by RG Long
“The King is dead!” Commander Polk replied. “Your son and daughter are to blame! This is your last warning, Lord Evan! Surrender them to me, or those above your airship will suffer my wrath!”
“He’s lost his mind,” the commodore replied. “Surely he won’t...”
The barrage of magical crossbow fire ripped through the air. Before Commodore Evan could give the signal, their airship had taken on three successive and terrible hits. The ship began to fall with dizzying speed.
Ealrin grabbed onto the railing as he heard the crewmembers and captain shouting at each other. His father was yelling out orders as well, though Ealrin could hardly hear them.
Elisa grabbed onto the railing as well and was holding on. But Ealrin could not see Blume. He looked over his shoulder and saw that with the tipping of the airship, she had slid nearly to the other side.
“Blume!”
Before his yell had left his lips, he let go of the side of the railing and slid down the deck in her direction. He grabbed onto a rope that was attached to a center mast and lowered himself down to Blume, grabbing her around the waist.
“Thanks!” She said breathlessly.
Another blast rocked the airship as it flew off course and began to steer further and further away from the fleet.
“Hold on to something!” Commodore Evan shouted over the chaos. “Hold on!”
Ealrin grabbed more tightly on the Blume as she used her magic to stand them both up.
“Do you think you can help us?” Ealrin yelled over the chaos.
“How?” Blume asked.
Elise slid down beside them.
“We’re tipping too far one way!” she shouted. “See if you can lift the airship on one side with your magic!”
Blume gave Elise an exasperated look but began to chant and raise her hand all the same. The ship slowly began to right itself as Ealrin watched drops of sweat pour down Blume’s brow.
“Fire!” Commodore Evan said as the men and women of the ship were able to get back to their crossbows. The Commander’s ship and speakers were not expecting a return salvo. The ship took several hits as magical blasts pummeled the airship. After several of the blasts and crossbow bolts connected, it relented its pursuit of them. Ealrin thought he heard Commander Polk cursing to the wind as the ship pulled back to the others.
No airships had come to their aid as the Commander’s ship attacked them. They were at the back of the airship fleet. It could be possible that the other ships had not seen the exchange. Maybe they had all flown forward without once glancing back to see what the explosions were? Ealrin grunted. That was not likely. That concerned him greatly, though there wasn’t much time to worry about that.
They were going faster now. And they were over water.
He hated to think of what would happen if they crashed into the sea. But he also knew Blume could only do so much.
“Speakers!” Commander Evan shouted. “Right the ship! Keep us above the water!”
The boat rocked and began to correct itself. Though the deck became flat again, it still shook violently. Crew members and speakers alike all fought to keep their footing. Ealrin could sense that Blume had given up her attempt to keep them upright and he made a great effort to stand while also grasping onto the rope that anchored him to the mast. Ealrin grabbed onto Elise who stumbled by them.
“Elise!” he said as she tumbled into his arms.
“Whatever happens,” she said so that only he could hear. “We can never tell father about the rebellion.”
Ealrin saw the fire in her eyes. Though everything around them was chaos, this was the one thought that occupied her mind more than the airship sinking into the ocean, more than Commander Polk’s attack on them, and even more than Belfast’s apparent death, if Polk was to be believed.
“We take that to our graves,” she said.
The airship rocked again, and Ealrin thought grimly that this task might not be hard to do. As the airship continued to fall towards the water, the grave might come more quickly than he desired.
7: Perin’s Peace
“I think they could’ve dropped us off a little closer to the port, ya know?” Trotta said as they marched along the beach of what was apparently the nation of Darc.
The Skrilx had steered their boats right up to the shore and let the party get out at what they said was a short walk away from the capital. Since it was nighttime when they stopped, their captors agreed to camp with them and keep them safe throughout the evening.
Trotta wasn’t sure if she had slept better or worse knowing that the cats were watching over them. In the morning, the Skrilx returned to their three boats and sailed away.
“What was all that talk about passing on a message? Wasn’t Chief Rark supposed to let these people know who we were and what we were doing?”
“The same as the dragon’s threat of passing a test of magic,” Holve said. “I’m beginning to think that these Skrilx and their companions say what is necessary and then move on.”
That didn’t answer Trotta’s question, but no one else seemed to want to offer up a suggestion either.
They marched towards the city, not knowing what else was available to them. No one was familiar enough with the land to be able to rightfully say if there was any other direction they could go. Rerial was on the other side of the continent, and the only hope they had of reconnecting with Ealrin was establishing themselves and finding someone willing to take them to the now far off land.
Preferably for free.
“What do we tell them when we get there, Holve?” Wisym asked as the gates of the city came closer. “We’re just a bunch of lost travelers trying to get to Rerial?”
“The truth,” Holve replied. “We flew here in an airship and got separated from our friends. The Skrilx brought us here, and now we want to go to Rerial. I hate being unfamiliar with places. I know nothing of this nation other than it is a human-run country that has mostly kept out of the affairs of Redact over the last hundred years."
"That’s more than we know," Serinde offered up.
"I’m surprised to know anything, you know?" Trotta mused.
She had never been off the continent of Ladis before this journey. Nor had she ever traveled by magic up until a few days ago.
"Why don’t we just get Alma to zap us over to Rerial real fast?" she asked.
She looked back at the girl with red marks all over her body and saw her shaking her head.
"I didn’t exactly mean to take us when I did. I was practicing for a future attempt, and even then, I thought I was going to take us from the library to just outside. Since I almost dropped us into the middle of the ocean, I don’t. I don’t think it be good for us to attempt it."
Trotta shrugged her shoulders.
"That might be right, but it would beat walking on this rocky, cold, wet beach towards a city we know nothing about, ya know? What if they don't like Rerial or the Skrilx and decide we're better off dead?"
"We've faced worse," Holve said.
Trotta couldn't argue with that. So on they trudged.
The city loomed high in front of them. It was a port; there was no question there. Several ships were docked there, but none were coming in. Perhaps it was early in the season. Regardless, a wall was built around the city to protect it, even from the docks below. When they reached the city gates, they found that they were open but well guarded. No fewer than ten well-armed guards hung around the gate. Trotta thought this was odd. There were no other travelers on the road, making their way into the city. Why guard the gates if there was no need?
Or was it because they had seen them coming from far off?
One regal-looking guard wearing a metal helmet with dark green feathers held up his hand to stop them.
"Holve Bravestead and company, I imagine," he said as he looked them over. "We heard you were coming and are expecting you. We ask that you act respectfully while in Perin. This is the main port of Darc, after all. Please follow me."
"How many cities are we going to enter an already be known to the people who live there, you know?" Trotta muttered under her breath.
Wisym looked over at her and winked.
"I’m afraid it’s fairly old hat at this point. We have quite a reputation."
"I suppose Chief Rark sent messages ahead," Holve said as he nodded them in under the gates. Then, adding in a much quieter tone. "Keep your eyes open."
The city they were marched into was not all that different from the ones Trotta had seen in Ladis. Perhaps, if anything, it looked newer. Most of the buildings in Ladis had been around before her great great grandparents. These looked at least to be built in the last century.
A busy market place greeted them. People bustled around as they bartered and traded in a large flourishing square. Trotta looked up and saw several flags flying there. They were half dark green and half white, separated by a black stripe. The colors of Darc, she guessed. It didn't take them long to make their way from the market to an area she assumed was the nicer residential part of the city.
The residential area was made up of tall and ornate buildings. Trotta again got the impression that these were all much newer than the structures she had grown up around. Each had been meticulously taken care of with well-manicured lawns and gardens. But walking amongst them Trotta noticed something she had missed in the market place.
Creatures covered in fur and walking upright like a man.
“Are those...?” Trotta began to ask.
“Skrilx?” the guard answered without even looking back. “Yes. We here in Darc are able to live in peace with various races, unlike the wild north that refuses to embrace every race but their chosen favorites.”
The way the guard answered her gave her pause. How did he know she would ask about the Skrilx? What all had Rark told them about their coming? She would have to ponder more. They were about to pass underneath another gate and through a wall.
More guards gave them a scornful look as they crossed from the residential area into what Trotta could only describe as an army training camp within the city. Soldiers marched everywhere and trained on sparring dummies and on each other.
Trotta missed training like this. It had been several years since she had done any formal fighting techniques. If they stayed here for a while, maybe she could brush up on some old skills. Or at least try them out on a guard or two.
It wasn’t long before they were through the military portion of the city and deep into the heart of the city. After passing through another gate, the buildings became very tall and intimidating looking. Nothing like the capital of the Theocracy, but Trotta could tell she was standing by the building where Perin was ruled.
The guard stopped at the steps and turned to face their group.
“The council is expecting you,” he said.
“The Counselors are here,” came a voice from just inside the doors. They had opened as their group had reached the bottom of the stairs.
Five people, well dressed in dark green and white, came out of the building. There were two older looking men, and one middle-aged woman, a young woman who could be no older than Trotta and, to her surprise, a Skrilx.
The guard snapped to attention and saluted.
“Council of Darc!” he said his extended his arm. “I have brought Holve Bravestead and his companions to you, as requested.”
The middle-aged woman who had several gray hairs mixing in with her dark black hair stepped forward.
“Chief Rark told us of your coming,” she said that she surveyed them all. Tratto had the feeling that this woman was used to understanding a person with her first glance of them. By the look on her face, she did not approve much of their group.
“Let us talk of this peace that you seek.”
8: Neglected
“Is everyone all right?”
“Yes, My Lord.”
“Yes, Commander, though we have a few wounded down below.”
“Yes sir, all is well!”
“Mostly,” Blume answered.
Ealrin looked down at her and saw that she was fairly beat up. How she and the other speakers had managed to get their airship to this city was beyond them. Fortunately, the town of Poral was once a port and so was close to the water. Before Rerial put all of its efforts into airships, it had been a nation that had sailed across the oceans from its glorious port city.
That was how Commander Evan had explained it, at least.
No other ships had followed them to attack. Ealrin couldn’t help but think that perhaps Commander Polk had instructed them to do so. Perhaps the Commander thought that they would surely sink in the ocean. Or that they might come back to check on them after the battle with the Court of Three was over. Either way, it felt odd. How could it be that the Commodore of the fleet would be left to his own devices?
Granted, they were aboard a vessel were around five-hundred people: Speakers, soldiers, airship crew mechanics, and others.
In other words, everything they needed to go off to war. And, fortunately, everything they needed to take care of themselves for several days if need. Food, supplies, and water to last a week if they rationed themselves.
Ealrin stood up and helped Blume to her feet as well. Lord Evan made his way over to them as he surveyed the ship.
“Poral doesn’t have everything we need to fix our ship,” Commodore Evan said. “But it does have enough supplies and things to get us started. Perhaps even back to where we need to be. If we can’t get ourselves off the ground, I’ll send off a messenger back to the mainland to let them know what happened.”
“Do you keep any airships on the ship?” Blume asked as she looked around, dusting herself off
Ealrin and Elise looked at her. He wasn’t sure what his expression was, but it must not have been flattering because she rolled her eyes at him.
“Like a sailing ship has lifeboats,” Blume explained. “I thought that might be an airship of this size will have a smaller airship on board.”
Commodore Evan look down at Blume with a proud smile.
“It’s something we’ve been working on,” he said. “So far we haven’t been able to get a small enough ship that won’t weigh us down. You’d be surprised how difficult it is to keep this ship up in the air as it is.”
Blume let out a small laugh.
“Actually, I think I’ve got a pretty good idea now,” she said with a smirk.
“Captain,” the commodore called over the man who still stood at the steering column. “Begin seeing to the repairs of the airship as I go and address the mayor of the city. If they are not yet aware of the Court of Three’s aggression, they will need to get their ships over to where the army is to aid in the battle.”
“Yes, sir!”
The captain ran off and began barking orders at everyone. Ealrin stretched his back, feeling the bruises of the rough landing and wondering how long it would take for the ship to be repaired. He looked at Elise who looked shaken up, but otherwise okay.
“What do you want from us, father?” she asked.
It was still hard to believe that she had been so ready to rebel against him three years ago. Ealrin wondered if she still felt like he was someone who they could trust and support. Or if she was plotting to overthrow him again.
“Come with me,” he said, looking at Ealrin, Elise, and Blume. “We’ll go talk to the leadership of the city together. I believe they are run by a governess.”
By the time the speakers had lowered the ladder down to the deck of the port, it seemed to Ealrin that the entire city was in an uproar, looking at the large airship that had crashed into their port.
Deckhands were running all over the place as people just beyond the shore were pointing and shouting about the airship. Ealrin wondered how many of them had ever seen one up close. By the way, they reacted, they had at least not seen one this large.
Amongst the chaos, a tall, lanky man
with a gray goatee came up to them with open arms.
“Commodore!” he said as he bowed towards him. “I’m Port Master Granner. We were not expecting you or your ship! To what do we owe the pleasure? Is everything alright? Your landing was quite the sight to see!”
“Rerial is at war,” the Commodore said. “We were attacked and moved off course. My ship will need attention in order to be fixed and returned to the fleet. In the meantime, we need to discuss with the Governees of Poral on how she can aid the country in the war against the Court of Three.
All of this information seemed to catch the chief Port Master by shock.
“Goodness gracious! War with the Court of Three again! I’ll take you straight to the Governess!”
“No need,” Lord Evan said, raising a hand. “Just send a messenger ahead and see to the repairs of the ship. I know it’s a big request and with no warning. We need to see to my ship and return to the battle as quickly as we can.”
The Port Master nodded his head gravely.
“Of course!”
He snapped his fingers, and too young deckhands approached him.
“This is Evelyn,” she will see that your ship is repaired and operational. She studied in the school of magic and in the hanger of the capital as well. She knows what you need and what we have.
Evelyn bowed down at the Commodore and then sped away into the chaos of the docks.
“And this is Gregory,” Granner said. “I will send him ahead of us to inform the mayor that you were on your way. But I beg of you, allow me to come. If we are at war, our ships must be prepared, and I will need to know our strategies.”
Gregory bowed and then turned and sped off in the direction of the city.
“Very well,” Commodore Evan said. “Show us the way.”
The Port Master began to direct them through the chaos of the dock. As he did so, he shouted instructions at passing workmen, ordering them to assist Evelyn as best they could until he returned and pointing out to them where they might get the necessary supplies. Ealrin was quite sure everyone already knew what they were being told but respond with vigor nonetheless. The Commodore of Rerial was here, after all.