Heir of the Elements (13 page)

Chapter 13

Falcon did not sleep much that night. The boat shook and rocked so much that he found it difficult to keep his eyes closed for more than a few minutes at a time. The fact that he was in a room with a half dozen snoring, sweaty, and smelly men did not help. For what seemed like the hundredth time, the rope hammock he was sleeping on slammed against the wall beside him.

When daylight finally trickled though the small holes in the deck above, he couldn’t wait to leave the dark, depressing room and go up to the deck. Careful not to wake Sheridan, who slept on the hammock beside him, or any of the other men, Falcon moved slowly. He cringed when his foot landed on the floor, causing the panels to creak. No one seemed to notice.

He opened the door and walked out into the narrow hallway. To his surprise, the door directly left of the one he had emerged from also opened. Faith and Hiromy were coming out. Unlike Falcon, they appeared well rested. There were no tired bags under their eyes, nor was the white around their pupils webbed in red.

Faith brought her hand to her mouth, as if to suppress a scream.

“Falcon!” she muttered after a moment of silence. “Are you well? You look as if you got no sleep.”

“I didn’t. It was impossible in those hammocks.”

“Hammocks?” Faith appeared genuinely confused.

Falcon looked past the girls and into the room they had slept in and immediately understood. The room they used had actual beds. Sure, the white mattresses didn’t look all that comfortable, but he was sure it was ten times better than the old rope he was forced to endure all night.

He pointed over to the room he shared with the pirates. “I had to sleep in one of those.”

“Hey!” cried Hiromy, spotting Sheridan as he rocked back and forth in his net. She waved her hand. “Hi. Sheridan. Hurry up and join us up top soon, okay? I missed you last night!” The fact that he was obviously in a deep sleep and therefore couldn’t hear her did not seem to bother her in the slightest.

“So? Where were you sneaking off so quietly?” asked Faith.

His nerves heightened a bit. “I just needed to get some fresh air and some quiet before everyone woke.” He decided to leave out the part where he was planning to search the ship, looking for anything incriminating. He didn’t care what the girls thought. He still didn’t trust Armeen.

“We were going up to train,” said Hiromy cheerily. “Isn’t that right, Faith?” The princess took off down the hallway and up the stairs.

“I better go after her,” said Faith, hurrying behind the princess.

When Falcon got up to the deck, he had expected it to be mostly empty, but he quickly saw that that was not the case. Many of the pirates were already up. Two of them were up high in the overlook. A few more of them were climbing up the ropes.

“Prepare the riggings, Mr. Gertie!” yelled a suave voice.

Falcon turned over to the sight of Captain Armeen. He was steering a giant half-broken wheel that looked as if it might fall off and roll across the deck at any moment.

“Yes, sir!” yelled Gertie, a short, wrinkled man who wore a black and white striped shirt that could barely contain his massive belly. He grabbed the rope and began to climb toward the riggings.

“Don’t look so scared, Mr. Falcon,” said Armeen, patting his back.

Mister?
thought Falcon. That certainly sounded strange coming from Armeen, considering that they looked to be about the same age.

Armeen continued. “Mr. Gertie has been climbing and descending those ropes since before you were born.” The captain was now wearing a long velvet coat. He also wore a long tricorne hat that covered most of his hair, except for the long ponytail dangling behind him. A golden oval earring, depicting a coin, dangled from his ear.

“All ready!” came the scream from above. Gertie had now opened all the sails and had joined the duo of pirates standing at the top overlook podium.

The sails opened, and quite suddenly the ship gained speed, bopping and bouncing over the waves.

Falcon felt his stomach turn. He darted over to the side of the ship, fully expecting to throw up the little food he’d eaten. But besides gagging noises, nothing came.

A strong pat landed on his back yet again, making his stomach whirl viciously. “Don’t worry. You’ll get used to it in no time. It takes most landlubbers a few weeks to get used to the movement of a ship, especially one as fast as the
Gold Chaser
.”

Weeks?
The sound of that made him wish he were back on land facing murderous Suteckh. In a battle he was at home. But here? Stuck in the middle of the sea in a rickety ship that was sure to sink at any moment, he was but a lost soul.

To add salt to the wound, Faith and Hiromy walked over to Armeen. Neither of them looked the least bit affected by the ship’s uneven movements.

“Excuse me, Captain,” said Faith. “My friend and I were hoping to meditate. But it occurs to me that you may need some help around the ship first. Is there anything we can do?”

“Oh no!” Armeen looked genuinely shocked. “No guests of mine will lift a finger on the
Gold Chaser.”
He pointed toward the back of the ship. “The port bow is an excellent place for that. Feel free to use it as you wish.”

“Thank you,” said Faith. She turned to Falcon. “You don’t look so well. Want me to use some holy wielding to heal you a bit?”

Armeen snickered. “We have some herbs down in the hold that can help. However, it’s usually saved for women and children.” He eyed Falcon from top to bottom. “Not fully grown men.”

Feeling like an idiot, Falcon tried to stand upright and display confidence. His wobbly legs sure weren’t helping. “No. It’ll just take me a little while to get used to it. That’s all.”

“Okay, then,” mumbled Faith, looking unsure. She and Hiromy headed to the backside of the ship and sat cross-legged. All along the captain watched them go, nodding to himself and mumbling under his breath.

“You better not get any ideas about Faith,” warned Falcon. “She’s a good girl.”

“Oh, her?” Armeen shrugged indifferently. “While that pretty lassie is certainly easy on the eyes, I have no interest in her.”

Falcon breathed a sigh of relief.

“I’m much more interested in the feisty one. What’s her name again? Oh, yes, Aya. And whatever I put my eyes on, I acquire.”

“You best get used to disappointment. Aya wouldn’t waste a breath on you.” Falcon wasn’t sure if he himself believed those words. He’d seen Aya around the captain, and she certainly seemed different when he was around.

“I wouldn’t be too sure about that. We spent the night alone in my quarters drinking wine, and she certainly seemed to welcome my company. Now please go wake your friend, Sheridan. I require your assistance manning the ship.”

Falcon was left at a loss for words. Certainly Armeen had to be bluffing. He’d gone to sleep at the same time Aya had. There was no way she had spent any time with the captain.

The captain eyed him. “Are you simply going to stand there all day? Light is being wasted. Come to me when your friend is with you.” Before Falcon could say anything, Armeen moved to the rear of the ship and disappeared behind the door to his quarters.

Still a bit perturbed, he went downstairs to wake Sheridan. On his way there he ran into Aya, who was just walking out of the room.

“Oh, good morning, Falcon,” she said. The oil lamp that hung above them barely emitted enough light to illuminate her face. But even through the darkness, he could make out a slight smile. The first smile she’d given him in ages. “Where are you headed?”

“Just going to wake Sheridan. Armeen said he needs our help up in the deck. I’m not really sure with what.” He inhaled deeply. “So? How about you?”

“How about me what?”

“Where are you headed?”

“Oh. I’m going over to Captain’s Armeen’s quarters.”

“His quarters?” He could literally see the color draining from the skin on his hands.

“Yes. We spent last night trying to find a path through the mountain pass. If we can locate it we’ll be able to cut three, maybe even four days off our travel.”

“He’s the captain of a ship,” said Falcon, unable to keep the irritation of his voice. “I’m sure he knows every passage there is in the seas already.”

“That’s not true. He’s very young. The youngest pirate captain, actually.” She spoke with admiration, which infuriated Falcon even more. “There are many routes and secret passages he knows nothing about. Besides, the pass we’re trying to find isn’t one that is well known. It’s not even on any maps. It’s merely mentioned in certain early transcripts from ancient prophets. Serilda made mention of it, as did Atto the Grim.”

“So you’re looking for a pass that probably doesn’t exist? Sounds like an excuse to spend time with him.”

She blinked, looking at him with protruding eyes. “What if I am? I don’t see how that’s any of your concern.”

“You’re right. I just wish you were straightforward about it and not pretending to be looking for some pass that doesn’t exist.”

“Straightforward?” she hissed. “You mean like you?”

“Me?” He pointed at himself, surprised by the accusatory tone in Aya’s voice. “What do I have to do with this?”

“Faith.”

Falcon shuffled his feet uncomfortably.

“What do you feel for her?”

“Well. Um…” He cleared his throat, which had suddenly become very scratchy.

“Don’t even think about telling me you don’t have feelings for her, because I know you do. I saw you talking to her once, at K’ran’s home. You were on the roof. That was our thing,
remember
? But you still went and did it with her.” There was a layer of pain and anger mixed in her voice. “Yet, I didn’t interrogate you the way you’re doing to me now.”

“Well, um—”

“How about me?”

“How about what?” Falcon was really regretting saying anything. His muscles stiffened as he clenched his jaw.

“What exactly do you feel for me?”

He wiped the sweat that seemed to be pouring down his face now, despite the cool weather.

“I thought so.” She locked eyes with him. “Don’t lecture me about being straightforward.” She moved past him, leaving her strawberry scent lingering in the air. He turned, wanting to say something, but found himself unable to form words. Her dark hair bounced after her as she climbed the stairs and disappeared above.

The silence that filled the hallway was haunting. He knew Aya was angry, but he hadn’t realized she was
that
angry. But then again, there was merit to what she’d said. He hadn’t exactly been open about what he felt. Whether he liked it or not, he would have to simply grit his teeth and let her do as she pleased.

“Is Nakatomi gone?” Sheridan slowly opened the old door. A rat, the size of a full-grown foot scampered out and into a hole on the wall. “Sheesh, Hyatt. She told you. I’ve never seen Nakatomi that angry.”

“You heard that?” Falcon felt himself turn a deeper shade of red.

“It was hard not to. Nakatomi was yelling, and I was right next door.” He leaned in closer, his face eager. “But never mind that. Give me the details. I only heard half of the conversation. What happened with you and Hemstath that made Nakatomi so angry? Did you finally kiss those little holy wielding lips?”

Falcon ignored him. “C’mon. Armeen wants to see us both. Something about helping around the ship.”

~~~

Aya came up on the deck. The sun’s rays rained down on her eyes. Heaving loudly, she put her head down and walked toward the back of the ship. Her heart was still pounding from the confrontation she’d had with Falcon. She couldn’t believe he had the audacity to question her. Even harder to believe were the words that had come out of her own mouth. Aya didn’t even know she had felt half of the things she’d said. But now that they were out in the open, she realized that she had always felt them. They had been there, bubbling within her, threatening to explode or engulf her.

“Good morning, Aya.” Faith leaned closer and waved, a smile on her face. Hiromy was beside her, spinning in place and humming a melody.

Aya peered at Faith. “Good morning.” She felt a slight discomfort about being so close to the person who had been the subject of her rant mere seconds ago. There was no reason behind it, but part of her felt like a bad friend.

“Would you like to join us? We’re about to do some meditating.”

“Not right now. Perhaps another time, yes?”

“Sure.”

Aya set off in a rapid walk toward the captain’s quarters. She knocked on the door. Besides the metal skull insignia hanging at the center, it was as time worn as the rest of the doors in the ship. From her time reading, she knew that adorning ships with metal skulls was an ancient tradition practiced by captains of times long past. She found herself enjoying the small ancient details spread across the
Gold Chaser
. The moldy smell was welcome too. It made her feel as if she were part of history. Nothing but a speck of dust in the tale of the cosmos. Somehow, this seemed to lessen her troubles a bit.