Chapter 4 The Voiceless King
The Voiceless King
The crew was too friendly to the heir.
I glowered from the helm, watching as Flameweaver and Eyecarver laughed while the boy raced around with Harald’s son. The moment I announced the heir would accompany us through the Chasm, Harald brought his boy, a chance to teach him how to stand at the side of the future Ever King as he put it.
Childish laughter lifted over the dark wood of the deck, and I had grand plans to remind the men when we finished this pointless meet that they were not bleeding nursemaids. They jested with a future king and taught him to be soft.
One finger each ought to make my point well enough.
“Ships be approachin’, me king.” An ancient sod with skin flapping off his cheeks shouted from the crow’s nest on the main mast.
Strange vessels carved through the darker, colder seas of the earth realms. Whatever spell came through this summons crafted a sort of path that guided the Ever Ship through the Chasm to a particular shore.
I didn’t understand such magic, and I would see it destroyed when we returned.
“Blades at the ready,” I barked at the crew.
Steel scraped over scabbards and knives glided free of boots. The Ever Crew gathered near the rails, ready to strike should any earth fae make a move. The nearer the vessels came, the stranger they seemed.
Smaller than the Ever Ship, weaker. The centers bulged out like full bellies, and both stern and bow were curved in the shape of serpent heads. Multiple oarsmen kept the vessels carving through the sea, and single, angled sails caught the wind.
“Harald. Take the helm.”
My brother did not hesitate, even gave me a sly sort of grin. “Remind them who lives beneath the tides, brother.”
On deck, I carved through the crew, snagging the cuff of the heir’s collar as I went. “You’ll learn how a king speaks to adversaries.”
The boy did not protest. He never did anymore. My stride was long and caused him to stumble more than once as his small legs tried to keep up.
At the rail, the strange ships were already nearby. Three in total. Each was positioned snugly against the hull of the Ever Ship, carefully avoiding the spines of bone jutting from the wood and rails.
I peered down at the strangers. Good hells, these folk were not fae, they were, “Mortals?”
A man in white robes, head shorn, and a cruel gleam in his eyes stood at the edge of the lead ship. “Welcome, sea fae. We weren’t entirely certain if you still existed outside of myth. Many fae here who are your descendants are more water nyk than true sea folk.”
His words were accented, almost sharp, not as smooth as ours.
“How has a mortal summoned me?”
“Forgive me.” His grin was anything but friendly. “I assumed you knew how vast the world of mystics is. You are not in mortal realms, sea king. You are among the alver clans. Some call us a cousin of the fae.”
I did not know what the hells an alver was, but I wasn’t certain it mattered. “I’ve come to your meet, if you have nothing of importance to say, we shall be going.”
My gaze kicked to the acrid flesh on my palm. I grinned. The edges were no longer necrotic and the mark seemed more like a bruise than anything. The summons was ended.
“We have much to say. It will be worth your while. In truth, I think you will find everything you’ve hoped for during your stay.”
Odd, but…I rather believed him. Warmth spread through my blood, calming the aggravation and bloodlust for being demeaned in such a way.
The man gestured to a woman who strode forward from the stern of the smaller ship. Her hair was long and dark, left in a simple braid, and the gown she wore shouted opulence. She appeared to be a woman of means, perhaps a mate of their king? Or did they allow women to lead in these realms?
“I am Britta of House Grym,” she said in the same sharp lilt as the man in white. “It was I who summoned the great folk of the sea.”
So she understood the power of the Ever. “I am told these spells are ancient.”
“Yes.” Britta offered a demure sort of smile, a woman who seemed to know her place beside an Ever King.
“I pray you will forgive us for such a desperate call, but we are under attack and read of the power of sea folk. In truth, seers have proclaimed you have the power of healing blood among the sea fae.”
I looked down at the heir. The boy could barely see over the rail. Out of everyone on board, he was the only one capable of healing with his blood.
Of course, he could poison just as well.
“What does it matter to you?”
Britta’s chin trembled, she clasped her hands like a pleading supplicant “We have suffered such atrocities from the vicious thieves and crooks and usurpers of our lands. They’ve slaughtered so many and cursed even more.
Tonics and elixirs are doing nothing to stop the spread. We need true, powerful healing.”
They were desperate. I preferred desperate folk.
“We may have this healing blood you seek. What will you offer us in return?”
“Our lands are known for deals,” said Britta. “Tell us, is it you, Sea King, with such power?”
I was no fool, it would not serve me to give up the truth of my heir just yet. But there was an overwhelming comfort being so near the strange folk. I trusted them. Such fiery, delightful hopes reeled through my thoughts of what lucrative relationships might form from these new alliances.
Before I realized I was even moving, I lifted the heir in my arms, and said, “My heir possesses such a gift should he sing after one ingests his blood. But he must sing.”
To give up that his blood poisoned if he kept silent seemed a fact too valuable to share. Yet.
“Sweet child.” Britta tilted her head. “What a gift you are.”
My heir shifted in my hold, even curling his arms around my neck, like he wanted to hide from the strangers. Annoyed as I was at the show of weakness and fear, it was blotted out by the fierce thrum of excitement at this new venture.
Imaginings of grand trade that added wealth to the Ever Seas more than had ever been achieved filtered through my mind. Even the men of the ship seemed lulled into such contentment. How had I ever thought this was a wretched plan?
“What trade will you offer in exchange for the blood of my heir?”
“Come, bring the child to us.” Britta waved one hand. “We shall discuss terms.”
Hesitation was there, sharp and hot, a warning in the back of my mind. Something was not right here.
“Sabain,” Britta said to the man in white. “Tell the sea king we mean them no harm.”
The eerie man looked at me, eyes hooded, a curl to his lip. “This is a great move for your kingdom. Don’t you feel it? What have you desired for the sea fae?”
Why I felt the urge to answer him, I didn’t know. “Power. Folk doubted my reign since my voice is common. No special ability. But I’ve proven them wrong. I want my legacy to be the strongest, the fiercest, the longest in all the Ever Seas. I will be written in the stars.”
“Of course you will.” The alver grinned. “With your help in defeating our enemies, your every hope is achievable.”
My pulse quickened. Gods, I could practically see it all. Isles sprawling with plunder and relics from these kingdoms. Strongholds in the earth realms. Dozens of stars shaping the greatness of Thorvald, the voiceless king of the Ever Seas. I’d be placed beside Voidwalker and Nightfire.
The Ever Crew was still, almost lost in a trance. They must’ve felt the truth of their words much the same.
“Let us meet then,” I said, a new delight in my tone.
It did not take long to transfer the heir over the rail. The boy whimpered, a bit of fear in his eyes when I handed him to the outstretched arms of a burly sort of man with blades sheathed to both sides of his waist.
When I made a move to follow, the ship with my heir drifted away.
“Sea King,” Britta called out. “Do understand, it is not personal, but we desperately need the healing blood.”
All at once the rush of hope, the fleeing visions of a grander, stronger Ever Kingdom faded. The force of what happened was a dagger to the belly. Even the crew shifted, some rubbed the sides of their heads.
The strange ships drifted farther.
“What did you do?” I bellowed.
The man in white hugged one of the serpent stemposts, grinning as he tapped the side of his head. “Alver folk, gifts of the mind and body, sea king. Hope can be very persuasive. Even if it’s manipulated a bit.”
Damn the hells. He’d twisted all those hopes, made me docile and submissive.
I’d slaughter them all. One palm outstretched, I called for the sea. My arm trembled, sweat beaded on my brow. All I could summon was a few frothing waves. We were too damn far from the Chasm.
“Papa!” The heir cried out, as though all at once realizing he was being taken, and squirmed in the arms of his captor.
“Thorvald, what is your word?” Harald shouted from the helm.
The alver ships were distant now, carving off the sea to narrow rivers along the shore. A space the Ever Ship would never fit. I understood their strange vessels now, and I hated them for their clever craftsmanship.
My fists tightened, the curves of my fingernails digging into my palms. The boy was too powerful to forsake and Oline was gone. To have another heir with such a sea voice with anyone else was unlikely. I would be forced to retrieve the boy myself.
I lifted my chin and called out to the boy. “Bring honor to the Ever. Remember your birthright! You are my heir. Do not bow to enemies.”
For a breath, the boy ceased his cries and fighting. He went still, then the vessel which took him out of sight faded behind a wall of trees, sailing upriver and out of reach.
Silence fell over the deck. I spun around and stormed to the quarterdeck where my brother waited.
One hand cupped behind Harald’s neck, I drew his face close. “Guard the ship.”
“Thorvald, don’t do this,” he said. “Send the men after Erik.”
“What sort of weak Ever King would I be if I did not fight for my bloodline, brother?”
Harald could not argue the truth. The folly of losing the heir of my house to the conniving schemes of these folk was on my shoulders alone. With a glare at the sky, I cursed Oline and her machinations against me, then made quick work of securing half a dozen blades to my thighs, my waist, my arms.
The low hum of the crew followed me at my back.
A man he’s not, we work we rot
No sleep until it’s through.
I dove over the rail before the shanty could complete and swam toward earth fae realms.
I would slaughter them all.