Blood and Water - The Darkling

Chapter 15: I am Become a Blade

*Unedited

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𝖂𝖊 bob and falter, the little craft swinging precariously back and forth beneath the sails as Tamar and the crew tries to get control of the Starling. Snow lashes at our faces in stinging gusts, and when the hull nicks the side of a cliff, the whole deck tilts, sending us all scrambling for purchase.

There are no Tidemakers to keep us cloaked in mist, so we can only hope that Baghra bought us enough time to get clear of the mountains and the Darkling.

Baghra. My eyes dart over the deck. Misha is tucked against the side of the hull, his arms curling over his head. No one can stop to offer comfort.

Even I have to force the numbness away. The heartbreak can wait.

I kneel beside Adrik and Genya. A nichevo'ya had taken a massive bite from Adrik's shoulder, and Genya is trying to stop the bleeding, but she's never been trained as a Healer. His lips are pale, his skin ice-cold, and as I watch, his eyes begin to roll back in his head.

"Natalya!" I shout, officially in leader mode.

The Healer rushes to my side and leans over Adrik. She has no warm words for the boy. All I can hear is her constant mumbling, "Poor Miroslava. Yuri. Sasha. Dmitri. Boris."

I don't waste time trying to comfort her. My shaky legs push up from the ground and I walk over to my surviving Grisha, "Ziva and Mikhail! Help with the sails. Everyone else to your assigned posts. If you don't have one then find one that is empty. We survived the Darkling, we are not dying now."

It appears that a leader is all we need. The moment my voice pierces the wind, people shake out of their stupor and jump into action.

My body doesn't stop moving. From working the lines to shouting out instructions to those that were never trained for this. I do as much as possible to keep us afloat and to keep my emotions at bay.

Suddenly, Alina says, "We need to set down."

"No," I immediately reply. "The Darkling would find us easily right now."

"Where are we?" Harshaw asks. His red hair lays flat on his head, soaked through with snow.

Tamar consults her charts, "Just past the permafrost. If we keep heading south, we'll be above more populated areas soon."

"We could try to find woods for cover," Inessa suggests.

"We're too near Chernast," I answer.

"Where are we headed, anyway?" Zoya asks.

Alina doesn't hesitate, "To the copper mine at Murin. To the firebird."

There is a brief silence.

I disagree with her decision but right now arguing will get us nowhere.

Harshaw breaks the tension, "We could run. Every time we face those monsters, more of us die. We could take this ship anywhere. Kerch. Novyi Zem."

"Like hell," Mal mutters.

"This is my home," Zoya agrees. "I won't be chased out of it."

I nod, "Mal and Zoya are right. We could very well try running but it won't change anything. He would still hunt us as traitors. We would never be safe. Ravka would never be safe. This country's best hope rests in the hands of everyone on this vessel. I refuse to let this country be destroyed... And if we run then our friends died for nothing."