CHAPTER 14
The light of a new day rose over the island kingdom of Dragon Haven, and with it, Larxene, eager to begin the work of expanding the dock to accommodate their new gallion properly, formerly King Maelstrom’s ‘Pride of the Storm,’ now known as ‘The Huntress of the Seas.’
Even in the early hours of the morning, the Talon Harbor was abuzz with activity. ‘Have to walk up before the fish do, if you want to catch anything,’ as the old saying went. As Larxene walked the gravel path leading to Dock Master Balasar’s hut, she noted the sound of voices singing. An old sea chanty, she had heard it before but couldn’t quite recognize the words. The source was the fishermen and sailors; some sang, others hummed, and a few worked in silence as they loaded up their catamarans and trimarans with nets, rods, and traps. It must have been part of the routine, a way of energizing everyone for the day's work. It was like how she used to go fishing with her parents.
The smell and taste of salt air, the feeling of the wind blowing against your face, the sound of an upbeat tone, and the sight of a vast blue ocean of fish to catch; it was amazing; it was invigorating. In moments like this, she remembered the time before she was cursed when she would fly through the air just above the water to catch great white sharks as they hunted seals. Sharks are another stable food for dragons, and the great white is Larxene’s favorite. Feeling renewed, she hummed along with the tune.
The Huntress of the Seas proved to be a bit of an obstacle for the sailors. Due to the size, they had to sail around it carefully; no one wanted to be the idiot that messed up the Dragon Prince’s shiny new boat after all. Quite a few of the younger sailors kept gawking at her as if she were a beautiful maiden. That made sense though it was THE ship of the Pirate King or once Pirate King… Larxene wondered who won the Clash of Kings in the end. She and the rest of the team were probably long gone by the time someone was crowned. Hopefully, it wasn’t Maelstrom. Otherwise, he might come looking to reclaim his old ship, and the Corsair was in no mood to lose her ship. Well, okay, Radais ship technically, he was the prince after all, but still, she was the one that sailed it. It was the coach driver that got to have the real fun; the coach owner just rode in the back.
The story of how the ship was stolen had already grown into a legend. It started off in the tavern last night with a fairly accurate retelling; led by the Prince, we swiped the Dragon Gemstone from Redmane the Seaspeaker, stole the ship, and ran. After a few rounds and some mentions of the Kraken summoned by Redmane, a climactic chase was added to the end, another few rounds, and rather than being stolen, the ship was won when Radais won the Clash of Kings by slaying the Kraken. Men of the sea love their tales, in part because they always change and grow in such interesting ways. Larxene herself might have added to the exaggeration herself, which is why in some versions, she was now the ‘Pirate Queen of the Clash.’ Not a bad title; she wondered if something like that could be unlocked through her Arcane Record.
‘Arcane Records’ are a list of accomplishments and tasks bound to one’s soul. Everyone in the world of Acheron has their own. Why that is, is the unknowable whimsy of the gods.What is known is that those who adventure and complete the tasks are rewarded with great power.
The sea chanty faded as Larxene reached Dock Master’s hut. It was one of the larger buildings due to serving as both the Balasar’s home, and office, and as a sort of drydock where boats (the little ones like the fishing boats) could be built and repaired. She spotted the Dock Master himself at the meeting table with fellow half-dragon Andhai, the island's best carpenter.
“We’ll need more lumber; we’ll have to harvest from one of the nearby islands,” Andhai noted as she leaned over the map of Dragon Haven and the surrounding islands.
Balasar nodded, “We’ll need to borrow the galleon, the only ship we have big enough to haul lumber.”
“A little day trip could be fun. Maybe you’d like to get out of this office for once? We could use someone strong like you for hauling trees back to the lumber yard.” Andhai noted with a flirtatious smile.
If Balasar noticed the flirting, he chose not to react. He heaved a heavy sigh. “A logistical nightmare is what it is. We need to get enough sailors to sail the ship properly, we need enough lumber jacks to fall the trees and get them on the boat, we’ll need enough guards to keep them all safe from whatever might be lurking on the islands, and enough supplies for all of them. And all of that is to get the wood to build the dock, which is another hassle in and of itself.”
Andhai nodded, “Well, at least it’ll give us a chance to work together. You’re always busy at the dock, and I’m always at the lumber yard. We’d have a chance to get to know each other.” She was more direct this time.
“I suppose,” Balasar replied with a shrug. He looked up and noticed the Corsair. “Ah, Larxene, good timing. We need to figure out how much lumber we’ll need for the new dock.”
“Right, we’ve got work to do… I’ll just see myself out, then.” Andhai quickly excused herself and left, pausing only briefly to nod to Larxene.
Once Andhai was out of earshot, Larxene turned to Balasar with a coy grin. “Just in case you didn’t notice, she was flirting with you…”
“I did notice.” He replied flatly and then turned and looked at the picture on the wall.
It was a small framed picture, probably from one of those ‘photograph’ gadgets she’s seen in Highhelm. The picture showed a woman and a small child that could have been Balasar’s son, given the resemblance.
Balasar noticed Larxene’s confused expression. “I… I lost my Ono and our little Arac when the damned Empire attacked.” He explained in a voice that echoed with distant pain.
“I… I didn’t know, I’m sorry.” Larxene frowned, she hadn’t known his family was yet another victim of the Tal’dartheria.
“It happened… it will never be set right. Let’s… just… focus on the job. ‘A mind busy with the future lingers not upon the past’ after all.”
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Elsewhere on the island…
Xion frowned as she walked through the town square and waved Draco Kami. The ‘town square’ wasn’t really a town square proper, more of ‘an area where most of the footpaths crossed that was basically the center of town, so let’s just call it a town square and be done with it, alright? Good!’. She felt the energies flowing through her weapon as passersby gave her the occasional odd look, but left the Shaman to her work. Things were worse than she had feared. There was a build of ‘negative energy’, or bad karma, ill intent, perhaps negative emotion. ‘Bad mojo’ as it were. There wasn’t a single name for it, the shamanistic interpretation of magic was less ordered and more sense based than other practices, but there was a ‘bad vibe’. She had spent some time last night scouting the island and resumed her search early in the morning. She was now certain, there was a curse brewing. She needed to stop it.
Xion heard the tell-tale ‘Your highness’es and ‘My Princess’es that followed Radais around like the wake of a large boat, long before she turned to see him.
“Xion, Good morning! I see Draco Kami has been repaired, always nice to see a weapon returned to the hands of its proper wielder.” Radais greeted her with his usual princely decorum. “I do wonder what you’re up to though. I seem to recall you being rather… ‘insistent’ about needing some time off. I assumed you’d be in your quarters reading a book, but I hear you've been all over the island.”
“We need to talk.” Xion replied with a worried look.
Radais blinked in surprise and nodded. “I was just on my way to handle a choir before Zhanatos and I departed for Highhelm. Can we talk on the way?”
Xion nodded and they began walking as they spoke in hushed voices. “Do you know the Dragonblood couple that works at the tannery?” She asked.
“Yes, the wife is the sister of councilman Ratheo. He told me Aresih and her husband Ilka are expecting a child soon.” Radais nodded with a smile. “I was just on my way to see them actually, to give my regards.”
“Has anyone told you about the curse?” Xion asked quietly to not be overheard.
Radais raised an eyebrow and spoke in a matching hushed tone. “The council mentioned there had been some arguments and tension. Some superstitious nonsense that having a Dragonblood born on the island will bring the Tal’dartheria Empire down on us. I was planning on addressing that as well.”
“How?” Xion inquired.
Radais shrugged, “By talking to my people and explaining to them we are safe from the empire so long as Waygate remains hidden. Even then currently the United Kingdoms of Acheron have banned them from the Ways Network, and Dragon Haven is well out of the range of the Empire’s flying machines.”
Xion winced and hesitated to speak for a moment. She applauded Radais’ intentions, but this wasn’t the sort of problem that could be solved with rationality, at least it wasn’t in her estimation. “That might not be the best idea. I’ve been checking the mana flows of the islands. There's a build of bad karma from built-up negative emotions.”
Unlike Xion, Radais was a magician. His interpretation of magic was founded on scientific pursuit. Magic was a force of the universe same as gravity and electromagnetism. From anyone else the notion of ‘bad karma’ or ‘build-up of negative emotions’ would have been ridiculous, but not from Xion. He knew Xion had magic; she had wielded both cryomancy and electromancy as well as other magics with Draco Kami, just as he did alchemy and pyromancy. “I see. Do you have any recommendations then?”
“Let me handle it. I’ve been studying the flow of energies and I think I can dispel the built-up negative energy with enough time.” Xion pressed on before the Dragon Prince could interrupt. “I know you want to handle this. These are your people, you want your kingdom to be safe and happy. However ‘telling’ everyone they need to be happy and get along doesn’t work. If anything it might make the curse worse. And no, it's not nonsense. Magic works based on will, if enough people THINK there is a curse, then there can be. Especially with how strangely magically charged the Forbidden Archipelago is.”
Radais supposed there was some logic to that. He was both loved and feared as the Prince of the island. If uttered the words for something to be done, it would be done, but that doesn’t mean his people would be happy with it. And yes magic was will based, and the will of large groups of people can be focused to achieve specific effects under certain conditions. “Well… I hate to cut into what was supposed to be your time off, but if you’re right… which generally you are, then you are the only one that can address the problem. But… you seemed really upset yesterday, maybe--”
“I’m sorry about yelling yesterday…” Xion interrupted apologetically, she had her own share of pent-up negative emotion now that she thought about it. “I was just…” The Prince silenced her with a gentle smile and a hand on her shoulder.
“It's okay to be upset, and need time. Just maybe next time let me know more quietly, alright?”
Xion smiled and nodded.
“Alright, in that case, I leave the matter of this curse in your hands. I’ll get Zhanatos and we’ll head out to Highhelm. I’ll have my Sending stone handy so please keep me updated on the situation here in case things go awry.”
The Prince was hesitant to leave Dragon Haven knowing trouble was brewing, but he trusted Xion and there were other matters that needed his efforts. He needed to meet with Adventures Association’s Master Hanover to bring news of the threats of Neptune’s hold as well as prepare for their next adventure where hopefully their third Dragon Gemstone awaited them at the end.
“...And with the anti-magic properties of Dimagium, any tracking spells are blocked, which is how we can get mail through the Ways Network’s Pneumatic tube system without fear of the island being discovered.” Explained… Blood Raven Zhanatos’ sword.
“Ah okay, I get it now!” Zhanatos nodded to … his hand that was holding Blood Raven in such a way that as he moved the thumb of his closed fist up and down it made the skull design on the hilt appear to talk.
The two guards assigned to watch the magician's tower that day exchanged a confused look and then the more senior of the two answered, “UM… thank you… um Master umm….Sword? We… well we were aware of that already.”
Zhanatos shrugged, “I wasn’t. Also, what does ‘Pu-man-tech’ mean?”
Zhanatos swayed Blood Raven in a matter that suggested the skull design was rolling its eyes. He moved his thumb up and down as he spoke out of the side of his mouth in the Blood Raven voice, “It means contains gas or is operated by air pressure, dear boy.” The sword ‘turned’ to face the guards. “Hey, fellas, sorry for talking your ears off. I just haven't tasted blood for a while and I get chatty when I’m hungry ya know?”
The other guard answered the sword this time. “Yeah, um… we get it. Guard work can be boring too.”
Zhanatos bobbed the sword up and down as if it was nodding. “Yeah… My job is like that. I gotta watch this guy’s back…” Zhanatos motioned the sword to himself “… all the time, especially when I’m stuck to it. Oh hey, the boss is here!”
“OH, thank the gods….” One of the guards muttered as the Dragon Prince arrived. Both guards greeted him with a sharp salute.
Radais returned the salute. “Good morning, gents. I see Zhanatos and, um… Blood Raven has been keeping you entertained until I arrived.”
“He… um ‘they’ sure have.” One guard said, and the other nodded with a forced smile.
“Well, we best be off, Zhanatos.” Radais offered him one of a pair of potions. They were potions of ‘Limited Invisibility' to be drunk as they traveled through the Ways Network. The potions would provide the imbiber a few moments of invisibility, just enough to exit the Waygate and travel a short distance and arrange the appearance of stepping out a different gate. Just in case any prying eyes were to be watching, as unlikely as that was.
Radais and Zhanatos popped the corks of their vials, downed the contents, and watched as they disappeared and ventured into the ‘Path that connects all paths’ the Ways Network.