Chapter 146: Encounter

Chapter 146: Encounter

The pervasive dampness in the tight confines of the lower decks made Royce feel as though the world was pressing down on him. His chest tightened and gunk oozed its way into his windpipe. Even at eight years of age he knew how dire his situation was. Lucia told him he was alright, that everything would be okay. He loved his sister, he truly did. But in the year since everything had gone wrong, Royce had seen others, even kids as young as himself, succumb to the same disease.

The urge to cough overwhelmed him, but heeding Lucia’s warning about making too much noise he hacked up his lungs into a discarded sack they had found in the ship’s depths. His eyes watered and his world spun, dizziness was a constant companion in the young boy’s life, but it was growing increasingly stubborn in its desire to not leave him be. By the time his eyes stopped watering and his vision cleared Lucia was stirring to wakefulness besides him.

She mumbled something in her sleep and turned, shifting as if doing so would make her rest on the hard, salty boards any more comfortable. Light filtered into the storage compartment they were hiding within from a dangling lamp, the faint orange illumination that reached Royce allowed him to perceive the crimson splotches that now stained the sack. He stared down at the blood, his hunger addled mind barely able to comprehend what he was looking at.

“Royce...?” Lucia mumbled, and it took him several seconds to realise the word hadn’t been the by-product of her usual sleep chatter.

“Sis!” He squeaked, not unlike the rats they were sharing the space with. He fumbled with the sack, hastily turning it over so she wouldn’t see the blood-stained phlegm. “You’re awake!”

“Shhh.” She chided, sitting up with a wince. “I didn’t mean to surprise you, Roy. Is everything okay?”

“Yes. I’m okay.” He lied. She leaned over and ruffled his dirty blond hair with a tired smile.

“Just two more days, yeah? Then, once the ship arrives at the Academy we’ll sneak off and go find answers.”

Royce nodded. He knew the chances of their plan working were slim. But if Lucia wanted to try anyway he wouldn’t stop her. He didn’t have the strength, and soon, he wouldn’t have the time. He shivered involuntarily and his sister pulled him into a hug. It reminded him of better times, of happier days when they were all safe and together.

“I’m going to go find us some water, and hopefully food if I can manage.” Lucia said, breaking off the embrace. The ship rocked and salty foam sprayed up from below, bubbling around the corners of the room before slinking away. She gave him a shaky smile, swiping her tangled fringe away from her eyes.

Though they were siblings, neither looked particularly alike. While Roy had blond hair and dark eyes, his sister had brown, verging on black hair with sharp orange irises. The reason was simple. While they shared the same father, their mothers, whom they had inherited much of their looks from, were different.

“Be safe sis.” Roy whispered to his half sister.

Lucia’s smile became slightly more confident as she adjusted the oversized rag she wore as a shirt, tying it off at the hip so it wouldn’t catch on anything as she went scavenging. “Always, you know me.”

He did.

He worried anyway.

===

Footsteps from the deck above made Roy’s heart skip a beat. Time within the darkened corner in which he was hiding seemed to stretch unnaturally as the minutes trickled by, elongating with every moment he was alone.

The ship groaned its protest as its prow cut through a large wave, the hull taking the brunt of the impact. Roy shivered as icy water slipped through small gaps in the sealant between planks, the frigid sensation of his lower body becoming soaked making his every underdeveloped muscle tense. Roy’s teeth chattered as he curled in on himself for warmth. It didn’t do much good.

Something bumped overhead, and he jumped in fright. Where he was huddled behind a mountain of crates it was unlikely anyone would discover him. But movement nearby would make Lucia’s life harder as she tried to return to him. If she got caught, what would happen? Would they beat her? Put her to work? Throw her overboard and forget about her? Doubts and worries writhed through his fear addled thoughts like an unwelcome worm.

To distract himself Roy focused on the empty air before him, willing the magic that governed the world to appear. It was hard, especially with how difficult concentrating was in his current condition, but the boy persevered, clenching his fists and narrowing his eyes. Then the window opened up before him. It was green, his favourite colour. It reminded Roy of the dense forests from the homeland he was too young to remember, but he had seen paintings.

Lucia had taught him how to see his status and change how it looked, but he liked it green.

Dark green background, green border, light green text. It didn’t show much information. Just his name, age, race and five in every attribute. Unlike most who lived on the streets his age, Roy could both read and write. Apparently both skills were a prerequisite to being able to summon the system, though he suspected that had just been motivation to get him to learn his letters and numbers.

Roy’s favourite part of the system interface wasn’t the information it showed. Instead it was the endless pages of notes he could write just by thinking. It was like having an infinite amount of paper and ink, and he had filled it with every thought, idea, dream and question he could think of ever since he had first manifested the system within his mind's eye. It helped stave off the boredom and anxiety, helped keep his mind off the long days he spent alone, praying that Lucia would return. And maybe, just maybe, the system was reading his words and keeping an eye on him and his sister.

The lamp at the entrance to the room flickered, briefly making the shadows dance and darkness leap from its hiding places. Roy tucked in his legs and tried to make himself as small as possible. Had there been someone at the door? He thought he saw a glimpse of a large silhouette. Wrestling down the sudden urge to cough he peeked around the corner of the nearby crate. Something moved, its bulk blocking the lantern's light completely.

Roy went still as fear gripped him, wrapping around his neck like a noose and threatening to squeeze. He couldn’t move, couldn’t breathe, couldn’t think. It wasn’t Lucia, it was too big, too tall and broad. And what was worse, he couldn’t make out any details about their appearance. Cloth draped their body, hiding their arms and upper legs from sight. But what was worse, it didn’t have a face. Just two golden pinpoints of light.

It's a ghost, a spirit of the ocean come to eat me! He thought, unable to look away. I’m going to die, I’m going to vanish and Lucia won't know what happened to me!

The monster moved away from the lantern, the shadows retreating as light retook its rightful place in the entrance. The sudden change broke him from his panicked state, finally allowing him to move, to hide deeper in the confines of the ship’s storage. He covered his mouth with his arm and coughed, desperately trying to keep the sound from slipping out.

Footsteps approached, one after the other, all other sounds becoming distant as Roy’s mind hyper fixated on just them. Something reached down for him, the hand of death coming to claim him. He squeezed his eyes shut, tears silently streaming down his cheeks.

A firm grip grabbed him by the forearm and pulled him up. Before he knew what was happening, Roy was standing, held in place by strength he couldn’t imagine.

“I thought I sensed something down here.” The... man said.

Huh? Roy thought, his jumbled mind trying to make sense of the words. They were deep, resonant and not at all threatening.

“Gods, boy, you’re so weak. Why are you down here all alone in the cold?”

Wah?

“How old are you? Never mind, too young, far too young.” The stranger said, kneeling before him, placing a second hand on Roy’s shoulder. It felt gauntleted.

“I- I’m sorry mister.” He said, babbling. “Please don’t hurt her. Please, please don’t hurt her.”

“Who? Who is her?” The stranger asked, but Roy was too far gone to hear.

“Please, please, she was only trying to help me. Please don’t hurt her, or kill her, or throw her overboard. She was-”

The boy’s rambling was cut off as something warm and golden pulsed through his body. He gasped, falling forward as what was left of his meagre strength fled him. Falling? Did he let go of me? Roy thought, stunned.

The stranger caught him before he hit the floor. “Woah, steady now. You’re okay.” They said.

Roy took in a lungful of salty air, and then another. It took another dozen before he realised the pain in his chest was no longer present, that every breath was as easy and as natural as the one before it. He sobbed, grabbing a fistful of the stranger’s clothes. He was so shocked he completely ignored the painted mask that covered the stranger’s face.

Another pulse of healing shot through his body, instead of wiping away the sickness and disease that plagued his small stature this one brought strength and comfort. Roy tried to thank the man but a lump caught in his throat. He couldn’t believe it, he was healed, he could live! He could help Lucia now, she wouldn’t have to starve herself just to keep him alive!

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Lucia. Where is she? I need to tell her this. She needs to see!

A scream came from the storage room’s entrance. A familiar scream. Roy’s heart stopped. Before he could blink the stranger had turned, a blur of movement so fast he hadn’t noticed until after it had happened. His sister stood before the man, something sharp gripped in her hand, two cups having fallen to the ground behind her, their watery contents spilled over the floor.

“Fine, fine. If this job paid better that wouldn’t have worked.” The cook muttered, shuffling around to prepare the leftovers.

“Two bowls, if you could.”

“Do you have two mouths?”

“Yes. In a manner of speaking.”

“Ah. You’re the idiot that took in those two stowaways. Make sure you hide your valuables, don’t want them to get stolen.”

“They’re just kids.”

“Kids make the best pickpockets, little fingers and all that.” The man said, filling both bowls with a violent motion of his ladle. The food made a slopping sound as it made contact with the cheap crockery.

“I’ll take your word for it.” Leif replied, picking up both bowls and making for the exit. “Have a good night.”

The cook muttered something under his breath as he departed. Leif descended another short staircase, then walked down the narrow hall to his cabin. Two figures were within, he could detect their vitality and emotions through the wall. One was the placid, unmoving energy and dampened thoughts that indicated sleep. The other was a restless mess of emotions and intent, the life-force within their body vibrating with their uneven heartbeats.

Leif rapped two golden knuckles against the door, waited a breath, then used [Wood Manipulation] to move the stool that had been propped up against the inside of the door to prevent his access. The key turned in the lock, and he stepped inside. Leif pushed vitality into [Amber Aegis], flaring the skill around himself, not for protection, he hardly needed any from the girl who had jumped to her feet to confront him, but instead to disperse the golden motes of light throughout the small cabin.

“How did you do that?” She asked. “Can you use telekinesis?”

“I can manipulate wood, this whole ship is like a playground to me.” Leif replied, mentally pulling the stool upright and placing it between him and the clearly agitated child. Then he placed the bowls onto the seat and sat on the floor, his back against the now closed door.

The girl’s eyes darted between him, and the food, then back again. He gestured towards the bowls, she flinched back.

“I’m not going to hurt you.” Leif said calmly.

“I can’t trust that.”

“I haven't hurt you yet, quite the opposite actually.”

The girl's eyes flicked to her sleeping brother, then back to Leif, then the bowls.

“Eat, I don’t mind. That’s what the food is for, actually. In case that wasn’t obvious.”

“What is it?” She asked, glaring suspiciously down at the food.

“Stew.”

“Is it poisoned?”

“No, but it is cold. The cook doesn’t do reheats.”

She darted forward, grabbing a bowl before hurriedly retreating to the other side of the room. Then she started shovelling the thick stew into her mouth with her fingers. Not once did she break eye contact with him.

“We know someone from the Academy. If you hurt us, she’ll be mad at you.”

“What a coincidence, I know people too.”

Her eyes narrowed. “Prove it.”

The air above Leif’s palm rippled, then a small metal badge materialised atop it. The token gleamed in the golden ambiance of the room. The girl stopped eating, her jaw falling open as she stared unblinkingly at the object.

“That’s the token they give to auxiliary members of expeditions.” The girl said, grimacing at the metal object.

“Impressive knowledge.” Leif said, returning the token to his spatial ring. “Is this proof enough?”

“Sure. Fine.” She said, digging into her meal with renewed vigour. “Maybe you're not lying. Maybe you stole it.”

“Not too far from the truth, actually.”

Her eyes went wide.

“Borrowed.” Leif continued, trying to cut off her assumptions. “Temporarily. Or at least that was the plan. It’s mine now though, the other guy doesn’t need it.”

“You killed him?”

“What? No, he got another token.” Leif laughed. “You’re incredibly suspicious, aren’t you?”

“Keeps us alive. You got a problem with that?” She said defensively.

Leif shook his head and sighed. “No, not at all. I’ve paid the fee for you to reach the Academy. Getting off the island might be another thing altogether though. Not sure if I can help you with that.”

“I don’t trust you.”

“You don’t even know my name.” He said. “But we can change that. I’m Leif Vin, travelling from Ahle-ho to meet some old friends. Who are you?”

“Lucia. Lucia Pheris. And my brother is Royce Pheris.”

“Pheris, huh?”

“What does it mean to you?” Lucia snapped, the next handful of food paused halfway to her mouth.

“Nothing.” He said, somewhat off-put by the aggression in her tone. It was altogether sharper than it had been up until this point. “Nothing at all.”