Converging Destinies: Part 1

Chapter 187

       First, Brie would place an invisible eye a mile above the boat. When she didn't see anything, she instead switched to using her other spell. Later, Brie was able to take a break to regain a level of her magical power. Then, she would look again.

       Now, a new rhythm had been established for the group. Cedric would control the weather, and Brie would use her divination magic to search for "death's mouth", whatever it could be.

       On the thirteenth day, they used the routine, but found nothing. Just as the day before, it was a clear day. The end of the second week out on the Boiling Ocean proved to be the same.

       However, on the fifteenth day, Brie finally found something.

       "Wait, guys! I see something!" Brie said.

       "What is it?" Cedric asked.

       "It looks like a small island, really small though. I'd say it's about six miles West." Brie said.

       Eris and Ella reoriented the boat with some of Brie's instruction. Within the hour, everyone could see what Brie was talking about.

       The island itself was made purely of black rock. It formed a somewhat crescent shape. It looked to be only about two hundred fifty feet across. The group sailed close to the island, and to the group's delight, the water was shallow near the island.

       With Cedric and Zerai's help, the group all flew to the island.

       "We've got about four hours left of daylight, I wouldn't mind being able to stay on land for a bit." Ara' Sei said.

       The crescent shape of the island sheltered a tiny stretch of beach with ebony black sand. Testing the water, Ella found it hot to the touch.

       "I don't think we should get in the water at this beach, it feels burning hot." Ella said.

       "All of this rock is basalt, it's volcanic in nature." Brie thought aloud.

       "I'll stay here and keep the weather altered." Cedric said, sitting down on the beach. The black sand was warm from the residual heat still within it before the altered weather blew over.

       Ara' Sei, Brie, and Eris all investigated the island. Ara' Sei from above, while the two others were on the ground.

       All of the rock on the island was rough and dark. The rock was such a color that it was difficult to pick out much detail from above.

       After half an hour of scaling the rough rock, Eris found a gaping mouth of a cavern.

       "There's a cave!" They shouted. Ara' Sei and Brie followed Eris' voice to the mouth of a cave. The inside of which was dark. Ara' Sei used her light to illuminate the cavern.

       The cavern only stretched about twenty feet back, and it rapidly became more and more narrow. In the back of the cave, a small shape was visible. It looked like a bundle of strangely shaped sticks, but they were white in color.

       "Is that a skeleton?!" Brie asked.

       "I think so." Eris replied. The three approached it. It looked to be either a human or an elf. It sat against the wall with its hands open. In one, there was a small piece of paper.

       Eris muttered a tiny incantation, and the paper floated up into their hand.

       "I don't think I can read this." They said.

       "I might be able to, and if not, I can use magic to read it." Brie said. Eris handed Brie the note.

       "Hmm, it's draconic. It says 'Search was a failure. Crew dead. I will join them soon. Recordings of research hidden in other hand." Brie read slowly. Glancing to the skeleton's other hand, nothing was visible.

       "How would it be hidden?" Ara' Sei asked. Brie gracefully carved a glyph into the air and muttered an incantation.

       "Oh, it's hidden with invisibility. I can detect some illusion magic in its left hand." Brie said. Eris put their hand onto the skeleton's left hand. Sure enough, there was an object there that they were able to pick up. It was a rectangular prism that felt leathery on three sides. On the three other sides, it felt layered and papery.

       "It feels like a journal." Eris said, stowing the invisible book into a pocket.

       "I can get rid of the magic tomorrow and read it on the boat." Brie said.

       The group reported their findings. Then, everyone flew back to the anchored boat to go to sleep.

       The next day, the group pulled up the anchor, left the island behind, and continued their search as usual.