Page 41 of Fateless

“A fallen city and a risen god seem like a pretty good reason to me,” Halek said.

“Indeed.” The captain’s jaw tightened. “I will make the announcement.” He sighed. “Right after our scout returns. I senther to investigate Kovass from a distance, and I wish to hear her report.” He raised his head and gazed at the sky. “In fact, I believe she is coming back now.”

I followed his gaze. A black spot hovered in the sky, silhouetted against the cloudless blue. As it drew closer, a droning sound began to vibrate in my ears. With a shock, I realized that this was the creature in my dream, the great black insect with transparent wings and curling antennae, descending from the sky like some kind of terrible nightmare. My skin crawled, and I tensed, but Halek put a hand on my arm and squeezed gently.

“Don’t panic,” he whispered with a secret grin. “That’s Rhyne. He’s a rock beetle. I know he looks terrifying, but he’s actually very well mannered.” His grin widened, and he lowered his voice even further. “The one you should be afraid of is his rider.”

Rider?Utterly confused, I looked back just as the massive insect touched down on deck. It wasn’t completely black, I realized. The translucent membranes of its wings were a shimmering emerald, and a faint metallic green tint covered its shell. A huge horn, nearly four feet long, protruded from its face, curving into the air.

“Captain!”

Part of the huge beetle suddenly detached from the rest, and a figure leaped down from its back, making me start. Only then did I see the ridiculously small saddle strapped behind the insect’s enormous head. I hadn’t seen the rider at first because they wore chitinous black-and-metallic-green armor that blended into the shell of their mount. A helmet with the same curving black horn as the beetle covered their face.

“Kysa.” Captain Gahmil stepped forward, brow furrowing. “Report,” he said sharply. “What have you seen? Were you able to get to Kovass?”

“Get everyone inside.” With one hand, the rider stripped off their helmet,revealing the face of a young woman. Her voice, low and smoky, was the one I’d heard on the Dust Sea when I’d thought I was dreaming. Straight black hair fell to her shoulders; her eyes were dark and her skin was pale, as if it rarely saw the sunlight. She looked only a couple of years older than me, but the hardness in her eyes and the set of her mouth hinted that she was the same kind of dangerous as Raithe. She had seen fighting, and death, and was no stranger to either.

“Get everyone below deck,” the woman repeated, making the captain frown. “Quickly! It’s coming.”

“What? What is coming?” the captain sputtered, clearly flustered but trying not to show it. The insect rider ignored him and turned to her mount, fiddling with the saddle straps. Captain Gahmil scowled. “Kysa, I am your captain,” he said in a voice of forced calm. “I order you to slow down and tell me exactly what is going on.”

A hollowthumprang out, echoing over the strider, and the entire vessel shuddered as something huge struck its side. A shiver went through me as well.

The insect rider turned, a spear in one hand and a terrible look of grim resignation on her face. “Too late. It’s here.”

Hurrying to the railing, we peered over the side.

Something was crawling up the vessel. Something massive, with a segmented body the color of sand and eight jointed legsthat nearly spanned the length of the strider. It wasn’t a spider, or an ant, or a scorpion, but some terrible, blasphemous mix of the three, with a bloated, pale abdomen, four serrated mandibles half the size of its face, and a pair of shiny black eyes atop its head. It peered up at us, a soulless, alien predator, before its jaws opened in a piercing hiss and it skittered up the side.

Fifteen

My vision blurred as a wave of terror flooded me. I nearly passed out, but then survival instinct kicked in and I found myself lunging back from the railing before I even knew what I was doing. Around me, I was aware of bodies moving, voices shouting, the flash of steel in the sun. From the corner of my eye, I saw the insect rider jam on her helmet and swing herself onto her mount. The beetle’s back carapace split open, and its translucent wings hummed as it lifted them into the sky.

“Maederyss’s mercy, what is happening?” Halek gasped as we backed swiftly away from the side of the ship. Beyond the railing, I could hear the scrapes and thumps of the creature scaling the strider. “What is that thing?”

“An abomination that should be extinct.” Raithe’s eyes were steely, his gaze never leaving the opposite railing. As I watched, a long, jointed leg rose over the edge, followed by another, and the hideous bloated form of the monstrous insect crawled onto the deck with a shriek that chilled my blood. Captain Gahmil stood at the center of the deck, his face white as he stared up at the thing looming over him. His hand shook as he groped for the blade at his belt. “Get out of there, Captain,” Raithe growled. “Don’t try to be a hero.”

Faster than thought, the monster darted forward and pounced, seizing the d’wevryn in its jaws. Captain Gahmil let outa single shout as the mandibles closed, severing the d’wevryn’s body into several pieces. Blood rained onto the deck and spread rapidly into a pool, and the mangled mess of Captain Gahmil vanished down the monster’s gullet. One severed arm thumped to the wood and lay there, twitching.

Gore dripping from its jaws, the abomination turned, multiple legs moving, and fixed its beady eyes on us. Halek and Raithe tensed beside me, but my limbs felt numb with absolute terror. As the creature scuttled forward, a spear flew through the air and struck it in the face. The monster staggered back, legs flailing, as the insect rider and her mount buzzed overhead. Kysa shouted something at us as she passed, probably telling us to get inside, but her words were lost in the wind and the drone of wings.

“Sparrow.” Raithe stepped forward, curved sword at his side; despite the horror on deck with us, his voice was calm. “You and Halek get inside. Try to keep the passengers from coming up. Don’t come out until you know it’s safe.”

“Raithe...” My mouth was dry with terror, but realizing what he was about to do filled me with a different dread. “Don’t.”

He shook his head without taking his gaze from the monster. “These things can burrow through solid rock. If I don’t kill it now, it will start chewing through the hull to get at the people inside.” His pale blue eyes met mine. “Don’t worry about me—just keep yourselves safe. Even if I’m not there to guide you, you have to find your way to Irrikah and meet the queen.”

The spear in the monster’s head finally came loose, falling to the deck with a clink. Lunging forward, the creature pouncedon it, seizing the weapon in its mandibles and snapping it into pieces. The insect rider swooped overhead and the monster reared up with a hiss. One long front leg came up, swatting at the beetle and striking a glancing blow. The beetle wobbled in the air, almost falling, and the monster followed it relentlessly across the deck.

“Go,” Raithe told us, and sprinted toward the abomination. Racing up behind it, his sword flashed as he struck one of its chitinous legs. It didn’t sever the joint or even seem to hurt the creature, and the monster spun on him with a scream.

Halek’s eyes narrowed. Setting his jaw, he stepped forward, making my stomach clench. I quickly grabbed his arm. “Halek, what are you doing?” I gasped. “The door is this way.”

He gave me a half-serious, half-apologetic look. “I can’t let Raithe and Kysa take on that thing alone. It wouldn’t be right.” One gloved hand came up, gently prying my fingers from his arm, and he nodded at the door. “Get inside, Sparrow. We’ll deal with this oversize cricket. I might not be a warrior or an assassin, but I’m really good at being distracting.”

“You can’t! What if it kills you?”

That familiar wry grin came creeping back. “You already know the answer to that,” the Fatechaser said quietly, and stepped away. “Protecting innocent people from a massive abomination? That’s the best fate I can hope for.”

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