7. Chapter Seven

Not many things truly frightened Rahmi, but Liddros was one of them. Ruthless and cunning were the only words Rahmi could use to describe the god of the sea; even those seemed to light a sentence.

Additionally, there was only one way to summon a god, something Rahmi hadn"t done in years—centuries. He tried to keep to himself, to bring on just enough souls that Liddros had no reason to hunt him down. The king was demanding, and it was taking far more souls these days to keep him young, but the number of callous and guilted men sailing the seas never dwindled. It was easy enough work.

Rahmi struck a match, murmured the incantation he knew from heart, and lit the corner of the parchment on which he had scribbled the runes. It went up in flame, the orange glow licking the parchment to cinder. It reached the runes, where a black shimmer that matched the markings covering his arms swallowed the light. He let the ashes fall to his desk, only allowing the moon"s silver light to penetrate the darkness of his quarters.

Then, he waited. Two minutes. Five minutes. Ten minutes. Each second felt longer than the last, ticking by with a guttering slowness that made Rahmi want to fidget in his seat. He managed to stay still, to coolly survey the brass instruments at the edge of his desk, and listen to the calm waves lap against the side of his ship.

"I"m surprised to hear from you," a man drawled from the shadows of the cabin, his low voice filled with enough authority that Rahmi had to stifle a primal instinct to sit up straighter. He actively fought against it, hating the control it took from him. "I thought we concluded our last visit that you would not contact me again."

Rahmi remembered the argument well. He had been raging at the short leash that tethered him to Liddros. He hadn"t bothered to understand the fine print regarding his job. He hadn"t realized what it meant to be a cursed captain when he cut the heart from the previous one before tossing it into the waves when he took command of The Mark of Malice and set her on a course that would forever change the lives of the crew onboard. Not to mention his own.

And he had thrown a fist at Liddros in retaliation, who easily dodged the blow and caught Rahmi in the gut in return, shattering three ribs that took weeks to heal. They hadn"t spoken since, but Rahmi ensured that he kept a steady flow of souls to the god, if only to keep him far away from his ship.

"Things have changed in two hundred years," Rahmi retorted, letting a hand rest on the dagger he had laid on the desk in front of him. "And I have questions that require answering."

Liddros waved a hand, lighting the three lanterns that hung in various places around the cabin. The flames flickered in his wake, even the fire coming to bow at his power. It illuminated the cabin, basking just enough light in the darkness that Rahmi saw the god"s face for the first time in centuries.

He was tall, his broad shoulders taking up nearly an entire corner of the cabin. His hair was dark, tied back in the same bun as Rahmi"s, though his locks were straight and smooth. His curious quirk to his lips promised mischief, and his unnatural stone-colored eyes danced with that same promise. He wore pristine fighting leathers with a sword hitched tightly to his back, and Rahmi knew he would use it if provoked. Dark markings encircled his neck and upper arms, chains of his own, and those markings seemed to absorb any light that dared grace his tanned skin.

A warrior. A god. One who Rahmi had known for a long time not to fuck with.

"Are we readying for another battle?" Liddros asked lightly, a chuckle gracing his tone. There was an unsaid don"t you fucking dare attached to the end of his question. He dropped his eyes to the dagger, quirking an amused brow.

Rahmi merely slid the dagger away from him, letting it rest at the edge of the desk. "I wasn"t sure how I would be received," he responded in just as light of a tone. "I wanted to be prepared." Just in case you came in, swords drawn.

Liddros"s smirk was devastating. "We both know that dagger would do nothing to me."

Rahmi knew that to be true, but he wouldn"t allow the god to kill him without a fight. Instead of countering that, he silently reached into his pocket, pulled out the folded map, and tossed it on the desk between them. He gestured to it, not taking his gaze away from Liddros. "I saw Devlin today. He seems to be doing well." The words were meant in jest, though Rahmi couldn"t help the bitterness that rode on them.

Liddros stepped forward, his brows pinned high on his forehead. "Is there something you wish to tell me before we begin this dance? One that I"ll inevitably win, might I add." Irritation flared within Rahmi. Liddros reached down and picked up the parchment, unfolding it carefully. "Devlin was a terrible captain, both you and I know this well. He felt too much for the people he was reaping. He was on the verge of—" Liddros trailed off, his eyes gliding over the map.

"I wondered how interesting you would find that," Rahmi said, leaning back in his seat to survey the god. That sudden irritation was replaced with something much sweeter. "It seems that I found my answer."

Liddros cleared his throat. "And where did you find this?" His eyes flashed up to meet Rahmi, who swallowed back the fear taking root in the recesses of his chest. "The Luminaria. That is a name I have not heard in a long time."

Rahmi sat forward at this, resting his forearms on the edge of his desk. "So, have you heard of it, then?"

Liddros was quiet for a moment, quiet enough that Rahmi was sure he was going to disappear into the cabin"s shadows. Instead, he waved a hand, conjured a chair—no, an embossed, cushioned throne—and sank into it. All the while, he never took his eyes off the map.

Rahmi waited the appropriate amount to speak again, watching with caution as the god roved his eyes over the map. "Devlin"s wife, Fenna, mentioned the Luminaria was created by djinn and could only be used by—"

"Stories sure do like to change over time," Liddros said, finally looking up from the map. His piercing gaze sunk into the depths of Rahmi"s soul, an iciness again sliding through his chest. "It"s ridiculous to imagine that djinn would have enough power to…" He paused again, cocking his head as rain began to plunk against the panes of the window behind Rahmi. "The Luminaria was the name given to a gemstone that fell from my brother"s sword during the War of the Sixteen. It was a war that ended in a treaty between two factions of gods and one that sent my brothers and me into different corners of the universe."

"I"ve never heard of it," Rahmi responded, running a finger over his bottom lip in thought. "It"s not something that"s ever been taught in the learning houses around here."

Liddros rolled his eyes. "Of course, it hasn"t. Your world is old. And it was already here when the War of the Sixteen broke out." He glanced back down at the map. "There was another world created from the war, where most of my brothers rest. Thanks to a betrayal from my twin that is. The gemstone comes from the hilt of my younger brother"s dagger. Maher is his name, and he used it to bind the power of the djinn. Make them slaves to its whim."

"The God of War?" It was Rahmi"s turn to raise his brows. "The gods have long disappeared from this world. As far as I know, you"re the only one left."

A smile curled Liddros"s lips, and it wasn"t one bought out of amusement. "The djinn were infused with magic directly from a god; that"s what made them so powerful compared to other creatures. Due to their power, the gemstone could be used to control a djinn. But make no mistake, they did not create it."

"Can the Luminaria do what it has been rumored to do?" Rahmi asked, threading his fingers together to prevent himself from tapping against the desk in thought. "Can it truly break all magical bonds?"

Liddros narrowed his eyes, his body coming to a preternatural stillness that sent an uneasiness blooming in Rahmi"s gut. "Why?" The question was a command, a tone that Rahmi frequently employed. Even though Rahmi hated the god sitting in front of him, he also knew better than to lie.

"You know why," Rahmi said carefully, his eyes flickered back to the map. A movement that was, unfortunately, not lost on the god in front of him. "The ability to break my bond to you while remaining an immortal captain on the seas is…" It was tempting, to say the least. It was more than tempting. It was a gods-damned miracle.

Liddros scrutinized Rahmi, his lips pressed into a tight, white line. "Picking up men and women who have guilt in their hearts, allowing them to work through it before my twin, Samael, takes them beyond…that"s a nice touch. How long before you realized you could work around your curse that way?"

"Too long," Rahmi replied, sliding his eyes toward the rain that now lashed heavily against the sea, blurring the horizon and the water together. He angled his head. "I rather enjoy my job now. Makes it easier when I know the people on my ship deserve to be here."

Liddros let out a huff of a laugh. "And who says you should have that kind of power?"

"You did when you gave me this curse and set me loose like a rabid dog on the Aeglecian Seas," Rahmi retorted. "Just like you"re going to tell me where I can find the Luminaria." He unthreaded his fingers, delicately sliding his left hand toward the dagger, letting it stop next to the sheath. Liddros caught that, too.

"Don"t you think," the god seethed from between his teeth, his eyes darkening, "that I would have found it long ago if I knew it was still here?" His leather armor creaked as he lifted his hand to gesture toward the markings that still seemed to swallow the light. "That I would willingly keep myself bound to that fool of a king if I knew of a way to end it? He and I have come to an understanding these last one thousand years, but not one that includes setting me free. I think he knows what will happen to him if I am."

One thousand? Rahmi knew the king was old, but he didn"t realize… "Do you know where to start? Do you know where the Luminaria could have gone after it left the City of Pillars?"

Liddros seemed impressed. "The old djinn city. Fenna has a propensity for knowledge that surprises even me. Some may call it nosy, but I find her curiosity endearing. The city is long gone, leveled by the War of the Sixteen and buried when the djinn rose against the gods a few hundred years later. It no longer exists, not to the extent you need it to. Though the magic still lingers…" He tapped a finger against the chair"s armrest, his eyes darting across the map in thought. "I can"t tell you where it is, nor can I say where it could be, but there are still three djinn who survived the uprising on this continent. All three are hidden, but I assure you are trapped here. You find one, you convince them to help you, and you can find the Luminaria. It won"t be easy. The djinn won"t be eager to be told what to do after this long."

"Why are you helping me?" Rahmi knew the god didn"t do anything for free.

"Because you are going to find the gemstone for me."

Rahmi was silent for a long minute before a harsh, barking laugh burst out of him. "You truly think I summoned you to my ship to ask you about a gemstone I"m now going to steal for you?"

"No," Liddros corrected him, his tone a touch too condescending for Rahmi"s liking. "My powers are dulled thanks to these chains given to me by the king. And that limits what I"m able to do otherwise. I cannot make the gemstone work on my own. This might be my only chance to break my bonds, too. And how do you think a god would repay the man, the captain, who found the way to do it?"

Rahmi"s heart thundered against his chest. Was he willing to make a deal with a god? To give up possession of the gemstone to Liddros in return for…what, exactly? He asked just that.

"What you desire most of all," Liddros responded, steepling his fingers as he leaned back in his seat. "I could give you true immortality, not something tethered to a curse. I could allow you to sail the seas for the remainder of this world"s existence. That"s what you want, isn"t it?"

That was precisely what Rahmi wanted. There was no hesitation in his decision as he braced his forearms on the edge of his desk. "Let"s come to an accord then, shall we?"