by Travis Bughi
Along the way, they encountered the ogres they’d been looking for. Adelpha saw them first and noticed that, unfortunately, they were heading away from the docks. She signaled, and they all pulled off to the side behind a merchant’s cart. From the meager cover it offered, they watched the ten ogres trudging back through the streets, no longer attending Katsu or Heliena, and as they marched by, Emily and Adelpha exchanged glances.
“We’d better hurry.” Adelpha spoke aloud their collective thought.
And hurry they did, all the way to the water’s edge, arriving just as both the sun and the crowds were beginning to fade and no more ships were coming to port. Streaks of light flowed out across the sky, bathing the scene with just enough illumination for Emily and Adelpha to scan the empty docks before looking out to the open bay.
Amongst the cargo and transportation ships that were anchoring for the night, Ichiro Katsu’s ship stood out like a sore thumb. Fancy, large, and luxuriously built, it was heading out to sea with all haste. Although sailing at night seemed like a dangerous thing to do, it was clear that the shogun’s vessel would clear the bay before the light disappeared. Among the growing shadows, Emily spotted the figures of robed men walking the ship’s deck, nothing more than slim twigs at this distance, and her heart sank.
“That’s it, isn’t it?” Adelpha asked.
The ship continued to steer towards the bay’s opening, and Emily said nothing in reply.
“She got away,” Abe needlessly stated.
Emily sighed and was about to look away when one of the figures on the ship began to run in a dead sprint from the front of the ship towards the back. Emily focused her attention and squinted her eyes. The figure was slim, perhaps slimmer than most, and the wind kicked up what appeared to be flowing black hair from the figure’s head. It reached the back of the ship where it slammed so hard against the railing that it almost tumbled into the water below.
“Is that her?” Adelpha asked with a wide-open mouth.
Emily nodded. Though her eyes couldn’t be sure from this distance, her heart certainly was.
“That’s her,” Emily finally replied, “and now she knows we’re alive.”
Adelpha scoffed, apparently finding something distasteful in her tone.
“Hey.” Adelpha smirked. “At least we ruined her trip.”
* * *
They took the road less traveled back to Madam Sweeney’s orphanage, despite knowing they were overstaying their welcome, but Emily knew of no other place to go on such short notice. Ogres or other agents of Count Drowin could be lurking about, unaware of the shift in power. That and it was getting late. They were exhausted and needed a safe place to stay for the night.
As expected, Madam Sweeney was hospitable enough, and withholding unforeseeable circumstances, they let it be known that they’d be out of the gnome’s hair for good, soon enough. Emily’s wound brought a questioning glance, but the trio was granted entrance and another free night.
Abe, however, would not have his relationship with the gnome end there. He offered her a donation, which she politely declined until Abe insisted with a rare assertiveness. The discussion was brought to a close when he explained that the money wasn’t to compensate for their stay or privacy, but to help the children in need. With his generosity properly aligned, Madam Sweeney took the money and escorted them to their room. They slipped under their sheets quickly, and although Emily heard Adelpha’s snores emerge soon thereafter, the sliver of an idea had imbedded itself into her mind, and so she looked at the wall, eyes wide open, and let her thoughts consume her.
What if this had been Quartus’ goal? What if slaying Drowin and freeing Lucifan had been Quartus’ real intention for letting her live? She wondered, sometimes idly and sometimes with immersion, why her pledge to follow Heliena to the world’s end had been the golden key to a second life. This question engaged her even more now that she knew Quartus had died to do so. She wondered, despite all the recent distractions Lucifan had offered, if perhaps Heliena had merely been the bait to bring Emily back to the city.
It was an important question to answer, really, because with Heliena having escaped to the sea, Emily was at a crossroads. Should she follow, or stay? As Emily had traversed the Great Plains with Adelpha, she’d asked this question before, and the answer had always been the same: she would follow. She’d follow Heliena to Juatwa and beyond if such a place existed. The answer had been simple and intuitive, but that was before Emily had slain Count Drowin and helped to bring freedom to Lucifan. She couldn’t help but wonder if that was Quartus’ true goal all along. Was she now free of her debt?
She explored the idea, and wondered if maybe, just maybe, she could let this one go. Could she return home to the Great Plains? To a life of thunderbirds, behemoths, and growing crops in the endless sea of yellow grass? As this thought penetrated her mind, she realized she already knew the answer. That life was not for her. She’d known that all along, and going beyond the plains had only proved as much to her. No, she would not go back home to stay, only to visit. Her family was there, but her heart was not.
She would travel on. But where would she go? She’d already visited the Forest of Angor, the home of elves and treants, and had far too much excitement for her to handle again so soon. After the close encounters she’d experienced here in Lucifan, she was in no way prepared to hurl herself at a charging bugbear. But then again, she probably never would be.
Would she go back to Themiscyra with Adelpha? To the home of the amazons? Surely that was where Adelpha was headed, a notion she’d made clear from the start. Adelpha had a duty, a position, and a place among her people. Emily knew she, herself, would be accepted as well, but that place and those people only made her think of Chara.
And as she thought of Chara, she knew where she was going next.
“I’m coming for you, Heliena,” Emily whispered. “You cannot escape me.”
With her mind calmed, sleep came to her.
Chapter 26
“So this is the end, huh?” Adelpha asked the next morning after hearing Emily’s decision. “You’re going to cross the sea after my sister?”
“Yes,” Emily said. “I have to.”
They had awoken early, surprisingly early. All three were tilted up in their beds, and the inevitable conversation of what to do next had begun. Emily had revealed her plans first, and they were met with near silence. Adelpha was just now about to respond when the screaming harbinger of morning came running down the hall.
It was the little redheaded boy, Clyde, as usual, and although Adelpha was already awake, she armed herself with a pillow and aimed it at the opening. Just as Clyde’s voice approached, Adelpha threw the pillow with all her might. Clyde’s head and body appeared a fraction of a moment later, but he brought his full-on sprint to a sudden stop. The pillow crashed into the wall and tumbled to the ground. Clyde picked it up, no longer screaming, and turned to look at Adelpha with a big smile plastered on his face, which Adelpha returned with a proud smirk of her own. Clyde threw the pillow back in the room and then took off running down the hall again, screaming at the top of his lungs for everyone to wake up.
“I like that kid,” Adelpha said. “I’m going to miss him.”
Emily laughed, but the mood darkened again when Abe and Adelpha focused back on her. The conversation she’d expected had finally arrived.
“You’ll at least come back home for a while, won’t you?” Abe asked. “I know Mother and Father would appreciate it, and truthfully, so would I.”
“I don’t know, Abe,” Emily replied. “If there’s a ship willing to take me today, I might just leave now. Every moment I wait is another moment Heliena gets out of reach. She’s going to be hard enough to track as it is without her having a lot of time ahead of me. And to be honest, Abe, returning home will just make it harder to leave. I didn’t like saying goodbye to Mother or Father the first time, let alone a second.”
Abe studied the floor as Emily finished her r
easoning. He heard and understood—his silence afterwards confirmed as much—but Emily felt her stomach cringe at her own words and tried to step back from her harsh statement.
“Hey, Abe,” Emily whispered. “Look, if I can come back, I will, okay? I didn’t mean it like that.”
“I know,” Abe said. “I know, but that doesn’t make this any easier for me. You know, I still wonder about Nicholas and what happened to him. I was so relieved when you came back, but now I’ll have to watch you leave again. We three, we’ve always been there for each other, you know? But now Nicholas is gone, and I have no idea what happened him. And now, well, I’ll be feeling the same thing about you, wondering where you are and if you’re okay.”
Abe kept his face low, but his emotions continued to pour out. He’d never been one for holding much back, and his words yanked at Emily’s heart. She turned her head and tried to stifle the tears that threatened to burst out, even as her chest clenched up, her throat swelled, and her eyes clouded. She understood and sympathized with every revelation, but none of it changed her mind.
“Oh, Abe,” Emily said to her brother.
“Stop it already,” Adelpha said and then jabbed Abe in the arm. “Look, you’re making her cry! Can’t you see this is hard enough on her already?”
Abe winced and rubbed his arm, shocked at being scolded, or hit, but then he looked up at Emily, and regret filtered into his eyes when he realized that he wasn’t making this goodbye any easier.
“Ah, oh,” he stammered. “Sorry, Emily.”
“It’s okay,” Emily replied, wiping her eyes.
“You know you don’t have to go, right?” Adelpha asked with a serious face. “Even if you don’t want to live on the Great Plains, you could just come back to Themiscyra with me. You have friends there, family, too, if you don’t mind considering them that way, and you’re always welcome. You don’t have to chase after Heliena. She’ll never come back, and you’ll never see her again.”
Emily shook her head after Adelpha finished.
“I can’t,” she said, staring down. “I can’t go back with you, not yet. I have to go.”
She heard Adelpha stand up and begin walking towards her, but Emily resisted the urge to lift her head, even when Adelpha’s feet entered her view. Then she felt a hand on her shoulder and looked up.
“No, you don’t,” Adelpha said, looking into Emily’s eyes, “but I’m glad you are. Chara would be proud of you, Emily. And I mean that.”
Adelpha smiled, and Emily returned it. The tension and apprehension that had welled up inside her drained away, and she was once again thankful to have a friend and sister in this world.
“Now, come on,” Adelpha said. “We need to get you on a ship. But first, I’m hungry. And second, you’re going to explain to me how that basilisk poison didn’t kill you.”
* * *
The poison was easy enough to explain. When Quartus had given his life to Emily, he’d not just brought her back but also granted her immunity to that which had killed her. It made more sense as she thought about it and explained it. The basilisk poison had never been removed from her body, so when Quartus brought her back, she would have simply died again if not for her new immunity.
She could not say for sure whether Quartus had done this or her body had simply accepted the poison, but it was a part of her now. She had been given a rare gift, so rare, in fact, that there’d never been another like it. She didn’t quite know what to think of it, really. Then again, she remembered her last conversation with Ephron. He’d said there was something special and mysterious about what Quartus had done, and there was more truth in that statement than she’d realized.
As for their breakfast, it was quick but eventful. It seemed the latest news had spread like a fire on the plains, and the conversations amongst the children were ablaze with it. They were so busy talking about it all that none bothered to ask Emily about her bandaged leg.
They spoke of knights, vampires, ogres, leprechauns, and minotaurs in an epic battle that seemed to have transcended the realm of reality. Emily was familiar with legendary stories, but to witness the creation of one was truly something else. The word around town was that the knights had stormed the tower with an alliance of Lucifan’s citizens. Minotaurs, gunslingers, and even a hunter had assisted in overthrowing the corrupt forces who had wormed their way to the top. Word was that the spontaneous attack was not the work of a rebel force waiting for the right moment, but instead the work of divine influence. It was even whispered that the angels themselves had planned it all from the beginning.
Duncan’s name was mentioned quite a bit, as was Mark’s. Gavin and the others, it seemed, had not graced the ears of the public quite yet, and Emily’s and Abe’s identities were not even speculated. Emily couldn’t help but feel a bit envious of the amount of praise that was being thrown about the table, but she knew better than to attempt to insert herself into this new story. She did not wish for fame. Growing up all her life with only immediate family around had given her a strong aversion to the affections of the many. Not to mention it would make her ability to slip about unnoticed a difficult endeavor, indeed, and the cloak of anonymity was something she still desperately needed.
As if to prove this, Emily slipped away from the table along with Abe and Adelpha. Even Abe’s gunslinger outfit failed to draw attention this time, and the trio pulled Madam Sweeney aside to thank her a thousand times over for all the hospitality she had shown them. The gnome was gracious and invited them back, but Emily could see through the veiled courtesy. The three had caused quite a ruckus here in Lucifan, and it was a miracle their involvement had ended before anything terrible had happened to the orphanage. Although Madam Sweeney feigned ignorance of her visitors’ activities, Emily suspected the gnome was coming to regret her generosity on this occasion. So, despite the offer to come back, Emily made it clear that they would not.
They said their goodbyes, and Emily left a final word with Madam Sweeney.
“If Gavin comes looking for me, tell him I’ve gone to Juatwa.”
“Juatwa, huh?” Madam Sweeney raised an eyebrow. “That’s a long way from here, dear, but I’ll tell him.”
Another chorus of goodbyes was exchanged before the door was finally shut. Emily hovered on the porch for a moment, taking it in for perhaps the last time, and then limped forward on her injured leg to join her companions on the street.
“Can you walk on it all the way to the docks?” Abe asked, skeptical.
“Yes, but we’re not going to the docks,” Emily said. “I don’t want to ride with some merchant and sleep next to cargo. If I’m going to cross the ocean, I want to do it my way.”
“And how would that be?” Adelpha asked.
Emily started walking away from the orphanage, waiting for Adelpha and Abe to follow before replying.
“Let’s go to The Kraken’s Eye.”
Emily watched their jaws drop open.
“Pirates?” Adelpha and Abe replied at the same time.
“No, Emily, no,” Adelpha said. “Isn’t your trip already dangerous enough?”
“I’ll not have my sister traveling with a bunch of bottom-barrel scum.” Abe gritted his teeth.
“Oh, come on now.” Emily waved off their words and started walking again. “They can’t be that bad. Besides, it’ll be fun. If I pay for my travels by working on the ship, I might just learn a thing or two as well.”
“Emily, no,” Abe said firmly. “There’s no way I’m telling Mother and Father I watched you sail away on a pirate ship.”
“Your brother’s right,” Adelpha said. “Besides, a pirate might take the long way about or have other plans. A merchant ship will be a straight shot, or close to it.”
“This isn’t open to discussion,” Emily replied, feeling very much like her mother as she did so. “I’m going to The Kraken’s Eye first, and if I don’t find anything there, then I’ll go to a viking ship next, assuming any are in port. So, if you want to see me off
safely, you’d better come along and ‘approve’ the pirate captain I sign on with.”
“Did she say viking?” Adelpha asked Abe.
“Yes, she did.” He sighed. “We better make sure she finds a pirate ship.”
“Damn her stubbornness. She’s becoming more amazon by the day,” Adelpha said.
The tavern was not far, and it was still early morning by the time they arrived. The sun’s light was just beginning to clear the rooftops around them, and the eerie silence of Lucifan’s back alleyways was made less intimidating by the soft, bright light seeping into the corners. Even from a distance, The Kraken’s Eye sign could be seen hanging above the entrance. The oval-shaped eye with its hourglass-like iris carved into the wood seemed far less menacing than it had the first time Emily had seen it. She had expected to hear sounds of laughter, drinking, and music as they approached the tavern, but her ears were greeted only by the staunch silence of early morning. By their nature, taverns were largely shrines for the nocturnal being, so her initial hesitation at the lack of activity was eased. As she opened the tavern door and had a look inside, her nervousness dissipated altogether.
There were pirates everywhere: in the chairs, astride the barstools, on the floor, on the tables, and even a few on the bar itself. Their clothes were ragged, their hair was long, their beards were short, and they stank of men who desperately needed to be back on the open sea. From their belts, vests, and boots hung the naked blades or concealed handles of everything from short daggers to fancy rapiers to wicked cutlasses. Jewels, rubies, and coins dangled from goatees, perched on rings, and hung from earrings. Each pirate had at least one, or as many as five, mugs and bottles no less than an arm’s length away.