Every fiber in my being tells me that we are in for another terrible fight, she thought as the massive cradles loomed nearer. May the Afterlife see us through it. Little did she know how much the other Conclave mystics had recently learned, or what added wonders she would soon witness.
Just then she saw a Minion litter approaching from the west. As it neared she could make out Tyranny and Tristan sitting in it. She watched Tristan shout out an order as he pointed toward theTammerland. Soon the litter landed safely on the flagship’s bow deck, not far from where Adrian stood. Tristan and Tyranny departed the litter and came to stand by her side. After exchanging greetings, for the next few moments the three allies simply watched Tammerland draw nearer. Finally Tristan turned to look at Adrian.
“Was your trip uneventful?” he asked.
Before answering, Adrian noticed that theJin’Sai seemed unusually anxious. And with good reason, she thought. Tyranny also seemed particularly vexed. Adrian watched the Conclave privateer place a cigarillo between her lips and light it. She smiled.
“So you still haven’t given up those things,” she chided Tyranny. “Given that the four cradles are about to be tested, I can understand why.”
Exhaling the smoke through her nose, Tyranny waved the match out and tossed it over the side. As if she didn’t know how to answer, she let go a disparaging snort and tousled her hair. “You don’t know the half of it,” she growled softly.
Tristan gave Adrian a stern look. “Yourtrip, First Sister?” he demanded.
Adrian pursed her lips. “I’m sorry, Jin’Sai, ” she said. “The voyage went well. There is nothing untoward to report save for my sorrow over the loss of the Night Witches. How is Sigrid?”
“She was injured but she will survive,” Tristan answered. As he let go a sigh, his expression softened. “I apologize for being short with you,” he answered. “What you have yet to learn is that seating the ships in their cradles will seem like child’s play compared to what the wizards want to do next. I understand their plan but I still can’t believe it. The Conclave and the entire Minion camp eagerly await us. This will be a far more eventful day than you first realized.”
“What do you mean?” Adrian asked.
As Tristan explained the Conclave’s plan to shrink the ships, Adrian’s breath caught in her lungs and her eyes grew as large as hen’s eggs. Finally she found her voice.
“They actually believe that such a thing can work?” she breathed.
Tristan nodded. “They claim that the theory is sound. But Tyranny and I have our doubts. It seems that she and I remain the two great skeptics.”
Adrian shook her head in disbelief. “You can add my name to that list,” she said. “What are your orders?”
Tristan looked out at the looming cradles. It was nearly midday and the shadows created by the great wooden ribs stretched long across the grassy field. He pointed toward them.
“As the fleet approaches the cradles, you will slow the ships to a crawl,” he said. “Then you and the other sisters will cause the ships to hover over the empty ground lying east of the four cradles. Wigg and Faegan will take a litter aloft while the others watch and wait on the ground. They will then lower the ships one at a time. Jessamay and Aeolus will stand ready to help with the craft should anything go awry. Do you understand?”
“Yes,” Adrian nodded.
“Very well,” Tristan answered. “Then this is where we leave you. Good luck.”
After Tyranny tossed her cigarillo overboard, she managed to give Adrian a wry smile. “If you wreck my ships I’ll have your hide,” she said quietly. Knowing that Tyranny was only half joking, Adrian swallowed hard and nodded back.
After saying goodbye, Tristan and Tyranny walked back to their litter. Soon they were aloft and heading back to the landing site.
Taking a deep breath, Adrian worriedly scrubbed her face with her hands, then called for a messenger. The female Minion was by her side in an instant. She clicked her boot heels together.
“I live to serve,” she said.
After repeating Tristan’s orders word for word, Adrian gave the warrior a stern look.
“Relay my orders to the other three acolyte pilots,” she said. “Leave nothing out. Should the acolytes have questions, bring their inquiries to me straightaway. Be sure to follow my orders to the letter lest you be responsible for the crashing of all four Black Ships.” Adrian turned her gaze westward once more. “I doubt that the Conclave would look kindly on such a disaster,” she added sternly.
For a moment the warrior’s face blanched, but she quickly recovered. “All will be as you say,” she replied.
“Then stop wasting time staring at me,” Adrian said. “Get going.”
The warrior again clicked her boot heels together, took a few quick steps, and launched into the air. After watching her land on the deck of theEphyra, the First Sister looked west again. She hadn’t meant to be so stern with the messenger, but like Tristan and Tyranny, she was nervous. Soon her earlier thoughts about Wigg and Faegan echoed in her mind, this time with even greater concern.
I hope those sly old wizards know what they’re doing.
“Are you sure this is going to work?” Wigg asked Faegan.
To say that the First Wizard was worried would have been the grossest of understatements. Like Abbey and Faegan, he was exhausted by the long hours and the mental stress of the last few days. After boarding the litter, Abbey affectionately touched Wigg on one arm, and Faegan situated his wheeled chair to his liking. As six stout Minion warriors took the litter aloft, Faegan cradled the precious jar of subtle matter in his hands. His usually impish demeanor gone for the moment, he gave Wigg a somber look.
“Will the cradles hold?” Faegan asked. “I don’t know. But they are the least of today’s worries, for they can be fixed if need be. The truly disconcerting part will come when we try to shrink the ships.”
Pursing his lips, Faegan looked at the subtle matter trapped in the simple glass jar. “Such amazing material,” he mused. “I suspect that we have only scratched the surface of its powers. But without more help from the Ones we will never grasp its true potential.”
“I know,” Wigg answered, “and I find that thought even more worrying.”
Suddenly an old wizard’s adage sprung from Wigg’s memories. His father first spoke it to him centuries ago, long before Wigg met Failee and she started the destructive rampage that would become the Sorceresses’ War.
“Worry is much like the payment of a debt before it comes due,” his father said, “neither of which will do one any good.” For the first time today the First Wizard let go a short smile.
As Wigg looked out over the grassy fields he was again awed by the mountain of wooden crates lying nearby. The crates were chock-full of supplies, foodstuffs, potable water, and arms. Each one had been precisely weighed by the Minions and the tally given to the Conclave mystics. The job had been a massive one. Even so, given the thousands of warriors taking part, the task had been finished in less than two days.
Then the mystics had painstakingly calculated the amount of subtle matter needed to do the job. The results were discouraging, for there wasn’t enough of the amazing material to perform all sixteen transformations. Only a bit more than half of what was needed lay imprisoned in the glass jar. If the expedition to Shashida was to go forward, the plan had to be changed.
And so a compromise was agreed to. Tristan suggested that they try to miniaturize only theTammerland and theEphyra, leaving theCavalon and theIllendium in their original states. This would provide Shailiha with two ships to use as she hunted down the Viper Lord and his servants. It also meant that only two ships could try to find their way across the Azure Sea to Shashida, but that couldn’t be helped. Aside from the fact that Tristan would lead the expedition, it had yet to be determined who among the other Conclave members would accompany him.
The wizards’ plan for the ships was simple on its surface, but it would be amazingly complex
in its execution. If the cradles successfully held the monstrous vessels, the warriors would then load theTammerland. The cradles had supposedly been engineered with enough strength to support the great ships even after the vessels had been loaded to their bursting points. But the mystics could not be entirely sure about that, nor could they know whether the cargoes would successfully shrink along with the ships. As the first vessel descended, Aeolus and Jessamay would be standing by to use the craft should it be needed. Once theTammerland was loaded, the next part of the great experiment could start.
Wigg looked east to see the Black Ship fleet approaching. They were wondrous things to see as their bright red images of the Paragon painted onto their huge black sails shone brightly in the sun. Wigg was proud of the acolyte pilots; they had learned to fly the Black Ships well. That’s a good thing, he realized as he watched the ships fly ever nearer. We might soon need the acolytes’ services as never before.
As the ships reached the landing area, Wigg watched their Minion crews take to the air to furl the hundreds of red and black sails. The ships then hovered in the air alongside the massive cradles, their hulls casting huge, looming shadows across the grass. Faegan shouted out an order to the Minion litter bearers. Soon the litter was also hovering just a few meters away from theTammerland ’s gunwales.
“Ahoy!” Faegan shouted at Adrian. “Is all well?”
The First Sister left her place in the bow to come and stand at the gunwale. “Yes!” she shouted back. “You may start!”
Faegan turned toward Wigg. “It’s time,” he said. After Abbey gave Wigg a supportive squeeze on his arm, the First Wizard went to stand beside Faegan. “I’m ready,” he said simply.
“Slowly release your hold over the ship!” Faegan shouted out to Adrian. “As you do, we will take control!”
“Very well!” Adrian shouted back. Grateful that her part of the process was done, the First Sister gradually retracted her power, and the two wizards took up the task.
For a few moments theTammerland rocked gently as the transfer of power was completed. Because Wigg and Faegan were both doing the job, the strain on each man was not unduly great.
Faegan looked over at Wigg. “Just as we discussed, First Wizard,” he said. “We’ll take her down nice and easy.”
As the remaining Conclave members and thousands of Minion warriors looked up in awe, the amazing process began to unfold. After Faegan carefully handed the jar to Abbey, the two wizards raised their arms.
Little by little, Wigg and Faegan caused theTammerland to float sideways to a place directly above her new cradle. Then the wizards rotated her bow due east, perfectly aligning her keel with the cradle’s spine. Soon the great ship began drifting downward. While Wigg verbally dismissed the warriors carrying the litter, he partitioned his power to take personal control over it so that its descent might more perfectly match that of the Black Ship. Seeing that the process had started, the thousands of warriors aboard theTammerland crammed up against the gunwales to watch.
Her hull creaking softly, theTammerland descended past the tops of the cradle ribs. Seeing that an adjustment needed to be made, Wigg and Faegan changed the ship’s lean slightly toward starboard. As she continued to descend, theTammerland ’s keel neared the spine of the cradle. Wigg took a deep breath. Now we shall see, he thought.
With a great creaking of her timbers theTammerland settled into her new cradle. At once the cradle leaned frighteningly toward starboard. Wigg and Faegan immediately brought the ship a few meters back up, alleviating the stress.
Jessamay, Aeolus, and several thousand warriors ran over toward the cradle’s starboard side. As the mystics helped with the craft, the warriors quickly pounded more buttress timbers into the ground and shoved them up against the cradle’s starboard ribs, returning it to the vertical. When the cradle had been righted, Wigg and Faegan allowed theTammerland to descend once more. Soon the ship’s keel was again nearing the curved spine.
With a great groan theTammerland again settled into her cradle. For a few moments the cradle ribs and spine creaked loudly in protest as they bore the massive weight for the first time, and the earth beneath them shuddered. Then all was still.
They did it! Tristan realized as he stared up at the wondrous sight. The huge Black Ship and her cradle were motionless, awe-inspiring. Soon theTammerland ’s massive stern door lowered and Adrian made her way to the ground, followed by the several thousand warriors who also served aboard.
Letting go a deep breath, Faegan looked at Wigg and Abbey and smiled. “It seems that we’ve done it, old friends!” he said. “Let’s go down and take a look!”
Wigg landed the litter near where the Conclave members were waiting. As they touched down, the thousands of warriors who had worked so tirelessly on the great project erupted into raucous cheering, their sudden outburst so deafening that no one could hear himself think. As the ruckus went on, the three mystics triumphantly exited their litter and were quickly engulfed by the throng. Soon the joyful warriors saw theJin’Sai and the other Conclave members approaching, and they dutifully formed a pathway through their midst.
Running ahead of her brother, Shailiha grabbed Wigg up in a great bear hug and kissed him on the cheek. As Wigg’s face reddened, Faegan and Abbey chuckled at the First Wizard’s expense.
“Well done!” the princess shouted. Soon Tristan and the other Conclave members joined them.
“I couldn’t have said it better myself,” Tristan said. “Well done indeed.” He looked up to see theEphyra, theIllendium, and theCavalon still hovering in the sky.
“But this is no time to rest on your laurels,” he added with a smile. “There’s still work to be done.”
Tristan turned to look at Traax. “Have your warriors start loading theTammerland, ” he ordered. “Given how many are available to do the job, it shouldn’t take long.”
Traax clicked his boot heels together and hurried off to carry out his orders.
Faegan turned to look at Wigg. “Shall we go for another ride?” he asked.
Wigg pursed his lips and placed his hands into the opposing sleeves of his gray robe. “And once we have cradled all three ships?” he asked. “Do you still intend to try to shrink theTammerland?”
“But of course, my dear fellow!” Faegan exclaimed. The crippled wizard’s mischievous smile reappeared. “Only he who attempts the ridiculous can ever achieve the impossible! Follow me!”
Without further ado Faegan levitated his chair high over the crowd to soar back to the litter. Wigg took the jar from Abbey, then wended his way through the crowd to join him. Soon they were again soaring through the sky to approach theEphyra.
Two hours later all four ships lay safely nestled in their new cradles. Each time, the process went more smoothly. Tyranny and Scars came to stand beside Tristan and Shailiha. Now that theTammerland had been loaded, the time for the more complex experiment had come. The Conclave privateer looked more worried than ever. Touching Tristan on one arm, she bade him walk with her.
“What is it?” he asked, as they left the crowd to stride across the grass.
For a time Tyranny said nothing as she walked beside herJin’Sai. Then she stopped and searched his face with a deeply worried expression. As though she didn’t know how to start, she sighed deeply.
“I know that I don’town those ships,” she said. “And I will never be able to repay you for all your kindnesses. But…”
Pausing for a moment, she looked back at the massive vessels that she so loved. For her, seeing the ships cradled on dry land seemed unnatural, almost a travesty. But her seafaring nature found what the wizards planned to do next even more blasphemous. She turned back to look into Tristan’s eyes.
“Those ships are my life,” she said quietly. Then one of her wry smiles appeared, only to vanish as quickly as it came. “I suppose that my well-known sense of pride would never allow me to say that to anyone but you. Must we try this thing?”
Tristan nodded. “Although I hol
d the same misgivings as you, my mind is made up,” he said. “I know that it’s risky. Whenever I get these feelings, I put my trust in Wigg, Faegan, Aeolus, and Jessamay. It’s all that we can do. What will be will be. Besides, if the worst happens and theTammerland is destroyed, we will still have the other three ships.” He gave her a crafty smile. “I’ll even make a deal with you,” he added.
“What sort of deal?” she asked skeptically.
“If theTammerland is wrecked, I will order that another be built,” he said. “You can have a hand in outlining her specifications.”
“Agreed!” Tyranny answered.
Just then they heard the crowd roar, and they turned to look. An azure glow was settling over the mastheads and the crow’s nests of theTammerland. Wigg and Faegan’s litter hovered above the great ship like a tiny fly badgering some great beast. Then the haunting glow moved lower, engulfing the entire ship. As Tristan watched, the breath caught in his lungs. It has begun! he thought.
Their hearts in their throats, theJin’Sai and the privateer ran back toward the spectacle as fast as their legs could carry them.
CHAPTER XX
AS KHRISTOS LOOKED AROUND HE REALIZED THAT EVEN his lost love Failee could not have created such an exquisite place. Silver staff in hand, he turned and ordered his thousands of hungry servants to wait behind.
Walking on, he crossed the ornate portal that granted him access to the magnificent chamber waiting beyond. As he entered, he found the room to be every bit as stunning as Gracchus had told him. Several hours ago, Khristos and his servants had not only entered the Caves of the Paragon, but with Gracchus’ help had found their way into its lower regions. These were sacred places that were once known only to a privileged few. Excepting the newly arrived Viper Lord, all the other mystics who knew of this place had taken their knowledge to their graves.
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