Chapter Eleven #3
Marcus, Danny, Kallie and I stepped onto a rock just past the edge of the shield.
Our animal companions followed, but there was hardly enough room for us all.
Ocean waves crashed into shore, spraying cold water at our feet.
Rishi hissed and scrambled backward into me.
I had to hold on to Marcus and Kallie to keep from falling into the water.
“We’ll see you once the Elven Gate is open,” Kallie told Ava.
“Please don’t fuck it up,” Ava begged.
“Try not to, lass, but no promises. Fucking things is a talent of ours,” Danny replied cheerfully.
I had the innate instinct that this was wrong. Ava shouldn’t be staying behind— she needed to come with us. Something about this was wrong. We shouldn’t be doing this without her.
I reached out to grab her and pull her through, until Kallie summoned a portal. Before I could say anything different, she yanked me through. We fell downward, rushing to the other side of the world.
Oberi landed softly beside me as we came to an abrupt halt on solid ground.
Marcus gave an oof, and Rishi screeched like someone had landed on his tail.
Alette fluttered past my ear to land on Kallie’s shoulder next to me.
Danny moved silently, barely making a noise as he stepped forward to observe our surroundings.
The air had shifted around us, feeling cooler and lighter, though the scent of saltwater remained.
We’d left Ilamanthe at night, but here, I felt the warmth of the morning sun filtering through cloud cover overhead.
The fresh scent of pine trees filled the air, giving Northern California a distinctly different feel altogether than Ilamanthe.
I could sense the magic of my ancestral lands pulsing through the earth— though it seemed distant, almost as if the magic was the remnants of what had once been, and not what remained.
We were far enough from the Elementai city that we couldn’t witness what the Warden had done to it, but I had to assume there was nothing left.
It was devastating. I hadn’t spent much time in Kinpago, but now my mother’s home and my birthplace was gone.
The rhythm of the waves crashing against the rock brought me back to the night Ava and I had discovered the cove and were arrested for stealing that boat.
It unleashed a lot of cherished memories I wanted to keep submerged, but they rose to the surface and batted at me like vicious waves, threatening to pull me under.
I got to my feet. “The ships are down the coastline.”
I placed my hand on Oberi’s scruff, and he led the way down the jagged rocks and into the depths of the cove.
It was eerie being back here. It seemed like a lifetime ago that I’d followed Ava to this cove and stowed away on that ship.
I barely knew anything about the supernatural world then, and now we were steps away from preventing its entire annihilation.
So much had changed. We weren’t even close to the same people anymore. I barely remembered the kid I had been when I was sentenced to the Institute. He was nothing like the man I was now.
The only thing that remained the same was how much I loved her.
The cove was well concealed by the rocks and foliage, but there was a strip of sand surrounding the perimeter that we walked along until we came upon the first boat. Marcus hopped onto the deck and began causing a ruckus as he rifled through crates.
I ran my hand over the side of the boat, which was much shorter than I recalled. “This isn’t the right ship,” I told him.
“We’ve got to search them all,” Marcus said. “Any one of these ships could contain the records we need.”
“Marcus is right,” Kallie agreed. “Let’s split up and see what we find. We’ll start on this side of the cove and work our way around until we’ve covered them all.”
Kallie and Danny climbed onto the next two ships, while Oberi and I took the fourth. We pried open boxes and looked into crevices within the ships, but found no records or clues. Hours passed as we scoured every inch of the fleet, and the day grew long.
I was growing increasingly frustrated, because we weren’t finding any answers. On top of that, Danny and Marcus were being no help. Marcus had found a hat and two rusty swords in one of the crates. He and Danny started dicking around playing pirates instead of looking for clues.
“En garde!” Marcus shouted, and their swords clinked together.
For fuck’s sake, he was acting like this was a dress rehearsal and not the literal end of the world.
“Boys, we’re supposed to be looking for clues,” Kallie scolded.
“These swords could be a clue,” Danny shot back.
“So why are you waving them around like you’re comparing dicks instead of inspecting them?” Kallie growled. “Get back to work!”
Marcus sighed. “Yes, ma’am.”
We were slowed down by every little trinket Marcus thought might be a clue— a compass here, discarded ropes there. None of it indicated where Yuto’s fleet had sailed.
“This is taking too long,” Danny complained. “I’ve only got a few more hours on the potion I took to protect me from the sun. If we’re at this all night, I’ll be burnt to a crisp at sunrise.”
The air was starting to cool as the sun dipped toward the horizon, and my stomach gurgled with hunger. We’d been at this far longer than I realized. We’d gotten here in the morning, and night was beginning to fall.
I wiped the sweat from my brow and hopped down from the ship I’d been searching. “This is getting us nowhere. Our best chance is to search Yuto’s main ship, The Great Escape. Which one of you searched it already? I’m certain we’re missing something.”
“How are we supposed to know which one of these ships it is?” Danny asked. “None of us can translate Elvish.”
“Maybe if you can tell us what you remember of the ship, it’ll help,” Kallie suggested.
I tried to recall what I could, but I hadn’t gathered a lot of details that night before we were arrested. “It was big, with a sail and a bunch of crates.”
“Oh, lovely,” Danny quipped. “That describes every ship in this cove.”
“Where’s the biggest one?” I asked. “The ship Ava and I stole was larger than most of these.”
Marcus hesitated. “Um… they’re all about the same size.”
“Are you saying it’s not here?” I demanded. Great, so we wasted the whole day for nothing.
“I don’t know what we’re looking for,” Marcus insisted. “Ask Oberi. He was there with you that night, wasn’t he?”
I turned to my Familiar. “Marcus is right. Do you recognize any of these ships?”
I can’t be sure, Oberi started. It was dark when we set sail, and I was preoccupied with ensuring yours and Ava’s safety. It’s not like I memorized what the ship looked like.
“Come on, Oberi. Look again,” I pressed.
Oberi began pacing along the sand, taking in the fleet. I suppose these ships don’t appear to have the proper sails. I don’t think any one of these are the ships we’re looking for.
I sank into the sand and buried my head in my hands.
I was exhausted, but I refused to believe we’d hit another dead end.
We were finding answers to the location of the Astromancer key tonight.
“All right, let’s think. After Ava and I were caught, the coast guard brought us to a beach, where we were met by Ava’s father.
We’re assuming the Elders would’ve brought the ship back here, but we can’t know that.
They must’ve taken it and stored it somewhere else. ”
The Kinpago marina! Oberi exclaimed. We’ve been looking in the wrong spot. Come on, I know where we need to go.
I repeated what Oberi said to the others, and we hurried out of the cove. From what I knew of Oberi’s life before bonding, he hadn’t been in Kinpago long, but he sure seemed to know his way around.
We must’ve been walking for at least a mile before Oberi lifted his nose and started sniffing. I’ve caught the scent— it smells a bit like an old mahogany desk. It’s this way.
I followed at Oberi’s side. He led us to a small bay, where I could hear soft waves lapping against the sides of various ships.
I was shocked that this was all still here after the Warden’s attacks, but we were far enough away from the main part of the city that the marina had remained untouched.
Whether by chance or by the grace of the ancestors, this place had been spared.
When Oberi stopped, I reached out and felt along the edge of a ship with smooth sides, until I came upon Elvish runes carved into the wood.
This is The Great Escape, Oberi told me. Go on, Charlie.
I gave a shudder. Something about this ship felt incredibly spiritual, though I hadn’t picked up on that feeling the first time I’d been here.
Maybe I didn’t know how to identify the sensation at the time, or maybe now that I knew about my Elvish heritage, this boat held a greater meaning to me.
Or maybe it was how it’d connected me to Ava, because this boat was the reason we’d landed in the Institute together.
Whatever the feeling was, I shook it off and climbed onto the boat. There were all kinds of ancient crates here that had carried supplies on Yuto’s journey. I opened them hoping for answers, but each crate was as empty as the last. I pushed aside empty boxes, my heart rate spiking with each one.
We were so close. I could feel it.
And if we weren’t… we were totally screwed.
“What do you see, Oberi?” I asked. “There must be something here.”
I’m looking around, but I can’t find anything.
We didn’t come here for nothing. I wasn’t leaving until I found where Yuto had hidden the Astromancer key.
Frustrated, I threw the last empty crate aside. The crate bounced across the deck before landing with a heavy thud that reverberated differently through the floorboards. Oberi and I both paused.
“What was that?” I asked.
It sounded hollow, Oberi remarked.