Heart of the Ocean

by Jason A. Gilbert

  Laila turned to look back at the coast of the island as the longboat rose out of the water. Their eyes did not glow yet—the sun was still high enough to dim the ember light of their eyes—but a pack of Manders stood at the coast directly across from the ship. They had followed the longboat as Dio had paddled them around the bend and back into the cove. At least she would not have to try to convince Icarus of their presence.

  When the longboat was secure along the edge of the ship, Laila turned back. She let go of her power and the light from her staff went out. The cold returned with a rush, and she pleaded with her body to stop shaking. Icarus, Lunete, and Captain Drachus all stood on the main deck, waiting for them to come off the longboat. Seeing Connor's wound, Lunete immediately rushed to his side, helping him as he stumbled off the longboat and onto the ship. She let him lean against her as she led him away from the railing.

  "Apparently I'm not teaching you well enough," she said.

  Connor smiled wanly. "I guess not."

  Lunete helped him to a sitting position near the middle of the deck and asked one of the crew to grab her some water and cloth.

  "What happened?" Icarus asked.

  Laila glanced back at the coast. "What do you think?"

  Icarus nodded, glancing between Laila and the Manders.

  "We were looking for something Laila saw yesterday," Dio began before Laila could explain. "They came out of nowhere."

  "Looking for what?" asked the Magus.

  "Some kind of building. I saw it yesterday from a distance, but wasn't sure what it was. I thought I might be able to see it if we went deeper into the island, just a little," she hesitated, seeing Icarus's brow furrow.

  "Did I not tell you not to venture too far from the coast? That warning was not made without reason. With everything that has happened, I feared that Nuriel's reach may have extended this far, and now that fear is confirmed. But that revelation should not have put you or Connor at such risk." Icarus's voice was calm, but Laila could sense the undertone of frustration.

  Before the Magus could say anything else, Laila snapped back, "His reach? What do you mean? How much do you know that you're not telling us?" The frustration, fear, and anger from the attack both by the Manders and Nuriel finally came pouring out. "Damn it, Icarus! Only after something life-threatening do you open up about the things you know. You talk so much about how important I am, but you don't give me any idea as to what I'm supposed to do. Connor risks his life for me, over and over again, and he knows less than I do! Why won't you tell us?" She was nearly screaming as she finished.

  Icarus stood stoically as she berated him. Lunete glanced up from her ministrations, concern on her face. Dio's eyes were wide, watching Laila fearfully.

  "Very well," the Magus said calmly. "See to Connor. We will speak tonight." He walked away toward the door leading to their cabins.

  Laila breathed heavily. She hadn’t intended to lose her patience, but some good might yet come of her outburst.

  "Those things, out there?" Captain Drachus finally spoke up. "They're not...they're not gonna come out here are they?"

  "They can't touch water...apparently," Dio answered.

  The captain looked back at the growling and snapping fire-wolves on the beach. He studied them for a moment, watching as they pressed forward and then back again as the waves came crashing down. Seeing that they did indeed avoid the water, he nodded to himself.

  "When can we leave?" asked Laila.

  The captain turned from the Manders, glancing up at the sails. "If we work through the night, we can leave with the morning tide. It'll be hard, but I don't think I'll have much trouble motivating the crew. Not with those things out there." He smiled slightly and waved back toward the beach. "Stathis!" he shouted before turning back to Laila. "If you'll excuse me."

  Without waiting for a response, the captain turned as his second made his way over to him. They huddled together, discussing what needed to be done and then split to go their separate directions. Laila and Dio walked over to where Lunete was helping Connor.

  "Is he all right?" asked Laila.

  "He'll be fine. The wound's already closed. Those creature's claws must be hot. I've never seen anything that could cauterize a wound immediately like this," Lunete explained.

  "I let one get too close," Connor said. Laila could hear the pain in his voice, but he did not look any paler.

  "You certainly did," Lunete snapped, taking on the guise of a teacher again. "We'll have to work on your footwork more."

  "They're not swordsman, they're animals. I can't—"

  "Nonsense! Anything, animal or human, moves in specific ways. You just have to learn to anticipate that pattern and adapt your footwork. So we’ll work on your footwork." Her tone did not allow room for any response, and Connor fell silent, lowering his eyes.

  Laila felt a shiver run down her spine as the sun lowered further behind the horizon and a cool wind blew out of the west, forcing her cold and wet robes against her already chilled skin.

  "Go change, Laila-sa. You're freezing," Lunete said.

  "I'm...fine..." Laila said through chattering teeth.

  "No, you're not. You both need to get into dry clothes." Lunete motioned to Dio. "Help Connor to his cabin, make sure he wraps that wound again, but get him into dry clothes."

  Dio did not look excited at the prospect of helping Connor change clothes, but he leaned down and wrapped the southerner's arm around his shoulders, helping the young man stand. They made their way toward the cabin with Lunete and Laila following after.

  "You're going to be in trouble with those two," Lunete said quietly as the young men walked through the door to below deck.

  Through her shivers Laila glanced at her mother. "What do you mean?"

  Lunete motioned for Laila to lead the way through the door. Walking in behind her, Laila could not see her mother's face, but she could hear a faint smile as she spoke. "You'll understand eventually.”

  Laila was too cold and wet to press any further. She finally made it to her small cabin, and her mother helped peel the wet and salty robes off her. Her mother wrapped her in a sheet to keep her warm while she pulled another robe from Laila's pack on the floor.

  As she pulled the robes out, a pin fell to the floor. Laila had almost forgotten that she had brought her family pin with her, having reverted to the more common practice of tying the shoulder of her robes with string. Her mother leaned down and picked up the small pin. The silver metal was inlaid with the image of a thin tree branching out in front of the silhouette of a moon. Laila was not sure what the symbols meant, but it had been the mark of her family for generations. Lunete studied the pin for a moment. Taking a deep breath, she looked up at Laila.

  "I'm sorry that you are here," Lunete said softly.

  "What do you mean?" Laila's voice came stronger now, she could feel her body heating up underneath the sheet.

  "That you are here, in this place, in this position. That any of this happened to you."

  "Mother, it's not your fault. It...I don't know... It just is, I guess."

  "Perhaps, but you were born to this. So, for that, I am at least somewhat responsible."

  "Would you rather I not have been born?" Laila asked.

  "Of course not!" Lunete's eyes filled with emotion.

  "Then don't say such silly things." Laila tried to smile; she had known that her mother did not wish that. She was only trying to make light of the situation. "I am here—we are here—and there is nothing that can be done about it now."

  Laila feared that her mother was falling apart again. She had regained so much of her former strength and passion since the attack on Terus. Seeing her mother's strength had helped her hold onto her own. She did not want to lose that now.

  "I miss your father," Lunete said.

  "I do too."

  Laila reached out and grasped her mother, pulling her toward her. Lunete slowly returned the embrace. They sat silent for a several long moments, remembering. Extr
icating themselves from each other, Laila, finally feeling warm and dry enough, put a clean robe on. She reached down and gently took the pin from her mother, using it to fasten her robes at the shoulder. Her mother nodded at the subtle gesture and they made their way back above.

  The sun had finally set, and torches had been lit across the deck, giving the crew light to work by. Connor and Dio had already returned, standing out of the way of the crew and watching silently. Laila walked toward them. She could see Connor favoring his right side, but the fresh tunic he wore covered the wound.

  "I'm fine. It's already starting to hurt less," Connor said in response to Laila's probing look.

  Laila nodded.

  The four of them stood against the railing, looking out toward the beach. The Manders were still gathered there. They were no longer snapping at the ship, but they paced in small groups, back and forth across the beach.

  "What are they?" Lunete asked.

  "Manders," Laila answered.

  "Fire elementals? I always thought those were just a myth," Lunete said.

  "So were the Aurai..." Dio said.

  Lunete nodded, continuing to study the creatures on the beach. Laila turned, hearing the door to the cabins open. Icarus walked out, a small bag in his hand. She was surprised to see Wyndam behind him as he stepped through the door behind Icarus. The Magus walked toward their small group, an unreadable expression on his face. The Aurai followed, stopping a few feet from the rest of them and standing silently.

  "You are right, Laila. I have not told you all that I could have. I have always feared that with too much knowledge you might turn from your path, or make the wrong choice." He raised his hand as she opened her mouth to speak, stopping her interruption. "The path of the Magusari is not one that can be told or dictated by another. You have to find your way. Each Magusari is different. Even the Treatises that we have are only a tool, not the path itself. And my own knowledge is far too limited. There used to be so much more..." His voice trailed off for a moment, his eyes becoming distant. With a shake of his head he returned. "But it is no matter. I will tell you what I can, in the best way I know how."

  Laila nodded, holding back the anger she still felt.

  Icarus watched her a moment longer. Then, nodding to himself, he took a seat on the deck, away from the working crew, and motioned for the others to join him. They sat in a small circle, except for Wyndam. The Aurai stood to one side, leaning against the railing, his attention split between their group and the Manders pacing on the beach.

  Icarus grabbed the small bag he had been carrying at the bottom and poured its contents out onto the deck of the Via. Sand poured from the bag, forming a small pile on the deck. Connor shifted next to Laila, and she glanced at him.

  "I've seen him do this before," he said excitedly.

  Laila raised an eyebrow. "Seen what?"

  "You'll see. Watch." He directed her attention back to Icarus and the sand.

  Once the bag was empty, Icarus closed his eyes and lowered his head. The others waited, shifting impatiently. Dio glanced around at the group, smiling awkwardly when his eyes caught Laila's. Lunete watched the old Magus, an uncertain look on her face. Wyndam turned his attention from the Manders and watched Icarus intently.

  Laila began to feel a subtle stirring. A familiar power began to emanate from Icarus. It was the same power she called on through her staff. She laid her hand on her staff reflexively as the magic grew.

  The sand in front of Icarus stirred as though a gentle wind were blowing across its surface. But there was no wind. The air in the cove was still, almost as if it was waiting as anxiously as the rest of them to see what would happen. Laila felt Icarus's power coalesce around the sand, and it lifted up into the air. An inhalation of breath indicated the others' surprise, but Laila was not surprised. She felt her curiosity increase. She could see what Icarus was doing to the sand. It was subtle and gentle. She did not know that magic could be used in that way. Her power always felt so strong and overwhelming; it had to be directed in wide strokes. Perhaps that was a difference between a Magus and the Magusari.

  The magic shifted and the sand spun in a small circle. Shapes began to form within the gentle whirlwind.

  "We have spoken of the Moon Kingdom." Icarus's voice moved in time with the sand as it formed itself into the shape of a crescent moon. "The ancient kingdom that once ruled over all of the world. Some know, but many do not, that when the Moon Kingdom ruled the world, it was far different than it is now. All the lands—Terus and Mount Obrussa in the south, the Splintered Isles in the west, the lands of the Aurai in the east, and the Dragonlands to the north—were all one great continent." The sand changed and formed into what looked like a floating map, with wide coastlines and small clumps of sand that must have indicated mountains. "This was before the Collapse."

  "No one knows what happened before the Collapse," Dio blurted out, interrupting.

  "You do not know, but that does not mean that no one does. The Magi held onto much of the knowledge from before the Collapse. Even Connor's people have some trace knowledge, mostly in the form of legends, but they still remember," Icarus said before returning to his tale. "At the peak of the Moon Kingdom, the Magi were great in number, the Clans protected the royal family, and the elementals existed alongside humanity."

  Laila saw Wyndam turn away at that last statement, returning his attention to the Manders.

  "Then came Chaos." At the last word, the sand broke apart, swirling. "Chaos, one of the Prime Aspects. Taking shape and form as Eris, the Aspect waged a war against the Moon Kingdom, determined to sow discord and destruction throughout the world." Images of mountains breaking, people fighting, and cities that looked like they were burning danced through the sand.

  “Why?” A young woman’s voice asked from the shadows by the group. Laila looked up and saw Cadi, along with two other young men, watching the strange scene.

  “Why did she wage war?” Icarus responded, not looking up.

  “Yes.”

  “Laila, Connor, and I once spoke of the balance of the world, the Prime Aspects and their role as the pillars of our existence. Chaos, Faith, and Logic.”

  The sand formed three poles.

  “All other things stem from those three pieces: humans, the five elements…all life and structure.”

  On top of the poles, five lines of sand weaved together, creating a support surface for a final disc of sand that rested on top.

  “But, our world is in a constant state of fluctuation. The Prime Aspects, as well as the Elemental Aspects, constantly stive against one another, at times even manifesting physically within our world.”

  One of the five interwoven lines began to stretch and lift away from the others. This immediately caused the disc on top of the structure to tilt and slip off.

  “Nuriel is one of those Aspects. Manifested to exert his will, that of fire, upon the world. The Magusari stands as a counter to that imbalance.”

  A figure formed on top of the disc, settling onto the area that had risen up. As the figure rested on the disc, everything came back into balance.

  “The other side of the scale, created, by what force we do not know, to keep our world in check. To remove the influence of any of the Aspects when they grow too strong. In the time of the Moon Kingdom, that influence was Eris, the Aspect of Chaos. Her very nature dictated the frenzy of the war that followed her arrival.

  "While Eris was incredibly powerful, she was a manifestation of one of the fundamental components of our world, and the combined might of the Clans and the Magi might have been able to contain her. But the elementals took sides. Nuriel, the Aspect of Fire, and his Manders sided with Eris, sweeping fire across the Kingdom. Aeolus, the Aspect of Air," Wyndam's eyes widened slightly as he turned back toward the group, "also fought alongside Eris and Nuriel." The sand coalesced into a familiar shape. It was the airships that the Aurai had brought to attack Terus. "Together, the three of them, with their elemental armies, were unstopp
able. And none of the other Aspects came to the aid of the Moon Kingdom. The Volos had long before retreated back into the earth, perhaps fearing the coming of Chaos. The Ondine were—"

  "They were put away!" Laila blurted.

  Icarus stopped, his eyes still closed, but he turned his head toward her, waiting. "I... It said they were 'put away' in the Water Treastise...back on the lake." Laila lowered her head, embarrassed at her outburst.

  "Indeed," Icarus said, "they were. How or why, or even what that means is not clear. But the Ondine were not part of Eris's forces." The sand took on the shape of an army marching on a large castle. "The Magusari was born in the midst of this, part of the royal family of the Moon Kingdom. She fought bravely, a member of the Dragon Clan at her side as Warden." Two figures coalesced, one holding a staff, the other holding a sword. "Their struggle was great. But, in the end, they would fail. Eris reached her goal. An ancient temple, the spiritual center of both the Moon Kingdom and the world. From there she began to break the world, reaching the pinnacle of her power and purpose as Chaos." The sand returned to the form of the map, and as Icarus spoke, it began to separate. Pieces of the main continent drifted away from one another, bursts of sand tore through the center, creating smaller lands out of the once-massive continent. "The world broke asunder. The Magusari was able to repel Eris back into the Void, where all Aspects dwell, but not before this happened. The Collapse. The cataclysm that shaped the world we know today.

  "That was over two thousand years ago, and nearly all knowledge of that time has been lost. The Treatises we found in Balon are probably one of the last surviving relics from before the Collapse. And, it's possible that they were actually written after, once the Magusari had defeated Eris."

  "I don't think so," Laila whispered to herself, remembering what the Earth Treatise had said about the Magusari’s sacrifice.