The Quest to the Uncharted Lands

by Jaleigh Johnson

  “Invisible ships.” A memory jolted Stella, and she leaned forward excitedly. “During the Iron War, there were stories that came out of the Independent Nation of Archivists claiming that they had an airship long before the Iron Glory was built. There were witnesses who swore they’d seen it flying over the mountains, but after that, it was never seen again, so I always thought the stories were made up. Could the ship have been one of yours?”

  Cyrus nodded. “It was, though it wasn’t part of our expeditions. It was sent alone over the mountains as an advanced scout. Our people thought it had been lost—it had been gone for years—until one day, it turned up again in Kovall.

  “As for my group’s ship,” he went on, “we hid it in a cave in the foothills of the Hiterian Mountains, not far from the scrap towns and meteor fields.”

  Where the strange objects fall from other worlds, Stella thought. The objects the archivists studied. She wondered if Cyrus had ever seen a meteor storm. She and her parents had talked about taking a trip north to study the phenomenon, but when they got the opportunity to travel to the uncharted lands, they’d pretty much abandoned the idea.

  The Iron Glory shuddered under a sudden wind gust, and Stella’s stomach lurched. So far, she’d managed to forget about being in the small room, the tight space, but the ship had just reminded her. She took deep breaths until the flash of panic had passed.

  “Are you all right?” Cyrus asked, reaching over to touch her shoulder. “You look pale.”

  “I’m fine,” Stella said. She wondered, not for the first time, why the pitching ship didn’t bother Cyrus. Could machines, or hybrid machines, get airsickness? “Keep talking,” she told him. “How many people were on the ship with you?”

  “There were ten of us,” Cyrus said, resting his hands in his lap. “Mostly scientists, along with some soldiers for security.”

  “Were there other people your age?” Stella asked. She couldn’t imagine it, but then again, maybe Cyrus was older than he looked. Maybe the olarans aged differently than humans.

  “Not on that expedition,” Cyrus said. “On previous ones, yes. But I was only allowed to go because my teacher had requested it. He’s a scientist and a high-ranking official in Kovall. I’d been apprenticed with him for over a year, so he thought I was the best person to help him with his research.” His hands clenched into fists. “And I wanted to go on the expedition. I wanted it more than anything, even though my parents said no.”

  That sounded familiar. Stella knew what her own parents would have said—No, no, no way, never in a million years, or something along those lines.

  Cyrus’s face was shadowed, his eyes full of unhappy memories. “They were furious when I told them that my teacher had arranged everything. My father is a diplomat, so he petitioned the alagant to intervene and keep me home, but like I said, my teacher is very powerful in the royal court, and he has more influence than my father, so the alagant sided with him.” His voice dropped. “I remember being so happy. I felt like I’d won a battle against my parents. I wanted to gloat.”

  Stella understood that feeling all too well. If King Aron had intervened and declared that she could join her parents on the expedition to the uncharted lands, she would have been overjoyed, ecstatic.

  “What happened?” she asked.

  “Oh, we fought over it for weeks.” Cyrus stared at the floor as he spoke, his shoulders tense. “I said awful things. Told them they were just jealous because I was getting to do something they never could have dreamed. In the end, I said goodbye and went on the expedition.

  “Once we arrived, the plan was to explore our designated lands for two weeks, collect as much information about your people as we could, then meet back at the ship and go home.” He looked up at her and shrugged. “Easy, right? And mostly, it was. My teacher and I covered the area around the scrap towns. We even got to see a meteor storm from a safe distance. Watching objects from other worlds streak from the sky in clouds of green dust—I’d never seen anything like it. Afterward, we headed south toward the archivists’ nation. Everything was going great.” His expression hardened. “And then the slavers found us.”

  A chill went through Stella. She had heard stories of slavers, of course, but King Aron’s soldiers kept most of them out of Noveen, so they weren’t something that she feared the way other people living in less protected cities did. “Were you captured?” she asked, though she feared she already knew the answer.

  Cyrus nodded, eyes wide and jaw tight with anger. “They’re the only thing about your people I hate,” he said. “When slavers hit you with their dust, you’re just…caught, and helpless, and all of a sudden, home’s so far away it might as well be another world….” His voice trembled, chest heaving, and by the dim light, Stella realized there were tears standing in his eyes. Lost in that terrible memory, Cyrus was terrified.

  Stella finally understood. That was why he’d been so angry when she’d used the knockout powder on him. He’d been a victim of slaver’s dust. In that moment, he wasn’t at all like the person he’d been when they first met, so sure of himself, not shaken by anything. Now he was just a boy who was alone, far away from home, and terribly afraid.

  She shifted and scooted closer to him. Without a word, she put her arm across his shoulders and tugged him toward her until their foreheads touched. He took her other hand and held it in a tight grip, and for a while, neither of them spoke. She listened to his ragged breathing; felt his cold, clammy skin against hers; and willed some of her strength and warmth into him. She didn’t know if she was helping or not, but eventually, his breathing quieted, and he lifted his head to look at her. He still clutched her hand, making Stella’s fingers tingle with numbness. She didn’t complain or try to pull away.

  “It’s all right,” she whispered. “We don’t have to talk about this anymore.”

  But Cyrus shook his head and wiped his eyes. “I need to tell someone,” he said. “I’ve never told the story before. It’s been inside me all this time like a knot that just keeps getting bigger, tighter, and it hurts.” His voice cracked. “He left me, Stella,” Cyrus whispered.

  “Who left you?” Stella asked, wanting to comfort him. “Your teacher? I thought you were both captured?”

  “We were,” Cyrus said. “They raided our camp one night and took us both, but my teacher managed to escape the next morning. I was sure everything was going to be all right then. We were supposed to leave for home in four days. I thought he’d go meet up with the others at the ship and they’d form a rescue party to come after me. We weren’t that far from where we’d hidden the ship. I thought surely they’d come back to get me. They wouldn’t just abandon me.” He shook his head as if he still couldn’t believe it. “I was wrong. No one…no one ever came.”

  “What?” Horrified, Stella thought of the message written on the crumpled paper. I’m so sorry. “They didn’t even try to rescue you?”

  “For all I know, my teacher told them I was dead,” Cyrus said, and the anger was back in his voice, a rage so intense it made his brown eyes look black. “Whatever the reason, I was on my own. I got lucky, though. After a week, the slavers camped near a railroad water station. The 401 train made a stop there during the night, and someone from the crew, a chamelin, was flying around, scouting the area, and saw the camp. He swooped in like a storm, sent the slavers running, so I ran too. Eventually, the slavers regrouped and chased me. I ran for miles, dodging their paralyzing dust and the bolas they use to trip and catch their victims. I hid when I could, and somehow, I lost them. I was exhausted, but I kept going. Finally, I made it back to the cave where we’d hidden the ship.” Cyrus’s gaze flicked to the crumpled note on the floor. “All I found was the message my teacher left me. They were gone, and that was it. I sat on the cave floor, reading the note over and over, realizing that I had no way home.”

  “Oh, Cyrus, I’m so sorry.” Stella knew the words could never be enough. She laid a hand on his shoulder, but he was absorbed in his memori
es and didn’t seem to notice.

  “The worst part was when I started thinking about my parents,” Cyrus said. He slumped, his expression crumpling. “All that time I’d spent being angry at them for trying to keep me off the expedition because I thought they didn’t trust me. But it wasn’t that at all. They didn’t trust my teacher to take care of me. My parents must have known what kind of person he was, that he’d sacrifice me in a heartbeat if it meant saving his own skin. They knew, but I didn’t believe them. I was just so sure I was right about everything.”

  “It doesn’t matter now,” Stella insisted, giving his shoulder a gentle shake. “You made a mistake, but you were so brave, Cyrus. You found another way home. We’re getting closer every day, and when we finally make it, you can tell your parents you missed them and didn’t realize what you were getting yourself into.” She smiled, hoping to coax one from him in return. “They won’t care about all the awful things you said. They’ll just be glad you’re safe.”

  To Stella’s relief, Cyrus did smile back. It was a small, tremulous thing, but it took some of the pain from his eyes. “You’re right,” he said. “They’ll be…so happy.” His expression quickly turned serious again. “But the Faceless man is still out there,” he said. “Now that the Iron Glory’s made it through the storm, he’ll come up with another way to sabotage the ship. It’s only a matter of time.”

  “We have an advantage thanks to you,” Stella said. “I know what detail the Faceless man can’t hide. It’s his eyes. Both times that I’ve seen him, his eyes were bloodshot. It means we’ll have to get up close to spot him, but it’s a start.”

  “Hmmm, that is something,” Cyrus said thoughtfully. “But I think if you’re going to mount a search, you should focus on the lower decks.”

  “Why? You think he’s hiding there?”

  “He might be, but it’s more that I think he’ll go after the Iron Glory’s engines,” Cyrus said. “It’s the best way to cripple the ship. If he tampers with the steam gauges, creates a pressure buildup, it could cause an explosion. But I’ve been in the engine room, and sabotaging things in there won’t be easy. There’s a large crew monitoring the engines at all times.”

  “What about a fire?” Stella asked. “He might try that again. There are plenty of things around that’ll burn.”

  “That’s true,” Cyrus said. “If he tries that, he’ll want to make sure the blaze spreads fast, too fast for the crew to put it out. However he does it, he’ll have to be careful, because if he tries again and fails, the crew will know I’m not the saboteur.”

  Stella considered that. “Maybe that explains why he hasn’t done anything yet,” she said. “He’s planning, biding his time while you’re a captive and—” She stopped. A thought occurred to her that sent a chill through her entire body. “He may come after us first. Come after you, Cyrus. You were protecting the ship during the storm, and the Faceless man knew it. That’s why he was coming up the crow’s nest after us. He was trying to stop you. As long as he knows you’re able to protect the ship, he won’t want to act unless he’s taken care of you first.” Her stomach twisted at the thought. It meant Cyrus really wasn’t safe anywhere, even locked up in the security office.

  She looked at Cyrus, but he appeared to be lost in thought, tapping a finger against his knee. “If that’s true, maybe we shouldn’t do anything,” he said slowly. “Rather than hunt the Faceless man down, we could try to draw him to us.”

  “You mean set a trap?” Stella asked.

  He nodded. “With me as the bait. The Faceless man knows exactly where I am, so we just wait for him to come here.”

  Stella frowned. She didn’t like the word “bait.” Not one bit. “He’s almost gotten to you once already,” she said, “and I’ve had a taste of what that rod can do to a person. I can’t even imagine what effect it would have on someone who’s part mechanical.”

  “It’s called a Lazuril rod,” Cyrus said. “In our language, it means ‘living light.’ And you’re right—it’s nasty enough on humans, but it can do different things to an olaran. On its lowest setting, it knocks us out by disrupting our mechanical processes. On its highest settings, a Lazuril rod can kill us. I’ve never been hit with one on any setting, and believe me, I never want to be.”

  He smiled weakly at her. Stella suddenly became aware that he was still holding her hand. He hadn’t let go during their conversation, and she hadn’t noticed until that moment. It had just felt…right. Now that she was aware of it, though, a blush streaked across Stella’s cheeks. She ducked her head so he wouldn’t see her burning face.

  What was she going to do? She couldn’t be the one to pull away first. He might think—what would he think? What did she think? And why was her heart beating so fast?

  Just as she was starting to panic, Cyrus turned to her and said quietly, “By the way—thanks,” before gently squeezing her hand.

  That made Stella look up, though her cheeks were still hot. “For what?”

  “For coming here, for listening,” he said. “The truth is, Stella, you’re not like anyone I’ve ever met.” Now his face was the one turning bright red. “I just…I wanted you to know that.”

  Stella was speechless. There were so many things she needed to say, but she knew she would have to get out of the cell soon and get the chamelin’s keys back before he missed them. Yet she hated the thought of leaving Cyrus here alone, just waiting for the Faceless man to show up. He needed protection, some kind of advantage against the enemy.

  Impulsively, she stood up and started to undo the clasps on the invisibility suit. “If you’re going to insist on making yourself bait for the Faceless man, you need to take back this suit,” she said. “I can’t keep a lookout every hour of the day, so you should at least have a way to hide from the Faceless man if it comes to that.”

  But Cyrus shook his head. “You need the suit to get out of here, remember? You can’t let them see you.”

  “Well, maybe I can sneak the suit back in here to you somehow and then—”

  “Stella,” Cyrus interrupted gently, “I’ll be all right—I promise. Besides, you can keep a better watch if you’re invisible.”

  Stella was out of ideas. She knew he was right, but still she hesitated, not wanting to abandon him. “Are you sure about this?”

  He nodded, and his expression clouded. “To tell you the truth, I don’t really like being invisible.”

  “Really?” She was surprised. Wearing the suit around the ship made her feel safe and free. She could go anywhere she wanted.

  “I don’t know why, but whenever I would put on the suit and disappear, I’d have this weird feeling that even when I took it off again, people still wouldn’t be able to see me,” Cyrus said. “I’d just be gone forever.” He glanced at her sheepishly. “I know what you’re thinking. It’s a stupid fear, right?”

  “It’s not stupid,” she said softly. He had been lost for so long. Of course he was afraid. “But I see you, Cyrus, and I won’t let you disappear. No matter what happens, I’ll make sure you get home to your family. I promise.”

  He smiled sadly. “Don’t make promises you—”

  “I promise,” Stella said, cutting him off. She refastened the invisibility suit. “I’ll look for the Faceless man, and I’ll keep you updated on the search through the beetle.”

  She tried to sound confident, for Cyrus’s sake, but she couldn’t shake the feeling that they were running out of time. They had to catch the Faceless man before he did something that the ship couldn’t come back from.

  The next day, in between spending time with her parents, Stella slipped away and patrolled the ship in the invisibility suit, searching for crew members with bloodshot eyes and sweeping the area around the security office for any suspicious activity.

  So far, there had been no sign of the Faceless man. The captain planned to land the ship as soon as they cleared the mountains and there was an area that looked inhabited. Stella knew that their first contact with th
e people of the uncharted lands would most likely be the city of Kovall from what Cyrus had told her, and the crew of the Iron Glory was in for a surprise, if the city was as big and grand as he’d described.

  That was, if they even made it that far.

  Stella tried not to think about that. She paused in her search at midday because her mother had asked that they eat lunch together while her father ran the medical bay. Stella had a sneaking suspicion that meant her mother wanted to talk to her about something.

  They met in the ship’s cafeteria, but once they’d stacked their trays with food and sat down at a table, Stella’s mother said, her voice deceptively casual, “So, Cyrus is cute.”

  That was all it took. Stella’s face was on fire in an instant. “Mom,” she said, hoping that her mother would recognize the please be quiet and let us never speak of this again tone in her voice.

  But she didn’t, of course. “Just an observation,” Eliza said, holding up her hands. “Purely scientific analysis.” She raised an eyebrow. “Why? You don’t agree?”

  Oh, she was good. Stella had forgotten for a moment how well her mother knew her. It was a wonderful, warm feeling, like a tiny sun inside her, to be known so well, but it was also extremely inconvenient.

  “Boy, this sandwich is really good,” Stella said quickly. “And the tea. The tea on this ship is great.” Then she remembered that she hadn’t taken a sip yet.

  Her mother chewed her bottom lip, as if she was getting rid of a smile, but she didn’t comment on the change in topic. “All right, then, maybe you can tell me about your adventures camping in the cargo bay.” Her brow furrowed. “How did you manage sleeping down there in the small space? Didn’t it bother you?”

  Stella shuddered at the memory of those early nights. “It was awful at first,” she said. “But Cyrus helped me get through it. He taught me to use the invisibility suit so I could go outside on the upper deck. It helped to be out in the open air, and what an amazing view. I wished he could have been there with me to see the sunset that night.”