The Sea Devil's Eye - Mel Odom [123]
Glawinn and Azla stood at the port side railing. The pirate queen ordered a longboat put over the side. It was a dangerous move. If it got too low and hit the water, it could be pushed back to smash a hole in the hull. Glawinn and two other sailors manned the boat as it swayed unsteadily down from the cargo arm.
The sea wyrm swam for the longboat, getting alongside it as if it was an everyday thing. It lifted its neck from the water and put Jherek and Sabyna closer to the longboat. Holding Sabyna in his arms, Jherek passed her up to the paladin.
"I've got her, young warrior," the paladin said. "Climb on up."
Glawinn sat cautiously, holding Sabyna tenderly. He inspected her wounds.
Jherek caught hold of the longboat and pulled himself inside. He gazed back down at the sea wyrm, still not believing what had happened. The creature looked back up at him and flared its head fins again.
Thank you," the young sailor said.
The sea wyrm gave a trumpeting call, then dived beneath the waves.
Jherek turned his attention to Sabyna.
* * * * *
Pacys swam across the Dukar Quarter in Myth Nantar as fast as he could. His heart still pounded from the dream that had awakened him. He'd slept in the Dukar Academy room Qos had offered him. The seaweed bed had proven surprisingly comfortable and, despite his excitement, when he'd lain down, he'd had no problem sleeping. Until this morning.
He stopped at the coral in the courtyard near Maalim's Walk where he and Qos usually met. The storm giant was already there, or perhaps the Green Dukar Paragon had never left.
Pacys tried to keep his voice calm. "Grand Savant Qos."
The storm giant looked up.
"I have to go," the old bard said.
"No-there are things not yet done."
Pacys felt frantic. "You've got to understand, this is about the boy, Jherek."
"The one you believe to be the hero of your song?" Qos nodded. "I know."
"The girl he loves-"
"-lies dying," Qos said. "Truly, Master Pacys, I do know these things. I keep watch over a lot of currents at this time. I also know a huge army of drowned ones marches on Eadraal."
"I must go to the boy. He's on the verge of giving up."
"Your place is here," the storm giant said, his voice holding a note of warning. "There are parts that have to be played yet, and you need to be ready to play yours. You could be called upon to open the Great Barrier. When that time comes, we'll have little time."
"You can open the Great Barrier."
Qos's emerald eyes blazed with angry impatience and he said, "If I could open the Great Barrier, you wouldn't be here."
The revelation stunned Pacys into silence for a moment.
"You can't open the Great Barrier?"
"No," the giant said.
"Why?"
"Because it was my decision to close it," Qos answered. "I can allow others in, but I can't return Myth Nan tar to Seros. The prophecies about the Taker creating a reunion of the peoples of Seros must come to pass first. That's the price I paid for salvaging what was left of the City of Destinies. If events don't go as I hope, if you aren't able to open the Great Barrier, Myth Nantar may never rise again."
Pacys stood mute, feeling the pressure of the depths above him for the first time since he'd descended into Seros.
"That's why the boy must wait," Qos said patiently. "Everything must come in its own time."
"He may break before I reach him," Pacys said. "He's that close to hopelessness."
"Master Pacys, we all are. We must each hold to our individual strengths just a little longer."
* * * * *
"Is she going to be all right?" Jherek asked.
He stared at Sabyna's limp form lying on the bed in her private quarters aboard Azure Dagger. She looked so small and pale.
Sabyna's wounds had been cleaned and tended, but they were inflamed and leaked pus. Glawinn had attempted to cure them with his paladin's ability, and Arthoris had tried a healing potion. In both instances some of Sabyna's strength and color