Lifting his legs, he resumed floating at the front of the vessel. Peering into the book, he vaguely heard Miceral and Peter leave. He knew he’d be bad company for a time, so he didn’t try to stop them.
For the rest of the day, he studied the thick tome. It took several spells to find the right passages, and even then, he had to search for other information before he could understand everything he read. Kel seemed to delight in breaking things up into smaller parts, then burying them in the middle of nonrelated topics. The process proved excruciating at times. Only after he assembled all the disparate passages did his heart beat faster as he saw exactly what his ancestor had left him.
As the sun slowly set off the stern, Farrell made his way across a ship that had turned into a beehive of activity. Knowing the prospect of dinner motivated even the laziest sailor, he tried not to get in anyone’s way as he walked. He reached his cabin with only one near collision. Before he opened the door, he heard Peter’s voice.
“Should I go see if he’s done?” The question, asked so earnestly, made Farrell’s grin widen. Food motivated hungry teenagers as well.
“I’m coming,” he said just before opening the door. Peter and Miceral sat on a trunk, each holding a well-used rag. Three sets of armor and weapons sat neatly arranged at their feet. “I . . . um . . . think I have my answers.”
“How convenient,” Peter grumbled. “Astounding even, that this task from Arritisa had to be done on the day we agreed to clean our weapons.”
“Yes, it is.” Miceral glared at Farrell. “If you ever leave me alone with a whiny teenager again, it’s . . . it’s . . . let’s just say I won’t be my usual happy self.”
“Hey!” Peter threw his rag at his armor. “I’m not whiny.”
“Was he mad I wasn’t here to do most of the work magically or that he had to do mine too?” Farrell raised an eyebrow at Peter.
Miceral gathered a pile of newly oiled armor and shoved it toward Farrell. “Probably some of both. But before you say anything else, he didn’t whine about it near as much as you did your first time.”
Farrell tried to look outraged but couldn’t stop from laughing at the memory. “In my defense, he’s not a grand master wizard. Your way is time consuming and inefficient. I do a better job with a wave of my hand and a lot faster, too.”
“See.” Peter pointed from Farrell to Miceral. “You could have let him do it when he finished reading Kel’s book.”
Letting out a sigh, Miceral collected his armor and looked pointedly at the young prince. “The point of this was for you to learn how to clean and maintain your own gear. Farrell won’t always be with you. And while you, as a prince, will have servants to tend to your needs, if you don’t know how to properly do it yourself, how will you know if your servants did it right?”
Farrell swirled his finger and their armor disappeared. Putting his arm around Peter, he turned him away from Miceral. “I’m sorry the weapons master forced you to do my work. I’ll find a way to make it up to you before the journey is over.”
“Can you get me out of weapons practice tomorrow?”
“I said I’d make it up to you, not grant you any wish you desire.” Farrell laughed. “Besides, even I can’t get out of practice. You’ll need help from the Six for that. But as a start, I’ll go collect our food while you two wash up.”
AFTER THEIR tasteless meal, Farrell stretched his lean frame toward the low ceiling. The way his tunic hung on his body, he knew he’d lost weight already. He’d worry about it when they reached Dumbarten.
Miceral came up behind him, wrapped his hands around Farrell’s chest, and pulled him closer. Nuzzling his lips under Farrell’s hair, Miceral kissed him several times on the back of the neck.
“Hey! I’m still in the room, you two,” Peter said before frowning at the pair.
Miceral rested his head on Farrell’s shoulder. “If you’re embarrassed, you can go stand in the hallway.”
“I’m not leaving. Farrell said he’d explain what he learned today.”
After kissing Farrell again, Miceral let go. “You did promise to tell us.”
“True.” He stretched again, twisting to get the kinks out. “But I was enjoying you holding me.”
“Later.” As if to emphasize his point, Miceral sat on the floor. “I don’t want you to get distracted.”
Glaring at Peter, Farrell said, “You had to bring that up?”
“Don’t blame me. Miceral suggested I leave.”
Farrell shook his head and looked at Miceral. “How is it, no matter where we go, I get outnumbered? Kerstand, Alicia, and now Peter. If it weren’t for Nerti, no one would have my back.”
“Oh, I have your back.” Miceral gave him a suggestive leer that made Farrell’s face get hot.
“Stop it!” Peter put his hands over his ears, causing the other two to laugh.
“Okay, fine.” He put his hand into his endless pocket and pulled out a small canvas bag. “Anyone want an apple? I still have a few left.”
He tossed them each one, took another for himself, and stashed the bag back into his pocket. Lifting his legs one by one, Farrell summoned his ancestor’s book once he’d settled into place.
“Funny thing about Kel’s book, you can look at pages and unless you know what you’re supposed to find, you won’t see it.” He paused before he flipped to the needed sheet. “It’s a humbling experience to know Kel employed a concealment spell I didn’t even notice.”
“As you keep saying, this is Kel you’re speaking about.” Miceral crunched on his apple, then wiped a bit of juice from his lip. “He should be able to fool even you.”
“True.” He scanned the page to make sure he had the facts right. “To summarize, Arritisa visited Kel years after he completed Yar-del. She told him to devise spells that would let him breathe underwater indefinitely and at depths that would crush a normal person. Kel said he put them in the book he was writing for Lenore because he was told I’d need them.”
“Are you sure he hid them and not Arritisa?” Peter asked before taking another bite.
It took a moment for Farrell to realize his mouth was open. He swallowed and shook his head. “An excellent point. You’re probably right. However he hid them, the spells took years to perfect. Kel personally tested them several times and then had a couple of other master wizards try it to be sure. I’m confident they’ll work.”
“You’re going to blindly trust his word?” The muscles in Miceral’s face twitched as his eyes narrowed. “From a book thousands of years old?”
“No, love.” He shut the book and smiled. “We’re going to test it tonight in a controlled manner. I’ll tie a rope around myself before I get in the water. If anything feels wrong, I’ll have you haul me up.”
“How does that help? If there’s a problem, I won’t be able to bring you up fast enough.”
Farrell gave Peter a wink when he noticed their friend looking uncomfortable. “That sounds like you don’t have much confidence in my skills or Kel’s. I do not, however, plan to leap in and descend to the great depths all at once. I’m going to stay close to the surface to see if the breathing spell works for an extended period. Once I’m certain I can breathe underwater, I’ll test the other spell. That way, even if there’s a problem, you’ll be able to yank me up with one pull of your big muscles.”
The smile Farrell hoped for never materialized. If anything, Miceral’s face got tighter. “I don’t think it’s a time to joke.”
Farrell stepped down and held out his free hand for Miceral. When his partner took it, Farrell helped Miceral to his feet. “I’m not treating this lightly, Ral. But Arritisa said to do this. And remember, Kel created these spells, not me. You know, that guy who’s better than me?”
Miceral’s lips twitched just enough that his face softened. “Even he made mistakes. If it doesn’t work, you could die.”
“Only if I’m reckless, and I promise you I won’t do anything foolish. Don’t forget, we’re linked.” He tapped the amulet un
der his tunic. “I’ll keep my link open. That way you’ll feel everything I do. If I’m surprised, shocked, concerned, you’ll know immediately. And I give you permission to pull me up if you feel something you don’t like.”
Miceral didn’t answer, but he didn’t object either, which Farrell took as a good sign. He tossed the book on his cot. “C’mon. Let’s test this now so we can get some sleep.”
ONCE TOPSIDE, Farrell collected a lengthy coil of rope. They made their way to a quiet part of the ship, and Farrell tied the cord around his waist. Handing the other end to Miceral, he gave him a deep, serious kiss. “I’ll be fine. I promise.”
“I know.” Miceral touched his pendant. “But I’m still going to worry.”
Farrell turned to Peter and nodded toward his partner. “See that he doesn’t worry too much. I’ll be back before you miss me.”
Rather than drag things out, he swung himself overboard. Using magic to slow his descent, he slipped quietly into the water. He bobbed up and down with the waves as he carefully cast the breathing spell. When he felt the magic fill him, Farrell cast the second part. For a moment he thought something touched him, but the sensation disappeared instantly. Before he could investigate further, magic from Kel’s spells coursed through him.
He waited for his senses to adjust, and when nothing unexpected happened, he relaxed and let himself sink below the surface. For several seconds after he allowed himself to submerge into the chilly water, he couldn’t bring himself to test Kel’s spell. Finally, when his lungs began to burn, he tentatively inhaled.
Expecting to choke and sputter, he was immensely pleased when air dispelled the fiery ache in his chest.
“So far, it’s working.” He hoped updates would help ease Miceral’s concern. “I can breathe as if I were standing on deck.”
“Good.” Miceral still sounded anxious. “Don’t waste time down there. Figure out if it works and get back.”
“Promise.”
Miceral grunted in his mind and choked off a laugh. He didn’t even know if he could laugh underwater, so he didn’t want to take the risk.
Light from the sliver of a moon barely penetrated this far below the surface. It felt as though he floated in black ink. The drag from the ship’s movement left him at an angle that upset his sense of balance. It took several attempts to find the right spell before he could “stand” upright. He adjusted the rope so it ran up his back, and then closed his eyes to focus on how his body reacted to the situation.
The energy hugged his body like a tight personal shield. He switched to wizard’s sight and gasped softly.
“What’s wrong?”
He forgot Miceral could feel his surprise. “Nothing’s wrong. The spell changes the water into air and expels some kind of gas that slowly rises to the surface. It’s amazing.”
Testing the spell, Farrell drew as deep a breath as he could. The exchange surged, as did the draw on his energy. “Well, that’s interesting.”
“What now?” Miceral’s tense reply told him his partner didn’t share his excitement over this experiment.
“The more air I need, the more energy the spell requires.”
“Do you have enough?”
“Easy, Ral. There is so much energy around me that I can replace what I use and have twice as much as when I started.”
The silence lingered, and Farrell sensed Miceral’s tension.
“I’m confident I won’t run out of air.” Grasping the end of the rope, he exerted his will and watched as power raced up toward the surface. “I’m going to test the second spell.”
“How far down are you planning to go?”
“As far as the rope will take me.”
Farrell changed the spell that let him float and used it to pull him down. Within a few dozen feet, all hint of light vanished. He collected some of the energy around him and created a small glowing globe.
A pair of large fish bolted, startling him. It took a moment for Farrell’s logical side to remind him his shields would repel any would-be attacker.
“What just happened? And what are you doing to the rope?” Miceral asked.
“I need to go deeper than the coil of rope would let me, so I put a spell on it to make it longer.”
“How much longer?”
Farrell laughed through their mental link. “I really don’t know. It won’t go on forever, maybe fifty or a hundred times longer than the original. Let me know when it gets close to the end. I don’t want to pull you in with me.”
He vaguely heard Miceral’s answer, focusing instead on his surroundings. Still using his wizard’s sight, Farrell saw the vast amount of energy and life in what would appear to nonwizards to be empty water. The occasional fish would flash by, but otherwise he spent the time alone.
The pressure he’d expected never materialized. He tried to gauge its effect on the spell, but his senses didn’t extend to the skin of energy surrounding him.
“You’re running out of rope.”
“Thanks.” He slowed his descent until he came to a stop. Estimating the exact distance proved difficult, but he had a reasonable idea. “I don’t know how deep I’ll need to go, but I’m about two thousand feet down now.”
“And?”
Breathing deeply, he scanned his body. “Everything feels normal. It’s like I’m back on deck with you.”
“How long do you plan to stay down there?”
“I don’t know.” He scanned his surroundings again. “I’m as far down as I can go and everything is working as expected. There doesn’t seem any point to staying longer.”
“Then come back.”
Miceral tugged on the rope. “Okay, but let me handle the ascent.”
Casting a spell he’d prepared for this moment, he let the rope pull him upward. Farrell continued his observations, knowing it would take some time to get to the surface. As on the way down, he saw very little. He extinguished his globe when he saw the first hint of light above him.
“I’m almost to the surface. Is it safe for me to come up?”
“Yes. There’s no one around.”
Using the rope to pull himself up, Farrell smiled at the shock on Peter’s face when he appeared on deck. When Farrell jumped up, Peter nearly knocked him back over the rail.
Miceral pulled him into a bear hug. “Everything go as expected?”
Planting a kiss on Miceral’s cheek, Farrell slowly untied the rope. “Different, but no problems. The spell to ward off the pressure from the deep felt weird.”
“Weird?” Miceral gathered the rope into a coil. “How so?”
Farrell wrapped the wet rope into a bundle. “I feared I would get hot-wrapped inside the energy skin, but there was no heat buildup.”
“That’s good, right?” Miceral tied off the rope, and the three started walking.
“I’m not sure. Kel suggested the farther down you went, the colder the water would be. But I couldn’t feel any change.”
“Maybe you didn’t go down far enough?” Peter said, drawing a glare from Miceral.
“Perhaps. Or the shield could have kept me warm. I don’t know.” They walked by several sailors who nodded as they passed.
“What else happened?” Miceral kept a tight grip on Farrell’s hand.
Although his partner couldn’t see it, Farrell’s smile grew. “Nothing. The shield absorbed the water pressure like a sponge. I could sense the water squeezing the shield, but I felt nothing. Hopefully it works equally well tomorrow.”
He regretted adding the last part even before he saw the scowl on Miceral’s face.
Miceral opened the door to their cabin. “Hopefully.”
Chapter Ten
FARRELL SET a large tray down on the small table the three used for their meals. “I asked Nerti to have the cooks at Haven prepare this for us. Having no idea how long I’ll be down there, I thought something high in protein would help keep my energy levels up.”
“You mean we could have had them make food for us all this ti
me?” Peter’s indignation didn’t stop him from grabbing a large pastry filled with meat and cheese.
“Unless you’ve learned how to fetch, I don’t know how we could have brought anything in every day.” He didn’t wait for an answer and grabbed two large boiled eggs. Yes, it had been a bother for his staff, but he asked very little of them compared to most rulers. Facing the unknown on a full stomach meant one less worry.
“We’re your guards, not your valets.” Miceral didn’t look up from the eggs he peeled. “Of course, you could ask Wilhelm to pay us to fetch you meals from Belsport. Let me know how that conversation goes.”
Farrell nearly choked as he watched Peter glare at them both before taking a huge bite. The younger man’s face softened as he chewed.
“Forgot how real food tastes, didn’t you?” Farrell gave him a wink and picked up a pastry from the tray. “I went on enough ocean voyages to know how quickly ship fare kills your sense of taste. Enjoy it. You might not get anything like this again until we reach Dumbarten.”
Conversation ended as they focused on their breakfast. Despite his looming departure, Farrell was more at peace seeing Miceral enjoy his food. He knew the good mood would pass when he had to leave, but he still appreciated the moment.
When they finished everything on the tray, he flicked his hand and sent the empty platter back to Haven. No one spoke as he brushed his teeth and collected a few things he wanted to take along. As he stuffed Kel’s book into his endless pocket, a now-familiar presence returned.
“They’re here.” Farrell noted the worried look on his partner’s face and motioned for Peter to step out. When just of the two them remained, he said, “I promise to be careful.”
“You’ve said that before.” Miceral pointed to Farrell’s hands. “Try harder this time.”
Keeping his gaze locked on Miceral’s, Farrell leaned closer for a kiss. “I will,” he whispered as they pulled back. “We should go. If the crew sees the dolphins, it might be a problem.”
Peter stood by the door when they exited. The three of them quietly made their way to the bow, where Farrell noted the dolphins’ presence. Although he couldn’t see them, their apprehension reached him even as they stayed just below the surface.
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