Echoes

Chapter 8

I was seasick by the third day. Pix and I ended up taking turns curling up into balls on the main deck, trying not to lose our lunches while Gavie cackled like a maniac every time we hit a larger wave. The boredom made it even worse, with nothing but the sea for miles and miles, and nothing to do. Pix told us she'd accompany us to Krie, but wasn't sure what her plans were after that.

"The elders would probably love to have you in our town," Gavie suggested. "They live for knowledge. I don't think they've ever met an ash-born."

I could tell Gavie meant it in a flattering way, but Pix wasn't happy.

"Oh, so they can examine me like an animal? I don't think so," she snapped, storming below deck.

Gavie looked completely confused. I sighed and climbed over next to him at the wheel. He kept his eyes fixed on the horizon.

"Gavie, I get that you meant that as a compliment, but it didn't quite come out like that," I said.

Gavie turned to say something, but resigned in defeat. I smirked at patted his shoulder.

Besides," I started. "That's not exactly the best way to invite a girl home."

"Hey!" He yelled. "That was not what I was doing!"

"Right. That's not why you were blushing when she fell on top of you in the boat," I retorted.

"I was not blushing!" He protested.

"You turned the color of your hair!" I said, gesturing at his frizzy ponytail.

Gavie waved his hand and returned to staring at the horizon, but I knew I'd won that argument. Which meant I had to go patch things up with Pix. I clambered below to find her curled up on a chair in the galley. I sat down next to her.

"You know," I started "Gavie didn't mean that in a mean way."

Pix rolled her eyes. "Is that supposed to make me feel better?"

I sighed at stared at the table.

"You don't get what it's like to be the freak show. You only just realized you're different. I was born an outcast," Pix muttered.

She was right. I let her sit in silence before speaking again.

"Gavie was just trying to get you to come home with him," I said.

Pix narrowed her eyes. "Hilarious, Nisa."

"Pix, I'm serious. He clearly likes you," I replied.

"Well good for him. If you'll excuse me, I'd like to go back to concentrating on not throwing up."

After that scuffle, the rest of the trip was fairly uneventful. Gavie said we'd probably reach Ekota by the fourth or fifth day, which gave the three of us just enough time to smooth over any bumps in our friendship. Gavie and Pix were back to normal, but I was starting to notice weird things, like Pix's eyes staring slightly longer at Gavie, or Gavie wanting to say something, then stopping himself. By morning of the fifth day, Gavie had noticed a bird, and may have popped a vein in excitement. Pix just rolled her eyes.

The coast of Ekota was jagged and covered in dense forests. The air temperature had dropped significantly, which I hadn't exactly prepared myself for. Pix was hugging herself tightly. I felt bad for her, with just a skirt and a wrap around her chest, she must have been freezing.

"Once we get to Krie, I can lend you two some coats," Gavie noted, watching the two of us shivering.

As we rounded the coast, Gavie explained that there was a small port village at the end of a river that we would use to get to Krie. But after that, we would have to walk or buy horses for a day's worth of travel. He mentioned that Ekota was slightly behind on technology, and didn't have roads for cars due to the strong connection with the land.