All the Stars and Teeth(39)
“You both look quite handsome.” Amusement glints in Bastian’s eyes, but there’s something off about them. They’re weighed down tiredly, and his skin has grown ashen, covered by a thin veil of sweat.
I shoo him away as I stand, and am promptly ushered away by Shanty. She says something to one of the other barracudas, and they disappear for a moment before returning with a handful of Ikaean clothing—white trousers, a soft pink frock and vest, and a coat heavier than the weather calls for to mask the shape of my body. I change into them swiftly, and my insides roil as I examine my widened jaw and growing stubble in the full-length mirror and decide there’s no way anyone would recognize me.
My face isn’t my own.
Ferrick has changed into an outfit similar to mine, and as Shanty examines us for a final time, she beams proudly at her work.
“Don’t forget to keep your end of the deal,” she purrs, teeth gleaming with terrific pride. “Otherwise I might have to pay the kingdom a little visit myself. And you won’t even see me coming.”
My breath hitches, but I force my nerves away. “I wouldn’t dream of it.”
Shanty nods her approval and waves for Liam to join her. He’s there within seconds, silver eyes skimming over Ferrick and me with pleased amusement. His expression never shifts; it’s like he knows something no one else in the room does.
“Please see that our guests are escorted out,” she says, and the man nods swiftly before stretching an arm around Bastian’s shoulders, ushering him back the way we came—to an empty black wall with a tiny knob handle.
He twists the knob and pulls the door open. “Please stop by again, should you ever require our assistance.” The words may be light and friendly, but he gives us no time to respond before steering us out onto stained-glass streets, somehow in a completely different area of town than where we entered. His face once again shines from pink to red as the lights flicker against his skin, half visible in the shadows of the wall’s crack. Without warning, it slams shut.
I watched Liam open that door, and yet, on this side, the stone wall is smooth. There’s no handle or button, just a single stone with a tiny etching of skeletal fish crossbones, in a random alleyway we’ve been dumped off in.
For a long moment, the three of us stare at the solid stone slab, trying to process everything that just happened and the strange place we’ve emerged from.
Eventually, Ferrick huffs a quiet, disbelieving laugh. “I can’t tell if I’m drunk, or if that’s the weirdest magic I’ve ever seen.”
“Both,” I answer, and he doesn’t disagree.
My blood pulses as I stare, enthralled such a place could even exist. Gently I run my finger over the light gray stone, but it feels no different from the others.
This is the magic of Visidia’s people, but used in strange ways I’ve never before seen. Ways I never would have known existed if not for seeing it with my own eyes.
What a strange, wonderful place.
“We’re not in the clear yet,” Bastian says, drawing my attention back to the situation at hand.
I’ve a rebellion to stop; there’s no way a few soldiers or an impending execution will keep me from that.
“Do you have an idea in mind?” I ask.
Bastian’s jaw quirks slightly, the sheen of sweat on his skin even heavier than it was inside the warm lounge. “All we have to do is get on the ship.” His words are slow, breath so labored it sounds as though he’s winded enough for the three of us. He must not have wanted us to know how much the alcohol affected him; I can only hope the cool sea breeze does him some good.
“And then what?” Ferrick asks. Though he seems to be sobering up some, he wears the perpetual glare of someone nursing a headache after one too many drinks.
“And then we take advantage of the fact Keel Haul’s magical and faster than anything else on the water.” Bastian smiles tightly, and out of habit I run a finger over the lip of my satchel. Though I don’t plan to use my magic on the soldiers, I find comfort in the action.
I square my shoulders and draw a breath to steady myself. “Let’s get going.”
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
Unlike Arida, whose nights are brightly lit by torch and starlight, nights in Ikae exist in a multicolored haze. The glow of enchanted oil lamps blankets the busier streets, but the alleyways are left forgotten. We stumble through them half-blind, following the echoes of bellowing soldiers who scout the docks.
Most of them scour the city. We’ve carefully avoided several small groups already, but there’s no getting around them this time. Fortunately, only a few are posted on the docks, while others search the ships anchored there. They don’t seem to have reached Keel Haul, yet.
I run a hand over my jawline, hoping the sharpened bones and stubble are still there to disguise me.
“Act natural,” I tell Ferrick, biting the inside of my cheek as his shoulders tense and his face pinches together with the attempt.
Perfectly natural, indeed.
We file out into the streets, and Bastian immediately begins boisterously talking about this morning’s rousing game of Cannon Rushing. I almost fake a laugh in response, but sharply halt the noise almost as quickly as it starts.
I may look different to others, but my voice is still my own.
We earn the immediate attention of two soldiers who flank the entrance of the docks, and I tense with recognition—it’s a seasoned guard named Antoni, and a newer soldier, Karin. I don’t remember either of their magics, and because they wear the same sapphire uniforms of palace guards instead of the color that represents their home island, it’s impossible to know what they practice. I keep my eyes far from them, not wanting to find out.