He had ended the storm as his minions neared the surface. They would find it easier to attack a becalmed ship than a moving one. He used the dreaming Source's power to fill his minions with rage, hunger for manflesh.
Feast, my children, he sent to them. Feast.
Frustratingly, the Source continued to feed him only half-measures, realities that Ssessimyth felt but did not live. His anger swelled. He tried and failed again to pull the attention of the Source back to himself alone, to share its dreams with only him. It resisted and Ssessimyth's body jerked in agitation. He became conscious for the first time in a long while of the throbbing pain in his head, of the ruins around him, the coldness of the water, the darkness of the deep. His waking dream-more beautiful than reality ever had been-was ending. At least temporarily. As it did, he felt something he had not felt in centuries: rage. He would not let his universe slip away easily.
If his servants did not kill those who dared try to share the Source with him, he would kill them himself. He knew that at least one creature aboard the ships was in contact with the Source, stealing its visions from Ssessimyth. He would not tolerate it much longer.
CHAPTER 12
OUT OF THE DEPTHS
Cale and Jak shared a look
What kind of presence? Cale asked Magadon. Under the sea? Is that what the slaadi are after?
I am not sure, the guide answered, and curiosity colored his tone. There's a consciousness here, Erevis. It's primitive, almost childlike, but very powerful. It's also torpid, as if sleeping. It does not communicate in a way that I can make sense of, but it makes itself. . . available.
What does that mean? Cale asked.
Magadon answered, I am not certain yet. I need some time.
Cale did not think they had time to spare.
"It is breaking!" shouted a sailor from the forecastle. "There, look!"
Cale followed the man's gesture and saw a hole in the clouds ahead. Stars peeked through.
As if in answer to the sailor's words, the rain slowed, stopped. The wind, too, died. Cale put a hand on Jak's shoulder and smiled. Demon Binder had made it through.
From the maindeck behind them, Cale heard Evrel ordering a headcount.
Do what you must, Cale projected to Magadon. But do not lose track of the slaadi.
I won't, the guide answered.
Cale turned and looked out on the calming sea, where the swells already were settling.
That was when he saw it.
The slaadi's ship floated not more than three bowshots away, glowing green on the black waves. And Demon Binder was closing fast. Despite the lack of wind, Jak's elementals propelled the vessel rapidly over the sea.
The light from the slaadi's ship was growing larger, brighter.
"Tell the elementals to stop us, Jak," Cale ordered. "Right now." To Magadon, he projected, Mags, tell the captain to snuff all lights aboard ship and to keep the crew quiet. Now.
Cale knew that light and sound traveled far across a calm sea. As though to make his point, a cheer carried across the water from the slaadi's ship.
Cale unhooked the lanterns from the prow and let them fall into the sea. Within moments, the crew had snuffed all other lights aboard Demon Binder. The ship's forward progress stopped. Jak must have dismissed his spell and released the elementals from their service. Demon Binder bobbed in silence on a calm sea, within eyeshot of the slaadi.
Cale and Jak doffed their cloaks and wrung them out, checked their gear. Cale eyed the sea suspiciously as he did so.
"Like it's waiting," Jak said, reading Cale's expression.
Cale nodded. What is Riven doing, Mags? he asked.
Before Magadon answered, Cale felt a thump against the ship's timbers. Another.
"That's from below the waterline," Jak said.
Another thump.
Confused shouts sounded from the maindeck. Cale cursed, fearing the slaadi would hear.
Splashing sounded from below, the crack of splintering wood. Bestial grunts carried up from the sea and caused Cale's heart to accelerate.
Something was coming out of the water.
Cale and Jak leaned out over the side as far as they could and looked along the hull of the ship.
A dozen or more dripping, green-skinned creatures were scaling the hull. Thin, overlong arms and legs ridged with muscle and sinew ended in long claws that dug furrows in the ship's side as the creatures climbed. Long, straggly hair the color of seaweed sprouted from their round heads. Their fang-filled mouths could take off a head at one bite.
"Scrags," Jak said. "Dark!"
From the maindeck, shouts of alarm from the crew echoed Jak's words.
"Sea trolls! Scrags!"
From below the waterline, the thumping against the hull continued, as did the grating sounds. No doubt some of the scrags were trying to tear a hole in Demon Binder's bottom. Cale had seen their claws and had little doubt they could do it, given enough time.
Chanting sounded from down in the water. Cale recognized the cadence of a spell.
"They've got a shaman," he said.
He pulled Weaveshear free of its scabbard, and he and Jak raced over the forecastle to the maindeck.
* * * * *
Azriim watched the huge heads and fang-filled mouths appear over the sides of the ship. Straggly green hair hung from the trolls' oversized heads.
"Scrags!" screamed several members of the crew, and grabbed for weapons. "Trolls on the deck!"
Riven started to draw his blades but Azriim stopped him with a hand on his wrist. He showed the assassin and Dolgan the compass. The needle pointed directly down.
"Here is where we disembark," Azriim said.
Several of the trolls already had scrambled over the rail. They shook the water from their long, stringy hair, roared, and charged the nearest crewmen. Sertan shouted orders, men fought with whatever weapons were at hand, screamed, and bled. Trolls answered with growls and grunts. The chant of a spellcaster sounded from somewhere and a bubble of darkness formed over the melee. Within the blackness, sailors screamed in pain.