dream, yet it was real, and all of her senses were engaged. The battlefield was a maelstrom of aggression and pent-up rage, and all she could do was fly.
Chapter 16
Some of the most beautiful things in this world will kill you quick as death.
Black sands rose from the sea, and the Firstland looked much different to Catrin. The land had healed itself from the devastation of the tsunami, and now Catrin could see the lush forests in their true glory. Chillingly beautiful was this unforgiving land of her ancestors, with the blacks and browns of the shoreline opposite fertile greenery that blanketed the land like moss on a giant stone.
All on board kept their gazes skyward, watching for ferals, and in Catrin's case, for Kyrien. She knew he lived, knew he had helped get them airborne, yet she had not seen him, and until she saw him, the reality of his survival would not be assured to her.
The fact that the Firstland looked like a beatific and idyllic setting and all around them was still and peaceful only served to unnerve the crew further. All of them knew they had come here for a reason and they might never leave. The placid beauty seemed almost inappropriate and garish in the face of their impending doom.
It didn't help that Kenward was not speaking to Catrin. At first she'd thought him simply angry, but he had attempted to speak to her and had failed. Each time he had opened his mouth, nothing came out. Eventually he raised his arms in defeat and walked away, mumbling to himself about flying through Catrin's nightmares and holes in his deck. Catrin knew she couldn't control her dreams, especially when she was beyond exhaustion, but still she felt guilty for having traumatized Kenward and the crew. The thought of flying the ship while sleeping haunted her.
'I'm amazed you could do it at all,' Pelivor had said. 'How did you do it? No, wait. Don't answer that. I don't want to know.'
Perhaps it was best that Catrin could not have explained it if she had tried. Somehow she had transitioned from waking to sleep without letting go of the power. She'd done it once before, in Pinook Harbor, but that was nothing as complex as keeping a ship in the air. And that seemed to be the rub. In her altered state, Catrin's mind had somehow overlaid reality with her dreams, and as she had been dodging monsters and attacks of power and fire, the
Catrin knew she would need her strength for the battle ahead. Kyrien had brought her here for a reason. He'd shown her visions of pain and death, and she knew the calm would not remain. Not knowing when the darkness would come made Catrin want to climb out of her own skin, and not knowing Kyrien's true fate gnawed at her.
'You need to eat something,' Pelivor insisted.
The acid in Catrin's stomach stole what appetite she had, and she shook her head. Even the smell of Grubb's fish stew did little to attract her. Kenward stood behind Pelivor, and though he still said nothing, she knew he was coming around. With his arms folded over his chest, he raised an eyebrow and tapped his foot.
Sighing, Catrin accepted the mug, thinking she would just sip it to satisfy Kenward. After a few tastes, though, her appetite returned enough to finish the mug.
'You know I love you,' Kenward finally said. 'But I have to admit that I'll be glad when you're off my ship. You're nothing but the worst kind of trouble, and you seem determined to kill me and sink my ship.'
'It took you all this time to come up with that? You're no poet, Kenward, but I can understand you feeling that way. Still, I think you're just jealous because I've managed to endanger your crew more than you have.'
Those words drove Kenward back into silence that was finally broken by Grubb's laughter. 'I say we keep her on board just to shut him up!'
A look from Kenward silenced him, but his shoulders shook as he walked back to the galley.
Kenward just shook his head. 'I suppose you'll want me to take you up the river toward Ri? You know, the place where the Gholgi nearly sank us the last time we were here?'
The memory was burned into Catrin's mind. She could recall every sight, smell, and sensation of that day. It was also the first time she'd been rescued by dragons.
'Yes. I suppose that is what I want. I had hoped for guidance from Kyrien, some sign as to what he needed from me, but no matter how I try, he will not respond. He's alive-I know it-but I think he is waiting for a reason, and until he's ready, we're on our own.'
'It seems we face the same dilemma once again,' Kenward said. 'I don't have enough men to send with you and still be able to defend the ship.'
'This time will be different,' Catrin said. 'This time I will go alone.'
'But you could be facing dangers far worse than those in the past.'
'True,' Catrin said. 'I am not as well prepared as I would have liked, but I have done everything within my power to get ready for this, and now I must simply let the bones fall where they may.' Instantly Catrin regretted her choice of words. No one else seemed willing to speak in the silence that followed. 'Please. Just take me to the place where you dropped me last time. I'll either be fine or I won't, but staying aboard this ship will not accomplish whatever it is I'm here to do. Now I just need to get on with it.'
Members of the crew approached her one at a time, each in his or her own way and only when ready. Catrin had known them since she was a teenager; she loved them like family, and to many of them, she was an adopted daughter. To have their love and respect meant the world to Catrin, and their words bolstered her confidence. If these brave and talented men and women believed in her, then surely she could believe in herself, even if she did face an impossible task: win a battle that would take place at a time and place beyond her knowing. Her only choice was to surrender to fate and hope that her knowledge and power would sustain her. It must have shown in her eyes, given the respect she got from the crew. Even those who had nearly died for her cause in the past looked at her with new eyes, as if they only now saw her true potential and sacrifice.
It was good that these things propped up Catrin's confidence as the next moment brought pure chaos.
Like a flock of birds launched from a shaken tree, dragons appeared all at once and, within moments, filled the air around the ship. Battle centered on the
Kyrien was nowhere to be seen. Catrin would have been able to pick him out of the chaos with her eyes closed, and she longed to find him and communicate with him, but her calls remained unanswered.
Crouching and shying away from another monstrous collision, Catrin thought the sound of dragons fighting might be the most frightening part of all. Not only did their growls make the air tremble and their screams inflict physical pain, the sound of their armored bodies slamming together was something Catrin thought no creature should ever have to hear.
'Full sail!' Kenward shouted. 'Get this ship out of the water! We need to get out of here.'
No one hesitated or questioned Kenward's words. His command gave them purpose and something to distract them from the horror that was taking place around them.
'Look out!' was all the warning anyone got before a pair of twined dragons struck the ship. Locked in a battle to the death, the two flailed and rolled, taking part of the rigging into the sea with them before disappearing under the waves. Had it not been a glancing blow, they'd already be sunk. Kenward was right; they needed to move.
Raising her arms to the sky, Catrin reached for the comets, and to her absolute shock, they felt a thousand years away, as if they had suddenly been flung back into the darkness. One look at Pelivor showed that he was experiencing a similar horror. Looking up, Catrin saw an unnaturally dark cloud blocking their views of the heavens. Like a stain on the sky, it roiled above them, sometimes lit from within by webs of lightning. The hair on Catrin's
