Ferðin út ljósin (Journey beyond the lights)

Chapter 3

Seeing the boat pull away from the shore and make its way closer to the ship, Matthias was just about ready to jump into the water and swim after them. He wanted to, he really did, but Berwald stopped him. He grabbed the back of Matthias' shirt, stopping him from going any further. Matthias struggled against him, and almost got away, until Tino got involved.

Tino came to stand in front of Matthias with his arms stretched wide open. So when Matthias slipped from Berwald's grip, he went straight to Tino. Tino hugged Matthias tightly, trying to squeeze some sense into him. It also let Matthias know there was no chance of him getting away from the Fin.

Matthias knew he couldn't get away, so he gave up struggling. He looked over at Lukas, his face filled with guilt. After all he felt as if he was the reason Lukas' brother had just been taken away. "Norge... I'm sorry."

Lukas didn't seem to register Matthias' words. He was staring out at the ship, watching as they brought Emil aboard. His jaw was clenched as he watched. He knew he was powerless against what had happened to Emil. As were the rest of them.

"Lukas?" Berwald spoke up, trying to snap the other out of his thoughts. It worked, for Lukas turned to look at the other three. Taking a moment to look at each one of them in turn.

He first looked at Berwald, then Tino. They both seemed to be as if they were waiting for him to speak. To say what he wanted to do. After all Emil was his brother.

Then Lukas looked at Matthias, who was still being held by Tino. His face showed visible guilt. He was looking down at the snow, not being able to pull his eyes up to look at Lukas. Matthias thought he had failed Lukas, when it was actually himself that he felt he had failed.

"Let's go get a boat." Lukas said. The Norwegian didn't blame any of them, even if he wanted to. He knew they had tried their best, and that was all he could really ask for. But now he could ask for some more help since he knew they couldn't get Emil back of they just sat around.

"What?" Matthias looked up from the snow he was glaring at. He hadn't fully heard Lukas but he had a pretty good idea of what the other had said. "Where are we supposed to get a moat? And why?"

Lukas glared at Matthias. "A boat. Not a moat." Lukas rolled his eyes as Matthias' mouth shaped as an 'O'.

"Well where are we supposed to get a boat?" Matthias asked. He had no idea where they were supposed to get a boat. They didn't even own a boat.

"Are you saying we're going to steal one?" Tino asked. He looked at Lukas looking for either confirmation or denial. Lukas looked at Tino blankly and shook his head. There were no boats around that they could steal anyway.

"Just be quiet for a moment, alright?" Lukas said. Lukas made a circle in the snow before kneeling down and dragging his finger through it. Writing a spell in the snow. He then straightened up before stepping into the circle.

As soon as Lukas stepped into the circle, sound reaches his ears. It wasn't just any sound though. It was all that Emil was hearing. A simple spell that only reached a certain distance away.

🇮🇸🇮🇸🇮🇸🇮🇸

Emil was terrified to the point where he shook with it. His family had been so close, yet they couldn't stop what happened to him. Maybe if he left a few minutes later than he did this wouldn't be happening. Emil was really starting to regret leaving the house at all.

He was thrown down on the deck once they arrived on board. Emil let out a squeak as he made contact with the wood. Some of it came up and dug into his hands as he fell. It hurt and he wanted to cry, but he didn't. He held back the tears knowing it wouldn't help him.

"Oh looky, what do we have here?" A gruff voice asked as footsteps neared. He got near Emil and all Emil could smell was dirt and whiskey. That was probably why his voice was so gruff, from drinking nothing but strong alcohol.

Someone grabbed the back of his coat and yanked him up. The cold callused hand brushing against his neck as he did so. Emil kicked blindly at whomever had picked him up. His feet reached nothing but empty air.

"Let me go!" Emil demanded. Upon hearing that, everyone on the ship laughed. To them, it was funny to hear a six year old demand something. It was also amusing to them to watch the Icelander struggle.

"Are you saying you want freedom little one?" Another voice asked. This one sounding calmer and more collected then the first. The voice of a confident captain. One Emil had only heard once before, Captain Kirkland. "Well I don't see you getting that any time soon."

Emil continued to kick around even if his feet met nothing. He hoped it would make him harder to hold onto. That way he would at least be put down. He didn't like the way he was being picked up.

The captain just laughed at Emil and the way he was struggling against him. Or more like trying to struggle. It wasn't working. All it was doing was making Emil more and more exhausted. It was hours after his bed time, and he needed to get sleep. He didn't even want to consider sleeping while on Captain Kirkland's ship.

Emil eventually stopped struggling. He had next to no energy left now and needed the last bit for staying up. He left himself hang limp, panting for breath. The way he was being held up did not help at all. The way his coat was pressing against his neck, really didn't help at all.

"Men, in sail and set our course for home." Arthur said and the crew did as they were told. Instantly getting work to open all sails. Emil was a bit fascinated the way they all worked together. But the fascination was little and only for a few small seconds before Arthur started to carry him somewhere.

Arthur grabbed an old oil lamp that was already lit. The light from the lamp illuminated Arthur's features, allowing Emil to get his first good look at the captain. Just as he remembered, sandy blonde hair, sharp green eyes, and those big bushy eyebrows that only the Kirklands seemed to have. Oh how Emil was starting to hate the look of him right now.

Arthur brought Emil bellow deck and stopped only when they got to a cage like space. The brig, Emil knew this was it. He was going to be thrown inside and then left there to rot. He was going to die in there, he was sure of it.

Arthur put the oil lamp on the hook before grabbing the key from his belt. He unlocked it, pulled open the door, and threw Emil inside. Pain shot up Emil's shoulder as he landed on it. Luckily his coat offered some kind of cushioning for his fall. Then as soon as the door opened it closed, being locked as well.

"Lukas will come for me! And so will the others. They'll beat you." Emil said as he moved to look over at Arthur. He was still trying to seem stinger than he felt, and Emil thought he was doing a good job.

"Oh I'm so scared." Arthur said sarcastically. That was the last thing Lukas heard before Emil got out of his range for the spell. Not that either of them knew that.

"Good. You should be." Emil said not picking up on the sarcasm. Arthur just rolled his eyes and laughed. He grabbed the lamp before heading back up on deck, leaving Emil scared and alone in the dark.