Blood Ties

Chapter 5 Sailing Ships and Sadness

The boat creaked, sloshing water made Trisa feel nauseated, she hung over the side of the boat, panting with the excretion it took for her not to vomit again. She looked at the sides of the boat as it cut through the uniform swells causing foamy discord. Trisa supposed she wasn't someone with sea legs. A problem she hadn't anticipated never having been anywhere remotely near the sea.

Sure, she had gone to lakes with Colton. They'd take an old wooden rowboat out to the center of the lake for fishing. Together they'd watch the sunset, whispering up at the sky as stars peeked out one by one. On clear nights in the center of a still lake, it was hard to tell what was water from what was the sky. You could get lost in the magic of nature. Wholly consuming, as it was, the mother of all life magic. Lakes weren't as wild as the sea; they didn't have as much unpredictability. Lakes were safe like the Seventh Kingdom was for Trisa, and now she was going to the sea to an unknown land. Where it was entirely possible that entire population of people that wanted her dead just because she had magic.


It was said that the one thing the Barbarians scorned more than their exile was magical people. Magic was a gift they could never possess, broken from a communion with nature. The Barbaric soul starved for nature's connection. For reasons the kingdoms have no answer for, they're just born without it. Continual inbreeding among the Barbarians over the centuries has removed all traces magic from their lineage. Some believe that Barbarians became so detached from Mother Nature; they eventually lost their magic. Others think it was Dark Crafters in days of old hexing the unfortunate. Sucking out their sense of magic and blackening their hearts. Hexes are among the forbidden types of magic in the kingdoms because they live through bloodlines. Much worse than the hairy scary curse here and there, at least curses die with a single person, but hexes span eons. Others say Barbarians are men of a darker star sent to this Earth by a cosmic twist of fate. Whatever the belief of how the non-magicals got here it was undoubtedly agreed they are unfortunate creatures. Who could blame them for their wickedness? When they're so deprived of nature's love? Trisa thought how sad it must be to have the Earth scorn you, to be tossed aside with distaste. She shivered at the thought as the shoreline peeked over the horizon.



"Batten down the hatches men!" Yelled the captain of the ship. "We approach shore! Let us get this hornswoggle on with! Shackle the prisoners!" He bellowed onto his crew. They'd been informed vaguely of the purpose of the diplomat's mission to infiltrate the colonies, but only just so Trisa and her companions would be sure to make it to the other side. Pirate prison carriers were not the most reliable form of transportation. If you were a real Barbarian, you weren't always guaranteed to make it to the island. As accidents happened, nausea in Trisa's stomach protested at the last thought. 



As they approached the shore, Trisa could see fjords cut into a cliff face jagged like giant sharks teeth they seem ominous. Tufts of grass and green shrubs stuck out of the rocky soil. A few oak trees stood further inward. Her eyes scanned the shore as she took in the view, watching patrols clamber the length of the shore. There was metallic clacking as she absentmindedly let the seamen shackle her wrists. It was a necessary to assume the identity of a Barbaric prisoner convincingly, not even members of the kingdom's guard would know.



Along with Trisa were Aliyus and Frenzick, after the original proposal that one person should go it was realized rather quickly, that the magnitude of this mission should require more people. Since the League of Diplomats couldn't very well take volunteers from the kingdoms, Aliyus and Frenzick jumped on the task. Aliyus was robust, assuming, and his eyes made him look a little striking, but nothing about his appearance was indicative of magic, at least when he wasn't dressed like a Druid warrior, decked in furs strutting about half naked. 



As for Frenzick, he had shifted into a common tradesman he'd seen in the Seventh. The man's build was much like Frenzick's, and they were close enough in height, so Frenzick only had to shift his face. Known as modeling in the Sixth Kingdom, apparently, Shifters had the ability to do partial shifts. Quick cosmetic changes, like the color of their skin or eyes. It was mostly used for fashion and older female shifters who wanted to assume a "younger looking" appearance. Though people knew you were faking it in the sixth without your tattoo showing on your cheek. Some women used berry paint to replicate their tattoos, but any close examination gave away the truth. 



They tumbled off the plank down to shore, shackles clanking all the way. Trisa felt trapped already; it wasn't the shackles, but the islands trees disturbed her. As a Magi, you could always sense your element around you, but the trees felt unfamiliar. Trisa shivered even the oak trees beseeched a kind of darkness. What had the Barbarians done to the forests?



"Yes, I know it's been awhile, but we found them hiding in the mountains. Well, I didn't, but some Shifters did. Paid me to bring 'em here along with my usual supplies." 



"Well, it's surprising, to say the least. How'd they hide so long??? Eh, who knows?"

" Well bring the Barbaric buggers around." Said a guard. 



Trisa was brought forward along with the boys, her eyes widened. It was the fire Magi. He looked curiously at her almost like he was trying to place something he'd forgotten. Trisa stiffened, did he know her? He was a good five years older; looked to be mid-twenties. It was possible they'd seen each other in passing, but Trisa would've been a child then. This thought relaxed her; age had a way of changing a girl. 



Suddenly the fire Magi moved his gaze to Aliyus. "Is he your boyfriend?" Trisa declined to reply, giving him a pointed look. "Well, you know between the two of 'em I'd guess one was your bedmate."

Trisa's look hardened, and the Magi seemed disgruntled. Until very suddenly a sick smirk grew across is face. "You know for a Barbaric babe you're pretty feisty." His voice dropped to just a whisper. "I like that in a girl." He winked at her then proceeded to push Trisa forward along with Frenzick and Aliyus, who seemed to find the guard distasteful in character. Was this really how the kingdom's treated Barbarians? If so it was no wonder they hated the kingdoms. 


The head guard pushed them into the hands of his lackeys, spears in hand they marched them towards the forest. Trisa's stomach churned as the dark feeling crept around her. Usually, Trisa loved forests. There was this kind of invisible song that came from the wood, a crescendo of different trees. The darker woods sang a baritone, whilst young sapling formed sounds of chirpy sopranos. It wasn't singing in a literal sense, but a kind of humming Wood Magi heard. At least Trisa assumed other wood crafters heard it; she never bothered to ask anyone. It just seemed commonplace, the sweet interflowing vibration of magic through trees, just waiting for a crafter to spark it into action. It was something really beautiful. 



Now in this wood was a kind of mournful song, it spoke of darkness, and abuse. She realized why when they'd gone towards the woods center. Trees blackened with ashes half stood, half lay, half dead, and like a wounded animal in pain she could feel the pain. Trees didn't like to be half alive, suppose most things would rather be dead than half alive. Chopped wood was different than trees it was dead and its material obedient. Live trees swirled with their own intensity, wild, free.


Trisa began to cry. So many trees had died and for what cause? The fire magi had been leading the procession of prisoners with his lackeys flanking their sides. One of the lackeys noticed Trisa's tears running down her face. He also had sadness in his eyes. "It's shameful, isn't it? This is not even the worst part of deaths on this side of the seas."