The Inner Seas Kingdoms: 05 - Journey to Uniontown

by Jeffrey Quyle

  He kept watching the spot on the water, waiting for the cautious Viathin to arise, when suddenly there were shouts from below and bellows from behind, and Kestrel swiveled to see a monster rise up along the side of the ship. The scaly head rose over the side of the ship and its jaws fixed on a stationary crewman, then it jerked backwards and dragged its victim downward within a mere fraction of a second, leaving the stunned crew scrambling to belatedly grab swords and pikes and weapons to protect themselves.

  Kestrel twisted his neck to look back at the other spot in the sea, the one that he had expected the monster to arise from, and saw that it was unchanged, still dark and troubled waters, yet somehow the monster had not arisen there.

  A new round of shouts arose on the side of the ship, and Kestrel drew back his bow again. A monster rose up from the water, moving fast, and Kestrel fired off a hurried shot that hit the monster in the snout as Kestrel quickly pulled another arrow and shot again, while the monster was swiftly withdrawing from the vicinity of the ship. His second shot bounced off the top of the Viathin’s skull, and then the monster was gone.

  Kestrel pulled out a third arrow, ready to shoot, while he heard the voice if their new passenger, the messenger from Seafare, call out, “Why are the masters attacking us? We are loyal to their orders!”

  “You may be, but we’re not,” Kestrel heard an unidentified crewman growl. “We want to kill the ugly monsters!”

  “What?” Kestrel heard the messenger scream, and then the water erupted in the front of the ship and the monster was directly in front of them. The helmsman instinctively wrenched the wheel, altering the course of the ship, and causing Kestrel to grab for the mast to maintain his position, and missing a chance to shoot at the Viathin, as it crashed into the front of the ship, causing the hull to shudder.

  Kestrel let go of the mast and fired off a shot as he started to fall, then reached up and halted his plunge. The ship shuddered again as the sea monster reacted to Kestrel’s shot that went into its open mouth and pinned its tongue; the monster rose up off the prow where its head rested, making the ship rock further, and Kestrel fired another effective shot that hit it in the eye, then he lost his place and threw his bow aside as he began to fall.

  Kestrel reached for a passing rope, grabbed it and changed the trajectory of his plummet so that he headed towards the surface of the sea. Things were happening quickly, and he had a glimpse of the injured monster weakly struggling away from the ship, staying on the surface as it awkwardly moved through the water.

  Kestrel pulled his sword from the scabbard on his hip while he was still falling towards the water. He landed on the sea’s surface with his legs churning, and he started running towards the wounded Viathin, which was on the far side of the ship. There was a cheer from the side of the ship as the crew lined the railing and saw Kestrel flying across the surface of the water.

  And then a sudden eruption occurred. It was around Kestrel, on all sides. It was underneath him. It was a sudden roiling of the water and he was thrown off-balance, then suddenly he was off his feet, and surrounded by darkness in a hot, humid malodorous chamber that was as pitch black as a cavern. He bounced off something hard, then off something soft, and swallowed a mouthful of seawater as he was knocked and moved and shaken relentlessly. The inexplicable chamber shook, and knocked him halfway senseless as his head struck something hard again, then he was suddenly engulfed in a tight, constricted cocoon that pushed and twisted and squeezed him.

  The air was terrible, full of noxious fumes, and then there was no air, as the soft sides of the cavern pressed against him, and to his horror Kestrel realized that he was being swallowed whole by a monster Viathin. There had been two of them seemingly, one that he had fought as it had actively attacked the boat, and one that had waited in ambush. It had succeeded in ambushing him, catching him unaware.

  Kestrel felt his own bile rise in his throat at the thought of being eaten by one of the monsters, only his fears were interrupted as the tight constrictions around him suddenly relaxed and he dropped into an open spot, one with both shallow fluid that he knelt in and more of the toxic air that he inhaled deeply, then coughed out relentlessly.

  He tried to stand, but his head struck the roof of flesh above him before he even rose to waist height. The flesh below him quivered in a wave of activity, and he felt himself propelled backwards, further into the stomach of the creature.

  This was not how he was going to die, by the names of all the gods he knew, he vowed to himself. He was not going to be beaten and eaten by a monster; he was not going to be denied his chance to defeat all of the Viathins, to overcome Uniontown. He was not going to be denied his chance to see Moorin again, to tell her that he loved her, to kidnap her if he had to, as a way to prevent her from marrying Ruelin.

  There was a wrenching in his soul, and he knew that his strong emotions had unleashed the power that lay within him, the dormant divine energy that Kai had shared with him. Instinctively, he spread his legs and his hands wide to stabilize his position within the monster, then closed his eyes and clamped his mouth shut, as he felt the energy build and release around him, exploding in all directions in a powerful eruption that burst the Viathin apart from within.

  The monster was underwater, and Kestrel was suddenly inundated with the cold seawater. He opened his eyes, and saw the dark, murky, blood-tainted water of the sea contaminated with the remains of the monster’s flesh all around him, making his eyes sting, but overhead was a dim glow, the direction that the sun, and air, and freedom lay in, and he stroked upwards towards the surface.

  Kestrel took a deep draught of air, fresh, clean sea air that filled his lungs with blessed relief, then fell back beneath the surface momentarily. He rose again and wiped the water from his eyes. He felt exhausted. He saw the ship nearby, and shouted loudly, as loudly as he could, then lay on his back and floated to rest for a minute. He raised his head and saw a small launch being lowered down the side of the ship, and he gave a sigh of relief, then gave another shout for help to give his rescuers a direction to move towards.

  He was spent. His body was limp and his mind was empty. He floated weakly on the surface of the water, waiting in a state of only half-consciousness until the dinghy pulled alongside and men’s strong arms grabbed him and pulled him onboard, and then he passed out.

  Chapter 6 – Return to Seafare

  Kestrel awoke the next day in a hammock stretched on the main deck of the ship. It was late afternoon, and his body that wasn’t protected by the divine tattoo was sunburned from the day’s exposure to the sunlight at sea; he lay naked and exposed in the hammock, with a crewman sitting next to him to keep an eye on him. He was groggy as he awoke, and didn’t really perceive that he was gaining consciousness until the solicitous crewman gently touched his shoulder.

  “Sir?” the man spoke in response to Kestrel’s moans. “Sir, everything’s alright now sir,” the man said reassuringly.

  Kestrel opened his eyes, and looked around wildly for a moment, his consciousness trying to reconcile dreams of foulness and beauty, monsters and Moorin.

  “We’re alright sir. We’re right on course for Seafare, so we are,” the crewman said. “Would you care for a drink of water?” he asked, holding up a wooden mug.

  Kestrel took the mug and greedily drank the water, slopping some across his cheeks and chin as he sat up with the mug held to his lips. He winced as he felt his skin inflict its pain upon him, the pain that resulted from his sunburn.

  “Why am I naked?” he asked as he handed the mug back to the man.

  “Well, begging your pardon sir, but you smelled so awful we couldn’t put you in a cabin. No one could stand to be around you. And your clothes stank so bad we just chucked them overboard,” the man explained.

  And with that colorful reminder, Kestrel suddenly recollected all that had happened to him.

  “Thank you Kai,” he softly whispered. “I remember now, the monster swallowed me.”

  “It did! It
did!” his caretaker agreed, and others nodded their heads as the crew rapidly gathered around.

  “We all saw it! We did! That thing swallowed you right up and took you down with it!

  “And then there was an explosion and a flash, and blood and flesh, and you were floating in the middle of it!

  “What happened down there?” the comments and questions rained in from all sides.

  “I,” Kestrel tried to find the right way to explain something so incredible, “the goddess’s power blew the monster apart, and I floated to the surface.

  “The other monster, did it die?” he asked.

  “Yes, we think it did. It floated along, then went limp and still, then it sank,” someone said.

  “Clear out now, you lot. Isn’t there enough work to do on this ship?” the acting captain came pressing through the crowd to Kestrel, dispersing the circle of men around him.

  “You’re quite an amazing person, my lord,” the officer spoke with great deference to Kestrel. “No one will ever believe half the stories the crew’s going to tell folks back in port!”

  “What day is it?” Kestrel asked. “How long have I been sleeping?”

  “The battle with the monsters was just yesterday. You’ve slept for more than a day,” the man answered.

  “And you have the messenger safely held captive?” Kestrel confirmed.

  “No,” the officer paused. “When he saw you get eaten by the monster he cheered, and then a spar accidentally fell out of a crewman’s hand and crushed his skull. We fed him to the sharks yesterday evening.”

  Kestrel grinned. “Accidents happen. Do you have a pair of pants I can borrow?

  “If we don’t have to worry about the messenger delivering his call for war to Uniontown, I’m going to ask the imps to take me back to Seafare,” he was already thinking about returning to see Moorin after being away from her for three days.

  “If you want to go, I can’t imagine there’s anything any of us could do to stop you,” the officer grinned. “Jenkins?” he called to a crewman, “Go fetch a pair of pants for our guest.”

  The man ran off and returned within seconds, bringing a plain black pair of pants that Kestrel pulled on, grimacing as the cloth rubbed over his burned thighs. He found men standing nearby holding his weapons for him.

  “It’s been a thrill to see you in action, my lord,” a man told him as he handed Kestrel his bow. “We’re on our way back to Graylee now; we’ve had good winds ever since the battle, and it’s carried us a good ways.”

  “Thank you all for making a dangerous journey on my behalf. You’ve helped save many lives with what we’ve done,” Kestrel told them. “You have my thanks.

  “Stillwater,” he called, and the imp arrived immediately.

  “”Do you look that way on purpose?” the imp asked as he surveyed Kestrel’s motley appearance.

  “I thought I ought to put on pants before I called Odare to come carry me,” Kestrel answered.

  “You’re a wise elf, Kestrel thinker,” Stillwater agreed. “You’re ready to go somewhere?”

  “Back to the palace at Seafare,” Kestrel answered.

  Seconds later the other imps arrived.

  “Given the outfits you wore sometimes, I’m not sure this is such a bad thing,” Odare spoke loudly as she floating in an observant circle around her elf companion.

  “He wishes to return to the palace at Seafare,” Stillwater spoke.

  “We better take him to a closet,” Odare said in a stage whisper, “so he can get some clothes worthy of the palace.”

  The four imps converged upon Kestrel simultaneously, as though on some unspoken order, and then the group disappeared from the deck of the captured Uniontown ship.

  Chapter 7 – Kidnapped at Seafare

  Kestrel arrived back in a guest suite in the Seafare palace, the same room he had awoken in after his soul had been restored to his body; he thanked the imps for their service in transporting him, then bid them farewell. There was a small pile of belongings stacked on a table, and Kestrel saw a water skin, one that he hoped held water from the healing spring. He took a sip of the water, then carefully slid his borrowed pants off and slopped some of the water on his sunburned skin.

  As he finished dousing the sore limbs, the door started to open without so much as a knock, and Kestrel quickly picked up his pants to cover himself. The visitor turned out to be Wren, who gasped, then smiled.

  “Well, this is awkward,” she said. “I suppose I should apologize, but I’m enjoying your discomfort too much.

  “You’re back, I see,” she said, and then her expression changed. “Oh Kestrel! Seeing you made me forget for a second! Get dressed, hurry, and give me that water skin – that’s what I came here looking for.”

  “Forget what? What’s wrong?” Kestrel asked as he moved over to the bed and pulled a cover up in front of himself, then threw the skin of water to his cousin and pulled on his pants.

  “Do you have a shirt? No? Well never mind, just come on, we can talk as we go,” Wren urged, as she opened the door and stood impatiently.

  “What’s happened? Why do you need the healing water? Is it Moorin? Is she hurt?” Kestrel asked as he came around the bed to catch up with her.

  “Yes and no,” Wren answered as she strode down the hall. “There are injured guards. Moorin’s not injured, as far as we know,” she said, “but she’s been kidnapped! And so has the skin of water from Decimindion!”

  Kestrel grabbed Wren, wheeling her around to face him. “What?” he shouted.

  “Three days ago, right here in the palace, right after you left, a group of men in Seafare uniforms slaughtered several guards; there were a series of battles. They grabbed Moorin and they grabbed the skin of water of Decimindion, and then they disappeared,” Wren said matter-of-factly.

  “The palace was in an uproar. A day later, we found one of the attacking men who was wounded, down in the basement, in a secret tunnel that was discovered. The tunnel led to the home of the Uniontown ambassador, the one you killed a few days ago,” she explained. “Inside the embassy the search found the discarded uniforms, and signs of a hasty departure.

  “The harbor master reports that a ship did leave the port in great haste. Now come on,” she urged, and started walking rapidly down the hall again.

  “Is there pursuit of the ship?” Kestrel asked.

  “It began immediately as soon as we found out, but that was a day later, the day before yesterday, and the ship that Ruelin sent out came limping back into port this morning after striking a rock in the river channel. They tried to sail at night to make up time and they lost their way in the darkness,” she explained.

  The pair turned into a doorway that proved to lead to a makeshift medical ward, where several injured warriors were lying in bunks. Wren carefully weighed the water skin in her hands, then started going along the line of the wounded, dispensing a small amount of water to each of the men.

  “So what happens now?” Kestrel asked.

  “Ruelin is in council with his advisors discussing that right now; it was boring, so I came to look for your healing water to help these men,” she told him as she gave the last sip of the water.

  “The injured kidnapper said they’re taking her back to Uniontown,” Wren told Kestrel. “They are going to sacrifice her and Decimindion’s water in a ceremony that will give them control of the world,” she watched his face carefully, and saw it turn white.

  “Stillwater!” Kestrel called. “Stillwater!” he nearly screamed angrily.

  “What are we going to do?” Wren asked her cousin.

  “I’m going to go save her. You’re going to make Ruelin put together an army to prepare for war against them,” he replied. “Stillwater!” he called again, just as the imp arrived.

  “Kestrel impatient friend!” the imp answered, “what causes your voice to beat so relentlessly against my ears?”

  “I need you to take me to Center Trunk, immediately,” Kestrel replied. “Cal
l the others to come.”

  Kestrel, why Center Trunk? That’s far out of the way,” Wren replied.

  “Not for me; it’s the only way I can do this,” he answered. “How many more days can you carry me, before the winter time comes?” he asked his imp friend.

  “It is only two days away,” Odare answered as she arrived.

  Kestrel shook his head. “What day will the Viathins try to carry out this ceremony?” he asked Wren.

  “Unfortunately, the captive died of his wounds before we got any further information,” Wren told him.

  “Good luck,” Kestrel told her, his mind racing far ahead as he began to plan his next steps. “Take me to see Alicia,” he ordered, and then he and the imps were gone, leaving Wren to stand in astonishment at his abrupt decisiveness.

  Chapter 8 – Into the Dark Lands

  Kestrel arrived in Alicia’s bedroom once again, and the room was empty. The sky outside was turning red, as the sun set below the western horizon.

  Kestrel opened the door, startling a guard who was passing in the hall.

  “Who are you and what are you doing in there?” the man demanded.

  “I’m the Warden of the Marches and I’m looking for Alicia,” Kestrel snapped. “If you know where she is, tell me. Otherwise, move along.”

  The guard bristled, then his mouth gaped open as the imps came floating out of the room.

  “Do you know where she is?” Kestrel asked again.

  “She went upstairs to see Silvan,” the man stammered, then watched as Kestrel ran down the hall and up the stairs, two steps at a time, the quartet of imps around him.

  “Why are we here Kestrel? What is so upsetting to the elf friend of our homeland?” Killcen asked.

  “The Uniontown forces have kidnapped Moorin, and they’re taking her to Uniontown,” Kestrel answered as he continued to climb the stairs two at a time.