The ladies rode their horses in an easterly direction around hills, avoiding rocky and wooded areas. Concern grew heavier when they didn’t find any sign of a path after twenty minutes had gone by. Liselle sent thoughts out to the plants in the area. She sensed nightflowers nearby and rode to them, motioning the others to follow. “This way.”
They were beautiful in the moonlight, their large teal petals open wide to catch the lunar radiance. She asked them about the ship and if there was a path up the mountains. Liselle watched the petals and leaves move, fluttering in gentle waves. Each motion communicated messages to her.
What they told her wasn’t what she expected to hear. Instead of anything about a ship or a path, they told her about a dragon up in the mountains that stepped on flowers. No dragon had ever stepped on flowers the way this one did. They were outraged and pleaded with her to do something about it.
Liselle acknowledged them and promised she would look into it, but could they tell her about a path or the ship. After she reassured them about ten more times that she would look into the problem with the dragon, they finally told her about a place nearby where people walked up and down into the hills occasionally. They didn’t know anything about a ship though.
“The flowers told me about a possible path back the way we came,” Liselle said as she turned her mount around. “I’ll see if there are anymore flowers once we reach the area. They didn’t know anything about the ship though.”
Emmaoen frowned. “The flowers told you all that?”
“Yes. They also told me about a dragon that’s been stomping on flowers. We’ll need to be careful in case it’s nearby,” Liselle warned them. “I promised I’d look into it after we take care of the ship.”
Emmaoen stared at her for a minute as they rode back around the last hill. “What spell do you use to talk to them, or is it some other sort of magic?”
“It’s . . . I don’t know if it’s magic, though I suppose it is. It’s something I’ve always been able to do. I understood flowers before I understood my parents.”
“Do you know which god or goddess you’re the child of?” the duchess asked, a little too casually.
Liselle studied Emmaoen before answering. “I don’t know anything about gods or goddesses. Let’s concentrate on finding the boys and their boat.” She turned back to their search, leaving no doubt to the fact that she was done with the conversation. Fortunately, she saw the path just as the duchess was about to persist with the questioning. “Found it.” It was enough to shut her up.
It wasn’t visible from their position, but the stone told her it was there. She rode around some rocks that disguised the tight path snaking up between two close outcroppings. “Did the flowers show it to you?” Emmaoen asked in a snotty tone.
“No, the rocks did. I don’t intend to tell you how I understand them either,” Liselle answered caustically. She didn’t like the way the duchess was speaking to her and was beginning to regret promising to remain friends. A nearby nightflower told her that the duchess was glaring at her behind her back. Liselle decided to ignore it.
Underbrush covered much of the path for the first thousand feet as it began to twist upward. After that, it wound its way around the hills, heading up into the mountains. The steepness of the incline and the roughness of the path required them to travel carefully, picking their way around rocks and hazards.
After they had journeyed about another half hour, a steep mountain rose above them. Cold wind whipped their hair and made the journey a little more adventurous. The trail went around the side of it with sheer rock face on their right and steep cliff leading to the ground below on the left. “We should dismount and lead the horses. They could use a break anyway,” Emmaoen suggested.
They took a moment to water the horses before heading along the path. Liselle went first and Emmaoen took the rear. They tied the reins of Tathan’s horse to Anilyia’s and she led them both. It took another half hour to make their way along the perilous trail until entering a canyon, where they watered the horses again and remounted.
The canyon walls rose high above, making them nervous. “Do you think Tathan’s alright, Liselle?” Anilyia asked in worried tones.
“I have no doubt about the boys’ ability to take care of themselves and each other.” Liselle smiled reassuringly. “I know you’re worried, and I am a little too, but I truly believe they’ll be fine.”
As if on cue, a low rumbling sound came from above and behind them, causing all three to jump. They looked up to see Vevin floating down in dragon form, his wings rustling against the air. Then he folded the wings in and transformed to human shape just before hitting the ground. He took a number of running steps to slow down his momentum before turning to Liselle who had dismounted and was running to him in joy.
They met with a thud and Vevin swung Liselle around as they kissed deeply. Anilyia rolled her eyes while Emmaoen frowned disapprovingly. After a moment, the two lovers came back to the group. “We were just talking about you, dearest,” Liselle said. “Have you seen the boys?”
“Oh yes. They’re on the ship in a valley about an hour’s ride from here, waiting for you,” Vevin answered.
“They caught the ship?” Emmaoen asked eagerly.
“Well . . . Not exactly,” Vevin responded. “They got it to agree to wait for Liselle.”
“Perhaps you should tell us what happened while we ride,” Liselle suggested.
“Oh yes, very good idea.” He kissed her, helped her mount and then hopped on Tathan’s horse. They continued through the canyon, Vevin’s words echoing softly off the walls as he told them what had happened. “I saw the ship and trailed it from above in order to track it and to position myself to plummet down in case you were in danger.”
Liselle realized that when he said ‘you’, he was referring to her, not the others. She wondered if he even knew he was doing it. “That was very smart, dear.”
“Oh yes, I know,” Vevin agreed. “I saw when you were riding toward it. Sir Danth was running from another angle. I didn’t realize how fast he could move, faster than a horse.”
“I didn’t realize that,” Liselle replied. “That’s interesting.”
“Oh yes, very interesting. Anyway, the net appeared. I thought for sure that would stop the ship,” Vevin said.
“That caught us all by surprise,” Emmaoen agreed, still irritated by the fact that her plan hadn’t worked.
“I thought about coming down and attacking it, but didn’t since we wanted to capture it. When the ship started trying to escape, it seemed even more important not to attack,” Vevin said.
Liselle nodded. “I agree. It doesn’t want to hurt anyone.”
“That’s what Tathan thinks too. He talked to it even though it couldn’t talk back.”
“How did he talk to it?” Emmaoen asked.
“He put a bunch of words together and said them out loud using his mouth,” Vevin informed her. The duchess wasn’t amused but Liselle and Anilyia found it funny. “The ship headed high into the air back toward the mountains. Tathan found a magical, glowing bell next to the wheel. He talked to that.”
“Magical bells are common on ships, but they do different things. I wonder what this one is for,” Emmaoen pondered.
“It’s extremely powerful,” Vevin told her. “There’s a great deal of magic radiating from it, maybe even intelligence.”
“That’s extraordinary, but fits with everything else we’ve learned about the ship so far,” Emmaoen observed.
“Tathan thinks so too. He thinks Liselle will be able to use the bell to communicate with it. I hope he’s right. I’m interested to know what it has to say.”
“I’ll do my best, but I have no idea how,” Liselle said doubtfully.
“Maybe you can look at the way the sails flap, kind of like the petals of a flower do when they’re around you,” Vevin suggested.
“Oh, that’s a good idea.” Liselle pondered how she would do that.
“So T
athan is safe?” Anilyia asked to be sure. “I was afraid the ship would try to shake him off or something.”
“It tried, but it can only lean so far and Tathan is very difficult to knock off his feet. So is Sir Danth,” Vevin said. “I continued to fly above it as it went into the mountains. I thought it was important to see where it was going so I could lead you to it. It was fast for a ship but Tathan convinced it to land in a valley and wait. He stayed on the ship with Sir Danth until I could get you. It took me a little while to find the path and I had to listen for the sound of the hooves and your voices.”
“We’re going the right way then?” Anilyia asked.
“Oh yes. Before I landed, I searched the trail. It goes through this canyon, up to a smaller valley, then through another canyon along a river, and then through a smaller canyon and then to the valley.”
“You said it would take us about an hour?” Liselle asked. Vevin didn’t answer. His head was cocked to the side and he was looking ahead. “Darling? You said it would take about an hour to get to the valley?” Liselle asked again.
“Did you see that?” Vevin tilted his head the other way. “I thought I saw something moving ahead and heard some rocks clatter.”
Emmaoen pulled ingredients for her magic out of a pouch. “I haven’t heard of skeethy attacks around here lately, but this is the type of terrain they like.” “They sneak around and wait for their victims. Let’s be prepared for an ambush.”
“Skeethies? Like that statue at the castle?” Liselle asked.
“Exactly like that,” Emmaoen confirmed.
As if on cue, a horde of the hairy creatures began pouring out of cracks in the canyon wall. It was surprising to see creatures so big pushing through small openings. They roared and snarled, creating a loud clamor that spooked the horses. The steeds calmed when Vevin made a soothing sound filled with magic.
It unnerved Liselle to hear the creatures and see their beady red eyes. They waved weapons in the air and banged them against the rocks to add to the commotion. Most had clubs, with or without spikes, but many had old chipped swords, rusty pitchforks or other scavenged weapons. They wore pelts and skins, though a few went with nothing at all, which nearly caused Liselle to gag. Anilyia blushed and turned her head.
The first person to react was Vevin. A multi-pronged bolt of lightning filled the canyon, jagging through the majority of the skeethies, burning and dazing them. The crack of thunder echoed off the walls, deafening friend and foe alike.
Liselle plugged her ears to contain the ringing in her skull. She noticed that everyone else did too, including Vevin. With concentration, she was able to send a tiny bit of healing power into her ears, restoring the hearing. Removing her hands, she could hear the screams of pain coming from the skeethies.
She reached out to heal her companions and realized that she had never done so without touching people. It only took her an instant to figure out how to do it, but it would take a little more energy. With a waggle of her fingers, she healed their pain and made it so they could hear again.
A few of the skeethies that hadn’t been hit by the lightning ran forward, yelling war cries. Emmaoen, who was on the right side of Liselle, cast her spell. Words of power flew out of her mouth as a gust of magical wind slammed into her from behind. From her fingers came bolts of orange power that flew at an angle to the side walls of the canyon. Upon impact, they shattered the rock into shards that flew into the crowd of skeethies, killing a score of the hundred or so that had come from the cracks.
The fight ended there. The skeethies that could still run went back to their holes. Others crawled back or just writhed in pain. Vevin waved for the ladies to go ahead. “Ride hard and don’t stop. I’ll take the rear.”
Liselle dug her heels into her mount’s flanks, but Emmaoen was faster and Anilyia was right behind her. Most skeethies ran from them, but a few tried to jump up and attack only to die from magical bolts of energy cast by Vevin. A minute later, they were past the ambush and deeper into the canyon.
The river forced them to slow down when they reached it. Fortunately, the trail alongside was in good condition. The spray of rapids made the going wet though, so caution was necessary. Emmaoen continued to lead the way, which was fine with Liselle who took the time to compose her thoughts and work on how to talk with a magical ship.
Chapter 24
The ship was floating above the grass when they rode into the spacious valley. Tathan was waving from the deck and Anilyia moved ahead to greet him.
Liselle looked around at the valley. Evergreens were interspersed with birch trees and plants were everywhere, all of it surrounded by hills and mountains. Morning would break in a little while, but Siahray and stars provided the only illumination until then. Piohray had set an hour before. A stream meandered through trees on the far end. Liselle took a deep breath of the clean, fresh air and enjoyed the sound of wind rustling the leaves. Off in the distance, wolves howled, making the horses a little nervous.
Tathan and the princess were kissing as the others rode up. Sir Danth was leaning against the railing, ignoring the lovebirds. A gangplank allowed them to board and they dismounted before walking the horses up next to Anilyia’s.
“Liselle, come see if you can communicate with the ship.” Tathan waved her to the aft where the wheel was. He gestured to a golden, glowing bell hanging from a post next to the wheel. It was etched with runes. “I talked to the bell and told it that we didn’t mean it any harm. Sometimes it rings in response, but I can’t understand it.”
The bell rang as though it understood what he had said. It was a clear tone that resonated through the air. Liselle listened to the sound and noticed that bell glowed a tiny bit brighter when it rang. It wasn’t immediately clear what the ship said, although Liselle could almost understand.
The fact that everyone was assuming she could talk to the ship astonished her in some ways. In a moment of self-reflection, Liselle realized that she believed she could talk to the ship too. Normal people couldn’t do such things and it made her wonder if perhaps she really was a child of a god or goddess. She also wondered if that would be a good thing or a bad thing.
The bell rang again, a bit more urgently. Liselle examined it, trying to discern any kind of language or message. When nothing came clear right away, she looked at the sails to see if they communicated anything.
“What is it saying?” Tathan whispered as though trying to hide his words from the ship.
“Shush. I need to concentrate and it will take longer to figure out if you insist on whispering at me,” Liselle replied absentmindedly.
“Oh . . .” He stepped back to give her space. The others did too as though it might help.
The sails and rigging were gently flapping in the mild breeze, but there was no message in them. Liselle put a hand on the intricately carved wheel and stared at the bell. There was a minute vibration coming from the wheel. Liselle could feel it through her feet too. Still, the message wasn’t clear.
Liselle relaxed her normal senses, like sight and hearing. She reached out and touched the bell, running a finger along the side and over the flared lip. “Hello. My name is Liselle.”
“Hello, Liselle. My name is Aermoirre.” The bell chimed. The glow of the bell shifted color slightly and the vibration of the wood altered just a touch. The bell made the words, but the rest made the inflections in the speech. It was different than flowers or rocks, but similar in a way. In any case, Liselle understood.
The ship seemed to understand human speech, which was good because Liselle had no clue how to chime, glow or vibrate in ways that would be understood. “Hello, Aermoirre. It’s very nice to meet you. You’re a beautiful ship.” Tathan had told her in their travels that it was always good to start with a compliment. Liselle would have done so anyway. She liked saying nice things.
Tathan took a step forward. “It has a name?” He waved at the bell. “Hi, Aermoirre. Liselle’s right, you are a beautiful ship.”
Lise
lle was certain the bell blushed. “Thank you,” it replied.
“It said thank you,” Liselle told Tathan.
He nodded at the bell. “Anytime.” Turning to Liselle, he told her, “Ask it why it’s attacking the villages.”
“Yes, I know what to ask,” Liselle replied in exasperation. “It’s very hard to have any sort of a conversation when you keep interrupting me though.”
“Sorry.” He took a step back.
She looked around at the others. None of them seemed intent on interrupting. Liselle turned back to the bell. “I’m sorry if my friends upset you, especially Tathan. He’s a bit rude sometimes.”
“Hey!” Tathan exclaimed indignantly. Liselle smirked.
“Tathan is the one the shadows watch?” Aermoirre asked.
“Umm . . . yes,” Liselle answered with a thoughtful glance at her cousin. The phrasing was interesting.
“What?” Tathan asked, taking another step forward. When Liselle didn’t answer, he took a step back and folded his arms impatiently.
The humming sound became a purr. “I like him. He’s very handsome and daring. My mothers would like him very much.”
“Oh . . . your mothers?” She left the part about her cousin being handsome alone. He had enough women who thought that and didn’t need a ship flattering him too.
“The witches who made me. I called them my mothers,” Aermoirre informed her. “They gave me life and made me aware.”
“You know, Cousin. We’d like to be included too,” Tathan pointed out.
“Oh yes, I’m very curious.” Vevin was doing his ‘I’m dying of curiosity dance’. The others nodded that they wanted to know too.
“Aermoirre tells me that she was made by witches, whom she calls her mothers.” Liselle asked the bell, “Will you tell us of them?”
“Yes, but I must be brief. I need to get sheep for the monster,” Aermoirre informed her.
Kethril Page 26
