Superior's Elixir

by Grace Augustine

Genres: Dragons & Mythical Creatures; Romance

Synopsis

Lake Superior the largest of the Great Lakes and under its surface lay hundreds of shipwrecks and interesting water creatures. Even today, lost souls and ghost ships wander the lake above and below its surface. Pop-up storms are not uncommon on this body of water and have sunk many vessels.Superior falls prey to the Ides yet again, as does an unsuspecting fisherman who is caught in the waves of the storm. Spiraling downward to the bottom of the lake, the man is near death's door...until he is whisked away.Superior's Elixir is an imaginative take on what life is like under the surface of this Grand Dame we call Lake Superior. Filled with fantasy and mysticism, you float along with the characters and learn a bit of history, too.

Release date: September 10, 2019

Print pages: 75

Sample

PROLOGUE

IN 1902, THE Bannockburn, a freighter carrying grain, left the port at Thunder Bay, Ontario. The two-hundred-foot vessel set its course and disappeared in the lake fog. No one saw it or heard communication from it until months later. An oar, with the ship’s name etched in blood, appeared on the beach in Grand Marias, Minnesota. Legend has it that the vessel remains on the lake, wandering with its crew. Thousands of shipwrecks have been recorded over the years on Lake Superior. The most famous by far is that of the S.S. Edmund Fitzgerald, the largest freighter to be lost to the lake. The vessel left Superior, Wisconsin loaded with taconite---iron ore---and was headed to the steel mills of Detroit, Michigan. On November 10, 1975, the SS Edmund Fitzgerald, an American Great Lakes freighter, sank. One of many theories is that she lost buoyancy due to intake of water in the cargo hold. Hurricane force winds and waves up to thirty-five feet were recorded that day. She and all twenty-nine crew members were lost to the lake in Canadian waters just off Whitefish Bay. The bodies were never recovered. Legend says Lake Superior never gives up her dead, and the spirits of the souls lost in the lake wander the waters and shorelines to this very day.

CHAPTER ONE

THE MORNING WAS like any other early autumn Minnesota morning: cold, gloomy, yet hopeful. Thankfully, winter hadn’t yet stretched her icy hands to freeze the lake. Dave set out to catch his limit of lake trout. His friend, John, was busy and Terry, another friend, couldn’t be bothered, so he decided to go it alone. He readied his boat and set out to fill his empty cooler with the best tasting fish available…in his mind, anyway. Dave packed a smaller cooler of food, grabbed his bait, tackle, poles, and life jacket and drove to the pier where his boat, Angel of the Lake, was moored. The ropes soon were untethered from the tie-down, and Dave steered Angel from the harbor into the cold waters of Lake Superior. He was a master at navigating his vessel. It wasn’t the smallest in the harbor, and not the largest, either. It was just the right size for taking a few buddies and spending the day fishing and telling stories…something Dave had enjoyed since his late teens. Dave had lived in the area most of his life and was accustomed to the frequent storms that blew in across the lake, especially this time of year. Minnesotans always chided that you could blink, and the weather would change. One always had to prepare for the worst and hope for the best. As he moved farther into the lake, he noted several larger vessels ahead of him in the distance. He wondered where they were headed. It was common to see these 20,000 to 60,000 ton ships that hauled taconite to the steel mills in Michigan and Wisconsin. There were other vessels whose cargo bays were filled with grain that would eventually find its way to foreign ports around the world. Dave knew enough to keep his distance from these big boys. They required lots of room to slow to a stop and could kick up water that would capsize a boat the size of his. In all his years of being on the water, he’d never had an accident, had never capsized, had never run into any bad weather. That all could change today. The water reflected the gloominess of the day. The farther into the lake Dave drifted, the more the wind whipped murky five-foot waves on what normally was calm, clear water. The eerie sound of air rushing around him and the waves slapping the sides of his boat set him on edge. Dave pulled on his life jacket. He knew he was in trouble. These pop up squalls on Lake Superior were normal, according to the elders who lived in Duluth and fished these waters frequently. He’d heard many a tale about them, though he’d personally not experienced one, until this moment. The winds grew fiercer, and sleet stung his face and hands as it pelted his open skin. The waves violently rocked Angel of the Lake side to side. In an effort to stave off the beating, Dave headed the bow of the boat at an angle into the waves, trying to make his way back to the shore. Water continued slapping over the edge of the bow and soon he was standing knee-deep in water that had to be eliminated. After slowing his speed and still angling into the waves, Dave took the lid off the empty cooler and began scooping and dumping the water over the side of the boat. He wasn’t sure he would win this battle. The boat took on more and more water, and the next wave sent the Angel flying in the air and plummeting upside-down in the churning water. Dave tread water as he tried to reach the boat, knowing if he climbed on top, he could stay afloat; he’d survive this storm and get to shore. He mentally kicked himself for going alone, something he never did. The vessel succumbed to the countless waves crashing into it. Dave was lost. With his boat no longer there, nothing floated to the surface. It was just him against the fog and the angry Ides who’d stirred up the storm. Wave after wave shoved Dave deeper into the frigid lake. It became difficult to keep his head above water. Shouting for help was useless as his words were lost on the wind. He was cold and tired of treading water, fighting the waves. A freighter passed within feet of him yet seemed to run right through him. “This is crazy,” he uttered aloud, spitting water from his mouth. “I know I saw that ship.” He wiped a wet hand over his eyes, hoping to clear his vision. “Oh my God…it’s the Bannockburn!” Those were the last words he uttered as the churning water pulled him deeper into the lake, becoming another lost soul on Superior.

CHAPTER TWO

Dave’s thoughts matched the downward spiral in the ice cold lake water. His thoughts were grim: I’ll never make it, I won’t see land again, never fish, never work. The scene in his mind changed from the dark swirling abyss to riding on the back of a giant fish, a sturgeon, the largest he’d ever seen. Once he’d tried hauling one onto the Angel, only to lose it as it jumped back in the water. I must be losing my mind. Is this what death is like? More memories flashed through his mind: coaching Little League ball, his niece’s fifth birthday, his first car. He was so cold he heard his teeth chattering. Soon there was nothing but darkness. “Stay with me. You’ll be all right.” Dave heard a voice that seemed to be inside his head as he floated with the fish who guided them forward. He wasn’t sure if he was dreaming or if this was his guide to Heaven. He’d always thought he’d be escorted to eternity by angels, not a sturgeon, and an ugly one at that. “This is ridiculous. Fish don’t talk,” Dave muttered. “You don’t know the half of it. And it isn’t something you will understand until you are conscious and can take in your surroundings. You rest now.” Dave lost consciousness again. He gasped for air, and his lungs filled with lake water. He coughed, trying to expel what he’d just inhaled. In his more lucid moments, he noticed under the surface of the water was quite beautiful. Different fish swam by and there were plants on the lake floor. A light in the distance illumined a sprawling building similar to a ranch-style house. It was all a dream. It had to be, didn’t it? His body was freezing, and his mind was playing tricks on him. Soon he would awaken and be in his boat. Yeah, that was it. He’d fallen asleep in the boat and this was all a dream. Dave drifted in and out of darkness as they continued traveling at what seemed warp speed. The building he’d spotted earlier came into view. The siding on the one-level building was fashioned of agates, a plentiful stone of the lake. “Hang on, buddy. We’re almost home.” Garbled words fell on semi-deaf ears. Dave felt like he was watching a movie…his life playing out before his very eyes. The giant sturgeon changed into a human. He walked out of the transfer chamber carrying Dave’s cold, lifeless body, put him into a cylindrical glass object, and watched as the door shut automatically. A blessed warmth overtook Dave, and he was once again in darkness.

GEON KEPT A watchful eye on the new soul, monitoring his every breath, noting the changes in his skin and temperature. Dave’s body shook violently, so much so it rocked the revival chamber. It was all Geon could do to hold it steady so it wouldn’t crash to the floor. “Serena! Get in here now!” he yelled for his daughter. Running into the room, she took several vials from the shelf behind her and mixed them together before rushing to the chamber where the mortal lay. She slipped on protective gloves, reached her hands inside the chamber through the monitoring holes, and forced the potion through a slit in Dave’s lips. The shaking stopped and Dave once again lay peacefully, his breathing returning to normal.

TWO WEEKS PASSED, and the only thing that kept Dave breathing was the comfort of the chamber in which he lay. He was still unconscious. “Father, I don’t understand. I’ve done everything I normally do to help bring life to the souls you rescue. This one isn’t responding normally. I’m worried we may lose him.” Serena’s concern worried her father. He’d never seen her react this way to those he rescued. Meredith floated into the room just as her daughter uttered the last sentence. She hovered over the cylinder, taking stock of the human. “No. This one is not ready to cross over,” she affirmed. “Far from it. He is resting. I see the waters beat him around. It took most of his energy to fight to stay above the surface. Only at the last minute did one of the Ides drag him under. I will speak with them and find out why they want this particular soul.” “Meredith,” Geon said, “I think that’s a subject better left untouched. The last thing I need is for one of that crazy trio to barge in here and take this poor man. No. You will not search further into this. If this man needs rest, then rest he shall have.” Meredith shrugged. She wasn’t used to anyone telling her what to do after her mortal body died and her soul lived on to accomplish the job she was given. She respected Geon and would abide by his wishes, this time. “I’m not sure I like you telling me what to do, Your Majesty.” She gave him a mock bow. Geon raised an eyebrow and directed his glance at the spirit of his wife. “While you are in my home, you will do as I say, wife. If you don’t like it, please float on.” He waved a hand, gesturing her to leave. “In a rush to get rid of me? There was a time when you couldn’t get enough of me.” “That was before you chose death over me,” he stated. “Besides, this isn’t about you or me, it’s about this man who is struggling to stay alive.” “Have faith in your daughter’s ability to heal. The man will be just fine.” Meredith left the room, and Geon turned back to monitor the man in the glass cylinder. He noted him to be in his forties, judging by the laugh lines in the corners of his eyes and the touch of gray hair at his temples. He was sure some would call him handsome, which brought thoughts of whether the man was married and if anyone would be searching for him. “Father, will he awaken?” Serena moved to her father’s side and gave this mystery man another injection of her herbal elixir. “We must believe he will. And when he does, I will have much to learn from him, as well as much to share about us.”