Ritsuko touched his hair lightly as she pushed to her feet. She rested her hand on his head for a few seconds, and he closed his eyes, leaning into her touch. If matters weren’t so pressing, she would’ve stayed longer. Instead, she hurried off to summon the others.
Two hours later, she was in a skiff. Irahi trimmed the sails, carrying the small vessel away from the Gull. Mikani stood on deck, looking worried, and Ritsuko raised her hand partly in farewell, partly to reassure him that it would be fine.
“Thanks for coming with me,” she said.
“Someone has to keep you out of trouble.” Though his tone was light, his dark eyes were serious.
“That’s usually my job, with Mikani.”
“And you do it admirably. You’re a good influence on him.”
Ritsuko laughed as Irahi trimmed the sails, turning the skiff toward the harbor. Several hours later, the looming Magnus cruiser came into sight. It was a dark, overcast night with glimmers of the gibbous moon overhead trickling through the clouds in spatters of light that gave Irahi an odd aspect, reinforced by the lurch of the waves. The knots in her stomach tightened into tiny nooses when she contemplated all the ways this scheme could go wrong.
Magnus could clap me in irons. Chuck me overboard.
But there was no time for doubt. The Major General had to be stopped. There was no good reason for her to betray them to House Skarsgard or to be summoning elementals and slaughtering them. And she has so many soldiers at her command. Suppressing a shiver, Ritsuko accepted the doctor’s hand as he helped her stand.
“State your business,” the sentry shouted from the crow’s nest. “Failure to do so will get you shot out of the water.”
“I’m Inspector Ritsuko of the Gull. This is Dr. Irahi Hu. It’s urgent that we speak with Commander Magnus at once.”
“Hold your position. Comply, or we turn the cannon on you.”
Since she had no idea how difficult it was to control a sailing ship of this size, Ritsuko turned worried eyes to Irahi. “Is that a problem?”
“I can manage.”
A few minutes later, the man shouted, “I’m dropping a ladder. Board at once. The commander will see you.”
She didn’t feel much confidence as she took hold of the damp, slippery fibers and hauled herself up the side of the huge ship. Pings of pain accompanied the movements, but she couldn’t falter. Irahi was climbing behind her, and she swung over the deck railing first, hauled up by hard hands. Sailors stared at them, many wearing Magnus ink on their skin. A man pushed through the crowd to beckon impatiently.
“You don’t want to keep him waiting.”
The mate escorted them to the captain’s quarters and closed the door behind them. Viktor Magnus sat behind his desk, a pistol within easy reach. A man nearly Irahi’s size stood behind him, holding a carbine trained on them.
“Inspector. You people seem to attract trouble like carrion does vultures.” He regarded them with dark eyes, his mouth set in a grim line.
“We’re here to deal with it, Commander. I’m afraid that means that we’re only needed when there’s a mess to be tidied up.”
He laughed and held up a hand. His bodyguard put up his short rifle but did not take his eyes off them. “I’m sure that will make those Skarsgard bastards feel better about your shutting down their mines and sinking one of their frigates.” He stood and poured some wine into a couple of goblets. “Maybe you should come work for House Magnus. We can always use people with a talent for chaos.” He pushed one of the glasses toward her. “As long as we point you in the right direction, of course.”
“Thank you, Commander Magnus. I’m afraid we already have a job.” Hopefully we do. For now, anyway. “But we’ll bear your offer in mind, as long as it still stands after what I have to tell you. You see, we need your help. Lady Thorgrim has captured a significant number of air elementals, and we believe she’s planning to use them for something dire.”
He regarded her in silence for a moment. Then he called out, “Hergrim! Bring the Windworkers in here! Now!” He motioned for them to sit as he took his own chair.
“Commander—”
He caught her gaze and raised a hand, signaling that she should wait. We need his help. If he wants us to sit quietly, then we will.
Five long minutes later, the door opened. Two men came into the cabin, weatherworn and with the air of those who hadn’t slept in days. They could’ve been twins, lanky and with mousy, disheveled hair down to their shoulders that jingled lightly with the beads knotted into their braids.
“Tell them what you just told me.” Commander Magnus motioned to the men. Ritsuko took a deep breath and relayed what they had gleaned, from the mirror incident back in Dorstaad to Mikani’s findings.
“My lord,” one of the mages murmured, when she was finished. “That would explain why we’ve been forsaken by the winds.”
“If the bonds were broken, that’s what killed Yngrid, my lord.” The other weather worker mumbled a quiet prayer, then glanced at Ritsuko and Irahi. “Our eldest sister. We all felt a tearing pain deep within, when we were working our rituals last evening. She did not survive.”
“We mourn your loss. But this is just the beginning,” Ritsuko said somberly.
Viktor Magnus met her gaze. “What would you have me do?”
He knows, she thought. That this is over his head, too. If he wades into this fight, there will be consequences.
Taking a deep breath, she told him.
• • •
MIKANI CHECKED HIS sidearm and made sure the axe was strapped to his back. He gripped the railing when the Gull crested a wave. “Hells and Winter. This is a bloody stupid idea.”
“It’s your plan.” Saskia corrected their course, putting a little more distance between the Gull and captain Lev’s ship, the Deva’s Flight.
“Yes, well. Even more reason to think it’s bloody stupid, then, right?” He peered into the horizon. Dawn was fast approaching, the dark before the coming dawn staining the ocean jet and casting dark crimson shadows over the waters.
I hate ships. I hate the sea. I hate that Ritsuko’s not here.
“Trust me, Janus. If we had a choice, none of us would be doing this.”
She’s right, of course. Bronze gods know it took all her skill and reputation to get Lev, Olson, and Beales to agree to help us.
He glanced over his shoulder. A few hundred feet behind the Gull and Deva’s Flight, two other free merchantmen followed their lead.
“We’re all fools, that’s what we are.”
“They’re brave men.” Saskia’s voice was soft; he could barely make out her words over the rush of wind and waves. “And they know the stakes. Now get ready. I can see the lights of the headland.”
He narrowed his eyes and leaned forward. Three darker shadows bobbed into view. He pointed toward them. “I’d wager those are the Skarsgard ships.”
Saskia followed his indication, and frowned. “Then what are the others?”
“Complications.”
Their small squadron exchanged signals and barked orders, sliding into a single line as they neared Northport. With the rising sun, they could make out the Skarsgard frigates as they spread out on a broad front. Three barques, flying Thorgrim colors, had taken up formation behind the larger warships, plugging the gaps between. Four or five smaller sloops sailed at the far end of the formation, undisciplined and almost erratic.
Mercenaries. Which means they’re bristling with guns and probably boarding parties. Wonder where Thorgrim scrounged them up on short notice.
“All hands, ready for battle!” Saskia sounded scared, excited, and very much alive, just then. He unslung his rifle and watched as sailors slid down from the rigging and manned the Gull’s light cannons. “Here . . . we . . . go!” Saskia spun the wheel. The Gull bucked like a thing alive, heading for the smaller ships. The Skarsgard and Thorgrim ships turned more slowly, having to fight their own weight and the shifting morning winds.
For an endless time
, all that he could hear was the sea and the creak of the ship. Then they broached the mercenary line, and the world exploded around him in concussive thunder and the sharp stink of gunpowder.
The Free Merchant ships weaved through the loose sloop formation, firing their guns in tandem as they slipped between the smaller ships. The nearest Skarsgard frigate opened fire with a rippling line of crackling cannons; two found their mark, tearing ragged holes in the side of the Deva’s Flight. Most of them splashed harmlessly around the swiftly moving clippers, but one of the smaller mercenary ships exploded with a sudden and vicious flare. Debris rained all around them in a cloud of billowing smoke; when Mikani glanced back toward the burning wreckage, he saw that another of the sloops had caught fire from the explosion.
“That idiot must have been overflowing with powder. They’re like floating magazines just waiting for a spark.” Saskia turned away as the burning ship blew behind them. It was close enough to the Skarsgard frigate to cause some heavy damage, the flying fragments of burning wood and iron tearing a gash along the larger ship’s flank and nearly to the waterline.
“There’s your opening.” Mikani pointed at the crippled Skarsgard ship.
“And there’s your Inspector. And she’s bringing friends.” Saskia grinned and nodded toward the Magnus war cruiser, bearing down with full sails behind the Thorgrim and Skarsgard ships. The Pride opened fire with a full broadside that obliterated one of the smaller Thorgrim ships in a hail of hot iron and tore the mainmast off a second Skarsgard ship.
“That’s going to cause an incident back home.” Mikani grinned. If they’re here, Ritsuko’s safe and well. And, she managed to convince a House Magnus scion to possibly start a war. I really must be a bad influence.
“Idiot. Let’s survive this, then worry about politics.” Saskia laughed and turned her ship straight down the throat of their enemy. The nimble ship skipped over the waves, guns firing in staccato cracks of deafening sound. Mikani grabbed onto the railing and laughed with her, watching the other merchantmen converge on the wounded frigate like wolves. The lighter vessels danced closer, ripping the warship apart . . . a magazine exploded deep within the warship, rolling out a cloud of dark smoke over the debris-strewn waters.
The Gull slipped behind the remaining frigates as they turned to face the threat of the Pride. The Thorgrim barques were more stubborn, and two of them started chasing after them.
“You picked up a couple of suitors.” Mikani looked back toward the harbor; on the deck below, Ferro was already preparing the remaining longship. A dozen armed men helped push the slender craft to the side, ready to release it as soon as they came close enough to shore.
“I’m used to it. I won’t let them down easy, though. Now get to the skiff, find that Thorgrim wench, and give her hell.”
“You do know just what to say to a man. Keep safe, Saskia; you’re our only way home, after all.”
“Idiot. Go.” She laughed again, and he jogged for the skiff. He vaulted on board as Ferro gave the command to release the ropes; Mikani had to bite back a curse as his stomach lurched when the small skiff fell several feet into the churning waters around the speeding Gull.
He grabbed an oar as Ferro barked out their rhythm. For endless minutes, his world became the stinging sea spray and the strain of pulling against the waves. Ferro barked, they pulled. He started when they smashed with a grinding sound onto the rocky beach under a pier.
“Out, move, move, move!” Mikani rolled over the side and hefted his rifle. While Ferro’s men disembarked, he spared a look back toward the harbor. The Gull still had two ships chasing her, but one of them had already lost a mast and seemed to be listing. One of the merchantmen was burning as it limped out to sea with a mercenary sloop chasing it. The Pride of the North looked torn up but still eager for a fight; it was exchanging broadsides with the two remaining frigates in a brutal match of sheer firepower.
“Look.” Ferro slapped his shoulder, turning his attention down the beach with his characteristic lack of enthusiasm.
Two longboats slipped onto the beach a couple of dozen yards away. Thirty or forty heavily armed men in Magnus colors jumped ashore and scrambled to secure a line along the beach; three figures detached from the main body and headed toward them.
Ritsuko. Hu. And . . . hells. Viktor bloody Magnus.
His feet were moving before he made the decision to go to her. Mikani ran full out, splashing through the water. Somebody could shoot him in the back, and it wouldn’t matter. When she spotted him, she put on speed, too, breaking away from whatever Magnus was saying to her. He caught her and whirled her around; she was laughing and batting at him, but he didn’t put her down until he’d squeezed her tight.
“Worried about me, were you?” she whispered.
“It was a long time, at least eight hours.”
Viktor Magnus stepped up beside them, arching an imperious brow. “Did you think I’d have her beheaded?”
“No, but I thought you might use her as a bargaining piece with Thorgrim.”
“Some might make such a move. I prefer more straightforward engagements.”
Studying Magnus, Mikani could well believe that. Despite his noble blood, he had the look of a soldier. “I’m glad you’re on our side, then.”
Mr. Ferro and his men caught up with them. The Magnus guards gave the Free Merchant sailors dubious looks, but there was no dissent in the ranks. Just as well, we can’t afford any. The first mate skimmed Magnus up and down and seemed not to hate what he saw. That’s a first.
“If you’re through jawing, we need to get this force moving before they get bored and decide breaking windows and setting fires would be more entertaining.”
Magnus aimed a dark look at him. “My men have more discipline.”
“They’re sailors at heart.” Ferro spat as if to emphasize his point.
“I agree,” Ritsuko said. “It’s time to sack Northport.”
CHAPTER 31
RITSUKO SKIMMED OVER THE COLLECTIVE FORCES ASSEMBLED onshore, mentally tallying the number, and it was lower than she’d like.
Between Houses Skarsgard and Thorgrim, there would be at least a couple of hundred guards ordered to stop their progress by any means necessary. Irahi pressed his dagger into her hands, and she nodded a thank-you. Magnus had taken command of the ground forces, and he was going over last-minute stratagems—to the boredom and bemusement of most of the Free Merchant sailors. They had the sense not to interrupt, however, even if they weren’t interested in a quick lesson on tactics.
“We don’t have enough men to split our forces, or I’d send a diversionary force to throw them off. So we’ll have to move fast and push through the alleys to the Major General’s palace,” Magnus concluded.
Nobody questioned how he had come to be in charge. House scions that ended in the military turned one of two ways—they were either nebbish dilettantes bursting with ennui or born commanders, sure of their right to rule from the cradle. It seemed Viktor Magnus was the latter. He was also arming the men with some makeshift siege equipment, hastily constructed from ship beams and coils of rope.
Mikani stood beside her, weapons in hand. He looked somewhat recovered from before, but she still worried about the lasting effects of pushing his gift. As if sensing her eyes on him, he touched her arm, and she smiled. Not long now.
Lady Thorgrim couldn’t be permitted to bind all the elementals to her will. That kind of power was unthinkable in a single person’s hands. There was no end to the damage the Major General could cause. Eventually, if they didn’t stop her, the woman’s strength would be sufficient to force all the isles to bow before her.
“Let’s go,” Magnus shouted.
His House Guards led the way, with the Free Merchant sailors close behind. The alleys of Northport were narrow and choked with refuse. In some of them, the stench was so bad Ritsuko had to put away Irahi’s dagger and cover her nose and mouth with her forearm. It was impossible for fifty men, give or take, to m
ove silently, but Magnus hadn’t lied about his soldiers’ discipline. None of them broke off, though some of the sailors in the back were doing so.
Citizens stepping out their back doors to see the small force sweeping through went immediately back inside. Clever folk. It’s not a day to be abroad. Best to stay indoors until the dust settles. As they passed through town, she glimpsed the milkman on his delivery route and the baker heading into his shop. After the chaos of the past weeks, it was somewhat miraculous for Ritsuko to realize that the little civilities were still being tended—that somewhere, there was a pot of tea on the stove. That knowledge reinforced her resolve to see this through.
This is why we fight. For them. For those who can’t.
By creeping through Northport via back lanes, they emerged at the base of the hill leading to the Major General’s palace. There was no telling how many guards and mercenaries were waiting behind those solid stone walls. If reinforcements come from the docks, we’ll be caught betwixt anvil and hammer. But Viktor Magnus didn’t hesitate.
“To arms!” he called out.
And the motley squadron roared in response as they charged the gate. Irahi was on the wooden beam along with Magnus’s second in command; together, they slammed it into the gate. Once, twice, and the door shuddered, then cracked and gave. Two more hard strikes, and it broke wide, so that their forces charged past.
Gunshots rang out immediately, and Ritsuko dove. She rolled behind a hedge and got out her gun, bracing to fire. A sailor dropped beside her, a bloody hole in his chest. The daylight helped with target differentiation, and she aimed at the Thorgrim guard who’d killed Miss Braelan’s crewman. She shot him in the thigh, starting the count to keep track of her ammunition. Another rushed toward her; he had no pistol or he wouldn’t be trying to force a hand-to-hand fight. She drew her dagger and sliced his Achilles tendon, then she shot him as his leg crumpled under him.
That’s two.
In this scrum, it was impossible to find any of her friends, so she focused on staying alive. The defenders were frantic, and a couple tried to run, presumably to request reinforcements or maybe just to hide, but Magnus’s soldiers had no compunction about shooting them in the back. Ritsuko told herself it was necessary . . . and did the same when one of the men taking aim at her broke and fled toward the manor. It sickened her when he stumbled and dropped, but everything about this situation did.
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