Tides of Faith: Travail of The Dark Mage Book Two (74 page)

“If they know that,
uh,
you
are taking
an interest her care and well-being, I would think any place would
treat her with the utmost consideration,” Shorty said.

“While I am in the area, perhaps,”
James replied. “But I shall worry about that when we get there. For
now,” he glanced to where the bard from the night before was
setting up over in the corner,” let’s enjoy good food, good music,
and good company.”

“In that order,” quipped
Scar.

Laughing, James nodded and flagged
down a server.

They woke with the sun the following
morning, had a hearty breakfast and then put Zixtyn behind them.
Several days of hard riding later, the unmistakable odor of the sea
wafted upon the breeze. Not long after that came the acrid smell of
sulfuric fumes emitted by the newly formed chain of volcanoes off
the coast where the Sorna Iron Mines used to be. Then when the road
crested a hill and the oceanic panorama came into view, they saw
more than one smoke-emitting cone rising from the water far off in
the distance.

“This brings back memories,” Jiron
mumbled, then glanced to James who nodded.

“Not good ones, either.”

“You did what you had to,” Miko said,
“And I thank you for it.”

Even after the years since the war,
the aftermath of the tsunamis that had wracked the coastline was
still evident. Debris washed upon hillsides, partially destroyed
buildings that had never been repaired, and even a shattered boat
where no boat had a business being.

Their road ended at the main trade
route that ran up and down the coast. A small town sprawled across
the junction, most of the buildings were those that catered to
travelers. A dock with three small ships stretched out over the
water.

“Think any of those would do?” James
asked.

“The two-masted one might get us to
Corillian,” Scar said, “but we’d have better luck down in Tiru
Stali.”

“We can ask around and see if she’s
available,” Potbelly suggested.

“Do that.” James glanced to the Pit
Masters. “If it is, see if they will trade passage for our extra
mounts.”

They took Tinok with them
to see about the two-masted ship while James and the rest went
to
The Spray Queen
, an inn and eatery just off the dock. Scar and Potbelly
arrived a few minutes after they had sat down and
ordered.

“The captain said he could take us,”
Scar announced.

“For our horses?” James
asked.

“Yes. And he has a small cargo area
that can hold a horse for each of us,” he explained.
“Barely.”

Jiron said, “It might be better to see
what is available in Tiru Stali.”

James shook his head. “I want to get
there as soon as possible,” he insisted. “I won’t be at ease until
my family is safe with me.”

“Then we need to get an early start,”
Potbelly said. “The captain wants to sail with the tide and that’s
before sunrise.” He flagged down their server, a buxom young girl
with a lilt in her step.

“Ale,” he hollered, “and keep it
coming.”

“Yes, sir,” she said and hurried to
the bar.

It felt good to get off the road.
James enjoyed the food, the company, and the bard that strolled
through the dining area playing a lute. But he was anxious to see
how Meliana was doing. Each night and morning, he along with Jiron,
Jira, and his two apprentices when he wasn’t paying close enough
attention, would gather around his mirror. It had become a regular
ritual, one that this evening was already overdue.

Once sated and full of roast beef and
assorted vegetables, James stood and asked, “Shall we check on the
family?”

Jiron nodded and motioned for Jira to
rise. She hopped up with a grin, eager to see her mother
again.

Leaving the others in the common room,
they ascended the stairs to the second level where their room was
located. Their window overlooked a local bazaar; the sound of
merchants hawking their wares wafted upon the evening
breeze.

A small table sat to one side. James
pulled his mirror out unwrapped it and set the mirror upon
it.

Jira hovered in close, her hands
gripping the table’s edge in excited anticipation.

“What do you think she’s
doing?”

“Probably missing you, I would
imagine.”

“I can’t wait to see how excited she
will be to see us.”

Jiron patted her on the head. “Neither
can I.”

The image coalesced and they found
Aleya strolling through the garden. Meliana and Kenny accompanied
her. Dressed in black, they made a sad picture.

“I wish we could be there tomorrow,”
she stated.

Without taking his eyes from the scene
unfolding in the mirror, James said, “We will be there soon
enough.”

Early the following morning, long
before the sun even thought about peeking over the horizon, they
were at the dock.

“Hello the ship!” Scar
hollered.

A rather short man of obvious northern
stock came to the rail and looked down; his gaze could still an
ocean swell.

“Captain Anyn,” Scar said.

For a second the captain silently
stared at them, then asked, “The fellow from last night wanting
passage?”

Scar nodded. “That is correct.” He
gestured to where Shorty and Kip stood with the horses to be used
for their fare. “We brought the horses.”

Captain Anyn turned and hollered,
“Cal, take the horses to Master Azzan.”

“Yes, Sir,” replied a wiry youth of
little more than thirteen summers. He hurried down the gangplank
and with Kip and Shorty’s aid, led the horses away.

Scar started toward the gangplank with
his horse when the captain said, “My crew will see to your horses
and packs. Leave what you do not wish to carry on the dock and they
will get them stowed away. Then come aboard.”

“Ok, Captain.”

“Scar,” Jiron said in a quiet aside,
“you, Potbelly and Tinok keep an eye on things.” When the Pit
Master turned to him, he added, “Make sure nothing
gets…misplaced.”

“Right.”

James was already on the gangplank
followed by Miko and his priests escorting a wobbly
Eddra.

“Thank you, Captain,” he said as he
came aboard.

The captain’s gaze came full upon him.
“You’re the one in charge?”

“I am.”

“Just keep your people out of our way
and we’ll get you where you need to go.”

Nodding, James asked, “Will
do.”

Grunting, the captain turned and
resumed barking orders to his crew.

An open and unbustling area fore of
the foremast looked to be a good place to stay out of the way. They
asked a crewmember for blankets for their elderly companion and the
lad returned with an armful. Not entirely the cleanest, but they
were better than the hard deck for Eddra’s poor old bones. Once
nestled in them, she fell quickly asleep.

Jira moved to the rail opposite the
dock and looked down at the dark water.

“What you looking for?

She looked up to her uncle and
grinned, then shrugged.

James chuckled and tousled her hair.
“I was, and still am, the same way.”

The crew was efficient in the stowing
of their horses and belongings. One at a time they were blindfolded
then led up the gangplank. Working them into the hold was trickier
but in short order, they were stored and secured. Then came Eddra’s
carriage. While the faintest hint foreshadowing the dawn that was
to come broke in the east, the crew cast off the mooring lines. A
single sail unfurled to catch the early morning breeze and the ship
eased its way from the dock.

Orders were shouted and men hopped to
it. As they made their way to deeper water, crewmen lowered
additional sails and the ship leapt forward.

Standing at the bow, James faced full
into the wind, the spray from breaking waves harkened him back to a
time long ago. On a ferry crossing San Francisco Bay during an
outing with his grandparents. He smiled to himself at the memory of
that summer day, then chuckled. How he had frozen.

“Bring a jacket,” his
grandfather had told him.

He rolled his eyes at the
absurd thought. In Haveston it was over ninety degrees; why in the
world would he need a jacket? The last thing he wanted to do was to
carry a jacket around while they toured Alcatraz. He had thought
they were crazy…and he froze.

When wearing shorts and a
t-shirt, a cup of cocoa did little to ward off the chill when faced
with a cold, spray-laced breeze. It took little time before he was
shaking and teeth began to chatter. Seeking shelter within the
small viewing cabin made little difference as half the windows were
open and the door failed to close properly.

The fact that the sun’s
warm rays lay behind a layer of clouds only compounded his misery.
Finding a spot with only intermittent breezes, he drank his cocoa
and vowed to never again treat advice from his grandparents with
disdain.

“Cold?”

He turned to find a man in
his early thirties, slightly balding under his ball cap and wearing
a very warm looking dark-blue jacket.

James nodded.
“Yeah.”

“Life lessons are hard to
live through, but worth it in the end.”

“What?” he asked,
confused. “What are you talking about?”

The man shrugged. “Just
making conversation. Helps to keep your mind off the fact you’re
freezing your butt off.”

James rolled his eyes as
his teeth chattered. “Not helping.”

Swells coursing across the
bay made the boat lurch to and fro. James held onto the back of a
seat to keep steady.

The man pointed off to the
west.

“Storm coming
in.”

Dark clouds filled the
horizon.

“Not a good day to be
without a jacket, boy.”

“Yeah, I figured that out
already.”

Chuckling, the man nodded.
“There are times when everything you know says to do one thing, you
later find to your dismay that you should have done another.”
Seeing James’ cocoa cup empty, the man handed him
another.

“Thank you.” Holding it
just beneath his chin, James reveled in the warmth steaming up
across his face. His shivers subsided.

“Welcome.”

He took a sip. “What do
you mean, do another?”

“Simply that you should
have been prepared for what was to come,” the man replied, “but you
were not. And now you are paying the price.”

“How was I to know I would
freeze?”

The man shot him an
annoyed look. “Your grandfather said to bring a jacket. Yet you
didn’t.”

“But it was hot back
home.”

“So? Don’t you trust your
grandfather?”

“Of course I
do.”

“Yet not enough to take
his advice, advice he repeated several times.”

James had no response to
that. He wasn’t about to admit being stubborn and stupid, no matter
how apparent.

“How was I to
know?”

“How indeed…”

“Ok,” James said, “I
should have listened to him.”

“That’s obvious, now. But
do such revelations, after the fact, help you in any
way?”

“Not really.”

The ship’s horn sounded
indicating they were approaching the dock.

“You better hurry and
rejoin your family,” the man said.

James looked around and
saw his grandparents moving toward the disembarkation
area.

“May you find someone that
will have a jacket to loan you.” When James turned toward the man,
the man tapped the window. “The storm is almost upon
us.”

Rain droplets dotted the
glass. Far off in the distance flashed a bolt of
lightning.

“It looks to be a real
frog-strangler.”

A tug upon his elbow and an excited
cry of glee brought him back to the here and now.

“Uncle!” Jira cried as she pointed to
the water below. “Look, dolphins!”

For a moment the memory held onto him,
but quickly released its hold. “Yes, Jira,” he said, head clearing.
He watched them cavort and play in the bow wave.

He hadn’t thought about that trip for
a long time. He could go for a cup of cocoa right about
then.

Jiron joined them at the rail next to
Jira.

“Captain said we would be three days
to Corillian.”

James nodded. “Can’t wait to be
there.”

“Mama’s going to be so
happy!”

Jiron patted his daughter’s head. “I’m
sure she will.”