Jade Fire Gold(86)
“I checked in with Ahn last night. She says we’re still on course.”
“Good,” I say. The tug of the sword seems to have grown stronger since we entered the Emerald Sea, acting like a compass needle, pointing Ahn toward its location.
Captain Yan strokes his beard, keen eyes fixed on the water. “We are heading into the Dragon’s Triangle. I expect to arrive at sunset in two days, which is the only time you want to arrive at those waters.”
“Why is that?”
“Because it is the only time a ship can glide safely through and bring us to Dragon’s Teeth Pass. Too early and we will miss the guiding current. The winds will change, and the ship will veer off course.”
“What happens if we’re late?”
His graying eyebrows meet in a forbidding line. “Then, my boy, you will have to pray for our souls.”
“The gods have little regard for human life,” I say, remembering all the times I’d asked the Heavens for help as a boy and received no respite. “I doubt prayers will save us or our souls, Captain. Please, tell me, what happens if we enter after sundown?”
“We will be trapped in between our world and the soul realm, in between life and the Courts of Hell, and we will have no choice but to navigate the Waters of the Undead.”
I start to dismiss this ridiculous notion, but his expression sobers me. He is unsettled, a far cry from the confident man who has been helming our ship. “Are you familiar with the Waters of the Undead?”
“I am, though this fact gives me little joy. You see, I may be the only one who has made it through alive.”
I incline my head respectfully. “If it doesn’t trouble you, Captain, I’d be honored if you could share your tale with me.”
“It isn’t one I like repeating, but perhaps it is best you know.” A look crosses his face, sorrow mixed with something darker. “I wanted to explore the world after the early wars, and the sea called to me. I’d heard of the old legends about the Dragon’s Triangle as a boy, and, eventually, I found a crew as reckless as myself. The plan was to enter at sundown to search for the mystical current that would carry us across safely. But the winds shifted at the last moment, and we were too late.”
The man shrinks back, a shadow passing his face. “When the spirits came, and the madness descended, it felt . . . it felt like death. Like death was running through us—consuming us one by one. Some of the crew removed the ropes that tied them to safety. Others screamed and wailed until they lost their voices. One man broke his own wrists and chewed at the knots so that he could get out of his bindings.”
A shiver goes down my spine. “And yourself?”
“The spirits tempt you in many ways, with your deepest fears or your heart’s desires. Greed, vengeance, love, anything you can think of. They dredge up the sins of your past and show you who you truly are. I was a military man who fought for over a decade in the wars when I was a young lad. I’ve seen bloodshed and countless deaths, men tearing at each other’s throats with bare hands for survival.” He looks at me with eyes that have seen too much. Eyes that remind me of Shīfù’s. “But I have made peace with myself, and I did not succumb.”
His description reminds me of the spirits that accosted me in the cavern in the Wudin Mountains. Could it be that another supernatural portal lies in the deep sea? Would there be another Soul Beast guarding it?
“I hope you and your crew have been paid enough to warrant this escort.” My tone is unnaturally light as I try to shake off the pall hanging over our conversation.
Captain Yan chuckles. “It isn’t gold that drives us to embark on this journey, my boy. I’m doing this for my country. Ming was my comrade in the military.” He gestures to another stocky man at the stern. “Lishi was in the Imperial Navy. All of us here fought in one way or another. We understand the cost of war. We know what is riding on this mission—we know our people are suffering as the desert takes over our land.” He places a firm hand on my shoulder. “There is power in your father’s legacy, Jin Long. He was a good man, and he left this world too soon.”
I nod slowly as his words sink in. He knows who I am, and so does his crew. But although I have carried my secret as little more than a whisper for so long, having it exposed so clearly doesn’t feel dangerous anymore. Perhaps, it is time to let go of that lost boy from the desert.
“Was it Tang Wei or Elder Hong Feng who told you?” I ask, curious.
“When you have traveled as far and as wide as I have, you hear things. Threads of conversations, pieces of truth in rumors. You begin to stitch your own tapestry of the world—your own truth.” Captain Yan’s laugh lines crinkle as his smile widens. “Maybe someday, if I’m blessed to live a long life, I’ll get to tell a new tale of how I once spoke so freely and informally to our emperor.”
He bows low and I return his respect. The gravity of his implication weighs me down. I know my vengeance bears a greater significance than a personal vendetta. I know it carries expectations. Responsibilities. Duty. I dampen the spark of doubt building in my chest. Now isn’t the time for second thoughts.
“I don’t know what you are planning,” he says thoughtfully. “But I do know the Life Stealer must be part of it. I have my own concerns . . .”
His unspoken question hangs in the air. Wouldn’t that be giving a tiger wings? Tang Wei questioned my course of action at the start, but now she seems to be on board. She believes in Ahn. Maybe I should, too.