By the second day, they’d left the calm seas far behind. Even Tierney had trouble keeping her feet firmly planted beneath her, and she had some experience sailing the rough waters of Loch Villandi.
The hour was early, but she couldn’t take another minute in the narrow chamber she shared with Bronagh.
“Careful, Tia.” Gulliver reached out to take her hand as she stumbled up the last step and onto the rolling deck. His tail snaked around her middle, anchoring her to him and the ship the hopes of two kingdoms rested on.
“Need fresh air.” She blew a damp strand of hair out of her face.
“It’s only going to get worse, isn’t it?” Gulliver clutched her hand, staring out across the surging waves that crashed against the hull, spraying a fine mist of seawater over everything. Pretty soon, they would all forget what it felt like to be warm and dry.
“Much worse.” Tierney sucked in a deep breath of sea air. With a new stench of decaying fish on the wind, it wasn’t exactly fresh, but at least it wasn’t stale human bodies and vomit filling her nose.
“How’s his Majesty fairing this morning?” Amusement filled Gulliver’s tone.
It turned out the King of Vondur did not have his sea legs yet. The minute the calm waters diminished behind them, Keir’s stomach began to heave and roll with the waves, and no amount of staring at the horizon helped.
“He hasn’t stopped vomiting yet. I fear he’s in his bed for the duration.”
“I will not stay in my bed a moment … longer.” Keir staggered across the deck, his face as pale as the Iskalt snows, his dark hair hanging in limp curls around his face. “I just need to walk around a bit.” He sucked in a breath and let out a strangled groan.
“He’s going to blow.” Gulliver moved them aside, turning Keir toward the ship railing. “Best get it out.”
Keir lunged for the portside, emptying the meager contents of his stomach over the railing. Tierney wanted to go to him, but the captain had warned them all to keep to the center of the ship when on deck.
“Your Majesty.” A sailor approached him with eyes full of sympathy. “You’ll feel better if you stay below deck with a cup of tea and a biscuit or two. Keep something in your stomach and in a day or so, you’ll be right as rain.” He clapped Keir on the back and went about his duties.
They all had duties to see to. Gulliver was quite good at climbing up into the rigging to help handle the sails and cables. Tierney didn’t like the thought of him up there when the seas were so unpredictable, but they all had to pull their weight onboard.
Tierney was responsible for running messages from the captain to the crew, and she helped mend the sails when needed.
Bronagh handled the cleaning below deck and filled in wherever an extra pair of hands was needed. And Veren was assisting the captain with navigation and keeping watch with the other sailors.
Keir wasn’t up to helping anyone yet.
Tierney let out a breath when Keir finally backed away from the railing. She didn’t like seeing him so close to the edge when he wasn’t at his strongest.
“I’m not going to fall overboard if that’s why your face looks like that.” Keir wiped his mouth with the back of his hand.
“I wish there was something to help you with the seasickness.” Tierney reached out a hand to keep him steady.
“I’m afraid nothing will help except maybe a knife to the gut.” He closed his eyes and leaned into her. “I pray the Iskalt shores are closer than we think.”
“I’m on duty soon.” Gulliver gave Tierney a worried look. “We should get him back inside.”
“I’ll make my way below deck in a moment.” Keir opened his eyes, lifting them to the heavens.
“Just be careful. Both of you.” Gulliver left them for his short morning shift among the rigging.
“I’ve never seen such a strange sky.” Keir took in another deep breath, a hint of color returning to his cheeks.
“The air is thick, and the salt burns your lungs.” Tierney looked up into the angry green clouds churning overhead. “It’s an eerie sight.” She gave a shiver that had nothing to do with the chill in the air.
“It’s better here at the center of the ship.” Keir rested back against a stack of barrels containing a good portion of their fresh water. “I can almost feel normal right here.”
The ship dipped over a big wave, and Keir groaned. “That didn’t last long.”
“Your color is fading again.” Tierney took him by the arm. “Let’s get you back down to your room. You need a cup of strong hot ginger root tea. It will help ease the nausea.”
“I don’t like your ginger root.” Keir scowled, putting some of his weight on her as they made their way across the deck.
“Have you tried the pressure points I told you about?”
“What I need is a totem with magic I can use to find my equilibrium.”
“Stubborn man.” Tierney helped him move down the steep steps into the berth he shared with Veren and Gulliver. Both were working their shifts with the crew. “It will be nice and quiet in your room. Maybe you can finally get some rest.”
“I don’t want to rest. I want to do my part.”
“Well, get some rest and give your body time to adjust, and maybe you can.” She shoved through the narrow door into the larger room. “Sit.” She pushed him down onto the edge of the bed. “Press here.” She lifted his left hand and showed him how to press down on his wrist in just the right spot to relieve nausea. “Do that until I get back with your tea.”
“Fine.” He sat sulking.
Tierney pulled her woolen shawl close around her shoulders as she made her way to the galley, where the cook kept a pot of boiling water on when he was able. Tea was the one thing they had plenty of. It warmed the body and filled the belly.
“How’s his Majesty this morning?” Darby shuffled around his small galley kitchen, stirring a pot of porridge and reaching for a wooden mug from his cabinet.
“Still struggling with nausea.” Tierney pulled down the tin of freshly grated ginger root mixed with shaved citrus rind and a dried flower she couldn’t identify. It smelled wonderful. Mild and calming.
“Make him drink this tea.” Darby filled the mug with hot water. “And give him these to gnaw on.” He set a tin of dry biscuits on a tray. “If he can keep them down, we’ll get him some porridge with a bit of honey.”
“Thank you.” Tierney lifted the tray.
“Well, now, wait just a minute.” He pulled down another mug. “You look like you could use a good cuppa too.” He gathered several tins and added a pinch from each to a linen tea bag. “Good strong black tea with some lavender and lemon verbena and a smidge of honey. That will calm you right up and give you some energy for the rest of the day.” He poured hot water over the little bag of tea leaves. “And a spot of porridge for you too. We all need to eat to keep our strength on this voyage.” He winked.
The weathered old man set her to rights and sent her on her way.
She balanced the tray as she made her way carefully to Keir’s room. He lay back on his bed, his fingers still pressed to his wrist, fast asleep.
She set the food on the bedside table, and his eyes snapped open. “I don’t know what kind of witchery this is,” he lifted his hands, “but it’s working.”
“I asked around and the old sailors swear by it.” Tierney pressed the mug of tea into his hands. “Drink that and try to eat at least two of these.” She opened the tin of unappetizing lumps that looked more like rocks than any biscuit she’d ever seen.
“Darby says you get to eat porridge if you can keep that down.”
Tierney sat in the only chair in the room and stirred her porridge.
Keir scrunched up his nose as she took a bite. “I don’t know if I want that.”
“It’s rather like eating paste. It doesn’t taste bad. Though it doesn’t taste like anything, really.”
“I’ve had worse.” He sipped the tea. Taking a biscuit from the tin, he nibbled on the edge of it. “Way better than the hardtack soldiers eat on the trail.”
The ship continued to roll beneath them, but for the moment, Keir seemed to be feeling better.
“I don’t know if it’s better or worse down here where I can’t see the sky.” He leaned back against his headboard, gripping the warm mug between his hands.
“It won’t be long before we reach the maelstrom, and then we won’t have time to think about our stomachs.”
“How long do you think it will take to go around it?”
Tierney shrugged. “I hope it’s quick and the swift currents take us where we want to go.”
“Tell me about Iskalt. What will we see first?”
She smiled, sitting back and putting her feet up on the edge of his bed. “The first things you’ll see are the ice floes. They will look like land, at first, from a distance. Then, as we approach, we’ll see patches of snow-covered ice floating on the sea. Once we see that, it won’t be long until we reach the fjords.”
“I don’t know what that is.” Keir smiled. “But it sounds wonderfully exotic.”
“Exotic is not the right word for Iskalt.” Tierney laughed. “The fjords are these massive sheer cliffs that extend out into the sea like the fingers of a giant’s hands. The sea flows between them like rivers heading inland.”
“And do people live on these fjords?”
“No. It’s far too cold, and there isn’t much land that isn’t steep and rocky and covered in ice. But it’s so beautiful with the afternoon sun glinting against the cliffs.”
Her heart ached with longing for her homeland. She would never again take it for granted. She might never reach home, but she would give anything for one last sight of Iskalt before she died trying to reach it.
“And after we see these fjords, what comes next?” Keir reached for another biscuit, breaking it apart to eat small bites.
“I don’t know, actually. I believe we will reach the far eastern shores of Iskalt first. The Northeastern Vatlands should be there, though I’ve never seen them myself.”
“What is a vatland?”
Tierney sipped her soothing tea, grateful to Darby for the aromatic blend. “It’s what we call places like the fire plains. They’re rural areas between the kingdoms where the terrain is harsh and the climate intolerable. In Iskalt, we have the Northern Vatlands to the west separating Iskalt from Myrkur. It’s a rough journey through the wild mountain terrain there, but there is one mountain pass we use most frequently to reach the shores of Loch Villandi. The Northeastern Vatlands are also a mountain range, but they’re impossible to navigate. The far reaches of eastern Iskalt are wild and uninhabited. From Lake Fryst to the Northeastern Vatlands, it is nothing but frozen tundra. Cold beyond the likes of anything you can imagine. Along the edge of the tundra, the vast mountain range of the vatlands rises to impossible heights. It is said the mountains are so high one can’t even breathe the air at the top. Beyond those mountains, there is nothing. Nothing but the maelstrom and Lenya.”
“And where do you think we will make landfall?” Keir leaned forward, hanging on her every word, his seasickness all but forgotten.
“I hope we will make it to the other side of the storm to find the seas that flow between Iskalt and Eldur. One side borders the fire plains and the other the impenetrable mountains of the Northeastern Vatlands. If we can sail through those waters, then we are home free. We can then make our way across land.”
“We are pinning everything on this voyage. I hope you are right about what we can expect on the other side.”
“It’s a gamble for sure, but it’s all we had left.”
Keri nodded. “What kind of reception will we receive when we arrive?”
Tierney couldn’t help the smile that spread across her face. “When we reach Iskalt, I’ll arrange for a messenger to travel ahead to give my parents the news of our arrival. I imagine they will ride out to meet us. Mother will be beside herself after all these months. She won’t be able to sit still. Neither will Father for that matter. Then, they’ll ride the rest of the way home with us and there will be chaos when my brothers and sisters realize I’m home.
“Father will want to hear every last detail of what happened … twice. He will have many questions for you and Bronagh. It might feel like he’s interrogating you, but he means well. He’ll be on edge when he realizes he’s hosting two unknown monarchs from kingdoms he’s never heard of.”
“Your father sounds … stern.”
“He is. They call him the ice king for a reason, but he’s very sweet and loving to those who know him best.”
“What will he think of me?” Keir drained the last of his tea and eased back onto his bed.
“He will wait to form an opinion of you until after he’s questioned you. He’ll want to know all about Vondur and Grima.”
“You must have had a terrible time with your suitors and such a protective father.”
“Oh, you have no idea.” Tierney laughed. “When I was fourteen, I went with Father to one of his noble’s estates. We were there to tour their land and discuss a potential contract between the crown and the duke who lived there. They produced the finest leather and furs in all of Iskalt. The duke’s son was just a year or two younger than me. He was a brat.” Her face fell. “It was hard for me then, before I came into the full use of my magic. I was the Iskalt heir, but I had Fargelsian magic. Others my age had no magic to speak of. Not until they were older. I hardly remember a time when I didn’t have magic thrumming through my veins.” Her fingertips rubbed together.
“Other children thought me strange. The duke’s son made fun of me. I can’t even remember what he said, but my father heard it. I ran to my rooms in tears. Father came to find me and told me I was perfect just the way I was. I dried my eyes, and we returned to the main hall for the evening meal.
“The duke was horrified and insisted he would punish his son for his insolence, but Father told him he would handle the punishment. He made the boy approach each nobleman in attendance that night—my father right there beside him the whole time—and confess to what he had done. He had to ask each nobleman to absolve him for his transgressions, and at the end of the night, my father made him publicly apologize to me. I’ve never seen him since.” Tierney shook her head with a frown. “It is odd that he wasn’t on Father’s list of suitors.”
She sat forward suddenly and laughed. “Oh my goodness! I’ve never seen that boy at court. Ever.” She smacked a palm over her face. “My father banned him from court that day. I don’t know why I never thought of it before. He never said a word to me about it, but it’s something he would do.”
“You are not making me eager to meet your father.” Keir yawned, his eyes drooping with fatigue. “Maybe I should ingratiate myself to your mother instead.”
“She’s a tough one too. But she will like you.” Tierney sat on the side of the bed, tucking the blankets around Keir. “You should get some rest while you can.”
The ship gave another heave, and Tierney held onto the bedpost with an iron grip. A gust of wind rushed through the lower deck, snuffing out the candles in the room, leaving them in the darkness of the eerie day under the cold green skies.
Keir was fast asleep.
Her hand froze, hovering just over the dim crystal he wore around his neck.
It felt different. She couldn’t resist touching it, running a pale finger over the smooth surface. The magic flickered inside the crystal. Just a flutter, gentle like the touch of a feather, but it was there. And it was different. There was not enough power left inside the crystal to be useful, but she could still feel it deep within the totem.
Keir said it was useless. He felt nothing from the empty vessel. The magic of Lenya was a strange thing Tierney wasn’t sure she would ever understand.
But how might the two types of magic interact? They were vastly different sources of power, and she wondered if they would come together to entwine, or if they would repel each other.
Tia.
A bolt of energy shot through her, and she leaped to her feet, running down the hall and up the steps into a torrential downpour. “Toby!” she screamed into the wind. “I’m coming!” She clutched a hand over the heart thumping in her chest. She could feel him. It was faint, but it was there. Her brother, her twin, was still right there with her. And he knew she was trying to find her way home.