The light was somehow mesmerizing and James couldn’t help but look in wonder as it crept ever so slowly closer to the edge of the table. The warrior woman stepped completely off the platform, careful to avoid the light, and returned to her place in the circle as the light came within inches of the edge of the table. James remained standing, ready to act.
The round beam of light struck the woman’s outstretched fingers first. She immediately let out a blood-curdling cry. Smoke began to rise from her hand as the flesh on her fingers quickly turned to dust. In an instant, James realized that the warrior woman wasn’t going to kill this woman, but the island was. Beside him, Luno, Kilani, William, and Roger had all gotten to their feet.
James ran toward the platform as the cries continued. Nearly her entire hand was now nothing but bleached bone. A slight breeze blew away the gray powder that moments ago had been her flesh. In the distant darkness the cries of a man echoed those of the victim.
As James reached the edge of the platform, he felt energy similar to that which came from the stone tower he’d touched in the cave on the Second Widow. He tried to surge through it, but he was unable and fell back to the ground. The others in his group hit the ground as well.
He quickly stood. “
Tertiri zé Manukto norge
,” he said, sending a surge of electric energy that looked like a miniature lightning storm toward the barrier. The invisible wall absorbed the spell and did not yield. By this time the beam was creeping toward the woman’s elbow and her cries continued at an earsplitting volume. They could also still hear the unknown man’s cries in the darkness.
“You are defying the will of the island,” the warrior woman said calmly.
“The island did not put her on this table. You did,” said James. “
Tertiri zé Manukto suomi
,” he said. Several large rocks lifted from the dirt beneath the ground outside the circle. He sent them hurtling toward the invisible barrier. Upon impact, each of the rocks shattered into sand. He then lifted a large amount of dirt into the air. It began to swirl like a hurricane creating a dense black cloud. James again directed it toward the barrier but this time sent it high into the air in hopes of blocking the moon’s rays from hurting the woman further. Unfortunately, regardless of how high he went, the barrier continued even higher.
James abandoned this idea, letting the dirt fall to the ground like rain on the tribe. The light had passed the woman’s elbow and was steadily moving closer to her torso. He knew he had only seconds before any intervention wouldn’t matter.
“
Tertiri zé Manukto suomi
,” he said, concentrating on the stone table inside the barrier. To his surprise, the table rose into the air. James sent it as far from the circle of light as he could inside the barrier. The woman immediately stopped screaming and looked around, confused. The stone table struck the far side of the barrier and came to an awkward rest on the steps. James knew this was merely a temporary solution. The moonlight was steadily making its way in the direction of the woman. He had time, but not much.
The warrior woman ran to James’s side, an incredulous look on her face.
“You dare defile the ceremony? If this woman does not die, the island will seek its revenge upon us all. Especially the one who interrupted the ceremony.”
“I will not stand by and watch her die,” James said. “If I am truly your chief, I order you to help me.”
The warrior woman stood looking at James with a defiant expression. It was clear that regardless of his title, she had no intention of bringing an end to the ceremony. Kilani, who James had forgotten was even there, reached down to the warrior woman’s belt and ripped away a small sac.She tossed it to James. The warrior woman turned on Kilani, ready to fight. Kilani brought herself to her full height, over a head taller than the warrior woman, and the warrior woman paused, realizing she was outmatched. Infuriated, she turned and walked away.
As this was happening, James reached into the sac, pulled a pinch of transporting powder from the bag, sprinkled it over his head and said, “
Tertiri zé Manukto ahlnãs
.” The next thing he knew, he was standing inside the barrier beside the table. The woman looked up at James in surprise. She whispered in a language James could not understand. Tears streaked her face. James tried to lift her from the table, but she was held there by an invisible bond.
“
Tertiri zé Manukto lehtinen
,” said James. The table immediately fractured, then crumbled. The woman’s body was free. What was left of her right arm was bright red and burnt but James thought it would be okay. He lifted her into his arms, took another pinch of the transporting powder, and tossed it over his head.
Both the woman and James had disappeared. Kilani, realizing they were now alone, nervously looked at Luno. The four of them stepped closer together as the tribe recovered from the shock of what it had just witnessed. Several of the tribe were shouting angrily and moving about pointing at the platform.
“Now vut?” William asked, eyeing the increasingly hostile tribe.
“Hold our ground. James will return,” said Luno.
The warrior woman marched quickly back toward the group carrying a spear. Over her back she’d slung her bow and quiver. She stopped just in front of the group and looked right at Kilani. She shouted in the native tongue.
“I will not fight you,” said Kilani.
The warrior woman clearly did not understand, because she grasped the spear and pointed it at Kilani, just inches from her chest. Before Kilani could react, Luno stepped in front of her, snatched the spear from the warrior woman’s hands and broke it over his knee. Enraged, the warrior woman began to pull her bow from her back.
“
Tertiri zé Manukto reisa
,” Luno said. Both bow and arrows immediately caught fire. The warrior woman quickly pulled them from her back and dropped them to the ground, where they burnt to ashes. She looked at Luno in shock and fear. Several tribe members began disappearing in orange flashes while others made their way back to the encampment on foot. The warrior woman, who’d retrieved another sac of transporting powder, disappeared in an orange flash. Within a minute, they were alone.
“Without James I fear we are extremely vulnerable here. We should leave at once,” said Luno.
“Into the jungle at night? I’m not sure that’s a good idea. At least here we know what we’re facing,” said Kilani.
With a flash, James appeared not three feet from where they stood. He was alone. He looked around, surprised to only see his friends.
“What’s happening,” he asked.
“The tribe has fled back to the encampment. I don’t believe they’re particularly happy with us at the moment,” Luno said.
“Where did you take her?” Kilani asked.
“Back to Harbor Town,” said James.
“What now, Capin’?” asked Roger, looking at James.
“I’ll take us back to the
Queen Mary
. Who first?” James asked.
Without waiting for a response, James put his arm around Kilani and they were gone. A moment later, they were standing on the deck of the
Queen Mary
. Their faces were less than an inch apart and in that instant, James wanted nothing more than to feel her soft lips against his. She quickly withdrew and James disappeared, leaving Kilani standing alone. Seconds later he returned with Roger, then William, and finally Luno. The group relaxed when Luno and James arrived. Before he could explain or the group had a chance to object, James disappeared again.
He transported to the spot where he had healed Meloc, beside the tampere’s head. Several tribesmen, who were running about with their weapons, jumped back as he appeared. James sent light orbs overhead, lighting up the entire encampment. A dozen orange flashes immediately brought more tribe warriors to the scene.
“Where is Peroc?” James demanded.
“You disgraced our tribe and damned us all,” said one of the armed tribesmen, pointing his spear at James.
“You disgrace yourselves with your murderous ways. You will not go unpunished for your years of brutality. Now tell me where I may find Peroc before I get angry.”
The ground trembled beneath their feet. Immediately they dropped their spears. Two of them turned and ran toward their tents. The others huddled in a tight group.
“For the last time, were is Peroc?”
“The ring of fire,” one of them shouted.
James immediately transported just outside the ring. Twodozen tribesmen looked on as the moon shone its deadly rays onto the platform. Inside, Peroc stood against the far wall in the rubble of the stone table. The circle of light was inches from reaching him.
On the
Queen Mary
Luno, Kilani, Roger, and William paced nervously on deck. No one had said much after James disappeared without announcing where he was going. In a flash, James returned, accompanied by a man none of them knew. He was shorter than James—most men were—with broad shoulders and matching golden hair and beard. He looked drawn, thin, and weak. The man collapsed on deck. Kilani and Luno ran to help him up and ask what was going on, but before they could get in a word, James was gone again.
The man muttered something before falling unconscious. Luno and Kilani exchanged looks of confusion. There was another flash and James was back. Beside him stood Peroc. James held an ornately carved tree stump under his arm. He set the stump on the deck and removed his arm from around Peroc’s shoulder. Peroc stayed close while eyeing the others as if expecting them to attack.
Exhausted, James sat on the stump and looked up at the group.
“Speak up plain, Capin’ what in t’ bloody ’ell is going on?” Roger asked.
“I knew they’d turn on Peroc, so I returned for him. He told me about the prisoner—the other screaming voice we could hear—and we rescued him as well. He is the woman’s brother. They are the last survivors of the village Kilani and Roger discovered on our first day here. The others, sixteen in all, were killed in a ceremony just like the one we witnessed tonight.”
“Murdering savages.
C’est des conneries
!” said William.
“Peroc, tell us about the ceremony. When did it begin?” James asked.
James translated as Peroc told the tale. “He says that as far back as our stories go, there has always been mention of the twentysecond ceremony. Every twenty-two days, the island requests a sacrifice. His tribe was required to provide it. Throughout their history, it’s usually been one of their own who would go on the stone table. They would hold games to decide who among them would go. Legends were born from these games.”
“Within the last generation, others began to arrive on this island. At first they came in small numbers, one every several years. Eventually larger groups began arriving.”
“Rather than capture and hold them, they would simply watch the newcomers until one was needed. Then, one at a time, they would take from the group. This man and his sister are the last of a very large group that arrived roughly ten years ago. The group built their own camp by One Tree Hill and appeared to thrive. Peroc’s people taught them rudimentary magic. They taught the group their words. They showed them where to find water and how to avoid being preyed upon by the tampere. They encouraged them to breed, but no visitors have ever been with child in this place. Essentially they raised them like beasts to slaughter. The newcomers trusted Peroc’s clan. When one went missing, there was always an explanation for their disappearance.”
“Finally they stopped coming. As their numbers dwindled, Peroc’s people realized it would soon come time for one of their own to go back on the table. The games were set to be held on the day we arrived. One of their tribe spotted our ship. The games were cancelled, and Peroc was sent to bring us to their camp. Everything changed when Perocheard me speak their language. He knew then that the legend of the outsider coming to lead his people to a better place was true.”
“What of the children? Why weren’t there any children at the camp?” asked Kilani.
James translated the question. “He said that they do not take the children to that cursed place. The children stay at another camp, one that is equally protected but not infested with the stench of death and murder. When the children are old enough, they make the journey to Peroc’s camp.”
“Your tone implies that you do not agree with the sacrificing. Please explain,” said James.
“He says that as long as he has lived, they have never missed a ceremony. The elders spoke of a time when the tribe decided not to sacrifice someone for the island. They said before that day, their people, the Belator, were the deadliest hunters on the island. The day the sacrifice was not made the elders say the land shook in anger. The ground parted and released terrible creatures from the underworld. The tampere. Peroc has always lived under the shadow of the tampere, so he cannot confirm whether there was once a time they did not exist.”
“When he passed the test and became a warrior, he made the journey to the new camp. He was the first of four to arrive from the children’s camp. The last to arrive—the slowest and weakest—was immediately taken to the stone table. He was Peroc’s brother. Since then, Peroc has always had disdain for the ceremony and all it represents.”
The group sat in silence for some time. Each of them digesting what Peroc had told them. Finally, William spoke up.
“What is under ze stump, Capitan?” he asked.
James had forgotten entirely about the stump upon which he’d been sitting for the duration of Peroc’s story. He stood, removed the dagger from his belt, and pried open the lid.
The group craned their necks to see what was inside. James thrust his hand into the barrel and lifted a handful of orange powder and let it spill through his fingers back into the barrel.
“Transporting powder!” Kilani said, her eyes fixed on the powder. “What is it made of?” she asked, looking at Peroc.
“It comes from the root of the tree on One Tree Hill. It is ground to powder and cured in the ring of fire for ninety days. It can only be harvested once a year, which is why the Belator have such a vast supply,” James translated.