“Murdering savages. C’est des conneries!” said William.
“Peroc, tell us about the ceremony. When did it begin?” James asked.
James translated as Peroc told the tale. “He says that as far back as our stories go, there has always been mention of the twentysecond ceremony. Every twenty-two days, the island requests a sacrifice. His tribe was required to provide it. Throughout their history, it’s usually been one of their own who would go on the stone table. They would hold games to decide who among them would go. Legends were born from these games.”
“Within the last generation, others began to arrive on this island. At first they came in small numbers, one every several years. Eventually larger groups began arriving.”
“Rather than capture and hold them, they would simply watch the newcomers until one was needed. Then, one at a time, they would take from the group. This man and his sister are the last of a very large group that arrived roughly ten years ago. The group built their own camp by One Tree Hill and appeared to thrive. Peroc’s people taught them rudimentary magic. They taught the group their words. They showed them where to find water and how to avoid being preyed upon by the tampere. They encouraged them to breed, but no visitors have ever been with child in this place. Essentially they raised them like beasts to slaughter. The newcomers trusted Peroc’s clan. When one went missing, there was always an explanation for their disappearance.”
“Finally they stopped coming. As their numbers dwindled, Peroc’s people realized it would soon come time for one of their own to go back on the table. The games were set to be held on the day we arrived. One of their tribe spotted our ship. The games were cancelled, and Peroc was sent to bring us to their camp. Everything changed when Perocheard me speak their language. He knew then that the legend of the outsider coming to lead his people to a better place was true.”
“What of the children? Why weren’t there any children at the camp?” asked Kilani.
James translated the question. “He said that they do not take the children to that cursed place. The children stay at another camp, one that is equally protected but not infested with the stench of death and murder. When the children are old enough, they make the journey to Peroc’s camp.”
“Your tone implies that you do not agree with the sacrificing. Please explain,” said James.
“He says that as long as he has lived, they have never missed a ceremony. The elders spoke of a time when the tribe decided not to sacrifice someone for the island. They said before that day, their people, the Belator, were the deadliest hunters on the island. The day the sacrifice was not made the elders say the land shook in anger. The ground parted and released terrible creatures from the underworld. The tampere. Peroc has always lived under the shadow of the tampere, so he cannot confirm whether there was once a time they did not exist.”
“When he passed the test and became a warrior, he made the journey to the new camp. He was the first of four to arrive from the children’s camp. The last to arrive-the slowest and weakest-was immediately taken to the stone table. He was Peroc’s brother. Since then, Peroc has always had disdain for the ceremony and all it represents.”
The group sat in silence for some time. Each of them digesting what Peroc had told them. Finally, William spoke up.
“What is under ze stump, Capitan?” he asked.
James had forgotten entirely about the stump upon which he’d been sitting for the duration of Peroc’s story. He stood, removed the dagger from his belt, and pried open the lid.
The group craned their necks to see what was inside. James thrust his hand into the barrel and lifted a handful of orange powder and let it spill through his fingers back into the barrel.
“Transporting powder!” Kilani said, her eyes fixed on the powder. “What is it made of?” she asked, looking at Peroc.
“It comes from the root of the tree on One Tree Hill. It is ground to powder and cured in the ring of fire for ninety days. It can only be harvested once a year, which is why the Belator have such a vast supply,” James translated.
“I think ‘had’ would be more appropriate,” said Luno.
“What are the transporting laws of this place?” Kilani asked.
“One must have physically been there in order to transport there,” James translated. “They’re just like our laws of transporting.”
“What the bleedin‘ ’ell is happenin?” said Roger, looking over the side rail at the island.
The island was shaking in the water. James had heard stories of how earthquakes appeared from the water, but he had never witnessed one first hand. It was an eerie sight. Several large chunks of rock slid from the side of the nearby cliffs into the water, sending waves that rocked the Queen Mary from side to side. Monstrous roars erupted from the jungle, causing the hairs on the back of James’s neck to stand. He wondered now whether the legend Peroc’s ancestors told him about the tampere were true, and if they were, what monstrosity had the island unleashed this time.
“I would fight a thousand tampere to have my brother back,” Peroc said as if he could read James’s thoughts.
The island settled and everything was still.
“Capitan, you ’ave a plan, no?” William asked.
James and Luno exchanged glances, neither sure who he was addressing because he’d referred to both of them as captain at some point during the trip. James nodded at Luno.
“We shall return to Harbor Town, regroup, and depart from there, well rested and fully supplied. Are there any who disagree?” asked Luno. To the silence that followed he said, “Very well. Harbor Town it is. At first light we shall set sail and leave this cursed place behind.”
“And what of Peroc?” asked James.
“I believe we should offer him a choice. We could learn much from him, and he is no threat to us. He may return to his home at any time,” said Luno nodding at the crate of transporting powder, “but he is welcome to join us on our journey. I’m not sure he would get such a warm welcome if he decides to return home.”
James translated. Peroc looked at the moonlit island with a stern expression. It was clear that he was not in a hurry to give an answer immediately, so James told him they would depart at sunrise. The group went about preparing their bedrolls on deck. Kilani saw to the unconscious man while James took his position on the crow’s nest for first watch.
James noticed Kilani constantly looking over her shoulder at the barrel of transporting powder. He grew increasingly worried she would try something rash. What was it that drives her to want to leave this place so desperately? he wondered. Akil had told James the dangers of attempting to transport somewhere you’d never physically been. Neither was sure it could be done and both had seen people try and fail. Some simply vanished and never returned. Others ended up going nowhere.
James saw Peroc finally turn away from his long gaze at his home and make his way across the deck to beneath the mast. He looked up at James.
“I shall join you on your journey if you will have me,” he said.
“We will be honored, warrior Peroc,” replied James.
James found the subtle sway of the crow’s nest relaxing as he looked out over the island. In his pocket he fingered the cold steel of the key and could hear the black castle’s call. He turned to the southeast, imagining he could see its curved spires on the horizon. He imagined himself standing on top of the keep, his colors flying in the wind. The need for it steadily grew inside him, becoming most apparent when he had time to reflect upon it as he did now.
James thought of Akil, his mentor, his father for all intents and purposes during their years together. The vision he’d had after falling in the cave came back to James. Akil had been here, James was sure of that now. That meant he’d found a way out and James was certain the way out was somewhere inside the black castle. A shadow quickly passed in front of the moon. James turned to see what it was but saw only empty sky and the brilliant orange moon. For an instant, a sense of foreboding washed over him. Before he could determine its source, the feeling was gone and James quickly forgot it had been there at all. Tomorrow he would see that all preparations were made for the journey to the black castle. There would be no more delays. He would have his absolution.