by Rosie Scott
I huffed in amusement, grabbing my undershirt and pulling it over my head. I hoped whoever was knocking was a friend, because I looked like an early morning mess.
I opened the door. “Yeah?” There was no one there. I glanced left, then right. “Hello?”
Nothing.
“I'm too tired for this shit,” I grumbled, before closing the door again. Cerin watched me curiously from the bed.
“No one there?” He inquired.
“No. And you heard that, right? The knocking?”
“Mmhmm.” He shrugged. “Some other door?”
“Maybe, but that was close, and nobody was in the hallway.”
“Come back to bed, then,” he said, pulling the covers open in an invitation.
“What do I get if I do?” I teased, crawling back into the bed, and landing a kiss on his face.
“Whatever you want, and then some.” Cerin turned his face to kiss my own, before he chuckled huskily beside it. “I'd kiss you on the lips, but I don't know what my breath is like.”
“Yeah, same here. That's all right, though. Kissing's not all we do.” I reached beneath the covers, preparing to touch him.
Knock-knock-knock.
I stopped short, and stared at the door. “Who is it?”
Knock-knock-knock. Then, as if to further annoy us, there was an added and extra strong, KNOCK!
“I swear to the gods, if this is some sort of a prank...” I got out of bed again, frustrated, and threw open the door. “What?” The hallway was empty. Again. My face grew hot with anger. “Who is out there?”
“Go back to bed,” I heard Nyx say from somewhere, though her voice was thick with held back laughter.
“Yeah, but what does she get if she does?” Jakan. Also nowhere to be seen.
Cerin came up behind me, just as confused as I was. “Where are they?” He asked.
“I don't fucking know. They're repeating what we just said. I'm so confused.”
Then came Anto's voice, behind the door of the bedroom he shared with Jakan. “Guys, enough, she's getting angry.”
“Oh, fine.” Nyx appeared just a few feet to my right in the span of a few seconds, giggling like this was the most hilarious thing she'd ever seen. A moment later, Jakan appeared to my left, seemingly out of thin air. The Vhiri looked overly proud of himself.
I could have been amazed. I could have been angry. In the end, I was left standing there, with two of my friends laughing hysterically, so I only spread my arms out toward them and demanded, “Explain.”
Jakan spoke up first. “I may or may not have found an illusion spell book in Killick, and it may or may not have taught me invisibility.” He grinned, before he slowly went invisible again.
I stared at the space where he'd been standing. “And you taught it to Nyx? What the hell is wrong with you?”
Nyx burst out laughing again, though she remained visible. “I'll be a good girl with it, I promise.”
“You are both children.” I couldn't help but be slightly amused by it all, however. I'd heard of the illusion spell before, but it was a rare one to come across. Jakan had often complained about being unable to find it during our travels.
Jakan dispelled the illusion energy, appearing once more to my left. “Admit it, though...we might be children, but we are children with cool spells who know how to use them.” He grinned cheesily at me.
“It could be useful if you used it for more than listening in on personal conversations,” I said.
“All right, we're sorry,” Jakan apologized. “It's a one time thing. Right, Nyx?”
Nyx crossed her arms before her chest. “Speak for yourself, Jakan. I'm not sorry.” She threw a half-smile in my direction. “I won't do it again, though. Promise.”
“It doesn't make you completely invisible, anyway,” Jakan pointed out, using the spell once more. Once he was invisible, he walked toward me slowly, the creaks of the floorboards the only indication of his approach. “You should be able to see my outline if you look closely enough.”
I squinted. “No, I don't.”
“Oh. Well, maybe since it's dark in this hallway. It's easier to see in the light. Nyx and I were messing around with it earlier.” Jakan appeared again, standing much closer than he had been before.
“Be careful with that in battle,” Cerin said behind me. “The last thing you want is to get hit by one of us unintentionally, or be unable to be healed because Kai or I can't find you.”
Jakan nodded. “Yeah, I thought of that. I'll use it sparingly.”
Once we were all dressed, we headed down to the kitchen together for breakfast. There was a cook who stood behind a cooking station that was no more than a metal box. He had a flame going, though, so it appeared to work for him quite well. A table set against one wall held bags of food, and as various sailors walked by to grab pieces out of them, I saw they included dried fruits and biscuits.
Many of the crew did not stop to sit and eat, and instead took the food with them as they filed back up the ladder to the deck above. It almost made me feel guilty for sitting down to eat after grabbing a plate from the cook.
The meal was a stir fry of various ingredients, including fish, nuts, and fresh greens from Killick. I even spotted bits of petals from the island's flowers mixed in, and the dish was marinated in a mixture of oil and vinegar. It smelled delicious, particularly the biting scent of the vinegar. I doubted the food would stay this good. The farther we traveled, the less fresh the ingredients would be, unless we were to stop along the shores to forage more.
We were not quite done with our breakfast when I noticed Koby come into the kitchen, just to grab a biscuit from one of the open bags on the table. He prepared to go back up to the quarterdeck, but he caught my eye, and came over to our table. I wasn't sure what to expect, given his hot-to-cold demeanor, so it was surprising when he squatted down beside me to be at eye level.
“Kai, I just wanted to say sorry for the way I treated you yesterday,” he offered.
“Oh...well, thank you.” I wasn't sure if Calder had talked to his friend about apologizing or not. In either case, it was a pleasant surprise.
“I appreciate your offers of healing. It was rude to refuse you and rude to snap at you, but I like to be able to rely on myself. I don't like taking favors. I hope you understand.”
His logic didn't quite make sense to me, but he was entitled to his opinions. “Okay. Well, I'm here if you ever need a healer. Cerin, too, is one.” I motioned beside me. “It's really not a big deal at all. It's my job, and I offered it in exchange for this trip.”
“I understand.” Koby nodded, his black hair falling before his eyes.
“How are you feeling today?” I asked him.
“Much better. The bug has passed.” He lifted up the biscuit. “Let's just hope this doesn't give me another one, yeah?”
I chuckled softly. “That would be ideal.”
The quartermaster smiled and patted me on the shoulder. “It would. Have a good breakfast, everyone. I'll be on deck if you need me.”
We were quiet as Koby left the room, his boot steps trotting up the ladder. Then, Nyx held both hands out, and lifted up one. “Night,” she said, before lifting up the other. “Day.”
“Yeah. He was much nicer today,” Cerin commented, before nudging me. “Calder probably chewed him out.”
“I hope not. I wouldn't want to make them fight,” I pondered aloud. “I'm just glad all is well now. Anto, did you ever give Calder the weapons you made?”
The orc had gotten some supplies from the captain back in Killick, and spent a day there making a variety of weapons for him and his crew. I knew that Anto had even bought extra supplies with his own money to forge more than he would otherwise have been able to. I think it weighed on his conscience that we had undercut Calder's fare.
“I did,” Anto replied. “He was very happy with them. Who knows? Maybe Koby is in a better mood because Calder gave him the captain's dagger I made.”
“Why did he do tha
t?” Jakan questioned. “You worked hard on that.” Glancing toward us, he added, “Anto carved little details in it and everything. It was wicked looking.”
“Cool,” I said, impressed.
“It was,” Anto agreed. “As for why Calder gave it away, I asked him if it wasn't to his liking, and he said he liked it very much, but that he wasn't a weapons person.”
Nyx laughed out loud at that. “Who isn't a weapons person in this day and age? That's a weird thing to say.”
“Perhaps he doesn't fight with his crew,” Cerin said. “I've never seen the guy wear armor.”
“That's true,” Nyx agreed. “His cabin is full of clothes, and most of them look the same. No armor.”
“You've been through his things?” Jakan questioned, amused.
“I was looking around last night,” she replied. “I wasn't stealing anything. He was watching me go through it.”
“During or after sex?” I asked with a smile.
“Afterward, of course. We were smoking together and talking, and I made fun of him for all his clothes. I asked Koby if any of them were his, and he said no. Calder just said he was fashionable.”
“Koby was there?” Cerin asked, perplexed.
“Yeah. Didn't join in, though.” Nyx took a drink of ale, before she frowned. “It's weird, because he was so excited to have me on board, at first. It's like he wants nothing to do with me anymore. I don't know. I know they both only like women and wouldn't want to be with each other, so maybe that was it.”
“This whole thing is weird, guys,” I murmured low, confused. “Something is up with them that I don't fully understand.”
Cerin turned to me. “You think we can't trust them?”
“I don't know. At first, I thought it was just Koby who was acting weird, but then today happened. He's suddenly nice, and now Nyx says Calder doesn't fight? What captain of a ship doesn't fight?”
“He said he didn't like weapons,” Cerin corrected. “Did you see his rings? Maybe he's a mage.”
“Yeah, but why keep that detail secret?” I questioned, before glancing to Nyx. “Did they say anything of note to you last night?”
Nyx thought back for a moment, before she shrugged. “Not anything out of the ordinary. Koby did ask me what our plans were for Eteri, but I just told him business, and he dropped it.”
“Okay...” I trailed off, before a heavy sigh. “Be careful, Nyx. I know you're happy to have found Alderi men, but don't let your guard down.”
“Aww, you worry for me,” she teased, before taking another swig of ale. “Don't worry, friend. My senses are as sharp as a blade.”
The conversation about the oddities of our situation swirled around my mind as we headed up to the deck after our meal. We had all agreed to pay extra attention to the two Alderi men from now on, because as much as I loved eccentric people, there came a point when it was simply suspicious. I wanted to like Calder and Koby, but I also wanted to be safe.
Going up to the quarterdeck gave us more of an idea of where we were, for the windows below deck were tiny and prohibitive. It was another gorgeous day. Bright white and fluffy clouds moved slowly across the sky like freshly washed pillows. The ocean was free and clear of other vessels in all directions, though I did notice there was still land to our left.
Koby had taken the wheel, and Calder stood at the railing of the quarterdeck, looking over the waters with binoculars. I trotted up the steps to the poop deck, and Koby peered over, curious.
“Is that still Killick?” I asked him, pointing to the shoreline.
“No. That is the island to its north. Cal has insisted we go around. It will be another day or two before we pass it.”
“Ah.” The ocean passed by below us quite quickly for such a large ship. “We came to Killick by a schooner, and it was supposedly a fast boat. This feels like it is as fast.”
“It's not,” Koby replied. “It is fast for a larger ship, yes, but still slower than most schooners. The schooner probably traveled at nine or ten knots. This travels at seven to eight, due to the four masts.”
“That's still pretty impressive.”
“Yes.” Koby cleared his throat. “You are more interested in the workings of the ship than most of our passengers.”
I took that as a pry for information. “Because it is interesting,” I replied, simply. “Surely, you can relate. Otherwise, I doubt you would have spent the last sixty years on the sea.”
The quartermaster chuckled. “Ah. Yes. Tell me, what is a Seran doing this far south?”
My jaw tensed. I continued to stare forward, unwilling to give eye contact. “What makes you think I am Seran?”
“Your name, naturally,” he replied, smoothly. “Kai Sera.”
There was little use in combating that. I could not deny it was my name, because it was what I had signed on the contract. Instead, I went for deflection, and laughed softly. “Only one of my group is from Chairel,” I lied, “and it isn't me. I was born and raised in T'ahal. Unlike in Chairel, my surname is not restricted to royalty.”
“Is that so?” Koby asked. “Interesting.”
“You have sailed around the world, Koby,” I mused. “And you find simple cultural differences interesting?”
I had originally approached Koby to engage him in conversation meant to keep my worries at bay, and convince myself that he was no threat. Instead, I ended up only feeling more on guard. The quartermaster had remained friendly and talkative, but there was something off. I couldn't place it, and it drove me crazy. In the end, though, there was little I could do.
Despite all of our reservations, the voyage continued as planned, and it was otherwise uneventful. Once the islands were far behind us, our ship continued northwest, where we would cut through the sea to Eteri. Somewhere farther to the south, the entirety of the wildlands sat on the other side of the water from us, though we were too far away to see it. The Galleon Stallion traveled uninhibited for the most part, save for taking a few hours worth of breaks here and there for fishing, which Cerin was grateful for.
After a fortnight had passed since leaving the islands behind, Calder began to get anxious. The captain did not relay his issues to us, though something had happened behind the scenes which drastically changed his mood. It was just the latest happening that was a cause for concern, and despite Nyx's prodding, Calder was not sharing his problems with her. The only thing my friends and I could think of which could have gone wrong was the timing of the trip. Right after departing from Killick, Nyx informed us she overheard Calder telling the crew we would reach the shores of the upper wildlands within a few weeks. If that was the case, someone had made a mistake, because our ship still sailed, and no land was in sight.
It was the 13th of Red Moon when Calder called a meeting, for crew and guest alike. We were in the middle of eating dinner, which consisted of little more than fish and hard biscuits. All fresh foods other than water had long ago been consumed, and we hadn't been near land in nearly four weeks to stock up on more. It wasn't just Nyx who was tired of fish, now.
Koby came down to the kitchen to announce the meeting, and requested all of our presences. Sailors and friends alike stood up from tables, and half-eaten plates were left to cool. I hesitated as I went to leave the room, feeling unease that I would be coming back to a plate of food that was left unattended. I grabbed my plate and Cerin's, before taking them out of the room with me.
Instead of following everyone to the deck, I took the leftovers to the bedroom we shared together. The last thing I needed was to be poisoned. I told myself I was being ridiculous, even as I hid the plates on the floor between Cerin's side of the bed and the far wall. I felt paranoid. Absolutely paranoid.
I stood, preparing to leave. Then I shook, startled, finding Cerin coming into the room, an amused smile on his face. “What are you doing?” He asked me, noting my place between the bed and the wall. He closed the door softly behind him, probably understanding that whatever it was, I didn't want to speak loudly of
it due to our circumstances.
“Calder called a meeting during dinner, and Koby came down to tell us of it,” I explained, with a shrug. I walked toward Cerin, preparing to leave, but he didn't move. “I wouldn't have been surprised if we came back to eat and I dropped dead from poison.”
Cerin nodded. “You're right. I didn't think about that. You should have told me before abandoning us back at the kitchen, though.”
“Sorry. But I was fast,” I pointed out. I raised my eyebrows at him. “You ready to go?”
“I was thinking...” he trailed off, his silver eyes traveling the length of me, “...maybe we don't need to go at all.”
I chuckled softly. “As much as I would love to ravage you right now, I think we were called, too.”
“Yeah, but...” he reached out to me, his long fingers tugging at my shirt. “How important are we, really, in the scheme of things? We are guests on this ship.” He leaned forward, brushing his lips against my neck. I exhaled heavily, letting my eyelids flutter closed at his touch. “They won't miss us at a meeting meant for the crew.”
I laughed softly as he pulled my shirt up, letting the garment fall to the floor. “In about two minutes, Nyx is going to come searching for us, and she'll never let us hear the end of it when she catches us.”
“Well, I'll be quick,” he murmured, tugging at my pants, next.
“You're never quick.”
“You usually like that.” He pulled my arm, leading me toward the bed.
“True. I love you.” I leaned forward, kissing at the top of his elongated neck. We were likely to be caught and chastised for not listening to our orders, but when I was with Cerin, I cared little. Sex was one of my weaknesses, perhaps as an unintended trait passed down from my mother. I laid back on the bed, completely naked and vulnerable to my lover, and reached out, grabbing at his armor. He insisted on wearing it, even during lazy days like these, which would count against us time-wise. “I'm not the only one who needs to be naked,” I murmured.
“You're right. Give me a sec.” Cerin climbed up on the bed above me, boots and all. I chuckled through my attraction at his antics. His fingertips trailed down my shoulders, then over both breasts. “Let me tie you up,” he pleaded.