Page 50 of Found at Sea
“Does Alek know about this?”
“Yes,” I answered, stopping at the door. “I told him of the woman. TheCrimsonis his home, whether you believe it or not. My intentions might’ve been self-serving, but I saved that boy. He’s happy here.”
“I’m not sure he sees it that way,” Fletcher countered, joining me at the door. “Can a man truly be happy in a cage?”
“That depends on what’s outside the cage.”
***
The island was even more beautiful than I remembered. After I’d been cursed years before, I had journeyed there to see the seer. I’d heard of her from other pirates, sailors, and travelers, and I’d been desperate for guidance.
The price of such guidance varied. The one I paid for help about my curse had been a blood offering. She’d cut into my palm and dripped my blood over the bones and jewel she used to see into the spiritual realm. The answer the seer had given me for such an offering had been vague.
“You will find what you seek in the stars,” she’d told me. “Look to them and they will be your guide.”
She had, indeed, helped me. After seeing her, I had begun mapping the stars when I couldn’t sleep. It was why I’d gone to the helm nearly every night and stared up at them. They had eventually led me to Fletcher. Finding him had in turn given me the next piece to breaking my curse.
I wasn’t sure what the seer would require this time, for I needed two answers: how to help Alek and the location of the lost heart of Triton.
We dropped anchor near land, but far enough away so that the hull wouldn’t be damaged by the rocks. The blue water was so clear that I could see the ocean floor. The land was green and thriving with life. It was a haven unlike any other.
A small village set off to the left side of the island, and my men were already speaking of visiting the women who dwelled there—women who eagerly awaited them in turn, if them standing on the beach and waving at us was any indication.
The launch was lowered into the water and the men jumped inside. The ones who couldn’t fit in that one lowered a second before rowing to shore.
I stood on the upper deck, watching them leave. Only a few of them knew my true purpose for visiting the island. Kris caught my eye as he helped row the launch and his furrowed brow told me of his concern.
I gave a curt nod to him before looking toward the main mast where Fletcher stood with Alek. Both men seemed on edge. Not as if I could blame them. They, along with Dax, were going with me.
Kris had wished to accompany us, but since he was my second in command, I’d instructed him to stay with the rest of the crew and keep order amongst them, ensuring that no raiding of the village occurred.
The seer lived in a cave near the eastern shore of the island. We needed to head out soon if we wished to reach it and return before dusk.
Dax joined Alek and Fletcher by the mast, and I took a calming breath before doing the same. I didn’t want them to see my nerves. My confidence would help ease their minds. Magic was unpredictable. Blood magic was even more so.
“Ready to go, Captain?” Dax asked once I was beside them.
“Aye.”
Using the last launch, we left the ship. I helped Dax row as the other two men sat and whispered to each other. Alek looked pale and it seemed as if Fletcher was trying to comfort him.
Bringing Fletcher had been a difficult choice; I hadn’t wanted him to go, because it had the potential to be dangerous, but leaving him alone was out of the question too.
Once on land, we secured the launch on shore before heading toward the wall of trees. The forest stretched as far as the eye could see, and within the density of it laid creatures of all kinds. Some that meant no harm and others that would attack with little warning and tear a man to shreds.
It was part of the journey, of course. A test of sorts. A path taken only by those courageous enough to do so.
Or desperate enough.
Meddling in magic was only for those who were serious about the consequences. There was no life without death, no happiness without first knowing despair, and no pleasure without pain. It was all about balance.
I walked in front of the others, but I was sure to have Fletcher behind me, Alek behind him, and Dax at the rear.
The sun’s light barely reached us, for the branches of the trees stretched outward and connected to others, almost as if it were a barrier to contain the darkness and provide the shadows dominion. My sword was drawn as we moved through the tall grass, and I paid close attention to everything around us: watching for any movement and listening to all sounds.
The peculiar thing was…there weren’t any sounds other than our feet upon the earth.
No birds singing in the trees, no insects buzzing in the shrubs or in the air. It was just quiet. Eerily so. The hairs on the back of my neck stood on end and cold spread through my bones.
