“It all began about a year ago,”
said Wella in a shaky voice. “ I grew up in a small farming
village on the drier side of Bertha. We lived a simple life, but it
was a good one. The people of my village grew cotton, tobacco and
our own food. We weren't rich, but we made do. In the spring the
village elders decided to open a few of the outer fields, that hadn't
been tended since my great-grandfather's time. It was hard work.
The fields were over grown and the dirt was hard and tangled with
roots and rocks. It took us weeks to clear it all.
“It was Fedward, Ryle's father, who
found it. He was always good at finding beautiful and shiny things.
He always claimed it came with being a ferret.”
Wella pulled a green orb the size of
her palm out of her dress pocket.
“He gave this to me as an engagement
present. It almost broke the plow when they hit it, he said. That
was the night Ryle was conceived. We noticed afterwards that this
strange stone began to glow. We took it as a sign that the universe
had blessed our union. We were so stupid, and so in love.
They came a few days later, the Dance
Lords. The were led by a gorilla and his dolphin lieutenant. They
claimed they were just doing routine farm inspections. We all should
have suspected something was wrong. High ranking Lords don't do
inspections. And they were asking so many questions about if we'd
found anything strange or seen anything out of the ordinary. Of
course Fedward and I denied it. The stone was our secret. How could
we have know what was to come?
Fedward and I were in the woods behind
the village, picking berries when we started to smell smoke. As we
looked toward the village we could see flames. Fedward told me to
hide and stay puut while he went to see what was happening. I
waited, I waited so long. It was night before I had the courage to
go back to the village. The smoke was so thick it choked me. They
had razed the entire village, every house, every store, even the inn.
It was all burnt to the ground and still smoking.
At first I couldn't see anything but
the destruction. Slowly though I started to make things out, I wish
I hadn't. I could see shapes in the coals, they were bones. The
charred remains of everyone I had ever known. Next to one of the
fires; no funeral pyres, I saw the singed edges of a green bow, just
like the one my little sister used to wear behind her ears. She was
only nine years old, and she was dead, they were all dead.
After what seemed like hours I
stumbled into the outer edges of the village square. They were
standing there, the two Dance Lords, with Feward kneeling in front of
them. I was lucky I suppose, they had their backs to me. Fedward
saw me though. He looked so scared, so trapped.
The gorilla picked him up by the neck,
“Tell us were it is,” he screamed, “the relic! We can feel it!
Where is it?”
“I don't know,” Fedward managed to
gasp.
The gorilla gutted him and threw him
to the ground like so much trash. I was close enough that even
through the smoke I could see him mouth his last words, “Wella, I
love you...Wella.” I saw the light fade from his eyes.
The gorilla turned to his dolphin
companion, “Do we have a Wella accounted for?”
I ran then, I don't know how I ran
for, it seemed like days. I ran until I collapsed.
When I awoke it was early morning. I
had no idea where I was, I just picked a direction and walked.
Eventually my traveling brought me into the wharf district. There I
was just another lost soul begging for a meal. I was there for
several months. I didn't know what to do, everything I ever knew was
gone, everyone dead. I still had the stone though. I know I should
have gotten rid of it, but it was the only thing I had left of
Fedward, of any of them. He had died to keep it a secret. Stupid
boy, we didn't know it was so important.
I snuck onto your ship because I saw
them, the gorilla and the dolphin. I panicked and knew I had to get
off Bertha. I had to save my son and I had to keep this stone safe,
they represent everything I love and I will die before I give either
to the people who took everything from me.”
Wella collapsed in tears as the green
stones pulsing glow became a blaze.
“How is she doing,” asked Wembly.
“Sleeping,” answered Bogart,
“Wuffy is watching Ryle.”
“And the rest of the crew?”
“Getting well and properly drunk. I
may have let it slip were a few of the kegs were hiding,” Bogart
laughed, “they've earned it.”
They both fell silent and stared at
the glowing orb. It had faded back to a glow once Wella had returned
to her quarters. Wembly picked it up.
“What do you think it is?”
“ I have no idea, Captain.”
“I suppose we are going to have to
find out.”
“I suppose we are.”
“We're in the right place for it.
If any one knows anything about the ancients its the residence of
Styx.”
“Unfortunately, you're right.”
“ The only problem is getting onto
Styx.”
“And how do you propose to do that?”
“By creating a very large ruckus,”
Wembly smiled mischievously.
“Oh, your not going too...”
“Oh yes, I am,” he laughed, “It's
been years since we've taken 'er out.”
Bogart shook his head, this game never
ended well.
“Oh, don't look like that, this will
be fun.”
