by David Talon
“I imagine so,” I said, uncertain how to respond. “So...where’s Sally now?”
“Helping with dinner. After we bathed you, Sally said I should stay and keep watch so you wouldn’t wake up alone in a strange place.”
I froze in shock. “After you...”
“Bathed you, of course,” she answered. “You were too exhausted to wake, let alone bathe yourself, and Sally wanted to make sure you weren’t afflicted with a pox of some sort, even though I assured her you were healthy. Sally’s treated me like a younger sister ever since the first night she sang me to sleep in this hammock.” My face grew hot and Pepper giggled. “You are so sweet I could eat you like sugar cane. Tomas,” she went on in a slightly exasperated tone, “I’m a Dragon and a healer; I saw nothing I haven’t seen a hundred times before, either helping Samuel or back when I was a sister to the Draco Magistris in Campeche.”
I took a deep breath to regain my scattered wits, remembering something Alfonzo had once said. I’d told him I wished I could meet a girl who was forward in speech and manner, and he’d said, ‘Be careful what you pray for, lad, in case the Almighty is in a jesting mood’. “Pray forgive me, mistress, but I think you’ve seen more of the world than I have.”
“I know I have,” she answered with a knowing smile, “since Jeremiah told me all about you while you slept.” My wits scattered themselves like mice again as she looked at me for a long moment. “It’s strange how the world works. I had a lover my first night at the fortified monastery in Campeche, but according to Smoke you’ve never had one...well, human, anyway.”
I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. “But Lord Tiberius is head of the order in Campeche. The time he came out to examine me and renew my license, he gave me a stern lecture about the evils of falling into lust.”
In the presence of Belle-M’ere and Gran-Pere, too, although I decided to leave that out as Pepper giggled again. “He used to occasionally give us the same lecture, and we’d all be good for at least a few days afterwards. But they knew, Lord Tiberius and all the Elder Dragons of the order, and as long as we were discreet they turned a blind eye.” At my look of shock she only shrugged. “Dragons are always more attracted to each other than they are to normal folk, and we kept our affairs among ourselves. The only times that changed was when one of us was about to go into heat. Then we had normal folk practically lining up to lay with us, immorality or not.”
“Alfonzo told me about that,” I admitted. “He said a woman bearing a Dragon-child could lift her entire family up out of destitution.”
“Or an entire town,” Pepper said, giving me a shrewd look. “St. Augustine became a stronger place because of what you did...and the girls spat on your shadow.” It was my turn to shrug as she sadly shook her head. “I can’t imagine growing up like that.”
“Where did you grow up?”
“I was born to an Irish Dragon, who gave me my fiery hair despite what Dava says,” she said with a smile. “She was known as ‘Red-hand Meg’, on account of her fierceness in battle, and she served with the English Dragon, Francis Drake.”
I gaped at her despite myself. “As in the ‘Red Dragon of England’, that Francis Drake?”
”One and the same,” Pepper replied. “Captain Hawkins, Mr. Smith and Dava all served with him too, which helped me establish myself so well aboard the Davy, since my mother had evidently been well liked. Anyway, once the Spanish Armada had been broken and Drake took a position at court, my mother returned to the New World and turned pirate...at least until I was born.” She looked past me. “I don’t remember much about her, except the world seemed to come alive again whenever she returned from one of her adventures. She loved me with all her heart, I do remember that.”
Pepper sighed. “Then Francis Drake returned to the New World. As Dava tells the tale, he was searching for a woman fleeing from a land called China, a Dragon he’d met when he sailed his ship, the ‘Golden Stag’, around the world many years before. Olde Roger had picked up her trail in the great south sea and somehow she’d managed to send Drake a message, letting him know she was in trouble. At the time we were living on an island called ‘Three-day’, and my mother had given up the roving life to settle down with me among the natives. But when Francis Drake’s ship pulled in to gather provisions, he convinced her to go with him on one last adventure: to help protect this Dragon from Olde Roger, in exchange for a share of the treasure the woman’s ship carried.
“But my mother never returned. Olde Roger caught up with the Chinese Dragon just off the Carolina coast, and they were locked in a great sea battle when the Golden Stag and the Blackjack Davy came upon them and joined in the fight. Dava will tell the story in all its bloody detail if you ask him, but in short: the Golden Stag, the Davy, and the other two ships, both sloops, sunk what remained of Olde Roger’s fleet, although the sloops went down as well. Olde Roger was forced to flee on the back of an Artifact golem and no one’s seen him since.”
I asked quietly, “Was your mother on one of the sloops?”
Pepper nodded. “Drake had a sloop he’d taken as a prize from the Spanish, and gave my mother her captaincy. My mother renamed her ‘Promise’, for as Dava tells it, she’d promised to come home to me when the adventure was over, although I don’t remember it.”
I carefully sat down on the hammock beside Pepper. “I’m sorry.”
She shrugged. “She left me in good hands. The headwoman of the village we’d lived in was named Silver Heart, and when the news came of my mother’s death she took me in as her own child. There was a Franciscan missionary who taught school at another village close by, and when I was old enough Silver Heart sent me there to learn, although she made sure I always had an escort there and back, since a Dragon, even a young one, was too valuable for the village to lose.”
“But they did eventually.”
“The monk told his abbot, who told Lord Tiberius, and eventually I was brought to Campeche.” Pepper smiled. “Lord Tiberius was crafty, for he sent his daughter Maria, who is a Dragon, not only talented but beautiful as well, and she made serving the Draco Magistris seem nothing short of magical.” Her smile turned to an infectious grin. “Of course it wasn’t, but I did quickly learn of the pleasures of the flesh, which made up for the hard work and studying.”
I found I was not only getting over my shock but becoming intrigued. “So who was the lover you had the first night in Campeche?” Her face fell and I became alarmed. “Pepper, I’m sorry; you don’t have to tell me if you wish not to.”
Pepper was already shaking her head before I finished speaking. “It’s not that I don’t want you to know, it’s just...” She took a deep breath. “Tomas, can you keep a secret, even from Jeremiah?”
I thought about the night before his sister Rebekah left for Campeche. She’d kissed me hard in a shadowed spot in our garden, away from all eyes except Smoke’s, Rebekah’s way of telling me goodbye. “There are definitely things I don’t tell Jeremiah.”
She nodded, her gaze fixed on the hands in her lap. “You have to understand, Three-day village was occasionally visited by the Bo, and some of their ideas about love have been adopted by the villagers. I didn’t know love between women was considered unnatural until I reached Campeche, so when Victoria slipped into my bed the first night, I thought nothing of it.”
I was shocked anew...until a more disturbing thought crossed my mind. “The woman who changed back from a harpy, Captain Thorne called her Victoria.”
“We were travelling together on a Spanish galleon bound for Spain. Both of us were seventeen, and the mother house wanted us to become fertile for the first time under their roof, so we’d produce strong Dragons born in service to the order.”
“Born in service...but the child would’ve been yours.”
Looking up at me, Pepper gave me a sad smile. “There were many things Maria didn’t tell me before I joined Draco Magistris, including the status of chi
ldren born to their Dragons. But the matter became of no consequence, for a storm hit the convoy and our ship was separated from the others. We somehow stayed afloat, although we lost some of the crew, but no sooner had the galleon dropped anchor at an island to take stock of our situation when two sloops carrying Shadowmen set upon us. The captain didn’t give up without a fight, and his cannon-fire took out one of the sloops. But not before the Shadowmen of both ships had swarmed aboard.” Her voice grew bitter for a moment. “If we’d been trained as fighting Dragons, the crew might’ve stood a better chance. But Victoria and I were healers. Captain Thorne took the galleon for his own ship, leaving his sloop to Captain Scab, whose own sloop had sunk. Captain Scab was none too happy.”
I reached out to gently squeeze Pepper’s shoulder. “Nor were you, I imagine.”
She pressed her cheek against my hand a moment before I let go, Pepper’s eyes locked on mine as she continued. “That’s a fair assumption. Captain Scab was bitter for a Shadowman, demanding I work for him like a normal Dragon, instead of letting the Dark Sisters work on me, which was the only reason I held on as long as I did. But the things I saw...” She took another deep breath. “I’ll spare you the details, except to say I was ready to give myself to the Dark Sisters when Captain Cholula showed up. Cholula broke me down, making me go over every horrible experience until there was nothing left to hide.” Her look became a knowing one. “Smoke told me and Jeremiah everything that happened to you over the last few days, including your encounter with the Draco Dominus.”
I was off the hammock in a heart’s beat, Pepper holding on as it swayed wildly for a moment. “But they still want me. If the captain finds out, and decides to sell me for gold...”
“Nobody’s going to sell you to anyone,” Pepper said, wincing as she slid off the hammock and stood up. “Tomas, pray cease thinking like a landsman, because everyone on the Davy’s got a price on their head... even me.”
“You? But...you’re a Dragon of the Draco Magistris. Lord Tiberius...”
“Will burn me as a heretic when he learns what I plan to do.” Pepper glided up to me until she was but a handbreadth away. “I asked all the dragon-ghosts to stay away while I spoke to you alone, and they agreed.”
“How can you be sure? I mean, I’ve never been able to keep Smoke away when she thought I was doing something interesting, even if it meant she stayed completely quiet.”
“Because I can see dragon-ghosts now,” Pepper answered in a matter-of-fact tone. “The Dark Sisters twisted my mind so I can see some of the unseen world, though not all of it or I’d be a gibbering idiot by now. There are no dragon-ghosts anywhere close to hear what we say, so,” making an inviting gesture toward the deck with her hand, “pray sit with me so we may speak...please?” I did as she bade, keeping my back against the side of the cabin as I sat down and crossed my legs. Pepper joined me, her body a mirror image of mine as she spoke. “While you lay fast asleep, and Jeremiah and I had learned all that had happened to you, he left and I opened my heart to Smoke. She, in turn, opened her heart to me.” Pepper gave me a sardonic smile. “It’s your own fault she’s so deep in love with you.”
My face grew hot again as I closed my eyes. “I know it is. But I couldn’t resist the temptation of having her become all the girls of St. Augustine I would never know in a physical way.” I sighed as I opened my eyes. “I never knew it meant anything to Smoke until a few days ago.”
“Well, now you know, as do I.” Pepper cocked her head slightly. “I can’t imagine growing up the way you did, but at least I understand why Smoke’s so important to you.” She put her hand on my knee as she leaned forward. “I want you to know what we’ve all decided is not going to take Smoke away from you, not permanently.”
“What do you mean, take Smoke away from me,” I said in alarm.
“Smoke’s agreed to become my dragon-ghost, as Jade’s going to become yours.” I gaped at her in shock and Pepper squeezed my knee. “Captain Hawkins has already made it official. Smoke’s still going to draw strength from you, since neither I nor Master Khan has the strength to give that you do, but she’s going to protect me until the Dark Sisters who had me find me again...which they will, soon.”
My wits were scattered like mice again. “None of this makes sense. Why would Smoke would want to leave me?”
“Because I showed her the vision Eldest showed me. I can’t speak mind to mind like the dragon-ghosts do, but I can give them my memories, and the visions placed in my mind. Smoke and Jade both saw what I saw, and they agree with me: Eldest’s interpretation of the vision is not the only one.”
“Pepper,” I said carefully, for if she was as mad as her words seemed to imply, I didn’t want to get her upset, “what vision are you speaking of?”
She reached out a hand to touch my cheek. “My vision of you. I saw you on the deck of the Dutch ship as you were this morning, wearing the same wild grin you had in Eldest’s vision. The rest of the vision is hazy, although it did show the Dark Sister’s marking me again, and hunting me down until they found me. It also showed me merged with a dragon-ghost, both of us one flesh and one spirit, which Eldest took to mean I would be merged with her. But Jade’s been around longer than any other dragon-ghost, and she thinks I’ll already be merged permanently with one of her younger sisters before that happens.”
Suddenly it was all clear to me. “You want to permanently merge with Smoke,” I said leaning forward. “Pepper, this is madness! You’ll be condemning yourself to only a few more years of life for what, the ability to light fires with your fingers?” A thought struck me...and suddenly I felt ashamed. “That isn’t it at all, is it? You want to keep the Dark Sisters from claiming you first, and you feel merging with Smoke’s the only way to keep that from happening.” She nodded with a sad expression on her face, and I took the hand caressing my cheek with both my own. “But what if the vision is wrong, or takes place years from now or...”
Pepper took her free hand and placed her forefinger over my lips to quiet them. “If I could place it in your mind like I did for Smoke, you’d understand. Once the Dark Sisters have marked me, the sands of the hourglass begin spilling out and I don’t know how long I’ll have. Smoke said you’d try and argue me out of it.”
Pepper took her finger away and I grumbled, “I’m not doing very well.”
She smiled. “It warms my heart you’re trying. Did Sally kiss you?” My wits scattered like mice again as she gave me a knowing look. “From the way you’re blushing, I’ll take it your answer is yes.” I let go of her hand, and in turn she put a hand on each of my thighs as she leaned forward. “Don’t worry: Sally knows you belong to me now.”
“That’s going to go hard with the crew,” Jeremiah’s voice said from the doorway. Pepper and I both turned our heads to look at him. He stood in the now open doorway with a white shirt in one hand, which he tossed at me as he continued. “At the beginning of every voyage we sign a set of Articles; the laws of the ship so to speak, and they clearly state that Pepper shall have no carnal knowledge of any member of the crew.” He gave her a sardonic smile. “The humans of the crew, anyway.”
“The captain and I have already discussed it,” Pepper said as she took the shirt from my hands and held it up. “Good; this is exactly the one I wanted you to have.” She stood up with a graceful motion, beckoning for me to join her. “Stand up and put it on.”
As I got to my feet she held it out for my inspection. It was fancier than any shirt I’d ever owned in my life, with long sleeves and a ruffle in the front...along with a faded bloodstain on one side, neatly stitched. I motioned towards the spot. “It would seem this shirt’s last wearer was unluckier than most.”
“That’s the nature of life,” Jeremiah said cryptically. “We make our own luck and enjoy every day, for the morrow may bring our death.” He grinned at me then, adding, “Put it on: I want to see how it looks.”
I took it from Pepper an
d slipped it on. The shirt was made for a larger man, and hung a little loose on my frame, but otherwise it seemed a good fit. As I buttoned the whalebone discs underneath the ruffle and tucked it into my white trousers, Pepper rummaged around the cabin until she found a blue sash the color of the captain’s coat. She looped it a couple times around my waist and tied it off in the back. “There,” she said as she stepped back, “now you look like a proper pirate.”
I couldn’t help but give them both a wry smile. “I don’t feel much like a pirate.”
“Give it time,” Jeremiah said, his face growing serious as he looked at Pepper. “Will you give me a moment to speak with Tomas?”
Pepper gave him a direct look. “I know what you wish to say, so let me say it for you. Tomas,” Pepper turning her gaze upon me, “Pepper is daft, but the crew is fond of her. So play along until she becomes obsessive about something else and forgets about you, while keeping any carnal knowledge of her away from the crew.” She folded her arms as she turned to Jeremiah. “Did I leave anything out?”
Jeremiah folded his arms in response. “No, you pretty much summed up what I was about to say. The cross-currents among the crew are bad enough right now without adding the storm that’s going to erupt when the crew learns of your intentions.”
“The captain’s got a plan,” Pepper shot back.
“I’ll be interested to hear it,” Jeremiah said skeptically, before motioning towards the doorway. “If you want a last view of your old life, the Davy’s getting ready to sail.”
I made myself square my shoulders as I pushed down the knot of fear creeping into my belly and followed Jeremiah out the door, Pepper at my heels as we stepped out onto the main deck. The sky above us was darkening as the sun dipped below the horizon off our starboard side, narrow clouds like sunset’s banners heralding the end of the day. Some of the crew were on deck, either in the rigging or talking in groups among themselves. The baldheaded pirate with the gold tooth looked at me and whistled. “Look, it’s the Prince-o-the-Pirates!”