by Ian Rodgers
Vala glanced at the position of the sun, then flicked her wrist and checked the time with a Cantrip.
“It’s almost noon. Want to head back to Lily and Bigg Guy and see if they wrangled up some food?”
“Why not. Can’t really do much else,” Gaelin noted.
On the way back though, he recalled some things he’d been meaning to ask since they’d washed up on the island.
“Vala, did you detect any magic in the storm? It appeared so suddenly, and then almost immediately afterwards the damned pirates showed up,” Gaelin pointed out.
“I felt something magical from the storm, but it wasn’t Occult or Divine magic. In fact, it felt like it was the sort Druids use, but different. Not quite corrupted, but certainly rough and ill-formed,” Vala said with a shake of her head.
“A magical artifact, then? Or a wannabe Druid?” Gaelin inquired. All he got was a shrug.
“I wasn’t really paying much attention. If you recall, I got swept up in the fighting almost immediately after I came out on deck,” Vala replied.
“True... well, then, did you get a look at the weapon being used against you? That flying dagger?”
“Again, I was a bit busy fending it off,” the green-haired elf said dryly. She then frowned and tapped her chin. “Although, from what I remember they weren’t like any daggers I’d seen before. They only had a single bladed edge, and the cross-guard was very short.”
“Was there an emblem of wings on it?” Gaelin asked, leaning over towards her.
“I couldn’t tell. Why do you ask?”
Having the questions turned to him, the adventurer explained. “While Bigg Guy and I were shopping in Riverfold, we went into a weapon shop to browse. While we were there, I saw a bunch of weapons that looked very similar to the ones that Bolos Stormbringer was using against us. They were Dancing Daggers, supposedly from Val’Narash. The shopkeeper said a large cache of them had been found, recently.”
“There were a few differences, although it could have just been the lack of proper lighting from the storm and the injuries that made me see that. But still, very similar,” Gaelin said. “I only caught a brief glimpse of them, so I wanted your opinion as well.”
“You think these were the same ones being sold? Are you suggesting Bolos stole a shipment of them, or what?” Vala inquired.
“Perhaps. See, the main difference I saw with the Dancing Daggers he had was how well they worked. He used four at once, so he either had a lot of mental control, or they were of exceptional quality. Either option is bad, but the latter one means that he has some connection with the ones being sold. Apparently, the glut of Dancing weapons appeared around the same time this pirate captain became infamous.”
“That’s a very serious accusation, and a tad far-fetched. Why are you thinking about this?” Vala asked.
“Because they gave me a bad feeling,” he admitted. “And then there’s the business with Bolos kidnapping Gelt! He was on a mission, remember? We even talked about why he wasn’t using the roads.”
“You think this is all connected somehow? Again, somewhat of a stretch to believe,” the Druid noted. Gaelin sighed and nodded.
“Yeah, I know it sounds ridiculous, but I cannot shake the feeling something big is going on behind all of this.”
“It’s Erafore, Gaelin. Something big is always going down somewhere in the background and the shadows. It’s why we have S- and X-ranked adventurers,” Vala said with a roll of her eyes. “There’s always a cult to stop, or a demon to banish, or a dragon to slay.”
“So, you think I should ignore my feelings? Perhaps pass it on to someone more capable of doing something about it?” Gaelin demanded. As accusing as his tone was, there was a sense of pleading to it as well. He knew the answer to his own question. He just didn’t want to hear it.
Vala, however, was not merciful and responded truthfully. “The answer is ‘yes’ to both your inquiries. You’re D-ranked, and while you clearly have the skills of a decent C-ranker, it’s still wouldn’t be enough to take on a pirate like Bolos alone. Or to tackle a conspiracy involving illegal weapons trafficking. Or even dealing with Gelt’s kidnapping.”
At that, Gaelin could only nod mutely. He then sighed, disappointed, and the two returned to their camp in silence.
Lily and Bigg Guy looked up, and when they saw the despondent look on Gaelin’s face, grew worried. Seeing this, Vala stepped in to explain before they could misunderstand.
“Ah, don’t worry about Gaelin’s mood, he’s just down in the dumps because I told him the harsh truth about running off and being a hero.”
“He wanted to do something stupid, didn’t he?” Lily deadpanned, her concern evaporating instantly.
“No more stupid than you trying to track down an infamous serial killer in Sanc Aldet, or agitating that pit full of snakes when you poked a flaming torch down into it.”
“Hey, guess what, Gaelin? Shut up,” Lily shot back. “At least I never tried to ride a Dire Eagle while also trying to bash its head in. Or spent five gold on a treasure map that turned out to be a scam.”
“It seemed like it was real! It had authentic markings and everything!”
Vala and Bigg Guy smiled. Even though the two were bickering, they were starting to act more like their old selves. Not to mention some of their awkwardness was slowly dissipating the more the two adventurers argued.
“Glad to see some things stay the same,” Vala said with a smirk. Bigg Guy nodded, before happily showing off some of what he and the archer had gathered during the time the other duo was away.
More driftwood and scraps had washed up, though a familiar table with broken legs and an old wagon wheel had also come in, much to the Ursine’s delight.
All the while the sun burned overhead, but none of the group found it overwhelming. It merely affirmed their determination to get off the island before the tropical heat baked them.
.
“Can we talk?”
Lily looked up from the log where she was sitting and wordlessly waved the earth elf over.
Lunch had already passed several hours ago, and now the stranded quartet were back to trying to survive. Again, they had paired off for their respective tasks.
Gaelin and Bigg Guy teamed up as they explored the island for more supplies and debated whether it was worth lashing together a raft to cross the lagoon or just swimming to reach one of the other landmasses enclosed by the obsidian reef.
As for Lily and Vala, their job was to whittle down the wood they had into useful shapes. They only had Gaelin’s halberd and Lily’s knife for tools, and the latter was much better for scraping off bark and turning the misshapen lumber they’d scrounged up into proper forms. The red-head had volunteered for that task, and Vala’s Druidic magic was good for reshaping and molding wood.
It was getting close to dusk, now, and the boys were expected to be back soon. Throughout the day, Vala had been shooting Lily odd looks.
“Sure, what do you need?” Lily asked in regard to the earth elf’s sudden question, scooting over to give room for the elf to sit down next to her. Vala plopped down with a small smile, a lump of wood in her hands. A faint green glow surrounded it, and it was slowly contorting from a crude rectangular plank into a cylindrical post-like shape.
“I wanted to ask you about something that might make you angry,” Vala said slowly. “And I’d first like to say I forced Gaelin’s hand, so don’t blame him for it, either.”
“What did you do?” she demanded, narrowing her eyes.
“I may have found out you are a princess?”
As soon as the words left Vala’s mouth she found herself being tackled off the log onto the ground by a furious red-haired girl who was also holding a knife to her throat.
“Give me one good reason not to silence you right now,” Lily hissed. The earth elf shivered, and for the first time she truly saw genuine rage in the young archer’s eyes. Along with a great deal of betrayal as well.
“I h
onestly did not expect this reaction from you,” Vala admitted, only to mentally berate herself. ‘Argh! Damn it all, me! Couldn’t I have thought of some better last words?!’
“What did you think I would do when you blurted out one of my most important secrets? One that people have already had to die for?” Deep sorrow filled her expression, and she glared at the young Druid-in-training.
“Did you expect me to blush coyly and deny it? Or perhaps try to wave it off, pretending it was no big deal?” Lily leaned in close, the knife pressing closer against the skin of Vala’s throat, and the elf trembled as a tiny red bead appeared on the edge. “I had to kill my best friend to escape unharmed from Tashel and my grandfather, and I will kill another friend to keep myself and Gaelin safe!”
“I-I just wanted to know!” Vala sobbed, terror threatening her eyes with tears. “I wanted to know more about you, I wanted to help!”
“My father once said he disliked mages because of their inherent curiosity about everything around them. They pry into secrets and mysteries regardless of whether it’s a good idea or not. I think I’m starting to understand what he meant,” Lily said caustically.
“W-why are you doing this? I thought we were friends! You just said so!” Vala begged when the knife did not waver.
“Were we? Last time I checked, friends didn’t try to uncover secrets about each other. Or maybe that’s an elf thing,” the red-head snapped. Her grip tightened around the hilt of the dagger. Vala saw that and her eyes widened in worry.
The earth elf didn’t dare to try and struggle, though. The princess might have been younger and smaller, but she was still stronger than a person dedicated to magic. Plus, more than a year of rough living had forced the runaway member of royalty to shed excess fat and build up muscles, especially in her arms due to her use of bow and arrow. Combine that with a sharp implement against her neck, Vala wasn’t going to take any chances that might lead to an accident.
“I should have known better than to hope I could stay anonymous, or least hide for a bit longer. Even if it was Gaelin’s fault you found out, that doesn’t mean others won’t discover it some other way, and who knows? Maybe next time it’ll be my grandfather’s men who find me! That’s why I need to… I have to… I can’t risk you telling anyone…!” Lily said, tremors starting to crack her stern façade.
And then, the apprentice Druid saw Lily’s body shaking slightly. A look of sadness and resignation soon completely swallowed up the young red-head.
Instead of carrying through with her threat, Lily slumped and let the dagger fall from her fingers.
“Aaaaahhhh!” Lily suddenly broke down, tears pouring down her face. She began to pound her fists against Vala’s chest, the blows causing the green-haired elf to wince, but there was very little actual power behind the strikes. It was mostly all compressed rage and sorrow that had been bottled up for too long.
As relief flooded her, Vala let the princess take out her emotions on her body. As the torrent of sobs drained away, leaving behind feeble, watery hiccups, the earth elf dared to reach out and wrap her arms around Lily.
It was an awkward position in which to try and hug someone, but she felt the adventuring princess needed one.
“I couldn’t do it, even though it would have been for the best,” Lily whimpered as the elf comforted her. “I couldn’t hurt another friend intentionally. Not again. Not after Randel.”
The two of them stayed like that for a while longer. All the tension had fled the area, and only angst remained.
“I’m sorry I broke your trust, Lily,” Vala said after a while. “I really did want to get to know you better. When you held back on being racist, you were actually fun to be around. And I also truthfully wanted to help you. And Gaelin too, I suppose. The pair of you were just so frustrating the last few days regarding your feelings for one another.”
“Even if I do like him in that manner, it would never work. My dream, my ambition, my purpose is to reclaim my throne. I cannot be with him due to that, the differences between our social standings are too great,” Lily said softly, still choked up slightly with her tears.
“Is that why you’re trying so hard to gain achievements through adventuring? To build your reputation to help solidify your stance against your grandfather?” Vala inquired. Lily nodded.
“But thanks to my cursed wound, I cannot produce an heir to the throne, which means I have to find a way around that issue before anything else,” the red-head spat. “Otherwise grandfather would be able to force the nobles to accept my mother as his puppet.”
“I’m sorry. You’ve gone through a lot, haven’t you?” the Druid said, and she started to stroke Lily’s hair comfortingly.
For the first time in a long while, Lily let herself be nothing more than a fourteen-year-old girl. Without the weight of a kingdom on her shoulders, she felt at peace. And as Vala continued to soothe her, her guilt and pain finally managed to wash away.
Of course, Fate and Erafore being what they were, the moment of happiness could not last.
The mood, and the silence, was shattered by a steady ‘thup, thup, thup!’ that gradually grew louder.
Annoyed at the interruption, and a tad curious, Lily and Vala looked around for the source of the sound. When nothing immediately caught their eyes, their attention slowly shifted to the horizon.
And their eyes practically popped out of their sockets.
The two instantly scrambled up from the sand and darted under the canopy as a large gnomish airship powered through the sky, its rearward propeller making the strange noise that had broken the two women’s bonding.
In any other circumstance, they would have rushed onto the beach and cast as many flashy spells as they could to attract the attention of the dirigible. However, in this case that would have been foolish and fatal.
Because on the sides of the balloon, a skull crossed with two lightning bolts brazenly stood out, defiantly declaring the flying machine’s allegiance. It was the Storm Caller, the personal vessel of the very pirate who had gotten them stranded in the first place.
Chapter 13: Pirates and problems
“Oh, for the love of the Divine Family and all that is holy! Did we get washed up on a secret pirate base? One that belongs to very same one who sank us?!” Lily hissed from beneath the palm leaves that shielded her and Vala from sight.
The Druid could only shake her head in disbelief. “I think we did.”
Lily inched back deeper into the tree line. “We need to find Gaelin and Bigg Guy, and warn them. They could still be out in the open, or make the mistake of trying to flag it down if they don’t spot the emblem!”
Vala nodded in agreement, and the pair darted off in search of their two male companions.
They didn’t have to look all that hard, thankfully, as they ran into Gaelin and Bigg Guy near the middle of the island, carrying armfuls of coconuts and odds and ends for supplies.
“What’s the rush?” Gaelin inquired.
“Didn’t you hear that sound?”
“What sound?” the halberdier tilted his head at Lily’s question. His gaze alighted on her red, tear stained face and a worried frown wormed its way across his own expression.
“Ignore my face, it’s not important at the moment!” Lily shouted, turned her head aside as she vigorously wiped at her eyes.
“We saw Bolos Stormbringer’s airship just now,” Vala explained, speaking up as the princess composed herself. “We wanted to warn you two about that.”
“Bolos? Here?” Bigg Guy growled.
“Then, does that mean this place is his hideout?” Gaelin asked, and the Druid grimaced and nodded.
“Odds are that is the case. We saw it headed for the central island, so I’d put money on that being where he sets up camp, so to speak.”
“Oh gods, that’s just great,” Gaelin moaned.
“Any plans?” Bigg Guy asked, with a hateful look back in the direction of the center of the archipelago.
“It�
�s obvious what we have to do. The only option we have is to steal Bolos’ airship and use it to get out of here,” Lily said. Everyone gave her stunned looks. Vala then offered the princess a slow clap at her idea’s sheer bravado.
“Look, the islands are surrounded by an obsidian reef that can and will tear up any ship that approaches. The tide is too strong to escape without magic, and a tiny boat might make it through the gaps in the spires, but then what? We’d be on a dinky raft with no way to know which way is Orria,” Lily explained.
“Not to mention building something might attract the pirate’s attention. They clearly don’t value this island, so it’s unlikely they’ll notice anything if we keep it small, but what if they fly overhead? They’d see us from their airship, and end us from above. That means our only option is to sneak onto their base, and steal from them.”
“Hmmm. Escaping the archipelago would be easier from the air. No riptides, dangerous reefs, or sea monsters to deal with when you’re in the sky,” Vala mused. “And now that I think about it, that must be how they’ve remained hidden for so long. The only way into the lagoon is via air. Boats would dash themselves on the reef. And the gnomes are stingy with their technology and its secrets, so unless we come across another stolen airship, we’d be unable to make our own.”
“I should have known it was too good to be true,” Bigg Guy sighed. “It is one thing after another with us.”
“Darn tooting,” Vala muttered in agreement. She then jerked her head back towards their campsite. “Come on, let’s get back before nightfall. And keep a closer eye on any light we produce. We can come up with a more in-depth plan later after we’ve eaten and rested.”
“Good an idea as any,” Gaelin admitted. He looked down at the coconuts he’d gathered and grimaced. “If anything, now we have another reason to go steal from pirates. They’ve got to have better food than this.”
A round of nods accompanied his declaration, and they slunk back to their side of the island to cower and wait for morning.
.
It was two mornings since they had spotted the Storm Caller, and the quartet had been busy with a flurry of activity, both mental and physical, as they planned a raid on the pirate base. They weren’t sure where on the central island Bolos had hidden his forces, but it was likely someplace that could contain the bulk of an airship.
