by Dave Skinner
Feenatay visited her parents at New KaAn. They had originally refused to let her go, but she convinced them otherwise. They all saw it as an adventure; young people sailing into the unknown to make contact, if possible, with history. That was how Shawn described it. Nails didn’t care about history, but Andoo was his teacher, and so he would continue his studies, practice his control and spend time with Reese. Nails saw this as a test of his ability to suppress his magic, to live a normal life with Reese. That conversation was still in the future, but the future looked better than it ever had. As Shawn said, they were “young people sailing into the unknown on an adventure. What could possibly go wrong?”
Nails stood on the wharf beside the plank that led to the barge while the others said their goodbyes. He had no one to say it to. Brayson stood beside him. He had sent word to his mother to say they were leaving and invited her to the sendoff, but she refused his invitation, saying only that she hoped the Mother was at his side. Ran and Manda had brought Feenatay’s parents to Southgate aboard the Red Witch II. Now, all four parents stood with their daughters wrapped in their arms. Words were being whispered, but Nails could not hear them. Shawn had said his farewells on the dock at Riverrun North while Remi stood off to the side with tears in her eyes. She wanted to come, but her parents were still cautious after the pirate incident and they had refused her request. Shawn had boarded the barge already, which was good; his pacing was making Nails nervous. Shawn’s impatience was almost palpable. Andoo Toran was tending the cage of birds that would be one means of connecting to Delta. He also had a cats-eye gem—one of the magic communication stones—which allowed him to speak with other wizards. Nails looked at the sky. The sun had almost reached its zenith. When he looked back, Reese, Ran and Manda were walking towards him.
“I expect you two to watch Reese’s back,” Ran said as they came up.
“I will,” Nails said.
“Understood,” Brayson added.
Feenatay joined them, and the young people turned and bounced up the plank to the barge deck. Reese and Feenatay took positions at the sweep tillers while Nails picked up a pole and stood, ready to push them away from the wharf. Brayson and Shawn stood by the ropes that held the barge to the wharf, they each took a rope in their hands and pulled the barge in to free up some slack.
“Ready,” Nails heard Brayson and Shawn say almost together.
“Ready,” Nails echoed them.
“Castoff,” Reese called.
Brayson and Shawn snapped their ropes, and the ends jumped up and off the pylons they lay over. Nails pushed off with his pole while Shawn and Brayson made ready to raise the sail. Their first half-day of sailing would be down the wide, slow-flowing bay that marked the start of the Grasslands River. Tomorrow, they would be into the river proper, which was still slow and wide, although not as wide as the bay. Nails laid his pole down and went to help with the sail.
“Raise sail,” Reese called.
Shawn and Nails pulled the sail crossbeam up and tied it off. Brayson had already climbed the rigging and was waiting for it. In moments, the sail was released, and it fell and fluttered while Brayson slid back down to the deck. Nails and Brayson trimmed the sail until it filled properly. Reese gave them a thumbs-up, and they tied the guide ropes off. Then, Reese and Feenatay tied their rudders into up positions, and Reese went to the centre rudder and released it into the water.
“The front part of the boat is called the bow,” Brayson said to Nails as he walked up beside him.
“Even though it’s not pointed?” Nails said with a smile.
“It sounds like you can get by without me, my friend.”
“I might be more than I was, Brayson, but it’s only because of you. You will always be my friend, and I will always have your back.” An image of him carrying Brayson’s body from a destroyed building came to Nails suddenly. His smile lost its luster. I can control it, he told himself.
***
As the sun was setting, Reese directed the barge over to the shore and grounded the bow on a sandy stretch of beach. Nails and Shawn used their poles to keep the barge in place while Brayson tied them off. They dropped the sail and made it shipshape, ropes were coiled in circles on the deck and the poles were stored in their places. They collected firewood and built a fire on the beach. There was a stone fireplace on the barge, but everyone wanted some time ashore. Brayson had fished while they sailed, and now he cleaned his catch and delivered it to Nails who was tending the fire. Reese sat close to the fire on a stump Nails had dragged over.
“That was an easy sail,” Brayson said.
“That was not sailing,” Reese said. “All we did was float, the rapids on the Trade River were more exciting. I have never been so bored on a vessel.”
“Get used to it,” Andoo said. He was sitting in his cloak which moments before had been around his shoulders and was now a chair, floating in the air. “My understanding is that we have a moon’s worth of travel before we get past the settled lands. We will pass a number of towns along the river, but they are nothing more than grain storage sites. A town called Newhope is the final place we know of going south.”
“Newhope is a strange name for the last settlement on the river,” Feenatay said, “especially when you consider how literal your city names are.”
“What do you mean?” Nails asked.
“Many of the cities around the lakes have meaningful names,” she explained. “Bakerstown is the grain capital of the Grasslands; there are more bakers in Bakerstown than anywhere else. Southgate is truly the gateway to the South. Marshtown, Riverrun South, and North are other examples. When we are headed towards the last outpost on the river, I was not expecting it to be named Newhope. Lasthope would make more sense.”
“You have to remember,” Shawn said, “settlers came up the river. We are going down.”
“Of course,” Feenatay said. “That makes sense.” She sat thinking for a few moments. “But it does not say much for what lies past Newhope.”
“I have reports of a dry, desert-like area some way past it,” Andoo offered.
Nails started laying the fish onto the coals, and his stomach growled as the aroma rose to him.
“We need something to go with this.”
“I will gather some greens,” Shawn said. He stood, brushed the seat of his pants off and strolled towards the woods.
“I will help,” Feenatay offered. Shawn waited for her and they entered the trees together.
Nails was pleased with the food he prepared. The fish was cooked nicely, and the greens were fresh. He mixed some flour with water and baked small buns on rocks at the side of the fire. After eating, Reese and Feenatay scrubbed all the metal plates clean with sand and water before saying goodnight. Eventually, only Brayson and Nails were left watching the coals burn down. Light was seeping from the day, and the last of the dragonflies were zipping above the water.
“Flitter would have loved it here,” Brayson said. “Lots of dragonflies to chase.”
“Do you miss her?”
“A little, we were together for quite a while.”
“I’m sorry she decided to leave,”
“I think it was for the best, my friend. The girl in my dreams is someone different.”
“How so?”
“Well, first of all, she has pointed ears.”
“Really? You will have to return to Crosstown for that. I didn’t think you liked it there.”
“You are right, but when I dream, I see a face, and that face has ears like mine.”
Chapter 41
Their days became a monotonous cycle of floating and stopping to sleep, broken occasionally by a visit to a small riverside town. Andoo gave magic lessons to Feenatay and Nails. Brayson’s inherent ability to read people had developed to a point where it never failed him now. Andoo taught him the same thinking exercises he had started Nails on back at Delta. Nails watched Brayson sitting on the side of the barge with a fishi
ng line in the water. He missed the times when magic training had been to sit and think through a problem. Why did I ever complain about that? He threw a blasting spell at another log in the river. It missed.
“Concentrate,” Feenatay said from beside him. She sent a stream of magic towards the same log and it skipped back across the water.
“I am supposed to be learning how to control my magic, not how to use it,” Nails grumbled.
“It is the same thing,” Feenatay told him.
“I think I need more practice thinking.”
“With a fishing rod in your hand, no doubt,” she said sternly, although a smile slipped across her face.
Nails held his hand out rigidly at arm’s length with stiff fingers pointed at the elusive log. He said the four words needed to activate the spell and felt a blast of energy leave his hand. The magic beam hit the water about a double arm-span behind the log.
“You are forgetting to take the log’s movement into consideration,” Feenatay observed, “but you did manage to kill two fish.”
Nails looked and, sure enough, two large fish were now floating belly up behind the log.
“I think we should stop for the day,” Feenatay said. “Before there are no fish left in the river, or better still, use a recovery spell to pull those dead fish in.”
“I don’t know a recovery spell,” Nails told her.
“Okay, I will teach you one.” She showed him the hand movements and taught him the words required, then went over them six times to make sure he had them before allowing him to try. He made the movements and said the words. The two dead fish, the log and a large volume of water raced across the top of the river towards them. Feenatay screamed as she ducked the log. One fish missed her. The other she grabbed as it smacked into her side. She staggered. The water knocked her off her feet and across the deck. After a moment, she sat up sputtering water and holding the fish in her arms. Nails felt terrible, but he heard Reese and Shawn laughing heartily from where they operated the port and starboard tillers. Feenatay glared at them.
“I do not find this funny,” she growled.
“I thought you did it to entertain us,” Reese said.
“Lunch is served,” Shawn added.
Feenatay, looking down at the large fish, chuckled. “Already cooked too,” she snorted. “Nails, you caught it, so you clean it.” Laughter floated across the deck.
Two days before the new moon, they arrived at Newhope. Tying up the barge, they headed into town for a meal at the local inn. Nails looked around as they walked, wondering where all the residents were. The sun told him it was early afternoon so he expected to see folks walking about or working, but there were few. He saw a wagon loaded with people heading out at the south end of the town. Other than that, the street was empty. Even the inn’s common room contained only the innkeeper and a drunk asleep in a chair. The innkeeper came to their table and offered a fish or a venison stew. They all asked for the venison. Feenatay ordered water, Shawn and Andoo ordered wine, the others ordered ale.
“I have never felt a place so depressed,” Brayson said.
“Or so empty of people,” Andoo added. “I think I will have a talk with the local wizard after our meal to see what is happening.”
To everyone’s surprise, the meal was exceptional. The stew was nicely seasoned, and the bread was fresh. The ale was cool and satisfying. But Andoo said he was not impressed by the wine, and Shawn agreed. Nails reasoned that Andoo had a taste for good wine and that Shawn came from Nadia where that good wine was produced.
“Where will I find your local wizard?” Andoo asked the innkeeper when the man brought a second round of drinks to the table.
“He’s gone,” the man said.
“Gone! Do you mean he is away on business?”
“I guess so,” the innkeeper replied.
“How long has he been away?”
The man counted on his fingers. “Six moons,” he finally answered. “Excuse me; I have business to attend to.” The innkeeper started to turn away.
Nails was looking around the empty common room and wondering what the business was when he felt the magic. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Andoo making a motion with his fingers.
“One moment, if you please, innkeeper,” Andoo said. “Did your wizard say when he would return, or where he was going?”
The man was clearly struggling to say as little as possible. Nails saw Andoo’s fingers move again.
“He said nothing. He was just gone one morning.”
“And you say this was six moons ago?”
“Yes, just when the troubles started.”
“What troubles?”
“I can’t tell you.”
Andoo’s fingers moved again.
“I can’t tell you,” the man repeated, “but if you are here tonight, you will see for yourself.”
Andoo stood and placed one hand on the top of the innkeeper’s head. The other hand held his staff. Nails felt the magic as it flowed into the man. Suddenly, he slumped and almost fell, and Andoo guided him into a chair. There were tears running down the innkeeper’s cheeks.
“That was quite the compulsion you had on you, my man,” Andoo said quietly. He offered the innkeeper a drink of Nails’ ale, and the man drained the mug. “Now, tell me what is happening here.”
“They showed up six moons ago. I’m sure they had something to do with our wizard’s disappearance.”
“Who are they?”
“A wizard and his henchmen. They come at the dark of the moon and take whatever food and drink they want. They kill anyone who stands against them. Most people leave for the night. Losing your food is better than losing your life.”
“Could you not take the food away with you?”
“We tried that once. They burned two houses and came back the next night and killed three men.”
***
Before the light of day disappeared, the town of Newhope was deserted. They had spent the afternoon gathering firewood and placing it in huge piles in the centre of the main street. Newhope had two streets, a short one that ran from the centre of town to the wharf, and a long one that ran north and south through the town. They prepared the biggest pile of kindling at the junction of the two. The other piles were stretched out along the long street. Now, with the light gone, Nails was standing in the dark at the north end of town with Reese beside him, her bow held loosely in her hand, and a quiver of arrows on her back. Shawn and Feenatay were across the street. Shawn carried a bow also. Nails had not been surprised to learn that both Reese and Shawn were excellent shots. Brayson was at the other end of town, in case the renegades chose to enter from there. The innkeeper had told them that they always come from the north. No one expected that to change, but Brayson would warn them if it did. Andoo was seated in his cloak-chair, back by the main pile of branches. Nails could just make him out. No one except a KaAnian would be able to see him with nothing but starlight to aid their vision. Nails estimated it was two turns of a glass after darkness fell before the marauders arrived. He touched Reese’s shoulder, and she lifted her head and made the long, looping call of a nightjar. The sound didn’t appear to disturb the renegades at all. Nails could see a man with a staff—that would be the wizard—leading others down the centre of the street. He counted thirty in all. The wizard stopped when he came to the first pile of branches for the bonfire. Nails saw the man look around after he kicked at it. Nails stood perfectly still. He realized he was holding his breath. The wizard and his group started forward again, and Nails breathed. Newhope wasn’t a big town and it was only a few moments before all the renegades were past the first pile of kindling and logs. He touched Reese’s shoulder again, and she made another perfect imitation of a nightjar. There was a murmur from some of the men in the street, but no one stopped. Nails let them move farther up before he snapped his fingers. Immediately, Feenatay shot a burst of flame into the nearest woodpile and followed it up with two mo
re shots that lit the next two bundles. At the same time, the large bonfire erupted, followed by the three remaining smaller bundles. Arrows were flying and men started to drop. Nails moved to the centre of the street with his sword out. Men rushed towards him. He cut them down if they weren’t felled by arrows before they reached him. Closer to the centre of town, beams of magic were flashing. The renegades were milling around, trying to find the source of the arrows, when Nails heard a voice cry out.
“This way,” the voice screamed, just as Nails felt a surge of magic. The milling men ran towards Andoo, and he blasted them as they came. Nails could see Brayson standing behind Andoo, taking down anyone who got too close. Two men rushed towards Nails and he put them down. A group of three was coming his way, but arrows took down two of them. The third was the wizard. He pointed a staff towards the nearest bonfire. It exploded and, for a heartbeat, Nails was blind. He blinked his eyes twice before he could see again. The wizard was running his way. An arrow flashed from where Reese stood, but it stopped and fell to the ground before it reached the wizard. Nails saw him raise his staff and point it at Reese. Summoning his own magic, Nails blasted it towards the wizard, but he deflected it towards Reese. He heard her scream. Nails stepped in front of the wizard and was hit by a stream of magic. He absorbed it all while grabbing the wizard by the cloak as he tried to get by and throwing him to the ground. Nails dropped beside him, slammed both hands onto the wizard’s chest and, without another word or motion, blasted him. The man’s chest disintegrated. Nails jumped to his feet and ran to Reese, who was sitting on the ground, cradling her arm. Above where her hand grasped her arm, he saw a burn mark. He sank to his knees beside her.