KANE

Baltessa

Mid-Rainrise

Kane's temples pounded as he headed to the docks with the dawn.

The only reason he'd been able to sleep when he returned to his chambers was because of the ale he'd had earlier. He'd lost count of how many precisely. He was half-tempted to drink another just to chase off the headache, but he'd rather suffer through it and have a clear mind when setting sail. Everything had to go right after it had gone so wrong.

The docks were still quiet, the capital only beginning to wake up as the sky began to lighten. His heart, however, remained dark.

He blamed himself for what had happened to Lorelei. He probably would until the day he found her. It was still difficult for him to grasp that not even a day ago she was kissing him under the moonlight, their feelings laid bare, and now she was gone. He truly was cursed with the rotten luck of his father. Black spot of a Blackwater. He faltered to a stop where the path met the dock. Grief hung on him, weighing him down like an anchor, but then anger rose again in him, lifting him back up.

He tightened the strap on his shoulder and turned back toward the waiting sea, nearly running into Csilla. Her curls were pulled back from her face, determination curving her brow, lighting her gaze. He noticed the blouse and pants she wore were simple like those she used to wear when she was only a captain. A queen with a ship instead of a crown.

"You're coming after all?" Kane asked her, watching her reaction closely.

"I don't take orders from Lockhart," she responded, gaze forward on the waves that lapped at the dock. "He should remember his place."

"He did make a valid point, you know." Kane knew she didn't want to hear the truth, but she still needed to. "Cerulia doesn't need to lose its queen as well."

"I'm surprised you remember what he even said." Csilla laughed, the sound small, clipped. "You were pretty sloshed last night."

"And I'm still feeling it this morning," Kane said, rubbing at his temple.

"But if anyone is going to be out there looking for Nara and Lorelei, I'm going to be with them."

"Then we will find them," Kane said, holding out his hand to her like he was offering her a deal. She grasped his hand and they shook on it.

"Together," she said.

Their ship rested at the docks, waiting to be taken on another voyage. Men carried crates and rolled barrels up the plank of one ship, its gray sails tucked away.

As they walked toward the plank, Kane glanced down where the tide met the ship, eying the line of silver peeking out of the water. A steel bow ran from the hull all the way across the bottom of the ship, magicked by a witch during the Old War, allowing it to cut through waves and even burgs. Pity such a beautiful ship belonged to someone who couldn't value its worth.

"We're taking the Wavecutter?" Kane asked as Csilla turned to walk up the plank of the ship. "Does Tomas know about this?"

"Not yet," Csilla responded. He jogged up the plank to catch up to her. "But what he doesn't know and won't remember, won't hurt him. This ship is the fastest in the fleet and we'll hoist merchant sails to disguise ourselves, but if anyone recognizes the steel, this ship also has a reputation of being manned by drunks. Fast and inconspicuous is exactly what we need."

~~~

It was a four day's sail to the Lost Isle, thanks to the Wavecutter. Kane had never visited the ruins of the ancient city of Alannis, but he'd sailed past it a time or two. To get to the Ruin Witch's home, Csilla told them they would need to row in on the narrow river that cut into the middle of the island. Flynn had insisted on sharing a boat with Csilla since he was the best shot and needed to protect the queen, even though they all knew the truth, while Kane sat in a dinghy with Borne and Arius, who wouldn't keep quiet. All Kane wanted was a moment to think and he clearly wasn't going to get that.

The vegetation on the island was wilder than on Crossbones, trees filling every space, winding around each other and through withered stone ruins along the riverbank. The farther inland they rowed, the narrower the river became. The canopy of the jungle grew closer, vines hanging down like ropes, brushing over their shoulders as they rowed on.

Kane was finally getting a moment of quiet when Arius yelped and let go of the oar to point out into the jungle. Borne quickly grabbed the handle before it could fall into the water, leaving them stuck with just one.

"Did you see that?" Arius yelled; eyes wide. "That lizard was as big as a dog! Do you think it was a dragon?" He looked at Kane, then to Borne who sat on the middle bench between them. "Borne, was it a baby dragon? I've always wanted to see a baby dragon. Do you think they came through the crack in Limbo as well?" His voice dropped to a whisper then, his gaze flicking back and forth between each riverbank. "What if its mother is here right now?"

Borne glanced over his shoulder to where Arius had pointed. "I don't see anything," he replied, then looked forward again. "I've seen lizards bigger than a horse while growing up here, so odds are it was only a lizard. However, you shouldn't sound excited about the possibility of the return of dragons."

Arius chuckled. "You wouldn't want to see one? A real fire-breathing dragon? I'd bet all my gold that they're damn magnificent."

"And destructive," Kane said from the other end of the dinghy where he sat, elbows on his knees. "They're too difficult to tame and were put in Limbo for a reason."

"Whoa," Arius feigned surprise. "Hold the sails! Is there some knowledge tucked away in that head of yours, Blackwater?"

"Don't think I won't kick your ass on this dinghy," Kane growled. "Just keep rowing."

"Now that would be a sight to see, mate."

"Kane is right, Arius," Borne interrupted, moving to block Kane from staring a hole through Arius. "Dragons burn with no mercy. If Incendia were to somehow be able to train or control them, then I'm afraid the Kingdoms of Four would fall to just one."

Arius scoffed. "Then what about the ice dragons in Ventys? Why didn't they get locked away in Limbo?"

"Have you ever seen an ice dragon, Arius?" Kane asked.

"No."

"Have you ever heard stories about them turning villages to blocks of ice?"

Arius hesitated a moment like he was cycling through his memories. "Hmm, no."

"There is your answer."

"Are you getting lippy again, Blackwater?"

Borne cleared his throat, interrupting them once more. "The ice dragons are docile and are used for Ventys' transportation and keeping the Frozen Gap surrounding their kingdom frozen."

"Huh..." Arius curled his lip like he was lost in thought for a moment. "You really are a little bundle of history, aren't you?"

Borne shrugged his shoulders. "My mother taught me everything I know."

"You should come with us," Arius went on. "It would be useful to have that brain of yours on board."

"For once," Kane said, hating that he had to say the words. "I actually agree with Arius. Your knowledge is valuable."

"Agree with me?" Arius laughed. "We really are in strange times."

They rowed on a bit more, Arius exclaiming a few more times—once about a white snake that had to be as long as the width of the deck of the Iron Jewel and another time about a turtle with what looked like jewels sprouting from its shell. Kane was ready to kiss the dock by the time they got there. The three of them quickly climbed out and joined Csilla and Flynn on the riverbank.

"Where to now?" Kane asked, wanting to be in and out of the Lost Isle as soon as possible. The quicker they found out what they could, the quicker they could find Lorelei and Nara.

"We go to the Ruin Witch or she'll find us," Csilla said. "Whichever comes first."

This made Kane cock his head. "You've been here before?"

"I've made many deals with the Ruin Witch." She motioned them forward. Borne joined her at the front of their group while they began their trek through the jungle.

"What kind of deals?" Arius asked as they followed Csilla and Borne through the jungle thicket. Arius swiped at a vine that hung down. "Did you ask for gold or...wait, did you ask to become captain of the Scarlet Maiden over your sister'?"

"Arius!" Flynn snapped, shoving him in the shoulder. "We talked about this. Some things we don't ask. Some things we don't say."

Arius brushed off his shoulder like Flynn had left a mark. "I'm just curious, mate."

Csilla stopped walking, the tall grass she was marching through covering her boots. She didn't turn to look at them as she said, "I made deals to keep my mother alive for as long as I could. It wasn't enough in the end."

Kane remembered the crate of fruit he'd had sent to the Abado sisters when he'd found out about their mother's passing. He hadn't known what Csilla had done to keep Soleil Abado alive though.

"Oh," Arius said, his voice dropping. "I'm sorry. Truly I am" He leaned closer to Flynn and asked so quietly, Kane almost didn't hear him. "Can I ask what she gave up to trade?"

A new voice entered the thicket. Rich, warm, and as unfamiliar as the jungle ruins. "She gave me some childhood dolls, a favorite sword, and even an eye."

Csilla looked back at them then. One eye of silver. One of brown. "She found us," Csilla said.

Kane turned in the direction of the voice, watching as the Ruin Witch slid from the jungle, a part of it in every way. She moved with the graceful danger of a snake, every step making the group shrink back slightly. Her curly amber hair was twisted in a knot on her head, wisps blowing as she walked, a scarf tied across her hairline. Golden eyes flitted to each of them, her expression unreadable. Then she smiled.

"My son," she said, opening her arms.

Borne stepped forward, embracing her. "Mother."

She pulled back from him, her hands at his cheeks as she looked up at him. "You're just like the trees here. You never stop growing." She hugged him again. "I'm so very glad you've came to visit me, my son. The trees told me when you arrived, but did you have to bring along pirates?" She bit out the word like it was a curse.

Arius cleared his throat, all heads turning to him. "Excuse me, Miss Ruin Witch?"

Kane let out a frustrated sigh and Csilla silently shook her head, mouthing the word don't. Flynn pulled at Arius's sleeve. "Some questions don't need be asked," he repeated through the side of his mouth.

"Do the trees really speak to you?" Arius asked, taking a step away from Flynn. "Or is it a metaphorical sense? You seem a little cryptic like your son, and I just want to be sure."

"Are you mocking me?" the Ruin Witch asked, the gold in her eyes swimming.

"No," Arius said quickly, his words stumbling from his mouth. "No, no, I'm only curious. I think it would be brilliant if you could really hear the trees." He beamed from ear to ear, dimples cutting his light brown cheeks.

The Ruin Witch studied him for a moment, the tension so thick it could be cut with a blade. If Arius's uncaged mouth thwarted this mission to get information, Kane would personally see to it that he was demoted and unable to dig them deeper into a hole. It didn't matter how close he was with Flynn or if he was a good shot. Lines had to be drawn in the sand at some point.

"She magically sealed Rhoda's lips the last time we were here," Csilla said quietly to Arius. "You should apologize and—"

"I like this one," the Ruin Witch said, the corners of her lips turning up the slightest. She turned to Borne then. "He can come visit us in Terran anytime."

Kane's mouth popped open. He could practically feel the pride swelling in Arius at the witch's comment. Relief washed over him for the moment after the shock.

Borne whipped his head to his mother. "Terran? What are you talking about, Mother?"

"Come," she said, waving at them to follow. "We have much to discuss."

~~~

The Ruin Witch's cabin wasn't too much farther into the jungle, but Kane would've preferred the jungle with how cramped it was inside. Various jars filled with different herbs and insects that made Kane's skin crawl were scattered on shelves and tables. The Ruin Witch walked the space lighting candles, and a sweet aroma reached him, almost like the smell of bayberries during peak sunspur. The unease he'd been feeling slowly started to slip away along with his suspicions that the cause was something magic in the candles.

"So," the witch said, snuffing out the rolled-up paper she'd used to the light the candles. "You've lost the Storm."

"We didn't lose her," Csilla explained. "Or Nara." She leaned against the wall next to the window, arms crossed as she looked out at something in front of the cabin. "Someone took them from us."

"And you came to me to figure out where to find them." The Ruin Witch clicked her tongue. "You pirates always want something."

"Mother," Borne intervened, brown eyes pleading. "You know the realms are restless right now. I don't believe we'd have come here if there were any other choice. We don't want your help, we need it."

The witch reached for her son, fingers twitching, then quickly dropped back down by her side. "I see. With your magic gone, have they now turned you against me in your time away?"

Borne sighed, the sound of it filling the space. "You know much, but you are wrong about that. I'm no longer a witchblood, and I thought you'd come to terms with that before Rove took me from here. We knew where my path led."

Listening to the exchange between Borne and his mother was a twist in Kane's heart. He remembered the time his own mother had asked him to stay and play cards with her instead of going and training with his father that day. He'd left her and ran off to train, leaving her alone in the captain's cabin, eyes drooping with sadness. If only Kane could go back, he would've stayed with her every day. He wouldn't have let another moment slip through his fingers. Perhaps Borne should stay with his mother too.

The tense expression on the Ruin Witch's face remained unchanged. "When you come back with me to Terran, we can find a way to fix your magic." Her gaze darkened then, worry creasing her brow. "You'll need your magic in the days to come."

"What's coming?" Csilla asked, finally pulling her gaze from the window. Kane briefly wondered if she'd been thinking about her own mother too.

The Ruin Witch cut her gaze to Csilla, her golden eyes flickering in the candlelight. "I think you know very well what's coming."

Kane thought back to Death's Cove. The ravaging hunger of the comoras, the reek of the half-souls on the abandoned deck of a Bonedog. His shoulder throbbed in response. He imagined the blackness of his wound stretching farther, rotting the blood in his veins, spreading across his skin like a disease.

"The crack in Limbo is real then?" Csilla asked. Kane anchored himself back in the conversation, suppressing the urge to grip his shoulder. The pain would fade soon. If he'd just distract himself, it would be over even quicker.

Flynn cocked his head at Csilla. "Did you not believe my story about those man-eating birds? I didn't make it up just to woo you. It's fine if it worked though." He mumbled the last bit, getting a snicker out of Arius.

"No, it's not that," Csilla explained. "I just want to hear it from her."

"Yes, Queen Csilla," the Ruin Witch said, putting emphasis on her title. "It is true." The words would've shocked Kane had it not been for what he'd seen on that day.

"You should know it," the witch continued, pointing at Csilla. "From the dreamwraith that haunts you."

"Dreamwraith?" Flynn rounded on Csilla. "What is she talking about?"

"They're just nightmares." Csilla kept her gaze on the Ruin Witch who laughed.

"The bags under your eyes are from more than just nightmares. Tell me, do the dreams come every night or just on the nights your anguish eats away at you?"

Csilla scowled and turned her head back toward the window, her jaw working. Flynn moved closer to her, placing his hand softly on her shoulder. She shrugged him away but his hand remained and she didn't move away from him again. Kane thought the two of them were like the tide, push and pull. This time it seemed she let him win their little game of back and forth.

Seeing the way Flynn looked at Csilla made Kane think of blue eyes and the way they'd gleamed at him in the moonlight. It was hard to believe that night hadn't even been a week ago, though it felt like an entire season had flown by, his thoughts always returning to her one way or another.

"What does one do about a dreamwraith?" Flynn asked. Csilla glanced at him out of the corner of her eye.

The Ruin Witch glanced between Flynn and Csilla, interest lighting her eyes. She continued to move like a snake even out of the jungle, her walk slow with a deliberate sway in her hips. She reached a pelt covered chair and turned to face them. "Like one ends most things." She slid into the chair, pointed fingernails tapping its wooden arms. "By killing it."

"And how do I kill something that I've never seen?" Csilla asked, her voice raising the slightest. "I've never seen this supposed dreamwraith."

The Ruin Witch took a deep breath and sighed like she was about to tell a long story. "You wouldn't have seen it because you're asleep when it comes. Dreamwraiths are difficult creatures as they tether their essence to the dream realm while their physical form remains in our mortal realm, feeding from the terror they create in our dreams. It must be killed in both realms."

"How can I kill it in this realm if it only comes while I'm asleep?" Csilla asked, taking a step forward, something on the edge of hope and desperation glossing her gaze. "If I kill it in my dream, will I wake up and have time to slay it?"

The Ruin Witch shook her head, one of her stray amber curls swaying. "It will take two. While you kill the wraith in your dreams, someone else must strike down its physical form."

"That part will be easy," Arius said from the floor. He sat on a rug near the Ruin Witch's chair like a child listening to a story.

"Don't be naive, golden one," she said to Arius, patting his sun-kissed curls. Kane rolled his eyes. She'd only known Pavel for a little bit of time and he'd already earned a nickname from her. "It won't be that simple. If you kill the wraith's physical form before Csilla is able to kill it in her dream, then its essence could keep her trapped in the dream realm. Once a wraith loses its essence, its physical form grows stronger, that's when you'll know to deliver a fatal strike...if you're able to land one."

"You underestimate my shot," Flynn said, hand resting at his pistol.

"Let's hope that remains true when it matters most then." The Ruin Witch looked at Flynn for a long moment like she was studying him or knew something none of them knew, which was likely considering all the things the trees told her.

If she knew so many things, then she had to know where Lorelei and Nara were. Kane had sat back, patiently listening to the rest of them, letting his mind wander to places, while the two of them were out there, waiting for them to help.

Kane cleared his throat, drawing their wide-eyed attention like someone had shouted about a fire. "I don't mean to be the black spot in this conversation and steer it off course, but do you also know where to find our friends?"

The Ruin Witch smiled full-tooth at Kane. It looked almost unnatural with her gold eyes. "There you are, Blackwater. I was wondering when you were going to speak up. Your voice is just as dark as I thought it would be."

"I've been listening." Kane pushed himself from the wall he'd been resting against and took a step forward. "You seem to know everything. Surely you must know who took Lorelei and Nara and where we can find them."

"Straight to business then," the Ruin Witch chuckled. "I can only assume it is the emberblood the hollow trees in West Incendia saw. He went to the wasteland alone and dug up a magicked sword that had belonged to Magnus when his war raged across this realm. If he knew where to find this sword, then he knew where to find Lorelei. I suspect he has a connection to Magnus, just as the flame god did with Rove and Rhoda."

Magnus. He'd see a world of flames and ashes. Molten men with their dripping lava and obsidian armor fighting alongside the flame-worshipping Incendians to conquer the other Kingdoms of Four. But the question still lingered: what was stopping him?

"Why hasn't he slipped through the crack in Limbo?" Kane asked. "Plenty of other creatures seem to be slipping through."

"Ah." The Ruin Witch raised one sharp-nailed finger into the air. "That's the correct question, isn't it? Mortals can slip between realms. We do it in our dreams, we do it in death, we can even project our spirit into another realm if we will it enough and if there is a path to take. But a god cannot walk our realm in their form. They must have a willing vessel."

"A mortal body for him to possess?"

Csilla bristled from the window, straightening her stance once more. "Then we have even more reason to hunt down the emberblood. If he has Magnus's sword, then perhaps he is the vessel Magnus is seeking."

"Why a vessel now though?" Kane asked, trying to piece it all together. "There was no mention of this when he nearly escaped the last time."

"The curse to hold him in Limbo was broken," The Ruin Witch explained, "and though it was partially resealed, a curse cannot be broken a second time. The spill of Stormblood was supposed to release him to the realm of the gods, where he could still wreak his havoc, but now Magnus seeks a different path, one directly to our realm."

"Well, isn't that just peachy?" Arius threw his head back and laughed. "We thought we saved the world, but we only screwed it up further."

Kane's head was swimming as he tried to figure out the emberblood and Magnus's motives. "Why take her then?" The question was barely a whisper, something he hadn't even meant to ask out loud.

"They must have other plans for her," The Ruin Witch replied. "Though I cannot say for sure what their reasoning may be, she is the only Stormblood who walks this earth. Perhaps they have a use for her."

"I'll be damned if I let that happen," Kane growled, white-knuckled.

"How can we find them?" Csilla asked. "We have no idea where exactly they're sailing to."

The Ruin Witch shook her head. "They're still at sea, so the trees have told me nothing. I cannot track them if the trees cannot as well."

"What about a loophole?" Flynn tested. "There's always a loophole."

"Well, I might not be able to track them, but I do know of someone who can track anyone...for a price." The gold in her eyes shimmered.

"Another witchblood?" For the first time since they'd left Baltessa, felt a kindling of hope. "Where do we find them?"

"I'll tell you," the Ruin Witch said with a calculative gleam in her eye. "But only if Borne comes with me back to Terran."

"Mother!" Borne turned on her. "You can't just—"

"Deal," Kane said without hesitation. Borne would thank him one day when he had his magic back and more time with his mother.

"Now hold on," Arius interrupted. "This kid knows everything there is to know about everything. He answers all of my questions. Who will answer them now?"

"The tracker is a witchblood," Kane told him. "Ask your questions to them."

"Terran isn't my home, Mother," Borne pleaded. "I've only just gotten decent with a sword."

"This about more than what you want," the witch told him. "If Magnus gets his vessel, it won't just be Cerulia in danger. After all this time, he won't stop there and you will need your magic back, so you will come."

Borne hesitated, eyes shining for a moment before he blinked them clear. "I understand," he said quietly.

"The Serpent can be found in Smuggler's Harbor. I can't promise he'll help you though." She gazed out the window, squinting. "The sun is already setting. I'd hurry there if you want to reach him before someone else has made an offer."

"Then we should go," Csilla said, straightening from where she was leaning by the window.

The group mumbled their goodbyes to the Ruin Witch and headed out the door of her cabin, Kane following after them. Before he could step through the doorway, the Ruin Witch's voice stopped him.

"Blackwater," she called. He slowly turned to face her. "Don't think I didn't smell the death on you. What do you plan to do about that wound of yours?"

"It was a dead man's sword," Borne said in his mother's ear. "He hasn't spoken about it with anyone."

"Denial will not make your wound any less fatal," the Ruin Witch told Kane, her gold eyes pinning him where he stood. He'd already told himself the words, but hearing them from someone else laced them with a finality that darkened his mood. He didn't look back as he walked out the door of the witch's home and back out into the wild jungle.