Chương 52: Chapter 50. Last Boat For Arkhos (Start of Book 2)

The waves whispered against the shore, a soft rhythm like someone humming a lullaby. Shhhh... shhhh... shhhh... Something tickled against his leg. Sand, maybe. Warm and soft. The sun pressed against his closed eyelids, turning the darkness red-orange. Five more minutes. A breeze carried the smell of salt, seaweed, and... fish? That wasn't right. His bed didn't usually smell like fish. The tickling sensation moved up his leg. Probably just the blanket getting twisted again. He should really fix that. Later.

Everything could wait until later. Shhhh... shhhh... shhhh... That sound was getting annoying. Who left the window open? Must have been mother - she was always complaining about the room being too hot. But the waves seemed so close, almost like they were right... Something pecked his foot. Adom's eyes cracked open, squinting against the blinding sunlight. A blob of white and gray swam into focus. Then a beak. Then beady black eyes staring directly at him with that particular brand of seagull judgment.

What was a seagull doing in his... This wasn't his room. The realization came slowly, fighting through the fog of sleep. Sand stretched out around him, dotted with shells and bits of driftwood. Waves lapped at the shore barely twenty feet away. The seagull tilted its head, still watching him with that look that somehow managed to combine curiosity with mild disappointment.

"What..." Adom mumbled, his tongue feeling thick in his mouth. Why was he on a beach? When did he... The position of the sun registered somewhere in his drowsy mind. High. Very high. Almost directly overhead, in fact, which meant... His eyes snapped fully open.

"I OVERSLEPT!" The seagull launched itself into the air with an indignant squawk, showering him with sand as he scrambled to his feet. Adom patted the sand around him frantically. Where were they? The glasses had to be somewhere - he distinctly remembered setting them down before falling asleep. His hand brushed something smooth and metallic. The pocket watch. He grabbed it, squinting at the numbers through sleep-blurred eyes: 12: 34. The last boat to Arkhos left at 2.

"No, no, no..." He dug through the sand with increasing desperation. If he lost the glasses here... They weren't just any glasses. The new ones had taken hours to make, specially crafted to house Riddler's Bane. Without them- A glint of sunlight on glass caught his eye. There! Half-buried in sand, the round frames somehow managing to look reproachful. He snatched them up, checking for scratches before sliding them on and the world... was as clear as it was before he put them on.

Eight months since he got the skill [Healing Factor] and Adom's eyesight had progressively gone from technically blind to as sharp as a human's could be. He'd had to take the prescription lenses out of his old frames. At least they made him look scholarly rather than the eccentric flavor a monocle would have given him. People dotted the shoreline in growing numbers - families setting up colorful umbrellas, children splashing in the shallows, vendors already making their rounds with ice cream and cold drinks.

The lunch crowd was arriving. Soon the beach would be packed, as it always was in Kati, where summer was the only season. He should never have fallen asleep here. But last night, watching the stars over his hometown's beach one final time before heading back to Arkhos... it had seemed like such a good idea.

"Adom! Adom!" Small voices called out as he started running, his feet slipping in the loose sand. Three familiar shapes detached themselves from a group of playing children - the Panu twins and little Maya, who lived two streets over from his house.

"Where are you going?" Shavi called out, already running alongside him.

"Late!" Adom managed between breaths.

"Boat - Arkhos - today!"

"Race you!" Maya shouted, her braids bouncing as she picked up speed. A Sunhound joined their impromptu parade, barking excitedly. Old Mr. Hvitserg's dog - what was his name again? Sunny? Sandy?

"Sorry! Excuse me! Coming through!" Adom weaved between beach chairs and umbrellas, the children and dog keeping pace. A Krozball bounced near his feet - he kicked it back to the waiting players without breaking stride. Someone called out his name - probably Mrs. Desai, who always brought too many sandwiches and insisted on feeding every child within sight. No time to stop today, though she'd probably tell his mother later.

"Watch out for the-" Shavi started. Too late. Adom's foot caught the edge of someone's buried sand castle, sending him stumbling forward. He managed to turn the fall into an awkward roll, coming up with sand in his hair and mouth.

"Sorry!" he called back to the wide-eyed children whose creation he'd just destroyed.

"I'll help rebuild it tomorrow!" Then he remembered he wouldn't be here tomorrow. The thought made his chest tight for a moment, but he pushed it aside. No time for nostalgia now. The dog - definitely Sandy, he remembered now - barked encouragingly as they reached the wooden steps leading up from the beach. The twins and Maya were still with him, treating the whole thing like a wonderful game.

"Are you coming back for the festival?" Sita asked, taking the steps two at a time.

"Try to!"

"Promise?" Maya's voice carried that particular tone that only seven-year-olds can manage, somewhere between demand and plea.

"Promise!" Adom called back, already turning toward the street that would take him home.

"Now go back before your parents worry!" Their goodbye chorus followed him as he ran: "Bye Adom! Bring us something from Arkhos! Don't forget to write!" He couldn't help smiling, even as his lungs burned. The watch in his pocket ticked away steadily, counting down the minutes until the boat's departure. At least he had time to pack. He did have time to pack, right? The smile faded. He really should have packed last night. Anyone unfamiliar with Kati might have found themselves doing several double-takes.

In Arkhos, or any of the other major human cities of Sundar, you'd expect to see humans running the shops, humans manning the guard posts, humans haggling in the markets. Humans doing human things in their human ways. But this was Kati. Here, you wouldn't bat an eye at a gnome merchant carrying an impossible stack of brass cookware while arguing prices in three languages simultaneously.

Or raise an eyebrow at a minotaur running a betting house, taking wagers on everything from krozball matches to weather predictions.

"Adom!" The minotaur in question boomed as Adom passed.

"One last match before you go? The odds are better now!"

"Sorry, Koros!" Adom called back without slowing.

"Last boat for school!"

"Oh, was it today? Next time then!" The minotaur's laughter followed him down the street. Two city guards - one human, one halfling - spotted him, their lighter blue uniforms a stark contrast to Arkhos's heavy gear.

"Look who it is - the prince-catcher himself!"

"Late for something again, young hero?"

"The boat!" Adom managed between breaths, not breaking stride.

"Better hurry then," the halfling guard grinned.

"Captain Voss is inspecting today. You know how she is about schedules!" Adom groaned internally. Of course it had to be Captain Voss. The woman who once made a ship wait three hours because a passenger's paperwork had a smudge on it. He darted between a group of people heading to the beach. A halfling fruit seller's cart provided a perfect launching point - he vaulted over it, earning appreciative whistles from nearby children.

"Hey mage!" A burly man called from the fighting pits.

"One more round?"

"Not today, Hamish!"

"Scared I finally figured out your tricks?"

"You had months!" Adom shouted back.

"Maybe learn to dodge first!" Where Arkhos segregated its districts by class and function, Kati mixed everything together like a particularly enthusiastic cook. Noble mansions stood next to humble fishermen's homes. Temples to a dozen different gods shared walls with taverns.

"Good morning, Adom!" called Mr. Viswanathan, an elderly gnome, from his bookshop.

"Or should I say afternoon?"

"Can't talk! Late!"

"Again?" His house appeared ahead - the blue-painted door standing out among the whitewashed walls. He took the steps three at a time, nearly colliding with the door in his haste. Home. Finally. Now he just had to pack everything in... he checked the watch again. Less than an hour. Wonderful. The door swung open with more force than he intended, the familiar scent of home washing over him - Sweet apple, old books, and his mother's favorite black rose tea.

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"You slept on the beach, didn't you?" Maria stood in the kitchen doorway, one hand resting on her slightly swollen belly, the other holding a wooden spoon like a weapon of judgment.

"Morning, Mother! I was just-""About to apologize for making your pregnant mother worry?" She raised an eyebrow.

"I was this close to sending a search party."

"Sorry," Adom managed, properly chastised.

"I'll just run up and pack-""Already done."

"What?"

"Your room. Go look." He took the stairs two at a time, bursting into his room to find everything neatly packed in his travel chest. Books, clothes, equipment - all organized with his mother's way.

"I love you so much!" he called down. Her laughter floated up the stairs.

"Of course you do. Now come down and eat something." Adom checked his watch - 54 minutes until the boat left.

"Mother, I really should-""Sit. Eat. The boat won't leave without the famous prince-catcher of Kati."

"That's not actually a thing," he protested weakly, even as he slid into his usual chair. She was already buttering toast, the kettle whistling right on cue.

"Tell that to Mr. Hvitserg. He's still bragging about how his neighbor's son caught the former crown prince in Arkhos." The familiar choreography of breakfast unfolded - his mother sliding perfectly crispy bacon onto his plate, pouring tea, adding just the right amount of honey. All while rattling off a stream of advice and questions.

"Did you check the hidden compartment I made in your trunk? I put something for your lunch in there. And remember, Arkhos gets cold in-" She cut herself off.

"Stop wolfing it down like that. You'll get hiccups." Adom slowed his eating, hiding a smile behind his teacup. Some things never changed.

"Your father and I will visit in three months," she continued, finally sitting down herself.

"His mission should be done by then, and-" She patted her belly.

"Well, I want you to see me before I'm as big as a house." He still remembered the day they'd told him. Two months ago, over dinner. If the Xerkes incident hadn't forced the academy to close for eight months while Headmaster Merris oversaw the purge of compromised staff - some reaching as high as the administration itself - he might never have had this much time at home.

Might never have seen his father take that extended leave, spending evenings training in the backyard, weekends exploring the coast, nights talking about everything and nothing. And then, one ordinary Tuesday dinner, they'd dropped the news. He'd stared at them blankly for a full minute, his mind struggling to process it. This hadn't happened in his past life. Never even come close. The implications made his head spin - how his return could ripple out to change something so personal, so... wonderful.

When he finally found his voice, he'd asked if they were sure they knew how babies worked. His father had laughed so hard he'd fallen out of his chair, and his mother had thrown a bread roll at both of them.

"You should rest more," Adom said, standing to wash his dishes.

"Ms. Sade will be here any minute to help with the house, and-""I'm pregnant, not invalid."

"And you should sit down while I get my things." He kissed her cheek.

"No accompanying me to the dock either."

"But-""Mother. Please." He gestured at her belly.

"Little brother needs you to take it easy."

"Could be a sister."

"Nah." Adom grinned.

"Definitely a brother. My divination skills are getting better." She swatted at him with a dishcloth.

"Then perhaps you should work on them a bit more. As a healer, I can tell you with certainty - it's a girl." Adom froze mid-bite.

"You... you can tell already?" She nodded, taking another slow sip of tea, clearly enjoying his reaction.

"I'm going to be a big brother..." The words felt strange in his mouth, foreign yet somehow right. A sister. He was going to have a baby sister.

"Can I name her?" His mother's laugh filled the kitchen.

"We'll see about that." The watch in his pocket ticked, and reality crashed back in.

"Oh! The boat!" He jumped up, nearly knocking over his chair.

"I have to-" He paused, turning back to his mother.

"Remember to rest between patients. And no heavy lifting. And make sure to eat properly - not just tea and toast. And-""Adom."

"-keep your feet up when you can. And don't forget the soothing herbs. And-""Adom."

"-I'll write every week. No, twice a week. And if anything happens-""Your boat, son" she reminded him gently. He rushed over, kissing her cheek.

"Goodbye, mother. Take care of yourself."

"I'll be fine." She squeezed his hand.

"Now go, before Captain Voss decides to leave without you." At the door, he turned back one last time. His mother stood in the sunlit kitchen, one hand resting on her belly, smiling that smile that had always meant home. The image burned itself into his memory - something to hold onto during the many days ahead as a Battle Mage apprentice.

"Go," she said softly. He went.

58 minutes later...

"Shit shit shit shit!" The docks loomed ahead, a maze of wooden platforms, warehouses, and the ever-present bureaucracy of maritime travel. Because of course he couldn't just run straight to the boat. No, first came registration, documentation, and the special joy of watching a sloth beastkin methodically stamp each of his seven required forms.

"Sir," Adom tried not to sound desperate as the clerk reached for yet another stamp with glacial precision.

"The boat leaves in-""Process..." the sloth drawled, "must be... followed..." Five agonizing minutes later, he burst out of the registration office, only to collide with someone carrying what seemed like their entire library collection. Books scattered everywhere, and Adom's conscience wouldn't let him just leave them there.

"I'm so sorry, let me just-" He helped gather the fallen volumes, painfully aware of each precious second ticking away. By the time he finally reached the main dock, the boat was already pulling away, a good fifteen feet of clear water between its stern and the wooden planks. People lined the railings, pointing and shouting, while dockworkers shook their heads with varying degrees of sympathy and amusement.

"Wait! No! Hey!" Adom's lungs burned as he sprinted down the dock, his trunk bouncing awkwardly against his leg. A small crowd had gathered to watch - because of course they had. Nothing entertained Kati's residents quite like someone missing Captain Voss's precisely scheduled departure.

"Jump!" someone called from the boat.

"Are you insane?" another voice answered.

"He'll never make that!" They were right, of course. No human could possibly jump that distance. The gap was already twenty feet and widening. Even if he somehow made it, the momentum would probably send him straight through the boat and into the water on the other side. But then again... The spell formed in his mind, mana crystallizing into familiar patterns. [PUSH] The world lurched. Suddenly he was airborne, his stomach doing interesting things as the dock dropped away beneath him.

Seagulls scattered with indignant squawks, probably remembering his rude awakening of their friend earlier. The wind whipped his hair, carrying the shocked gasps and cheers from the crowd. Time seemed to slow. Up here, between dock and boat, between earth and sky, magic hummed through his body like electricity. Eight months ago, flying like this would have terrified him. Now it felt almost... peaceful. Almost. The boat was still moving.

If he didn't act quickly, he'd end up with a very undignified splash instead of a heroic landing. With his trunk occupying one hand, he had to time this perfectly. [Wind], just enough to adjust his trajectory... The spell wrapped around Adom like invisible silk, nudging him gently to the left. He could see individual faces now - passengers with mouths open in shock, sailors paused mid-task, and Captain Voss herself, looking somehow both furious and impressed. His feet hit the deck with a solid thud.

He managed two stumbling steps before his legs remembered they weren't meant for flying and gave out, sending him sprawling in a heap of limbs and luggage. For a moment, absolute silence. Then the cheering started.

"Did you see that?"

"Like a bloody bird!"

"Now that's magic!" The applause rolled across the deck like thunder, punctuated by whistles and excited chatter. Adom tried to stand with what little dignity he had left, brushing off his clothes as his legs remembered their proper function.

"Aah, I wish I could do that," a burly man said, shaking his head in admiration.

"Always wanted to be a mage, but never had the talent for it."

"Thanks, that's really kind of-" Adom started but his explanation was cut short by the distinct sound of boots approaching. The crowd parted like a school of fish avoiding a shark. Captain Voss stood before him, her brass buttons gleaming in the sunlight, her expression as unreadable as ever. She held out one hand, palm up.

"Ticket." Adom fumbled in his pocket, produced the slightly crumpled paper, and tried not to wince as she inspected every inch of it. The silence stretched out, broken only by the gentle slap of waves against the hull and the distant cry of seagulls. Finally, she handed it back.

"Next time, Mr. Sylla, I expect you to be here thirty minutes before departure. Like everyone else."

"Yes, Captain."

"And no more aerial acrobatics on my ship."

"No, Captain." She turned to leave, then paused.

"Though I must admit... your landing has improved since last time." Was that... was that almost a smile? Before Adom could be sure, she was already walking away, barking orders at her crew to make up for their thirty-second delay.

"Last time?" someone whispered behind him.

"Oh yeah, you should've seen him three months ago. Ended up in the water and had to be fished out..."

"No!"

"Complete mess. Seaweed in his hair and everything..." Adom grabbed his trunk and headed below deck, pretending he couldn't hear the growing collection of increasingly elaborate stories about his previous maritime adventures. The cabin was surprisingly spacious for a ship's quarters, with polished wooden panels lining the walls and brass fixtures that caught the light streaming through the round window. The bed, with blue covers and wide enough to actually stretch out on, sat beneath that window.

A solid desk occupied one corner, bolted to the floor but elegant nonetheless, with a matching chair that somehow managed to look both comfortable and seaworthy. Three days to Arkhos at full speed meant the passenger cabins were built for actual living, not just surviving. This was, after all, one of the primary routes between the two cities, frequented by merchants, nobles, and anyone else who could afford passage on Captain Voss's meticulously maintained vessel.

Adom set his trunk down, already hearing his mother's voice in his head telling him to unpack properly instead of living out of it for three days. He'd do it later. Maybe. The sun was still high, and after spending eight months in Kati's eternal summer, he wanted to soak up as much warmth as possible before hitting Arkhos's more diverse seasons. The deck was less crowded now, passengers having retreated to their cabins to settle in.

Sea breeze carried the tang of salt, mixing with the smell of whatever the ship's cook was preparing for dinner. Probably fish stew - it was always fish stew on the first night. A flash of familiar golden hair caught his eye. Damus stood on the port side, looking out over the water. It made sense. They'd taken the same boat back to Arkhos many times before. Both having grown up in the same duchy, under Lord Lightbringer's rule. Their eyes met across the deck. Damus's expression didn't change.

He simply turned and walked away, disappearing below deck. Adom couldn't help but chuckle. In the three months he'd spent in Kati, they hadn't exchanged a single word outside of functions where their parents were present. Sam had told him about Damus's help during the incident - how he'd assisted them in reaching the Mage Council chamber, putting himself at considerable risk. It was... perplexing. Adom had tried to thank him, of course, but each attempt was met with the same cold shoulder he'd just received.

Eventually, he'd given up. Some mysteries weren't worth solving, especially when they involved stubborn kids with complicated pride.

"Look! Over there!"

"Is that what I think it is?"

"Someone get Captain Voss!" The excited voices drew Adom's attention away from his thoughts. People were rushing to the starboard rail, pointing at something in the distance. But before he saw anything, he heard it - a deep, resonant song that vibrated through the wooden planks beneath his feet, through his chest, through his very bones. He knew that sound.

"Leviathan!" someone shouted, and the deck erupted in chaos. There, breaking the surface like a mountain deciding to go for a swim, was Old Mazor. The locals had named it centuries ago, back when the great beasts were common enough to need names. Its skin gleamed like polished obsidian, water cascading off scales the size of houses. As it breached, its massive head rose higher than the ship's tallest mast, seawater streaming from ridges and grooves.

"It's bigger than the stories," a woman whispered, clutching her child's hand.

"That's Old Mazor," an elderly passenger said, his voice filled with reverence.

"Haven't seen him in... must be two years now." Adom gripped the rail, his throat tight. In his time, Old Mazor had been nothing but bones on the very beach he'd slept on this morning. The last of the leviathans. But here, now, it lived. Breathed. Sang. The creature's eye - larger than any window Adom had ever seen - swept over the ship.

"They say it's been around since the time of Law itself," someone murmured. The leviathan's song changed pitch and steam burst from its spiracles, creating rainbow-touched clouds that drifted over the deck. Children laughed, trying to catch the warm mist in their hands. Even the most seasoned sailors stopped their work to watch, their faces softening with wonder.

"Well," Captain Voss's voice cut through the awe.

"That's good luck for the journey. Back to your posts, everyone. We've got a schedule to keep." Old Mazor began to sink, and for a moment - just a moment - its eye met Adom's. He blinked, startled. The leviathan had passed their ship dozens of times before, but it had never looked at him like this. Unless he was just seeing things...

"Did you see that?" an elderly passenger said.

"Looked right at you."

"You saw it too?" Adom turned.

"I thought I was imagining things." The old man scratched his chin.

"Strange thing, that. Then again, you're a mage, aren't you?"

"What's that got to do with anything?"

"Well," the old man said, already trudging back from the rail, "usually when beasts look at someone like that, means they're interested in bonding. You know, mages being druids and all that."

"You think a leviathan would want to bond with me?"

"Who knows? Beast's been around since the time of Law. Maybe it's lonely. Maybe you two have something in common." Adom found himself actually considering it. The path of druids wasn't completely closed to battle mages... The old man's laugh broke through his thoughts.

"Don't take me too seriously, boyo. If Old Mazor was open to bonding, someone would've done it centuries ago." He walked away, shaking his head. Adom laughed too, more out of politeness than anything. Because it would be interesting, actually becoming best friends with a leviathan. Huh. Third year was starting well.