A Long Time Away

Rounding an outcropping of cliffs Cayden gathers strength to push the oars against the waves a few more times. Almost there. Breathing heavily, she pulls out the map from the pack at her feet. The pirate lord in the ramshackle town had warned her of a great beast in these waters, a beast that shatters ships and drowns sailors. Coward. When she pointed out that this beast had never been seen and was nothing more than a myth, he had called her a fool but still gave her what she needed, like the map in her hands or the rowboat keeping her afloat. She was hunting a myth of her own. A tale told for centuries about the lost city of Antica. The story of the powerful kingdom that sank to the bottom of the ocean was told to children at bedtime and many believe that the city never existed. Magic flowed freely through the world hundreds of years ago, and creatures like spirits, nymphs and fae lived in peace alongside the humans. But that was a long time ago. Magic vanished and now only humans are left to walk the earth. Explorers have gone searching for the lost city, believing the fairy tales. A few came back empty-handed. Many didn't come back at all.

Beneath her, the water is still, not a rippling wave disrupting the surface. Not a cloud in the sky, Cayden squints to be able to read the map in her shaking hands, the sun's reflection making the water sparkle, blinding her. To make it worse, sweat runs down her face making her eyes burn. She wipes it away but there is nothing she can do to silence the roar of her blood in her ears, keeping her from thinking clearly. After several minutes when her pulse has finally calmed down, she realises that the silence surrounding her is not a natural one. The sounds of the jungle have gone dead silent. Like all life has vanished. A ripple from far below sends her tiny, fragile vessel of safety, swaying, rocking back and forth. Yet everything is still and calm. Holding her breath, Cayden reaches for the knife sheeted along her thigh but before her hand reaches the intricately carved handle the boat is flipped upside down and she is falling headfirst into the water.

Surprised, she inhales, and the cold, salty water fills her mouth. Her nose. And her lungs while she fights to reach the surface. When she does, she gasps for air. Gulping it down in big breaths and coughing violently to ease the burning sensation in her lungs. Desperate to get out of the water Cayden looks around for her boat but all she finds are broken pieces of wood drifting on the waves. "No, no, no. No!" she screams. In the water, the sun is making it even more impossible to see anything. Determined not to give up Cayden franticly kicks the water with her feet, spinning around, looking left and right hoping to see something that might save her life. Then she feels something wrapping around her. Snaking its way up her leg and waist. Tight, to the point where she thinks her bones might break. Cayden stops moving. Going completely still. Not daring to move a muscle. Sudden pain in her arm forces her to look down. She sees blood. And scales. Blue and green, the same shade as the ocean, making them almost invisible. The edges are sharp, like tiny daggers. While she studies the shimmering scales, something emerges from below. It rises tall above the surface casting a shadow over Cayden. Too scared to look up, but incapable of diverting her eyes, she follows the scaled tail wrapped around her to a massive, winged body with two clawed feet with talons longer than her forearm. The blood in her veins freezes. One word is repeated over and over again in her head. But... But that's impossible. Her heart hammering in her chest she forces her eyes to continue along the thick, muscled neck until she finally meets the yellow, glowing stare of the wyvern looking down at her. No longer a myth. "Fool." The pirate lord's word echoes through her. The wyvern opens its jaws to reveal a row of flesh shredding teeth. The beast roars, the sound vibrating through her bones. Cayden lets out a sobbing scream. In a heartbeat, the monster dives. Deep. And sets off at full speed to the open water beyond, dragging her along with it. Claws of water reach down her throat to rip the air from her lungs. Drowning would be a mercy. The palms of her hands are in shreds from trying to pry the scaled tail off her, but it's all in vain. Suddenly the wyvern turns around, heading back to the cliffs and pushes itself to go even faster. Using its tail like a whip it hurls her toward the cliffs. Ripping her clothes to shreds and slicing her skin open in the process. Before Cayden can feel the impact of the jagged stones thick darkness surrounds her.

The first thing she feels is the sun on her face. The second is the excruciating pain throughout her entire body. One by one the memories of what happened out on the ocean come back to her, making her already fuzzy head spin. She tries to sit up but a stabbing pain in her side forces her to re-think the idea. The movement caused something warm and wet to trickle down her skin and seep into the sand. Cayden slowly reaches a shaking hand to assess the damage. There is a deep wound on the side of her stomach. When she pulls back her hand it's covered in bright red blood. Nausea bubbles up inside her. "Don't touch that. It might get infected." The words seem far away. Unsure if they are real or only a fabric of her imagination, Cayden lets her arm fall to her side. She stares up at the blue sky, ignoring the sound of footsteps in the sand, walking closer and closer. The sand shifts when someone kneels beside her. That someone lays their hand on her forehead and begins stroking her hair. "You're lucky I saved you or you would be dead by now." Deciding the voice must belong to the person next to her, Cayden turns to look at the stranger. A woman looks down at her. She is beautiful. Her skin is pale, and her long black hair is still dripping wet.

"You saved me?" Cayden asks hoarsely. The stranger only smiles in reply. Her thin lips curled around elongated, sharpened canines. Cayden's eyes widen slightly. "Who are you?"

"A friend." A non-answer. In the sand next to her, there is a pile of supplies. Leaves and vines and a grey paste that looks suspiciously a lot like mud. The woman gives Cayden a look but doesn't say anything before, without warning, applying the mud directly onto the wound. It stings and Cayden cries out in surprise and then grinds her teeth as the pain reaches a new level.

"If you're going to torture me, you could at least tell me your name." Cayden grits out.

"Fine," the woman says, covering everything with a leaf or two. "it's Zeniya. Happy?" She takes one of the vines and ties it around Cayden's waist, to keep everything in place.

"Very," Cayden grins. Her usually tan skin ashen. "I'm Cayden."

"Come on." Zeniya rolls her eyes but stands up and holds her hand out. For a second or two, Cayden stares up at the stranger debating whether to trust the woman before realising she doesn't have much choice. Cayden grabs the outstretched hand and lets herself be pulled up.

"Where are we going?" Cayden asks when they start walking.

"Antica," Zeniya says simply. Cayden stops dead.

"What?" she exclaims when Zeniya continues walking.

"Isn't that why you came here? What you're looking for?" she says turning around. "I'm bringing you home Cayden."

"I'm a long way from home," Cayden frowns. Zeniya tilts her head, smiling. Those canines glinting in the setting sun.

"You're a lot closer than you think."

"What did she mean by that?"

"What do you think she meant?"

"I don't know! But that can't be the end?"

"It's not the end?"

"Then tell me what happens next?"

"I can't do that, Sophie."

Sophie stares at the cover of the book for several minutes. Her bed shifts as Cayden sits down on the edge. Sighing, she looks up. Cayden gives her a sad little smile and holds out her hand as if to offer to take the book from her hands. Sophie makes no effort to give it to her. Instead, Cayden leans forward and grabs the book, having to pry off her fingers. Then she gets off the bed and walks over to Sophie's bookcase to return the book to its place on the crammed shelves.

"So, I'll see you again?" Sophie asks quietly. Cayden nods as she walks towards the door. With her hand on the handle, she turns around.

"I'll see you in the next one, Sophie," she says with a wink before walking out the door.