by Heath Pfaff
"My apologies." He said, before taking a big breath. "There has been a birth." He blurted. The words hit my ears and my mind worked them over, but they didn't make any sense to me. I must have looked as confused as I was, because Liet spoke again.
"One of our females has given birth to a child." He explained more clearly. I was taken aback. The black cloaks were men who'd been given the bodies of Fell Beasts. I had never considered that those bodies would still be capable of breeding. Female Knights were stripped of the parts of their internal anatomy needed for breeding. I'd assumed that the females of the Black Patch Brigade would be no different. The reality of the situation struck me all at once. I suddenly realized why the Brigade had not been surgically altered to keep them from having children.
The black cloaks were supposed to be tightly locked under the confines of magic. Those responsible for their creation hadn't bothered to remove the breeding functions, because they'd assumed those instincts would be forever locked away. If they were breeding, though, successfully, what sort of offspring were they having? Were they birthing Fell Beast pups? Were they having human children? I didn't know, and I knew it wouldn't be right to ask. Besides, Liet didn't look like he was finished.
I nodded. "Go on." The news was shocking, but it was far from terrible. There had to be more.
Liet shook his head. He looked content with my reaction so far. I wasn't precisely sure what he may have worried my reaction would be. Certainly I was startled, but I couldn't make myself take the creation of a new life as an evil occurrence. What it meant for the crew I did not know, and what the future implications might be for the black cloaks themselves, I couldn't say, but a birth was not reason enough to warrant the agitation that Liet seemed to be experiencing.
"The birth has brought our role as servants of the king under question." Liet continued. "Some of the men believe it is time we took this ship. . . . believe we should make sail for some place where we can settle, start our own village. They do not believe you and the others will allow that. They do not trust you and yours. They do not believe human kind will see us as equals. All of our females are with child. You see the problem?" Liet finished.
There were eleven females. That they could all be pregnant and have hidden it from the crew for so long was a surprise. That one of them had given birth and none outside the black cloaks was any the wiser, was also a shock. I could understand their fear, and their desire to secure a future for their kind, but I couldn't let them take the ship. That was unacceptable.
"The mother and her child, they are healthy?" I asked Liet, deciding it was best to tackle one aspect of the problem at a time. A new mother and child would have to take precedence.
Liet nodded. "They are strong, mother and daughter. She is like you, the girl, human child, almost. She has light fur on her stomach and back, gray, strong claws, Fell eyes, but she is helpless like a human child. Soft. Fragile. Sweet. Innocent. Human features, though her legs are like the Beast, and her ears are pointed, large for a human child. She is beautiful." His voice grew soft as he spoke of the child.
I wondered for a moment if it was his, but I could not bring myself to ask. "Liet, I will not let any harm come to the child or the other black cloaks, if I can possibly avoid it. I just need to get my ship to Telistera's land, and then your folk are welcome to it. You have to make them understand that I will not stand in the way of their lives. We are close now. Let us finish this journey." I tried to appeal to Liet.
His soft expression faded. He was shaking his head. "Can't, my King. They have already decided. That is why I've come to you. You must take this to them. You must make them see, or set an example. That is what we understand. Strength. Power. Go soon, I don't know how much longer they will wait. Find Kivann. He will lead them. Convince him if you can, if you can't, kill him, or he will kill you."
"I don't want to kill any more of my men." I told Liet, though I wasn't sure if the sentiment was for his ears, or if I was simply speaking my thoughts. Too many of my own men had fallen at my sword already.
"King Noble is good, but He Who Walks with Shadows, must do what must be done. You have young to protect too. Sweet. Fragile. Innocent. Go to Kivann, speak, fight, win, and protect. That is what my king does. Protect." Liet's voice was sure, confident in his convictions. I wished that I felt so confident myself.
I knew what I had to do, but I did not like that it had to be done.
Kivann was working the hull pumps for the early part of the day. I waited until his shift was over, knowing that he would go from there back to the black cloak's commons area. I did not know how far I would have to take matters, but I knew that it was important that whatever happened, happened in front of the others. They needed to see that I would do what was necessary to maintain order, and to assure the ship reached its destination. I hoped that words would be sufficient, though my talk with Liet had not given me much confidence in that regard.
The section of the ship in which the Brigade resided was left entirely to them. None of the other crew, with the possible exception of Ethaniel, would breach the area that had become theirs since the trip began. There was no set rule, but it was common knowledge that they had made their homes there. I wasn't sure what to expect as I pushed open the door which separated the black cloak quarters from the rest of the ship, but it certainly wasn't what I encountered.
Some part of me had believed that the fierce-eyed half-men would live in squalor, filthy and disorganized, a testament to the part of them that was Fell Beast. The truth couldn't have been further from that. The area beyond the door into the black cloak rooms was spotless. Everything was pristine, and well organized. It looked as though it had all been cleaned within the past couple of days. There was no sign of a spider web or spot of dust anywhere. Whatever else the black cloaks might be, they were tidy.
I briefly considered asking for assistance with what I was about to do, but the thought passed as quickly as it came. If I brought anyone else with me, and they were injured, it would be my responsibility. Besides, I didn't want to give the impression that I had a fight in mind. If possible, I still wanted to avoid a conflict that could result in more deaths.
I walked down the hall, my quiet footsteps seeming loud in the empty corridor. Doors lined either wall, separate apartments, each large enough to bunk four crew members in an emergency. I wondered if they lay empty, or if each was filled with the tidy quarters of another black cloak. Were they all so fastidious in their cleaning? I knew so little about them. I felt out of place.
It was a feeling that had assailed me as soon as I crossed through the door into the clean and well kept area the Black Patch Brigade had taken for themselves. It wasn't that the cleanliness was off-putting, so much as a sense of not belonging. I had come somewhere that I wasn't welcome to be. I felt no outward hostility, and sensed that I had not yet been detected, but that feeling of not belonging did not fade as I walked deeper into the ship.
I was headed for the commons. It was a large open area, with tables and facilities for cooking. Liet had told me that would be the best place to find Kivann off shift. I knew where the commons would be, though I had never actually been there. The interior of the ship was divided into four sections. The front two sections were the same, only mirrored. This was true of the rear section as well, but it was the front section that was most important, as that was where the black cloaks had taken residence. Knowing how the other side of the ship was arranged, it was not difficult to determine where I needed to go. I followed the path I would take to reach the commons in my own section of ship, only I reversed the turns as necessary. There were few turns to make anyway.
A door opened on one side of the corridor and a figure dressed in black stepped out, hood pulled down. I recognized female features instantly, and remembered Liet had said that all the females were pregnant. The black cloak female saw me, and her eyes went wide for a moment. She stepped back into her room, and the door shut behind her. I wondered if she was a mother to be, o
r if she was already a mother. All of the females would soon have children. Even having had Kay, the concept of children seemed alien to me. I had been a terrible father.
I was curious about the black cloak child already born, but I would need to handle the situation with Kivann before I could make any further inquiries into the health of our newest crew member. Even then, it was unlikely the black cloaks would be eager to accept my intrusion. I was an outsider to them. The actions I was embarking upon, I knew, would not help that situation.
The sounds of voices drifted to my sensitive ears from further down the hall. I was approaching the commons. The jumble was too thick to pick any one voice out, but the conversation seemed light and was interspersed with laughter. For all practical purposes, it could have been any group of people in the mysterious commons still further ahead of me. Away from the scrutiny of the rest of the crew, it seemed that the Brigade, for all their seeming hostility and bleakness, were not so very different after all.
I cleared the last of the distance to the black cloak common room with some trepidation. I was about dark business. I wasn't happy to be doing it, but it had to be done. I would try my best to make them see reason, and if reasoning failed, I would resort to the universal language of violence. It was, sadly, a tongue I spoke only too well.
I entered the commons. The black cloaks around me were hardly recognizable. Most of them, though not all, were dressed in normal clothes, likely taken from the supplies in the hold of the ship. The few that were in cloaks wore theirs hoods down, and had their weapons off and laid to the side or on the tables before them where they sat. The tables were full with men playing cards, and men drinking and eating. I saw a few women amidst them, some dressed in feminine clothing, a strange sight to see over their Fell Beast bodies, even stranger than such a sight on a Knight of Ethan.
As the first eyes fell on me, a wave of quiet swept through them, moving from the first to notice, and outward, until the entire room had fallen to silence. Before I had felt that I was some place I wasn't meant to be, at that moment there was no denying the significance of my intrusion. Every eye in the room fell upon me, and though not all were hostile, those that weren't, were confused. I had pierced a secret place, and the black cloaks were, perhaps rightly, agitated.
"I'm here to see Kivann." I said, deciding the best course of action was to directly confront the problem, and get myself away as quickly as possible. The tension level in the room rose immediately. A table with eight black cloaks around it stood up as one. I saw hands reaching for swords, and heard the sounds of steel on leather as weapons were drawn. A few other warriors around the room stood and drew weapons. One of those who stood was a woman, dressed in a pale sun dress, her bestial body seeming so unusual in the fabric. She'd taken the sword of the armed man next to her, and held it defensively. In her dress, I could see the bulge of her stomach, heavy with young.
A figure stepped from the group of eight, dressed in his black cloak, the hem of the fabric still damp from his work down in the pump rooms. He was bigger than the others, a wall of a man, tall and imposing. His hood was back, revealing a young face, with a firm jaw line, and hard gray eyes. He held his sword with confidence, though all of the black cloaks did, his was a casual confidence that bespoke some talent with the blade. His hair was short, roughly cut, and hung bedraggled about his face, giving him an ominous cast.
I had not expected hostilities to rise so quickly. I did not reach for my sword. I had the advantage of speed. If it became necessary, I could draw and defend myself before those around me attacked. There was still a good amount of distance between myself and even the nearest of those who'd stood in Kivann's defense. The pregnant female was the closest, only five paces away from me. That distance could be closed quite quickly. I didn't wish to cross swords with her. I did not want to be responsible for the death of a mother and her unborn child.
"King Noble, you are not welcome here." It was Kivann who spoke, his voice had the gravely edge of the Fell Beast, but there was barely restrained hostility beneath it.
He had not introduced himself, but I knew the large man was Kivann. He would not have stepped forward if he wasn't. He was leading the others. It had been he who first stood from the table. The others had followed quickly, but his motion had begun before the others.
"This is my ship, Kivann. I'm welcome wherever I might wish to be." I answered calmly, keeping my voice steady. My eyes traced the numbers of risen black cloaks. Twelve had stood with Kivann, including those at his table and the female. That made for thirteen possible enemies. Others might support his cause, but they were not willing to do so openly. There was always the possibility that some might be waiting for trouble to start before jumping in, but I did not believe that those with such a heart for subtlety would number high among the black cloaks. They were driven by the same Fell Beast compulsions I felt driving inside of me.
The beast inside of me already stalked its confines, growling and snarling, its vicious teeth gnashing at the prison in which I kept it locked. It could sense death coming, and it wanted to be free. I knew the black cloaks around me must be feeling the same impulse. Violence, death, lust, these were the creature's primary driving forces.
Kivann stiffened at my words, his eyes filling with hostility as I claimed the ship as my own. Liet had not been deceiving me. Kivann wanted the ship, and he was doing a poor job at hiding that fact. I could see his knuckles whitening on his sword hilt. Anger, while powerful, could weaken the form of a good swordsman. That tightening of grip would not help his grace with the weapon. His anger worked in my favor.
"Why have you come, King of Men?" Kivann spat the words with venom, emphasizing the word "men," as if to let me know that I was no king to the black cloaks.
"You want my ship." I kept my voice level, without accusation. I was rarely good at establishing a point in a subtle manner, and with the Kivann, I didn't believe it was the best approach anyway. "I'm willing to let you have it." Kivann's grip on his sword loosened, and his expression became confused.
"You'd give us your ship?" He asked, a smile coming to his features. "Fear. Death has filled you with fear?"
"Once this ship reaches its destination, I will turn it over to you and yours, along with any remaining supplies." I said, ignoring his jibe. If I could get out of the situation without violence, I would have achieved my goal. I hoped that Kivann would see the benefit of settling matters without any loss of life.
Kivann's smile soured. "No. The king commands. We die. Too long have we served. We want this ship now. You Knights and Humans, you can take the escape boats. We'll let you have water, food. We'll let you live. No more."
I shook my head. "I don't think you understand the situation, Kivann." I began, not liking the direction the conversation was turning. I would not lose my ship before we landed on Tett O Sut. "This ship is mine. I know your women are with child," at this a rumble of alarm passed through the black cloaks. I knew their secret. "and I am giving you this ship because I believe your services to the throne do not deserve to go unpaid. I will not, however, be given ultimatums on my own craft."
"You don't understand, Oath Breaker." He used the mocking title first given to me by the black cloaks a long time before. It had been years since I'd been called by that name, but it had never bothered me. "We have served. We shed our blood for you without our will. We had no choice but to follow you to our deaths. Thousands of our comrades, dead. How many for this ship? How many for the whims of Oath Breaker?! You say that the ship is yours? Whose blood soaks its planks?" Kivann's voice rose as he spoke. A few more men stood up, drawing their swords. Kivann's message was powerful.
"You want to protect your women, and your new children. I respect that, but I have a daughter to protect as well. If this ship does not reach its destination, she will be left in the hold of the Hungering. She has already been with them for nearly six years. I will not be turned away now, Kivann. Once I am on shore, you can have my ship, but not before then.
I will fight to the death to get this ship to my daughter." I still did not move for my sword, but I knew my words might be taken as a declaration of war.
"Then we will kill every human and Knight. We of the Brigade take what is ours. We will not be ignored. We will not serve." Kivann took a step forward as he spoke, and the others around me also inched forward. There were seventeen including Kivann and the pregnant woman.
"Please, Kivann, no one needs to die." I held my hands out palm up, my last attempt to plead for a peaceful solution. "You can have what you want. You've waited so long, you need only wait a little . . ."
"Silence!" Kivann sprang forward, and so did every other standing black cloak in the room.
My heart hammered in my chest, and the world slowed around me. They were fast, and dangerous, but I was faster, and far more lethal. I pressed forward, letting the resistance of the thick ship air whip at me, even as I drew my blade from my shoulder sheath. The weapon came free easily in my hand, glinting like silver fire under the dim lighting of the ships interior. Even slowed, Kivann was coming fast, his Fell Beast strengths giving him the ability to move with terrific speed. His eyes though, were not equipped to handle the motion, and he was forced to maintain a line once he'd taken it. I used the flat of my blade to turn his charge. His momentum shattered against the side of my larger weapon, and he was thrown to the side, even as those around him attempted to reach my body with their steel. To their eyes, it appeared that I vanished before them. In my slowed perception of the world, I could see the confusion forming on their faces even as I twisted my sword's line of motion with a powerful swing that knocked multiple incoming thrusts uselessly to the side. I ran out wide and stopped as far from the aggressors as possible, allowing the world to resume a normal pace again. I had managed to avoid matching swords with the pregnant woman.