The Pirates of Fainting Goat Island

by Teresa McCullough

  “What do you want?” Jarot asked.

  He gave me the opening I needed. It had to be said naturally, or they would remember it and wonder, because it was an odd request. I served them all for just room and board. If I gave them an order, those I Controlled would obey me. “Just don’t hurt me. Not now, not ever.” I looked around to the group to make sure they knew I was including all of them, but I ended my glance with Merko. I wasn’t certain how much the others owed me, but that might work in my favor. If everything I did was for Merko, he owed me all the favors and he was the one I feared.

  And he owed me. If he hadn’t saved me from the fire, if I would have awakened in time, then he did nothing for me except stop the men from stealing my possessions. But he set me up for that. A word from him before I got off the ship would have been enough. He knew his men and didn’t give that word.

  He hadn’t paid me, and I had no intention of reminding him. The more he was in my debt, the better. I couldn’t refuse the pay if he offered it, since he would have met his obligation. But I did make it clear to him that I owed him nothing for the spices and fruit to feed his men.

  I didn’t want the mood to be bitter, so I said, “Amapola has more clothes to show you. I don’t know if she wants to keep them as a surprise or give you a show now.”

  They voted for now. There was some good-natured teasing about where she should change, but she allowed herself to be persuaded, ran back to her room to change, and enjoyed their appreciation.

  I thought I got away with it. I thought I had them Controlled. But Merko disappeared for a few minutes and came back with a small bag, which he handed me. “Is this what you wanted?” he said with a smile.

  I opened the bag and was stunned. It filled with money, more than I would earn for a year of work in the tavern. “It’s too much!” I said automatically.

  Merko slowly reached for it, daring me to keep it. I had to keep it. Once I refused, I would cancel Merko’s debt to me. I would accomplish nothing but getting the contempt of the pirates by giving it back to Merko. “But I’ll take it if you’re silly enough to give it to me.” I pulled the bag back to my chest, holding on with both hands. Merko made mocking motions as if to retrieve the money but didn’t follow through. He then pulled out two other bags and gave them to Lina and Amapola. They weren’t surprised. Milea apparently didn’t rate pay.

  “Next time you go to a major port, I would like you to take me there, so I can spend this,” I said. Suddenly, the room was quiet, and I felt tensions rise. I carefully worded my statement, so it wasn’t an order. I was curious how Merko would respond.

  “That may not be for a while,” Merko said. “Our next trading venture is to a port where it’s unsafe for women. My conscience wouldn’t let me take you there. Even my sailors go in groups of five or more.”

  Sure.

  “Yes, Merko’s getting cautious,” Jerot said. “He’s even running away from that yacht we keep seeing.”

  “What yacht?” I asked, not wanting to let things dwell on Merko’s mendacious refusal to take me to a port.

  “There’s this yacht. Merko chased it once, just to see why it was shadowing us, but it’s faster than we are. Now he avoids it,” Jerot explained.

  “Avoids it? Why?”

  “Instinct,” Merko said. “It sometimes gets me out of trouble. We see the yacht too often and I don’t want to lead it to this island. They might be working with pirates.” The men unsuccessfully tried to conceal their amusement.

  “But they aren’t a threat themselves?” I asked.

  “It’s not big enough. Oh, it might hold ten men, but it couldn’t hold provisions for more,” Merko said.

  One of the three injured men died, and there was a brief funeral. The other two were up and about in time to leave when they left to go pirating a few weeks later. Roddy never showed up during their stay, but came a few hours after they left, while I was cleaning the kitchen.

  “Welcome, Roddy,” I said. “I’ve missed you.”

  “And I, you, girl,” Roddy said. “But I would prefer they forgot about me.”

  “I don’t think Merko will,” I said.

  “Sadly, no.”

  “I suppose there’s no way off the island?”

  “The local people told me the pirates destroyed all the boats that are safe to take any distance. I often look out over the water and never see ships. I don’t think we’re on any sailing route. There are a few tiny boats for fishing and to go to Goat Island.”

  “What’s on Goat Island?”

  “Goats,” Roddy said with a smile.

  “There are goats here.”

  “The goats there are milk goats. I’ve been there and there are a few cottages. The people raise vegetables and make cheese, trading it for what’s here. If you think this island is poor, try over there.”

  “You’ve been there?”

  He grimaced. “Girl, I’ve seen poverty, but it’s primitive there. I understand why they tolerate the pirates here.”

  “I thought the pirates killed all the young men.”

  “Nope. The pirates killed everyone that lived in this village.” Roddy’s hand swept to indicate he was talking about the cottages near The Lodge. “But they were the owners of the island. Everyone is afraid of the pirates, but the pirates tax the locals less than the original owners did.”

  “Tax?” It hadn’t occurred to me to think of the pirates as legal rulers with a right to tax the locals. But legal rulers didn’t hide where they lived and use it as a base to attack others. Whatever the locals thought of them, they were still pirates.

  “The Lodge was the ruling family’s home. The cottages belonged to their servants, although some slept in the Lodge.”

  “It must have been a big family,” I said.

  “Big, but not popular. They controlled trade. The pirates are actually more generous.”

  “Good landlords?” I said bitterly.

  “Indifferent landlords. All they really want is food and women. They give the women cloth and other imported items. The locals really come out ahead on the deal. It took me a while to realize it, because they don’t trust me.”

  “I suspect they trust me less. None of them speak to me.”

  Not even Vlid. For that matter, Lina and Amapola only spoke about sharing the work. I spent years working in Ship Town and was liked by patrons of the tavern. Oddly enough, the pirates seemed to like me better than Amapola, who was much more beautiful, and apparently more available. Why didn’t anyone talk to me?

  “What are they hiding from me?” I asked Roddy, suddenly certain there was something.

  “I can only guess,” Roddy said.

  “Guess then.”

  “Probably what they want you to do with your enhancing.”

  “Which is?” Roddy was talking to me, but the information had to be pulled out of him.

  “Defend them. They can’t know what your range is, because you haven’t shown them. There’s only one way into the harbor for a ship with any draft, to the east. They left a pile of wood near the dock. If you were down there and a ship came in, you wouldn’t have to reach any further than you did with those long boats that attacked us when we came here.” His guess made sense.

  “Could I destroy a ship with a single burst of flame? It would have to be a single burst, because after I did it, I wouldn’t be able to enhance any more. I don’t think Ezant approves of defending pirates.”

  “You defended them before,” Roddy said.

  “But I didn’t know they were pirates.”

  “Also, you were defending yourself. Whether the attackers were pirates or pirate hunters, you would not be treated gently by them.”

  That was the problem. If I defended the pirates, it would be once. I would lose my ability to enhance and would be no more use to the pirates than Lina or Amapola. My mind flew back to the twig ceremony. Lina knew the words. Although only a small percentage of people who worshipped Ezant were enhancers, every enhancer worshipped Eza
nt and was a descendent of the first enhancer.

  Amapola was upset by the ceremony, but not by the other two religious ceremonies. Had she been an enhancer who lost her power? Was Lina one also?

  CHAPTER 7

  Guessing the pirates wouldn’t return for a few weeks, I spent some time explored the island. Spring was coming, and it was pleasant walking. The Lodge was on the highest point and roughly the center of the crescent-shaped island. There were a few spots where I could see the shape of Goat Island, which was smaller, didn’t rise as high out of the ocean, didn’t appear to have any flat areas, and was also roughly crescent-shaped. The two islands enclosed the harbor.

  Each end of the island was half a day’s walk from The Lodge. There were a few scattered villages, each containing fewer than ten cottages. While returning from my first such walk, I felt an earthquake. I didn’t fall down since it was easier to stand than on a ship in a storm, but too my surprise, a goat fell down. It appeared unhurt, but goats have four legs instead of my two and have a reputation of being steady on their feet.

  Before I returned to The Lodge, an aftershock came. This time, I was looking at two goats during the rumbling of the earth and both reacted the same way. Their legs stiffened unnaturally. One fell, but the other managed to stay upright. Their legs returned to normal quickly, and the fallen goat regained his feet and scampered away. Fainting goats. I finally understood the name of the island.

  I also noticed that there was a shallow area between the two islands, which was visible from the cliffs overlooking the roughly circular harbor. The harbor was deep enough for ships but there was a shallow area in the center that ships would have to avoid.

  I went to bed early that night, tired from walking more than usual.

  “You have two minutes to get dressed,” said Merko. I’d been sound asleep in my room and there was no daylight visible through my window. Merko was wearing leather clothing and a sword. He looked tired.

  Bleary-eyed with sleep, I said the obvious. “You’re back.” I was not wide-awake enough to respond more intelligently.

  “Less than two minutes now. I’ll drag you down as you are.” He stepped out of my room and closed the door. I briefly wished I had a ground floor window like Roddy did, allowing me to exit. I didn’t think Merko’s presence meant anything good.

  I hastily dressed, ignoring my hair in its nighttime braid. I was putting on my second shoe when he opened my door again. He waited until I tied it, but then grabbed my arm and pulled me up. We ran to the path to the harbor. I never descended so quickly before. I asked him what was going on, but he ignored me.

  We passed a number of pirates coming up. Some were obviously injured. A few were carrying things, but not enough for it to be a general unloading. I saw only the Sea Skimmer in the harbor, but it was anchored a distance away. I realized if a ship tried to go directly to it from the deep-water entrance, it would run aground on the sunken island in the center.

  “Where’s the other ship?” I asked.

  “Jerot tried to draw them away from the island. I’m not certain what happened to him.”

  There were only two men left on the dock and they were moving the woodpile to the natural stone base of the stairway to block the entrance up. When finished, they climbed over it and left. Merko lit a candle. The candle cast a feeble illumination that disappeared in the predawn darkness, but it wasn’t intended for light. Merko lit a few sections of the kindling. Although the wood on top was damp with dew, the kindling caught, and I realized in a few minutes, it would block the entrance to the way up.

  “There’s a way up, around the fire,” Merko said. “I can climb it, but I doubt you can. It’s not an easy climb for me. Once I’m up, I’ll drop you a rope and pull you up, if you do what I ask.”

  “What do you ask?”

  “Look away from the fire for a few minutes,” Merko said. “You will need your eyes to be accustomed to the dark. Then I’ll show you.”

  I looked to the deep-water entrance. Gradually, the image of three ships came. The first was coming toward the entrance of the harbor.

  “Protect us. When the fire is at its maximum, sweep from the first ship to the last one. Don’t linger on a ship but give your full power to the sweep.”

  “So, when I lose my enhancing, I will have destroyed all three ships? No thank you.”

  “Protecting yourself is ethical,” Merko said.

  “All you care about is protecting yourself and your pirates.”

  He hit me on my chest. It was too quick for me to consider using enhancing and the blow nearly knocked me over. For a brief time, all I could think about was the pain. I heard a voice saying something, I don’t know what, and looked over to its source. I saw Vlid was taking a flying leap over the flames. They weren’t high enough to scorch him. He fell when he landed and somehow rolled into a standing position. He must have jumped from the stairway. It was a one-way trip, since there was no way he could cross the flames again. He started for Merko, but Merko had his sword out.

  “Stop!” I screamed. “He’ll kill you.”

  I should have Controlled Vlid, since I repeatedly fed him meals, but he paused for a second before he continued. He pulled out a knife, clearly an inadequate weapon against the sword. As Merko stepped forward, I used enhancing to make him fall. I wasn’t gentle, like I was when the men were stealing my possessions.

  Vlid kicked Merko’s hand and Merko dropped the sword. Vlid reached it first, and now he was armed with a sword and a knife. Merko arose slowly, but Vlid slipped between him and me, with no sign of a limp. Merko didn’t attempt to attack but put his hands at his side in a deliberately relaxed position.

  “Who told you?” he asked me. “Amapola? Lina?”

  “They won’t even talk to me,” I replied bitterly. “No one will.”

  “They had their orders,” he said. “It was too long, I suppose. You were bound to guess eventually.” He looked over to the ships entering the harbor. “They’ll kill you, you know. After a few dozen of them rape you.” I wish I thought he was lying, or at least exaggerating, but I don’t think he was.

  Vlid slid Merko’s sword across the rocks toward him, handle first. Merko picked it up and sheathed it. Vlid sheathed his knife. Merko smiled, gave an exaggerated bow to Vlid and limped a bit for his first steps, but he seemed all right when he reached the base of the wall. He climbed up with care, but he quickly reached a spot about twenty feet up where he could step onto the stairs. He left the two of us at the mercy of the attacking pirates.

  Vlid grabbed my hand and pulled me away from the direction the ships were coming. He led me along a small ledge near the water. We didn’t stop when the ledge disappeared into the water. The water became waist high and was cold and uncomfortable.

  “Wait,” he said, disappearing into a cave with an entrance half underwater. He wasn’t muttering anymore, and his voice was no longer high pitched, but a pleasing baritone. It was one word, but it was clear. He came out pulling a rowboat. He steadied it while I awkwardly climbed in, with my wet skirts hindering me. I think I was dry above the neck, but everything below was wet. Vlid pulled himself in over the stern, took the oars and we moved out into the shallow water near the entrance ships couldn’t use. There was another set of oars, and I got in position to row, but Vlid said, “No. Enhance.” With his rowing and my enhancing we quickly reached Goat Island. He pulled the boat ashore, higher than needed by many yards. When I looked back at the fire, I realized I destroyed my night vision and could see little else.

  “Sit down and cover your ears,” he said. When I didn’t comply, he pushed me gently into a sitting position on the sand. He grabbed one of my hands and put it against the side of my head. I put the other one up, although I didn’t understand why he wanted me to do this. He stood up and stared at the water, with his hands over his ears.

  The light was dim, but I could see the first of the three ships grounded on the sunken island. It must have happened when they tried to approach the Se
a Skimmer, which I suspected was empty. The second ship was at the entrance to the harbor and the third was further away.

  A huge explosion came from the sunken island, shaking the ground. Rocks flew, and steam filled the harbor, making it impossible to see. Vlid dropped his hands from his ears and ran toward the water. I could see he was rescuing the rowboat from the wave that floated it off. After he secured the rowboat, he stared out into the harbor, but the steam was now a fog that made it impossible to see what happened. Vlid said, “Come with me,” and I followed him up a narrow trail into Goat Island. I wasn’t certain who this man was that I spent many hours with. I couldn’t Control him, but he probably saved my life.

  CHAPTER 8

  Vlid and I walked for about half an hour while the sun came up. We came to a mud-walled cottage, crude by the standards of Fainting Goat Island. There was a door, but it wasn’t hinged, just placed in position. He removed it and entered. The cottage had skin and pottery containers hanging from the ceiling and a pile of skins on the floor as a bed. A woman was kneeling on the bed and to my surprise I recognized Milea. She stood up when we entered. There was a child of about six or seven asleep next to where she knelt.

  She saw me and reacted with shock. She turned to me and asked, “What are you doing here?”

  “Vlid brought me,” I replied.

  “What happened?” Milea asked.

  When Vlid didn’t respond immediately, I said, “I know he isn’t what he seems to be, and I would also like an answer to your question.” Considering that I believed Vlid couldn’t speak coherently, it was interesting that he didn’t seem upset that two of us were pressing him to answer our questions.

  Vlid answered, “Merko returned in the Sea Skimmer, chased by three ships. I don’t know what happened to Jerot and the Red Lion. He wanted Heleen to destroy the attackers, but she wouldn’t.”

  “So, you protected them!” She almost spat the words at Vlid. This was the woman who appeared to love Merko?