Azra of the Burning Sands (Genesis Project) (16 page)

‘You are learning the
Fire
aspect, Azra... fire
flows,
yes, but
you
try to treat it like...
water
... Fire is
not
Water, they are in
opposition.
Your theory is not sound and your execution is sloppy. Do it as I say, or you will
never
learn the proper way!’

-Miriahnu, Azra’s Mahgic teacher, when Azra was still an Apprentice

DEADLANDS – NORTH SHORE OF MILLA – ASH SEA

K
ia and Cina stood back while Jahnyz stood on a rocky cliff, overlooking the Ash Sea. She had been standing there for some time. Kia was aware of Vosco’s men standing some distance away, watching them.

When Jahnyz had awakened from her monster induced sleep, she had been groggy and confused. She had said that there was something wrong with her Mahgic. Though Vosco’s healers had looked her over, none of Vosco’s band were Mahgic users themselves. Phips had suggested that Jahnyz could use some fresh air. Every sailor knew strange things happened near the Ash Sea, but few people knew what, if anything, the effects of the beast’s toxic spray was.

Vosco had agreed to let them outside – under guard of course – and Jahnyz had stood on the edge of the Ash sea for about a half urrh, seemingly doing nothing.

Presently, Jahnyz turned around and motioned for Kia. Looking at Cina for a moment, Kia walked towards Jahnyz.

‘How are you feeling?’ Kia asked, stopping next to her.

Kia looked out at the Sea. It stretched out past view, with jutting rocks showing they were close to an edge off to the left. The surface was calm, and there was no wind.

‘Odd. I feel odd. There’s something here that’s making it difficult to use my Mahgic,’ Jahnyz said distantly.

‘We’ve told Vosco what he wanted to know, he’s promised us passage to Nolmi when he next leaves here. We can get you back to the kingdom and have our healers give you a look over,’ Kia said.

‘The next time he leaves, it’ll be to hunt the monster. We’d be better off on foot,’ Jahnyz said angrily.

‘You don’t know that.’

‘He’s impetuous and impatient. Not unlike Azra,’ Jahnyz countered, ‘and that didn’t do
him
any good.’

Kia straightened stiffly. ‘My Uncle is
alive,
’ she said with some venom.

Jahnyz looked at Kia gloomily. ‘How do you know? Are you capable of finding him with Mahgic and didn’t think to tell us? Can you see with your mind’s eye that he’s safe? How do you know? You
can’t
know! None of us can. All we know is he was taken,’ Jahnyz said angrily, ‘and now we’re stuck in an inhospitable part of the world under the watchful eye of a notorious bandit.’

‘So what can we do?’ Kia asked.

‘That’s not for me to decide. With Azra gone, it’s Cina’s call now.’

‘I think it’s
my
call actually. I
am
a Princess, and I know what I want done,’ Kia said.

Jahnyz looked back out over the sea. ‘And what would that be...
Princess?’

‘I want to get you well so we can try to look for Azra,’ Kia said.

Jahnyz shook slowly. ‘I have tried to look for Azra using my Mahgic, that’s what I was doing when I came out here. This place makes it difficult. My vision was drawn to the sea, but I couldn’t find him. Everything is like looking through a thick fog. There was a great light and nothing but fog. I don’t even know which way the light was coming from.’

‘Then we’ll look for him the old fashioned way,’ Kia said.

Jahnyz sighed and turned to Kia. ‘As much as I’m sure you’ve heard this from Cina already, our priority needs to be
you.
If our mission cannot be completed, we
must
protect you. The Sorcerer won’t wait forever. We have to get you back to the capital and have the court Wyzards try to get rid of that snake.’

Kia turned around, looking away. ‘Azra didn’t recognize the kind of Mahgic used to link it to me. What makes you think the court Wyzards can?’

‘Azra is
far
from the only Mahgic user on this world, nor is he the most powerful, or the most knowledgeable,’ Jahnyz said. ‘He frequently came to the wrong conclusions during his own training.’

Kia took a deep breath, letting it out slowly. She was still coming to terms with what all had happened. Hearing Azra’s apprentice speaking like that about him was not making it any easier.

Kia looked over at Cina, who was still watching them from afar, and then at the guards watching them. ‘Recover quickly, Jahnyz, we’ll need your strength if we are to make it home again.’

Out of the corner of her eye, Kia saw Jahnyz nod. Kia walked back towards Cina.

‘Let’s go back to the caves, Lady Cina,’ Kia said, beckoning. ‘Jahnyz can come when she’s ready.’

Cina nodded, and they started back to the caves, two of the watchmen falling in behind them.

They walked until they were at the path leading back to the caves. They stopped, as Vosco, and two more bandits, stepped out of the cave.

‘Ladies, a lovely day isn’t it?’ Vosco said with a smile.

‘Yes. It’s a nice day,’ Kia said stiffly.

‘Were you busy, or would you care to join me for a walk?’ Vosco asked.

‘We were just heading back,’ Cina said quickly. ‘We have things to discus with our people.’

Not looking away from Kia, Vosco said, ‘As much as I’m sure you have many important things to discus, and many things you’d like to tell me, the invitation was
not
to you
Lady
Cina.’

Kia saw Cina’s jaw clench as she visibly repressed her reply. Kia looked at Vosco carefully, though he was smiling, his eyes did not share the mirth of his mouth.

‘I will accompany you on your walk, Vosco,’ she said, a lump in her throat.

‘Excellent. Let’s go,’ Vosco said, walking past them.

Kia turned and followed him, struggling to keep up with his sure-footed march over the uneven ground. As soon as they reach higher ground, she saw the guards with them spread far apart and take up a moving perimeter around them.

Vosco slowed down, and Kia caught up to him.

‘What’s a Princess like you doing with a snake like that?’ he said suddenly.

Kia felt herself pale. None of the group had said that she was Princess to any of Vosco’s men. She recalled the conversation with Jahnyz, but didn’t think any of Vosco’s men had left to report after that. She wasn’t sure if it was bluff or not, and if Vosco knew she was a Princess, it might make their arrangement difficult to maintain.

She realized Vosco was looking at her, waiting for an answer.

‘I... I picked up the snake from an unwanted source. I can’t get rid of it if I wanted to.’

Vosco nodded. ‘No comment about being a Princess. Very well.’

Vosco looked back forward, and was quiet for a long time.

‘What did the beast do to you that has you so adamant to kill it?’ Kia asked.

Kia saw Vosco grimace at the question. He stopped walking, and stared out over the horizon. Kia stopped next to him and looked around, a gentle breeze tugging at her blonde hair.

‘I was not always a bandit,’ Vosco said, distantly.

Kia looked at Vosco, his face was strangely calm.

She wasn’t sure what to expect.

‘Being single-minded is a single pathway, to a single end... I do not tell you if this is good or not... decide for yourselves...’

-The Wisdom of Zug Twill

VOSCO’S HIDEOUT – DEADLANDS – MILLA

S
tanding quietly in the wasteland around Vosco’s base, near the Ash Sea, Kia waited for Vosco to explain himself.

The thought that this intense, and obviously troubled, man had once been something
other
than a bandit had made her curious. She supposed that much should have been obvious though, no one was
born
a bandit, but there was also something else about this man that made her curious to learn more about him.

He stood, looking out over the sparse vegetation around them, and said softly, ‘I used to be a merchant. I had a few ships under my payroll. We made cargo runs from ports in Halli to ports in Milla. Few ships wanted to make that run, due to having to pass next to the Ash Sea, but it was very lucrative.’ Vosco made a sour face, adding, ‘Its danger was high. We had been lucky. We made the run for many yehvs, and we got rich. Rich enough that I bought a villa in the Kingdom of Nedin. There were many retired merchantmen from the surrounding independent trade ports under the kingdom's protection. I felt at home among them.’

Vosco’s face relaxed again, as he said, ‘I felt like it was where I wanted to be. I had a place on shore to come back to, and nothing but the finest ships in the world at my fingertips. I realized that I could be expanding my operations, become even bigger. With the money I got from the route from Halli to Milla, I could have a whole fleet of ships plying the waters all up and down the coast. Maybe I could even trade with the Zhakim Island!

‘In my hubris, I never once thought that I could be hurt enough to stop me. I always expected to lose a few ships here and there – that’s just the cost of the business – but I lost the one ship I couldn’t afford to,’ Vosco said bitterly.

He started to slowly walk again. Kia followed after him.

‘I had decided to move my family to my Villa in the Kingdom of Nedin. I had my finest ship come to port, and had my household, my family, and all that I held dear, loaded onto the ship. We set out with fine weather and high spirits, but as we passed by the Ash Sea, all went quiet. Not a whisper of wind. We were dead in the water, but still close to shore, so we weren’t too concerned.

‘But then, out of nowhere, a storm began to grow from out over the ocean. It came out of nowhere with furious force. I tried to use it to get us to shore, but we were attacked by the beast. It came from the sea, grabbing onto the ship with its tendrils, and pulling it apart one piece at a time. I fought it. My whole crew fought it, but we were no match for it. It pulled my ship apart, and, in the confusion, I lost sight of my wife and children... my son and my daughter...’ Vosco pulled out a lock of hair, the same one Kia had seen him holding when they first met. ‘All I have left of them is this lock of my wife’s hair,’ he said in a quivering voice, ‘a memento given to me to remember her with when I went on long voyages.’

Silence passed between them for a moment.

‘I’m
so
sorry,’ Kia said, seeing the pain in Vosco’s face.

Vosco shot a look at her, his face briefly flashed with a terrible fury. ‘I don’t want sympathy,’ he spat, ‘I want
revenge!’

Kia took a step back. Vosco calmed down, and kept walking.

‘When the ship had sunk, I found myself clinging to a piece of the vessel, no one alive around me. The storm vanished just as soon as it had come, but it was replaced by an unnatural fog. I heard the crying of my son through the fog. I paddled towards him until my arms burned. Every time I heard him, his cries were coming from a different direction.

‘I kept at that for days. I was weak and delusional, but still I paddled after his sounds. I did it until I didn’t hear him anymore. I don’t know what happened after that. I passed out in exhaustion and sorrow. When I woke up, I was on the shore of Milla, the Ash Sea nearby.

‘Something changed that day. I supposed I could have gone to Nedin and tried to start over. I could have tried to resume my business as though nothing had happened. But I didn’t. I spent the first week hunting for food and spending time floating at sea on my piece of the ship, waiting for the beast to show itself so I could try and kill it.

‘In hindsight, I know it wasn’t a very good idea. When hunting a beast such as it, a little planning will go a long way. But never forget, I only have one goal in life, and that is to kill that Hell-spawned monster before I die,’ Vosco said firmly.

‘What will you do if you
do
kill it?’ Kia asked.

‘When, not
if,
’ Vosco said with some venom. Then he went on, ‘What will I do? I don’t really care. Maybe I’ll go to Nedin and see what happens from there. Maybe I’ll stay a Pirate. I don’t really care. I’ll cross that bridge when I come to it,’ Vosco said dismissively.

‘Now that I’ve told you more than I had ever planned too, why not answer my own question. What’s a
Princess
like you doing with a snake like that?’

Kia felt turmoil within her. She wasn’t naturally violent, but Azra was missing because of the beast and despite how hard she tried, there was that part of her that never expected to see him again. There was a coldness within her that had been gnawing at her since the ship had sunk. The sailors lost would never see their families ever again either. If anyone could give them justice, it was Vosco.

‘It was forced upon me by an enemy of the Kingdom of Minna.’

‘I see, Princess Kia.’

‘Why do you insist on calling me Princess?’

‘Just because I am a bandit doesn’t mean I’m without connections. I know who you are, which would make your Uncle royalty too. Minna is in a tough place if the two of you are so far away from home. Why can’t you be rid of the snake?’ Vosco asked.

‘It’s held to me by some Mahgic. It won’t let anyone touch me, it won’t let me touch other people, and it won’t let us be deviated from our mission for long. It is instructed to kill me or kill whoever tries to touch me. It’s made me a prisoner without any jail,’ Kia said.

‘How... tragic,’ Vosco said absently.

Kia frowned at his dismissive tone. Vosco raised his hands up, palms out, in a defensive gesture.

‘Don’t get me wrong, it
is
tragic, but it’s also a tool. It seems to me that snake would protect you from harm,’ Vosco said.

‘It has protected me before, but the cost is not worth it,’ Kia said.

‘Cost? You mean the prison without a jail?’ Vosco said.

‘No. The snake is the reason were out here. My Uncle is trying to get rid of it.’

‘Would that be the important mission you’ve got to get back to? It simply wouldn’t do for a royal Princess to be under the influence of a Mahgic snake now would it?’ Vosco said, grinning slightly.

Kia frowned again. ‘I can’t say I’m enjoying this walk too much.’

‘I’m sorry if I’m prying – well
actually
I’m
not
sorry, but it seemed like the thing you wanted to hear. I feel like you want some sympathy. You won’t find much of that out here. I’ve decided to not be a foe, but I’m still not a friend. Right now we are someone with a common goal.

‘The beast attacked your ship, and creatures that were following it then stole away your Uncle. Your Uncle, who is trying to remove that snake,’ he said, pointing at it meaningfully, ‘will probably be with the creatures still... or
dead.
But that said, so far the only thing we know about the creatures is that they’re somehow tied to the beast. I think it’s in your best interest to hunt it with me.’

Kia looked at him, her mouth hanging open in disbelief.

Vosco stopped and looked at her intently, waiting for a reply.

Kia blinked a few times and exhaled, words fighting to find their way to her mouth. ‘I... Is there anything else you think about?’

Vosco laughed heartily, and then took a big breath calming himself. ‘Ahhh, of course I do. Of course I do. But I feel an opportunity, and I see a common goal. Your friends would rather go fleeing back to your home and leave your Uncle for dead, but you don’t want to do that, do you? You don’t want to leave him here, never knowing if he’s all right or not. Even if he’s dead, you deserve to know. If he’s not dead, then you can rescue him, but none of this will happen if I take you to Nolmi and you get passage back to Minna.’

Kia bit down on her lip, thinking hard. She was torn. She wanted to get away from Vosco, his bizarre intensity and quickly changing moods were unnerving, but he was in control, and he was offering something Kia wanted, the chance to get her Uncle back.

The desire won out.

‘I’ll join your hunt Vosco, on one condition,’ Kia said.

‘You aren’t in much of a position to make conditions,’ Vosco chuckled, raising a hand, ‘but, I will humour you. Your plight is tragic. Name your price young lady.’

‘Those I’m travelling with must be able to decide of they will stay or go, and if they choose to leave, then they get passage to Nolmi,’ Kia said firmly.

Vosco pursed his lips, and looked thoughtful. Kia wasn’t sure what was going through his head, and didn’t know what to expect.

‘Hmmm... that’s a very tall order. Making trips like that isn’t cheap and it isn’t easy. To have to make
two
trips would be even more costly... but I suppose if we succeed I’ll be in a very good mood, and if not, we may well be dead. Very well, Princess. We have an agreement.’

END OF VOLUME III