Chapter 39: Chapter 37: Trouble at Sea

“Hello again, Caelan,” Eyrina smiled. Once again we were inside the crumbling cathedral she’d called my sleeping mind into where I obtained the wish magic to turn Rina into a child. This time a table and a pair of chairs had been added, just before the altar with the four undamaged statues. 

“Umm… is there a reason we’re meeting here, and not just talking in my head?” 

“Yes,” Eyrina motioned for me to sit down. “I’ve recently become aware of a few troubling developments. Truthfully I was hoping to wait until your memories returned, but I can’t leave you in the dark any longer.” 

“Okay, what’s going on?” 

“The gods are becoming active again.”

I clenched my hands into fists, “Isn’t that a good thing?  People will rejoice at the return of the gods.” 

“It’s not exactly the same. I believe these gods are similar to me, vestiges of their former selves, who’ve slowly begun to amass their forebearer’s power. Because of this, we have no way of knowing their personalities, or their goals.” 

“What can I do against a god?” 

“There is a great deal you could do, especially since we are contracted to one another. In the past you were simply a hero, there was only so much Eynhilda could give you. Now that you’re my contractor, I can share a far greater amount of my power, limited as it may be.” 

“I mean… that’d be great, if I could remember how to use my skills.” 

“For now, you remember how to use holy magic, and you’ve recently regained your memories of how to utilize firearms yes?” 

“Yes.” 

“Good, utilize them. Holy magic can empower more than people. You can utilize your holy raiment spell to empower a bullet to the point that it’ll hit like an enchanted arrow. That should give you enough fighting potential to protect yourself. Other than that, well, run away. Your survival is more important to me than interrupting the plans of other gods.” 

“To do that I’d need to find a firearm I could use.” 

“If you allow those around you to know you desire one, I’m sure they’ll help you out.” 

“How,” I chewed my lip. “How did you learn about the other gods?” 

“I can feel it. I don’t know how to explain it. I don’t know if I can feel them because they’ve recently become powerful enough for me to notice, or if I can feel them because I’ve become powerful enough to sense them. All I know is that without a doubt, Lusareh, and Amysara, are alive and active.” 

Digging deep into my memories I couldn’t place the two names Eyrina had mentioned. If I’d once known them, Rina hadn’t saw fit to leave me with that knowledge. “Who?” 

“Lusareh is the god of fate, rivers, death, and demons. He is the god responsible for creating creatures like goblins, orcs, and vampires. Despite this he sided with humanity when the fell dragon rose to power. His hero however was killed early on in the war. 

“Amysara on the other hand is the goddess of war, woodlands, and the beastkin peoples.” 

“Did she have a hero too?” 

“No, she aided you when possible, but never elected a hero of her own. Actually… many of the gods refused to create mortal heroes. My predecessor Eynhilda, Lusareh, and Correalyse were the only gods to grant the hero’s mark to mortals. Though I’m not sure if you were aware of this at all, even before losing your memories. The other heroes were relatively unknown, and failed to aid humanity as much as you did.” 

“What was Correalyse the god of?” 

Eyrina smiled wryly. “Speech, writing, and patience. I guess you could say he was the god of librarians.” 

“A heroic librarian is hard to envision.” 

“Rina would’ve fit the bill, had she not turned on you. Anyway, my only concern is that you’re aware of these gods, as they may seek you out. Eynhilda’s wish magic has long been something Lusareh despised, and you’ve made use of it on several occasions. As for Amysara… honestly my only fear at this point is that she may try to steal you from me. Fight if you have to, run if you can. Understood?” 

“Understood.” 

“Good girl. Now then… there is one other thing I need to mention, and then I need to sleep. Keeping you here is exceptionally draining at the moment.” 

“What is it?” 

“There is a disturbing amount of mana following your ship. Make use of the woman with the philosopher’s eye and do everything you can to avoid it. It’s not a god, but it might be fatal if you’re forced into a fight.” 

“A disturbing amount of mana?” 

“That’s all I know. I’m sorry Caelan, but we have to end our little chat here. Stay safe.” 

“Ugh,” Opening my eyes I rolled over and got out of bed. Bobbie’s ship had a small interior cabin, just large enough for the four of us to share somewhat comfortably. There were only two beds, but since someone had to be out on deck at all times, it wasn’t ever an issue. Plus Rina and I were both small enough that we could share a bed without it feeling too cramped. 

Climbing the small ladder from the cabin onto the ship’s deck I found Bobbie sitting with a fishing pole in her hands. We had more than enough preserved foods to eat well during the trip, but fresh fish was certainly preferable to dried meat. 

“Bobbie.” 

“Good morning Caelan dear, how’d you sleep?” 

“I ugh, slept okay. My spirit says there may be something following us, do you think you could use your eye to watch for it?” 

“Something is following us?  I’ll keep an eye out,” Bobbie nodded and removed her eyepatch. 

 

“Thank you Bobbie. Also umm… you wouldn’t happen to have a pistol and some blackpowder on board would you?” 

“Not a pistol, but I do have an old musket below deck. There might be an old powder horn with it, but I don’t know if any of that stuff is still good.” 

“I’ll take a look. Anything is better than nothing.” 

“You didn’t strike me as a firearm user.” 

“I… don’t have a lot of experience with them. Someone close to me gave me a few basic lessons, and I’d like to have a weapon if I need it.” 

“Well, if the musket hasn’t rusted into worthlessness, you’re free to keep it. I have no use for it.” 

“Do you not use it?” 

“No. It was a gift given to me by a fellow sailor. I felt bad discarding a gift so I put it aside till I could find someone able to make use of it.” 

“You’re too kind.” 

“It warms my heart to know you think so,” Bobbie smiled, scanning the waters around us with both eyes. 

Going below deck I found the musket Bobbie mentioned. There was a bit of rust on the outside but it looked usable, not that I knew enough about firearms to be certain. Beside the musket I found a small hollowed out gord with a cork full of blackpowder and a small bag full of metal bullets. 

“What are you doing Caelan?” Rina asked, watching as I counted how many bullets were in the bag.  

“Bobbie said I could have this musket, I’m just counting how many bullets I have.” 

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“Is she going to teach you how to use it?” 

“No,” I smiled ruefully. “Some of my memories have been coming back as dreams. Recently I’ve remembered how to wield a firearm, it was something Myra taught me.” 

Rina’s eyes widened. “Your memories are coming back?” 

“Not all of them. Just a few I believe made a major impact on my previous self.” 

“Still that’s amazing. I’ve never heard of someone regaining their memories through dreams. Is this Eyrina’s doing?” 

“I don’t know. She hasn’t mentioned it. Besides if she could bring all of my memories back through dreams, I doubt she’d have sent us to Kaia.” 

“True.” 

“You seem a bit more enthusiastic about this than I thought you’d be.” 

“I failed,” Rina shrugged. “I’ve said time and time again that I made a mistake brainwashing you. I’m firmly on your side Caelan, I want to see your memories return too. I’ve already paid a substantial price for taking away your ability to fight.” 

“Do you really want my memories to return?  Or just my ability to use my skills to protect you and our allies?” 

“I,” Rina froze, biting her lip. “I still can’t lie to you. I… do mostly regret erasing your ability to fight. More than I regret erasing your other memories. While it’s true you may have forgotten your lover, there are many other things you’ve forgotten that aren’t worth remembering. Your mind was full of pain, Caelan.” 

“I don’t want to lose the good memories, in an attempt to erase the bad ones. I don’t think I’ll be complete until all of them return.” 

Rina nodded, her ears flattening. “I know.” 

“Just so you know, Eyrina spoke to me while I slept. She said something is following us, something big.” 

“Does Aivi and Bobbie know?” 

“I told Bobbie, I haven’t relayed it to Aivi yet.” 

“I’ll do my best to get ready,” Rina clasped her tiny hands into fists. “I won’t let anything happy to you.” 

“We’re going to avoid it, whatever it is, if possible.” 

“It can’t hurt to be prepared for a fight. I’ll relay everything to Aivi.” 

“Thanks.” Smiling at Rina I collected my musket and went back up the ladder, to find Bobbie squinting her eyes at the open water behind us. “Do you see anything.” 

“Nothing dangerous,” Bobbie replied. “There are faint trails of mana in the water. It’s not unusual, many sea creatures produce natural bursts of mana as they go about their lives. I’m just being more skeptical now that I know something might be following us.” 

“Thanks again… for keeping an eye out.” 

“Of course. I trust your spirit wouldn’t say such a thing on a whim.”

Sitting on the edge of the boat I loaded the musket and lit the cord needed to ignite it. Aiming out at the open water behind us I pulled the trigger. With a crackling burst and a cloud of smoke the musket propelled a small bullet into the water. 

“Like a pro,” Bobbie chuckled.

“You think so?” I sat the musket down beside me. “At least we know it still works.” 

“Were you intentionally imbuing the bullet with mana?” 

“No. Eyrina told me I could, but I was just trying to test the musket.” 

“You’re too talented, Caelan. That bullet carried a small seed of your magic into the water. The tendrils of mana I saw following us have scattered.” 

“I really wasn’t trying to do anything like that.” 

Bobbie smiled. “Perhaps your subconscious mind has the ability to act before your consciousness catches up? It’s impressive, even if it’s unintentional.” 

“Caelan trained for years to be a hero,” Rina said from behind us. “Even if she doesn’t remember it, fighting is ingrained into her very being.” 

“It’s our turn to steer the ship,” Aivi added. “You can go sleep now Bobbie.” 

“I think I’ll stay up a bit longer. Caelan’s spirit sensed something at sea, and only my eye will be able to spot it.” 

“We’ll wake you up and have you take a look if we feel anything is unusual. For now, please go rest. We won’t make it to Orvost if you collapse.” 

“Very well. Keep her straight, and do as I taught you Aivi dear. Little Rina, please use your magic to keep the wind in our sails. The fish were being a bit shy today, so you’re stuck with jerky.”  

“Will do.” 

I smiled as Aivi and Rina set about carrying out Bobbie’s instructions, gazing out at the water behind us. We had several days ahead of us before we’d reach land, as much as I needed Bobbie’s eye to keep watch on the water, nobody could stay awake forever. 

Channeling my holy magic into my eyes I attempted to augment my vision to mimic Bobbie’s ability. It was a poor imitation, but with it I could make out faint auras around us. Deciding the augmentation wouldn’t drain my mana too heavily I decided to keep it up, taking Bobbie’s place as lookout while she slept. 

A few hours after the three of us replaced Bobbie, I began to see dark circles in the water, the color of dried blood. Standing up I squinted and magnified my vision, spotting a few humanoid creatures below the water’s surface.

“Hey… Rina.” 

“Yes, Caelan?” 

“What would you call a creature about my size, with fins along it’s arms and spine, that swims in the water?” 

“Er, is there anything else?” 

“Well… there is more than one of them, and they seem to be armed with… spears, maybe?” 

“That sounds like Sahuagin. Caelan, point them out to me, we can’t let them board the boat.” 

“Ugh there are five that way, another seven behind us, and a few on the other side.” 

“Aivi, get below deck now! Caelan, start shooting!”

“You sure they’re hostile?!” 

“I’m certain, now shoot!” 

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