Tides of Faith: Travail of The Dark Mage Book Two (79 page)

Seven of Kendrick’s men hopped over
the rail to the other ship and rushed into the larger of the two
warehouses. They emerged a short time later with a large rolled-up
sail.

“
Here he is,” Scar said and
nudged a reluctant Captain Anyn forward.

“
Uh, how may I be of
service?”

James waved him forward and held up
his mirror. The captain’s eyes widened as he saw the situation
unfold upon the docks of Tearlan.

“
Corillian has fallen,”
James explained, “as has Port May. Tearlan is next.” The scene
shifted to ships locked in battle. “Warlord Azkimal is putting up a
good fight,” a beam of golden light bored a hole through the side
of one of the warlord’s ships, “but as you can see, it is in vain.
The enemy is much too powerful for him to prevail.

“
We’ve encountered ships in
this area so it is safe to assume that their intentions entail far
more than simply taking over a few island cities.”

The captain nodded.

“
Do you have any idea who
they are?”

The captain shook his head, “No. The
cut of their ships is different than anything that sails these
waters.”

One of the captain’s crew stepped
forward. “Might they be the Farlanders, Captain?”

“
Bah,” Captain Anyn replied
dismissively, “they are but a legend.”

“
Legend?” queried James. He
eyed the captain.

“
It’s an old seaman tale
like women who swim under the waves and giant leviathans that
swallow ships whole.”

“
In light of the mysterious
origins of these ships,” Miko interjected, “this legend may have
some basis.”

Captain Anyn flashed the sailor an
annoyed look, then turned to James. “There isn’t much to the legend
other than that far beyond the end of the world, where the sea
ends, there lies a land of seafaring people.

“
Every now and again, a
tale will surface of a ship being sighted far out to sea on the
horizon’s edge just as the dawn breaks only to vanish once the sun
rises free of the water. Superstitious nonsense if you ask
me.”

James eyed the captain and the sailor.
“Is that all?”

They both nodded.

“
Scar,” James said, “you
and Potbelly question the other sailors and see if any knows
something more.”

“
Think this could be
them?”

He turned to Jiron. “It’s likely.
Ships different than those in commission here; sailors and priests
bearing an insignia no one recognizes; and a magical device that is
unlike anything else we know… A far away land looks to be the most
likely probability. If any of this had been developed anywhere near
here, someone would have gotten wind of it before now. Distance is
the only answer for such secrecy.”

“
Smoke!” came the cry from
the Crow’s Nest.

“
Where away?”

Before the sailor could answer, the
black plume appeared off the port side and some distance ahead. The
ship had been one of Warlord Halim’s from the looks of her. It
listed badly and there was not a sign of life either on the ship or
in the water.

“
Looks like they got
another,” murmured Shorty.

“
They’ll have a lot more
before they are through I’d wager,” Scar replied.

Potbelly watched the smoke rise and
asked, “Through with what?”

“
Don’t care right now,”
James replied. “All that matters is reaching our families and
ensuring their safety.”

“
And taking out anyone that
stands in our way.”

James turned to Jiron and saw the grim
set of his eyes. “Agreed.”

“He’ll live,” Father Vickor announced
as he rejoined the others.

“That is good news,” Miko
replied.

Captain Anyn and another sailor helped
the one that Tinok had nearly slain to the crew
quarters.

Scar and Potbelly
approached.

“No one knows anything more about the
Farlanders,” Scar said.

James nodded from where he
sat cross-legged looking into his mirror. The
Melia’s Dream
now had their newly
acquired mainsail in place and was making good time. Four other
ships had joined Kendrick in his bid for freedom. Three were
merchantmen while the fourth was a small private yacht fairly
bursting at the seams with people.

The enemy had completely wiped out
Warlord Azkimal’s ships and now held complete mastery of the waters
surrounding Corillian and the island’s southern half.

To the west, Warlord Halim’s navy
still fought but were quickly being overwhelmed. It wouldn’t be
long until all opposition had been dealt with.

“He’s making for the top of the
island,” James announced.

“Hoping to get to Cardri I’d imagine,”
Jiron said.

Per James’ instructions,
Captain Anyn had altered course to intercept the
Melia’s Dream
after it
makes the turn at the island’s tip in the vicinity of the Isle of
Carut. They were still a couple hours away.

After taking another scan of the area
between where Kendrick and the others were and the Isle of Carut to
ensure there were no enemy ships in the vicinity, James checked the
water from the Isle to him. Not finding any, he gave a relieved
sigh and canceled the magic.

“Almost there.”

Jira gave her uncle a hug. “Mother’s
going to be so happy.”

“Or mad,” Scar jested. “Never know
with a woman.”

Potbelly laughed. “You got that right.
Remember that time over in Karnellian? We saved that wench from the
soul sucking lotus demon, as well as reunited her with her long
lost twin sister that she never knew she had, and yet she was still
mad at us for her having missed tea with her mother.”

“Well,” argued Scar, “we never did
really adequately prove that her father was the lotus demon and
that was why we had to kill him. She could have been put off a bit
because of that.”

“Perhaps.”

James ignored them and gave Jira a
hug. “I can’t wait.”

“Me neither.”

Getting to his feet, he walked over to
where Azhan and Hikai worked to keep the sails full.

“You boys okay?”

“Yes, Master,” Azhan replied. “Hikai
is helping.”

James patted his newest apprentice on
the shoulder. “Good. It should only be a couple more hours. Will
you be able to maintain the winds until them?”

“Not a problem, Master,” Azhan
boasted.

He thought that having an apprentice
or two might not be a bad thing as he went to see how Father Vickor
and Eddra were doing.

Eddra lay bundled beneath many
blankets to ward off the chill borne upon the sea air. Father
Vickor sat next to her holding her hand. The swelling surrounding
the one eye was all but gone. Her other tracked him as he
approached.

“How is she doing?”

“Better,” the priest replied. “Her
strength is improving and she gains lucidity daily…”

“Glad to hear it.”

“Any idea if she knows anything about
the shimmering field?”

Father Vickor shook his head. “I doubt
it though all Azhan’s attempts at questioning turned up nothing. I
don’t have the feeling that she is anything more than an old woman
wrongfully accused of being ill-favored.”

James knelt before her and patted the
back of her hand. In a soft, kindly voice he said, “Do not worry,
we will see that you are well taken cared of.”

He doubted she understood what he
said, but her face lit up ever so slightly and the corners of her
mouth rose almost imperceptibly.

Patting her hand once more, he smiled
reassuringly, then stood. To Father Vickor he said, “Let me know if
anything changes or if you need anything.”

“I will.”

Jiron stood at the rail with his
daughter. They stared eastward to the horizon, vainly hoping to see
sails bringing their loved one closer.

“Will still be a couple hours,” James
said as he joined them.

“I know,” Jiron said.

“Mother is fine, isn’t she Uncle?”
Jira asked.

“She is,” he assured her. “I am sure
she will be even more so when you are once again with
her.”

Jira grinned. “I can’t
wait.”

James turned his gaze to the far
horizon ahead of them. “I can’t either, Jira. I can’t
either.”

The following hours passed agonizingly
slow. His mirror showed that Kendrick kept on course and finally
turned due west at the top of the island. Ever worried for their
safety, James scrolled the image in search of enemy ships. The only
ones near the island were to the south and unlikely to pose a
threat. A few could be but they appeared intent on patrolling
rather than hunting for those in flight.

Port May now lay completely under the
enemy’s control and the forces heading for Tearlan had arrived. The
city’s garrison and watch manned the defenses but once the magical
devices came into play, it ended quickly.

“They’re going to have the whole
island in a day or two,” Scar commented.

“Looks like it,” agreed
James.

Potbelly spat. “Think they will move
on the mainland?”

“Most likely. The island would make a
good staging area from which to launch an assault.” In the mirror,
a lone warship fled before three of the enemy’s ships; golden beams
tore it apart. “Especially if they control the seas which it looks
very much like they will.”

“Land off the port bow!”

James hurried to the port side and
looked ahead. “Must be Za’im.” He turned to Jiron. “It’s a small
island famous for its olives.”

“Are we close to mother now?” Jira
asked excitedly.

“Less than an hour I would guess,”
James replied. He pulled out his mirror and checked.

Kendrick and his ships had passed the
Isle of Carut and were now tracking more northwest than west. Two
others had joined them.

“Have Captain Anyn turn a few degrees
to the north,” James instructed Scar.

“On it,” he replied as he turned and
hurried to the rear of the boat where the captain stood with
several of his men. In short order, the orders had been given and
the ship angled more toward Za’im so as to pass close to its
southern shoreline.

Scanning to the south revealed a
patchwork of sails scattered throughout the area as merchants and
citizens fled in ships of all sizes. Most were heading toward the
mainland; the others sailed in every direction from north to
west.

Za’im bustled with activity. While not
under immediate attack, those living there wasted not a minute in
fleeing. Docks were filled with people and ships packed to standing
room only headed out to sea. Where the exodus from Port May and
Tearlan had been little more than a panicked, out of control mob as
likely to sink and destroy those seeking to save them, Za’im
remained somewhat orderly. Guards stationed at the docks kept the
evacuation on track.

One large merchantman with railings
lined with people came alongside.

“Where are they coming from?” their
captain shouted to Captain Anyn.

“
South,” he replied. “Head
west and north.”

The other captain nodded, shouted
wishes for speed and luck, then hollered for sails to be lowered as
he turned to put the islands behind him.

“Is he right?”

James turned to Shorty.

“Heading west I mean,” the knifer
explained.

Shrugging, James said, “I don’t know.
Maybe.”

In the mirror, he brought
their ship into focus, then zoomed outward for a large aerial view
of the surrounding waters. It took a few minutes to pinpoint
the
Melia’s Dream
among the rest of the fleeing ships.

“That’s them,” he said, tapping the
mirror. Then his finger moved. “And we’re here.” It looked like
they were on the right course to intercept them somewhere north of
Za’im.

“Not too much longer,” Jiron
said.

“I wouldn’t be surprised if their
sails come into view in the next five or ten minutes.”

Centering the image on
the
Melia’s Dream
,
James zoomed in until the ship came into sharp clarity.

“There’s Mother!” Jira exclaimed
excitedly.

Aleya stood with Melina and Kenny near
the ship’s wheel where Kendrick and another captain stood
conferring.

“Shall we let them know we’re coming?”
James asked her.

Her eyes got wide. “Can
we?”

He glanced to Jiron. “Might be close
enough. I’ll see what I can do.”

Gathering magic to him, he
concentrated on the ship’s deck near where Kenny played.