by Ben Chandler
‘Which one?’ Fox asked, any trace of her flippancy gone. She sat with her back erect, her eyes alert. ‘You seem to have many, Captain Shishi. If you wish to hurry this meeting along, I suggest you explain yourself as quickly as you can.’
The captain nodded and launched into a hasty account of the Hiryū’s voyages. Lenis was a little shocked by his candour – he didn’t shy away from telling them the truth. He was even more surprised that the Cunning Lady didn’t seem at all astonished. In fact, she didn’t even blink when the captain mentioned Ishullanu and his Demon army, or the World Tree and the fate of the Totem.
Ursula was another matter. The captain of the Geschichte was radiating alarm throughout the captain’s story, though her expression remained impassive. The captain finished his recount with a summary of their encounter with Karasu in Kolga’s temple.
The Fox Lady nodded once when he was done. ‘Thank you. Given the importance of your quest there seems little point in delaying your departure.’
Lenis looked to Captain Shishi, who remained focused on the Cunning Lady.
‘You are letting us go?’ the captain asked.
‘Yes.’ The woman waved a dismissive hand at them. ‘You may go.’
‘What of Kenji Jackson’s offer?’
The woman smiled, just enough for her eyeteeth to show. ‘I have had a better one.’
‘What will you do with him?’ the captain prompted.
Her smile widened as she turned to the Hiryū’s navigator. ‘I have decided on a suitable punishment for his crimes.’
‘Oh, good,’ Kenji muttered. ‘Am I to be tortured? Thrown out into the Wastelands? Perhaps boiled –’
‘No, Kenji,’ the woman said. ‘I have decided to hand you over to the crew of the Hiryū. Your fate is now in their hands.’
Almost as one, each of the crew turned from the Cunning Lady to the navigator, the man who had attempted to barter everything they had been fighting for to save his own life.
‘Very well, then,’ Captain Shishi said, then stood. ‘Let us make haste. Mister Jackson, you are needed at your post.’
‘Captain!’ Shin protested. ‘Surely you do not mean for us to take him with us after what he did?’
The captain nodded. ‘He is still our navigator, Miss Shin. Now come, we must –’
‘I’m not going with you,’ Missy suddenly shouted. All eyes turned to her, and Lenis saw his sister shrink down in her chair. ‘I’m not going.’
‘Missy?’ Lenis couldn’t make her words mean anything. ‘What are you talking about?’
Finally, she looked right at him. ‘I’m not going, Lenis. I’m leaving the Hiryū.’
He shook his head. It didn’t make sense. ‘What? Why?’
Missy glanced at the woman sitting beside her and then turned back to Lenis again. ‘I have to stay here, Lenis. Lady Fox is going to teach me how to use the Quillblade properly.’
Lenis heard the words, but they didn’t sink in. What was his sister saying? ‘I don’t understand.’
‘I’m sorry, Lenis, but I have to do this. It’s the only way. You can see that, right?’
Of course he didn’t see that! All those years he had been so worried about being separated from his sister, about them being sold to different masters, or her being taken from him by some Demon or crazed Totem, and now she was the one who wanted to leave him? Lenis couldn’t believe it. He felt something pierce his chest. His throat tightened. His eyes filled with tears. And suddenly he was running. Someone called out to him, but he didn’t care. He just had to get out of there.
He burst out of the temple, pushed passed a trio of black-robed figures, and headed for the Hiryū. The buildings flew by him in a blur. And then he was on the gangplank, then the deck, and finally he was on the forecastle, where he collapsed on the blood-stained wood and cried. After everything, this couldn’t be happening. Not this. Never this. What was the point of any of it if he lost his sister?
Lenis knew Missy had come after him long before she knelt down next to him and placed an arm around his shoulders.
‘Why are you doing this?’ he asked through his sobs.
Missy sighed, and the sound made her seem much older than she was. ‘What wisdom forbids, right, little brother?’ He glared at her. ‘I really don’t have a choice, Lenis. I have to learn how to use the Quillblade. Fox can teach me.’
‘Tenjin can teach you!’
Missy shook her head. ‘Not fully. Not like she can. You saw her fight those Demons, Lenis! Ishullanu’s strong. We know that. If the Totem have fallen, and the Jinn, then what hope does Suiteki have on her own, even if she achieves her full potential? We need every warrior we can get, and if I can be a warrior, well then that’s just what I’ll be.’
‘Then I’ll stay with you,’ he mumbled.
‘And leave the Hiryū, and your Bestia, and Suiteki behind? No, Lenis. That isn’t going to happen.’
‘But I don’t want to lose you.’
‘I don’t want to lose you either, dummy.’ She poked him in the ribs, and he winced. ‘But we’ll see each other again.’
Lenis narrowed his eyes. ‘You don’t really believe that.’
She shook her head again. ‘No, Lenis, I don’t. Not completely. But we have to hope.’
This time it was Lenis who shook his head. ‘Not good enough.’ He fumbled around in his pocket and pulled out the damaged stone. ‘Take this.’ He pressed it into Missy’s hands.
‘I can’t!’ She tried to give it back to him, but he wouldn’t take it. ‘Suiteki needs it!’
‘It’s broken. Work out how to repair it. Then bring it back to me after your training.’
‘But I can’t –’
Lenis gripped his sister’s hands around the orb. ‘Suiteki will need it when it’s fixed. You have to bring it back to us.’
Missy looked from their clasped hands to her brother’s eyes. ‘All right, little brother. When I work out how to do it, I’ll come looking for you and the Hiryū.’
‘You’d better.’
For a time the two sat together on the forecastle, holding each other in silence.
They both became aware of Kanu at the same time. The Titan boy stood at the top of the stairs leading up to the forecastle, looking graver than Lenis had ever seen him. Lenis glanced back to his sister. It was time to put a stop to this, for Kanu’s sake. He couldn’t spend the rest of his life trailing along after either of the twins. He had to find his own Way.
‘Kanu,’ Lenis said, beckoning the boy over. When he was next to them, Lenis went on, ‘Kanu, this can’t go on.’
‘I know,’ the boy said, surprising them both.
‘You do?’ Missy asked.
‘I cannot be in more than one place. If one of you leaves, I cannot serve Mashu.’
‘We don’t want you to serve us,’ Lenis said, and Missy nodded. ‘You aren’t our slave.’
Kanu frowned. ‘I’m not a slave. I am a Titan.’
Lenis and Missy exchanged a long look. How were they going to make him see?
‘Your life is your own,’ Missy told him. ‘You can do whatever you want with it.’
‘I can?’
‘Yes!’
The frown vanished from the boy’s face, replaced by his now familiar too-wide grin. ‘That’s good. Now I can decide.’
Lenis nodded, satisfied that Kanu understood he was free. ‘What do you want to do?’
‘I will serve you, Lenis,’ Kanu said, stumbling over Lenis’s name a bit. He’d only ever called either of them Mashu before.
Lenis groaned. ‘No, Kanu. That’s not what we meant, I –’
‘That is my choice,’ Kanu insisted. ‘I will go with Lenis. He is weak. He does not have Adad’s power or the protection of the Lady of Cunning. He will need me. I see this now. I can serve Mashu by protecting him. I will do so by his side.’
‘But you don’t have to do this,’ Lenis pleaded.
‘I am a Titan,’ Kanu repeated. ‘It is my duty to serve Mash
u. Since I cannot be with you both, I choose to serve Lenis.’
Lenis and Missy shared another look. Lenis began, ‘You don’t –’
‘That is my choice,’ Kanu said. Then he turned and walked away from them.
Lenis groaned, but Missy laughed. ‘It’s not funny, Missy!’
‘We gave him the choice, Lenis,’ Missy said, covering her mouth with one hand.
‘He wasn’t supposed to choose that!’
‘But he did, and you’ll just have to deal with it.’ She reached out to ruffle his hair. ‘We chose to serve Captain Shishi when we were given our freedom.’
‘Yeah, I guess,’ Lenis mumbled, ‘but I’m not the captain.’
‘No, but I’ll rest easier knowing you’ve got someone as strong as Kanu watching over you once I’m gone.’
They both lapsed into silence, and that was how the captain found them. He cleared his throat politely and waited for them both to notice him. ‘I have discussed your decision with Lady Fox, Miss Clemens. Are you certain this is the course of action you wish to take?’
Missy was looking at Lenis when she answered. ‘Yes, Captain. I will remain here and learn to use the Quillblade. When I am strong enough, I will return to my post on the Hiryū.’
‘Very well,’ the captain said. ‘We will miss you while you are gone.’
Lenis saw the tears in the captain’s own eyes and didn’t need his empathic gifts to tell him their captain was being sincere.
‘I will miss you all, too,’ Missy said. She gave Lenis a quick squeeze before disentangling herself from his arms.
‘Not all of us, I think,’ the captain said.
Missy stood. ‘What do you mean?’
‘You are not the only one who will be staying behind,’ Captain Shishi told her.
Lenis held out his hand so Missy could help him to his feet. ‘Who else is staying?’
‘I am,’ Shujinko called from the deck. The cabin boy was standing just on the other side of the forecastle’s railing. ‘The captain has decided my injury is too severe for me to continue travelling with the Hiryū.’
The boy was in such turmoil Lenis couldn’t sift through his emotions. Given his fear of heights, he should have been relieved to remain on solid ground for a time, but he didn’t seem at all pleased with the notion.
‘Miss Florona will also be staying,’ the captain told them as Missy descended to the deck, ‘and the doctor has agreed to remain behind to care for them.’
Lenis didn’t respond. Three more crewmates gone. Would there be anyone left to pilot the Hiryū?
The captain lowered his voice and leant in to whisper to Lenis, ‘I would not leave your sister alone with strangers, Mister Clemens. Their injuries give me an excuse to leave them behind, but in truth Shujinko, Miss Florona and Master Long will provide much-needed support to Miss Clemens after we are gone.’
Lenis watched Missy and Shujinko over the captain’s shoulder before mouthing, ‘Thank you.’
The captain nodded in reply. ‘As much as I am loathe to speed our separation,’ he went on in a normal tone of voice, ‘we must be leaving.’
‘So soon, Captain?’
‘We must hasten after Karasu.’
Lenis felt his tears come again. He pushed past the captain, jumped down the stairs and pulled his sister into a hard embrace. She squeezed him back. They were both crying. The captain left them alone for a moment, but all too soon he was clearing his throat and apologising, then they were pulling away from each other and Missy was heading below decks to fetch her things.
It was all happening too fast. Lenis didn’t know what to do with himself, so he did the one thing he could always rely on. He went to work. If they were going to be chasing after Karasu then they were going to need the engines warmed up and ready to go. Lenis was going to show that Shinzōn mercenary just how fast a dual-Bestia engine could outstrip his airship.
Missy crammed her few belongings into the shore bag and flung it over her shoulder. This was it. It was really happening. She was leaving the Hiryū. She looked down at her bunk for a moment, waiting for it to sink in. Her eyes were still puffy from her cry with Lenis, and her heart was aching at the thought of leaving him, of leaving all of them. But she had made her decision, and she would stick to it.
As she passed through the airship she paused to say farewell to the Bestia. This proved harder to do than she had imagined. Trying to form a coherent image-message in her state was difficult enough, but receiving their replies was almost too much to bear. They were going to miss her. She tried to hold onto that as a solace, but it really just made her sadder. As she climbed the stairs to the deck she met her brother, who seemed to think better of entering the engine room and trailed along after her.
On the way across the deck they passed Kenji and Shin. The helmswoman’s disgust for the navigator was writ large across her face, but Kenji was wearing his usual sardonic grin. Missy gave Shin a quick hug and then turned to go. A thought occurred to Missy and she paused.
‘You did it on purpose,’ she said, rounding on Kenji.
‘What are you talking about?’ he asked, sounding bored.
‘You were testing me back there in Haven, weren’t you?’ she demanded. ‘You wanted to see if I would read your mind or try to stop you. That’s why you did it.’
Kenji winked at her. ‘Trust moves in two directions, little girl.’ Then he laughed and continued up to the bridge.
Shin looked at her, but Missy just shrugged. The navigator, she suddenly realised, was no longer her problem.
At the top of the gangplank they met the captain and Tenjin, who was leaning heavily on a crutch. Lenis was still crying a little, Missy noticed. So were the captain and the old records keeper. Her heart went out to them, but she had to do this, and do it soon. The longer she delayed the more pain she would cause them all.
Tenjin reached inside his robe. ‘You will be needing this for your lessons, I believe.’ He drew forth the Quillblade and held it out to her. ‘I am sorry I placed this burden on your shoulders.’
As she took the shintai from him, she replied, ‘Don’t be, Lord Tenjin. Once I’ve learned to master the Quillblade I’ll be able to help in the coming war.’
She had meant to make him feel better, but he only looked grimmer.
‘Take care, Miss Clemens,’ he said and patted her shoulder before hobbling off down the deck.
‘Goodbye, Miss Clemens,’ the captain said. He bowed low to her and then left the twins alone.
‘So,’ Lenis said. ‘I guess this is finally it.’
‘I guess so, little brother.’ Missy reached up to tousle his hair. ‘Look after yourself. And the Bestia. And Suiteki. And Kanu, I guess. I’ll find you when I’m done here. I promise.’
‘And I’ll find you if you don’t.’
Missy laughed and hugged her brother. Something squawked inside his robe and she pulled away as Suiteki poked her head out. For a moment, looking into the baby dragon’s eyes, it seemed to Missy that she wasn’t a baby at all, that deep inside her lurked the Totem she was one day going to become. Take care of my brother, she said, and was sure Suiteki bobbed her head in a nod. The little dragon gave one of her reptilian caws and disappeared back inside Lenis’s robe. Without another word Missy turned and walked down the gangplank.
‘I love you, sister!’ Lenis called down to her.
‘I love you too, little brother!’ Missy waved her hand as Lenis disappeared behind the railing.
‘Goodbyes can be hard,’ Fox noted. The Cunning Lady was waiting for Missy at the head of the airdock. She wore one of the black coats of the Brotherhood over her flimsy gown. ‘I’m sure you will see your brother again.’
Missy nodded, fighting back tears. ‘I will. Definitely. In the meantime, where should I put my stuff?’
Fox smiled her wicked smile. ‘Turn around.’
‘Sorry?’
‘Go stow your stuff aboard the Geschichte.’
Missy shook her head. ‘But
I thought you were going to teach me!’
Fox rolled her eyes. ‘I am, but not for free. Remember our deal? You owe me one Peaceful Guardian, and we certainly aren’t going to find him around here!’
GLOSSARY
(For a more detailed glossary, go to www.benchandler.com.au)
Apsu
(Rinjin, Njord)
God of the Sea
Ishullanu the
(Akuma, Idunn)
God of Order
Demon King
Adad the Lord of Storms
(Raikō, Magni)
Lightning Guardian
Apsilla the Lady of Rain
(Seisui, Kolga)
Water Guardian
Silili the Lord of Healing
Peaceful Guardian
Blitzer
Bestia of Fire (the Geschichte)
Pog
Bestia of Earth (Haven)
Iki
Bestia of Air (Itsū)
Etana the Lord of Fury
Warden of Retribution
Shamutar the Lord of Destruction
Warden of Renewal
Neti the Father of the Slain
Warden of Knowledge
Akandoji
Demon of the Northern Isles
Akamusaborikū
Demon of the Western Marches
Bakeneko
Cursed Yūrei no Gōshi Yami
Disma
Bonded to Anastasis Greygori
Lord Butin
Steward of Ost
Nue
Bonded to Lord Butin
2468
The first Kystian settlers arrive in the ‘New World’
2500
Nochi is built and named the new capital city of Shinzō
2578
The Great War Starts
