2247 FY | 1754 BC
In an age of dynasties, where the tribal colonies and settlements of old began to morph into kingdoms, two rising empires reigned supreme in the Fabellan continent of Kathara. One of them was Punt, the first of the ancient empires and ruled by twelve godlike people calling themselves “The Titans.” Opposing Punt was the Republic of Fantasia, founded by the sentinels whose sworn duty was to rid Fabella of the titan menace.
Situated in south Kathara, where the weather was always a balmy 70 degrees, the Republic of Fantasia was a place out of time. Founding mother and first President Stephanie LeFleur instituted a long list of new advancements in this kind of empire’s foundation. By the end of her twelve years in power, Fantasia shined brightly as the first Democratic Republic in Fabella, and the National Volleyball League wasn’t too shabby either.
Life in Fantasia was truly unique:
The people of Fantasia lived in wigwams fashioned out of thatched grass and wood.
Alix Chapel was where people all congregated to thank Lord Lukis for the gift of life.
Speakers informed everyone on the news from a raised stage in the center of the market place.
The theater hosted such great early classical plays as “When Harry Met Sally” and “Rocky.”
The national anthem “Somewhere Over the Rainbow” was on the tip of everyone’s tongues.
Riders on airborne chariots pulled by pegasuses and griffins made up an early Air Force.
During her tenure, all these wonderful inventions brought by Stephanie LeFleur gave her presidential successor Ephias Thinker some massive shoes to fill. Thinker’s election had been a contentious one as Fantasia’s philosopher class were continuously forced into conflict with their military commanders. The military called for a harsher, more orderly form of government. At the same time, the philosophers were committed to evaluating the cause and effect of their actions. When the final votes were tallied, goblin Ephias Thinker was elected to the top post by a very slim margin.
As he took his place in the Fantasian palace, Ephias Thinker rejoiced in his new election to the Commander in Chief of this beautiful utopia. It was easy to forget that this empire was still open to danger.
An ear-piercing scream in the middle of the night shattered the illusion that Fantasia would ever know a period of true peace.
Ephias Thinker shot out of bed as fast as possible. He only had enough time to tie a linen kilt around his midsection and shove his feet into a pair of sandals before charging bare-chested down to the basement of the palace where the scream had come from. His advisors fell into step behind him as he thundered down the stone steps and into a little known section in the maze of underground catacombs.
Thinker came to a sudden stop when he saw a bushy brown-haired woman in the middle of shutting something inside a small chest. She rose to her full height of 5’ 8”. The black robe around her shoulders billowed behind her. Free-floating balls of yellow lights bounced off the chrome exterior of her wand as she shoved it into her pockets.
At her feet was the gruesome sight of soldiers all lying dead on the stone floor. Judging by their obsidian armor, these soldiers were from the rival empire of Punt. No doubt employed to undertake a secret mission by infiltrating the very heart of the Fantasian Republic.
“Were they here for me?” asked Ephias Thinker.
“No,” responded the busy brown-haired woman before him. By the yellow lights floating around her casting their pigment on the woman’s face, Thinker could clearly see that it was his legendary predecessor Stephanie LaFleur. “They were here for something else.”
Thinker followed Stephanie’s midnight blue eyes to the small wooden chest she’d been fiddling with when he arrived. When he was elected to the post of president, Stephanie confessed to Thinker exactly where she’d come from and all her adventures. She also told him that she’d hidden a relic in the palace’s catacombs in an area, which remained undisturbed until now. Thinker had never seen the relic up close but knew exactly what was in the chest. Stephanie said the day would come when their enemies in the north would seek this treasured artifact. That day had come.
“Send for your daughter,” commanded Stephanie LaFleur.
*****
Years ago, Thinker had engaged in a tryst with a mermaid. That one night led to the birth of Lora.
As the illegitimate daughter of the republic’s second president, sixteen-year-old Lora was not welcome to engage in the benefits extended to her half brothers. They, of course, we’re proud, noble, and brave offspring of the President and his First Lady. She was just an unfortunate souvenir from a night Thinker made it clear he’d rather forget. A dreadful accident never meant to breathe or have a beating heart.
Merfolk were the unique people in the world. No two of them were the same. Some grew squid tentacles for hair or sported the colorful scales of a tropical fish. The typical merperson had two legs ending in a set of webbed feet. They could survive on land provided they remained soaking wet, but Lora was different.
Lora had green hair that hung over her large eyes like a bed of seaweed. A set of fins flexed themselves on the sides of her diamond-shaped head. She didn’t have much of a nose. Gills kissed the air along her neck. Most of her athletic, toned body was a quiet aquamarine.
Half mermaids like Lora were allowed to walk on land much longer than the typical merperson. Her family in the rolling sea was allowed to walk above the water as long as they stayed soaking wet, Lora could remain on dry land for a full day before having to soak her body again. Likewise, she could only survive underwater for the same period of time before having to surface. This trait was more like a curse than a gift. Lora couldn’t find a home in the sea or on land. She was a mermaid who didn’t belong anywhere.
Her mother helped Lora build a home on the beach of her own where the teenager could stay on alternating days and be safe from the outside world. So, once a day, Lora traveled between the land and sea. She destined to straddle two worlds forever and never truly find her home.
The merfolk empire of Niflhel, where Lora’s mother was from, built most of their structures out of stone and coral. Floors and stairs didn’t exist, so you could be at the top of the tallest tower underwater and see clear down to the bottom. All the furniture had to be installed directly into the algae-covered walls. Roofs were only employed as a form of privacy.
The bulk of Lora’s chores while underwater involved scraping off barnacles, which grew all over the small hut she shared with her mother. The two of them also worked as a maid in the Niflhel palace, with the mother and daughter team scrubbing every inch of the glorious structure.
“Don’t forget to get the bottom of Princess Perrivan’s dresser,” reminded Lora’s mother. “You forgot the last time, and she complained.”
“I did my best,” argued Lora.
“Do better,” instructed her mother harshly.
Lora’s webbed hands flew up to her throat and flailed her arms dramatically in the ocean. “Mama, I think I’m drowning.”
“You still have five hours left.”
Lora stopped the act. It had been a lot easier to trick her mother when she was younger. The mermaid matriarch counted every second her daughter could live underwater. Teenage Lora had no choice but to swim off to Princess Perrivan’s room to labor over the spoiled rich mergirl’s quarters.
Sunlight filtered through the waves above her as Lora scraped madly at the royal wardrobe. Crustacean pests scuttled into the dark recesses of the room, snapping their pincers at the poor mermaid’s tender fingers as she clawed at them.
A dark shadow suddenly appeared over her, blocking out the sun.
Lora arched her eyes up to the surface to see only the bottom of the boat. She had no reason to think so, but somehow she knew that boat was for her.
Hours later, she was being introduced to Fantasia’s two Presidents as “Lady Lora Thinker!”
Lora had done her best to quickly slip into a loose-fitting dress she picked up from a boutique in the marketplace on her way to the palace. The straps slid down her narrow shoulders as she awkwardly stumbled into the study over her big webbed feet in front of the two most powerful people in the Republic.
Stephanie LaFleur had been around to visit with Lora a great many times. She was almost like a second mother to the mermaid and even helped raise Lora. Stephanie always exuded a warmth that made Lora feel loved. The second Lora stepped into the study, Stephanie rose to pull her into a welcoming embrace.
Contrasted against her kind demeanor was the father Lora actually shared blood with. Ephias Thinker sat in his chair with a seatback so high it reached up to the ceiling. His skeletal hands clung to the armrests like he was afraid the chair might buck him off. Lora had only met him a few times in person, and each event was more horrible and embarrassing than the last. Never once had Ephias treated her like she was anything other than some common urchin. To be reminded that his blood ran through her veins always came off as an insult.
Also present in the room were Lora’s three half-brothers. At twenty, Runcas was the eldest. He towered over everyone else in the room. His hands clutched the hilt of his sword like he intended to strangle it to death. If looks could kill, the bitter glare Lora got from him would have sucked her soul out on the spot. Her other two half brothers were Eritos and Ivos. One was five, and the other was just learning to walk.
“Okay, gang, let’s get this show on the road,” said Stephanie brightly, reading the tension room like she had a blindfold over her eyes. “Everybody knows everybody, right? I don’t need to do any introductions? Should we start with a quick ice breaker activity?”
Baby Ivos giggled from the floor.
“Well, I’m glad someone likes my jokes,” quipped Stephanie. “How have you been, Lora? Is your mother holding up?”
“Get on with it,” growled Thinker.
“I’m getting there,” charged Stephanie. “You can’t expect the poor girl just walk right in here and have us say ‘Hey, you’re going on a quest. Take this fucking chest. See ya!’ I don’t want to be rude.”
Lora picked up on Stephanie’s words. “I’m being sent on a quest?”
“I was trying to ramp up to that, but I guess we’ll start now.” Stephanie took the chest sitting at her feet and set it on the table in front of Lora. “Last night, a troop of Puntian soldiers snuck into the Fantasian catacombs to steal this.”
“What’s so special about a chest?” asked Lora.
Runcas scoffed derisively in the corner.
Stephanie pretended not to notice. “It’s what’s inside the chest that’s so important.”
“Treasure?” asked Lora.
“Something infinitely more powerful than coins or jewelry.” Stephanie set her hand on the chest, for a brief moment, she became overwhelmed with emotion that a tear slipped out. “I can’t tell you what it is. Just know that you have to guard it with your life.”
Lora’s webbed hands were on the chest before she knew what was happening. She looked up to Stephanie, seeking permission to lift it.
“Go ahead,” Stephanie said with a nod. “It’s not heavy.”
She was right. The small chest itself was about her forearm’s size and lightweight enough that it was easily portable. Lora could hear the artifact inside rattling around and thumping against wooden walls.
“Best not to open the chest at all and let it be,” suggested Stephanie. “As I said, last night Puntian soldiers came to Fantasia looking for this artifact. Now that they know where it is, we can’t allow it to be captured and fall into the wrong hands. The artifact has to be moved immediately. I’m taking my son with me on a decoy mission to take some of the heat off you because the enemy expects us to have it. My husband and his sister have already left on a separate decoy mission of their own. What they won’t expect is for someone unconnected to the Sentinels to be the one with the real thing.”
The previous lightweight chest started to feel heavier in Lora’s hands as she held it. “Where am I supposed to go?”
Stephanie smiled broadly as she showed Lora a world map of Fabella spanning the study wall’s length. Lora had never seen a complete map of Fabella before. Her eyes widened with awestruck admiration as she marveled at the jagged landmasses of continents spanning across the wall and the perfect blue of the vast open sea.
“You will take a ship to Adele. It is an island located here in the Holcat Ocean. Looks sort of like a burning torch” directed Stephanie. “It will be a perilous journey. I can’t promise you that it will be easy. You will encounter fierce opposition. Above all, you cannot let the artifact fall into enemy hands. Get to Adele and bury it in the ground as deep as you can dig. When the mission is complete, send word by the fairy. If we do this right, you will find you forever home.”
Lora had heard of Adele island before. “I thought the Titans obliterated Adele.”
“They killed the people there and took a few survivors prisoner, but the island remains,” informed Stephanie. “This is where you have to go.”
Runcas could not remain silent any longer and made his voice known. “Why her? Madam President, I don’t mean to call your judgment into question . . .”
“Yes, you do, but continue,” said Stephanie.
“… You’re out of your mind if you think a little mermaid can accomplish a quest like this.” Runcas stepped forward. “Give me the artifact. I’ve been training for this moment my whole life. I’m not some worthless maid. I’m a soldier. Lora doesn’t have the skills to defend herself against attack. She’s going to lose, and this whole operation will be a failure.”
“Well, that’s good that you place so much faith in your skill because you’re the one who is going to protect her,” charged Stephanie.
“What?!” both siblings protested in unison.
“Did I stutter?” asked Stephanie.
Lora didn’t like this one bit. “He’s a stinky goblin.”
“She’s a mermaid!” protested Runcas.
“She’s your sister,” corrected Stephanie. “Anyway, her having the chest is simple to battle tactics 101. If you’re ever attacked on the open sea, Lora will be able to take the artifact into the watery depths away from any attack launched from the surface.”
“To leave me alone to get stuffed with arrows like a pin cushion?” said an offended Runcus.
“Well, you’re the one being a massive tool right now, so sorry if I don’t have a lot of sympathy for you, dude,” quipped Stephanie.
Runcas turned to President Thinker, who, true to his name, labored deep in silent thought throughout the proceeding. “Aren’t you going to say something?”
“President LaFleur’s instructions are clear,” announced Ephias from his chair. “Lora must undertake this quest, and you will be the one to offer her protection. My decree is final.”
“Happy trails,” concluded Stephanie with a smile.
Adele had been the subject of many stories of early Fabella. If the legends were true, it was the cradle of life. The very island from which all life on Fabella originated. Lora, along with everyone else, choked this up to just an old myth and nothing more.
The one part she believed was that the island had once been the site of a great catastrophe years ago, brought on by the invasion of the titans onto Fabellan soil. These were the very same titans who ruled over Punt’s rival empire and — if Stephanie was as correct as usual — the place from which more enemies seeking the artifact would spring.
There wasn’t a moment to lose. Lora was only given enough time to pack her belongings, say a quick goodbye to her mother, and set off for a journey across the open sea with a brother she barely knew.
Stephanie produced a sailboat strong enough to brave the waters of the Holcat Ocean amazingly fast. So fast in fact that Lora suspected the former president of Fantasia must have had foreknowledge about this event. Stephanie was the most skilled witch in all of Fantasia. It stood to reason that she knew how to perform a bit of fortune-telling.
Lora decided this boded well for their journey. Stephanie would not have sent the two siblings off on a journey she knew would fail. Or would she?
Stephanie LaFleur had always been somewhat of an enigma for Lora. It always seemed like she knew a lot more than she ever said about the world. Travelers from other places in the world often remarked how Fantasia was a technological utopia far ahead of its time. Many of the unique innovations Stephanie LaFleur instituted weren’t known or practiced by the rest of the world. These included things like democracy, sports, theater, art, construction, and the military’s battle tactics. No one could truly say they understood Stephanie LaFleur, least of all Lora.
Runcas would be steering the sailboat while Lora was just supposed to stay out of the way. She was more than happy to do that. She had never been on a sailboat before because she could swim underwater for long stretches of time.
To help Lora carry the chest, Stephanie gave her a tan pack with straps fitted over the shoulders. She called it a backpack. This backpack was enchanted with magic so that it could shrink almost anything to fit inside. Food could not be reduced in size. Neither could animals or people.
“This pack served me well during my travels,” said Stephanie. “I can only hope it will do the same for you.”
“This is amazing,” exclaimed Lora. “Why aren’t there more of these backpacks?”
“There will be someday.” Stephanie opened her mouth like she was about to say something else but decided at the last minute to say, “It’s yours now.”
Lora slid the chest inside the back, marveling at the way it shrank down to just ¾ its original size.
“It’s time for us to take off,” announced Runcas.
Lora wanted more time to speak with Stephanie and get greater insight into the quest. Time was not on their side. They had to part, and Lora would be forced to take on the arduous journey to Adele before her without the safety of having Stephanie by her side.
“You don’t have to be afraid,” Stephanie said to Lora as they parted from a long hug. “Do your best. That’s all the Lord, or I can ask of you. Godspeed.”
Lora boarded the sailboat.
Runcas took the boat away from the dock and out into the open sea. Lora watched the only home she’d ever known shrink away behind her as they drifted further out to the ocean. Stephanie LaFleur stood alone watching from the beach, still as a statue. Before long, it was just the two of them with no land in sight and certain danger on the horizon.
They glided along the rolling sea alone, just a brother and sister on the open ocean. Runcas methodically steered the boat over the waves. Tactically rising and crashing forward, spraying salty ocean water everywhere. When his eyes weren’t on the open sea in front of him, Runcas was focused on the sky, looking out for any sign of approaching enemy fighters on air-chariots or dragons.
Lora was quite at home with the constant bobbing and spray of the sea in her face. Runcas, on the other hand, started to look green as he operated the steering wheel of the sailboat.
Stephanie had given Runcas a map that magically pinpointed their position as an inky black dot in empty parchment, heading to a small island shaped like a burning torch. She said the dot was supposed to move with them and guide them to the island. As Lora looked at it, though, it didn’t appear like the dot was moving at all. She couldn’t tell if this was a sign of how slow they were going or if the map was somehow broken.
Lora opened up the tan backpack and felt around for the chest inside to make sure it was still there.
The sea may have looked quiet, but it was a monster—a colossal obstacle steeped in mystery. An enigma nobody, even the merpeople who lived in it, really knew what kind of dangers the sea held. It was a living, ever-changing tapestry. Lonely, unknown, terrifying.
The sky in Fabella was always a bright blue dotted with twinkling stars during the day. Designs called “constellations” could be seen across the great blue void, spanning one end of the horizon to the other. Navigators in the sky and sea often used the stars to guide their way. Legend had it that these stars were the souls of departed loved ones guiding their ancestors and looking down upon them from the heavens. Lora wasn’t quite sure if this was true, but it was a good sentiment.
In contrast, nights in Fabella were always blanketed by shimmering aurora. These brilliant, multicolored lights crossed over the field of black like waves. They offered little in the way of navigation but sure were pretty to look at. A pale blue was the most common color to be seen at night. The yearly appearance of gold was always caused for delight and celebration. Fantasias even had a holiday in honor of gold aurora in the night sky called “Golden Twilight.” Everyone would gather together to play games and watch for the annual display of gilded lights. It was Lora’s favorite time of year.
Sadly, she would miss Fantasia’s festivities because Golden Twilight would fall while she and Runcas were on their journey. Lora would have to miss the games, theatre performances, and customary dances. The thing she’d miss most would be watching all the couples get married because Golden Twilight was the date of the most impromptu wedding ceremonies in Fabella.
For the next few days, Lora slid back and forth out of the water, swimming with the sailboat as it cut a path across the vast rolling sea. While on the boat, she’d dangle her feet over the side of the boat. Runcas wouldn’t let her help him sail. So she was left to her own devices most of the time.
“You want me to take over?” offered Lora.
“I’m fine,” shot back Runcas venomously.
Lora was just making an honest offer to help. He didn’t have to bite her head off. “What did I ever do to you?”
“This was my mission to undertake alone. My time to be the hero. My time to shine. You stole it away right from under me,” accused Runcas. “When people talk about this mission and tell their kids stories at night, I’m always going to be the sidekick. An afterthought that is quickly cast aside and forgotten while everyone remembers Lady Lora. Who am I going to be after this is done? Not a noble victor, not a hero, not a challenger, not a legend, not anyone. Whenever I was scared or alone, I used to lay in bed telling myself it would be okay because I was destined to do something great in the future. History would remember me as being someone more than a President’s son. Now, what will become of me?”
“You can be anyone you want to be,” said Lora. “Don’t let the successes father has had in life dictate how you compare yourself to him. You don’t have to be anyone special. Just be you. Trying to be anything more will drive you to ruin.”
Runcas squinted at her for a moment. “That’s actually kind of helpful.”
“I’m a wealth of good advice because I’m smarter than you,” said Lora bluntly.
“No, you’re not. I’m the oldest, so I’m the smartest,” argued Runcas.
“Age has nothing to do with intelligence,” broke in Lora. “Look at Papa. He’s older than both of us, and we know he’s dumb as a rock.”
Runcas laughed heartily, harder than she’d ever heard him before. “You’re right about that.”
For the first time in their lives, they were really getting along like a normal brother and sister. The way they could have if they weren’t always forced apart by their parents. It was nice. Lora felt a kinship with Runcas she’d never experienced with another person before. The same blood ran through their veins. They were family in the truest meaning of the word, and it felt great to find that connection after so many years of being separated.
After a little while of bobbing around on the ocean, Runcas turned to Lora. “How much do you know about sailing?”
“Not a lot,” admitted Lora.
“Well, it’s pretty easy once you get the hang of it,” Runcas called her over to the wheel. “Here, take the wheel. It’s okay if we crash; you’re a mermaid, you’ll be fine. Me? I’ll just drown.”
“Har, har,” said Lora to his little joke.
Runcas lashed the wheel and turned to Lora. “We call the front of the boat the ‘bow.’ Back, that’s the ‘stern.’ ‘Port,’ is left. ‘Starboard’ is right. Up is ‘Aloft.’ Down is ‘Below.'”
“I shouldn’t have to learn a new language just to sail,” complained Lora.
Runcas glared at her. “I’m trying to help you. Can you just be quiet and do what I say? Why is that so hard?”
“Sorry, continue,” permitted Lora.
He continued to walk her through how to set the mast to catch the wind and steer the boat. Lora struggled at first, but Runcas proved to be a patient teacher. He let her make a few mistakes on her own before correcting her. He remained by her until it was clear she was comfortable.
“There you go,” coached Runcas. “You’re a natural.”
Once he was finished, Runcas sat down on the deck for a much-needed break.
Lora found she enjoyed sailing. Runcas was right. There was a bit of a learning curve, but she felt safe having him beside her. He watched her for a few hours before deciding she was fine on her own and retiring below deck to nap.
For a while, it was just Lora adrift along with the current. The sun sucked heatwaves off the surface of the ocean. Lora tied a strip of linen around her head to protect against being sunburned. She drained the water from her canteen in one long pull. One webbed hand had to be on the wheel while another was raised to shield her eyes from the sunlight bearing down upon her. It made her feel like she was roasting over the fire, being boiled alive for a stew.
Still, the sailboat surged forward. Lora could now clearly see the black dot gradually moving across the map’s parchment displayed in front of her. It wasn’t broken. She was still on course for Adele. Not too far north or south, right on point.
Runcas emerged from below deck hours later as night was beginning to fall. He checked their heading to see that Lora had kept them on course just fine. “How long was I out?”
“A few hours,” responded Lora.
“I’ll relieve you,” volunteered Runcas.
Lora switched with him. They traveled further on their course before she asked him a question that had always gnawed at her. “How much do you know about my birth?”
Runcas paused for a while to think. “Not much, really. Papa has always been somewhat of a philanderer. I didn’t even know you existed until you were four. I think my mother always knew. They’ve always had a loveless marriage. She stays with him out of a need to maintain her social status.”
“She probably wouldn’t want some mermaid laying claim to her fortune,” asserted Lora.
“No, probably not,” said Runcas.
Lora thought back to her childhood. “I think my mother loved our father. I don’t think it was a one night stand. I think it was a relationship. For whatever reason, they couldn’t see a life together.”
“You might be right about that,” said Runcas. “Sometimes I catch father gazing out into the sea, just lost in thought. Maybe he always thinks about your mother. It’s sad. I’m not condoning what he’s done by all means, but it has to be a tough position to be in. You, least of all, should not have had to pay for his indiscretion.”
“I wouldn’t do well as a lady of the court,” said Lora. “Can you imagine me tripping over my webbed feet at dances? I’d rather pave my own way in life and not have everything decided for me.”
“It’s not easy,” acknowledged Runcas. “I’m not allowed to marry for love. I have to marry for power. Father and mother keep bringing me these princesses from different kingdoms. All they want is to increase their fortune and power. I’m not their child. I’m a tool.”
“Is there someone you’d want to marry if you could?” asked Lora.
Runcas hesitated for a moment before saying one name. “Ionosus.”
Ionosus was a warrior in the Republic Air-force. Lora was prepared for her brother to say the name of a girl, not some boy. She couldn’t mask her surprise.
“What?” shot Runcas at her.
“I didn’t say anything,” said Lora.
Runcas returned to the wheel. “Don’t breathe a word of this to anyone.”
“I won’t,” promised Lora.
Runcas’ old stone-cold demeanor returned as his invisible shields were once again deployed against his sister. He kept shooting her wary glances out of the corner of his eye like he was afraid Lora might whisper his secret to the asrai water faires bounding against the boat, and it would somehow reach their father.
Lora didn’t like the silence and tried to think of another subject to break the tension. The weight of the pack on her shoulders reminded her of the mysterious relic hidden inside. “What do you think it is?”
Runcas instantly knew what she was talking about. “President LaFleur said that it wasn’t treasured. It could be some type of powerful relic. One that grants unfathomable power.”
“Maybe it changes you. Transforms you somehow,” guessed Lora.
“Why do you say that?” wondered Runcas.
Lora dangled her webbed feet over the side of the boat. “Stephanie said it would help me find me forever home. I’ve been going back between the sea and land my whole life. It’s tough for anywhere to truly feel at home when you’re constantly on the move. All I’ve ever really wanted was a permanent home.”
“I had no idea you felt that way.” Runcas looked at Lora like he was seeing her for the first time. “I can’t imagine going through life like that. I used to be jealous of the way you got to lead a normal life.”
“Is anyone’s life normal?” asked Lora.
Runcas took the time to think for a moment. “No. I don’t think there is such a thing as a normal life. We all have our own challenges. Our own demons. To say anyone just drifts through life the same as everybody else doesn’t sound quite right. We’re all just putting on an act for the outside world hoping that we’ll find acceptance.”
“I think we’d all be a lot happier if more people realized that,” said Lora.
“Yeah,” agreed Runcas. “You’re probably right.”
“Whoa, did you just say I was right?” asked Lora.
Runcas realized he’d made a mistake. “Don’t let it go to your head.”
“Too late,” said Lora jovially. “You just admitted I was smarter than you.”
“No, I didn’t,” protested Runcas.
Lora marched around the deck chanting. “I’m smarter than you! I’m smarter than you!”
“Alright, alright, get it out of your system,” grumbled Runcas.
“I’m smarter than you! I’m smarter than you!”
“Wait, do you see that?” Runcas arched his eyes to the sky. “Oh God, they’ve found us. Lora, get down!”
“I’m smarter than you! I’m smarter than you!”
WHOOSH!
A flaming arrow sliced through the air, colliding with the sailboat.
Lora fell silent. They were under attack.
Her attention shot up into the air to see a group of Puntian assassins descending on them from above. The assassins rode on griffins, a mix between an eagle and a lion, otherwise known as one of the most fearsome flying beasts anyone to encounter, and that included dragons.
“Dive!” ordered Runcas amongst the flames eating away at the sailboat. “Dive!”
“I’m not leaving you behind!” shouted Lora at the top of her lungs.
The hot sting of a blade digging into her back made Lora yelp in pain. She looked behind her to be confronted by the dreadful sight of Iapetus, the faun Titan of War. Iapetus’ reputation in Fabella for being a bloodthirsty beast of dread was well-founded. Folks called nicknamed him “The Piercer” because of his fondness for the blade. Sunlight rebounded off the obsidian Puntian armor hugging his broad chest and legs. Rings dangled off the horns, which curved aggressively off his head. He hovered over the brother and sister on giffinback with Lora’s on the blade along with the tattered tan backpack he’d cut off her shoulders.
“Kill them,” commanded Iapetus as passively as if he were calling for someone to smash an insect.
The trio of assassins in his company soared forward.
One of the assassins, griffins, yelped in pain. A long sinuous tentacle erupted out of the sea and seized his ankle and dragged beast and rider down into the ocean deep.
A bulge of water swelled over the boat. A gargantuan sea monster exploded from the surface, too massive to been whole. Its slick pink body layered with mucus and eight legs covered with suckers kissing the air. The monstrous body rose, up, up, dwarfing everyone under it. It was a krakan.
Runcas shot an arrow at the leviathan’s head.
“The pack!” Runcas called from the remains of the shattered boat. “Recover the pack!”
Lora fell into a rapid descent directly above Iapetus. She only had a second reach out with her webbed fingers and grabbed the pack off the griffin.
“Oh no, you don’t missy!” shouted Iapetus as he seized the other end of the pack.
Lora’s descent was enough to pull Iapetus from his flying steed. They both crashed into sea strewn with flaming debris from the ship and the krakan’s colossal tentacles blindly swiping at anything that moved.
The cloud of dark red blood mixing with water was so thick she couldn’t see. For a split second, she wondered where this blood could be coming from. The agony of saltwater seeping into the cut Iapetus gave her across the back, answered that question in a hurry.
Iapetus tried tugging the pack away from Lora’s slimy fingers.
She maintained her grip. Lora realized her best chance at getting him to let go was to drag him down into the water. Ignoring the pain of water against the open wound across her back, Lora called upon all her strength to tug Iapetus down into the water.
The faun struggled against the current, flailing his arms and legs as he tried to tear the pack from the young mermaid.
Lora’s plan worked like a charm. Before long, Iapetus, requiring oxygen to breathe and valuing his life more than whatever was in the pack, relinquished his hold and swam back up to the surface.
The krakan continued to smash away at the boat reducing it to kindling.
Lora remained hidden under the watery depths, watching as Iapetus was picked up by one of his assassins and taken away on the back of a griffin.
She scanned the surface of the rolling waves for any sign of Runcas. Finally, Lora spotted his limp body floating on a mast. She swam up to her brother. The joy she felt at finding a weak pulse on his neck was a brief bright spot in a situation plagued by urgency.
The krakan didn’t show any signs of letting up on the boat.
Lora found a piece of wooden debris large enough only to hold Runcas’ thick form afloat. Setting his limp body on the debris, she dragged it across the rolling oceans. Clawing at the water with one hand and gripping the debris with the other.
The strain this put on her, especially with the gaping wound across her back, was unbearable, but she kept at it. Blood no longer drained continuously out her back after a while. She didn’t know what this meant but prayed it was a good thing. It was a remarkable stroke of luck that she didn’t feel woozy from blood loss as she continued to surge forward with the current. Without the map to guide her, Lora had to keep paddling in the direction she thought Adele was located.
Arrows zoomed past her as the Puntian assassins took shots on her and Runcas from above. Iapetus sat astride his griffin, proudly smirking ear to ear and calling on his forces to continue fire.
Heavy bright yellow fog rolled in over Lora and her brother. It was so dense; she couldn’t see the stars in the bright blue sky—just a massive blanket of strange yellow fog. The fog hovered over the surface of the rolling waves thick dark cloud.
The arrows stopped splashing down on the siblings.
“Where are they?” called out Iapetus. “Find them!”
Lora realized he couldn’t see her through the dense fog, and she continued swimming forward. All Lora could see was a vast stretch of the ocean against the thick cloud of fog. It filled every part of her vision, no matter where she looked. Endless, massive, glittering, and incredible.
It felt like she swam against the punishing waves for hours before Runcas stirred on the floating debris. “What happened?”
Lora told him all about the fight she had with Iapetus over the pack and her journey thus far.
Runcas listened to her without interrupting. When she was finally finished, he said, “You mentioned that you’d been struck across the back by Iapetus’ sword.”
“Yes,” confirmed Lora.
“I don’t see a wound,” revealed Runcas.
Lora stopped swimming with a start. She hadn’t felt the sting of the gash across her back for some time, but she assumed it was still there. It sounds like that didn’t just normally disappear. Because this was located on her back, she was unable to know it had been sealed.
“There’s no mark,” repeated Runcas.
“How is that possible?” wondered Lora.
Runcas looked up at the heavy yellow fog around them. This, coupled with the evidence that Lora’s wound had somehow sealed itself, leaving one conclusion. “This is magic.”
Lora didn’t know much about magic, but she believed him. “Who could be casting this around us? I thought we were alone.”
Runcas scanned the blanket of yellow around them. “I don’t think we’re alone.”
There was no sign that anyone else, witch or wizard, existed around them. Lora detected no sound of someone moving through the water. The most she could hear was a barely audible hum. She had no choice but to continue swimming, hoping the sibling’s invisible guardian angel would continue to watch over them.
Nighttime was the worst. Lora struggled to fight against the bitter chill of the water as intense drowsiness overtook her. Her throat burned with thirst. It was ironic that she was surrounded by dark water, yet she felt trapped in a desert. The fog blocked out the light from the aurora, so Lora blindly pulled herself through near pitch blackness all night.
All night that is, until the line of free-floating yellow balls of light appeared on the surface. Lora drew closer to these balls out of curiosity. Each time she approached one, it would vanish and be replaced by a new flickering ball of daffodil yellow light the size of her fist.
The sun began to rise; the fog dissipated slowly, revealing the unmistakable shape of the land in the distance. It had to be Adele. As they swam closer, she could see palm trees and a white stretch of sandy beach.
Lora and Runcas wandered around the beach after they made landfall. There was no sign of magic yellow light around them. Lora was so exhausted she flopped on the white sandy beach and lay there for a moment like a dead fish.
It was hard to know where to start. The footing was treacherous on the narrow strip of greasy stones layered with green algae. The wash of color presented by all the flowers in full bloom around every corner was a feast on the eyes.
Lora wasn’t sure what she expected to find on this island. She had thought that someone trustworthy would be there to meet them and direct the two of them on what to do with the chest, but there didn’t appear to be any people on the island at all.
“Our mission was to get to the island,” Runcas shot Lora a glance out of the corner of his eye. “Now what?”
“My thoughts exactly,” echoed Lora.
“Let’s look around, ” suggested Runcas. “There has to be something somewhere that can help us.”
So they set out, aimlessly exploring the island and hoping against hope to find help.
A short journey north, Lora spied a large hill that rose out of the wild jungle. Upon the hill rose many mighty mushrooms and flowers, taller than all the others. Lora and Runcas made their goal to get to the top of this hill from where they could get a better glimpse at the island’s layout.
When they finally made it, Lora was struck by the incredible beauty of the place they had the good fortune to find. It was impossible not to feel a little weak while gazing with wonderment at the tropical vista before them. She could see tremendous flowers tall as trees and colossal looming cliffs.
“Look!” Runcas’ arm shot out from his side. “There are people down there.”
Lora found his outstretched finger to see indeed a group of merfolk bobbing around on the shallow shoreline of the beach.
The left the hill to speed down to the beach. When the merfolk saw the siblings coming, the group of seven amphibious tribe members couldn’t be more terrified. They started screeching in horror at the siblings in a foreign dialect—a few dove into the water out of fear.
“Wait!” called Lora.
To communicate with them, she resorted to using the merfolk language of Subbish. This was a series of clicks and fin movements only a merperson was capable of performing. It was a unique cultural tradition passed down through the generations. She hoped the merfolk of Adele would recognize it.
Fortunately, this was the case. A merman tribal warrior with slicked-back wriggling squid tentacles for hair took notice of Lora’s use of Subbish and stopped communicating with her.
Lora engaged in a quick back and forth with the merman who identified himself as Serap of the Policarp tribe. She then, in turn, translated the discussion for Runcas. “He says this land is cursed. They don’t walk on it. Legend has it that an army came here long ago. They took children prisoner and killed the rest.”
“Is there anyone who lives here now?” asked Runcas.
Lora translated Runcas’ question to Serap using Subbish.
Serap shook his head. His fins flexed themselves like a fan as he formed his reply.
“He does not know of anybody.” Lora translated for Runcas.
Runcas tried again. “Is there any safe place we can stash the chest?”
The cycle began again, and Lora came back with the response. “Nowhere in Adele is safe.”
“Let’s bury it,” suggested Runcas. “If we’re caught with the relic here on land by Iapetus and his assassins, they’ll kill us. If we can separate ourselves from the relic, we may be able to survive. They’ll have to keep us alive if they hope to find it.”
Lora agreed and let Serap dive back down to his tribe beneath the water’s turquoise surface. They found a unique tree struck by lightning, causing its bark to be charred and contort into a twisted form. Without any tools, she had to get down and dig with her webbed hands into the foot of this tree. Runcas joined her. Their hands both clawed at the rich soil, heaving entire armfuls of dirt to make a hole.
A few moments into the task, Lora suddenly doubled over in stabbing pain as agony tore into her back. It felt like she’d been freshly struck with a sword. She looked around through teary watery eyes, wondering if Iapetus had found them but didn’t see anybody.
Runcas rushed over to her with alert. “It’s deep. Hold on; I need to dress the wound.”
“What’s going on?” cried Lora in horror. “I thought the wound had healed itself.”
“Not anymore.” The surprise on Runcas’ face was palpable. “I wonder if — No, just hang on.”
Lora felt the crippling pain as Runcas scrambled to whip up an ointment using a set of berries and natural leaves he found around the site.
“They taught us how to make a healing ointment in military training,” he explained. “This is going to hurt, but if we leave it on, it should prevent the wound from getting infected.”
“It hurts so much!” cried Lora.
“I know, I know. Just hang in there. I’ve got you, Lora, do you hear me? I’ve got you.”
Those were the last words Lora heard before the crippling pain was too much, and she fell unconscious.
*****
Lora awoke in the middle of the night to find Runcas seated by the fire. The pain of the wound across her back had mostly subsided. Replaced by the cool moistness of heavy layers of ointment across her blubbery back. The feeling of wet sand under her chest and water rushing over her with each crashing wave into the shore told her she was on a beach.
Runcas noticed she was awake. “How are you feeling?”
“I’m fine,” responded Lora. “Thank you.”
Runcas stared at the fire, lost in thought. “I finished burying the relic. It’s safe.”
“There’s something you’re not telling me.” Lora gazed up at her older brother, who seemed to be lost in a trance.
Runcas swallowed hard. “I was hurt on the boat too. I remember being on the edge of death, then relief washing over me. I didn’t tell you earlier because I thought I’d been magically healed like you. Maybe we both were. I guess the magic used to heal us isn’t permanent. If your wound came back, then that means mine will too.”
“What happened to you?” Lora couldn’t hide the dread in her voice.
Tears slid down Runcas’ cheeks. Before he could answer, the hideous tall form of a faun appeared in the firelight.
“Very foolish of you to start that fire, boy.” Iapetus sneered from the darkness as the two assassins in his company loaded their crossbows right at the siblings. “We might never have found you otherwise. Now, where is the artifact?”
“We’re never going to tell you!” shouted Runcas.
Lora was dragged to her feet and thrown beside Runcas like a piece of trash by the two soldiers as Iapetus casually seated himself by the fire. The two Puntian soldiers bound the sibling’s wrists behind them with rope. Then sat down by the fire to receive more orders.
Iapetus stooped down to the fire and light a torch. The faun then thundered into the darkness of the jungle with his torch bobbing the entire way.
They lay on the sand for what felt like hours in total silence. Little crustaceans and insects made their way out of the sand and began crawling all over their bodies. Lora writhed around in agony as thousands of little feet touched the tender wound on her back. She could feel them burrowing into her flesh and pinching her insides. It was the worst pain she’d ever felt.
Iapetus’ voice reached Lora’s ears. “I tracked their prints back ways into the jungle. There was a site with freshly upturned soil.”
A pang of terror seized Lora’s heart.
Just as she suspected, the dirty pack fell right in front of her eyes.
Lora and Runcas lay flat on the ground, overcome with terror. The rope binding her wrists behind her rubbed against her fragile skin as Lora fought to free herself.
Iapetus turned a blind eye toward her as he dipped a hand into the pack and pulled out the chest. After trying to tear the lock off with his own brute strength, he resorted to tearing off the helmet over his head and hammering it against the chest. It took several good whacks, but the force of bronze against metal eventually yielded success.
The lock fell to the sand with a disappointing thud.
Iapetus greedily flipped open the chest lid. “Now, let’s see what Mistress Tefnut wants so badly.”
Lora and Runcas both raised their heads from the sand. They, too, couldn’t fight their curiosity about what the relic could be.
“What the –” The flabbergasted look on Iapetus’ face was palpable even in dawn’s early light. “– What is this?”
Iapetus pulled out a disk cut in two. At least that’s what it looked like to Lora. The material for said disk appeared to be made out of something harder than stone, a metal that she’d never seen before. Early morning sunlight rebounded off the dusty gray exterior. Whatever this broken disk had been before, it looked more like trash.
Iapetus threw the broken disk aside and spun around to face the siblings. “What did you two do to it?”
“Nothing!” cried Lora.
“Liar!” howled Iapetus. “You broke this relic on purpose; admit it!”
Lora didn’t know how the relic got broken. Maybe it had happened in the attack. She’d never been inside the chest. Perhaps Runcas broke it when he was burying the pack. She turned to Runcas, hoping for some nonverbal confirmation this was the case, only to be confronted by a dreadful sight.
Burns spread all over Runcas’ skin. His right wrist eroded into a charred black limb. Runcas groaned in agony as one of his eyes fell out of its socket.
Lora’s mind flashed back to what he’d said about his injuries before Iapetus captured them. The serious injuries he’d sustained in the attack on the boat were finally making their horrifying return as the magic keeping him whole lost its effectiveness.
Runcas’s right wrist had eroded into a blackened stump so much that he was able to snap his hand clean off, freeing himself from his restraints. He then reached up with his gradually blackening left hand to rip the sword away from a nearby soldier’s scabbard. The blade of the stolen sword flew through the air, cutting down one soldier but, more importantly, also slicing off the rope, binding Lora’s hands together.
Lora took a cue from her brother and quickly reached up to tug a dagger away from the last remaining Puntian soldier and slicing open his throat.
Runcas rushed forward with a cry. He swung his sword at Iapetus, who blocked the blow with his own sword.
Lora picked up a bow from one of the fallen soldiers and loaded it up with an arrow. She aimed and let the arrow fly.
Runcas moved his head and just the right second, leaving the arrow enough of a gap to fly through the air tear across Iapetus’ neck.
Iapetus screamed in pain as the blood drained out of his neck. He backed away from the fight. A griffin landed behind him. Iapetus leaped atop the flying animal’s back before Lora could fire off another arrow. She could only watch as he fled into the sky and out of sight.
Runcas crumpled to the ground.
Lora rushed to his side.
Runcas looked up at her with his one remaining good eye. He’d been burned beyond all recognition. He couldn’t even speak.
Lora sobbed over him. “It’s okay. You were a hero today. I’ll make sure you’re remembered.”
Runcas looked up to the sky. His eye slowly closed, never to open again.
Lora picked up the broken disk from the beach. She still couldn’t make heads or tails about what was happening. Stephanie said she was supposed to find her forever home here on this island, but it didn’t feel like home. It felt like a nightmare.
POP!
A high popping sound drew Lora’s attention behind her. She spun around to find the very last person she expected to see.
Right before she was a girl. She had to be in her late teens, maybe early twenties. A full head of curly brown hair fell over her narrow shoulders, layered with black padding. Her head was the only part of her body not covered by strange black armor, completely out of place and out of time. She wore a pair of mismatched boots, and there was dried blood on her cheek. Still, despite the fact she looked like she’d been through hell and back, the girl wore a smile brighter than the sun.
“Hey!” she said brightly. Her midnight blue eyes landed on the broken disk in Lora’s hands. “Looks like you’ve got something for me.”
It was Stephanie LaFleur, but much younger than the legendary heroine and president Lora knew.
“Do you know me?” asked Lora, unsure if the former president had taken some kind of youth potion.
“Can’t say I do,” Stephanie said. “Should we know each other?”
“I don’t understand.” Lora struggled to speak. “You can’t be who I think you are.”
“Depends on who you think I am,” responded Stephanie. “Can I get that disk from you, please? I don’t mean to be totally rude and all, but it’s kind of important.”
“It’s broken.” Lora handed over the two halves of the disk. “I don’t know how it happened. I’m so sorry.”
“Nothing to be sorry about.” Stephanie took the pieces of the disk and slid them into the tan backpack around her narrow shoulders. The same one Lora had been wearing over her own shoulders, but less worn and dusty. “Probably wasn’t anything you did. It’s okay, though. I got a guy who’ll fix it right up. I wish I could stay and chat, but I gotta be a little judicious ‘bout out how often I travel. My mom’s been on me about keeping a schedule. She thinks I’m going to wind up being a 90-year-old junior in high school or whatever.”
“Don’t you have something for me?” asked Lora.
Now it was Stephanie’s turn to be confused. “What, like candy? I got this chocolate bar, but it’s got almonds in it.”
“No, I was supposed to be able to find me forever home,” argued Lora.
“Home is wherever you make it,” said Stephanie. “Nothing in Fabella can just give you a home and erase all your problems. At least none that I know of. If you find something like that, be sure to hit me up.”
Lora reflected on Stephanie’s words for a moment. “Where are you going?”
“More of a when than a where, if you get my drift.”
Stephanie extracted a device from her pack. Lora recognized it as the disk that had been in the chest, but it wasn’t broken. It was whole. A gorgeous round device was harder than a stone with a smaller red circle in the middle.
“Can you take a step back, please?” requested Stephanie. “I’m not supposed to take hitchhikers.”
Lora stumbled backward.
Stephanie leaped up in the air and smashed her fist down on the device.
Lora watched in astonishment as a purple bubble materialized over the teenage Stephanie.
POP!
She was gone just as quickly as she had come. Lora felt around in the space where Stephanie had disappeared. There was no sign of her.
Something the younger Stephanie said stuck with Lora. The home was where she made it. At that moment, she knew she wasn’t going back to Fantasia. This island would be her home from now on, and Runcas’ memory would be interred in the land for all time.