Vortex snorted again. He flared his wings and beat them to send a blast of wind at the ship. Shadow Dance rode the waves and wind out to the open sea.
“Okay, that is making me nauseous,” Thera said as she sat down on the deck.
Vortex lunged into the water and swam beside the ship.
“I apologize, Thera.”
The young Occultist nodded.
“This is your first time on a ship, right?” I asked, sitting beside her.
She smiled wryly.
“Don’t worry. The sea sickness will wear off in a bit.”
“I am more worried about a repeat of history.” She pushed her hair from her face. “I really hope we don’t find ourselves in a storm.”
“Ah.” I had forgotten Thera lost her mother in a storm at sea. “I’m sure nothing like that will happen.”
“If I sense a change in the winds, I shall alert you,” Vortex said.
Thera smiled at him. “Thank you.”
“Are you planning on swimming alongside the ship the entire way to the Shaking Island?”
“That is a long way, hatchling, and even I don’t have that much energy. When I tire I shall return to the eye.”
“Then how can you monitor changes in the winds?” Thera frowned.
“Do not fret, young one. I can still feel them while I am within the eye.”
Thera’s worry appeared abated for the moment. “Well, seeing as how I have never been on a ship like this before, I think I will go have a look around.”
“Have fun.” I watched the young Feykin disappear below deck. I closed my eyes and leaned back against the railing.
“Are you okay, hatchling? You seem upset.”
“I’m okay. I just wish Ríhan was still here.”
“He is, Xyleena,” Vortex said gently. “His spirit will always watch over you.”
I nodded solemnly.
The day flew past, and I watched everything from my spot at the railing. Vortex had grown bored of swimming and had returned to the eye, yet I could still feel him watching me. I wished I could feel Ríhan the way I did my dragon.
After the suns were set and the sky was dusted with the first stars, I finally moved from my spot. I quietly crept down to the lower deck where my quarters were and threw myself onto the bed. I sighed and let sleep take me.
◆◆◆
I awoke with a jolt and wiped tears away. Ríhan had danced in and out of my dreams, and the last had disturbed me greatly. I took a deep breath in hopes of calming my emotions, but it did not work. So I crawled out of bed and once again returned to the top deck.
It was still night out. Bedeb floated high in the sky, its rings casting midnight rainbows in the heavens above. Two of the moons were just above the eastern horizon, while the third had almost sunk below the western side. Countless stars dusted the sky.
It was a beautiful summer night, but I was in no mood to appreciate it. Instead, I found myself leaning over the railing, staring at my darkened reflection on the water.
I sighed. “Atlidmé, if you can hear me, please take care of Ríhan in Havel. I hope he has found peace in your realm. He is a good man and very wise. So if he is chosen to be reborn some time later, I can vouch for him. And if you see him, tell him… Tell him I love him…and I miss him.”
I finally cried.
‘The Ghosts of the Firsts’. That is what they are calling the people that were killed when I sent Demona to sack the city. Thousands were killed, and more swore fealty to me and my cause. The sacrifices were necessary, though I did not intend for so many to perish.
– FROM “THE DIARY OF AGASEI BY AGASEI DÉDOS
It had been over a month since Dimitri’s team arrived at the Shaking Island, and they continued to endure the long overdue appearance of Xyleena’s team. They knew she had not been there yet, as the dragon was still here and, thankfully, asleep. However, nasty earthquakes were happening more and more frequently and steadily increasing in magnitude. If Xyleena’s team did not arrive soon, he would be forced to give the order to evacuate the island.
Dimitri stood alone atop a cliff overlooking a thundering waterfall. From this vantage point, he could see the entire island and the ocean surrounding it. The whole island was rich with fauna. Many creatures roamed in tiny herds, flocks, or packs as if the constant threat of earthquakes did not exist.
Dimitri took a deep breath, enjoying the mingling scents of the deep woods and salty sea air. He exhaled slowly and cast one more look at the horizon. Still no sign of another ship. Dimitri clicked his tongue and turned to begin his descent from the cliff. Godilai was there, watching him as she had been the last few weeks. He could not suppress the smile at seeing her again.
“She isn’t here again?” Her voice was like the wind.
Dimitri sighed and shook his head. “The captain said he and his crew will have to leave within the next few days, or they will not have enough supplies for the return trip to Aissur.”
“I will deal with them later.”
A look of curiosity flashed across Godilai’s face. “What do you have in mind now?”
“You.”
She frowned.
“I want to know more about you.”
Godilai crossed her arms. “That is not what you meant.”
Dimitri smiled and walked right up to her. He watched the way her cyan eyes hardened. She was steeling herself, trying, albeit in vain, to keep her distance.
“Tell me something, Godilai,” he whispered to her. He had a burning question to ask, one that had been plaguing him for weeks now. But now, face to face, he had lost his nerve to ask. “Why have you been watching me?”
She scoffed. “You asked me that the other day. What is really on your mind, Dimitri?”
He sighed and turned away from her. It was either now or never, he realized. He had to ask her. “What would you do if you were to become high queen of Ithnez?”
She was quiet for the longest time, and he feared that she had walked away, leaving his question lost on the winds. He looked over his shoulder to see her standing, unmoved. Her cyan eyes had softened, and her lips were slightly parted– beautiful.
Finally, she answered. “If I could do anything, I would enslave the Humes and force them to serve the Dákun Daju. But, Dimitri…”
“Yes?”
“What are you planning?”
He smiled and turned to face her completely. “I intend to overthrow the royal house of Za’Car and reclaim the throne that once belonged to my father. And I want you at my side…as my queen.”
“Wha—What are you saying?”
“When you are gone, I crave your presence. And when you are with me, I just want to hold you close and tell you…tell you how much I love you. I want to marry you, Godilai.”
“I…I’m not sure what to say.” She turned away from him, but he was sure he caught a glimpse of a blush on her cheeks.
He nodded and stepped closer to her, placing his hands on her shoulders. “Just think about it for now, then.”
She nodded, unsure of what to say. Rapid footsteps approached, and Dimitri promptly removed his hands. They both sunk into fighting stances, ready to attack whoever was running toward them. Luna burst through the foliage headed straight for the duo.
“She’s here! She’s here!” Luna exclaimed and skidded to a stop in front of Godilai. “Another ship just appeared over the horizon; a black one with silver sails.”
Dimitri smirked. “Finally!”
“I will get everyone in position for the ambush,” Godilai said, looking into Dimitri’s eyes.
“And I will have Pox hide our ship in an invisibility field.” He winked.
The trio rapidly descended the cliff to prepare for their enemies’ arrival.
Once back with the rest of their team, the plans were quickly reviewed and set into motion. The traps were checked, weapons were gathered, and they veiled themselves in the foliage and mud. All that was left to do was wait a little longer.
Unnoticed by anyone, a pair of amber eyes bore witness to everything.
There are other… creatures… on this planet. At first, we only caught glimpses of them; tufts of hair, ever watchful eyes, fangs, talons. Then, one day, one of them revealed itself. It was humanoid, but looked like a wild animal – something very similar to the ancient, Egyptian god Anubis. It did not speak, just looked at us as we looked at it. Then, the creature vanished into the surrounding swamp. It has been a fortnight since it appeared, and we have yet to see it again. Others have started calling it… them… Demons.
– FROM “HISTORY OF BEDEB, VOL I” BY ACASIA FLEMENTH, MAGISTRATE ELECT
Thera and I sat together at a table in a lone corner of the ship’s galley. Having finally pulled the young Feykin away from her meditations, I had suggested that she and I spend the afternoon playing various games – a fun way of learning other cultures. I had already shown her an old game of cards that the Temple Priests taught me. Once she had mastered that, she began to teach me a Feykin game involving several hand sized clay rods, which were painted black and white, and five tiers of wooden boards that were emblazoned with a grid of squares.
We were about half way through the complex strategy game when a soft rumble echoed through the galley, and the Shadow Dance rocked on a violent wave. I met Thera’s gaze. I could tell she was thinking the same. A moment later, both of us ran from the room. We gathered our weapons and burst onto the top deck, expecting to be under an attack. Instead, we found the crew was busy with their normal tasks. I located Teka at the helm and moved to join her.
“What was that?” Thera asked as she and I reached the top step.
“The rumble?” Teka glanced up from the charts in her hands to see us nod. “That is what an earthquake sounds like at sea.”
“We must be getting close then,” Thera said, glancing at me.
I clicked my tongue and moved to the railing to scan the horizon. Nothing. I sighed and closed my eyes.
Vortex whispered to me from the back of my mind. Feel it out, hatchling. You know where to find the island.
I slowly opened my eyes. There! Just over the southeastern stretch of ocean, the shadow of an island brushed the sky. I whooped and pointed toward it.
“Now we’re talking!” Teka laughed. “Come and turn Shadow Dance so that we sail straight for the island.”
I blinked in surprise. “You want me to steer the ship?”
“No one here but you can see our destination,” Thera pointed out. “We could sail right past it without you directing us where to go.”
“Good point,” I said and moved to the wheel.
“Okay, steering the ship is fairly easy,” the helmsman explained, stepping aside to teach me. “Each one of the knobs on the wheel represents ten degrees, like in a circle. The silver one is zero degrees, which means that if that one is at the top of the wheel, as it is now, the ship will go straight. The blue knob marks ninety degrees, meaning the ship will turn starboard, or right, if you move the wheel so that knob is on top.
“The green knob marks two hundred and seventy degrees. That will turn the ship to port, or left. You basically just turn the wheel in the direction you want to go. Keep in mind that it doesn’t take much to turn the ship in a wide arc.”
“Okay, so the island is slightly south of us, so I would need to turn right…er, I mean starboard.”
The helmsman nodded and moved to allow me to steer. I calmly took the wheel and turned it one… no, two knobs towards the blue. Moments later the bow of the Shadow Dance was pointed straight at the island. I straightened the wheel and watched until I was sure the course was correct. I nodded and allowed the helmsman to take the wheel again.
“I centered the bow on the island, so just keep going this way.”
You did great! Vortex exclaimed.
I could not suppress the proud smile that grew on my lips.
“About how far away does it look?” Thera asked, looking eagerly over the bow.
“I’m not completely sure, but it will be at least a few hours. We’ll get a better idea once we’ve breached the field protecting the island.”
Teka smiled. “I can’t wait to meet the next dragon.”
I nodded in agreement and watched as the Shaking Island crept closer. A bad feeling washed over me, and I shivered.
◆◆◆
I had been slightly off on my guess. Almost five hours later, we finally broke the field around the island. The crew whooped upon seeing the long-lost isle, and a few clapped me on the back. I could not bring myself to spoil their good mood with a warning of danger, which had been eating away at me since I first laid eyes on the island.
Teka decided to anchor the ship about a league out, as she did not know what lay beneath the surface of the water. For all anyone knew, there could be rocks or coral surrounding the island. Therefore, we loaded up a few rowboats and began the final trek to shore.
Teka had been right to worry about rocks hiding in the shallows. The rowboats barely managed to sneak over them. No doubt that Shadow Dance would have grounded long before even reaching the shore.
It was sunset by the time we found ourselves standing on the rocky beach. I shivered again, unable to suppress the bad feeling I got when I looked at the scenery.
You are right to worry, hatchling, Vortex whispered in my ear. Something is not right here.
Will Kkaia attack us?
I doubt that. She should be able to recognize you, even after all the time that has passed since last you saw us.
I hope you are right. I began making my way up the rocky beach.
“Wait.” Thera hissed.
Everyone turned to face her. She muttered something I could not hear and stared at her ribbon staff. A soft lick of wind caused the ribbons to dance, revealing to Thera something that made her gasp. A heartbeat later, she cast a spell, and a force field melted away, exposing another ship.
“It’s a trap!” I freed my tessens and flared them.
An instant later, we found ourselves surrounded. Thera quickly took flight and cast defensive barriers around us. Pox shot out of the trees, headed straight for her sister. The two collided mid-air and plummeted. I rushed to help Thera, but the Dákun Daju on Dimitri’s team stopped me.
“Now, you will die.” Luna growled, brandishing her giant sword with practiced ease.
I sunk into a fighting stance. “I don’t think so.”
Godilai laughed darkly. “You can’t beat both of us, girl.”
“That’s what you said last time, before I sent you running like a pair of frightened neerie birds.”
The Dákun Daju exchanged a look then lunged for me. I slid my left foot further back, widening my stance as some unknown teacher had taught me. When the duo was a mere blink away, I brought my war fans up in front of me, forming a shield that forced their blows to graze harmlessly away with a metallic ring. As they reeled around for another combined strike, I ducked low and swept my fans in a wide and fluid arc. I felt the blades tear at the clothing on their legs and heard them hiss in pain as I somersaulted away.
They were both upon me before I could get to my feet again. Godilai loosed a furious sound as she brought her sword down for a killing stroke, but a field of magic deflected the blow. I silently thanked Thera for her spell work as I launched telekinetic spells to knock the Dákun Daju away. Luna recovered faster and crossed the space between us in a flash, swinging her sword in a circle that would have caught me just below the knee had I not back flipped away. I barely had time to react as Godilai hurled something at me. I deflected the object with a fan and heard a loud thunk as it sank deep into the wood of a nearby tree. Half a heartbeat later, several more of the small, shiny objects were heading for me. I brought my hand up in front of me and uttered a spell. The objects, which turned out to be a menagerie of small knives, froze midair. I cut the magic and let them fall harmlessly to the ground.
I took up my stance again, and stared the duo down as they prepared to strike.
◆◆◆
Dimitri danced away from the swings and parries of the sailors’ blades before blasting them away with a fire spell. He could not help but smirk at the pained yowls that the spell tore from the sailors’ lips. It felt so good to be able to cause that much pain to these pathetic Humes with so little effort. Of course, he owed much of his new knowledge of magic to young Pox. Without her teaching, he was sure he would still be straining to form even the simplest spells.
He dared a moment’s respite to set his crimson gaze on the young Feykin, finding her high above the treetops several meters away and locked in a heated exchange of spells against her sister. Pox’s onyx eyes were burning with barely contained rage as her older sister tried in vain to bring her back to her senses. Pox wanted none of it, and blasted the area with a spell powerful enough to vaporize a radius of trees. The sister managed a defense, and countered with a ferocity that rivaled a Dákun Daju. Dimitri had to admire the Feykin. They were ferocious and powerful in battle—the perfect ally for any Dákun Daju warrior.
A loud thunk by his ear caught him unprepared, and Dimitri was forced to quickly break his concentration on the dueling Feykin. He glanced first over his shoulder to see what had caused the sound, only to discover Godilai’s whittled jawbone stuck deep into the wood of a tree. He turned to scan the area in front of him, finding Godilai and Luna double-teaming Xyleena just meters away. He watched their exchange, formulating a plan to defeat the girl while admiring the skill she had to fend off two highly experienced Dákun Daju Assassins.
After a minute or two more of watching, he had his plan worked out.
◆◆◆
I glowered at the murderous duo as I took up another fighting stance. Luna surged toward me with a burst of speed I could barely follow. Less than a meter away, she dropped and slid across the ground while swinging her sword in a climbing arc. I blocked the blade with little effort but barely managed a defense as Godilai sped in from my blind spot. Just as I shoved their blades away from me, a fourth body suddenly entered the fray, leaping clear over the kneeling Luna to attempt a killing stroke from above. I instantly recognized the new fighter as Dimitri himself. They had tried to trick me, but all they had succeeded in doing was infuriating me. I launched a series of spells in rapid succession. The first of which rammed into Luna and forced her back several meters, while the second sent Godilai airborne for a few seconds before she crashed into a tree. My third spell was reflected away as Dimitri countered it almost with practiced ease.
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