Chapter 171: Aella’s Journey
The night passed surprisingly quietly. There was no attack, which Aella found suspicious. Epelda too, moved about with wide eyes and tense movements, as if she were anticipating the attack to happen at any moment. When the sun rose and no attack arrived, Aella ordered her to bed, knowing it was the only way to make sure her daughter actually rested. Jules had checked in, but said he planned to sleep beneath the waves so he could recover. The mood about the ship was a tense one. The crew had believed their captain about the attack. Aella summoned her officers to her cabin, chasing out her tired wife and children so that they could use the large table.
They spent hours going over possible routes and nearby islands. Evander and Matthias, both capable of being charming, had gone into town near dawn and spoken with the sylph sailors who recovered after the demon attack. They learned of other areas “protected” by demons, ports that paid dearly for the privilege of not being attacked. Their lord Kevlin had refused, and the demons had laid siege to the small town, only leaving when all four of their ships and most of their fishing boats were sunk. One sylph youth, just a little older than Epelda, came aboard to share his story. He asked if he could join their crew, though he was just a fisherman’s son. He was wingless, powerless, but clearly knew his way around a smaller vessel. Aella hired him and set him to work right away.
She called Carlos into her cabin once the new cabinboy was gone. Carlos was not, technically, an officer. But he was well known and well liked by her crew and her wife.
“New hire,” she said as he slid the door closed.
“Want me to watch him?” Carlos asked. The older man grinned and straightened his wrinkled tunic. “Seems the thing.”
“Teach him the ropes, if you think he’s a danger, try and suss it out before we leave port, yeah?” She was glad to not have to explain herself. Carlos was already on the same journey has her.
“Absolutely,” Carlos replied with a salute. “Do I get to put him on duty with the other cabinboy? It’ll suss things out quick as lightning.”
“If you must. But if the boy is harmed…”
“I’ll kill the asshole myself if he hurts any of your children, ma’am. You have my word.” He bowed, and scuttled out, off to go wrangle the new guy.
Dymion came to speak next in the unending parade of folks who needed her attention. The rudder was damaged from their rough journey in.
“It’ll be a trick, Admiral,” Dymion said, rubbing his bald head with one hand. “There’s no shipyard here. We can’t get to her rudder. We could limp here,” he pointed to the nearest island on their map that had a shipyard icon drawn on it. “But it could take two weeks, and the rudder could crack fully into two and then we’d be buried under rubble, if ya know what I mean.”
“What if the sirens get it from underneath?”
“Get me a fresh young sapling and I can probably mend her with magic,” Dymion said. “If they can get me and the sapling to the rudder, we’d be good to go. One hour to fix and then we stay put for a day or two to let the magic do its thing. Should I get the sirens to come chat?”
It took an hour to get the sirens in and explain what they wanted. Jules asked if they could loop in Epelda, since they could keep the water out but she’d need to bring the air in. Soon the discussion was whirling around if it was possible.
“Do it,” Aella said. She tried to hold back her yawn, but she had not slept well, her mind had been churning all night. “Try for two days, and if that doesn’t take, then you two will be learning the saw.” Dymion and Jules headed out, but as they left, Aella put her arm up in front of her wife and closed the door. Nereida froze.
“More bad news?” Nereida asked, her face paler than usual.
“No,” Aella replied. She leaned in and kissed Nereida’s lips, pulling her wife into her arms. Nereida returned the kiss eagerly, her fingers curling into Aella’s waist. “I just couldn’t stare at you for that long and not need to kiss you.”
The siren lay her head on Aella’s shoulder. Aella ran her fingers through the tips of her wife’s messy braids, toying with the soft hair without undoing it. Neredia held her middle, hardly moving as the ship swayed ever so gently beneath them. They stayed like that, content and quiet, until someone outside called for Aella. She sighed, kissed her wife on the head, and moved toward the door.
Repairs that didn’t require magic were already underway. Evander had gone to town to buy supplies for the repair and to upkeep the food stores. Mostly it was damage to the canvas, which meant sewing. Aella pulled aside her crewmembers with the best stitching skills, unwilling to pay a local to do it. Nereida and Matthias volunteered, which meant her wife was spending the day with the fop. She considered sitting to join them, but truthfully hated sewing enough that she was willing to let them gossip… even though it would likely be about her.
The lord and lady of the town did not call for them that day, though they did invite Epelda and her beau to come dine. Aella wanted to caution her daughter, something not sitting right in the whole exchange. But Epelda swore she could handle herself. Aella let her daughter head off as the sun started to set, Jules on her arm. The young siren was dressed in his best clothing, the ones he’d worn at court that made him look like a child playing dress up. He moved with an awkward gait, uncomfortable and clearly overwhelmed. The streets in the town were still busy but oddly quiet. There was no shouting or hawking of wares. The words were signed, fast and furious. Only a few sylph stopped to actually speak to her crew, mostly merchants.
Caleb was the only crew member to refuse to leave the ship. It seemed odd behaviour for a Salamander. Bassiano had spent as much time as possible on dry land. But there was Caleb, perched on a barrel, his eyes out to sea.
“You’re entitled to shoreleave too,” Aella said, after watching him sit for nearly an hour without moving.
“I thank you, Admiral,” he replied, never turning to look at her. “But I think Epelda was right. I think an attack is coming. We should not be letting our guard down.”
“I thought so too,” Aella replied. She leaned against a nearby railing. “This morning, I charted our course, and the demon’s courses if they went for help. We have five days minimum before we see any trouble. We’ll be ready to go around then.” She turned to face the prince. Caleb wore a haunted expression. She wondered if he’d seen any battles when he had served his father-in-law, or if it was only on her ship that he’d had to deal with the realities of ocean life. “Tomorrow Evander and Dymion are collecting votes from the crew. Do we stay for a few extra days and protect this village from attack, or do we head off to find allies to help with the blockade as soon as we’re sea-worthy.”
Finally, Caleb tore his eyes from the sea.
“A vote?” he echoed, flabbergasted. He blinked at her. “You’re their Admiral.”
“Aye,” she admitted. “But we spent time as pirates, and even if we ain’t anymore, on a technicality, I gave them a voice and I won’t take it away. Normally it's the officers that get their say, but we have time.” She shrugged. “You’ll get a vote too, princeling.”
“You are an odd duck, Admiral,” he said after a long moment.
By the time the sun was gone from the sky, a third of the crew had gone ashore at some point during the day. A few were spending hard-earned coins in taverns or the lone inn. The ship was quieter without so many of her souls, but it was a more relaxed quiet. The nervous energy from the night before had faded. Epelda and Jules were coming toward the Tooth as the last rays of light arrived. Once aboard, the young sylph pulled Aella aside.
“Admiral or mom?” Aella asked. Epelda’s face twisted, her nose flaring a little.
“Both?” Epelda signed, shrugging. She took a moment, her eyes drifting back toward the land, toward where her sister lived in a mansion far above the sea-line.
“Tell me?”
“She wants me to stay,” Epelda signed, her face full of pain and sorrow as she signed the word stay. “Be with my people. Be with her. She says she is family. She is my family, and I am hers.” There were tears in her eyes. “She said Jules can stay too. But if I go with you, I cannot come back. She does not want to share. I have to choose the sea or the land.”
The world seemed to hush as Epelda signed, or perhaps it was that all she could hear was her own heart thudding in her ears. She swallowed her pride, swallowed her own needs, and placed her hand on Epelda’s shoulder.
“If you stay, we will make sure we will come back. Once a year. As long as I breathe. I promise.” Epelda’s tears finally burst free and she collapsed into Aella’s arms. Aella pulled her in, held her close, remembering the first time she’d held Epelda. How she’d been half-starved, too skinny, but so, so desperate for physical comfort. This Epelda was healthier, happier, but still in need of her mother’s arms.
“But my duty?” Epelda signed, sniffling as she tried to reign in her emotions.
“What matters if your heart now, Epelda,” Aella replied, speaking so that she could keep holding her daughter. She did not want to be the first to let go. “You will be a Kyverna whether or not you are aboard the Tooth. And we have Admirals and Captains aplenty. I want you here, but the ship doesn’t need you. Don’t choose tonight. Wait until morning. Hard choices are easier by the light of the sun.”