Rich Wulf - Rise of the Seventh Moon

“That’s not what I mean,” Tristam said. He leaned toward the cabin porthole, staring out into the sky. “If the Seventh Moon is so close, we should be able to see her elemental ring. I don’t see anything.”

“Look higher,” Omax said.

Tristam crane his neck, looking through the porthole at an angle.

High above the Mourning Dawn , the sparkling golden lights of the Ring of Siberys gleamed in the night sky.

And there, so high in the sky that it almost appeared to be a star, a red ring of flame traced its course toward Sharn.

“Captain Gerriman, take us higher!” Tristam shouted, bursting out of his cabin and running toward the deck. “All hands, prepare for battle!”

Seren appeared beside him as he ran through the corridor. She smiled at him, and he found it a little harder to be afraid. He squeezed her hand gently and hurried onward to the deck. The others were swiftly gathering there. Gerith was tightening the harness on his glidewing. Eraina distributed flasks of alchemist fire to the others. Pherris’s gaze was locked on the red ring high above them as Karia Naille began to climb. A cold wind cut across the deck as the airship ascended.

“Khyber, why’s she riding so high?” Pherris said. A thin line of sweat beaded on his brow as he pushed the ship higher. “These ships aren’t built to sustain that sort of altitude.”

“He’s flying above the clouds so that I can summon no storm to hinder him,” Aeven said.

“That’s not the only reason,” Shaimin said. “Skyway.”

“Eh?” Pherris said, looking at the elf.

Shaimin pointed at the clouds. “Marth is headed for Skyway. The noble district.” Lights twinkled among the clouds. From below, the lights had seemed to be stars.

“Buildings?” Seren said, astonished. “The people live in the clouds?”

“The rich ones do,” Zed said, studying the clouds beside the elf. A large central cloud was encircled by many smaller floating islands. “Though they won’t stay up there for long if Marth reaches them. I bet he plans to drop the Skyway district on the city, then work his way down.”

The Kenshi Zhann had nearly reached the closest of the cloud islands.

“Damn it, Gerriman, doesn’t this ship go any faster?” Dalan demanded.

“Doing my best, Dalan,” Pherris said. “She’s not doing well in this thin air. She’s going to freeze up and drop if we keep this up. Aeven, any help you can provide would be much appreciated.”

The dryad looked up suddenly. She had been staring into the depths of the black glass sphere. “Aye, Captain,” she whispered. The wind picked up behind them, pushing them to greater speed.

“I should go down there,” Gerith said, peering over the rail.

“What are you talking about, Snowshale?” Dalan said.

“All those people!” Gerith said, gesturing out at the city. “What if we can’t stop Marth? They need to know what’s about to happen! Someone has to warn them.”

“You want to fly through Sharn on your glidewing and tell people the sky is falling?” Dalan asked.

Gerith looked crestfallen. “When you put it that way, it just sounds stupid,” he said meekly.

Ahead of them, the Seventh Moon dove toward the nearest edge of the massive floating island. A squadron of airships burst from the cloud cover as he approached, speeding toward him. The Seventh Moon banked and climbed higher as bolts of flame and arcs of electricity erupted from the ships.

“Brelish warships,” Tristam said, running to the bow and staring out at the swarming vessels. “Draikus must have sent word ahead.”

“Maybe they’ll buy us time to catch up,” Pherris said.

“Or maybe they’ll just get themselves killed,” Zed replied.

The air, though already bitterly cold, grew even colder as a shockwave of white energy erupted from the core of Marth’s ship. The Legacy’s power washed over the attacking airships. The elemental fire that supported a dozen of the closest vessels vanished in an instant. The remaining ships scattered, the fleet thrown into disarray by the Legacy’s incredible power. Terrified screams drifted upon the thin air as airships plummeted toward the city below. A gleaming fissure appeared in the shining clouds of Skyway. Cracks began to spread through the floating island.

“Flame forgive us all,” Zed whispered. “We’re too late.”

“Not yet,” Tristam said. “Skyway was built to be self sustaining. If we can stop him quickly, the island will repair itself.”

“We aren’t going to catch him at this rate,” Pherris said.

Even as he spoke, the Legacy’s wave washed over them and the Karia Naille gained speed. The ship’s elemental ring burned pure white, crackling with raw energy. The airship surged higher, moving above and behind the Seventh Moon . Far beneath them, Tristam could see the Cyran soldiers on the deck shouting and pointing upward. Marth stood in their midst, his pale hair and face a marked contrast to the others.

“We need to get closer,” Tristam said, holding his wand in one hand and a flask in the other.

Pherris nodded, but even as the ship descended, the Moon banked suddenly to starboard. The Mourning Dawn soared on ahead, still descending.

“He’s coming around,” Zed said.

“Trying to get behind us so he can shoot us down,” Pherris muttered, fighting to mirror the Moon ’s maneuver.

The smaller airship struggled to veer about as the Moon came around behind her. A searing blast of electricity erupted from the warship’s bow, singing the Mourning Dawn ’s hull. Tristam cursed. The winds were fierce this high above Sharn, rendering their flasks and crossbows nearly useless. Marth could elude them forever, whittling them down to nothing with his lightning. The Mourning Dawn was forced to gain altitude, pulling out of the Seventh Moon ’s range.

The Moon sped past them again, toward the heart of Skyway. Another burst of energy erupted from the ship’s heart as the Legacy activated a second time. The cracks that threatened the floating island began to spread. Tristam could see the taller buildings of Skyway tremble as a tremor shook the district.

“If we get close, he’ll just circle around and blast us again,” Zed said. “We’ve got nothing to stop him at this altitude unless we just plan to crash into him.”

Tristam looked up. An idea struck him.

“Get him behind us again, Captain,” Tristam shouted, running back below deck, “but stay above him!”

Pherris gave him a dubious look, but complied. The Mourning Dawn dove again. Moments later, another bolt of lightning narrowly missed its keel strut as the Moon moved to pursue again. Tristam emerged on the deck, holding the life ring he had taken from the Seventh Moon . He looked down at the pursuing airship and hefted the ring in one hand.

“What are you doing, Tristam?” Dalan asked.

“Jumping onto the Seventh Moon ,” he said. “We have to stop Marth somehow.”

“How do you plan to come back?” Zed asked.

“I’ll worry about that later,” Tristam said with a crooked smile. “This can only carry four. Who’s coming with me?”

Omax had already seized one side of the ring. Seren quickly grabbed another. Zed, Ijaac, and Eraina all reached for the remaining handle.

Shaimin had already grasped it.

The black sphere in Marth’s hand seethed with bitter cold. The smell of burnt ozone singed the air. Below him, the city of Sharn was thrown into chaos. Already he could see fires erupting in the lower reaches of the city from the crashed airships. Alarm bells echoed throughout Skyway. Lights flickered in the buildings ahead as citizens roused from their slumber. The Brelish airships, thrown into chaos, pursued the Seventh Moon at a distance. They were hardly even worth concern.