Keelin, dressed in a faded blue suit with tasselled epaulettes, was talking to the man with the rifle. Kebble Salt was an odd one, and Elaina had yet to figure him out. The man kept his head a short shave away from bald and maintained his horseshoe moustache with almost a lover’s touch. The crew of The Phoenix were more than just complimentary about him; they treated him as a hero, with all the awe and distance that folk afforded to such.
Elaina looked around for Keelin’s waif and found her staring up the beach. The woman had insisted on taking one of the oars on the way across, and Elaina had to respect her for that. Despite her size, she didn’t back down from a challenge. Taking another couple of short sips from the water skin, Elaina approached her. “Here.”
The woman looked down at the offered water and then away.
“I ain’t trying to poison ya,” Elaina said with a sigh. “We all need to drink if we’re gonna survive this. Weren’t exactly an easy row over, and you did well at the oar. Reckon ya deserve a bit of hydration.”
She looked at Elaina sceptically, but her thirst soon won out and she took the skin. “Thanks.”
“Reckon you and me got off to a bad start,” Elaina continued, staring down at the smaller woman. “So I think we should rectify that, seeing as we’re gonna be around each other a bit. I ain’t trying to come between you and Keelin.” There was nothing quite like starting off an offer of friendship with a lie.
The woman finished gulping down the water and handed the skin back to Elaina. There was a look on her face that said she didn’t quite believe the claim.
“Then what are you doing here?” she said. “Why come aboard in the first place?”
“Don’t think I caught your name?”
“Aimi.”
“Well, Aimi, if you can keep a secret – I came aboard The Phoenix because I don’t have a ship of my own. Bastard of a first mate pinched it while I was ashore in Larkos. Now, you might know that me and Keelin go a long ways back. Well, I needed passage back to the isles, and he was one I knew I could trust.”
“Sorry about your ship.”
Elaina laughed. “Oh, don’t you worry about that. I’ll be getting it back soon as the fucks make port.”
“Why come along for this though?” Aimi said. “It’s a lot of danger for no share in the prize.”
“I’d be bored sat on the ship waiting for you all to come back. Figured I might as well come along for the fun.”
Aimi looked up at Elaina with an incredulous expression. “You’re mad.”
Elaina grinned. “Runs in the family. Reckon we’re getting ready to head into the trees. Come on.”
Each member of the expedition had their own pack to bear, and each of those packs contained food, water, and flint for starting a fire. There were no illusions that the food they were taking with them would be enough, so one of their duties, while looking for whatever it was they were looking for, would be to search for food and fresh water. All eleven of them were armed with both a weapon of their choice and a thick knife for cutting through the undergrowth.
“Stick close together,” Keelin said as the last of the expedition drew near. His gaze stopped on Elaina and Aimi standing close to one another, and Elaina thought she saw a flash of worry pass over his face. “But not too close. Be ready to help each other, just try not to get in each other’s way.”
“What is it we’re looking for, exactly?” Elaina called.
Her question was met with a silence that sounded suspicious at best.
“We’re already here, aren’t we?” she said with a laugh. “Right along with you, and still promising not to steal your treasure. I think it’s about time you let us know what we’ve got ourselves into, eh?”
“The city of HwoyonDo,” Keelin said, as though the name should mean something.
“Oh. A whole city then. Big, is it? Hard to miss?”
Keelin set to staring Elaina down, but she met his steely greys with her own bright blues.
“Actually, the city of HwoyonDo was rather small compared to some of the other cities the Empire built,” said Kebble. “It was not the capital, nor a base of power, but instead the seat of religion and worship. People from all over the Empire would make a pilgrimage to the great temple, where they would offer up tributes to their god. Sorcerers would gather from the far reaches to crowd the Sky Spire and the Observatory, and watch the stars in hopes of enlightenment and to reap the rewards of the rocks that fall from the sky.”
“You seem to know a lot about an empire that most folk call forgotten for a reason,” Elaina said.
Kebble gave her a wistful smile.
“Do you know the way?” Keelin asked his marksman.
Kebble nodded. “More or less. The forest has likely reclaimed all the old roads though. It will not be easy.”
“Nothing worth a shit ever is,” Keelin growled. “Let’s move out. Kebble has the lead.”
Elaina fell in beside Smithe. The man had been quiet for a while now, and that was unlike him. It was more than just quiet, though – Smithe had a haunted look in his eyes.
“You hear that, Cap?” he said, his eyes darting about as they walked past the first tree into the close, damp forest.
Elaina listened. She heard the sound of boots on earth and twigs. She heard the chirping of insects and the call of birds. She heard the wind stirring branches and leaves, and she heard the gentle slosh of the sea washing the beach away.
“Hear what, Smithe?”
“The whispers,” he said. “Angry voices, like… like they don’t want us here.”
“Right.” Elaina took a deep breath. “So, what’s with your man Kebble? Seems he knows a bit about this place.”
Smithe hacked at a branch that had had no intention of getting in his way. The brief act of violence seemed to embolden him a little.
“He thinks he’s immortal. Real smug about it too. Acts like it’s nothin’. Smug fuck-piece. Says he’s even tried to get himself killed. Like being immortal is a bad thing. Dumb bastard. I’d be captain if I were immortal. Sure as hell wouldn’t be in this forest with all its fucking whispering.”
Elaina almost laughed. Smithe was considering the possibility of immortality, and the furthest he could set his sights was still captain of a ship. Simple men had simple desires, and Smithe appeared to be deranged as well as simple. The trees were most certainly not whispering at them all to leave. The spirits, however, were another matter altogether.
Chapter 33 - The Phoenix
Two days into their expedition and Aimi was fairly certain they were going round in circles. Kebble claimed to be leading them to HwoyonDo, but he didn’t seem enthusiastic about the responsibility, and Aimi wondered whether he would soon lead them right back to the beach.
The forest was hot and damp and full of biting insects and other things that had far bigger teeth. Each night was a horror that started with a chorus of animal calls and ended in haunting wails and titanic roars that ripped through the forest like a wind, bringing the smell of death and decay. Each night Keelin set three watches, and each night Aimi found herself sitting at least two of them, wishing sleep would claim her. Her tremulous feelings were only made worse by Elaina Black’s apparent ease with the situation. In fact, Captain Black seemed to be the only one in the entire expedition who wasn’t worried by the forest.
Aimi knew something was wrong as soon as she was awake. Keelin was kneeling above her, his hand on her shoulder and his eyes darting around the forest. It was long past her watch, and the near-pitch darkness told her the sun had yet to rise.