She’d tucked the knife into her waistband. Its pressure was a constant reminder of her promise. All-father Hueryx expected her to kill the children to save them from the raiders. It was no consolation that if the worst came to pass, he would also be dead.
A shout and running feet on the deck directly overhead made her look up. Redravia met her eyes then glanced to Hariorta, who looked grim but determined. Aravelle wondered if her face was just as grim.
Hariorta beckoned them both.
Aravelle checked that Itania was fast asleep. She tucked the blanket around her little sister, wondering if the next time she touched Itania, it would be to kill her.
Could she do it?
She’d been shocked when her father killed that unconscious fisherman who’d washed up on their beach. Da had wrestled with himself, but in the end, he’d done it. Now she understood why he’d had to. Hard times called for hard decisions, and this made Aravelle wonder if her parents had had a contingency plan in case they were attacked by their people’s ancestral enemy.
Would her parents have smothered their children, rather than let them be taken by the Mieren? In the end, they’d been taken from their beds, their father murdered and their home burned.
Despite everything she had undergone since that night, Aravelle wanted to live.
More running boots on the deck above. Something had stirred up the young Malaunje defenders.
‘Turn down the lamp, Vella,’ Hariorta whispered.
Aravelle did so. They were plunged into a dim twilight.
She glanced to the sleeping children. Some were stirring. What if they woke, despite the drugged drink? She had a vision of chasing screaming children around the cramped storage hold as she tried to kill them before the Mieren could get in, and the horror of it made her nauseous.
‘T
OBAZIM
?’
He waved to Ardonyx and plunged down the steps to the mid-deck. Meanwhile, his shield-brother forged through the fighting to join him. Tobazim hacked through another grappling hook rope, sending more sea-vermin back to the deck of their own vessel. One fell in the sea and the waves heaved the attackers’ ship against the
Victorious,
crushing him.
As Tobazim grabbed the grappling hook, a painted, screaming creature appeared over the ship’s side and launched itself at him. He buried one of the hook’s prongs in the warrior’s eye. With a cry, his attacker toppled backwards, taking the hook with him.
Something moved in the corner of Tobazim’s vision and he turned in time to see his shield-brother deflect a blow that would have slid in under his arm and through his ribs. The armour had its weak spots and these sea-vermin were quick to spot them.
‘How’re the two smaller brotherhood ships holding out?’ Tobazim asked
‘Sea-vermin are swarming over them like maggots on a carcass.’
‘We could –’
‘We can’t. We’re only just holding our own. We don’t –’
Shouts and screams carried on the wind.
Tobazim spun around. ‘The sisterhood ships.’
Ardonyx turned.
At the same moment, a wave of raiders came over the sisterhood side of his ship. With their strange, painted faces it was hard to tell male from female, or old from young. For each one Tobazim struck down, another two appeared in their place. They drove him apart from his shield-brother.
He fought through to rejoin Ardonyx. Together, they struck and backed up, and struck again. And still the raiders came.
Screaming Mieren forced Tobazim towards the wall of the rear-deck cabins. Only isolated pockets of Malaunje and T’En still battled on the mid-deck.
‘To me! Norsasno, to me!’ Tobazim roared, and the remaining mid-deck defenders surged towards him.
His hand-of-force made a desperate bid to join them, dragging several injured young initiates with him.
‘Hold here,’ Tobazim told him. ‘I’m going to check the rear-deck.’
Tobazim caught Ardonyx’s eye and they fought their way to the steps, then up to the lower rear-deck. Here Tobazim found Ionnyn and Haromyr, among others, backed up against the door to the cabins. Raiders, four deep, surrounded them.
With a roar that went unheard in the din, Tobazim charged. He ploughed through the attackers’ undefended backs, scattering them left and right.
The sea-vermin parted long enough for him to reach the defenders. Haromyr dragged Eryx to his feet. Haromyr was bloody, yet appeared unhampered by his injuries. Plucking a wicked curved blade from a dead attacker, he shoved the hilt into Eryx’s hand. Eryx blinked blood from his eyes as he swayed, but he stayed on his feet.
Tobazim almost tripped over bodies piled two deep. Ardonyx steadied him. They’d reached the others just in time as a fresh wave of sea-vermin came up the steps, armed with weapons scavenged from every kingdom.
Soon they were pressed so tightly there wasn’t room for skill, only furious blows. When Eryx fell again, Tobazim shoved the injured brother behind him and their circle contracted.
Something collided with the door at their backs. Tobazim thrust the door open. One of the attackers lay dead in the passage, and Iraayel was running back to the captain’s cabin. Beyond his head and shoulders, Tobazim saw leaping flames and Deimosh’s thin body as he struggled with two attackers.
Ardonyx shoved him. ‘Go, take Eryx.’
With a curse, Tobazim grabbed the injured adept’s arm and headed down the passage to the cabin. Shattered shutters let in more raiders. Flames ran across the planks, licking at the oil spilled from an overturned lamp.
Iraayel struggled with several attackers and there was no sign of Deimosh.
Tobazim charged the nearest raider, driving his blade through the man’s chest from behind. As the man fell, Tobazim kicked the long-knife free, then ducked a blow from a second attacker. Iraayel brained his assailant. Another sea-vermin leapt for Tobazim.
Eryx cut the man down and sank to his knees.
For the moment, there were no more attackers.
Without a word, Iraayel leapt into the flames and emerged, carrying Deimosh across his shoulders. He laid the gift-tutor down next to Eryx. Tobazim snatched a blanket and, between them, they smothered the fire.
In the dimness, he could just make out what Iraayel was doing as he wrapped a cloth around Deimosh’s head.
‘They’re coming again,’ Eryx yelled.
Two more painted raiders appeared at the broken windows, even as a third smashed another window.
As Iraayel surged to his feet and stood guard over Deimosh and Eryx, Tobazim thought surely, after this, the brotherhood would accept the causare’s choice-son.
Then there was no time to think, only react.
I
MOSHEN STOOD ON
the rear-deck, searching the
Victorious
for Ardonyx and her choice-son. Attackers swarmed over the brotherhood flagship. She’d spotted warriors in full armour, who had to be the two all-fathers and their seconds, but from this distance she couldn’t tell who was who. At her side, Egrayne said nothing, but she felt the voice-of-reason’s gift trying to break free. Unfortunately, the instinct to grab an attacker and drag him to the higher plane was useless in this situation. There were too many attackers, and their physical bodies would be vulnerable while they were on the empyrean plane.
‘The brotherhoods aren’t going to keep them out, Imoshen.’ Egrayne gestured to All-mother Melisarone’s small three-masted ship, which had already been overrun. ‘They’ll be on our deck in a matter of moments.’
Down on the mid-deck, Hand-of-force Kiane strode about, shouting. ‘Prepare to repel boarders!’
Imoshen surveyed the fleet. Every ship was now overrun with raiders.
‘Oh, dear,’ Egrayne muttered, pointing to the mid-deck.
It was such an inappropriate response, Imoshen almost laughed. She looked down to find Tancred sauntering across the mid-deck, dressed in mismatched armour. ‘How did he...’
She’d sent him to the hold with the children, but he must have come back and scavenged discarded armour. It would not have been so bad, if the geldr hadn’t begun to follow Kiane around, mimicking her actions.
‘Tancred? Come here.’ Imoshen beckoned. ‘I need you.’
He trotted over and climbed the steps.
‘Stay here,’ Imoshen told him, then turned to her voice-of-reason. ‘Can you sense if there’s a power-worker amongst the sea-vermin?’
‘Let me see.’ Egrayne closed her eyes, summoning her gift.
‘Tancred play, too.’ The geldr promptly reached for Egrayne. The moment his hand closed on hers, he gave a cry of pain and crumpled forward.
Imoshen tried to catch him, struggling with his weight and the amour’s. This close to him, she could detect that his gift defences were down and his power activated.
She glanced to Egrayne.
Her voice-of-reason frowned, pity twisting her lips into a grimace of regret. ‘He touched me at precisely the wrong moment.’
‘Not your fault.’ Imoshen glanced around. ‘Help me get him into the cabin. Then you can try again.’
As they took Tancred’s shoulders and feet, power that was neither male nor female but something ‘other’ exuded from the geldr.
‘He’s gift-working,’ Egrayne whispered, her face turned away, mouth tight with distaste. ‘How can he, when he’s never been trained?’
‘Tancred knows the higher plane. He fears it,’ Imoshen revealed. ‘He told me in one of his more lucid moments.’
‘Fiant take him,’ Egrayne cursed. ‘Someone will have to stay with him.’
They carried him down the passage to Imoshen’s dimly lit cabin, then laid the big geldr on the floor in the corner. The four empowered lads defending the bolted shutters across the stern windows looked to Imoshen and Egrayne in surprise.
A scream echoed from the mid-deck. Deep, eager voices roared as the sea-vermin boarded. Although she’d known their attackers were almost upon them, Imoshen flinched.
The lads shifted uneasily. Imoshen sensed their fear.
Saffazi ran in from the bathing chamber. ‘Did you hear...’ She stopped, seeing the geldr laid out in all his borrowed glory. ‘What’s he doing up here?’
‘What are
you
doing up here?’ Egrayne demanded. ‘I sent you below.’
Saffazi raised defiant eyes to her choice-mother. ‘I’m warrior-trained. This is where I should be.’
‘We’ve lost so many initiates, we can’t afford to lose you.’
‘If the ship falls, you lose me. You lose everything.’
Running footsteps on the high rear-deck above made the empowered lads duck their heads and eye the ceiling uneasily.
Imoshen grabbed Saffazi’s arm, pulled her close and gestured towards the lads, skittish as colts. ‘Safi, I need you to put some steel in their spines.’
Saffazi nodded and brushed past her choice-mother. ‘Watch the windows, lads. If the sea-vermin force the shutters and try to get through, poke their eyes out!’
The lads took heart. Aged thirteen and fourteen, they were used to taking orders from the sisterhood’s hand-of-force.
‘Don’t tear the veil...’ Tancred slurred his words. ‘Something will come through. Don’t... too late. Watch out. It’s hungry!’
Egrayne grew pale. ‘He’s not on the higher plane, he’s on this one. And I think he’s found the power-worker.’
Imoshen dropped to her knees beside the geldr. ‘What’s hungry, Tancred?’
There were different classes of empyrean predators, some more dangerous than others. Some hunted in packs, some could be tricked or evaded and some not even the most skilled gift-warrior could escape.
The geldr’s eyes darted about behind his closed lids. ‘Here it comes...’ He whimpered.
Imoshen looked over the geldr’s body to Egrayne. ‘I’ll try to bring him back.’
‘No. I’ll see if I can do it.’ Egrayne placed her palm on his bare skin and closed her eyes.
Imoshen waited anxiously.
‘The god of the sea,’ Tancred mumbled. ‘Pretty, blue fire. So pretty...’
‘A fiant!’ Egrayne pulled back as if burnt, eyes springing open. ‘It’s not the sea god. It’s a fiant. It’s casting illusions on the higher plane.’
Imoshen took the geldr’s hand in hers. ‘It’s an illusion, Tancred. That pretty image is what the Mieren power-worker sees. The fiant has plucked the image from the power-worker’s mind so it can get close to him. Don’t let down your guard. Don’t let the fiant see you, Tancred!’
The geldr smiled. ‘He’s going to let the sea god ride him –’
‘Foolish Mieren!’ Egrayne lifted horrified eyes to Imoshen. ‘The power-worker thinks it will make him powerful, but it will consume him.’
‘Come back, Tancred,’ Imoshen whispered in his ear. ‘Come home before the fiant notices you.’
No response.
She dropped her defences and reached for him just as the geldr arched, eyes rolling back in his head.
Egrayne grabbed Imoshen, dragging her away.
‘He needs me.’ Imoshen twisted, trying to escape, but Egrayne was stronger.
They both gasped as Tancred went still.
Imoshen gasped. ‘Is he...’
Tancred gave a grunt of pain and woke. He sat up, blinking. For a heartbeat, the geldr looked startled. Then he doubled over, dry retching.
The instant Egrayne relaxed her grip, Imoshen darted over to kneel and rub his back. ‘You did well, Tancred. You –’
‘Leave him, Imoshen.’ Egrayne pulled her to her feet.
On the deck above them, they heard running footsteps, shouts, thumps and the clash of metal on metal.
Tancred lifted his head, eyes red-rimmed with tears. He frowned. ‘What’s that?’
‘Raiders,’ Imoshen said.
The geldr’s eyes widened. ‘The sea god’s coming!’
He scrambled away from them. Flipping open a chest, he tossed everything onto the floor, then stepped in and tried to make himself fit, but he was too big. Next he ran to the changing screen and ducked behind that. It fell over.
The empowered lads laughed.
The geldr whimpered.
In frustration, Imoshen strode across the cabin, grabbed a staff and shoved it into Tancred’s hands. ‘Use this. Hold them off.’
‘Nothing can kill what’s coming.’ The geldr stared at the staff, then dropped it. ‘It’s going to devour us all!’
Imoshen slapped Tancred’s cheek. But it didn’t clear his mind; the geldr dropped to the floor with his arms over his head and began to rock back and forth as he sang a nursery rhyme.