Chapter One

His screams were agonizing. Amaris could hear them from the end of the corridor. Every step she took closer to his cabin door was slower, more hesitant. She wanted nothing more than to drop the bowl of water she was holding and cover her ears. She wanted to pray to the spirits that this was all a bad dream. That she was the one poisoned and this was all some kind of elaborate hallucination. But it wasn’t. The drops of cold water that swayed out of the bowl and wetted her fingers were all too real, as were Mecheye’s cries.

The door was cracked open but Amaris didn’t dare look at the bunk or at the man lying in it. She knocked on the door silently and lowered her head. Still a small stream of blood was running between the floorboards and making its way towards her. She followed it with her eyes, breath caught in her chest, eyes hypnotized and horrified by the red liquid.

She was only snapped out of it when the door opened wider and Hawk grabbed the bowl from her hands.

“Thank you.” he said, stepping to the threshold and completely blocking her view of the room. “Go down to the galley. I’m sure Mirage will find you something to do.” Amaris was only half listening as she looked at the amount of blood splattered on hawk’s white shirt. She could only imagine how Mecheye would be feeling at that point. If he was feeling at all.

“How is he?”

“How do you think he is?” Hawk shot back. He looked tired. As if his fifty years have turned to a hundred in a single afternoon. “Look, kid. I don’t think it’s a good idea for you to see him now.”

Amaris couldn’t agree more. She was far from ready to face him. She wouldn’t know what to say to a man in his position. And she very much doubted that he would appreciate the company at this point. “I know,” she whispered. “I just- is he- is he going to-” she couldn’t get herself to finish the sentence. The captain was missing, the ship was wrecked, and she couldn’t imagine anything happening to Mecheye, too. This was too much.

“I…” Hawk looked behind him hesitantly before putting the bowl down, stepping completely out and closing the door behind him. “I did everything I could.” That was never a good start. “His forearm is...gone so the poison source is gone too. But his body has been absorbing the poison for hours now. I don’t know how much he ingested and… we don’t exactly have many potions or herbs. There are no potions at all actually. We left before the men sent to the market returned. All that I have to treat him with are some of the herbs we got from the island. I don’t think- he- he needs a real healer. Or a miracle. I’ll keep trying until we find one of those.”

Amaris nodded glumly.

“Go to the galley,” he said again. “Keep yourself busy.” With that, he stepped back in and shut the door.

Amaris couldn’t believe this was happening. One minute she was pissed at her father for sending her off and saying goodbye to the boy she spent the last day kissing, the next she was being chased down by dark emperor guards and boarding a burning ship. Her feet were numb as she made it to the galley. It was empty. No one was there and she didn’t blame them. So she numbly shuffled through the pantry until she found a basket of wild potatoes and brought them to the table. She took out a knife and sat down peeling quietly.

The quiet was deafening. There were no thundering footsteps, no chanties or loud obnoxious laughter. It was as if she was on a completely different ship. This was not the Silver Crescent she knew.

It was only once she went back to the pantry to look for the spices and a row of jam jars faced her did she remember that she had yet to see one more person on this ship. How he was taking in all of this? He was strong, she knew that, but she needed to check on him nonetheless. She quickly grabbed a jar of berry jam and made her way up the stairs.

The few men who were on the deck were rushing back and forth, some raising new sails others cleaning up the mess. Amaris looked up at the main mast. It was nothing but a splintered black char now. The crow’s nest was no more. She huffed and shook the heartache that came as she looked at the tiny space that hosted so many memories now a complete wreck. She needed to find him.

She looked around the deck some more and peered up at the other masts that were less damaged but he wasn’t there. She was about to climb back down and look for him in their cabin when something caught her eye. A small figure at the far end of the ship. She made her way to the bow of the ship and there he was.

Slygrin was straddling the bowsprit. Dangling his legs above the waves and staring at the infinite sea. From her position, she couldn’t see his face and the roaring waves more than muffled any sound he could’ve made. So she spoke up, masquerading her worries in a cheerful tone. “You decided to change your lookout spot?”

At first he didn’t answer, and she thought that he must not have heard her. But then he lifted his hand to his face and after a few seconds called back without turning. “Yeah, the old one kind of wore out.”

“I got you something you might like,” She waved the jar even though he couldn’t see her. “Berry jam. To give you some strength and energy for your job.”

“I’m not hungry.” He said without looking at her.

“Sly,” she said quietly. “Why don’t you come back here? We can talk.”

“I don’t want to talk,” he said.

“Then we can play cards, or throw knives or train with wooden swords. Just… just don’t stay alone there.” she knew the feeling. When despair took over and she felt like she was drowning in it but couldn’t find the energy to swim back up. She couldn’t find the energy to talk to anyone but staying alone only made it worse because her mind was working twice as fast in the silence. She and Slygrin didn’t have a lot in common, but she knew that this, they did. The racing mind. The need to stay busy and focused. And Amaris would be damned if she didn’t help her friend.

“I don’t want to do any of that either.”

Amaris sighed. “Sly…”

“Just leave me alone,” he said.

“No,” she said firmly. “I’m not leaving you by yourself here. If you stay, I’ll stay.” As she spoke, she climbed to the bowsprit and straddled it too, her nails dug into the wood as she saw the long long distance between her and the sea, but she didn’t back down. Instead, she slowly scooted over to Slygrin until a mere foot separated the two.

“You’re going to fall, you know.” From this close, she could hear the rasp in his voice, the strain that accompanied his words.

She shrugged. “It’s fine. I can handle this.”

“Suit yourself.” The silence stretched, as did the creeping night sky that swallowed all the remaining lights. Amaris didn’t answer him. She sat there offering her silent company and waiting for him to speak. “He’s going to die isn’t he?” He finally spoke. The note of bitter acceptance in his question didn’t go unnoticed.

“No,” Amaris said. “Of course not. He just… he just needs some help and then he will be fine.”

“I’m not stupid,” answered Slygrin. “We’re at least two days away from Miruina. There’s no way he can get ‘help’ before he bleeds out. I would know.” Of course. Oldsalt. Slygrin’s father bled out before they could get him to land.

“Sly, this isn’t the same. Oldsalt wasn’t hit in the arm was he?”

Slygrin didn’t answer.

“Mecheye will be fine. The arm doesn’t bleed out that fast.”

“But it bleeds out.”

“No, not… when treated correctly.” She didn’t know if someone told him about Mecheye’s amputation and she certainly wouldn’t be the one to break the news so she treaded carefully. “Look, Hawk treated him the best he can. He just has a fever, nothing more. You’ve had a fever before haven’t you, Sly?”

“Yes.” he answered after a long silence.

“And you’re still alive are you not?”

He didn’t reply.

“See? He will be fine. He will make it. I promise you.”

Silence stretched once more before he spoke, “It’s because of me.” he admitted.

“What?”

“He’s injured because of me.”

“What makes you say that?”

“That guard was coming for me. He was going to attack me and I had just thrown my last knife. Mech pushed me aside to stop him. He forgot he wasn’t wearing his leather arm armor and tried to stop the sword with his forearm.” He turned to her and Amaris’ heart broke at the red eyes and tear tracks that faced her. She scooted closer and hugged him from behind.

“That is not your fault. If anything, it’s the guard’s. And the emperor’s. They are to blame, not you. And they will get their punishment, I promise you.”

“It’s still-”

“Still nothing.” She squeezed his arm lightly. “He will be fine and you have nothing to do with his injury. You need to understand that.” Slygrin didn’t answer. “Come on, let’s go in before you catch a cold.”