Voidhawk - Lost Soul Read Online Free Page A

her. “But it is your error to make. Without strong leadership your people may forget the progress they have made.”
    Jenna nodded. “Thank you, Elder Kiltyrn. We are indebted to you again. As for my people, I’ve already ignored the ones that matter the most for too long. If the elves forget so quickly then perhaps they were never mine to begin with.”
    Kiltyrn nodded. “Her body awaits. It will endure for years in this state. Returning her soul will break the enchantment. May the winds of the void speed your journey.”
     
     
     
     
    Chapter 2
     
    “We’re sailing on this?” Trilliana’s tone left no doubt about what she thought of the Voidhawk.
    “She’s been docked for a long time now,” Dexter defended his ship. It was true that the ‘Hawk had seen better days, but the problem wasn’t a matter of dry rot or damage, just dust settling in. “She still sails the void and I reckon she’ll be sailing it long after we’re gone.”
    The smirk on the witch’s face said otherwise. Dexter scowled at her, but turned away when he heard a commotion on the docks. He turned and saw Jenna striding along the wooden limbs of the conjoined trees Flasgoryll was built upon. She wore breeches and a vest made of leather, with her swords at her hips and a pistol on a sash. Dexter also noticed that she looked angry.
    The elven capitol city was massive, nearly the size of a small moon. As with nearly all elven outposts and citadels, Flasgoryll was a living entity. Far from sentient, it nevertheless consisted of a massive tree that had been nurtured with magic to grow into the shape that its tenders had imagined. Now it housed thousands of elves and served as one of the Elven Empire’s mightiest shipyards capable to growing the most breathtaking vessels to ever set sail across the void. The Voidhawk, in comparison to nearly any elven ship, seemed crude and uninspired.
    “Look beyond the surface,” Xander urged his apprentice. “The Voidhawk has served for many years and has no small amount of magic built into it. Beyond that which is necessary to sail the void, I mean. I thought like you once, even after I worked my own magic into it to increase the size of the cargo holds. I’ve come to learn much more about it, there’s magic in it that goes beyond what the books can teach us. The magic of devotion and hard work. The magic of love.”
    Trilliana spun to look at him, her delicate eyebrows raised. “You sound poetic, or at least romantic.”
    Xander chuckled, trying to erase the red bloom from his cheeks. “Emotion carries power. It can be dangerous, especially for those that know how to use it. I’ve had lengthy debates with the Elders about it . I suspect channeling such energies over long terms—and by invoking them in massive groups of people—is what can cause inexplicable phenomena to occur. Miracles, you would say, or for even longer term results the creation of deities.”
    “There’ll be no deity that can save you if you don’t have the ‘Hawk ready to sail by the time I’m back on the deck!” Jenna stepped off the ramp and strode across the deck, heading to the circular staircase that would take her to the companionway closest to the bridge.
    Dexter allowed himself a smirk. “Seems my first mate is back,” he offered. A ribald curse drifted up from the staircase, followed by a crash of wood against wood. He turned without another word and hurried after her.
    Jenna was pulling chart after chart out of a chest, unrolling the delicate parchments on the table then tossing them aside. She looked up at him when he entered and glared angrily. Her eyes softened. Her shoulders sagged and it seemed only her hands on the table kept her knees from collapsing beneath her. Dexter hurried over to her, rounding the table and placing his hand on her back.
    “We’ll get her,” he whispered.
    Jenna turned, burying her face into his chest and letting loose a sob. The Captain had little choice but to hold her