Mindbender (36 page)

The captain hesitated.

“Speak your mind, Captain,” Alexander said.

“I . . . those ships are commanded by my friends,” he said. “I don’t want to hurt them.”

Alexander nodded with genuine sadness. “I understand, Captain. In truth, I don’t want to hurt them either but I will if I have to.”

“If you don’t want to hurt them, then why are you doing this?” he asked.

“Grafton has declared war against Ithilian and taken sides with Prince Phane,” Alexander said. “The Governor helped Phane’s people abduct Princess Evelyn and is allowing an army from Karth to use Grafton as a staging ground for an all-out invasion of the rest of Ithilian. I intend to stop them—and your friends are in the way.”

The captain shook his head. “I don’t know about any of that and neither do they,” he said, pointing out into the darkness toward the patrol boats that waited in the distance. “We’re just doing our jobs.”

“In doing your job, you are committing treason against Ithilian and waging war against the Seven Isles and the Old Law,” Alexander said. “Doing a job that requires you to betray basic morality is not an excuse worthy of consideration. By defending Grafton, you are aiding those who would wage unprovoked war against innocent people and abduct others for the purpose of using their lives as leverage against their loved ones.”

“None of that is our doing,” he said with indignation. “We have to feed our families so we do as we’re told. Otherwise, we’d lose our jobs and others would take our places. You can’t blame us for what the Governor does.”

“No, I can’t,” Alexander said. “I can only blame you for what you do. You and others like you are the means through which the Governor wielded his power. Without people like you who blindly follow his commands, he would be powerless. Obedience to authority does not absolve you of guilt if your actions are immoral. We must all choose when faced with a moral dilemma. How you choose reveals your nature and your character.”

“And what about you?” the captain spat back, growing more angry by the moment. “You’ve hijacked my ship at the point of a blade. What gives you the right? How are you any different from the Governor?”

Jataan stepped up. “Lord Reishi has no need to explain himself to you. His word is law.”

“Lord Reishi?” the captain said as his face went slightly pale.

“It’s all right, Jataan. His question is valid, so I’ll answer it,” Alexander said. “I’m acting in response to provocation. I did not start this war. I did not ask for this power. I did not bring enemy soldiers into a peaceful nation. I did not abduct an innocent woman from her home and ransom her back to her family. This war was brought to my doorstep. My family was attacked, my brother was killed, my home was burned to the ground, my nation was invaded and my enemies have tried to kill me time and time again. My actions are in response to aggression against me and other innocent people. If I wish to survive, I must destroy those who are making war against me and mine. They cannot be reasoned with, they cannot be bargained with, and they cannot be permitted to continue to live. They lust for power over the lives of others and will stop at nothing until they impose their will on every life in the Seven Isles. Their actions have condemned them to death. They have murdered innocent people, abducted innocent people, and stolen from innocent people. They have violated the Old Law and as such, they have forfeited their right to life, liberty, or property. Taking your ship is not a violation of the Old Law because you serve the enemy that has made war against me. Your rights under the Old Law are forfeit.”

The captain swallowed hard. “Are you going to kill me?”

“Not if you do as I tell you,” Alexander said. “I’m not bloodthirsty. I don’t want to kill but I won’t hesitate either. For the moment, you represent no threat to me. Killing you wouldn’t further my cause. However, if the day should come that I face you on the battlefield, I will kill you without a second thought.”

The man in the crow’s nest called out and pointed into the gradually brightening dawn.

Alexander and his friends went to the foredeck.

Anatoly was standing on the bow, looking out across the water at the patrol ship on the horizon. “The ballista is loaded with a fire pot and ready to fire. I’ve set the range at maximum and checked the sights. It’s in good order. We should be able to hit them within a few minutes.”

“Lord Reishi, I believe I can hit them from here,” Jataan said.

Alexander and Anatoly frowned in unison.

“How? Anatoly asked. “The ballista can’t shoot that far.”

“Not on its own,” Jataan said, “but my magic will add considerably to its range.”

Anatoly shrugged and looked over at Alexander. “I guess it couldn’t hurt. We have plenty of ammunition and it won’t take long to reload.”

“Give it a shot,” Alexander said.

Jataan nodded and went to the firing controls of the big siege weapon. He made a few adjustments and nodded to Anatoly to light the fuse on the fire pot. When Anatoly gave the signal, Jataan checked his aim and fired the weapon. The clay pot filled with lamp oil sailed through the air in an impossible arc propelled more by the magic of the battle mage than the power of the ballista. It hit the deck of the patrol boat and shattered in a spray of fire.

“Nice shot,” Anatoly said grudgingly.

The sails went up in flames quickly. Within minutes, the boat was listing and the crew was abandoning ship. Alexander watched their desperate struggle to save themselves as his ship sailed past. The remaining two patrol boats in the blockade and the three that launched from the port in pursuit were well out of attack range.

Grafton Island grew on the horizon as the light of day grew brighter.

Alexander suddenly realized he was tired. They hadn’t slept for the entire night, and the rest of the day would be spent running into the interior of Grafton Island in an attempt to elude whatever soldiers made landfall from the ships behind them.

He thought about Isabel and wondered what she was doing in that moment. He hoped the mana fast was successful and worried that it wasn’t. He told himself that his worry was irrational, Isabel was strong, she would survive and emerge stronger, but he still worried. More than anything he just wanted her with him. Her presence made everything better, calmed his nerves and soothed his soul. He missed her terribly.

“She will return to you, My Love,” Chloe said in his mind.

“You sound so certain, Little One. How can you be sure?” he said without speaking.

“I have seen her mind and her soul. She is strong and she loves you just as much as you love her,” Chloe said. “You will be together again.”

“Thank you, Little One.”

Chapter 22

They had sailed for several hours through the morning and into midafternoon when the captain came back to Alexander.

“Where should I make port?” he asked. “There are adequate ports at the northernmost settlement and one around the west side of the island. The one to the east is farther and would take longer because the winds shift out on the open ocean and we would have to rely on the oars.”

Alexander scanned the island looming up before them. “We aren’t going to a port. There will be soldiers waiting for us. Run aground there,” Alexander said, pointing to a sandy beach in a little cove a few miles from the northern port town.

“But, we’ll be stuck,” the captain complained. “I’ll never get my ship off that beach.”

“Captain, your ship is a thing,” Alexander said. “I am trying to save the lives of innocent people. Do as I tell you or you’ll find yourself swimming to shore.”

The captain grudgingly followed his orders in spite of his crew’s protests. Less than an hour later, they ran aground in the shallow waters on the northern shore of Grafton Island. The water was only four feet deep, but Alexander still took the longboat from the ship, mostly to prevent the captain and his crew from getting to shore quickly enough to warn the enemy forces stationed on the island. It was a quick ride to the beach.

The road that circled the island was about a quarter mile from the shore. They approached it with caution but it was empty so they crossed quickly and headed due south into the interior of the mountainous island. As they gained altitude, Alexander stopped to check on the progress of his pursuers whenever a clear view presented itself. They were closing fast but it appeared that they weren’t willing to run aground. Several vessels were heading for the port a mile or so east along the northern coast while one remained anchored in the little cove near the ship Alexander had commandeered. He estimated that they were at least three hours behind, plenty of time to lose them in the rugged wilderness of the island.

By dark they were well away from the coastline and into the foothills of the mountain that loomed up from the center of the island. They made camp and Lucky prepared a hearty stew over a little campfire.

Alexander could tell that Conner was nervous about something but he waited for the young prince to speak up rather than ask him about it. After dinner was eaten and their bedrolls were laid out under the clear sky, Conner cleared his throat and took a deep breath.

“Legend has it that this mountain is haunted,” he said quietly. “I don’t know how much is true and how much is a story, but we should be cautious.”

“Caution is always wise,” Alexander said. “As I understand it, there are ganglings in these mountains, possibly dragons as well. There might also be a creature called a revenant. They’re supposed to be strong and fast. And winged, so they may strike from above. Malachi Reishi created them by mating a virgin witch with a demon. He said they heal very quickly from injuries and that the only sure way to kill one is to cut off its head. Hopefully, we won’t encounter anything, but we should be careful nonetheless.”

“I figure it’ll take a couple of days to reach the keep,” Anatoly said. “Might go faster if we stay in the foothills and skirt around the mountain rather than trying to go over it.”

“The enemy soldiers are more likely to find us if we stay closer to the road,” Alexander said.

“Soldiers are much easier to contend with than the creatures you spoke of, Lord Reishi,” Jataan said. “I would recommend the course Master Grace has suggested.”

“I agree,” Lucky said. “Ganglings are dangerous in the mountains, especially if they ambush us from higher ground.”

Alexander nodded. “All right, we’ll avoid the mountains and stay to the foothills.”

They woke early the next morning and began the long walk around the mountainous island to Lighthouse Keep on the southern bluff. The forest was thick and travel was slow, but the density of the foliage in the early months of summer offered ample cover from the enemy patrols that frequented the road not a mile away.

Several times during the day, the group stopped and hid to avoid soldiers that made sweeps into the forest near the road. Alexander preferred to avoid a confrontation, more to protect their position than out of fear of the outcome. He had become confident in his deadliness with the Thinblade, and Jataan had proven to be a formidable ally. He still didn’t really like the little battle mage but he had to admit that his assistance was helpful, and it was certainly preferable to having the man as an enemy.

At nightfall they made a quiet and dark camp, ate a cold dinner, and laid out their bedrolls. Alexander thought about Isabel as he drifted off to sleep. He worried for her safety and wondered what she was doing but mostly he missed her. Her presence had a way of calming and centering him like nothing else. She made him feel like he was exactly where he was supposed to be.

He woke with a start. Jack was kneeling beside him, shaking his shoulder gently. He motioned for silence in the dim light of the stars and the half moon overhead, then pointed into the forest. Alexander sat up quietly, checking the Thinblade at his side, and looked to where Jack was pointing. In the flickering moonlight, he thought he saw the silhouette of a man standing several dozen feet outside their camp, except the man had no colors. Alexander pulled on his boots and drew the Thinblade. Anatoly came awake from the stirring in the camp and fluidly rolled to his feet with his war axe in hand. Alexander motioned for silence and began to advance on the man’s position.

The silhouette didn’t move or react as Alexander approached. The trees swayed from a gentle breeze, throwing shadows and moonlight across the forest floor. Then the man suddenly disappeared. Alexander froze, scanning the forest with his magical sight. There was nothing out of place, no evidence of any threat.

“Did you see anything, Little One,” he asked Chloe in his mind.

“No, My Love. What was there?” she responded silently.

“I’m not sure.”

He went to the place where the man had been standing and carefully searched the forest floor for any sign of his presence but found none. It was as if they had seen a ghost, except Alexander had seen ghosts before and they didn’t look like this.

Jataan came up silently through the darkness. “Is there a threat, Lord Reishi?” he whispered.

“I’m not sure,” Alexander said. “There was a man standing here watching us but he didn’t have any colors.”