Page 107 of King of Storms and Feathers

“Ah, here she is,” boomed the captain, his tentacles writhing with glee as he watched me approach flanked by Jarl and Handsome, their blades digging into my sides.

Loligos stretched his arm toward me. “Your Regent’s precious cargo cometh. What do you think of her, Earth soldiers? Pretty little viper, no?”

“Indeed,” answered a man who was dressed in a navy uniform trimmed with gold piping that matched the armor covering his chest and shoulders. “She is exactly as you described. The Regent will be pleased.”

Ten bags that contained either coin or gold feathers were unloaded from a covered cart on the dock and dropped at Loligos’s feet. A sailor opened the sacks and verified the contents with a sharp nod. The captain grinned like he’d just been served a juicy baby whale for his dinner.

“She’s all yours,” said Loligos as Jarl pushed me into the human soldier’s arms.

As two of the men stepped forward and replaced the rope around my wrists with shackles and chain, Loligos drew on his cigar, then blew smoke in my face. “She claims to have no memories, but has all the pluck you’d expect for her type, so watch her closely or she’ll cut your kidneys out and eat them while you sleep. Good luck, human. Give the Regent my regards, won’t you?”

In a fond gesture of goodbye, I spat on the captain’s boot. The Earth Realm soldier’s slap sent my head reeling to the side. While I rubbed the sting from my cheek with the back of my hand, he dragged me across the plank and onto dry land, where I swayed on the dock next to a cart and five tethered horses.

“I’m Sonail, by the way.”

“Impressive backhand,” I said.

He grunted and dumped me on the cart bench seat. After he got comfortable next to me, he checked the handcuffs and chain lying in my lap, then picked up the horse’s reins.

The four other men mounted heavily muscled steeds, moving them into position. One at the front of the cart, two on either side, and one at the rear.

Even restrained and unarmed, the Earth soldiers correctly viewed me as a flight risk.

I turned to Sonail and took his measure. Middle-aged, with reddish-brown hair tied neatly behind his head, he looked fit, strong, and despite the straggly beard growing in below his scarred cheeks, neat and orderly. Dark narrowed eyes stared back at me.

“And I’m Leaf,” I said in a mocking tone. “Pleased to meet you.”

“Leaf, is it? I don’t think so.” He shouted at the horse, lashing it into motion with a long whip.

“With only one horse to draw your cart, you might want to treat it better,” I suggested.

He laughed. “Varlys is strong and the cart light. If I was you, I wouldn’t waste my energy worrying about a horse. You’ve got bigger problems ahead, Leaf.”

We set off at a brisk pace, soon clearing moonlit coastal dunes, then traveling along rough roads that cut through a hilly landscape marred by strange shadows. The air was cooler here than in the Light Realm, and the sounds were different, too. Instead of the haunting calls of night hawks and owls, wolves bayed from different directions, coordinating their night’s hunt.

Without warning, two of these hungry creatures shot out of the darkness, snarling as they attacked one of the horse’s legs. A wolf yelped, kicked away by beating hooves, and Sonail whipped out a pistol and dealt with the other, the shot echoing through the wasteland and bouncing off nearby hills.

“So, this is the Earth Realm,” I muttered to myself. “What a hospitable place.”

“I’m glad you like it,” my companion replied. “It is your home, after all. The wolves are hungry. And like them, you’d probably bite my fingers off the first chance you got, wouldn’t you?”

“No doubt. But then I’d spit them out and crush them under my boot. I’d rather starve than task my gut with digesting your rotting flesh.”

“Charming,” Sonail replied.

“As are you.”

He sighed so hard he nearly choked on his saliva, and I had to swallow my laughter or risk angering him further.

“Speaking of food, what are my chances of getting something to eat and drink soon? Or are you hoping I’ll perish along the way to wherever you’re taking me?”

“If you’ll be quiet, I’ll make sure you’re fed and watered when we make camp. If not, then perhaps I will let you perish. It’s not a bad idea.”

“You know, Sonail, it really bothers me that you don’t care whether I make it to our destination alive or dead.”

He shrugged. “I might be bluffing. You really have no idea where we’re going?” he asked.

Light from the rising sun revealed a lightly treed, softly undulating landscape that I was sad to find completely foreign to me.

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