The Elderkin Prophet

Chapter 17

Ophinia slowly opens her eyes. She finds herself on a bed along with several pillows tucked under her head. A jug of milk and other food articles were placed in an orderly fashion on the table next to her. She noticed that Moogi was sleeping beside her, tucked into a ball. She did not feel tired or any pain of any sort this time. She easily propped herself up against the wall of the bed. She noticed that there were two crew mates sitting on a table opposite to her and were engrossed in a game of cards. Ophinia stood up onto her feet and as soon as she placed her feet on the wooden floor, it creaked. This alerted both the crew mates and they rushed over to her quickly and began to assist her.

“Go get Uul quickly!” One spoke to the other.

One of them left to bring Uul while the other kneeled before Ophinia to help her on her feet.

“What happened to me?” Ophinia questioned.

“Your little pet ran up to us and began to shout. We followed it to find you unconscious on the floor. You were knocked out cold for almost a straight day. Uul was worried about you, I’ve never seen him like this before.”

Before Ophinia could ask further questions, Uul barged in the room. His eyes frantically were searching for her. He rushes towards her and checks if she was alright.

“Are you okay? What happened to you! Tell me everything.”

Ophinia did not know where to begin with. The whole sequence kept playing like a loop in her head. That voice, those memories. What did they mean? What did that voice want from her and why? She kept on wondering. She began to think if she should tell Uul about everything or not. She finally decided that it was best if she kept the incident to herself since she was unclear about it and did not wish to stress Uul further.  She decides to lie about it.

“Oh, I don’t know… I don’t remember what happened to me before I collapsed. The only thing I remember was me feeling incredibly hot and thirsty. I went inside to get myself a cup of water.”

“Do you feel pain? Are you hurt anywhere?”

“No I don’t think so.”

Uul seemed to relax a bit after hearing this. His poised shoulders reclined and his brow began to ease.

“Okay. You are not leaving my sight ever again alright?”

Ophinia nods in approval.

“You’ve been out for a straight day do you know that?”

“Yes, one of the crew told me that. It feels like only a few hours passed though…”

Uul shakes his head.

“You missed one of the most beautiful things you could have seen. During the night, under the stars and the light of Thrah… An aurora lit up the skies above. As we sailed, the entire sky above was flooded in shades of green, purple, red and blue.”

Ophinia grins. “Damnit.”

“Come you must be hungry… Go get ready and join me upstairs for some food.”

Ophinia remembered one thing from her vision. That ring she saw on the person. It bore the sigil of the Legion. Before Uul rose up to leave, she asked himi a question.

“Hey..Uul.”

“Yes?”

“Can you tell me what happened to Durlan? You mentioned him before when you told me the story about the ravages.”

Uul pauses for a moment.

“Why do you ask?”

“I’m curious that’s all.”

“I told you right… He disappeared into the woods after the battle.”

Uul’s breath seemed to tighten. He was hiding something.

“Are you sure about this? Tell me the truth.”

Uul’s body tenses immediately. He shudders at the thought.

“I’m sorry…. I..Ca..”

“It’s alright…” Ophinia consoles him.

Uul sighs.

“Durlan was one of my closest friends… same as Mulnac. After the battle was won, we planned to grab a drink together to celebrate. Me and Mulnac waited for Durlan but he never returned.”

Ophinia listened carefully.

“Did he wear a ring?”

Uul paused and looked shocked.

“Ho…How do you know that?”

“Just, answer me.”

“Yes… He wore a black ring of power that was given to him as a reward for his service.”

“So.. What happened to him?”

Uul presses down on his beak.

“We saw him the next morning. He looked terrible… We took care of him and tried to nurse him back to health. But his condition wasn’t improving. Every day we saw him detoriate and his condition worsened. It was like he was sick with something.. Something we had never seen before. Every day he grew more violent and more of a stranger to us. He was lost in his own thought all the time. We started to fear that he was turning into a broken one.”

“Then?”

“One day we saw him… Eyes shrivelled up.. skin was pale as snow… uttering complete nonsense. It was unlike anything ever. The townsfolk began to grow fearful of him… This was until one day.. He massacred a dog out on the street and tore its skin with his bare hands and drove his teeth straight into it… Alive.”

Ophinia gasped.

“That was the final straw… His title was dismissed and he was chased out of the town and was titled a monster. He did not show any signs of turning into the broken. We tried to follow him and bring him to safety but he was driven into a rage. He began to cast his spells at me and Mulnac. When we saw him…. His body had turned grey and the Fade had begun to consume him. We watched him as he jumped off a cliff.”

“Did you ever get to see him again?”

“No… Nobody could have possibly survived that fall. We knew he was dead and never saw him ever since. To this day Mulnac gets nightmares of this.”

Uul shudders as he shook off the chilling tale.

Ophinia was silent. She had nothing to say. She had so many questions but nobody could answer them. Only that spirit that communed with her.

“Why did you ask about him?”

Uul asks with suspicion.

“I.. Umm.. Read about him in one of the books back at Froli…”

She lied once again.

“Oh… Strange.. I didn’t know that they held records. Anyways… I will see you upstairs. We are entering Baylon Isle’s; you must see its beauty.”

Ophinia nods.

Uul leaves the room and she begins to get dressed and freshens herself up. Moogi woke up and was excited to see her as he pounced about. Ophinia managed to put together a few pieces of what happened but there was still a lot more she needed to know. She turns to her alchemy table before leaving. She almost forgot about the brew she was mixing. It had completely burnt to a charr.

“What a waste…” She said to herself.

She cleaned out the vessel and put another batch of ingredients to brew. She left the room and climbed up the staircase. Once she was out of the dark interiors of the ship, she was welcomed with the blooming light of noon. She looked around and was overwhelmed by the beauty. The Kalina was floating between a sea of bright blue. The water was so clear that the sandbeds were visible below. Several corals and fish made their home in these warm waters. There were schools colourful Jagfins and macabre bulbfishes swimming in the water. Big and small islands dotted the surroundings. They were virgin islands that boasted a lush vegetation on almost each and every one of them. Tall coconut trees twisted in the humid breeze. There were islands to see for miles and miles on.

Ophinia noticed that most of the crew were enjoying the scene aswell. The waters were extremely calm and allowed the ship to easily skim through. Some crewmates were cleaning the ship while others were playing small games. Some were locked in conversations while some were locked in exciting brawls to test their mettle. Far in the corner near the rear of the ship; Uul sat on a table which was dressed with plentiful food. A huge cooked and spiced fish sat on the table along with other delacasies. Ophinia had never seen such a huge Droonfish before. She joined Uul at the table.

“Enjoying the view? Eh eh..” Uul speaks before he bites into a juicy piece of the fish.

“It’s.. I’m shocked…It’s so beautiful. Words cannot express…”

Uul laughs.

“This is nothing compared to the crystal Fjord.”

“Where is that?”

“I’ll take you there once this is over. You’ll see.”

Uul hands Ophinia a plate of fish and fills her cup with water.

“Eat.”

Ophinia begins to nibble at the fish. She offers some to Moogi but he outright rejects it and runs away.

“That’s strange… I did not know they hated fish… But they love meat right?

“More fish for me then.” He makes a face at Moogi and continues to devour the fish.

“It’s really tender…Mmmhh”

Uul lets out a nasty burp. He drinks some water to clear his throat.

“Droonfishes are a speciality of these waters.. You don’t get them anyplace else.”

Some more of the crew sit down at the table and join the conversation.

Ruuney sits beside Ophinia and greets her.

“Good day to you… I don’t quite know your name yet.”

Ophinia reacts almost dropping her fish piece.

“Hi! My name is Ophinia.. You must be Ruuney.”

“Yep.” He smiles.

“So.. Whats your story eh?” Uul asks.

“Well… I was a travelling merchant around these parts… I often traded things to and from big cities and occasionally stopping at smaller towns. I speak almost all the languages in Phaera except Dosh…. Hmm… What else… I am good with a crossbow and would often hunt in each forest I visited. Well this was until those damn rump skinned dwarves captured me for hunting too close to their mountain. Mulnac found me rotting away in their cells when he had come there for some business. He requested those numb nuts to free me… and that they did. Mulnac took me under the Onyx Legion and put my skills to use. Since then I became one of his favourite scouts.”

“Aye.. He’s a real ladies man, captain..” Another sailor added.

The table bursts into laughter.

“We all know about the mighty warrior Uul… But what about you?” Ruuney asked.

Ophinia hesitated for a minute to answer..

“I… I umm..”

“She’s a nurse, all the way from Rarzu that too… She begged me to take her along on my journies…. She was like ‘Oh pappy Uul, please take me with you on your sweet, sweet ventures… Get me out of this sobbing village.. Please.’” Uul imitated Ophinia in a funny tone.

This pisses Ophinia off but made her laugh as well. She throws a punch onto Uul’s shoulder making him almost choke on the fishbone he was struggling to remove.

“This place sure is outstanding …” One of the crew mates spoke out loud.

“Do you know the history of these Islands?” Ruuney asked around as he leaned over the table.

“The story says that there was once this King who loved turtles of all kinds. He was a just and kind king but one day some rival king threatened him. He poisoned his wine during his own children’s wedding. The king was bedridden and very sick. On his death, the rival king sent his forces to snatch his weakened kingdom. His fleet was huge and strong.. The real scum of the sea y’know. Legends say that the entire fleet disappeared within one single day. The city was sadly destroyed and its ruins still remain to this day. A tale told by a survivor said that huge dragon turtles rose out of the deep clutches of the sea and stomped over the entire fleet during a massive typhoon. Once the fleet was destroyed, the turtles burrowed themselves and went into hibernation ever since. They say that these islands are the shells of giant sea turtles that are asleep. That’s why the shape of each island is so unique.”

The entire table sat there looking baffled.

Suddenly, a crewmate runs up to Uul and calls for his attention.

“Captain… There is something you must see.”

“Alright I’ll be there in a moment.”

Uul gets up shortly and goes with the crew mate.

“What is it?” He asks.

The gull hands him a telescope.

“Word from the crow’s nest is that there is sea wreck of at least four ships over there behind this island.” He points his hand.

Uul looks through the telescope and is shook. He could see three sunken ships near the coral reefs while one ship had crashed into the island. They looked like human flagships.

“What should we do captain?” He asked.

Uul did not want to delay the journey but he was too curious. Human ships always were filled with rich and shiny things.

“Anchor the ship and drop down the rowboats.”

“Aye sir.”

Uul returns to the table.

“Gentlemen, we have a wreck to explore. Looks human to me.”

Uul looks to Ophinia.

“Wish to tag along?”

“Definitely!”

Two oar boats are dropped into the water. They reach the wreckage. They found several pieces of flotsam floating aswell as stranded on the sandy beach of the island. Most of the crew began to throw ropes out at the flotsam to collect it and see what was inside. Uul, Ruuney and Ophinia stepped onto the hot beach to explore the wreck in detail.

“Doesn’t look like there were survivors.” Uul speaks as they draw near.

“I think you spoke too soon.” Ruuney points out onto the coastline.

There were seven humans who were washed up on the sandy beach. One was left hanging from one of the upper decks of the overturned ship. The ship looked like it was blasted to shreds.

Ophinia stared at the fallen humans. For the first time she got to see some in person. She was greatly intrigued by their appearance. They looked better than the books would depict them.

“What should we do with them?”

Uul was still deciding.

“Bring them to safety!” Ophinia answered quickly.

“FIRST…. Check if they are even alive or dead.” Uul cut in between.

“Aye.”

Ruuney runs up to the washed up humans and begins to investigate. Meanwhile, Uul and Ophinia move around the ship closely to investigate the cause of the wreck.

“They sure put a lot of effort into their craft.” Ophinia remarked.

“It’s a way of telling others that we got a lot of material to spare.” Uul concluded.

The ship had numerous holes in its finely packed wooden walls.

“Cannonballs.”

“What?”

“These ships were probably caught up in some naval fight. They lost, badly.”

Ruuney calls to them in the distance.

“Four alive captain.. The rest did not make it.”

“Ay…. Call the rest to help carry them to the Kalina.”

Uul inspects the wreck further. He sees an upturned table revealing several documents. They could probably answer a few questions of the origin but unfortunately the water had washed off most of the writing. Uul picked up all that he thought he  could salvage from the wreck. He headed back to the oar boats along with Ophinia.

Once they were back on the Kalina, the washed away humans were placed in the centre of the brig as the entire crew of fourteen looked at them. The humans were knocked out cold.

“What should we do with them?” A crew mate asked.

“We will drop them off at Brigna, they can find their way home from there.” Uul answered

“How long till we reach Brigna?” Ophinia asked.

“Brigna is not far away now. Just a few more hours.”

“They look a little fancy for humans if I’m not wrong?” Ruuney asked.

“It’s because they are not some standard human.”

Uul looked at one of the humans who is dressed in a suit of mail with fancy scuffs of dyed cloth wrapped around his arms. He had an empty ruined quiver on his back. His belt hoisted a cloth which was pale blue in colour. It had a stag with a golden flower sewn into it.