“Ugh, what is that?” Tavia grimaced.
Tyrell was clutching the hilt of his sword.
“It’s whatever your fiance is so keen on hiding,” he growled. “When we get there, you’d better let me look first. It’s not going to be pretty.”
Lia decided she was not going to fight him on this one.
A moment later, as she looked across the never ending scenes of ocean brutality, she thought she heard a voice. She was about to dismiss it as her imagination, when she caught Tyrell’s wide-eyed glance—he had heard it too.
A step closer and they could all hear it—the voices of women chanting with the rhythm of a beating heart.
Death, death,death.
The three explorers froze in place. Tyrell’s face had gone a ghostly white, and Lia knew her own cheeks were just as pale. She listened as a haunting soprano rose above the thrumming choir:
Back when I was just a lad, I loved a maiden fair.
Her gentle heart was pure as gold, she’d flowers in her hair.
Alas, my sweetest darling,was careless in her stride,
And tumbling down into the waves was swallowed by the tide.
Tavia started to sway as the soloist faded back into the beating chant. Lia leapt forward and caught her arm, snatching the lamp just before it slipped from her hand.
Her own heart was beating leaps and bounds ahead of the distant rhythm.
“Maybe we should go,” breathed Tavia.
“N-no,” Tyrell was now noticeably trembling but his jaw was set tight in a valiant attempt to hide it. “We must s-see-”
Before he could finish his sentence, the singers broke into a refrain, each one taking a line in turn while the others continued drummingdeathbeneath the rotating soloists. Tyrell extended a finger and whispered a number as each woman wove her line in and out in turn.
Death, death, death to all that sings!“One.”
Death it comes to sailors bold,“Two”
And death, it comes for kings!“Three”
Death, it took my maiden fair,“Four”
With dancing curls of gold.“Five.”
Death so cruel that none would spare,“Six”
It snatches young and old!“S-s-s-”
Tyrell slowly looked up from his fingers and met Lia’s eyes. “Seven,”he finally managed to mouth.
“Eight,”came a voice from the blackness behind them.
Lia shrieked, her scream mixing with that of Tavia and Tyrell.
A crash sounded as the lamp hit the floor and went out.
Some animal instinct sent Lia running directly into the wall which knocked the wind out of her, causing her to stop screaming long enough to breathe.
“YOU!” came Tyrell’s voice. Lia turned around to see that Tavia had fainted on to the floor and Tyrell wasn’t looking much better. Yes, he was technically still standing but shaking so violently, he couldn’t get a grip on his sword hilt.
