The Escape
"Where is it, Talen?" The massive Vesten asked.
The young man stared out into the night darkness, his youthful eyes searching for the Montaigne cape. Soon his eyes picked out the crashing surf beyond. A few more minutes and the cape would be as near as Talen could have charted with the maps that he had. If the captain had any idea how close to land his ship was� "Just beyond," Talen pointed, "We've got a little while longer." "The watch?" "Should be unconscious by now." The young man said staring up to the main mast. Because of the relatively calm sea, the deck was clear but for the first mate who had the wheel. But the young Vodacce and his Vesten friend were out of his sight. As for the cape, the first mate wasn't looking in the right direction, and the evidence of the cape was only for those who were looking for it. "Looks like we've just about made it, then," Bron smiled, "Soon we'll both be off of this cursed ship." Talen didn't right respond right away, "You'll need a good knife, at least," he pulled a knife from his sleeve, "And a little gold," he produced a small leather pouch. Bron felt a little disturbed, there was something that Talen was leaving out, "Talen," he took the knife and the pouch, "What is it?" "Take off your shirt," Talen said, "It'll weigh you down, and you'll need all the strength you have to make it." Bron glanced out, now he could see the shoreline that Talen had indicated, "True," he said, "But that jacket of yours weighs more than this shirt�" There was a pained look in Talen's eye, "But I'm not going, Bron." "Of course you're going, you haven't done all of this for nothing, we're going to get off this ship�" "I can't swim, Bron�" "Of course you can," Bron said smiling, "You wouldn't have come up with this unless�" But he looked in the young man's eyes. "Talen." "I'm sorry, Bron," he answered, "but this is all that I could think of. I can't swim, and you can't swim for the both of us. This is only a chance, that shore is farther than you think and you're going to need all the strength in you to get to it." Bron took him by the arm and knelt to Talen's eyes, "You'll die here on this ship, Talen. You know that." "I'm going to have to hold the captain at his word," he answered. Bron pulled his arm, "Come with me." "I can't." "Talen." "Bron, you're going to miss you're chance, this is your chance, not mine," Talen's voice wavered, "I can only hope that my chance comes." "You never had any intention of escaping this ship with me did you?" Talen shook his head, "All I could hope for was that I could help you escape, Bron. This ship." Talen said, "Is a cage that I cannot free myself from, a prison that I cannot escape, and I've escaped a few," He smiled, "But you can, Bron, you can leave this place, and you should, I have no idea what this captain had in mind for you, but I only think it could be worse than dying. He is up to something, something sinister, something evil," The young man said, "Evil, and mad. I can feel it. By Theus, I can feel it." Talen looked into Bron's eyes, "I wish I could leave with you, but I can't." Bron looked at him unbelieving, both of his hands resting on Talen's shoulders, his eyes also looking into Talen's nearly tearful ones, "Is there a message that I could give, anyone that you�" The young man coughed a short laugh, "Tell Berrin Hudnik, that he owes me big for this one�" Bron shook his head, "Of course, I will. Anything else?" "No," Talen said, "Good luck, Bron." "And to you, my young," Bron paused, "Friend." And to Talen's disbelief, Bron took the knife that he had just given him and struck the young man a glancing blow across the shoulder. It bled almost instantly. "There is a term from where I live, Talen," he cut his hand with the same knife and pressed his wound to Talen's, "The term is brother or dearest friend, but is for only those connected by blood�" The blood seeped together. "What did you sacrifice? What will you have sacrificed for my chance?" Bron asked him, "My chance to live?" Talen did not answer. "Thank you for it, my gjaeving, my brother." Talen pulled on the massive Vesten's arm, "Bron, quickly now, you must go quickly�" Bron stood, stripped off his shirt, and walked toward the end of the deck. He was gone. There was a splash, but no one but Talen heard it. His hand went up to his wounded arm, "A brother�" Talen smiled, "A thank you would have sufficed." But he stood and strained to hear his friend swim to shore until the midnight wind took the Beautiful beyond the cape and once again into the open sea.Return to Uncommon Valor