Dragonfire

by Charles Jackson

  “My God, Nev, do you think you were the first person I tried to get? Why do you think you hadn’t seen me at all these last few months? I tried looking for older people to bring back… tried so hard to find someone – anyone – with intelligence in that Godforsaken town of ours. We have a TAFE, Nevaeh… a TAFE, for God’s sake… not even a proper university! Do you have any idea what it’s like trolling that campus in search of someone with even half a brain? ‘Technical And Further Education’ my bum: that was the last thing on the tiny minds of most of the men there, I can tell you…” she added with a shudder, remembering having to fend off their pawing hands on far too many occasions. “Although considering the general lack of intelligence, I’m amazed some of them even knew what sex was…!

  “In the end, I chose you because you were the only one I knew with even the slightest chance of being acceptable…” she continued, making a conscious effort to slow her words and lower her intensity as the door groaned under yet another assault. “Because if there was anyone I knew who could possibly impress these things, it was Nevaeh bloody Anderson…”

  “And now you want to help us escape out of the ‘goodness of your innocent, misunderstood little heart’… is that it…?” Nev sneered, not buying any of it.

  “Hardly…” Percy grinned, the deep scratches on her cheek a macabre sight as they twisted and deformed at the edge of a mirthless smile. “You ruined everything for me, but they did this to my face…” she explained, touching a finger tenderly against her wounds, “…and I’ll be damned if I’ll let them get you before I have my chance. Watching you die quickly would be no fun at all…” she continued, her toothy grin becoming decidedly evil and more than a little insane. “I want you to suffer first… at my hand… and in exchange for that, helping you escape these losers is a deal I’m happy to make.”

  “We could kill you right now,” Godfrey pointed out darkly as he staggered awkwardly around behind Lester, pulled back a large rug with his boot and found the trapdoor Percy had described. “Believe me: I’d lose not a wink o’ sleep over the doin’ o’ that deed…”

  “I love you too, gorgeous…” Percy replied with sweet sarcasm, noting that that small effort had already exhausted him as he almost collapsed against the desk. “Oh, if you could find the strength, I doubt you’d hesitate for a second,” she added, then nodded toward Nev who, in spite of her own rage and indignance, knew that every word Percy spoke next was completely and utterly true “…but she would. Nevaeh’s no killer, and ‘though you might be, you’ll do anything not to hurt her feelings… I can see that already…” she observed with an unpleasant smirk that might’ve had both of them blushing, had the circumstances been different.

  Another crash of a battering ram beyond the doorway, and this time the frame around the top corner cracked and pushed inward a centimetre or two, sending splinters flying into the room under the impact. Godfrey could see that door had perhaps one – maybe two hits left in it at the most, and that time had most definitely run out for pleasant conversation.

  “We need to go… now…”

  “How do we know she’s not lying?” Nev wavered, not ready to believe Percy just yet.

  “If she’s lying, then we’re in no more trouble than we are if we stay, are we…?” He pointed out tersely, crying out in pain as he used his good arm to haul the trapdoor open and let it fall backward with a loud bang against the floor. “Besides… I think this time she is telling the truth… it sounds crazy enough to be real…”

  “Crazy like you wouldn’t believe, babe…” Percy almost cackled then, backing away again until she was once more in the shadows.

  “You get down there first, then I’ll lower Toadface to you…” He suggested, distracted momentarily as Lester moaned and shifted in the chair. As little as the reaction was, it was nevertheless at least some sign that the boy might be improving. “…if there is a boat down there and we can get on it…” Godfrey went on, voice almost catching with emotion as relief surged through him “…they’ll have no chance of finding us in the darkness. It’s all we’ve got.”

  “I really should kill you…” Nev growled, knowing very well it wasn’t going to happen as her own hand instinctively touched the hilt of the katana at her waist.

  “Oh, you really should…” Percy agreed without hesitation. “Is that a real katana, by the way? Did the old man give you that?” She actually sounded impressed. “That crusty old fool is way cooler than I gave him credit for: samurai swords are so hot right now…!”

  “Nev, now…!” Godfrey warned, the door pushing away from the frame even further now with the next impact.

  “I hate you…!” Nev hissed finally, turning on her heels and sweeping up her duffel bag as she moved quickly to join Godfrey. Stretching her foot tentatively down into the open hatchway, she found the first rung of the narrow ladder below and began her descent with as much speed as she could muster.

  “You don’t know what hate is…” Percy muttered softly, glaring at Nev as she disappeared below the level of the deck.

  The ladder led down to a long, narrow platform enclosed on three sides and open at the far end, where Nev could faintly pick out the glint of the ship’s wake in the moonlight as it cut through the dark water. That being said, there was nowhere near enough light to see what she was doing and she immediately took out her phone and activated its torch app. With a wide beam of white light glaring from its rear-mounted flash, she was finally able to make out the rest of her surroundings.

  What she stood on was indeed a narrow platform perhaps a metre wide and twice that in length, beyond which was an empty space filled by the small, wooden boat Percy had mentioned, set on a pair of iron rails. It was mounted facing the same direction as Rapier and Nev quickly noted a large lever close to its starboard side, amidships, which appeared to be connected to the rails beneath. It took no great leap of logic to make the connection that a pull on that lever would drop the boat’s stern into the water rushing past below and allow it to slip out and away behind as the galleass continued on its merry way.

  Nev had to admit that the whole thing seemed quite ingenious. With a good wind, there’d be no chance of finding them on a dark night, and with a little good luck thrown in they might be well away before anyone even realised where they’d gone.

  “Is it clear…?” Godfrey called down in a hushed whisper, barely audible over the rustle of the water rushing away below the boat.

  “It looks okay… narrow, but okay…”

  “He’s coming down…” he warned loudly, and Nev quickly shrugged off her duffel bag and tossed it into the bow of the boat in preparation for Lester’s descent.

  She was surprised to find the boy climbing down of his own accord, albeit slowly and with a number of pauses as he rested for a few seconds at a time, breathing heavily as he waited for his head to clear. Nev waited patiently for him to reach the bottom, standing with feet braced apart as he descended and ready to catch him should he fall. Lester indeed missed his footing on the last step, but managed to catch himself as she leaped forward and carefully lowered his feet to the platform.

  “Good to have you back…” she grinned, and he gave a silent nod and a smile in return. He looked pale and worn out and weak as a kitten, but he was awake and clearly lucid, and that was enough to be thankful for, for the time being. “Hop in – we’re getting out of here!”

  He nodded again, and as he slowly tumbled himself over the side and into the boat, Nev glanced up toward Godfrey again just soon enough to see Godfrey’s rucksack plummeting down toward her. She caught it awkwardly in one hand, staggering a little close to the edge of the platform for her liking as she continued to wave the phone light around with the other, then tossed it into the bow next to her own.

  “Nice catch…” he offered with a weak smile, sliding one-handed down the ladder so quickly it could almost be classified as a fall and grunting at the pain that came with his landing as the heavy trapdoor slammed shut above them.

/>   “Do you trust her?” Nev asked warily, standing firm with hands on hips as Godfrey heaved himself into the boat behind Lester.

  “Not in the slightest,” he answered honestly, “but I believe her… in this case, at least. Anyway,” he added, his words interrupted by the muffled sound of a crash and the tromping of many boots above, “we’ve not much choice, as she pointed out. Any reckoning can be had later on if you’ve both a mind to, but right now we need to get as far away from here as we can…”

  “I know I’m going to regret this…” She growled, finally pushing aside her reservations and climbing into the boat ahead of the other two. There was a folded mast lying right down the centreline of the boat, a canvas sail wrapped and tied around it, and she found herself seated on the opposite side.

  “Regrets can be fixed…” Godfrey pointed out with a thin smile, lifting his eyes skyward as they all heard the creak and thud of the trapdoor once more being pulled back “…decapitations, not so much! Wanna hang on to something?” He suggested, working out the purpose of the lever on the starboard side as quickly as Nev had and grasping it with his good hand.

  “I already regret this…” she corrected, mostly muttering to herself as she dragged her duffel bag in between her legs to keep it secure and latched both hands tightly around the folded mast.

  With a nervous chuckle that was no reassurance whatsoever, Godfrey tensed his body against the agony he knew he was about to experience and hauled back on the lever for all he was worth. He cried out through clenched teeth as stabbing pain instantly flared through his wounded shoulder, yet the mechanism gave way with surprising ease for all that and the small boat instantly tipped downward at the rear, its stern hitting the water with a jolting splash.

  A marine dressed in leather armour and brandishing a short sword dropped through the trapdoor and landed heavily on the platform at that moment, followed quickly by a second, however the boat was already under control of the passing sea now, dragged by its stern as it jerked backward at speed and lurched out into Rapier’s wake as the warship carried on regardless.

  Another alarm was raised immediately, but it took time for news to travel from one end of a ship to the other and it was three full minutes before the crew had managed to lower the sails and stow the oars: Rapier continued on for more than a kilometre before she was able to completely slow down and come about. Cloud had completely obscured the moon by that time, leaving it no more than an indistinct, muted glow in the sky, and there was no hope whatsoever of spotting something as small as the sailboat against the backdrop of a dark sea.

  “Are you insane…?” Silas almost shrieked, advancing on Percy with a noticeable limp as guards stood on either side, restraining her tightly enough to make it uncomfortable. “Do you know what you’ve done, helping them escape…?”

  “Well, I’ve pissed you off for a start, so that’s some consolation…” She replied proudly, lifting her head in defiance and standing taller by a good half-head.

  “I’ll have you executed for this,” Baal snarled angrily, the agony he felt clear in his tone as he perched precariously on one corner of his huge desk and allowed the ship’s medic to splint and bind his broken arm. “Not quickly, though…” he added with a dark smile. “… I’ve no doubt our oarsmen would find great delight in filling your final hours with any number of tortures…”

  “You’ll do none of that, and you both know it,” she fired back without hesitation, more than ready to meet his gaze with one as cold as iron. “This crusty old turd has orders to bring me back to the cardinal in one piece, and he’ll follow those orders if it kills him! Disobey De Lisle, and it’s your life won’t be worth a pinch of crap!”

  “She speaks the truth…” Silas spat disgustedly, seeing no point in continuing with the charade. “She must not be harmed… not before the cardinal has done with her at least. After that…” he added, almost promisingly “…she’s yours to do with as you wish…”

  “I look forward to that…”

  “So do I, bitch…!” Percy shot back, never one to give an inch in an argument, regardless of the consequences.

  “Enough…!” Silas barked angrily as Baal leaped to his feet, fumbling for his sword with his left hand and grunting at the pain that instantly lanced through his right arm as the medic dived to once side. “Enough of this stupidity: it solves nothing! You…!” He continued, glaring at Percy now, taking a quick step forward and making her flinch in spite of herself. “They were trapped here! You’ve no love for the girl after what she’s done… why did you do this…?”

  “Now we’re asking the right questions,” she observed with an evil smile, pulling her arms free of the guards as Silas gave them a silent, grudging not of consent regarding her release. “Why did I help them escape?” She shrugged. “Partly just for shits and giggles, but mostly because if anyone’s going to make that bitch suffer for what she’s done, it’s going to be me and no one else!”

  “Revenge… I see…” Silas mused softly, his faint smile quickly became something far more dark and malevolent. “And for that revenge, you would willingly jeopardise everything The Brotherhood has been working toward for years. For this, you would risk everything we are…?”

  “Your Brotherhood… not mine…” she fired back with defiance, not about to let him stare her down. “I was promised power and title and riches beyond my wildest dreams, and I delivered…! The Blackwatch let her escape, and gave me up as the scapegoat when it all went down the toilet. Then you used that crystal to ruin my face and mess with my head… God knows what damage you’ve done in there.”

  “Your thoughts were filled with chaos and a thousand senseless images…” Silas shuddered, recalling in mild horror the wild and inexplicable things he’d seen in the thoughts of a 21st Century teenager.

  “Yeah…? Well don’t think for a moment I don’t know how much fun you get out of hurting people… especially young women,” she growled, sneering at him with disgust clear in her face and tone. “It’s a two-way street when you use one of those things on someone, and I saw the sick things that live in your mind too, so don’t get all sanctimonious on me, you dirty old bastard…!”

  ‘None of this is of any consequence,” he dismissed nervously, unsettled by the thought that someone might actually have looked into the dark corners of his thoughts and seen the ugly truths living there. “The only fact that remains is that you allowed – nay – helped them get away, and you’ve placed the entire Brotherhood in danger as a result. Cardinal De Lisle will need to know about this and I can promise you he will not look on your actions kindly.”

  “Shame you’re gonna have to wait ‘til you get to port to let him know, Nev having taken off with your crystal ‘n’ all, isn’t it?” She shot back with mocking sweetness. “I bet the cardinal will be rapt when he hears about that… and she’ll be long gone by then.”

  “The other witch will be caught, and she will die…” Silas stated with simple conviction.

  “Oh, she’ll die alright…” Percy agreed coldly, her eyes filled with hatred and vengeance “…but by my hand, not yours…”

  “The sail…!” Godfrey called urgently, not wasting a moment as he struggled to get his good arm under the lowered mast. “We need to get the sail up, now…!”

  Nev didn’t need any further urging. As quickly as she was able without tipping them over, she shifted position and added her strength to his as they both strained to raise the folded mast and slot it into its mounting socket at the centre of the boat. It slipped into place easily and Godfrey locked it securely with a large, steel pin.

  “You know how to sail…?” She asked breathlessly, sounding impressed as he rose awkwardly to his feet and began to unfurl the canvas.

  “They teach us a little bit of everything in the Oster…” he shrugged, allowing the sail to billow out and fill as the cool, night breeze surged around them out of the east. “Gotta get out of this area as fast as we can,” he continued, turning to cast a wary eye up at
a large moon half covered in cloud. They’ll never find us if we can get far enough away in this darkness… no, sit down, y’ silly bugger…! You’ll have us all in the drink with your carry on!” That last remark was directed at a weak and very woozy Lester, who’d automatically tried to stand up and help and had sent the boat rocking wildly in the process.

  The sail caught almost immediately, bulging as the wind propelled them forward. Godfrey seated himself at the rear and turned the tiller to starboard, bringing the sailboat around and turning her west beneath the cloudy sky.

  “How can you possibly know where you’re going?”

  “I don’t,” he shrugged again. “Not really… but if Rapier was headed to Bridgeport or George’s Town, which they had to be, then they were headed pretty much due south. That puts us pretty much in the middle of Deepwater Strait, so there’ll be no major islands or anything else likely to get in our way. Won’t be sunrise for a few hours yet I reckon, but we should be able to see the Huon coast when it comes and we can find somewhere safe to land then. Before that happens, I want to make sure we’ve put enough distance between us that when we do make landfall, it is somewhere safe. Come in too soon and we’ll still be in Baal’s territory… but if we can make it to Huon, I’ve got Oster contacts there who can help.”

  “And then what…?”

  “Then…?” He asked rhetorically, the faintness of the moonlight giving his face an eerie glow as he grimaced. “Not sure. The Southern Oster don’t usually concern ‘emselves with the politics of nations, but this alliance ‘tween Baal and Harald won’t be good for anyone. Need to check with the local command when we arrive, but I reckon we might need to have a talk to the king…”