Lucy's Blade

by John Lambshead

  "If Lucy wants me to."

  "And suppose she doesn't? Marriage is between two people, not three. Suppose she is seduced by the power of your possession of her? Will you do the decent thing and go anyway?"

  "The decent thing. Getting rid of me is the decent thing is it, Captain? I can see how it would suit you but how about Lucy?"

  "Don't accuse me of selfishness, demon. I want what's best for her."

  "Really?" Lilith changed tack. "I suppose you have had many friends as a boy, William."

  "Yes, what of it?"

  "I didn't," said Lilith softly. "I had no friends at all until Lucy. And look around you, Captain Hawkins. How many friends do you see here in Lucy's childhood world, just me and you, her best friend and her suitor? Are you going to ask her to choose between us? Would you be so cruel?"

  William had no answer for her.

  "Think carefully, Captain, for you may hold three people's happiness in your hands. I gather from your silence that this interview is terminated."

  Lilith clapped her hands, theatrically, and opened her arms. William had a sensation of flying through a tunnel of light and then was back in his body, looking down at Lucy. Looking into Lucy's eyes.

  "Don't be alarmed. Little time has passed out here, merely the blink of an eye. No one will notice anything. Did you get what you wanted from Lilith?" Lucy asked him.

  "I got much to think upon, milady. If you will excuse me," he said.

  The Swallow sailed on, possibly the first ship in the world to achieve a direct course crossing from Northern Europe to Mexico. Everything depended on an accurate assessment of longitude.

  "Do you have to ask her to do it again? It gets worse every time," pleaded Simon.

  "What else can I do?" asked William. "If there was any other way, any other way at all, I would choose it. But we are now only one hundred miles of the Bahamas by dead reckoning. I can't risk going any further without checking longitude."

  "But Lilith estimates that the effort needed to power the spell goes up by the square of the distance and we are, what, three thousand miles from London?"

  "Do you think that I don't know that? Do you imagine that I delight in torturing the maid? But there are a thousand uninhabited coral islands and reefs in the Bahamas, all ready to rip the bottom out of a ship."

  William pulled open the door to his cabin, frustration lending unnecessary vigour to the action. Lucy knelt on the floor inside with her hands palm out on her thighs. She chanted gently to herself, eyes closed. William squatted down beside her. She opened her eyes and William could see fear lurking like a dark cloud in them. "There is an alternative to the reading, Lucy. I can reverse course to the east and head south to the latitude line."

  "And how long will that take, Captain?" Lucy asked.

  "Some little time," William admitted.

  "And where is Isabella?" asked Lucy.

  "It must be a close race but I calculate that we are a little ahead of her."

  "A lead that we would lose if we take the long route to the south." Lucy closed her eyes again. "Light the candle."

  William leaned close to Lucy's ear and whispered. "Take care of her, Lilith. Stop if it gets too much for her, even if she wants to go on. Milady's courage exceeds her sense."

  Lucy started to sing the critical note. The candle flame flickered and flared before steadying on the same harmonic as the sound. Lucy took a deep breath and sang harder. Her skin began to glow as Lilith poured power into her. Her eyes glittered crystalline in the candlelight. The flame climbed higher and higher. Lucy's body twisted as if under torsion and William could see the agony in her face. He was about to insist on a halt when the flame shrank back into a hard line with a noise like cannon shot ripping through the air.

  "Doctor Dee, Doctor Dee. Can you hear me?" The flame line vibrated in tune with her voice, like a lute string. There came an indistinct murmur from the candle in reply. She gasped and twisted her head in agony. "Doctor Dee, say again, I can't hear you."

  "The time in London is four hours and forty-seven minutes past noon," Dee's voice said from the flame.

  The candle flared and went out. Lucy swayed and William grabbed here.

  Millie rushed over. "Right, all you men out of the chamber. My mistress is going to her bed for the rest of the day. Begone, all of you."

  During the night the wind began to rise and the Swallow pitched and rolled in the heavy seas. The storm launched itself fully with the dawn.

  Black clouds scudded low across the sky and the first rainsqualls washed the ship. William shot out of his quarters and hastened to the rear deck.

  "Boatswain, put her under storm sails; batten the ship down," said the master. The boatswain screamed orders to the crew, who scurried to his bidding.

  A jagged lightning bolt split the sky beside the ship as he ran. "What the hell is going on, master?"

  "I don't know, sir. I have never seen anything like it. The storm just blew out of nowhere." The Swallow pitched downwards and her bows buried themselves in the next roller. Foaming water washed as high as the focastle and into the waist deck. The ship staggered then rose out of the wave like a prize fighter shrugging off a heavy blow. She climbed upwards and crested. William saw a wall of water in the foreground racing towards them as the bow dropped down.

  "Grab hold! Great wave coming!" William yelled at the crew. Men ran to tangle themselves in ropes or get under cover. The giant wave slammed into the ship, ripping away part of the fo'c's'le and the foremast. It passed clean over the decks, burying them in water. The water rushed over the rear decks, sweeping William off his feet and towards the side. He tried to grab the rail as he collided with it, but the power of the water was too strong and he went over the side.

  Something grabbed his wrist in a vice like grip and held him as the water rushed past. It seemed to last forever but was probably only a flicker of time. His body twisted in the rushing water but the grip on his wrist was unbreakable. He was pulled unceremonially back over the side onto the deck.

  William coughed up water. "Lucy? Where did you come from?"

  "We are under attack, William. Lilith can feel power all around us."

  As if to emphasise the point a lightning bolt forked into the water beside them. The Swallow yawed into the next swell, unbalanced without her foremast. The next giant wave would roll the ship over and kill them. Lucy raised her arms and began to sing.

  "When that I was and a little tiny boy

  "With hey, ho, the wind and the rain,

  "A foolish thing was but a toy

  "For the rain it raineth every day.

  "But when I came to man's estate

  "With hey, ho, the wind and the rain,

  " 'Gainst knaves and thieves men shut their gate

  For the rain it raineth every day."

  Her voice started softly but, as demonic possession overtook her, Lucy's words echoed around the ship from the keel to the mast tops. She kept singing and a cone of power built up around her.

  "But when I came, alas, to wive

  "With hey, ho, the wind and the rain,

  "By swaggering could I never thrive

  "For the rain it raineth every day."

  The cone spread outwards until a luminous glow surrounded the Swallow. It damped the howling wind and the rolling surf. Even the rain seemed to slide off it.

  "But when I came unto my beds

  "With hey, ho, the wind and the rain,

  "With toss-pots still 'had drunken heads

  "For the rain it raineth every day."

  Lightning flickered angrily all around them. A golden hemiglobe surrounded the ship. Through it, William could see waves of power dropping from the sky and sweeping in towards his ship in rippling sheets of green and purple. He suspected that the luminous shield was allowing him to see what Lilith and Lucy saw. No wonder the girl had said that they were under attack. This was unnatural. The power flowed around the golden globe to whip up the water in the ship's wake.

&nb
sp; "A great while ago the world began

  "With hey, ho, the wind and the rain,

  "But that's all one, our play is done

  "And we'll strive to please you every day."

  A massive lightning bolt sliced down towards the ship and struck the globe. It flared and rang like a bell. For a split second, the whole ship was bathed in light, then the globe split at the top and fell down into the sea each side of the vessel with a hiss.

  Act 21

  Bimini

  The Swallow sailed across placid waters, one moment a tropical storm, the next a village pond.

  "Bail her out. What are you waiting for, whoresons? A personal invitation from King Neptune?" The boatswain's voice rang across the ship.

  "Has anyone seen the master?" William said.

  "He's not here," said Lucy. "I couldn't save both of you. I had to choose." The girl began to sob, quietly.

  William took her in his arms. "He was a sea dog, Lucy, and a good age. He wouldn't retire. I think he wanted it to end this way, rather than on land among strangers. Now, I must check the ship over."

  William walked down onto the main deck to confer with the boatswain. "The master's gone. You will have to take over his sailing responsibilities. I will navigate. Get me a foremast rigged as soon as possible."

  "Aye, aye sir." The boatswain nodded towards Lucy. "She's a little cracker, isn't she? The men reckon she's like a good-luck token. They believe that we can't lose as long as she is with us. I think they're right. How does she do that singing trick?"

  "I wish I knew. It astonishes me how the sea grew civil at her song. She's upset over losing the master. She thinks she should have saved him."

  "She saved the ship and all our arses today," said the boatswain. "I have heard of witches who could whistle up a wind but never one who can sing the sea to sleep."

  "Is that what the men think she is, a witch? I am worried that they might take against her."

  "What, the lady? Of course they think she's a witch, the captain's white witch. I have heard no complaint of her. If I had then I would have dealt with it." The boatswain closed his fingers making an impressive fist. "The men have seen you together. They know where the lady's affection's lie."

  "Put up the mast, boatswain," William said, stiffly. "I needs must comfort Lady Dennys."

  "Aye, aye, sir," said the boatswain, grinning.

  Women aboard ships, William thought, were very bad for discipline, although possibly good for morale, especially the captain's.

  He made his way back to Lucy, who was talking to Simon. "I hope the storm did not push us too far off course or your hard-won longitude reading will be for nothing," William interrupted their conversation.

  "We don't need to navigate now, Captain. I know the course for Bimini. The island is over there." Lucy pointed.

  "And how do you know that, milady," asked William.

  "The magical attack came from Bimini. Lilith can smell the island."

  "Does that mean Isabella has already reached the island?" asked Simon.

  "Not necessarily," said Lucy. "She could have used the island's magic from a distance."

  "Are we safe for the moment or do we face another attack?" asked William.

  "Lilith thinks that Isabella has shot her bolt for the moment. We are probably safe for a while, now that we are in the Other World," said Lucy.

  "What?" asked Simon.

  "Other World!" said William, simultaneously.

  "I am afraid my defensive spell wasn't entirely successful. That last attack squeezed us out of the world," Lucy said, cheerfully. "But we would have had to come here anyway to find Bimini, so maybe Isabella did us a favour. By your leave, gentlemen."

  Lucy curtseyed to the men and paraded off. She was clearly delighted to have caused such a sensation.

  "What speed are we making?" asked William, trying to get a grip on something tangible.

  "I estimate four and a half knots," said the boatswain. "Sorry, sir. It's the best speed we can make with the rigged foremast."

  "We've lost our lead, haven't we?" asked Simon.

  "I suspect so. Hell's teeth! We came so close, Master Tunstall." William punched his fist into the rail.

  Simon pulled back the sleeve on the captain's shirt. Five purple bruises marked where Lucy had grasped it. "I expected to see that," said Simon. "Look where she gripped the rail."

  William ran his fingers over the wood. There were deep indentations that were just the size of Lucy's hand.

  "So do we turn back and admit defeat?" asked Simon.

  "I just don't know," William said. "This is not a tactical situation that I have faced before. If we go on, and Isabella gets to the magical source first." He spread his hands, expressively. "We may confront dangers that we can't cope with, even with Lucy's help. However, if we turn back, we may give Isabella the chance to launch another magical attack across the water, one that sinks us this time. It is probably safer to head straight for the island at our best speed."

  "There is another consideration," said Simon. "According to Lady Dennys, this is the Other World. How do we get home if we just sail away? Doctor Dee told us that Bimini Island has a portal that we could use to go home. I suppose that this is the Other World. It all looks so normal."

  Simon gestured at the blue sky above them

  "Do you think so?" asked William, pointing over the side. The Swallow had been sailing through a swarm of jellyfish for some time. There was nothing unusual in that as such, except that these jellyfish had humanlike eyes on top of their canopies, eyes that watched the ship as it sailed past. Simon grimaced.

  "Aye. I must warn the crew not to do any fishing. It's salted meat from the hold to eat from now on," said William. He came to a decision. "We go on. All our courses are fraught with danger so we might as well choose the one with some chance of success, however small. Have faith, Master Tunstall. We have our own pocket-sized secret weapon on board."

  * * *

  The Swallow steered into a bay of Bimini Island, following Lilith's guidance. The island was low and covered with rich tropical growth, quite unlike the rest of the Bahamas. A small Native American city was visible just behind the beach. It was badly overgrown with luxuriant foliage but roofs and cleared areas were still visible.

  "No sign of a ship," Simon said. "Do you think we have got here before Isabella?"

  "Possibly," said William. "But look over there." A thin column of smoke rose from the jungle into the air. "The Bahamas are supposed to be uninhabited. This island clearly isn't. Boatswain, get the shore party organised. Break open the guns, I want everyone heavily armed."

  Boats ferried the assault force to the shore. William chose to take both the gunner and boatswain with him, as he thought it unlikely that the Swallow would come under military attack. They had not seen another ship since entering the Other World.

  The island was hot and humid even by the standards of the Americas. The fetid smell of rotten vegetation hung heavily in the air, which was alive with the buzzing of insects.

  "So, Lady Dennys, which way do we go?" asked William, when they had all disembarked.

  Lucy ignored him. She seemed distracted. "Lucy, are you all right?" asked William

  "Yes, I'm fine," said Lucy. "It's just that the magic sounds like a screaming child in my brain. The source lies within the city."

  They made their way through the jungle. A paved path ran towards the flat-roofed buildings.

  "I wonder what keeps the jungle back from the path," said Simon. "It would require heavy use to keep it free but there is little sign of people or large animals."

  "I suspect all sorts of irrational things happen here," said Lucy. "Magical power streams out of the city. Have you seen the butterflies?"

  "What about the butterflies?" asked Simon.

  "Some of them have three pairs of wings."

  The first building that they chanced upon was almost concealed by the jungle. It was white-walled and square. An orange-red band, about one
foot wide, ran around the base and a similar band circled the house in green at the top. Peculiar red slabs were positioned in a line along the edge of the roof. One had fallen off and dug into the earth. William examined it closely. It was made of an opaque, crystalline mineral. Blunt tools, probably of stone, had been used to roughly shape the slab.

  As they went deeper into the city, the plant life thinned out and the buildings emerged clearly. Some structures still had doors barring entry, while in others gaps opened into dim interiors. None of the men felt moved to explore. Lucy silently pointed to the left or right, guiding them through the streets. The route took them ever closer to the rising column of smoke. Eventually, she stopped at a compound surrounded by a high wall of white and red-flecked stone.

  "The magic comes from in there," Lucy said. "Something is happening. The power is building up."

  William flipped a mental coin. "Follow the wall to the right."

  They turned the corner and came upon a heavy set of wooden doors, with a life-sized statue each side. The boatswain detailed several men to put their shoulder to them. The wood gave but an inch before locking against a retaining plank.

  "Hurry, we must hurry," Lucy said, suddenly. "Isabella is opening a portal."

  The men did not understand the implications of her comments but her urgency and fear came across clearly, so they redoubled their efforts to break down the doors.

  "This is no good." The boatswain turned around. He pointed to one of the statues. "Use that."

  The sailors upended the stone and charged the doors, using it as a battering ram. The first blow splintered the wood. Something cracked on the other side but the doors still stood. The sailors backed up and ran at the doors again.

  Lilith detected all kinds of gravitonic anomalies from the swirling energy mass on the other side of the wall. 'Help them Lucy,' she thought. 'They will never get that door down in time.'

  Lucy reached up and pushed hard on the statue as the sailors charged past. This time the doors smashed off their hinges. It happened so fast that the sailors failed to notice the girl's intervention. The sailors flooded into a large rectangular enclosure.