“Welcome to the quarterdeck, son,” Domadred said with a smile. “How can I help you?”
“Captain, I wished to ask you about Luka and what you plan on doing with him.”
“I have not decided the fate of our Northern prisoner.” Domadred paused and stroked his beard. “But even if I had, tell me, young Aleksi, why should I tell you, someone whom I just met yesterday—and under an alias no less?” Brayden chuckled as Domadred continued. “Although I try to not be a bigoted man and judge one on the color of his eyes, I have no choice but to see that yours are Northern green as well. Does that have anything to do with your asking?”
“Sir, I meant no disrespect,” Aleksi said, averting his eyes. “Luka troubles me. He seems to be hiding something and not telling the full truth about why he is on this ship.”
“Yes, and Luka is not the only one.”
There was a long silence and Domadred watched Aleksi closely as Brayden continued to steer the ship. Aleksi nervously glanced at the massive Zenith Mountain at their stern; glowing red, it was the only thing on the horizon behind them other than cloud and wave. In addition, Aleksi noticed it now rested lower than yesterday when seen in Mindra’s Haven.
Taking a deep breath, Aleksi spoke again. “Captain, I am sorry. It is none of my business. This is just my first time at sea and I am trying to learn the ways of your ship so as to better understand her rules.”
“Son, you seem to already know more of our customs than you let on.”
“Only what I have read, sir.”
“Well, you seem to have read a lot.” Domadred paused again, this time letting out a great sigh. “How is your map reading, however?”
“Poor, sir,”
“Excellent, I’m glad to see you’re still human. As mysterious as you are, I was beginning to think you were one of those strange Akasha people from Kwa’thari in Farden.”
“Sir, you can clearly see by my facial structure that I am most certainly not Akasha.”
Domadred’s eyes narrowed. “I have been told that what they truly look like is a mystery because none but the Masters have seen under the Akasha’s ceremonial face masks.”
Aleksi was silent and once again averted his eyes.
Domadred chuckled. “Well, trust, much like knowledge, is a thing earned through hard and diligent work. So if you truly wish to learn the ways of sailing the high seas, then tomorrow afternoon at second bell, I want you to meet Brayden and Kairn, the sailing master, up here in the navigation room for lessons. But do not test my hospitality, for I do not want to hear another word about our guest Luka Norte. Have I made myself perfectly clear?”
“Yes, sir, I—” But before Aleksi could say more, he was interrupted by Brayden.
“Da!” the boy blurted, full of indignation. “You can’t seriously mean that he will be joining my—”
Domadred turned to his son with a look of sharp anger. Seeing it, Brayden was instantly silenced.
Regaining his composure, Domadred spoke again. “In fact, Aleksi, come here. Your first lesson begins now.” As Aleksi approached them in the fading light, Domadred then looked back at Brayden. “Step aside, Son, and allow Aleksi to take the wheel.”
Brayden glanced up at his father and a look of shame shone in his eyes. “Yes, sir.” The boy then released the helm. As Aleksi reluctantly took the wheel, Brayden spoke again. “Permission to leave the quarterdeck, Captain?”
“Granted.” Domadred’s response was curt, but his eyes followed Brayden as the boy walked to the shrouds of the mainmast and slowly ascended into the dark rigging above. Domadred was silent for a long moment as Aleksi held the wheel and felt the strong pull of water below and wind above.
Aleksi looked at Domadred, saying, “Captain, should I—”
“You’re doing fine, son,” Domadred interrupted. “We have a good wind, so just hold her steady.” There was a pause before Domadred continued. “I’m sorry you had to see that. There are times when Brayden forgets who his father is. Or rather, wishes his father were someone else. No doubt he would like to speak openly to me like a normal son would. When we are alone it is fine, but when we are on deck it’s . . . complicated.”
Domadred let out a sigh and ran a hand through his long hair. Its captain’s beads clinked softly as he continued to look at his son. “When he was young, things were different. But now he is a member of this crew and wants to be respected as such. Much like trust, respect is earned, however, and the other crew members still remember him as the young captain’s boy who got special attention. It’s difficult to break such memories in men who have been hardened by the sea”—Domadred chuckled and finally looked at Aleksi—“for they are as stubborn as the old bitch of an ocean that birthed them. But I’m sorry for boring you with such talk, Aleksi. It’s just the idle musings of a father, I suppose.”
“Was he born on this ship?” Aleksi asked as he looked up at Brayden in the rigging. The high spars were illuminated in the last rays of the Zeniths and shone red against the dark sky beyond.
“Yes, according to custom, Brayden’s mother bore him during a calm spring morning back before . . . well, a good many years ago now.” Domadred let out another sigh. “His mother was beautiful, smart, and well respected in the Warden Women’s High Council. Something that worked out to be in Brayden’s favor—for he looks nothing like his old man!” Domadred then winked at Aleksi with a smile. “High Arkai Aruna seems to have saved him from such a fate.”
“If I remember correctly, Western custom dictates that after two years at sea, children and their mothers then return to land, yes?”
Domadred nodded before answering. “Indeed. After his two years, Brayden spent the rest of his childhood in Skadra. But when he came of age, he returned to the ship. After that, the ocean was his cradle, the sky his roof, and his mother watched over us both from her Runic altar.”
There was a long silence as the evening sky became dark. Outside the creaking of the spars and the hum of the wind, silence now prevailed on deck as the seamen lit the lanterns. Aleksi then looked back and saw that only in the East, where the Zenith rose high into the sky, did the dying light of day still show itself as a faint glow of velvety red.
“Brayden wants so badly to be a man,” Domadred continued. “He tries to kill his innocence before he’s ready for its death. There are days I wish I could give this all up to allow him the childhood he deserves.” The pirate gave Aleksi a melancholy smile. “He practices incessantly with his sword, but yesterday was the first time he actually ever killed. He has yet to speak of it, but I am sure yesterday’s carnage troubles him greatly. To be quite honest, yesterday’s events trouble me greatly. I can only hope and pray that Beck and his men are faring well back in Mindra’s Haven.”
“Brayden has a right to practice,” Aleksi said slowly. “You must run into many dangers on the open sea.”
Domadred laughed. “I suppose we do, although I was once told by a man smarter than either you or me that ‘a sword will cut its way through many men only to leave you to die at the feet of a beautiful woman. But’”—Domadred grinned—“‘with the right words and a smile, you would instead have that woman in your bed, and the very same men bringing you breakfast in the morning.’”
Aleksi tilted his head and looked at the captain. “I know little of women and have been taught only to trust in the sharpness of a blade and the truth it exposes in one’s heart.”
“Just wait until you meet your woman, my boy,” Domadred said, as his smile faded. “A blade may cut the heart, but only the love of a woman can truly open it.” The captain’s tone grew soft. “In my opinion, until you’ve found that, son, you are little more than a walking corpse.”
Aleksi didn’t reply. With the last of the Zenith’s light gone, the rays of both moons shone on the deck about them as Domadred continued. “But enough of this wistful talk; what about you? What rude manners I have. Through all the commotion, I don’t even know your full name. Where do you hail from and what is your
story, Aleksi?”
“I was given a surname in my youth, but it is not mine to carry.” As Aleksi’s hands firmly grasped the wheel, he suddenly became very aware of his Rune pulsing in time with his heartbeat. Aleksi swallowed hard and looked out into the dark horizon ahead as he continued. “I am an orphan, sir.”
“I am sorry. Lineages are not what they once were.”
“Actually, Captain, one of the reasons I travel to Vai’kel is to learn of my house and fath—”
But before Aleksi could continue, there came a sharp snap from a line in the mainmast’s rigging and then a hollow thud as a body fell to the deck.
“Damn the darkness!” Domadred cursed loudly. The captain then let out a piercing whistle and ran down the quarterdeck steps toward the huddled mass. Midstride, Domadred called back to Aleksi. “Hold the helm true, son, and pray to whichever Arkai you favor that whoever fell is not dead!”
CHAPTER XV
As Domadred ran up to the huddled figure on the deck, there came a deep moan of pain. Doc Marlen and several other seamen rushed over as well. Through the gathering crowd, Aleksi saw the fallen sailor begin to move and clutch his mangled leg in the lamplight.
Wasting no time, the doctor went about the painful work of aligning the dislocated joints. Aleksi heard a series of hollow pops followed by groans of anguish. The sound was harsh and throaty—too masculine to be a boy’s voice. Aleksi let out a sigh of relief; it was not Brayden who had fallen.
Nara and Fa’ell came on deck. They must have heard the captain’s whistle. As they emerged from the entrance below the quarterdeck’s stairs, Aleksi could clearly see that innumerable stitches laced Nara’s day-old wounds.
The Lionman glanced over at the small group still setting the fallen sailor’s broken bones. Hearing the man give out another cry, Nara shook his head and walked up the stairs to the helm. When the large man saw Aleksi at the wheel, he smiled.
“They don’t waste their time, do they?” Nara said as he strode up to the youth. “I would have thought they would have at least waited a few days before putting you to work.”
“Oh, Nara,” Fa’ell said curtly as she walked behind him, “your stupidity betrays you. Acting as helmsman is hardly work on a ship.”
“Come now, Fa’ell. They are just trying to snare the boy in,” Nara said. Fa’ell frowned as she followed Nara over to Aleksi. “Mark my words,” the large man continued, “if this goes on, our young warrior here will be hauling lines within the week!”
Fa’ell shook her head and looked at Aleksi. “Son, the captain saw what you did yesterday. He wants that sword arm of yours, and I don’t blame him. You have no need to worry and should instead take his trust as a compliment. Manning the helm is an honor reserved for officers and mates, not petty deckhands.”
“And what does a crew’s sword arm do when there is nothing to swing at, I ask? It washes the deck!” The giant of a man let out a great laugh and his muscles rippled in the moonlight. “And my darling Fa’ell,” Nara continued, now speaking more softly and winking at Aleksi, “I’d watch who you call petty. Remember, my dear, we ride on a vile pirate ship manned by outlaws and thieves!”
Fa’ell rolled her eyes and walked closer to Aleksi, who continued to stand, awkwardly silent, at the helm. “Pay him no mind,” Fa’ell said, running her hands across Aleksi’s shoulders as she walked behind him. “In only a few days, that oaf over there will not only be stupid but also foaming from the mouth and speaking even worse nonsense.”
Fa’ell leaned closer, and Aleksi felt her supple breasts press against his back. “And then, Aleksi, there will be no one to keep me company on this long and lonely voyage.” Aleksi felt the warmth of her breath on his neck. “No one but you . . .” Her hands then slid across Aleksi’s chest, feeling the crevices of his muscles.
Aleksi swallowed hard and tried to step away from Fa’ell’s advance. But Fa’ell only moved in closer, pinning him between the wheel and her soft chest. Aleksi looked up at Nara and saw a dark expression grow on the large man’s face. Nara was not watching him, however—the large man’s gaze was locked on Fa’ell.
“And you fought so skillfully with such finesse and dexterity,” Fa’ell continued, meeting Nara’s glare but still speaking to Aleksi. “I’m sure with a little encouragement, you could please a woman wonderfully—”
“Enough!” Nara said loudly. “Oh, how I have missed your little games, darling.”
Fa’ell took a step back, but Aleksi felt her hands linger on his body. She then gently squeezed his buttocks as she walked back in front of the helm. “Oh, don’t be jealous, Nara,” Fa’ell said, smiling sweetly. “I only speak the truth. Your soma withdrawal will be quite bad this time around. And with nothing to ease your letdown, dear, I do believe you will die.”
Fa’ell then put the back of her hand to her forehead in mock lament. “And then, my brave Lionman, who will protect such a frail woman like me from these vicious pirates?”
“Don’t be ridiculous, Fa’ell,” Nara said, frowning deeply. “My withdrawal will—”
“You have no more paint?” Aleksi interrupted, swallowing hard and purposely avoiding Fa’ell with his eyes. “What will you do?”
“Same thing I did last time,” Nara answered, putting a large hand through his hair. “Weather the storm . . .”
“Last time,” Fa’ell said angrily, “I had dried soma leaves to wean you off with. Now you have only the last crusted dregs from your pouches!” Emotion leapt across her face. “You’re a fool, Nara, and by my guess, soon to be a dead fool!”
“Fa’ell, that is quite enough!” Nara said sternly. “I’m growing tired of—”
“Oh, won’t it be a funny song sung by the bards!” Fa’ell then threw up her tattooed arms like a songster. “The mighty Lionman, brought to the Zenith not by the Vashyrie in battle but by his own stupidity, drooling at the mouth and shitting himself!”
“Listen, woman!” Nara said, jabbing a finger at Fa’ell. “I would have been fine with two full pouches, but I decided to rescue you from nearly twenty armed men. And this—this—is the thanks I get for saving your life?”
“I never asked for your help—or for you to kill yourself!”
“Well, no one asked you to be such a vindictive bitch of a woman, but that’s not stopping you, now is it?”
“After what you did not only to me, but also my family,” Fa’ell said, gripping her whip tightly, “you have the gall to call me vindictive?!”
“Sweet Akasha!” Domadred said loudly, walking up behind them. “You two bicker better than my wife and I. And trust me, that’s truly saying something.” Domadred put a firm hand on one of Nara’s massive shoulders. “How long have you two known each other? It took us over twenty years to build up a banter like that!”
“I’ve known him long enough to know how much of a fool he is,” Fa’ell said, as her turquoise-and-amethyst eyes burned harshly.
“Well,” Domadred continued, “I had wanted to invite you three to dinner in my cabin tonight. I had wished to celebrate our new officers and officially honor you for your help yesterday—and if we all think we can keep it cordial, I would still very much like to do so. But Nara and Fa’ell, tell me now if having you together in the same enclosed space is a mistake.”
“It would please m’lady and me greatly to attend,” Nara said with a deep bow to the captain. “However, Fa’ell and I have not seen each other in some time and our history runs quite deep. Please grant us a day or so to sort things out, and I guarantee you that we will not dishonor your table with our petty trifles.” Nara’s former ire had completely vanished, but Fa’ell still glared at the large man’s deeply scarred back.
“Then we shall postpone the dinner to accommodate your reunion,” Domadred said with a wry smile. “What about you, Aleksi? Care to dine as an honored guest of the Illusive Diamond in two days’ time?”
“Yes, Captain,” Aleksi answered. “I would feel privileged to do so.”
“Splendi
d. In addition, once we reach the Grya Sea, the crew will be having their own party for the officers. Sometimes drunken merriment is the best way to relieve the tension of losing your brothers.” Domadred paused and cast a knowing glance at Nara and then Fa’ell. “For all our sakes, I would greatly appreciate if you two followed suit and likewise relieved your own tensions sooner rather than later.”
Before Nara or Fa’ell could respond, Domadred turned and walked to the carved double doors that led into the navigation room and captain’s cabin beyond. After opening one of the windowed doors, however, he turned around. “Oh, and Aleksi, someone will relieve you on the helm shortly. Thank you for your help.”
“Yes, Captain,” Aleksi said, deliberately avoiding eye contact with Fa’ell and Nara. “But do please tell me, how is your crewman?”
Domadred turned around, still clutching the door handle. “Thank you for asking, son. He is OK, but his leg is badly broken and he will not be walking much until we get it healed up. It was a series of clean breaks, though, so it should mend well once we get him to a temple of the Arkai in Vai’kel.”
With Domadred gone, Fa’ell quickly went below and Nara stalked off to the ship’s bow. Soon after, a mate came to relieve Aleksi from the helm, and the youth retreated to his cabin. Entering his small room, Aleksi locked the door and let out a deep sigh. Life outside of the Academy was much more tumultuous than he was accustomed to.
Rune of the Apprentice (The Rune Chronicles) Page 22
