Chapter 170: Nereida’s voyage
Nereida watched as her daughter flinched at being called an “auntie”. It was a small movement, almost nothing, and she was only half certain she’d seen it at all. She did not dare call attention to it, not here among strangers beneath unfamiliar banners. Would the cream and blue pennants that hung about the edges have been Epelda’s colours in another life? It was clear her sister had some rank, though no titles had been exchanged even now.
“It would please us if you’d stay the night,” Kevlin said, his smile welcoming and his eyes shining brightly in the warm firelight. “My guest room is well furnished and is likely warmer and more comfortable than a ship’s bed.” Nereida started to answer, when she saw a far-away look in Aella’s eyes.
“I can only see shadows creeping across the sea.” Aella spoke quietly, staring at the ceiling. Her voice was too high, too tight.
“What troubles her?” Kevlin asked, his eyes narrowing. “Sorcery?” His eyes flickered to Nereida for a moment before they went back to Epelda.
“My mother is Moon-blooded,” Epelda signed, her motions sharp, almost angry. She made a point of putting a hand on Nereida’s shoulder, a familiar, protective gesture.
“Sorcery, then. Just her own.” He shrugged and leaned back, taking a sip of his tea which had to be cold by now. Nereida’s own cup was long emptied.
“The shadows creep and creep like bugs in the night.” Aella continued, heedless of the conversation around her. Her hands moved to swat and scratch her arms as if she were covered by them. Her eyes were glowing with a soft, white light now. Their hosts scrambled back, Kevlin throwing himself between Aella and his lover protectively.
Aella began speaking, and it sounded as if she were two speaking in unison, one high tone, one lower. Aella and Moon together. Nereida’s stomach dropped as she listened.
“Moon and Ocean awakened and free at last
Shining brighter than the Stars, healing painful past
The time of the wheel’s turn comes sooner than tomorrow.
Blood woke the first Sleeper, beneath grief and sorrow.
Bone woke the second Sleeper, an offering born of pain
Love woke the third Sleeper, consummated in rain.
Fire woke the fourth Sleeper, reborn of scions’ hand
Time passed as she is wont to do; and darkness now covers dawn.
Shadow thrashes painfully, tortured by his spawn.
Breath must wake the Fifth sleeper, song of the last stand
Gold must wake the Sixth sleeper, from head, from mouth and hand.
To six sleepers, one calls for aid, recover now his blood.
When Scions eight must stand against the flood
Devastation or salvation.
Peace or Pain.
War or Protection.
Son or Stranger.”
Her prophecy complete, Aella dropped like a stone. Epelda reached her first, catching the admiral before she could crack her skull against the stone flooring. Epelda made a desperate little sound as she gave Aella a gentle shake. Nereida knelt on the floor beside her wife, holding her hand. Aella’s fingers were icy cold, but the fingers closed around Nereida’s after a moment. Relief flooded Nereida as she used her free hand to move a stray hair off Aella’s face. Behind them, the sylph were having a rapid conversation, but Nereida could not be bothered to take her eyes off Aella to follow it. She kissed her wife’s head, whispering her name softly, until Aella’s eyes fluttered open at last. She’d been unconscious less than five minutes, but it was the longest she’d been out after a prophecy. Her skin was pale and clammy.
“Love?” Aella asked. She looked around, clearly confused and tried to sit up. She eventually made it to sitting, but only with Epelda’s wiry arms supporting her. “Was I poisoned?”
“No,” Nereida soothed. “You dropped a rhyming prophecy.” Aella made a face like a toddler who’d eaten a lemon.
“It’s worse when they rhyme,” Aella grumbled. “I never remember the rhyming ones.” She shook her head, as if to clear it, before she put her weight on the nearest chair to stand up. She was weak as a newborn kitten, her legs trembling, her arms no better, but she did manage to stand after a long moment.
The hosts stood when she did. They began to sign something, but Aella cut them off.
“I have no desire to dance political nonsense after that,” she said. Epelda, translated, her hands going quickly. Nereida made a note to praise the girl for her diplomatic thinking. The local language, not the market language, was the best to use in any diplomatic setting. “So, cards on the table. Dragons are real, the moon-blooded are back, prophecies are back, real and a pain in the backside.” She rubbed her back. Epelda smirked, but kept translating. “The demons use the blood of their dragon to make themselves stronger, which is why they are such a bloody pain. They made poison that they mixed with the stuff, the Moon only knows why and I am over them and theirs. Pretty much sums it up, yeah?”
“Blockade,” Nereida whispered.
“Right, also the demons put up a blockade. Now you are both caught up. And I’d love to make plans with you to stick it to them, but I’m ready to fall over. Can we pick this up in the morning?”
There was stunned silence from the two sylph hosts, until Kevlin burst into a giggle like a young boy. He wiped his eyes, taking a moment to breathe. Nayda took over, her signs imperious now.
“We will speak tomorrow,” she signed, her back straight as she did so. She looked over at Epelda, and something like worry or regret crossed her face, before she turned back to Aella. “You have given us much to think on.”
“We will be back in the daylight,” Aella promised. “If for no other reason than to spend some gold.” That, for some reason, was even funnier to Kevlin, and his laughter redoubled. Nayda shot her lover an annoyed look, her face pinched, but she signed polite goodbyes to all.
They took their leave of the cozy hall. Aella followed them ten paces behind, her eyelids half lowered, walking with a stiff gait as if she were asleep on her feet. Once they were out in the fresh, crisp air as moonlight from a crescent moon sparkled on the waters, Epelda stopped. She looked around at the shadows cast by the houses, firelight and moonlight making long shadows that seemed to be everywhere.
“Epelda?” Nereida looked to her daughter for an explanation. Epelda’s eyes scanned the shadows as if she were looking for an ambush.
“Mom said shadows like bugs,” she signed. “I think they are coming back. Back to port. I’m going to fly ahead, get battle ready.”
“What if you are wrong?” Nereida asked.
“Then forty people get shafted with shortened sleep. If I am right, maybe no one else dies.” Epelda looked over at Aella who was picking her way down the road after them, each step seeming to take more and more effort. “Can you stay with her?”
“Aye Captain,” Nereida replied with a wry little smile. Epelda chuckled, flashed the sign for “good luck” and then took to the air.
Aella half stumbled up to Nereida. She yawned.
“Where’s Epelda off to?” she asked, their daughter’s name stretched out ridiculously as another yawn overtook Aella.
“The Tooth,” Nereida replied. She took Aella’s hand in hers, feeling the callouses on the thin, delicate-looking hands. But years of tying ropes had left their mark on her hands, even if she rarely did such tasks anymore. She ran her thumb over the tiny mole at the base of Aella’s thumb.
“Why would she…?”
“You spoke about shadows as bugs,” Nereida replied softly. “Epelda fears the worst.”
“She’s a good captain, our girl,” Aella whispered. She sounded proud, but there was also a melancholy note in her voice. Nereida kissed her wife’s cheek, hoping she’d keep talking as they walked through the streets. All the windows were shuttered now, except those few that still had candles burning on the sills. It was quiet, peaceful. There was very little wind, and the summer bugs were not yet chirping. She did not pester Aella about what bothered her. Instead, she kept pace with her as they wandered through the streets toward the docks.
In front of a little bakery with darkened windows, Aella finally spoke again.
“She is a good captain,” she repeated. She looked up at the sky. “It’s good to know the crew will have her when I’m done.”
“Aella,” Nereida breathed, her worry escaping before she could control it.
“Oh, love, I’m not looking to die. Nothing so final. But I’m not long for adventure. My bones ache, my knees, my back, everything some days. These dragons are harsh on the body, even if they mean well. Maybe… maybe we think about retiring to some coastal shore, one year in your lands, one year in lands in Seliniakos. Let the children grow up little heirs in two countries, let them learn all the dances, political and ship-based, until they are forces of nature like their mother.”
“Mothers,” Nereida corrected, rubbing her nose on Aella’s. The admiral blushed, the affectionate touch more than they normally shared in public. But no one was around.
“You are a terror,” Aella said fondly, a smile on her face.
“You love it,” Nereida replied with a cheeky smile. Aella chuckled.
“Should we let the captain handle her worries, then, and find an inn room? I have a handful of gold on me. We could….”
“Tempting,” Nereida whispered. But the reality of their situation crashed down on Nereida, drowning out the thoughts of what she and Aella could do. “If we aren’t there and something happens, neither of us would forgive ourselves.” Aella’s grin faded, but she nodded.
They walked through the streets to the dock, still hand-in-hand. They did not speak, just enjoyed being with each other in the calm before the storm.