“This is Brogden. His team of three will be heading our travels. The ship they’ll be manning has a sleeping chamber in the lower deck, but it doesn’t have enough space to accommodate all of us. Our carriage will be coming aboard with us, while Gladian’s will be staying behind. The three Veilatara and us will be staying on the upper deck. First glance at the map, Brogden assumes it’s going to take two days to get to our location as long as we don’t run into trouble. We’re to stay in our assigned areas.”
“We didn’t decide that, Creed. You did. There’s no way you expect us to stay in the lower deck for two days straight.”
Creed shrugs at Gladian. “I don’t see why not. It’s no different than staying in your home for two days.”
“We don’t stay locked in our homes for two days straight.”
“There’s nowhere else for you to go but back to the Godsdawn. That’s always an option.”
“You know as well as I do, it isn’t. You can deal with us coming up on the upper deck from time to time.”
“I don’t have to deal with shit.”
“Thayla,” Gladian says, staring at me like he wants me to change Creed’s mind.
“Don’t fucking talk to her.” Riven’s voice is laced in warning, and I brush my knuckles across his.
“I honestly don’t give a shit where you go, but you and your Valtrue stay the hell away from me.”
He holds my gaze for a long moment, then nods.
I don’t like that either.
He, Mara, and Chasin have been quiet bystanders this entire time since Derivius’s decree locked their minds up, and their weird acceptance of what’s going on around us does nothing but set off my suspicions. Of what, I don’t know, but I don’t trust it.
Mellcom and Jeremiah haven’t done anything necessarily either, but they talk the loudest and draw the most attention to themselves. Where the rest of their Valtrue seems to be trying to blend in, those two seem to be trying to stand out.
Collum is just fucking here, making things more awkward.
“If all your bickering is done, then let’s load up. The creatures like to play mostly at night, so it’s best to get the easy sailing out of the way during the day.”
The gruff, burly voice from the god who’ll be guiding our way shocks me. He’s got a playful smirk tilting his lips like he was truly enjoying that. He doesn’t wait for a response, though, as two more gods stomp past us and he falls in step with them as they walk toward the fog covering the pier.
Creed nods for us to come on and we do.
My Valtrue naturally falls in a formation around me with Creed leading the way. Kyzen stays where he is, Riven steps from my side to my back, and Amick takes the spot he was just in.
My exhale is loud as we step through the thick cloud of fog and Riven’s fingers tangle into the back of my shirt. I can’t see much of anything for a solid five steps, then lights flicker to life along posts sticking out of the water.
The only sound to be heard is the motion of the water. It slaps up against a surface somewhere in front of us and the sound of something falling causes me to jump.
“They just lowered the bridge for us to walk up to get on the ship,” Creed murmurs over his shoulder.
“It’d be lovely if I could see that,” I grumble, and he grunts as he reaches back, grips my wrist, and pulls me forward.
I don’t bother pulling away when our steps slow and my mouth falls open. My gaze scans the pitch-black, sleek ship from one end to the next. I’m shit at estimating size, but it’s at least one hundred feet long.
One of the two men with Brogden tugs on a rope that’s tied to a post in the upper deck, releasing massive gold sails. There are two more columns spread across the boat that have those strapped sheets as well.
My shocked gaze follows a large wooden slab that lies from on top of the ship down to the pier. It’s wide enough that the carriage won’t have any problems getting up it.
“Shit. This is really a ship,” I mumble.
“Come on,” Creed says, lacing our fingers together rather than let me go.
I wobble a little bit when we step onto the bridge thingy, and the ship rocks from the waves. Before I can even balance myself out, I’m being slung over a shoulder.
“Creed, put me down right this second.”
