Chapter 13
Chapter
Thirteen
Only fools willingly sail through Talon Bay, and Erinna found herself among those who lacked enough sense to avoid its tumultuous waters. First Rexin, now Kane, who thought they could outmaneuver the force of nature.
Desperation could make one do crazy things. Now Erinna understood why the risk was worth it.
Talon Bay wasn’t a bay at all—at least not technically. It was a distinct feature, just off the east coast of Tarth, where rough ocean currents forced ships against sharp, jutting rocks and sent sailors to their watery graves. In the center was Fort Solitude and the library it guarded.
Erinna paced the length of the small room below deck, gnawing on her thumb in worry. The boat was small, too small for Erinna’s liking if they wanted to maneuver as safely as possible through the tumultuous sea. Even the room she was in now could barely fit her and Inez comfortably.
She paused her nervous gait long enough to eye Inez, who was clutching the edge of a bench for dear life. The ship swayed with every wave, causing her features to contort in worsening nausea. Erinna knew the look of seasickness and rushed to place an empty bucket into her hands.
“You okay?” Erinna asked.
Inez clutched the bucket, fingers digging into the wood. “No,” she answered through clenched teeth, squeezing her eyes shut as the boat gently rocked from side to side. Erinna settled herself beside Inez and lightly tapped her wrist. “May I?”
The diviner managed a small nod, clearly desperate for a way to ease the seasickness.
Erinna gently took her wrist and applied a soft pressure with her thumb; a trick her father taught her on one of their first missions smuggling an aberrant off Tarth.
The pallor of queasiness seemed to subside from Inez’s features, and her vice grip on the bucket eased. “That’s a bit of a relief, thank you,” she breathed, slumping against Erinna for support.
The moment of peace was short-lived as the boat lurched violently to one side.
An indication they were approaching the rough currents of Talon Bay.
Inez let out another groan as the vessel swayed aggressively on the water.
Erinna’s small trick was no match for the movement.
Even her own stomach flipped—not with seasickness, but rather with a mixture of fear and trepidation as they neared the most dangerous part of the voyage.
Thundering footsteps made their way down the cramped hall outside, followed by furious banging on the door.
“Yarrow, we’re approaching Talon Bay!” Kane called before his footsteps receded above deck. It was time to get to work.
Erinna shot a worried glance at Inez, who looked even worse than before. “Go,” she grumbled and weakly waved Erinna away. “We’ll drown if you don’t.”
That was all the encouragement Erinna needed. It was always best to heed the advice of a diviner. Erinna would do everything she could to make sure that didn’t happen.
Sea spray coated the wood as rough ocean water crashed against the side of the vessel.
Harsh winds stung Erinna’s eyes and cheeks as she steadied herself against the rough sway of the ship.
She didn’t have much time to catch her bearings as the boat lurched roughly to the side, threatening to buck everyone into the water.
One moment of hesitation could mean the difference between life and death.
Instinct pulled Erinna forward. She could hear the rough snapping of rope as the sails fought against the wind.
The lines would sever from the force with no one tending to them.
If that happened, the sail would be useless, and the ship would be at nature’s mercy.
“Yarrow, at the mainsail, you need to mind the lines!” Kane called from his position at the helm.
Erinna was already running to her station. “I know!”
She passed Asher, positioned at the main mast, commanding wind and water.
Her arms cut through the air, guiding the zephyrs into the sail with steady movements.
A cresting wave splashed on deck. Asher shifted her stance, directing the frothy liquid back into the depths.
The beauty of it had Erinna falter. It was the most intricate use of arcanum she’d ever seen.
No wonder Kane’s crew was so fearsome on the sea. He had a stormsinger among his ranks.
“Yarrow, the rigging!” Kane bellowed, knocking Erinna back to perilous reality. The corners of Asher’s mouth ticked upward, and Erinna darted to the bow. Inez’s warning filtered into the forefront of her thoughts.
“We’ll drown if you don’t.”
Her boots skidded across the drenched planks as she made her way to the belaying pins. She wrapped her hands around the wood and yanked a pin loose, letting a sheet of sopping-wet rope run with expert control.
The canvas groaned above her, caught again.
The ship tilted; the wind was bringing them down.
Kane howled something into the screeching wind, but Erinna was already scaling the rigging.
She climbed up the ratlines and saw the threat of a tear forming in the sail.
It wouldn’t hold unless she got the tension right.
The boat was listing hard—one more like that and they'd roll.
From her perch, she pulled the sail in at a better angle to the wind, then hauled slack on another line, drawing the sail flatter. They were sacrificing speed, but speed meant nothing if they capsized.
Finally, the boat settled—as best it could with the roiling waves that still churned below. But Erinna had bought them some time. A minute to recoup before another onslaught threatened to drown them.
Secured at her station, she managed a glance at the watery terrain. In the moonlight, she could make out the jagged rock formations that pierced through the surface, ready to impale the ship on one wrong move.
In the distance, five of the largest jutting rocks surrounded an island in the center. The dark gray walls of Fort Solitude loomed in the distance. Behind the fort walls rose the steepled peak of the library at its center. A tomb for knowledge, built behind walls of military masonry.
Erinna turned her attention back to the deck. Water thrashed against the sides of the boat, battering the hull with storm-soaked fury. Asher’s clothes were drenched, clinging to her lean form as she continued her dance.
Another snap of the sail, and Erinna was back at work. Her muscles screamed with overuse as she managed the lines, hands burning against the pull of the rope. It was a job meant for more than just her, but she would have to be enough.
Another deluge of water had the boat careening toward a spiked mass of rock.
“Keep us pointed east!” Kane shouted, his voice strained with effort as he forced the ship to heed his command. The vessel groaned beneath them.
Erinna could feel the unnatural pull of air around her as Asher's arcanum fought with the natural flow of the wind. The boat lurched in response, the sudden force nearly knocking Erinna from her position. Securing the last cable, she glanced over her shoulder.
“No,” she breathed, heart thundering in her chest, adrenaline warming the blood in her veins.
A large swell of water raced toward the ship.
The size and force would be enough to knock anyone overboard.
Asher wouldn’t have time to brace herself before the wave hit.
She was far too focused on commanding the wind.
“Asher, the water!” Erinna cried, but the stormsinger couldn’t hear her.
There was no time to waste. She needed to do something.
Without Asher, everything would be for naught.
Erinna dropped to the deck, letting the wind have its way with the sail as she scrambled to Asher.
If she faltered now, it would endanger all their lives.
She wrapped her arms around Asher’s waist and pressed them both against the mast just as the wave struck.
Water exploded across the deck, drenching them up to the waist. The force beat against Erinna’s feet, threatening to sweep her legs out from under her, but she tightened her hold around Asher, bracing her stance to combat the rushing force of water.
The two of them wedged between the churning sea and the solid wooden post.
“Good catch,” said Asher, her breath tickling Erinna’s cheek as the water finally receded.
Erinna didn’t have the chance to respond before the ship banked on its side.
The hull scraped viciously across stone, and Erinna nearly lost her footing as it sundered the rail on the right side to splinters.
There was a sharp crack and jerk of the ship as a hidden stone column ripped the rudder from the ship.
The vessel banked left at the impact, and Erinna scrambled to maintain her balance.
Sea spray soaked through her clothes and into her bones.
Her teeth chattered from both chill and fright.
The vessel was not the right size for such tumultuous water.
With another shudder, Erinna knew the patchwork integrity of the boat was stripped by the razor-sharp rocks just beneath the ocean’s surface.
Without Asher’s power, the vessel was prey to the whims of wind and water. The stormsinger was all they had left to help steer the ship away from the dark claws of death that waited for them in the sea.
Asher scrambled back to her position, barely remaining upright as she started her command of the wind once more, hurling insults at the sky.
Kane barreled past Erinna, shouldering half her body as he darted toward the bow. “Sail or drown, Yarrow!” he reminded her and pulled the sail aft against the pummeling winds.
Erinna scrambled after him, her boots sliding on the water-slicked deck. The rigging strained against the zephyrs, and she could see Kane struggling to manage the loose lines.
She lunged forward to help secure the flailing rope, grabbed the rough material, and pulled with all of her strength.
She could feel the sail catch, the force of it threatening to lift her off her feet.
Beside her, Kane reeled in his line, securing the sail once more.
Erinna let out a shaky breath, but her relief was premature.
The boat lurched violently starboard. Her feet went out from under her, and her body slid toward the splintered rail.
Kane’s arm shot out, catching Erinna around the waist and hauling her upright, her back pressed solidly against his chest.
“Some room for improvement, it seems,” he quipped, pulling her closer to him. Erinna glared out at the horizon, knowing deep in her bones that Kane was smirking at her.
If she could, Erinna would try to wipe that smirk off his face—preferably with the palm of her hand.
Since her hands didn’t have easy access, she would settle for driving her elbow into his gut.
She thrust backward, but Kane was too quick.
He released her with an infuriating chuckle, sidestepping her swipe as easily as if they were dancing.
The space left between them felt suddenly, unexpectedly cold.
The boat steadied on the rough waves, the tall, jagged rocks moving behind them in the distance.
The island was ahead of them. Close enough to make out the rocky shore and stonework of the fortress.
A manic laugh bubbled in Erinna’s throat. They made it. Survived the night through treacherous terrain. Relief flooded through her as she turned to meet Kane’s gaze. “I’ll be damned,” she breathed. “We did it.”
The corners of Kane’s mouth ticked up in a smile, one that made her chest tighten. “Nice work, Yarrow.” His hand brushed her shoulder, a small pat of approval, as he moved to check on Asher.
The feeling lingered longer than it should have. Erinna brought her own hand up to brush it away.
Her heartbeat was nearly back to a normal cadence when a hoarse scream split the air.
“There’s one beneath the water!”
Erinna whirled around to find Inez on deck, body tense in terror. Kane spun on his heels, sprinting back to the helm.
He wasn’t fast enough.
A final jagged skewer lay in wait beneath the waves. One last lurch and the ship tipped sideways. Erinna sprinted to Inez, hoping to close the distance in time.
Stone scraped across the bottom of the ship; the movement had the vessel tipping violently to the side. Erinna reached Inez with enough time to take one lungful of air before they were both wrenched into the ocean.
Cold water swallowed them whole.
The current dragged them under as Erinna struggled to keep her hold on Inez. She clawed desperately toward the surface, but the water kept yanking them down farther. Erinna’s lungs screamed for oxygen, vision blurring as darkness crept in from the edges.
Ice bloomed beneath her skin, and somewhere in the back of her mind, a voice filtered through the panic and her rapidly withdrawing consciousness.
“You’ve come back.”