THE_REALM_SHIFT Read online

  “I see,â€� Bonifast replied, his joviality fading now. Then he recovered it long enough to say, “If it’s bad news you bring me, then at least we can enjoy a good meal while we hear it, aye? Come now, my friends, let’s dine in my quarters. I’ve asked Cook to prepare us a meal fit for kings.â€�

  True to his word, the meal was fit for royalty—at least if royalty meant they knew good food when it was set before them. Ethan had been starving after his activity in the spiritual realm. He had gone back and forth many times during the course of the day. For some reason he felt less exhausted by the whole ordeal this time than he had been after returning from his fight onboard the slaver ship. Maybe it was the fight, or perhaps he was just getting used to it all. At any rate, realm shifting still gave him a ravenous appetite.

  Ethan stuffed food into his mouth from a heaping plate of roast beef, potatoes, and corn. He kept thinking how good everything was.

  “Tell me the bad news you’ve brought,â€� Bonifast said as he took a sip from his glass.

  Ethan gulped down the mouthful he’d been chewing. “Well, I boarded two ships loyal to King Stephen and found nothing out of the ordinary.â€� Ethan neglected to share how he had caused one of the captains to spill his tea. “But when I came to the first of the mercenary ships, I became aware of a demon onboard. I kept out of the creature’s sight in the physical realm, but I could still hear the words it was speaking among the crew.â€�

  “And what were the words?â€� Gideon asked. The warrior-priest ignored his meal, fully engrossed in Ethan’s story.

  “It said things about hating King Stephen and that this mission against Mordred’s navy would take their lives if they continued. The demon even spoke ill against you, Captain.â€�

  “Really?â€�

  “Yes, and I think it was trying to discourage the captains and their crews by saying these things. Each mercenary ship I came to was being worked upon by a different demon in this same manner,â€� Ethan explained.

  “And could the crew members hear these words the way you heard them?â€� Gideon asked.

  “I really don’t think they could. But they reacted to the words. When they talked among themselves, their talk was about the same things the demons were saying—how they should not continue with the king’s fleet to Emmanuel, or how the money wasn’t worth losing their lives.â€�

  Captain Bonifast stopped short of taking another drink from his glass. He concentrated on a point on the wall, deep in thought.

  “Do you suppose we should cancel the attack, Captain?â€� Gideon asked.

  Bonifast turned to the warrior-priest with a thoughtful look on his face. “I’m afraid that would be devastating to the land army King Stephen is already leading toward Emmanuel,â€� he explained. “They’ll be waiting for our signal to attack. And we are meant to break through and weaken the palace walls in order to divert some of their strength from defending the outer walls against Stephen’s attack.â€�

  An uncomfortable silence hung in the room for a few moments. Finally, Bonifast looked at each of them and smiled. “Men are not meant to have all of the answers in these situations, lads. But we can speak to the one who holds all things in his hand.â€�

  Gideon’s smiled. “Prayer.â€�

  Captain Bonifast nodded. “Yes, we must call upon Shaddai whose war this actually is. He will lead us according to his will.â€�

  Ethan had not actually thought about the war against Mordred as being Shaddai’s war. King Stephen was the one leading the campaign. He was the one financing the war effort and sending out emissaries to the various villages and towns looking for those willing to join in the fight. But, in truth, this was a spiritual conflict, and all of them, including King Stephen, were fighting on the side of Shaddai.

  “There’s no time like the present, gentlemen. We’ll have privacy in here,â€� Bonifast said.

  They bowed their heads, and the captain began to lead them in prayer. Ethan remembered the days when he had prayed with his sister, Elspeth. They had prayed together the night of their exodus from the village of Salem. They had prayed while traveling the dangerous roads winding through Nod as they sought a place where they might find food and shelter. They had even prayed together before Elspeth accepted Mr. Howinger’s proposal, allowing them to remain in his employ so many years.

  As Captain Bonifast prayed for the will of the Lord in this war, and the plans they were preparing to execute, Ethan remembered the nights his father and mother had prayed with him at his bedside. It had been a nightly ritual, and one he could not go to sleep without. His parents had brought him up in the knowledge of the truth—Shaddai watches over, providing for and protecting those who put their faith in him.

  Ethan prayed silently as the captain continued making his supplications for the fleet and King Stephen’s army soon to arrive outside Emmanuel’s white walls. Ethan even noticed the captain mentioning him and Gideon in his prayer—that they might be used by the Lord to do mighty things for his name’s sake.

  When they started praying, it was close to the ninth hour bell. When they finished, it was almost time for the tenth hour bell to sound. The men did not finish what was left of the meal. It became a solemn time as they considered whether their prayers would be answered in the way they hoped.

  Ethan excused himself, getting up from the table. He was tired after the long day of realm shifting, but at least his belly was full. He walked out of the captain’s cabin, leaving Bonifast and Gideon to their conversation. He just wanted to get some fresh air and think.

  The weather remained warm with a steady breeze blowing. There were hardly any clouds out, and the stars shone brightly—an endless sea in the heavens above. For the most part, the crew had retired down below in their bunks, rocked to sleep by the undulating Azure Sea.

  Ethan turned toward the bow and noticed a strange light. It was unlike anything he had ever seen. He walked briskly across the deck, making his way to the front of the ship. The light never moved. Ethan felt drawn to it like a moth to a flame.

  When he finally came to the source of the light, Ethan was astonished to find a man—or at least someone man-like in appearance. He quickly realized this was no mortal at all. This being was tall and powerful in appearance, yet peaceful and calm in his demeanor.

  The man looked directly at Ethan, regarding him. Ethan froze where he stood. The man’s countenance was like lightning. Ethan trembled to look upon him. He tried to speak to the stranger, but his voice failed him. No words would come.

  Ethan knew this was no demon. He had not felt the tingling sensation he always felt when demons were near. Instead, he felt warmth, peace, and contentment.

  The stranger was dressed in white robes with a golden breastplate girded upon his upper body. A sword, much larger than the one Ethan used in the spiritual realm, hovered at his side. Ethan suddenly realized he must be in the presence of an angel sent from Shaddai.

  Though Ethan could not speak, the angel smiled at him, nodding slightly. Ethan smiled in return and simply let the warm, peaceful feeling wash over him. Though he had seen demons many times by now, this was the first time Ethan had ever seen an angel.

  Though the angel never spoke a word to him, Ethan understood that Shaddai was with them, had heard their prayers, and would lead them in the way they should go.

  Ethan turned his head to see if the helmsman or the night watchman had noticed the angel. When he turned back to look upon the heavenly being again, he had gone. Ethan felt a moment of disappointment, but the sense of peace from Shaddai remained.

  He walked back toward the captain’s quarters. There, to the left of the captain’s dining room, was an anteroom, housing two bunks. This room had been allotted to Ethan and Gideon as the captainâ
€™s guests. Ethan took his newfound peace and went to bed. Not a worry of harm disturbed him that night.

  THE_REALM_SHIFT

  THE STAGE IS SET

  Captain Bonifast awoke well before dawn and stood upon the deck of the Maelstrom, waiting. He wanted to see how many ships of his ragtag fleet had abandoned him during the night when they would not be seen. Ethan walked up to the captain as he stood looking out over the Azure Sea in the early morning sun.

  To both of their surprise, all of the ships were still with them as near as they could count. “Well, lad, how bout that!â€� said the captain, greatly relieved. “I suppose our prayers got through last night after all.â€� Bonifast grinned from ear to ear as he watched the fleet, intact, bobbing upon the gentle waves of the Azure.

  Ethan recalled the angel he had seen the night before, following their time in prayer. He nodded in agreement. “I think you must be right, Captain,â€� he said, smiling. Ethan had rested well in the peace he had received at the angel’s appearing.

  “Where’s Gideon?â€� Ethan asked as he searched for his friend.

  “He’s up there on the bowsprit,â€� Bonifast said. “I think I may have actually found someone crazier than myself.â€�

  Ethan followed the captain’s extended index finger as he pointed out Gideon. He stood on a beam extending off the front of the ship. Rigging from the foremast ran down to it. Below the bowsprit lay nothing but water. Gideon stood there perfectly balanced upon it.

  He performed a system of fighting maneuvers with an imagined sparring opponent. As Ethan watched him, he noticed also that Gideon had blindfolded himself. The bowsprit bobbed up and down with the rhythm of the sea, yet Gideon never faltered as he sparred with the wind.

  Ethan thought for a moment he might call out to his friend, but the thought of startling the priest, and him losing his balance, falling into the water, and being instantly crushed by the speeding bow of the ship, stopped him.

  “You’d better get dressed,â€� Bonifast said. “And get something to eat from Cook. We’ll attack the harbor at Emmanuel within three hours time.

  A question popped into Ethan’s mind. It was an odd question to ask an ex-pirate and a captain under the command of a king, but Ethan asked it anyway. “Are you afraid?â€�

  Captain Bonifast gave him a thoughtful look, then looked out over the fleet sailing beside and behind the Maelstrom. “You see this armada, Ethan? This fighting force is only as capable as Shaddai makes it. I learned many years ago that it’s not what I can do in battle, but what he will do in the battle. And because I’m not trusting in my ability, but Shaddai’s, I have no need to fear. Even if we meet death in a few hours, I can leave the world, knowing that I did my best to serve him. There’s a peace in that knowledge, Ethan—a peace that passes all understanding.â€�

  Bonifast’s words of faith encouraged Ethan’s heart, causing him to like the man even more. Even though Levi Bonifast was not as old as Ethan’s father had been, there were still like qualities between them.

  Ethan did as the captain told him. He went to get dressed and find something to eat. He was going to need his strength for the coming battle. If he had his guess, this battle might require the special talents that Shaddai had bestowed upon him.

  Before Captain Bonifast had given the order to let every scrap of sail fly to the wind, and before the mouth of the harbor had come into sight, Ethan saw them—a cloud of demons so dense it looked like a thunderstorm brewing over the bay. “They know we’re coming, Captain!â€� Ethan yelled over the wind.

  “Aye that may be, lad, but we’re going in fighting anyway,â€� he called back. Levi Bonifast had that wild look in his eyes again, the same Ethan remembered upon first meeting the man in Tilley Town’s jail. It was the same look the captain had worn while pulling off the escape from the gallows, simultaneously blowing up Mordred’s ammunition depot. If there was a look Ethan hoped to see, going into this battle, it was that look!

  Gideon was dressed in his priestly robes with two cutlasses held in the crimson sash around his waist. He had managed to find a bow and quiver jam-packed with arrows from the ship’s armory. Ethan knew Gideon could do some serious damage with whatever weapon happened to find its way into his capable hands, but the bow would give him deadly distance.

  He had a pot of black pitch burning next to him. He stuck arrows into the deck around him, building a deadly nest in preparation for the battle. Images of a fiery hail of arrows careening through the air into the sails of Mordred’s ships danced in Ethan’s mind, bringing a smile to his face.

  Ethan looked back to the sky where the vortex of spirits churned above Emmanuel Bay. This battle is going to get very ugly, he thought. Then a brilliant light, like the sun breaking through clouds, shone down upon Ethan.

  When he looked up, Ethan saw an entire legion of angelic beings like the one he had seen the night before. They flew in formation high above King Stephen’s fleet. Each one of the heavenly warriors held a large broadsword in their right hand. Wings of purest white carried them through the spiritual ether.

  No one onboard the ships saw the heavenly host, except Ethan. He looked back at the cloud of demons swirling in the sky over the bay. “Perhaps not so black a day as I supposed,â€� he said, smiling.

  The naval piers came into view, stretching out into the water. Dozens of tall sailing ships sat moored there. Others started to come away from the piers where they had been docked. King Stephen’s fleet had definitely been spotted now. High above the bay, perched upon the white granite cliffs, stood the palace of the king and the city of Emmanuel. This would be their final target.

  Captain Bonifast had prepared especially for this initial run at the harbor. The Maelstrom and the other ships started into the bay with the beach, piers, and Mordred’s ships to their starboard side. Bonifast had as many of his guns as possible lined up on the starboard side so he could shoot at the enemy ships like fish in a barrel.

  The stage was set. Angels soared in the ether above, ready to attack the demons swarming over the harbor. The ships of King Stephen’s fleet ran full speed to get within firing range. And some of Mordred’s ships were leaving dock in a scrambled attempt to take on the rebel armada while others remained moored to the piers.

  The Maelstrom charged ahead of the other ships. Bonifast beamed as he surveyed his quarry—birds caught sleeping in their nests. “FIRE!â€� he screamed. This word was one of the last Ethan heard during the firefight that ensued.

  BETRAYAL

  The Maelstrom shook as though it were caught in the midst of a thundercloud. The boards beneath Ethan’s feet vibrated almost continuously as shot after shot of cannon fire leaped away from the starboard side of the ship. Multiplied arcs of smoke trailed from the Maelstrom toward its targets.

  Captain Bonifast watched with intense satisfaction as his gunnery crews fired, reloaded, and fired again. Years of experience in sea warfare allowed them to perform the tasks with keen precision—a well-oiled machine. Ethan watched them, awe inspired, as they worked ceaselessly at their task like ants bringing in their food stores for winter.

  The Maelstrom kept up her speed as Captain Bonifast stayed their strafing run through the harbor. The ship trailed a cloud of smoke behind her, adding to it with every destructive volley. Bonifast watched his targets.

  Wood burst into splinters upon the decks of the enemy ships. Bodies tumbled through the air. Masts burst asunder and fell like cut timber into the sea. Bonifast’s special guns blasted through the hulls of enemy vessels, causing them to take on water and list to one side. The crimson sails, bearing the black standard of Mordred, shredded under fire and fell from their rigging, the picture of defeat.

  The plan appeared to be working. The Maelstrom led what at first appeared to be
a successful surprise attack on Mordred’s navy. Then Ethan heard screaming. He turned to find Gideon with his bow in hand at the portside rail. He pointed frantically toward the rest of the armada, which had been following the Maelstrom on her strafing run of the harbor.

  Ethan ran to the portside rail and saw why Gideon was screaming. Behind them, the attack was not going well at all. In fact, the mercenary ships, which Ethan had noted the day before as having demonic activity onboard, now turned their cannons on the other ships in King Stephen’s army.

  The armada ships loyal to King Stephen shuddered in the crossfire between Mordred’s vessels and the mercenary ships they supposed had been fighting with them. Within minutes, the traitors pounded them into submission.

  Ethan managed to gain Captain Bonifast’s attention and motioned for him to hurry over. Trying to yell anything over the barrage of cannon fire was impossible. When Bonifast ran to the portside next to Ethan and saw what had happened, his wild look turned to fury. “We are betrayed!â€� he bellowed. The captain ran for the alarm bell, sounding it repeatedly. Only its piercing ring could capture the attention of the busy crew in the midst of all the cannon blasts.

  The crew responded with an immediate cease-fire, awaiting the captain’s orders. “The mercenary ships have betrayed us, lads! Spill the wind from our sails and bring us to a halt. Helmsman, hard to starboard! Gunnery crews, make ready!â€�

  Some of the mercenary ships had taken up a hot pursuit of the lone Maelstrom, now that the other ships loyal to Stephen were sinking or too damaged to fight. But contrary to what might have been expected, Bonifast would not run. Ethan watched the captain as the wild fire returned to his eyes.

  Captain Bonifast’s order brought the Maelstrom to a near halt, sending her careening sideways, her starboard side and starboard cannons exposed to the oncoming ships. To the captains of these mercenary vessels and the few of Mordred’s navy which had managed to get into open water and take up the pursuit, it made the Maelstrom a much bigger target to shoot for. Unfortunately, the bulk of their cannons were located on the sides of their ships.