Pirate's Promise

by Chris A. Jackson

  Hard to port!"

  Windy hauled the wheel hard over, and Stargazer fell off the wind. As they came abeam of their target, Snick's shrill command rose from below, and six ballistae bolts shot from Stargazer's side. One sailed over the galley's deck to splash beyond, but two struck her hull, and three her deck. The warheads ruptured, and flames blossomed. Slavers scrambled away from the fire and threw buckets of water to quench the blazes.

  "Good shooting, Snick! Ready the starboard broadside!"

  As Stargazer came around, the main boom swept over Torius's head, sheets and preventer lines burning through blocks to retard the force. Sails billowed full with a crack, heeling the ship over. Snick called out again as Stargazer rolled upright, and six more incendiary bolts soared toward the galley. Much closer now, all six struck true, and the galley's waist blazed in flames. Her mainsail caught and started to burn.

  Then, out of nowhere, a familiar figure appeared on the galley's foredeck, arms raised.

  "The wizard, Thillion!" Torius looked aloft to see the elf's bow bending, but it was already too late.

  "Look out forward!"

  Grogul's bellow drew Torius's eyes just as a torrent of ice slammed down, smashing Stargazers to the deck and shredding the forestaysail. A storm of sleet swept aft ...

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  Pirate's Promise © 2014 Paizo Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means digital, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, or conveyed via the Internet or a website without prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embedded in critical articles and reviews.

  Paizo, Inc., LLC, the Paizo golem logo, Pathfinder, the Pathfinder logo, and Pathfinder Society are registered trademarks of Paizo Inc.; Pathfinder Accessories, Pathfinder Adventure Card Game, Pathfinder Adventure Path, Pathfinder Campaign Setting, Pathfinder Cards, Pathfinder Flip-Mat, Pathfinder Map Pack, Pathfinder Module, Pathfinder Pawns, Pathfinder Player Companion, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Tales, and Rise of the Runelords are trademarks of Paizo Inc.

  Cover art by Michal Ivan.

  Cover design by Emily Crowell.

  Map by Robert Lazzaretti.

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  ISBN 978-1-60125-664-5 (mass market paperback)

  ISBN 978-1-60125-665-2 (ebook)

  Publisher’s Cataloging-In-Publication Data

  (Prepared by The Donohue Group, Inc.)

  Jackson, Chris A.

  Pirate's promise / Chris A. Jackson.

  pages : map ; cm. — (Pathfinder tales)

  Set in the world of the role-playing game, Pathfinder and Pathfinder Online.

  Issued also as an ebook.

  ISBN: 978-1-60125-664-5 (mass market paperback)

  1. Pirates--Fiction. 2. Piracy--Fiction. 3. Spies--Fiction. 4. Imaginary places--Fiction. 5. Pathfinder (Game)--Fiction. 6. Fantasy fiction. 7. Adventure stories. I. Title. II. Series: Pathfinder tales library.

  PS3610.A357 P76 2014

  813/.6

  First printing December 2014.

  Printed in the United States of America.

  This story is dedicated to the memory of my friend and fellow author, Eugie Foster. The world is a poorer place without her creativity, her smile, and her warm and generous spirit.

  Chapter One

  Auspicious Arrivals

  Raucous laughter shook every cup and tankard in the bar. Windy Kate wiped ale from her chin and handed over a silver coin, having just lost a bet that she could drink a tankard without touching it with her hands or spilling any. Torius Vin leaned comfortably against the bar, close enough for a good view, but far enough to avoid getting wet.

  "They're a noisy lot." The barkeep scowled as he refilled Torius's glass.

  "Just a little well-deserved celebration." Torius sipped the fine spiced rum. The barkeep might not like Stargazer's boisterous crew, but he couldn't complain about the coin they were spending.

  "We might
be noisy, but we smell good!" Grogul drained his tankard and thumped it down on the bar, grinning at his captain. "Damn near forgot what it was like to be really clean. Thanks again, Captain."

  "The least I could do." After a month at sea, springing for a stint at Trillia's Bathhouse for his entire crew had been worth every scarab. Besides, he could afford it.

  Torius sipped, surveyed the well-mannered debauchery, and sighed in contentment. The scam they had just pulled off had been a near thing, but even after subtracting Vreva Jhafae's cut and the crew's shares, he had more gold than he could imagine spending. He could buy another ship and still have enough to live handsomely for years.

  "A shame Celeste couldn't join us." Grogul accepted his refilled tankard and quaffed a third of it.

  Torius doubted that Celeste regretted using all her daily transformation spells on the trip to Trillia's. Lunar nagas didn't sweat, and a quick swipe with a damp cloth was enough to cleanse her scales of dust and dirt, so their trip to the bathhouse had been a novel experience. He smiled as he recalled her look of delight as she immersed her human form into the hot, sudsy water, reveling in the luxury.

  "She's busy planning our trip to the Observatory anyway."

  More laughter rang from the betting circle. One of the caravan guards with whom the Stargazers were competing had spilled ale all over himself, and good-naturedly handed a silver back to Windy Kate. She wiped the ale from his chin with a sultry gleam in her eye amid the hoots of the onlookers.

  "When you leavin'?" Grogul asked.

  "Oh, not for a few days, at least. I need to discuss the alterations to Stargazer with Snick, and set up an account that she and Thillion can draw on for the work."

  Grogul snorted. "Give that gnome free rein, and she'll spend you into the poorhouse."

  Torius couldn't deny the truth of that. He'd already ordered Thillion to keep Snick's modifications under close supervision.

  "And how long's this little vacation gonna take?" Grogul sipped his ale and narrowed his eyes at his captain, but Torius just grinned.

  "A few weeks at least, more likely a month. Why? Are you bored already?"

  "Just thinkin' about the crew sittin' in Katapesh for so long with nothin' to do. Boredom and money are a dangerous combination."

  "Once Stargazer's back to her old self, Thillion could run a load of cargo up to Absalom or Sothis."

  "Aye, that might keep 'em out of trouble." Grogul scratched his chin in thought. "Fenric should be able to handle the crew for a simple cargo run."

  "Fenric?" Torius cocked an eyebrow. "And where will you be?"

  "With you, of course. The desert's a dangerous place! Got a few others picked out to—"

  A harsh shout and a crash brought the festivities to an abrupt halt.

  "Uh-oh." Grogul slammed his tankard down, his eyes suddenly as sharp as the two kukris tucked through his sash.

  Torius followed his bosun's gaze and saw Fenric with a bared cutlass in his hand. The Stargazers and caravan guards glared at one another across the tankard-littered table. Between them, Windy Kate slumped in a chair, spilled ale dampening her lap. Two more Stargazers sprawled in similar conditions nearby.

  The hairs stood up on the back of Torius's neck. Something was wrong. Later in the evening, after much more drinking, passed-out crew members would not have been an untoward occurrence. But this early? Not a chance.

  "No fighting!" the barkeep bellowed over the growls of the crowd.

  "I'll handle this." Torius strode forward, Grogul at his flank. "What's going on here, Fenric?"

  The bosun's mate pointed his cutlass at one of the caravan guards, a swarthy man with short-cropped hair and a long, angular jaw. "That motherless son of a scrub slipped somethin' in Kate's ale! She's out like yesterday's bilge water! Troy and Fenthis, too!"

  "That's a load of camel dung!" the man protested. "They just can't hold their booze!"

  One glance and Torius knew the man was lying. But why would they be drugging his sailors? He bristled with rage when he considered that they might be slavers out to supplement their stock by preying on the unwary. Whatever they were, they were outnumbered. Though Torius had no doubt that his score of pirates would prevail over a dozen caravan guards, a fight would be bad. Katapesh was their home port, and the Zephyr Guard enforced the laws of the Pactmasters with unwavering efficiency. A little diplomacy was called for.

  "Stow your blade, Fenric." The man dutifully slid his cutlass into its sheath. Torius nodded toward the door as he glared at the caravan guards. "Now, you all move on to another bar. We don't like your tricks and we're not going to play your games."

  "You move on! We were here first!" Spittle flew from the leader's bared teeth, and his hand edged closer to the hilt of the gleaming axe at his hip.

  "Now friend, you really don't want to start something you can't finish." Torius nodded to his grim-faced crew. "We don't want trouble, but—"

  Six more Stargazers suddenly crumpled to the floor, taking the pirates' numerical advantage with them. Torius's stomach clenched, and as he reached for his cutlass, he realized just how much trouble they were in.

  The leader's eyes gleamed with malice as his face and form changed. His jaw elongated and opened wide, baring prominent canines dripping with saliva. Thick fur sprouted from his skin, and his legs bent backward into the limbs of a bipedal canine.

  "What in the name of Gozreh?" Torius doubted if even the sea god could give him an answer. He recognized the features and coloration of the jackals he'd seen in the wildlands around Katapesh. Only those were much smaller and didn't clutch weapons in claw-tipped hands.

  The leader's axe flashed as the werejackal lunged at Torius.

  "Stargazers!" As Torius drew his cutlass to parry, a kukri flashed past his ear to cut a deep line in the werejackal's neck, ruining the creature's aim. Torius turned his parry into a slash that opened the other side of his assailant's neck, and the beast went down in a spray of blood.

  The barkeep's high-pitched shouts rose over the din, but none paid heed. Accustomed to fighting in tight quarters and on uneven footing, the pirates reacted as a single unit. Fenric kicked the table into two more charging werejackals and fought off a third, while the remaining Stargazers formed up to protect their unconscious comrades.

  Grogul snatched up the fallen werejackal's axe and stepped to Torius's side. "Come on!" His bellow shook the walls and, from the sudden doubt in the eyes of the leaderless werejackals, their morale as well.

  In the brief lull, Torius considered reining in his pirates, but the werejackals had obviously been trying to kidnap some of his people, either to sell as slaves or to have for dinner. To let them go without a proper lesson simply wouldn't do. Torius grinned at the snarling creatures. "It's time we taught these curs how to heel! Have at 'em, Stargazers!"

  The pirates leapt to the attack, battle cries rising from their throats. The werejackals met the assault with blades and gnashing teeth. Torius's new opponent was a quick creature wielding a jagged scimitar and a set of fangs capped with sharpened steel. Parrying the scimitar with his cutlass, Torius drew his fighting dagger and plunged the blade into the toothy maw. Teeth like sabers raked the back of his hand, but the tip of the blade pierced the back of the creature's throat. Hot blood gushed out over Torius's hand and the werejackal fell twitching to the floor. To his left, Grogul's axe reduced his opponent's skull to a spray of shattered bone and meat, while to his right, Fenric scored a deep gash in his adversary's arm.

  In no time, half of the werejackals were on the floor, either bleeding or dead. The survivors disengaged and dashed for the exits. The Stargazers let them go, chasing them only with a resounding cheer of victory.

  "For Stargazer!" Torius thrust his cutlass high in the air.

  His crew cheered and waved their weapons in menacing arcs, more inebriated by their victory than the ale and rum they'd imbibed. Only two Stargazers had taken wounds, neither serious. Torius wiped his sword clean on the tattered shirt of the werejacka
l leader, snapped it into its scabbard, and bellowed for a round of drinks. The barkeep was nowhere to be found, however, so Torius took the liberty of grabbing a bottle of rum from behind the bar and emptying it into the cups and tankards of his cheering crew. The ones who had fallen unconscious roused easily enough, though they were upset at having missed the fun. Windy Kate, Troy, and Fenthis blinked in confusion, unsure of what had happened.

  Torius raised his cup high and shouted for silence. "To the crew of Stargazer! Best damn buccaneers in the whole Inner Sea!"

  Torius quaffed his rum amid the cheers of his crew and started pouring the next round, but their celebration was interrupted by a hard-toned shout from the tavern's entrance.

  "Drop your weapons in the name of the Zephyr Guard!"

  As one, the Stargazers turned toward this new threat. Torius heard a low growl from his bosun's throat, but he knew instantly that this was not a fight they could win. A half-dozen troops flanked the Zephyr Guard squad leader, who had not even drawn her sword. She had no need to. The monstrous aluum that ducked low to enter the tavern ensured her safety. Humanoid in shape, but twice the height of Grogul, the aluum eyed them passionlessly. Created and controlled by the Pactmasters, the virtually indestructible magical constructs were powered by the bound souls of executed slaves and prisoners, and knew no mercy.

  "Stand down, Stargazers." Torius waved his crew back and strode forward, executing a respectful bow to the squad leader. She wore no badge of rank other than the gleaming blue gem dangling around her neck. She needed no other badge, for that trinket commanded the hulking aluum. "I'm glad you arrived. We were beset by these creatures and had just managed to fight them off." He waved a hand at the dead werejackals.

  "He wrecked my bar!" The barkeep advanced from behind the Zephyrs. He pointed at the broken furniture, blood, and gore that littered the floor. "I'm ruined!"

  "Oh, you're not ruined, man," Torius argued. "Nothing that a carpenter and a little soap and water won't fix! And we didn't do any of the wrecking! Three of my people were drugged, several more rendered unconscious, and we were attacked. You saw it happen!"

  "I saw nothing of the kind!" A gleam of avarice outshone the despondency in the bartender's eyes for just a moment, but long enough to show Torius the game he would play. The werejackals were long gone, so the only source of gold left was Torius. "These ruffians were loud and drunk and looking for a fight!"