A Vial of Life (A Shade of Vampire #21)(39)

After I followed the beasts down the mountainside, it wasn’t long before we arrived at the borders of a human settlement. A ski resort of some sort. We arrived in the midst of a blizzard, which worked to the ogres’ advantage.

As soon as we reached buildings, they headed down an alleyway. I had no reason to follow them anymore. I scoured the small town, looking for a tourist shop of some sort. I found one next to a coffee shop in what appeared to be the town square. It was small and warmly lit, displaying all sorts of trinkets, but most importantly souvenir compasses, postcards, and maps. I was in Canada, not far away from Mount Logan, by the looks of it.

At least now I knew where I was. The next thing I had to do was figure out how to reach home. It was endlessly frustrating not being able to pick up any of the maps in the shop. Somehow, I was going to have to figure this out myself.

First, I had to make my way to the west coast of the country, but then once I arrived at the shores of the Pacific Ocean, I had no means of navigation. I could find The Shade in a submarine or almost any type of vessel, but without any navigation equipment? I had nothing now, just the knowledge that I needed to head westward.

Feeling overwhelmed, I reined myself in and forced myself to take things one step at a time. First reach the ocean, then figure out how to make it back to the island.

And so I headed west with as much speed as my subtle body was capable of. At some point, I had to reach the shore.

I did, in far less time than I could have anticipated. I arrived at a deserted beach, and, scanning the length of it, I knew that now I needed to find a harbor. I continued traveling and came across a large commercial port after an hour or so. I roamed around the ships, listening in to conversations and trying to figure out where each one was headed. I found one captain discussing his pending journey to Hawaii. Since this seemed to be the ship going nearest to The Shade, I stuck with him for the next few hours, until his break was finished and he returned to a massive cargo ship.

I moved on board and headed to the front of the ship, waiting for the journey to begin. To my annoyance, I waited another couple of hours. When the vessel did finally set off, its pace was horrifyingly slow. Slower than I’d ever imagined even a cargo ship traveled. I waited another couple of hours, and then, frustrated out of my mind, I found the control room and took a look at the maps and navigation equipment. I found myself again aggravated that I couldn’t reach out and touch anything in my search for directions. All I could do was gain a general sense of direction from the display monitors—though it hardly helped even in the slightest. I already knew the general direction of Hawaii, and, consequently, the general direction of The Shade.

Although the idea of getting lost in the middle of the Pacific Ocean chilled me, even that was a more tempting proposition than staying here on this snail-slow ship. With my supernatural speed, I couldn’t help but wonder whether, even with no means of navigation, traveling alone might be faster than remaining here. The vessel, in addition to being slow, wouldn’t even take me to my final destination. It would take me to Hawaii, closer to home, but I would still need to figure out the final stretch by myself.

I gazed out toward the ocean, stalled. Am I really mad enough to try this? This is the Pacific Ocean I’m talking about.

I should’ve tried to reach an airport to get a ride on a plane to Hawaii. But I was already on the ocean now. I didn’t want to spend more time searching for an airport on land—I had no idea where the nearest one would be, nor any immediate means of finding out.

Leaving the control room, I hovered upward into the air and looked down on the massive ship. Even if straying from the vessel did end up getting me lost, what was the worst that could happen? I was already a ghost. I no longer had the restraints of a physical body holding me back. The sun could not harm me. I didn’t need blood, food, or water. I could survive… forever, I guessed. Even if it took me weeks to find The Shade, it wouldn’t be the end of the world.

My mind made up, I drifted apart from the vessel, and as I sped up my sprint over the waves toward the endless blue, I looked over my shoulder and watched it fade into the distance.

I lifted myself higher up in the air. Since the sky was clear, I had a bird’s eye view of the ocean and any surrounding land formations that might crop up.

Judging by the sun, I was racing southwest—or what I hoped was southwest—the entire afternoon before something made me slow and freeze in midair. A sound. A tune? Drifting over the waves came a faint, enchanting melody. I tried to place what instrument it was. It sounded closest to a flute, though this guess was not quite right. The melody was soft and somber, distant yet haunting… breathtakingly beautiful. It spoke of life and promise, like the singing of a nightingale in spring. Even as I listened to it, it filled my heart with unexpected hope. Hope for what exactly, I didn’t know, but the soulful tune so completely possessed my mind that I felt like I could hope for anything.

Where is it coming from?

I gazed around the water again, as if expecting to see a Pied Piper floating toward me on a fishing boat. From what I could see from my elevated position in the sky, there was no land for miles, nor any vessels on the waves. And yet the sweet melody continued. I wasn’t sure if I was just imagining it, but it seemed to grow louder, penetrating the atmosphere and engulfing me, as though it was reaching inside me, touching my very soul, and filling me with an unexpected warmth.

It was coming from the direction I was headed. Southwest.