The Case of the Sea Bug (The Wolflock Cases Book 3) Read online

  The Third Case. The Case of the Sea Bug

  By Rhiannon D. Elton

  The Wolflock Cases, 3. The Case of the Sea Bug, by Rhiannon D. Elton

  First Edition published February 2017

  © 2017 Rhiannon D. Elton. All rights reserved.

  All rights reserved. This book or parts thereof may not be reproduced in any form, stored in any retrieval system, or transmitted in any form by any means—electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, or otherwise—without prior written permission of the publisher, except as provided by Australian Commonwealth copyright law. For permission requests, write to the publisher, at “Attention: Permissions Coordinator,” at the address below.

  [email protected]

  Cover compiled by Rhiannon D. Elton

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, businesses, companies, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

  Dedicated to mum for putting the fear of death into me about eating undercooked food.

  Chapter 1. Merry Part to the Blickland Sisters

  The Silver Ice Hair had glided for nine days from the Plugh dock along the crystal blue waters of the Silver River. The leaves continued to evolve into a spectrum of red, brown, yellow and orange as Autumn transformed the land. More and more animals were seen along the banks of the great river as they collected stores for Winter, enjoying the bounty that the land provided for every being during this time. Wolflock and Mothy had spent many hours sharing knowledge on the local wildlife; seeing deer, bear, marmuti, many varieties of squirrel and on one afternoon they thought they saw a great stone creature wander off into the forest.

  The days passed quickly as they both spoke about their lives. Wolflock had told Mothy about his luxurious upbringing, eating from silver spoons, conducting business with the local vampires that resided in Plugh, his avid war with a girl named Aiirika Thorn, and the education his father had believed to be imperative to his upbringing. Mothy had spoken about his travels between Corl and Shellinden, his life working at the Shellinden docks and even his short cooking job in the Shining Castle. They never seemed to run out of things to discuss. Mothy happily spoke to everyone and although Wolflock did not speak so easily and openly with everyone, he still managed to give Wolflock the exclusive attention he demanded. It was not long before the rest of the company started calling them brothers, and when one was seen alone it became somewhat of a game to say “Where has your brother gone?”

  They got into mischief like brothers too. They had been caught thrice sneaking out after nightfall to sit in the crows nest. Twice they had succeeded in making it to the crows nest and woke the ship with obscene shouts such as “Grogen's running skyclad on the deck again!” and “Captain's mum is nude in the kitchen!” They had also used pale sheets and ran around the deck as 'ghosts' until they ran into someone or each other. Whenever they had run into one other in this instance they had tackled each other to the ground and wrestled for the rest of the ship's enjoyment. They were put on deck swabbing duty after they had tied ropes around their waists and to the railing at the back of the Captain's room, jumped off and enjoyed the ship pulling them along in the water. This had eventuated to collecting planks of wood and “skiing” behind the ship. They'd only gotten in trouble for this because they had crashed into each other and lost the planks.

  The marmuti had been dropping fruit on the ship for a week now. Large deliciously sweet pink and green fruit called a Tuiti that was shaped like a pink melon with a green frill that helped it float. The boys had taken playful digs at one another one lunch and began a food fight that only ended when Slavidus threw himself in front of Yifi to spare her from being splattered. The Captain had tied both boys together and thrown them off the back of the ship, letting them trail behind for a good hour in the chilled water before pulling them back in and making them swear that they would be the only victims of their mischief for the remainder of the voyage. Wolflock haughtily agreed (Mothy happily did) and they were sent to bed after dinner but before the evening’s entertainment, which was fine by them because it was the crew singing sea songs and they had heard it for five nights prior.

  The next morning was cooler than the one before and the birds had begun their work for the day before the sun had even risen, singing shrilly in the nearby trees. The forests had begun to change as well, their leaves growing longer and thinner and the solid trunks seemed to get fatter and fatter as they moved further upstream. Wolflock was awoken in the early hours of the morning (he could tell it was early morning by the grey Autumn light filtering through his small round window) by heavy footsteps above his room. As he rolled over and closed his eyes again he thought it was the crew going about their duties, but a tinkling clatter roused him further.

  “Uhnha! Be careful!” came the soft deep guttural tones of Ungul, “We don't want to wake them!”

  Wolflock was awake now and his curiosity had peaked. ‘What could they be doing?’

  He tiptoed passed Mothy (who was sleeping on his stomach with one hand halfway up the wall and a leg attempting to reach the other side of his small room), and decided it would be too noisy and take too long to wake him. He slipped along the wall quietly, avoiding the floor planks that Mothy showed him that creaked. He made it onto the deck and was greeted silently by the brisk chilly air and the smell of the pine needles that were falling into the clear water of the broad river.

  In the soft morning light he could see four people on the starboard side of the deck. The Captain, Slavidus, and the Blickland sisters.

  “Are you sure you won't stay until we have breakfast? I'm sure the rest of the company would like to see you off,” the Captain asked gently.

  “We cannot. If we do not leave soon we will have to walk for miles to get home. Our path is not far away,” Ungul sighed, looking at Uhnha who was wiping away some tears.

  “Please give them our apologies. Especially Mothy. That sweet boy has been so kind to us,” Uhnha sniffed.

  “Aye. I'll let him know,” the Captain nodded.

  “Wait!” Wolflock called and dashed across the deck in his long dusty blue pyjamas, “Can't we do something so that Mothy can say goodbye himself? He'll be terribly upset if you leave without waking him!”

  The four of them looked shocked and Ungul huffed.

  “I have already tried to wake him. That boy sleeps like the dead.”

  “Can we dock the boat at where they need to get off, Captain?” Wolflock asked quickly.

  “Not really. There is no wharf for us to dock in. Just a huge tree that Ungul and Uhnha were going to climb into from the crows nest.”

  “Can't we just weigh anchor then?” Wolflock tried again. After his fiasco that Mothy had saved him from last week he wanted to express his gratitude and the opportunity had presented itself.

  “I suppose we could,” the Captain pinched his chin thoughtfully and nodded to himself.

  “Well it's settled! You can both stay for breakfast and everyone can see you off,” Wolflock smiled happily with himself for seizing the chance so quickly.

  Uhnha's lip had been trembling as he spoke, but as he finished and stepped back she threw herself on him and sobbed.

  “Oh thank you! Thank you! Thank you! Such a good boy you are!” Uhnha gripped him so hard that he was frightened his head would pop off, but he took a relieved breath as she released him quickly.

  “I'll try to wake Mothy,” he gasped and left them smiling, but not really caring about anyone but himself and Mothy.

>   He took the chance to get dressed in his favourite black trousers, singlet and soft long sleeved shirt before flicking Mothy's ear.

  As always, his awakening looked like someone who had trodden on a thorn and been stung by a bee at the same time. He shouted and flailed his arms and legs around wildly, then fell off his bed and scowled at Wolflock.

  “Wha’ cha do tha’ for?” he grumbled and rubbed his eyes.

  “You know, I never get tired of seeing you wake up. The process is fascinating and invigorating at the same time,” Wolflock commented as if he were watching a bug perform some strange action.

  “Glad you feel energized... I'm bloody tired!” Mothy yawned and tried to crawl back into bed.

  “Oi! No you don't! The Blickland sisters are leaving soon and they want to see you before they go,” he said as he grabbed Mothy's foot and pulled him out into the hall.

  “What!?” Mothy blinked and was suddenly very awake, “They can't go! I have to give them something! They haven't left yet have they?”

  Wolflock was entertained by the change in energy his friend produced and as Mothy hastily scrounged for something small under his bed Wolflock chuckled.

  “They're on the deck. I think they'll stay until breakfast.”

  Mothy seemed a little frustrated, “No they won't! They'll only stay until they reach the tree! Gah! Where is it?!”

  “What are you looking for?” Wolflock asked inquisitively as he watched Mothy demolish his room.

  “Aha!”

  But before Wolflock could see or ask what it was, Mothy had dashed passed and was up the stairs. Wolflock followed him quickly to find the Captain arguing with the sister's.

  “I must insist you let me-”

  “We will not be responsible for everyone else being late to their destination!” Ungul frowned and folded her arms defiantly, “Our agreement was that we would leave without you stopping for a discounted trip and I will not incur a debt because we surrendered to sentiment.”

  “Unhna! Ungul!” Mothy shouted and ran across the deck to them, “Please! Wait just a moment.”

  “Oh Mothy!” Unhna sighed and hugged him, “I'm so glad we got to see you before we left!”

  Ungul smiled too. It was clear to Wolflock that they had been with Mothy long enough to have developed a deep affection to him, but he wanted to know what he was giving to them.

  “Here!” He finally said, holding out his closed fist, “I made this for you both. It will keep our hearts close so that if we're ever near each other we'll feel it and be able to say 'merry meet'!” he smiled brightly and gave them a beautifully carved rabbit with two opals for eyes.

  “Oh Mothy!” Unhna sighed gratefully and hugged him again, “You precious, precious boy! May the forests guide you to abundance and may your arrows strike true,” she smiled and Ungul began muttering something in the Blickland tongue.

  Unhna looked up at the trees around them, which had grown so tall and thick that no storm could ever bother them. Their thin leaves were a deep green, turning black and their trunks were smooth and would take ten fully grown Plugh men to go around them.

  “Sister?” she asked gently, but Ungul raised her hand for silence as she continued to mutter.

  The air became charged with the energy from her spell, then suddenly she pressed two fingers to Mothy's chest above his heart and a dull noise like a heavy wind thudding against a door echoed within Mothy and made him stumble backwards.

  “May your arrows always strike true.”

  Then with a nod to each man on deck, Ungul and Unhna climbed the rigging into the crows nest, then up to the top of the mast and leaped nimbly up into the thick branches of the tree, finally returning to their true home.

  Chapter 2, Gifts from the Marmuti

  Wolflock sat with Mothy, Slavidus and the Captain until the tree that the Blickland sisters had departed from disappeared down the river. The sun was sitting low, but the world had been illuminated by the beautiful pink and blue colours streaking through the sky. The animals around them were sufficiently awake and the marmuti had begun to drop onto the ship from the overhanging braches. Every day they met a new clan of the monkey-like creatures. They would shake the trees and the Tuiti fruit would drop down onto the deck, which Grogen was particularly grateful for not having to climb to the crows nest to knock them down. It was daily entertainment to watch them swing from tree to tree, racing alongside the ship. They were allowed to play on the deck, but the Captain made it clear that they were not to be allowed below deck because they liked shiny things and were prone to extract them from passengers’ luggage.

  Wolflock and Mothy were too excited to go back to sleep, so they stayed up and played catch with the marmuti, throwing a hard under ripe Tuiti fruit around. The marmuti picked up the game quickly and would try to intercept the fruit, but to no avail. A burly crewmember, Hognut, was in charge of making sure the marmuti didn't get downstairs, so he stood by the door, grateful that he got to take a small break from his regular duties. Hognut was a large Corshman with arms as thick as trees and a chest as thick as a bull. He had red wiry hair that wrapped around his whole head, leaving only a little gap for his eyes and nose, and no visible mouth. Wolflock and Mothy had joked in private saying that he didn't really have a mouth, but his beard absorbed all his food for him.

  The rest of the company awoke to the delightful smell of sweet porridge, Geagle's specialty. He added in just a little salt, which made the sweet taste from the Tuiti fruit all the sweeter (Mothy ate all the leftovers). After breakfast everyone ventured onto the deck to get their sunshine and digest.

  Fuhji played with Tinni and the two Eastern boys, Gege and Didi, who were all under a decade old. Wolflock and Mothy sat on some barrels and watched them, Wolflock noticing that there was a particular glow about Fuhji that he hadn't noticed a week ago.

  “She'll make a lovely mother,” Mothy smiled happily.

  Wolflock nodded in agreement, thinking that Froderyk was quite lucky to have such a pleasant partner. Froderyk agreed, for he was smiling widely and could not take his loving eyes off his wife for a moment.

  “I wonder when they'll have children,” Mothy grinned.

  “Eight months,” came a small voice from beside them.

  Wolflock turned around to see Nü, the sister of the two boys playing with Tinni and Fuhji. She had a fair face, round and smooth, with two black almond shaped eyes and long straight black hair that shimmered prettily in the sunlight.

  “Eight months? How can you tell?” Wolflock asked curiously, wanting to understand her deductive skills.

  Mothy made a noise beside him that sounded like a strangled laugh. When Wolflock gave him a quick glance he saw that his friend had turned bright red and was trying to hide his face in his mousy blonde hair.

  “She has been-”

  “Nü!” came the stern voice of Ji Nan, her father. “Come!”

  Nü sighed sadly and went to sit obediently by her father, her head bowed and her hands folded neatly in her lap. Dressed in her soft brown dress made her look like a doll. Wolflock recognised them as appealing, but they weren't what he found exquisitely attractive. Although as she walked away his lips thinned in distaste for her father's tone.

  “I really wanted to hear her explanation,” he sighed in disappointment.

  “Too me... I mean- me too!” Mothy babbled, his face going redder.

  “Are you not feeling well?” Wolflock asked and laid the back of his hand on Mothy's forehead, checking his temperature.

  “No-no! I'm fine!” His sweet blue eyes followed Nü as she retreated down below the deck, escaping her father's disapproving gaze. “Actually... yeah... You know, I'm not feeling well. I think I might just go lay down...”

  “Are you sure? We could ask the Captain for-”

  “No, no!” Mothy said a little too worriedly, “A lay down is all I need. I'll be back in about an hour!”

  Wolflock reluctantly let his friend retreat downstairs and went to sit with the C
aptain, Slavidus, Yifi and Veluse. Ever since Slavidus had saved Yifi from the Tuiti missile, she had taken a liking to him. Wolflock could see that she was very fond of Slavidus when he wasn't oggling her. Grogen entertained the company by chasing one of the marmuti around with the children as it playfully tried to take his gold earring as other marmuti threw Tuiti fruit at him. The morning was frivolous but everyone seemed a little tired. Wolflock put it down to the Blickland sister’s departure. It certainly felt like part of their company was empty now, like a void had been placed upon the ship, but Wolflock knew that when he finished his studies he (and he expected Mothy to accompany him) wanted to travel all of Puinteyle and learn all he could about each State. His deep interest in the mysteries of the world kept his mind racing as fast as lightning. As the ship’s company laughed and played he observed. He watched their interactions, their subtle nuances, their unconscious glances, and he analysed it all. Without Mothy’s happy company he did feel somewhat lonely and he was just about to go and check on him when Nü emerged with an addition of an intricately designed silk shawl, and less than a minute later Mothy also came upstairs looking mildly disappointed.

  He flopped beside Wolflock and stared at the fluffy white clouds.

  “Did you get rejected? Or did you not get the chance to speak to her?” Wolflock asked quietly, identifying Mothy’s attraction with a sly grin.

  “Huh? Oh! I-um, well…” he blushed and looked like he couldn’t think clearly, “I sort of spoke to her… Well… I choked and she asked me if I needed help…”

  Wolflock bit his tongue to keep from laughing, “What did you say?” he asked quickly so he could breathe.

  “I said I was fine and asked if she needed help. She just smiled at me.”

  Wolflock thought that it was an odd response, but then suspected that Mothy wasn’t being completely honest with him. He came to the conclusion (that he never voiced) that Mothy meant to say what he had said, but instead fumbled his words and made no sense, and Nü took pity on him or found him amusing.