by David Talon
Selene gently pried his hand off her face and held it in both of hers. “Captain Hawkins, I am a courtesan of Venice. Now, I have a question to ask Jade, if I may?” He nodded, and she continued. “Plato, in his discourse on Atlantis, mentioned they had great Artifacts that had been ancient even in their day, terrible machines of war that had brought down their civilization.” She closed her eyes as if trying to recollect the words. “He wrote: ‘Each one had a sorcerer of Atlantis inside it, the man becoming the machine as if it was his own form, and the earth trembled as they fought’.” Selene opened her eyes. “Scholars have always thought Plato was wrong or being fanciful, but in light of what you said about this Long-Mu becoming part of the ship...”
“I’m not a True Dragon or even a part of one,” I blurted out, the knot of fear twisting itself inside of me as the implications of what Jade had said about me began to sink in. “I’m just an apothecary’s apprentice.”
Captain Hawkins let go of Selene, grabbed me by the front of my ruffled shirt and spun me around, pushing me backwards until the small of my back met the deck rail. “”You’re not an apothecary anymore. What are you?”
My wits ran like rats for a moment...then the rats began running together. “I’m your apprentice, sir.”
He kept his grip on my shirt. “That’s right. You may know apothecary, you may know how to physic the men, you may know how to do a thousand things I’ll find useful, but you’re my apprentice. I don’t give a half-penny what your true nature is, as long as it serves my needs. Are we clear?”
For some reason his words loosened the knot of fear inside me, and I made myself stand straighter. “Aye, sir.”
A ghost of a smile touched his lips as he let me go. “So, we keep your parentage a secret between the five of us.” I glanced at Ezekiel, who nodded back as the captain continued. “Eventually the truth will come out, but by that time a want a better crew than the one I’ve got now, armed with Artifact weapons.”
Mr. Smith’s voice rumbled, “We need men willing to take on a ship full of Shadowmen.”
As Captain Hawkins rubbed a hand through his hair he looked weary enough to sleep for a year. Then his face became stern again. “Agreed, although I believe the Draco Dominus more likely to be our foes. But we say nothing of this either until we reach Tortuga and the crew is released.”
Selene came up beside the captain. “What are your plans for me when we get there?”
Captain Hawkins looked her up and down for a long moment before regretfully shaking his head. “I’d keep you aboard if I could, and not just for your obvious charms. But your presence would become too great a distraction to the crew. So, when we reach Tortuga, I’ll release you to make your way in the New World as best you can.”
Selene gave him a wary look. “Just like that?”
Captain Hawkins gripped her chin again. “Make no mistake: you will pay for your passage both with your favors and with your wits, from this moment until we reach Tortuga. Are we clear?”
Once again Selene gently removed his hand from her face, but this time she carefully kissed his palm. “I will enjoy paying your price. What do you desire of me first?”
“Your wits,” he said at once, pulling his hand away. “Tell me of events in the Olde World, beginning with the reason you’re on board the Davy and not drinking wine in the marbled halls of Venice with courtiers and fools.” He glanced at me. “Speaking of wine, get one of the bottles we took from your cabin and placed in mine, along with the one wineglass. Take your time; I’ve things to ask Tomas which need be done without your presence.”
I saw a flash of irritation cross Selene’s face, quickly masked as she gave him a deep curtsy. “As you wish, sir.”
Selene glided away and we watched her go, Mr. Smith joining us as she walked down the steps. Then Captain Hawkins turned to me. “Jeremiah told me you speak French.” I gave the captain a wary nod and he said, “Tell me what Jean Le’Vass said to the Buccan, down in the hold.”
“Master Le’Vass told the Buccan to bide their time. He said the Olde World would pay a good price for me.”
Captain Hawkins nodded, not looking the least bit surprised as he looked at Mr. Smith. “That’s about what I expected, although it seems he neglected to add the part where he turns the Buccan in to the French court to be arrested for being rebels and Huguenot heretics.”
Mr. Smith chuckled. “I’m sure it was just an oversight.”
“No doubt,” the captain said dryly. “So, when does he make his move?”
“He needs the Buccan with him, but right now he can’t be sure of their loyalty. But if Le’Vass waits too long he loses his chance when we reach Tortuga, and the crew’s dissolved.” Mr. Smith noticed my confused look. “A member of the crew can call for a vote of confidence in the captain at any time. If the vote fails, the crewmember is left behind on the next island the ship passes by, but if the vote passes, then the captain’s the one banished... though it’s usually an execution, or a fight to the death.”
I gaped at Mr. Smith. “But...he’s the captain!”
“This isn’t the navy of England or the Draco Dominus,” Captain Hawkins said, “but free men governed under a set of Articles all agree upon before setting sail. If Jean Le’Vass wants to press for a vote of no confidence, it’s within his right.”
Still holding the tiller steady, Ezekiel said, “Tomas’ mam, she not like that. You de captain, and she not gonna let you go.”
Captain Hawkins shrugged. “If Jean and the crew take my life, she won’t have much choice.”
Ezekiel shook his head. “Alive, dead, de White Lady never letting you go.”
The captain gave Ezekiel a dark look as an unsettling thought crossed my mind. “Jade, how much is Long-Mu actually aware of?”
“She is aware of everything that happens aboard the ship, and before you ask, she cares not about the matters of nature which are part of everyday life.”
“Does that include Pepper?”
Jade’s voice grew amused. “Your true mother was an extremely carnal woman within the bounds of the sacred vows she swore to the men and women in her life, and she expects no less from her son...once the betrothal is in place, that is.”
My mouth hung open a moment before I shut it with a click, while Mr. Smith chuckled. “Long-Mu sounds like a very different person than Jeremiah described Johanna. Pepper will be pleased.”
“Long-Mu has listened to Pepper’s tales, including the ones she has only told Sally, and feels sympathy for the girl. She approves of the match between Pepper and her son.”
“I’m so happy to hear it,” Captain Hawkins said sarcastically. “Have you any idea what she is planning now that her son is aboard?”
“When she confides in me I shall confide in you,” Jade answered. Captain Hawkins gave the spot her voice came from a dark look, but Jade only said, “Selene is coming.”
A moment later Selene appeared at the top of the stairs leading up to the quarterdeck, a bottle of green glass in one hand and a glass goblet in the other, as she stopped. “Am I interrupting?” Captain Hawkins waved her forward and she glided towards us, stopping in front of the captain to hold out the goblet in front of him. Taking it from her hand, he held it up to the light of the dragon-globe hanging off the stern. The goblet had a wide mouth and a stout stem, its glass clear except for a band of blue around the rim and the base and stem. “There were more of them,” Selene said as the captain lowered the wineglass and she began filling it full of wine a rich, red color, dark as blood, “but in the mad scramble to escape the assassins this was the only one I could rescue.” She poured in a long practiced style, twisting the bottle at the end so it wouldn’t dribble. A note of sadness entered her voice as she handed the green bottle to Mr. Smith, who held out his hand for it. “This goblet was Bartholomew’s favorite.”
Captain Hawkins took a swallow as Mr. Smith took a pull off the bottle, and to my su
rprise handed it to me as the captain said, “Tell me about him, and the entire incident.” He handed her the goblet. “Storytelling’s thirsty work,” he added, his eyes watching me as I took a cautious sip from the bottle. The wine was more sour than sweet but I caught echoes of the fruit used to craft it, and decided I could get to like it. But Captain Hawkins pointed at Mr. Smith and I regretfully handed the bottle back.
Mr. Smith gave me a look of amusement as Selene took a delicate sip and gave the goblet back to the captain. “Bartholomew always said ‘politics is gambling, but with higher stakes’. I told him, in time all gamblers lose, but he would not listen.” Selene then began speaking of important people I’d never heard of, in Venice, Milan, and in Rome herself, all of them involved in the last papal election.
I quickly got lost in all the intrigue, but it seemed Bartholomew had uncovered incriminating evidence against the man who was now pope, and had used it during the election to try and help another man get elected, a cardinal from Venice. I was perplexed, for Belle-M’ere had told me the pope was chosen according to God’s will, but God seemed to have very little with the process, at least according to the way Selene described it. Captain Hawkins handed her the goblet, and she drank as he grimaced. “So, you’re saying the Draco Dominus secured the election for Pope Gregory, which in turn means he owes them a huge debt. If those bastards are given a freer hand, it will bode ill for us.”
Selene handed the goblet back to him. “Perhaps not, for I believe the Olde World shall keep the order occupied for a time.” She began to speak of the rivalries between England, France and Spain, of the Holy Roman Empire (which from her words seemed neither holy, nor Roman, nor much of an empire, for that matter), and of the rekindled ambitions of the Turks, somewhere to the east. Both the captain and Mr. Smith asked her questions, Mr. Smith’s focused on trade and how much attention the powers of the Olde World would spend on the New, while the captain seemed more interested in their politics. Selene seemed to understand what they wanted answered, going into an area as deeply as they wished.
Mr. Smith handed me the bottle again, but before a could take a sip Captain Hawkins held out the now empty goblet and I poured the same way I’d seen Selene, twisting the bottle at the end so it wouldn’t dribble...or dribble much, as it did anyway. Captain Hawkins didn’t seem to notice as he took a swallow of wine, and I snuck a sip off the bottle as he turned his attention to Mr. Smith, who remarked, “Of all the treasures we pulled off that Dutch tub, I believe you’re more valuable than all the others put together.”
Selene smiled and inclined her head to him as the captain glanced at the tall, tattooed African and back again. “Agreed. Is there any chance Bartholomew survived? I imagine he’d move heaven and earth to have you back again.”
Selene shook her head as she looked down at the deck. “Bartholomew gave his life so I could escape. We had warning, and he had arranged passage for the entire household on one of his ships. But Draco Dominus assassins caught us on the docks and blew up the ship before we could board. Bartholomew found a skiff for my aunt and I, ordering his strongest Dragon, a Northman named Jarl, to guard us.” Selene’s eyes met the captain’s. “As Jarl’s dragon-spirits gave us the wind so we could escape, I watched as the assassins disemboweled Bartholomew and burned his insides with quickfire. No one will ransom me...well, alive, anyway.”
Captain Hawkins folded his arms over his chest. “Where is this Jarl now?”
“The assassins picked up our trail just before we boarded the Queen Anne’s Regret, but again we had warning, and Jarl remained behind to ambush those pursuing us. Of his fate I know naught.”
A thought struck me, but I wasn’t sure Captain Hawkins would welcome me adding to the conversation. “Permission to speak, sir?”
A wry smile touched the captain’s lips as he unfolded his arms. “Now that’s something I don’t hear very often. Say on, Tomas.”
“What about the Draco Magistris? Alfonzo once told me the two orders are like rival brothers vying for their father’s attention, and are always looking to outdo the other. They might pay gold for the knowledge.”
Selene gave me an exasperated look. “Tomas, it’s the father who the knowledge is about. They cannot very well use the knowledge they paid for against him.”
“But they might pay to know,” Captain Hawkins said, taking the goblet from Selene as he seemed to mull the matter over. “Knowledge is power, and even if they cannot use the knowledge right away, they might still pay to learn it.”
“Tiberius has factors in Tortuga,” Mr. Smith said. “It would risk nothing to inquire.”
Captain Hawkins glanced at him. “Nothing to Mistress Selene, you mean.” He turned back to her. “I will leave the decision in your hands. It may well gain you more than gold, for Tiberius might well grant you sanctuary to keep the knowledge safe. But that will be your choice to make.”
“Regardless,” Mr. Smith said as he extended his hand for the bottle, which I handed back, “Tomas deserves a reward for using his wits.” Mr. Smith took a long swallow then handed the bottle back. “Finish it,” he said, which surprised me since there was at least half a goblet left inside, “I’ve drunk enough.” He took a deep breath of the salt air blowing in our faces. “We should be reaching land soon, unless I miss my guess.”
“In a quarter-hour,” Jade answered.
“Then I’d best roust the crew, at least those still sober enough to haul a line. Jade, will you scout out a good landing place for us, somewhere close to the village?”
“Gladly,” she replied, “but who will call out the depths as the ship gets close?”
“I’m going to teach Star how to do it,” he said in his deep rumble. “She seems the brightest of the six.”
“Bide a moment,” Captain Hawkins said. “Maccabee, pull your six, one by one, and have them drink from Tomas. Jade, when they’re finished you drink as deep from him as you safely can. I want to take a few days on the island to make Artifact weapons.”
“We don’t have the tools or the skills to make muskets,” Mr. Smith said.
“Jeremiah has the skill,” I said. Captain Hawkins gave me a questioning look and I nodded. “His former master had the two of us make Artifacts, including weapons, and Jeremiah learned how to make guns from the royal governor’s armorer, which Smoke transmuted into Artifacts.”
“Did they work?”
I nodded. “We once made an Artifact musket for the governor himself, a very ornate piece with a lot of detailed carving, and Alfonzo fired it a dozen times before he gave it to his lord. It became the governor’s favorite weapon to hunt with.”
“For now I’m more interested in swords and pikes,” the captain said, “but we should invest in some tools when we reach Tortuga...if Jeremiah still remembers how to make guns.”
“You’ll need to make him the ship’s armorer if he does,” Mr. Smith said, “which means an extra share or more of the plunder.”
“We’ll discuss that when we put together a crew for the next voyage.” Captain Hawkins’s eyes met mine. “For now, I want Tomas so drained he will think of naught but his bed when Jade’s done.”
“I still say that’s not fair,” Pepper’s voice called out. I looked past the captain to see the redheaded girl bound up the stairs, her bare feet thumping on the grey-wood deck as she raced towards us. Captain Hawkins turned around as she reached us. “Sir, I claim mistreatment, as it states in the Articles...”
“I’m not mistreating you in the least...only Tomas, who as my apprentice I may mistreat to my heart’s content.” He gave her a sardonic smile as he folded his arms over his chest. “Once you’re betrothed you may have carnal knowledge of him to your heart’s content...but not until.” He turned to Mr. Smith. “If you will begin?” Mr. Smith called out to Star, and a moment later I felt delicate fangs pierce my arm as a mermaid in the main sail went still. “Samuel,” Captain Hawkins called out over Pepper’s shoulde
r, “how do you read the crew?”
Samuel walked up beside Pepper, with Jeremiah joining me, wrinkling his nose as I offered him a sip from the bottle, before holding up his own wooden cup filled with what smelled like rum. We both took a drink off our respective vessels as Samuel adjusted his spectacles. “You mean over the whole question of Pepper’s betrothal? The Africans will follow Mr. Smith and the Frenchmen Master Le’Vass, except for the Buccan...although I believe they’re leaning his direction, for all that he’s a Papist.”
Captain Hawkins grimaced. “What about the Mulattoo and his men?”
“He’s with you, sir,” Pepper said. “Before I came topside with Jeremiah and Samuel, he took me aside to tell me what he’d always wanted to do to me, and I told him if he ever tried it I’d set his cock on fire.”
“What did he say?”
“Laughed and wished me well. He said I was the Davy’s luck regardless of who’s having carnal knowledge of me.”
Captain Hawkins seemed to relax a little as Mr. Smith asked, “What does he think of Tomas?”
For the first time since I’d met her, Pepper seemed hesitant. “I’m not sure. I think the Mulattoo’s still trying to decide whether he likes Tomas or not.”
Jeremiah bent over to speak quietly in my ear. “The Mulattoo’s a pirate captain we came across being overwhelmed by the Draco Dominus. We defeated the bastards and saved all we could of the Mulattoo’s crew, who became part of ours. His men follow him fanatically.”
I nodded as the captain continued speaking. “What about the rest?”
Star finished and another dragon-ghost took a spot on my opposite arm as Samuel answered. “As long as Sally’s happy and Pepper’s not leaving, they really don’t care. Pepper’s too skinny for most of them, anyway.” Pepper glared at him as she put her hands on her hips, but Samuel only chuckled. “That’s a lucky thing for you as well as the captain. The way I read things, no one has enough support to challenge your leadership, good sir.” He turned toward the bow of the ship. “Now, I need to find Khan...oh, Pepper, you need to come as well.”