by Allan Joyal
"It was worth it," I said softly as I hugged Panalope.
Barfiet nodded. "Well, I have already sent people ahead to start gathering the goods for trade. Do you need me here for the exchange?"
Ushcail laughed. "I'm sure you are going to talk to the town council about the possibility of setting up to purchase a couple of the ships we will build."
"Would the council be willing to do that?" I asked.
"They might be one of the few towns with the ability to do it," Jessop said. "Metal isn't worth much in the islands. The lack of easy ways to smelt the metal makes it expensive to form. Anything made out of metal tends to be very expensive. But Lenoir's people clearly have uses for metal. And the wood that Gwerton can obtain in the trades will make them quite wealthy here in the islands."
"At least he seems honest," I said. "I'm not sure the Seres will be nearly as honest."
"Some might surprise you," Jessop said. But for now, everyone get ready to load the trade goods."
"Aye," I said softly as I jumped back down into the hold. I could see that it might be wise to organize it so the goods we received were stored carefully.
Chapter 32: The Politics of the Islands
The majority of the people who had come out to the pier left with Barfiet. I ignored the activity as I worked to clear some space in the hold. However, as I shifted one of our barrels of salted fish I heard Ushcail growl.
"I had not heard you ended up here," he said angrily.
"Why Ushcail," a voice snarled back. "How did you end up in command of such a fine ship. Last I heard you were thrown off Sere Varkip's galley after you refused to join in a raid."
"I've never participated in surprise raids," Ushcail said firmly. "There was no declared war and you know as well as I do that Sere Varkip’s plan was just to raid the grain storage of that island. People were going to starve.”
“So you’d rather that the Sere and his warriors starve?” the voice asked. It seemed to be silky smooth. I peeked a head over the railing of the ship to see a rather rotund man wearing elegant blue robes standing on the dock. The man was smirking as he gazed at the ship. “I must say that this ship looks far too small to carry troops.”
“It was built for exploration,” Ushcail said. “And to see if the old plans found in the archives were accurate. Someone like Sere Varkip wouldn’t need this ship.”
“You never know,” the robed man said as he approached. “Now, I know you don’t own the ship. Why not accept me as a passenger until you meet the owner. I’m sure I can interest him in selling me this craft.”
I stood up. “Ushcail,” I called out. “How long until we can be underway?”
Ushcail looked over at me. He had turned away from the robed man and I could see surprise on the captain’s weathered face. He stared for a moment before smiling. “The last of the trade goods just need to be stored. We have plenty of food and water, so we can make for Isla Molgrist in just a few moments. Sere Gristmey is likely to be extremely happy to trade. Let the rest of the crew know that we’ll need them to raise the sail.”
The robed man was staring at me. Surprise was the only reaction I could read on his face, but he quickly closed his mouth and appeared calm. “You, are you the owner’s representative?”
“Ushcail,” I said firmly. “I’ll pass on your orders. Please make sure that we don’t take on any passengers at this time.”
I turned and jumped back down into the hold. Panalope was standing there. She held a hand over her mouth as her shoulder’s shook.
“Nice play,” Hadlor said quietly. “That sounded like Vermarlin.”
“Who?” Panalope said.
“The man up there. If he really represents Sere Varkip, its almost certainly Vermarlin,” Hadlor said quietly.
“Rather well fed, wears robes that don’t belong on a dock,” I said. “I didn’t take a good look at his face as I was trying to ignore the man.”
“That sounds like Vermarlin,” Hadlor said. “I know about the raid he was arguing with Ushcail about. I wasn’t there, but some of the tales you’ll hear in taverns say that Vermarlin rode into the battle wearing robes that had been dyed green. The man is actually rather good with a spear, but he was there mostly to ensure that Varkip got his share of the grain they were stealing.”
“I don’t care,” I said firmly. “This ship is Marrisey’s if I was going to say anyone owned it. And I know he’ll happily give it to Ushcail once we complete the circuit and then move Marrisey to the ruin.”
“You really going to move?” Panalope asked plaintively.
“Definitely,” I said. “Once we are there we’ll have the wood Marrisey needs to build many more ships and we can trade with Lenoir’s friends.”
“Family,” Lenoir said. “I’m married to Krysbain.”
“But he allowed you to come,” Hadlor said looking over at the young woman. She had a couple of locks stuck to her face by some seawater that had fallen through an open hatch while helping stow the trade goods.
Lenoir just shrugged. “He and I scout for the village. We sometimes spend days apart. The others watch our son when we are both out scouting. He knows I plan on returning.”
Panalope just smiled and then turned to me. “Kaven, can we try to rescue your sister? I want someone to share the joy of being married with.”
“You could always share that with Undine,” I said. Hadlor started to blush. “I think she’s managed to catch the eye of one of our fine crew and they do plan on moving to the ruin.”
Hadlor seemed to choke as Panalope and Lenoir looked at the sailor. “Humm,” Panalope said. “They do see to be nice, and I wouldn’t mind getting to know them better, but I’d still like someone to share experiences with. Didn’t you say that the farm is barely providing grain. This might be a way to save her from becoming…”
I held up a hand before Panalope could continue. “Say no more. I’ll talk to Ushcail about stopping at our Isla Komptan for a very short visit. Perhaps he can ask his wife to find a way to get a message to my sister so that she’s prepared to meet us. Sere Komptan has already seen Gypsy and will definitely try to capture her if he sees us sailing up to the dock.”
“Kaven!” Ushcail shouted from above us. “I sent you down to tell everyone to finish stowing the cargo and get ready to set sail. What are you doing down there?”
Hadlor laughed. “We’ve just finished,” he shouted back. “We’ll be right up.”
Hadlor led Lucis, Jessop, Panalope and I up onto the deck. Lenoir remained behind. I could hear the rustling of cloth moving as I stepped off the ladder and put my feet on the deck.
“We’re ready,” Hadlor said firmly.
Ushcail nodded. His eyes were still firmly on the robed man standing at the end of the dock. The man appeared ready to leap onto the ship.
Jessop picked up a boat hook as Hadlor and Lucis moved to grab the mooring lines. I headed to the ropes which would raise up the main sail and began preparing for hoisting.
“You might want to step back,” Jessop said offhand. I almost turned to look, but realized he had been talking to the Sere’s representative when I could hear quick steps on the wooden dock.
“Jessop,” Lucis said. “Should you be doing that to our esteemed friend?”
“He’s no friend of mine,” the old crewman said. “Now are we freed from the dock. I don’t want to push off, if either mooring rope is still attached.”
“Bow is free,” Lucis said.
“Stern is free,” Hadlor called out. “We are ready to set sail.”
“Raise the mainsail,” Ushcail said. Our captain stepped over and grabbed one of the lines from me. He immediately began hauling on the line, hoisting our main sail.
“Make sure the tiller is set to turn us to starboard,” Jessop called as he scurried over and began releasing the lines for the secondary sails. “Let’s show Vermin just how fast this ship can go.”
“That’s not my name!” the man on the dock howled as Gypsy’s sails
caught the breeze. We were still raising them, but the ship was pulling away from the dock.
Ushcail and I managed to get the mainsail up quickly. The captain nodded and started to tie down the line he was using. “That’s good. Bring the tiller amidships,” he called out to Panalope. “We’ll want to tack to the left after we’ve cleared the island. I think we should try to split the Brethren and make for Isla Martinyx.”
“Martinyx?” Lucis asked as he and Hadlor completed the raising of the foresail. “I can’t see them having much to trade.”
“True,” Ushcail said. “But they do have plenty of sail and therefore have lots of preserved food like salted fish and pickled cabbage. Any ships Marrisey builds are going to need food. This should mean that Martinyx will become a trade point for the eastern islands.”
“And the fact that the island is run by a council of elders doesn’t play into your idea?” Panalope called out.
“Of course it does,” Ushcail said with a laugh as Gypsy started catching a crossbreeze. We had sailed past the hills that made up much of the island we had just left and the wind was picking up quite a bit.
“Trading for food always good,” Lenoir said as she emerged from the hold. She was holding a strip of cloth in her hand, but she quickly slipped it into the waistband of her outfit and moved towards the stern of the ship. “I’m surprised you haven’t needed much water.”
“I know an old spell that turns salt water into fresh,” Jessop said with a cackle.
“You do?” I asked. “You never mentioned that before.”
Jessop smiled. “I don’t tell anyone. The few sailors who have revealed they know the spell have ended up pressed into the service of a Sere. They are valuable as they can allow a galley to stay at sea for days.”
“More signs that the Sere’s are always in it just for themselves,” Panalope said with a sigh. “Kaven, this isn’t going to work. Once the Sere’s get a few ships, they’ll just raid our harbor and that will be the end.”
“No they won’t,” a rich female voice said from the water to the starboard of the ship.
Ushcail appeared confused. “That doesn’t sound like Syrina,” he muttered as he moved to the starboard rail.
Our captain looked out over the ocean. He quickly took a couple steps away from the railing. “What?” I called out as I ran to the railing.
“Who is in charge here?” a male voice asked. It was deep and thunderous.
I looked out and found at least a dozen heads bobbing in the water. They were keeping pace with the still accelerating Gypsy and I immediately realized that a mermaid’s or man’s body must be hiding under the churning ocean.
“Captain Ushcail is in charge of the ship,” I said carefully.
“No,” a male with long grey hair said in the same thunderous voice. “Who put together the plan to visit the lands of the empire.”
“That would be you Kaven,” Panalope called out helpfully from the stern.
I nodded and turned to the speaker. “I was the one who worked with the ship builder,” I said firmly. “Since we returned successfully, it is clear that my efforts have provided a way to help bring goods to help save the islands.”
“Not that these islands needed to be saved,” a young male merman muttered. His voice carried surprisingly well above the water. “Too many of your men are more interested in fighting and fucking than in helping their fellows survive.”
“Tsuvam!” one of the older females shouted. “We brought you to show that mermen could be respectful. “Don’t alienate the human. From what we’ve heard they might have found a place we can set up a new colony.”
“We’d already talked about the possibility,” I admitted. “I know that Ushcail wants his wife and daughters to be safe and near, and we want him to move to the new harbor. I don’t know how much space you need, but as I remember the harbor has an area where no ship should end up. It might provide shelter for young mermen and maids during storms and such.”
“We can just dive deep to avoid a storm,” the female said. “But a sheltered cove is always welcome, especially if there are some rocks or sand, we can use to sun ourselves. But are you truly willing to have us join your new town.”
I looked over at Panalope. My wife was nodding frantically. She had a huge smile on her face. Ushcail growled from behind me. “You answer this wrong and I throw you overboard.”
“We will welcome having a community of merfolk,” I replied. “As long as Syrina, Undine and Nereid are part of that community. I believe we can help each other.”
“How?” Tsuvam snapped.
“Well, first, while I wouldn’t claim to be an expert, I’m sure your people would welcome having better fishing spears and such,” I began.
“Of what? Wood lasts mere days in the salt water, and any metal you can provide would rust,” Tsuvam said.
“Stone for shafts, Enchanted metals for the blades,” Lenoir said. “Not free, but dwarves can trade. They offered stone shafts in the past, but they are too heavy for us. In water, that might not be as important.”
“Stone is heavy,” Lucis said.
“Not all stone. Some can actually float,” Lenoir said. “Jeff showed us one day. The dwarves have stone-singers who can craft very light shafts that will not break.”
“Dwarves?” the older male asked. “You’ve met dwarves?”
Everyone turned to look at Lenoir. “Once,” she said. “They visit our village. Mostly others go and trade with them in their home.”
The old male turned to look at me. “What course are you setting?”
Ushcail put a hand on my shoulder. “I’ll answer that.”
The captain came over to the railing. He gazed over the many merfolk and then shook his head. “No Syrina,” he muttered.
Ushcail then looked directly at the old merman. “I want to make at least two more trades before we reach Isla Oerste and head back to the harbor we found. One will be at Martinyx, they have food and a council that shouldn’t try to steal Gypsy. The other I’m not sure about. The Seres in the south are all going to want to steal the ship. We do have to stop at Sere Komptan’s island to collect Kaven’s family and we’ll hopefully meet Marrisey near Isla Magestica.”
“We can get messages to both groups,” the old merman said. “Tsuvam, you know the waters of Isla Magestica, head out now. I’ll need another merman for Sere Komptan’s island.”
“I’ll go,” another young merman said. He dove under the water revealing a tail that was bright orange.
The old merman looked at me. “We’ll have a group at Isla Oerste ready to make the journey. For now, resume your journey. Only if you plan on splitting the Brethren, go down the Gullet. The main path is filled with danger.”
The merman dove. His tail was almost grey. At first, I thought the scales were dull, but then I realized that time had caused many to split and the outer coating was separating from his body. The others vanished in a flash of color. In an instant Gypsy was by herself as she continued sailing southward.
Chapter 33: The Chase to Martinyx
“The Gullet?” Hadlor asked. “Will you really take us down the Gullet?”
“What’s the Gullet?” Panalope asked.
“Perhaps the most dangerous passage in all the isles,” Jessop said. “The passage is narrow enough that a ship can wind up unable to use its oars to move. And rocks frequently fall from the sheer cliffs.”
“Sounds like it would be impossible to navigate,” I said.
“Its deep and storms regularly send any wrecks to the bottom,” Ushcail said. “And its wider than people think. It’s small spikes of stone that cause galley’s all the trouble. They get hung up trying to row past them and the cliffs. We just have to stay near the middle and use the ship’s ability to move by sail. Fortunately, the wind blows the direction we want to head through the passage.”
“Ship off to port! Looks like they launched from the main harbor!” Lucis shouted.
Everyone on board Gypsy tur
ned to look. The ship was a galley that had a mast for a sail. The crew was unfurling the sail as the ship cleared the breakwater and entered the ocean. It was some distance behind us, but appeared to be moving around the same speed as Gypsy.
“They are moving fast,” Panalope said in an awed tone.
“The probably used the oars to build up some momentum,” Ushcail said. “The crew is probably exhausted, but with this breeze they will probably keep up with us until nightfall.”
“Wonderful,” I muttered. “How did they launch so quickly?”
“I warned you that Culax would likely escape once he was out of sight. The people in charge of the island had no real reason to keep him locked up,” Ushcail said.
“But the trade? Wouldn’t they be upset over the possibility that we might choose to trade elsewhere?” Panalope asked as we watched the galley maneuver to fall behind Gypsy. They were just far enough back that no one would hear us shouting to them.
“They are probably hoping to use Gypsy to start trade,” Ushcail said.
“Ron wouldn’t trade with them if they steal ship,” Lenoir said firmly. “He hates thieves.”
“But they’d also capture you. They could use you as a hostage,” I said as we stared at the ship trailing behind us.
Lenoir shook her head and headed off to the bow of the ship. Lucis and Hadlor just laughed one last time and then began working on the ropes to tie off any stray ends.
“Having a ship chasing us makes it hard to relax,” I said as I looked back at the galley. “Somehow it is keeping pace with Gypsy.”
“The wind is at the right angle to push them along at a solid pace,” Jessop said. “And we don’t have all of our sails up.”
“Why don’t we raise more sail?” Panalope asked. “I really want to get away from that galley. I don’t think the men on that ship are going to be gentle if they catch up to us.”
“We need to be able to maneuver,” Ushcail said. “Raising more sail will propel the ship faster, but…”