prisoner (shadow & bone)

Chapter Nineteen

THE FOLD

Every person on the skiff held their breaths as they entered the dark mist, and instantly, the surrounding went eerily quiet. There was no sign of life, only the short, ragged breaths that were taken by all those aboard.

Tatia could feel the fear of the others radiating off of them, only adding to her own concerns.

The skiff slowly crept forward, nearly tantalizing in its pace. It was like it purposefully didn't speed up, to antagonize the people on top of it.

"That's our cue," Jesper mumbled quietly.

He crouched down and felt around on the floor for the hatch to the room below deck, and once he found it, he hastily pulled it open and urged the other three inside, before jumping in after them and closing the hatch behind him. No one noticed the four mysterious passengers who disappeared.

As soon as her feet hit the floor, Tatia pulled off her hood, allowing her sight to improve drastically.

The room wasn't large, but it was certainly rather dark. A few boxes littered the floor, and the only light source was a flickering torch on the wall, which barely gave any light at all.

"I wish I was able to use my powers," Tatia whispered, looking at the torch full of sorrow. "Then it wouldn't be so dark."

"It's alright, we'll manage," Inej assured her.

Jesper was polishing his guns nervously, glancing upwards every few seconds to check if there were any noises from upstairs. "This is a bad idea."

"I think it's rather practical," Kaz said calmly.

Jesper scoffed incredulously. "What? Why?"

"I don't see how we step off this boat without you pulling those guns. So, cleaning them is a good idea."

"I really hope we don't have to use them, actually," Tatia muttered. "As much as I'd like to see Jes in action, I don't think it would end well for us. We're clearly overpowered."

Jesper was looking at Kaz in irritation. "I don't mean this," he said, holding up his guns. "I mean this." He gestured towards the ceiling, indicating that he wasn't comfortable with the plan. "We are in the worst place in the world, on a ship full of people who want us dead, surrounded by monsters who want us in their gullets."

Tatia winced. "Well, if you say it like that..." she attempted to joke, but the quietness of her voice indicated that even she was getting a bit discouraged.

Jesper groaned to himself. "I should have brought Milo."

Inej scrunched up her nose in confusion. "Who's Milo?"

"Ooh, I know! He was the goat, right?" Tatia said excitedly, glancing at Jesper hopefully to see if she was correct.

Jesper was already looking at her fondly. "Yes, love, exactly. It warms my heart to know that you cared enough to remember." He blew her a kiss, making her giggle softly.

"How many bullets do you have?" Kaz asked Jesper as the sounds of volcra were starting to sound nearer and nearer.

"Not enough."

"What was it like when you crossed the Fold for the first time?" Tatia asked them curiously.

"It was nerve-wracking," Inej confessed. "We weren't sure we were gonna make it at all-"

"-but that's when I swooped in and saved the day with my wonderful shooting skills," Jesper interrupted, grinning cheekily and swirling his gun around for show.