Sea Of Sparks And Shadows

Hey everyone! This story has the last two chapters removed. To read them, please head over to Webnovel and search for this book. By doing so, you would be supporting me while also getting to know what happened to the Amaris and the crew. Thank you for reading!

Amaris twirled her bracelet mindlessly and stared at the blank wall facing her. The small cabin was completely empty and the porthole was too high for her to see through. She’d stopped banging on the door hours ago. Or was it minutes? she wasn’t sure. Her mind had morphed from a fast working machine that raced and turned non-stop to a dead creature with no energy to do a single thing.

The boat had stopped rocking a while back. And now she wasn’t sure if they won or lost the battle. She wasn’t sure if the person who will find her would be a merchant sailor coming to check on her or a soldier coming to shoot her.

She sat on the ground, leaning on the door and blinking mindlessly at the wall.

Were they even merchant sailors? The amount of guns and hidden canons seemed to suggest otherwise. Suddenly she wasn’t sure if the people she thought she got to know in the past three days were really who they told her they were.

A clicking sound echoed through the silence. Amaris stood up just in time for the door to open. Slygrin stood in front of her with a somber look on his face. He was covered in soot and sweat. A large stain of blood was painted on his shirt. He didn’t look her in the eye when he spoke.

“Come on.” He started walking down the corridor and when he noticed she wasn’t following he turned around and sighed. “Look, you can stay in that room alone and confused with no idea what’s going on, or you can follow me.”

He started walking again and Amaris followed a few beats later.

“What’s going on? Who were those people?” Her voice echoed in the empty halls.

“Sinsecria’s naval army.”

“Why did they attack us?”

He didn’t answer. She jogged to catch up with him.

“Slygrin why did they attack us? What the hell is going on? Tell me.”

Slygrin muttered his answer only when they reached the open deck. “We’re all done for, that’s what’s going on.”

It was already sunset. The reddish rays showered the chaotic deck. People were running around from one side to another carrying equipment and bandages. Some were helping others to trudge to the cabins.

Amaris tried not to look at the puddles of blood on the floorboards.

between the chaotic paths the men were taking, only one group stood still. gathered, some crouched around one thing.

Or rather, one person.

As Amaris got closer she recognized the man who sat leaning on the ramp, his shirt torn and bloodied. A gold necklace with a round metal hoop dangling at its end.

It was the stranger she spoke to on her first night on the ship. His black hair that barely touched his shoulders was damp with sweat. His face was contorted with pain as he struggled to breath.

“He’ll be fine.” She snapped out of her trance at Hawk’s words. She only now noticed his crouched figure near the man. His hand was covered in blood as he threw something to the ground; a small metal ball that rolled away. A bullet.

The captain who hovered over the two looked at the rest of the men and spoke in his usual strict calm manner. “Get him a wet towel and some bandages. Mirage, help me take him to his cabin.” Mirage, who was standing silently watching, nodded and stepped to the man’s other side.

Suddenly a sweep of air caught everyone’s attention. Wind Tuner landed before them, breathing heavily. Amaris could still see the dried blood on his wing. “The hull is really damaged. We have two large dents on the metal parts and a huge gash right where we fixed it last time with wood.”

Hawk cursed.

“Get a team to fix it immediately. The priority is to fix the hull everything else can wait.” Said the captain.

Not a minute after he spoke, Ash appeared from the corridor, he had taken his shirt off and sweat was beading down his body. Thankfully, no injuries He spared her a glance before turning to the captain. “The engine stopped again.”

The captain kept his calm unreadable expression.

“Wind Tuner.”

He stepped forward, trying to stand straighter despite his injury. “Yes, sir.”

“Do you think you can weave the winds to get us to the closest dock.”

It took Wind Tuner a few beats to answer. “I’m not sure. The main sail is torn. Some others are burned. Not to mention that I’m not at full capacity. I might be able to but it will still take weeks.”

The captain turned to Hawk silently. He stood up. “That’s not good enough. We’re almost out of food as it is. And some of the men need a healer as soon as possible. In a couple of weeks, we’d all be dead.”

Amaris could almost see the worry and desperation seep into the crew.

“I can do it.” Everyone turned to the man who was sitting on the ground with the gold necklace and the wounded shoulder. He made to stand but his muscled arm gave way beneath him and he fell back into his first position.

Hawk was the first to react. “Not a chance in hell! Mecheye look at yourself. You can’t even stand!”

“He’s right you’re not doing anything until you’re completely healed.”

Mecheye shook his head and panted. “Captain, please. I can fix it. I have to.”

The captain’s decision didn’t change. “No. we’ll find another way.”

“No one else can fix it.”

“I can.” Amaris stepped forward and they all looked at her shocked, as if they forgot she was there in the first place.

“What?” The captain asked.

“I can fix it. I studied a lot of mechanics and I know most of the basics of ship engines. In theory. Of course.”

“This isn’t child’s play, girl.” Someone Amaris didn’t recognize said.

“I’m serious! I can do it!” she turned to Mecheye. “What was wrong with it?”

He blinked at her a few times before answering. “I finished most of the work earlier. All that’s left are some magnetic wheels that need changing, I thing one of the gears is stuck too. And a couple of others are rusting.” He scanned her face as he spoke, making sure she followed. She nodded and twirled her bracelet in concentration. “After the battle I’m guessing the shock affected it too.”

She nodded again. “Easy enough.”

Hawk looked her in the eye. “Are you sure you can do it, kid?”

She felt offended. “Of course I can-”

“Are we really going to let her mess with the engine?” Someone else yelled.

“Keep your mouth shut Shark!” Of all the people on the deck, Ash was the last one she expected to come to her defense.

He turned to the captain and spoke without meeting her eye. “Sir, I’ve seen her work. If she says that she can do it then I’m certain she can.”

The captain was silent.

“Captain,” Mecheye made to stand and this time Mirage and Ash helped him to his feet. “I can watch over her. Make sure she doesn’t do anything wrong.”

“You need to rest.”

Amaris swallowed her bruised pride and spoke again, knowing that this was the only way they could get anywhere. “He can just sit down and watch me. He doesn’t have to do anything and if he thinks I’m messing up, he can tell me what I’m doing wrong and what I should do instead.”

The captain stayed silent for a long moment before he spoke again. “Mirage, Hawk, help him down to the engine room. Slygrin, get him a chair and a pillow. Where are the bandages I ordered?” Someone ran off below deck. He turned to face her. “Thank you.” He nodded before looking at the rest of the crew. “the rest of those who aren’t injured, get to fixing the hull. There are a few rain clouds coming our way and I don’t want us to take any chances.”

Everyone sprung into movement and Amaris momentarily forgot about the battle and the fact that she almost died just that afternoon.

She had a machine to fix.

******

The engine room was a huge steaming beast that dominated the center of the lowest levels. Amaris had gaped at the structure for a while before Mecheye with an amused tired smile suggested that they get to work.

She jumped at the interruption and they spent the next few hours working. Him dictating which tools to use and where and her following silently. By his strained voice, she knew that he was still in pain. A sailor Amaris didn’t know had come earlier to dress his wound properly.

After a while she heard his soft snores and she smiled. He was trying too hard to stay awake when she knew from the healing book she read that rest is important for a fast recovery. She’d told him many times that she could handle it and that he should go to sleep but he refused. “I can rest later.” He had said, stubbornly.

It didn’t take her long to fall into a rhythm and forget about everything that happened outside of this room. For the first time in almost a week, she was back in her element.

She expertly moved around the machine in a graceful dance, the cramped space her ball room, her ponytail, a beautiful updo, and the tools she held, the fan that cooled her blushing cheeks.

She was so lost in her job that she didn’t hear the door open.

“Any luck?” Ash stood leaning on the doorway, watching her work.

Amaris yelped in surprise, dropping the wrench on her foot. She cursed and knelt down to pick it up.

“Are you okay?” Ash was suddenly beside her. He lifted the tool off the ground and handed it to her.

“Sorry,” he added pushing back his bangs. “I didn’t mean to scare you.”

“I’m fine.” She didn’t mean it, but she sounded as snarky as she usually did with him. She grabbed the wrench and went back to work.

“I see you’re not too happy with what happened today.”

“Which part?” she didn’t face him as she answered. “The battle with Sinsecria’s soldiers, the fact that people got hurt and some might die of their injuries before we get to land, or the fact that we might stay stranded and die of starvation if I don’t have this thing fixed as soon as possible? Oh wait! Maybe it’s the fact the I’m on a ship with people who have two guns each and hidden cannons under floorboards.”

Ash chuckled awkwardly and she was tempted to turn around just to shoot him a glare but decided that he’s not worth it.

“You think this is funny?”

“I think it’s funny how you’re your usual cheerful self instead of hyperventilating and fainting like I expected you to.”

She wanted to tell him that he left her a lot of time to hyperventilate when he locked her in a small room for hours ignoring her shouts. But she didn’t.

Instead, she scoffed and put on the thick leather gloves Mecheye had shown her.

She reached inside the engine to unlatch a gear. When she finally managed to get it out and inspect it, she found it had a missing tooth. “Well that explains it.” She muttered.

She checked the combination under the one she just pulled out and found a small piece of metal stuck between two gears.

“Where’s your shirt?” Amaris whipped her head up and if her cheeks weren’t already red from the heat, she was sure they would rival the dried tomatoes they had for lunch by now. Ash was back near the door watching her curiously. She had taken off the shirt only minutes after starting to work. It was too hot and stifling to keep it on. So she now stood in her white undershirt and the rolled up men’s pants.

“I could say the same to you.” He was still shirtless just like earlier on the deck.

He shrugged. “Tore it and bloodied it during the battle.” He said it with such casualty that he might as well have told her that he spilled his milk over it. “I didn’t get the chance to grab a clean one yet.”

Amaris blinked at his response before searching the small table on one side of the room. “But you still had time to come bother me? Did you by any chance get new gears from Tom last time?

He shook his head. “No. I just got the magnets and some chains and tools.”

“Great. Do you know where he keeps the blowtorch?” she asked.

“He doesn’t have one.”

“What?”

“He doesn’t need it. He’s a fire weaver.”

“Well how am I supposed to stick this back to this then?” she waved the two pieces in front of him in exasperation.

“Maybe I can help with that.” He stood straight and started walking towards her. Amaris furrowed her brows. He got a bit too close but she forced her legs not to take that step back that she so desperately wanted to. He stopped less than a foot in front of her and pulled something out of his pocket. He showed it to her, smirking.

She lifted an eyebrow, unimpressed. “Matches? Really?”

“Not just matches,” he said as he lit one up. Then placed his thumb at the base of the fire. Suddenly, the flame grew and turned blue. “Matches and a weaver.” His smirk widened.

“Alright then,” she said. She took the small piece with a pair of tongs and placed it over the fire. she watched it slowly turn red.

“I never got to finish apologizing for the way I treated you.” He said. His dark grey eyes have turned into a stormy blue from the light of the match. “I was being stupid because of… Look I was pissed about something else and you just happened to be on the crossfire.”

She snorted. “You seriously thing that that’s at the top of my list right now? If you’re going to apologize might as well explain what the hell happened up there.”

He sighed “It’s really not my place to tell.”

She frowned. This was what Mecheye said earlier when she asked him too. She felt like stomping her foot and punching something. Only, this would further prove Ash’s judgment that she’s a spoiled brat. Instead she let out a breath and asked. “At least tell me that this kind of thing doesn’t happen often.”

He looked away. And she found her answer.

“This is getting better and better by the second.” She muttered.

She took the piece off the flames and stuck it to the gear, applying slow steady pressure until it was fixed in place. She placed it on the edge of the table waiting for it to cool down.

She turned back to see him watching her, the match discarded.

“so,” she suddenly felt uncomfortable. She took off the gloves and wiped her sweaty palms on her trousers. “You’re a fire weaver. Is that why they call you Ash?”

He smirked and looked her in the eye. “They call me Ash because that’s all I leave behind.” He watched her eyes widen as she tried to make sense of his words, then, he turned and left.

*******

It was dawn by the time Amaris finished. Somewhere along the way, hawk came and helped Mecheye to his cabin. Slygrin brought her something to eat too, but it lay cold and forgotten on the table surrounded by the scattered tools. The red broth looked too much like blood. Her appetite was long missing.

She was exhausted and could think of nothing better than a warm shower and a comfortable bed. But at this point she’d gladly take the seawater bucket and haystack.

But first, she had something to do. And this couldn’t wait any longer.

She steadied her footsteps into a strict rhythm that concealed her exhaustion as she reached the landing of the last staircase. She could hear some silent chatter before she swung the door open.

As expected, Hawk was there, sitting at the table with a stack of papers in front of him, and now looking up at her. Wind tuner, who now had half of his left wing wrapped tightly in gauze, stopped cutting the vegetables on the counter and watched her warily too.

She ignored him and walked straight to Hawk.

“The engine is working. For now, at least. You’ll need a new gear.”

He nodded. “That’s good. I’ll add the gear to the list.”

She stood silently waiting for him to finish. When it became obvious that he wasn’t going to say anything, she lifted an eyebrow. “Well?”

“Well what?”

“Aren’t you going to explain what the hell happened up there yesterday?”

“Right.” He stood up groaning. “About that, the Cap’n want to talk to you.”

Amaris face blanched and for a second she regretted not going straight to bed.

******

Hey everyone! This story has the last two chapters removed. To read them, please head over to Webnovel and search for this book. By doing so, you would be supporting me while also getting to know what happened to the Amaris and the crew. Thank you for reading!