Shadeling

The rain was really pouring down, and as the man sprinted along the footpath, head bent down and hands in his jacket pockets, Kaieena’s green eyes never left him. He was almost upon her now, and with a look of determination she pushed away from the wall that she had been leaning against, and stepped out into the rain. Ignoring the freezing water, she drew a gleaming dagger from a sheaf that was strapped to the top of her right thigh, hidden by the length of her shirt, and stepped into the man’s path. The man didn’t even seem to notice her, and Kaieena flashed a wicked grin. Reaching out with her left hand, she grabbed the man’s shoulder, pulled him roughly forwards, and rammed the dagger hilt-deep into his gut.

The man’s dark eyes went wide with shock, and he gave a gasp of pain as Kaieena withdrew the dagger and let him fall to the ground. Flicking most of the blood off of the blade, the young woman stared down at the dying man with satisfaction, before she turned her back on him and started to walk away.

For a moment the rain seemed to falter, and the whole world seemed to shift. An invisible force smacked into Kaieena’s body, causing her bare skin to prickle with energy, yet it left her unscathed.

The sound of splashing footsteps came from behind her, and turning around, Kaieena sighed as she saw the man that she had just killed jogging along the footpath once again as if nothing had ever happened. Indeed, to the man, nothing had happened; he had no recollection of the girl who had just stabbed him, even though his blood was still on her blade.

“How many times are you going to kill random people before you grow tired of it?” a male voice asked from behind, and as he drew level with her, Kaieena turned to face him with a smirk. He was a young man in his early twenties, like herself, with glossy black hair and a rugged appearance, sporting the tell-tale sign of a pirate; a cutlass on his belt.

“As long as they keep coming back, I’m never gonna grow tired of it,” she replied, and Reuben shook his head. “Besides, it gives me something to do to past the time, and he was a jerk anyway. A lot of effort goes into finding just the right person to stalk, you know?”

“And you know that I hate it when you create ripples. They always make me feel like thousands of bugs are crawling over my skin,” he said with a grimace and slight shudder, and Kaieena laughed.

“And you’re supposed to be a big tough pirate Lord,” she teased.

“Son of a pirate Lord,” Reuben corrected. “Besides, you’re supposed to be a princess – the Layfian princess at that – yet you don’t act like it,” he added, and Kaieena shrugged, causing her short auburn hair to bob about on her shoulders.

“True. But I guess that it doesn’t matter what we were supposed to be anymore. Those lives ended when we were made Shadelings, so we’ve just got to make the most of what we’ve got left,” Kaieena said with a rueful smile.

“Well, this should cheer you up then – the pendent is currently onboard The Caviller, which is scheduled to leave port at down,” Reuben said, and a triumphant grin broke across Kaieena’s face.

“Are you certain? I don’t want any more false leads, Ru,” she said, but her friend grinned.

“Pirates have loose tongues when they get drunk, and bar wenches have good memories. I just had to ask enough of them enough times until I found just the right one. It seems that one of the pirates had been boasting about a good haul, and was flashing the pendant in the bar. From the description that the wench gave me, it fits perfectly with what we know of it,” Reuben explained. They had started walking towards the docks, going unnoticed by the few people that were around, and Kaieena was bouncing with anticipation.

“The pendant of invisibility; the Shadeling amulet; the one thing that can make the Shadeling wearer a part of this world again,” Kaieena said with excitement clear in her voice. “It’s almost within our grasp.”

“All we have to do is sneak aboard The Caviller, find where they have it stashed, grab the thing, and get the hell out again,” Reuben added with a grin, and Kaieena snorted.

“Piece of cake. It’s not like they’ll even remember us being on board,” she pointed out, and Reuben laughed.

“Too true my dear, too true,” he said, and Kaieena quickened her pace as they started down the hill towards the docks. It was one of the fundamental features of being a Shadeling – people didn’t remember you. It was the ultimate punishment that the world could dish out, erasing you from existence, and both Kaieena and Reuben had been punished thus so for committing an Unforgivable Sin.

Wandering onto the docks, it didn’t take the pair long to find The Caviller, and once located, it was even easier to find a way on board – the gangplank had been left out. Stepping down onto the deck, Kaieena’s breath caught in her throat as she saw several pirates sitting in a corner around an upturned barrel, apparently arm wrestling over several pints of ale. Judging by the noise however, not one of them was likely to look over at the two newcomers anytime soon.

“Let’s just get below deck and find the pendant, okay?” Reuben suggested, and Kaieena nodded, following the Shadeling pirate to the hatch that led below deck. “They’re likely to have it in a store room,” Reuben added as they slipped past a snoozing pirate who didn’t even stir at their presence.

“You’re the one who knows ships, so lead the way,” Kaieena said, and Reuben grinned at her. She could tell that he was really enjoying being back on a pirate ship, and Kaieena felt a stab of misery for him. As a Shadeling, Reuben could never be a part of any crew again.

“In here,” he said, shoving a door open with his shoulder. The door protested, scrapping the wooden deck, and the pair held their breath, waiting to see if anyone had heard them. No one had, and with a sigh of relief they slipped inside and closed the door behind them. The room was lit by candles and was almost bare, save for a chest that was sitting on the ground, its lid left slightly ajar. Kaieena and Reuben both crouched down in front of it, lifted the lid, and gasped at the contents.

“Where have they been to gather this much loot?” Kaieena asked, and Reuben shook his head.

“I don’t know, but we’d better start looking. If anyone comes in here, I don’t think that we’ll stay unnoticed for long,” he pointed out, and with a nod Kaieena started digging through the piles of gold coins, sparkling jewels and strings of pearls. Handful after handful was removed and dumped on the floor, yet there was still no sign of the pendant.

“Are you sure this is the right ship?” she asked, growing more frustrated by the second.

“Of course I’m sure; I know my ships,” Reuben shot back, sifting through what Kaieena had discarded. “Kai?” he asked, and Kaieena grunted, digging deeper into the chest. “Kai?” he repeated, this time more insistent.

“What?” she snapped, finally looking over to where Reuben was sitting on the ground, dangling a glistening chain in the air and grinning at her cheekily.

“Look what you overlooked in your haste to find it?” he teased, and with a scowl, Kaieena snatched the pendant from him. Holding it in her hand, the pendant fit snugly into her palm. It was oval in shape and made from silver, with a smooth oval shaped piece of tiger’s eye at its centre. From what she had discovered about the pendant, she knew that it was made out of silver because it was a metal of purity and mental clarity. The golden tiger’s eye not only enhanced perception and increased the flow of yin and yang energies, but it was also a stone that aided in the flow of energy in general. Studded around the tiger’s eye, in tiny polished balls, were pieces of green aventurine stone, placed around the pendant simply for luck.

“Score,” Kaieena said with a smile, balling the chain up and stuffing it into her pants pocket. “Now let’s get out of here,” she added, and Reuben nodded, climbing to his feet. But no sooner had he stood up that the door opened and a burly pirate stomped into the room.

“Wha the ‘ell?” he exclaimed, seeing all of the loot that was still scattered across the floor. Kaieena and Reuben froze, both praying that the pirate wouldn’t notice them, but as he stomped over to the open chest, the two young Shadelings were forced to step out of his way. In their haste to reach the door, Kaieena slipped on a stray pearl necklace, and as she reached out to steady herself she fell against the door, closing it with a slam.

“Crap,” she cursed as Reuben pulled her to her feet and the pirate spun around, his beady eyes finding them instantly, now that he knew someone else must be in the room.

“Oi! Wha ya think yur doin’?” he slurred as Reuben wrenched the door open, and the pair of them bolted. Once out of sight, the burly pirate would have forgotten about them, yet the other crewmembers had heard his yell. As they climbed the stairs back onto the deck, several crewmembers were watching the stairs expectantly, and spotted both Kaieena and Reuben instantly.

“Run!” Reuben yelled as the pirates advanced on them.

“Where? They’re everywhere!” Kaieena yelled back. Indeed, the deck was crawling with pirates, meaning that even if they evaded one group, more would spot them and start the chase all over again. They had to get off the ship and get out of sight; only then would they be forgotten about.

“This way!” Reuben shouted as he ducked under the swinging arm of a pirate. The arm was almost the size of Reuben’s waist, yet the nimble young man ducked under it as if the pirate had been moving in slow motion. Kaieena sidestepped a pirate of her own, who was too drunk to stand upright properly anyway, and dashed after her friend.

“Now what?” Kaieena asked as she stood with her back against the starboard railing. Reuben smiled at her as he grabbed her shoulders and spun her around so that she was facing out to sea.

“Now we jump,” he replied, climbing up onto the railing. The sky had lightened somewhat since they had boarded The Caviller, the rain had stopped, and the dark sea was now tinged with a grey light. Yet the water still looked cold and uninviting.

“Hold it, you pair!” a pirate drawled from behind them, and casting one last look at the unpleasant crew, Kaieena followed Reuben up onto the railing, and without a moment’s hesitation they jumped from the ship. Hitting the water with a splash, Kaieena kicked her way to the surface, coming up for air only a moment before Reuben did. Looking back at the ship, not a single pirate was looking for them; they didn’t even remember the two Shadelings being on board. Sharing a grin, Kaieena and Reuben swam to the nearest jetty and climbed up onto the pier.

“Oh good, it’s still there,” Kaieena muttered in relief, patting her pants pocket where the priceless pendant still sat. Wringing her dripping red hair out, she pulled it out of her pocket and examined it one more time. In the growing light, it sparkled a bit, and both Kaieena and Reuben stood transfixed for a moment before the young woman undid the clasp and draped it over her neck.

Reuben looked apprehensive for a moment as Kaieena fumbled with the clasp. “Are you sure you want to try it on now?” he asked, and Kaieena frowned in concentration, staring down at the pier as she continued to struggle with the clasp.

“Of course I do. I’m cold and I’m wet, and I don’t want our efforts to be for nothing,” she replied, before grunting with irritation. “Can you do this stupid clasp up for me? My fingers are wet and keep slipping on the darn thing.”

“And what makes you think that I can do it up? My fingers are wet too, you know?” he shot back, and Kaieena glared at him, letting him feel the full weight of her emerald eyes. With a sigh, Reuben moved behind Kaieena and took the ends of the chain from her in one hand, and gently moved her hair out of the way with his other.

Kaieena shivered as Reuben’s cold fingers brushed the back of her neck, and for a moment the young man couldn’t think past that one little moment of contact. Her skin was the colour of coffee, and was so smooth to the touch that before he even realised it, Reuben had reached out towards her neck once more.

“Have you done it up yet?” Kaieena suddenly asked, snapping Reuben out of his daydream.

“Ah, not yet. Give me a moment,” he replied, quickly opening the clasp and fumbling for a moment with the other end, trying to get it in just the right place. His fingers slipped on the clasp and he had to open it again, yet with a certain degree of luck he managed to get the loop through the clasp and shut it closed, securing the pendant around Kaieena’s neck.

“Is it done?” she asked as Reuben moved back in front of her, nodding his head. “I don’t feel any different,” she added, and Reuben shrugged.

“There aren’t any other people here, so we can’t really test it out,” he replied, and Kaieena nodded slightly as she thought this over.

“Well, in that case, I say we head up to The Drowned Buccaneer and put it to the test,” she said with a grin, and Reuben gave a hollow smile as he followed the young woman along the pier and onto the waterfront. He couldn’t explain it, but he had a bad feeling that the Shadeling pendant was going to cause a whole world of trouble for the pair of them.

The seaport of Vernai was a magnet for pirates, and The Drowned Buccaneer was at the centre of the town’s daily activity. What used to be a respectable bed and breakfast some fifty years ago had since become the local tavern, offering only a handful of rooms to those unlucky enough to need them. As far as accommodation in Vernai went, you could do a lot better than the Buccaneer, as more often than not, the luggage that you arrived with rarely departed with you. Pirates were a-plenty, and thieving was a part of daily life.

Pushing the swinging doors open, Kaieena stepped into the pub and grinned as several burly pirates looked over in her direction, letting their beady eyes travel up and down her attractive figure. It was only a small gesture, yet the young woman was overjoyed by the attention; the pendant was working. Pushing her way through the throng to the bar with Reuben close behind her, she lent across the sticky counter and waved the barmaid over.

“Wot can I getcha, love?” The barmaid was an older woman, rather plump with scraggly blonde hair that was left to drape over her generous bosom. Yet she had friendly brown eyes and a kind smile that Kaieena returned.

“Can I just have a bottle of tequila please?” she asked, and the barmaid tilted her head at her for a moment before retrieving the bottle.

“You’re not from ‘round these parts, are ya? I can tell by that fancy accent ‘o yours,” the woman said, and Kaieena blushed with embarrassment for a moment, taking a quick swing of her alcohol. “Where you from then, love?”

“Layfia,” Kaieena replied before thinking, and the woman blinked in surprise. Next to her, Reuben was trying to order his own drink, waving his hands in the air and calling out to the barmaid, yet the woman paid him no heed. With a disgruntled sigh, he grabbed the tequila bottle away from his friend and took a swig. The barmaid didn’t even notice.

“Layfia, eh? Very rare that we get one ‘o your sorts in these parts. Wot you doin’ ‘ere then?” the barmaid asked, before holding a hand to her chest. “Me name’s Polly, by the way.”

“Kaieena,” the redhead replied, and Polly smiled at her.

“Such a pretty name. You ‘ere for a holiday, then? Bit of a strange place to come, if you ask me.”

Kaieena shook her head. “Not a holiday, really. I’m just travelling around, seeing the sights.”

Polly laughed. “Not many sights to see in Vernai, ‘less you count them drunkard pirates,” she said, and Kaieena grinned, taking another mouthful of tequila.

“But them drunkard pirates are part of Vernai’s charm,” Kaieena replied a little sarcastically, and Polly snorted before the sound of glass breaking drew her attention. Two men had started a fight, and one of them was currently trying to gouge the others face out with a broken bottle.

“Oi! I’ll have no killin’ in me bar!” Polly yelled, drawing what looked like a crowbar out from underneath the counter, before sauntering over to where the two men were grappling with each other. Words were exchanged, the crowbar was threateningly waved in the air, and the two men eventually skulked away looking rather sheepish.

“Hey, can we go already?” Reuben asked, leaning in to whisper in Kaieena’s ear. The girl turned her attention away from Polly long enough to give her friend a non-committal wave, before turning back to the barmaid.

“Bloody pirates,” Polly muttered, stowing the crowbar back underneath the counter. “Can’t do anything without tryin’ t’ kill once another.”

“Kai, I want to go,” Reuben said more insistently, giving the long sleeve of Kaieena’s scoop neck shirt a tug. Kaieena pushed him away before trying to flag Polly down again.

“Can I get another bottle, please?” she asked, and Polly nodded.

“Just a tick, love,” she said before pulling a drink for another patron further down the bar. Kaieena waited, yet when Polly was done, she moved on to another group of people. Kaieena tried to flag her down as she walked past her, yet the barmaid didn’t seem to see her.

“Polly?” Kaieena called out, yet still she got no response. A lanky pirate with dreadlocks staggered up to the bar and plonked himself down on her lap, and Kaieena indignantly shoved him off. “Do you mind? I’m sitting here!” she spat in annoyance, and the pirate brushed himself off and sat down on the seat next to her, paying the young woman no attention what so ever.

“Kaieena, it’s too crowded in here. Let’s go already,” Reuben said, and as Kaieena turned to argue with him once more, she saw that the youth was dangling the pendant in front of her.

“You little sneak!” she yelled, jumping out of her seat. Reuben grinned at her, and as Kaieena reached to grab it, he yanked the pendant out of her reach.

“It seemed like the only way to get your attention,” the young pirate replied, and Kaieena growled at him with annoyance. She hadn’t even felt him undoing the clasp; such was Reuben’s skill as a pickpocket.

“Fine. I guess we have no choice but to leave then,” she spat before retrieving what was left of her tequila from the bar, then following Reuben out of the Buccaneer. “Can I have the pendant back now?” she asked once they were back out on the street, and with only a slight hesitation, Reuben handed it over.

“You know it works now, so I don’t see why we should be hanging around here for. There are a lot better places that we could go,” Reuben said as Kaieena secured the pendant inside of her pants pocket once more.

“I agree,” she said, before flashing Reuben a grin that he knew meant that she was scheming something. “And the first place that we’ll be going to is Layfia. I have some unfinished business to attend to there,” she added, and Reuben groaned. He didn’t know all of the details of Kaieena’s past in Layfia, but he did know that there was only one reason that she would want to go back there – Denahi Ramirez.

Later that night, as the pair laid curled up together for warmth in a run down seaside hut, Kaieena was sound asleep with the pendant clutched in her fist. Next to her, Reuben was snoring slightly, his cutlass by his side, within reach if needed. The young pirate was dreaming of sailing the seas and exploring new lands, yet Kaieena was dreaming of something a bit more serious …

There was blood on her hands, and the sword that she held was slick with it. Around her lay the bodies of her family and of her fiancée, as well as those of the many servants and guards that had stood in her way. She was only a girl of fifteen, yet she had somehow outmanoeuvred all of them.

“None of you shall stand in my way now, for Layfia belongs to Denahi and I. He is the one that I love, not Rowan,” she spat, sparing a glance at the body of the young man that was sprawled out with her parents and older brother. He was the son of a foreign lord, whom her parents had decided to engage her to, and although they had struck up an instant friendship, Kaieena’s young heart belonged to the older Denahi, who was the son of a Layfian noble.

“Kaieena Zhey, princess of Layfia,” a voice boomed in her head, and the young girl dropped her sword as her hands flew up to futility cover her ears. “You have committed an Unforgivable Sin in murdering the Layfian royal court. I hereby pronounce you a Shadeling.”

And then the voice was gone. When Kaieena opened her eyes, the court around her was bustling with people; courtiers who had come flocking in to help the injured. Many were crying at the sight of not only the king and queen laying dead, but of the prince and only heir dead as well. Rowan’s body was taken away by a group of his people, and more sat around in huddled groups mourning the dead. Yet no one seemed to notice the bloodstained princess that was standing in the centre of the room.

“Look at me!” she yelled, spinning around as her emerald eyes darted from person to person. No one paid her any heed, and Kaieena could feel the panic rising in her chest. “LOOK AT ME!”

Her eyes opened with a snap, and Kaieena lay for a moment, breathing heavily as she stared up at the ceiling. Next to her, Reuben gave a groan and rolled over in his sleep, and through the dirty window she could just see the first rays of sunlight seeping through. The pendant was still in her hand, slightly warm to the touch, and Kaieena regarded it for a moment before setting it aside on the timber floor. She couldn’t remember the last time that she had dreamed such dreams, and the memories had left her on edge.

Looking over at Reuben, Kaieena smiled as she saw a spider crawling over his arm. The young man was whimpering and had a look of disgust on his face, and Kaieena gently picked the spider up and moved it away from the bug-phobic pirate. As soon as it was gone, Reuben settled down once more and relaxed, muscles unclenching.

“How did you ever end up like this?” she whispered, staring down at the sleeping youth. “You, who jump at the slightest little insect; how could you have ever committed a crime so bad that you could have ended up a Shadeling? Me, I wanted to take over my kingdom with the man that I loved. But what about you? What did you do, Reuben?”

In his sleep, the young pirate rolled over and his right hand reached out for his cutlass. Kaieena gave a smile and a small sigh. She had always been curious about Reuben’s past, yet she was also afraid of what she would learn if she actually asked him to tell her his story. Reuben was such a gentle person that she couldn’t, and didn’t want to, imagine him committing an Unforgivable Sin. Yet he must have done in order to become a Shadeling.

With a snort, Reuben awoke and rolled over, blinking up at Kaieena. “What?” he mumbled as he noticed that she was watching him.

For a moment, Kaieena just shook her head, sending her messy hair everywhere. But then she grinned. “You snore,” she said, and Reuben snorted.

“And you mumble, so we’re even,” he countered, and Kaieena poked her tongue out at him.

“Get up already. We have a long way to travel, and most of its on foot,” she said, giving Reuben a shove. The youth groaned, but eventually dragged himself up, and once the pair had gathered their stuff together, they hit the road and headed north towards the mountain region of Layfia.

Author’s Note – So here we have it, the start of my latest fic. I hope you all enjoyed it, but please don’t poke me for any more just yet as I’m in the middle of assignments and other projects that are demanding my time. I will write more when I get the chance, so please just be patient! I hope you enjoyed this though, as I’m really enjoying working with Kaieena and Reuben. It’s a nice change from my usual cast! Anyway, please review and let me know what you think!!