Wielder's Curse

by Elle Cardy

  Finn rubbed his arms as if he were cold. “Forget it.” He took another step away, eyeing the door and looking like he wanted to be long gone from the infirmary, maybe even from the ship itself.

  “Why, in all the seas, did you attack the lad?” Durne asked.

  Philips shook his head. “I’ve been having lousy dreams.” He shook his head again. “Not just bad, but downright bleak. They’ve been relentless.”

  Since he was no wielder, his bad sleep was likely caused by his sickness.

  “I know it was just a dream,” Philips said. “Now, anyway, but in the moment, it was real.” He shook his head. “I would’ve never… Ever.” He muttered another apology to Finn. “In the dream, Finn’s death meant my peace.”

  Jasmine frowned. Maybe Philips had the faintest touch of wielding ability in him. Maybe he had caught a glimpse of the false vision.

  Durne stroked his beard. “Might be wise to secure the lad in a safer holding.”

  “I’ll not do it again,” Philips said.

  “I don’t doubt it, sailor, but you said yourself you thought it was real. What if you have another dream and act out again, thinking the lad here needs to die?”

  Philips’ sickly complexion turned paler. He looked far from good health.

  Durne ran an eye over Finn from head to toe. “The lad looks mostly recovered from the initial attempt on his life. Brusan, return him to his quarters. Philips is still unwell. Until he has made a full recovery, it might be wise to assign someone to keep a watch over the lad.”

  Jasmine thought about volunteering for guard duty then changed her mind. The look Finn had given her was enough to keep her away for a while. She should give him time to work things through, time to get over his fear of her power. If that were possible.

  Durne turned a steely gaze on Gley. “You are in charge of guard duty.”

  “I only vouched for her over the first attack,” Jasmine said, eyeing the child-like girl. “There’s been no other vouching.”

  With his feet planted in a wide stance, Durne hooked his thumbs in his belt. “If anything happens to the lad or any of my men, I will hold this young spy personally responsible.”

  Gley smiled. “I will do as you have asked, and you’ll learn you can trust me.”

  It wasn’t a risk worth taking.

  The girl’s smile broadened. “You have another problem I can help you with. Those ships following us won’t give up the chase. We must change course.”

  Changing course wasn’t going to help. There was nowhere to go except north. The south was cut off by the pursuing ships. To the west was the mainland with nowhere safe to land until Ruskhor, and it was unlikely the Rusk would help. To the east, there was nothing but endless sea. Their only option was to go north and hope they could out sail their pursuers until they reached Auslam.

  “What do you suggest?” Durne asked.

  “We need to go somewhere unexpected,” Gley said. “Somewhere they won’t follow.”

  Obviously. But no such place existed.

  “I know of such a place,” she said with a smug grin.

  Durne’s thick eyebrows bunched together in a dark frown. Slowly, he nodded.

  “See, you need me.”

  Chapter 21

  The night was black nothingness broken only by the distant spots of lights from the pursuing ships. The cloud cover was thick and low, and the wind blew from the southeast. The conditions couldn’t have been better for their needs.

  Jasmine, Arassi, and Kask extinguished the last of the lanterns on deck while Willem, Hensley, and Stenson extinguished the lights below. The crew was under strict instructions to stay quiet and stay dark.

  Once Cagg gave the ready signal, Durne turned the wheel. The ship creaked and swayed, cutting the waves as it headed east. Away from their scheduled destination. Away from well-traveled waters. Away from the safety of the known. Only mad men sailed under-supplied to a dangerously distant shore.

  This had to work.

  The two pursuing ships had been relentless, pushing their crew day and night to keep up with the Prize. Jasmine suspected they’d follow them to their watery grave. She could still feel their burning hatred across the waters. On top of the gold the Guardians were paying them, her very Kahld-like trick had ensured their desire to catch their prey. Revenge was a strong motivator. There would be no escape unless her captain did something radical. Something perilous.

  From the crow’s nest, Jasmine chewed on her bottom lip as she studied the black sky. The moon wouldn’t rise for another two hours. They’d been waiting for a night like this one. The clouds needed to stay thick.

  With a wink, a single star poked through before the clouds swallowed it. She muttered a curse under her breath. Another gap like that had the potential to give away their cover.

  At least Durne’s able control kept the Prize sailing at a good speed. There was no need to add wind to the sails. Marcelo had called her a beacon with her magic enough times to ensure she’d started to listen. No sense giving the pursuing wielders a trail to follow.

  When her watch ended, Kask took her place in the crow’s nest. There was nothing more to do but wait and hope. She had no desire to go below. The open air where she could smell the sea was where she felt most comfortable, so she remained on deck. Durne’s dark form stood at the helm. She imagined him glaring out to sea, his jaw set.

  A shadow shifted near the bow of the ship. It wasn’t the right shape to be one of the crew. Jasmine padded up the ladder to the forecastle. The figure was short.

  “Gley?” Jasmine whispered.

  The shadow moved. “Just needing fresh air,” the girl murmured.

  “Shouldn’t you be watching Finn in case Philips sleepwalks again?” While the sailor wasn’t over his malady, he had slept soundly that day and had started to show improvement. He’d even gone to the mess hall for his supper. But this didn’t mean Finn was safe. The Beast had caught a whiff of its prey and wasn’t about to give up.

  “I can watch Finn from here, as can you.”

  She was right. Jasmine could. And the magic she needed for this was so minimal, it was undetectable. Finn was in his room. He sat with his back against the bulkhead, feet hanging off the side of his berth. By the light of a single lantern, he read some crusty old book. Even though his room had no portholes, he kept the lantern shielded. And his door was locked.

  “Can I ask you something, Jasmine?”

  “You just did.”

  The breeze carried the girl’s soft hiss away. “I’m not your enemy.”

  “That wasn’t a question.” Jasmine knew she was being difficult. No one knew anything about this strange silver-haired girl, and everyone seemed fine with that. If nothing else, she was a no-good stowaway. A no-good stowaway who’d claimed she’d been looking for a great power when she’d first boarded the Prize. With the ship as her talisman, Jasmine could be that power. So, what did the girl intend to do once she discovered the truth?

  The wash of waves against the ship turned to a croon as the silence between the two wielders lengthened.

  Maybe, Jasmine thought, if she acted like a friend, she’d learn more about the girl. How to begin? It wasn’t like she had any female friends. What did female friends talk about? Maybe making the same approach as Gley had done might soften the edge between them.

  “Can I ask you a question?”

  “You just did,” came Gley’s quick reply.

  Jasmine let out a quiet snort. While she had earned that response, it was clear there’d be no friendship between them. She couldn’t pretend otherwise. Neither of them could. A great chasm of differences separated them. Different backgrounds, no doubt, different mindsets, different motivations. The girl was probably coddled when she grew up. Spoon-fed. Got everything she ever wanted. It would explain why she took what she wished despite being told no.

  “What was your question?” Jasmine asked, deciding games were a foolish waste of ti
me.

  “How well do you know Durne?”

  Not the question she had expected, and not one she would’ve guessed in a million years. “I’ve known him all my life.”

  “So he’s been aboard for at least seventeen years. What else do you know about him?”

  Jasmine shrugged in the dark. “He originally hailed from Gad, a small town on Ruskhor’s northern coastline, so I guess you could say seafaring is in his blood.” The only way to Gad was by sea, or along a narrow mountain path carved for the foolhardy. Gad folk were sea folk.

  “Anything else?”

  “He’s an honest man, if that’s what you’re wondering. And as captain, he knows what he’s doing. He rose swiftly in the ranks until he became Kahld’s first mate. He earned his place.”

  “And what are his thoughts on magic? Does he fear it? Does he use charms to ward against it, or own trinkets of a magical nature? Is he a superstitious man?”

  These were all peculiar questions. “No idea. You’d have to ask him. Is Durne the reason you’re here?” Jasmine asked, letting her annoyance get the best of her. “Or are you still looking for that mysterious power?”

  “Power surrounds this part of the world,” Gley said in the dark. “Do you know what it is? Can you feel it?”

  The Beast. The boiling seas. The hunt for more magic. She felt it every moment of every day.

  The girl could be after the Beast.

  You are a beacon.

  More than likely, she was after Jasmine. It seemed to be what other wielders did: find the ones who were stronger and destroy them. Or use them.

  Jasmine needed to convince her it was the Beast she was after, and explain it in a way that wouldn’t make Gley dismiss her as Marcelo had done. And she needed to do it without giving away all her secrets. Coming back from a silencing? Learning new ways to wield? No, these were not things she wanted Gley to know. The girl was powerful enough to hide herself and her magic. She would make a dangerous enemy if she guessed Jasmine was an abomination.

  “If you’re going to say a beast,” Gley added, emphasizing the word as if it were a joke, “then you’re wrong.”

  Her hope drained into a pool at her feet. “You’ve spoken to Marcelo.” The foolish old man would’ve taken great delight and careful pains to dismiss the Beast as a theory.

  “Creatures can’t control magic,” Gley said. “They never could and never will. It takes a conscious mind with the capacity for reason to cast magic, to wield. The only monsters left in this world are people. Like you and me.”

  Had Gley just called her a monster? Did that mean she knew?

  Jasmine tried studying her. Light wasn’t necessary to see magic. She searched for the girl’s talisman. She’d worn no trinkets, rings, or earrings. She always carried a short silver-tipped stick. If it wasn’t in her hand, it was strapped to her back. Maybe that was her source of power. Nothing emanated from the short staff. Jasmine found no clues and no power around or on Gley. It was as if the girl wasn’t a wielder.

  “How do you hide your magic so perfectly?” Jasmine hadn’t meant to give away her secret that she could read a person’s magic as easily as she could read the sea.

  Gley snorted. “Is that something you want to learn for yourself?”

  Dangerous words. Words that should never be spoken aloud.

  Trying to sound unruffled, Jasmine said, “Magic can’t be learned.”

  “Right you are,” Gley said with a weary huff, “and, if magic could still be learned, then you wouldn’t be able to learn what I do anyway.”

  She doubted that. If she could see it, she could learn it. Maybe that was the girl’s point: she couldn’t see it. She wished there was enough light to read Gley’s expressive face. Anything to gain more answers.

  A heartbeat before releasing her magic to create light, Jasmine contained it. Her mouth went dry at her near mistake. She’d almost given away the Prize’s position to the pursuing ships. She couldn’t let her instincts control her. They would only betray her as they’d betrayed Kahld. More than ever, she needed to stay in control.

  At least Gley hadn’t yet sensed the full extent of her power. Of that, she was certain. If the girl had, she wouldn’t still be hunting. She’d be at Jasmine’s throat.

  The black expanse enveloped the night. The dots of light from the pursuing ships could barely be seen. Gley’s plan to lose them seemed to be working. But they still had a long way to go.

  “What’s this about a change of course?” Marcelo bellowed behind them. He stomped up the ladder to Durne at the wheel.

  “Keep your voice down,” Durne hissed.

  The faint light of the following ships winked in the distance.

  “I have to get to Auslam,” Marcelo said in a harsh whisper.

  “And you’ll get there. It might take longer than expected, is all.”

  “What’s the delay?”

  Without saying a word to each other, Jasmine and Gley left the forecastle and drew closer to the men. Jasmine knew her ship so well that she didn’t need light to move around. It seemed Gley didn’t need light either, because her steps were sure and graceful and silent.

  “The entire township of Oakheart knew we were headed to Auslam,” Durne replied. “There is but one way there. We can’t shake those ships if we continue the same route.”

  “You have to take me to Auslam. I paid for my passage.”

  “You are more than welcome to alight at our next port. Or, if you prefer, I can give back a portion of your coin.”

  “I don’t want the coin. I want Auslam.” He sounded like a child having a tantrum. “Where is this next port?”

  “A small island to the southeast.”

  “There’s nothing southeast,” Marcelo whisper-bellowed. “Auslam is north. We must go to my home city.”

  “Why, old man? Why is it so important that you’d have me risk my crew and my ship to reach the river town? I’ve heard tell you see visions of the future. Does that have something to do with it?”

  “You too, huh?” Marcelo muttered in the dark. “How far out is this island?”

  “Two months. Maybe two and a half depending on the winds.”

  “You can’t be serious. This ship didn’t pick up enough supplies in Oakheart for a trip that long.”

  “Aye, we’ll be hard pressed, but we’ll make it if we ration.”

  Gley squeezed Jasmine’s upper arm then left. If the girl knew Jasmine’s secrets, she wasn’t acting like she did. Best keep it that way. The little stowaway could not be trusted.

  * * *

  Brusan sat on an upturned bucket and whittled at a piece of wood that was destined to become an octopus, a gift for Jasmine. His sharp knife worked fast with curls and splinters falling to the galley’s deck.

  That Gley girl was a mystery. Ever since she’d protected him from the men boarding the ship, she’d avoided him. He hadn’t been able to ask her anything. Like, how did she know him? Or, what was her interest on the ship and with Jasmine? Most especially, why take them to that particular island in that part of the ocean?

  The knife cut through the wood, and a tentacle fell away. Brusan swore and threw down his ruined carving. He’d been sitting around hoping everything would sort itself out. That wasn’t how he did things.

  Brusan rose. He was going to hunt that girl down and demand answers.

  He found her leaning against the doorframe of the sailor’s sleeping quarters. It was late enough that a large portion of the crew was there, asleep in their hammocks. Why was she just watching them like that?

  Brusan approached her. “That island you sold to Durne. You don’t mean Thunderclap Isle, do you?”

  Gley stirred as if from a dream. “The locals call it Pruma. Believe me, I don’t want to go there either.”

  “Are you trying to get me killed?”

  “Far from it, but neither of us have a choice.” With that, Gley walked away.

  Chapte
r 22

  The southeast trade wind turned the seas dark and whipped the waves into white peaks. Jasmine rubbed her arms against the cold and headed below in search of food.

  “There you is,” Brusan said when he spied her. “Was wondering when you’d get hungry enough to come down here.”

  They’d lost the ships six weeks ago. It had been a long journey, and they still had a long way ahead before they’d see dry land. Everyone was hungry and tired and surly. Jasmine was no exception. If she could avoid Brusan’s attempts at restoring whatever relationship he thought they had, then she would.

  “Here,” Brusan said, handing her a bowl with double the allotment for the morning rations. “I saved this for you.”

  She returned it. “I can’t be accepting favoritism. We’re all on rations.”

  “Aye,” Brusan said, “but you skipped last night’s portion, so I saved it.” He pushed it toward her.

  “I’m not hungry.” She turned her back on him.

  “Then at least take the portion to Finn, seeing as he ain’t eating neither.”

  That made her turn. “How is Finn?”

  She hadn’t spoken to him since she’d made the boarding parties leave the Prize and pushed away their ships. It had been easy after he’d looked at her as if she were a monster. Her greatest fear realized. He might not know she was an abomination, but he still feared her enough to shun her. On the rare occasions he had left his room, he hadn’t sought her out. If all was well between them, then Gley shadowing him wouldn’t have stopped him. Instead he’d chosen to stay mostly holed up in his room with Brusan and Marcelo checking on him occasionally.

  “His wound is healed.”

  “And the mark?”

  “It’s still there but no worse. The blisters have healed. He ain’t got no more than a fine scar and black mark.” Brusan pulled at his ear. “But he ain’t eating.”

  Avoiding him had only made the hurt she felt worse. Of course, seeing him could make things worse again, but maybe it was worth the risk. She reluctantly took the bowl. Freshly heated gruel. No cinnamon.