Voidhawk

by Halstead, Jason

  “Why?” Dexter asked her.

  She hesitated, opening her mouth a few times before finally speaking out her reasoning. “I am stronger and faster; if something is wrong I will survive longer,” she explained. “And if I do not, it is better I die than you.”

  Dexter frowned. “My thanks, but you’re all my crew, my responsibility. I’ll be the one sticking his neck out.”

  The Captain turned then and climbed down the steep staircase into the hold, stooping his head when he reached the bottom to avoid cracking his skull against the timbers that supported the floor above. “Someone pass me a lightstone,” he muttered, realizing he had forgotten to bring one with him.

  A few moments passed and Dexter heard footsteps as one was fetched. He peered around the steerage hold while he waited, trying to force his eyes to pierce the gloom. He thought he heard something at one point, but when nothing further developed he dismissed it.

  Jenna landing lightly behind him made his heart jump in his chest, however. He cursed softly at her and saw the smile on her face. She held up a stick that had a glowing crystal tied to the end of it. It shed enough light to chase away the shadows for half a dozen feet or so.

  “What are you doing?” Dexter snapped.

  “Bringing you some light, Sir,” she replied smartly.

  Dexter scowled and glanced past her at the trapdoor, then realized it would be useless to try and order her away. He turned instead and moved deeper into the hold, looking for some sign of Kragor’s passage.

  He found a knocked over barrel and the shattered remains of another. “Jenna!” He hissed, pointing to the broken barrel.

  She nodded and moved off to the side, stepping around a pile of spare lumber they had tied together for emergency repairs. Smoothly she drew her weapons, then let out a gasp of surprise.

  Dexter scrambled over the long timbers, drawing his long sword in the process. He hesitated in surprise when he saw a flicker of energy leap up and down the blade, shedding a faint light of its own. His hesitation and distraction cost him though. He came down on a tentacle and stumbled into Jenna, sending her off balance as well.

  The tentacle he tripped on wrapped around his legs and tripped him further, sending him crashing to the hull. He tried to roll free but was held up by the thing around his calves. He hacked at it, feeling the energy that coursed from the blade and into the tentacle channel back through his legs.

  Jenna rolled out of harm’s way, or so she thought. She bounced off a crate, stunning her and bruising her shoulder. Another tentacle wrapped around her arm, pulling her off balance and making her drop her short sword. She kicked at the tentacle, doing no damage but granting her enough momentum to twist around and hew at it with her sword.

  Jenna’s first swing cut into the leathery hide but did not sever it. It yanked at her, surprising her with its strength, and pulled her across the uneven flooring. She could only grit her teeth as her side and legs were scraped against the wood. She looked up when the momentum slowed and saw a mottled brown shape detach itself from the floor. She saw six tentacles attached to it, with one of them having hold of her, and in the midst of the triangular shaped creature a circular orifice rimmed with tiny teeth, something that reminded her of a leech.

  She smelled the puff of gas almost instantly, and recognized it as a much stronger version of what she had smelled in the cargo hold above. She held her breath and struggled, but it was too late; she had already inhaled enough of it to affect her. A slow paralysis gripped at her, numbing her skin and then her extremities. Her sword managed to sever the tentacle that held her, but before she could lift it again it fell from nerveless fingers.

  “Dexter!” She gasped, reached out for him as he was being pulled toward the creature as well.

  Dexter hacked at the tentacle again, being ready for the shock this time, and lurched to his feet when it recoiled from him. He saw Jenna ahead and faintly heard her cry, which caused him a rush of adrenaline fueled by anger. He lunged towards her and stumbled, seeing what the creature had left behind. Kragor lay on the decking, limp and unmoving.

  Another tentacle swept in, slapping him in the side and knocking him off balance. He turned, growling in rage, and swung at it, realizing too late the strange odor that had surrounded him. He disregarded it as his sword severed the tentacle, the electrical effect from the blade causing the dismembered tip to spasm and contort for several seconds.

  He tried to advance on the stowaway but found his legs not obeying him. His ankle turned on the first step, and his other leg refused to move fast enough to catch him as he teetered and fell. He looked up and watched another tentacle approach him. It came in slower, obviously cautious of the weapon that had caused it such pain. Dexter was unable to react to it, other than to watch it approach and wrap itself around his torso. It pulled him back towards the sucking orifice, with Dexter furiously struggling as a prisoner inside his own body.

  * * * *

  “What was that?” Rosh asked, looking at the others. “You hear something?”

  “Captain!” Keshira said, diving through the open trapdoor.

  Rosh recoiled back, surprised, then looked to Jodyne. She looked back, equally confused. Rosh shrugged and moved down the stairs as quickly as possible, his tall frame cramped in the hold. He pulled a dagger from his belt, wishing he had thought to bring his sword. A glance at the low ceiling made him realize how pointless his massive sword would be. Likewise he had no pistol at hand.

  Keshira brushed aside barrels and crates as she moved like an elemental force through the hold. She reached her destination and grabbed on to the tentacle that was wrapped around Dexter. Using her great strength she dug her fingers into it and pulled, tearing it apart slowly and stopping the advance Dexter made towards the creature.

  With Dexter safe she turned to Jenna, who already lay in front of the thing that had stowed away. She grabbed a hold of Jenna’s legs and pulled the helpless elf back, easily ignoring the puff of gas that enveloped her. A tentacle wrapped around her arm and another around her leg, pulling at her. The pleasure golem bent towards it, then regained her balance and pulled back. It slid across the decking towards her, then tried to release her from its sinuous arms.

  Keshira grabbed hold of the one around her arm, pulling on it and dragging it closer to her. It slid alongside Jenna, who was oblivious by that point, and then was within range of the fury of the pleasure golem. Keshira’s fingers dug into its body, pulling it up and throwing it against a box. She pounded her other fist into it, pummeling the boneless body of the creature mercilessly.

  “Keshira!” Rosh said, coming upon the scene and trying to get her to stop. The creature she was battering was obviously beyond any hope of defending itself.

  She pounded it for another minute, stopping only when it tore in half. The gore of its entrails stained her and the hold. She looked at it and then turned to Rosh, who was shaking his head and holding on to the pile of lumber to keep from falling.

  “Are you hurt?” she asked him.

  Rosh shook his head, almost losing his balance as he did so. Speaking slowly and carefully he said, “No… sleepy.”

  “Go back, I will get the others,” Keshira told him, turning already and gently picking up Dexter.

  Keshira had to wait while Rosh struggled to climb back up the stairs. Jodyne, of all people, helped from above by pulling his arms once he made it to the stairs. Once Rosh collapsed on the deck and fought the effects of the cloud, Keshira deposited Dexter’s unconscious form before returning to bring up the others.

  Kragor’s body was still and pale, with little warmth remaining in it. Jodyne collapsed next to it and felt desperately for breath and then a pulse in dwarf’s neck. She threw her arms around her husband and clung fiercely to him while her body shuddered with grief. There was no signs of life to be found.

  * * * *

  With less than a skeleton crew to run the ship, Bekka let the ship float aimlessly in the void. She hurried down to lend her fi
rst aid skills, but was frustrated and unable to do much. Even Xander was pressed into service, but while his knowledge of arcane things was considerable, he had little to offer by means of restoring health. Necromancy, he asserted, was not an interest of his.

  Rosh came back around first, being the least exposed to the noxious fumes the creature released. Still unsteady, he was nevertheless able to stand by the time that Dexter and Jenna began to awaken. Both were nauseas and had little in the way of a sense of balance for some time, but regardless of that, Dexter insisted almost immediately on learning of the fate of Kragor.

  With Bekka’s help, he staggered to the hold where Kragor’s body lay still on the decking. Jodyne sat next to him, arranging his clothing and beard so that he would be looked upon respectfully in the afterlife. She looked up as Dexter came in then looked back, only her stubborn will keeping her grief stricken eyes from spilling tears that would not stop.

  Dexter collapsed to his knees beside Kragor’s body and took his friend’s cold hand in his own. Tears ran from his own eyes, but he blinked them away mostly and bowed his head respectfully. Finally, after many minutes had passed, Dexter looked up into the dwarf’s face and nodded to him.

  “Rest well, my friend,” he whispered. “We will miss you.”

  Jodyne sniffed and Dexter rose unsteadily to his feet. He turned and staggered back to the door of the hold, where Jenna was watching with tears of her own streaming down her face. Keshira and Rosh were nearby as well, though everyone was respectfully silent.

  “Why do you grieve?” Keshira asked, breaking the silence.

  Jenna looked at the pleasure golem and smiled sadly. “We were elf and dwarf, so we bickered.”

  She turned to Jodyne, who glanced at her and then looked away. “Kragor was loyal and skilled. He served the ship and crew well, and though we argued often, he was my friend. I think he would say the same of me, though I did not do him the justice of showing my nature.”

  Jodyne looked up at her again and nodded, then had to look away to blink away fresh tears. Keshira remained silent as she pondered what Jenna had said.

  “His spirit will always be with us,” Dexter said consolingly. “My heart is heavy now, but it is brighter for having known Kragor so well and so long.”

  “Jodyne, what would you have us do with him?” Dexter asked her softly.

  She shivered for a moment but quickly gained control of herself. “This ship was his home, Dexter, and having us together beside him made him happiest.”

  She paused and took a deep breath, pausing only to brush an imaginary strand of hair from Kragor’s cheek. “He loved sailing the void, give his body to it, so he can sail forever.”

  Dexter nodded and motioned for Keshira to pick him up. He did not trust his voice, so he was surprised when she correctly interpreted him and stepped forward to gather up the fallen dwarf in her arms. She was surprisingly gentle as she picked him up and then led them all out to the main deck.

  Atop the stern castle she waited. The rest filed in and stood quietly. The collective mood was understandably somber. Dexter looked to Jodyne, wondering if she had any final words to share. She stared at her husband’s body mutely, however.

  It was Xander who broke the silence. “Captain, I have a simple spell I could use to help preserve his body…”

  Dexter’s eyes narrowed for a moment, then he looked to Jodyne. “I don’t ‘spect Kragor’d be wanting any magic put on him, thanks all the same.”

  Jodyne nodded appreciatively and Xander stepped back. “It’s just a small spell,” he muttered to himself, though it was easily overhead by others nearby.

  Dexter, if he heard the wizard, ignored him. He turned back to Jodyne. “Jodyne, is there anything you’d like to say or do?”

  The dwarf took a deep breath and stroked her beard. She closed her eyes and let it out, then shook her head. Staring at Kragor’s body she whispered something in dwarven to him, then turned to Dexter. “Let him go, Dexter.”

  The captain nodded and turned to Keshira. He opened his mouth but could not make the words come out. Keshira leaned over the railing anyhow, having received Dexter’s command through the bond she had with him. Kragor’s body dropped to the gravity plane of the Voidhawk and bobbed up and down a few times until it settled on it. Then it slowly drifted away from the ship, floating in the same way that the debris and space junk they came across did.

  Kragor’s body slipped out of the bubble of air that surrounded the Voidhawk, his inertia continuing to move him away from the ship. They all watched as the dwarf’s body diminished from view and disappeared.

  “Rosh, take the helm when Bekka’s shift is done,” Dexter said. “Everybody else back to their posts.”

  They fell in, finding a sense of purpose in following his orders. Jenna alone looked at him for a long minute, something clearly on her mind. He caught her gaze and shook his head, letting her know that now was not the time for it, whatever it was. Instead Dexter followed Xander as the wizard returned to the crew quarters he shared with Rosh.

  “Something you need, Captain Silvercloud?” Xander inquired rather stiffly when he realized that Dexter had followed him down the stairs and seemed to be interested in following him further.

  Dexter nodded and gestured into the cabin lined with bunks, chests, and a couple of small tables. He turned and shut the door behind them after they entered. Then, surprising Xander immensely, Dexter grabbed him with both hands on his robes and threw him onto one of the tables.

  “I’m a might curious why it is I’ve had nothing but trouble since running across you and your place,” Dexter said, his tone deadly serious. “First the pirates you happen to be captured by. Sure, there’s cause enough for that. But where’d that thing come from in my hold? Wasn’t there before. I don’t much care for coincidence.”

  Xander stared up at him, his eyes displaying shock, surprise, and more than a little fear. He tried to stammer out a reply but failed miserably at making any intelligent or decipherable noises.

  One hand holding the wizard down, Dexter reached down with his other and drew his pistol. He cocked the hammer back on it and placed it against Xander’s chest, poking him none-too-gently in the ribs. “Care to try again, or do you want your body to join Kragor’s floating through the void forever more?”

  “I didn’t do anything!” Xander cried out desperately. “I don’t know what was in your hold either! Some kind of scavenger, I don’t know how it got there!”

  “I’ve seen scavvers before, they aren’t looking like that thing,” Dexter growled. “Small things, snakes with wings… this was nothing like that.”

  “Your construct demolished it before I could study it,” Xander said, his fear turning to anger in spite of the pistol in his side. “And I have nothing to gain from destroying your ship or crew.”

  “I have nothing at all, save my life and my spell books, which you saved for me,” Xander reminded him. “My home, my research, my wealth… it’s all gone! And what’s worse is that I owe you my life, although I’m beginning to wonder if it’s worth it.

  “The truth, Captain Silvercloud,” Xander continued, though he spoke Dexter’s name with emphasis, “is that when you drop me off at the next port I’ll have to start from nothing and rebuild everything I’ve had. I’ll have to perform parlor tricks to earn a meal and scrape together what coins I can in the hopes of one day reestablishing myself. And then I’ll have to worry about finding a way to pay you back one day for saving me.”

  He paused and stared up at Dexter, the shock now missing. “Now either let me up or kill me, Captain. Either one would be appreciated.”

  Dexter stared at him for a long moment, considering the wizard. Finally he consented and lowered the hammer slowly on his pistol. He straightened and held out his hand to Xander. “Think you’d have been able to figure out what that thing was or where it came from if Keshira hadn’t mashed it up so bad?”

  Xander’s eyes narrowed suspiciously, but he accepted Dexter�
��s offered hand anyhow. He let the man help pull him upright and then rubbed his back where it had bitten into the table. “Perhaps,” he offered. “I’m not familiar with anything with tentacles though, as your crew described it. Creatures are not my primary interest, although I have dabbled some in them.”

  “What is your interest?” Dexter asked.

  “Magic,” Xander said with a shrug. “Instilling it into whatever I can and making it last. Extra-dimensionality, for example, or making the sounds of a bell ring more clearly.”

  Dexter raised an eyebrow. “Extra what?”

  “Dimensionality… remember what remained of my tower? It seemed larger on the inside than it was from without, that’s an extra-dimensional effect.”

  “Oh,” Dexter said, pretending it made sense. “Wait, you mean you can make an area bigger on the inside than it really is?”

  “Well, that’s a simplistic way of saying it, but with enough time and effort, it’s possible. It can require special thaumaturgic materials as well,” Xander explained.

  “Thauma-what?”

  “Metals, powders, jewels, and other items that can be imbued with magical properties,” Xander explained with an aloof smile.

  “Huh, well that’s something then,” Dexter offered. He gave Xander a brief smile then said, “might just find a use for you after all.”

  Xander’s smile faded as Dexter turned away and opened the door. He stood there, trying to come up with something witty or justifying but the door shut behind the Captain instead.

  * * * *

  Jenna pounced on Dexter as he passed her cabin on the way to the ship’s bow. “Dex- Captain, can I…can we talk?”

  Dexter slowed as she fell in behind him. He frowned a little but let it pass. “What do we need to talk about?”

  She was silent a moment, allowing them to pass the cargo holds and come closer to the ship’s bow. “About Kragor…and Xander.”