by Cully Mack
They were going into war because of her. She needed to stop this. If she returned to Shemyaza and pleaded with him, promised to stay, could she avert this? She tensed, aware of Nate coming up behind her.
‘I know what you’re thinking. He’d welcome you back but your returning won’t protect those you love.’
He leaned his elbow on the side of the ship and faced her. Unable to look him in the eyes, she focused on the merging of the ocean and the dimming sky.
‘Mirah, do you understand? Shemyaza believes Gabe is a threat. He will hunt him and destroy him. I don’t relish the idea of going up against Shargaz but Ammo is right. They won’t expect it. We’ll have an advantage and if we succeed, a better chance against the others and with one less fake god to worry about. It will make Shemyaza cautious and give us more time.’
His words rang true. He’d been Shemyaza’s Captain and had spent years strategising every possible course of action.
‘You don’t need to be a part of this,’ she said, noticing his hands. His knuckles were white, and she knew he was resisting the urge to touch her. ‘When we get to Chaba Misgab, you should take Galia and Zeev and flee. This is not your fight.’
‘I can’t let you go. I’d bleed out before I left you.’
She tensed and focused on the ocean and to the stars, she hadn’t noticed emerge in glittering protest.
‘It’s over there,’ Nate said, pointing to the Star of Dignity.
That he remembered caught her breath. It felt so long ago when they’d watched the stars from aboard his ship.
‘Mirah, please listen, I came for you because I love you,’ he declared, reaching out towards her.
She clasped her hands together.
‘I’m sorry. Tell me what I need to do?’
‘There’s nothing you can do.’ Her voice shuddered in her throat and she gasped for air. Tears welled in her eyes and rolled down her face. ‘By not telling me, you allowed that thing to— You broke something in me. I don’t know how to fix it.’
He swallowed, and she looked into his eyes. The moonlight exposed the glistening moisture in them. ‘It’s over,’ she said, and fled across the deck to the echo of him calling after her.
‘You never told me about Gabe.’
She flew through the hatch and down into her cabin.
As much as her heart rallied against her she knew what they’d had, was over.
❊ 32 ❊
Nate cursed and followed after her. Bina, standing with her hands on hips and feet spread far apart stopped him in his tracks. He’d not meant to accuse her about Gabe. He didn’t even care that she hadn’t told him.
‘Let her go,’ Bina demanded.
His focus shifted beyond her. Everyone on deck watched him, judging. Gabe and Ammo hands poised over their daggers. Apart from Neviah and Galia chasing after Mirah, no one moved.
He strode over to Zeev standing on the ship’s bow. Zeev tried to pass him his beer, but he ignored it. Neither speaking, they watched the waves breaking. How long he’d stood there he didn’t know.
His clothes dampened as the sea mist crept in and enveloped him. On the horizon it looked like a god had rubbed out the world, ready to start again on a gleaming white canvass.
Footsteps padded up behind him, he whirled, realising Zeev had already gone.
‘Keeping things hidden always earns deceptive wages,’ Meciel proclaimed. ‘If you put it right, you can still reap the reward.’
‘I don’t know how?’ Nate said, rubbing his face.
Meciel laid his hand on Nate’s shoulder. ‘You’ll know when you see it.’
‘You know them, Shemyaza and the others?’
Meciel nodded.
‘If one of them captures her, and she’s not wed, then you know what they’ll do.’
‘Then you had better be prepared,’ Meciel said, fading into the misty shadows.
Meciel was right. He needed to focus on Ammo’s plan against Shargaz. He had his own score to settle. If it were not for Shargaz suggesting Esha pick three Wielders, none of them would have found out about Mirah. He’d wait for her until eternity is over. Until then he wouldn’t push her. He’d wait until she found her way back to him.
After a week the winds turned against them. They lowered the sails to prevent drifting backwards. Ammo spent most of his time on the deck with essential crew members to keep watch.
Nate wondered what action Shemyaza planned. He was sure Shemyaza would send Bishnor. He’d search all the coastal areas until he picked up their trail in Nanshe. Nate hoped he was correct and Bishnor wouldn’t expect them to go south. He scanned the horizon for distant galleys and was relieved to still find none.
Ahead he could see the constellation of Enki, among them the Celestial Scorpion. He knew their names, Girtab, Lishi, Nabu, and more and the two stars forming the scorpion’s sting, Sharur and Shargaz.
He almost jumped when Ammo asked, ‘Tell me more about Shargaz.’
‘You’re following his star. You seem to know where he is.’
Ammo awarded a half smile. ‘Tomorrow, if we have the winds, we’ll head west for a little detour.’
‘How have you hidden your forces so close to his borders?’
Ammo beckoned him to follow. ‘We have Meciel to thank for that,’ he said over his shoulder, ‘but I guess, ya being with Shemyaza, ya know all about glamours.’ He stopped towards the stern of the ship and sat on an upturned boat. ‘So what about Shargaz?’
Nate sat down. ‘Shargaz is known as the Supreme Smiter and not just for his talents with metallurgy. He has a head for war and revels in it.’ He picked at a rope knot and tightened it. ‘It will be wiser to sneak in and steal what we can.’
‘That ain’t gonna work,’ he said, plucking at the cuff on his silk shirt.
‘Why not?’
‘Ya haven’t seen the size of my forces,’ Ammo said, pushing back his shoulders. ‘We need his steel. I guess we’ll work out the rest when we meet him.’
Nate let his fingers slack on the knot. ‘You have no plan?’
‘It ain’t my plan to make but I’ll guide Gabe as best I can. Ya know how to kill a scorpion?’ He traced out a circle on his thigh and prodded his finger dead centre. ‘Ya make em sting emselves in the back.’
The only fire they had came from Neviah and even though she still wore her amulet, if she still wielded, she’d be no match against Shargaz.
‘You believe in Gabe then? That he’s chosen by the Cloud Rider?’
‘Meciel believes, and that’s good enough for me.’ He rose. ‘I saw ya sparring with Gabe. I know ya held back on account of Mirah. If ya want to help her help him. I taught him as best I can. With ya technique, he might stand a chance.’
‘You want me to train him?’ he asked, in surprise. ‘He’d never agree.’
‘Wouldn’t ya do anything for Mirah if ya had the opportunity?’
The next day the wind changed. They travelled south until midday and then turned west. Nate surveyed Gabe and Ammo parrying with swords which had seen better days. Ammo wielded his sword well. If he was up against most of Nate’s guardsmen he’d out skill them but Ammo was right, he’d taught Gabe as much as he could.
‘Here try this,’ Nate said, offering his sword to Gabe. ‘Can I borrow yours?’ he asked Zeev.
‘Sure, this should be interesting,’ he chuckled, unsheathing his sword.
Their blades clashed, and they parried. Gabe’s muscles flexed well against the strain but his inexperience shone through.
Between the ringing of blades, Ammo shouted, ‘I’ll take ya bets.’
Raucous cheers erupted and crew members ventured closer.
‘Gabe has no chance,’ Zeev said to Galia. ‘Do you want to wager some silver.’
‘You men are all the same,’ she replied, strutting off to sit with the girls.
‘You leave your left side too open,’ Nate observed. ‘Hold the weapon higher, like this.’
Gabe lifted the sword but as the
y fought on, sweat ran down his forehead. He wiped the drips away and the distraction cost him. Nate slammed Zeev’s blade across Gabe’s cross guard. Gabe lost his grip, and the sword dropped to the deck.
‘You’d be dead doing that on the battlefield. If your eyes sting, learn to ignore it. Now let’s start again.’
When they finished, Nate’s shirt stuck to his skin. Gabe’s face was flushed as red as Mirah’s hair. Nate could have killed him more times than he could remember. How was this boy, balancing on the cusp of manhood, ever going to defeat Shargaz or Shemyaza when he couldn’t even defeat another man?
‘Tomorrow, we’ll do it again,’ Gabe said, walking off to wash from a water barrel.
Zeev came over laughing. ‘You keep this up and by the time we reach Chaba Misgab, I’ll be a rich man.’ He held out his palm full of silver and small round tokens.
‘You’re unbelievable.’
Nate spied Ammo crouched over counting his winnings. Ammo snickered at him from under his blonde fringe.
He wanted Gabe trained that was understandable, but he’d still taken the opportunity to make a wager as well. Ammo and Zeev were so similar and despite everything, he realised he liked him.
Zeev jerked his chin in Gabe’s direction. ‘He nearly had you a few times.’
‘I had to at least let him think he had a chance.’
‘Have you done that to me?’ Zeev asked, following him to the barrel of water.
‘Of course,’ Nate laughed.
‘You’re an idiot,’ Zeev grinned.
Later that evening, Mirah thanked Nate and then walked away.
The bond they shared had been his bridge away from Shemyaza, now he’d crossed it, would the bridge shatter beneath his feet? Would time erase the memory of the smiles she gave?
He desired to run his fingers through her hair, to feel her tender lips on his. He missed her touch, her scent, the way she smiled at him but most of all he missed the way her eyes lingered on his, filled with expectations and promises of where their love would lead them. He saw none of that in her eyes now and it gutted him.
Casting a glance over the ship he saw Galia sat talking to Bina. They were often speaking in low whispers and he wondered what captured their interest. Too deep in conversation, neither of them noticed as he neared.
‘You don’t like me?’ he heard Galia ask.
‘It’s not that I don’t like you. It’s that I don’t like what you do.’
‘But I’m no different from you.’
‘My power is my own not borrowed from a fallen one.’
Nate let out a small cough, and they glanced up. Bina stood up and left.
‘What was that about?’
Rising, Galia said, ‘I was trying to convince her to give my amulet back.’
‘Oh.’
‘What powers was she on about?’
‘Don’t know, don’t care,’ Galia said and strode off as well.
What was it with the women on this ship and their insistence on walking away from him? He’d be glad when they reached the shore. Maybe firmer ground would firm up their heads.
After several more days, they arrived at Chaba Misgab. They were about a quarter of a league from the seashore when he felt the air ripple. The empty shingle bay, backed by red cliffs, transformed into a full-blown harbour. Slender galley ships overwhelmed the wooden docks. There must be at least a hundred ships he calculated.
‘One hundred and thirty-four, five including Wind Weaver,’ Ammo said, watching him take in the impressive view. ‘Although as ya can see mine ain’t no warship.’
‘How did you manage it?’
‘I’ve been doing this a long time ya know. My men built the galleys here and every one of em is trained in warfare. For each galley, there’s a hundred and seventy oarsmen and space on board each galley for four hundred men.’
‘I thought you said your forces are camped another few days from the coast?’
‘They are. These ain’t included with em. Meciel will take ya to the encampment.’
‘You’re not coming?’
‘Someone’s got to lead em,’ he said, nodding to the harbour
The knowledge that Ammo was leaving them jarred him.
‘I added my own special design,’ Ammo said, pointing to a long length of bronze protruding from the galley’s keel below the waterline. ‘I call it a ramrod.’
Compared to Shemyaza’s warships the galleys were smaller but their slim design and light construction would give them the speed Shemyaza’s ships lacked.
With Wind Weaver moored, Meciel took the lead and disembarked.
Gabe stepped on the gangplank and Ammo caught hold of his shirt. ‘Ya look after my forces, ya hear me. Ya lead em well.’
Gabe reached over and grabbed his arm. ‘Thank you. For helping me find Mirah and for this,’ he said, as his gaze drifted over the galleys in the harbour.
Nate saw genuine appreciation mixed with doubt leak from Gabe’s eyes. He waited to say thank you to Ammo as the others spanned over the harbour front heading for a dirt track chiselled into the cliffs.
‘Hey Bina,’ Ammo called after her, ‘Ain’t ya gonna even bless me with a goodbye kiss. This might be ya last chance,’ he teased.
He sketched a bow as she paced back towards him. His eyes were hungry and filled with risk and taking chances. ‘I’ve been waiting for this my whole life,’ he said to Nate.
She cut across the harbour, her lavender glare boring into Ammo with a ferocity that made Zeev and Neviah’s bantering look tame.
‘Maybe I should go,’ Nate said.
‘No wait, ya got to watch this. This is gonna be a vision of a lifetime.’
Bina, on reaching them stopped a few paces before Ammo. Her glare a fixture of cool composure. ‘I told you if you ever asked again, I’d knock you back on your ass.’
Ammo waited expectantly. She parted her lips and exhaled a small gust of air. He flew backwards into a water barrel, landing on his butt several feet behind Nate. Water slurped over the barrel ridge drenching him and his silk clothing.
Nate caught the slimmest victory smile as Bina pivoted and walked off.
‘Did ya see that?’ Ammo said. Raising his voice louder, he announced to everyone within hearing, ‘She finally blew me a kiss.’
Bina groaned. She was impressive. The way she curled the air was different to how the Air Wielders worked. She wore no jewels, and he wondered if she hid another kind of amulet.
Ammo swept his soaking hair from his face and peeled his silks away from his chest.
‘I wanted to say thank you for bringing Gabe back to Mirah.’
‘Ah don’t worry yaself about that. I ain’t never had what ya had but I can see how much it cost ya. I’m sorry it didn’t work out for ya. If we’d had time, I think we’d be great friends, ya know.’
He rose and shook the water from his hair. ‘I could have used a man with ya skills as an Acquistioner. Maybe who knows if we survive?’
‘I hope to see you again at the scorpion’s nest,’ Nate said.
When he reached the track leading up through the cliff, he surveyed Ammo’s galleys. They rocked together on the lapping sea, nudging each other as the current swelled. The galleys reminded him of cockroaches swarming out of their burrows to escape a deluge.
He left to the sound of seabirds squawking their battle cries overhead, to catch up with the others. He followed their dusty footprints up the track and found Zeev, Meciel and Gabe standing outside a timber hut. It was the first in row upon row of timber huts which from the number of men milling around, housed the crew and the forces for Ammo’s galleys.
Gabe was feeding fish to a beast. Nate wasn’t sure if it was some type of bird or reptile or both, whatever it was, it was huge.
‘This is Terra,’ Gabe said, as Nate approached. ‘She belongs to Meciel.’
Terra snorted and Gabe threw her another fish. Nate studied her conical razor-sharp teeth as her jaws opened to gulp down the fish. He noted
the lethal hooked talons and wondered how she’d fare against Shemyaza’s chimera. ‘What is it?’
‘She’s a Dactyr,’ Meciel answered. ‘She fell out of her nest and I reared her when her mother refused.’
‘She’s upset because Meciel sent her ahead of us,’ Gabe added.
‘Where are the girls?’ Nate asked.
‘They’ve already gone inside to wash up,’ Zeev said, nodding to a timber hut behind him. ‘They picked the room on the right, we’re on the left.’
A row of wooden beds, three on each side and covered in woollen blankets filled the room. Someone had left fruit, cheese and flatbread on a table. A small barrel of beer stood in the corner.
The beer was the first thing Zeev spied when he entered and flopped down on the bed nearest to it. ‘That Ammo’s done well getting those galleys.’
‘He’s an Aquisitioner,’ Meciel said, appearing in the room.
‘An Aqui what?’ Zeev asked.
‘He gets things accomplished, things no one else will take the trouble to.’
‘Shame he’s leaving. I’d like to have shared a beer with him.’
Meciel leaned his staff against the wall. ‘He doesn’t drink.’ He laid down on one of the beds, drew the blanket tight to his neck and turned over.
Zeev raised his brows at Nate and shrugged.
Nate took the bed closest to the exit. He lay on his back, arms folded behind his head and closed his eyes. He listened to Zeev munching on grapes and pouring himself a beer over the sounds of men outside singing, laughing and throwing dice.
‘You want one?’
‘I’m too tired,’ he answered, and pulled the blanket up to his chin. Compared to Hermonial the temperature chilled him. He was asleep before Gabe entered.
A loud shrilling scream woke him. He rushed out the exit, still clothed, to meet Gabe coming from outside. In the darkness they both searched for the girl’s door and heard Galia utter, ‘It’s a nightmare. You’re all right. There’s nothing here.’
Gabe’s wide eyes shone whiter than salt rock, and he knew they mirrored his own.
‘I don’t know how to help her,’ Gabe whispered.
‘We do so by destroying the portals and killing them all,’ Nate replied.
