The Outskirts: The Sky Raiders (Jace x OC)

Part 23

By the time they had extracted the floatstones and brought them back to where I was, night had fallen and it was pouring rain. The wind had risen, blowing the droplets diagonally. No stars were visable. The temperature had dropped significantly.
Each floatstone was a mirror like disc with round edges, no bigger than a dinner plate, maybe three or four inches thick. When you let go of them, they hovered in place, perfectly stationary.
We were waiting for Lyrus to return as with something to serve as a skycraft.
Me, Cole, and Mira sat together, backs against the stone wall of the next building.
"What a mess." Cole said. "I'm so sorry."
"Me too." I added.
"You guys saved my life, Durny's too." She said.
"Whatever." Cole said. "If you say so."
If there was one thing he was good at, it was feeling sorry for himself.
"Why'd you do it?" She asked earnestly. "You were in a lifeboat. You could have escaped."
"I didn't want to see you guys get squished. It would have been my fault." Cole mumbled.
Mira shook her head. "We're slaves Cole. You came here because they forced you. If you want to place blame, give it to the owners of the Sky Raiders. No matter what goes wrong, you don't deserve any of it."
"Maybe your right." Cole said. "But I still couldn't watch you guys get killed. I just couldn't. I saw it coming. I saw a chance to stop it, so I tried. There wasn't time to think it through."
"Well it was the bravest thing anyone has done for me. And the least expected. Thank you."
Mira gave him a kiss on the cheek, and his face turned bright red. I tried to cover a laugh, but I failed.
"Aha!" Lyrus yelled. "To the victor goes the spoils."
"What?" Cole said.
"You saved a damsel in distress." Lyrus said. "I may never have that pleasure. You talk like a coward, but act like a hero. I can respect that." This time I couldn't hold it in, and laughed hard. Mira did to, even Cole laughed a little.
Lyrus set down a big box. I realized it was a coffin. It was a regular shaped coffin, except it looked like it was for someone who was eight feet tall.
"Woah." I said. "Where'd you find that thing?"
"In the crypts." Lyrus said. "There we're plenty of cooler ones. You should have seen the skeleton. It had the head of a bull. A Minotaur, most likely."
Mira tan a hand down the box. "Feels sturdy. It hasn't rotted."
"I hope it serves." Lyrus said.
Mira shook Durny awake. "Oh dear, a bit morbid isn't it. But it will have to suffice. How much time do we have before we reach the Cloudwall?"
"The storm has hastened our progress. No more than two hours." Lyrus said.
Durny sighed. "I had hoped the children could wait for the storm to relent before departing.
We'll have to work quickly, and you three will have to risk turbulent air."
"Won't you come with us?" Mira pleaded.
Durny shook his head. "There would be no sense in it. I won't last many more hours. Better for me to bow out gracefully than spend my final moments as dead weight."
"You have to try!" Mira said. "Maybe they can heal you. Maybe—"
Durny held out a hand. "Please don't weary me any further. We have no time to waste. You do not understand the damage inside me. I shaped myself in unnatural ways. It bought me some extra hours of life, but no one can heal me now.
I have no desire to die-but there is simply no way around it. Give me the floatstones. Cole, may I have a private word with you?"
As Durny spoke with Cole, he started working on the coffin. Mira came and sat with me, tears in her eyes.
"Hey," I said. "It will be okay, he wants this."
"I know," Mira sniffed. "But I'm going to miss him."
"I will too." And I meant it. Durny had brought me and Cole to the Sky Raiders, but he had been nice enough.
Lyrus and Cole walked over to us.
"You proved yourself. You deserve to be rewarded. What manner of prizes would you prefer?" Lyrus asked.
"Do you have any special weapons?" Asked Cole. "You know, that are shaped to do things? Or treasures with secret abilities, like my cloak?"
"You were wise to ask." Lyrus said. "We have three such items: a painting that foretells the next days weather, a jewel that will always return to the first person who kisses it, and a bow that requires no arrows. They were prepared to reward discerning eyes, but I wear your shawl, and you asked, so I would be glad to give them to you."
Cole pulled me up and put my arm around his shoulders to help me walk, and we set off. We used the catacombs to avoid the rain. We visited three different treasure rooms, all lit by candles and torches. Cole kissed the jewel immediately, and Lyrus wrapped the painting in cloth, and grabbed the bow so we could grab more stuff.
I loaded my pockets with jewels and coins, and my fingers with rings, and put on several necklaces. Cole grabbed a small chest filled with gold coins. Lyrus also grabbed us cloaks to shield us from the rain. I was hard to tear myself away from the treasure, but when Lyrus announced that we only had half and hour before we reached the Cloudwall, I knew it was time to go.
Upon returning from where they had left Durny and Mira, we found Durny facedown on the floor, with Mira crouched beside him. Mira had tears running down her face, and her eyes were red and puffy.
"He's gone." She choked out.
"I'm so sorry." I said.
"Yeah," Cole added. "He saved us."
"Did he finish the skycraft?" Lyrus asked.
"He died as he finished it." Mira said. "He warned me that he might. We can't steer it, but it shouldn't be necessary. The coffin will fly itself to the salvage yard. It was the safest destination he could give us. The Cliffside entrances are sealed at night."
"You should depart," Lyrus said. "Time runs short."
"Do you want to come with us?" Cole said.
He shook his head. "I would not survive the journey. Better that I remain here where I belong."
"Durny told me we should launch the skycraft from the edge of Parona." Mira said.
"He was right," Lyrus agreed. "Once you depart, the catapults will target you. The storm should wreck havoc in there sun, but why take needless risks?"
"Seriously?" I snapped. "That's pretty ironic coming from you, you just fought monsters on purpose!"
Lyrus shrugged. "You're a maiden. And you can't fight a ball of flame. Cole, I should return your shawl?"
"Wait until we take off." Cole said, clearly skeptical.
"As you wish." Lyrus said.
We situated the items we were taking in the coffin, and put on our cloaks. Lyrus picked up one side off the coffin and dragged it toward the edge. We followed behind him. The wind gusted hard enough to make the walk laborious.
"Not the night I would choose to go flying in a
Minotaurs coffin." I grumbled.
"I've had some bad days with the Sky Raiders,"
Mira said. "But this one takes the cake."
We followed Lyrus to the edge of a patio where he set the coffin.
"Would you like me to remove the shawl now?"
Lyrus asked.
"Yes." Cole said.
The soldier removed his shawl, and handed it to Cole. "Luck be with you."
"Die bravely." Mira said, and we echoed her.
"What now?" Cole asked.
Mira stepped inside the coffin. "We get in and I tell it to go."
We climbed inside, Mira in the back, Cole in the middle, and me in the front. Cole wrapped his arms around my waist, and Mira clung to Cole.
"Everyone ready?" Mira said. We nodded and she yelled, "Skyport!"
And we fly off.