by John Corwin
"We should sail for the Golden Skylets as custom demands," a soldier said. "We already suffered enough bad luck in the north."
"Illaena has acted strangely ever since we left Guinesea. I think she is too friendly with the land dwellers."
"Careful, Sholea," said a male voice. "Do not make accusations against one of our own."
"I never accused her of anything," Sholea replied. "But her orders have been strange of late, have they not? We aren't even allowed near the gem sorters for the rest of the trip."
"Does the wine taste a bit sour today?" The deep-voiced sera asked.
"What do you expect?" the male said. "We traded for it on Guinesea. Brightling soldiers have no taste for good wine."
"It tasted fine this morning," Sholea said. "I wonder if it spoiled."
Elyssa gave me a concerned look. "I hope it kicks in before they realize it's spiked," she whispered.
That definitely concerned me, but Sholea's mention of a Illaena's strange behavior threw up a red flag. Had something happened in Guinesea? My stomach clenched. What if Illaena met with Kaelissa while she was there and decided to throw in with the Brightlings?
A thud sounded from the galley followed by cries of surprise.
Crystal shattered. "Why did you knock away my wine?" Sholea asked.
"It has been tainted!" the male shouted.
"Petyris is right," the deep-voiced female said. "We have been betrayed."
"Can't keep my eyes open," another soldier said in a groggy voice.
"Is he dead?" Sholea asked.
There was a pause before Petyris answered. "No, he's asleep." His word grew heavier.
"Can't—" Whatever Sholea meant to say cut off in mid-sentence.
Elyssa and I waited for another full minute before risking a peek into the galley. Soldiers lay slumped over a table where they sat, though some had toppled to the floor. One seraph lay face-down with his butt poking into the air.
Elyssa blew out a breath of relief. "It worked." She bit her lower lip and looked around. "We still need a place to put them."
I did a quick headcount and came up with eleven soldiers. Before I could tell Elyssa we were missing someone, a female with a book tucked under one arm entered the galley.
"I nearly forgot—" she stopped, staring at us wide-eyed for a brief instant before turning to run.
Elyssa dove and tackled her. I blurred over and clamped a hand over the sera's mouth before she could scream a warning to others. A quick chop to the base of her neck stopped her struggling. I felt her pulse to make sure I hadn't hit her too hard and nodded when I felt it beating.
"That was close," I said.
"We were sloppy and unprepared." Elyssa hit her thigh with the bottom of a fist. "Stupid!"
"Hey, we're making this up as we go along," I said. "Unfortunately, this means there's no going back since that soldier saw our faces."
Elyssa grimaced. "Maybe. There's always another option."
"I won't kill her in cold blood," I said. "These soldiers are just following orders."
"Soon those orders might be to execute us for hijacking," Elyssa said. "I don't condone killing her either, but we may have no choice."
"We'll burn that bridge when we come to it," I said.
"You mean cross it?"
I shook my head. "You know I like doing things the hard way." I jabbed a thumb at the corridor. "I'll find a room to stow our sleepyheads while you separate them from their weapons and communication gems."
Elyssa got to work removing swords and armor from the unconscious soldiers. I went into the corridor and tested the gems in the door alcoves until I found one that responded to my request. The wall misted away to reveal an empty cabin that would serve as our makeshift prison.
I returned to the galley and tucked a Seraphim under each arm, deposited them in the room, and repeated until all the soldiers snoozed comfortably on the floor in the room. Elyssa dribbled wine into the mouth of the sera we'd knocked out so she'd stay asleep as long as her comrades.
After making sure our guests were tucked away, I found another open room and we dumped their armor and weapons inside. The only thing left was meeting Shelton and Adam so we could lock the room with the soldiers.
"Shouldn't they be here by now?" Elyssa asked.
I looked down the corridor, but the curve of the hull made it impossible to see very far. "They might be in trouble."
"They are trouble." Elyssa sighed. "Let's go find them."
We set off at a fast but stealthy jog until we reached the aft ramp and headed down. We literally ran into Shelton just around the first curve and sent him tumbling with a yelp back into Adam. The pair backward-somersaulted into the wall and came to rest with Shelton's face on Adam's backside.
Elyssa covered her mouth, shoulders shaking and face red as she tried not to burst into laughter. A snort escaped me before I put a lid on it. Restraining the laughter brought tears to my eyes.
Our friends disentangled themselves with as much dignity as they could muster, Shelton casting murderous looks at us while Adam shook with silent laughter.
"We're in the middle of a deadly mission and you think this is funny?" Shelton hissed.
"Did Adam make your man parts tingle?" Elyssa said through barely repressed giggles.
I wiped tears from my eyes and nodded. "Even pirates have to laugh sometimes."
A growl rumbled in his throat. "In case you care, the gem sorters are locked in the sorting room."
"Good." Elyssa's voice trembled with mirth. "I hate to ask, Shelton, but how did you like Adam's pirate booty?"
That brought a fresh round of snorts from everyone except Shelton who released a sigh of the long-suffering.
Adam slapped him on the back. "C'mon, dude, admit it was funny."
"Hee-larious," Shelton said with a scowl.
Elyssa took a deep breath and straightened her mouth into a semblance of seriousness. "The soldiers are in a room but need to be locked up."
"Yeah, we would've been done sooner," Adam said, "but there's something strange going on in the sorting room."
That perked my eyebrows. "Strange? Are they practicing acapella pop music while they work?"
"Nah, more like arguing and yelling," Shelton said. "I heard someone threatening them."
"Maybe that's how they work." Elyssa frowned uncertainly. "The deck crew certainly yells a lot."
"I could've sworn someone threatened to cut off a sorter's hand if they didn't keep working." Adam looked at Shelton. "That sound about right?"
"Sounds exactly right," Shelton said.
Elyssa's forehead pinched as she turned to me. "Didn't one of the soldiers complain about not being allowed near the gem sorters for the rest of the trip?"
My forehead mimicked hers. "Yeah, but what does that have to do with what Adam said?"
"Illaena handing out strange orders, forbidding the crew from seeing the gem sorters, not taking the first haul to the Mujaha Kajeen—" Elyssa laced her fingers together. "Put that together with what Adam and Shelton overheard and it sounds like there's a conspiracy on this ship."
"Forgive me if I'm wrong," Shelton said, "but ain't we the conspirators here?"
"We need to hack the door gem where you're keeping the soldiers so we can lock them in," Adam said. "I optimized the code so it takes about twenty minutes instead of thirty, but we don't have any time to spare."
"What's the code for the gem to the sorting room?" Elyssa asked.
Adam looked from her to me, then flicked on his phone and showed us the symbols. "Don't tell me you plan to unlock that doorway."
"She's got that look in her eyes," Shelton said. "What did you overhear the soldiers saying?"
Elyssa repeated what we'd heard and drew frowns from Adam and Shelton.
"I think you're right," Shelton said. "There's something fishy going on here."
"Still need to lock up the soldiers," Adam said. "Can you show us the door?"
I put a hand on Elyssa's
shoulder. "You show him the door; I'll take a look inside the sorting room."
"There are three ways into the room," Shelton said. "Use the aft door. The voices sounded farther away from there, so you might have a chance of sneaking in undetected."
Elyssa gave me a stern stare. "Don't go in too far. I'll be right back, okay?"
"I'll be careful." I pecked a kiss on her forehead.
Shelton looked at me expectantly. "Do I get a kiss too?"
Adam clapped him on the shoulder. "Haven't you already gotten enough booty today?"
"Thanks for reminding me," Shelton grumbled.
Elyssa led them up the ramp and I headed down. The door alcove Shelton told me about was a few paces to my right when I emerged from the ramp well. I pressed an ear to it and made out the faint sound of footsteps and murmuring voices. Since even my enhanced hearing couldn't make out the words, I assumed the speakers had to be on the opposite side of the room.
I charged the door gem and pictured the runes Adam had shown me. The doorway misted away to reveal translucent crystal chests filled with gems of all colors and sizes ranging from the size of a fingernail up to the dimensions of a fist. The containers, cylindrical casks with no locks or openings, didn't even remotely resemble the sort of treasure chests I'd seen in pirate movies.
The stacked containers stood tall enough to conceal me and the door and formed narrow aisles leading deeper into the room. Rather than take the first path, I chose to creep closer to the curved hull where the containers offered better concealment. The voices grew louder as I made my way along the hull until I was finally able to make sense of what they were saying.
"—that's no volgen, it's a volken!"
A male and female burst into laughter.
Heavy footsteps stomped and an angry female hissed, "Perhaps we should run around the ship announcing our presence, you fools."
The laughter cut off abruptly.
"Sorry, Racha," several voices said at once.
"You, what is the count?" Racha said.
Someone replied in the proud tone of a person who didn't like her attitude. "We found one."
"I have been graceful in my lenience," Racha said, her words grating with fury, "but your intentional delays leave me no choice."
I sneaked to the corner of the nearest stack and peered down the aisle. Shimmering nets bulging with gems hung from the ceiling near tables studded with more stones. Sorters sat at each of the tables, and around them stood people dressed in white uniforms with the white sphere of Brilliance emblazoned on the chest. One of the sorters held her palm to the larger gem in the front of the table and beams of energy flowed from the other gems and into the one I assumed she was evaluating in the center.
I identified Racha before she even opened her mouth by the imperious look she cast at the gem sorters as she drew a white crystal sword from the sheath at her side. "I warned you that if you had not found three gems, one of you would lose a hand."
One of her companions, a tall seraph in white robes spoke in a nerdy, lecturing tone. "Technically, you gave them fifteen more minutes, and it's only been ten."
Racha glared at him, and the man visibly withered.
"The gems you seek are incredibly rare," the sorter who'd spoken earlier said, his voice unafraid. He ran a hand over his bald head. "I warned you we would likely need another expedition to the core." He was a short, thin seraph, but his gaze was hard and unflinching despite the armed soldiers around him.
Racha bared her teeth. "I've heard enough excuses."
The sorter slid up the sleeve of his robe and laid his bare arm on the table. "Then take my hand and be quiet, for I am weary of your constant complaints."
Damn, that dude is a badass.
At this point even my slow wits had put the pieces together in this scenario. The Seraphim in white were bad guys, forcing the sorters to do their bidding. Were they Kaelissa's people, or was Illaena in cahoots with the Brightlings?
"If you take his hand, we will refuse to work," another gem sorter said. "Without us, you'll never find the gems you need."
The tall seraph in white dared speak again. "Maybe you should just let them work, Racha."
Racha gripped her sword with both hands and swung it in a chopping motion toward the gem sorter's hand. I acted on impulse and projected a shield over the seraph's wrist. The sword rang hard against the barrier. Racha cried out and dropped the weapon.
The time for stealth was over. It was time to fight.
Chapter 12
Before anyone could recover, I blurred in and smashed the tall seraph in the face with my fist. I dodged a thrusting sword and swept the legs from beneath the wielder. Using techniques television wrestling taught me, I gripped a fist with the other hand, and drove my elbow into the soldier's solar plexus. A cry of pain exploded from his mouth.
I channeled a block of Murk around my fist and sent him to La-La Land with a brutal face smash.
Racha picked up her sword and came at me with her remaining two soldiers. Orbs of Brilliance formed in their palms and they took aim at me. I tried to channel a Murk shield, but daggers stabbed my brain and my concentration vanished. Apparently, my mind hadn't fully recovered.
If you can't win fair and square, fight dirty.
I snatched a glowing net of gems from the ceiling and flung it at the soldiers just as they fired beams of destruction. The magic refracted through the stones in a kaleidoscope of raw energy. Sorters and soldiers shouted and took cover as white energy zapped through the gems in a feedback loop, crackling and sizzling like lightning. One of the bolts caught a sorter in the back. She screamed and face-planted on the floor.
The gems took on lives of their own, circling in the air through some form of magnetic cohesion caused by the surges of magical energy. I grabbed the sword from one of the fallen soldiers and threw it at the gems. It smashed them apart, flipped, and caught Racha in the chest with the hilt. She grunted and smacked into a table behind her.
The soldier on her left bent down to help her up. I snatched a big gem, wound up, and pitched a zinger at his head. My aim was off and the rock caught him in the side of the neck. Another hail of gems rained on the soldiers as the sorters jumped into the fray. They quickly overwhelmed Racha and the two soldiers.
"There are three more," said the gem sorter Racha had threatened.
Elyssa appeared, dragging two unconscious soldiers by the feet. "Not anymore." She dropped her load and jabbed a thumb over her shoulder. "The last one is lying back there."
"Who are you?" asked the bald seraph.
"I'm Justin and this is Elyssa." I knelt next to the sorter who'd been struck in the back and turned her over. "This sera needs help."
"I am Eor." The seraph put a hand over the stricken sera's mouth. "Her breath is strong and steady. She will survive." He turned to the others. "Don't just stand there like frightened children. Secure the prisoners."
The sorters immediately set to work without another word, binding the soldiers in the shimmering nets they used to capture gems.
"Who are these soldiers?" Elyssa asked.
Eor scowled. "Land dwellers. Pirates." He stood over Racha, fists clenching and unclenching. "They sneaked aboard while we were trading in Guinesea and forced us to sort the gems for a very special kind they desired."
I looked at the single gem they'd found. It was rough and uncut, about the size of a baseball and crimson in hue. I picked it up and held it to the light. Thick liquid bubbled inside. "What's so special about this stone?"
Eor plucked the gem from my hand and set it on the table. "We call them bloodstones because they are red and filled with liquid aether." His voice took on the tone of someone lecturing a particularly slow-witted child.
Elyssa peered at the gem but didn't touch it. "Aether can be liquid?"
"Aether can take many forms," Eor said with a sigh.
While I appreciated Eor's bravery in the face of adversity, I didn't appreciate his curt tone. "What are bloodstones us
ed for?"
He covered the red stone with cloth. "Nothing good, I can assure you. We are forbidden from keeping those we find and cast them into the sea." Eor set his arms akimbo. "Now, I suggest you explain why you're down here. I assume you're the companions of that nosy pair of land dwellers who've been on board for the past week."
Apparently, Illaena hadn't told him who we were.
The other gem sorters gathered around him, some regarding us with uncertainty, others with the same naked suspicion in Eor's glare.
"Yes, the nosy pair are our friends, Adam and Shelton, and we just saved you from pirates." I squared my shoulders and stepped into Eor's personal space. "How about you show a little appreciation?"
"I have little appreciation for land dwellers of any kind." Eor turned and looked at the bound forms of Racha and her comrades. "I also have no patience for a captain who allows such crimes to go on right under her nose."
"Illaena knew about the pirates," Elyssa said. "She forbid the other crew from entering the main hold."
Eor faced us again. "Then I believe a conversation with our captain is in order." He turned to the other sorters. "Take these prisoners to the vault and lock them inside. Once you've finished, eat and relax for the rest of the evening. I want you fresh and ready for sorting first thing in the morning."
His underlings nodded and obeyed with murmurs of obeisance, eyes to the floor like a bunch of whipped dogs. I felt sorry for anyone who had to work for this guy.
"Uh, don't drink the wine," Elyssa said. "There's something wrong with it."
The sorters looked from Elyssa to Eor as if asking permission to believe her.
Eor's eyes narrowed. "What's wrong with the wine?"
I scrambled for a reason. "It came from Guinesea. We think the land dwellers there put something in it."
He scowled. "Very well. Replace the wine in the decanter with the stores we brought from home." Eor huffed and spun on his heel. "I will speak with Illaena and get to the bottom of this."
Elyssa and I traded concerned looks.
"Well?" Eor stamped his foot impatiently. "Are you coming or not?"
"Y-yes, of course," I said and hurried to catch up.
