The Heart of Alchemy by James Wisher (i like reading books txt) 📗

“Unless the local monsters travel by boat, I’m pretty sure it’s a who.”

“It is.” Corina’s voice held a brittle note Otto hadn’t heard before. “But I’m not sure what sort of a who he is.”

Otto waved at Hans who reluctantly sheathed his sword then went to join Corina at the ship’s rail. From out of the murk, a canoe made of bone came toward them. What he had first taken for oars turned out to be fins attached to the side of the canoe that propelled it forward. A single man stood in the front. He wore an odd headdress made of some kind of leather stretched over a frame. The skull of a small animal stared out from just above the brim. His clothes were no less odd. He wore a black robe woven with barbed wire that dug into his flesh in places.

Just when Otto thought things couldn’t get any stranger, he spoke. “What is your purpose here?”

The stranger’s voice sounded like a multitude of voices all speaking slightly out of time. Just listening to it made Otto’s stomach churn.

“We’re travelers on our way to the Celestial Empire,” Otto said. “Our ship has been damaged and we need a port to make repairs. Yours was the nearest.”

The odd fellow stared at Otto without seeming to see him. At last he said, “You have goods to trade for your repairs?”

“We do.”

“Very well. The Cult of Astaroth agrees to sponsor your visit. You will restrict yourselves to their enclave. Anyone caught outside of that district will be sacrificed. Follow me.”

The canoe turned and headed back toward the fog. A path opened as it passed, making a tunnel through the mist for them to follow.

“Was that a person?” Corina asked.

“I wish I knew,” Otto said. If it was, he couldn’t help wondering what sort of person wore a robe woven with barbed wire. If that was the local fashion trend, Otto had no desire to follow it.

Something bumped the underside of the hull.

From his place at the helm Captain Wainwright said, “Something has us, Lord Shenk. I’m no longer in control of the ship.”

Otto refused to let the captain’s panic infect him. The moment that happened, he was doomed. Since discovering the corruption in the local ether, he’d been reluctant to extend his senses, but now he needed to know what they were dealing with. Whether he could do anything about it was another matter.

Resting a hand on his mithril sword, Otto sent his gaze out down toward the water. Pain stabbed his eyes, but he ignored it. Under the hull, a… creature had the Star in its grasp. It looked a bit like a whale, only with frills and tentacles coming out of its back. The tentacles looked purpose built for grasping ships. He guessed they measured a good foot in diameter and were probably strong enough to crush the hull should the beast be so inclined.

Otto released the spell and the pain vanished. His cheeks felt wet and when he went to brush the tears away his hand came back bloody.

“Corina, don’t touch the ether here unless it’s life or death.” Turning to the captain Otto said, “Everything’s okay. Have the sailors lower all sails. We’ll be taken to the dock automatically.”

Otto silently hoped he was right about that. Since meeting Lord Karonin, he’d been out of his depth plenty of times, but right now he felt like he was in the deepest, darkest hole ever.

Just as Otto predicted, the bizarre creature controlling the ship guided them right to a dock. So gently it barely made a sound, it eased the ship into place. At least the dock itself looked normal enough. Made of wood treated with tar for preservation, it wouldn’t have looked out of place in Lux.

The dock quickly disappeared into the fog. The city itself, assuming there was a city, remained hidden behind a vail of mist and corruption.

In the water beside them, their odd guide glared at Otto. “A representative of Astaroth’s cult will be here shortly. Do not leave your berth until they arrive.”

With an extravagant flourish of his leather headdress, the man and his canoe paddled off into the fog. A pair of sailors put the gangplank down and hurried to tie the ship up before scurrying back aboard.

“What should we expect, my lord?” Hans asked.

Otto had no idea. “The Cult of Astaroth worship the demon lord of disease and undeath, so a hale and hearty fellow with rosy cheeks and a big smile are unlikely. What little I know comes from a book nearly a thousand years old. We’ll have to keep our wits about us and remain calm.”

Corina’s laugh came out as a high-pitched giggle. “Keep calm? I can barely keep from leaping over the side and swimming away from this place. It’s wrong in ways I can’t begin to describe.”

“Given what I saw guiding the ship, I recommend staying out of the water. If you’d feel better, you can go below and stay with Axel. There’s no shame in being afraid, especially here. I’ll negotiate with whoever shows up and try to get us out of here as quickly as possible.”

She bit her lip and straightened. “I’m your apprentice. My place is at your side. I’ll be okay.”

Otto squeezed her shoulder. Corina’s courage and determination made him proud. “Good. You may notice something I miss.”

The conversation ended when the sound of hard boots on wood came echoing out of the fog. The mist parted, revealing the last thing Otto expected: a woman, and a beautiful one at that.

She dressed in a black robe that hung down to midcalf, but was slit in such a way that with every step her pale, smooth thighs appeared for a second before being obscured again by the cloth. A black metal chain served as a belt, cinching the robe tight to her narrow waist. It didn’t have barbs, which made him feel a little better about her sanity.

A