Devil's Sea

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

As soon as she saw Thera appear on the horizon, Kaia felt a surge in her chest. The oracle had been correct; this was where her ancestors had lived for a long time. She had a vision of the island as a whole, before the destruction, of a magnificent white city with a pyramid in the center. Ships sailing from the port to all points of the Mediterranean.

“What is it?” Falco was at her side.

“Do you feel it?” Kaia asked.

“I feel power, subdued power,” Falco said. “This was a great place once.”

“It is where my people lived for a while after they came from Atlantis,” Kaia said.

“Atlantis?” General Cassius had joined them in the bow of the imperial galley. “That is a story you Greeks made up.”

“It was a real place,” Kaia said. ”The Shadow destroyed it.”

“A very powerful Shadow then.” Cassius said. “What can we do against such a force?”

“That remains to be seen,” Kaia said. She pointed toward the island where they could see the shattered cliff walls surrounding the place where the sea had intruded into the center of the island. “That was also done by the Shadow.”

“Why does this Shadow seek to destroy people and cities?” Falco asked.

“I don’t know that,” Kaia answered. “I hope to get some answers here.”

As they got closer, it was apparent that there were several islands making up Thera. The land, as was usual in this part of the world, was rugged and rocky. A group of white buildings clung to the cliff side that faced the sea, and the galley docked below them. The land that remained was the caldera, or lip of the ancient volcano, a long, curving, steep ridge.

“This way,” Kaia led the way off the ship, Cassius and Falco following. The few fisherman who were on the dock stared at them curiously as they went up a set of stairs cut into the rock itself. They said nothing, stepping back at Kaia’s approach.

A nervous Captain Fabatus immediately cast off and pulled out a safe distance from the land. Like any sailor, he felt safer on the water.

Kaia didn’t stop in the small town but kept going right through it and continuing upward. Falco was sweating heavily, and despite his training, he was slightly winded as they approached the top of the high cliff. He could see the general was struggling even more, but he knew that to offer help would be an insult. He was impressed with the woman’s conditioning as she hopped from step to step. He was grateful when they reached the top. They could look back and see their ship far below, like a toy floating in the water. But it was the view in front of them that had their focus.

The high land curved around left and right, surrounding the inner sea, broken in two places to touch the outer sea. In the center, two small islands poked above the water, a thin line of smoke drifting up from the larger of them.

“This was once all an island, and that” — Kaia pointed at the smoking island—“was a mountain in the center. It was called Palaia Kameni, or Old Burnt Island in your language. The other is Nea Kameni, New Burnt Island. That is where we must go.”

Falco felt uneasy. He looked over his shoulder toward the ocean. It was late afternoon, and the sun was going down. “We need to do whatever it is you want to do quickly,” he said.

Kaia also looked over her shoulder and nodded. “I feel it, too. Danger. But it’s a distance off.”

“But coming closer,” Falco said.

Without another word, Kaia began scrambling down the interior of the island toward the inner sea, following a narrow track that switched back and forth across the steep, rocky slope. Falco saw where she was headed: a small dock where a narrow boat was tied up. An old man was seated in the shadow of a large boulder, watching them approach.

Kaia raised her hand in greeting as they reached the dock. “I seek passage to Nea Kameni,” she said.

The old man peered at her with eyes cloudy with cataracts. He placed his hand on her forehead and remained still for several moments, then he nodded. He held out his hand, and Kaia slipped several gold pieces into it. The old man gave a toothless smile and pointed at the boat, still without saying a word. Kaia climbed into it, Falco and Cassius following.

“It seems as if we’ve paid for the service of the boat and not the man,” Cassius noted.

“He would take forever,” Falco said as he grabbed one of the oars, Kaia the other, and they began pulling.

“Talkative fellow,” Cassius noted, looking back as the old man went back to his place in the shadow of the boulder.

“He has no tongue,” Kai said. “He is the gatekeeper for the Akrotirian Oracle I was told of him. He brings the oracle food and water every morning, but he can never speak of what she tells him.”

“I have never heard of this oracle,” Cassius said. Falco could tell the general was uncomfortable sitting in the back of the boat and having a woman row.

“Few have,” Kaia granted. “She has a special power, as each oracle does. Hers does not involve the future but rather the past. Most people don’t care about the past, as it is over with, and they feel they cannot change it. Of course, many are fools to think the future is changeable also.”

“Are we fools then?” Falco asked.

“We might indeed be,” Kaia said, “but I do not think so. Fate is not all-powerful.”

“It has been in my life so far,” Falco argued.

“Perhaps,” Kaia allowed. “But many times, we make our own fate without knowing we do so.”

Falco thought of his inability to allow himself to die in the arena. He had always attributed that to his desire to remain alive to see his children, but they were dead now, and here he was on this strange quest. He could have easily refused the emperor and ended his misery with his head on the pike on the Imperial Palace wall.

Shrugging off these thoughts, Falco peered ahead and could make out a small, pebbled beach on the smaller island, with a cave right behind the beach. “If you cannot change the past, and you cannot change the future, what is the point of anything?” he asked.

“Because it is our fate?” Kaia said with a smile. “And there are some who say both can indeed be changed.”

General Cassius laughed. “A philosopher. They will argue you in circles so that you end with the same question you started with, but it will take you a week to get there.”

Falco wasn’t amused. “I do not care for fate. It has not been kind to me or those close to me.”

“Perhaps that will change,” Kaia said as she pulled her oar as they approached the beach.”

“I doubt it,” Falco said as the boat hit the pebbles. He jumped overboard and pulled the boat onto the beach.

Kaia immediately went toward the cave. The opening was fifteen feet wide by six feet high, and Falco bowed his head as they entered. There was a dim glow ahead and they all paused to allow their eyes to adjust.

A worn pathway went down the center of the cave and curved to the right toward the glow. Falco wondered how many generations of feet had shuffled along the path. As they went around the curve, they could see the glow came from a blue rock set in the center of the cavern about thirty feet in diameter. Falco had never seen such a stone. Across the stone from them was a figure wrapped in dark red robes, seated in a chair made of black stone.

“Welcome, travelers.” The voice was surprising, holding the vibrancy of youth, yet Falco could see the woman was very old as she pushed back her hood and revealed her lined face. “Have you come far?”

“From Delphi, Mother,” Kaia said.

A darkness crossed the old woman’s face. “My sister there is dead.”

“Ah!” Kaia staggered, and Falco helped her to the ground, where she sat, dazed. Then he stood by awkwardly and waited.

“There is not time to grieve,” The Akrotirian Oracle said.

“ I did not feel it,” Kaia said in a low voice, “but I feel it now.”

“There are some things it is best not to feel,” the Akrotirian Oracle said. “The emissaries of the Shadow found her and killed her. But it was you they were really searching for. My sister protected you from them and from feeling her death.”

Kaia looked up. “I thought the Shadow could not come out of the darkness.”

“You forget what you were told. Those who killed her were Valkyries. They had hard white skin that your blades” — she flicked a withered hand toward Cassius and Falco—“cannot penetrate. They always come in a fog that drifts over sea or land.”

Falco shifted his feet uneasily. If his steel would not work against things the old woman spoke of, then what hope was there?

“My oracle sent me here.” Kaia was gathering herself together.

“I know. It is time.”

“Why am I here?” Kaia asked.

“This was once one of the havens our ancestors sought after our home in Atlantis was destroyed by the Shadow. But almost two millennia ago, the Shadow reappeared off the coast. It was stopped at the last minute, but the island was destroyed. A few survived and hid in other lands. You and I, we come from the same line, from Pri Lo, the only surviving priestess. Many, many years ago, our line split, and mine came here to this island while yours went to Delphi. There are others of us, here and there around the world, although in many places the line has died out or been so diluted that a true Defender or oracle is born only rarely.”

“Why did you come here?” Kaia asked. “It is a dead place.”

“I was charged with remembering and examining the past.” the oracle said simply. “And as all oracles, to wait.”

“And now the time has come,” Kaia said. “The Shadow has already caused much destruction among the Romans, and a gate grows to the north.”

The oracle nodded. “I have felt it.”

“What am I here for?” Kaia asked once more.

“To go into the Earth,” the oracle said. She stood and gestured for them to follow. They exited the cave and stood on the rough beach. “All was not lost when Thera was destroyed. With a finger that wavered, the oracle pointed at Palaia Kameni, which lay not far away. “There is where you must go. There is an opening that you will go into. Then you must follow your instincts.”

“What am I looking for?” Kaia asked.

“You will know it when you see it.”

“Which means you don’t really know,” Falco spoke for the first time, tired of oracles and priestesses and their vague words.

The old woman looked at him. “You have a dark soul.”

Falco shrugged. “I’ve been told that many times.”

The oracle’s eyes shifted from Falco and Kaia. “Interesting,” was all she finally said.

“What is interesting?” Falco asked.

“The balance between the two of you,” the oracle said.

Falco laughed. “She is light to my darkness?” he asked, indicating Kaia.

“No. She is the light that will illuminate your shadow side,” the oracle said.

“Do you sense the darkness that is close by?” Falco asked, changing the topic from himself.

She nodded. “Yes, It is closing. Valkyries are coming. There is not much time.”

“Then stop playing word games,” Falco said, “and tell us what we need to know.”

“There is a way to stop the Shadow,” the oracle said. “You” — she pointed at Kaia—“are part of it. You also need a staff with one end a seven-headed snake. On the other end is a blade. It is called a Naga staff. It must be wielded by a warrior.”

“My oracle told me that.” Kaia said.

“That blade will work against the Valkyries. And you will find it where I send you. That you did not know. But what I do not know is if there is a place for all this to come together near this new Shadow.”

“What kinds of place?” Falco asked.

“You will see when you go there,” she pointed once more to Palaia Kameni.

“Then let us go.” Falco headed toward the boat.

Kaia reached out and took the old woman’s hands in hers. “Thank you.”

“I wish you well on your journey,” the oracle said. “I am the last of my line here.”

“I suggest you leave,” Kaia said.

“And go where? And do what?” The old woman shook her head. “This is where I belong. Go now. Your killer is right. There is not much time.”

Kaia and General Cassius joined Falco who was waist deep in the water, ready to pull the boat offshore. With a heave, he had them afloat, and he jumped aboard, grabbing an oar. Falco concentrated on rowing, his muscles enjoying the feel of the wood in his hands, the strain of exertion. He looked up and saw the oracle was still standing on the shore, watching them. Then he glanced over his shoulder and saw another small section of beach, a dark hole just above it. He adjusted his stroke so the nose of the boat was headed toward it. Within minutes, they were ashore.

As Kaia scrambled up the slope toward the opening, Falco paused. He could see the smoke coming out of the top of the cone that made up most of the island they were on. Then he looked around. There was a hint of darkness in one of the openings that led to the outer sea. He turned and ran after Cassius and Kaia.

“We have no light,” Cassius noted as they stood just outside the opening. A tunnel dove steeply into the side of the cone, the sides of it smooth. They could feel heat coming out of it, washing over their skin.

“I can find our way in the darkness,” Kaia said. She pulled two short pieces of rope out of her pack. She handed both to Cassius. Then she took the end of one and signaled for Falco to take the end of the other. “I’ll lead.” She stepped into the opening and began descending, the two Romans following, like sheep on a tether.

The light from the opening faded as they went down, and soon they were moving in complete darkness. Falco wasn’t worried, though, because he could sense what Kaia did, the path of the tunnel as it made slight turns left or right, but always descending. The temperature was rising, and sweat poured down Falco’s skin, irritable underneath his armor.

Kaia suddenly halted, Cassius bumping into her. “What is it?” the general asked.

“There is a branch here; two tunnels,” she answered.

“Left,” Falco said from the rear.

“Yes, left,” Kaia agreed after a moment, and they continued on their way.

Falco could sense something ahead and below, something of considerable power but not active. It wasn’t the dormant volcano, although he was picking up the power in the Earth, but something different. He stumbled as a vision of a stepped pyramid, a woman lying on a platform on top, came to him unbidden. Then it was gone, as quickly as it had come. He continued on, by then he paused when the others did, as the Earth shook under his feet.

On the small beach of Nea Kameni, the Akrotirian Oracle had watched the three disappear into the opening. She had never set foot on the other island, even though it was so close. She had always known it would not be her fate to go there. She was just a signpost.

Despite the darkness she sensed coming, her heart was joyful. When she had produced no heir to her post, she had worried that her line would die without fulfilling its destiny. But now she could die in peace, knowing that what had been slotted to her line had been accomplished. It would be up to others to take the battle further.

She startled as the ground shook. The quake lasted for almost ten seconds, then stopped. She turned toward the main island, where her gatekeeper was looking out at her, his hand covering his eyes. She waved, indicating for him to leave, but she knew he couldn’t see well anymore. She yelled as he got into a second boat that he kept at the small dock and began rowing toward her.

“Go away, old fool!” she called.

He didn’t stop rowing.

“Nectarous, go away. Save yourself!” she called out, but he kept coming. She sat down wearily on a stone. Then her eyes were transfixed by the site of a brownish gray fog boiling in over the water, coming through the southern gap.

“Hurry,” Falco was whispering, although why, he didn’t know.

“I’m going as fast as I can,” Kaia replied. “What if there is a sudden drop-off or a chasm?”

“Then you die,” Falco said. “But if you don’t hurry, you’ll die anyway.”

“Hold!” Kaia called out, and Falco felt it at the same time. The air was much hotter and the walls had disappeared. They were in an open area, deep underground, how large he didn’t know. Then he blinked as there was a very faint light ahead and above them.

“What is that?” Cassius asked.

“Where we are going.” Kaia began moving. The others didn’t need to hold the rope now as their eyes, so used to the dark, locked onto the light like a beacon. As they got closer, Falco could make out a pyramid enclosed inside the large chamber, the light coming from the top of it. It was the same as the one that had been in his vision. They reached the base and began going up the wide steps toward the top.

“What is this place?” Cassius’s voice sounded unnaturally loud, echoing off the walls of the chamber.

“This defeated the Shadow long ago,” Kaia said. “It was buried here when the volcano exploded.”

“But why is it in a chamber?” Cassius asked.

“Even after stopping the Shadow, there was enough power to keep it from being swallowed up.” Kaia was almost at the top, the others close behind. “In the old days this was in the center of a great city.”

“Who build it?” Cassius asked.

“The Ones Before,” Kaia said. “Those who helped my ancestors and who also fight the Shadow.”

She stopped as she reached the platform at the very top. “But not enough to save those who served here,” she said as she saw what was before her.

Falco climbed the last step and stood behind her. There were skeletons littered all over the flat platform. The glow was coming from something next to the raised table in the center of the platform, something underneath a skeleton covered in armor

Falco went past Kaia and knelt. He recognized the armor of a warrior, but the working was very old and of bronze. The bones were large, indicating a powerful man. Carefully, he pulled the skeleton back from whatever it was covering. He blinked as his eyes were temporarily blinded by what he unveiled: a clear skull, glowing from an inner blaze of white light that now lit up the entire cavern and pyramid.

“Ah!” Kaia exclaimed as she joined Falco and reached for the skull.

“Careful!” Falco warned. “It might burn.”

“It won’t hurt me.” Kaia tenderly picked the skull up. “This is my ancestor.”

The fog was approaching rapidly, spreading in an unnatural manner, going against the wind. The Akortian Oracle could see that Nectarios would not arrive at her location before the fog.

“You foolish man,” she murmured as the fog enveloped him. Her heart was heavy as he disappeared, because she saw not the old man, but the young, strapping warrior Nectarios had been when she first met him. He’d been her lover for many years, but they had never had a child, a fact she had taken as an omen that the end of her line was near, as she knew it was not Nectario’s fault, but rather that her womb was barren. She had spent many a long day pondering what that fate meant. Now she knew.

She staggered as she sensed Nectarios dying, a feeling that cut through to the bone, and then was gone, just as quickly. She stood, facing the approaching fog. It swept over the beach, and her skin crawled from the feel of it.

Something came out of the fog and came to a halt just in front of her, two feet above the pebbles. She saw the hard white skin and stared into the unblinking red eyes.

“You are too late, demon,” she said bravely. “They had been here and gone.”

She was uncertain whether it had heard her as a second, similar creature floated out of the fog and joined the first. This one held up it’s claws, and blood slowly dripped from them. She knew that was Nectarios’ blood. At least he had died swiftly, she thought.

She could sense the creatures, and it wasn’t specifically evil that she picked up but rather something so alien that evil wasn’t even a concept to them. She realized suddenly that she was as much a thing to them as they were to her.

She saw a claw come up, holding a thin spear. As the probe shot forward toward her, she blocked it with her right hand, the metal punching entirely through, the tip sticking out of the other side.

“They’re gone!” she screamed as she curled her fingers around the probe, trying to hold on to it, as the Valkryie reeled it back to the launching tube. She staggered as she was pulled toward the creature. Her fingers were sliced to the bone as the probe was pulled out, despite her best efforts, and reloaded.

The second Valkryie was behind her, claws grabbing her shoulders, cutting the skin as it tried to hold her still as the first aimed the tube at her head once more.

“They will kill you,” the oracle said, then spat at the creature.

The probe hit her in the forehead, slicing through her brain and lodging there.

Falco stood and looked about. There was a depression in the table, human-sized. Nearby, he could see a shaft stuck into a slot, the top consisting of seven snake heads, intricately carved, as the old oracle had told them. He reached for it and pulled, but it didn’t move. He closed his eyes for a second, then opened them. He twisted and then pulled up, and the staff came free, revealing a fine blade on the other end. He hefted it. Light, very light. In the gladiator school he had been trained on all weapons, including the javelin and the thrusting spear along with bow, net, trident — every device used in the arena or in war. For the first time since Vesuvius had erupted, he smiled as his hands curled around the haft of the weapon. He intuitively knew this was the most powerful killing tool he had ever wielded.

“Ah!” Kaia spun about, the skull cradled against her chest. “They are above. They have the oracle.”

“Who?” Falco asked.

“The Valkyries. Two of them. She cannot stop them. They will know we are here.”

“Then let us go and confront them.” Falco began going down the pyramid stairs, taking them two at a time. He paused halfway down. A river of red was pouring into the chamber, boiling up through a crack at the base of the pyramid below him. Kaia and Cassius joined him, and they continued down, feeling the heat, watching the river widen from a foot to two feet.

They reached the last step. The river of lava was five feet wide and still growing. The heat was almost unbearable. Falco turned and grabbed the general and without a word threw him through the air, clearing the lava and falling in tumble on the far side. Falco looked at Kaia.

“Ready?”

She nodded. He held out the staff, and she grabbed the haft near the Naga heads he had it near the blade. “Go!” he yelled and they both jumped. He landed, rolling and coming to his feet, Kaia at his side.

“Hurry!” General Cassius was waving at them from the tunnel entrance.

The oracle’s last thought was that she had failed as she looked up at her body still being held by one of the Valkyries as the blood drained from her severed head lying on the beach. She blinked once, twice, then the eyes clouded over.

The first Valkyrie reached down and picked up the now lifeless head and crushed it, tossing the mangled remains into the water. Then they floated into the fog, heading toward Palaia Kameni.

The glow from the skull being carried by Kaia silhouetted Falco as he moved up the tunnel. His shadow was long, bouncing off the walls in front of him. He was focused on what lay ahead, all his senses alert. He probed with his mind, but there was nothing.

The light changed, and Falco risked a glance behind him. Red filled the tunnel behind them, the lava coming after them, channeled into the narrow space, accelerating.

He tucked the staff under one arm as he wiped the sweat off his hands on the tail of his tunic that stuck out from underneath his breastplate. It was as hot as Hades in the tunnel, and he staggered as the ground shook once more. He spared another glance over his shoulder and saw that Kaia was right behind him, the general behind her, his sword drawn and in his good hand. The red glow was closer.

Falco tried to remember how far they had gone down, but it was difficult to estimate, given they had traveled slowly in the dark. Sweat stung his eyes, and he swung his head back and forth like a wild beast, spraying sweat from his face.

There was a light ahead, not daylight nor starlight, but something diffuse and obscene to Falco’s eyes. He tightened his grip on the staff and probed ahead with his mind. It was as if he could see two blocks of ice just outside the entrance to the tunnel. Cold, that was the aura of whatever waited; cold and uncaring.

He paused. “General.”

“Yes, Centurion?”

“Guard her.”

“I do not—“ Kaia began, but Falco shushed her.

“There is nothing you can do against these things that wait for us.” He held up the Naga staff. “This is the only weapon we have against them, and I am the best trained to handle it. Wait here until I call.”

Cassius looked back at the red glow. “We do not have much time.”

Falco edged forward, feet spread in the fighting stance he’d been taught as a child. He could see out of the entrance now and noted the fog that covered the area. He could still sense the two cold spots, definitely not like anything he had ever faced before, and he had killed not only humans but every manner of beast in the arena. This was something completely new. They flanked the entrance, about ten feet back on either side. Always the pincer; it was the classic maneuver of a larger force. Falco had encountered it numerous times before.

He knew there was only one way to face this threat, and that was to attack. It was a lesson that had been pounded into him by his various lanistas over the years. When in doubt, attack. When surprised, attack. When desperate, attack. In the arena there was only one inevitable end to the defense: death.

He gathered himself, then dashed forward out of the tunnel onto the hillside, and spun to the right. But there was nothing there. As he tried to adjust, he realized his opponent was above the hillside, floating in the air, coming in for a strike. He could also sense the danger closing from behind, He had a brief glimpse of a figure covered in white armor, red eyes, then he jabbed, missed, and rolled downslope, taking the impact of the rocks and ground and letting his body absorb the blows.

He hit the beach and rolled to his feet at the ready. The two Valkyries were coming toward him, ten feet between them, hands glittering with sharp extensions on each of the fingers. Falco tucked the haft of the staff under his left arm, blade forward, and drew his sword from across his body with his left. He knew from the words of the oracle that it could not hurt these creatures, but he needed it to protect himself.

They attacked. He jabbed at the one on the left and backed the one-handed slash of the one on the right with his sword, feeling the impact through the blade, up his arm. He staggered back. The metal was chipped where it had been hit. Falco growled and turned as they circled him. He could not sense their intentions as he could in the arena with more earthly opponents, only their cold presence. That, combined with their ability to hover and the sloping ground, put him at a distinct disadvantage. His military training had taught him that the army that controlled the high ground had the advantage, so he rushed upslope at the Valkryie closest to him.

He thrust with the staff, and the Valkyrie parried it with a slap of a clawed hand. Then it emitted a noise such as he had never heard, a scream that cut through his brain, the pain doubled as the other one added its own inhuman yell.

Falco jabbed again, and as the Valkryie slapped, he pulled back on the haft of the staff and pivoted with all his strength, directing the edge of the blade at the hand. The edge caught right at the wrist and sliced neatly through, the clawed hand falling to the ground.

Instead of blood, black steam issued from the stump, and the Valkryie screamed once more, but there was different timbre to this, one that gave Falco confidence, as it echoed of disbelief and pain. Falco’s feeling was short lived as he sensed the other creature right behind him. He spun, ducking down, just in time as the tips of razor-sharp claws, sliced along his armor in the back, then cut his shoulder, splitting skin.

He stopped his slide with the Naga end of the staff, jamming it between two rocks on the slope, hands wrapped around the haft tightly, blade pointing up. The second Valkryie halted just short of splitting itself on the point.

“Come on!” Falco yelled at it.

The wounded Valkyrie joined the other, black still issuing out of the stump. As they came closer, Falco got to his feet, pulling on the staff. To his dismay, it didn’t move, the snakeheads jammed tight between the two rocks. He twisted and yanked to no avail. His sword was ten feet away where he had dropped it and the staff was useless.

Falco let go of the staff and stood, hands raised, ready to fight the creatures bare-fisted. They closed on him, then paused and turned slightly. Falco saw what had caught their attention. Kaia and Cassius were in the mouth of the tunnel, silhouetted in red. The priestess had a long dagger in one hand, the skull covered in her robe in the other, while Cassius had his sword in his one good hand. They were yelling to attract the attention of the Valkyries. It worked. Both floated up the hill toward the two, leaving Falco. He cursed and rushed after them, scrambling up the slope, picking up his sword as he went.

As the Valkyries closed on the tunnel opening, Kaia pulled aside the cloak, revealing the skull. It lit up the fog around it, and Falco could swear it was pushing the foul air away from it. The Valkyries stopped abruptly. With a chorus of screams, they rose up and retreated, moving back out to sea as the fog rapidly retreated also.

Falco stopped his charge, watching the creatures disappear with the strange fog. Kaia and Cassius came down to his location. Behind them, lava began flowing out of the entrance of the tunnel.

“You’re wounded,” Kaia said.

Falco glanced at the cuts on his shoulder. “It’s nothing.”

“It could be diseased from the creatures,” Kaia said. “We need to clean it.”

“We need to get out of here,” Falco said, pointing at the lava now flowing down toward them. He turned and went down to the Naga staff, freeing it from between the rocks. As he passed, he also picked up the severed claw of the Valkryie, sticking it in his belt.

He led the way to the boat, and they clambered aboard, Kaia covering the skull with her cloak once more. As Falco pushed off, he felt the ground shake again. Looking up, he could see what the smoke coming out of the top of Palaia Kameni was much greater than before, a thick, dark plume rising to the heavens. He hopped and grabbed one oar while Kaia took the other. They pulled, rumbling in the air giving them urgency.

“Head for the opening,” Cassius ordered. “I ordered Captain Fabatus to put out to sea near there if there was any trouble, and it will be quicker than going over that ridge.”

Falco adjusted the course of the boat, leaning into the oar.

“What about the oracle?” Cassius asked as they passed the smaller island.

“She’s dead,” Falco said. He glanced up and met Kaia’s eyes. He knew she had felt the old woman’s death deeper than he had. “Why are these things killing the oracles?”

“They want to wipe us out,” Kaia send. “End the line of priestesses.”

Falco gave up the conversation and concentrated on rowing. There was the sharp crack of an explosion behind them, and he looked back. A section of Palaia Kameni had collapsed, spewing dust into the air. Lava was flowing out of the tunnel and the destroyed area, heading down toward the water. Where it touched, there was an explosion of steam as heat fought liquid. Falco and Kaia strained hard at the oars, and even Cassius tried to help with his one good arm, splashing at the water.

There was another explosion behind them, and they didn’t even bother to look. The boat lifted as a five-foot-high swell passed under them and headed out to sea. The wave gave them some momentum, and Falco risked a glace back, feeling a tremendous pressure in the back of his head. At that moment, the top of Palaia Kameni blew with a thunderous explosion. Rocks and dirt flew high into the air, and a fiery cloud came racing outward.

“Over the side!” Falco screamed, emphasizing his point by tossing Kaia into the water with one thrust of his arm. He spun around and dove at Cassius, wrapping the general in his arms, and flying overboard. They hit the water, and the combined weight of Falco’s and Cassius’s armor took them under.

Even as he sank, Falco looked up. He saw the bright sky disappear as the ash cloud swept overhead. Then he felt Cassius struggling in his arms, and he let go of the general as they both fought to get their breastplates off as they slowly sank. Both men had worn their amour almost every day of their life, so the routine was something that was ingrained. Falco’s fingers unbuckled and loosened, and in second his breastplate was off, plummeting to the bottom, He reached out and grabbed Cassius as the general got his off. Boulders hit water all around, racing by on their way to the bottom.

Looking up, he could see the sky was not as dark. Falco kicked for the surface, feeling the air in his lungs turning bad. He surfaced and gagged, as he sucked in huge lungfuls of ash-filled air. Cassius surfaced next to him and began coughing. Falco saw Kaia’s head pop up near the side of the boat, and he swam over. He could see that the wood was singed. The sky was filled with the ash that was steadily spewing out of the volcano, but the superheated death cloud had passed.

“How did you know to do that?” Kaia got out between coughs.

“It just came to me,” Falco said as he climbed into the boat and reached down to give her a hand.

Kaia got on board, and then they both helped Cassius. Kaia ripped strips of cloth from her cloak and gave them to the men. They tied these around their heads, covering their mouths, and then they resumed rowing. Behind them, the volcano was spewing a towering cloud of ash into the air, while lava flowed freely, hitting the water and turning it into steam.

As they made it into the gap, they could see the galley off to the left, protected from the direct force of the volcano by the old caldera.