The Black Shard

by Victoria Simcox

  Kristina's eyes narrowed and a vengeful smirk formed on her face. It was those few words Werrien had spoken that triggered the feisty spirit in her. She stood up, about to push him in the water, but just as she was moving toward him to do so, she heard directly above them, on the main deck of the ship, Hester and Davina talking with Elzwur.

  "Why do we have to go with you?" Hester's complaining voice could be heard saying.

  "Listen clearly this time. The Brinewine brothers are far too busy today to take you," Elzwur answered in a seemingly patient voice. His tone with Hester surprised Kristina, for he had been nothing but grouchy to her, and she hadn't even been snippety with him, like Hester was obviously being.

  "I've got an idea," Davina said enthusiastically. "How about Hester and I go with Werrien and Kristina?"

  Hearing this, Werrien frowned, and he shook his head in a definite no. Then he quietly placed the oars in the water and began gently rowing toward the other side of the ship.

  "Are you kidding?" Hester said in a disgusted tone.

  "Actually, Kristina and I are getting long amazingly now—even though she talked my ear off last night, when all I wanted to do was get away from her boring on-and-on ranting and raving about Werrien."

  "Whatever," Hester said, sighing and rolling her eyes.

  Werrien and Kristina didn't hear Davina's last comment because they were already out of earshot.

  Having had enough of Davina and Hester already and in no mood to take the two of them anyway, Elzwur agreed to let Davina and Hester go with Werrien and Kristina.

  Davina had seen Werrien in his boat earlier on, and she raced to the edge of the ship to tell him the good news that Hester and she would be going along with him and Kristina. But when she looked over the edge of the ship she couldn't see the rowboat anywhere. "Where did he go?" she yammered loudly.

  "They're probably already on their way as we speak," Elzwur said. "Now if you'd be so kind as to follow me, I will take you to the boat that we will be boarding, so we can get a move on as well."

  Werrien rowed the boat north. "See the island ahead of us?" he said to Kristina. She looked ahead and did see a small island, wobbling in the waves of heat, about a mile away in the distance.

  "Is that where you're taking me?"

  "Yes. It's called Finimus Island. On most of our journeys to Tezerel, we stop here and visit it. It makes for a nice break in our sailing trips."

  Kristina stared out at the clear aqua-blue sea, listening to the sound of the oars softly treading through the water, and she thought about how perfect a sunny day it was and how happy she was being back with Werrien. While relishing in the moment, she suddenly felt Werrien's eyes fixed on her, and a dry lump filled her throat. Her thoughts directed her back to the way she had looked in the vanity mirror the night before. He's probably thinking how horrible I look, she thought. Embarrassed, she quickly turned toward him, about to say something, but then she noticed that he was actually looking past her. Relieved, she turned to see what it was he was looking at. She couldn't see anything out of the norm. "What are you looking at?" she asked.

  Werrien stopped rowing, still gazing intently past her at the surface of the sea. "I thought I saw something swimming, not far behind the boat," he said.

  "What do you think it was?"

  "It may have been a turtle." He picked up the oars and as he began rowing again, Kristina panned the sea, looking for any signs of a turtle.

  "I think I see something," she said.

  Werrien stopped rowing and looked past her, at the surface of the water. "You do? I don't see anything." He picked up the oars again.

  "Wait—don't row yet. I just saw it again," Kristina whispered loudly. She turned and looked at Werrien, the sun making her eyes the same color as the aqua sea. "Maybe if you come over here, where I am, you'll be able to see it as well."

  Werrien gently placed the oars down and discreetly made his way to the front of the boat where Kristina was now crouched with her back toward him. She pointed directly out in front of her at the sea.

  "There it is. Do you see it now?" she whispered, glancing at Werrien out of the corner of her eye.

  As Werrien crouched down and scrupulously studied the sea's surface, Kristina decided to finish what she had started, before she had heard Hester and Davina talking above them on the ship. Kristina pushed Werrien, and taken off guard, he went head-first overboard—quickly disappearing under the boat.

  Nervous and excited at the same time, Kristina hastily went to sit on the bench in the middle of the rowboat, wondering what Werrien would do to her when he surfaced.

  Ten seconds went by, and he was nowhere to be seen. Then fifteen seconds went by—then twenty. Restlessly, Kristina bit her fingernail, the seconds seeming like minutes. Twenty-five seconds—then thirty passed. A warm breeze blew at the rowboat, shifting it sideways. Thirty-five seconds, then forty. The breeze turned into a wind and spun the boat counter clockwise.

  Kristina stood up and looked all around the rippling sea surrounding the rowboat. Sixty seconds had now passed, and still there was no sign of Werrien.

  - 19 -

  Tensor

  Back inside the cave, the serpent was in high spirits, savoring the fact that all of its plans were falling neatly into place. With its spiny little hands at the end of its leathery wings, the bat very cautiously held out a glass vile filled with a florescent-green, bubbling potion toward the serpent.

  "I revel in the fact that this world will not much longer be the fatted lazy calf that it has resorted to being," the serpent gloated.

  Eagerly agreeing with the serpent, the bat grinned from ear to ear, its eyes bulging enthusiastically. Then the bat began to laugh excitedly, and a tiny bit of the potion dribbled out of the top of the vile.

  "Hold it still, you dim-witted fool!" the serpent snarled.

  The bat gulped nervously as it regained control of its emotions and steadied its jittery hands.

  "I hope you know that this potion has different ratios of the substances than that of the formula the insect made. Are you sure that you took the right amount from the Aurum sap?"

  "Yes, and again, the remainder of the Aurum sap is safe in the back of the cave, where you told me to put it," the bat assured the serpent.

  "Good, very good," the serpent hissed softly. "And the juice from the Efah fungus—is it safe as well?"

  The bat's hands at the end of its wings were beginning to cramp from holding the vile for so long. Impatiently, it rolled its eyes. "Like I told you many times, it is right beside the Aurum sap." Even though the bat's tone was as soft as warm butter, its words implied impatience.

  The serpent's eyes grew wide and through its small scaly nostrils, it sucked in the cave's stale air. "Be very careful how you speak to me, for I could end your pathetic existence in an instant," it said, just before opening its mouth to reveal its sharp fangs.

  The bat's lips quivered as it witnessed two large beads of venom drip from the tips of the serpent's fangs. The drops fell to the ground and splashed the bat's tiny feet, and even though its face shriveled with fear, the bat didn't move as much as a muscle. Then without any warning, the serpent snatched the open vial out of the bat's hands and swallowed it whole. A loud belch was released out of the serpent's mouth, and then green smoke seeped out of the corner of its eyes and nostrils. Right afterward, a foul-smelling wind filled the area. Stricken with fear, the bat flew to the rock wall and attached its body to it, flatting itself out like a pancake. The wind began to form into a tornado, and as it whipped around again and again, it quite suddenly sucked up the serpent into its powerful vortex. The serpent blended into the spinning air, blurring into it. Then an abhorrent ghost-like woman emerged from the top of the vortex. Seeing the woman, the bat laughed with great pleasure.

  ~ ~ ~

  Kristina's heart began to pound and her finicky stomach cramped up again as she viewed THE KRISTINA, now looking very tiny, about a quarter of a mile behind her. The small island was
about three-quarters of a mile ahead of her. Seventy-five seconds had now passed, and there was still no sign of Werrien. What if he hit his head on something and drowned? she thought. It would be my entire fault—I couldn't live with myself. She stood up and glanced around the water surrounding the rowboat. Could it be that he's unconscious and lying on the bottom of the sea?

  A minute and a half had now passed, and Kristina decided that there was definitely no more time to waste in analyzing the situation. She jumped into the water and swam around the boat—once, then twice, and still there was no sign of Werrien. Clouds rolled over the sun, and the wind blew the boat a few yards away from her. She decided to swim the opposite way around it. Through the cloud-darkened, wind-rippled sea she went, and as the salty water splashed in her face, she began to feel extremely scared and angry. She reached the back end of the left side of the rowboat and just as she turned to go to the back, an arm reached out and grabbed her, pulling her in toward the back of the boat. She gasped loudly. It was Werrien, and he pulled her in close to him. His heart was pumping fast. "I guess I got you back," he said, half out of breath.

  Kristina pushed his arm away from her, and she turned to face him. "You guess you got me back!" she repeated angrily, trying not to cry. "I thought you had drowned!" She made her hand into a fist and tried to punch him, but he caught hold of it before she did.

  "Hey! Calm down. I'm really sorry," he said, "but first of all, I'll have you know that I'm far too good of a swimmer to drown that easily. Second, I really wasn't intending on being gone as long as I was."

  Kristina looked at him through watery, red eyes. "Gone so long?" she said while treading water. "Where could you have possibly gone in such a short time?"

  Werrien smiled cautiously. "How about to the island and back."

  "Yeah, right!" Kristina splashed water in his face.

  "I'm dead serious."

  She gave him an annoyed glare.

  "Okay, I used the wrong word. I'm very serious. Is that better?"

  "Yes, that's better. Now explain to me how you got to the island and back in probably less than five minutes," Kristina said, starting to calm down.

  "I—"

  Werrien didn't finish his sentence, because Kristina suddenly blurted out, "Something just brushed up against my leg!" She tried to pull her knees up, but because she was treading water, she couldn't. "Oh ... my gosh! I think it was a shark!"

  Werrien grabbed her arm and turned her around so that her back was facing him. He pulled her close to him and wrapped his arm across her chest. With his other arm he held the back of the boat in place. He could feel her heart thumping at high speed.

  "Shh," he said softly, trying to keep her calm. "It's not a shark."

  "How do you know?" Something large and dark suddenly whizzed through the water directly under them again. "I just felt it again," Kristina winced, drawing her knees up toward her chest.

  "Just stay calm—you'll see why in a few seconds." Werrien leaned his chin down on her shoulder and just as he did so, something almost as long as the rowboat flew up at full force out of the water and into the air a few yards ahead of them. Kristina looked up to see a shiny, light gray dolphin, magnificently flipping in the air. Awestruck, Kristina's eyes trailed its speedy descent back to the water. Then a second before it hit, Werrien quickly put his hand over her eyes to shield them from the large, slapping splash sent directly at their faces. Suddenly, the dolphin ascended again, and this time, with only its upper body out of the water, it began swimming backwards, as if it were putting on a show.

  "Come here, Tensor. I'd like you to meet a friend of mine," Werrien called to the dolphin.

  With pure excitement flowing through her veins, Kristina turned quickly to look at Werrien and then back at the dolphin. Tensor flipped backwards and disappeared again under the water. Kristina's eyes nervously shifted about the sea's choppy surface as she wondered what would happen next. There was silence for a brief moment, and then it was broken by Tensor's upper body ascending out of the water again, about two feet in front of them. Startled, Kristina leaned her head back on Werrien.

  "Hello, Kristina," Tensor said, in a strange, robotic-sounding voice.

  "Hello," Kristina said, slightly apprehensive.

  "Could I have the honor of taking you for a ride?"

  Kristina moved over to be at Werrien's side. "So, I'm guessing that this was how you were able to make it to the island and back so quickly?" she whispered to Werrien.

  "It's a lot of fun," Werrien said, grinning like a little boy.

  "But is it safe?" Kristina whispered, so Tensor wouldn't hear her.

  "I won't go as fast with you as I go with Werrien," Tensor said.

  "How did he hear me?" Kristina whispered to Werrien.

  "He reads minds," Werrien whispered back. "He has a sixth sense."

  "So, I guess there's no need for whispering."

  "I guess not," Werrien whispered back.

  Tensor dipped his beak in the water, then drew it up again, lightly splashing them, to get their attention.

  "Okay, okay! I'll go," Kristina chuckled, and a few seconds later Tensor was at her side.

  "Take hold of his fin," Werrien said.

  Hesitantly, Kristina gently placed her hands on Tensor's dorsal fin, but it was very slippery and her hands slid off.

  "Try it again," Werrien encouraged her. She did so, and as soon as her hands had a grip, Tensor began swimming—slowly at first—in a clockwise circle.

  This is fun! Kristina thought, but right after the thought popped into her mind, Tensor swam deeper and Kristina let go of his fin so she wouldn't be dragged under. "What's he doing?" she asked Werrien.

  "I'm not sure."

  Kristina felt Tensor softly nudge her leg. Then he swam in between her legs and raised himself up, so that she was sitting on his back.

  "What am I supposed to do now?" Kristina asked Werrien.

  "I'd say hold on tight," Werrien said airily, and he climbed back into the rowboat.

  Kristina took hold of the dolphin's dorsal fin and clenched her legs as tight as she could around its cool, smooth, yet rock-hard body. Tensor gave her a few seconds to get situated and then began swimming at a slow and comfortable speed. He circled the rowboat a few times, and each time he passed by the direction Werrien was facing, Werrien waved to Kristina, making her feel like a little child on a carousel ride being observed by a proud parent.

  This is actually quite easy, Kristina thought. No sooner had she thought this than Tensor picked up his speed again, doubling the size of his circle around the boat. At first Kristina felt a little apprehensive, but after a few times around, her tension eased up. She giggled, and Tensor veered away from the circle and started heading toward Finimus Island. Kristina clutched his fin tighter, and the dolphin sped up even more, causing the warm wind to blow through Kristina's long hair and the sea to whoosh past her thighs. She felt scared yet at the same time secure on top of the powerful dolphin. Then something inside her clicked, and all her fear disappeared. She felt one with the dolphin and from that moment on, whatever speed he wanted to go, she felt she could handle it. Faster and faster, Tensor swam, and within a few minutes, they were very near the shore of Finimus Island. Tensor stopped swimming and only treaded water with his fins, so that Kristina could view the island. She gazed upon it, marveling at its white-sand beach and tall palm trees lightly swaying in the tropical, orchid-scented breeze. Then like a rearing horse, Tensor suddenly lifted his upper body out of the sea. Kristina was familiar with this move from when she rode Taysha the first time she was in Bernovem.

  "Hold on," Tensor said, his voice vibrating slightly. Without hesitation, Kristina took hold of the dolphin's fin, and he lowered himself back down into the sea. Then he turned and began to head back to the rowboat.

  You can go a little faster, if you'd like, Kristina thought. In a flash, Tensor sped up, and this time he swam double the speed as before. They made it back to the rowboat in about two m
inutes. Tensor sent a huge spray toward Werrien in the rowboat—he had no way to shield himself from the barn-door size splash. Werrien, of course, got soaked. Tensor brought Kristina right next to the rowboat, and Werrien gave her a hand to get in. Then Tensor lifted his head out of the sea and treaded water with his tail.

  "Very funny, Tensor," Werrien said, dripping wet, with an iffy grin on his face.

  With his body straight up and down in the water, Tensor began swimming backwards, clapping his flipper fins together and laughing in a strange yet amusing way.

  Kristina glanced toward the ship and caught sight of another rowboat coming toward them. "Look!" she said, pointing it out to Werrien.

  "Oh, yeah—it's Elzwur and the other girls," Werrien said, unenthusiastically.

  "Great," Kristina said dully. I was hoping it would be only you and me going to the island, but now Hester, Davina, and the old goat, Elzwur, are coming, too. What a complete drag this is going to be, she thought.

  Werrien could tell by the look on her face that she wasn't too thrilled that they were coming as well. "Hey, Tensor?" he called to the dolphin, who was presently in the middle of a flip in the air. Tensor torpedoed head first into the water, this time so cleanly that he left no splash. When he surfaced, Werrien said, "Quit showing off and come here a minute." Tensor descended into the water and resurfaced at the side of the boat. "Do me a favor and tow us to the island."

  "At your service, Prince Werrien," Tensor said. As he swam on ahead of the boat, Werrien picked up a rope lying on the floor of the boat and made it into a lasso. Then he whirled it into the air in the direction of the island. As soon as it left Werrien's hand, Tensor went after it, like a dog after a ball, and he caught the noose end around his beak. Then he nudged it down, until it was just below his head, and he began pulling the boat. He went so suddenly that Kristina fell back on her bottom onto the bench.

  "Hold on," Werrien said, gripping the side of the boat. Kristina grasped hold of the edge of the boat as well. She thought it felt a lot like when she rode in her family's power boat on the lake, not far from where she lived.