Nannade could not recall how, but she managed to grab one of the metal anchors jutting from the rock.
She pulled herself up and held on tight, to not get flushed away by the current. Smaller rocks were still impacting around her. She did not know where to look. Upwards were only more rocks, forward the Flitting Fiona trimmed her sails. Tessem threw lines to the anchors in the rock and waved from the back of the ship. She would have to let go of the anchors to get out of the danger zone. She inhaled deeply and let go.
The current tore her away. Panic overcame her again and she reached for another anchor, if one would pass her by. Finally, after a momentary eternity of dread, she got hold of one. She allowed herself to breathe again. She looked to Fiona and she did not seem an inch closer. She couldn’t do this.
Tessem started to jump and point to her, yelling something she could not understand. When she looked behind her, she saw a boat rushing towards her. The men manning it looked just as afraid of the stones as she.
She clung close to the wall to avoid getting hit by the boat or torn away by its wake. The boat had almost passed her when a though shot through her head.
Almost reflexively, she pushed herself off from the rock and stretched her hands towards the wood of the boat.
Her claws dug in deep into the wet and soaked wood and she managed to hold on to the boat, being carried down the stream towards Fiona.
She let go just as her ride steered to avoid hitting Fiona and she managed to jump ship.
Tessem pulled her aboard with a relieved laughter.
“My my, what fear I had for you, girl! Good to see you well!”
“Cat can’t swim, who would have thought?” He said with an impish smile. “Your kind is normally so nimble in the waters.
“Well, just another exception in the long list of exceptions that is me, I guess.”
They sat on the deck, Nannade wrapped in a blanket, her wet clothes hung out to dry. They watched the few last rocks of the wedge tumble down, before it seemingly decided to fall another day.
Nannade decided to poke at him. “You know, you seemed awfully concerned for me.”
“Yeah well... How could I not? I lost my brother-in-law on the salt river. It was... I think ten years ago soon. We were riding on a springtide for an extra fast tour. While we were in, before reaching midpoint bay, an extra strong wind picked up. He tried to steady the sail to keep it from flipping front wise, but he leaned too far back too closely to the edge and I was steering the boat too closely to the rock wall. He hit his head on one of the anchors. I only saw splattering blood from his head, then he disappeared into the river. I sat for an entire day by mitpoint bay until a fellow rusher brought me his corpse. It’s common courtesy.”
Nannade swalled deeply. “I’m sorry for you.”
“It’s a rusher’s life. And now his son is following into his footsteps. He begged me to take him with me. I yelled at that boy for an entire month to never ask me again, but eventually, I got let him come along. It’s the only thing keeping him and my sister afloat. But still, every day I worry something will happen to him like to his father.”
Finally, Tessem decided they had wasted enough time with sentimentality.
“Sing your songs whenever you feel well enough, I'll get us back on the way to Northbridge”
Elissa sat at the bow and let the cool autumn air blow through her hair. They could still get a good distance out of the current tide. She decided to raise her voice to another song.
A few swifts’ spirits joined their breeze and she kept them along for a while, filling both their sails and Nannade’s lungs with strong winds, until the tide died down again.
It came as Tessem had predicted; they arrived even before evening of the third day of their journey, a stiff breeze and only a short interruption had granted them a fast travel, and they even had some crabs left to roast on the shore of Northbridge, along with other cleft rushers, friends and acquaintances of Tessem. Their laughter and stories were carried up into the evening sky by the autumn winds, along with the light and smoke of the camp fire on the beach.
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Nannade spent her night at another inn and got up the next morning. She helped Tessem find some medicine for his nephew before he could set out. Distinguishing between sham and proper medicine was the least she could do for him. Aaka had told her to go to the university's western campus to meet with a certain professor Alivor. Even the university here seemed identically designed to that of Southbridge. She was let in rather quickly and was pointed to the building of the faculty of evocation, where she was told to ask for dean Alivor.
The building was old, probably one of the earliest built in the city. When Nannade entered, she was met with an empty front desk. She rang a table bell left there and waited for someone to appear.
Eventually, a young man did. He had short brown hair curling on his head and was a bit small for a human male. He wore the robe of a graduated alumni of Northbridge university, orange, dark green and deep blue with silver trim.
His posture was straight and stiff, he held his hands behind his back and looked her directly in the eyes. “What can I do for you, miss?”
“I am here to meet with Professor Alivor, my name is Nannade of Sturreland.”
“I will notify his spectability.”
The young man left the room and returned shortly later.
“His spectability currently cannot receive you, but will shortly have time to do so. Please follow me to the waiting room.”
Nannade was confused and interrupted the man before he could turn around. “I am sorry, but what is his spectability?”
The man smiled, like one would smile at a child’s silly questions. “It is the proper formality to address the dean of a faculty opr even the entire university, miss.”
“Oh, I am sorry for any disrespect.”
The man said nothing and simply led her to a small room around the corner. It was a luxurious room, the walls decorated with intricate wooden veneers, soft padded benches around the walls and opposite of the door stood a large cabinet clock, its pendulum swinging in perfect mechanical steadyness.
“I will call on you as soon as his spectability is able to see you. If you need anything in particular, please ring the bell.”
He left the room and so she waited. She first tried to pass the time with going through her notes. She made sure to write down “spectability” as the proper honorific for a dean of a faculty or university. When she was done with checking and updating everything, she inspected the wooden veneers on the walls and furniture. Then she went through her palm book and check what she had written down and where she could make some improvements.
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In the end, she just ended up sitting on the bench, looking at the pendulum of the clock tick left, tick right. It wasn’t that she had never seen a clock before, just that this was the longest she had ever been in the same room with one. One hour and seventeen minutes.
Finally, after all this time, the young man came back.
“His spectability Alivor will now see you.”
He led her down the narrow corridor to the last door at the end and let her in and closed the door behind her. Inside was a large office with a huge table looking as if it had been shaped or carved out of a single piece of wood. Behind it sat a tall man, almost gaunt in his appearance. He had short, light-brown hair and cleanly shaven mutton chops. Many metal rings adorned his staff leaning in a glass cabinet behind him, Nannade would have to concentrate to count them all.
“You must be Nannade. My name is Professor Alivor.” the man said to her.
“Yes, I am, your spectability.” Nannade bowed, somewhat awkwardly. He beckoned her to take a seat and she complied. He felt his gaze eyeing her up from top to bottom and back in an instant. It had something of an impending fight.
“I was offered by the Lodge of Sturreland to take you on my delegation for a mission as a specialist. Have you been filled in yet?”
“No, I have not.”
He leaned back in his chair and put his folded hands on his lap. “Well then. This mission is a joint operation by the Ordo Militaris of the Church of Her Holy Radiance and Northbridge University. In the ocean between the continents Botrelandt and Ackarom lies an island named Stakkarun.”
He put a map on the desk and Nannade leaned close to inspect it. She could see Northbridge, the salt river and Botrelandt. Stakkarun was a rather large island, just a hundred miles across at the narrowest.
“Stakkarun had always been its own tiny nation ruled by a single family and somewhat secluded, turned inwards. Some years ago, it was rid of a cult that had undertaken wyrd experiments for decades there. But since then, Stakkarun did not open itself up one bit. Expeditions and delegations there never return and sailors that come close to the shore say there is a distinct lack of ships, even fishing vessels. In recent months, rumours of military mobilization and outwards expansions have cropped up among those that frequent the waters. Northbridge university and the Church of Her Holy Radiance have decided to send a specialist platoon to Stakkarun, in order to investigate and if necessary, prepare for either a large-scale invasion, or a specialist elimination of the threat, depending on the intelligence gathered. The island’s natural flow of life force may be twisted and turned by the cult and needs to be put back on a path of healing.”
“And I’m supposed to do that? How?”
“You’re first and foremost tasked with helping the platoon find its way in the landscape, avoid the dangers of malformed life force and arrange the troop with the spirits and daemons that might haunt the place.”
Nannade had problem believing that claim. “So, no assassinations or anything like that?”
“I see you know what might be going on.” He leaned over the table towards her and lowered his voice. “Let it be said that I and I alone know of your training, situation and special circumstances. No one else needs to know. I was offered specifically your assistance for undisclosed reasons and I am to observe your performance as an additional source to the familiar called Aaka.” he nodded towards the jar on Nannade’s hips. “If the church of Her Holy Radiance ever found out about your predicament, they would be most upset and it could jeopardize the mission.”
“I understand. Be assured that I know to lie low.”
“Now come along, we don’t have all day.” Alivor lead the girl off the campus and towards the port, she could tell by the layout so similar to Southbridge. Directly below the bridge itself was the harbour. Alivor and Nannade had headed up to the cargo deck of the bridge, which spanned almost the entire lowest floor of the interior. From there, they were lowered down in a carriage-body without wheels, suspended from one of the cranes, similar to the cargo of ships. Nannade leaned out the window and saw a large tall ship directly below them. She could see the crew hurrying across the deck, stowing cargo and getting everything squared away. She saw the many layers of the bridge slowly pass her by. A breeze out of the salt river was wishing them good travels and the carriage was gently sway from side to side.
“Have you all just been waiting for me?”
“No, not entirely. Many members of the team arrived just recently. You are not the last to arrive either, we have been searching for suitable members for three months by now. I was only referred to you because of a letter that arrived three months ago from the Lodge of Sturreland mentioning your availability. We will most likely wait another two days or three, but we want to be ready to depart as soon as possible and you need to be filled in on some details.” Slowly, the carriage continued its decent by the rope.
Finally, it arrived on the deck. Alivor stepped out before Nannade. “Welcome on the Vigilantia of the university’s fleet.” He said after she had stepped out. The carriage was hoisted back up shortly afterwards. Several people were saluting the professor as he made his way across the ship to the captain’s quarters. In there, several other people were already waiting, leaning over lists and tables while discussing something.
Alivor stepped aside so the rest of the room had a good view on Nannade. “May I present, Nannade of Sturreland, apprentice and specialist on ley-lines and natural daemons.”
Nannade tried to stand straight and look dignified. The eyes in the room pierced her with questions and judgement. A large man with greying hair and a scarred face stepped close to her. He was at least a head taller than Garetas and wider as well. He held out his hand to Nannade and when she shook it, he introduced himself as Andronicus, one of the twelve Paladins of Her Holy Radiance. The other two members of the round were Father Syagricus, a priest of the faith and even more gaunt and dried up than Alivor. And finally, Captain Christopherus, of the Northbridge university’s fleet, a broad man with a chest and belly that looked like they could fill an entire tavern with sailor’s songs, and a smile that told her those songs would be naughty, if he wasn’t wearing his fine uniform with all those medals at the time.
All three of them were observing her very closely. Finally, Andronicus spoke up to break the silence.
“Does the Lodge of Sturreland not have any more experienced members?”
Alivor answered before Nannade could. “Nannade is the one they have sent to us, no one else. She will perform admirably.” he gave Nannade a stern glance. She knew to simply keep her mouth shut and let him do all the talking.
They showed her various maps, records of previous expeditions, samples of leaves, beetles and other formerly living beings, all of them twisted in some way. The Ordo Militaris had already erected forward bridgehead on Stakkarun and had half the platoon still stationed there, waiting for the specialist teams from Northbridge. Nannade was made to understand that the place they would be embarking to was a twisted land, and that the cult had engaged in dark and forbidden practices. The population was enslaved and used as livestock for their demonic sacrifices. It sounded familiar to Nannade. Another big city, another dark cult, and she was sure enough there would be another mighty Lord as well.
She had been given a small berth, together with Alivor, where she had taken the top bunk, she liked sleeping up high. Alivor did not sleep on the ship, he had his own house in the city, for Nannade, it was as good as any inn, but for free.
Now Nannade sat on her bed, looking at one of the leaves in a glass vial. It looked spikey and leathery. It was not green either, rather a dark purple tone. At times she could see something crawling over the leaf, it looked like a small, fast bug, but she could never find it when looking for it. This leaf, and the plant it had come from, was wrong. After she had made her notes, she put the vial aside to get some sleep. She turned her light-vial off and tried to get some shut-eye, as the vessel rocket her to sleep gently.