'Incredible isn't it?' Dunsany said. 'And, I must add, completely safe.'
'I confess that it's making me rather dizzy.' Father Maylan said.
The rock of the tunnel walls was now completely transparent and Silus fought a nauseous feeling of vertigo as he stood, staring at the ocean that surrounded them. The seabed lay twenty feet below their boots and the surface was twice that distance above, shafts of brilliant sunlight cutting through the churn of the waves. Deep blue water flanked them on both sides as far as the eye could see and Silus gazed into the depths in wonder. Shoals of beautiful fish — the likes of which he had never seen- played through the tall fronds of emerald weeds. A fish the size of a dinner plate, covered in scintillant diamond markings, swam close alongside and Silus put his hand to the wall that separated them. The piscine eye followed the movement of his fingers for a moment before the creature darted away. Along the seabed below scuttled crustaceans the size and shape of large boulders, their bulk somehow supported on dozens of spindly legs. Eyes dotted the craggy surfaces of their shells at seemingly random points and long, many-jointed arms reached into narrow crevices in rocks to retrieve lime green worms, which they fed into dark openings in their chitinous sides.
'Believe it or not,' Dunsany said. 'There are yet more wonders to behold. Not far now and you will see the Llothriall herself.'
Silus and the rest of the crew stared at Dunsany for a while, looks of wonder obvious on all their faces. Silus gazed back at the view of the ocean for a moment, reluctant to leave behind the breathtaking panorama, but then he followed. After a short while, the dark rock of the tunnel returned and they started to ascend.
The thunder of breakers greeted them as they stepped out of the tunnel and onto a pebble beach. They blinked in the intense sunlight for a few moments before the scene in front of them resolved itself. Sheer cliff faces flanked them on two sides, covered in screeching gulls and heavy with the stink of guano, while in front of them churned the angry sea. Silus could just see across it to the northern tip of the Sarcre archipelago. The water that separated the northernmost province of Twilight from where they now stood was wine dark and violent.
'And this,' Dunsany said. 'Is why Makennon's lot will find it impossible to discover our hiding place. No regular ship can cross that stretch without being destroyed. For the Llothriall though, the angry churn out there is nothing.'
Dunsany led them through a narrow gap in the cliffs and Silus saw that the centre of the island opened out into a wide, deep lagoon. In this natural harbour sat the most beautiful ship he had ever seen.
Dunsany led them to a launch and, with the aid of this, they boarded the Llothriall.
The two fugitives from the Faith had clearly done a great deal of work since hiding the ship and it seemed to be stocked with all that they would need for a substantial voyage. On deck everything gleamed and not just with newness, some of the shine that emanated from the wood was due to the magic that gave the Llothriall its power. Silus looked up at the masts that towered above him and wondered at the strength of the sails that were furled there. He had a difficult enough time on his own small fishing vessel fighting the wind with a bit of canvas. Silus dreaded to think how the vast sheets above them would fair against the fierce winds on the Twilight seas. Surely they would be torn from the masts within seconds of being unfurled?
'Have you noticed the sheen on the material?' Kelos said, following his gaze.
'Sheen? No.'
'Well the silk that makes up those sails came from the X'cotl.'
'And what are the X'cotl?' Katya said.
'A sort of giant spider. They're said to exist in our reality only some of the time.'
'So you guys must have a lot in common.'
Kelos chuckled. 'Hoist by my own petard. You mock Katya, but I just know that you're warming to the charms of this beauty of the sea.'
And the Llothriall was both charming and beautiful. Below the main deck the ship was opulently attired. Each cabin was comfortably equipped and Silus reckoned that the sleeping quarters would be more than adequate for a high ranking officer in the Vos navy, never mind the ragtag band of thieves and renegades currently on board. There was also a vast dining room, a well equipped and impressively stocked galley, a hold big enough to contain the largest of treasures and an array of gleaming canons, well oiled and with a ready supply of ammunition.
'There is a lot more to the Llothriall that you can't see. The elf magic has been seamlessly integrated into the design of the vessel. This empowers many of the ship's unique abilities; its ability to negotiate the angriest of maelstroms, or its ability to sail beneath the sea, for example.' Dunsany said. 'And talking of elf magic…'
Emuel had joined them and Dunsany put a hand on his shoulder, smiling. The tattooed eunuch returned the mage's expression with a weak smile of his own.
'Emuel, would you like to show us to the gem room?'
Emuel nodded and led them down a short flight of steps and into a room buzzing with magical energy. The hairs on the back of Silus's neck rose as he entered and there was a sour taste in his mouth.
The stone sat in its housing in the centre of the room, veins of power rippling across its surface. The slightly cowed expression on Emuel's face was replaced by a look of affection as he ran his hand over the surface of the gem, almost as though he were stroking a much-loved pet.
'And this is why we need Emuel,' Kelos said. 'It is his song that unlocks the power within the stone and enables the Llothriall to handle the roughest of seas. This power will enable us to sail through the Storm Wall unharmed. Entire elf fleets used to venture forth in ships such as this. Unfortunately we have found no record of what they discovered.'
'A good reason why we should set out on a voyage of discovery ourselves.' Father Maylan said. 'Why, we could map anything we find and sell copies to the highest bidder on our return. We could become very wealthy men.'
'Ah, but this voyage is not just about money, Father.' Dunsany said.
'Speak for yourself,' said Ignacio.
'We are going to be paid, right?' Jacquinto said, his hand dangerously close to his dagger.
'Gentlemen, of course you will be paid.' Dunsany said. 'Have I not already given you a little taster? But, trust me, you will gain so much more from this than a full purse.'
Silus led Katya to the main deck, leaving the rest of the crew to argue it out amongst themselves. They stood at the prow of the Llothriall, looking towards the mouth of the lagoon and beyond to where the angry ocean stretched to the horizon. The masthead of the ship followed their gazes, the violet eyes of the wooden elf maiden reflecting and somehow enhancing the glow of Kerberos. The wind blew strong and fresh in their faces and the ship swayed gently in its natural harbour.
'I remember that look,' Katya said, turning to her husband.
'What look?'
'It wasn't just for me was it, that first night beneath the gaze of Kerberos on the subterranean lake? I know how you dream.'
Silus embraced her. Sometimes he regretted the fact that he was so easy to read. 'Katya, you know that I love you.'
'I do know, Silus. But something like this… it's not going to happen every day. You deserve this, no matter how much I'd like to just return to our old lives.'
'But what about our child?'
'We'll be safe enough, safer when you guys set sail. Then our son or daughter won't have to be born in the company of fugitives from the Faith. Besides, I have a friend on Sarcre who will look after me and I would rather not give birth in the confines of an inquisition cell or on a ship. So you see, it's probably for the best.' Katya looked back up at the sails. 'And she is a beautiful ship. When you return we can go somewhere quiet, live off the money and you can raise our son or daughter on stirring tales of the sea.'
'You know that that this voyage is probably going to be dangerous?'
'Yes, but you face danger every day, out on the Ocean Lily. There's something about you Silus, Kelos was right. I think that your veins run not just with blood but also seawater. Like I said, you can't take the sea out of the boy. And nor would I want to. It's who you are.'
'I'm worried Katya, worried about what I may be becoming. Those creatures called me half-breed and Kelos seems to think there's something unique about me, but what? Why did those standing stones seem to scream at me? Why do I suddenly feel like a player in a game I don't understand?'
Katya didn't answer, instead she put her arm around her husband.
