Listen to the Water | FULL SERIES | Wattys 2022 Shortlist | ✔

(12) Ande: Into the Ocean

Ruka catches me one last time on the day Taiki and I are set to leave. Taiki is off somewhere else, probably finding food before we take off into the open water for the next who-knows-how-long. There will be small islands and atolls and seamounts for the first stretch of the journey, but Ruka has said those will get more and more scarce as we go along. I'm surprisingly okay with it. When I first arrived in the ocean, I would have freaked out at the mere thought of crossing such vast spans of water without a rock or island to orient me. But there will be Shalda-sana below us wherever we go, and with Taiki and the Sandsingers' navigation techniques, the ocean is slowly resolving into a map that I feel like I can actually learn and get around without losing my way.

Ruka checks surreptitiously over her shoulder, then beckons me off to the side. When we're far enough that someone would have to make an effort to eavesdrop, she turns to me. "Devir spotted Arcas near Sami-controlled islands again this morning. She was just leaving the island chain to return to the Sami-sana."

My mouth goes dry, one sensation that never gets less weird underwater. Arcas wants to take the Ashianti throne, a seed of anxiety that has never truly left me. If anything, it sprouts a little more every time I think about what might happen if the message I helped Keshko and Ruka send never arrives. And that was before Taiki and I planned to swim straight to Rapal. Rapal is where the Ashianti royals all live. If Arcas makes her move while we're there, we could end up in a war zone. I suspect that's what Ruka is here to warn me about, and she proves me right.

"Unless you ride the entire way to Rapal," she signs, "Arcas will beat you there. Ashianti are fast, and she will be able to ride currents through Saru ranges if she has allies there. If the message we sent survived, it should arrive before she does, but maybe only just."

"So be careful in the city?"

"Be careful in the city. If the message doesn't arrive, you might still be safe if a coup isn't planned yet. Or Arcas may attempt it and fail, though with the Alliance behind her and everything I know about her, she's dangerous. If you get any whiff of Alliance Kels in or around Rapal, leave. Dive if you can. Stay deep until you're far, far away. If Arcas takes control of the city, she might not have the power to chase out Shalda or anyone who doesn't support her, but you still won't be safe."

I swallow hard and nod.

Ruka runs both hands down her face. She's stressed—more stressed than she's letting on. I can feel it rolling off her in waves, and that unsteadies my confidence more than anything she's saying. "I feel uneasy asking this of you," she signs. "Because I don't know the danger when I can't be there myself. But if you get there and have reason to believe the message hasn't arrived, can you warn the Ashianti? Even a guard, or a regular city dweller. Their royals are good leaders, and the heir is especially beloved. The people will protect them at any cost."

I already know I'll have to hide all that from Taiki, and the thought of sneaking away from him—of us being separated in a foreign city—long enough for me to convey a warning like that make my stomach do flips. Still, this is about more than just me now. I nod again. "I'll try."

"Thank you."

What she isn't saying still shows on her face. If the message doesn't arrive before Arcas, we might be too late to bring it ourselves. Me delivering it personally is a last-ditch effort. Ruka is hoping it won't come to that, for more reasons than just the danger it would pose for me. Before I can sign anything else, her eyes skip over my shoulder with a half-smile that makes me turn to look. Taiki is waiting for me. My heart sinks again as his eyes linger suspiciously on Ruka, and when I join him, he pulls me away without a goodbye. I don't have an excuse to stop him. I've already given my parting blessings to the people I know or met here. It's time to leave.