘I didn’t tell them, Captain, I swear –’

  Yamini had been bribed once, before Lintang had joined the Winda’s crew, giving away Captain Shafira’s location for a bunch of gemstones. Her weakness had resulted in her permanent demotion to cabin girl. Lintang found it hard to believe she’d make the same terrible choice twice.