Read Online Sennar's Mission by Licia Troisi - Free Book Online Page B

was enjoying the journey. Maybe he’d complete his mission after all and come out of this alive.
    He missed Nihal. One evening, he wrote her a letter. He’d already begun reciting the spell that would speed it on to her when he paused to read it over one last time.
What the devil am I thinking?
He tore it in half and tossed it angrily overboard. He watched as the scraps of parchment were carried off in the waves and then he returned to the hold, alone with his thoughts.
    The problems began during the fifth week of sailing. The sea grew more treacherous and unpredictable, one storm after another. They’d arrived in uncharted waters. No one had ever come this far, and keeping their bearings proved difficult.
    One evening, Rool called Sennar into his cabin.
    “According to my calculations, we should be within sight of the unknown islands any day now. These here.” He pointed to the map. “But as it stands, we haven’t seen so much as a shadow.”
    “How bad is it?” Sennar asked, troubled by the news.
    “Bad. The pantry’s almost empty. When we last restocked, we were assuming that we’d have filled up again by now. If we don’t find that damned archipelago soon, we’re in trouble.”
    As the days passed, the crew stared out with more and more apprehension at the flat, empty ocean. But the horizon offered nothing new—only a cruel and intense blue.

    Sennar decided he would give up half of his daily food ration.
    “Are you always so considerate, Sennar?” Aires asked when she found out. They were seated beside one another on deck.
    “I feel responsible for this,” he replied, with remorse.
    “What a good boy you are,” she answered, laughing. “The kind of guy worth marrying.”
    Sennar was shocked to see her so at ease. Even Benares and Rool seemed unperturbed. For them, this was all just routine—the risk, the hunger, the wild unknown of the sea.
    “You’re not afraid of what might happen?” he asked her.
    Aires stretched her legs out and rested her feet on a barrel of rum. “Scared? Of what? Taking risks is the spice of life. It’s more fun that way. If you can’t manage to have a little fun in the short time we’re given, what’s there to live for? Besides, it’s a challenge.” She turned to face Sennar. “Do you know why I accepted your proposal?”
    “For the money?”
    “Bravo, my little sorcerer. You know, you really are sharp, when you want to be,” Aires quipped. “But without adventure, the money means nothing. To go where no one else has ever stepped foot … Do you ever think about the fact that almost no one else has witnessed this blue in front of us? That no one has ever lived to tell about it? Well, I plan to make it all the way there. And then I’m going to turn around and go back. That way I’ll know I’m the greatest. For now, just quit panicking—all your worrying won’t bring you one foot closer to your destination.”

    And then came a dead calm. The sea was as flat as a puddle, bluer and bluer at the horizon. Without any rainwater to collect, their water reserves diminished rapidly. Rations were cut, and with hunger came discontent. Not everyone was as strong-willed as Rool or as reckless as Aires.
    Sennar spent his nights poring over the map, trying to figure out how far they’d come, how much farther there was to go. More than once he resorted to magic, hoping to discover whether or not they were on the right path, but rather than point the way to the islands, the rays of light he conjured merely trailed off in the evening dark toward unknown places.
    When some of the pirates began to blame Sennar for involving them all in his own hopeless mission, it was Benares who came to his defense. “Are we all men here, or what? The sea is our home, dammit. Did anyone force you to be here? Whoever wants to turn back to shore, grab a boat and get rowing. End of discussion.”
    Soon, there were no more birds. Not a gull, not an albatross, not a single flock migrating