Diamond Bonds

by Jeff Kish

Di isn’t convinced. “Era, no offense, but you know nothing about those things! We studied these in school as a case study for how not to use runes. A standard sky boat requires no less than twenty runes to keep afloat, and someone needs to manage all of them at once! If they were safe, there would be hundreds of them in the sky!”

  “But if they were completely unsafe, you’d never see any,” Era counters.

  “S-Sure, but-”

  Jem places her hand on Di’s shoulder. “I hate to admit it, but they’re probably right. Even if the chance of surviving a sky boat trip are fifty percent, it might be better odds than making it to Kemplen alive by foot.”

  Era adds, “If Fire is right and those hunters are reporting our location, we don’t have long until we have to start dodging troop deployments.”

  Di puffs her cheeks but relents, accustomed to not getting her way with this group.

  “Follow me,” Fire says as she takes off ahead of the others.

  The three resume marching, though Di’s anxiety causes her to slow, which results in more time spent in Era’s arms. She decides that isn’t such a bad thing.

  After an extended hike, Fire once again reveals herself to the group. Her expression is unusually excited as she points a thumb behind herself. “There’s definitely a sky boat operation in the clearing ahead. I’m not sure yet whether it’s on the up and up, so we’ll need to be cautious in our approach.”

  “Seems sketchy, considering it’s buried in the woods,” Era suggests.

  Jem shrugs her shoulders. “Not necessarily. Sky boat operations are banned by most towns, aren’t they? It wouldn’t surprise me if they set up between villages like this.”

  “Either way, we approach cautiously,” Fire again warns. “I’ll stay back with the brat, and you two-”

  “Whoa, whoa,” Jem contests. “You are not staying back with Di.”

  Fire smirks at the expected response. “Finally making a smart decision, Allerian? Fine, me and the idiot will go in and ask around. There are seven workers milling about, and four of them have weapons strapped to their sides. So if there’s a fight for any reason then we’ll need both of you for backup. Understood?”

  “Got it,” Jem affirms.

  Di groans before nodding her understanding as well. “I hate fighting.”

  “Okay, let’s move,” Era says, and Fire follows after him.

  Di looks to her remaining guardian as the two leave. “Jem, I don’t want to go in a sky boat!” Her stomach growls, and she rubs it pitifully. “Also, I’m really hungry.”

  Annoyed, Jem pulls rations out of her bag for the girl. Di pouts at the sight of the bread before she reluctantly takes it, and Jem silently wonders if she’d rather hang out with the assassin.

  Era and Fire approach the edge of the clearing. After a quick peek through the trees, Era boldly steps out into the open, trying to look innocent. Fire follows, glancing around and keeping an eye out for any signs of hostility from the workers. She knows how risky it is to expose themselves to anyone at all, but the situation requires desperation. This is exactly what they need to escape the region, and she knows it.

  A burly worker drops a crate, spotting the two approaching strangers as he wipes his brow in the high heat of the sun. He calls out a warning to his associates as he meets Era. “What business have you here?”

  “We’re looking for transport,” Era explains. “We saw a sky boat descend here. Can we hire your services?”

  The outspoken worker mutters, “You’ll have to take that up with the manager. I’ll send him out.” With that, he retreats back toward one of the many tents scattered about, but the others keep their eyes locked on the two visitors.

  Era waits in uncomfortable silence, and his eyes fall on the sky boat at the center of the clearing. The main body of the craft resembles the carriage they’d ridden in with Andrea, though the wheels had been replaced with landing struts. The operator’s seat is mounted on top in front of a command console, which houses dozens of runes of various shapes and sizes. A mess of tubes spill out from under the console and run along the sides of the craft, providing the pilot different options for control.

  As he glances over to one tent, he sees someone pop her head out from under the flap. Though young, her hair can only be described as silver, and she watches them with intense curiosity. Era doesn’t have time to give her much thought as the manager exits his tent and makes his way over.

  Short, trim, and well-dressed, the middle-aged man walks with a cane and a limp. He has a moustache and goatee, and a small hat sits on his head. Contrary to the mood of the workers, he jovially steps up to Era and shakes his hand. “Welcome, welcome! What brings the two of you to my humble operation?”

  “We want a ride,” Fire explains as she steps in front of Era. “What would be the charge for a ride to Canterin?”

  The manager smiles and shakes Fire’s hand, much to her disgust. “Sorry there, young lady. I didn’t realize you were the one in charge!” Short enough to meet her at eye-level, he removes his hat and introduces himself. “The name is Poulton, and I manage this sky boat operation. We don’t typically transport people, but we’re certainly flexible, if you know what I mean.”

  Fire crosses her arms, knowing exactly what he means. “How much?”

  “Five thousand per head.”

  “Five thousand each!?”

  “That’s right. Ten thousand for you two, plus another five thousand for the young lass behind you who keeps peeking her head out.”

  Annoyed, Fire offers, “We’ll give you two thousand total for the transport.”

  “I won’t go a venni lower than four thousand a head,” the manager insists. “I’ll have you know my daughter is the sky boat operator. I need to make it worth my while to risk her safety.”

  Era glances over to the girl staring at them from her tent. ‘I guess that explains her.’

  “Sleazy old man, selling out his daughter like that,” Fire mutters to Era as she beckons for the others to join them. Surprised by the request, Jem and Di make their way into the clearing.

  The manager smirks at the new arrivals. “Ah, so this is why you wanted a flat rate. How many more Allerians are you hiding back there?”

  Fire reaches a hand to Jem. “Give me that rune.”

  Though at first confused, she argues, “Hey, you’re not planning to-”

  “Do you want to walk or fly to Canterin?”

  “I didn’t want to fly in the first place!”

  “Jem, give it to her,” Era pleads.

  Annoyed, Jem swings her bag to the ground. She pulls out the rune she procured from the underground cavern, gives Fire a dirty look, and extends it close enough for the manager to study. “No touching.”

  Poulton raises an eyebrow. “And this is…?”

  “This rune is worth twenty thousand venni,” Fire lies. “We’ll exchange it for transporting the four of us to Canterin.”

  “This is a rune? It looks like a rock to me.” He waves his hand to have Jem withdraw it. “Sorry, but I’m not a rune collector. Sell that to someone who cares.” Jem smugly returns the rune to her bag as he adds, “If you don’t have the money, then I’m afraid we can’t do business today.”

  “Fine,” Fire scowls as she turns to leave.

  Era glances at the workers, who continue to watch the small group carefully. ‘Maybe this is for the best,’ he thinks.

  The four walk back into the forest a short ways before Jem asks, “So what now?”

  Fire’s good mood is gone as she once again recalculates the plan. “We head to Kemplen. The threat of the military swarming us is realistic, so we’ll need to continue our fast pace.” Di cringes at the suggestion, but she’s silently grateful they’re walking instead of flying.

  “Fire, you seem upset,” Era says. “Could it be you were excited to take a ride?”

  “O-Of course not, I just-” She freezes in place and brings her finger to her mouth. The others listen and hear the sound of someone
approaching from behind. Fire scales a tree while Era forms a blade from the ground and steps in front of Di. Jem also unsheathes her broken dagger and steps next to her partner.

  However, Era is surprised to see the light-haired girl from earlier chasing after them. She shrinks back for a moment when she first spots them bearing arms, but, summoning her courage, she continues her approach. Era has never seen a sky boat pilot, but her ratty, knee-length dress, leather leggings, and thick goggles resting atop her long hair certainly fit any mental picture he had of one. Her eyes are gray, their color practically matching her hair.

  Holding a clenched fist close to her chest, she summons her bravery and offers, “Hi.”

  Jem and Era glance at each other in confusion. Raising an eyebrow, Jem sheathes her dagger and asks, “Who are you? What do you want?”

  “I’m the sky boat operator,” she answers, relieved to see Jem put away her blade. “I can give you a ride if you’d like.”

  “Going around your dad’s back, huh?” Jem asks with a certain respect. “Can’t say I mind that. How much are you looking to make?”

  The girl looks directly at Era, determination in her eyes. “I don’t want money. I want a rendezvous.”

  Era and Jem’s eyes widen in surprise at the request, and Di swings around from behind Era. “What!?”

  “I want a date. With him. Tonight.”

  More than uncomfortable with the request, Era scratches his sandy brown hair. “A date? You’d take us to Canterin for that?”

  “Canterin is too far,” she quietly admits.

  Fire abruptly drops from her perch, prompting a contained yelp from the pilot. She gets in her face and asks, “What about Kemplen? Would you take us that far?”

  Still startled by Fire’s appearance, she nods an affirmative. “S-Sure, Kemplen is fine.” Returning her gaze to Era, she blushes and says, “I don’t get to meet many boys my age. Take me to dinner and on a romantic walk. No rushing it, either! I want to have a nice time.”

  “Dinner?” he asks in confusion. “Where can we eat around here?”

  “There’s a small town called Lentien about an hour to the north,” she explains. “We’ll walk there and back, and I’ll fly you at first light.”

  “First light is too late,” Fire argues. “Fly us to Kemplen now, and you can date the idiot when we’re there.”

  The girl doesn’t take the bait. “No way! You’d just leave me.”

  “So date him tonight and fly us over immediately afterward.”

  The pilot shakes her head. “It’s too dangerous to fly at night. We could hit a tree or land in a swamp. It has to be tomorrow morning.”

  Exasperated, Fire asks Jem, “How far are we from Kemplen?”

  Jem already has her map out, wondering the same thing. “I just don’t see us getting there faster than three days. And that assumes we move at a fast rate without much sleep.”

  “Wait, we’re not actually doing this, are we?” Di interjects. “Jem, we don’t even want to fly! There’s no reason to force Era into something like this.”

  Jem reluctantly admits, “I think it’s our only option, Di.” As the schoolgirl pouts, Jem leans close to Fire and mutters, “Can we sit idle that long?”

  Fire shrugs. “It might actually throw them off our trail. There’s no way they’re expecting us to stop and rest for so long.”

  Accepting Fire’s logic, Jem turns back to the pilot girl and extends her hand. “You’ve got a deal!”

  The pilot frowns at Jem’s hand. “No, I want him to do it.” Amused, Jem withdraws her hand and smacks Era’s back, shoving him forward.

  Era looks her over, recognizing she’s likely not much younger than him. She’s about as tall as Jem, and her silvery hair blowing in the breeze makes her appear sophisticated. Attractive as she is, he decides he might not mind this ordeal. Clearly blushing at this point, Era stammers, “U-Ummm… would you…?” Pausing, he realizes he doesn’t even know the girl’s name. Extending a hand, he says, “My name is Era. What’s yours?”

  The girl happily clasps Era’s hand in between her own. “My name is Pearl. Pleased to meet you, Era.”

  More relaxed, he smiles and asks, “Could I treat you to dinner tonight, Pearl?”

  Playing the part, Pearl exclaims, “I’d love to, Era!”

  Di audibly pouts at her personal fantasy playing out before her eyes. Fire glances at Jem, curious to see if she shows any kind of jealousy, but the Allerian is sporting her usual confident grin, as if taking credit for the entire arrangement.

  “So where should I pick you up, and at what time?” Era asks.

  “You can meet me right here at six o’clock sharp,” Pearl answers before turning back to Jem. “By the way, that thing you showed my father… Was that a rune?”

  Jem raises an eyebrow. “Why?”

  “There’s an old rune expert just outside Lentien. He lives in a small ranch to the east. You should show it to him!”

  Her interest piqued, Jem says, “Sounds like a profitable way to spend the afternoon.”

  Releasing Era’s hand, Pearl calls, “See you tonight, Era!” as she heads back to her camp with a wave.

  Di plants her hands on her hips and sternly says, “This is a terrible idea. We’re supposed to be going to Canterin, not going on dates!”

  Rolling her eyes, Jem grumbles, “Yeah, I’ll bet you’d be this upset if Era were taking you on a date.” Without waiting for a response, she asks Fire, “You good with checking out the town? We should probably scout ahead for tonight.”

  Fire nods in agreement. “I’ll go ahead of you. Try to keep up.”

  “But it’s an hour away!” Di complains. “We’re hiking there and back just to check it out?”

  “What else are we going to do? The date isn’t until six,” Jem argues, annoyed by the girl’s constant complaining. “Besides, I want to see how much my rune is worth!”

  “Don’t worry, Di,” Era says in an effort to comfort the girl. “If this gets you home, I promise I’ll take you on a date in Canterin sometime.”

  Blushing, she stammers, “H-Hey now, that’s… I mean, that isn’t necessary.”

  Era shrugs. “Well, we’ll do it anyway. For now, let’s keep moving. It’ll be safer if we’re not standing in one place anyway.”

  Di nods, seemingly content. Fire dashes ahead, and the other three resume their previous formation as they turn north.

  * * *

  Lentien is a tiny town consisting of no more than thirty or so buildings clustered together within the forest. A small road exits the east side of the town, no doubt connecting back to one of the main pathways between major villages. Considering there’s no other road leaving the village, it is unlikely the town sees many passers-by.

  In traditional form, Fire appears from the brush when they approach the outer border. “About time.”

  Jem ignores her and jabs her elbow into Era’s side. “Getting excited for your big date?”

  Era smiles awkwardly. “Yeah, I guess I’m actually a little excited. It’ll be nice to forget this whole situation for a little while.”

  Fire frowns. “Getting a big head about it, I see. You do realize you were picked by default. I think you’re the first clean-looking guy she’s seen in years.”

  “And it’s a good thing she didn’t smell you before asking you out,” Jem mutters, waving her hand back and forth while wrinkling her nose. “You need to take a bath or she might call the whole thing off from the start.”

  “He smells better than someone else present,” Di mutters, glancing at Fire. She replies with a snarl.

  Era sighs. “I’m not doing this because I want to, you know.”

  “But you just said you’re excited!” Di reminds him, visibly upset.

  “You did,” Jem adds.

  Era is bewildered. “Why am I being ganged up on, here?”

  “Because you’re traveling with three ladies,” Jem teases. “You give us no mind for this entire journey, and here y
ou are asking some random girl on a date!”

  Era shakes his head in amusement. “No winning this one, eh?”

  “I don’t get why she’s so desperate,” Di huffs.

  “That’s not abnormal behavior,” Fire says as she scopes out the town from afar.

  Di looks at her in confusion, and Jem explains, “The war ended seven years ago, right? Haven’t you noticed a distinct lack of middle-aged males around the Academy?”

  The girl ponders the idea. “Well, now that you mention it, most of the adult men are older.”

  “So I guess the special Academy students aren’t immune to drafting,” Jem snidely observes. “Think about it. There’s an overpopulation of women compared to men these days. Unless we want to risk becoming old maids, we have to take matters into our own hands.”

  “So why haven’t you taken matters into your own hands?” Era asks with a grin. “I’ve been right here for two years.”

  “Do you really want me to answer that?” Jem asks with a flat expression.

  Changing the subject, Era looks out at the town from his vantage point. “Okay, so how do we safely evaluate this village? We can’t let our guard down, even if this town is in the middle of nowhere.”

  Jem nods. “Towns like these often hire a soldier or two to patrol. There’s zero guarantee this town is free from knowledge of our bounties.”

  “Plus it’s unlikely the town sees many visitors,” Fire reasons. “The original description for you three was an Allerian, a blond schoolgirl, and an earth shaper. That’s a pretty rare mix, so we’ll stick out to anyone aware of the bounty.”

  “Okay,” Jem decides, “I’m interested in the rune guy, and that pilot girl said he lives to the east. Di and I will look for his house while you two check out the town. As long as Era doesn’t shape any earth, he shouldn’t be recognized.” Looking at Di, she asks, “You okay with your man being alone with another woman?”

  “Fire’s not a girl. She’s a monster,” Di mutters to herself as she walks away.

  Fire doesn’t seem to mind the description as she heads into town. Era offers Jem a wave before following Fire, and it’s quickly evident the few people wandering the streets have their eyes set on them. The road cuts straight through town, and the local businesses are strategically placed along this stretch. The buildings are all constructed using lumber taken from the forests surrounding the village.