Dark Island Revolt (The Children Of The Gods #102)

Chapter 1 Esag

ESAG

The humidity enveloped Esag like a wet blanket as he stepped off the jet onto Safe Harbor's airstrip. It reminded him of Cairo—all those miserable summers in the City of the Dead.

Why had he stayed there so long, inflicting that misery on himself?

Habit, maybe. Or penance for old sins. But that was him.

Why had his companions stayed with him? Davuh and Roven could have insisted on the three of them moving somewhere more pleasant, or they could have left him and moved on.

But they'd stuck by Esag, suffering a miserable existence alongside him.

"Finally!" Anandur stretched his massive arms over his head. "My ass went numb hours ago." He looked over his shoulder at Yamanu, who was descending the stairs behind him. "Couldn't you have thought of singing me to sleep before we were about to land? I could have used some shuteye."

Esag hadn't slept either, and he wondered if the same thoughts had kept Anandur awake.

Wonder's mate was as invested in Tula's rescue as Esag was, but for different reasons.

Anandur wanted to save Wonder's little sister to make his mate happy, while Esag wanted to save her so Wonder and Tula would both forgive him for the sins of his past.

There was no logic in his quest. Wonder had already forgiven him, and Tula wouldn't forgive him even if he flew her off Navuh's island, holding her in his arms and flapping angel wings he had sprouted just for the occasion.

The thought painted a ridiculous picture in his mind, and he found himself smiling for the first time since boarding the plane on the clan's airstrip back in California.

Perhaps he could draw the scene. He wasn't half as good with a pencil as he was with a carving knife, but he had reasonable skill, and perhaps if he gifted Tula the picture, it would at least bring a smile to her face.

He hadn't had any more visions of her since the one he had experienced through her eyes, and that troubled him.

That experience had shown him that Tula wasn't in a good place emotionally, and early pregnancies were fragile, susceptible to the mother's moods. The thought of Tula miscarrying tightened the knot of anxiety that had taken permanent residence in his stomach ever since his first vision of her.

If that happened, she would have no incentive to leave Areana and would most likely choose to stay with the goddess.

The sense of loss following that thought was overwhelming.

For days, Esag had imagined Tula entering the submarine and seeing him for the first time after over five thousand years.

Most often, he imagined her scowling at him and asking what he was doing there, but sometimes he imagined her smiling and thanking him for coming to get her.

His reasoning was that a familiar face of someone she'd disliked in the past should be better than the faces of strangers she had no feelings about, but he could be wrong.

The truth was that he had no business being on that submarine, and Esag still wasn't sure why Kian had agreed to him tagging along, while his being there served no purpose.

Perhaps the clan needed a journalist? Someone who could write a piece about the rescue and publish it on the clan's virtual board?

Not that Esag was qualified for that. He was a former squire turned sculptor and carver, but he was good at describing scenes in a way that made them easy to visualize. He should definitely do that, provided it didn't violate any safety protocols.

Or maybe not.

He was still aimless, searching for purpose and questioning his place in the clan. He needed to contribute more than carving figurines.

"You should have said something," Yamanu told Anandur in his melodious, deep voice that carried a sing-song quality everyone other than Esag seemed to find pleasing.

The guy had been appointed as their team leader, but, in Esag's opinion, he didn't project the appropriate air of authority, not with his demeanor and not with his waist-length, glossy black hair and perpetual grin.

Anandur was even worse with his constant clowning, and he was the other senior Guardian on the team. Sixteen junior Guardians, Okidu, and the doctor were supposed to answer to these two.

"How could I have known that you had trouble sleeping?" Yamanu's long hair swayed as he leaned to heft several bags overstuffed with equipment.

"Good point," Anandur admitted. "Usually, I sleep like a baby before operations, but this time, it's Wonder's little sister that needs rescuing, and I can't allow anything to go wrong."

"It's not up to you, my friend." Yamanu clapped him on his back. "It's up to Lady Luck and the Fates." He lifted his leg, exposing a faded yellow sock that had seen better days. "But have no fear. I'm wearing my lucky socks."

Great. So, their team leader was not only vain but also superstitious.

The roar of engines diverted Esag's attention from the conversation between the Guardians. As he turned toward the noise, he saw three large vans rolling toward the plane.

When they stopped within feet of the cargo hull, one of the drivers got out. "Welcome to Safe Harbor." He offered Yamanu his hand.

"It's good to be here, Boshev." Yamanu shook it. "How are things going?"

"Can't complain. Jade is waiting for you and your men in the dining hall, so as soon as you get your equipment loaded, we can head straight there.

Put everything that's supposed to go to the submarine into that van.

" He pointed at the largest of the three.

"No point in loading and unloading twice.

You can just leave everything in there, and then we can take it straight to the sub. "

"Good thinking." Yamanu turned to his men and motioned at the plane's open cargo hull. "Let's get it loaded up, boys. Food is waiting."

Esag doubted that all the equipment would fit in one van or that their team of twenty-one would fit in the other two. In addition to the diving suits, scuba tanks, and underwater scooters, they also had three Zodiacs, climbing equipment, weaponry, and enough ammunition to supply a small army.

Unsurprisingly, Okidu did most of the work transferring crates of heavy equipment to the van, and he refused to allow the Guardians to assist him until Yamanu commanded him to do so.

The Odus were programmed to serve, and they didn't take kindly to others doing what they perceived as their jobs.

They also accepted orders only from their masters, so before their departure, Kian had temporarily transferred ownership of Okidu to Yamanu, ensuring that the bio-mechanical butler would follow Yamanu's orders and defend him if needed.

"Yes, master." Okidu dipped his head with a distinct note of displeasure in his voice.

Esag had been told that the Odus were slowly becoming more sentient, which was wonderful and worrisome at the same time.

Wonderful because they were proof that machines could become autonomous people, but troubling for the same reason.

If they became independent and decided that they didn't need to follow orders, their potential for causing harm was great because they were incredibly strong and practically indestructible.

When Okidu and the Guardians were done loading the van that Boshev had indicated for the equipment, they moved to the other two, and when everything was finally transferred, they squeezed into what space remained.

"I don't get it," Anandur said to Yamanu, who was sitting beside him. "How come you get to lead the mission when I'm the most senior Guardian here?"

Yamanu shrugged. "I'm better looking, that's why."

Several of the Guardians chuckled, some made comments, and Anandur shook his head.

"I know it's because of your shrouding and because you've done this before," Anandur said. "But when you are doing a massive shroud, you can't function at all and need someone to shield you. Who is going to lead then?"

Yamanu didn't seem to mind Anandur's doubts.

"This mission doesn't require a massive shroud.

I only need to convince a couple of human harem guards and any servants that might be in the vicinity that Tula jumped off the cliff instead of climbing onto my back.

I can do a shroud like that in my sleep. "

"What if more than that is needed?" Anandur pressed on.

"Then we are screwed. If things go wrong and the immortal guards show up, my shroud will be worthless."

Evidently, Yamanu's shrouding didn't work on immortals, which in a way invalidated the claim that it rivaled the abilities of the gods. Perhaps in scope it was as powerful as what the gods could do, but not in strength if immortals could see through it.

Yamanu leaned his head on the headrest and crossed his arms over his chest. "The humans are not really a problem.

Even you could thrall them. But if we are discovered by the real warriors, our only option is to run as fast as we can.

Frankly, you could have led the mission.

Tula would love to see you at the top of that rope instead of me. "

Anandur grimaced. "I'm afraid my shrouding is not good enough even for such a small job. I'm only good at messing with one human brain at a time."

A shit-eating grin bloomed on Yamanu's face. "Well then, it would seem that the chief knows what he's doing, and he chose the right Head Guardian to lead this mission."

The arguing further eroded Esag's confidence in the ability of this particular team to get Tula out of Navuh's fortress.

"Nervous?" Anandur eyed him.

"A little."

"It's natural for a civilian to feel anxious before a mission." Anandur turned to look out the window. "But don't worry. I've been doing this for a thousand years, and the other Guardians have been doing it for centuries. We've dealt with all kinds of trouble and came out swinging. We don't lose."

That was mildly reassuring.