by Jon F. Merz
Quickly, Ran dove back down and toward the bearded man’s skiff. This was risky, he knew, but they weren’t leaving him much choice. He surfaced directly at the rear of the skiff and stole a breath. As he did so, he saw another skiff approach the left side of the channel and press what looked like a huge boulder. The effect was instant. Ran heard the muffled grinding of gears and the rattle of chains as the portcullis slowly lifted free of the water. A massive amount of seaweed plopped off the teeth of the portcullis and fell back into the water with a resounding splash.
So that’s how they did it, he thought.
“Come on, time’s wasting!”
The skiff he was hidden near started to move. Ran quelled the panic in his stomach, allowed himself to sink below the surface, and then followed behind the skiff slowly so as not to disturb the water. As the skiff drew up alongside the raider ship, the bearded man ordered one of the men with him in the skiff to throw a rope up to the men aboard the raider ship.
“Let the ladder down, and we’ll come up. Then tie the skiff to the stern.”
“Understood.”
Ran heard them lowering a ladder that clanked against the wooden sides of the ship. The bearded man and his two underlings scrambled aboard while Ran waited beneath the skiff. Then the skiff was led to the back of the ship and tied off. Ran placed a hand on the smaller boat and waited for the raider ship to move out of the channel. At least he could stay with them now.
The question was, how long would his good fortune last?
The two other skiffs had already put out to sea, although they seemed woefully unprepared for the surging swells of the open ocean. Their boats were being pulled in all directions by the volatile current. Ran could feel it pulling on him and had to use both hands to hold on to the back of the skiff. I need to be out of this water, he thought. At any moment, he expected sharks to tear him up or the jagged rocks to cut him open. Neither option appealed to him.
He waited until the two skiffs were out of sight and he didn’t see anyone looking out over the stern. Then Ran pulled himself out of the water and into the skiff itself. Luckily, a small tarp lay on the bottom, and he scrunched up underneath it. Anyone looking out from the ship would see only the tarp, instead of a shadow warrior sitting there.
Ran shivered beneath the tarp and started some breathing exercises that would warm him up and keep his muscles loose in the event he had to go into action unexpectedly. At this point, Ran saw two problems.
The first was the fact that there were now four of Malkyr’s men aboard the raider ship. That evened the odds with Neviah, Kancho, Jysal, and Yuki, but in reality, they were outmatched. Yuki wasn’t a fighter, and, worse, she’d been imprisoned for some time and showed the strain of captivity. She’d just exhausted herself rowing as well and would scarcely be in shape to fight off an attacker. Outnumbered as they were, the fight would be a brutal one if they were discovered.
Worse, Ran was in a skiff twenty yards away, and any attempt to shimmy up the rope to reach the raider ship would be seen in the midday light. The skiff bobbed on the swells and was now taking on a bit of water. While the tarp would conceal his presence, if the skiff took on too much water and started a slow sink, it would certainly be noticed and Ran exposed when they pulled the skiff in and tried to bail it out.
Both of these problems paled in comparison to what Ran heard next, though. The bearded man came to the rail and shouted out to the two skiffs that were still searching for the escapees. “Forget it. If they haven’t been killed yet, they will be soon. Turn your boats about and head back in. We’re going back into the inner harbor.”
Ran frowned. If the raider ship headed back into the harbor, then they’d have no chance of escaping from Malkyr and Kan-Gul. Ran peeked out and noted that the two skiffs were already maneuvering their way back toward the portcullis, riding swells and steering with their oars to reach the relative calm of the channel. The raider ship was now also turning about. Ran felt the skiff lift and then fall as another swell nearly sent it aloft. His stomach lurched, reminding him of his seasickness when Malkyr first sailed them across the Dark Sea.
He choked back the urge to retch and steeled his will. They couldn’t afford to have the raider return to the harbor. If they were going to act, they’d have to do so now.
CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO
As the raider swung about and headed back to the channel, Ran made his move.
He came out from under the tarp and reached for the rope that held the skiff to the stern of the raider ship. It was going to be risky for the first few minutes, but he gripped the rope and immediately started pulling the skiff toward the larger ship. Waves buffeted him and salt water lashed at his face as he hauled the skiff closer to the raider.
Ran kept pulling until the skiff was a few feet from the stern. Then he used his upper-body strength to haul himself off the boat. As soon as he cleared the skiff, he switched so that his feet took most of the weight. He wrapped the length of rope around the outside of one leg, passed it between his feet, and then wedged his feet together to create something of a stop-check. He would bend his knees and bring them up a certain length, then lift himself up as his feet tensed back together. The friction his feet created—even with the sea water making things a bit more slippery—was enough to propel him upward.
At the top of the climb, he could see over the back of the boat into the stern, where the bearded man held the tiller. His back was to Ran. Ran checked his position, then used his hands to bring himself up and over and onto the stern deck with hardly a sound. He crept up behind the bearded man and grabbed him from behind with the tip of his sword poking into the man’s lower back.
“Carefully . . . very carefully now. Don’t do anything stupid or you’ll have a sword stuck through you for your troubles.”
The bearded man raised his hands. “I won’t do anything.”
Ran cranked the arm he had around the man’s neck and used his left foot to buckle the bearded man’s left leg at the knee. “Just take it easy. Call your men and tell them to all stand at the bow. Do it now.” Ran kept his voice level but firm. The sword at his back was motivation enough for the bearded man, and Ran doubted he would make a move while his life clearly hung in the balance like this.
The bearded man gave the order, and his confused crew did as they were told. The three men stood at the very point of the bow, waiting. When they saw Ran dripping from head to toe, the looks on their faces betrayed their surprise.
Good, thought Ran. They ought to be surprised.
“Kancho!” He hoped his voice was strong enough to penetrate whatever hiding spots the others had managed to find below decks. Ran waited several seconds before repeating Kancho’s name. “It’s Ran. Come out.”
“Ran? Your name is Ran?” asked the bearded man. “Such a strange name.”
“In my homeland it means ‘storm.’ Pray you never find out why they called me that.”
Kancho poked his head out from belowdecks. The bearded man grumbled, “I thought I told those fools to search this boat.”
“Apparently they didn’t do a very good job,” said Ran. “But I wouldn’t be so quick to blame them. They probably heard you talking about how we’d supposedly swum out into the open sea and decided they didn’t need to be thorough.”
“This isn’t my fault.”
“We’ll see,” said Ran. “Malkyr may not feel as you do.”
Kancho came up to the stern and grinned at Ran. “Glad to see you. We thought you might have gotten left behind or something.”
“Luckily, no,” said Ran. “But it was a little nerve-wracking there for a while.”
Kancho drew his sword and leveled it at the bearded man. “What is your name?”
The bearded man spat at him. “Does it matter? You’ll kill me anyway.”
Kancho smirked. “I will kill you, but only if you give me reason to.” He nodded at Ran. “I can keep him for you if you’d like.”
Ran shoved the bearded man toward th
e stern of the boat. “Stay put while I get the others. This man is even better with a sword than I am. You’d do well to remember that.”
Ran hurried below and soon had Neviah, Jysal, and Yuki up on deck. “We’re going to make a run for Nehon.”
Kancho called down from where he stood guarding the bearded man. “How about we use the crew to row?”
But Ran didn’t want to do that. Keeping the enemy on board the ship would prove too tempting for them, and they’d be thinking about taking control back instead of focusing on the task at hand. “No, they can jump overboard.”
The bearded man paled. “These waters are filled with sharks. They’ll tear us apart before we reach shore.”
Ran shook his head. “Then I suggest you swim faster. We’re giving you the skiff tied up behind us. Get into that boat and stay there. Once we’re away from the coast, we’ll set you free. Understand?”
The bearded man frowned but nodded. “Very well.”
“Tell your men that if they try anything funny—like untying the skiff before we reach open water—our mage here will turn you all into shark food by destroying the boat.”
The bearded man passed the word to his crew. Ran had them line up at the stern and then jump into the water. The four of them splashed into the churning sea and swam for the skiff as quickly as they could. A triangular fin jutted out of the surf and closed in on one of the men, but at the last second he was yanked into the skiff just inches shy of being bitten by the ten-foot shark.
“Close,” said Ran.
Kancho frowned. “I think we should have used them to help us row.”
“We don’t need them,” said Neviah. “We’re able to sail from here on out. Help me with the main sheet, and rowing will be a bad memory.”
Ran eyed her. “You know your way around boats?”
Neviah shrugged. “Spare knowledge I acquired during my travels. I would never claim to be a captain, but I can get us going and on course. If things hold, we should be fine until we reach the coast of Nehon. I have no idea how to bring a ship into a busy harbor, so we may still have a swim ahead of us. But it will be a quick one.”
“Fair enough,” said Ran. “I’ll turn the ship over to you then. Just tell us what you need us to do.”
“Stay by the tiller for right now,” said Neviah. She turned to Kancho. “Come with me.”
Kancho shrugged and followed her belowdecks. Within thirty minutes they had the main sail fluffing in the strong winds. Neviah pointed at Ran. “Steer to the port side so the sail fills.”
Ran did as she commanded, and the sail instantly took a gust that filled it. The raider ship responded by cutting through the waves with speed. Ran smiled. This was more like it.
But he was worried about the dark clouds gathering over the land to their left. A storm right now was the last thing they needed. And they were losing sunlight as well. Neviah might not know enough to be a ship’s captain, but she’d better know enough to navigate a storm, he thought. Otherwise, this is going to be a very short trip.
Jysal stood at the bow, peering out to sea as the prow cut through the waves. The raider rose and fell as it carved a path through the Dark Sea. The wind tussled Jysal’s hair, and Ran found it nearly impossible to look away from her. She faced forward, deep in concentration. Kancho came up to stand alongside Ran.
“What is she doing?”
Ran shook his head. “No idea. She looks beautiful, though.”
Kancho grunted. “There is something eerily beautiful about her. Such power, too. I wonder if she knows what sort of life lies ahead of her.”
“Do any of us?” asked Ran. “Our destinies are known only to the gods. The best we can do is try to play the roles they set before us.”
“Is that why you chose to become a shadow warrior for the Nine Daggers?”
Ran smiled. This was the first time Kancho had said the words. He knew that Murai custom was to never speak the name of his clan. But Kancho had demonstrated that he cared little for Murai customs if it did not suit his own agenda. Ran admired that.
“I didn’t choose to become one of them,” said Ran. “My parents were slain in a territorial dispute between two of the warlords in my region. I came home from playing in the fields one day—I couldn’t have been much older than seven or so—and found them both dead. Slaughtered. We had no possessions, no weapons. It was a senseless act. But senseless acts are common, aren’t they?”
“Indeed.”
“The house was afire. I couldn’t do a thing to rescue my parents. The house burned with them still in it.”
“I am sorry for your loss. Their souls will have traveled on to a better life by now.”
Ran nodded. “I hope that’s true. In any event, I had nowhere to turn. I wandered by myself for two months. I begged for food from anyone who would listen. Gradually, I made my way out into the countryside and passed from temple to temple, offering to work in exchange for food. But one of the monks had a better idea and told me to go visit a temple hidden in the peaks of Gakur.”
“Various clans of Murai have searched for that place for many years,” said Kancho. “I believe they would destroy it if they ever managed to locate it.”
“The temple is guarded by magic of a sort I have never known to exist elsewhere. I doubt any warlords would ever be able to locate it. No one knows how to get there unless you are given specific directions from one who knows. As it was, I nearly died getting there.”
“But you managed to survive. Seven years old. Impressive.”
“I was nearly eight by the time I found them. Getting there was part of the test,” said Ran. “The temple elders who run the compound wanted only those who had the urge to survive no matter what. After being on my own for many months, I guess it was pretty well established that I wanted to survive. Not only that, but to prosper as well. Survival, after all, is not enough. You have to not just endure; you have to thrive.”
“Did you thrive at the school?”
“I did. The lessons were tough, and there was no slacking. The teachers made sure of that. Complacency was ruthlessly rooted out of us through hard training. The only way to exceed expectations was to constantly challenge ourselves. The teachers made sure that we developed our own sense of discipline; that we never stopped challenging ourselves. Those who grew comfortable with their rank as they progressed were also dropped from the course. The attrition rate was severe.”
“Sounds like a lot of people are wandering around Nehon with intimate knowledge of the shadow-warrior temple. I would think that a very dangerous thing.”
Ran smiled. “They’re not alive any longer.”
Kancho raised an eyebrow. “The elders at your school killed them?”
“No. They sent them away on assignments. Those who returned were allowed to resume training. Those who failed inevitably died during the course of the mission. Their complacency effectively got them killed. The lesson was clear: never believe that you are the best or immune to critique. To do so is to be a slave to your ego. And ego gets people killed.”
Kancho smiled. “There are many similarities between the Murai and Shinobujin.”
“True,” said Ran. “But members of the Nine Daggers are taught to rely upon themselves above all else. Murai are taught to depend on the structure of your code of honor and the service to your lord.”
“Some would say such a thing isn’t necessarily bad.”
“It isn’t,” said Ran. “For professional soldiers like yourself. But it’s the wrong approach for training spies.”
Kancho considered this. “Murai consider the use of espionage beneath them.”
“That doesn’t preclude many from hiring us to do their dirty work, though, does it?”
Kancho grinned. “I suppose not.”
“And your code of honor also precluded you from coming after Yuki, didn’t it?”
“Indeed it did,” said Kancho. “I guess you and I have more in common than I thought.”
“We’
re two warriors tossed together in a bad situation,” said Ran. “Both of us have our own paths, but while we’re together, I’m honored to fight beside you.”
“As am I.”
Ran looked at the sky. The dark clouds were congealing into a rather terrifying sight. He could see the sheets of rain pounding the lands on the coast. And judging by the wind direction, the storm was headed right at them. “That’s not good.”
Kancho nodded. “The storm will be upon us very soon.”
“Better get Neviah. I don’t know what to do with this ship.”
Kancho rushed down to the deck to get Neviah. Ran watched him for a moment, but then Jysal’s voice rang out from the bow. She’d been unmoving for minutes.
Until now.
“Sail!”
Ran looked. Around a promontory ahead of them, he spotted the black sail of a narrow ship adorned with the head of a dragon at its prow. Another raider? Out here?
“Who is that?”
Neviah came back up on the deck and looked out across the sea. “They’re on an intercept course with us. Same as the storm.”
“Who could it be?” asked Kancho, coming up to stand with them.
But then he saw the lone figure standing at the rear of the boat a strange-looking helmsman gripping the wheel. There was something off about him. Ran peered closer and saw it.
Chekhal.
Kan-Gul had arrived.
CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE
The clouds opened up, deluging the raider ship with a torrential downpour that weighed heavy on the sails. Jysal came away from the bow and walked the length of the boat to stand next to Ran and the others. “He is using magic to control the storm.” She shook her head. “I first sensed it back on the Aqaria, but I doubted myself. I thought I was being silly.” Jysal sighed. “I know better now. His magic has a taint to it.”
“You can smell it?” asked Ran.