Chương 36: Wrecked

Miriam awoke with sand in her mouth. She coughed, tiny granules having found their way into every possible place they could in her throat. Her knees were wet. She reached back and scooped some water from the ground to rinse her mouth out with, though it left it feeling drier than before when she spit it back out. She was on a thin beach, a belt of sand leading abruptly into what looked like a jungle. Thick leaves dangled from plump trees and vines wrapped around them, densely packed.

Behind her the ocean pulsed in gentle, soothing waves under a cheery open sky - a far cry from the storm from the night before. Behind her as well was the wreck of the longboat, now sundered into half a dozen pieces.

"Róise?" she croaked, coughing.

"Cormac?" Miriam stood, her sodden clothes heavy with caked-on sand and seawater. She called her crewmates' names a dozen more times, searching the surf with her eyes, hoping she didn't see their bodies drifting on the waves. She was in what looked like a bowl made from rocky cliffs - a lagoon which opened out into the sea a mile or so out. The sort of shape you'd expect to see if a giant were dragging its foot along the sea floor.

"Cianán's Walk," she muttered. As far as she could see, she was alone. Cormac was too lucky to die this way, she tried to convince herself. And Róise too strong. Maitiú at least was Water Nature - he should have been able to make it through. No sign of Ultán or Eoin either, but she was sure neither of them drowned, unless one did it to the other. She felt her heart clench with worry. Not just for her friends, but for herself. Miriam was alone in Cianán's Walk, and didn't have Cormac's Drop of Intent to guide her.

"I'm going to have to just make it work," she declared to the beach.

"I'll find them and make it out."

"That's very optimistic! I like it!" a small voice said behind her. Miriam turned to see a young boy sitting on a stump. She would have sworn that neither the boy nor the stump had been there only moments before. This was not that startling - object permanence was definitely hit or miss in the Tír on a good day.

"Who are you?" The boy ignored her and leaped down off the stump. He looked young - maybe eleven years old, if he were a human. He wore a red vest with no shirt, with loose billowing red pants. Gaudy necklaces dangled from his neck, gold and ruby adornments. His skin was a dark reddish-brown and his hair jet black. His smile was bright and his eyes unnaturally cunning.

"That your boat? Gotta be honest, most people get here on something bigger."

"We had something bigger," Miriam said.

"It… huh. Well, I was going to say it wrecked, but more accurately it changed. Kind of an unusual thing I suppose." The boy shrugged.

"We get all kinds here. Unusual is more usual here than 'un'."

"Have you seen anyone else?" Miriam asked. As she talked, she kept her eye on the tree line. It was possible the boy was bait for an ambush. She didn't get a sense of hostile intent from him, but she learned a long time ago in the wilds outside Marybel that diligence was free, and neglect could cost you dearly.

"I was with a few other people."

"Oh, yeah, they're here. I'm talking to them now." The boy frowned.

"Well, most. One guy won't stop screaming about how he's going to die."

"Maitiú?" Miriam sighed in relief. She wasn't exactly friends with the older sailor, but she felt bad about him getting stuck here against his will.

"Where are they?"

"Here," the boy said.

"I know, that's confusing, but it'll all make sense. Or… enough, anyway. Follow me. I do my best to lead newcomers to the first bald spot, but you need to take care of yourself on the way there." He started to walk back towards the jungle.

"Wait!" Miriam said.

"What about the others?"

"You'll see them there," the boy said.

"If they survive the trip."

"And who are you again? You never told me your name. I'm Miriam." The boy rolled his eyes.

"My name is Cian. Short for Cianán. Yes, as in, that one."

"Cianán… as in, the King from thousands of years ago?" Miriam raised one eyebrow.

"I thought you'd be taller."

"Ha, funny!" Cian leaned backwards as if he were leaning against a wall, but there was nothing there.

"We should save all the getting-to-know-you stuff until we get to the bald spot. Dark comes quick around here and things get a lot scarier in the dark. You've been sleeping in the mud for a while." Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on the original website. Miriam tried her best to brush off the wet sand but gave up after a minute. It would probably dust off once it dried. Suddenly, she gasped, clutching her hand to her chest.

"What? See a scorpion or something? There's tons of those things around here," Cian said.

"No, I just… remembered something." The Reel was gone. Broken. As much as she detested the bruise-colored gem, she needed it. None of her fórsa manifestations were going to work right without it.

"The path to this… bald spot. It's dangerous?"

"Oh yeah, big time," the kid said, crossing his legs, leaving him leaning at an impossible angle.

"By design, it'll be the most dangerous walk you've ever taken." Miriam bit her lip. Treading back through the waves she found one of the oars, miraculously still amongst the wreckage of the boat. By adding some fórsa volume to her hands, she was able to mold the Second Ring material into a sharp point with her dryad abilities. That was getting easier - digging the tunnel through the wood of the dinghy in Arbrey had nearly drained one of her fórsa rivers. This wasn't nearly as hard.

"You woman, big spear!" the kid said mockingly.

"Can we go now?"

"Tell me where to go, but stay behind me," Miriam said.

"If you see something dangerous, point it out. If something attacks, run." Cian looked confused for a moment, then smiled, a shy kind of unbelieving grin.

"Oh, that's sweet! You think I'm a helpless kid. Girl, I'm literally thousands of years old. I've been living here the entire time. Nothing in that jungle could attack me if it wanted to. Don't worry about me. It'll be hard enough worrying about yourself." Miriam laughed softly. She kept slipping back into old habits. Nothing here was as it seemed, and this child was no child, no more than she was really a young woman. She had just seen a lone boy in the wilderness and the maternal instincts had come rushing back.

"Very well, my King," she said, bowing.

"Lead the way."

"I like that," the boy said, standing up.

"Most people don't give me the proper respect. King Cian! Never forget the King part! Follow me!" The jungle was humid. What had been an invigorating day on the beach turned oppressive as soon as Miriam stepped into the trees, sharpened oar still clutched in both hands. Insects buzzed all around and she could feel them probe her skin. For some her skin was too tough, but others left smears of amber blood when she flattened them with her hand. The trees were massive.

She had heard of tropical places back in the Realms Above, but her travels had never taken her there. Still in all those stories she didn't think any ever spoke about a tree the size of a tower, with branches like bridges, upon which she could see forest birds and small primates dancing.

"It's only a couple of hours to the bald spot," Cian whispered.

"This is the most dangerous part for you right now. Only one way to go, and no safe area back. The beach might have seemed like a bald spot, but it wasn't. Any creature in here could follow you back there."

"What does that mean?"

"We'll get into it later. The short answer is that bald spots are safe. Anywhere else is very much not. What is your Nature? I hope you have some combat techniques trained up." Miriam sighed. There was really no avoiding exposure at this point. If Cianán's Walk was supposed to make her stronger, she shouldn't hold back information from someone who seemed inclined to help her.

"Water."

"Ok, not bad. A bit plain, but -""And Life. And… Blight. But I'm hoping someone can help me get rid of the Blight." Cian's jaw dropped and he squinted at her more closely. Then his eyes widened.

"Ooh, well, now that's a new one! I could see that either being very advantageous or a right pain in the ass."

"It's the latter." Cian nodded sagely.

"Very interesting! We can work on that later, but now we have to get you to the bald spot. Do you know any combat techniques?" Miriam shrugged.

"Not really. I can make vine spears, and do lashings and ropes. I was a sailor for a little while before coming here. But none of that matters because the Blight just ruins it all." Cian took a look around, as if to make sure nothing was stalking up on them at this moment.

"Can I see?" Reluctantly Miriam opened up her fórsa and created another spear out of vines, similar to what she had used to pierce Ultán's forearm. Except now it was wet and disgusting, rotten goop oozing out of wormholes. Within seconds it fell apart in her hand, leasing a greasy residue on her fingers.

"See? It's worthless." Cian wrinkled his nose at the smell.

"Not pleasant, no. But if you crewed a ship, how did you make it work then?"

"I had a device someone made which allowed me to lock off and divert the fórsa streams I didn't want. But it's… broken now." Cian rolled his eyes.

"Well there's your problem. How were you ever going to learn to manage it if you take a shortcut like that? But tell me, why are you using all three at once? That would seem to be your real problem." Miriam wiped her hand on a nearby leaf.

"I don't have a way to stop it from doing that." The boy shook his head.

"Lazy kids these days. Too afraid to put in the work. We'll see if we can't put you on the right path with that, but in the meantime you should lean into your strongest Nature."

"I've used Life the most. But you saw-" Cian shushed her with a gesture.

"No, no! Life is weak. With practice any Nature can be strong, but there are inherent traits that never change. Life is the nature of things to grow and thrive. Blight is for things to wither and die. Which do you think is inherently stronger?" Miriam grimaced.

"I'm hoping it's Life?"

"Don't be an idiot. In any place in the world, no matter how teeming with life, how long would it take every single living thing in that place to die, given the right catastrophe?"

"Not long," Miriam agreed.

"Right. Life is powerful - persistent! Even when you think it's gone it can come back. Green shoots peeking their way out of volcanic ash. But at the end of Life's journey death comes for all. Blight is Life's antithesis. That's why it's so easily overpowering your Water and Life Natures. Where you are in your development now you can't separate them, so lean on the dominant one." Cian thumped her lightly on the back of the head.

"Ow! You brat," Miriam growled.

"I suppose. And it did help me, once before. I just… I don't want to be someone who has the shape of Blight in their soul." Cian shook his head sympathetically.

"Oh, you innocent child. We all do." At that moment something huge ripped through the trees and shredded a nasty-looking claw right through the boy.