Under a Starless Sky

Chapter 76

From the air, they saw the vastness of a submerged archipelago, primarily limestone that rivaled the

Bahama Banks. The twist of sea dunes was as if Monet and Van Gogh had collaborated on the world.

Much of it seemed barren, except for pockets where life exploded along these twist and turns, oases

under the sea that quickly dropped to black water, and around small islands topped by grass and or

shrubs. There were sea people ships. One of them looked as if it were beached. The people could

wade in waters waist deep for miles. There were people in water around the ship and they seemed

happy. TL took note of their position and assured Shen she would check back with them, but that there

was no apparent signs of distress.

Shen left the deck and found his friends having a meal together. They stood as one.

“Don’t do that,” Shen said. “Sit”

They sat. It was uncomfortable. “May I join you? Or is this a private club meeting?”

“We’re in your house, brother,” Arne said.

“Is it private, or do you know everything?” Orton asked.

Arne was not happy about that, but it was out- and it was a reasonable inquiry.

“I do not know everything. At some level, the ship hears you, and I suppose I have the authority to

follow that, but I don’t. Following that stuff to that degree makes people crazy sick. I will know you by

our interaction, by your words directly to me, or make assumptions in your absence just like normal

people would,” Shen said.

Shen wanted to ask if he had done something wrong. He didn’t. He stood for moment, considered

leaving, but sat down at the table with them. Uffe set a beer in front of him. Shen thanked him. He

drank from it, and finished it in one go, and set it down. He wiped his mouth.

“Oh, is that not the game we’re playing?” Shen asked.

Arne laughed. More beer was shared.

“So, you can be normal?” Yaffa asked.

“No,” Shen assured. “I can pretend for a moment.”

Loxy emerged. “Sorry to interrupt. Jon, you may want to see this.”

Jon excused himself. Arne and Torny followed them to the helm. The ship was hovering over the sea.

The sea was dark black, except for one rise of a submarine mountain. A domed city was on top of the

mountain. All of it submerged. TL manipulated the image and was able to give them a reasonable view

inside. She took them in through a tunnel on the mountain, and up to a central, inner harbor. The city

was easily the size of Paris, with paved streets and water way canals flowing from a central park and

inner lake. The dome, with the inner lake and surrounding city sea scape, seemed like an eye- with

accompany iris. He found himself comparing it to the ‘tech-eye’ the giantesses had.

“This city is old,” TL said. “There are clearly caretakers, given how the flora hasn’t taken over. That

could be automated. I don’t see signs of inhabitants.”

“We promised to get our guests home,” Shen said.

“A whole city without people?” Arne said.

“We found many a ruins,” Torny said.

“We have found ruins, but this is different,” Arne said.

“Really, you don’t remember the last city paved with gold? The sirens nested on the rocks nearly killed

you. And the next Siren occupied city nearly killed Jerica, you, Erico, and Shen,” Torny said. “This is

how deep in the water? We can’t get there.”

“Yeah, we can,” Shen said.

“No!” Torny pointed at him. She turned back to Arne. “No, Arne. This is just another distraction. We are

going home. That’s it.”

“Drop a probe,” Shen said. “Return to previous speed and heading.” He turned to Arne and Torny. “You

will be home on schedule, as promised.”

“Thank you,” Arne said. “Coming back?”

“Sorry, one too many beers for me. I am going to go take a nap,” Shen said. “Excuse me.”

Shen returned to his quarters. TL joined him after the guests had departed. She laid in bed next to him

and stared at the ceiling.

“You okay?” TL asked.

“Yeah,” Shen said.

“That wasn’t convincing,” TL said.

Shen turned over into her, hugged her closer. “Is it the nature of captains to be lonely?”

“It’s the nature of humans,” TL said. She hugged him tighter.

Easter Midelay looked quaint from the air, but alive. Whether they saw the ship passing overhead was

not obvious from above, at their height and speed. It was Shen’s experience, they don’t look up. No

stars, why look up? People near the Isle of Dragons likely looked up. There was East side home on

one of the water fall steps, its water supply now maintained artificially since the shift in the river. If there

was any place passable by climbing it would have been here, but then one had to cross the gap’s lake.

He called it the missing tooth lake. Snow melt kept the lake full. Even rain clouds had trouble passing

the mountains, and they would resolve into the lake. The Calypso passed with ease, descended

vertically down the other side and landed in the court yard. Breathing was noticeably impacted by the

pass over, but still Shen and Arne remained on deck, enjoying the cold, brisk air, and witnessing the

change as Calypso descended.

Once everyone had disembarked, the ship rose, became embedded in an orb of energy, and reduced

in size. It came to TL’s hand. She placed it in her bag.

“What about Calypso?” Orton asked. “She’s still on the ship?”

“She’s alright,” TL promised him.

“She is the ship,” Shen reminded them.

“This castle is huge,” Arne said.

“It would have been bigger, but someone said we would never have guests,” TL said. “There’s an

orchard outside the gates. Wild bees, and some tamed hives. Gardens. And the goat pin.”

“The wall is big enough to hold off a giant,” Torny said. Property of Nô)(velDr(a)ma.Org.

“Or wild Irks,” TL said.

“Come on, I’ll take you to the gate and get you home,” Shen said.

“All this, by yourself?” Jerica asked.

“You are all welcomed to stay,” Shen said.

“You’re not afraid we’ll steal your stuff?” Orton asked.

“No,” Shen assured them. “It’s just stuff. Cary what you want.”

“Or what you can,” TL said, amused.

They gathered around Erico who was trying to lift the Torch from the stone. He realized the amount of

effort he was now putting into it had attracted attention.

“Sorry, it seemed discarded,” Erico said.

Orton scoffed. He pushed Orton out of the way to retrieve the object. “What, you can’t…” His eyes

widened. They bulged and his face went red as he added effort with two hands.

“Most things simply can’t be taken because they’re smart,” TL explained.

Arne was curious and grasped the Torch. He didn’t pull it. He simply took hold. His eyes shifted, going

distant, then began tracking things around him that no one else saw. His lips subvocalized.

“Are you connecting with him?” Shen asked.

“No,” TL said.

“Back away,” Shen directed everyone.

“What kind of sorcery is this?” Torny said.

“Please, back up,” Shen said. He turned to TL. “Do something.”

“I cannot interrupt the process,” TL said.

Arne pulled the Torch free from the stone, a blade coming with it-forming even as the sword was drawn

up, sparking, turning the stone red with light around the edge that had sheathed it. The blade fully freed

was perfectly suited for Arne, solid weight, balance, and the sheen rivaled that of a polished steel

mirror. The sheath in the stone filled with liquid rock and solidified. A hilt formed on at the end of the

torch. He sheathed the sword in a scabbard that was ‘suddenly’ hanging from his belt- and may have

arrived there even as the sword was being teased from the stone. No one had noticed the truth of it,

they just accepted its presence. Using tech, Shen could see that all of Arne’s clothes were being taken

over by tech. The legends of Arthur state the scabbard could prevent injury. The sheath kept the sword

charged with power. The sword itself would cut through iron as easy as wood, and this sword certainly

would. The sword in the stone was a lightsaber before things were called such. Once sheathed, Arne

was suddenly back, refreshed, but surprised by the congregation around him.

“Where did you all come from?” Arne asked.

Shen took a knee. “King Arne,” he said. “I am your humble servant.”

Arne laughed. So did his friends. TL took a knee. “Your majesty. We are yours to command.”

“Get up,” Arne said. “You’re embarrassing me.”

Shen and TL stood, and waited for command. Arne’s company also stared, waiting for explanation.

“What?” Arne asked.

“What did you experience?” Shen asked.

“I went for a walk, I met Skadi,” Arne said.

“The Lady of the Mountain?” Jerica asked. “I’ve been looking for her all my life and you think you just

met her?”

“Brother,” Erico said. “You didn’t go anywhere. You’ve been right here with us the whole time.”

“No. Look,” Arne said. He withdrew the sword. “She gave me this.”

“No, she didn’t. You just took it from that stone there,” Torny said.

“No, I didn’t,” Arne argued.

“Brother we just watched you do it!” Erico said.

“You haven’t been eating Lotus, have you?” Orton said.

“I believe you,” Shen said.

“You were right here with us when he pulled it from the stone,” Jerica said.

“And I am telling you, both accounts are true, and there might be a dozen more versions of this

acceptance of the sword before the world ends,” Shen said.

“The sword belongs to Shen,” Torny said. “You should give it back.”

“If the Lady gave it to him, it belongs to him,” Shen said.

“I am glad you said that. I would hate to have to kill you for it,” Arne said.

“It’s possessed. Give it back,” Torny said.

“It’s not possessed,” Shen assured him. “The sword is sentient. It will teach you its ways, in a manner

that fits your understanding.”

“You mean, he will become like you?” Torny said.

“No. He will be Arne. He will become more like Arne,” Shen assured them.

“How could he be more like himself?” Jerica asked.

“What was all this king nonsense?” Arne asked.

“I am not King material,” Shen said. “I am okay at being a ship’s Captain- because I have crew that

compliments me. I would be less efficient at being a King’s magician, but here we are, in Merlin’s

court.”

“That’s funny,” TL said.

“We want to go home, now,” Torny said.

“This way,” Shen said.