Gorinthians Page 18

  Seranova sighed in frustration. There really were not any options that she could see and she had spent her life finding options that others claimed did not exist. If she stayed, more of the creatures that had attacked them might appear in her village. Personally, she did not really care if the rest of the village was wiped out, but she did not want to endanger her parents. She could not risk leaving on her own. She might end up dead, as much from ignorance in the outside world as being hunted down by the king’s soldiers.

  Squaring her shoulders, she faced Morindessa. “Very well. I will accompany you. We will need to let my parents know that I am leaving though, or they will come searching for me.”

  Morindessa just nodded, her lips turned up slightly as if she found something amusing. The man that had followed Morindessa had been studying Seranova silently during the exchange, as if she were a strange puzzle. She was not sure what to make of him. He was dressed like a noble, though he lacked the overbearing confidence that most nobles adopted. How does he fit into the picture? she wondered, studying him with the same puzzled fascination with which he was studying her.

  Giving her head a small shake, she turned and started back toward the village with the other two following behind her. She thought about asking who Morindessa’s companion was, but she thought Morindessa would have already told her if she had wanted her to know. As they made their way back to the village, Seranova tried to change the leaden feeling that was beginning to settle in the pit of her stomach. She told herself that this was her chance to meet other people that might be like her. This was her chance to leave behind the provincial villagers that tried to make her life miserable merely for being different.

  A half an hour later, they entered a gate in a small white fence that surrounded a two-story house on the outskirts of town. It was obviously the largest home in the village, easily covering a half-acre of land. When Seranova had first found several bars of Prenium on the bottom of Lake Magnus, her father had been able to sell them to a person that he knew in Shalilayo that did not ask unnecessary questions regarding origin or ownership. They had only received a hundredth of their original value in payment, but that had been more than enough to have the house rebuilt, with plenty left over to live off for the rest of their lives. They had told the local villagers that it had been an inheritance from a distant family member in Shalilayo and since her grandfather had not been from Laketown, no one could dispute the claim. Her father had dedicated the entire upper floors to her, telling her that she should have a place to conduct her experiments.

  Her father was waiting for them on the front porch, his face full of concern. He was a tall man, taller than any other man that Seranova had ever seen. His hair was almost completely grey and his face was etched with lines that were at odds with the youthful light in his blue eyes. He wore a light brown robe with a symbol sewn over the right breast that seemed to be made up of a series of complexly arrayed triangles.

  “You are all right,” he said, sounding relieved. “We heard some kind of commotion coming from the lake,” he finished with a questioning note in his strong voice. His gaze passed over her new companions, widening in recognition when they landed on Ferrich.

  “Your highness,” her father said with a deep bow. “My house is honored.” The concern that had been on his face had tightened into worry as he looked back at his daughter.

  “Your highness?” Seranova exclaimed in surprise. “What are you talking about father?”

  His eyes flickered quickly between the two newcomers, before looking back at his daughter cautiously. “This is Prince Ferrich,” he said slowly to his daughter, looking surprised by her ignorance of who her companions were.

  Turning to stare in amazement at her unassuming-looking companion, she could not help feeling skeptical as Ferrich shrugged nonchalantly at her father’s esteemed address. “It was sort of an accident that I had no control over. My position embarrassed my father, almost as much as his embarrassed me.”

  Morindessa laughed softly at this, her eyes sparkling as she looked at Ferrich. So that is the way the wind blows, Seranova thought with wry amusement, and a more interesting pair I could not imagine.

  Aloud, she said, “This is my father, Deisian.” Feeling the lead ball in her stomach grow in size, she continued, “Father, can you have mother come down? We need to discuss a few things.”

  Sighing, Deisian nodded, beckoning the others into the house after him. The sitting room looked like a blacksmith turned artist. Two small metal pipes ran up the wall next to the door, where they met a larger pipe that ran along the ceiling. Walking up to one of the metal tubes, her father pulled a thin wire that ran alongside the tubing. A moment later, a voice issued out of one of the tubes.

  “Do you know what time it is, Seranova?” The woman’s voice was fogged in sleep.

  “It’s me, Love,” Deisian spoke into the second tube. “Can you come down here please?”

  There was a moment of silence before she replied, “Let me get dressed.”

  In the meantime, Ferrich had walked up to the set of tubes and now stared at them in fascination. “Amazing!” His eyes shone with excitement. “How far away can you talk through these tubes?”

  “Almost a mile,” Seranova replied modestly. She felt a thrill of satisfaction mixed with pride that someone besides her parents showed some interest in one of her inventions. All of the villagers regarded her devices with scorn, if not outright hostility.

  As Ferrich studied the tubes where they connected with the main tube on the ceiling, Seranova's mother arrived, descending in the lift box that Seranova had designed just last year. As the lift box lowered from the second floor to land softly in the entryway that connected the sitting room to the main hallway, Ferrich’s attention was diverted from the listening tubes to the lift box.

  "How does this work?” Ferrich asked, hurrying over to the lift box to study it, almost running Seranova's mother over in the process. He stood peering up at the roof of the lift box, the top of which was now flush with the ceiling, then walking around inside of it, looking at every part of it. He looked up in surprise as Morindessa cleared her throat loudly.

  "I don't mean to ruin your fun, Ferrich," Morindessa said, that small smile once again lighting her face, "but we do have a rather urgent matter to take care of."

  Ferrich laughed sheepishly. "I'm sorry," he said to Seranova's mother. "My manners have left me. I am Ferrich and this is Morindessa."

  Her mother's eyes widened at Ferrich's name; when he mentioned Morindessa's, she shrank back in sudden fear. Deisian moved swiftly forward to place himself between his wife and Morindessa, while Seranova assured them that everything was fine. Ferrich stood with his mouth gaping, staring at them as if they had gone mad, while Morindessa arched a very cool eyebrow at Ferrich.

  "We just had a chance meeting," Seranova explained, describing the bizarre encounter. Her parents went from looking intrigued by the coincidental meeting, to alarm as she described the Elementals' attack.

  "Gorinthians, you say?” her father asked when she finished explaining the king’s unusual behavior.

  "That is what Morindessa called them,” Seranova replied, inclining her head at Morindessa.

  "Why would the Gorinthians be hunting you?” Seranova's mother asked Ferrich curiously.

  Morindessa cleared her throat. "I'm sorry, what was your name?" she asked Seranova's mother.

  "Clariona,” she replied, flushing slightly. "I didn't mean to overreact earlier, but you surprised me."

  "Think nothing of it, Clariona." Morindessa gestured at Ferrich. "We are not certain why the Gorinthians are hunting Ferrich, and Ferrich was not even aware of what a Gorinthian was until a few day ago.” Pausing, Morindessa studied Seranova's parents before asking, "How is it that you know what Gorinthians are?"

  The two of them shared a guarded look before answering. "My father knew of them,” Deisian answered, studying her in return. "He knew a lot of stories about the old civilization and the w
ar that ended it."

  "What was his name?” Morindessa asked intently.

  The couple shared another guarded look before Deisian sighed resignedly. "I am going to assume that his name will be safe with you, since the Gorinthians are trying to kill you. He was known as Ralcon, and was one of the last members of the Derinian order. Enough people remember the Derinian Order as being responsible for the end of the old civilization that it isn’t good idea to be associated with them.”

  Morindessa nodded in satisfaction. "I thought you looked familiar.” Seranova did not recognize the sudden spark of suppressed emotion in Morindessa's eyes. Could it be hope?

  "Have you ever met a woman by the name of Riah?” Morindessa asked too casually. "She may have been in the company of a man that was garbed in black."

  Deisian sighed sadly. "I knew a woman by that name," he admitted heavily. "If she was a friend, then I am sorry to inform you that she died some years ago.”

  Seranova had been watching Morindessa so she saw the wave of anguish that clouded her face for a moment. Tears welled in her eyes before she hastily pulled them back, resuming her mask of calm. "I see,” was all she said.

  "The man that you are referring to," her father said suddenly, "was his name Lochnar?"

  "Lochnar?” Morindessa repeated, looking as if she were tasting the word. "I never did learn his name. The man of whom I spoke was Riah's father."

  Deisian nodded. "Yes, that was Lochnar. As far as I know, he still lives.” From the look on her father’s face, there was more to it than that, though he said nothing more.

  "Father, the soldiers that escaped saw me clearly,” Seranova said in a rush. "They will be back to look for me. Maybe the other creatures will too, I don't know.” She watched her father anxiously, not willing to come out and say that she must leave.

  Her father sighed again. "I know.” Looking at Ferrich and Morindessa, he continued. "There is more at work here than meets the eye, I think. We could pretend that it was chance that you went to the lake on the same night that these two decided to make camp there. We could also pretend that it was chance that what you found on the bottom of the lake was the very weapon that you needed to defeat the Elemental and the Gorinthians. We could even stretch it so far by saying the fact that both Morindessa and I have ties to members of the Derinian order was just an odd coincidence.” Pausing, he surveyed the three of them to make sure that they understood. "We could pretend a lot of things, but I think there is another force at work here, something that is guiding your every footstep."

  Morindessa looked like this was not the first time that she had thought of this notion. She also looked like she did not like the implications involved, though Seranova had no idea what they might be. Ferrich's eyes were narrowed in thought as her father's observations sunk in.

  "I think it is time that we moved on," Deisian continued determinedly. "This has been an excellent home for the time that we have been here, but its purpose has been served.” He was watching Seranova, his eyes full of pride. "You have grown into a mantle of greatness that you do not yet realize, though one day you will."

  Seranova stared at her father uncertainly. "Are you saying that you are coming with us?” Seranova was not certain that her parents would be up to the journey that she was sure stretched before them.

  Shaking his head, her father sighed. "We will go to Shalilayo,” he said, glancing at his wife with an upraised eyebrow. "If the Gorinthians are returning, then we will need to be in a place where we can be of the most help. Shalilayo is one of the best strategic locations for the Enemy to have. We will need to influence the succession now that the king is dead and make certain that his replacement is not a Gorinthian as well."

  Staring at her father as if she had never seen him before, Seranova could only shake her head slowly in wonder. Who is my father? He was certainly much more than I realized. How did he know so much about the inner workings of court? And how was he going to influence the next succession? Turning to look at her mother, she noticed for the first time the regal bearing with which she carried herself. Clariona did not have the casual, almost clumsy gate of the other village wives, but carried herself with a grace that made her seem a swan among ducks. Clariona's expression was a mixture of sadness and anticipation, a combination that Seranova would not have thought possible to have share the same face.

  Morindessa cleared her throat again, this time a little more urgently. "I don't mean to rush you, but we need to move on if we want to make any distance before morning."

  "Where are we going?” Seranova asked curiously.

  Morindessa glanced at Ferrich with a slightly troubled expression on her face. "South, for now."

  "I have a kind of ship that we can use," Seranova offered. "That way we won't have to worry about running into soldiers."

  "A ship?" Morindessa said in surprise. "That would be wonderful."

  Walking up to her parents swiftly, Seranova embraced them fiercely. "I love you," she whispered softly into their ears. Her father whispered back that they would see her again when they returned to Shalilayo, and her mother told her to take care of her companions.

  Turning away from her parents, Seranova led Ferrich and Morindessa out the front door and down a path behind the house. The path led to an inlet from the lake that was a few hundred feet from their property. The inlet was surrounded by thick trees that were sheltering what looked like a large floating two-wheeled carriage with a mast in the center of it. There were small benches on the front and back of the odd looking barge and three very odd-shaped seats on the sides and middle.

  "That's a ship?" Morindessa asked doubtfully.

  "Sort of," Seranova replied as she walked down the small dock that it was tied to. She stepped aboard. "Except that this will travel faster than any ship that you can find on this lake."

  From the blank look on Morindessa's face, Seranova could tell that she thought that it was a boast. Ferrich was considering it with pursed lips, studying the round wells that attached to the sides. They would both see in a few moments.

  As her two companions joined her on board, she directed Morindessa to sit in the seat next to the port side, while she slipped into the seat on the starboard side. "Ferrich, can you cast off?" she called to him as he sat down on one of the benches. With a start, he stood back up and untied the ropes that held them to the side of the small dock.

  Reaching down to a lever that was sticking out of the deck next to her, she pulled hard. There was a loud clank beneath the decking, causing her two companions to jump slightly. She pulled another lever and the deck in front of the two seats opened up as a small set of foot pedals appeared where her and Morindessa's feet were. This time, Morindessa did jump out of her seat in surprise, but settled back sheepishly as Seranova arched an eyebrow at her.

  "Push your feet against the pedals to make the paddle wheel move," she said to Morindessa, pushing her feet against her own and pedaling backword to show her. "We push this way to go backword, the other way to go forward."

  The strange ship began turning in a circle as soon as Seranova pedaled backword, but straightened slightly as Morindessa began pedaling on the other side. As the small craft turned to face the open lake, Seranova told Morindessa to begin pedaling the other way. Seranova pushed the lever next to her forward, which caused the ship to turn the direction that she wanted. The small vessel picked up speed as they moved out into the main body of the lake. Seranova continued pulling different levers, which increased the resistance on the pedals and in turn increased their speed.

  As the two women pumped their legs against the pedals, Ferrich crawled over every inch of the boat, like a mouse that had just found a table full of food and did not know what to inspect first. He climbed on top of the well that covered the waterwheel, studying it from his precarious perch with an intensity that made both she and Morindessa laugh. Morindessa suggested that she pull the steering lever the other way and see how well Ferrich swam. Ferrich was completely oblivious to the
two of them. Instead, he made his way down from the well and over to the front of the vessel where a handle stuck out of the deck. As he looked inside, his eyes widened at the complicated series of gears, chains and pulleys rotating swiftly through the underside of the deck.

  "Be careful, Ferrich," Seranova warned. "You could lose a finger if it gets caught in the gears."

  Ferrich's head bobbed up above the upraised decking that had been hiding it, with a startled expression that made the two women laugh again. He had obviously forgotten that anyone else was on board.

  "Can he help in that seat?" Morindessa asked, gesturing at the seat that was between them.

  Seranova shook her head. "That is the seat I use when there is no one else to help." She pointed at the lever that she had switched when they first boarded. "It is set to either connect the middle seat to the gears, or the two side seats, but not all three."

  Morindessa nodded her understanding. "Where did you learn how to make all of this?" she asked with interest.

  "I actually can't take all of the credit for this invention," Seranova replied with a distant look on her face. "My father had a friend that had stayed with us for a couple of days once." Seranova remembered how interested the man had been in all of her inventions, telling her how brilliant she was. She had only been nineteen at the time and had flushed with pleasure at the compliment. "I had been working on a vessel that was much simpler than this at the time. When he saw it, he showed me a small drawing of how gears and chains worked, and that I could use my feet to propel it instead of my arms, leaving them free to steer."

  Morindessa's eyes had sharpened when she mentioned the man that had stayed with her father. "Do you know who the man was?" Her tone made Seranova's ears perk up warily.

  "He said that his name was Terrance," Seranova replied, looking at her curiously. "Why? Do you know him?"

  Morindessa's eyes had gone flat when she mentioned the man's name. "I know him," she said without elaborating further. A burning rage beneath her tone warned Seranova to leave the subject alone. Sighing, she wondered how many other people and events tied the three of them together.