by Ben Hale
“You plunder and you pillage,” Jack called, “yet prey on the weak. Who is the coward?”
Pyron swung about, shouting to his men for more light. The crew had to push through a herd of swinging bodies to reach the bar, but their demands for light orbs were denied by a laughing Hillon. Jack grinned at her reaction, and turned as Inna appeared at his side.
“I shouldn’t have been worried for you,” Inna murmured.
“You could have helped.”
“Why?” she asked wryly. “It appears you’re enjoying yourself.”
Jack grinned and did not deny it. A panicked man raced for the door and Jack cut a rope holding a series of light orbs. With a deft sweep he formed a knot and tossed it over the man’s neck. Then he lifted the choking man upward. A single blow sent him to sleep and Jack uncoiled the rope. Looping it around the man’s feet, he let him fall.
“Where do you draw your strength?” Inna murmured. “It’s greater than a normal man.”
“I’ll leave that for you to figure out,” he teased.
She chuckled ruefully. “Care for some help?” she gestured to the seven pirates that frantically raced about below.
“Do you want to help?”
“I was trained from birth to fight and kill,” she said, and her lips twitched into a smile. “I never learned to enjoy it.”
He laughed, causing the pirates to shriek and scurry anew. “It’s time you learned.” He cut a rope and handed it to her.
She grinned, her eyes turning mischievous as she skipped across rafters. Coming to a stop above a pirate backed against a wall, she dropped down beside him and landed on cat’s feet. He heard her arrival and spun but she wrapped an arm about his throat. He squirmed and shouted for aid but she twisted and smashed his skull into the wall. She wrapped the rope around his hands and ascended to the rafters to pull him up. Pyron arrived to find the man swinging with the others.
“I’ll gut you like a fish!” he screamed. “And leave you to the gulls!”
Inna slid up next to Jack with an unrestrained smile on her face. “I’ve never seen a pirate so scared.”
Jack used his dagger to gesture an invitation. “Care to handle the others?”
She folded her feet and dropped from view, her smile lighting the shadows. Jack leaned against a rafter and used his shadowhook to snag a loaf of bread. The serving girl squeaked in surprise when the loaf on her tray disappeared. Jack settled in to watch Inna, idly wondering what Hillon put in her bread to make it so delicious.
Inna slipped in and out of the shadows like a wraith, striking in a swirl of red hair before evaporating into darkness. Pirates dropped from view, crying out as limbs snapped. Jack tracked her movements by the whisper of her boots on the wood floor.
She was quick and precise, using the shadows and the hanging bodies to move about the room unseen. Jack admired the sweep of her cloak, the shift of her weight as she punished the pirates, snuffing out their torches until only one remained.
Alone in a sea of swinging bodies, Pyron screamed his rage and fear. He caught up a crossbow and fired indiscriminately into the rafters, one bolt sinking into an arm of a hanging pirate, rousing him in a bellow of pain and fear. Pyron ignored him and shoved his way through the unconscious forms.
“A hundred gold for his head!” he shouted. “A thousand!” When no one joined him, he gave in to desperation. “He’s Jack Myst, guildmaster of thieves! There’s a ten thousand gold bounty on his head!”
The remaining patrons avoided his gaze, either too weak or too afraid to join him. Pyron abruptly sprinted for the door but Inna stepped into his path, extending her dagger toward him. He attacked in a frenzy but she defied every strike, blocked every swing. Then she spun inside his guard and grabbed his wrist, yanking the sword free.
Pyron fled, shoving his way through the hanging bodies of his men. He tripped in the midst of them and rose surrounded by unconscious and bleeding forms. Terror robbed him of his voice and he drew a knife from his belt, spinning about.
“I’ll kill you!” he screamed. “I swear it!”
The body hanging behind him reached out and placed a dagger on his throat. Pyron went still, his hands trembling.
“No you won’t.”
“What are you?”
Jack laughed in his ear. “I’m just a thief.” He removed the dagger and dropped, twisting into a flip to alight next to Pyron.
“If you apologize for your gender,” Jack said, “I’ll let you go.”
Pyron stared at him in shock. “You want me to do what?”
Muffled laughter and jeers came from the sides of the tavern. Jack thumbed a rune on his crossbow and the darkbolt disintegrated, allowing the lights to brighten. Pyron shielded his eyes at the sudden brilliance.
“Say it,” Jack said.
Pyron straightened. “I’m not going to—.”
Jack’s dagger touched his nose. “I didn’t kill the others, but I don’t mind killing you.”
“I . . . I’m sorry for men,” Pyron stuttered.
“And how will you treat women in the future?”
“With respect,” Pyron said hastily.
Jack leaned in. “If I hear that you have broken your promise, I’ll come back to steal your life.”
Pyron nodded vigorously, his earrings jiggling. Jack smiled, and then grabbed Pyron’s neck, slamming him into the table. Pyron folded in half and dropped to the floor, and Jack wove his way through the swinging pirates to the bar. He produced a gold coin and placed it on the bar in front of Hillon.
“For the ropes,” he said. “You’ll need to replace them.”
Hillon grinned and slid it back to him. “For the entertainment. You come back anytime, Jack.”
Jack grinned and collected the coin as he turned away. He strode to Wart, who was dragging himself toward the door by his free hand. Catching the rope, Jack heaved him out the door and sent him tumbling into the dirt. Then he turned and bowed to the room.
“Feel free to come after me,” he said blithely, “but do not forget where you’ll end up.”
The bodies of pirates continued to swing from the rafters as the door shut, and no one followed Jack into the street.
Chapter 9: Wart
Jack dragged Wart into the street and triggered the release on the bindings. The ropes collapsed into the bolt and Wart fell into the mud. Spitting it from his mouth, he rose and leveled a finger at Jack.
“I’m not letting you string me up.”
“Why such fear?” Inna asked, appearing behind him. “We’re just here for information.”
“That’s what you said the last time,” Wart said, rubbing his arm.
“Do you want me to break a leg this time?” Inna asked.
Jack put his arm around the scrawny man. “Tell me what I wish to know, or I’ll let her ask the question.”
Wart pushed his arm away. “Skorn’s been sending shipments to his new haunt.”
“Where?” Jack asked.
“I don’t know,” Wart said.
“Inna?”
She took a step closer but he raised his hands. “I don’t know, I swear it.”
Jack read the truth in his fear. “Tell me about these shipments.”
“I don’t know what’s in them,” Wart said, “But rumors have it Skorn wants artifacts, powerful ones. It seems he’s building something, and by the size of the shipments, it’s big.”
Jack exchanged a look with Inna. Then he said, “How has he kept the shipments from being noticed?”
“He pays for them,” Wart said, “and pays well. Everyone involved believes they are shipments of iron ore from Griffin. They leave from Keese, Woodhaven, and Terros.”
“By ship?” Inna asked, surprised. “That means he’s on an island.”
“I’ve told you everything I know,” Wart said.
Jack caught his arm as he tried to slip away. “When is the next shipment?”
“I don’t know,” he said.
Jack smiled at th
e note of falseness to his voice. “I don’t care for lies,” he said.
Wart flinched away from Inna. “I overheard more than they meant for me to know. If the cultists learn I told you they will tear me apart.”
“Do you choose pain now?” Inna asked, brandishing her knife. “Or later?”
“You can always find a hole to crawl into,” Jack said. “Or Inna can break your leg right here in the street.”
His eyes flicked to Inna and Wart rubbed his arm again. “There’s a shipment coming through Keese in twelve day’s time. The papers say its iron ore, but there are going to be five times as many guards as necessary—and they’re Talinorian mercenaries”
“Well now,” Jack said, surprised to hear the reference. Talinorian mercenaries were as vile as they were dangerous. “Let’s go steal ourselves a caravan,” Jack said.
“You’ve got what you came for,” Wart said, “Can I go?”
“For now,” Jack replied. “But if it turns out to be a trap, I’ll come back for your tongue.”
Jack’s smile was gone, his voice as cold as wind driven snow. Wart swallowed and retreated a step, and then turned and bolted. Jack held his smile in check until the man had turned a corner.
“Would you really cut out his tongue?” Inna asked.
“Of course not,” Jack said. “But I think I can use him in the future, and some relationships work best with a healthy dose of fear.”
She glanced back at the tavern. “Can we depart before more of them consider the reward for killing you?”
He sighed regretfully as they made their way back toward the sea. Kulldye Dreg held more interest than he’d thought, and he abhorred departing so soon. They reached the docks and climbed back onto the boat to find Borne sleeping in a hammock strung between the masts.
“Asleep already?” Inna asked.
He jerked awake and blinked in surprise when he spotted them. “You’re not supposed to be here.”
“It’s only been a few hours,” Jack said regretfully. “Not nearly enough time to explore the island.”
Borne rolled out of his hammock and made his way to the rear of the ship, looking up at the island. “What happened?”
“A few pleasant encounters and now we must go,” Jack said, falling into the recently departed hammock.
“We really should embark,” Inna said. “It’s possible we picked up a few threats while in the Dreg.”
“We can’t leave yet,” Borne said. “My son is stocking up on supplies.”
Borne’s son appeared on the dock pushing an overflowing cart. He reached the gangplank and looked up, his face beaming when he saw Inna. She stepped down and helped him hoist up the cargo.
“Borne said you wouldn’t be back until tonight,” he said. Then he noticed Jack and his expression turned confused. “And I thought you weren’t returning with us.”
“Nonsense,” Borne called down, “Get the cargo loaded below and we can be underway.”
Borne smiled at his son but the expression was stiff and forced. His eyes flicked to Kulldye Dreg and back to Jack. When their eyes met, Jack saw the sweat on his face that had been absent when he’d been in the hammock.
“Borne,” Jack drawled. “I thought you were a friend.”
“Any friend of Inna’s is a friend of mine,” he said, but he began to fidget with his tunic and glanced again toward the Dreg.
“What’s going on?” Inna asked, her eyes darting between them.
“All is well, my dear,” Borne said, and moved to the ropes on the dock.
“It’s not polite to lie,” Jack said, his eyes on the island.
Borne turned indignant. “I’m no liar—”
“He told Pyron who I was,” Jack said, relaxing into the hammock. “That’s why he came after me.”
Inna rotated to face him. “Is that true?”
“Of course not!”
She advanced down the gangplank until she stood nose to nose with the trembling man. “Speak the truth.”
Borne cast about for an escape but the dock was empty. Then he wilted. “I knew about the bounty, and saw a way to get a cut.”
“You sent pirates to kill us?”
He flinched at her voice. “Not you,” he said. “Our deal was that they’d only kill the thief.”
“You’re disgusting,” she snapped, and turned away.
“You don’t understand,” Borne said. “I want a new boat, and with that much coin I would never have to work again.”
“If you don’t get us out of here, I’m going to slit your throat.”
Borne swallowed. “We could split the bounty. You’d have enough to buy the Assassin’s Guild outright.”
She stood still for long enough that Jack glanced at her. He doubted she would turn on him, but people could be unpredictable. Abruptly she whirled and faced Borne again, speaking so quietly that Jack could not hear the words. Whatever she said, the man’s face turned to ash and he scurried back onto the deck. In minutes they were free and the sail filled with wind. Jack took a final look at the island to see hundreds of sailors rushing to their ships.
Borne’s son ascended to the deck and froze, his eyes widening as he spotted the horde sprinting toward the sea. Confusion washed across his face and he turned to Jack, but his father barked an order.
“They’re coming for me,” Jack said, putting his hands behind his head.
“Why?” the boy asked, moving to the ropes and unfurling the sail.
“There’s a ten thousand gold bounty on my head,” Jack replied.
“I’d think you’d be more concerned,” Inna said, hurrying to the opposite mast to unfurl the sail.
“You said your boat was faster than a Talinorian warship,” Jack said.
“It is if you help,” Inna said.
Jack groaned and pulled himself from the hammock. Then he climbed into the rigging and set to work. As the ship accelerated out to sea he had a perfect vantage point of dozens of vessels pulling out of port. One crashed into another, and a volley of arrows flew between the two.
Jack leaned out from the mast as Borne’s ship crashed through the waves, riding the vessel as it skipped across the sea. With the afternoon sun beating down upon him he grinned, relishing the sensation. Inna ascended to his side and he looked back to their pursuers.
“Are all your friends this reliable?” Jack asked.
She scowled. “Borne and my father were friends for years. I thought he’d value that over coin.”
“You have my gratitude for not joining him.”
She cast him a look. “I still need you. Besides, I don’t care about coin.”
“They certainly do,” Jack said, gesturing to the armada. “Do you really think this boat can outrun them?”
“I don’t know,” she said, her voice tightening. “Some of the pirates from Kulldye Dreg have ships that make this one look like a rowboat.”
Jack noticed one of the vessels outstripping the others. The three-masted ship plowed through waves, its dragon figurehead visible as it climbed into view. Even with the distance, Jack spotted the enormous ram extending from the front of the vessel.
“Like that ship?”
She followed his gaze and frowned. “That’s the Hullbreaker, Captain Raize’s ship. He’s ruthless and smart, and uses what he plunders to improve his ship.”
“I can see that,” Jack said.
The Hullbreaker continued to outstrip the others, its hull knifing through the sea. Unlike Borne’s ship, its sails were flawless, it’s wood freshly painted. The detail bespoke a captain intelligent and controlling.
“They’re gaining on us,” Inna said.
“Not by much,” Jack replied. “We might make it to Keese in time.”
She didn’t respond, and used a rope to descend to the deck. A moment later Borne’s son took her place and hastily began adding more sail to the mast. Noticing the boy’s trembling hands, Jack moved to his side and helped.
“They want me,” Jack said. “Not you.�
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“But you’re on our ship,” the boy said.
Jack laughed lightly. “Trust me.”
“Why should I?” he asked. “You’ve brought them upon us.”
“I trust you to be a sailor,” Jack said. “You trust me to be a thief.”
Jack held his gaze until the boy nodded. Then they set to work together. As Jack helped him add sail the boy remained tense, but he directed Jack with precision. Under his leadership Jack added a small sail at the top of the mast and a triangular sail lashed to the prow. Then he dropped to the deck and approached Borne at the helm.
“It’s in Ero’s hands now,” Borne said.
Jack burst into a laugh at the reference to the deity, causing Inna and Borne to cast him strange looks. Unable to contain his mirth, Jack continued to laugh as Borne’s son joined them. He threw Jack a confused look before speaking to his father.
“I’ve added every shred of sail we have onboard,” he said.
His voice was cold enough that Borne scowled. “Don’t speak to me like that, boy.”
“Mother would never have betrayed a passenger,” he said, jutting his chin out.
Borne’s expression clouded with fury and he reached out to cuff the boy on the head. Jack caught the blow and cuffed him instead. Borne blinked in surprise and then recoiled from Jack’s anger.
“Don’t do that again.”
Borne swallowed and turned back to the helm. “Raize has the best ship on the sea,” he said, his voice sullen. “Even with the extra sail I can’t outrun him.”
“Can we make it to Keese?” Inna asked.
“Not likely,” Borne said. “He likes to hit elven ships carrying water oars, and keeps a few on hand whenever Talinorian warships try to catch him.”
“Water oars?” Inna asked.
Jack grinned, recalling how he’d used them to steal the godship. “Disks enchanted with water magic,” he said. “One can propel a small ship for a short time, but they cost a small fortune.”
“Aye,” Borne said. “It would take two or three to get a ship the size of the Hullbreaker to accelerate. I doubt he’s willing to use them on you.”