Nodding as if satisfied with his reply, Novak stated, “That's fine by me, so long as you don't mean the doves any harm, or my ship.”
With that said, he grabbed a bottle of ale from the cabinet behind his desk and motioned to Karina for a few mugs to pour some for each person present, adding, “My only problem is finding room for you.”
Confused, Jada inquired, “You don't have any quarters available?”
“Not at present. We were on a delivery run to The Jagged Coast when Karina signaled us, so I loaded the extra cargo onto The Scimitar, and took some of their crew to make room.”
Jada frowned. “Where's The Gladius?”
“Undergoing repairs, and all other ships were out of range. So things are a bit cramped right now with my own new hands.”
New hands? Jada didn't know Novak had new crew members aboard, and Karina was just as curious over the matter, inquiring, “When did you get new hands?”
“About a week ago.”
Jada wasted no time asking, “Who are they?”
“Mostly barbarians, and a few half elves.”
Hearing this, she arched a brow. Elves who were part human or barbarian were commonly referred to as half elves, and Onoria didn't technically consider them citizens. Instead, they had an indifferent attitude, allowing some half elves to prove their worth while others were too indignant about their treatment to care to do the kingdom any favors.
This had the sisters exchanging a suspicious, but knowing glance.
“Where are they from?” Jada inquired.
Knowing why she'd ask, Novak answered, “Don't worry, they've no ties to Onoria, otherwise they'd never serve a barbarian ship.”
“Unless they wanted information,” Karina pointed out.
At that, Novak's brow wrinkled in confusion. “What information?”
“Last night, Menlor ambushed us—at the teleport sphere,” Jada enunciated. “I've been trying to figure out how he found it, and hearing about your new hands makes it sound like one might be sneaking about, looking for information to leak.”
At once, the barbarian's expression darkened as if he wanted to bloody the first person he could find—his mug cracked in his fist as a testament.
But he ignored the now dripping item to state, “If there's a spy on this ship, I'll find them, doves, and keelhaul the bastard.”
Jada knew Novak was serious about that, but the problem was actually identifying the culprit—if there even was one.
She also wondered what other information they'd been privy to since joining the crew, and remarked, “The worst part of all is that they know where the island is located now.”
“It's a good thing we brought what's important,” Karina supplied. “So if Menlor visits the grotto, he won't get his hands on much of anything worthwhile.”
“True, but the spy could easily go through what we've brought on board, so we should post a watch until we can identify them … or … ”
Jada exchanged a look with Karina, who knew her well enough to guess what she was thinking. “Or we can trap them by making them think our valuables are stored somewhere specific, and let Dalris or Novak have the actual contents!”
“Exactly!” Jada grinned.
“My sneaky doves,” Novak laughed. “Very well, I'll keep your valuables in my quarters, and we'll store your bin in the cargo hold and put Salt on watch.”
“Salt?” Dalris asked. “Are you sure you can trust him?”
“Aye, he's been with the crew for almost thirty years, and hates Menlor more than anyone except the doves and myself.”
If Dalris was curious over why Salt hated Menlor so much, he didn't ask, and Jada was grateful. She'd rather not take the time to explain past events when she was so focused on formulating their plans.
“Okay, so now that we've got the trip worked out, let's plot our course,” she started, standing to adjourn to a large map on the wall right of the entryway.
“Novak, do you still have those enchanted sails?” Karina asked as she joined them.
“That I do, dove,” he confirmed, and Jada was glad to hear it—sailing from their current position to Sadonia would take a month or more under normal circumstances. But Novak's sails amplified wind power, which would cut their trip's length down considerably.
“So where's this ruin precisely?” the barbarian captain asked as he stood next to Jada.
Pointing to the same spot Morwin had marked on the map in his tome, Jada answered, “Here, perhaps two days south of Westmere. So that's where you'll need to dock.”
Westmere was a large port city that served as one of the first and last harbors vessels encountered when traversing The Platinum Sea, and Novak mentioned thoughtfully, “That's good.”
“Why?”
“Because if there's a spy on board,” he started distastefully, “we can officially travel to Westmere to pick up goods, and no one will suspect our stop as being anything but routine. They might get suspicious when we don't immediately move on, but by then, you'll be long gone.”
“Good point,” Jada started, “though I hope we've rooted them out by then.”
“So do I. But even if we don't, at least you've got another set of hands to help out,” Novak mentioned, motioning to Dalris. “So you should be fine regardless.”
He spoke as if knowing for certain Dalris was skilled, and Jada wasn't surprised. Most barbarians admired draconians as warriors, and Novak in particular appreciated their bartering skills. Still, Jada wouldn't have argued with his assessment anyway, particularly in light of recent developments.
More and more it was starting to look as if Dalris' speed in following her to Ithelyon was actually a good thing. Under normal circumstances, a small compliment from The Cutlass would've accompanied her to the ruin while Novak waited at port for their return. But with a spy aboard, it wasn't a good idea to allow anyone to tag along and learn their true destination.
So Dalris' skills would definitely come in handy if push came to shove and they couldn't figure out who was responsible for leaking information to Menlor before making port.
Still, that was assuming anyone on board was actually spying—and despite what it could mean, Jada truly hoped there was. Otherwise Menlor might have another means of following them to the ruin, which could prove to be nothing short of disastrous.
But only time would tell—and they had an entire week ahead of them to find out.
It wasn't hard to see that Jada didn't like the possibility of a spy being on the ship, but she honestly didn't seem entirely concerned.
She obviously trusted Novak, and if he was a friend of Morwin's, then she had every reason to. Dalris couldn't say he felt as if the barbarian harbored anything but affection for the sisters either, and like any dedicated captain, he was definitely outraged by the thought that a spy was among his crew.
It was simply a shame that elves could only detect deception from humans, otherwise they could've cornered everyone on the ship and easily learned who the spy was, or if there was a spy. But their current plan was sound, and Dalris would do everything within his power to uncover any infiltrators while aboard.
So he listened carefully as the trio started discussing their provisions for the trip—though their talk was quickly interrupted by a sudden, loud shriek echoing in the distance.
Simultaneously, Jada and Karina looked up, the latter remarking, “Sounds like Adravi's coming in for a landing.”
“Novak, is the hull door open?” Jada inquired.
The captain thought about it, then cringed. “Shit, I forgot to give the order.”
Hearing this, they didn't hesitate to depart the cabin, just as another, closer shriek sounded.
Looking up to the sky from the quarterdeck, they spotted Adravi moving toward The Cutlass while Novak promptly called for the hull door to be opened.
In the process, Dalris remembered Jada mentioning that the ship belonged to poachers before coming into Novak's possession, and there was a specialized compartment below deck used to s
tore wyverns for transport. This meant the hull door had to be a modification Novak implemented to allow Adravi on and off without bothering the rest of the crew.
Such a precaution was indeed wise—things could quickly become dangerous if Adravi got too close to the crewmen, particularly without any draconians around to exert some influence over the big beast.
So in response to Novak's order, one of the crew swiftly turned a lever at the edge of the deck to open the door—too late. Adravi had already passed by, and swooped upward next to the ship, obviously intent on coming down for a landing.
“Well shit,” Novak cussed, calling loudly, “no one make any sudden movements when he lands, but get that hatch open!”
The crewmen all looked rightfully apprehensive as Jada hurried down to the main deck to greet the wyvern—and Dalris didn't hesitate to follow.
No matter how well Adravi had bonded with her, she'd already admitted her lack of fluency in draconian as far as speaking the words were concerned. So if the worst came to pass, and the wyvern grew aggressive, he'd need a firm hand to guide him.
Just before Adravi landed, a dead cockatrice hit the deck as if in offering. Shaking her head, Jada sidestepped the charred carcass and sarcastically remarked, “Thanks, it'll make a nice snack,” then immediately patted the wyvern's snout as soon as he was settled to keep him preoccupied.
Thankfully, it worked, and the wyvern purred, too busy enjoying her attention to impede the crew. But one of the men let the hatch cover drop a little too hard, resulting in a loud, sudden thud against the deck.
As a result, Adravi quickly lifted his head, wasting no time reacting.
Turning, he aggressively snapped at the crewman, likely believing the man was trying to cause him or Jada harm. Thankfully, the barbarian was so shocked by the wyvern's initial movement that he'd already backed away.
But his retreat didn't matter to the beast, who moved for another try.
“Adravi, stop!” Jada entreated.
The wyvern didn't listen—unsurprisingly. Now that he was in attack mode, he wouldn't be easily calmed, particularly with so many people around.
So Dalris stepped in, quickly demanding, “Adravi, kur'si.”
Suddenly, the wyvern turned his head in the draconian's direction, letting a low, stubborn hiss. He obviously didn't want to give up his prey, so Dalris repeated the command more sternly.
“Kur'si arkas!”
Finally, the wyvern lowered his head, growing much more docile, and paid no further attention when the crewman went running—probably to go change his pants.
The rest stared as Dalris walked over to commend the beast for good behavior, and wasted no time leading Adravi below deck to sleep the day away in his compartment.
The accommodation was agreeable as well, being clean, roomy, and once the hull door was closed, dark enough to comfort the nocturnal creature. There were literally no signs that the space was once used by poachers, and the wyvern wasn't adverse to entering the chamber.
So as soon as he was inside and curled up, Dalris latched the door for him without concern, and almost immediately heard Jada asking his name.
Turning around, he spied the elf at the landing with a curious look on her face.
“What did you say to stop his attack?”
Joining her, he answered, “Kur'sii loosely means stop.”
“Loosely?”
“It can also mean wait, depending on the inflection.”
“And what about uh,” she paused, sounding the word out, “argas?”
“That means now.”
Nodding, Jada looked at the door to Adravi's compartment before she smiled and asked, “Would he listen to that command coming from me?”
“He would. Dragonkind understand the intent of words in draconian, but just words. Sentences are too complex.”
She looked completely enthralled by his explanation, asking, “Are you still willing to teach me?”
“Of course. We can start now if you'd like.”
She bit her lip as if intrigued. “I need to help Karina put our things away first, but I'd honestly like that.”
Dalris couldn't suppress his smile, her look giving the distinct impression he may have just gained some ground. In turn, the thought reminded him of their conversation on the island, and the question he'd wanted to ask since they'd boarded the ship.
So he stopped her ascent up the steps by requesting, “Tell me something first, Jada.”
Now at the second stair, she looked back to ask, “What?”
“On the island, you said we couldn't throw caution to the wind, and almost stated a need for something. What was it?”
Silently, she bit her lip, making him think she didn't want to answer, or wasn't sure what the answer was. But after a moment of deliberation, she finally did—and it wasn't a response he'd soon forget.
Without breaking eye contact, Jada took a single step back down, which put her at eye level. Then, cupping his cheeks in both hands, she leaned in and brushed her lips against his in a simple, but inviting kiss.
Despite his surprise, Dalris grasped her upper arms as if controlled by someone else, and returned the kiss with fervor, staying locked together just that way for several moments before Jada finally broke contact to offer a breathless response.
“The truth is that I'm … curious, but I need time to think, Dalris.” Lifting her violet gaze to his, she implored, “Can you give me that?”
Still dazed, he found himself nodding, replying the moment he felt capable of speech again, “Of course I can. I'm not going anywhere, anyway.”
Somehow, his response made her smile, and in backing up a step, she remarked, “Good.”
“Good?”
A nod. “I'll need a distraction to make this week go by more quickly, and I'm sure you'll cause enough irritation to keep me preoccupied when it's slow.”
Grinning, Dalris started up the steps behind her. “In that case, it's fortunate for you that I always come through on my jobs. So whenever you're bored, just let me know, and I'll find a way to bother you—for a small fee.”
Her brow wrinkled in confusion. “I thought draconians didn't charge their mates.”
“We don't. Why? Does it irritate you?”
“A little.”
“Then I'm doing my job already.”
They emerged above deck with Jada's laughter filling the air, and a grin split his lips. The sound warmed his heart, and though he looked forward to where this voyage might take them, he wasn't going to rush the ride.
As far as he was concerned, a week was nothing compared to eight centuries, and he intended to use every minute getting to know his mate better and proving himself worthy while she took the time to think things through.
All he hoped in turn was that seven days would be long enough for her to decide.
CHAPTER 19
The Platinum Sea, Northern Sadonia Region
One Week Later
Jada was right about Dalris—he was a complete irritation.
He simply wasn't irritating for the reasons she'd expected.
Over the past week, she'd fought tooth and nail to keep her intrigue with the draconian from coloring her perception, but to no avail. Not only was he charming and frustratingly considerate, he'd also won over most of the crew with his willingness to lend a helping hand.
It was annoyingly endearing, but also humorous in a way. According to the Udanian clergy, a draconian with Dalris' status would've sat high and mighty without bothering to lift a finger, and hell, Jada would've thought he'd do that just after seeing the staff working at his estate.
But no, Dalris always pitched in, no matter how menial the task—between bouts of seasickness, that was.
If Onoria boasted the strongest naval fleet in Ithelyon, Draconia ruled the sky. So most draconians weren't entirely adept at sea travel, and as time passed, Dalris was sometimes found heaving over the edge of the ship, or out of the nearest porthole.
Thankfully, there was
a supply of dawn berries on board that Jada used to brew an elvish tea which could soothe an upset stomach—and it seemed to work. He usually felt much better after drinking a cup, and as a bonus, he enjoyed the flavor.
So she started making a little extra in secret that he could drink with his meals, which he usually did. One evening, he'd even given her an imploring look to make more upon learning none was available to have with dinner.
Jada had no idea what to think, either. Not only was it strange to see a draconian enjoying elvish tea, her delight at knowing he was fond of it was baffling. Was she just touched by the thought that he approved of the small taste of home she'd offered?
He'd reacted much the same way to the breakfast she'd prepared on the island, but basilisk eggs wasn't an elvish meal—it was actually considered a draconian delicacy. So perhaps she just liked the thought that her culinary skills pleased him in general.
Whatever the case, cooking wasn't the only way she'd attempted to get the draconian's attention. Admittedly, such a task wasn't hard to accomplish—simply passing by usually did the trick. But Jada had gone to such lengths as wearing makeup, styling her hair, and letting Karina paint her nails in a bid to be more attractive.
Of course, she'd rationalized the activities by recalling her preference of being as presentable as the next elf, and it was nice to touch herself up when she rarely got the chance to wear more affluent clothing.
In fact, she'd found herself frowning at her currently limited wardrobe more than once that week.
Most of her clothing was utilitarian; leather vests, plain tops, breeches with numerous pockets, gloves, and sturdy boots. But the moment she realized why she was frowning at her plain selections, she forced herself to pick something out regardless of its attractiveness, and went on her way.
Through it all, she began realizing that she'd softened toward Dalris a great deal. He was giving her the space she requested without pushing, and whenever an intimate moment did arise, he always showed respect for her boundaries.
She simply hadn't figured out whether or not it was a good thing, and sadly, getting so irritated with her own inner workings didn't make the week pass anymore swiftly. Instead, she started wishing they'd make port even sooner, and time seemed to drag on, especially when everyday followed the same routines.
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