Our art is solitary, though we practice with others. When you train your body in daipuna, you also train your spirit, and a strong spirit is both the individual and the collective. The ocean exists within a single drop of water.
DAIPUNA: THE ART OF COMBAT
Ani had been born on a ship. That was back when things had been good between her mother and father—maybe for the last time since Mother had returned to the island when Ani was barely out of nappies. After that, Ani and Tai split their time between land and sea. The open waters with their father and his ever-decreasing band of loyal smugglers, and the island with their mother as she outwitted those older and supposedly wiser, wheedling and scheming her way into more and more power.
Ani had learned as much as she could stand to from her mother. Both her parents had exposed her to traders and scholars, warriors and holy men, the corrupt and the corruptible, and even at the age of fifteen, she’d been privy to many tall tales at ports all over the world. But Dansig ol-Sarifor’s tale of kidnapping was still one of the stranger stories she’d heard.
“So they got Varten first?” Ani asked. The twin in question had a cut over his eye. He looked down, appearing guilty.
“I heard a woman calling for help,” he said. “I was ahead on the trail, and she sounded so bad. So I went over to check without waiting for Roshon and Papa. And then someone shot me with a dart, I think.”
“We went off to find him, and they led us through the caves before shooting us, as well,” Roshon grumbled.
“I think they underestimated how difficult it would be to transport three bodies from where we were on the trail,” Dansig added. “That’s why they used Varten to lead us back down to the foothills.” He shook his head.
Ani wouldn’t soon forget the deranged look in the Sister’s eye as she’d jumped onto Bor, screaming. Who knew what other schemes or craziness she’d gotten into in the name of her goddess? Ani was glad that Myr didn’t inspire such madness. The Raunian god delivered calm seas or strong winds according some plan of His own design, and other than creating His people and the marine life that kept their society running, and accepting their souls after death, He mostly stayed out of everyone’s way.
Tai looked up from his nautical charts, a grim expression on his face. “If we turn back now and head for any mainland port, we risk being caught by Bor’s cronies. Their ships have advanced tracking technology, and while we’re faster in short bursts, they can definitely catch up if we turn around.”
“Plus, a message went out to all Raunian vessels in range,” Mik added gruffly. “The bounty has been raised.” He gave Ani an apologetic head tilt. “Ten thousand runas.”
Ani whistled. Tai cursed.
“Every ship in the eastern seas will be after us now,” Tai said, rubbing his face.
Dansig’s head hung heavy, probably with worry for his daughter. Though Ani had her own troubles, she felt for the girl. How would it feel being left behind like that, not knowing what had happened to her loved ones?
“Once we get into the main Raunian shipping channels, we can find a messenger to send word to Rosira,” she offered. “My friend Machen might be able to do it. He and his family have a big network. Then it’s just a matter of locating someone there who can take your message to your daughter.”
Dansig looked dubious, but given the situation, sighed and acknowledged that it was too dangerous to turn back now. Roshon was scowling, but seeing as that was so close to his natural facial expression, she wasn’t quite sure if he was upset or not. After a few moments where the only sound was the whirring of the thermoelectric engine, the older man spoke. “How far is it to the Narrows?”
Ani froze and so did Tai, mid-drink from his canteen. “Why would you want to go to the Okkapu?” Ani asked.
Dansig’s brow furrowed.
“The place you call the Narrows,” Ani explained, “its true name is the Okkapu, and it’s not a place for men who want to live.”
Roshon appeared alarmed at her words, but his father just stroked his chin. “She never does anything by half measures, does She?” he muttered. “You’ve heard of the Queen Who Sleeps, I trust?”
Ani nodded, and Mik grunted from the co-pilot’s seat.
“Elsirans keep the body of their goddess in the palace and believe She walks their dreams, right?” Tai asked.
“Not just Elsirans. She visits the dreams of Lagrimari, as well. I was once a member of the Keepers of the Promise, the rebel group inside Lagrimar fighting for freedom from the True Father. There were some of us who’d had the Dream of the Queen. We believed She was guiding us toward our eventual victory.”
Dansig took a deep breath, as if relaying this was taking a lot out of him. “Nearly twenty years ago, during the Sixth Breach, the Queen visited my dreams, and I made a request of Her. I was . . . disillusioned with the Keepers and their methods, but there was no way out, neither of the organization nor of the country. However, She knew a path. She led me through a crack in the Mantle, one of the earlier ones that had formed. I crossed into Elsira and lived in the mountains for some time while the war raged. After every breach closed, there were always those stuck on the other side, I just had to wait it out. My plan, such as it was, was to blend with them. Live among them, away from Lagrimar and away from the Keepers. I had no idea I’d meet Eminette and everything would change for me, that I’d have a life, a family.” He looked at his sons with pride and love.
Ani swallowed, her throat growing thick. Her father had done a lot for her, but he’d never looked at her that way.
Dansig continued. “When She agreed to tell me where I could find a place to slip through the Mantle, She warned that I would be in her debt. It is one I must pay, and that requires going to the Okkapu, as you say.”
Silence descended until Tai finally spoke. “What is it you hope to find there?”
“An artifact of some kind. It’s a magical object the Sister called the death stone. I don’t know much of it, but I recall years ago there was talk of a Singer who had found another stone . . . There are objects like these in the world that hold different purposes, different powers. This one, I don’t know what it does, but it’s probable that a need has arisen for whatever magic it holds. It was lost generations ago and must be found. The Queen does everything for a reason. Even helping me.”
Ani pursed her lips. “How does She expect you to find it? Only the foolish or desperate attempt to sail the Okkapu. The waters are rough, storms plague it, and there are jagged rock formations jutting all throughout the area. They say it was once a beautiful island and that its people built enormous statues of their kings. This sort of thing displeased Myr, as there was no statue of Him, so He sank the island. Now the tops of those statues are the only thing left, peeking out of the water to rip apart ships and men.”
“Don’t forget the band of selakki who use it as a hunting ground,” Mik added, his voice rumbling. “The place is dangerous in about a dozen different ways.”
“What are selakki?” Varten asked.
“Fish,” Mik said, evidently believing this to be a complete answer.
“They’re gigantic sea creatures, their scales cover our ships and their bones are strong as iron,” Ani added. “They hunt us and we hunt them, and much of Raunian life depends on them. But they’re . . . not creatures we want to cross.” She actually shivered. There wasn’t much in this world that scared her, but the vicious fish, as Mik called them, were on the list. A memory tried to push its way through her consciousness, one of pain and sorrow and fear, but she beat it back, determined not to dwell on those dark days.
Dansig nodded. “I can’t, in good conscience, ask you to endanger yourselves for me. Is there a smaller boat or even a raft on this vessel that I could take? If you bring us as close as you’re able to this area I could go the rest of the way alone.”
Tai winced. “Even if there were, have you ever free dived before? There have been many eager to seek the rumored treasure that sank with the island. The best divers in Raun have tried to explore the depths and only a few have survived to tell the tale.”
“I doubt an Earthsinger has tried before,” Dansig said.
“And how would your magic help you?” Ani asked.
Dansig turned his dark gaze on her. His eyes were kind, his face gentle. The things that were said about the Lagrimari were terrible and painted them as wayward savages creating storms with their magic everywhere they went. But Ani had never believed tall tales.
“I can sing a spell to bring me air underwater, to light the dark depths of the ocean, whatever is needed to find what I seek.”
Ani scrunched her nose, trying to picture such things. She would have thought he was making it up as if just then, a cloud hadn’t formed over the perfectly sunny day, shading them all. Just one cloud, and only over their ship, moving at the same speed as they were.
Tai looked up in shock, then turned to Ani for confirmation that she was seeing it, too. She was. “Unexpected,” she whispered, grinning with approval.
“Even with the aid of your magic,” Tai said, “if you say this object was purposely thrown there so it would never be retrieved, then they did a good job. When Myr sunk the island, He did it thoroughly. Artifacts have washed up on some of the uninhabited smaller islands nearby, leading folks to think that the Okkapu held untold treasure, and many Raunians have gone to search, but mostly what they have to show for it are damaged or destroyed ships. No one has ever retrieved a single item from the depths.”
Dansig dropped his head. “I understand the risks. Truly, I do. But I owe a debt, so I must try. And the sooner I do this, the sooner I can go home. We can go home.” He put an arm around each of his sons and pulled them tighter. The boys looked somewhat embarrassed at the display of affection from their father, but they allowed it.
Ani looked away. The man was brave but foolish—two of Ani’s favorite qualities in a person. In that, he reminded her of Father. What would she give to go on one more adventure with him? One more journey, no matter how dangerous. No matter if he’d never hugged her like Dansig had hugged his children or praised her for any reason, regardless of how hard she tried to please him. He’d understood her in a different way. He’d known how she was built. As Tai liked to remind her, they were a little too much alike. Then again, Tai was going back on a negotiated deal to save her from an unfortunate apprenticeship, and while it was noble, it was also a little too close to what Father had done to earn disgrace.
Tai was a good captain and a great smuggler, but he took after their mother: orderly, organized, and ruthless when needed. Ani and Father were risk-takers. They loved the sea because they loved danger, and neither of them had ever met a fight they didn’t want to be a part of.
Fighting the Okkapu was the biggest adventure yet, and as much as it scared her, she’d never turned down a challenge before. Being captain had made Tai cautious, so had dealing with the aftermath of Father’s betrayal. Still, Dansig and his family needed help, and saving Tai’s birthstone when they didn’t have to, at some risk to themselves . . . Well, it put the Summerhawks in their debt.
“Noa would never look for us there,” she offered. “You know how scared he is of that place after it took his last ship.”
Tai shot her a look that said he knew exactly what she was doing.
“Who’s Noa? Is he the one looking for you?” Roshon asked, perking up.
“Yeah, my mother promised me to him as an apprentice, but Tai had other ideas. Now I’m a fugitive, and Noa has a bounty out on me. Ten thousand runas. Not bad.” She really was impressed with the rate.
“Why a bounty for an apprentice?” Varten asked. “Can’t he just find another one?”
Ani shrugged. “The contract was broken. In Raun, contracts are king. I mean, the king is king, of course, but the contract is a close second.”
“Like the queen?” Roshon asked, his mouth turned up in an almost smile that made Ani’s heart rate speed.
“No queens in Raun,” she said with a wink. He reddened and looked away.
“Why break the contract?” Varten asked Tai.
Ani turned to her brother, waiting for an explanation. His actions had disrupted his trade and made them the target of a crew of smugglers and pirates feared across the ocean. “Yes, dear brother. Why kidnap your own sister to save her from an apprenticeship with a very prestigious captain in a piracy operation that was well respected among our people?” She blinked rapidly, affecting an innocent expression.
Tai’s lips curled in a snarl. He wasn’t amused and turned to Varten. “The man that holds my sister’s contract is a shark, bloodthirsty and brutal. I know for a fact that he intends to challenge for her. I’ve seen the damage he leaves in his wake and cannot in good conscience allow her to marry a scoundrel such as Noa.”
“Marry?” Roshon yelped.
Ani shrugged again. “Not until I’m of age. After my apprenticeship would be when I’d have to lose my freedom, and that’s only if I best Noa in the challenge.”
“You would,” Tai said. “You have too much pride to do anything but, and Noa is an idiot.”
Ani’s shoulders sank. He was right. This would all be so easy if she could throw the challenge, lose on purpose, and not be seen as a decent match. But Ani never could. Not since Father had sullied the Summerhawk name. She’d rather keep her honor and be saddled with a man she hated than maintain her freedom in a shameful way.
She turned back to their guests. “So you see, Tai had to resort to desperate measures to save me.”
“How long will you have to be on the run?” Roshon asked.
“Until Noa stops chasing or someone buys my contract from him. Or if I accept another challenger.” Though that was unlikely. Noa was too powerful for any other Raunian to risk trying to take what Noa thought of as his. And it wasn’t like Ani was a prize on the marriage mart.
“The king can also intervene,” Tai said.
Ani snorted. “But she won’t.”
“She?” Varten asked at the same time Roshon said, “The king is a woman?”
Tai nodded grimly. “In Raun, kings can be male or female, and the current king is definitely a woman.”
“Yeah,” Ani said, standing to stretch her back. “She’s our mother.”