"I hope they burn him."
Kato withdrew her hand, seemingly stunned by his harshness. "Jaylen?"
"I hope they make him suffer. I hope he dies a very painful death. My father needs to die again as well. If Zeriel had done a good enough job the first time, maybe Doran wouldn't have come back to life as a demon."
"Why do you want Oviel to suffer?"
"Because I know what it's like to be a victim to someone I was supposed to trust, someone who was supposed to protect me. Anyone who harms a child must be punished."
"You believe Oviel is guilty?" Kato asked.
"I don't care either way. I say burn him no matter what the truth is. He knew what he was doing. He shouldn't have been in a position like that in the first place."
"I know this is hard for you, but you can't be so quick to accuse him. How about you just lie down and I'll make you a cup of your favorite peppermint tea? I'll have the cook bake you some cinnamon buns."
He slid off of the bed to sit on the floor. "I don't want any. I don't want anything."
"Take the amulet off."
Jaylen sighed and slipped the blue topaz amulet over his head. "How did you know I was wearing it?"
"Beside the fact that you've been trying to hide your magical hand under the sleeve of your jacket?"
"Oh."
"You start behaving strangely when you wear that amulet. You know that. Why are you wearing it?" Kato asked.
"So I can protect myself."
"Why would you need to protect yourself?"
The truth. The horrible and terrifying truth. "I'm scared, Kato. I'm scared about so many things. What if Sola hates me for being an apostate, for being the Angel of Darkness?"
"Sola is locked away in that cage."
"But all three seraphs are out and around. They could unlock it, right?"
"And then what?" Kato asked. "You would try to kill your beloved sun goddess?"
"If she comes here and tries to hurt you or anyone else, I will do whatever I have to do in order to keep everyone safe. I swear on my mother's memory that I will not let anyone hurt you, Kato. I love you."
Kato reached down to gently wipe away the tears from Jaylen's eyes. "You're crying."
"I didn't even notice."
"Shh. It's okay, Jay. I know this entire thing is rough on you. Don't worry, though. Everything with Oviel will be sorted out."
"I didn't mean it, you know? I didn't mean those things I said. I don't want Oviel to die."
"Oh, I know. I know. Here, lie down." Kato pulled back the blankets on the bed and patted the silk sheets with her hand. "Lie down, Jaylen."
"Okay." Jaylen removed his jacket, shirt, and pants then curled up underneath the blankets and held a pillow to his chest. "Kato?"
"Yes?"
"Will you join me?" Jaylen asked.
"Of course."
* * *
Jaylen hid underneath his wide-brimmed floppy hat that kept his pale skin from burning too badly in the hyper-powered mage-glow of early morning on the ocean. His black leather coat fluttered in the wind as he stood near the bow of the ship with the spray coming off the waves and a heart that felt significantly lighter than the days before. Here he could breathe and finally relax enough to see the beauty of the world around him. For the first time in months, Jaylen felt fully rested in mind, body, and soul.
He turned around and called out to Kato over the sounds of the crew working the rigging and the waves crashing against the hull. "What's our heading, Captain?"
"Let me worry with those details. Just get us through these accursed reefs without ripping a hole in our hull and we'll be clear for nearly one hundred miles. The Owani Islands are beautiful this time of year. You will love them, Jaylen."
"Owani Islands? Never heard of them."
Kato handed her spyglass to one of the sailors then joined Jaylen's side. "They're a tropical island chain in the southern Silent Sea where pineapples and sugarcane are grown. They also just so happen to be the hideaways of my people and escaped slaves from Wolfekin merchant ships."
"Your people?"
"Pirates, of course. Our people. Krenoa Island is the primary hideout and base of operations for all the independent pirates in the Silent Sea. Sure they're all a scraggly bunch on the outside, but once you give them some rum and women, they loosen right up and become the nicest bunch you'll ever meet. They'll give you the shirt off their backs if you need it, but they'll take your shoes and hat when you're not looking. It's a beautiful place. That's why we will have the ceremony there."
"On an island?" Jaylen asked.
"Is that a problem, clergy boy?"
"Ex-clergy boy. And no, I guess not. But weddings are typically performed in temples."
Kato put her arm securely behind Jaylen's back. "For sailors, the ocean is our temple. It is where we feel the closest to whatever higher power might be watching over us. It's where we are complete and find ourselves. Communing with Mother Ocean is the way we pray, how we discover the world around us, and how we maintain inner balance. I am at peace on these waves with the wind in my hair and in my sails. I can go anywhere. The best time is when I'm far from shore with only sea as far as you can see from horizon to horizon. I'm tell you, Jaylen. Once a sailor, always a sailor. You will never want to go back to staying on land. You've been touched by Mother Ocean. The salty air and waves will be the only place you will ever be able to find true peace."
"A wedding near the ocean sounds perfect for us, Kato."
"It will be. I have always had a connection to the sea. Which is why I want you to make me a promise, Jaylen. You must agree to this before we say our vows."
Jaylen would have given her anything. "Anything, dearest."
"If there ever comes a time when I die before you, I want you to make sure that my body is safe below the waves. I need to be buried at sea."
"Certainly."
"And there's one more thing. The Reef Runner will need a new captain."
She wanted him to have her ship? "Um . . ."
"You are her first mate, after all. When it comes down to it, my ship will be all yours. Promise me you will keep her sailing, Jaylen. Keep her in the water with her sails full and heading somewhere. Promise me."
Why was Kato talking about all of this now? Anything that sad and terrible should have been the farthest thing from their minds. However, Jaylen knew enough about the serious side of marriage to know about the contracts, the deals, and the binding agreements that had to be hashed out beforehand. It was a business transaction. Of all the things he thought the two of them would discuss, this one didn't even make his list. Kato wanted him to the be captain of her ship should something happen to her? Naturally, the first mate would normally take over those duties anyway, but his duties wouldn't simply end there. She asked him to continue sailing as long as he could, to never stop doing what Kato herself would want to be doing on this planet.
"Jaylen? Please do this for me. I know it's a lot to ask of you, but I need to know that my husband will look out for my ship as well as myself. We will work on getting you familiarized with keeping her running. I won't leave you until I am certain that you will be more than competent as captain."
Jaylen pushed down his fear and apprehension before taking his betrothed's hand and looking deeply into her eyes. "I will do this for you, dearest. The Reef Runner will be safe under my command. She will sail every day, no matter what happens."
"Oh, thank you. You may never know how much this means to me. Please, if there's anything you need from me before the wedding, let me know. I will agree to anything."
Growing up as a member of Ilyan's noble class, Jaylen had learned many things about marriage agreements, but he could never think of anything that he would require of his future wife. To him, marriage was something that would never happen. And if, for some strange reason it did, he disliked the notion that the two partners in the marriage should feel indebted to the other for any reason.
"Come on, Jay. There has
to be something you need to secure before we are married. Money? Children? Estates?"
Jaylen laughed as he tied off a length of rope around the railing. "If I had money or an estate, do you think I would have agreed to be a slave on a pirate ship? And I figured any children we have will be raised by both of us. Marriage is something I don't view lightly because I never had an actual family. There's nothing I need from you."
"Nothing at all? Jaylen, I mean it. Anything you need, I will oblige. I will sign anything."
"Zeriel."
Kato raised an eyebrow as she stared at him. "Huh?"
"After we're married, I still need Zeriel to be always nearby. He's my angel and I think he needs me more than I need him. If something happens to me, take care of him."
"Really? That's what you want?"
Jaylen motioned to the crew to let out the sails. "It's what I need. Please don't mock me."
"Never. I think that's a wonderful thing for you to ask. I will make sure that Zeriel still has a place with you and I will take care of him."
"Thank you, Kato. That is all I need."
Chapter 11
Seaside shacks lined the pier and filled the town where the obviously impoverished citizens lived. They hung up their damp clothes on lines that stretched across the alleys to dry in the unregulated mage-glow. A few of them toiled in their small backyard gardens where they grew various vegetables in plots of dark soul and red clay pots. Others pushed carts piled high with fresh tropical flowers and seashells for sale through the winding streets near the canal that ran through the town. The light danced on the yellow, pink, and blue painted shacks that were built on stilts to keep them from flooding in the wet season.
Their building material of choice was saw palmetto wood, chosen for its abundance in the nearby mangrove marshes as well as its ability to deter water. This made everything, that wasn't vibrantly painted, the same shade of pale grey. The citizens would build their homes, shops, and sheds in varying increments, choosing to construct their lives when they acquired the materials instead of all at once. Many of the buildings on the island were only spindly, hollow shells of someone's hopeful vision for their future. Crude frames of homes stood with no walls, some had no roofs, and yet others were merely tiny plots of land sandwiched between other houses where the ground had been cleared of plants to allow for the initial planning.
As he walked along the palm-lined canal with Zeriel at his side, Jaylen watched the darker-skinned fishermen drawing their nets out of the water. Hundreds of glistening silver and yellow fish spilled out over the cobblestones where they began flopping around in their desperate attempts to reach the water again. Perhaps the most interesting job Jaylen found was the banana harvesting. Shirtless men with leather wrapped around their hands, arms, and knees would climb up the banana trees with practiced ease to chop down large clumps of bright green bananas from between the fan-shaped leaves. They spared no time in tossing the bananas into waiting baskets down on the ground.
A thin veil of fine grey dust kicked up under the soles of Jaylen's leather boots as he walked down the main road connecting the two halves of the city. The side closest to the water consisted of the wealthier citizens, the doctors, the merchants employed by various smaller trading companies, and the privateers who sailed under the Wolfekin flag. While the privateers flew the black flag with the golden full moon embroidered in the middle and had special funding from Queen Sela and Aiden, they were pirates nonetheless. They obeyed no one's laws but the pirate code and would as soon plunder their own country if they needed, or wanted, coin.
One such privateer, a tall middle-aged man in an ankle-length admiral's coat and leaning on a golden cane, was bartering with a local merchant over the price of a burlap bag filled with waxy pink fruit. The privateer eventually agreed on a price, slipped a silver coin into the woman's hand, then turned and tossed one of the lumpy fruits to Jaylen.
Jaylen caught it with ease, even with his one hand. He held the mysterious fruit up in the mage-glow to examine it. "Thanks."
"No problem." The privateer bowed lavishly, his golden buttons catching the light just like his black and grey hair. "The name's Dave. Dave Mandobi of Wolfekin, Privateer of Her Majesty Queen Sela. In other circles, I am Admiral Mandobi, but you can just call me Dave."
Jaylen eyed the man curiously, especially the bushy beard and mustache. "Aren't most admirals clean-shaven?"
"What part of privateer don't you understand, boy? Anyway, I saw you checking out those xacalas, so I figured I'd share. I'm just using these for my rum drinks I make."
"Xacalas?" Jaylen asked. "Is that what these things are called?"
"Never had one? Don't eat the fruit itself. It's highly poisonous. You'll be dead in ten minutes. What you want is the large sponge-like seed in the middle. The juice in there is the closest you'll get to ambrosia without going to Heaven. So, you've got the looks of a seafarer, but your skin is too pale to be have worked as a deck hand in this mage-glow. Who are you, stranger?"
"First Mate Jaylen Corrifus of the Reef Runner under the command of Captain Kato Vallen."
"Ah. First Mate, eh? And a slave by the way you reverently say Captain Kato's name. Am I right? But nah, you're not just any typical slave. No. Let me guess. You sold yourself to get out on the waves, didn't you? Smart kid. I'd rather be a slave on the seas than a king on land any day. What did you say your name was? Corrifus? As in the fallen royal family of Vilyron?"
Jaylen sighed. "The same."
"So you must be the fallen king. Well, well. It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance, Your Majesty."
"Spare your mocking, privateer."
"Oh, I was just having a spot of fun. You're a lucky young man to have a woman as brave and lovely as Captain Kato on your arm. Though watch out for her bite. She has a feisty wit and she wields it with whip-like precision. Stings just as a bad as well."
"How do you know Kato?" Jaylen asked.
"Everyone on this island knows Captain Kato. Lady of the Death Tide, we call her. She's right fit to be of legends and scary tales that keep children up at night. Over thirty men she's gutted in her wake, but not one has managed to woo her fancy like you have."
"We're actually getting married tomorrow at sunset, well the artificial sunset that is."
"Aye, damn this mage-glow. Sailed through a patch the other day, nearly singed my eyebrows off. I hate the stuff. Give me the good old sun back, I tell ya. Anyhow, you said you and Captain Kato are getting married, did ya?"
He nodded. "Yes, sir."
"Ah." Dave chuckled warmly. "Good luck putting a saddle on that mare. She'll just as soon kick ya in the balls as kiss ya on the lips. She's a wild one."
"That's what I love about her. She's not like any other woman I've ever met."
"That she is. Unique." Dave slung the canvas bag over his shoulder and motioned towards the docks. Well, I'd better be getting back to my crew before they raise a riot. Tell your betrothed I gave my blessing. You seem like a nice man, despite the wanted posters and rumors."
"Thank you. Oh, and Dave?" Jaylen called after him.
"Yeah?"
"We would love to have you at the ceremony."
"I'll be there, if I'm not drunk."
Zeriel waited until the man was out of earshot before turning to Jaylen. "You know who that was, don't you?"
"Uh, should I know who that was? I figured he was just some privateer."
"He used to be Wolfekin's highest ranking naval officer, but he suffered a terrible injury in the Eight Night War and couldn't hold onto his command."
"How do you know that?"
Zeriel grinned. "Because I'm the one who injured him. He took one of my angelic arrows straight through his groin. It went all the way through, actually pinned him to the mast of his ship. Notice how he ignored my presence? He remembers me all too well. I'm glad to see he survived and isn't completely allied with the enemy now, though. I had been sure he died back in the battle."
"I thought the
Eight Night War was fought solely on land."
"Most of it was. But there were a few naval skirmishes along the coast, mostly fighting over supplies entering and leaving the harbors. Early on in the war, Doran and I were on one of the ships that came under attack from an entire Wolfekin fleet. Your father ordered me to find the admiral. So I did."
Jaylen handed the strangely-shaped fruit to Zeriel. "Huh. With that kind of a story, you'd figure he wouldn't be as friendly to us."
"He was merely following the orders given to him by his queen. Now that he's broken away from that, he isn't half bad. I almost feel sorry for hurting him. Almost."
"Why wouldn't the clergy teach us paladin recruits the complete history in our classes at the Clerical Academy? Why keep so many things secret?"
"There are many things you don't know about the past or the current status of Aldexa. You didn't even know the world was called Aldexa until Liaxa told you, right?" Zeriel asked.
"True."
"The purpose of the Clerical Academy was to prepare you to be a paladin. You were to deliver punishments, kill efficiently, and die in The Cleansing to bring the sun back. Nothing more. Even The Cleansing was a lie, you know? No one except maybe Xair knows where the sun went, and he's not talking about it. The clergy wanted their paladins to die in order to summon the dragons. You were simply an ingredient to be sacrificed in their summoning spell. You didn't need to know anything else. They filled your head with lies about remaining pure just so they could ensure they had plenty of fresh virgin blood sacrifices for their spell. The paladins of the Holy Order were cattle to be slaughtered. Cattle don't need to know history or facts. They just need to know enough to scare them into obeying orders until they are led to the slaughter."
"That's very dark, Zeriel."
"That truth is rarely pleasant. I only recently came to terms with it all myself. As terrible as this sounds, the sooner you break your final vow, the better. Then many people will stop pursuing you for your virgin blood. You don't know it, but I have fought off three demons in the past day who have tried to harvest it from you."
Angel of Darkness Books 6-10 Page 21
