Ruin & Reliance

by Jeremy Dwyer

  Tija drank anew of the waters of the Zovvin Ocean from her vial to be energized with the power to connect to the spirit world. She focused her power and attempted to locate the spirits precisely. “Now I know where they are. I’m trying to see through them, to send them away. Look,” she said and pointed to a location outside.

  Reko looked through the window of the wheelhouse in the direction that Tija pointed. “There is a glowing light there. Are you saying it is caused by spirits and not a person?” he asked.

  “Yes, spirits were summoned. I can’t dispel them, but now I can detect their location precisely,” Tija said.

  “Where is the summoner?” Kaija asked. She probed for thoughts of anyone who might be hidden, but could not identify who was responsible.

  “There’s no sign. Bring us down over there,” Tija said and pointed.

  “I’ll try,” Annaliisa said. She steered the Resolute Traverser toward where Tija pointed, and hovered the ship over that location.

  Tija exerted her powers further and was able to dispel the summoned spirits.

  Kaija sensed the thoughts of the people on the ground and said: “We need to be here. Bring the ship down near those people.”

  Annaliisa pulled levers to lower the Consecration of the Hopeful to a patch of dry ground near the mountain forming the eastern wall of Cinder Valley. She then pulled another lever to lower the boarding ramp.

  “Reko, stand watch. I need to go down and meet these people,” Kaija said.

  ~~~

  Kaija exited the wheelhouse and walked across the deck. She drank anew of the waters of the Elanatin Ocean from her vial to be energized with the powers of telepathy and empathy.

  She approached the rest of her crew – who were waiting on deck – and said: “Romana, come with me. Saku, I need you, also. Bring Colonel Lodokus and Lieutenant Mazavida. They might be able to help us here, if they are willing to cooperate,” Kaija said.

  “Under the authority of the Oath, I will be coming with you,” the Chronicler Ximenez said. He drank anew of the waters of the Ursegan Ocean from his vial to be energized with the power to slow the passage of time. He exerted this power to extend his own long life as well as to observe fast-moving events around him. Ximenez followed Kaija, Romana and Saku – who still restrained Colonel Lodokus and Lieutenant Mazavida with their hands bound behind their backs – as they walked down the boarding ramp.

  “My name is Kaija, and I am here to serve The One True God. A poison has afflicted many people across the world, and I believe that the cure can be found here. Seeds must be planted in the soil of this valley, and the trees that grow will bring healing,” Kaija said.

  “The soil is dead. If it ever was any good, it’s ruined now. I’m a Gradaken drinker, and so are these men and women. Nothing we planted here would grow,” Odhran said.

  “When God wills it, the seeds will grow. Trust in God, Odhran. Your wife, Elise, has a deep faith. Follow her example,” Kaija said.

  “If God willed us to be safe, we would be safe. But we’re not. Either your God doesn’t want us safe, or He isn’t even real,” Sophie said.

  “You need to believe in a power greater than any you have ever seen, Sophie,” Kaija said.

  “Obviously, you can read our thoughts and know who we are without us telling you, so you have to know that I’ll never believe in fairytales. I need proof. When I see it, maybe I’ll believe,” Sophie said.

  “Just because you see something doesn’t mean it’s real,” Lieutenant Mazavida said.

  “Having faith is foolish enough. Having faith because another tells you to have faith is twice is foolish,” Colonel Lodokus said.

  “Living in this world and not believing that it was created by a good and loving God is the most foolish,” Kaija said.

  “Those ships and all the soldiers mean that we’re on a battlefield. There’s going to be a war,” Patrick said.

  “I believe you are correct, Patrick,” Kaija said.

  “I think we need to leave – now,” Sophie said.

  “I agree. We’re stonecutters, not soldiers. And these farmers can’t plant seeds in dead soil,” Ruth said.

  “You could have faith, Ruth. Your heart is sometimes open to God, but then you close it. You’re caught between fear and hope,” Kaija said.

  “We’re caught between mountains and lava, ships and soldiers, and before we got here, it was spirits and robber barons,” Ruth said.

  “Yet God protected you,” Kaija said.

  “Considering where we are now, I’m not so sure about that,” Ruth said.

  “I’m still feeling sick,” Molly said and she coughed to clear her throat of the windswept volcanic ash.

  “I’m not feeling well, either. And things look like they’re going to get worse,” Sean said.

  “A lot worse – and we’re in the middle of it,” Sophie said.

  “This isn’t precisely the middle, but we are too close,” Patrick said.

  “I don’t know what you think we can do in a war. We cannot fight without weapons and training. We cannot even make proper weapons from the volcanic rock in the ground. Our waterbindings are of little use in battle. Our deaths would serve no good,” Ciaran said.

  “No one expects you to become a warrior, Ciaran,” Kaija said.

  “Kaija, you said a poison has afflicted the world and you have seeds for a tree that can cure it. If we can’t plant the seeds here, how can we help you? ” Elise asked.

  “God will guide us, my friend. The answer will become clear according to His Will,” Kaija said.

  “The only thing that is clear is that we will die if we remain here,” Lieutenant Mazavida said.

  “Before the battle begins, we should leave. That the conflict has not yet started suggests that the enemy’s presence has not been detected, or they have not yet arrived,” Colonel Lodokus said.

  “Who is the enemy they’re waiting for? Is it us?” Ruth asked.

  “I am Ximenez, Chronicler of four thousand seven hundred twenty-five (4725) years. Whatever I see and hear in this place, I will record,” Ximenez said.

  ~~~

  Allegria continued steering the Plenteous westward along the river leading toward Cinder Valley.

  Consolata remained kneeling down on the floor of the wheelhouse while watching the other ships and said: “My lord, I have been tracking the lead ship – the Consecration of the Hopeful – with my far sight. It has entered the valley ahead. The river enters into a lake there, but the ship was moved away from it and onto the dry ground between lava flows. There are now four hundred forty-four (444) ships in the valley, and armies of tens of thousands have gathered.”

  “I am not taking this ship into a war zone! Kaija is a foolish woman who will act with reckless abandon and make martyrs out of her crew. We shall wait outside the valley and watch,” Grand Duke Braden said.

  “Shall I stop the ship here my lord?” Allegria asked. She had her hands on the ship’s wheel and her knees on the floor. Duke Rowan continued to massage her and she hoped to stop the ship so that she could have time alone with him for a very close embrace.

  “How far away is it, Consolata?” Grand Duke Braden asked.

  “The valley is one hundred forty-nine (149) miles to the west, my lord,” Consolata said.

  Grand Duke Braden looked at the pages of the atlas detailing Waderav and said: “Cinder Valley is fifty-two (52) miles wide. I suggest that we remain (40) miles to the east of it, which will put the entire valley within the range of your far sight, as well as my telescopic crystals. Then, we can monitor the situation without becoming entangled in the difficulties,” Grand Duke Braden said.

  “Allegria, continue sailing along this course. Consolata, let us know when we are forty (40) miles to the east of the valley, and we will stop there,” Duke Rowan said.

  “Yes, my lord, I will take you wherever you please,” Allegria said.

  “Yes, my lord, I am watching,” Consolata said.

  Allegria contin
ued sailing the Plenteous and Consolata constantly gauged their distance. Within the hour, Consolata said: “We are there, my lord.”

  “Stop the ship,” Grand Duke Braden said.

  Allegria pulled levers to lower the sails and then drop the anchor, bringing the Plenteous to a halt.

  “Excellent, my dear Allegria,” Duke Rowan said. He kissed the top of her head and she dreamed of closer kisses still.

  “Consolata, remain watchful,” Grand Duke Braden said.

  Consolata drank anew of the waters of the Lujladia Ocean from her vial to refresh her powers of light and far sight. She gazed westward into Cinder Valley and said: “I see armies standing ready and fleets of ships on the ground between lava flows, but there is no fighting.”

  Grand Duke Braden plucked a crystal off of his sash and peered through it to gaze into the valley, where he saw the situation as Consolata described it. “The battle will begin when the enemy is detected…or makes the first move,” he said.

  ~~~

  Captain Arata continued sailing the Sandstone Cutter westward along the river until the ship passed through the gap between the mountains and entered a lake.

  ~~~

  Commissioner Wallace was standing on deck, pacing back and forth, along with his twenty (20) armed guards. He noticed the gray-blue lake and thought it looked odd.

  Fantine and Niven were walking back and forth across the deck of the ship. Fantine stared at the lake and her gaze met that of Commissioner Wallace.

  “Something isn’t right. That water looks almost toxic,” Fantine said. She coughed, and now it was worse. Blood was mixed with ash blown in on a chill breeze passing through the valley.

  Commissioner Hannah looked around them and said: “Look at all those other ships. They’re not on the lake. They’re near the lava flows,” she said. She gasped and coughed up a small bit of ash and blood.

  “You’d think they would be afraid their hulls or sails would catch fire being near the lava,” Captain Gijsbert said. He coughed up a bit of ash and a trace of blood.

  ~~~

  “Captain!” Commissioner Wallace yelled. He hurried across the deck and entered the wheelhouse of the Sandstone Cutter, followed by his twenty (20) armed guards. “Captain! Get the ship out of this lake! Immediately! The water is toxic! We’ll be drowning in acid when it burns through the hull!” he said. He then coughed and brought up just a bit of blood and ash. He coughed again and brought up more.

  Captain Arata pulled levers to elevate the Sandstone Cutter to thirty (30) feet of altitude. He steered the vessel to a clearing in between the lava flows and brought it down to the ground.

  “We shouldn’t…have…come…here,” Commissioner Wallace said, coughing and wheezing.

  “Take deep breaths. Calm down,” Captain Arata said.

  “No! Little breaths! There’s ash in the air!” Commissioner Wallace said.

  ~~~

  Romey was pacing on deck along with the rest of the crew and passengers. “This is a battlefield. The war hasn’t even started and we’re already getting sick from breathing in the ash, never mind the poison! I can chart a course to get us out of here!” she said. As she spoke, the ash in the air entered her lungs. She coughed and brought up blood and ash. She coughed some more, so violently that she fell to her knees.

  “Take it easy,” Commissioner Hannah said, while her own throat was parched.

  Niven just held Fantine to prevent her from tiring out. “Rest easy. Don’t strain yourself. Just keep walking, slowly if you have to. Don’t say anything. You’ll breathe in the ash. Just take little breaths,” he said. He kept Fantine walking slowly back and forth across the deck. Niven then drank anew of the waters of the Trerada Ocean from his vial to refresh his power of vitality and resist the effects of the cold breeze and the ash.

  “It’s cold. The breeze is cold,” Fantine said.

  Niven took off his coat and placed it around Fantine, over top of the coat she was already wearing. He pulled her closer and then kissed her on the lips. “Just stay with me,” he said. Fantine smiled and said: “Help me.”

  “Just keep walking. We’re here together,” Niven said. He held Fantine close as they walked along the deck of the Sandstone Cutter.

  Commissioner Hannah watched them and remembered no compassionate behavior from her own husband. She was envious of that kind of affection, but not resentful toward them. She hadn’t been lucky in love – not real love. Hannah wasn’t sure how lucky any of them would be for much longer, because the presence of these armies meant war was going to break out at any time. Like most of the crew and passengers, she was still sick from the poisonous cloud that she was exposed to. She wondered if the twenty (20) armed guards that Commissioner Wallace retained – all of them being drinkers of the Nabavodel waters – would be able to ward off the illness caused by exposure to the toxin any better than she could. Hopefully, they would have milder symptoms if not immunity, because that gave hope to everyone else who drank those same waters, even if that included the tens of thousands of soldiers in these armies gathered around them in Cinder Valley.

  ~~~

  Uzoma continued sailing the Sky Lion westward along the river towards Cinder Valley.

  “I see four hundred forty-five (445) ships and tens of thousands of soldiers in Cinder Valley,” Munroe said.

  “That is the sign of a war! We should go no farther!” Captain Duvall said.

  “I see another ship halted ahead, forty (40) miles east of Cinder Valley. It’s the Plenteous. That’s the ship Grand Duke Braden sailed in when departing from Sedavidian Island. I watched him and remembered the markings on the vessel,” Munroe said.

  “While I don’t trust that man – he has no regard for the intellect of women – he may be justified in deciding not to enter a battlefield. Uzoma, steer the ship alongside his,” Captain Lusala said.

  “What do you hope to accomplish? Without entering the valley, we cannot help to find the cure. If this Grand Duke Braden is not someone you trust, there is little sense in being near him. Why?” Captain Duvall asked.

  “I’m not trying to form an alliance. I’m hoping that Munroe can maintain a safe distance, while still observing what occurs in Cinder Valley. If we are farther away, his view will be less detailed, and Grand Duke Braden will be better informed by being closer,” Captain Lusala said.

  “I suppose that is a good enough reason,” Captain Duvall said.

  “I’m not planning on entering a battle. However, I’m also not planning on dismissing the possibility of finding the cure for this illness. If the poisonous cloud spreads far and wide and infects millions or tens of millions of people, then many of them will die. Only the Trerada drinkers will be truly safe,” Captain Lusala said.

  “I could go into the valley for you,” Goyo said.

  “And do what? You drink the waters of the Ikkith Tar Ocean, so at best you would be a scout. We already have that, in Munroe, who can report from a distance. You cannot plant the seeds, and you are in no shape – nor will you ever be in shape, given your well-deserved maiming – to alter the outcome of this war,” Captain Duvall said.

  “If we need you, we will tell you, Goyo. For now, stay put,” Captain Lusala said.

  Uzoma sailed the Sky Lion westward along the river until Munroe said: “That’s the ship!”

  Upon hearing this, Uzoma pulled levers to lower the sails and drop the anchor.

  “Keep us informed, Munroe. The ship is well-stocked with Lujladia waters for when you need them,” Captain Lusala said.

  Munroe drank anew of the waters of the Lujladia Ocean from his vial to refresh his powers of light and far sight. From this position – forty (40) miles east of Cinder Valley – he exerted his powers and gazed ahead to look through the gap between the mountains that surrounded the valley and observe what was going on within.

  “The soldiers are still in position. The ships are docked on the ground between the lava flows. No ships are on the lake that this river empties into,�
� Munroe said.

  “They should prefer the lake to being anywhere near lava. The hull or the sails or both could catch fire,” Captain Lusala said.

  “Perhaps the lake is where they expect their enemy’s ships to arrive. If they attack quickly and fiercely, the ships will sink before deploying troops,” Captain Duvall said.

  “Who is the enemy?” Captain Lusala asked.

  ~~~

  Akylas continued steering the Resolute Traverser eastward along the river.

  Massimo entered the wheelhouse and said: “From what I can see, Cinder Valley is fifty-two (52) miles wide and surrounded by a ring of mountains. We’re eighty-one (81) miles to the west of it. This river enters the valley by passing between the mountain peaks, then meanders between hills and lava flows in the western half of the valley, and empties out into a lake in the east. There is a mountain in the center that blocks my view beyond that narrow range.”

  “That’s Mount Rurik, according to the atlas,” Captain Pradrock said.

  “We need to proceed carefully, until I have a clear view of what’s on the other side of that mountain. The lava flows are sparse in the west, but they could be dense in the east,” Massimo said.

  “I’m more afraid of not going than going forward,” Akantha said.

  “You’re afraid of that spirit. Are you still sure it wasn’t something evil?” Akylas asked.

  “I don’t think it was evil, but it was extremely powerful,” Akantha said.

  “A stern message from God is to be obeyed. Instead of fear, have determination,” Lady Onora said.

  “Proceed carefully, Akylas. Massimo, watch the area ahead for any signs of lava or burning embers near the sails or the hull,” Captain Pradrock said.

  Massimo drank anew of the waters of the Lujladia Ocean from his vial to be energized with the powers of light and far sight. “I will remain watchful,” he said, and continued looking for signs of danger as far as he could.

  Akylas continued steering the Resolute Traverser and sailed it into Cinder Valley. He followed the course of the river as it meandered through the valley.

  Alonso recorded everything he heard and saw into his book – the conversations, along with sketches of the valley as they sailed through it.