The lightning lit up the night sky as the waves tossed the Nomad back
and forth as if the magnificent ship was merely a small tugboat. Thunder
clapped loudly over the roar of the angry sea and the yells of the shipmates
went unheard. Captain Sinbad yelled orders at his crew but they ignored his
angry shouts. The men were in a state of panic and only thinking of one thing,
survival. He shook his head as he helplessly watched as yet another one perished
in the monstrous seas. His fearful gaze searched for his close friends, seeking
out each one of them, making sure they were still onboard. His brother Doubar
was still standing next to him, battling the stern.
“RONGAR! SHORTEN THE SAIL!” Sinbad called out to him. He then
looked over to Fouruz who hung tightly to the railing. “FOURUZ! SECURE
THE GEAR!” They couldn’t afford to lose anything; half of their
equipment had already perished in the seas. Sinbad was amazed at how unprepared
they had been for this battle. The storm had taken them all by surprise.
The lookout hadn’t even seen the storm until it was upon them. Sinbad
was about to pound the poor lad into the floorboards if Maeve hadn’t
spoken up. ‘Sinbad, this is not a normal storm, I feel black magic lurking
in those clouds.’ Her face had turned upward and Sinbad saw fear dancing
in her eyes. He had ordered her down below to work on a spell. She had insisted
that she could better help above but he had wanted her to try. She was still
down there conjuring away. The object of his thoughts chose that moment to
come stumbling out on deck. She carefully made her way to his side.
“It’s no use, the magic is to powerful for one apprentice
mage to overthrow.”
“That’s alright Maeve, thanks for trying.”
Sinbad yelled. “See if you can grab a hold of those runaway lines.”
He asked, pointing to some lines that were dancing in the wind.
Maeve nodded and slid her way over to where the two lines
had come untied. Maeve tried to reach up and grab them but couldn’t
get a hold of them. The ship rocked and she stumbled backwards, her side
slamming up against the rail. She pushed herself up but was thrown back to
the side as a wave smashed into the side of the Nomad tipping it towards
the waters below. The crash sent Maeve falling backwards and right over the
side.
“MAEVE!!!” Sinbad yelled, abandoning his position
beside Doubar. “MAEVE!” He ran towards the spot where he had last
seen the sorceress. Without another thought to his own safety or the rest
of the crew he jumped over board in an attempt to save her life.
“SINBAD.” Now it was Doubar’s turn to cry
out into the darkness. He battled to keep a hold of the wheel while he
frantically searched for his brother and friend. Fouruz had given up on securing
the few remaining items and watched in horror as his friends were washed
overboard. Rongar half-heartedly hung on while he looked at the devastation
surrounding them. Maeve and Sinbad were lost at sea.
The sun’s glare beat down upon the sleeping form of
a lone sailor. A shadow cast itself across his still form. Sinbad slowly
opened his eyes and whispered the name of the only woman that mattered to
him, “Maeve?”
“No,” the shadow responded. “But we better
get moving if we don’t want to become lunch.” A loud stomping sound
punctuated the truth behind the stranger’s words. A hand reached down
to help him gain his footing. He reluctantly took the offered hand and followed
the stranger into the near by woods. He was then led to a small nook in-between
two rocks where the stranger stopped. “We should be okay here, for
now.”
“Who are you?” Sinbad asked.
“The name is Bryn. And you are?”
“Sinbad. You wouldn’t happen to have seen a redhead
around here would you? She is about your height, green eyes and a bad
temper?”
“No, can’t say that I have. Would this be
Maeve?”
“Yes, we got caught in that bad storm, she was thrown
overboard. I jumped in after her. I had a hold of her there for a while but
she was torn from my arms.” His eyes misted over at the memory of being
separated from Maeve.
“I’m sorry to hear that, I’m sure she washed
up around here somewhere just like you did.” Bryn told the sailor
encouragingly. When she had first seen him she had admired his rugged good
looks but hope of a more romantic relationship with the sailor dwindled.
There was no mistaking that look of love in his eyes when he talked about
his friend Maeve.
“I hope so,” he whispered.
“Come on men, put your backs into it! We got crew
members to recover.” Doubar yelled out, trying to get the men to row
faster, “Including our captain.” The sailor muttered to himself.
If Sinbad wasn’t dead already, Doubar was going to strangle him. Of
all the stupid stuff that boy has pulled this one tops it off. Everyone knows
that it’s impossible to save a drowning person if you jump in also.
Doubar shook his head; he probably would have done the same thing. Doubar
loved Maeve, not in the way that his brother did but more like a sister.
He just prayed that they found them.
Her first conscious thought was of the harsh ropes binding her wrists
and feet. There was a gag in her mouth and she fought to work it out. She
attempted to move her hands apart, even just an inch so she could form a
fireball to burn the ropes. Not even a simple spell would work with her hands
bound so closely together. Maeve slumped in defeat. She glanced around her
small prison and determined that it was a tent. Beneath her there was a brown
rug and a pot of some kind sat at the opening of the tent. There was a table
to her right with two chairs and Maeve longed for the comforts of her
cabin.
Sinbad and Bryn had left their safe haven between the rocks
and headed toward the ocean to look for his friends. They were trudging through
some thick undergrowth when they heard some rustling in the bushes ahead
of them. Sinbad held his hand out for Bryn to stop and he drew his sword.
He was just about to investigate when someone jumped out from behind the
bushes and landed square on his chest. His sword flew from his hand and his
breath caught in his throat. From somewhere above him he heard a familiar
voice.
“Well, I’ll be darned! He’s
alive!”
Sinbad turned over and looked up into the smiling face
of his brother. “Doubar!”
“We thought we had seen the last of you little
brother!” Doubar said, extending his hand to help Sinbad off the
ground.
“Have you found Maeve?” Sinbad asked, looking
around for her.
“No, we were hoping she was with you. However, we
did find this.” Doubar held out Maeve’s glove.
“She’s alive. I know it.” Sinbad said,
determination evident in his voice. He was not giving up.
The group had been walking for a while when the faint sound
of war drums filled the air. Sinbad turned and fixed his questioning gaze
on Bryn.
“Do you know what that’s all about?” He
asked.
“It’s the sacrifice.” She replied, avoiding
his eyes. She hadn’t told him the reason why she had been running.
“Sacrifice for what?” Doubar did not like the
sound of this.
“Several months ago the ship I was traveling on was
sunk in a terrible storm. I washed up on shore but I was alone. If any of
the other passengers had survived they had left without me. When I went searching
for a nearby village I cam upon this tribe. War drums were being played and
they had one of their own tied to a wooden table. I watched as a giant came
and plucked the villager from the table and carry him off to his
cave.”
“How did you figure it was a sacrifice?” Fouruz
asked.
“I suppose the villagers failed to find another tribe
member worth sacrificing because when the giant came back and saw nothing
had been prepared he ransacked the village. Several were killed and many
more injured. That was the day I had been found lurking in the bushes. They
took me prisoner.”
“So if you were sacrificed then why are we standing
here talking to you?” Doubar asked.
“I have this ability. I can move things with my eyes.
Once the creature had me I simply threw a rock at his head and took off.
He was most unhappy and I guess the villagers are preparing another
sacrifice.
Sinbad exchanged a knowing look with Doubar. Wherever trouble
is, Maeve can usually be found in the middle of it. “Lets go!”
“Wait a minute! Are you crazy! They will sacrifice
me!” Bryn yelled.
“Not if they found a replacement.” Sinbad said,
already making his way toward the sounds of the drums. He just prayed he
made it there in time.
Maeve was woken from her troubled sleep by two hands roughly
pulling her up. Two men stood on each side of her and led her from the tent.
When Maeve caught sight of the large round table she fought back a wave of
dread. The drums, the chanting, a large round table, oh yeah definitely grounds
for a sacrifice. Maeve began to struggle out of her captors grasp. When two
other men came to help Maeve realized that her efforts were in vain. There
was no way of escaping.
Maeve winced as they tied her hands to the handles on the
round table, making the rope dig tighter into her tender flesh. Once her
feet were secure they began their ritual. The drums and the chanting grew
louder.
“Its just over this hill.” Bryn told them, leading
the way. She stopped at the edge of the forest and pointed to a valley. Smoke
rose from a fire and they could see several villagers dancing in rhythm to
the beat of the drums.
What drew Sinbad’s attention was the small figure of a woman dressed
in sacrificial robes, and tied to the center of a wooden table. “There
she is.” He whispered. Now how to get her out of there? He thought.
“There is to many of them Sinbad. We couldn’t possibly take
all of them and get Maeve out of there safely.” Doubar told his little
brother.
“We don’t have any other choice.” Sinbad said. Just then
the ground shook beneath them and loud thunderous steps echoed through out
the valley. “If we’re going to do something it has to be
now.”
“What if we followed the giant back to its cave and waited for
it to fall asleep. Then we could grab Maeve and use my exploding sticks to
seal the entrance?” Fouruz asked.
“Good thinking Fouruz.” Sinbad said, patting the man on the
back. “That sounds like the best plan. What are the chances of him hurting
her before we get the chance to get in there and rescue her?” Sinbad
directed this last question at Bryn.
“From what I can tell he never really hurts them. He just likes
the companionship. The victims most likely starve to death or are killed
trying to escape then from the giant actually harming them.”
“Almost makes you wish you didn’t have to put a stop to his
search for companionship.”
“Can we discuss the Giant’s feelings later, he’s on the
move!” Doubar yelled, charging after the giant.
They followed the giant to his cave and watch him enter carrying Maeve
in his hand. They waited until just before dusk to make their move. Sinbad,
Doubar, Rongar and Bryn were the ones to enter the cave. Fouruz waited outside
for the signal to light the fuse. The group made their way carefully through
the cave by the light of a torch. They stopped abruptly when it shined on
the sleeping giant. “Maeve!” Sinbad called out quietly.
“Over here!” Came her faint response. “I’m on the
other side of this tub of lard. Get me out of here!!” She called
impatiently.
Sinbad had never heard a pretty sound then the voice of his lovely
sorceress. They continued to follow the wall of the cave until they got around
the giant form. There sitting right beside the giant’s ugly face was
Maeve. She was locked inside a little cage. Bryn held the torch while Sinbad
ran over to unlock it. He undid the clasp and took Maeve by the hand and
hauled her into his arms. “I was so afraid I lost you.” Sinbad
whispered.
“Right back at ya sailor.” She replied.
Their tender reunion was interrupted the by the loud cry of the giant.
He had woken up and didn’t like the fact that his playmate was escaping.
“RUN!” Sinbad shouted. He still had a hold of Maeve’s hand
and he pulled her along with him towards the entrance of the cave. Just before
they exited Sinbad called to Fouruz to light the fuse. Right as they came
out of the cave Fouruz threw the stick inside. There was a loud blast as
the entrance to the cave collapsed.
“Now, lets get back to the ship before the villagers get anymore
sacrificing ideas.” Sinbad said, glad to have his whole crew back together
and in one piece.
It was a quiet night aboard the Nomad. Maeve sat at the front of the
ship talking to Dermitt. She had ordered the hawk to safety once the threat
of a storm had been apparent. She stared out into the calm sea in awe. The
last time she had looked at the waters they had been turbulent. The stormy
waters were long gone, replaced by a gentle rocking. She kissed the top of
the bird’s head and went to talk to Sinbad. She passed Bryn on the way
and gave the new girl a friendly smile. Maeve wasn’t to sure about having
the woman around; she had caught her twice looking at Sinbad with more then
just a friendly glance. Although Maeve really had nothing to be jealous about,
Sinbad and her had never discussed their feelings. At least she had never
told him of the love she had for him in her heart.
Maeve rounded the corner to the main cabin and smacked right into Sinbad.
He wrapped both hands around her waist to steady her.
“Oops, sorry.” Maeve apologized, ducking her head. See what
thinking of him got her into? Trouble.
Sinbad gently put his finger under Maeve’s chin and tilted her
face towards his. “No more running.” He said simply. “I almost
lost you today and I don’t want to take the chance of that happening
again without you knowing how much you mean to me.” He slowly bent down
and captured her lips. The kiss was gently at first. He reached up and cupped
her cheek, bringing her head closer and deepening the kiss. Several minutes
later they broke apart, both breathless. “Tell me you feel the same
way.”
“I do.” She replied, smiling up at him. She wrapped her arms
around his neck and kissed him again, while slowly backing into her cabin
and shutting the door tightly….
The End.