Volanta

Barty Brave was one of the greatest heroes of Oliver's generation. He could single-handedly rescue entire civilizations, defeat armies, and walk away with the most beautiful women on the planet hanging off his arm. Oliver always figured that the author was a little bit like his character, at least. Meeting the author had certainly ruined the magic for Oliver. He could only hope that those coordinates actually led him somewhere.

He and Pippa didn't talk much as they walked through the town. She seemed to be fascinated with the people of the foggy port town as they quietly went about their business, but Oliver felt her sneaking glances at him every now and then. He never considered Pippa the sort of person he would talk to about how he felt, but at that point, he didn't have another option.

"My entire career and credibility is riding in the word of a man who is afraid of squirrels and rain," he said slowly, eyes still glued to the ground.

"Not your entire career," Pippa shrugged.

"If I don't come back from this as a success, it's over for me," he said. "I'll be the joke of Highgate for the rest of my life, and probably after that too. I'll be the guy that went looking for truth in a fictional book. Because I trusted Roland Fishweiler."

"He's really your only option," Pippa reminded him.

"I hope I die on this expedition."

"You're being a baby," she scoffed. "It's not like you're the only one taking a risk here. That whole crew is risking it all, too. And so am I. So shut it."

"You are?" he asked.

"I'm coming too, Oliver," she said. "I thought we established that. Wipe that look off your face. You thought it was my life's dream to just come to Trillby's cove? I don't even like seafood."

“I’m not really surprised anymore,” Oliver said. “Everything feels like such a blur.”

“It’ll all be okay,” she reassured him. “You’re scared now, but once you start on your way, you’ll feel the excitement.”

Oliver didn’t say anything, and they walked in silence a little while longer before Pippa gasped, startling him. He tensed up, expecting someone to attack them, but rolled his eyes when he saw what she was pointing to.

“It’s an ice cream parlor, Pippa,” he groaned. “We have dozens of them in Highgate.”

“Fine,” she scowled. “Go back to the inn then. I’ll go by myself.”

Oliver let out a mix of a frustrated groan and an exhausted sigh as Pippa walked away from him and entered the parlor. He debated actually leaving, but Nigel’s voice rang in the back of his head and he felt that the man would appear out of nowhere and scold him for it. He reluctantly followed Pippa inside, finding her talking with the woman working there. The woman handed her a cone with a scoop of ice cream, and Pippa looked over her shoulder at Oliver.

“Do you want any?” she asked him.

“No, that’s alright.”

“Alright, then,” Pippa said, turning back to the woman. “He’ll pay for it.”

Oliver rolled his eyes and handed over the payment for her ice cream, sitting down at her table. It was only then that he realized how tired he was.

“Are you going to exhaust me this much this entire expedition?” he asked her.

“I’m going to be myself,” she told him. “Whether or not that exhausts you is your problem.”

Oliver just gave her a look, which she responded to with a bright, confident grin. He shook his head and took out Roland’s journal, flipping it open to the first page and skimming through. He found that the entries started out bright and optimistic, but slowly grew more and more fearful. Oliver paused on one entry in particular that caught his eye.

I’ve been separated from the crew for three days now. The Volantians will not speak to me. They call me the “grey one”, because of how pale I’ve gotten from malnourishment. They won’t give me food. They think I am here to hurt them. Clearly, I am not the first outsider to have come here. I don’t think their previous visitor was very good to them.

Oliver’s brow furrowed as he read this, flipping ahead to a later entry.

There is something off about the Volantians. I feel that they are hiding from me, by disguising themselves to look like me. Today, I could have sworn that I saw a child with glowing eyes. The little girl’s eyes resembled the sun on a clear, summer day. It was only for a few seconds that I could witness this, before her mother snatched her and took her away. They no longer let me near the children. I wonder if the children have a harder time hiding.

“How does it look?” Pippa asked.

“I’m not so sure,” Oliver mumbled. “It sounds like he was alone. It’s no wonder he feared no one would believe him.”

“It’s all so exciting,” she grinned.

“Yeah. It is.”

They spent the next few days in Trillby’s cove, mainly in the library as they continued to gather information. While Pippa wanted to sightsee, Oliver insisted they stay on track. She was right. The more Oliver was preparing for the expedition, the more excited he was for it. Highgate was a lovely place with fair weather and nice scenery, but it was all Oliver had ever known. His father didn’t believe in traveling for fun, and Oliver had never seen the ocean outside of pictures in books.

Trillby’s Cove was by the sea, but it was gray and foggy there. The books all talked about the location Volanta was to be in as a beautiful, tropical place where the sand was soft, the water was like crystal, and the wildlife in the lush green jungles was like nothing he could ever dream of. He was almost reluctant to go back to the inn at night, but he was so tired, he’d fall asleep right away.

Soon, they were packed up again and ready to return to Highgate, all of their information tucked away safely. This time, Oliver was the one staring out the window while Pippa slept. He watched as the scenery changed, going from the cold and grey scene before and slowly growing greener. They passed the cows once more, and the green pastures that were dotted with colorful wildflowers.

Oliver felt a slight nudge and turned to see that Pippa had slid in her sleep, and her head was on his shoulder now. He just stared at her for a few moments. She wasn’t so annoying when she was asleep. Still, Oliver figured that she probably didn’t want him to be the first thing she saw when she woke up. He took her coat off the opposite seat and bundled it up, gently moving her so she was resting against the wall, the coat used like a pillow. He put his own jacket over her shoulders, then picked up Roland’s journal once more and stood, taking a walk down the train cars as he opened the journal up again and began to read.