Chapter 17 - The Morning Dawn
The Morning Dawn was the most beautiful ship that Chalice had ever seen. Anchored and moored to a large pier that stretched deep into the Kedros, it swayed gently with the motion of the water. It was huge, with a thick keel that stretched from the bow to the stern, made for slicing quickly through water. She didn’t know what it was exactly. It wasn’t a frigate or a brigantine. It wasn’t exactly a galleon either, but it was definitely a multi-decked, sailing warship and its color matched that of the sky as it was lit by the sun at dawn. It had a white outline and a polished white wooden rail. Rigging lines stretched from the rail to the three masts that supported white, furled sails. Watertight ports, scuttles, and covered oarholes dotted the hull and a white carving of a sea creature decorated the bowsprit. The creature was long, sleek, and powerful, with its strong jaws savagely baring sharp teeth in a rictal snarl. It appeared to be leaping out of the water and striking whatever poor, unfortunate soul that happened to cross in front of the ship.
The sun was setting and light shone softly from the east, illuminating the world on one side. Two of the ship’s afterguard lowered a plank from a large hatch in the hull while the Quaie’Miren men secured it on the pier. Chalice watched as Ardenne’s brothers carefully ascended first with Jeremiah on the stretcher. Then, she dismounted.
“They will take him to one of the cabins on the stern deck,” Ardenne said. “You will have your own cabin there, too, close to mine. I’ll show you.”
“And our horses?”
“They’ll be taken below the main deck into the cargo hold. There are stalls there with water and hay. Don’t worry, it is a very secure place for them.”
“Okay,” Chalice replied and then jumped suddenly when Ardenne let out a loud, high pitched whistle.
“Irad! Jacob! Will you attend to our guests’ mounts please?” she shouted as two large, dark-haired men came running.
Chalice glanced back at the others. Kirna and Tycho had been riding in the back of the party with Ben, in conversation the whole way from the campsite. Chalice, on the other hand, had chosen to stay in front with Ardenne and her brothers in order to keep an eye on Jeremiah. One of the men ran up to her to offer assistance as the other approached Kirna. She undid the buckle on the strap of her saddle bags and threw them over her shoulder. Then, she ascended the plank with Ardenne and Kirna.
“What kind of ship is this?” Chalice asked.
“She is a Quaie’Miren sea cruiser.”
“A sea cruiser? Do you usually travel far?”
“We travel all over. Originally, we set out from the northern sea to the Kedros for trade with villages in Culmanoq. Then, we came here after my father gave us the search order.”
“So, is it a trading vessel or a warship?”
“Both. Our ships need to be able to travel long distances and be self-sustaining at the same time. They also need to be capable of inflicting damage on a foe and making swift getaways.”
Chalice looked a question at her.
“You see,” Ardenne said, “we do not pay taxes and this is not our first encounter with the King’s men.”
“Oh … right.” Chalice nodded. She believed it. No one in their right mind would attack Draaquans if they weren’t absolutely certain they could get away quickly. “Where do you usually make port?”
“Everywhere and nowhere. We live on the sea. When we make port to trade, we usually do it where there are no royal customs houses, mostly in the east.”
Kirna pointed to the bowsprit. “What is that? It looks frightening!”
“That is a sculpture of a requin that my brother carved for the ship.”
“Requin?”
“They are water predators. Every creature of the sea fears them. The last part of the initiation into the Silver Mariners is to come face-to-face in the water with a requin and defeat it. We take the dead creature on board and skin it for the shagreen, which becomes the initiate’s fighting attire.” She motioned toward her outfit. “Then, we clean and gut it for the celebration that comes afterwards. It makes for good eating. We use every part of it. At sea, we waste nothing. We can’t afford to.”
“So, you’re a Silver Mariner?” Kirna asked and Ardenne nodded. “What is that?”
“We are a special group of the Quaie’Miren who are trained to become fighters. My father sent us to find you.”
She paused for a moment as they reached the hull of the ship and a tall man offered his hand to help Ardenne onboard. He had raven-black hair and dark blue eyes, almost the color of the northern sea during a storm. Ardenne smiled warmly and took his hand. She glanced back at the girls.
“I am pleased to introduce to you Darion Coquille, my shipmate and sea partner.” They had no clue what that meant, but all the same, they both nodded a greeting at him which he returned in kind.
“Pleased to meet you!” Chalice said politely. “Are you the captain?”
“Of this ship?” He laughed and shook his head. “No, I am the quartermaster.”
Ardenne peered into his eyes and put her hand on his cheek. “No, he is not the captain of the ship, but he is the captain of my heart.”
Chalice suddenly understood what she had meant by sea partner. The two stared at each other for a moment as a silent communication passed between them. It reminded Chalice of Jeremiah.
Ardenne turned to help Chalice and Kirna onboard. They could immediately feel the unstable movement of the water underneath their feet and knew they were no longer on solid ground.
“Darion is a Silver Mariner, too,” Ardenne said, “like me and my brothers. He stayed behind with a few others in our group to protect the ship. The captain of this ship is my father, the Prophet, Samus Marin. My mother’s name is Winnivere. You will meet them shortly.”
Just then, Ben, Bunejab, and Tycho walked up and were helped onboard. Ardenne introduced them.
“So, these are the ones you were sent to retrieve?” Darion asked.
“Yes, can you believe it? He was right this time! He was even right about her not knowing what she did.”
“I don’t understand,” Chalice said. “What did I do?”
“You sent out a calling thought,” Darion answered.
“A calling thought?” Chalice asked as she looked at Ardenne.
“A mental signal of distress. You must have sent it unknowingly and my father felt it. He knew you were in the area nearby. So, we docked and came to search for you. He also knew that finding you was very important for some reason, but he didn’t know why.”
“How could I have done that and not known?”
“In the past,” Ben interjected, “some of the Terravail have been known to have that gift, Chalice. It is the gift of telepathy. This is a valuable lesson for you. You are beginning to learn your own abilities and that is the first step in your training.”
“You are Terravailian?” Darion asked Chalice.
“Yes, well, sort of.” Seeing the curious expression on his face she said: “Half Terravailian, that is.”
He gave her a weighing look. “I’ve never heard of such a thing.”
Eager to change the subject, Ben turned to Ardenne. “Ardenne, can you tell me where your brothers took Master Maehbeck, the young man on the stretcher?”
“I can do better. I can show you. Come, I will take you above board.”
She turned to lead them through the passageway of the lower deck. It was narrow and the bulkheads were made of finely polished wood. It led to a ladder that they ascended to the main deck. The ship was as beautiful on the inside as it was on the outside. The main deck lay just a few paces lower than the quarterdeck where the helm could be seen, its polished wood gleaming from the slanted rays of the eastern sunlight.
Young men and women in modest attire, whom Chalice took to be deck hands, scuffled this way and that, manning the decks and shouting directions to each other as they prepare
d the ship. A gentle breeze brushed Chalice’s hair into her face and she quickly tucked it back behind her ear. The combination of shouts, polished wood, and ocean smell made her think of being out on the open sea with nothing but the water, the wind, and the stars as guides. Suddenly, out of the din, a young, blond boy who resembled Ardenne ran up to them excitedly.
“You’re back!” he exclaimed.
“Yes, I am.” She smiled down at him. “Lofty, can you do me a favor?” she asked and the boy nodded. “Make sure all guests and crew members are on board and the cargo secured, including the horses, before we weigh anchor and set sail. I’m making you sailing master for this evening.”
“Sure thing, Denni!” He knuckled his forehead and ran off shouting for the boatswain and all hands on the main deck.
“That is my little brother, Brennen.” She smiled and continued to lead them to the cabins on the stern deck. “He is the only one who can really go aloft when we are having problems with the rigging. He also mans the crow’s nest. That is why we call him Lofty. He loves sailing,” she said and stopped. “Ah, here we are.”
They had ascended the stern deck that stretched out in front of a row of cabins. Ardenne motioned in the direction of each cabin.
“Master Graeystone, Master Maehbeck is in here. Your cabin is there and the others are down this way.”
Ardenne nodded to him and continued to walk down the deck. The others followed her as Ben and Bunejab entered Jeremiah’s quarters.
Chalice paused, hesitating. Are they going to finish healing him? she wondered. Seeming to read her mind, Ben turned before shutting the door.
“Chalice, Bunejab and I are going to take care of the rest of Jeremiah’s injuries, but we will be along soon to see to your shoulder.” She looked a question at him and he pointed to her shoulder. “Your bandage is soaked in blood.”
She looked down, and to her astonishment, found that he was right. The bandage that Ardenne had made for her was completely red. She hadn’t even noticed. She jostled her arm forward and back and felt a sting of pain. She found that the bandage was wet and sticky.
Ugh, yuck! She nodded and Ben shut the door as they continued to follow Ardenne to their quarters. They arrived at Chalice’s cabin first. Ardenne opened the door and motioned for Chalice to enter.
“Here you are. There should be a lantern hanging near the bedside table and a washroom to your right. If you are up for it, my family would like to invite you all to dinner tonight.”
“That would be wonderful!” Chalice said, her stomach rumbling.
“Great! After you’re finished washing up, we will meet you just below on the quarterdeck. Right there.” Ardenne pointed to the deck just below them, where the helm stood and Chalice nodded.
“Alright. Thank you,” she said and shut the door behind her. She found it was very dark in the cabin, so she strode over to the table and lit the lantern. Light flooded the room and she could see how small the cabin actually was. The biggest piece of furniture in the room was the bed, which was fairly large. It consisted of a feather mattress, covered in soft fur blankets and tucked into a large, polished wooden bed frame and headboard. A wooden chest lay at the foot of the bed where she placed her bags. The bulkheads were darkly polished wood, decorated with paintings of islands and sea creatures that she had never seen before. Some of the creatures were very small and others were so large, they looked as if they could swallow a whole ship. She made a mental note to ask Ardenne about them. She wondered if the islands and the creatures really existed like the creature carved on the front of the ship.
All the sudden, she heard a loud whistle, which drowned the noise from outside, and then felt the ship lurch powerfully. She fell back onto the chest and was pinned against the wooden bed frame. She realized that the ship had set sail and she could feel the swift motion of the massive vessel underneath her. Everything in the room seemed to shift in the same direction. It was no surprise to her why the Quaie’Miren were so eager to return to the river. This was a fast ship.
After the acceleration of the ship had eased, she sighed, slid off her boots, and massaged her feet. It felt good to sit down and finally remove her riding habit. It was dirty, sweaty and torn all over. She unbuttoned it and peeled it off.
This is ruined, she thought, tossing it into the corner of the room. She winced slightly as a small pang shot down her arm from her sore shoulder. She proceeded to the washroom, where she found a large, lidded bowl of hot water, a wash towel and soap. There was also a brush and soda water for her teeth.
Then, she set to work, brushing and cleaning, digging out all the grit and grime off her skin and out of her hair. It was an arduous task as she was finding it hard to move. The adrenaline rush she had felt from the events of the day was wearing off and real pain was starting to set in. After she was done, she heard a knock. Re-entering the bed chamber, she pulled a soft blanket from the bed and wrapped herself in it. Then, she opened the door to find Ben and Bunejab waiting.
“Oh, it’s you. Come on in.” She let them in and shut the door. She noticed that Bunejab was rubbing the back of his head. “What’s wrong?”
“When the ship set off, he fell off the bed and hit the wall,” Ben said.
“Oh, I’m sorry! You alright?” She looked down at the Chinuk and he nodded. Then, she glanced up at Ben. “How is Jeremiah? Can I see him?”
“He is fine, but it is best if we let him rest. Maybe we can stop in and see him after dinner.”
She nodded. Bunejab chittered something at her in rapid Chinukan and she looked at Ben.
“He wants you to have a seat so he can take a look at your shoulder.”
“Oh, alright,” she said and sat down on the bed. Bunejab jumped up beside her with his bag. He proceeded to unwrap Ardenne’s bandage until it was completely removed. She felt hot liquid drip down her arm and he wiped it with a dampened cloth. It stung badly. Chalice winced as Ben hissed loudly. She looked down and saw that her cut was angry, red, and full of pus.
“There is something wrong with your wound, Chalice,” Ben said as he moved toward her, and without asking, placed his right hand on her forehead. She closed her eyes and felt a warm sensation rush down her neck and into her shoulder. Ben stepped back and shook his head.
“I don’t know what it is. Your body is trying to heal itself, but something is blocking it.” Then, Chalice suddenly remembered what Rhaene had said about the sword that had cut her. Jez … she treated it with toxins.
“Ben, I forgot to tell you something,” she said and proceeded to tell him who Jezebelle really was and what she had done to the sword.
“I see. Alright, I can try to heal it if you want, but it might not work. I am not a skilled herbalist like Bunejab. He may have something better for it. He has medicine that can act as antidotes to certain poisons.” She looked up and he shrugged. “It’s up to you.”
She thought about the little Chinuk and how he had healed her before. Although she was sure of Ben’s ability, she trusted Bunejab.
“I’ll let him do it,” she said.
Bunejab smiled proudly and set to work, cleaning, treating, and bandaging her shoulder. He managed to spread a salve over it that stopped the bleeding and soothed the red soreness. After he was done, it felt much better.
“Will I be able to wear my dress over it?” she asked and Bunejab nodded. “I ask because we’re dining with Ardenne’s family tonight. We’re supposed to meet her on the quarterdeck.” Ben nodded as Bunejab handed her a small packet.
“Those are herbs,” Ben said. “He wants you to put them in your drink tonight. They’re painkillers.”
She reached up and placed her hand on Bunejab’s head. “Thanks, Bunejab!” His ears twitched and his nose flushed with a rosy color.
“We’ll see you on the quarterdeck,” Ben said as Bunejab finished placing the last item into his sack and jumped off the bed. Chalice nodded
and they left.
From her bag, she pulled out a fresh white slip and a rose-colored evening gown that Sieren had given her and slipped them on. Then, she grabbed the lantern from its hook and left the room.
The night was cool and the fierce wind brought a chill. She wished she had had her cloak with her as she walked down the planks, but the Quaie’Miren had packed it in their bags when they left camp and had not yet delivered to her cabin. The evening was also surprisingly calm, she noted, and the only sound came from the wind and the splashes of river water as the ship glided through it.
Those present on deck were the night watchmen and Kirna and Tycho who stood by the helm, waiting. As she approached, Chalice thought that her best friend looked beautiful in a brilliantly green evening gown that she, too, had gotten from Sieren.
Kirna smiled. “Your shoulder looks much better. Did Ben heal you?”
“No, there is something wrong with the wound. Bunejab seems to think he can heal it, though, so I let him do the honors.” Chalice glanced down at her shoulder. When she looked up, she noticed a curious expression on Tycho’s face. “What’s up, Tyke?”
“I’m just wondering about this Prophet we’re going meet. Ardenne and her brothers keep talking about how he was right for once. I mean, about finding us.”
“Yeah? So?”
“Well,” Tycho said, frowning, “if this is the first time he has ever been correct about something, then how can he really be called a prophet? A prophet who can’t predict the future? That’s kind of a contradiction, isn’t it?” Kirna scowled at him. “Well it is!” he snapped.
“Given that they just saved us, Tycho,” Kirna retorted, “it’s probably a good idea to watch what you say about them on their ship!” She popped him on top of the head and he winced.
“He is right,” a soft, female voice suddenly said behind them and they all jumped and turned to see Ardenne. Apparently, she had been there for some time, listening.
Damn! She is stealthy! Chalice thought as not even she had heard her walk up behind them. She noticed that Ardenne had taken off her fighting attire and had changed into a beautiful ocean blue gown that was laced with pearls along the back.
“My father is rarely correct when he makes assertions. That’s why we were so surprised to find you. He’s supposed to be our Prophet who reveals information to us that he sees through his gift, but so far, he has only been right once.”
She smiled, not mockingly but more lovingly … or was it pityingly? Chalice couldn’t tell, but it was obvious that Ardenne loved her father despite his failings.
“And yet you still honor him as a prophet?” Tycho asked.
“I understand your point, Master Bendeban, and yes, we do. We have to. Our culture, our beliefs — these things are all that we have. We cannot settle within the Realm. We have never been able because we are so different. We don’t fit in and we don’t own land within the Realm, not even under the old King, which is one reason why we refuse to pay taxes. Also, we do not have the gifts of the Terravail or the talents of the Naeon and we do not have your longevity either. Our lives are much shorter and fleeting compared to yours. We need our customs and traditions to survive. It’s the core of our existence. Without them, we wouldn’t know what to do.”
Chalice had never realized how they were treated by the other races. She had never known. She couldn’t imagine what it would be like.
“We have always been outcasts since the Haeliad because of the way we are,” said Ardenne. “That is why we are called the Lost Ones by some.” She nodded, seeing the surprised expression on Chalice’s face. “Yes, we know what you call us. It doesn’t offend me. And the Haeliad is also a day that we celebrate as well. We honor it because it brought us back to the ocean and islands that we love. A beauty that can never be replaced with anything made by human hands.”
“The islands? The Maaldanese islands?!” Tycho asked in alarm.
“No, don’t worry. We are not Maaldanese. Not anywhere close. There are islands that no one in the Realm or in Maalda know. We call them the Karahali after our first Prophet who discovered them. That was her name.”
“Her name? I thought the prophets were all men,” Chalice asked in surprise.
“No, whoever has the gift is the one who assumes the position when the Prophet passes on. It is usually the son or daughter.”
“And in your case, who will take your father’s place?”
“My brothers say that it will be me. I seem to possess the same talent that my father has, only more strongly, and I should hope so. No one knew where to find you when we set out, but I sensed you and we found you just in time.” She paused as her brows creased thoughtfully. “Although, it was odd. All morning, I couldn’t feel anything and then all the sudden you were there, as bright as day, in my mind. Then, we turned northward and found you.”
“That’s interesting,” Chalice said. “I had just woken up. That morning, I had taken a pretty bad fall off my horse and was knocked out. I think the Draaquans had taken us north intending to deliver us to Dar’Maalda by boat. I woke up when they were …” She stopped, not wanting to think about what had happened to Jeremiah. “Well, right before you came, that is. You really do have the gift.”
Ardenne nodded. “It is hard to believe given my father’s track record,” she said and glanced toward the stairs where Ben and Bunejab were approaching. “Ah, here they are. Shall we proceed?” She pointed to the cabins below the stern deck. “This is where we will be having dinner.”
They followed her down the planks toward the aft of the quarterdeck, where they stood facing the captain’s cabin.
“This is the bridge. It is the cabin from which the ship is commanded. It is also my parents’ dining quarters.”
She grabbed the latch of the bridge and opened it. A rush of warm air blew at them and they saw five figures, in elegant clothing, seated at a large table next to the rear window of the ship. The figures stood as Ardenne entered with their guests. Chalice already knew three of them. Darion and Ardenne’s brothers who had carried Jeremiah to the ship.
The inside of the bridge looked much like the cabins above, although larger and much more ornately decorated, with many various paintings of the same sea creatures that Chalice had seen in her cabin. There was also a model of a large fish with a long, swordlike snout attached to a board on the wall.
“Ah, they are here!” Aeron said. “Mother, this is Chalice Pandretti …”
Aeron proceeded to make the introductions as they were welcomed to the table and given drinks. The woman at the table was tall and beautiful and looked just like Ardenne, but more mature, with small lines of age on her face. The other four were men: Ardenne’s brothers, Darion, and an older man who was short and round, with chestnut hair and brown eyes. Chalice assumed he was the Prophet.
“I am so pleased that we found you!” the Prophet said.
He was a soft-spoken man with kind eyes, Chalice thought, but there was something odd about them. His right eye was lazy and seemed to drift down toward his nose, giving him a distinctly cross-eyed look. Chalice knew immediately that Tycho had noticed, too, as he was holding his hand over his forehead, scratching his brow, peering down into his lap as if in concentration. Chalice could tell he was trying to keep a straight face. Kirna was giving him a reproachful kick in the leg under the table. The Prophet, completely oblivious to all of this, continued to address them.
“I am looking forward to hearing about your journey here, but for now, you must be famished.” He turned to his wife. “Winni, did Lofty tell the cooks to make enough for eleven?”
“Yes, of course, Sam. That is what I was telling him a half an hour ago before he left. Were you not listening?”
“Oh, I’m sorry! My mind must have been on something else,” he said and she smiled knowingly, as if this sort of thing happened all the time.
The door opened and four cabin boys en
tered, carrying trays of food and the savory scent of bouillabaisse, freshly grilled fish in lemon butter, fresh vegetables, and bread. They set the trays on kickstands that they had carried with them in the crook of their elbows and proceeded to serve the meal to each person individually.
Chalice immediately placed the packet of herbs that Bunejab had given her into her cup of hot water and nursed it slowly. As she did, she felt the dizziness and pain wash away. She noticed that he was watching her, seated on the other side of Ben who sat to her right. She smiled at the little Chinuk and he giggled, turning away, embarrassed. It was odd, but he seemed to be very at home with the Quaie’Miren and they treated him as if he were no different than anyone else in the room. They showed not even a hint of surprise at seeing a Chinuk.
“This smells delicious!” Kirna exclaimed, sniffing the warm fumes that rose slowly from her plate.
“So, what are we eating?” Tycho asked.
“Xiphias,” Aden answered and Tycho looked a question at him. Aden pointed to the model fish on the wall.
“Oh, I see,” Tycho said, glancing at the wall and then back down at his plate.
“You catch this?” he asked and Aden nodded with a mouth full of food. “Where do you get the vegetables?”
“Usually, we get everything from the sea.” Ardenne answered. “Goods that can only be procured by land, such as fruits and vegetables, we get from our kin on the islands. Sometimes, we get them from trade with the people of the Realm.”
“So, these islands, where are they exactly?” Tycho asked.
“Deep into the Aeolian sea, toward the northeast.”
“You sail into the Aeolian?!” Chalice asked with gaping eyes. She knew that the Aeolian sea was the most dangerous in the world because of its violent storms. She had learned from the trading ships that stopped in Canton that many vessels had been lost by sailing too deeply into it.
“The weather does not harm our ships. Our people have been sailing the sea since the Haeliad. The design of our vessels goes back all the way to that time. Ours are the only ships in the world that can sail the Aeolian. We are lucky to live on the Morning Dawn. She is the fastest and the most weatherly. It is easy to sail the sea with her.”
“Is that how you are able to escape Dar’Maalda? By sailing where his men can’t go?” Kirna asked.
“Yes, exactly.”
“But they are Terravailian,” Chalice said in confusion.
“And?”
“They can control the weather.”
“Chalice,” Ben interrupted, “it would take an enormous amount of Terravailian power to calm the weather over the Aeolian sea. Starting a wind is one thing because it can build upon itself, but stopping a wind is very difficult. Stopping winds like those would be nearly impossible. You would need all the Terravailians alive to do it and it would still be very challenging.”
The Prophet looked intently at Ben. “Master Graeystone, being Terravailian yourself and a member of the Realm, do you have any idea of the King’s intentions regarding the Gulf of Paelianna? The reason I ask is because we are interested in gaining access to the port cities in Maliya for trade and entrance into those waters is still too dangerous due to the large Draaquan presence. Without it, it is very difficult to obtain Maliyan spices.”
Ben frowned and scratched his chin. The news about Draaquan ships in the gulf seemed to puzzle him.
“I don’t know what his plans are, but I do know that his intentions can’t be good. You see …”
Everyone ate slowly as they listened to Ben describe the King and the age-old conflict between the Maaldanese and the people. It was clear that the Marins knew nothing about the Realm and its internal problems. Ben explained how events surrounding these issues had led them to the Quaie’Miren and their ship. Lastly, he told them about the Delphaline, the prophecy, and how it related to their journey.
The Prophet nodded. “Ah, that was it. In the past two decades, we have noticed a big change in the Realm, at least in those areas where we do business. Not to worry though, Master Graeystone. We will set our heading for Auvergny once we are out in the open water. It would be best to arrive there just after dark. Your mission in Chainbridge will go more smoothly under the cloak of night, I think.”
Ben voiced his agreement.
“And you say that you have ships in line for the journey back? You will not need us to wait for you?” the Prophet asked and Ben nodded again. Then, the Prophet looked over at his wife. “You know, Winni, I knew that our mission this time was important. The last time I had this feeling was when we went looking for the lost ship in the gulf.” He turned back to Ben. “That was an important mission as well, but unfortunately it wasn’t a successful one.”
“Well, it wasn’t there,” Aden said.
“Yes, it was. You just didn’t find it,” he replied sternly to his son and glanced down at his plate to cut a morsel of fish.
Everyone turned to Aden as he shook his head in response and mouthed silently: “It wasn’t there!”
“It was there, Aden!” the Prophet said again loudly, still looking down at his plate. Aden jumped. He hadn’t been expecting that his father knew he was still contradicting him.
“We believe you, Father,” Ardenne said kindly.
Chalice saw the expression on Tycho’s face and she and Kirna almost exploded into a fit of giggles. She wished Jeremiah could be there with them. He would have appreciated the humor.
“So …” Tycho cut in cautiously, “which ship wasn’t … uh …” Pausing, he looked at the Prophet and corrected himself. “Or I should say was there, but wasn’t found?”
“The lost ship of Paelianna,” Aeron interjected.
“Oh, okay,” Tycho replied, nodding. “What’s that?”
“You don’t know the story?” Ardenne asked and Tycho shook his head, shrugging.
“If it makes you feel any better, Tyke, Kirna and I don’t know it either,” Chalice whispered to him.
“Have you ever heard the phrase, ‘Paelianna, Iel Aelia D’Avaria’?” Ardenne asked and Tycho shook his head. Chalice, however, recognized the phrase but couldn’t remember where she had heard it. Ardenne continued.
“She was the first Terravailian Queen of the Realm and the only monarch who was ever familiar with our people.”
“Yes, she was the first Ielierian to rule the land after the Haeliad,” Ben interrupted. “She was one of your ancestors, Chalice.”
“Yes,” agreed Ardenne. “She originally gave us lands on which to live but soon we discovered that our differences with the rest of the Realm made it difficult for us to belong to it, so we took to the sea. We built ships on which to live and they were so fine, she commissioned us to build a fleet for her. In return, she paid us handsomely and let us trade freely with the people of the Realm and sail where we chose, not hindering our headings in any way. Paelianna was wise and kind to everyone. She was a great queen.” Ardenne paused to sip her drink, then continued.
“Unfortunately, she loved a man who was not of the same character. His name was Dar’Baren. They say that love can blind a person. In her case, the blindness was complete. Dar’Baren was obsessed with wealth and power and would do anything to get it. He asked her hand in marriage with every intention of seeing her dead so he could take over the Realm. She had no clue, of course. Outwardly, he appeared to be everything she thought of him, handsome, wise, kind — in short, a good husband and ruler — but secretly, he was developing a weapon that he could use to kill, destroy and conquer anyone who stood in his way. When she found out about it and about his plans to usurp her throne, she was devastated. She soon realized, however, that she had to do something about it before he could use the weapon on her and her family.”
“What did she do?” Chalice asked.
“She had him imprisoned and executed. This set off a series of events that led to the First War of the Realm, and eventually, to her death. Dar’Bare
n had followers and they wanted revenge. They also wanted the weapon that he had created. She took the weapon, a few trusted advisors, and the best crew that she possessed and set sail for the Great Maelstrom, a huge oceanic whirlpool that at the time, consumed the gulf that is now called the Gulf of Paelianna. In our time, the storm is mostly dormant. We only see it flare up once every several hundred years and even then it doesn’t last long, but back then, it was in constant flux. Anyhow, she had intended to throw the weapon into the maelstrom to dispose of it and head back home, but those of his followers who had ships pursued her. The chase ended in a battle at sea in which they all perished, dragged down into the deep, stormy waters of the gulf, never to be seen again.”
“It was shortly after this, Chalice, that your family instituted the oaths that now protect them,” Ben interrupted once again and then turned to Ardenne. “Pardon me, Ardenne. Please, continue.”
“No worries, Master Graeystone. Anyway, her lost ship is still out there somewhere. Most believe it to be too far deep into the ocean to be searched, but my father believes that the current carried her ship to a shallow part of the gulf, near the Blue Coral Reef where divers can reach it. This is where we went looking. Our mission was cut short, however, by hostile Draaquan ships that chased us out of the gulf. Since then, we haven’t been able to return.”
“What a sad, but beautiful story!” Chalice said and then she suddenly remembered where she had heard the name. Jeremiah had said it when they were in Branbury. Oh yeah, and Paelianna … It’s about a queen who dies to save her people. There was something that piqued Chalice’s curiosity.
“And the weapon, does anyone know what it was?”
“No. No one knows,” Ardenne answered. “All we know is that it was very dangerous. No opponent of Dar’Baren on which it was used ever survived. It was lethal.”
“Well, it’s a good thing it’s gone!” Tycho added.
“Yes,” Ben agreed, but his expression was disconcerted.
Chalice waited until the others were occupied in conversation to whisper: “What’s wrong, Ben?”
“This bothers me.”
“What does?”
“The Draaquan ships in the gulf.”
“You think they may be looking for it?”
“They could be since they can’t use their power directly as a weapon. For a long time, they have been looking for other means to subdue the people. The only problem is that no one knows what kind of weapon Dar’Baren made or how to use it, so their presence there may not actually be related to that at all. Most likely, they are protecting their economic interest along the coastline. The Maliyan spice trade is very lucrative. I’m not surprised that the Quaie’Miren would like access to those cities. However, we can’t be sure of what Dar’Maalda is planning. I’m glad that the Prophet brought this to my attention.”
“So, Dar’Maalda is looking for other weapons? I don’t understand. He is King. He already has control.”
“Yes, he does, but it is not complete and he knows that. There are those who still defy him secretly, like us, the Resistance, and if we decide to move against him, he wants to be able to have a sure victory. Especially now that he knows about you, he will be even more aggressive in his search.”
She turned away from Ben. Her face was pale and a chill ran down her spine. She set down her knife and fork and stared into her lap. She was no longer hungry. It was hard to imagine a man like Dar’Maalda with such a deadly weapon. Having control of the Draaquans was bad enough, wasn’t it?
We need to hurry! she thought. We may be running out of time. Caught up in her thoughts, she heard the voice of Samus Marin telling them about another sea adventure that turned out to be a failure. She looked up and caught a glimpse of Aden rolling his eyes.
“Chalice dear,” Winnivere said, “do you not like the food? If not, we can bring you something else.”
“Oh … no, it’s delicious. I’m sorry. I’m just not very hungry.” She paused and then suddenly had an idea. “Would it be alright if I can tray this and take it to my friend? We are going to visit him after dinner. I know he’ll be hungry.”
At this, Ben raised an eyebrow. He hadn’t yet said that visiting Jeremiah was a definite thing. She didn’t care. She would go see him regardless.
“We will do better. We will save that for you and make him a fresh tray. How about that?”
Chalice smiled and nodded and Winnivere motioned for one of the boys to fetch a fresh tray of food as they finished up with their meal. Afterwards, they thanked the Marins for their gracious hospitality and rose from the table. The boy returned and handed the tray to Chalice, who took it gratefully. Then, they left with Ardenne and her brothers.
Once outside, Ardenne tried to justify her father’s behavior. “My father, he is stubborn, but he is also very keen on exploration.”
Aden scoffed. “Denni, are you kidding? That’s putting it way too lightly. Dad always has us off on some hair-brained adventure that he thinks was revealed to him by his ‘sight’ and it always ends in disaster! It’s lunacy!”
“Not this time, Ade,” she said, shaking her head.
“On that, I will have to agree,” Aeron added.
“You two are ganging up on me again!” Aden turned toward Chalice and the others. “They do this to me all the time.”
Chalice could see the wide grin on Tycho’s face. He liked them, she could tell. She had to admit that she liked the Marins, too, just as much as he did. They were so odd.
Ardenne turned to Chalice. “Chalice, I wish we could join you in Master Maehbeck’s cabin, but we need to meet with my little brother and set a course for Auvergny. Is that alright?”
“Oh, absolutely. Thank you again, for everything!”
At that, they said goodnight and departed. Before Chalice knew it, they were up on the stern deck in front of Jeremiah’s cabin door. Ben opened it and Chalice followed behind with the tray. Jeremiah was awake and lying on the bed, his body covered with blankets up to his chest.
“Hey!” he said and gave them a weak smile. He looked so tired. He struggled to raise himself up. Slowly, he managed it, propping himself up on the pillows behind him until he was in a semi-sitting position. All the blood was gone from his wounds, but his face and chest were still a mass of bruises and cuts and his lip was swollen and split. Chalice scooted past the others and sat down on the chair next to him. Placing the tray on the bedside table, she picked up the soup bowl and spoon.
“We brought you some dinner.”
“Thanks!”
He took the bowl and ate slowly. Kirna and Tycho took seats on the other side of the bed and Ben, lighting his pipe with fire from the lamp, sat down with them.
“So, how was dinner?” Jeremiah asked.
“It was fun. We learned the story of Paelianna,” Chalice said.
“Ah, Paelianna, the Queen of Courage,” he said softly.
“You know the story?” Tycho asked.
“Yeah, my mom read it to me when I was young.”
“Oh okay, good, well anyway …”
Tycho proceeded to tell Jeremiah about the Marins, their idiosyncrasies, and their adventure looking for the lost ship. When he described the expressions on the faces of Ardenne and her brothers as their father told the story of Paelianna, Jeremiah snorted with laughter and then immediately clutched his side, wincing in pain.
“You alright?” Ben asked, concerned.
“I’ve had better days,” Jeremiah said, grunting softly in discomfort as he removed his hand from his side.
Chalice did not want to stare at him. She could barely bring herself to look at his bruises. Every time she did, she felt guilty. She felt that it was her fault. Tears wanted to break through her calm exterior, but she held them in.
“It will take a while,” Ben said, “but you should be fully recovered in a few days, a week at most. Bunejab will be here soon with more salve that
you can use tomorrow. He’s in my cabin mixing it now.” Ben paused to study Jeremiah for a moment. “They really did a number on you, didn’t they?”
Jeremiah nodded. “Yeah.”
“Kirna told me what happened. So, they know?”
Jeremiah knew exactly what Ben was referring to and nodded again.
“Yeah, they do now. They thought it was me at first. When they couldn’t find the mark, they tried to beat the information out of me.”
Chalice lowered her head to stare at her hands. She needed something to concentrate on so that her thoughts would not drift to what she had witnessed in the clearing. She couldn’t yet deal with it. Ben looked at her, misinterpreting her expression.
“What happened is my fault. I should have chosen another route over the river, but all the same, Chalice, you shouldn’t have told them. You should have remained silent.”
She looked up at him indignantly. “They were going to kill him!”
“You should not have told them,” he said again calmly, but sternly, emphasizing each word.
“And let him die?!” Her voice was rising and her eyes blazed with anger. She couldn’t help it. It was easier to be angry than sad. She shook her head defiantly. “No way!”
Kirna and Tycho just sat there in silence, afraid to interrupt. Ben paused and studied Chalice. He was beginning to understand the relationship between Jeremiah and her. He realized then that there was nothing he could do to convince her, so he gave it up.
She is so much like her father, he thought.
“Well, what’s done is done. There’s nothing we can do now to change it.” He paused to puff on his pipe and his brow furrowed curiously. “By the way, what did they say when they saw the mark?”
“Nothing really. They were speechless, actually,” Jeremiah said and shook his head with a wry smile.
“What?” Ben asked.
“It wasn’t what they said. It was what she said.”
“Which was?”
“She told them to choke on it.”
At this, Ben coughed loudly and then burst out in a deep, hearty laugh, releasing all of the tension that had built up over the course of the past few days. After a few moments his laughter dissipated and he drew in a deep breath.
“Chalice, you really are too much like Duquaine. He always had a sharp tongue.” He shook his head. “And I’m not sure if that is a virtue or a curse.”
“A curse, I would say,” Jeremiah remarked. “She almost got her head cut off.”
Ben’s eyes widened and Chalice could feel all of them staring at her. She looked down at her hands again.
“Kirna told me about her shoulder, but not about this?”
“The young one — I think his name was Rhaene — he was going to kill her, but the older one stopped him. He mentioned the oaths and that Dar’Maalda was unsure of something.”
Ben looked down to tap his pipe and nodded. “Hmm, yes, that is something. I didn’t think of that.”
“What?” Jeremiah asked.
“Well, he’s not sure if the oaths will hold for her. She is only half Terravailian.”
“Oh, that was it.” Jeremiah nodded. “He also said their orders were to give her to Vlaad so he could …” He paused and swallowed. Chalice could tell that he was having trouble saying it, so she finished the sentence for him.
“So he could torture information out of me and then find a way to ‘dispose of me.’ Those were his exact words.”
“And he would have, too,” Ben said, his expression very serious. “You can thank your lucky stars the Quaie’Miren showed up when they did. You probably shouldn’t have mouthed off.”
“Well, at the time, I thought I was going to die anyway, so it didn’t really matter. I wasn’t going to give in to their bullying. I would never die like that.”
Ben looked at her in wonder. “You have the heart of a true Ielierian, you know that Chalice? Stubborn to the end.” He shook his head slowly as he added: “To … the … end.”
She managed a weak smile. She didn’t want to tell him about the stone, but she knew there was no choice.
“Ben, there’s one more thing.”
“What’s that?”
“They took the box.”
“With the stone and dagger?”
“Just the stone. I still have the dagger. Rhaene dropped it when the Quaie’Miren attacked.”
“What else did they take?”
“That was it.”
He leaned back and let out a deep sigh. “Damn! I wanted to have that examined. It has some sort of power, a great deal of it, and no one seems to know what it is or what it does. The only ones who would know are in Portalis and now we can’t bring it to them.” He puffed a ring of smoke, thinking. “I will have to ask our network of spies in the white palace to see if they can spot it or possibly get it back. In any case, Dar’Maalda won’t know what to do with it. If the Chinuka don’t know and neither do I, he definitely won’t. We can at least rest assured in that.”
The door opened and Bunejab stepped in with a small jar of salve in his tiny hand. He walked over to Jeremiah and proffered it.
Jeremiah accepted it gratefully. “Thanks, Buney!” he said and then yawned widely.
“Alright, well, it’s probably time for all of us to go to bed,” Ben said.
“That is … aww … a good idea,” Tycho said, catching the yawn from Jeremiah. He and Kirna both had rings of fatigue under their eyes. As they rose from the bed, Chalice didn’t budge. She took the empty bowl from Jeremiah, who had finished eating, and placed it back on the tray. Ben looked at her knowingly. He knew that she wasn’t going to return to her room.
“Good night, you two,” he said.
“Good night,” Jeremiah replied. His head was turned away from her as he watched the others leave. Chalice didn’t know what it was — having all of them gone at once or finally being alone with Jeremiah again, but she could not stop the torrent of tears that surged behind her eyes. They came out in full force, flowing down her cheeks. When the door clicked shut, Jeremiah turned toward her.
“You know—” He broke off, stunned, when he saw her face.
“It was my fault,” she said. “It was all my fault. I was too slow. I …”
She couldn’t finish her words. He looked at her with an expression of such tenderness that she couldn’t speak at all. Then, he reached up with his hand, caressing her face with his palm, and stroked away the tears from her cheek with his thumb.
“Hey now, none of that. It wasn’t your fault. It wasn’t your fault at all.”
The tears kept falling, spilling down her cheeks onto his hand and into her lap. She just let them fall. She didn’t care. She didn’t need to be tough around him. He knew her. He knew her strengths and her weaknesses, and he still loved her, everything about her. Her tears were for his pain. They were for her pain. They were for her grandparents, for the villagers, for the Farahs and the children who lost their parents. They were for the blind woman in Woodrock and for all the people in her father’s kingdom. All of the stress that she had experienced up to this point, that was built up inside her, let loose all at once and she didn’t fight it this time. She laid her head on the side of the bed, up against his chest and he stroked her soft, golden hair.
“I don’t want to do this anymore, Jeremiah. I don’t want to see people suffer anymore. I want it to end.”
“I know,” he said soothingly. “I know.” He stroked her golden hair and let her cry until the tears abated and they were both asleep.