The sun had reigned supreme over the land for nearly a year since Amethyst left Stone Town. Burning and baking all in its sight as a cruel king. In that time Amethyst had grown to despise the sun's unyielding rule. In that moment, however, sitting so far from land in a floating tub, Amethyst wished dearly that the ravenous king of the sky would return and devour the blackening clouds which sailed overhead.
Amethyst whispered a short prayer of safe passage to any god that would listen; just as the first patter of rain struck the deck. The rain didn't start slowly. No, the massive beads of water and hail came crashing down almost immediately. The wind had pressed into the side of the ship, pushing it noticeably to all those on board. The clouds had eaten across the sky in a matter of minutes and the last traces of blue were swallowed up.
The sun's bright presence had been almost entirely erased. Although it was just past noon, the only trace of the fleet alongside Amethyst's ship was the faint glow of lantern light. Lanterns were quickly lit on her ship as well. As the minutes passed and Amethyst's eyes adjusted, she could see the crew scurrying all about the deck and up high amongst the ropes and sails. They had already tied down most of them, but the few smaller sails meant to assist in turning the boat had become shredded in the mere moments the storm had taken to crash into them.
Amethyst could hear the shouts of the men faintly along with whistles and bells crying out wordless orders. They were a strange cacophony barely audible over the wind which threatened to take anyone standing too tall out into the swelling sea.
Amethyst was standing on the stairs leading below the deck, watching the torrential downpour in front of her. She could hear more clearly the men below as they worked tirelessly to pump out the invading water which had begun to fill the ship's insides. She was torn as to where she should be. She wanted to be of help, but she was also terrified of being out in the storm or in someone's way.
"Captain has ordered us to our bunks!" Tenya shouted from behind Amethyst, her fingertips brushing Amethyst's elbow.
Amethyst turned to see Tenya's shivering form just in reach. Her hair, like Amethyst's, had been matted down and soaked. "Okay!" She shouted back, taking one last look out at the storm.
Below the howls of wind had turned to whistles, and small streams of water found their way in from tiny holes exploited by water seeping through the imperceptible seams in the deck. Their candles were too wet to take flame, and all their clothes and equipment were equally soaked.
Ebba sat in the driest corner on the far side of the room. Tenya hunkered down next to her while Amethyst fought to keep standing as the ship tossed her from side to side.
"Sit!" Tenya told Amethyst.
"I can't." Amethyst said. The dim view in the room was helped only by the small hints of light from the hallway which stretched under the door. She couldn't tell whether Tenya had heard her as gestures continued to beckon Amethyst to come closer.
Tenya stood, uneasy as she strode the short distance to Amethyst. "You need to sit with us and wait the storm out!" Tenya's voice was much more than a shout, she made no gamble as to whether Amethyst would hear. She also grabbed Amethyst's arm and began to pull her closer to the corner.
Amethyst had little choice but to accept. She allowed herself to be pulled and sat in the corner, where the three sat shivering, huddled together. Amethyst's mind rattled through all the gruesome ways to die. She had been told by slaves who had frequented the ocean waves that to drown out here was a slow and painful process. But they were equally as likely to burn from a fallen lantern or drift for days, slowly being cooked from the sun, or eaten by the birds one little piece at a time after the ship failed the sea's test.
The three girls screamed as the first crack of thunder rocked the ship. Ebba had started to whine and cry, begging that this be a dream. She hadn't hidden any of the details of the typhoon she had experienced. Being trapped in a cage, the water rose to half her chest high before the ship buckled. Lucky for Ebba and the children, as the ship was being torn apart, the wooden wall holding the cell in place split apart, allowing them to escape into the stormy waters.
Ebba had said she saw the heads of kids bob for a moment before disappearing. She didn't even hear them cry out. It was the silence that had scared her. The inability for those who were not strong enough or who were not able to swim at all. Their voices were silenced in an instant before they themselves could perceive their doom.
Amethyst could feel the fear once again as she heard the awful cry from above. "Man overboard!" Fueled by her fear from Ebba's story, Amethyst found herself standing instead of hiding. She rushed up and out of the bunk towards the deck. If Tenya was calling to her, or trying to stop her, she didn't know. The stairs were not much of an obstacle as she threw herself into the raging storm.
"Where did the man fall!" She shouted to a few crew members near the stairs she had sprinted up.
Large flashes of lightning lit up the sky and sea more clearly than she had expected them too. There was a constant barrage of light trailing through the clouds. Like thousands of snakes, lightning slithered without resistance over head.
The men pointed over towards where the man had been, she made her way to the worn railing. Far out in the distance, Amethyst could see the man like a dark speck as he drifted away, or maybe it was the ship that drifted, she didn't know, or take the time to figure it out. Like instinct, Amethyst dove over the edge of the ship, landing into the rough water.
For the brief seconds she was under, only the gentle sounds of the rain crashing into the surface over head left any evidence of the cyclone above. Her eyes were open and she could see the light show above, distorted, yet beautiful. Had lives not been in danger, she would have felt truly at peace here.
She felt the water around her warming up, molding to her body as she started making her way to the surface. She wasted no time in swimming further, she pressed her hands onto the water. Like a platform of solid stone she raised herself up. Her feet planted firmly on the water. The constant light from above, dimming only in short intervals continued to illuminate the man. Amethyst dashed towards him. He was only just starting to slip under the water. Each swell tossed the man about.
"Take my hand!" She shouted as she drove hand into the water.
The man, who was in a great panic, not only grasped onto her hand, but started to wrench himself up. Amethyst, as soon as the man touched her could feel the presence, the very shape of the man's body. He stood on shaky legs as the water moved around them. Despite the water's inability to remain still, they stood upright as though on a hill. Rolling up and down along with the swells. But Amethyst did not feel the water's movement below, they simply remained in place. Confidently she started to pull the man along with her, his feet were not moving, but Amethyst's pressed onwards.
The ship had drifted further away. Amethyst felt like little progress had been made in her strides towards the ship. She looked around and saw a different ship that was being pushed closer to them but was in the opposite direction of the original target. She turned to make her way to that ship. This other ship was closing in as she pressed towards it. She had made it almost half way, as a bolt of lighting blinded her for a moment. The ship had been struck and seconds later, the red paint along its hull made sense. The ignition was not instant. whether due to wet powder, or some other mystery Amethyst did not know. There were a few precious seconds for Amethyst to turn around and let instinct take hold.
Sounds of shouting and screaming came from behind her. She could almost feel as they jumped overboard. She wanted to turn around and save them, pull them along with her. She knew she couldn't, this man by himself was already taking a toll on her. Though she couldn't hear their screams over the wind and rain, she knew those men were crying out for someone, or something to save them.
Desperately, she continued to drag the man along, at some point he must have fallen unconscious as she was now dragging his limp body behind her. Still, she felt little weight, or pull. He glided along with her as they continued to move further away from the struck ship. Her hand gripped his limp wrist tightly as she started to make real progress the other way, back towards the original ship. She felt like she was moving much faster, almost skating over the water as though it were ice.
To her it felt like minutes or even hours before the struck ship behind her lit up the water in front of her with a reddish orange hue. A few moments later, she felt a heavy pressure strike her back and a massive kaboom struck her ears. The pressure knocked her off balance and she fell onto the water sliding along its slick surface. Her momentum hadn't shifted much, if anything, the explosions had helped propel her forward towards her original ship.
She had fallen forward, but shifted onto her back, looking at the unconscious body she had clung so tightly too. In the distance she saw the source of the orange and red glow. The struck ship had exploded into a million pieces. Some of which were still making their way to the water. Smaller splinters began to rain down over her, carried by the harsh wind. A large plume hung over the corpse of the old ship, but was quickly being dispersed into the storm. Almost as quickly as it began, the storm swallowed up the remains of the fire, as though the ship had never existed in the first place.
Amethyst pushed herself back up. She let her instincts pull her back to her home, back to Tenya and her friends. The man behind her still unconscious.
§
Amethyst had spent the better part of three hours working with the crew and water around her, attempting to pull the water out of the ship to ease the men's tired bodies below. Wa Chini, Garba, and Stochastís had taken to the oars. along with several other members of the crew, attempting to keep the ship facing the swelling ocean and minimizing the wind against them. Several other ships had already done just that. Though each ship kept a healthy distance, there were still a few which slammed into one another.
Amethyst was beyond exhausted, but the storm had refused to let up. She felt sick, like her insides were trying to escape her. She watched in horror as one of the ships split in half, the water swallowing it and all it's insides into the depths below. She felt useless to help. Her victory at saving the men on her own ship was simply not enough. She let the weight of the lives of those lost at sea rest on her burdened shoulders. Logically she knew she could do nothing, but her heart still cried for them.
She had succumbed to sleep in short lengths, not by her own will but by what Amethyst had perceived as the weakness of her body. The storm seemed to be letting up slightly, taking a rest to catch its energy after the tantrum. They could have been in the eye of the storm, or perhaps the storm's rage had passed fully. Whatever the case, Amethyst had finally allowed herself a moment's reprieve as she fell into a slumber.
§
She couldn't tell how long she had been asleep. It was darker out now and the thunder crashed distantly around her with only small sparks of lighting far off to the east. The rain was still pattering down, but the wind had let up enough that they were no longer moving, but anchored to the sea floor.
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Amethyst found Tenya in their bunks. Amethyst was sore from falling asleep against the wall to the captain's quarter. More over her body burned from exerting her magic so recklessly. So as she entered, she fell to her knees and was unable to pull herself up.
"I was so worried about you!" Tenya screamed, tears running down her still damp face.
Ebba had fallen asleep in the corner, only siring slightly at Tenya's anger. Tenya's hair was more dried than before and a small collection of candles were set neatly in front of her, a metal shield propped to help radiate heat back. Amethyst thought this very clever.
"I... I needed to help." Amethyst said, her lungs struggling to keep her conscious as she spoke. "I couldn't... let..." She took a deep breath. She felt a stabbing pain in her ribs as she did so. "I couldn't let anyone die if I could help it." Amethyst crawled over to the corner.
She hadn't realized how cold she was. The heat from just a few candles felt like a roaring fire. The chill in her bones fighting to remain. She felt Tenya tugging at her soaked clothes. Even if Amethyst wanted to fight she had no strength to do so. Amethyst sat, nearly naked as Tenya stripped her shirt off as well. Amethyst, however, was focused on her hands. She couldn't feel them due to the cold. She felt Tenya's blazing hot body press against her frigid one. At first the heat was too much, but quickly she let herself lay back into Tenya, who wrapped her arms around Amethyst.
"You are a damned fool." Tenya whispered into Amethyst's ear as she clutched at her bare torso from behind. "A damn fool, but a damn good woman."
Amethyst had nothing to say, she simply let herself lay back into Tenyas hot embrace. She could feel the beating of her heart and feel the rising and steady fall of her chest. Amethyst watched the candle flicker as she thought about how Tenya would feel if Amethyst had died out there. The what if's that normally flooded Amethyst's mind were nowhere to be heard. She simply felt that Tenya would be sad. That in turn made Amethyst sad.
Ebba moved in her sleep. Tenya attempted to comfort her, but was unable to reach her. Amethyst shifted forward, then reached her own hands out for Ebba. In her sleepy haze, Ebba switched from leaning on the wall, to leaning against Amethyst's now much warmer torso. Ebba wrapped her arms around Amethyst and said. "I love you mom."
Amethyst knew she had meant to say those words to Tenya, but couldn't help to pretend for a moment that she had intended them for her instead. She watched Ebba curl and felt her little arms tense. Amethyst felt herself starting to cry, but stopped when she could feel the shutters that came form Tenya.
She looked up to see Tenya's chin. Not able to see her face, Amethyst reached her hand to Tenya's cheek. Tenya pressed hard against Amethyst's hand and cried for a short while.
"I am so grateful for you." Tenya said, cutting through the droll pattering of rain against the hull of the ship.
Amethyst attempted to speak, but she just couldn't find her voice. She thought that might be for the best as Tenya continued.
"You are so incredible, Misty." Tenya sniffled. "Taking care of my boy, taking care of me, and taking care of Ebba." Tenya started to rub the outside of her finger tips against Amethyst's side. "I wish you had always been in my life to guide me." Her voice hitched. "My boy would still be here if I had you with me." Tenya squeezed Amethyst in a tight hug.
Amethyst pressed back against her more. Her hand wrapped around Tenya's, interlocking as they sat in their relative silence, enjoying each other as they shared their embrace. Before long, Tenya fell asleep, Amethyst felt her gentle rise and fall slow considerably. She noticed that Ebba's grip had nearly fallen entirely. Ebba had also drooled quite a lot onto Amethyst's thigh. Amethyst smiled widely as she let the last little flicker of the candles go out. and she too fell into sleep.
§
Bells and shouts rang in alarm. Amethyst jolted up along with Tenya and Ebba. The calm peace of sleep ripped away from her. Amethyst could tell that the waves and wind had settled, and there was not even a drop of rain to be heard.
The storm must have passed, but the shouts above were panicked. What if they had been in the eye and now they would have to brace themselves again? Amethyst scrambled upwards as soon as Ebba sat up, she wasted no time in putting her clothes on.
Tenya insisted Ebba wait there while she joined Amethyst up. The two, warm, replaced the cold damp cloths they had worn before. Amethyst was first up and out of the room, Tenya following soon after.
On the deck, Amethyst observed the sun had risen and it was in fact the next day. Any view was obscured by clouds. The deck was not in a scramble, instead everyone leaned over to one side of the ship. Amethyst approached, letting herself push through the crowd until she let her hands grip the railing. She could feel it's smooth surface, she could feel the pits that had been sanded down to help reduce the chance of splinters. She looked out in a horror she never knew possible. On the western side, the same side the storm had come raging through, she could see the remnants of a ship.
There were people crying out for help, but Amethyst was unable to do anything but watch as one by one they disappeared under the water. They didn't sink slowly, but were pulled quickly below. as the last man disappeared, she could see what had transfixed the crew. As, like columns rising from the depths, massive tentacles started to grip and wrap around the adjacent ship.
Amethyst watched for a long time as the ship was slowly crushed apart. The tentacles trying to grab the crew from inside the ship before finally cracking it apart, like a bear after honey.
Tenya was the first to shout. "Don't just stand there, to arms!"
Everyone looked in confusion towards her, they couldn't understand what she had said. Bontu followed up quickly. "To arms!" After a delayed second, the crew scattered. The bustle of the ship drowned out the screams of the people on the other boat. The man on the lookout nest raised blue flags and the other ships began turning and readying themselves to take on the beast together.
Amethyst had no arms to go to, but Tenya clearly did as she made her way below deck. Amethyst felt it silly that she too might run below deck to grab her daggers. After all, what would splinters do against a colossus? She thought Wa Chini and Garba must have felt the same as they stood on the deck not far from her.
Stochastís approached Amethyst. He rested his hands on the same worn railing she did. "The Scylla, or rather the Kraken." Stochastís sighed. "Few sailors have seen this, and fewer still tell it's tale." Stochastís shuttered as he spoke. "Many claim to have seen it, but the tales they recount are... well they are full of inaccuracies."
"I never knew such creatures exist." Amethyst said shakily.
"I did not think it was real." Stochastís agreed. "I cannot tell if you are the luckiest or unluckiest person I have ever met." His trembling hands were white as he gripped the rail tightly.
"What do you mean?" Amethyst asked, her eyes still focused on the monster in front of her.
Stochastís placed his hand on Amethyst's shoulder, squeezing firmly. Amethyst looked at him, he had a subtle smile on his face and welling tears in his eyes.
"I know this is not where we shall die." He said calmly before taking a deep breath. "Everywhere you go, a disaster follows Though, that is not to say that you are a disaster." He blinked rapidly, as tears fell. Amethyst could see his fear fighting with his trust in Mágissa. "So I wonder whether you are bad luck for finding the disaster, or good luck for pulling through it."
Amethyst felt conflicted about the idea she was responsible for bad luck and disaster. As her life has been one tragedy after another she saw merit to the idea. At the same time, she had also managed to survive, even if uncomfortable while doing so. The words Stochastís said, regardless of his fear or trust, made her question her very existence. She wasn't able to follow her thoughts to any conclusion as she heard the screaming stop and looked back up to find that the tentacles were gone.
"I guess we will find out today which you are." Stochastís's smile dropped as he pulled out what looked like a golden tube. There were wreaths carved into it and what looked to be a depiction of storming clouds which wrapped around the cylinder. He squeezed his hand tightly and two ends shot out of the tube, both were sharp.
Amethyst had never seen a weapon like that. She wondered why he didn't fight alongside them in battle before. The answer came as soon as she started to wonder. His right arm grew dark as blood started to drip out his open pores. She had no time to question it as he hurled the spear into the sky. It moved further and faster than any human could throw it. He gripped his arm tightly as the spear hit the clouds disappearing behind them.
She heard the dribbling of water behind her and looked to see that one of the massive columns was right behind her, the massive suction cups covered in filth and ilk. She could see the jammed remains of human bones which had been stabbed into the tentacles, pieces of wood which had become almost a part of the creature. She could smell the puss filled wounds and see the drips of darkened blood which had formed over old wounds.
Amethyst looked on with Stochastís as the tentacle raised up into the air. Then with his blood soaked arm Stochastís brought his hand down. A bolt of lightning came crashing down into the tentacle. A large hole with deep scorch marks was left by this attack. The tube Stochastís had thrown was back in his hand, the blackness had gone away, but he still gripped this forearm tightly and he was still bleeding.
Amethyst turned to see the tentacle thrashing before it shot beneath the water. Amethyst looked down, hope filled her heart that Stochastís's attack had done enough damage or even kill it. Her hope turned to terror as dozens of larger tentacles sprang out of the water high into the air. The other ships had gathered around and were now harpooning and shooting small cannons and large ballista at the tentacles. The attack was enough to divide the attention as some of the tentacles shot in different directions, narrowly missing the attacking ships. Smaller tentacles started to wrap themselves around Amethyst's ship.
The crew had gone to work hacking and slashing at them. The cats clawed while Busara and Bontu stabbed spears into the creeping appendages. Tenya, however, caught Amethyst's eye. She ran to the thinnest tips and began slashing through them, working her way along the edges of the old worn rail.
Amethyst was impressed, but took no time to admire her hard work and beauty. She focused on Stochastís, who had fallen onto the ground. She grabbed at him and struggled to pull him back away from the edge. Making it just to the wall of the captains quarter.
She heard a scream and looked to see Tenya in the grip of one of the tentacles. It had not raised her up and Amethyst would give it no chance to. She ran towards Tenya, she imagined her hands dipping into the water of the sea and lifting the water out. Along both sides of the ship Amethyst saw the water rising along with her imagination. She felt a pit in her stomach but continued forward.
She imagined the water forming sharp blades and slicing through the tentacle. Just as she envisioned it, the water, obeying her wordless command, formed what looked to be a sharp horseshoe before slashing right through the tentacle then splashing down on the deck harmlessly. Amethyst's arms felt numb and started to tingle aggressively. She wasn't cold, but the pit in her stomach grew.
She watched Tenya squirm out of the wriggling appendage. A moment later she watched Tenya run towards her, but even though she could see her, she couldn't hear her. She could tell that Tenya was shouting, she had even dropped her sword as she ran to Amethyst. Tenya slid and gripped Amethyst's body, but she couldn't feel it. Amethyst felt a ringing in her ears.
In her head, like a rumble, an inhuman voice echoed and reverberated throughout her mind. The pain was immense as the voice spoke. "I HAVE FELLED ENEMIES COUNTLESS, FOR TIME UNKNOWN, YOU SHALL BE AMONG THEM, WATER MAGE." It was unlike anything Amethyst had heard before. Her mind felt defiled. Visions of a serpent devouring itself stole her vision like sunspots.
Amethyst grabbed her head as the echoes of the words and visions ceased. Amethyst felt like her head was ready to explode. Tenya was shaking Amethyst, trying to get her to move. But Amethyst felt dizzy and didn't recognize Tenya or her attempts to rouse her. She could feel the ship rocking slightly before seeing all the tentacles which surrounded the ship. They twitched and wriggled as their tips started to turn towards the ship. They were glowing slightly in her vision as a putrid greenish gold color.
Amethyst Imagined the water around them spiraling like a circle. She couldn't see with her eyes any more, as the world started to go dark. In her mind's eye the water had formed a ring around the outside of the tentacles, just high enough to miss the mast. She wanted to imagine it to go higher, but was unable too. She envisioned the ring narrowing into a perfectly flat disc.
Light flooded her vision. She could see all the tentacles as though the ring of water was millions of little eyes. She could sense the Kraken below, feel it as though it were in the palm of her hand. In her dream she squeezed the beast, but could not hold it in place. The "eyes" she used as a ring around the uplifted tentacles closed in quickly. Faster than could be perceived, like a hot knife through butter, the water effortlessly sliced through the tentacles. She could feel the ocean rumbling as her grip on the Kraken failed, and the beast disappeared.
She sensed the remnants of blood and gore as the crew fought to evade falling tentacles before crashing down into the deck. Blood rained down as hard as a storm. The thick and retched smell of death and decay like in the Aqueducts haunted Amethyst's dream.
As her "eyes" fell, Amethyst could see Tenya holding and crying as Amethyst's body spasmed. Foam was pouring out of her mouth and blood was dripping from every orifice. Like an out of body experience, Amethyst thought she had died and was now looking down on her own body. The body, of course, didn't know it was dead yet. Then she saw Nuru and could see a faint highlight around her body as though she were cloaked in a radiant and golden aura.
Then all went dark, and Amethyst's dream ended.