Across the Darkling Sea by Ferrin K

Author:Ferrin, K. [Ferrin, K.]
Language: eng
Format: azw3
Publisher: Pixie9 Press
Published: 2016-11-12T05:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER ELEVEN

As the figure drew nearer, it became clear to Ling that it was a woman. She was tall and lean and moved with an inhuman grace. Pale skinned, thick rolls of raven-black hair swept back from her chiseled face to spill down the length of her back, brushing her heels in heavy ropes. Ling’s breath caught in her throat as the woman stopped to chat with the guard at the plank. Iridescent yellow scales covered her elegant cheekbones and the space beneath her luminescent yellow eyes. She raised a hand and ran a long, sharp talon, the same luminous yellow as her scaling, gently down the side of the guard’s cheek as she smiled at the man. White teeth flashed in the morning sun, and Ling could see their knife-sharp points clearly.

The woman was terrifyingly alien, and the mundanity of her laughter and casual chitchat with the guard served only to enhance that alienness. Ling wondered if it was intentional—an affectation to enhance the effect her appearance had on everyone around her.

Ling’s heart felt like it raced in her chest, and her mouth was dry. From the reactions of everyone on board, Ling suspected this woman was not a warlock. None of the other passengers had caused such a strong reaction. Captain Drake’s expression was clearly concerned, and the crew was tense. The man with the amethysts’ hands whitened where they gripped the rail.

Ling had snuck downstairs often as a child, spying on her parents and listening in on their conversations. They spoke of terrifying things—monsters, the adults had called them. Beings of magic that lived only on Dreggs. She’d believed the stories as a child, and they had caused plenty of nightmares over the years. But somewhere along the line, she’d given them up as fables. Untruths made up to explain things the people of Brielle couldn’t understand. But now, she wondered. Was this woman one of those creatures? And if she were, was this what would happen should the crew of the Courser realize what Ling herself was?

She cursed her parents and the people of Brielle for their habit of ignoring the outside world. She knew precious little of warlocks and magic. She felt like she was walking into a dragon’s lair with nothing to protect or defend herself. Something was clearly happening here, but she had no idea what, and that terrified her.

The scaled woman paused in her talk with the guard and tilted her head as if listening for some distant sound. She twisted her upper body, swung her head around, and settled those shining yellow eyes unerringly on Ling. For the space of a single breath, the woman studied her, then slowly turned back, seemingly picking up the conversation where she’d left it.

Ling felt as if something large had lodged in her throat. There was no doubt that the woman had looked at her and not at Captain Drake. Ling was certain that woman knew that she was no normal human girl. She turned

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.