The Mad Voyage of Prince Malock (28 page)

“Too bad none of us are lithomancers,” said Malock.
“We'll keep it anyway. It might be useful later.”

Malock took the stone from Jenur's hand and dropped
it in his left pocket. He could feel its warmth against his thigh,
even through his pants, but all that did was remind him of how cold
the island was and how much he wanted to get off it.

“So ...” said Aseth. “Should we leave now? I mean,
what if there are more guys like him hiding in the treetops?”

“Unlikely,” said Jenur. “I didn't see any in the
trees. Most likely this guy was alone.”

“Still, Aseth has a point,” said Malock. “This ...
whatever he is, probably didn't live alone, unless his ship
happened to crash off the shore of this island and he's the only
survivor. He probably had some friends and when they realize he's
been gone for too long, I bet they'll send some people to go find
him.”

“Are we going to run away, then?” said Kocas. “Just
head back to the ship? Even though there's plenty more game to be
caught and skinned?”

“Of course not,” said Malock. “We're going to go to
the most likely place that these people are located on this
island.”

“Why?” said Jenur. “I'm not afraid of 'em, per se,
but it sounds like we're going to be causing a lot of trouble for
no reason.”

“Because I want to know what secrets this island has
to hide from us,” said Malock. “I'm tired of being afraid of the
unknown. I would at least like to know what is going on here, if
nowhere else.”

“You're the boss,” said Jenur, shrugging again. “But
where
would
this guy's friends be, anyway? There don't seem
to be any villages or towns on this island and I doubt, based on
his coat and equipment, that the guy just lives in the wilderness
like a wild man.”

Malock turned and pointed in the direction of the
ice walls. “That way. If his friends are anywhere on this island,
then they are probably behind those walls. Now let's go.”

***

T
he stillness of the
Iron Wind
had not
done anything to make the ship warmer; if anything, Kinker thought
the ship actually was colder, although that may have just been his
imagination. Of course, he also spent a lot of time by the port,
near the davit, where he could see Stalf. He had seen the hunters
attack the walrus-like creatures and heard several gunshots go off
in the forest, but he didn't know if they were okay now. He knew
better than to worry about Jenur, as she could take care of
herself, but he still found his thoughts straying to her every now
and then.

A cold wind blew off the port just then, causing him
to shiver and bring his jacket up more tightly around his body. Not
much help. The wind from Stalf was so fiercely cold that Kinker
thought he would become an icicle before a refreshing warm breeze
fell over him, like the first day of summer. He closed his eyes and
took in the heat, enjoying it as one might enjoy a fresh-cooked
meal, before hearing something moving behind him.

Kinker opened his eyes and turned around to see
Bifor standing above him. The mage was moving his wand back and
forth, the heat shimmering in the air.

“Thanks, Bifor,” said Kinker, loosening his jacket a
little. “I was wondering where the heat came from.”

“No problem,” said Bifor, his voice etched with
tiredness. “Can I rest here for a bit? I've been working all day
and got maybe only three hours of sleep that night, if that
much.”

“Sure,” said Kinker, gesturing at his right. “Sit
where you please. I don't mind the company.”

Bifor gave him a grateful smile and plopped down on
Kinker's right, with his back against the bulwarks. The mage
lowered his wand and closed his eyes, as though he were asleep.
Nonetheless, the air remained warm and comfortable, even causing
the icicles hanging off the bulwarks to drip.

“I thought you were a pagomancer,” said Kinker,
looking at Bifor. “But you can also control heat.”

Bifor didn't open his eyes, but he replied, “Part of
basic mage training. All mages have a basic grounding in the most
important magical fields. So yes, I do know some pyromancy, but I'm
hardly a master.”

“Ah,” said Kinker. “I see. Just like how you know
repair magic and such?”

Bifor nodded. “Yes.”

“Okay,” said Kinker. “But if you're a pagomancer,
why haven't you used your magic to get the ice off the ship? Surely
you could do that?”

“That's the problem,” said Bifor. “This ice works
very differently from ice back up north. I am not quite sure what
the problem is, but for whatever reason, the coldness around Stalf
does not feel like magic or nature. It feels artificial.”

“Artificial,” said Kinker. “What do you mean?”

“Like something is generating it,” said Bifor. “That
may just be me, though.”

Kinker shrugged. “I don't know a thing about magic,
to be honest, so I don't think I can help you here. At least your
fire magic still works, though, eh?”

“True,” said Bifor. “And for that I am grateful. Why
are you standing here, anyway, Kinker? Waiting for the hunters to
come home?”

“Mostly,” said Kinker. “There's not much for me or
the rest of the fishing crew to do until the ship starts moving
again. Can't do any fishing or anything.”

“I see,” said Bifor. “Well, you got it lucky. Banika
has been ordering me about all day. Only managed to get away from
her because she finally decided to give me a break.”

Kinker glanced over his shoulder. Banika was
standing near the mainmast, overseeing a group of sailors who were
attempting to clear the ice and snow off the stays. Though she
spoke in a low tone, the sailors appeared to have no trouble
following or understanding her orders.

“I've never understood Banika,” said Kinker,
returning his attention to Stalf. “Why is she Malock's first mate?
Why does he trust her so much, perhaps only second to Vashnas?”

“I have no idea,” said Bifor. “Heard some rumors she
was in the Carnagian Navy. Worked as a captain of the
Grinf's
Justice
.”

“The
Grinf's Justice
?” said Kinker. “What's
that?”

Bifor opened his eyes and looked at Kinker. “Oh,
that's right. I keep forgetting you're from Destan. Well, the
Grinf's Justice
was the flagship of the Carnagian Navy, also
doubling as a pleasure ship for the royal family. Biggest and best
ship ever constructed in the Northern Isles, or so the announcement
said when she was finished. Had a hundred guns and could hold a
crew up to about five hundred, not counting the extra three hundred
or so passengers she could hold. Was a beauty.”

“You're talking about it in the past tense,” said
Kinker. “Do you mean to say that it's no longer around
anymore?”

“More or less,” said Bifor with a shrug. “She sailed
fine for five years, but sank off the coast of Carnag when on a
return voyage. The exact cause of the sinking is still not known,
but it is believed that a ship saboteur hired by some rival nation
had sunk her in an attempt to kill the entire royal family of
Carnag, who were aboard the ship at the time. No one found any
proof, though, not even after a team of aquamancers hired by Carnag
investigated the wreckage.”

“Did anyone die in the sinking?” Kinker asked.

“The entire royal family made it out alive,” said
Bifor. “But a good chunk of the crew and passengers all died. Most
of their bodies were recovered from the wreckage, but they were
mostly unrecognizable, so they were all given a mass burial at sea,
sort of like the ones we do here, in fact.”

“Hmm,” said Kinker, turning to face Bifor, leaning
against the bulwarks with one elbow. “Sure seems like Carnagian
ships have a habit of sinking, don't it?”

“If you are referring to the rest of the fleet on
this voyage, then yes, it is a disturbing trend,” said Bifor. “But
we've only lost so many ships thanks to freak accidents no one
could have predicted, such as the mishandling of the gunpowder in
the hold of
Our Beloved Lady
, or when a previously dormant
volcano exploded and sunk the Cat's Hook—things no one expects to
happen but do anyway.”

“Are you sure that those aren't the result of some
ship saboteurs on board, trying to make this voyage a failure?”
said Kinker.

Bifor sat up straighter and looked Kinker straight
in the eye. “No, I do not believe so. Why?”

Kinker shrugged. “Admittedly, my understanding of
international politics is very limited and probably incorrect, but
it seems to me that Carnag must have some political rivals who for
whatever reason would not want to see this voyage completed.”

Bifor snorted. “As if. It's true that Carnag has
some enemies, but in recent years Carnag has been making peace with
many of its former enemies in an attempt to prevent another war
from breaking out. And so far, all of the peace negotiations have
gone smoothly, even with such hated enemies as the Shikans.”

“But you said that Carnag still has some enemies,”
said Kinker. “Who might these be?”

“Off the top of my head, I'd say that the Shikans
are still our worst enemies,” said Bifor. “Despite the recent
advances in peace negotiations we've made, they still have a rather
negative opinion of us. And we, too, have a rather negative opinion
of those boot-haters.”

“Why?” said Kinker. “What caused this hate between
you Carnagians and the Shikans?”

Bifor sighed. “That's a rather long story I don't
really want to get into right now.”

“I'm listening,” said Kinker. “Don't have anything
else to do at the moment, anyway.”

“All right,” said Bifor. “It started back in—”

Bifor was interrupted when, without warning, a
massive water spout burst out of Stalf Bay. The water shot high
into the air, well above the highest mast of the
Iron Wind
,
and fell back into the ocean with a loud splash.

Kinker and Bifor looked out into Stalf Bay,
surprised.

“What was that?” said Kinker. “A giant whale or
something?”

Bifor got to his feet and peered over the bulwarks
into the part where the water spout had blown up. “No. The Bay is
too shallow for a whale to get there.”

“Then what—”

A low rumbling in the Bay caused the entire ship to
shake. Kinker and Bifor grabbed onto the railings to avoid falling
over, while a few nearby sailors fell over onto their behinds as a
result. The surface of the water was bubbling, huge bubbles that
instantly popped in the air, and then a large, round black object
began to arise from the bubbles. Water cascaded down its large
shoulders as the creature rose to its full height.

The monster looked similar to the baba raga that had
been lying on Stalf's shores a few hours ago, except as big as the
ship. Not only that, but its huge eyes gleamed with intelligence
... intelligence, and hunger. Its large front tusks looked large
enough to rip straight through the hull of the
Iron Wind
,
while its snout sniffed the air as though trying to determine where
it was.

“What in Kano's name is that?” said Kinker, pointing
at the giant monster in fear.

The giant baba raga let out a low growl, prompting
Kinker to take a step back. Bifor, however, didn't seem frightened
by the noise.

“It's calling someone,” said Bifor. “Or multiple
someones, perhaps.”

By now, the rest of the crew had gathered nearby to
see the giant monster, but Kinker paid them no attention. “How do
you know that it's calling others?”

“Because back in the North Academy, I had to take a
course on the behavioral patterns of baba raga before I could
graduate,” Bifor said, his eyes fixated on the giant before them.
“When a baba raga is angry, it lets out a low growl that other baba
raga nearby will immediately understand to be a cry for help.”

“A cry for help?” said Kinker. “What does that thing
need help for? Looks strong enough to kill us on its own.”

“Maybe it's not a cry for help at all,” said Bifor,
his voice full of dawning realization. “Maybe it's actually an
order to attack.”

Without warning, the
Iron Wind
rocked again,
not as badly as last time, but still enough to force Kinker's
knuckles to turn white over the tops of the bulwarks. When it
steadied again, Kinker looked overside and saw a dozen or so baba
raga rapidly climbing the side of the ship, moving faster than
their bulk should have let them, their flippers clinging to the
sides thanks to the suction cups underneath them.

In fact, the baba raga moved so fast that Kinker had
to step back, again almost slipping over the icy deck, just as the
first beast stuck its head over the side and let out a terrifying
roar. It was followed by eleven of its brothers, their flippers
slapping against the frozen deck and their tusks slicing through
the air. Forced to retreat, Kinker and Bifor found themselves at
the mainmast, where the rest of the crew had backed up. Behind
them, another dozen or so baba raga had climbed over the starboard,
effectively trapping the crew between them.

The baba raga did not yet go in for the kill. They
circled the sailors, making deep growling noises, baring their
teeth and enormous tusks, and generally acting threatening. The
sailors were mostly unarmed, but even if they had been armed,
Kinker doubted they would have been able to do much against these
beasts.

Then the giant baba raga's tongue—long, pink, and
slimy—shot out of its mouth and wrapped tightly around the
Iron
Wind
's mizzenmast. Like snapping a twig off a tree, the monster
tore the mainmast, beam and all, off its foundations, sending bits
of wood and metal flying through the air and causing the entire
crew to duck to avoid being hit.

The giant baba raga rolled the mainmast up to its
mouth and then threw it over the ship. The mainmast fell into the
ocean with a loud splash, sending ice cold water splashing onto the
second group of baba raga, which didn't seem to bother them at
all.