The Bubbleship Series; The First Heroes

Her Father's Hall

Back aboard the Saki, so named affectionately by the Toyama's crew, the three separated from the Quintessential to continue north to the point where they would debark from the smaller wooden sea vessel. Another two days went by, and the ship reached the place where the mountains melted into the sea.

The three of them went ashore in the smaller craft for landing. The crew set about repairing the Saki after the storm’s damage they incurred while sailing the first few days. Inland they trekked for a day before the night, where they decided to set up camp in a small ravine surrounded by fir, blue spruce mainly.

Toyama drank the last of the Saki and lay down for the first watch, which the demon took. SunRue sat in quiet until she could stand no more silence.

“Why do you do it,” she asked. “Why do you save people when you could just sit back and collect your profits from your business ventures?”

"Because I have compassion." She bit into the dried and salted salmon. She chewed and swallowed the tasty morsels. "My father, through his severe treatment of my mother and me, taught me that there is more to life than being in the light of misery to teach a being how to survive. That captain loves my mother and was always there to heal my wounds caused by my father. He showed me the meaning of true friendship."

“Ah see,” she said. “So, you do it because you value our friendship?”

“Yes,” the demon replied. “But I value life. My father values power. Even his marriage to my mother was a political move designed to bring him closer to the Emperor's throne.  Even my birth was a political move. Designed to bring him even more power through marrying me off to a great house to a lord much older and of the same cruel temper like my father."

SunRue sat and stared into the fire; the amber flames dance in the breeze and brought little warmth.

"More importantly, the good Captain Talise gave me freedom by showing me how to escape the great House of Eldeman." She paused to chew another bite of salmon. It made her thirsty, so she drank. “he gave me one phrase before I departed. “Do good for good’s sake. He may not make it as ruler by himself, but my mother can be cold and calculating enough for both of themselves. So, I think he will do good.”

Just then, a tremendous roar was heard from the brush around them to the east of camp. Crashing through the underbrush came a mountain troll, wiry and long-nosed. Sinewy and tall, seven feet tall. It charged. Kontessa jumped to her feet with her longsword and blocked the huge tree limb from hitting SunRue.

SunRue rolled out from under Kontessa and grabbed her rosewood Bo staff.

Kontessa swung and hit.

The troll roared in pain and lifted its tree limb over its head.

Toyama sprang to his feet and sliced off an arm.

Then to the horror of all, the limb began to grow a torso.

Toyama stepped back, as did Kontessa, and SunRue hesitated.

The wounds on the mountain troll healed.

The stump where the arm came from grew another.

Three white-feathered, flaming arrows appeared in the chest of the torso on the ground.

It stopped growing and started to burn.

"Burn it," came a tiny squeaky voice from up in the firs. “Burn it now!”

SunRue grabbed a flaming branch from the fire and thrust it into the face of the mountain troll.

It screamed and ran back into the forest.

“Who’s out there,” Kontessa asked. “We’re grateful you came.”

From the trees jumped a small red-haired little sprite. He held a bow in his hand as tall as himself.

"My name is JayCol Wishman,” it stated. I say it because if seemed to be naked and sexless. “You must burn them, or they heal.”

“Well,” answered Kontessa. “We were at a loss when it started to grow from an arm.  What in the name of the seven hundred hells? I had no idea mountain trolls did that.”

“Oh yes,” stated JayCol. "The northern mountain trolls drink from the magic pool. Poison to most but not to them. Odd that."

“Come share our fire," SunRue said. "We don't have much, but we have some salted and dried fish.”

"Fish, fish, fish," the sprite chanted. “Afraid of fishing am I, but fish I love eating.”

JayCol sat and scarved down the rest of the meal Kontessa started.

“More wood, more wood," The sprite chanted. "More wood, and I'll sing."

SunRue poured on the branches she gathered earlier, and the flames ate into the dried spruce limbs. She laughed at the sprite, and the sprite laughed back. The demon and the ex-Samaria looked at each other and were unsure what to make of the little guy.

“Sit, sit, sit.”

He began to dance and sing.

I sing you a song of yesterday

Before the knight of man,

I sing you a song of years ago

Before the world of man,

When the fey ruled

And elves took the land,

Of joyful songs

When they sang into existence

Yes, even the sand.

They sang of trees and lakes and streams,

Of a lovely world and land

Of joy and peace

Of gentle ways, they sang as a band

Of brothers and sister

They sang the world

Of every tree that stands.

Behold the time…

Try as they might, each swore the sprite sang all night but not one of the three could remember anything but dreaming of a perfect world where the unicorn pranced, and elvish maids and lads dance joyfully among the trees and flowers in a world long gone.

They woke in the morning fully refreshed, but all the fish were gone.

“Apples?!” exclaimed SunRue. “I hate apples.”

In the place of the fish were apples. Fresh and plump. Juicy and red.

Kontessa laughed and bit into one. “Well, looks like breakfast.”

    *     * They rode into the mountains, dark and cold. Up further and further until the trees became sparse and tough grasses showing through the late winter at those heights. Clouds covered the sun as SunRue shivered and drew tighter to Toyama on the back of his mount. They rode this way for two more days before coming to Hell’s Gate.

A great skull with inverted horns made the entrance temple, long abandoned, that was the way in. Above the temple entrance, a sign hung a stone plaque with ancient writing. Kontessa stated that it said, 'Abandon All Hope, Ye Who Enter' when asked what it said.

They dismounted and entered the mouth of the skull.

A dark red glow that emanated from the walls lit the way. The cold of the mountain passes now forgotten; they threw aside their makeshift coats. The further they walked in, the hotter it got, and SunRue thanked the Seven Heavens for the leather armor she wore being sparse. Toyama undid his Suki top and continued bare-chested. They questioned how Kontessa could stay in her leather armor until she reminded them she was from the hells.

They walked further into the cavernous passageway and found the heat became almost unbearable in its intensity. The three started to see small imp-like creatures crawling on the walls, ducking in and out of small crevasses all over.

“They are stupid,” Kontessa said. “unintelligent little things that inhabit the outer reaches of Hell. No one knows what they eat or how they survive, but they do."

“I am glad I am in my leather armor and leather skirt," stated SunRue. "I feel sorry for you, brother, you in your Suki."

“I will manage.”

“The portal is just ahead, so my mother will probably be waiting there. She will have many demons with her.” Kontessa drew her new sword and felt the balance of it in her hands, so light that she felt she carried a sword half its length.

True to her word, they entered a cavern with a round stonelike structure at the back of it. They saw a swirling fire in it. Red as blood. Red as a black burgundy rose. All over the structure crawled little imps. Not unlike the one in the passageway, but these were white instead of red. Quiet chirping noises could be heard coming from the creatures just on the edge of hearing.

As the three came further into the cavern, they saw a voluptuous burgundy-skinned woman with black eyes the color of deep unconsciousness sitting on a ruby throne with bright red flames dancing in its depths as if it were on fire from within.

"Hello, mother," Kontessa announced. "Friends, this is my mother.”

The woman winked, and Kontessa knew that everything the captain had told her seemed too accurate. Doubt still lingered, though.

"I knew you'd show," stated her mother. "perhaps your Love of the common man has led you into your captivity. When you’re taken before your father, you'll find that he will not be very forgiving. You will probably be kept in chains for the rest of your existence because you have escaped from him once already. You know that, don't you?”

“I was hoping I could bargain with you,” Kontessa said as she walked forward.

Ja Nita stood and sauntered, swaying her hips as she walked. She approached SunRue, took hold of her silky ebony hair from behind, and curled it tightly around her hand. "Bargain with this one, and perhaps I will let you escape again. I would love to have this one as a plaything for a year.”

Quicker than the blink of an eye, Toyama drew his Katana to draw a small line of blood from the neck of Ja Nita. "Let my sister go," Toyama whispered. "Do you see the writings on this blade?" Ja Nita lowered her eye to gaze at the weapon at her throat and felt the trickle of blood running down her neck. "They say I can take even a demon's soul. Will yours be my first kill?"

Ja Nita smiled with the perfect white teeth of the aristocracy. “Control your friend,” She said. “You should not have brought them, Kontessa. This is house business.”

"These people are my house, mother. Let her go, or I will let my Ronin friend take your soul. Forget oblivion mother, coming back will be at his bidding."

Ja Nita let go of the hair of the warrior Geisha and put her hand to the flat of the Katana. “Easy fighter.”

Toyama lowered his weapon. Kontessa's mother walked back to the ruby seat, sat down, and spoke the words.

“Tay soul Lacash, embin locosea.”

The imp creatures began to scurry over the surface of the floor in the thousands. They came from the crevasses and out of the blood-red portal. They came in droves concealing the floor of the cavern in their multitude. The minor demons crawled up the legs of the three standing there, and the floor began to suck the fighters down. SunRue screamed as the imps crawled over her with their tiny claws like pinpricks all over her skin. Toyama tried scrapping at them with his free hand.

They sank lower into the floor. They fell further, and Kontessa remained impassive, worried that her friends would be sick upon entering the hells, but there was nothing for it. She would never be free of her father's will any other way. Plus, she would probably need the assistance of these two soon enough.

Just before the flood engulfed them, Kontessa saw her mother walk through the portal.