Take Me

“Where am I?” I asked.

I hated how shaky my voice sounded. I didn't want to show weakness, even though I was about as vulnerable as I'd ever been.

“How did you come up on our shores if you know not where you've landed? Does one simply cast themselves into the sea?”

“It was actually pretty close to that.”

A laugh bubbled out of him—literally. It sounded like his lungs were full of water. “You have reached the Isle of Wyrd.”

Wyrd? That explained a lot of things. And now I understood what those hanging bones symbolized. They were Witch shanties, inhabited by practitioners of dark magic. I had heard about them but had never seen them in person. Now, I couldn't shake the feeling of being watched from behind so many curtains, so many darkened windows.

“Thank you. I need to find a way to get... somewhere else,” I said.

This was beyond pathetic. How was I supposed to make it look like I could take care of myself if I didn't even know where I needed to go?

“Not so easy to get where you want to go if you know not where that is.” He extended a hand, his long fingers curling as he beckoned me. “Come. I shall help you.”

“You know what? I appreciate the offer, but I'm going to do a little exploring. I've never been here and would like to look around.”

Yes, that would certainly get him to leave me alone.

But it seemed to work.

He chuckled again, backing away with his hands held up. “Very well. I hope you don't regret turning down my offer, child.”

Yes, that made two of us. There was something about the way he said it that told me I had a lot more in store.

It didn't take long to understand what that was. I stuck out like a sore thumb in this place, which was filled with Sirens, Witches, and strange, demonic creatures I couldn't identify in any way. All I knew was I was different from all of them. It was impossible to blend in. I could only hope no one had any ideas about hurting me because there was no way I'd be able to defend myself. I was hardly even wearing clothes.

But I was thinking clearly, at least for the time being. Maybe the shock of being thrown overboard had cleared my head up for once. There was no pain, no longing for anyone or anything but Jett. I didn't think I was imagining having heard him scream when I was falling through thin air in those breathless moments before hitting the water.

It was the thought of what he must be suffering that kept me moving.

“Pretty thing! By the foam, why are you alone? Come inside.” A tiny little figure in a hooded robe waved at me from the doorway of a straw hut.

They laughed when I shook my head and hurried on. I couldn't help but wonder what they wanted with me. To sell me? To use me for some weird ritual?

“The battle will begin once the night has fallen and the moon risen,” the hooded figure added.

I almost shrieked at the sudden presence by my side. It was the same one I’d just hurried away from. How had they reached me so fast?

And what were they talking about?

“I beg your pardon?” Because being polite seemed like the best way to manage this. I couldn’t afford to anger anyone.

“The battle in Biryg.” It was a woman, this hooded figure. That much I knew now, even if I didn’t understand anything else she was saying. “I can tell you what you wish most to know. Follow me.”

Nothing could’ve stopped me. She might’ve been mysterious, and she might’ve been leading me into a creepy straw hut where anything could happen, but she seemed to know things.

The hut was dark, cramped, and smelled like herbs and smoke. “I don’t have any way to pay you,” I offered without being prompted.

Better to get that out of the way before I committed myself.

“Have I requested payment?” She lowered her hood, revealing a heavily lined face and thin, white hair that floated in a cloud around her head. “I saw everything the moment I set eyes upon you. It is the Fae king you’re looking for.

“Healynas?” I asked, confused.

“No. Jett. Isn’t that right?”