Chapter XI

Kaptain Rin hung from the side of the Luxury, a rope in one hand and sea water in the other. Most kaptains didn’t bother actually sailing with their crews, preferring to hole up in their cabins with charts and other instruments to make them feel important. Rin thought they were all dull. The best way to show the crew your prowess and poise was to sail alongside them. They wouldn’t slack if you were breathing down their necks. And it paid to keep an eye on some of them. She didn’t often worry about mutiny, but she’d seen it pop up out of nowhere before.

She pulled on the rope, walking on the side of the ship toward the bow. That was the best place to be in fair weather, the morningcrow’s nest up top being the second. Rin climbed up over the railing of the ship and onto the deck. The wind blew through her hair like it was a sail, lifting her and filling her with an elation that only a sailor could understand. Something tickled the back of her neck, soft like a fancy evening gown. She still had to get used to her short hair, but the length allowed her to feel the wind better. Sun in the sky, wind blowing through her hair, a whole crew sailing with a hold full of supplies. The perfect day for treachery and crime on the straits.

She adjusted the hem of her short dress before turning around and facing her crew. They all seemed to be doing something. Except for…

“Milton, you pick up that mop and swab that deck like you’ve never swabbed before, or I’ll throw you overboard!” Rin glared at the boy before grabbing hold of the rigging on the forward mast and starting to climb. Surely they’d be coming up on their destination soon. The Western Isles weren’t as far out as everyone said they were, only about a week’s hard sailing from the mainland. Most could make it on smooth water in a week and a half with no stops. From the Spires, Slantspire being the topmost of the five, a regular ship could make the voyage in four or five days. She could do it in three. And she intended to do exactly that. Prisoners were a drain on the food supply, something dangerous for a crew that didn’t have a place to regularly restock. Already McKinley’s food reserves were being called into use. Maybe he wasn’t as dull as she sometimes thought.

Luckily, the winds were in her favor, blowing east from the Barrier Mountains into the west and the Unaligned Territories. Maybe she could even coax a few extra knots of speed out of the Luxury and arrive midday. Rin reached the morningcrow’s nest and hauled herself up onto the platform. The Luxury was by no means a cheap ship, but some things just weren’t necessary. Like a railing on the morningcrow’s nest. If someone didn’t hang on and fell off, they’d have the sense to push off and land in the water, where someone could haul their embarrassed soul back up. If they didn’t have that sense, well, a stupid mariner didn’t benefit her. Unfortunately those were more and more common these days.

Rin pulled out a spyglass and spiraled it out into position. She didn’t bother to hold onto the rigging; if she fell, her reflexes were good enough that she could catch herself before her feet left the platform. And if she missed that, she could always catch the rest of the rigging. She’d done it before. It had dislocated her shoulder and forced her to rest for a few days to heal, but she’d done it. And she’d do it again before she fell in the water and had to be pulled up soaking wet. Having thin clothes worked well when warm sea air blew around her, but they were kind of terrible when they got wet.

A mass of land grew from the horizon, a dark tower on its coast. Those were the Isles all right. Rin cleared her throat. “Land! Land on the horizon!”

Faint cheers rose from below before the crew returned to their work. Rin stowed her spyglass and grabbed hold of the rigging, swinging back under the morningcrow’s nest and scuttling like a crustacean down to the deck. She pulled a timepiece from her pocket and clicked it open. One of the needles pointed north, currently to the right as it should be. The others indicated the time. Sixteen hundred, right smack in the middle of the afternoon. The perfect time for a drink.. She walked over to the bell next to the staircase down into the hold of the ship and pulled hard on the rope. “Alright, you moonless. Get up on the deck and relieve these tired sailors. And you…” She pointed to those already on the deck. “Keep it to one mug for now. We’ll be in the bay by midnight, and I don’t need half my crew passed out.” There was a collective groan on deck. “Quiet down. I’ll join you there once we’re shipshape with the next shift.” That elicited a little excitement. The kaptain was known for doing some wild things after a mug or two. Secretly, most of the stories were of her own design.

The first mate walked over as the sailors switched out and shuffled down into the hold. “You sure that’s a good idea? We’ve only got on a little less than a shift between us and landfall. We’ll need our kaptain for that.”

Rin elbowed the large man. “Don’t worry about me. I’ll be fine by the time we land.” She turned to the stairs. “In the meantime, I’m going to go have a toast. Hold down the deck and don’t let it float away while I’m gone.” Rin sauntered over to the stairs and slid down the spiraled railing to the common area. Most of the previous shift was already seated with mugs of frothing drink, although it seemed that none of them had taken a sip yet.

The kaptain raised her arms and grinned. “Drink up, mariners!” She pulled a mug from the bar table and took a long whiff. The rum didn’t have much of a taste, but it was certainly strong. She raised her mug in the air. “A toast! To the straits and seas we sail, and to the ships that traverse them!”

“Hear hear.” The tall bald man in the corner raised his mug, followed quickly by the rest. Rin took a sip of the froth on the top of her mug, an idea forming in her mind.

“Hey Keep, you still have those shot glasses?” The man looked back in his cabinet and nodded. “Pull ‘em out.” Rin turned to the crowd of sailors. “You moonless want to have some fun?” They nodded in affirmation, pounding their fists on the bartop or on a nearby stool. The barkeep set the shot glasses out. Rin pushed them all together and dumped her mug into the first, moving down the line in quick succession. Only a few drops ended up on the bartop. She turned to the crowd of raiders. “Alright, for those of you new here, I’m not down here associating with the rank and file most days. But sometimes I need to drink with other people. Which is where you louts come in.” She raised the first shot glass and drained it, the rough liquid burning like a coarse rope. “Raise your mugs and celebrate! This is the life! And there is none better!” She threw back a second glass. Her eyes saw as straight and true as ever, but this was the point where she usually laid the speech on a little thick. Placing one foot on the stool next to her, she raised the next glass into the air. “Trent would love this.” She drank the next shot.

“Who’s Trent?” The raider in the back banged his mug down.

Rin raised a hand to point at the raider, intentionally missing the mark and swinging back. “Ah, you’re tryin’ to get me to talk about myself. Won’t work. But I’ll tell ya anyway.” She downed another shot. Three more to go. “Good old noble to everyone, ‘cept when he was doin’ things he wasn’t supposed to. Then he didn’t have that nice look in his eyes.” Rin pantomimed grabbing her sabre from her back, missing the actual weapon and holding thin air while she thrust at nothing in particular in front of her. “He tried to cross me an’ sell me off. Ran him through and took his coin for his trouble.” Third to last glass, up and in. She pushed herself up and sat on the bartop, hanging her legs over the edge. Absentmindedly, she rubbed her eyes. That wasn’t an act. She could use a few hours of sleep before landfall.

“Now gather ‘round and pipe down. Few knew this tale when it came into the world, and fewer still know it now.” The raiders quieted and sat down, most of them on the floor. A few of them still slurped on their rum. “Long ago and far from here, there was a ship as black as night with sails the color of blood. No one knows if they were just always that color or if the captain stained them with the blood of his enemies. But rumor had it that his metal finger had more to it than met the eye.”

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One of the younger raiders raised his mug and started to ask the man’s name, but another raider lifted his empty mug and clonked the other on the head. “Shut yer mouth. I want to listen.” Rin grinned at the older raider. At least she held some respect.

“This kaptain had a penchant for the rarest of treasures, the ones nobody else would dare try to reach. He had pearls from the biggest clams of Montal Bay and the scepter of the Queen of the Mermaids from the palaces below. These made him feared, but he couldn’t very well sell them off lest the world think he was going soft. No, he needed a trove of coin and gem to buy those things a kaptain needs. And one day, he learned where to get it.”

Rin placed her hands on the bartop and leaned forward, lowering her voice to a conspiratorial whisper. “A woman descended from the heavens as if by an invisible thread. She handed him a parchment made of the night itself, telling him to sail true and he would have what he desired. The kaptain awoke the next morning and drafted the rest of the sailors he needed before setting sail. If the map was written in truth, he’d reach the island in two weeks.” She threw back the second-to-last shot glass. Better hold off on the last one while she still had to remember the details of the story.

“Two days before the island, a terrible storm arose and rocked the ship from side to side. With each toss and turn, the sailors moaned and wept at their terrible luck. But the kaptain remained fixed on his prize. He pulled a star from the sky and fired it up into the storm from the cannon on the deck. The clouds burned away, and the tops of the sails were bleached white. But the ship continued on. They sighted land right on schedule. With a clear sky and smooth waters, the kaptain climbed into a skirtbow and declared that when he returned, he would have treasure enough for all who had sailed the voyage. He took his first mate with him, along with three raiders who had proved their worth and skill on the straits. They sailed to the island’s beaches and disappeared into the dark rocks that littered the landscape.”

“Deep in the caves of the island and pool of glittering water stood absolutely still, smooth as a looking glass, a man’s height in diameter. The kaptain stared into it and declared that the treasure was just below the surface. One of the raiders dived for the pool, greed overwhelming his common sense. He sank below the water’s surface and never resurfaced.”

“Just like that? Gone?”

Rin nodded solemnly. “Just like that. But as he sank, the cavern filled with light, the very same color as the glint off a sea-shined coin. The light built until none of the raiders could see anything, flashing as bright as a thousand moons before dimming away. When the raiders opened their eyes, the cavern was filled with piles of coin and chests full of cut gemstones. The raiders fell down and grabbed handfuls of the riches, crying for joy. The kaptain threw his hat and dived into a pile of coin taller than any of us here.”

The raiders’ eyes were fixed on Rin, the same familiar gleam of coin-light reflected in them. Something shivered deep inside her, although it didn’t show on her face. She reached down and raised the last shot glass. One more. She threw it back, slamming it down on the bartop so hard it was a wonder it didn’t crack and shatter. Now it was time for the theatrics. This part of the story was most suited for them anyway.

“One raider stood on the side of the cavern, her sense of survival warning her not to indulge like her kaptain had. And so she faded from view as the others let their greed rule. Each knew that the others would kill in order to take the treasure for themselves. They stood up and drew their weapons, sabres and cutlasses glinting like the treasure. The first sailor was easily dispatched, knowing much of sailing but little of swordplay. Then the kaptain and the first mate turned on each other and let their darksteel meet. No negotiations could suffice; the other had to die.”

“The lone sailor watched as the kaptain and his right-hand woman clashed, each one wearing out as slow as the tide comes in. Finally, each one disengaged and retreated to opposite halves of the cavern. They determined to kill the other in their sleep, but the spells of the cavern left them both asleep before anything else could be done. There was no doubt that they would remain here and fight to the death, whatever would be presented to them. Even then, the winner should never be allowed to go free again in such a coin-blinded state. The girl crept forward over the mountains of coin and stole the items she knew would prove to the crew that the kaptain and the first mate weren’t going to return: the kaptain’s hat and the first mate’s necklace.”

Rin reached under the bar and procured two items she’d placed there before her excursion on the deck. The right stories had to have the right props at the right times in order to have the right effect. In her left hand she held a black tri-cornered hat with a blue feather next to a black one. In her right hand, a necklace with a heavy blue stone in a teardrop shape. She lowered her voice even further, to the point where the raiders had to lean closer in order to hear the final part of the tale.

“The girl returned to the ship, hat on her head and necklace around her own neck. In her hand she held the kaptain’s darksteel sabre, traded for hers of common steel. She climbed out of the caves and through the black rocks, back to the skirtbow. On her own, she rowed back to the night-black ship with the star-bleached maroon sails. They hoisted her boat up, and the crew parted for her as she strode along the deck. Holding the sabre aloft, she declared herself kaptain of the vessel and commanded that they make haste away from the accursed island.” Rin raised the hat and necklace in her hands. “Here are the hat and necklace of the kaptain and first mate. They perished in that cave, or so I know. I was that girl, forced to take command of the Sea Dragon before my given time.” She placed the hat on her head, straightening it so the feathers were to the right and the point forward, and clasped the necklace around her neck.

The young raider from before started lightly clapping before being hit on the head again. “That ain’t the end, numbskull.”

Rin drew her sabre, for real this time, pointing it to the right towards the stern of the Luxury. “Alas, my command was not accepted by all. Before we had gotten far, the cook decided to stage a coup and seize command of the Sea Dragon, intent on returning to the island and claiming the treasure for himself. Even without the magic, the tales of the treasure had captured his heart. In the chaos, the wheel of the ship was left unattended as I dueled the cook with the navigator at my back. The Sea Dragon dashed herself upon a reef close to the island, perhaps the final revenge for thinking we could steal away the treasures contained within. The hull split in two, taking the cook and the navigator with her as she sunk into the deep. I untied the skirtbow that had ferried me from the island and managed to escape the wreck, fighting hard with the paddles to take me away. I had but the water in my canteen and sticks of dried meat that I had thought to take with me on the island. I rowed my way until I could row no more before making a sail of my jacket and commending myself to whatever god or goddess roamed the skies above the seas. I landed at Fort Percival with only the clothes on my back and the coin in my pocket. No home, no destination. Just a longing for the seas and a warning of the dangerous waters beyond the map.” Rin sheathed her sabre. “Tie my heart and toss it overboard, but that’s the truth.”

The hold had gone absolutely silent, staring at the kaptain as she lowered her hands and tipped the last few drops from her mug into a shot glass. She finished off her drink and winked at her captive crowd. “Alright, enough of that. It’s not as if I’ve got blue hair.” She hopped off the bartop. “Finish your drinks and sleep it off. I’ll be in m’ office if anyone dies.”

Rin opened the door next to the stairs and exited the main hold, stumbling into the hallways of the ship. Between the fatigue and the rum, she’d better actually sleep before landfall.

Most kaptains had their office and quarters up on the deck of the ship, in full view. That made them an easy target. Besides, Rin didn’t need a large office if she never had a reason to be in it. No, she just needed a small office with a desk for writing and a bed for sleeping, the bare minimum for a room that only saw a tiny fraction of her time. Even better that it was right smack in the middle of the decks. She could sleep through a hurricane if she needed to.

She procured a silver key and let herself into the room, only a few meters across. On a ship as big and fine as the Luxury, quite a few of the officers could afford to have rooms all to themselves. In fact, when the ship had been built, the architects had probably assumed this would be a small reserves closet or a third-rank officer’s room. But it suited her just fine. Locking the door behind her, Rin pulled off her dress and fell onto her bed. Someone--probably the first officer--would come find her when they were about to land. Until then, she needed as much sleep as she could get.