Ominous Odyssey (Overworld Chronicles Book 13)

by John Corwin

  The Sirens guided their mounts into a loose formation and turned away from the ship, apparently unconcerned that we might turn tail and flee. They also had to know it wouldn't do us any good, because there was nowhere to run.

  If there's nowhere to go, where are we going?

  It took a while to answer that question because after twenty minutes of travel, I still didn't see anything except water.

  Elyssa gripped my arm and pointed dead ahead. At first I saw only the sparkling reflection of the sun off the water, but as we drew closer, I realized something was strange about the water. It wasn't until we were within a mile of the anomaly that I realized what I was seeing wasn't endless ocean, but a reflection of endless ocean—as if someone had mounted a huge mirror in the water.

  It was like looking at one of those drawings with a second image hidden inside, seen once you shifted your perspective. One second it was all ocean, the next it was a huge reflective dome of mist. The dragons flew through it as if it wasn't even there. I had to resist throwing up my arms and bracing for impact when the Falcheen's prow pierced the bubble.

  Cool, salty mist brushed my face and lips and a mountainous island appeared a half mile ahead. The dragons swooped low, and Illaena directed the Falcheen to follow. We glided twenty feet off water so calm, it reflected everything like a mirror.

  A dozen dolphins burst from the water, squeaking excitedly and leaping in graceful arcs off the starboard bow. Creatures that resembled manta rays glided up into the air and hovered next to the vessel before veering off and diving back into the water.

  Amazing as the sea life was, I could hardly take my eyes off the island. Marble towers rose high, ending in tall spires with statues holding heroic action poses. A huge citadel rose at the top of the mountain, its many marble columns supporting the monumental statue of a thickly muscled, bearded man. A fierce expression gleaming in his marble eyes, the man was frozen in the act of casting a trident toward the water while his lower half was caught in the act of transforming from scales and fins to legs.

  The impressive architecture reminded me of ancient Greece, but with a modern twist. It didn't take a mythology specialist to realize that the statues were those of gods. In this place, Poseidon was a bigger fish than Zeus.

  "Son of a gun, are those ships?" Shelton jabbed a finger toward the harbor.

  Long piers crafted from coral reefs and sea shells radiated from the curving shore. Some of the ships nearly defied description. The largest resembled a huge floating conch shell with windows and terraces all along the surface, like a seashell houseboat.

  Next to it floated a huge starfish with the shell of a horseshoe crab mounted on top. I couldn't even imagine what made it float, much less propelled it in the water. Mingled with the fantastical ships were a few mundane sea-going vessels with wooden hulls and sails.

  "I've never seen the like," Illaena said. "Why would you purposefully float a ship on the water when you can fly?"

  "Maybe their ships can't fly," I said.

  Shelton nodded toward our Siren guides. "Yeah, but they have freaking dragons!"

  "Can't argue with that logic," Adam said. "On the other hand, did anyone notice the statue on the mountain?"

  "You'd have to be blind to miss it," Shelton said. "This place looks like ancient Greece, gods and all."

  "Except the architecture is too advanced," Adam said. "I couldn't even make a guess as to what era this represents."

  "How could it be related to Greece when it's out in the middle of the Pacific Ocean?" I said.

  "Voltis may be in the equivalent area of the Pacific Ocean, but it's not in Eden." Adam paused and then shrugged. "Geographical location doesn't mean much when we're talking interdimensional shifts."

  "Wherever we are, it's beautiful." Elyssa had a dreamy look in her eyes that reminded me of the first time we'd gone to Venice, Italy.

  "Yeah, too bad we're not on vacation." Shelton blew out a breath. "Let's hope the natives don't plan to eat us."

  Adam blew out a breath. "Man, Zagg would probably give his two left nuts to be here right now."

  Zagg, an Arcane history professor at Arcane University, was one of the most knowledgeable people in the Overworld when it came to Eden, but after meeting me, he'd learned more about ancient history in months than in all his previous years. Primarily because I attracted the sort of crowd that had been involved in world domination at some point of their careers.

  "I almost wish it was Zagg here and not me," Shelton muttered. He looked at me out of the corner of his eye. "Answer me this. If the Sundering happened before ancient Greece even existed, then what in the hell is a statue of Poseidon doing here?"

  I shrugged. "Maybe this is where the idea for the Greek gods came from."

  Thousands of years even before the First Seraphim War, all the different supernatural races lived together on Earth. Cora had told me the story of how the Seraphim ruled the skies, the Sirens, the sea, and the Lyrolai, the land. There had been other supernatural creatures like dragons and, hell, maybe even unicorns back in those days. An ancient race of god-like beings, the Apocryphan, had taken over and, at some point, gone to war with each other.

  This had the unfortunate effect of shattering Earth into separate realms—Eden, Seraphina, Haedaemos, Aquilis, Draxadis, Sturg, and so forth and so on. It had isolated the Apocryphan from each other along with their kingdoms. Eventually, the Sirens had trapped these gods in a prison of their own making—the Abyss.

  I'd learned in my adventures that the Sirens were also responsible for making the Alabaster Arches, the Obsidian Arches, and had been the architects for the Apocryphan. If they didn't plan to kill us, it seemed like a grand opportunity to find out a lot more about the universe.

  Maybe I should be a history professor.

  "The Apocryphan who ruled the Sirens was named Posthanied." Adam said.

  His statement snapped me from my thoughts. "Uh, I think you're right."

  "Sounds close to Poseidon," Elyssa said. "Who knows? Maybe the entire Greek pantheon came from the Apocryphan."

  "I ain't too sure how you get Zeus and Ares from Kathazal and Xanomiel," Shelton said, naming two of the other ancient beings, "but knock yourselves out."

  The Sirens guided us toward a wide stone pier shaped like a sea turtle with a shell a hundred yards in diameter. Their green-haired leader pointed down and Illaena gave Tahlee the command to land.

  Scores of seagulls burst into flight as the Falcheen settled in for a landing, swirling overhead like a white funnel designed to crap on everything anybody ever loved.

  Shelton looked suspiciously up at the birds and pressed his hat firmly on his head. "The Sirens are paying my dry cleaning bill if those birds poop on my duster."

  Tahlee charged a gem on the starboard side and a gangway of Murk projected from the side of the ship. The Mzodi soldiers lined up, weapons at the ready, but Illaena held up a hand and shook her head.

  "I will go alone."

  Tahlee's eyes flared. "Not without me."

  Illaena offered a curt nod and the pair walked down the gangway to the turtle shell pier.

  My guts knotted as I watched them descend. If the Sirens meant us harm, there wasn't anything we could do to stop them.

  Chapter 22

  Shelton and Adam leaned on the railing, watching with interest as the Sirens dismounted their dragons and glided toward their guests, their dresses flowing like water along with them. The sea dragons didn't wait around long, sliding off the end of the pier and into the water.

  "I don't trust these Sirens one little bit," Shelton said. "Those tales about them luring sailors to their deaths against the rocks weren't just fairy tales."

  "I'm sure it had some basis in fact," Adam said, "but the reality seems different."

  "On the surface," Shelton said. "Dive deep enough you'll find out the truth."

  "Or it might be smooth sailing," Adam said with a smirk.

  I groaned. "I hate to dampen your enthusiasm by throwi
ng cold water on this conversation, but there's not much we can do if the Sirens decide to sing us lullabies."

  Elyssa shook her head. "I think I just heard more water metaphors in thirty seconds than I want to hear for the rest of this trip."

  "Might be a short trip, sweetheart." Shelton unholstered a short wooden rod and flicked it out to a full-length staff. "We need to protect ourselves against the song of the Sirens or we'll never get out of here."

  "I'm not walking around with cotton in my ears," Elyssa said.

  "Wouldn't work anyway," Shelton said. "You need something denser like beeswax. Speaking of which—" he dug around inside his duster and removed a small pink coin purse from an inside pocket.

  Adam leaned over his shoulder. "Aww, did Bella pack your toothbrush in there?"

  Shelton gave him a dirty look. "Shut it, smartass." He twisted open the metal latch and removed a pair of foam earplugs. "Sometimes I have trouble sleeping when there's a lot of noise." He stuffed them in his ears where the pink tips designed to aid removal poked out like bug antennae. "There. Problem solved."

  Elyssa's nose wrinked. "They look stupid."

  Shelton cupped a hand to his ear. "What?"

  Adam spoke loudly, speaking each word with exaggerated precision. "They. Look. Stupid."

  "What?" Shelton pulled one out. "Can't hear a thing with those earplugs in."

  "I'm about to backhand you across the deck," Adam said.

  I ignored the banter and watched Illaena converse with the green-haired Siren. Judging from their facial expressions, the exchange seemed calm and polite, and neither of the Mzodi had the glazed look of someone under the spell of a song.

  "If Adam is right about this being another realm," I told Elyssa, "we must be in Aquilis."

  "Makes sense." She looked out at the city. "If that's the case, the secret weapon must be here somewhere."

  I frowned and looked at the peaceful city. "Doesn't seem like the place to have a secret weapon."

  "No, it doesn't," Elyssa said. "None of those vessels in the harbor look like warships, and I don't see soldiers or troops anywhere."

  "They do have dragons," I reminded her.

  She nodded. "True, but they didn't seem hostile."

  A shout from Tahlee ended our conversation. At first I thought there was trouble, but quickly realized the first mate was ordering the soldiers to disarm and come down the gangway. I took it upon myself to head down and face the music.

  Shelton swallowed hard and shoved the earplugs back in place, much to the amusement of Adam. Elyssa gripped my hand and we walked down the ramp toward the group at the bottom.

  The green-haired Siren wore a long shimmering dress that hid her legs and made it look as though she glided instead of walked. She nodded at my group. "I am Narine." Her arm swept to include her other companions, one a female with soft features and turquoise hair, and the other with a round face and blue-gray locks. "This is Balaena and Dolpha."

  She didn't extend a hand to shake it and I didn't feel like pressing my luck so I simply nodded back and introduced the others. "I'm Justin and these are my friends, Elyssa, Adam, and Shelton."

  Vertically slit pupils regarded me curiously. Narine tucked a flowing lock of hair behind small smooth ears and glided her eyes across the others. "Some of you are mortals."

  I didn't want to show all our cards so I answered with a shrug. "Are we in Aquilis?"

  Her very thin eyebrow raised slightly. "The ancient kingdom of the Sirens vanished long ago."

  "How would you know of it?" Dolpha asked. Her voice was unusually high pitched, but no less sing-song than Narine's.

  I exchanged a confused frown with Elyssa then turned back to our hosts. "Aquilis is the Siren realm, right?"

  Narine nodded. "Yes, it was once so, but our kingdom vanished into legend along with the rest of the world eons ago."

  Tahlee and Illaena shared confused glances of their own.

  "We are from Seraphina," Illaena said.

  Dolpha's head reared back as if struck. "The angel kingdom was destroyed with everything else."

  Illaena's forehead scrunched. "Where else could we have come from?"

  The Sirens took a turn looking flummoxed. "Are you not from Heval?" Narine pointed up and away.

  "The more we talk, the more confused I get," Adam said. "Maybe it would be better if we didn't assume anything and just said where we're all from."

  "What game is this?" Dolpha said in a harsh song. "We have left your kingdom alone for millennia. The mortals are free to do as they wish, so what cause have you to intrude on our sovereign territory?"

  I held up my hands. "I assure you, we're not from these parts at all. We really are from Seraphina—well, not originally." I flicked my hand to indicate my friends. "We're from Eden."

  "Ha!" Dolpha scoffed. "Now we know they lie."

  Narine's eyes lit with wonder. "Or perhaps the legends are true."

  "Could it be?" Balaena said. "Perhaps there are survivors beyond the storm."

  I didn't know what to think, but I figured a brief history lesson of the Sundering might help jog their memories. It was possible that they'd suffered some sort of memory loss, or maybe they'd been isolated from everyone else.

  "Do you remember the Apocryphan?" I asked.

  "Indeed." Narine tilted her head slightly, as if remembering. "I was not alive during those dark days, but we still sing the legends."

  "Our ancestors fled when the Apocryphan War started and founded this city in a place untouched by man." Balaena raised her chin proudly. "Many Lyrolai fled the war as well and joined us on the island, which for some reason, was invisible to the Apocryphan."

  "So the legend says." Narine's huge eyes widened. "The great war wiped the kingdoms from the face of the Earth."

  "Centuries later, the mortals appeared." Dolpha scowled, as if this was an unpleasant thought.

  "Many moved to the island, and together, we built a great civilization," Balaena said, chin lifting even higher. "We showed them how to create magnificent, efficient structures, and educated them with ancient knowledge."

  "The mortals in the other nearby lands were not so pleasant." Dolpha's scowl deepened. "For a time, we traded with them, but then they grew to fear us, claiming we were cannibals who feasted on their sailors, luring their ships to their doom."

  "We cut off contact with the outsiders and they stayed far from us." Narine shook her head sadly. "It was then that another great evil appeared, and songs of a new war reached our ears. Whatever made our island invisible to the Apocryphan kept us undetected by this new evil. But then something terrible happened, and a great darkness swept the land."

  Elyssa gave me a knowing look. "Sounds like the Desecration."

  She was right. When stories had timelines spanning thousands of years, it was hard to keep things straight, but the Desecration was one of those worldwide events so huge, that it placed a big old frownie-face on the calendar.

  Narine raised an eyebrow at Elyssa's remark but continued the story. "The storm that destroyed the world, swept in from all sides and soon we were all that remained. Now there are only the three of us, a few Lyrolai and perhaps two-hundred mortals."

  Adam's eyes flared as if a lightbulb just blinked on inside his head. "What, exactly, is the name of this city?"

  Dolpha scowled, apparently unconvinced that we weren't from Heval. "Your game is not amusing."

  "Ah, yes," Narine said. "I apologize for my lack of manners." She spread her arms as if to present the city. "Welcome to Atlantis."

  Adam might have expected that answer but I thought my jaw was going to hit my belly button. "This is the lost city of Atlantis?"

  Illaena and Tahlee didn't seem to know what to make of our confusion. For that matter, neither did the Sirens.

  "We are not lost," Dolpha said.

  "You've got to be kidding me!" I pressed a hand to my heart. "We're in Atlantis? Do you know how freaking cool that is?"

  "Totally explains the ar
chitecture," Adam said. "I knew it was inspired by ancient Greece architecture, but it was too advanced."

  "Do they have flying chariots and laser beams?" I asked.

  Elyssa frowned. "I thought Atlantis was underwater."

  "What nonsense is that?" Dolpha said.

  "Laser beams?" Narine spoke the words haltingly.

  Shelton's eyes darted back and forth as he tried to read our lips. Little did he know his earplugs were making him miss all the juicy info.

  Adam switched gears with his next question. "Who lives in Heval? More Sirens?"

  Narine blinked. Up close it was really unsettling since she had a clear eyelid that closed before her outer one did. "Heval is a mountain that reaches far into the sky. Its slopes are rocky and steep—unsuitable for living since there is no easy access to the water. We did not realize there are people living at the top until only about a thousand years ago."

  "Only a thousand years?" Adam said incredulously. "Who are these people?"

  Balaena rolled her shoulders in what I took for a shrug. "They did not offer much information, and seemed just as surprised as us to discover there were other survivors of the world's end."

  "What are their names?" I asked.

  "They were very secretive," Narine said. "While they did not offer their names or background, one of them addressed the male by name—Gallifer."

  A cold chill tip-toed down my back. "How many people were there?" I asked.

  "Only three," Balaena replied.

  "It's the Seraphim who tried to control Thussor," Elyssa said. "Gallifer, Sithain, and Purah."

  "I told you these intruders are from Heval!" Dolpha said.

  I shook my head. "No, we're not. You have no idea how dangerous those people are."

  "They are not dangerous." Dolpha huffed—but in a musical way, of course. "Many mortals live in Heval, and they have been perfectly happy there."

  "We don't actually go to Heval." Narine said. "Those Atlanteans who moved there sometimes return to visit family and say they are treated very well."

  "None of them know the names of their hosts?" Adam asked.

  "I wouldn't know," Narine said. "I do not interfere in their personal affairs."