Read Online Lost Empire by Jeff Gunzel - Free Book Online

weight was afloat. Within minutes it was drifting through the icy water. The angry shouts faded into the night as the mighty ship slowly began putting distance between itself and the port city.
    The grinding and shaking had stopped and was now replaced by a smooth, rocking motion. The four companions could hear the salty water crash against the boat in an almost musical rhythmic pattern. Jacob grinned as he slowly released his death grip from the table, first one hand then the other, as if not yet trusting the suddenly smooth ride. He shook the numbness from his hands and stomped the pins and needles from his feet. “We did it. We really did it, guys!” he exclaimed, giving Eric a light punch in the shoulder. “I can hardly believe it. We’re going to be the first to set foot on a new land, a land no one has ever seen before.”
    Jade’s voice trembled with anger, “Why must everything be a game to you? These lands have been all but forgotten, true, but they are certainly not unknown. Berkeni showed us a map, remember? More than one person has already been there before. And besides all that, this is not some joyride for a small-town farm boy to attempt to fulfill his boyish dreams of adventu—”
    A strong hand lightly placed on her shoulder was enough to stop her off in mid-sentence. The anger melted from her eyes as she leaned back into Eric. He whispered in her ear, “He is just caught up in the moment and speaking his mind like he always does. You know he meant nothing by it. Are you now planning to hold Jacob accountable for being Jacob?”
    She smiled at the words meant only for her ears, then turned back to Eric’s friend. “Jacob, I’m sorry for what I said. You didn’t do anything wrong. I guess deep inside, I’m just jealous of you. Here I am worried about, well...everything. What will we do when we get there? If we get there? What will we find? I just don’t understand how anyone can have absolutely no fear of the unknown.”
    Jacob locked his fingers behind his head as one boot thumped down on the table, followed loudly by the other. “Don’t waste your apologies on me,” he said with a blatant eye roll. “First of all, you couldn’t offend me if your life depended on it. Truth be told, you’re really bad at it.” Everyone laughed. “As far as being jealous of me, well...that’s the curse I’ve dealt with most of my life, so don’t bother thinking you’re special.” A rhythmic clinking sound began to ring out over their laughter.
    An older man with white bushy eyebrows and an impossibly large nose continued to thump a silver spoon against his table over and over again. His deep-set dark eyes seemed to have singled out Eric as the high pitched rattling clanked away in a steady beat. If it was their attention he was seeking, he certainly had it now. However, he appeared no more likely to have his mindless song interrupted than he was to break off his stare, which was being returned in the same manner. In a crackling, stony voice that more than matched his grizzled looks, he said, “Well, I’m glad the four of ye are having a good time.” He slammed the spoon flat against the table. “Tell me, boy, do you know how many different ways a man can die at sea? I assume this be the first time your sea legs have been tested.”
    “ You assume correctly, old man,” said Eric with no hint of anger or sarcasm. “This is the first time any of us have been on a ship. And no, I don’t know how many ways one can meet his end at sea. But I do know this. Even if that number is in the millions, it doesn’t change the fact we will still be at sea and you will be there with us as well.” His voice stayed steady and calm, as if discussing what types of fish lived in the water. “If you are afraid, I wish you had thought of that before agreeing to this, because we are not stopping for the likes of one coward.”
    The grizzled man leapt spryly to his feet as many of the others leaned forward in their