The water around the chieftain exploded into foam as I lifted it with Crashing Wave. I poured my Vigor into the attack and staggered as all the water rushed out from around my legs. I managed to lift him high into the air as he squirmed futilely in the column of water and howled curses.
I made a Plank Pillar erupt under my feet, and the wooden platform shot me up and out of the pool. I balanced on my makeshift perch and pulled the column of water toward me with a mighty effort. Then I somersaulted off the Plank Pillar as Jonnik tumbled through the air. My heel and all the weight of my spinning kick crashed into his head. The chieftain plummeted into the pool with an explosion of water.
I landed over Jonnik before I rolled him onto his back with a kick. The water lapped around us as Jonnik stared up at me with wide and red-rimmed eyes.
“How’s that for a ‘word-wielding tosser’?” I asked.
Jonnik spat out a mouthful of acidic water. “Only an idiot continues fighting when they’ve lost. Well fought. You win.”
“You going to listen to what I have to say?” I held out my hand, and he wrapped two of his tentacles around it. I planted my feet and heaved him up.
The Wild chieftain slapped me on the shoulder and a huge, toothy grin spread across his face. “Fuck, but you’re good at that. I don’t say it often, especially not to guild-trained pricks, but I’m impressed.”
“Maybe you need to get out more,” I suggested. “But you’re pretty impressive yourself.”
“Crabshit. You saw my tactics a mile away. Save the pretty words for someone who’ll care.”
He grabbed my hand and raised it high in the air as he looked around at the crowd of spectators who howled their approval. I winked at Kumi as she gaped at me.
“We have a winner!” he bellowed. “You bastards better cheer for Ethan Murphy lo Pashat!”
The sound rolled around us and out across the ocean in a wall of noise that shook the treetops and sent the seagulls soaring away in alarm.
I freed my hand and strode into the center of the pool with arms raised on a cocktail of excitement and adrenaline. I tried to wave the noise down, to get everyone quiet so that I could be heard, but they kept their adulation on full volume. It was exhilarating to have such praise thrown my way, but I wasn’t here for the glory. I’d come here with a mission, and I couldn’t get it done if no one listened to what I said.
“Quiet!” Jonnik roared.
Silence fell along the shoreline at last.
“I’ve come to you with an opportunity,” I shouted, making sure I could be heard all the way to the furthest boats. “And with a warning. The Resplendent Tears Guild is growing more powerful and more aggressive with every passing day. Right now, they’re threatening Qihin City, but once they’re done there, they’ll come for you. You know better than I do what they think about Wilds and what they’ll do if they seize control of the Diamond Coast. Your way of life will be at an end.
“But while this is the moment of peril, it’s also your chance to change everything. King Beqai and the Qihin Clan are preparing to attack the guild. I invite you to join them in that attack, not as subjects of the King and his clan, but as equals in a fight for freedom. This is your chance to stick it to the Resplendent Tears, to drown everything that’s rotten in that guild and see if there’s anything left worth saving. This is your chance to control your own destinies.
“Who’s with me?”
Jonnik roared with laughter and turned his voice into a primal howl of warlike intent. The crowd exploded in a cacophony of shouts and chants.
Another chief stepped forward on a huge raft near the shore. Her hair rattled with a ceremonial headdress made of bird and fish bones.
“You all know I hate Beqai!” she shouted. “But that won’t stop me shoving an oar up Horix’s ass. I’m in!”
“Let’s tear the fuckers down!” screamed another chief with rings through his lips.
The entire audience roared their approval as the drummer took up his heavy sticks and pounded a rhythm like a racing heart. A smile spread across my face.
I’d done it.
The Wilds were going to war.
It took two hours for Jonnik and the other chieftains to assemble their forces.
Gulls soared over our heads and followed the boat carrying Kumi and I back toward Qihin City. That, or they followed the fleet that came behind us. It was a host of Wilds armed up and ready for war. Some were in boats while others swam with swift, confident strokes. A few even rode dolphins, squids, or giant turtles. I’d gone in search of an army.
And I was coming back with one.
I laid a hand on the hilt of the Sundered Heart Sword and felt Nydarth’s presence.
“Your kind words are always appreciated,” I said inside my head.
“You’re welcome, sweet man,” she replied. “It’s always a pleasure to be there for you.”
“Don’t you get frustrated?” I asked. “Being stuck inside the sword the whole time, not able to come out and explore the world?”
Nydarth laughed. It was a deep, luxurious sound like honey across my senses. “Oh, my sweet man. So kind of you to ask; so many don’t think of the welfare of their weapons. Yes, it is frustrating, but the end is in sight. Now that you’ve brought me from the cave and started wielding me in battle, I’m growing in power. Every day, I feel my strength returning, just a little at a time. But it is enough to let me know that my day will come. Soon, I will be able to materialize in this plane of existence, and when I
