by J P Nelson
The next year’s race had all eyes looking toward the friendly, but hot rivalry between the teams of the Sangora and the Evertide. Although there were several competitors as usual, most were resigned this time to chasing third place prize … but then one never knows.
Among those at the race’s send off was the infant, Kinson, the newest addition to Albri and J’Hene’s household … and Jann Raul was most proud of his little brother.
The sky was not friendly as sailors made ready to cast off, and even as the signal was given, angry lightning streaked across the sky. But this race had been uninterrupted since its beginning and this day would not be an exception.
This sailing would be a true test of all those involved, as the teams of more than one hundred craft sought to gain their prize. As expected, the favored teams edged to the front before the competitors were out of eyesight, but their chore was before them.
Savvy, skill and instinct were in much demand as the two teams relaxed not a whit to gain an advantage, yet neither could take a solid lead over the other. The next closest craft had long fallen from sight as the skies unloaded torrents of rain, wind fought more than gave aid and water churned as if to voice displeasure of any upon her this day.
The Sangora was beginning to take a lead when both mates saw the Evertide suddenly take an unnatural leap almost vertically into the air. It was Jann Raul, still a youth of fourteen years and was not yet master of his unique abilities, who saw the flapping of a large wing-like fin in the water.
Again the Evertide was knocked out of the water, but this time with a terrible splinter of wood as Mardon was spilled overboard … but in the creature’s mouth Mocklin was firmly caught by his leg as a Giant Scorpion Ray hovered an instant atop the wounded vessel, then plunged into the depths below as its huge, boney tail slapped against the now sinking Evertide.
As if the attack on their rival craft was not enough, Dover watched with even greater horror as Jann Raul yelled to him over the storm, “Round-a-bout, get Mardon …” Dover was not prepared for his mate to put a long bladed knife into his teeth and step upon the rail of their craft. He made a lunging grab, but missed as young Jha’Ley dove into the violent sea.
Chapter 6
WHAT HE HOPED to do, Jann Raul was not sure. But he couldn’t stand by and watch his friends die without doing something. His father had taught him, “That person who is capable of acting in danger and does not, is as guilty as one who acts with criminal intentions.” This was not exactly criminal, the actions of the fish, but he possessed an ability Dover did not have, so-o-o …
Within an instant of diving, the gills opened and he took his first deep, acclimating breath. As he did, however, he saw the size of the ray. Miu’Ganté, he thought as his eyes grew wide in alarm. He knew the fish was big, but …
The Scorpion Ray was not typically the largest of the ray family. A relative of the shark, it possesses a somewhat shark-like torso, but with wing-like fins which allow it to appear to fly in the water. Many rays borough under loose ocean floor, but this species actively hunts for prey like a shark. They are usually a deep-water predator, however.
Why this one was within a twenty-foot-depth and rocky shoreline was not important, not at the moment, anyway. What was more disconcerting was this one was gargantuan for its type, and Jann Raul was wondering what, if anything, he could do. Scorpion Rays usually grew to twelve feet across, the body measured the same, but its name came from a long prehensile tail with a stinger at its tip and was as long as the body itself. This one had to be at least twenty feet across, damn, giving it a forty-foot-overall length.
These thoughts he had while swimming at top speed toward Mardon. The man was clearly unconscious about five feet from the surface and seemed to be bleeding from the scalp. Blood, not good, especially in these waters. Then he saw the ray was turning around and headed back, but where was Mocklin? Jann Raul felt a shudder, had his friend been eaten already?
Many times he had dipped low into the depths and rushed up in his power swimming, and leaped up in the air like a dolphin. He had never tried it with another person, though. Giving it all he had and taking his knife into hand with a reverse grip, the swimmer placed the blade against his forearm and rushed to grab Mardon.
The ray was coming on as hard as it could …
Jha’Ley focused …
Only yards away the ray opened the folds of its mouth, revealing rows of jagged teeth …
Almost there …
The ray spun its body around …
Jha’Ley yelled underwater and grabbed his friend …
Teeth raked the swimmer’s leg a grazing wound as they came together tight only a hair’s breadth from the toes …
Jha’Ley, with his burden, barely cleared the water to the stern half of the wreckage as Dover was making way as fast as he could. Words could not be heard as both tried to yell at each other.
‘No time to wait,’ Jha’Ley thought, ‘Mocklin is still down there.’ Then he could sense the big fish coming about again. These were not slow, but were not quick in the water, either. The idea came to him on the fly, it was scary, but it was a chance.
Timing the ray’s speed and trajectory, Jann Raul dove again into the water, directly across the fish’s path. Darting to the rocky bottom as fast as he could, he paused long enough to look about and see if he could locate anything that looked like it could be Mocklin. Then he made a rough sound, almost a blend of grunt and click against the roof of the mouth, “Gkah-h-h,” as he tried to bounce the sound off of a solid object … hopefully his friend.
Again he made the sound … there … hard to see, but …
He waited too long, the ray almost snared him in a pass that included a narrow miss with that deadly tail. Only practiced reflexes prevented the predator from making the kill.
In a beautiful motion the ray turned about, but the lively meal was not there. Where? The creature was moving almost as fast as a porpoise toward a cluster of rocks. The ray was sure of itself, it could not have lived as long as it had if it were not skilled at such hunts. An inverted swimming motion and …
Jha’Ley found his point of opportunity and slashed the underbelly along the gills. Convulsively, the scorpion-like stinger flashed under and upward, barely missing the assailant.
Hesitating only a moment to see the ray’s reaction, Jha’Ley swam hard for Mocklin. Doing his best to tread water in the tossing waves, the eel hunter’s left leg had been severed. It was only by a miracle he hadn’t already bled out. Jann Raul quickly took his belt and tied a tourniquet around the leg and looked about for Dover and the Sangora.
The village of Turgens was close by, and it was there they headed with the injured brothers. The water depth was good only for canoes, but they ventured in as far as possible before dragging keel.
Mardon had come around and there was no time wasted getting Mocklin to a healer they knew. The salt of the sea had aided in slowing the blood loss, but any more and he would have died for sure. Mocklin survived to tell the tale, but he remained sick for a long time.
A runner was sent to Essontown to alert those folks as to the whereabouts of the two craft and teams. Also, Jann Raul quickly wrote of the encounter with the unnaturally sized Scorpion Ray.
As it were, there had been varying reports of sea life habits changing and species not seen before in the Georgian Isles making themselves known. This was the first encounter with such a large Scorpion Ray, but it would be far from the last. Without a doubt the currents were changing, and much talk was being made this was due to the coming Stellar Alignment.
The brothers had not seen, and no mention was made abroad, but Dover was definitely fascinated with Jann Raul’s underwater action. Being true friends, and as Dover was practically a part of the family, the secret was kept.
Albri simply believed it was best not to let such knowledge become public. In a world where differences such as color of skin, points on the ears and significant height differences were often the root of disc
rimination, he did not want to subject his son to the negative scrutiny of small-minded people. There would be enough of that when the lad was grown.
Even without the revelation of Jann Raul’s aquatic-abilities, the actions of both he and Dover were regarded as heroic. As Albri put it, “You two gentlemen are the flavor of the month. Well done.”
As any news is good news, the story eventually circulated all throughout the Georgian Isles. Due to the extensive amount of reefs about the island, it was said a good Robinto Pilot was by skill one of the best reef pilots in the Argos Ocean. Because Turgens Cove was among the worst areas to navigate anything larger than a canoe, Dover’s skill in avoiding damage to his craft, especially in such a storm, elevated him to status of among the best in the business.
Three more times Jann Raul and Dover competed in the island sail race, becoming the first team to win three consecutive victories. The third was to be the team’s final run, however, as Dover took position as pilot on merchant vessel, the Luhai.
Dover set sail on the Sangora with his three best friends, the Madiel brothers and Jann Raul, for Sherrils Island where he would begin the next phase of his life.
The brothers knew a’forehand, but Jann Raul was taken by surprise when Dover clasped his friend’s hand and said, “The Sangora is yours, mate. Treat her well and she will give return favor.” Then he took up his duffle and boarded the Luhai.
As much as Jann Raul spent time on and in the water, his mom made sure he applied himself to academics as well. He also spent time in cultured practices of music, art appreciation and dance.
Perhaps the most academic training he received, however, was when his grandfather, Captain Liam, sailed in on a thirty-two-foot catamaran named the Max Cat to retire and settle his bones.
Twin hull craft were not uncommon, but they were in essence two canoes connected together by a platform. The Max Cat was very different. Both hulls had walking space compartments, including his sleeping quarters. Instead of a simple platform, the hulls were connected by a nicely built cabin and deck. A single mast supported fore and aft sails. It was a beautiful rig with a shallow draft.
Liam was J’Hene’s older brother by a good many years, he being the eldest child and only son of Captain Ruben and the only known child of Captain Raul Vier, a daughter named Shuella. Still game and spry for a man of seventy-six years, he built his own cottage on Wessex Mountain where he could watch the ocean.
As a boy, Liam had been raised to fish by his father in their ancestral home on Avalon, north-by-east of Lychiwal, “Fer ‘nough est so not t’be Eh’Shea,” he would say.
From Old Uncle, as the children came to call the elder man, Jann Raul learned of Captain Raul Vier, many voyages of the Tab’Oleen told him by his own father, fishing and legends of Avalon and how his people were said to have settled there.
Old Uncle had done it all; from deep diving and fishing with a spear off of Avalon’s coast, fighting to the death with a cutlass at only ten years of age, his illustrious thirty year career as an officer of the Vedoan Navy, winning over two pirate ships from his own sinking vessel, getting burned by a black dragon’s saline breath … Old Uncle even showed them the scar on his left side … being stranded on a desert island for four years, living for a time among a band of trolls, hiking through a tunnel through Orucean’s core, and for over a year he was caged as a pet in a land of giants where he stood only to their knees.
Sometimes Jann Raul would wonder as to the accuracy of the stories, but they were colorful to hear.
Old Uncle had sailed with Captain Greybeard, then later went out on his own to find Dorian’s Purse. Afterward he came back to Vedoa to sail for another decade as a frigate captain.
Jann Raul’s favorite stories, however, involved the Kelshinua. Captain Vier had a message with a large draft of currency and special ship design sent to Old Man Ruben at his home in Avalon. The vessel was to be built by Ruben’s people and he to supervise. The message was sent by way of N’Ville, but nobody had ever known where the legendary captain actually came from.
The gray-headed man showed up at the dock where the vessel was being completed and introduced himself to Ruben as Captain Greybeard.
“Sech a shiep as ye’ve ne’er seen a’fore …” recanted Old Uncle. One hundred thirty-five feet from bow to stern, with two masts, not three, and though rigged to handle square sails if need be, “… twas the tri-sail we hoisted epp-hon ‘er.
“Aye dast ye defy me wurds, she could nigh sail d’rect inta ‘da wind. Ah reg’lar shiep frum elfin tahms, she was.”
It wasn’t until the vessel cast off that Captain Greybeard disclosed the purpose of his quest, to seek and find Dorian’s Purse. Within the purse was to be a great treasure of the Elvin Bards, a treasure forgotten by even the Elves of Ch’Hahnju. Within this treasure was the Key to Kohrmynthia.
What the Kohrmynthian Key actually looked like, or what lock it was to open was never divulged. In the log of Old Man Ruben, it was assumed the key opened the way to youth, long life or something to that effect. The only real clue lay in a reference in the log to Mynthia being an Elvish word indicating godly. A footnote speculated whether Greybeard wanted to ascend to godhood, but disregarded the thought as it would be uncharacteristic of the man.
For twelve years The Kelshinua roamed the known world. With raised eyebrow to embellish his tale, Liam added, “… an’ then sum, mind ye!”
When Dover left to sail aboard the Luhai, Jann Raul was a healthy seventeen-year-old. A solid yet lean five-foot-eleven marks tall with rippling muscles from his daily swims, a sheaf of dark and unruly hair, and a young mustache which would become his trademark vanity.
Known by all of his acquaintances for his flashing smile and good naturedly way, he was also known as a bad fellow to mess with. A bad fellow meaning he was bad news for anyone seeking a tussle. Jann Raul Jha’Ley could and would toss a man or two, and as had happened twice in locales apart from Robinto Isles, he proved himself worthy with his blade.
Twice more saw Jann Raul in the sailing race aboard the Sangora, both times with Mardon as partner, and both times they won, making Jann Raul the first person in Robinto history to win the race on six occasions.
During his nineteenth year, Jann Raul took part in festivities of Ka’thi’s marriage to a fine man named Leslie. Teppine was blossoming into a beautiful teenager, and Kinson had become his special buddy … but the call of the sea was weighing heavy and pulling hard.
Several times adventures were launched, sailing aboard the Sangora into the deep while diving to see what may be seen. Old vessels were explored, twice a known heirloom of some island family, thought forever lost was recovered and returned.
Sometimes young Jha’Ley would venture out with Old Uncle, together they would sit on deck of the Max Cat and stare at the moons. The waves would gently rock the boat, salt spray wafting over the rail with only the sea for a horizon. More entertaining tales would be told, but often the thought nagged at the mind of the borning seaman, ‘What else is out there … who else is out there?’
The day came when a light craft came to Essontown bearing a special delegation of four officers. Old Uncle, once a distinguished captain in the Vedoan Navy, had sent a missive suggesting his nephew be considered for officer recruitment.
Commodore Sark had received the letter from Liam nearly a year previous, but Vedoa was far away and one could not just sail thousands of miles for a recruit, even a promising one.
A circumstance called for Sark to pursue a particularly elusive pirate from Siaco, wanted for many crimes against the crown, and that pursuit led into the Georgian Isles. Captain Mitchell, the pirate, was of persuasion to not only capture vessels and their loot, he enjoyed torturing souls and hanging them by their feet aboard burning vessels. If women were aboard … it went very badly for them.
As crafty as he was cruel, Mitchell had recently taken the VNS Luscious, a splendid two-mast schooner which was out on her maiden run. The details were unclear, but h
er captain and crew were found naked, mutilated and hanging from the yardarms on Mitchell’s previous ship. The vessel was still burning when it was found, the captain’s skull split twice in a cross-pattern, as was Mitchell’s signature.
Unfortunately, the chase had been for naught. By accident, Commodore Sark and the two sips under his command, the VNS Alvarez and VNS Cortain, made a brief stop in Port Oliver to take water and supplies when they saw the Luscious casting off. Thus was begun a pursuit to last for weeks.
The Alvarez and Cortain were Vedoan built frigates and quick on the water, but the Luscious was built specifically for speed with a more shallow draft and swept-back keel for easier maneuvering. Furthermore, Mitchell was a shrewd captain of superb seamanship. There were times the commodore wandered as to whether his quarry was mocking him, as his sails were always just within visibility.
The chase led into the Georgian Isles, an archipelago eleven hundred miles long, but then the fish jumped the hook, so-to-speak. Now, the pirate had managed to hide among a rocky cluster of uninhabited islands not even on royal charts.
Frustrated, but resigned to having lost his quarry, the commodore optioned to visit Robinto and investigate this nephew of Captain Liam’s. If all was favorable as Liam insisted, he would be tested for a ship’s position on the spot. Seeing the captain again would be a pleasure as well.
Formal introductions were quickly by-passed and Liam explained, with arm around Sark’s shoulder, that he had brought the lad up from ship’s boy to sailing master. The Albri household was pleased of the honor and purpose of the visit, but as soon as Jann Raul learned the primary reason for the commodore’s voyage to the area, he became enthused.
“Sir, what, may I ask, was his bearing?”
With his hands outstretched, Lieutenant Redding replied, “If you had a map I could show you, straightway.”
Within moments Albri produced a sheaf of maps, then rolled them out upon the center-room table.
