17. Vera
Vera
Odessa refused to talk until we went somewhere more private.
The three of us made our way out of the Dead Man’s Chest and down the streets, back toward the dock.
Billowing fabric hung between windows of the stacked buildings above us, and the sounds of boots on cobblestone and coins clinking in pockets mingled with the conversations.
Starke led us through the crowds and clouds of smoke until we reached the ship, and we clambered back aboard. I was practically vibrating with the need to know more. Patience had never been my strong suit.
Starke opened the doors to his office on the quarterdeck, guiding Odessa to one of the chairs in front of his desk. “Are you feeling alright, Odessa?” he asked.
She nodded. “I’m fine. I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to cause a fuss. I was just…I was caught off guard.”
“You said you know what Sommers was talking about,” I started. “That you know what Mortep is looking for.”
Odessa twisted her lips and looked down at her fingers. “It was that phrase he said, the ‘eternal flame.’ I’ve heard it before, from an old legend my parents passed on to me. But I never believed it could be true.”
“That what could be true?” I urged.
“Vera, let her breathe,” Starke cut in.
“No, it’s fine,” Odessa said. “I should have connected the dots when we were researching in the archives room. I’m sorry I didn’t tell you before, Vera.”
Her big, golden brown eyes peered up at me from behind her spectacles. I softened at the look on her face, then reached to take her hand. Physical touch still wasn’t something I was comfortable with, but Odessa and I had taken each other under our wings, in a way. I had a soft spot for the girl.
“You have nothing to apologize for. I didn’t mean to push you, Odessa. This is just really important to me.” I chewed on my lip, wrestling with how much to open myself up to her.
“You know I’ve been looking for someone from my past,” I finally said.
“That’s why I’ve worked with Starke for the last year.
This man we’ve been searching for, Mortep, he took everything from me.
He helped strip me from my family, kept me imprisoned for years, tortured me, and—and worse.
” Odessa squeezed my fingers. “I’ve been looking for him ever since I escaped.
And now I know for sure that he’s here.”
I leaned forward. “If you know something about this eternal flame, maybe it will help me find him. Whatever legend it is, I want to hear everything you’re willing to share.”
“I’m so sorry, Vera,” she whispered. “I had no idea. Of course, I’ll help.
It’s just a story, but maybe there’s some truth in it.
” Odessa took a deep breath. “There’s a legend my parents heard a while ago when they were stowed away on a pirate ship leaving Twin Tides.
The captain was aged and had traveled the Triad Realm his whole life, and his father before him, and his father before him.
He was the one who told my parents of the kingdom of the eternal flame. ”
The lamps flickered at her words, and a chill crept over my skin. “I’ve never heard of this kingdom,” I said, glancing at Starke. He shook his head.
“They say it was the first kingdom ever created by the Fates,” Odessa said.
“The three Fates grew lonely, so they took pieces from each of them and fashioned the first humans.
They pulled from earth beneath the sea and raised an island for the humans to live on.
The kingdom of the eternal flame was said to be a utopia of wealth and power, the most beautiful, perfect kingdom you could imagine.
“Back then, the Fates took a physical form and walked among the people, even conceiving children with them. Their offspring were born with the Fates’ magic.
But after a while, the children began to resent them.
The Fates acted like deities among everyone else, but their children were nearly as powerful.
They didn’t want to bow down to their parents.
They thought they could rise up and overthrow them.
The legend doesn’t say exactly what happened, but whatever they did made the Fates punish them. ”
I was on the edge of my seat. “By killing them all?”
Odessa shook her head. “Not exactly. They banished the kingdom from this world. It became untraceable, as if it never existed. Except…” Her lips thinned into a grim line.
“This is the part I always thought was ridiculous, but after what we found in the archives room, I don’t know what to think anymore.
The captain told my parents that every one hundred years on the spring equinox, the kingdom rises again for twenty-four hours, giving the people one chance to break the enchantment before they sink back into oblivion for another century. ”
I let out a breath. “That map Starke and I found in the tunnel, do you think…”
“That it’s the lost kingdom?” Odessa nodded. “Perhaps. It would explain why it didn’t match any other continent. These legends have been circulating for generations. I suspect the bodies of the crew you found were remnants of a ship trying to find the kingdom, once upon a time.”
“Or escape it,” I said, standing to pace. “What about all the records we found of crazy natural disasters happening around springtime?”
“That’s when the kingdom’s power is the strongest, at the spring equinox. Even if it can’t rise but once a century, my parents always said its magic can still bring myths alive. It can still sway the sea and beckon ships to its side, hoping someone will come and raise them one day.”
“And how do you raise the kingdom?” Starke asked.
“I have no idea. But first, someone would have to find it, and as far as I know, that’s never been done,” Odessa said.
My thoughts churned. Mortep obviously knew about this kingdom—why else would he be talking about the eternal flame? But what I didn’t understand was why he cared about it.
I faced Odessa. “Why would anyone want to find them? What difference does it make to the rest of us if it’s raised or not?”
Odessa raised an eyebrow. “The people of this kingdom are descended from Fates, Vera. Their power is inconceivable. Imagine what having people like that in your debt would mean. You would have their power completely at your disposal.”
Of course. It was starting to make sense. Mortep was always in search of the most powerful, most rare magic. He must have somehow discovered this legend. Maybe that was why he was gathering followers—to help him find the kingdom and raise it, so he could take their magic for himself.
“He’s trying to find it,” I said to Starke. “That has to be what he’s been doing this whole time.”
“If he is, it’s highly unlikely he’ll be successful,” Starke countered. “This supposed ‘kingdom’ only rises once a century, and what are the chances that this just so happens to be the year? That’s if we believe the legend at all,” he added.
“You never know, it could be soon. The storms have been worse this spring,” I argued. “More weird storms, more shipwrecks, more disasters like the whirlpool. I think it was a sign.”
He sighed. “Vera, I’ve lived here my entire life, and I’ve never once heard of a lost kingdom. Not that I don’t believe you, Odessa,” he said hastily. “I just think it’s a myth passed down from bored seafarers, like any treasure hunt or ghost story.”
I bit my tongue, wanting to remind him that up until a week ago, the magic of my empire was also a myth to him.
I didn’t blame him for being skeptical, but this was all I had to go off of, and it was the closest I’d been in a year.
If chasing some legendary lost kingdom would lead me to Mortep, then I’d do it.
“It doesn’t matter if you believe it,” I said to him. “What matters is Mortep does.”
He scrubbed a hand down his face. “How come nobody has found this place yet?” he asked Odessa.
“It’s said to be guarded by a powerful force placed by the Fates to ensure no one can ever break the enchantment.” She looked between the two of us. “And to kill anyone who tries to leave.”
“So the people living in this kingdom are trapped,” I said. Something stirred in my chest at the thought. Something familiar, deep, and yearning. I knew what being trapped felt like.
I slid my gaze from Odessa to Starke. He seemed to know what I was thinking before I even said anything. “Vera, wait—”
“We have to find this kingdom before Mortep does,” I said firmly. “We’ve got four days before the spring equinox, so we better start looking.” I smirked at Starke’s exasperated expression. “Unless you’d rather I go back and ask one of those pirates for help?”