Free Legends of Marithia: Book 3 - Talonsphere by Peter Koevari Page B

impersonation, howled like a wolf. The howl echoed back.
    He laughed, always enjoying this game. Sometimes, he would think he heard a growl or footsteps from within. With an active imagination, it’s hard to know what his mind created, or what was real.
    A girl’s voice called out from above. “So, anything worth seeing out there? Or are you just wasting time, lazing about.”
    Raehar knew he should have left a while ago, but did his best to appear surprised. He grinned as he placed his hands on his hips. “Adela, how’d ye know I’d be here?”
    “Where else would you be? I know you too well. If you’re not on deck, you’re usually near the water. I sometimes wonder why you weren’t born in the sea. After all, you often act like your head’s full of water.”
    He leapt to the right, and sprung off the rocky eye socket’s wall. He misjudged the distance and his hands landed hard on a flat section of rock, on the skull’s head. He struggled to pull his body weight by his arms alone. Swinging his right leg around, he caught Adela’s hand as she hoisted him up.
    “Good think he came when he did!” Raehar said.
    He panted as he looked her over and wiped water from his brow. She was always a thin girl, but had an air of cheekiness about her that gave her a larger than life presence.
    “You’re getting tired in your old age, Raehar! Even I could beat you down right now, and then I could tell the whole island that you got beat by a girl!” she said, running toward a thick line of trees.
    “Oh really?” he said, giving chase.
    “Yes really! Come now, don’t tire your old arse out trying to catch me.”
    He burst through the tree line, grinning as he caught sight of her white dress flapping in the wind.
    They ran through shadows and bright slivers of light, avoiding the island’s deadly hidden traps that were placed to dispatch any unwanted visitors. All of the island’s inhabitants were shown where they were, but accidents happened, and the odd bone still poked out from the foliage. He was always so careful in these parts. If he was going to die, he was sure it would be at the blade of an enemy, or the grip of the icy cold sea, but never from his own stupidity.
    He followed her giggles as he turned a corner. He came face to face with Captain Silvertongue, bumping into the stocky pirate’s chest. Raehar’s smile was wiped from his face as he stood stiff. The captain narrowed his eyes as he barked an order through gold teeth. “What ye doing? Yer supposed to be getting ready to set sail! Get yerself on deck before sundown!”
    “Aye, captain. I won’t let ye down,” he said, jogging along the dirt path toward the centre of town.
    “Ye sure won’t! Or I’ll make ye scrub Lucia’s deck whistle clean, ye hear?”
    He sustained a straight face, but wanted to laugh. He had heard that threat hundreds of times.
    “Aye captain, I hear!” Raehar said, continuing down the path and searching for Adela.
    He raised his arm to block out the sun and see better into the shadows. “Where’d she go?”
    Drooping his shoulders, he stumbled toward town.
    He almost fell over as she leapt onto his back, laughing and wrapping her arms around him. “Come on, great pirate, give me a ride into town! I’m getting hungry. That would just be, well, unacceptable!”
    She was getting far better at sneaking around and evading him. He took a few steps, grinned and raised his voice. “Sure Sis, I’ll take ye into town. Hold on tight.”
    He grabbed her arms ran toward the town.
    “You’re really taking me? Well, I’m honoured.”
    Looking back to make sure she was distracted, he turned and headed through the trees. Her giggles stopped as she squirmed and tried to drop off from his back. He held her slender weight with ease as he charged down the bank, along a rickety wooden bridge.
    He paused and cocked his head. “You know, I can’t believe that I can manage to do this in me old age!”
    He hoisted himself up the side of