Ashrak frowned, but turned and moved closer to where the small dinghy floated, holding out the black dagger towards Stitch. The grim mercenary took the blade with his one hand and nodded slowly at Ashrak and Aiden before grunting. “Well, that’s the most help we’ve gotten from anyone since Noropol invaded. I won’t forget it.”
“We’ll be leaving this area and heading off towards Caiterel, or maybe Banum,” Stitch continued, looking out over the darkness of the ocean and back towards the sinking pirate ship. “There’s only three of us left, so maybe we’ll do better as soldiers then we were as mercenaries. Take care, kid. I’ll be sure to put this pretty little darling to good use.”
Aiden nodded before quietly raising his skimmer up and over the small dinghy, moving in the direction that Stitch had indicated. He had no idea how far the coast was and he couldn’t see anything but the faint light of one of the moons reflecting off of the dark water. They’d traveled for maybe half an hour when Ashrak turned, his head cocked to the side.
“Uh…Aiden. I don’t know much about this skimmer. My father had one but never took it out. He said someone would kill us all and steal it if he did, but he did mention once that it was always a good idea to fly in the daylight. To avoid mountains.”
Aiden’s eyes went wide, the image of a huge pillar of rock or mountains suddenly jumping into his imagination. He slowed the skiff and then made it raise up fairly high before proceeding.
“What do you think they’ll make of it,” Ashrak said, tiredly stretching his arms above his head, “when we fly in all fat and happy?”
Aiden shrugged and shook his head. “I don’t know. Both Chari and Gavin are unconscious, and they already know you can’t even make a plate. They’re suspicious, Ashrak. Most likely they’ll just toss me right off of the docks when we land. My only hope is that I go quickly.”
Ashrak grunted, shifting down and putting his hand on Gavin’s chest to feel his heartbeat. While Chari’s breathing had remained steady and even, Gavin was showing more signs of distress. “We can always stop before we get anywhere and drop you off?”
“No. No, we need to get Gavin into the castle as fast as possible. I don’t even want to slow down. I couldn’t live with myself if he died because we stopped to drop me off, Ashrak.”
They sat in silence for a while. Aiden thought that Ashrak had fallen asleep but he surprised him, whispering softly into the night. “For what it’s worth, I think you’ll find some way to get out of it Aiden. I don’t think your story is over. Even if it is the end, I’ll stand for you if I can. I don’t really have any pull, and honestly, no one cares about what I say, but I’ll be there to help.”
“Thanks, Ashrak. I…I’m not sure what to say,” Aiden said quietly.
He saw the older boy shrug and then settle even further. It wasn’t long before he heard the slow, rhythmic sound of Ashrak sleeping. Aiden gazed up at the stars, pondering his fate. He hoped he wasn’t at the end, but if he was at least he’d saved his friends. Jessop would be sad, and he worried for him but the school would continue to take care of him. He’d get over it, and eventually move on.
Those were the tired thoughts that were bouncing around in his head when the sun slowly began to lighten the horizon. As the light increased, Aiden could see fields and forests below him, showing that he’d passed the coast and traveled inland. Turning the skimmer in a gentle arc, he headed back the way he’d come and a half hour later found the coast. Turning to the West, he pushed the speed of the small craft towards where the City of Terek could be found, and hoped they would be in time.
Chapter 23
It was about three hours past sunrise when Chari began to stir. Aiden watched her tiredly as she moved her hand to her face and groaned. He was happy for it, seeing that she wasn’t in the same condition as Gavin, but it was hard to be overly happy. Gavin’s labored breathing had increased through the night. The looming threat of death had kept Aiden from doing anything but guiding the skimmer and worrying about his friend.
“Oh gods,” she moaned, jerking her hands away as they came in contact with her nose. “Why does my face hurt? Where am I?” Aiden watched her carefully as she began to remember what had happened and jerked her body violently, shifting herself from where she had been laying and pushing up against the side of the skiff. Confusion was all over her face as the bright light blinded her, making her look around wildly until she focused on Aiden sitting quietly in the back.
“Don’t worry, Chari. You are safe.” Aiden said, trying to remain calm as she blinked at him owlishly. After a few more moments, he could tell she was back. Looking curiously around her at the boat, she saw Ashrak asleep and then the pale form of Gavin. Leaning over him, she put her hand on his face with concern.
“Is he okay?” She said, touching Gavin’s forehead softly. “I saw that pirate hit him hard.”
“I don’t know, honestly. It’s pretty bad. Stitch said he was going to die if we can’t get him to Terek Castle. He said something about a bed. How can a bed help?”
“Terek castle? There’s no way, Aiden,” She said, her face falling into despair. “There’s no way we can get to the castle. We were on the ocean for over a day. It’s going to take a week to row back in a skiff. We’d need a skimmer to get back.” She slumped against the gunwale, hugging her knees to her chest.
Aiden nodded, gesturing over the side of the boat but feeling too tired to respond otherwise. Chari saw the odd movement and looked at Aiden strangely before peeking over the side and letting out a startled gasp. After a few more moments of disbelief, she turned back to Aiden with alarm on her face. “Aiden, you’ve got to slow down! If you pass over the city and castle at full speed, they’ll try to crash us.”
Aiden blinked before raising himself from the slump he’d taken to in his chair. There, just in front of them were the quickly approaching walls of the city. He hadn’t even realized they were almost there. Even as he watched, two of the duke’s skimmers were racing towards them, tiny men frantically taking positions on the bow with what he assumed were crossbows.
“Aiden!” Chari called, her voice urgent and waking Ashrak up with a start. “Aiden, slow us down and turn us, we have to make sure they don’t think we’re attacking!”
Finally, Aiden responded, his sleep addled brain making him sluggish but he did as she said. Turning the skiff, he slowed it to a crawl. The other skimmers didn’t slow, but he could see the men lower their crossbows. Thank goodness. That was the last thing they needed was to be fired upon.
Chari called out, pulling her vest off and waving it like a flag before they could hear her. The tactic worked and instead of moving aggressively, the two skimmers slowed and approached them cautiously, bracketing their small ship between the two larger vessels.
“Ahoy! Bring your skimmer to a stop and prepare to be boarded,” called over one of the guards wearing sergeant’s stripes. Aiden dutifully stopped, watching as the man crossed over their gunwale and stepped into the skiff under the watchful eye of several crossbowmen. As he landed, he blinked and shook his head in surprise. “Children? What in the seven circles is going on here?”
Chari stood, bowing to the man and holding her hands out to her sides. No one wanted to make a mistake now, and Aiden had no clue what to do so he was profoundly grateful. He watched as she straightened, a pleading look on her bruised and swollen face.
“Please, we need your help! Gavin Terek, the duke’s son is hurt,” She said, gesturing to Gavin in the bottom of the boat, “He needs to get to the castle immediately. He’s had a head injury, and needs the medibed as soon as possible.”
The man squinted at her suspiciously, but he bent over and looked at the boy. It wasn’t long before his eyes widened and he straightened.
“It is Gavin! And you must be Charissen? I almost didn’t see the black hair through the bandage. What’s happened? Where have you been? His Grace has had us scouring the city for you after you disappeared from the Tavern.”
“I can
tell you everything later, but we have to hurry to the Castle,” Chari said in a rush, elated that the man believed them. “Please, you must help us! He’s going to die!”
The man nodded before calling over that it wasn’t an attack and they’d found the duke’s son. An older man came to the railing, grimacing before letting his eyes take in the small group. The sergeant repeated what Chari had said to the questioning gaze of the man, emphasizing that Gavin was dying and they needed to hurry. In response, the Captain quickly moved back to the small bridge, telling one of his men to get on board pilot it in.
Aiden almost slumped in relief. He was exhausted and when the man climbed into the small craft, he gladly vacated the seat. The pilot looked surprised when the seat felt more like a comfortable cushion rather than the wood it resembled, but he quickly got to business and sent the craft zooming off towards the Castle with the other two skimmers as a close escort. He was happy to see the man seemed to have no problem with the controls because Gavin was paler by the second.
It wasn’t more than a few minutes later that they settled towards the sky docks where a team bearing a stretcher, along with an anxious duke and duchess, waited for them. Gavin was whisked away with his parents in close pursuit.
While Aiden stood there feeling numb from everything that had happened, Chari came up to him and slid into his arms, hugging him and sobbing quietly into his shirt. For a moment, he had no clue what to do, but then weariness and his own intense worrying caught up with him, and he just hugged her back. Ashrak was slumped nearby on a handy crate, holding his face in his hands with his eyes closed in relief.
They had all been through a lot and were thankful when Captain Stelios came up to them, suggesting that a hot meal and a comfortable place to rest would be good while they saw to Gavin. His warm, gentle baritone was comforting and the three friends followed him towards the castle. Stelios gestured for a man dressed as a nurse, telling them he’d have them all checked out when they got to the room to make sure they were ok.
After cleaning up and getting new, fresh clothes they sat and picked at a beautiful meal that had been made for them. For all his hunger, Aiden found it difficult to eat when they hadn’t heard if Gavin was going to be okay, and he suspected both of his friends felt the same way. Even Ashrak was timid, only making it through about half of his plate.
“Do you think he’ll be okay?” Aiden asked glumly. “He looked so still. And his breathing was so ragged.”
Chari bit her lip, but Ashrak was the one who answered. “It all depends on if they got him into the medibed in time.”
Chari nodded but Aiden was baffled. He still didn’t know what a medibed was, having never heard of them before. “How is that going to help? I mean, isn’t it the doctors that will be able to help him?”
“Ah, well, it’s one of those things that is kept pretty secret. I think only half the duchies even have one, and they all belong to the dukes unless someone’s managed to steal one or keep them secret. Unlike the skimmers, they can be kept hidden and still used, but they’re ancient artifacts. They can cure almost any disease or injury, I hear.”
“Really? Why don’t they use them more often? There're so many people that get killed or die in the world but I’ve never even heard of these beds.”
“That’s if you’re interested in helping people, dear Aiden,” Ashrak said sardonically, “At least in Father’s case, he’s not overly affectionate toward the masses, preferring to work them to death, rather than work to save them from it. Such a saint that he is. I remember once when he was particularly distressed with one of his nobles and kept bringing him back from near death after torturing him. Eventually, even the machine wasn’t able to save him, but Father still threw a tantrum for a good twelve hours afterward, as if he was robbed. He made us watch of course… I still remember the gurgling,” Ashrak ended, making a face and shaking his head.
Chari grimaced. “Do you have to tell stories like that?”
“Well,” Ashrak spread his hands, “if I didn’t, no one would know how wonderful the man is. Forewarning about the family you’re marrying into, dear Chari. Sorry to remind you, but it is better to know.”
Chari scowled but didn’t answer, instead turning back to Aiden. “The medibeds are miraculous, and I know Duke Terek does use it in some cases even with commoners, but he keeps it quiet. I’m not sure why he doesn’t use it for more people, but maybe it’s because there’s only one? The castle might be swamped if people knew about it? You’d have to ask him. I’m sure there’s a good answer.”
Ashrak just snorted, making Chari glare at him again. “Or it’s because it can extend your lifespan. Who wants angry peasants around for ages? Far better to grow new batches, otherwise, they may have long memories.”
“That’s your duchy, Ashrak, not Terek. They don’t treat people like that here.”
“I give you that,” Ashrak agreed. “Compared to most places on the planet, they treat them well. Still, it is a good question, isn’t it?”
Just then Duke Terek came into the room, looking worn and tired. Not quite as tired as Aiden himself felt, but he had more worry lines on his face then he had a few days ago. Slumping into one of the chairs, he grabbed a pitcher of water and took a long drink from it before coming up for breath, wiping his beard and watching them all with his crystal-blue eyes. “It is a good question, boy, and in this case, I’ll answer it since the lot of you know about the beds. Not that it’s a huge secret since over the centuries word has to have gotten out, but yes, the medibeds are kept fairly secret.”
But why?” Asked Aiden, curiosity winning out over his exhaustion.
The big man shrugged, “Same reason for a lot of things, the Ducal Council decreed it. They thought it would cause wars or some hogwash, and unfortunately, that lot of windbags is probably right. Think of it, boy. Free healing and a lifetime about twice as long as before. There’s not many men or women who wouldn’t kill for that. Also, they are fragile, and unlike skimmers, they require certain chemicals that are quite hard to come by.”
The man paused for a moment, watching them all before speaking again. “Also, you’ll be happy to know that Gavin got to one in time. He will be okay, though it says he’ll be unconscious for a few days. Otherwise, no worse for wear. Thankfully.”
Aiden felt a huge knot release in his chest and back. He hadn’t known how tense he was with worry for his friend, but to know they got back in time was a huge relief. He was just digesting that when the duke put down the pitcher of water and turned to him, looking him square in the eyes. “Speaking of skimmers, where did you get that little beauty out at the sky docks?”
Aiden was frozen, staring at the man who really didn’t appear as if he needed Aiden to answer. The two stayed locked in silence for several moments until they heard a chair being pushed back from the table. Ashrak had stood up, facing the duke.
“It’s mine,” He began formally, pausing before launching into some elaborate lie.
His speech was stopped by Valeran letting out a rough laugh and his hand slapping the table loudly, making plates and glassware jump. “Sit down, boy. I know it’s not yours. I’ve already heard about your shenanigans with the plate at the school.” His voice lowered and he turned back to Aiden. “Headmaster Bing let me in on what happened as far as they can make out, as well as who really made it.”
Aiden felt his face drain. Everything they’d been fighting to avoid had had just been thrown at him by the man that would be responsible for carrying out his punishment. He knew it would happen when they flew to the city, but it sounded like they’d been revealed well before. He tried desperately not to give Ashrak a dirty look, but Chari was not so nice. Both Aiden and the duke were taken back when Chari stood, and grabbed a large bread roll from the table before flinging it at Ashrak’s surprised features. Her black-and-blue eyes gave her a particularly frightening visage.
“You idiot! Look what you’ve done!” Chari screeched, her voice having gone to intolerably lo
ud levels almost immediately. “Do you know how hard we tried to keep them from knowing it was Aiden? Do you!? And you had to ruin it all for a grade!” She picked up some eggs and threw them as well while Ashrak tried to duck behind his chair, only partially succeeding.
She would have continued but the duke rose, glaring at her thunderously. “Would you be quiet!” he whispered furiously, waiting until she’d stopped and retaken her seat with wide-eyed compliance. “Since we don’t really want the boy to die, you are making it exceedingly difficult to keep anyone else from finding out. I’m pretty sure they can hear you down by the tar pits. Hush!”
After Chari had sat, he retook his own seat, glaring around at the three of them. “In fact, they’ve known since Ashrak turned in the plate. Knowing who created something is part of the science, being able to feel who the originator is, amongst other things.” He paused. “After they heard about what happened on the Skywitch, we compared notes and I figure that you had something to do with that as well. Am I right?”
The Glimmer Steel Saga, Boxed Set, Books 1 - 4 Page 29
