Sebastian Darke: Prince of Explorers (37 page)

Cornelius smiled. 'Perhaps Aaron was not such a fool after all,' he said.

Max gave him a withering look. 'We've still got a good distance to go to Veltan,' he reminded them. 'Don't be jinxing us by saying rash things.'

'We'll just have to stay optimistic,' Sebastian said; but he was thinking of Aaron – the man who had spent much of his life devising this escape plan but had not lived to see the moment when his great project finally came to fruition.

Sebastian hoped that wherever he was now he knew that all his work had finally paid off.

Darkness fell around them and still the ark drifted on, its prow pointing stubbornly down river. The younger children got themselves settled on the animal skins and woven blankets that had been placed in the wheelhouse.

Cornelius fetched his backpack and carefully took out the Lantern of Krelt.

'Thank goodness it wasn't damaged,' he said.

All eyes turned towards it, and suddenly, magically, it lit up, flooding the wheelhouse with a clear bright light.

'Amazing,' whispered Sebastian.

'Incredible,' added Cornelius.

'What's the big deal?' asked Max. 'It's only an old lamp.'

Sebastian glared at him. 'A lamp that never needs refuelling,' he said. 'A lamp that has burned every night for thousands of years.'

'All right, keep your hair on! I just think you humans are easily impressed, that's all. A magical barrel of pommers that keeps replenishing itself – now that would be something worth having.'

'It's funny how your idea of something wonderful always involves food,' observed Sebastian.

He felt a tug at his sleeve and, looking down, saw the little blonde girl he had carried to safety. She was gazing up at him, her face serious.

'Hello, Chosen One,' she said. 'I'm Ellan.'

'Hello, Ellan,' he said. 'You can call me Sebastian if you like.'

She nodded. 'Thank you for saving my life,' she said.

Sebastian's heart seemed to melt within him. He crouched down to the same level as her. 'You are more than welcome,' he told her. She put her arms around him and gave him a fierce hug, then went off to find herself a place to sleep. Sebastian stood up again. 'Isn't that cute?' he said.

Max was unimpressed. 'I carried two of them and neither have been round to thank
me
,' he muttered.

'I'm sure they're both very grateful,' said Cornelius. 'I'd better take the lantern and have a look in the hold – make sure we aren't springing any leaks.'

'Isn't there a hurricane lamp down there?' asked Sebastian.

'There is, but I'm nervous crawling around in the hold with something that could start a fire at any moment.' 'Good point,' said Sebastian. 'Be careful with the Lantern of Krelt, though. Whatever you do, don't drop it. It's probably the only one like it in the known world.'

Cornelius went down the steps, taking the light with him.

'Don't worry about us!' Max called after him. 'We're quite happy to stand around in the dark.'

Cornelius's voice drifted up from below. 'Well, I could skip this inspection,' he said. 'But if we sink in the middle of the night, don't blame me.'

'No, you carry on,' said Max hastily. 'Have a really good look.'

Sebastian felt another tug at his sleeve and turned, thinking that the little girl had come back. But it was Keera; her face was very grave.

'Can we talk?' she asked him. She nodded towards the doorway. 'Outside,' she added.

'Of course.' Puzzled, he followed her back to the stern. It was a calm, still evening and exotic jungle fragrances drifted on the air. A full moon rode serenely in the sky, reflected in the gently rippling water. Sebastian looked at Keera and was alarmed to see that her eyes were wet with tears. 'What's the matter?' he asked her.

'It's Cal,' she said. 'I can't stop thinking about him.'

He nodded. 'It was awful, what happened,' he admitted. 'But there was nothing else we could have done. We couldn't bring him with us. The bite, he—'

'I know that,' she said. 'But I feel guilty. He cared so much for me, Sebastian. He wouldn't have been bitten at all if he hadn't got in the way of the creature that was attacking me. And yet I treated him horribly because I was blinded by my feelings for you.'

Sebastian frowned. He realized that this was all true enough, but he just said, 'People can't help the way they feel.'

She nodded. 'I've been thinking about this very carefully,' she told him. 'And . . . well, I'm sorry to tell you that I cannot be your mate any more.'

He stared at her and then realized that she was using the word in the Jilith sense. For a moment he nearly punched the air in relief, but stopped himself just in time. 'Umm . . . oh,' he said. 'I see. Why . . .?'

'Because I cannot betray Cal's memory,' she told him. 'He gave his life for me. He made the ultimate sacrifice. Now he rests in the arms of Okrin and I must honour him as a true warrior.' She gazed up at Sebastian; her face was enchanting in the moonlight. 'I understand how disappointed you must be . . .'

'Oh yes, I should say so! But, I'll . . . I'll try and live with it, obviously.'

'If you want me to go away, I will jump off this boat right now,' Keera offered. 'I will swim to shore and make my way back to my village . . .' She made for the rail but Sebastian grabbed her arm.

'NO!' he said. 'Er . . . no, I don't want that. This thing about mates . . .well . . . where I come from, it has a different meaning.'

'It does?' She turned back to look at him.

'Yes. In my world a mate is somebody you just
like
. You know – you talk with them, hang around with them, maybe eat or drink together. You . . . you tell each other jokes. Maybe . . . maybe we could have that kind of friendship?'

She considered for a moment and then shrugged her shoulders. 'This would be enough for you?' she asked.

'Oh, yes, I think so. And I'm sure it would be more agreeable to Jenna.'

'Ah, the captain woman! Your wife.'

'She's not my wife,' said Sebastian hastily. 'But we're . . .

close.'

Keera smiled sadly. 'So now I won't have to fight her for you?'

'No,' said Sebastian. 'I think it's all for the best.'

She nodded. 'I'm glad we settled this,' she said. 'And I think Cal will rest happier too.' She reached up and gave Sebastian a kiss on the cheek. 'This is permitted between your kind of mates?' she asked him.

'Oh yes,' he said, smiling. 'That's no problem.'

The wheelhouse suddenly filled with light and the lamp came bobbing out of the doorway. Cornelius made his way towards them, his face unusually anxious.

'Everything all right?' Sebastian asked him.

'Not exactly,' said Cornelius. 'I've just finished inspecting the hold. I'm afraid we're taking on water.'

Four days later, the ark, listing dramatically to starboard but still just about staying afloat, rounded the final bend in the river. Sebastian, standing in the prow, was delighted and relieved to see the bustling port of Veltan waiting up ahead of them. Beyond it, the river mouth opened out into the vastness of the open sea.

'Cornelius!' he yelled, and the little warrior came scrambling out of the wheelhouse to join him, followed by a small crowd of cheering children. Everybody started to hug each other in delight.

'Now there's a sight for sore eyes,' cried Cornelius. 'I was beginning to think we might not make it.'

It had been a nightmarish four days and three nights, during which everyone had had to work in shifts, baling out with whatever came to hand – buckets, goblets, ladles, all had been put to use and everybody pushed to the very edge of exhaustion. But now it looked as though their worries were finally over and they could celebrate their amazing escape from the city of Chagwalla.

Ships of various sizes rode at anchor alongside a huge wooden jetty. They ranged from humble fishing boats to great three-masted schooners, their mighty sails furled. On and around them, legions of men and women moved to and fro, packing or unpacking their cargoes. As the ark drew nearer, Sebastian saw that many small dwellings were clustered along the harbour front. Beyond them, a mighty city rose up on a steep hillside – scores of whitewashed buildings, huddled together as if for safety. Here and there were more opulent palaces with great golden domes, marble spires and turquoise minarets. There was clearly much wealth in Veltan and, Sebastian mused, there would be a good deal more once the contents of the ark's hold was unloaded.

'There's an empty berth right there,' said Cornelius, pointing to a place between two majestic ships. He turned and gestured into the wheelhouse, where Olaf was currently piloting the ark to its final destination. 'Max is going to be so disappointed,' the little warrior observed. 'For the last two days, he's been announcing to anyone who'd listen that we were doomed!'

Sebastian grinned. 'Where is he, anyway?' he asked.

'He's having a lie-down. Said he was feeling seasick again.'

Sebastian shook his head. 'I didn't realize you could get seasick on a river,' he said.

'Probably just an excuse to take another nap,' said Cornelius. 'Actually, I'm glad of the silence.' He thought for a moment. 'We'll have to play this right. We can't let everyone go tearing off into the city or our treasure will be looted before you can say Shadlog's trousers. I think it's best if you all stay here and keep an eye on it. I'll nip into Veltan and find the right people to escort it up to a bank.'

Sebastian looked doubtful. 'You sure that's the best thing to do?'

'Absolutely. Well, it's like I said before: that much treasure needs to be stored in a vault. You can't just throw it in a heap and hope for the best. And some of these children are too young to know what to do with it. There will be other things to sort out – somewhere for them to stay and so forth. They won't want to be split up after spending all their lives together so we'll need to find a big property, somewhere with plenty of rooms . . .' Cornelius looked up at him. 'Of course, if you'd rather head into town and sort it all out, I don't mind staying with the ship.'

'Oh no, you go ahead – you're better at that kind of thing. Besides, I want to ask around, see if anybody has seen anything of Jenna. Oh, I hope she's still here! Hey, supposing she is? Won't she get a surprise!'

'Yes, particularly when she claps eyes on Keera.'