The Quorin Saga: WattALegend 2021

Zauthean

A gentle evening breeze passed through the beach, filling the air with the scent of coconuts and sea salt. Ocean mist tickled my skin as I worked on tugging and adjusting the ropes of my flying contraption. I felt oddly relaxed considering the quest I had in front of me.

"Clover, are you sure this is what you want?" Father asked from behind me. I tied off one of the ropes, which pulled part of the wing taut. With a small shuffle, I shifted to the next one, working with nimble hands.

"I'm sure, Father," I responded, "I want this for you. For me," I turned and threw a quick glance over my shoulder, looking at Gloria who was snoozing in Father's arms. My younger sister's frizzy brown hair puffed up in the humid air and her tiny hands were curled against her chest. "For Gloria." I added, turning back to my work. "She has so much potential, just not here. When I find the Captain's lost treasure and I get the Pathfinder, she can live better. We can live better."

"We can find another way," Father offered, "A safer way. This is a quest, Clover, not a trip. It's dangerous."

I began stocking the storage trunk on the back of my flier with clothing and rations, as well as maintenance materials. "I know, Father. I'm seventeen now. It's time I started pulling my weight."

"You can do it some other way, son," I felt his hand on my shoulder and I turned to him, looking him straight in the eyes. "I don't want you to get hurt. I want you here, where you belong," His eyes began to water the smallest bit, glittering in response to the sunset, "The world out there, it's not like life here on Zeuthean. Here, we're safe. Secluded and separated from the world, yes, but safe. Out there, there are opportunities, but there's also hate and fear and violence. I just don't want you seeing too much too soon."

He pulled me in for a hug, holding me close to him with one arm, the other carefully cradling Gloria. He was strong from years upon years of being a crew member of the Captain's ship, but still retained enough gentleness for his children. Quietly, I said, "I have to see it sometime, Father. Why not now?"

He gave me a tight squeeze before letting me go, "Because I'll miss you too much."

"I'll be back," I said before leaning over to give Gloria a kiss on the forehead. She barely stirred, only turning her head further into Father's chest and curling up tighter. For a moment, we stood in the silence, relishing in the cool sea breeze and the warm evening sun. The waves gently rolled onto the beach, then receded back into the water. I breathed deeply, soaking in the fresh smell of the island one last time before I left.

"Well," Father grunted, sighing deeply, "The sooner you leave, the sooner you come back. Here," he said, "Let this be a parting gift, if you will," He handed me a rolled up piece of paper that I knew all too well. It was the piece of parchment stating the mission. I had read the paper many times over since that morning, so I almost knew the page by heart, but something was different about it. On the back was a roughly sketched map of Quorin with red guiding lines spanning across it. "Don't forget, I was on the Captain's last voyage. If he lost his treasure sometime on the trip, it'll be on this route. Now, get a move on, boy. And stay safe." He gave me a light shove towards my contraption and I nodded in thanks, tucking it into my satchel.

My contraption was a new invention on the island that only Father, Gloria, and a few of my friends knew about. Oh, and the Captain of course; he knew about everything on the island. Its skeleton was made of lightweight wood and its wings were stretched out across the top. They were made of strong canvas I had woven myself. But, none of its physical materials were what made it fly; it was the secret underneath. Sure, the wind had a big effect on a flight's success, but attached to the floor of the contraption was the magic piece that kept it going.

It used to be my Mother's. She was a fierce fisherwoman, one of the first women on the island to take on the job. Anyone could catch fish, but what made her wares so special was that she was able to venture out into the deep sea and catch fish no one had ever seen before. No one quite understood her secret to traveling so fast until five year old Clover had wandered into her quarters and found a shimmering pendant the size of an orange. It was large, round and silver, with the middle being a milky, pearly white stone. Crawling across its surface were thin tendrils of silver, weaving together to create a graceful knot of metal in the middle.

"Can you keep a secret, my Little Lucky?" She had said, leaning in close. Eagerly, I nodded and she continued, "This is a special tool only for those seeking adventure, little one. This calls on the ancient spirits of the wind and it pushes me deep into the water, letting me find all of the good fish. It makes my boat travel faster than anyone's boat ever has."

So, when I had begun dabbling in inventing as I grew older, the only thing I requested from my late Mother's belongings was the pendant of the wind. Low and behold, it came in handy. Fastened to the bottom of my flier, I could travel as fast and far as I wanted.

I loaded myself into the contraption, giving everything one last check before carefully tapping the pendant with my foot. A puff of air rose up around the flier and it began to hover over the sand.

"Good luck, Clover," Father said, "We'll be waiting for you." I smiled and waved before letting the pendant raise the contraption into the sky. I held my breath as it began to levitate higher and higher and then ride off on a gust of wind. It sailed through the sky, moving over the nearby forest. I looked down with an amazed gasp, watching the trees zoom by below. The fresh island air blew my chestnut curls out of my face. I peeked out from under the wings and looked up at the sky, painted with pinks, blues, and yellows. Taken by the beauty of the moment, I let out a triumphant laugh.

As the flight carried on, I reviewed the actual journey. Like Father had said, it wasn't just a trip; it was a quest. I had a job to do. I pulled the poster out of the satchel I had at my side and held onto it carefully. The papers had been posted all over the town earlier that day and as soon as I saw it, I knew I had to give it a shot. It described the situation in eloquent language, but could be simplified to "the Captain lost his most important treasure on his latest trip around the kingdom". The poster instructed that anyone who was able to find the Captain's lost item, which he unfortunately couldn't share the name for an unknown reason, would be granted the Pathfinder, the object that would lead the owner to unimaginable treasure.

I smiled to myself as I thought about it. Gloria was a smart girl, even at four years old. With the treasure granted by the Pathfinder, surely Father and I would be able to enroll her in a proper school and give her the boost I never had.

I turned my attention back to the paper, skimming over the contents. Even though the name couldn't be shared, a picture definitely could. The drawing provided, done in ink, was of a cube. I couldn't tell how big it was supposed to be from the picture but I assumed that it wasn't terribly large if it could be lost so easily. On each of its planes was a circular indent with a short raised lip around the circumference. A further description underneath it stated that it was made of metal and looked to be made of copper.

I flipped the paper over and looked at the map my Father had drawn. From Zauthean, the first place I would need to head to would be Abyssos, a very aquatic kingdom which was half-underwater.

I leaned back in my seat, staring off into the sky. The initial take-off of the plane had left me jittery and energetic, but as I soared through the air, I began to relax. I let the plane carry me into the night and off to Abyssos.

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