The Storm

Back to Iothaenea

After [[The Attack]], The Ruto Clan chose to flee both their city and their country, in order to protect MC from the cruel and unfair reprecussions they would undoubtedly face.

Aided by some contacts of Taza, the family managed to be stowed away upon a small trading vessel known as The Shadoka, hidden among the cargo.

Though the circumstances that had spurred them leaving were horrible, Grayson was amazed to see the light and life return to his wife Rosa.

Though all of their children were now grown, she expressed such joy at the fact that they finally got to fulfill their wish to travel with their family, even if only for a journey escaping across the Solrise Sea to Iothaenea.

The Blockade

Months into the journey, the family’s world was turned upside-down once again.

One morning, they were awoken Grayson to the sound of canon-fire. At first they feared they’d been followed by police from Astrialum, but instead were informed by their handler among the The Shadoka’s crew that it was the Iothaenean navy instead.

They were told that civil unrest and rebellion upon one of the southern plantation islands along Iothaenea’s coast had lead to the nation’s navy blockading the island to keep the rebels from getting any supplies or reinforcements.

While the family was told that The Shadoka had simply been mistaken for a blockade-runner, and that is why they’d been fired at, Grayson, suspected the crew wasn’t being entirely forthright, and perhaps had more to do with this rebellion than at first seemed.

Regardless of the truth of things, The Shadoka was forced to veer off course into unpatrolled waters to avoid the Iothaenean blockade.

And it was within these empty waters, that the gaze of the Titan’s Eye fell upon the vessel.

And it was here that the Titan’s Eye wept. And its tears were rain, and its wails were wind and it thrashed up waves that towered above the sails.

The Eye That Wept

The Storm engulfed The Shadoka whole. Some of the Ruto Clan jumped into action to aid the crew, trying to keep the vessel from capsizing, from sinking.

Others huddled in the cargo bay with the children, Isabel and Luca, Andrew telling stories and Nomalanga jokes to try keep their minds off of the terror of what was happening.

But regardless of where on the boat they were, no one was safe.

The violent waves nearly toppled the boat. Cargo was sent flying.

Little Luca was pinned beneath crates.

Several of the crew were thrown overboard.

Rosa was thrown overboard.

And once The Slumbering God had taken its fill… the storm passed as soon as it came.

And The Shadoka found itself floating in uncharted waters, under stars in an unfamiliar sky. The star-charts matched up to nothing that glimmered up above.

An on the horizon was an island, that none had ever seen before.

Next: [[The Story of Starshead Island]]