Shadows Bleed

XI

XI

The Stormwall appeared on the horizon late on the sixteenth day of our journey, the day following my awkward encounter with Celeste.

The majority of my day was spent avoiding her while I went about my usual training but, come the afternoon, our usual sparring time, I had to face the music.

"You ready?" she asked, drawing her narrow, Arulenite scimitar free of its sheath.

"Yes," I said after a moment's hesitation.

It was odd, her behaviour, in that she did not seem any different from the previous day. She acted as though nothing out of the ordinary had happened. Maybe it wasn't as big an issue as I made it out to be. Maybe I was overreacting. The thought of that brought a smile to my face as we crossed blades. Things might not be so complicated after all.

We spent nearly an hour dancing around the deck, deflecting each other's blows with little effort, before the pace quickened further. She lunged at me, her blade poised to strike my heart. I batted her weapon aside, sidestepping to tap the flat of my blade against her calf; first point to me.

She struck again, slicing towards my shoulder. I caught her sword on mine, our blades locking. The distance between us was reduced to centimetres as our blades slid until they were crossed at the hilts. Then it happened.

Without pausing, she leaned forward and planted a kiss squarely on my lips. My eyes widened in shock as she unlocked our blades and slapped the top of my head with the flat of her steel, all in one fluid motion.

"What was that?" I asked, nonplussed. Maybe things were complicated.

"I believe I scored," she said, flashing her perfect teeth.

"Not that," I retorted, hands on hips. "The kiss. Why?"

"Maybe I like you," she answered, raising her eyebrows. "Or maybe I just wanted to distract you so I could score. Shall we continue?"

Before I could respond we were interrupted by Bluepin. He strode across the deck with a sense of urgent purpose, moving with almost regal grace. It did not suit him. His brow was knitted and his eyes distracted.

"Time to put the sticks away," he said, walking straight past us and heading toward the prow. "The Stormwall is ahead. So is company."

I raced after him, to the front of the Mayflower, eager to confirm his words. He was right. On the horizon the sky shifted from clear to black, massive clouds towering higher than the eye could see. Lightning sliced and cut through them constantly, thunder always rolling on the breeze a few seconds later.

And then there was 'the company' he had mentioned. A innumerable number of giant warships with red sails floated on the waves on the edge of the Stormwall. The red sails betrayed their affiliation; these were Imperial Navy cruisers. Not Inquisition ships, mind you, but Imperial nonetheless.

"What are they doing so far out?" I wondered aloud to Bluepin. He shrugged.

"Beats me. Who knows what motivates the Emperor?"

"I hope they're not after me," I mumbled, more audibly than I intended.

"Why would they be after you?" Bluepin and Celeste asked simultaneously.

"Uh, it's complicated," I answered nervously, remembering they were not from the Imperium and were likely unfamiliar with the Crimson Sorrow. "I'll explain later. Is there a way we can get around them?"

"We can sail further north until they're out of sight. If you'd like, that is," Bluepin suggested.

"Sounds good, let's do that. You'll tell Varik?"