The Tempest Sea

by Robin D. Mahle

  “You have the agreed-upon amount?” The first man asked the general.

  General Noble handed over several jangling purses. The man weighed them in his hand, then peeked inside to be sure. Finally, he led our party to an adjacent room. He kicked aside a rug and pulled up a section of the floor to reveal an uneven stone staircase carved into the stony ground. I glanced uncertainly at Xavier. He was huge, towering over his adopted father and every other man in the room, but one misstep and we would both be seriously injured.

  On the other hand, there was no way I was getting down those stairs myself, so I gritted my teeth and forced my eyes to stay open, refusing to display any apprehension. I couldn’t stop the tremor in my hands, though, as I was once again forced to descend into a dimly-lit, damp space.

  And what will happen once we get to the bottom? Are they taking me down here for some creepy ritual sacrifice ceremony?

  My blood ran cold.

  No. I couldn’t think that way. I tried to focus on something else, like the fact that the air was at least minimally cooler down here.

  Men went before and after us. When most of the dozen men with us were on the stairs, I heard an odd grunting sound from behind us.

  Curious and eager to distract myself, I tried to peek around Xavier for the source.

  “Don’t look,” he told me, shifting his weight to block my view.

  He was too late. I had already seen the blood trickling in rivulets down the stairs before they wrenched the heavy door shut. The two men in the back wiped their daggers clean of the fresh blood before sheathing them.

  I swallowed and closed my eyes briefly. I focused on taking deep, subtle breaths, though they were shakier than I would have liked.

  Five. I will not be stuck in the dark forever.

  Four. They will not see that they scare me.

  Three. Xavier may not care for me, but he loves his brothers. Would he really alienate them by taking part in my murder?

  Two. Then again, maybe they would never know. Or care. This is not helping.

  One. Locke always says, all you can control is yourself. I will not let fear overtake me. I am stronger than this.

  I opened my eyes to find Xavier examining me by the glowing illumination coming from evenly-spaced fixtures on the wall. I steeled my expression, daring him with my eyes to comment on the moment of weakness he had witnessed. He didn’t. He only swallowed and averted his gaze.

  No one spoke as we descended countless steps. Any attempt at speech would have been impossible to hear over the roaring sound that got louder the further we went. At long last, a beam of light crept from a small entry point ahead. Water fell in a heavy sheet, obscuring the view beyond the cave.

  I gasped.

  We were underneath the Ever Falls. The stair finally ended and opened up into a cave, the far side of which gaped open with cascading water enclosing it instead of a rock wall. In the corner, between the vertical, rushing water and the solid rock, hung what looked like a steel cage, large enough for at least five adults. It was suspended in the air using a solid wire cable anchored into the cage wall. The cable extended out past the waterfall.

  The top and bottom of the cage were solid, but the middle was made of steel netting. The side facing us had a door built into it. Noble gestured to the cage.

  Surely not.

  “We’ll need to make a few trips,” the general said.

  Half of the men remained behind us, the cave landing not spacious enough to hold fifteen adults. I could only hope Jethro was in that group. The general pointed to the three men closest to the front, then at Xavier.

  The metal was surprisingly cool against my skin when Xavier placed me gently on the bench in the cage. There was a mechanism in the center like a teeter totter with handles, and a bench outlined the circular structure. Six handlebars were built into the bench. Xavier followed after me, then the three men, and finally, the general. I was in between Xavier and one of the masked men, separated only by the handles on either side of me.

  The general shut the door securely, then directed two of the men to begin.

  The two sitting on either side of the teeter totter pumped it down in turn, and the cage jarred along its line.

  Are we going further down the chasm?

  This had to be dangerous. Zeppelins couldn’t cross the Ever Falls because of gusting winds. That might be mitigated somewhat inside the chasm, but it hardly seemed wise to face them in a steel egg supported by only a flimsy wire.

  The force of the waterfall alone would likely derail us. I held my breath as we jolted along, clenching the handhold with my right hand. Just before we reached the waterfall, a steel canopy slid into place, dispersing the stream to either side of the cage. And then we were out, and my jaw dropped, unbidden.

  The wire stretched out as far as I could see toward the other side of the world. I realized we weren’t going down at all.

  We’re crossing the Falls.

  Every ounce of blood drained from my face. There was an endless abyss beneath us, and I hadn’t been wrong about the wind. The prospect of the ride across wasn’t nearly as terrifying as the realization that no one would know where we had gone. All this time, I had held onto the sure knowledge that whatever his faults, my father would move heaven and earth to retrieve me. But even the Director and his considerable influence couldn’t follow me here.

  My heart sank. A gust of wind blew through the cage. The reason for the design was evident now. We would still be shaken by gales that caught us at just the right angle, but at least we were likely to survive the trek. My stomach didn’t seem to care, though. We were only moments into our shaky ride when I bent at the waist and emptied my stomach.

  They all cringed away from me. The endless drop from a rickety contraption hadn’t fazed them, but my emptying the contents of my stomach had even the general readjusting his boots. A small surge of satisfaction ran through me at the sight of the vomit-splattered shoes of my captors. A tiny, unintentional revenge was better than no retribution at all.

  I looked out the mesh part of the cage, trying to calm my stomach and breathe in the fresh air. The view of the water cascading into nothingness was awe-inspiring. Tears burned my eyes, but not from the beauty of it. I was finally here, at the Ever Falls, this place I had dreamed of seeing since I was a girl.

  And all of it was so, so wrong. Ami wasn’t here to see it with me. I was a captive, and I was seriously beginning to doubt whether I would remain alive long enough to return to this place. There was no closure or sense of completion or anything but stone-cold disappointment.

  I could reach through the cage and spread the remnants of Amelie’s ashes from my locket.

  I wasn’t prepared for the pang that went through me at the thought. If I did that, I would be well and truly alone on the other side of the world.

  No. I will come back here, I vowed. On my terms.

  I wasn’t ready to relinquish the last remnants of my sister yet. I let the locket fall down my wrist into my hand and squeezed it in my palm, not caring when the tiny, sharp gears dug into my skin. It gave me the strength I needed to firmly paste on my heiress mask and face the rest of this ordeal with what little dignity I had left.

  The Protector

  Xavier’s blade clanged against Clark’s while Gunther worked on a project in the corner. Father was at some highbrow event. Fortunately, he never made his boys suffer through what he insisted was worse than a war zone.

  Neither had the advantage in this spar, and Xav was getting hungry. He smirked.

  “Had enough?” Xav asked Clark.

  As he had predicted, the words were enough to incite Clark’s legendary temper. His younger brother lunged at him and left a tiny opening. Xav took it and had his blade at Clark’s neck in an instant.

  “Do you yield?” Xav asked calmly.

  Clark spat out a curse before conceding.

  “Fantastic. That means I get the last meat pie.” Xavier took off for the house, and Clark was
quick at his heels.

  “Like hell!” Clark shouted.

  Gunther overtook them both, though, darting into the kitchen and snagging the meat pie in question.

  “Victor!” he shouted. “This is what you get for thinking I’m not paying attention,” he said, taking a large bite.

  Xavier laughed, and Clark joined him. It wasn’t the first time Gunther had gotten one over on them. Xav rummaged around the kitchen for something else to eat. Clark sat expectantly at the table.

  Technically, each of them had been taught the basics of cooking. Somehow, though, Xav had become the de facto chef in their household when Father wasn’t around. Gunther could cook, but he had a tendency toward distraction, always insisting on having several projects going at once. After a while, they got tired of hearing the smoke alarm go off.

  And Clark just wheedled his way out of it every chance he got. Xavier could hardly complain, as he was an enabler. The truth, not that he would admit it to his brothers, was that he enjoyed cooking. It was calming after a day of training or the tumultuous life of medicine.

  So, he made dinner while he joked with his brothers until Father came home to join them as well. The four of them stayed up late, laughing and talking. Xav realized that, for all their travels, there was nowhere else in the world he would rather be.

  Chapter Seven

  CLARK

  “It’s okay that you’re worried about her, you know. Or that you… miss her?” Gunther leaned against the railing next to me, watching me curse the gently-waving waters. We had been making decent time for the past week, but it wasn’t fast enough.

  “Who?” I feigned ignorance.

  He leveled a look at me, and I caved.

  “I barely know her.”

  “From what I saw of Addie, you probably know her as well as anyone does. I liked her,” Gunther said. “Like,” he corrected himself.

  “You may have been right the first time,” I muttered darkly. The stormy skies in the distance mirrored my mood. The more I thought about what the Court was capable of, the less I started to believe we would find either of them alive.

  “I don’t believe Xav would have led them to their deaths. He’s the best fighter amongst us. If they were in danger, I’m sure he’d find a way to get them out.”

  Mocking laughter sounded behind us. I turned, and Gunther followed my lead.

  “You really know nothing about the Court, do you? Ironic, considering. Suffice it to say, if they want someone dead, even the mighty Xavier won't be able to stop that from happening. If he would even try.”

  “Who let you off your leash, Jayce?” I tried not to show the effect his words had on me.

  “He had to use the head,” Locke’s deep voice sounded as he came up behind Jayce. As soon as we had boarded the boat, he had reverted to naval jargon. “And now, he’s finished. Let’s go.” He grabbed Jayce’s good arm and steered him back toward the stairs.

  “Wait!” Gunther shouted.

  We all turned to face my brother. I raised my eyebrow at him, but his eyes were locked on Jayce.

  “What did you mean when you said it was ironic, considering? Considering what?” Gunther asked him.

  The condescending gleam never left Jayce’s eyes.

  “Considering your dear daddy is their leader these days.”

  I froze, too stunned to even react. Jayce gave an exaggerated yawn.

  “Come along, Warden,” he told Locke. “I’m ready to get back to my cell now.”

  “Like hell,” I said, finally coming out of my stupor. “Explain. Now.”

  “Funny, your brother looks shocked all-around, but you don’t look as surprised as I would expect. Someone’s been keeping secrets.”

  I felt more than saw Gunther’s stare. I hadn’t told him I suspected our father was alive because I hadn’t wanted to get his hopes up before I had more information, but now wasn’t the time to explain that. Jayce wasn’t finished, anyway.

  “Though I guess secret-keeping runs in the family. Hell, even I didn’t know Xavy was working with your father. Enough of that, though. If you want information, I want to stay on the deck during the day.”

  “Or I could just agree not to throw you overboard,” I countered.

  “Let’s not make idle threats, Clark. We both know you won't destroy your only chance of catching up to them. My limited freedom in exchange for three answers.”

  I looked to Locke, barely able to see straight through the furious red clouding my vision. He gave an almost imperceptible nod.

  “Two hours a day,” I said. “Nonconsecutive.” I didn’t trust myself not to stab him if he was up here for any longer than that.

  “Three.”

  “Two,” Gunther said flatly. “And three answers every day.”

  My chest swelled with a mixture of gratitude and guilt. He was always supporting me, whether I deserved it or not. I should have told him the truth from the outset.

  “Fine,” Jayce shrugged his shoulders, as though the number had never mattered to him. Throwing him overboard was sounding more appealing by the second. He leaned against the mast, and Locke backed up a couple of paces.

  “What do you want to know?” Jayce asked.

  “Who are the Court of Yomi?” Gunther asked.

  “Really? That’s what you want to know?”

  We both glared at him.

  “Very well. King Yomi of Levelia had a plan for the rest of the world, but his sister, Hila, thwarted it. A group of his generals formed the Court of Yomi to take back what was rightfully theirs. Those plans have taken some time to see through.”

  “Levelia?” Gunther asked.

  “Correct.”

  “What does my father have to do with any of this?” I questioned.

  “Everything. Yomi told us we would know his return by a display of the great power of Levelia. There was more in there, of course, but the signs were clear. Your father is the second coming of King Yomi. He’s going to lead us back to Levelia.”

  I blinked several times. This is perfect. Our only source of intel is completely insane. Jayce looked as though he truly believed what he was saying, but even if I were to make a leap, it didn’t add up. My level-headed, practical, war general of a father was not the type of man to run around thinking he was the reincarnation of a long-dead king. I didn’t even know what to say.

  “What do you care about getting to Levelia? You’re Ceithren,” Gunther said.

  “Sorry, boys, that was all three questions.

  “No, it was only two –”

  “It’s hardly my fault if your brother wasted one on clarification. Kindly leave me to enjoy my sunbathing.””

  I glanced up at the cloudy sky and rolled my eyes. I would gladly leave him, though. I needed to talk to Nell anyway.

  Nell hadn’t had many insights, except to comment that it made sense now why they wanted the necklace so badly. Not just for its raw power, but because it could lead them to Levelia. She mentioned that if we had a lesser crystal, we could track the amulet from a short distance. Not that it mattered, since we had no way of obtaining one. Apparently, the crystal in her teleport bracelet had limited uses.

  She did educate us on the ways of Levelian society, mostly because we didn’t have much else to pass our time. She explained that it was actually YoMi, but they had dropped that over time. The pronunciation didn’t change. Her own name was technically spelled PeNelope, which Gunther found endlessly fascinating. He questioned her about every nuance of her world. I will admit, I wasn’t quite as interested, and tended to doze off during these long knowledge exchanges.

  I couldn’t get too close to Nell’s bed without Shensi biting me anyway, though she had no such inclination with my brother. Of course not.

  The days passed, and we didn’t manage to get much useful information out of Jayce. Locke questioned him about what they wanted with Addie, and Gunther questioned him about our father, but he mostly repeated the same things in an increasingly irritating manner. Even N
ell asked a couple of questions about what he wanted with Levelia, but his answers to that were always vague and unhelpful.

  I was the only one who hadn’t questioned him again. I wasn’t sure I wanted the answers to my questions.

  Did Xavier betray us for Father? Had he known the truth all along? And the worst one. Had my father ordered my death that day in the warehouse?

  I had at least managed to apologize to Gunther. He was predictably understanding, and it only made me feel worse. Still, it was nice to have no secrets between us again. I used to think that was how it would always be between my brothers and me, but now I wondered how long Xav had been living a double life.

  Those cheery thoughts kept me company until Gyomatsu Island loomed blurry on the horizon. We were all standing on the deck in anticipation of landing.

  Locke looked to Jayce. “Where will they be? On what side should we dock?”

  Jayce’s answering chuckle set my teeth on edge. “Oh, you didn’t think they were staying here, did you?”

  My sword was at his throat before I could consciously recall drawing it. “Jayce, I swear to whoever is listening, if you have led us out of the way —”

  “Always so high strung, Clark. I didn’t say we weren’t going the right way, just that they didn’t stay here.”

  “Where else would they have gone?” I asked through gritted teeth, not moving my blade.

  “They crossed the Ever Falls.” The answer didn’t come from Jayce. I looked to my brother, who had spoken. His face had gone even paler than usual.

  “That’s not possible,” I said. “The bridge is gone. We were there when Father destroyed it.”

  Gunther didn’t respond, but Locke spoke up.

  “There have always been rumors about another way across.” Locke looked to Jayce. “The question stands. Where do we head from here?”

  “I have no idea how to get across. That information was shared only between the Elders and Master Yomi.” Jayce’s voice held nothing but reverence. Odd for someone hell-bent on revenge.