Sea of Revenants (Nysta Book 6)

by Lucas Thorn

  “Had a reason,” Maks finished for her, disgust thick in his voice. “Yeah. I got that. You know what, Saja? I pitied you before. But right now, you make me sick. Because you’d like to be like them. Crawling up from the sea to eat kids. I can’t think of anything right now which makes me feel better about having you around.”

  “Come on, Maks,” Halvir said. He held his hand up, calling for peace. “It ain’t her fault. It’s the way of the Crossbones, man. Just the way. Always has been. It’s been like that since the Night Age. We all know life ain’t easy here. If we wanted it easy, we’d all ship north to Dragonclaw.”

  “Maybe it’s time for a fucking change,” Maks snarled.

  Geri fingered his knife. Voice quiet and cold. “Maybe we start now.”

  “You just try, you piece of shit.” Saja whipped her axe free and looked ready to use it. The sympathy she’d felt for the two men evaporated on a blast of rage. “You fucking try it and I’ll have your guts all over the fucking ground, you little bucket of piss.”

  For a moment, the elf knew Geri was only waiting on Maks, and the one-eyed raider was tempted.

  Knew the heat of his rage was bordering on madness. Knew he wanted vengeance. But he was counting the odds. He wasn’t one to go berserk.

  So, he counted Halvir and Saja. Knew Saja would probably take Geri with ease. Also thought he could take Halvir himself and maybe get Saja by a whisker. But there was another factor he considered more.

  Nysta.

  Which side would she fall?

  Even as she weighed her options, he gave them equal weight and decided the best path was caution. The look on his face twisted bitterly and it was clear she was the cause for his hesitation. Clear even to the others.

  Underlined when Saja took a half-step to be closer to the elf.

  For herself, the elf stayed unmoving. Her fingers hovered close to the hilts on her hips but didn’t quite touch the deadly blades. And though her heart wavered, her violet eyes were calm slits which studied the one-eyed man with cool curiosity as she waited for the trigger to be pulled which would send the stillness cartwheeling into lurid violence.

  “Looks like it’s your call, Maks,” Halvir said softly. “Like for you to remember we’re all crew, though. Even if the Blue Ox is sunk, we’re still crew.”

  Grappling his patience, Maks nodded. “Crew,” he said through his teeth. “Sure. We’re crew.”

  Geri said nothing. Just hawked up as much spit as he could pull from the back of his throat and spat toward Saja’s feet. That might’ve been the final spark, but the one-eyed man’s arm snaked out with a blur of speed and took the young man by the shoulder. Shoved him back away from the others as Saja shouted for Geri to come at her.

  “I’ll fucking kill you, you little bastard!”

  Halvir held Saja.

  Maks held Geri.

  And Nysta held her tongue.

  “Alright,” Maks said at last. “You win. We’ll go to Cold. We’ll go to your mad fucking god’s temple. And I’ll have answers to this. And if I don’t like those answers, Saja, I’m gonna tear that place down stone by fucking stone. I’ll have Ihan’s head on a fucking stick. Yours, too, if you get in my way.”

  Saja kicked at the ashes, sending a wave of black at the two men. “Go fuck yourself, Maks.”

  “I reckon we’ll keep apart as much as possible,” Halvir said. “Might be a good idea.”

  “Sure,” Maks said. He turned to the elf. “What about you?”

  “I don’t want her anywhere near me,” Geri muttered. “And don’t look at me like that, Maks. We ain’t on the Ox no more. And we ain’t crew, no matter what. That’s clear to everyone. So, I don’t have to be anywhere near her or her kind. If you want to walk with her, then that’s fine. You do that. But I’m gonna go with what Nath told me. Look around. Look what they did to my folks. This is what happens when we ain’t strong. I’m done with hiding. Done with trying to be something I ain’t. And if that gets me killed, then so be it. I’ll die clean.”

  “There’s more going on than you know, boy,” Maks said. Then turned back to the elf, a wild and desperate look in his eye. “You sure you ain’t been to Lightforge? Sure?”

  The elf studied the big one-eyed raider. She’d never heard of Lightforge. And it seemed like that wasn’t even the question he was asking.

  He was right, she figured. There was more going on than either Geri or herself was aware of.

  She looked sideways as Saja snorted.

  Halvir didn’t look happy. Looked like someone chewing on something he didn’t like.

  And that was the choice she was faced with. Keep with Geri and Maks who seemed to know the island well. Who seemed to have some kind of plan.

  Or Saja and Halvir who looked confused and angry. Lost, too.

  And then there was Saja’s dream of becoming a draug. No matter how much she thought about it, the elf couldn’t wrap her mind around that one. The entire concept was alien. Horrifying.

  Yet, the young woman thought it the most natural thing in the world.

  By rights, she should feel more inclined to standing with Maks. But the one-eyed man’s look was disturbing. There was an eerie undertone of desperation in him. And Geri’s obvious contempt for the elf made it worse because Maks didn’t seem to disagree.

  With that in mind, Nysta shrugged lightly. “Ain’t ever heard of it.”

  “You think I’m crazy for asking,” he accused, shuffling awkwardly for a brutish man like him.

  “I reckon we’re all judging our sanity,” she said. “But, when you’re standing in the middle of a burned out apocalyptic wasteland, I reckon it’s natural to try figuring who’s mad, Maks.”

  CHAPTER SIX

  The road curved like a knotted snake beneath high limbs of spruce. Smell of pine and moist earth quickly consumed the salt on the whispered breeze. At first, the road had been steep, but soon it flattened out as they journeyed through a long valley which seemed to split the island in two. On either side of the valley, great craggy cliffs reared up. A wall of volcanic stone meshed with tree and fern.

  Pale green lichen wrapped clammy tongues around spearing trunks and crumbling stone alike. The road, which had been clear and clean closer to Flowing Tears, now bore the debris of needle-thin leaves shed from the trees during the last days of summer. Autumn would soon claim their inner blanket.

  Nysta cocked her head as she walked, turning her mind from Saja’s complaints. The young girl hadn’t paused her muttered curses at Geri’s back.

  Ahead, Geri and Maks moved at a faster pace. For the past hour or so, they’d been stretching the distance between them. Something the elf was growing less comfortable with. She didn’t like the thought of the two men deciding to entertain Geri’s notion of killing the remaining crew.

  But it wasn’t her suspicion which caused the skin on the back of her neck to prickle. And wasn’t Saja’s complaints which caused her to scratch at the palm of her hand.

  It was something else.

  Something cold.

  And quiet.

  At first, it was just a feeling. Then it was more than that when she caught a flicker of movement within the trees. She pulled A Flaw in the Glass free and stopped, motionless. Aware of the startled looks aimed at her, she crouched low and tried to peer further into the dark embrace of the forest. Dragged her tongue across her lower lip and tried to work moisture into her mouth.

  “What is it?” Halvir asked. He slid his axes free and motioned for Saja to do similar.

  “Ain’t sure,” the elf said.

  A soft snuffle from somewhere far out. Not loud enough to be close. A few cracks of branches, but some of those sounds were normal as the trees swayed in the breeze.

  “Could be pigs,” the big man offered. “Plenty around here.”

  She shook her head. “It ain’t pigs,” she said, feeling too exposed in the middle of the road but not sure which way to move. “I’ve been hunted enough times to know when I’m being hunted
.”

  He didn’t argue. Crouched down next to her and looked hard. “We don’t get bandits,” he said. “Around these parts most fellers can fight. And fight good. It ain’t a smart thing to try banditry on these roads. Unless you want to die, of course. Which case, you’ll get what you want.”

  “Reckon it ain’t bandits, then,” she said.

  “You think I should call the others?” He looked reluctantly up the road to where Geri and Maks were walking. “No matter our differences, we’re still crew.”

  “We ain’t still crew,” Saja said. Spat wetly on the ground. “You heard them, Halvir. They’d most likely put their axes in our backs than help us out.”

  “Maks ain’t all that bad.”

  “Really?” Saja gave a snort. “You heard what Geri said. And you saw his face when he said it. They’ve been listening to Nath. And you know what that old weasel’s like. Bastard’s only trade is trouble. And he’s been trading in it like it’s gold lately, so he’s fucking good at it and only getting better. I heard he even slit old Malek’s throat last year before we left.”

  “That was just a rumour.”

  “Only rumour? You believe that?”

  “I don’t know, Saja. Nath’s followers are a bit on the strange side, for sure. But they ain’t no stranger than the yellow-coats on Scupper who worship that big rock of theirs. What I’m saying is, they ain’t ever done anything except talk.”

  “Maybe that’s changed since we left. Maybe that’s what’s happening here with the draug. And what happened with the town back there. Nath hates the temple. Hated Ihan. Everyone knows that. He told everyone he could. So what if they’re fighting now? What if we’re walking into a war?”

  “Surprised you did any thinking the way your mouth was moving,” Halvir said. Then held up a hand as she opened her mouth to protest. “Alright, Saja. Maybe you’re right. But that ain’t helping us here. Not right now. I think Nysta’s right, and there’s something in those trees. I’m gonna take a look.”

  “Don’t be stupid,” Saja said. She grabbed the big man’s sleeve. “You can’t go in there on your own.”

  He pulled free. Smiled. “Only way we’ll find out if it’s pigs or not. You wait here.” He nodded to the elf. “Keep an eye on her. Don’t let her talk your ears off. As long as they are, you got a lot to lose. I’ll be right back.”

  “Don’t make those your last words,” the elf said. She pointed toward a few trees left of her centre. “Reckon whatever it is, it’s in there.”

  He crept into the brush, a man as used to prowling a forest as rowing a ship. And, for his size, she had to admit he did a good job of keeping quiet. Supposed he had to, given raiders often preferred stealth to brute force.

  Saja squatted facing Nysta’s side. “What do you think is in there?”

  “I got an idea,” she said. “But I’m hoping I’m wrong.”

  “What?”

  “Figure it’s draug.”

  “But they didn’t follow us. Halvir said they didn’t follow inside the reef.”

  “Not at night. Maybe they changed their mind.” She sucked on her lip and squinted. Added; “If they even have minds left to change.”

  “If it’s draug, then Halvir could be in trouble.”

  “Could be.”

  “Shit.” Saja looked back over her shoulder. Geri and Maks were now at a point where the road was about to twist to their right. “Maybe I should call them. Not for me. For Halvir. You think I should?”

  The elf shrugged. “You know those fellers more than I do.”

  “Yeah.” She screwed up her face and then sighed. “Fuck ‘em. If Geri ever gets close to me again, I’m only gonna cut his head off anyway.”

  Whether she really would have cut the young man’s head off or not, she’d never know. Because two things happened at the same time with equal speed and ferocity.

  First, Geri let out a high-pitched squeal which echoed right across the valley and made more than a few birds leap from the trees to soar panicked into the sky. He screamed because two draug had pounced from the ferns to wrap sodden arms tight around him and were tearing into his flesh. Their cracked teeth carved into his skin and pulled meat from his bone in horrendous chunks which spurted crimson across the pale faces of the two hungry draug.

  Maks might’ve been able to save him, but the big man found himself wrestling another two, and his axe had no time to offer the young man help. Still, the one-eyed man let out a frustrated and sorrowful roar as Geri was torn to pieces in front of him.

  The second thing which happened was Halvir burst back out of the trees.

  Face pale. Eyes wide and terrified. “Draug,” he blurted as a few hoots followed him.

  “Figured that,” the elf growled. And spun on her heel before sprinting down the road. Aimed herself to where Maks was still chopping at draug trying to pull him into the trees.

  Behind, Saja and Halvir scrambled to catch up as a handful of draug shot from the forest in Halvir’s wake. They ran awkwardly, like puppets on strings. Their brains might be dead, but their hungers lived with dreadful purpose and drove them onward with savage and unrelenting pace.

  There were enough draug in the Deadlands for the elf to know that running was always the best option. On the Blue Ox, they’d had the advantage of being able to dismember and dispose of the draug over the edge of the longboat. Let their pieces fall to the seabed.

  But out here, there was no easy way to gain respite as Maks was quickly finding out.

  Even though he’d cut the forearms off one of the draug, it still kept coming. It raked its mouth along his thigh and battered at his body with bloody stumps. It might have been comical but for the sheer horror on the one-eyed man’s face as he understood the fragility of his situation. And then the look of relief on his face as he saw the elf surging toward him.

  Relief he might not have felt if he knew the depths of her hesitation as she approached.

  Wasn’t sure herself if she was going to help him or keep running.

  The smartest thing, she allowed, was to keep running. She’d heard in the Deadlands that you could pull a draug to pieces and sometimes its pieces would keep coming after you.

  More than one ghost story ended with a dismembered draug limb wrapping itself around the throat of an unsuspecting sleeper who thought they’d escaped the clutches of the undead creatures.

  She shot a look over her shoulder to see Saja and Halvir had almost caught up. Also saw the draug shambling along behind them, which only added to the elf’s reluctance to stop for Maks.

  But as the one-eyed man used his axe to chop through the head of one of his two attackers, she figured there was still a way to go before they reached Cold.

  And the big man could fight.

  She might need him.

  Blood streamed down his thigh, but he kicked out hard. “It’s got my leg,” he shouted. “Won’t fucking let go.”

  The elf figured he didn’t want to use his axe on its head for fear of hitting himself in the thigh. For her part, she didn’t care either way. Launching herself at the draug, she brought A Flaw in the Glass down with all her strength. The venomously-glowing blade speared through dead flesh and brittle undead bone. She wrenched it sideways, popping vertebrae and slicing easily through muscle and meat.

  The blade nicked Maks’s leg, but she figured the damage was a lot less than if she’d left the draug attached to him.

  The creature flopped backward, stunted arms and feet flailing wildly. Black ooze jetted from the gaping hole in its neck where its head was only clinging by the most fragile strip of skin.

  She looked up into Maks’ gleaming eye as the big man stared to where two draug were devouring his young crewmate.

  “He’s dead,” she hissed. Shoved him in the side as Halvir and Saja raced up. “Now, move!”

  He ran with them, silent tears edging his cheeks. Tears he scrubbed away quickly. Fist clenching the axe as tight as he could.

  No matter how much he�
�d later resent her coldness, he knew the stupidity of staying.

  The elf looked back again, eyes drawn to the two draug clawing Geri’s intestines free of his unfeeling corpse. They shoved the sloppy mess into their undead maws and watched the elf run.

  If they felt anything, it didn’t show on their faces.

  Shivering, she spun away. Kept running.

  Felt her legs harden as muscle began to warm to exertion.

  “I know a place,” Maks said, clutching his thigh as he limped as fast as he could. “This way. I know a place.”

  Saja scowled. “How the fuck can we trust you now? After what you and Geri said earlier?”

  He looked at her, puzzled by her outburst. Then nodded. “You can’t,” he said. “But I know this island better than you do. And I want to live. You can follow me. Or you can keep running. But you can’t run all the way to Cold.”

  “I trust you,” Halvir said firmly. Reached out and pressed a hand to the one-eyed raider’s shoulder. “You’re still crew to me, Maks.”

  Maks looked away. Pointed his axe to a ridge further along. “Not far from here’s a trail. Leads up to a waystation. Inside a cave. Old Stern built it up so nothing can get in if he doesn’t want it to.”

  “What if they don’t leave?” Saja didn’t look happy at the idea. “I don’t want to die buried in a fucking cave.”

  “They usually do,” the elf supplied. “At least, that’s what they’re like in the Deadlands. They ain’t got much of an attention span.”

  “She’s right,” Halvir said. “You know the Madman’s song. The chorus? Run and hide, it says. Remember?”

  “Run and hide,” Saja echoed. “Shit.”

  “Then follow me,” Maks said. He pushed ahead, leading them into the forest. Left a thick crimson trail in his wake. Thick enough the elf started to doubt he’d make it. “It ain’t far.”

  A barking hoot undulated across the valley, torn from the throat of a hungry draug. The sound made the elf think of other times she’d run from the undead. The fear rolled in her belly on its icy ball, clipping her spine and making her shudder.