the bowsprit called as they nosed around the last bend. “Captain, Cutthroat’s gone! There’s nobody here!”
“What in the Nine Hells?” He strode forward, cursing under his breath. Why would Parek leave?
Sure enough, the place was empty. Though they could still see the hacked and broken branches where the ship had been tied, even now the breaks were turning gray; it had been several days since Cutthroat had been moored here. The crew buzzed with curses and speculation: Parek had abandoned them, Cutthroat had been caught by a warship, the seamage had found and sunk the ship.
“Belay yer jaw flappin’!” Farin snapped, glaring at them. “Get one of them tow lines aft and we’ll warp her around and moor her on the north bank. Smartly now!”
The crew followed orders with only a few grumbles, and in short order the ship was securely tied to the towering mangroves, the men taking their ease. This only brought the inevitable speculations back to a head, and Farin knew he would have to nip this dangerous talk in the bud before it went any further.
“All hands on deck!” he bellowed, taking his customary position on the galleon’s raised hatch cover as the crew formed up around him. An old pirate, called Quid for the huge wad of tobacco he always had stuffed in his mouth, spoke out above the whispered murmurs.
“What’s the story, Capt’n? Parek go off and leave us?”
“I’m not gonna start supposin’ where Capt’n Parek’s gone to, lads, but remember your oaths. He wouldn’t just run out on us.” This drew a few murmurs, and Farin knew he had to quell them. “I will tell you this: when we left, he had a plan to pit the emperor’s warships against the sea witch. Now, three things could’a come from that: the seamage could’a sunk the emperor’s fleet, which means we’re right back where we were before, without any warships to worry about. Or the emperor could’a won, and though they’d probably leave a garrison at Plume Isle, which means we’d have to dodge warships, it also means that we wouldn’t have to worry about the sea witch. Or,” and here he paused for dramatic effect, showing them a predatory grin, “the emperor and the sea witch could’a destroyed each other, leavin’ the Shattered Isles open fer us!” The men cheered at this last suggestion until Farin waved them to silence. “There’s no way to tell what’s happened without waitin’ to find out. We’re safe here, so we’ll give Parek a week or two to show. If he don’t, we poke our noses out and have a look. If we don’t like what we see, we take our booty north and make the best of it.”
There were a few grumbles, but many more nods and mutters of agreement. Farin smiled at how easy it had been to allay their fears. Crew motivation, he had discovered, was what being a good captain was all about. That was what had made Bloodwind such a legend; the men and women under his command would willingly put their lives on the line for him. Once motivation was mastered, the rest was easy. Of course, it helped to have some instant gratification, too.
“Now, we had a long run to get here, and I think we’re all deservin’ of a little victory celebratin’, so tap a barrel of that Marathian wine, and we’ll all have a tot or three!”
Shouts of approval rang through the trees, startling some egrets nesting in the high branches. Farin barely had time to leap off the hatch cover before eager hands flung it open and a heavy barrel was hoisted up on deck. In short order they were raising their cups and shouting three cheers to his name.
≈
The fire of Akrotia waned. Edan felt it throughout his innumerable chambers and corridors, from the tips his soaring towers to the inverted pinnacles of his underwater spires. The well of power inherent to the enchanted structure, untapped for a millennium, had fueled the vast energies required to set the city aflame, to cleanse it of the detritus of centuries, and to purge the hated
“What in the Nine Hells?” He strode forward, cursing under his breath. Why would Parek leave?
Sure enough, the place was empty. Though they could still see the hacked and broken branches where the ship had been tied, even now the breaks were turning gray; it had been several days since Cutthroat had been moored here. The crew buzzed with curses and speculation: Parek had abandoned them, Cutthroat had been caught by a warship, the seamage had found and sunk the ship.
“Belay yer jaw flappin’!” Farin snapped, glaring at them. “Get one of them tow lines aft and we’ll warp her around and moor her on the north bank. Smartly now!”
The crew followed orders with only a few grumbles, and in short order the ship was securely tied to the towering mangroves, the men taking their ease. This only brought the inevitable speculations back to a head, and Farin knew he would have to nip this dangerous talk in the bud before it went any further.
“All hands on deck!” he bellowed, taking his customary position on the galleon’s raised hatch cover as the crew formed up around him. An old pirate, called Quid for the huge wad of tobacco he always had stuffed in his mouth, spoke out above the whispered murmurs.
“What’s the story, Capt’n? Parek go off and leave us?”
“I’m not gonna start supposin’ where Capt’n Parek’s gone to, lads, but remember your oaths. He wouldn’t just run out on us.” This drew a few murmurs, and Farin knew he had to quell them. “I will tell you this: when we left, he had a plan to pit the emperor’s warships against the sea witch. Now, three things could’a come from that: the seamage could’a sunk the emperor’s fleet, which means we’re right back where we were before, without any warships to worry about. Or the emperor could’a won, and though they’d probably leave a garrison at Plume Isle, which means we’d have to dodge warships, it also means that we wouldn’t have to worry about the sea witch. Or,” and here he paused for dramatic effect, showing them a predatory grin, “the emperor and the sea witch could’a destroyed each other, leavin’ the Shattered Isles open fer us!” The men cheered at this last suggestion until Farin waved them to silence. “There’s no way to tell what’s happened without waitin’ to find out. We’re safe here, so we’ll give Parek a week or two to show. If he don’t, we poke our noses out and have a look. If we don’t like what we see, we take our booty north and make the best of it.”
There were a few grumbles, but many more nods and mutters of agreement. Farin smiled at how easy it had been to allay their fears. Crew motivation, he had discovered, was what being a good captain was all about. That was what had made Bloodwind such a legend; the men and women under his command would willingly put their lives on the line for him. Once motivation was mastered, the rest was easy. Of course, it helped to have some instant gratification, too.
“Now, we had a long run to get here, and I think we’re all deservin’ of a little victory celebratin’, so tap a barrel of that Marathian wine, and we’ll all have a tot or three!”
Shouts of approval rang through the trees, startling some egrets nesting in the high branches. Farin barely had time to leap off the hatch cover before eager hands flung it open and a heavy barrel was hoisted up on deck. In short order they were raising their cups and shouting three cheers to his name.
≈
The fire of Akrotia waned. Edan felt it throughout his innumerable chambers and corridors, from the tips his soaring towers to the inverted pinnacles of his underwater spires. The well of power inherent to the enchanted structure, untapped for a millennium, had fueled the vast energies required to set the city aflame, to cleanse it of the detritus of centuries, and to purge the hated
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