18 Years Later

“One moment I was home, the next I was standing beside a shallow creek in the Daamun woods, several leagues away from my home. Stealing from a god does have its perks. Even though I can still feel His eyes on my back. Even now, all these centuries later, Chronos watches. And He seems mad.” – Khna’ Badosh.

“At least give me fifteen minutes before you blast the damn ship,” Adan said, looking into the tiny mirror on the wall, checking his disguise for the tenth time. The red, bushy beard was fine but the wig was quite itchy. He grimaced as he shifted it a little but to no avail.

“Fine,” Reeyu said, who sat at the lone chair in the tiny, darkly lit room, “but no more than that. Every minute we stay there is just unnecessary danger.” He picked at his teeth, making annoying noises. Adan was sure Reeyu did that mostly just to annoy him.

“It’s not unnecessary.” Adan adjusted his leather jacket for the last time and made for the door. Reeyu followed him.

“Maybe. But it sure as hell is one crazy plan.”

“That it is.” Adan grinned as he left the dingy, old inn in the town of Hosin and headed for the docks.

Adan stood in the captain’s cabin, aboard the ship of the Karathian pirates—the most notorious pirates in all of the Known Universe—and the incredulity of Adan’s plan dawned on him. These people are known to be cannibals! What if I’m the dinner? Adan was well practiced not to let his emotions show on his face, but fear churned in his stomach, fighting with excitement.

The cabin was lit by a lone brazier on the left wall giving it an ominous look. Four pirates stood on the right, one sitting in front of Adan. The captain. And he was just as scary as Adan had heard. Most of his face was hidden under the large brimmed hat and the rest of it was covered in scars. The most prominent ran from his lip to his left ear.

Every pirate was dressed similarly, tight brown breeches, no shirt, dark loose vests, and a sword at their hip. Two of them also carried pistols.

The lanky pirate who’d been his escort through the docks stood behind Adan, guarding the door. And each and every pirate chewed on telah, their lips stained red with it and the rhythmic grunting of teeth filled the room, along with the sea hitting the ship.

“Good evening and may the sun and moon bless you,” Adan greeted, trying not to stammer under the collective gaze of the tall, broad men. The Karathians did worship goddess Iseda, like most of the universe, but they referred to her differently.

“Ello young rat,” the captain said, scanning Adan from head to toe. Those vicious golden eyes almost shone from under the hat, making Adan gulp. “I am to believe you are here to buy some information.”

“Yes, captain.” Sweat glistened on Adan’s forehead, despite the chilly wind entering from the tiny window to his left. He knew what he had to say next; he’d practiced. But for some reason the words didn’t come out. Get on with it, fool!

“Well go on then,” one of the other pirates in the room spoke in a rough accent. The tallest and the burliest of the men in the room, he wore a shirtless vest that was too small for him, and rested a large triple barrel shotgun on his shoulder. Adan glanced at the weapon—he had never seen one before, just read about them—and quickly brought his gaze back to the captain. He knew he should get on with his questions; Reeyu could do his part any minute.

“Norandun Stormaxe,” Adan began, trying not to let his nervousness show, “where is he?”

The captain smirked and lifted his hat a little. The scar looked like an extension of his smile. “You talk of a ghost, boy. No one knows the answer to that.”

“Not for certain, sure. But if anyone has any clue, I’d bet it is you.” Adan’s voice didn’t waver anymore. The desperate need to find the old Mage outweighed his fear.

The captain seemed like the little praise. “That, you speak true. But so do I. The latest rumour place him in the Vorbon solar system.”

Adan gritted his teeth in frustration. That was too vague information. How was he to search an entire solar system! The knowing smile on the captain’s face gave Adan pause.

“You know more?” Adan guessed.

The captain nodded. “I have more information about the mythical Mage in here,” he beckoned one of the pirates, who left the cabin and returned with a dusty brown file, handing it to the captain. “You need to pay before I let you see this.”

Well, Adan had no intention, or frankly the capacity to pay the price for the information. Where the hell is Reeyu? As if the thought were a summon, a huge, ear-numbing blast went off on the top deck of the ship, much larger than Adan had anticipated.

The entire ship shook. Going down on one knee himself, Adan scanned the room. Three of the six pirates in the room were on the floor, but the one closest to him was standing straight blocking the door. The captain, who still sat on his chair holding on to the wall, stood up with his sword out of his scabbard, eyes bulging, face painted with shock, the file laid on the floor. He looked at Adan with suspicious eyes but didn’t say anything.

“Don’t let him leave,” the captain snapped, pointing at Adan, and exiting the cabin. Another one followed him out, leaving Adan with the remaining four. The one who had escorted him firmly grabbed Adan by the shoulders.

Adan thanked Iseda as the captain walked out; his gamble had worked. It would have been impossible to fight the captain. He was a cobalt Mystic, after all. Anything short of another Mystic or a Mage didn't stand a chance, and Adan was none, yet.

Adan could summon Kallor like the cobalt Mystic, but not even one-tenth of his intensity. The captain would’ve taken care of him in seconds. But the four pirates remaining in the cabin? Adan had no doubt who’d be the winner here.

Adan waited ten seconds for the captain to be far enough. He stood still, not letting his anticipation show. At the tenth second, a smile curled up on his lips as Adan summoned Kallor, the soul of a dead god.

The Mage ring on Adan’s finger melded with his skin, becoming a part of his body and began to glow a fierce blue. The energy entered his body through the ring and travelled to his heart, lighting his veins faintly on its way. A burning sensation accompanied the energy as it coursed through his entire body, reaching every organ. As the energy filled his body, Adan felt his muscles tighten, his heart beat faster than it normally could. He felt the urge to move, jump, run. He felt raw power surging in his bones. The pirate’s grip on his shoulders, which until now was a strong one, suddenly felt like that of a child. A sharp tug broke the rope that bound his wrists. He turned sharply and kicked the man holding him in the groin followed by a punch to the chest, sending him to the floor. The satisfying crunch meant he had probably broken a rib or two.

Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.

The other pirates stood in stunned silence as the screams of the man on the floor filled the room. Weapons drawn, they came at Adan.

Adan ducked a pistol blast and got closer to the two wielding curved swords, nimbly dodging their slashes. Kallor made the pirates appear as if they moved through water. Closing in on the one with the gun, Adan punched him square on the jaw, sending him to the floor before he could fire another shot. A cut on his shoulder made him stagger away from the two pirates still standing.

Clumsy, Adan thought in disgust as he scanned for a weapon. The cabin did not have much room to move or escape and the pirates knew it too, for they jumped together, swords held high.

Adan lifted the captain’s chair to his right and threw it at one of his attackers, making him stumble and went down on his knee, avoiding a deadly slash where his head had been a second ago. Slipping to his left and avoiding a flurry of attacks, Adan punched the pirate in the gut once, twice, four more times, sending him sprawling on the floor, grunting with pain. Picking up the pirate’s fallen sword, Adan moved in to attack the last one, who finally gained his footing.

A sword was a familiar weapon to Adan, for he had spent years practicing with it, and the quick lunges and jabs at the pirate proved it. Within seconds, Adan had the lone pirate bleeding from a thousand cuts, his sword arm wavering. A final slash made the pirate drop the weapon and a kick to the chest made him join his fellows on the ground.

Adan rolled his shoulders and moved to pick up the file when the cabin door smashed open. Bursting alight with Kallor, the captain walked in.

“You swiny runt,” the captain said, face bubbling with anger, “you attack my ship!”

“Technically,” Adan pointed a finger as the glowing Mystic, “I didn’t. My friend did. And I can’t be held—”

The captain charged in, cutting Adan off and swinging his sword high. Adan barely got his sword up in time, saving his head from being split open but the sheer force of a Mystic’s Kallor reverberated through Adan’s arm, shoulder, and entire body.

Adan grunted in pain as he bent under the attack and barely managed to slip to his left, putting some distance between him and the captain. That didn't seem to help a lot as a foot came flying as Adan’s chest, throwing him back at the wall, his head hitting with a crunch as he slumped to the floor, dazed.

The captain bellowed as he raised his sword again but Adan managed to get up in time and slip to his left once again and, blessedly, exit the cabin on unsteady legs.

Adan’s Kallor had almost run out when he stepped on the upper deck and took in the chaos. He wasn’t great at holding in summoned Sentience, yet.

The north end of the ship was covered in flames, surrounded by frantic pirates trying to get the damage in control. Two of the three masts had fallen and several pirates were stuck under it. How many explosives did the idiot use? Adan thought as he looked for an escape, the gangplank he had walked on to get abroad the ship.

There! Adan spotted his exit to his left, empty of pirates and made a run for it. A shove from behind sent him crashing to the floor, the sword almost slipping from his sweaty fingers. He grunted as he skidded on the floor, scraping his hands. If not for Kallor, he’d have felt that a lot worse.

“I will skin you alive, boy,” the captain said from behind as Adan struggled to get back up, hefting his sword. Many others saw Adan and came to stand in a loose circle around them.

Summoning more Kallor would bring with it strength and agility, sure, but it would also bring mind numbing pain. Summon too much and the energy would literally burst out of your veins, especially if you were a novice. And as much as Adan hated to admit it, he still was one.

“I can’t allow that, I'm afraid. I’m quite fond of my skin. I can’t seem to find anything better.” Adan shrugged, trying his best to sound confident, but his voice faltered as he summoned Kallor and bright blue energy coalesced in his body, making him lighter, faster, and under immense pain.

The captain seemed to have summoned more of his own energy, for he burst with a blinding glow of his own as he came at Adan shouting a wordless cry, sword held at his side.

The captain seemed to move faster than light. Adan barely kept track of his movement enough to parry the attack. His Kallor may be miniscule compared to his attacker, but Adan had years of sword practice under his belt and he knew how to deal with a stronger enemy. Instead of meeting the captain head on and blocking his attacks, Adan slightly nudged the attacking sword away from his body enough to slip and avoid injury.

The captain shouted in frustration and increased his speed, swooping in from every direction with all his speed and came at Adan’s chest, gut and legs. He deflected the first, stumbled back from the second and barely jumped in time to save his legs. The captain grinned as Adan stepped back, trying to catch his breath but a shove from behind—another bloody pirate!—sent him to the Mystic. On unsteady legs, he rebuffed another slash at his chest and rolled under an overhead attack and came to a halt behind the captain.

The Mystic spun, his sword little more than a blur for Adan, and slashed at his gut. Adan’s heart clenched and a cold shiver ran down his spine. I’m going to die! He stumbled back, trying to put some distance between him and certain death when hit the only standing mast. No more room to retreat.

The captain laughed maniacally as he lunged for Adan. A loud thud made him stop. A figure had fallen from the sky and slumped between Adan and his attacker. A pirate, and judging by the way he didn’t move, a dead one.

The entire deck had gone silent, only the crackling of the wood under the remaining fire filled the air. Most of the fire seemed under control, the dark cloud of smoke over the ship slowly dissipating.

The captain looked up in utter confusion when an old croaky voice came from the top of the mast.

“That pirate had the worst breath I have ever come across. And that includes my friend down there.”

Reeyu.

Adan, relieved to hear his friend’s voice, didn't have time to react to Reeyu’s blabber as another explosion went off at the south end of the ship. Adan went to his knees as the ship trembled, dropping his sword, but so did several others. Cries and warnings began again as the pirates steadied themselves and rushed to put out the newly lit fire. The captain managed to stay upright. Adan looked up in time to see a silhouette of a man rappelling down the mast and landing in front of Adan. The tall, lean man, with a rough head of greying black hair, stood with a long wooden staff in his hand.

“You were right,” Reeyu said to Adan, not taking his eyes off the fuming captain, “two explosives are better than one.”

The captain bellowed as he ran for Reeyu, sword held to his side. Adan tried getting up but his legs failed him. He realised he didn’t hold any Kallor. Dread filled his eyes as the captain got close to his friend and swung. Reeyu, against all logic, moved to the side missing the overhead swing and hit the captain on his ass with the staff, sending him stumbling and skidding down the deck. Reeyu couldn't summon Kallor or any other Sentience. And yet the man had dodged the Mystic’s attack. Iseda’s blessing!

The Mystic looked just as stunned as Adan. He got up and ran for Reeyu again, forgetting about Adan, but Adan wouldn't let him have another go. Wincing with pain akin to a thousand needles stabbing you at once, Adan summoned Kallor again and lunged for the captain, sending both of them to the deck floor again.

“Reeyu,” Adan shouted. “Run!”

Reeyu dropped the staff and came for Adan, helping him stand up. Thankfully, the other pirates were busy with the new explosion enough to forget about Adan and his friend. Reeyu helped Adan across the gangplank and they began running as they hit the ground. Adan, limping his way across the docks, could still feel the heat of the fire on the ship and the smell of burning wood in the air. He could also feel agony filling his body, all his bones and muscles crying out in pain and yet the frustration of not getting the file on Norandun gnawed at him. The relief of getting out alive wasn’t enough to overshadow that.

“If only I could’ve reached that file,” Adan said, looking over his shoulder at the ship. Several pirates were running towards them. Many held guns, firing in their direction but thankfully missing every shot.

“What file?” Reeyu asked amid ragged breaths.

“The one that had info on Norandun.”

“You mean this one?” Reeyu pulled out a crumpled brown file carrying loose pages from the pack slung on his back, a cheeky grin covering his face.

Oh I could just kiss you, old man! Adan thought as he grinned too, limping his way into town.