Maquesta Kar-Thon

Chapter 15

"You don't have to stay with us any longer," Maquesta told Tailonna. "We can ease into the Endscape port for you. It's not far, and there's a deep harbor that we can move all the way into. It won't set us back more than hour, two at the most."

The women stood near the bow of the ship, looking out at the early morning sky and the rough water. The sails were full of wind and crackled with each gust, and the ship crested one wave after the next, rising and falling and spraying water over Maq and Tailonna. Despite the strong breeze, they were not making good time. Dragging the morkoth's cage slowed their progress considerably.

The sea elf turned to Maquesta, a grin forming on her thin lips. "I know I could leave," she said softly. "With the morkoth captured, my obligation ends. But…" She paused and looked up at the cloudless sky. "I have to know how this all turns out, Maquesta. I've come this far, and I want to see this journey through. Besides, you can't afford to lose an hour or two."

"And after that?"

"This is a fine ship. I've learned you make an excellent captain, and you have an able crew. But if you keep traveling waters like these, you're going to need someone with a little magic." She winked at Maq. "Maybe I'll stay. For a while anyway."

"I think the crew would like that," Maq replied, still not sure if she would like the presence of the sea elf on board.

"I should catch some fish for the morkoth," Tailonna added. "My people said the beast eats only live animals, and I trust you want the morkoth returned healthy to Lord Attat. So with your permission…" The sea elf pointed over the railing.

Maquesta nodded, not accustomed to having Tailonna ask permission to do anything. Then Maq turned and walked toward the port side of the ship. Behind her, she heard a splash, signaling that the sea elf was overboard. Maquesta hoped Tailonna managed to catch plenty of fish. She and the crew could use some fresh food for dinner.

Maq passed by Kof, who was obviously enjoying his time at the wheel. She wondered what he was thinking. They were returning to Lacynos, where he would be the property of Lord Attat again. She would talk to him about this later, as she had been mulling over the idea of purchasing his services from Attat on a permanent basis. Waving to him, she sped her pace. The minotaur nodded a greeting in return.

Her leg had recovered, thanks to the sea elf's magical balm and Lendle's herbs, though it was still a little stiff. She vowed to walk as much as possible today to help it limber up-the gnome's orders. For a moment she thought about going belowdecks and looking for Fritzen. She enjoyed his company, and she would like to hear again the story about the morkoth's capture and the twisting tunnels of its lair. But then she changed her mind. The half-ogre was with several of the other crewmembers, resting-hopefully sleeping. They would take over when night fell. With the cage slowing them more than she had anticipated, the Perechon had to continue moving, no matter the threats of traveling on the Blood Sea at night. There would be no more stops, and Ilyatha would use the flute of wind dancing each evening as long as its magic held out.

She spied Lendle leaning over the railing near the morkoth cage and decided to chat with him for a few moments. She wanted to thank the gnome for his help in mending her leg. She hadn't thanked him earlier-she was concerned about her ship, worried about the morkoth. In short, she thought to herself, she was taking the gnome for granted. That was a situation that would end now, she decided.

"Youaremostcertainlytheugliestcreaturelhaveseen," Lendle chattered at the morkoth. The gnome was leaning as far over the railing as his short stature allowed, ogling the beast and rapidly and loudly speaking to it. It was apparent Lendle wanted his voice to be heard above the sound of the wind and waves. Though the creature remained submerged, its head was just below the water, and it was looking back with interest at the gnome. Lendle watched its beak open and close and its red-flecked eyes narrow. The gnome tried to imitate the morkoth, then gave up and waggled his fingers in a childlike manner.

"Youbenicetome," Lendle sputtered. "Ikeptyoualivewithmyherbs."

"Slow down, please." Maq reached his side and affectionately scratched the top of his head. "I can barely understand you, which means it's doubtful the morkoth has picked up on a word."

"Thinkso?"

"Yes, I think so."

"Hmm." Lendle rubbed the end of his ample nose and smiled. He made an effort to talk more slowly for Maq. "I wasn't really talking to him anyway. He's ugly, huh?"

"Yes."

"And he looks like a couple of creatures put together. Part octopus. Part barracuda. A little bit of squid thrown in. Maybe a sea snake or an eel, too. He'd make good bait for a really big fish. Too bad we have to get rid of him."

"Uh-huh."

"You know, Maquesta Kar-Thon, I could create a device resembling his tentacles, but straight. And I'd make them much wider and flatter, of course, like oars. Made out of steel or hard wood-that would be best. You wouldn't want them to wiggle the way his tentacles do. They'd need to be sturdy, and water-resistant, too. I'd spread them even, like the legs of a starfish, like spokes on a wheel, then I'd attach them to a barrel. See, just like the straight part of his body there. If I could affix it to a winch, something to make the tentacles turn, I bet I could hook the whole thing up to the back of the Perechon. I'd crank it up, wind it up like a child's toy, and it would help power us through the water. We'd go much faster."

Maquesta offered Lendle a weak smile. "It has potential," she laughed. "But how about you getting belowdecks and working on your oar engine? That device is already put together; it just needs to work properly. Because of the morkoth's cage we're not covering much distance. And we can't carry the creature any other way, because I suspect if we took him out of the water, he'd die."

"My oar engine!" The gnome beamed. "You most certainly could go faster, Maquesta Kar-Thon, if I got my engine to work!"

"Exactly."

"Til get right to it."

"Wonderful idea."

"And I'll fix dinner at the same time." The gnome pushed away from the railing and headed toward the stairs. Then he stopped, scratched his head, and turned back to Maquesta. "What do I fix for the morkoth? Do you think it would eat my brown-bean soup? How about cornmeal muffins? Dried kipper?"

"Don't worry about the morkoth, Lendle. Tailonna is out catching some fish for it. She claims morkoths eat only living things. And I'd be careful not to get to close to its cage. Those tentacles are long, and I'd hate to tell the crew the cook has been eaten."

The gnome whirled on his tiny feet and resumed his course.

"Oh, Lendle?"

He stopped again and looked over his shoulder.

"Thanks for fixing my leg. And my arm. And for seeing to the rest of the injured crew. Without you, we'd all be in the infirmary."

The gnome smiled and waved his hand, dismissing her words. "It was nothing," he jabbered. "Besides, Tailonna and Ilyatha helped." Then he dashed belowdecks.

Maquesta stared through the water at the morkoth. It placidly hung floating inside the cage, glancing up at her occasionally. She reached over the side to touch the top of the cage and saw the red flecks in the morkoth's eyes grow more intense and brighter, and its tentacles began to undulate faster. When she withdrew her hand, the beast again seemed docile. Maq doubted the thing was subdued. She suspected it was just biding its time, waiting for someone to lean too close. She decided to instruct her crew to give it a wide berth. She couldn't afford to lose any more sailors-or the morkoth.

It fell to Tailonna to feed the morkoth every day. She would catch fish, then carry them to its cage and push them through the bars, careful not to bring her fingers too close to the creature's beak. It seemed to be growing stronger, and though the bars on the cage were solid, and the latch strong and out of the morkoth's reach, the beast's presence worried her.

"Do you think we'll have any trouble getting the morkoth to Lord Attat's?" the elf asked as Maquesta and Fritzen wandered over to watch a feeding session.

"No trouble at all," Maq replied. "I intend to make the minotaur lord come get it."

The three laughed for several long minutes, before Maquesta strolled toward the aft deck. Fritzen followed her.

"When we pull into Lacynos-" Fritzen started.

"If we make it on time," Maq interrupted. "The cage is slowing us, despite the magic of the flute. I'm troubled over it; the cage's drag was something I had not anticipated."

"We'll make it," he said. "And when we make it, what will you do, Maquesta?"

She looked at him quizzically.

"You've a taste of being a captain now. I can't see you doing anything else."

Maq had to admit she felt a satisfaction at the respect accorded her by the Perechon's crew. No longer was there any hint of her being merely the ship's mascot or someone who had to be treated as special because she was the captain's daughter. She was the Perechon's captain-at least for another week, and everyone on board recognized that. Once or twice it had occurred to her to wonder what it would be like with Melas taking over again as captain, and her following orders once more. But she quickly pushed such thoughts away as the ultimate disloyalty.

"My father is the captain of the Perechon. It's that simple."

"Kof brought back pockets full of gems. Enough to buy your own ship," Fritzen posed. "And a lot more."

Maq hung her head. "I know. I've been thinking about that. I want to offer some of the gems to Attat, an attempt to buy Kof. He deserves his freedom. Lord Attat is liable to not let him go-just for spite. But if Attat did go for it, there still would be enough gems left over to pay this crew a year's worth of wages and to buy a fully-rigged two-masted ship. I'd hate to leave my father. But, despite everything, I sort of like this. Being in charge."

Fritzen grinned. "It shows."

"I'd have to get a crew," she mused, dreaming.

"Well, for starters you'd have Kof, if Attat can be tempted. And you have me."

Maquesta looked up at him, and Fritzen drew her into his arms. He kissed her, and she lingered in his embrace, then she pulled away, confused, and worried that someone might have been watching. "I-I have to take the wheel," she stammered. "It's my shift."

"I'll relieve you in a few hours," he offered, grinning.

Maquesta nodded, backing away and realizing she must be blushing horribly. Turning and bouncing up the stairs, she allowed a wide smile to creep across her face.

As Lendle busied himself in the hold working on his oar engine, Ilyatha helped him, relishing the darkness of the ship's belly and delighting in the gnome's company. The shadowperson told the gnome that the work kept his mind off his daughter, Sando. Though from time to time Ilyatha stared off into the distance, as if in a trance. Lendle suspected he was trying to telepathically contact his daughter. Finally, the shadowperson's words confirmed it.

"We are still too far away for my mind to touch hers, to reassure her we are coming," Ilyatha said sorrowfully.

Lendle tried to be compassionate. "We're still many days out of Lacynos," he said. "She'll be all right. You'll see."

The shadowperson made some adjustments here and there to the gnome's odd-looking oar machine, then glanced at Lendle. "But what happens, my friend, if we are late? According to Kof, Lacynos is eight days away. Our thirty-day deadline is seven days away."

The gnome scowled and retrieved a crate of rods, cylinders, clamps, bolts, winches, and pulleys. "We'll make it," he said slowly and sadly. "Maquesta Kar-Thon will think of something. She will not allow us to be late."

Belwar continued to monitor the Perechon's voyage. Every now and then the magnificent ki-rin would swoop out of the clouds and hover over the ship, sending the sailors friendly greetings and, on a few occasions, loaves of bread, wheels of cheese, sacks of oranges, or something else good to eat. Often the food was in the shape of mythical birds or long-finned fish, as the ki-rin created it from his imagination.

The great creature most often conversed with the sea elf on these visits, though Maquesta sometimes was treated to his words of wisdom.

"I sense the evil growing," the ki-rin told her on one of these special occasions. It was nearing sunset, and he made it clear that during this visit his time would be spent only with Maquesta. "Snaring the morkoth stopped only a small speck of the wave of evil gaining strength in the Blood Sea."

Maquesta looked into Belwar's iridescent eyes. "You talked about this evil before, when we first met you. How can you sense this? And can you tell what the evil is?"

"It is in my nature to feel the good and bad pulses in this world. Too, I can sense good and evil in planes that exist side by side with your world of Krynn." The ki-rin shook his head sadly, his golden mane glittering and causing Maquesta to blink. "There is always evil in every world, but when the pulse of it gets stronger, when those with foul intentions become more powerful, it makes me uneasy. I am uneasy now, and that is why I know the evil is becoming more tangible."

The ki-rin hovered above the deck and looked to the sky. "I have business again on another plane, though I suspect it shall not keep me for more than a few days. I will return to you when my tasks are complete." With that, he climbed into the air, shimmered, and turned into a translucent, glittering cloud that dissipated in the wind.

As the Perechon approached the section of the Blood Sea known as Blood Cup, the site of many sunken ships, Maquesta stood near the capstan, her spyglass pressed to her eye. She was beginning to worry in earnest about making it back to Lacynos on time. The flute had been a boon, but they were four days out of the minotaur port city, and the deadline was three days away.

"There's something odd about the water."

Maquesta put the spyglass away as she saw Tailonna climb up over the railing. Maq had gotten used to the sea elf's frequent excursions into the water to catch fish for the morkoth-or just to swim.

"Odd, how?" Maq asked, padding over to join her.

"There are no fish. At least nothing small for me to catch for your beast." Tailonna shook herself, this time staying far enough away from Maquesta that she did not drench the captain. "I saw a couple of barracuda and one large bullshark. That was it. Though fish that size tend to keep the smaller fish away, I swam far enough that I should have seen at least a school of queen angels or some cuddlefish hanging near the bottom."

Maquesta looked toward the aft deck. Hvel was talking to Kof, who had the wheel. Maq rubbed her chin. "Maybe the presence of the morkoth is spooking them; the thing certainly has made me uneasy. That hasn't caused a problem with fish before now, but maybe because he is stronger…" She took a few steps toward the center of the deck and waved to Hvel. "Check on the morkoth!" Hvel nodded, and Maq resumed her conversation with the Tailonna.

Though Maquesta still considered the sea elf haughty and somewhat irritating, she was starting to warm to her. Maq had gained some respect for the comely Dimernesti. The sea elf had taught her about several drop-offs in the Blood Sea, things Maq was sure even her father didn't know about. Tailonna detailed where the coral cities of the mermen were and where other sea races frequented, and she explained that the mermen were often more than willing to trade with surface dwellers, though the mermen were shrewd bargainers.

"Far to the west is the Pit of Istar." Tailonna started to regale Maq with tales of another feature of the sea floor. "The water there is more than three hundred feet deep, and halfway down there is a whirlpool above an ancient rune-covered column."

Maq, listening to the story, glanced casually over her shoulder to watch Hvel. She squinted her eyes to see what he was doing. Working with the chain on the cage, she suspected, maybe pulling some seaweed free from it. Hvel worked and worried over the cage, then he started playing around with the mechanism that held it to the deck.

"No!" she shouted, finally realizing what he really was doing.

Maquesta broke away from the sea elf and darted toward the aft section of the ship, her sandaled feet slapping hard over the polished wood. A softer slapping sound indicated the barefoot sea elf was on her heels. "Stop it, Hvel! You'll release the cage!"

Hvel glanced up and smiled at his approaching captain. Nodding to her, he released the last clamp that held the morkoth's cage to the back of the ship.

"What have you done?" Maq screeched, as she slid alongside him.

Hvel looked at her blankly, and she spotted red flecks in his eyes. "The morkoth needed to be free," he said in a dull, monotone voice. "I couldn't open the cage, though. I tried real hard, too. So I let the cage loose. I thought maybe its impact on the sea floor might break it open. My friend the morkoth needed to be free. He told me so."

"All stop!" Maquesta bellowed at the top of her lungs.

Immediately the sailors on deck rushed to the rigging to lower the sails.

"Drop anchor!" Maq continued to shout orders. "Now!"

"Aye, Captain!" It was Vartan calling from the capstan, where he was fervently working to lower the anchor.

A pounding across the deck brought Koraf and Fritzen to the aft section where the cage had been affixed. Hvel grinned at them and quickly explained how successful he was in freeing his new friend. He puffed out his chest in pride. Furious, Maquesta shook his shoulders. The red flecks faded, and a dazed Hvel stood looking out over the water.

"What happened to the cage?" he asked innocently. "Why are we stopped? Why are you all looking at me like that?"

Maq ignored him and whirled on the Dimernesti. "Tailonna, how long would it take you to mix up some more potions of water breathing?"

"Not long," the sea elf said. "But I likely have enough ingredients for only one." She rushed toward the armory, where the remainder of her herbs were being stored.

"Do it quickly!" Maq called after her. "I'm going after the cage." Then she wheeled on Koraf. "Get Hvel belowdecks. I want Lendle to look him over."

The minotaur half-carried the puzzled Hvel away, leaving Maq and Fritzen staring at the water.

"Let me go after the cage," the half-ogre offered. "I've faced the morkoth before-in his element. I know what to expect. Besides, I'm stronger than you, and that cage is heavy."

Maquesta firmly shook her head. "This task is mine. I have to do this." Her shoulders sagged. "And we were so close. How could this have happened?"

Fritz stood behind her and wrapped his arms about her waist. "We're not undone yet, but you'll have to give in to me this time. There is no way you can bring up that cage."

"Neither could you," she retorted, spinning and releasing herself from his arms. "Not even you are that strong. But I could use your help up top. Lendle has a collection of winches and pulleys down in the hold. I've seen them lying around next to his oar engine. If you could get them rigged up, anchored off the aft deck, I could hook a couple of cables to the cage and we could pull it up."

Fritzen stroked his chin in contemplation. "What if the cage has broken open, Maquesta? What if the morkoth is free?"

"Then we are undone," she said softly. "My father will die, and Ilyatha will never see his daughter again. But I'll not let another sailor die on this quest."

"Thebeastisfree?" Lendle hurried up behind them and poked his head through the aft rail. "Everyoneistalkingaboutthemorkothescaping."

"Temporarily escaping," Tailonna said, as she approached, holding up a vial. "Enough for one potion, and not a large one at that. I suspect this won't last you more than a few hours."

Maq stepped away from Fritz and took the vial in her trembling hand. "It will have to be enough, then." She downed the mixture in one gulp, made sure her short sword and dagger were firmly hooked to her belt, then vaulted over the railing and plunged into the choppy water below.

Tailonna glanced at Fritzen and Lendle. "I'm going with her," she said. Then the sea elf was gone, too.

The gnome peered over the railing to watch their forms disappear as they swam deeper.

"Ihaveabadfeelingaboutthis," Lendle jabbered.

The half-ogre tapped him on the shoulder, nearly sending the startled gnome into the sea, too.

"Winches and pulleys?"

The gnome nodded and led Fritzen into the hold.

The water became colder the deeper Maquesta swam. Her tunic was plastered against her skin, making her movements awkward, and after several yards she tugged off her sandals and let them float away. She felt the water move in and out of her nose, deep into her lungs. It was an odd sensation, but the potion was working, and Maq was amazed that she was breathing water as if it were air.

Dark shapes loomed up below her. Rock formations, a small coral reef, the wreck of an old ship. She batted her eyes and pumped her legs harder, her efforts carrying her deeper still. Another wreck came into view, and another. She gritted her teeth. The morkoth had chosen the center of the Blood Cup to make its move. These waters were rumored to be filled with all manner of aquatic life, lured by the empty husks of once-proud caravels, schooners, warships, and carracks. Divers who sought out the Cup to harvest the riches of the hulks were rarely successful. Most succumbed to attacks from bullsharks.

Sharks were the least of Maquesta's worries now. In fact, Maq didn't see any fish at all. Wait! There was one bullshark, a massive one. It lazily swam over the largest wreck, probably searching for food. That explained the lack of smaller fish, Maq decided. Bullsharks would try to eat anything smaller than themselves.

Trying to keep a good distance from the large shark, Maquesta hovered several yards above the sea floor and peered through the gloom, trying to find the morkoth's cage. All she could see was the graveyard of unfortunate ships and rocky spirals reaching upward amid them. Judging where the cage might have gone down before the Perechon could stop, she started swimming forward, skirting the ships, suspecting the cage might lie beyond them. With each stroke she prayed the cage was intact. If the morkoth was free, it could be hiding in any one of these rotting vessels-or it could be swimming as far away and as fast as its tentacles would take its ugly body.

As her half-elven eyes became more accustomed to the darkness, Maquesta began to pick out details. Most of the ships had sat on the bottom for decades. The barnacles and algae that flourished on their sides were thick and covered up the names on their hulls. Broken masts pointed in all directions, as if the sea floor were a giant pin cushion. Rotting pieces of sails fluttered from some of the masts, looking like ghosts hovering in the water.

The Golden Sailfish, Blood Sea Bounty, Felicia's Dream, and Red Roland were some of the names she could discern on the more recent wrecks. Perhaps victims of the Blood Sea imps, she mused, as her course took her around the edge of the graveyard and to a sloping coral ridge just beyond. Fortunately the morkoth had not hypnotized Hvel at night, when the imps are about, she thought.

Something brushed up against Maquesta's legs, and she drew her dagger, twirled in the water, and stopped herself from stabbing forward with the blade. Tailonna hovered there. The sea elf pointed toward the coral ridge. Maquesta followed the Dimernesti's gaze and spotted the outline of the cage, just over the edge of an embankment. Squinting, Maq could tell the morkoth was still inside. But it was getting some help to get free.

No! Maquesta's mind screamed, as she kicked her legs furiously to take her closer to the coral ridge. A squid, apparently under the control of the morkoth, was hard at work on the bars, trying to pry them apart with its tentacles. The morkoth was assisting it, using its tentacles to do the same.

Maquesta's eyes grew wide as she watched the bars start to bend. The sea elf shot past her, propelling herself at the squid, and hitting the creature's bulbous body, pushing it away from the cage and impaling it on a jagged finger of coral. Maquesta swam faster, too, her lungs aching from the exertion. She held the dagger in her teeth and dived toward the cage. As she landed on the ridge by the cage, the sharp edges of the coral bit into her feet. Ignoring the pain, Maquesta drew her short sword, moved forward, and thrust the blade through the bars to keep the morkoth back. She examined the bars that were swelled outward. Not enough space to let the morkoth slip through, she decided, though more than enough space for a tentacle to slip out.

She glanced over her shoulder to see Tailonna finish off the dying squid. Another was moving slowly toward Maquesta and the cage, and the sea elf started shooing it away, like one might chase a naughty dog.

Maquesta looked at the morkoth, then let her gaze drift upward and to the south, where she vaguely made out the image of the Perechon's hull. The bullshark was hovering under the ship now, probably curious.

You're coming back with us, she thought, as she gazed malevolently at the caged morkoth. There'll be no more of your tricks. You can try them on Lord Attat for all I care. But first, she added to herself, we've got to get you out of this cage so you can swim free. There's no reason you should be confined in this terrible cage.

Maquesta's eyes were flecked with red, mirroring the eyes of the morkoth. The creature hovered within the confines of its cage, its tentacles tracing patterns of bubbles in the dark water.

Maq watched the bubbles for several moments, then she pushed herself off the coral ridge and floated to the top of the cage. The solder on the bars was likely the weakest there, she decided, as she hooked her legs between the bars for support and started to work on the metal with her dagger. The tip of her weapon broke off, but the rest of the blade was still strong.

Faster, the morkoth urged her.

Faster, she answered inside her head.

Maquesta had just about succeeded in breaking one of the welds when she felt herself flying backward through the water, pushed by two strong arms. Tailonna thrust Maq away from the cage, propelling her down to the coral ridge, and slamming her into it, knocking the water from Maq's lungs.

You don't understand, Maq's eyes tried to tell Tailonna. My friend the morkoth must be free.

Tailonna grabbed Maquesta's head and brought her own face down to within inches of it. "Listen to me," Tailonna said. The tones sounded bubbly and distorted through the water. 'The beast has hypnotized you, just as it did Hvel. As it did to Ilyatha in its tunnel-lair. Fight it!"

Maq blinked and tried to focus on the words, on the sparkling blue-green elvish eyes before her. Tailonna roughly shook her.

"The morkoth," Maq mouthed. "The morkoth lulled me!" Maquesta pushed off the ridge, away from the Dimernesti and toward the cage, fire in her eyes replacing the red specks. She brought the pommel of her dagger down on the top of the cage to get the beast's attention, then she narrowed her eyes and glared at it.

Maquesta stood on top of the cage and pointed her hand up, in the direction of the Perechon. Then she motioned to Tailonna, indicating she should go to the ship. The sea elf shook her head fervently, perhaps unsure if Maquesta was herself. But Maq pointed again, and then pointed at the cage.

Tailonna understood. She was to go to the ship and bring down a cable. The sea elf waited for several moments, until the bullshark moved on, then her powerful legs kicked off from the sea floor and started her toward the surface.

Maquesta watched the Dimernesti rise, feeling envious of her ability to swim so strongly and move so gracefully beneath the waves. Then a shadow fell across Maq's line of sight. She blinked and looked up, initially fearing another bullshark. Squinting her eyes, she saw the movement again. One of the rocky columns amid the sunken ships was quivering, as if it might fall down.

Then column began bending, contorting. At first Maquesta thought the image was a trick played by the currents. But as she continued to watch, she saw the other columns start to move, too. She glanced at the morkoth. It was still. Its tentacles were at rest, though its wide eyes glared back at her malevolently. Not an illusion created by the morkoth, she guessed. Tailonna was too far away now to see what was transpiring. Maquesta could see only the tiny reflection of the sea elf disappearing at the top of the sea, climbing up to the Perechon's deck.

The wavering rocks bothering her, Maquesta pushed off from the cage, trying to get above the sea floor and get a better look at the living columns. As she rose, she saw that the rocky columns were attached to a larger rock, one that sat in the middle of the graveyard. Her stomach began to churn as she realized it wasn't stone she was watching, but a living creature, a leviathan rising from the sea floor. A pair of large eyes opened on the bulbous, rocky-looking body, and Maq's mouth gaped wide.

A giant octopus! Her mind raced. This was why the ships lay broken all around. They weren't the victims of the Blood Sea imps-they were the victims of this hideous monstrosity! And this was the reason there were so few fish. The bullshark was insignificant next to this thing. As the creature moved, barnacles and algae, the parasites that had clung to its tentacles, fell away, revealing smooth, green-black skin. The mantle of the octopus, its bag-shaped body, was larger than any of the ships that lay broken about it. Eyes wider across than a man is tall blinked at her from the base of its body. Eight tentacles, longer than huge sea snakes, writhed and whirled, stirring up sand. The undersides of the tentacles were much lighter in color and sported hundreds of small cups. As the tentacles wiggled above the sea floor, Maq glimpsed the creature's gaping mouth on the underside of its mantle. As she watched, the creature's color began changing, becoming lighter to nearly blend in with the sand and ruined ships.

The thing must have been sleeping for weeks, Maquesta realized, to have accumulated so much algae on its skin. What had awakened it? She glanced down at the morkoth and saw its eyes were practically glowing. A single tentacle flexed toward the giant, like a beckoning finger.

Maquesta shot up through the water, her legs pumping fiercely. She had to get to the Perechon, had to get the ship out of here. Retrieving the morkoth had just become too costly. She refused to jeopardize everyone on board.

A stream of bubbles trailing behind her, Maq saw the light growing brighter ahead, signaling that she was nearing the surface. Ilyatha! her mind called out. Make them raise the anchor! Make them… At the edge of her vision, Maq saw a mammoth tentacle wrap itself about the anchor chain. Like a child with a toy, the great beast began to pull, and she saw with anguish that the Perechon rocked in response.

Changing her tactics, Maquesta angled herself beneath the ship. Her side ached, but she pushed herself harder, faster. She was nearly under the ship now, near the chain. She groped about on her belt and discovered that her dagger was gone, forgotten somewhere on the sea floor. But her short sword was with her. Pulling it free, and swimming more awkwardly with it in her hand, she finally reached the chain.

Hear me, Ilyatha! she continued to concentrate on the shadowperson, hoping he would pick up her thoughts. You've got to get the Perechon away from here.

Wrapping her legs about the anchor chain, so that she was head down and pointed toward the octopus, Maquesta pulled herself closer to the tentacle and lashed out with the sword. She sliced halfway through the tip of the tentacle that held the chain, then drew back her weapon to jab at it again.

I'm here, Maquesta. The voice inside her head was Ilyatha's.

A giant octopus! Maq shouted back to the telepath. It has the anchor. I'm cutting it free. Raise the anchor! Tell Kof to get the Perechon out of here!

We'll throw a rope to you, Ilyatha communicated, an urgency to his telepathic voice.

Don't worry about me! Maquesta concentrated. The ship. Save the ship. She lashed out at the tentacle again, this time successfully cutting through the rubbery thing. Dark red blood, almost black, poured out into the water like a cloud. She felt the tension loosen about the chain. Move the ship! That's an order. Tailonna can direct you around the Blood Cup! Maq realized that with those thoughts her father's life had finally, irrevocably, slipped beyond her grasp. Without the morkoth, there would be no antidote for Melas. There would be no freedom for Ilyatha's daughter. But staying over the Blood Cup jeopardized the lives of everyone on the Perechon. She could not justify that.

Releasing herself from the chain the moment she felt it start to surge upward, Maquesta decided to buy the Perechon some time. Swimming at another tentacle, she thrust forward with her sword, stabbing at the rubbery mass. Myriad suctionlike cups wriggled at her, but she kept out of their way, hovering just at the end of the tentacles' reach. Withdrawing the sword, she plunged it in again and again. Then the world turned black around her as the water darkened like the midnight sky. She twisted her head all about, but it was pitchblack everywhere. Not even her sensitive vision permeated the darkness. Then her eyes began to sting, and she realized the octopus had released an inky substance, turning the water black.

Maq was disoriented, not knowing which way was up, which way to the ocean floor, where the octopus might be lurking. Kicking her legs, she began to move, guessing that she was rising toward the surface. She held her sword tightly, and waved it back and forth in front of her to keep any tentacles at bay. As a jab of pain shot through her leg, she realized a tentacle had found a way around her flailing weapon. Perhaps the leviathan could see through its dark cloud. The octopus tightened its grip, and Maq gritted her teeth, trying to block out the aching sensation. Twisting in the black water, she continued to flail about with her blade, hoping it would connect with something.

Again and again she dragged the sword through the water, until at last it met resistance. Jabbing there, she felt a rush of bubbles against her body. She must have hurt the leviathan. Stabbing again, she cringed as a tentacle found her sword arm. It gripped her tightly, but she kept her fingers wrapped about the blade's pommel, refusing to let go. With one tentacle also still holding her leg, the tentacles began to move away from each other-the octopus intended to tear her apart!

Maquesta fought back a wave of pain and groped out with her free hand. She felt the tentacle about her sword arm, and she fumbled frantically until she felt her captured hand and the pommel still held tightly within it. Grabbing the sword, she started sawing through the tentacle with it, trying to free her captured arm. The tentacle tugged more strongly, nearly wrenching her shoulder out of the socket, but she persisted. The tentacle tugged again, and Maq screamed, though no sound came out, only a stream of bubbles. She cut faster, and at last she was rewarded when the tentacle about her arm writhed away. Doubling over, she felt about her calf, at the tentacle still firmly holding her there. Again she started cutting. This tentacle released her quickly to avoid being severed, and she kicked her legs to propel herself away from the creature.

She felt herself rising, and she kicked harder. Maquesta knew that if this giant octopus was like its smaller cousins, it would be able to regenerate its rubbery limbs. But it would take several weeks, and she and the Perechon would be long gone. Her heart hammered wildly in her chest, the thundering sound filling her ears and increasing her terror. Her feet churned, and she felt out of breath, dizzy, but at last her head broke through the surface of the water and she started breathing air. She coughed, spewing out the saltwater that had been in her lungs. Blinking furiously as the light of the morning sun hit her full in the face, she turned about in the water, looking for the Perechon.

The anchor dangled from the ship, which was a little better than a hundred yards from her. As she watched, the sails reached the top of the masts and began to billow with air. Sheathing her sword, Maq started swimming toward the ship. No use trying to fight the giant octopus when she couldn't see it for all the inky water, she decided.

"There's Maq!" It was Fritzen's voice. "Wait for her!"

Don't wait for me! Maq's mind scolded, hoping Ilyatha was still reading her thoughts. If I reach the ship on my own, all right. But get out of here before… Her last thought trailed off as she saw a giant tentacle rise above the water and drape itself over the bow of the Perechon.

Panicking, Maquesta swam faster, taking great gulps of air into her lungs and watching as the sailors ran toward the rubbery mass that threatened to capsize the ship. As she closed the distance, the water began churning in front of her, bubbling like Lendle's soup caldron. An enormous, bulbous head broke the surface of the waves. The leviathan had risen, seeking to add another ship to its trophy collection on the sea floor.

"You'll not take the Perechon!" Maquesta seethed. "You can't have my ship."

The great beast seemed not to notice Maq, it was so intent on the ship. Waving another two tentacles in the air, it dropped them across the deck, one between the mizzenmast and the mainmast, and the other over the aft section. The giant octopus began to rock the ship wildly, and Maq saw Vartan and Hvel get pitched into the water.

On the deck of the ship, Koraf gave up trying to steer the Perechon. He drew his sword, grabbed a belaying pin, and rushed at the tentacle that lay between the masts. The rubbery tentacle had broken the railings on both sides of the deck and, like a snake, had begun to constrict about the center of the ship. The minotaur grimaced as he heard the wood groan in protest. Motioning wildly, he directed the bulk of the sailors to join him. Gathering on both sides of the thing, they began hacking on the leviathan's tentacle, cleaving into the thick tissue and trying to dislodge it.

Fritzen had grabbed hold of the tentacle on the aft section of the ship and was trying to pry it loose. His muscles bulged, and the veins stood out on the side of his neck. Wrapping his left arm about the tentacle where it tapered on the port side, he reached to his waist and his fingers closed about the hilt of his dagger. Drawing the weapon, he pulled it back behind his head, and then let it fall, stabbing deep into the beast's flesh. Dark red blood spurted out, making the deck slippery. It was all the half-ogre could do to keep his balance. Then the tentacle turned on him.

Releasing the deck, where it had splintered the wood, and leaving a gaping hole open to the galley, the tentacle rose up into the air. Like a snake, it came down and coiled about Fritzen. It picked him up from the deck and shook him as a baby would a rattle. The halfogre concentrated to keep from dropping the dagger. As the thing flailed him about, he stabbed into the tentacle repeatedly.

A great cry erupted from the leviathan's wide mouth. Fritzen and the others were hurting it! In anger, the giant octopus hurled Fritzen at the mizzenmast. The half-ogre flew through the air until his back soundly struck the mast halfway up. The wind knocked out of him, he plummeted to the deck, near where Koraf and the others had just managed to sever the tentacle that had been wrapped about the ship's middle.

The half-ogre groaned and shook his head. For a moment it looked as though there were two minotaurs, two of everyone. He shook his head again, and his vision began to clear. Stumbling forward, he fell against the tentacle and began pushing the severed part into the water. The stump that remained started thrashing about maddeningly. Koraf ordered the sailors to back away, lest they be beaten by the thing. As they complied, the flailing stump hit the mizzenmast, cracking it. The tall beam teetered for a moment, then the top half of it snapped off and crashed to the deck, pinning two fleeing crewmen, and covering the rest with the collapsed sail.

Tailonna and Ilyatha struggled against the tentacle at the bow of the ship. The sea elf hummed and concentrated, while the shadowperson struck at the rubbery mass with his barbed staff. Violet darts flew from Tailonna's fingertips, striking the tentacle and causing it to rear back in pain. As the tentacle pulled back, it struck Ilyatha, knocking him into the water.

Maquesta saw the shadowperson fall. Tangled in his voluminous cloak, he flung his arms about, but couldn't stay afloat. Maq swam toward him, noticing out of the corner of her eye that Hvel and Vartan had grabbed on to a section of the railing that was floating in the water. Panting, Maquesta finally reached the shadowperson and started pulling the sodden cape from him.

"I know the sun will hurt you," Maquesta gasped. "But you'll drown with all these clothes on." Letting the cloak and hood float away, she grabbed Ilyatha about the shoulders and swam with him toward Hvel and Vartan. Shouts from her crewmen on deck, and the cacophonous screeching of the octopus, filled her senses.

"Maq!" Vartan called. "We thought you were dead."

Maquesta pushed the shadowperson into Hvel's arms. "Hold him," she huffed. "I'm going after the octopus. If we can't beat this thing back, we'll all be dead."

She dived beneath the surface, breathing deeply of the water again, thankful that Tailonna's potion was still working. Maquesta angled herself away from the ship and under the octopus. From beneath its body, she saw its limbs waving wildly and noticed that two had been cut in half. Dark blood poured from the frayed edges. The creature's mouth was open, and its long, pointed tongue, covered with two rows of jagged teeth, wriggled back and forth.

As Maq swam toward its underside, short sword raised in front of her, one of the unharmed tentacles brought a struggling sailor to its mouth. She kicked her legs faster to close the distance, but the octopus stuffed the hapless sailor inside its beak, using its tongue to cut the man into bits before Maq could even discern his identity.

Maquesta closed her eyes for but a moment, not wanting to see the sailor's grisly end. Opening them slowly, she saw the octopus's beak open and close, chewing its meal. She thrust herself forward, slipping between a pair of tentacles and jabbing at the bulbous body from underneath. Again the octopus screamed, but this time the cry was louder than before. The leviathan pulled its tentacles away from the Perechon and started swirling them about its body in the water, looking for its attacker.

Struggling to keep herself away from the tentacles-and staying beneath the giant octopus where its eyes could not see-Maquesta drove the sword in again. Almost instantly she was surrounded by the inky blackness. Undaunted, she withdrew her blade and stabbed forward, certain that the great beast could not have moved far.

On deck, Fritzen and Koraf lowered a rope ladder to Vartan and Ilyatha. "Hurry, please!" Vartan called. "The thing got Hvel. Dragged him under. We'll be next!"

Tailonna jumped over the side and helped Ilyatha to the ladder. The shadowperson's eyes were closed, and he tried to draw his webbed arms about his face to fend off the sun's rays. Vartan leapt ahead of Ilyatha, climbing up several rope rungs then extending an arm down, indicating Tailonna should hand up the shadowperson.

After she was certain Ilyatha was all right, Tailonna dived beneath the water, searching for Maquesta, who she guessed must be somewhere in the cloud of blackness. She mumbled a few words, and a globe of glowing blue light appeared in the palm of her hand, cutting through the inky haze. She spied Maq beneath the giant octopus's body. Maquesta was quivering, and Tailonna noticed the leviathan's toothy tongue was wrapped around Maq's left leg.

The sea elf gasped, realizing the octopus must have released its nerve poison into the water, one of its last defenses. Maquesta must have hurt the creature badly, Tailonna mused as she swam toward the octopus's mouth, hoping she would be in time.

Maq felt her fingers growing numb and had to keep both hands about the hilt of her short sword so she wouldn't drop it. Shocks of hot and cold chased up and down her frame, and she felt a tingling in her leg where the tongue had grabbed her. She bit her bottom lip, hoping the pain might help her concentrate. Focusing, she stabbed forward with her sword, piercing the octopus's tongue.

The beast let go of her, and its tongue flapped wildly, her sword still embedded in it. Maquesta, weaponless, looked about and saw Tailonna swimming toward her. The sea elf had a dagger strapped in her belt, and Maquesta numbly swam toward her, motioning for the weapon.

Tailonna reached Maq in a few strokes and could tell by the glassy look in the captain's eyes that the nerve toxin was in her system. The sea elf shook her head and pointed away from the octopus, trying to get Maquesta to back off to safety. But Maq was determined. Reaching forward with unfeeling fingers, Maq saw her hand close about the dagger. She pulled the weapon from Tailonna's belt. Maq brought her other hand about the small hilt, too, not wanting to drop the blade. Tailonna's magical light source helped her see the giant octopus, which had now turned so it could watch the two tiny figures in the water beneath it.

The sea elf began mumbling again, calling forth violet darts from her fingertips that struck the octopus near its mouth. Its lidless eyes grew wide and dark, filled with anger, as it waved its tentacles to carry it closer to the small creatures causing it so much pain.

At the same time, a determined Maquesta swam awkwardly forward, luckily dodging a tentacle, and moving up against the creature's head. Its massive eyes regarded her balefully, and Maq stared back at the creature, pulled her lip up in a snarl, and plunged the dagger into the nearest eye.

In the next instant, the sea about the Perechon became a foaming, frothing expanse. Tentacles thrashed about, and the giant octopus screamed shrilly, causing those on board the ship to cover their ears. The ship pitched, sending many of the sailors to their knees.

"To the oars!" Kof bellowed. Only those sailors closest to him heard the order above the terrible noise coming from the leviathan.

Maquesta and Tailonna suddenly found themselves being propelled backward through the water. The giant octopus was shooting a jet of water through its body. The burst of speed sent the leviathan away from the Perechon, and the backlash sent Maq and the sea elf bumping soundly up against the hull of the ship.

"Grab the rope ladder!" Fritzen called out.

The feeling had started coming back into Maquesta's fingers. Mustering what was left of her strength, she pulled herself up the ladder and fell forward onto the deck. Tailonna scampered up behind her. As Maq raised her head, she took in the destruction.

The mizzenmast lay irreparably broken, in worse shape than the mast Belwar had destroyed on the Butcher. The railing was nonexistent about most of the ship, and holes dotted the deck where the leviathan's tentacles had ripped up boards. All about Maq, the crew worked to pick up the mess.

Fritzen helped her to her feet. His eyes held hers, and this time she didn't look away.

"I thought I was going to lose you," he said.

"I lost my father," she replied simply. "The Perechon can't make Lord Attat's deadline now. The morkoth is at the bottom of the sea. And the only way we're getting anywhere is under oar power. It will take us weeks to get back to Lacynos."

Fritzen kissed her forehead. "We also lost Hvel," he said finally. "The octopus pulled him under. Beyond that, two sailors were injured when the mizzenmast fell, but their wounds are not serious. Ilyatha will be all right, too, if that's any consolation. He's in the armory, under a blanket. The sun burned his skin and temporarily blinded him."

Tears spilled from Maquesta's eyes. The price had become very high indeed.

For nearly an hour the only sounds on the deck were made by crewmen cleaning up pieces of the mast and folding the sail. Maquesta sat on the poop deck, looking out over the water. Vartan padded up behind her.

"At your request, we've organized teams for rowing. They'll be starting…" His voice trailed off.

A discordant collection of groans, wheezes, clicks, and whirrs issued from belowdecks. A loud, sputtering belch discharged, and a great gout of black smoke puffed up through every hole in the deck. Maquesta jumped to her feet and clamped her hands over her ears. The air became filled with a cacophonous clanking, grinding, squeaking, and banging sound. Smoke poured forth again, and then the Perechon jerked forward. Maq climbed down from the aft deck and dashed through the smoke. Standing at the side of the ship, she glanced over. The oars were moving. All in unison.

"Mymachineisworking!" cried Lendle.

The gnome rushed on deck, and all eyes turned toward him. A triumphant cheer went up from the Perechon's crew, and Lendle's eyes filled with appreciative tears. His clothes were in tatters, and burn marks were evident all over his small form. The tips of his boots had burned away, and his toes, covered with soot, wiggled excitedly. There wasn't much left of his beard, and his once-white hair was now as dark as Maquesta's. His face was smudged all over, except for a small track, down each cheek, that his tears had washed clean.

"MaquestaKarThonmymachineisworking!"

She rushed to the gnome and picked him up, hugging him fiercely and covering herself with soot and dirt in the process.

His face broke into a broad grin, and he talked slower to accommodate her. "Now we can make it to Lacynos on time. With one sail and my oar machine, we'll make better time than ever before."

"But the morkoth!" Maquesta cried. "Tailonna! Do you think the octopus is still down there?"

The sea elf rushed to Maq's side and gave Lendle's head an affectionate pat. "I think that octopus is long gone from these waters. Let me take a cable over the side and see if the beast is still in the cage. If so, we'll hoist him up. If not, we'll go looking for him again."

Maq shook her head. "This quest has been too expensive already. I'll not jeopardize another life on Lord Attat's creature hunt."

The Dimernesti nodded, somehow understanding what was going on in Maquesta's mind. She ran to the aft of the ship and dived over, hardly making a splash as her form cut through the water.

"Lendle, can you make the oars stop-without turning off your machine? Perhaps just raise them up out of the water so we don't go anywhere?" Maquesta looked into his bright eyes, hoping she wasn't about to make another mistake. "I'm afraid if you turn it off, you might not get it started again."

"Oh, it will work from now on, Maquesta Kar-Thon." Lendle was beaming with pride. "When you directed us to set up a winch and pulley on the aft deck to pull up the morkoth's cage, I had to take the big winch out of my oar engine. It seems I had a few too many parts in the engine, because when I closed it back up, and turned it on, it started right away. Of course, there is the matter of a little smoke."

"So you have a winch set up?"

"Oh, yes, Vartan and I did that while you were… busy underwater."

"And it looks like we're going to need that winch and pulley!" Fritzen was calling from the aft deck. "I'll need some help with the crank. Tailonna says the morkoth is still caged!"

Several long minutes later, Tailonna's head cleared the water. "I've hooked up the cable. And it looks as if the morkoth is decidedly unhappy about all of this."

As she climbed on deck, the sea elf explained that she'd had to chase away a veritable army of crabs that were hard at work trying to free the morkoth. The steel bars were tougher than their claws, and all the experience had done was make the little crustaceans grumpy, she added.

It took shifts of three men, taking turns working the crank, to pull up the cage. As its top broke through the water, Maquesta ordered the men to look away. She dashed to the hold and retrieved one of the old sails that she had stored in the event her new ones needed repairs.

Tailonna drew the material about the cage, so the morkoth could not look out of the bars and hypnotize any of the men. She left only a small hole, just large enough to slip fish through to feed the beast. And the hole had a flap of material attached to it, so when the creature wasn't eating, it would not even be able to see a speck of sky.

"Reminds me of an orange parrot my mother had," Fritzen mused. "The little bird was so loud that she had to completely cover the cage every night. She used a white sheet, and when I was a child I would have nightmares about the ghost in the kitchen."

"I dare say the morkoth is more annoying than a bird," Maq quipped.

"I'm not sure you could convince my mother of that."

"At least you still have a mother."

"Somewhere," Fritzen answered.

The cage secured to the aft section of the ship, Maquesta nodded to Lendle to put his oar engine into its highest gear. All of the crew had assembled on the deck to watch the gnome's machine at work. They anxiously stared over the sides, looking at the oars that hovered just above the water. Finally, the oars began to move, their oarlocks creaking. Slowly at first, then gathering speed and power.

The crew broke into spontaneous applause, and Lendle's blush could be seen even through the soot on his face.

During most of the next day, Lendle tended the engine as if it were a newborn baby, emerging from the cargo hold only to take an occasional bite to eat, and forcing Vartan to stand in as chef. The Perechon was making better time than ever before-and was also making more noise than Maquesta would have believed possible. She made a mental note to ask Lendle-after they arrived in Lacynos-if he could make the oar machine work quietly. She didn't want to ask him now and risk him doing something to stop it from functioning.

Maquesta and Fritzen stood by the helm, listening to the odd collection of sounds and watching the sun drop toward the horizon. It was the evening of the second day that the oar engine had been in use, and the Perechon, within less than a dozen hours, would be approaching the entrance to Horned Bay-its prize captive in tow, and more than a half day short of Attat's deadline.