The Brotherhood: Blood (48 page)
“That’s right,” Domnin said. He straightened his posture and pointed at a nearby iceberg. “Say this iceberg was coming to the boat, Odin. What would you do?”
“Try and push it away.”
“Right. But what if you didn’t have enough power to push it away? What if it was too big?”
“I… don’t know,” he frowned.
“You could stop it from moving fairly easy,” Icklard said. “Watch.”
The shorter brother lifted his hands. Green fire sprouted from his palms, then shot out at the iceberg. Though it did not visible damage, the iceberg stopped moving, suspended in place by green tendrils that wafted around its surface like snakes coiled on a suspect tree.
“That’s one way,” Icklard said.
“But the smaller ones,” Domnin said. “we usually destroy them by sending a bit of magic into their center.”
Domnin raised his hand and summoned at the tip of his finger a plume of orange light. This he shot at the iceberg, then smiled when the thing split into five even pieces before sliding into the ocean. “Not much too it,” he said.
“You try,” Icklard said.
Odin raised his hands, gathered an orb of magic between his two clawed hands, then released it toward a smaller berg. It dissolved into a plume of transparent air upon impact.
“That works,” Domnin said, fingering his chin. “It’s not as easy to do on a bigger one though.”
“I can imagine,” Odin replied, sliding his hands into his pockets. “Thank you for giving me a little of your time.”
“Hey, it’s no trouble,” Icklard said, raising a hand. He slapped Odin’s hand, then gestured him to do the same for his older brother. “If you get bored, come find us again.”
“Our room’s at the end of the left hall,” Domnin smiled.
“All right,” Odin said. “Thank you.”
He bowed his head, turned, and made his way back to the stairs, grinning all the way.
“Where were you?” Nova asked.
“Up top,” Odin said, turning to shut the door.
“I thought you were only going to look?”
“I got sidetracked.”
“By what?”
Odin shed his coat, set it in his clothing chest, and sat down on the bed. “I ran into captain Jerdai up there,” he said, “and I asked how he kept the ship safe with all the ice floating around. He pointed to a couple of mages that he pays to keep the ship safe from storms and other stuff.”
“And?”
“I talked to them. They showed me how they keep the boat safe.”
“So you were casting magic with them then?”
Odin nodded. “Yeah,” he said. “It was a lot of fun.”
“I’m glad you found a way to entertain yourself, kid.” Nova paused, sat up, and rubbed his face. “What’d they say about you being there?”
“They said I could come visit them if I wanted to.”
“It sounds like you made a couple of friends.”
Odin reached back to rub his head, not in the least bit sure where the sudden burst of embarrassment had come from. It could’ve been because Nova had a grin plastered over his face, but he didn’t think so. “I guess,” he shrugged.
“Hey, that’s great,” the man laughed, throwing his legs over the side of the bed. “You planning on going and seeing them again?”
“I want to, but I don’t want to leave without Miko’s permission.”
“I don’t think he’d mind. Besides—you’re most likely going to have to wait until Jerdai anchors the ship down for the night. I don’t see how your mage friends could keep the boat safe at night if it was still moving.”
Odin shrugged.
“What’d you say their names were?” Nova asked.
“Iclard and Domnin. They’re brothers.”
“Twins?”
“I doubt that. What brings that up?”
“In my experience, most brothers are so different that they end up splitting away from each other after they become men. That’s why I asked if they were twins.”
“I highly doubt they are. One of them is taller than the other.”
“Ah.” Nova stood, walked to the window, and set a hand on the ice-covered glass. He grimaced before pulling his hand away. “You’ve got balls to be out there in
that.”
“I wasn’t paying attention to the cold.”
“You usually don’t when you’re having fun.”
Odin smiled, but quickly shrugged it off when Nova turned to face him. It soon returned when the man smirked. “What?” he asked, a bit of a laugh in his voice.
“Lucky bastard, you. I wish I had magic. Then
I
could go with you to see those mage brothers.”
“You can come with if you want. I don’t care.”
“Nah. That’s fine. They’re your kind of people, not mine.”
“If you want someone to talk to, you can always go socialize, you know?”
“Yeah, I know. I’m not too great in that department though.”
“Neither am I.”
“Yeah, but you…” Nova stopped. A moment later, he frowned, then sighed. “Guess you’re right. I
should
go try, just not now. I’ll do it later, like when we go down to get dinner or something.”
“All right,” Odin said. “You can still come with me if you want.”
The older man waved his hand at him before settling back down on the bed.
Apparently, he would be visiting the mages by himself.
Later, after he was sure that at least one of the brothers had returned from dinner, Odin knocked on the door and waited patiently for the occupants inside to arrive. Hands in his pockets, head downturned, he stared at the tips of his boots and how their surfaces had managed to hold up all this time until the door opened, after which he returned his head to the world above him and looked on the brother standing in the threshold.
“Odin,” Icklard said. “Come in, come in.”
After stepping through the doorway, Odin turned to examine the younger brother closer. Without the hat and the mouthpiece, he could easily see the lengthened locks of fire-brown hair and the brown birthmark that rested to the right side of his lip—all details that had alluded him previously.
“What brings you here?” the man asked.
“I… I came to visit, if you don’t mind.”
“That’s fine. Here. Sit. I’ve got tea ready.”
Odin settled into one of the armchairs. Icklard poured some tea for himself, then set a cup in front of Odin. “It’s nothing special, really, but it’s good for you.”
“Thank you,” Odin said. Grimacing the moment he sipped the tea, he set it on the table, nodding thanks to Icklard. “Where’s your brother?” he asked.
“Domnin? In the kitchen, I’d assume, helping some of the other men with the dirty dishes.”
“Are you required to help around the ship?”
“No. What we do here pays for the food and the room. Technically, we don’t have to do anything other than make sure the ship stays safe. My brother, though… he tends to like working in the kitchen, but I think that’s because he can eat the last little bit of the fish.”
They laughed. Icklard set his tea down and seated himself in his own chair.
“So, Odin,” Icklard said, setting an elbow on his chair. “You’re here with your knight master, I assume?”
“I am.”
“What brings you out to this ungodly part of the sea?”
“I’m… not so sure. My knight master hasn’t said where we’re going.”
“How come?”
“He wants it to be ‘a surprise.’” Odin made sure to enunciate the words as harshly as he could, fingers raised and all.
“I see,” Icklard smiled. He looked around the room, particularly at the beds in the opposite corners, before returning his eyes to Odin. “Was there anything you wanted to ask me?”
“Actually… well… sort of.”
“Ask anything you want.”
“Jerdai said you’ve been with him since you were my age.”
“That depends on how old you are.”
“I’m sixteen.”
“Ah. Yes. Both me and my brother have been on the ship with Jerdai since we were your age. Well—I was your age, anyway. My brother’s two years older than me. As to our work… it’s the only thing that keeps us alive.”
“Do either of you have families?”
“I have a woman back home, if that’s what you’re asking. God knows I only see her once every few months though. What about you? You have someone back in…”
“Felnon,” Odin said, shaking his head whilst finishing the man’s sentence. “I was at Ornala until just a few months ago. I had some… complications that kept me from seeing much of anyone.”
“No need to explain. That’s your business, not mine.”
“You never mentioned your brother though,” Odin frowned. “What about him? Does he have a wife?”
“Well, no.” Icklard paused. He waited a moment, as if carefully considering his words, then shrugged and smiled. “Let’s just say my brother isn’t one to mingle with the fairer sex.”
“What?”
“You want me to explain it?” Icklard laughed.
“I… don’t exactly understand what you’re saying. Do you mean that he prefers his own company, or—”
“He prefers the company of men, my friend.”
Odin frowned. He couldn’t help but swallow a lump in his throat. “What?” he asked.
“You
really
must’ve led a sheltered life at that castle,” Icklard said, leaning forward to set his hands on his knees. “My brother, as I just said, prefers men over women.”
“Are you serious?”
“I am. He doesn’t go around broadcasting it like public knowledge, but wait up late at night and follow him through the halls. You’ll find he’s in the captain’s room many nights.”
“Is the captain—”
“Oh, no. Jerdai isn’t. Their relationship is… well, let’s just say it isn’t personal beyond what they do behind a closed door.”
Odin chose to remain silent. He kept his eyes to the floor, looked up only when he felt it necessary, and tried to avoid the plain, indifferent gaze Icklard offered him in that moment. Of all the things to do or say during such a conversation, he had to have been offensive—particularly, of course, toward Domnin, whom, judging by dialogue alone, Icklard obviously loved very much. “I’m sorry,” he said, taking a deep breath when he finally felt himself able to look up and face the man in front of him. “I just wanted to get to know the two of you better.”
“There’s no need to apologize. I’m sure my brother would’ve explained if I hadn’t. At least this way, you don’t have to say anything that might accidentally bring this up again.”
“Are you ashamed of him?”
“No,” Icklard said, then blinked, as though incredulous and unable to believe what had just been said. “Why would I be?”
“I just thought… that you might not approve.”
“My brother has his own life—it’s not my job to tell him what he can and can’t do.”
“All right.”
“Does it bother
you,
Odin?”
“No. Why would it?”
“Some men are ignorant,” Icklard said, a brief smile crossing his face as he leaned back in his seat.
After the period of awkward silence that followed, Icklard began to ask about the trip and just what they had seen on the way from Ornala.
“You’re back.”
Odin jumped. After closing the door, he turned to see Miko sitting in an armchair. “I’m sorry for coming back so late, sir.”
“It’s all right. Nova said you were visiting friends.”
“The mages,” Odin replied, stepping further into the room. “Icklard and Domnin.”
“What made you want to visit them?”
“I went up onto the deck earlier and ran into Jerdai. When I saw all the ice and asked him how he kept the boat safe, he pointed to the brothers and said they were mages. I wanted to ask more about what they did, so I went up and talked to them. They showed me how they kept the ice away, asked me to try, then invited me to visit after I dissolved a smaller berg.”
“They didn’t mind your presence?” Miko asked.
“No,” Odin said. “Well…. Icklard didn’t. Domnin wasn’t there.”
“Did you have a nice visit?”
“Yeah. He asked about our trip down to Elna.”
“I’m glad you’ve made some new friends.”
“I am too, sir. I just feel like I wronged you by not asking permission.”
“I wasn’t here until just recently. Nova was waiting up for you, but I told him to go to bed once I returned.”
“He was?”
“He cares about you too, Odin. I’m sure you know that.”
“I do, sir.”
Miko stood, drawing a blanket around his naked torso. “I’m going to bed,” he said, stopping to set a hand on Odin’s shoulder before he could descend to his makeshift bed on the floor. “Don’t feel like you did something wrong in going and visiting friends. My only concern is how you are going to keep contact with them after we leave the ship.”