All the Stars and Teeth(69)
He removes his hands from mine and steps back, putting enough distance between us that it doesn’t feel like he’s hovering.
I lift my eyes to the horizon. The rocks feel both impossibly close and strangely far. My breath hitches in my throat, but when I look back at Bastian, he’s smiling. Even Ferrick’s watching, a small grin on his lips.
“Tighten your grip, but never doubt your gut instinct,” Bastian whispers, nodding for me to turn back around. “The key to being a good captain is to always trust yourself.”
I stretch my lungs with fog and breathe as my grip tightens on the helm. I turn it to the left, ever so slightly, and Keel Haul obeys. It’s not pulling the other way, or struggling against me. The ship doesn’t laugh at my commands. It searches for a leader and listens, respectful.
I press my fingertips against the wood, falling into the moment. The world is black in my periphery. All I see is the crest-shaped cavern, the impending danger, and Keel Haul.
The world moves quicker. I twist my grip on the helm to redirect the ship. It obeys with a satisfying groan; the sails catch the whisper of a breeze and bend to my whim. My heart races as we approach, and under my breath I repeat a steady stream of prayers that lasts until the ship rattles, slowing as we sail along the middle of the cavern’s pass.
Breathless, I spin to Bastian, whose ridiculous smile mirrors my own. He’s already stopped the ship, but he steadies its place by dropping anchor.
My hands shake against the helm as I stare at the cavern. Pride has made a home for itself in my swelling chest. It snatches my breath and flusters my already quick heart. The rocks no longer look jagged; they’re smoothed by the sea. Perhaps I’ve been played by a trick of the light? Or was I so worried, I imagined the threat was greater than it was?
“So what do you think of sailing?” Bastian asks smugly.
I smack him lightly on the shoulder, then fall in to hug him tight, laughing because I can’t find my breath and words don’t satiate me. Nothing I say will do justice to the overwhelming pleasure swirling inside me. There are no words for the satisfaction of the sea’s salt on my face and the brine in my lungs.
Bastian knows. He doesn’t need words, because he knows the feeling well. I recognize it in his lopsided smile.
We’ve shared an experience only a few people will understand, and it’s marked our souls. The sea is a beast more fearsome than even the Lusca.
But we don’t need to rule it. We need only for it to trust us. Work with us. Be partners.
I’ve finally been accepted.
But the moment doesn’t last long.
“Don’t go any closer!” Vataea bolts out of the water with a gasp, grabbing hold of the cavern rocks to steady herself. Her entire body quivers, eyes glazed over as if sick. I rush to the ledge, ready to toss the ladder down for her.
“What happened?” Ferrick asks as he rushes to my side. “What’s wrong?”
It takes Vataea a moment to catch her breath, and though she manages to steady herself, the shaking never quite stops. “This isn’t a curse. Beyond this cavern is a plague.” She clings to the rocks as though they’re the only thing that can save her. I glance back at Bastian, whose jaw tightens as he glares out at the water.
Our moment of reprieve is already a distant memory.
“Can we navigate through it?” I ask, receiving a sharp snort from Vataea in response.
“Not a chance. This is stronger than anything I’ve felt before.”
The wind and excitement that filled me only moments ago is knocked swiftly away. We’ve no time to turn around and reassess our options. It’s now or never.
Zudoh’s a smudge in the distance as I sink into the railing, mind reeling. There’s no way we can give up now. Not when we’ve come this far. The air here is cold, clinging to the start of autumn. Any day now, Aunt Kalea will be asked to accept soul magic. If she admits the truth, she’ll be executed for the treason of learning enchantment magic. But if she lies to protect herself, she’ll die from dual magics, and the beast will let loose its vengeance on all of Visidia. I have to make it back to Arida before either of those things happens.
Vataea’s managed to steady herself, and with her mouth set in a firm line of determination, she sinks fully back into the water. I straighten as she disappears, and the boys tense as if they’re worried she’ll vanish completely.
But I know better. I don’t worry when she’s gone for a full minute, nor five.
There’s a flash of her fin the moment before she emerges back at the cavern rocks, her eyes slit. Fierce.
“We can’t get through the barrier.” She sinks her nails into the rocks like claws. When she peers up at us, her grin is bright and sharp. “But we can go under it.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
“Are you sure this will work?” I linger at the end of Keel Haul’s rope, waiting to drop into the water with the others. We’ve hidden the ship behind the crest of the cavern, shrouded by the thick layer of gray fog that looks every bit as ominous as our situation feels.
Ferrick wears a deep frown of unease. “To think that this is truly how I’m living my life.” He sighs, brushing a wet hand through his waves and flattening the hair down to his scalp.
“Most men would die for this opportunity.” Vataea lifts a defiant chin into the air.