Page 8 of A Spell of Bones and Madness (Nostos #2)

Chapter Five

Ajax

C ards was one of the single times of the day Ajax could relax—could let the stress of the daunting duties of a spymaster slink away to nothingness.

He could shut off his brain and let the chips fall from his purse.

Gamble away his thoughts in exchange for the honor of beating his fellow soldiers, or—for the foreseeable future—crewmates.

Because Ajax always won. Which is why the sweat that built along his neck and the incessant bouncing of his leg was unheard of.

Ajax was down to his last few coins. All because of her .

In all the time Ajax had known Ember, he’d never once seen her play cards.

It shouldn’t have surprised him that the princess had dabbled in gambling before she traded gowns for the leather uniform of the Spartanis.

She had never snuck down to the barracks to bet her coin against the men and women that made up her soldiers, but why would that mean that the many men of court who tried to woo her had not escorted her down to the exclusive gambling houses in the markets of Alentus?

Ember was ferocious.

Deadly.

A mastermind with not a tell in sight.

He had never seen someone with such a straight face and the innate ability to outsmart men twice her age with little to nothing in her actual hand.

Was it just Eleusis that she dominated, or perhaps had she learned the tricks of other games?

Regardless, she had somehow found the secret rules of the dealer every single game.

It caused Ajax’s blood to boil and his skin to heat every single time, and he wasn’t sure if it was out of jealousy or pride over the princess who constantly proved men wrong.

Or it simply could have been that the seer was the dealer. Maybe the two women were in league with each other to steal not only his money, but the other unexpecting crew’s as well. Ajax couldn’t help the flutter in his heart or the upward tilt of his lips at the thought.

This hand, however, Ember had seemed to falter. That is, until Ajax thought he’d figured out Thalia’s secret pairing rule and had failed miserably. After he had already slid his last few coins into the center of the table.

“The men all cheer for you? So quickly? Am I to expect they would take orders in battle from you before me as well?” He laughed, but his jaw tightened.

He wanted that for her—truly—but it was another slice of the blade to his confidence.

After all he had sacrificed as a spymaster, the men aboard this ship seemed to keep him at arm’s length.

“I think you underestimate me, Commander. Most men find me irresistible to follow.” Ember’s light voice hung in the air as if it was sucking the very oxygen from his lungs.

Reaching out his hand, Ajax grazed his thumb along her cheek until he reached her chin, titling it toward him, locking his gaze with hers. “I have never underestimated you, Drakos.”

The rose that bloomed in her cheeks and the way her lips parted just slightly was enough to bring him to his knees, but they were surrounded by the rest of the crew and he promised himself that he would not allow himself to want her—to even dream of it—until he was completely honest with her.

About his past, about his duties to the kingdom they sailed toward.

Even then, the laws were clear. And what was a commander without adhering to the laws?

Ember shot backwards in her chair, looking away from Ajax, her focus now securely marked on her hand of cards.

A soft snicker came from the other side of Ajax.

Thalia leaned in close to him, her daimon -like grin haunting.

“You better decide quickly,” she whispered, “whether you are going to claim her or not. Otherwise, I am sure one of these fine men will beat you to it. The Skiathans are enamored by confidence, a woman who fights for what she believes in. Why do you think she earned their trust so quickly?”

It took all Ajax’s strength to suppress a growl, but Thalia was right. “She is the Prytan and I am a commander—we are not allowed, even if I wanted it,” Ajax whispered back, although his voice was much sharper than the seer’s .

“If you have forgotten, Jax, the Spartanis have fallen. She may still hold the respect of rank, but the laws no longer apply.”

A buzzing in his ears sent him into a spiral. She was right and, gods, did Ajax hate when Thalia was right.

No—it wasn’t in his ears—it was coming from all around them.

The very bones of the ship rattled, knocking over goblets of wine and sending gold and silver coins crashing to the ground.

Shouts echoed from above deck. There was no time to think about whether or not having Ember was in the realm of possibilities.

Something was here.

Katrin

“ Skatá !” Leighton cursed, running down the steps of the quarterdeck, practically knocking Katrin over in the process.

“Alert the men below deck, a ship approaches swiftly at our stern.” Several of the crew scattered below, but Katrin turned toward where Leighton pointed.

This could not be happening. Not when they were so close to reaching their destination.

There, just over the horizon, a large ship flew over the water toward them, its sails black with intertwined silver snakes. The Typhon. It had to be. No other ship, not even The Hydra , could outpace them in these seas. But The Typhon would forever be seared in Katrin’s mind .

How had it approached so quickly? Was it spelled? Was Kohl aboard? Or the red-eyed man? Katrin would slit his throat if she had the chance.

“Leighton, we need you back at the helm!” Katrin yelled, scanning the opposite direction to see if they were approaching land, anything that would give them a slight advantage, a way to outrun the approaching threat.

They weren’t anywhere near Nexian waters yet, and Katrin wasn’t even sure if King Nikolaos’s fleet would come to their aid, even for his son’s ship.

Out of the corner of her eye, she caught Ajax, Farah, Ember, and Thalia racing up from below deck.

Each carried their weapon of choice, except Farah.

Instead, black smoke threaded through her fingertips, extending up her forearms. What is she?

Katrin thought. The sorcerers from Votios were supposed to be merely legends, but Farah was no god, nor god born.

Unless she was not truly Kohl’s sister? Or perhaps the Athanas line had kept some of those ancient, mystical powers hidden over the last century.

“It looks like there are around twenty men on deck, most likely more below. They all bear the banner of Harrenfort,” Ajax heaved as he approached Katrin and Leighton at the stern.

How did he know this? Katrin was still getting used to the fact that Ajax was, in fact, Nexian, and now he possessed some farsight even she did not have?

How many people on this ship wielded powers she had not seen?

“We can take twenty men easily. We have more soldiers aboard than they do,” Katrin said, looking between the two men who both had their jaws clenched tight, brows furrowed deep .

“It is not the men we should be concerned with. It is the catapults they have,” Ajax replied as he raced down the stairs to where others were preparing their weapons.

Starlight flamed along Katrin’s skin. She didn’t know how to control it yet, but she would try.

Maybe if she could direct her power to the ship before it reached them, she could sink the wretched thing and be done with it.

The Typhon was only a few ship lengths away—if she just focused, the ship could burn.

“Incoming!” Ajax’s voice boomed from the main deck.

Fire lit up the sky as a flaming oiled stone spun in the air straight toward the foremast. It was as if it moved in slow motion, the object that would surely destroy them all.

“Do I have to do everything myself?” Farah screamed as she extended her arms and black smoke flew from her fingertips toward the hurtling rock, shattering it to pieces on contact. But even though they downed one flaming stone, more followed. “Katrin, I could use your help with these!”

“I can try!” she yelled back.

Home. Home. She needed to remember Ander’s words, to harness his strength and resolve in the moment.

Clouds swirled overhead and lightning struck near the port side of The Typhon.

Starlight and electricity buzzed along Katrin’s skin, heating with every breath she inhaled.

She had done it before, that day on The Nostos when she set it ablaze.

“There’s a narrow pass between the shoals up ahead.

I think we can make it through!” Leighton spun the ship’s wheel hard toward the port side.

“The beam of The Typhon is too wide, it won’t make it.

I need you and Farah to take out the catapults.

We won’t outrun them fast enough and if those take us out we will sink. ”

Katrin whipped back toward Leighton. “But I tried to burn this ship down and she did not fall.”

“ The Nostos has protection, but only against the will of the gods. She will fall if hit by true fire.” He gripped the wheel harder, fighting against the heavy gusts that came from the west.

“I will not let her sink, not without her captain.” Katrin went running toward the main deck. “Ember, prepare the long bows!”

Ember signaled the men stacked inside the rail of the ship, who moved in formation, pulling back their bows in tandem.

It was magical, seeing the way these men followed her sister’s orders without judgement or question.

The soldiers of Skiatha were as loyal as they came and somehow, in only a week, they had learned to trust a foreigner as a leader among their ranks.

“Light them up, Katrin!” her sister bellowed as her hand dropped and the arrows flew from each archer.

Inhaling the salty air around her, Katrin calmed all other senses, letting the light flood deep within her well of power.

Starlight blasted from her like a searing hot flame, sparking the tips of each arrow as they soared for The Typhon.

Some fell just short of the oncoming ship, while others met their target, setting the jib sails ablaze.

“Prepare your second mark!” Ember ordered, but was cut off as The Typhon ’s archers sent a row of arrows right back.

“Take cover!” Ajax shouted, sprinting toward Ember who stood closest to where the arrows flew. He tackled her to the ground, throwing a wooden shield over her sister as four arrows landed directly around them .

“We need to get to the shoals faster, Leighton,” Katrin begged, not knowing if she would be able to summon her power many more times in such a direct manner.

“I’m trying my best, but the water around this stretch of sea is volatile and the winds are working against us.” Leighton gripped the wheel harder toward the port side, trying to fight against the raging wind pulling them in the opposite direction.

A crash sounded from the main deck where one of the catapult’s boulders made its mark. The foremast splintered, sending shards of wood falling for the ground and snapping the lower ratlines.

“Alright, just focus on keeping us steady. I have another plan.” Katrin took off down the stairs from the helm, scanning the deck for Farah.

She caught her toward the starboard side, still flinging her smokey tendrils out toward the oncoming boulders, trying to disintegrate as many as she could.

Another firing of arrows came straight toward them but the Skiathan archers created a blockade with their long, rectangular shields.

They were almost at the shoals, it would only be moments longer, but The Typhon was no more than a ship’s length away. The ship would reach them before they had a chance to escape unless there was a way to slow it down.

“Farah, I need your help,” Katrin called as she slid under the shield barrier on her knees, right up to where Farah crouched.

“Does it not look like I’m busy at the moment, or are you trying to get us all killed?” Farah retorted, peeking over the barrier to see if another target hurtled toward them.

“We need to take out more than the jib sails. We need to break the main mast. ”

“There is no way I can bring that down myself! I’ve already used more power than I should, and all power comes at a price.” Farah’s hands shook, her veins an inky black threading through her skin. Liquid that looked like onyx blood seeped from her nose.

“Please. One last time, Farah. With me. I will not let these men win.” Katrin let her body heat once more, summoning the power of the sky above.

“Alright, but if this doesn’t work—”

“It will work. It has to work.” Turning to the left, Katrin caught her sister’s attention.

“Ember, Ajax, we will need your cover. On my mark, have the archers fire another round of arrows.” She positioned herself behind the line of archers, letting lightning and starlight crackle between her fingers. Katrin signaled her sister with a nod.

Ember nodded back. “Ready yourselves, soldiers!” She raised her arm, holding for one moment before whipping it down. “Aim! Fire!”

Katrin and Farah stood shoulder to shoulder, an overwhelming power thrumming between them, and as the arrows flew, so did Katrin’s light and Farah’s darkness, straight into the main mast of The Typhon.

Splintered wood soared from the mast as it fell, smashing through the hull of the ship. Violent screams filled the air as some of the Harrenfort soldiers dove into the sea to avoid death.

But one did not, and Katrin was grateful to be close enough now to see the anger in his features knowing he had lost. Standing at the bow of the ship, sword raised, the red-eyed man let out a war cry.

A captain going down with his ship. And as they finally reached the safety between the shoals, Katrin watched as The Typhon sank to the depths of the sea.