Chapter 4- Through the Straits
Gutting fish, Amy discovered, is gross.
It was evening now, and Amy had taken her usual place at the bow of the
ship, leaning against it, enjoying the sensation of wind in her face. She
and Hermes had explored their ship after setting sail, rummaging through
the supplies left to them by Elissa and her traders. There were changes in
clothes, sets of sandals for each, as well as four of the rounded, domed
shields that Elissa's men carried. The weaponry consisted of a set of four
leaf bladed bronze swords and four slender bronze knives, finely wrought and
gleaming in the light they were held to.
Wine and fresh water were carried in jugs, their bottoms rounded. To pour
drink, they tipped the cask onto its side, spilling. Food consisted mostly
of dried and salted fish, along with bread, olives and cheese. It had been
Hermes' brilliant idea to fish with some netting they found with the
supplies, and had spent the later part of the morning casting the net into
the water. Fishing at that point of day was not quite as profitable as the
earlier hours, but he managed to catch a fair sized batch of marine life.
Amy had asked if she could help do anything, and had ended up receiving a
lesson in gutting and de-boning fish. No further than her second attempt,
Amy's knife had slipped against the guts, and had sliced lightly into the
webbing between her thumb and pointer finger, just deep enough to draw
blood.
She had poured some of the stinging wine onto the cut, and Hermes had bound
it in a bit of cloth. He didn't call her clumsy, and she was glad of it. He
had, also much to her surprise, offered to make dinner, frying the fillets
in the bronze brazier. "Your hand's cut. I don't want to eat blood," he
claimed, but his voice had been teasing, not harsh.
So now, Amy leaned against the prow, watching the setting chariot of the
sun. The sky looked as though some celestial painter had spilled their oils
across it, blue and red and orange and gold, mixed into the inky blueness of
the dawning stars. She flexed her fingers experimentally, the white
handkerchief spotted just slightly with her crimson blood, holding it before
her eyes to see the folds of the cloth. *Sometimes I don't know what to
think of him. He acts like such a baka half the time...then he turns around
and helps me with Elissa, then binds my hand. Not that I couldn't do that
myself. With luck, I am going to be a doctor. I wonder if it's some sort of
god personality trait. Still....*
Amy sighed, returning her hand to the wooden beam. *I'm just not good at
this sort of thing. I'm better with books. Raye...she would probably just
yell at him. Lita would want to beat him into a bloody pulp. And if I
were....*
"Hey Princess!" at Hermes' call, Amy turned from her reverie, seeing him
hefting a plate into the air, beaming. "Dinner's ready!"
*And if I were Bunny or Mina....* Amy walked over, settling herself down
comfortably on a pillow beside the fire. Hermes handed her the plate. Amy
looked at the concoction that he had made. Two strips of black char were
stretched out across the baked clay, black and crumbling. They smoked.
"Hermes?"
"What?" he stuffed a mouthful of the burned fish into his face before Amy
could stop him, then turned green, spitting it out. "You mortals eat this
stuff?" he asked incredulously.
"It's usually not burned like this. Hermes...have you ever cooked before?"
"It looked easy enough."
*That's probably what Mina thought too....* Amy sighed, closing her eyes
and placing a hand to her temple, rubbing it distractedly. "Is there any
more fish?"
"Couple. Why?"
"Give it to me."
Amy gathered some of the bread and the remains of the fish, slicing the raw
meat into flat fillets, fingers easily dancing between the food and the
knife. *I may not be a culinary genius like Lita, but at least I can
make....* "Have a sandwich."
"A what? With raw fish?"
"Like sushi," Amy shrugged and bit into her creation. *It's okay, I
guess....* She chewed it thoughtfully. Hermes inspected her bread and fish
layering, wrinkling his nose, but finally took an experimenting mouthful. He
shrugged.
"Better than that mess I made."
"Well, it could have been worse."
"How?"
"Jalapenos?"
"What?"
"Nothing."
Amy took another bite to prevent him from asking her again, since her mouth
was full. The pair settled into calm silence, chewing thoughtfully. Amy
glanced at him, looking sharply away when he caught her stare. *Great. Stare
at him, Amy.* She cleared her throat and took a sip of the warm wine. *And
don't drink too much! Water in this era isn't exactly the best thing to
drink...well, there may not be any pollutants, but it also hasn't been
cleaned...getting drunk is NOT going to help matters.*
"Princess?"
"Yes?"
"When you yelled at me..." he began, shifting nervously on his pallet,
tucking a leg closer to him, "you said that I didn't know what the Crystal
thing was for. Um, what is it?"
*Ah. I was beginning to wonder if he would ask me. I suppose this is as
good a time as any. Better than most, actually. I must be careful though.
Athena refused information about the future...I should be vague about
that...but I do need to tell him about the Mercury Crystal. Something, at
least. But...maybe I can turn one, small thing, to my advantage...it's
getting very tiring.*
"I would be happy to. On one condition."
Hermes frowned, which was slowly becoming a glare. "I wasn't expecting
rules to be set up on information. The way you were talking, it sounded like
you were mad I didn't...."
Amy laughed lightly, shaking her head. She waved a hand carelessly to stop
him from saying any more. "It's a small thing. My name. It's Mizuno Amy, not
'Princess.' Call me Amy."
Hermes stared, blank faced, for a moment. Then he grinned. "All
right...Amy. Tell me about this Crystal thing."
Amy looked at the mug in her hand, swirling the contents around the bottom
as she collected her thoughts. "First, it's not a 'thing'. It's a henshin
Crystal. It allows me to tap into my powers, so that I may transform into
Super Sailor Mercury...."
"Wait," Hermes was frowning. "Sailor Mercury. Like Sailor Pluto?"
"Something like that, yes."
"There's more of you? Since when? Wait. Never mind. Future stuff. But I
thought you would have a stick or something, like Pluto."
Amy shrugged. *Stick? Oh, a pen. Best not to elaborate. Let him wonder
about that.* "Second, it is my duty to protect the Moon Princess, for she
has a great destiny." *Should I mention the Silver Imperium Crystal?
No...I'd better not... who knows what information Hermes has of it?*
"You mean you're going to guard Selene's kid? In the future? What's so
special about her?"
Amy, by way of reply, only tucked her knees under her chin, casting her
eyes to the sea before the prow of the ship. She said nothing.
Hermes rolled his eyes. "More future stuff that I can't know?"
Amy closed her eyes.
Hermes leaned back, looking at the darkening heavens. Selene's face was
nearly to its fullest, glowing gently in the dying splendor of the sun.
Hermes glanced at the young lady he sat beside, the way she looked so
solemnly at the sea, young, but already tired. She paid him no attention,
instead only watching the rising and falling beams of the ship. After a
moment, Hermes grinned. "Hey, Prin-" he hadn't even quite gotten the word
out before Amy was glaring sharply at him. "Amy?" he corrected.
She lifted an eyebrow archly.
Their eyes locked for a moment, then they both laughed, Amy shaking her
head at Hermes' lopsided smile. "Amy," Hermes asked as they stopped their
laughter, "you're a Guardian, you said. How many others?"
"Mmm," Amy nodded, unfolding herself and settling into a more comfortable
position. She looked to the flickering embers of the brazier before them.
"Serenity has four guardians altogether. Venus, Mars, Jupiter and myself.
There's also Pluto, who you've met..."
Amy continued, even though Hermes face soured and he looked away.
"...as well as Neptune, Uranus and Saturn. They have different duties from
the four Guardians, though."
"You are referring to the planets, I assume, not my relatives?"
*Relatives? Oh! Amy, you dummy! Those are the Latin names...well, okay, not
Uranus, that's Greek, but the others...Latin names of gods!* "Yes, the
planets."
"And powers...like what?"
For a moment, a look of pain washed over Amy's face as she remembered the
reason she was brought here. "Elemental, mostly. I am...water. So is
Michiru, Sailor Neptune. Pluto is time, Uranus is air, like the sky her
planet is named for. Saturn is death...the silent star. Venus is love and
energy, Mars is fire, Jupiter is thunder and lightning."
"And these powers? What do they do?"
Amy shrugged. "Different things. Different attacks. I have the Mercury
Harp, of course, and the Shine Aqua Illusion...Venus has the 'Love and
Beauty Shock' and the 'Venus Love-Me Chain', Jupiter has...."
"Wait!" Hermes was laughing again, shaking his head as he stopped the
startled Amy. "Venus has the Love-Me Chain? Amy, doesn't that sound a
little...kinky?"
Amy blushed a bright red. "Oh! Ah...well." *Mina-chan, I wonder what you
would say if you heard that one....* "Actually...it does, just a
little...." she slowly, reluctantly, admitted.
The pair sat talking for several hours, chatting more comfortably as the
time passed. The unease that had hung over them in the earlier part of their
voyage was passing behind them as they glided over the waves of the moonlit
sea. It was late into the night when they finally dozed into sleep, curling
up in their blankets before the dully glowing bronze brazier, heads pillowed
on their arms.
They did not see the milky whiteness that flowed in streamers from the
rocks they approached near dawn, so deep was the relaxed sleep they had
fallen into. As they dreamed, the blank silence enveloped them, obscuring
the rocks that began to drift closer to their ship, making watercolor
silhouettes from their crags. It was the stillness that awoke Amy, the
slowing of the sea. No waves bobbed their boat, gently rocking them like
children in the cradle. The only sound was the lapping of waves against the
hull of the ship.
She opened her eyes to see Hermes' mist shrouded hand a few inches from her
face. In his sleep, one of his arms had come free of the blanket, and was
now palm down before her. Amy grimaced, wiping sleep from her eyes and
curling up to look around. *Fog...that's usual on the sea, surely.
But...those rocks are awfully close. I'd hate to wake Hermes so early, but
he'd probably know the way around the rocks better than I. And...there's
something not right about this. It just...feels...wrong. Interference from
Poseidon again?*
"Hermes," Amy shed her blanket, and shook him gently on the shoulder.
"Hermes. Trouble. Wake up."
"Trouble?" Hermes was upright in a moment, looking around. "Fog. Great." He
headed to the helm, taking the rudder.
"Do you know where we are?"
Hermes frowned, concentrating. "This mist makes things difficult," he
furrowed his brows, looking sharply around them. He suddenly swore violently
and leapt up, heading to their supplies.
"Hermes? What...?"
"Help me find something to plug our ears."
*Our ears...?
...the island of the Sirens,
those creatures who spellbind any man alive,
whoever comes their way. Whoever draws too close,
off guard, and catches the Sirens voices in the air-
no sailing home for him, no wife rising to meet him,
no happy children beaming up at their father's face.
The high, thrilling song of the Sirens will transfix him,
lolling there in the meadow, round them heaps of corpses
rotting away, rags of skin shriveling on their bones....*
Shock registered on Amy's face. *The mists! Of course! The Sirens!*
Hermes was continuing, "...on these islands. They sing and lure men to
their deaths."
*Men, huh?* "If you haven't noticed, I'm not a man."
"Yeah, I noticed." Hermes froze as he realized what he had just said, then
hurriedly busied himself with finding something to stuff their ears with.
Amy fought back a flush, also realizing what she had said. *Smooth, Amy.
Blurting stuff out again. But I'd better....*
"Hermes?" she asked when he suddenly stiffened. A moment later, Amy
discovered why as the sound reached her own ears.
It was heartbreakingly beautiful.
A wordless song, otherworldly in nature.
If glass could sing, this would be its song, shimmering and clean, both
frail and strong at once, rising and falling in cadence with every moment.
The crystalline notes plucked against each other, softly, the sound of
chimes in the breeze of the cool air, enchanting their pair of listeners.
Hermes straightened, turning, dazed. Amy clamped her hands over her ears in
attempt to drown out the sound, squeezing her eyes closed in an attempt to
concentrate. *I will fight! No one has ever survived the Sirens' spell! None
but Odysseus, because he was tied to the mast! Hermes...mmmm...the sound is
so beaut...No! I have to do something! Hermes is...already heading for the
side! It's a spell. It's just a spell. And there is always a way to break a
spell! In the legends, how do you break a spell?*
Amy's eyes broke open as the answer washed over her.
She forced herself to ignore the music, despite its growing intensity in
her mind. It drowned out all thoughts, leaving Amy with a single motion to
complete. She forced herself around Hermes, standing before him, feeling her
resistance to the Siren song crumbling.
She reached up, taking his face in her hands.
Then she pressed her mouth against his.
In the darkness behind her eyelids, she felt, rather than saw, his eyes
clear from the glazed look, turning to shock instead. She felt his body
become rigid as she held him. Then, after a moment, he relaxed against her.
From around them, the harmony of the glassy song shattered, screaming as a
sword against a plate of iron mail. The pair flinched as the sound
penetrated their ears, vibrating around them. The music took on a desperate
scream, a protest against its break. Shards of the crystal song exploded
around them, keening and wailing now, the beauty of their song replaced with
a cry of agony. From the cliffs, shadowy figures leapt in outrage.
The faint currents carried them away from the strait of the Sirens.
The heat was sweltering.
For two days, Poseidon let the heat of the sun blister their heads, sending
no cooling breezes to ease the hot gusts that carried them forward. No
islands decorated the horizon, leaving them on a prairie of salty water.
Even the nights grew warm with the air, a hot humidity that pressed like a
blanket.
*We're running low on water.* Amy tested the jug for any clear liquid.
Dismayed that it was so low, she turned to look at Hermes, perched as usual
on the tiller. Concernedly, she brushed a waving lock of hair from her azure
eyes. *We need to stop and get more water if this keeps up. Maybe that line
of clouds to the west will bring rain.* A thin silver line was thickening on
the horizon, churning into a fluffy bank of haziness. *This heat...even if
we ration for the rest of the trip, we'll have to stop for more water.*
Amy took a place on the opposing side of the rudder from Hermes, leaning
against the rail. "We need to stop."
Hermes gave her an oddly calculating look.
*He keeps looking at me like that! It's unnerving.*
"It's the water, isn't it?"
Amy nodded, pushing her hair away from the perspiration on the nape of her
neck. It clung to her skin stickily with the heat. *Ah, for a cool breeze.*
"How low?"
"Two, maybe three days if we ration."
Hermes bit his lip, distractedly looking out over the grey waters. "There's
some islands we can make for. We can sail through the night, then stop for
the day. Sound all right?"
Amy agreed, standing, then took her position at the prow again.
Night did little to ease the muggy temperature. The clouds had formed
during the next hour, a churning, if patchy, stew of greyness above. *I
wonder if that is what is called ominous.* Amy watched Hermes clear the
remains of yet another dinner of sushi sandwiches away. She sat at the helm,
steering easily in the tepid waters, angling them the way Hermes had
directed.
"Get some sleep. It will be a long day tomorrow," Hermes said as he came to
relieve Amy from her shift.
"I don't mind. You spend most of the day at it. You must be sleepy."
"I'm not tired."
Amy gave him a quizzical look. *Why is he arguing about such a silly
thing?*
"I want to make sure that we get there in the morning. Those clouds are
bothering me. They obscure the stars," his face was closed, not open for
argument. *Stubborn. This is ridiculous. He's been acting strange since the
Sirens. I don't want to argue about who's going to stay up late.*
"Fine," Amy released the wooden handle as Hermes took it up.
It was late that night when Amy awoke to a feeling that did not bode well.
The clouds were dissipating overhead, and the thick, hot air was being
replaced by a stinging salty breeze. They were traveling very fast now that
the wind was up, sail stretched to its fullest with the invisible hand of
the wind. Amy looked for her companion, and found him rummaging through
their supplies. She unfurled herself from her sleeping pallet and joined
him, remaining silent at his side.
Hermes, still intent on digging through supplies, told her, "It's the
stars. They're wrong. Those clouds...changed them around. It's an illusion
of some sort."
He found what he was looking for. The four swords and knives that Elissa
had left to them. He selected the first leaf bladed weapon, hefted it
experimentally, then handed it to a surprised Amy. "I don't know how to
use...."
"Any weapon is better than none against Scylla."
*Scylla....
No mariners yet can boast they've raced their ship
past Scylla's lair without some mortal blow-
with each of her six heads she snatches up
a man from the dark-prowed craft and wisks him off....
beneath it awesome Charybdis gulps the dark water down,
that terror!....No, hug Scylla's crag-sail on past her-top speed!
The words of Circe the witch. Odysseus's men were to row as swiftly as
possible. We have no crew to do so, relying on the currents. There is
nowhere to hide on board. And across from that terrifying monster, lays
another, the whirlpool creature Charybdis.*
She tested her blade, watching the iron glint in the dull grey light. She
practiced with it a moment, adjusting her hand on the leather grip. The
blade was well balanced, even and finely wrought. "There's no way around
Scylla or Charbdyis?"
Hermes, weighting his own sword, said evenly, "No. The currents are taking
us straight forward. Poseidon is probably behind the winds. When we get
there, split up. The current will probably slow, allowing Scylla a better
chance at us. If we get past, hang on. Get to the rudder if you can. We'll
steer as close to the rocks as possible."
A cavern was yawning sleepily ahead of them, the darkness as murky as the
air they breathed. They approached the cliff wall, and passed through the
shadow of the opening. Hermes stoked the fire, bringing its light in the
brazier higher for light. Red and orange flames licked at the crumbling
walls.
Amy felt her breath grow loud in her ears as she looked around the cavern,
her heart strangely calm in the silence. *I've faced youmas before. Okay,
maybe none had six heads, but I can do this. Both of us can. I have to get
home.*
The mute silence began to break as the sounds of dogs braying vibrated up
the shaft of the tunnel. *That is the sound of Scylla....* They drifted
slowly forward, warily watching the angles around them for the sight of the
monster. *Poor Scylla. She was a lovely girl once....* The howling of
hounds grew more intense as a light pierced the darkness, fraying the red
light of their flames into a dusky shade. *I see her. She is perched at the
threshold of the exit. That will make Charbdyis very close....* Amy hefted
her sword up, readying her other hand beside her. It was a weapon made for a
single hand to wield. Beside her, Hermes did the same, and she heard him
taking several deep breaths in preparation. *He has never faced such a
danger as a mortal. I wonder if he could truly be killed with a demigod
status. He would know better than I. And he looks afraid, though he conceals
it well. That is a mark in his favor. He has courage. Athena...Themis...are
you watching him? Do you see? Watch us, Defender of Heroes, Pallas Athena...
please see us through this fight.*
They drew closer to the awaiting form on the rocks. The light grew strong
enough to see the coils of Scylla's body wrapping around jutting
outcroppings of stone. Six fanged heads turned their attention to the
oncoming boat. The baying beated around them against the sides of the cave,
echoing wildly as the creature that was once a young woman spied the
intruders in her domain. Sleek bronze scales rattled against the stone as
she slid closer to her prey. Six mouths gaped, barking hoarsely.
With unnatural speed, a head lightning struck the boat, first attacking
Hermes. His godly speed intact, he avoided the strike, slashing with the
sword. The head crashed into the deck, but withdrew so quickly that even
Hermes's swift retaliation to the blow caused no harm. Two more darting
heads howled their way closer, each selecting one of the awaiting figures.
Amy wheeled, leaping backward, landing uncomfortably close to the rim of
the ship. *Don't want to get pinned here....* She spun across the wood as
another head rammed in, splintering the wood of the place she had stood. As
the head smashed into the rock, Amy turned her sword in her hand, using it
dagger style, and rammed it into the neck behind the jaw, burying it hilt
deep. The blade struck bone, causing her body to jar as she pulled it down
and out. She staggered as Scylla threw her head up in pain, bellowing.
Green syrupy blood trailed from the blade. *Did I really do that...?* She
cast a swift glance at Hermes, who was not faring much better than she was.
He was swinging himself around the mast, causing one head, sloping in from
above, to slash at the neck of another, which was snaking its way around the
deckboards. In fury, they reeled away from each other. These two heads
withdrew, allowing another set to attack both Amy and Hermes. This time they
were not so quick to strike without thinking.
They combined their attack, multiple heads ramming down at once. Amy
brought her sword to bear again as she fought for her own life. *I want to
help Hermes, but I can't if I'm trying to...!* Another blow from her sword
slashed across the bridge of the long teeth. The second tore forward as she
brought herself to readiness again. This one banked a few feet above the
deck, glancing above Amy. As she turned her blade to meet it, the first head
crashed in, cutting for her head, teeth bared.
Amy dropped and rolled, feeling the sword torn from her grasp as Scylla bit
into the space it occupied. The blade splashed into the dark waters below as
the mouth released it. She heard Hermes scream her name as the pair of heads
slanted swiftly for her, himself entangled with another part of Scylla.
Her hands came over her head as she pulled herself upright. Her eyes
widened as she saw the gnashing fangs.
*'If you need my strength, call upon it, and it will serve you.'*
"Athena...."
Somewhere, deep within her, Amy felt the sensation of the sea, rising in a
tide within her. It warmed her and cooled her at the same time, rising as
she called it, a familiar feeling, but blended with something new, something
strange, but powerful and wonderful. It was this feeling that she summoned
to her hands.
She felt a thud as though it were against her own body. Then a second ring
of flesh against solidity accompanied it, hard on its heels. The two heads
reeled backward. She felt a strange heat on her chest, mingled with
coolness. Amy did not need to look to see what it was. The closed, silvery
lidded eyes of the Medusa brooch had opened, gleaming a silvery sheen as Amy
directed the power within it to protecting herself.
Like a lens, she felt her senses expand. *An aegis! A shield! This is what
Athena gave me when we left! Hermes....* She increased the size of the
aegis, and it blossomed at her command, a thin, watery film that shimmered
in shades of silver and aqua. The rim of the shield pressed against the head
that had trapped Hermes in a corner, pushing it back and outside the deck.
"Amy...." the word was said in amazement, as the small, blue haired young
woman held her hands above her, pressing the rippling field outward. Scylla
regrouped, snarling as each of the heads charged together, baying in fury at
being deprived of their prey. They beat against the shield, hammering at it
with their own body. Amy winced as she felt each blow impact on the aegis.
Again and again they rammed against the defense, forcing Amy to her knees
as they pressed downward. Her face contorted in pain as teeth slashed
against her, she struggled to keep her hands aloft, protecting herself,
Hermes. Wind flowed around her, tossing her hair around her head in an
aureole, a halo of watery hair. From behind her, another pair of arms joined
her strength, taking some of the heavy load of weight onto his.
The current carried them out from the archway, leaving Amy to collapse onto
the deck. Hermes pulled her upright. "Ames? Ames!"
"Charbdyis," she responded as she gripped his hand. With that word to
remind him, Hermes began to set her down, but she prevented him, pushing him
away. "I'm all right," she staggered a step forward. "Get the rudder."
Behind them, Scylla's howling echoed as she wrapped herself back around her
rock, a single head poking out into the uneasy sunlight, waiting and
watching to see if her escaped prey would manage past the second danger.
For a moment, they drifted idly, Hermes trying to pull the rudder about,
bringing it closer to the rocks, further from what would open into
Charbdyis. A bowshot from the prow of the ship, off to port, the waters
began to froth white, a deep echo emanating as a dying groan from the
unimaginable depths of Chardbyis's insides. Like a hand reaching out of the
water, thick, lichen encrusted fingers reached up through the foam,
revealing a ribbed abyss in its center. Layers of rocky sediment built up to
the snaring bones of earth, stopping at their fullest point. Water sluiced
outward at the expansion, then began to be sucked into the newly emptied
space.
Seastrider swelled upward, dipping and spinning as they were tossed on the
waves. Hermes fought with the wildly swinging tiller, finding that it was of
little use in the churning of the salt water. They spun around, pell-mell,
closer into the sinkhole of the sea.
Amy clung onto the rail beside Hermes as they were tossed upward, the end
of their ship being thrown carelessly into the air. They crashed down again,
heavy waves rolling over them, soaking the deck and the inhabitants. *I have
to do something! I have to stop the ship!* Amy looked around her for any
ideas. Another wave slapped her in the face, tugging at her fingers, hoping
to wrench the free of their hold on the ship.
They approached the rocks that jutted from the water. The teeth of
Charbdyis, opening into the gaping abyssal mouth. *That's it!* "Hermes!
Stay here! I have an idea!"
Before he could protest, Amy released her precarious grip, allowing herself
to slide down the wet deck. She caught herself against the beam of the mast
as Seastrider lurched upward again, then crashed back down, slamming her
into the wooden planking. Down again, the deck rebelled from the liquid
hands that threw it about. She slid down to the prow, her favorite place on
the ship. Bracing herself against the mutilated rail, she brought her hands
up before her. *Let this work, please....*
Before her, the aegis flowered at her command, exploding outward. *If it
can defend what is within it, then perhaps it can form a barrier as
well....* Water kicked up around her as the aegis grew in size, scraping
against the deep.
Amy was nearly thrown from her feet as the aegis' ends impacted on the
stones to either side of them. Waterfalls formed between each of these
teeth, ushering water and fish to the hungry belly of Charbdyis. They tipped
precariously close to the precipice, the brink of the mouth, held back by
the thin bubble of the shield.
Wood screamed against stone as Seastrider turned to her side, hitting the
rock Amy supported them against. There was the fatalistic sound of wood
splintering, as a finger punched through the hull. Still she held the fence
between them, the weight of the ship crushing Amy into her own defense. The
liquid lens pushed her hands back, forcing her to fold her arms before her.
*Hermes, don't you move...!* She heard him shouting to her as the aegis
scraped raw the flesh of her forearms, snapping the rail as it pressed
inward. *There's too much pressure....this hurts....*
From within the beast that was Charbdyis, the sound of suction reached
them, slurping up the remains of the fish and water. The stones began to
move, releasing the tension as a string from a bow. Amy staggered forward as
the aegis was allowed its range again. The rocky juttings cycloned to a
close, leaving the waters a mess of moss, lichen, fish and wooden splinters.
Her palms hit the remaining rail with a tired smack, knees giving way to a
position of exhaustion. Hermes scrambled away from the helm, pulling Amy
from the edge of the boat, holding her into a sitting posture. "Ames?"
She managed a weak smile, looking up at him. The sun was bright now, and it
glinted on the brown-gold waves of his hair. Then she asked, sounding
somewhat foolish, "Hi?"
He shook his head despairingly, then grinned that lopsided smile back at
her. "Ames! Your hands!" His chocloatey eyes switched from relief to worry.
It was not just her hands. Her forearms, where the aegis had pressed
against, had torn at the skin, exposing raw flesh underneath. The angry
redness had been striped up her inner forearms and across her palms, though
leaving the fingers undamaged. Amy stared at them numbly, not feeling the
pain she should, merely a tingling sensation.
"It's not so bad," she told him.
He grimaced. "Stay here. I'll get some...."
"No. I'm fine. Really. I can walk. It's my arms, not my legs. See?" She
tottered warily to her feet, breaking his hold on her. She stumbled a step,
Hermes catching her arm as she righted herself. "We'd better get going," she
glanced at the hole in the hull. It was dangerously close to the water line.
If Poseidon sent another storm, they would be flooded. A faint breeze tugged
at the waters weakly, barely enough to ripple them. The sea was turquoise
glass.
Hermes looked at the hole as well. "We'd better get to land, fast."
Amy sat down heavily at the brazier, inspecting her raw arms. "Those
islands you mentioned?"
"I should have seen through that illusion. Clever, though," Hermes pummeled
a fist into the rail. To his dismay, the piece cracked and fell into the
water with a splash. He left the rail, heading to the supplies. He dug into
the clean cloths, then dipped them into a broken piece of crockery, which
had once been a water jug. Bits of supplies laced the deck now, thrown about
in their fight against Scylla and their survival of Charbdyis.
Hermes returned to Amy, who was continuing to stare at her arms. Hermes
dropped the cloth as he watched in fascination with Amy. Slowly, steadily,
the broken skin was knitting itself together, soft, pink flesh replacing the
harsh redness. She flexed her palms as a cool sensation washed over her.
*This is so strange...I've never healed like this before. I can feel...the
blood. Flowing in my veins. Like water. I don't understand. How is this
happening?*
"Ames?"
She looked up at him through her lashes, her face blank to his question.
"I thought you were mortal."
She returned to her forearms, her fists clenching tightly, nails pressing
crescents into her palms. "We have to get the ship repaired." She stood,
breathing deeply in the sunlight, soaking it in, feeling strengthened as the
current of water she felt within grew.
She looked at the Medusa that she wore, seeing the silvery eyes closed
again. Closing her eyes, she smiled, feeling the flow that had begun as she
had called upon it. It was still flowing steadily within her. "Ithaka."
"Ames?"
"Ithaka. We're by Ithaka and Same, aren't we?"
Hermes hesitated a moment, searching the empty sea around them. "Yes. How
did you...?"
"The sea told me," her eyes sparkled blue. "Come on. Let's get the sail
up."
"The wind is going in the wrong direction."
*Wrong direction? Not just that. It's practically dead. Let's see. What do
I know about sailing with no wind?* "We'll try tacking."
Hermes tripped over the unfamiliar word. "Tacking?"
"A zigzag line. Sail along the wind, moving forward, then go the other
direction. Like this," Amy drew a line with her finger along the deck. First
to the south, then the north. It was some extra work, but they would be
moving forward, in the right direction. Without much water, and with the
hole, they would need to move as swiftly as possible. "This is how sailors
moved in the ocean when the wind was dead. I don't see why it won't work
here."
"People sail in Ocean?" Hermes looked incredulous. "Without magic?"
*Blurting again, Amy. Foreknowledge. Don't reply.* She set herself to
work, pointedly not responding to Hermes question. He didn't take long to
get the hint.
touched
you say that I am too
so much of what you say is true
I'll never find someone
quite like you
again
I'll never find someone
quite like you like you
the razors and the dying roses
plead I don't leave you alone
the demi-gods and
hungry ghosts
god, god knows I'm not at home
I'll never find someone
quite like you
again
I'll never find someone
quite like you
again
I looked into your eyes and
saw a world that does not exist
I looked into your eyes and
saw a world I wish I was in
I'll never find someone
quite as touched as you
I'll never love someone
quite the way
that I
loved you
-"Touched" by VAST
from Visual Audio Sensory Theater
(
geocities.com/tokyo/shrine) (
geocities.com/tokyo)