by Holly Lisle
Rrru-eeth smiled. "We shall all be kings, my friend. Tomorrow we sail for Calimekka, and for the new life we shall win there." She rested one palm flat upon the table and held the other to her heart. "A toast to all of us to Bemyar, who shall sail us to our new destination and command the crew who shall keep us there; and to Kithdrel, who shall guard and dispense the funds with which we shall buy our kingdom; and to Ry, who shall teach us the ways of kings and lead us to our paraglesiat; and to Greten, who shall be paraglesa in name, and to whom all knees shall bow; and lastly, to myself, who shall be paraglesa in fact, and to whom all hearts shall at last turn with worship and awe."
The other four placed their hands on the table and heart and said, "To us."
During the meal, they listened while Rrru-eeth talked about her dreams of the future, about the grand roles each of them would play, and about the glories and honors each of them would receive when she was paraglesa of her own Family, living in a great House on a high hill in the greatest city in the world. Ry let her feed the dreams with her words, and when he judged the time to be right, he said, "A single thought, Captain, that I offer so you can protect yourself. Calimekka is a city of rumors and tales, where gossip is a minor deity honored most in the highest halls. There are in the city those who are called Finders, whose entire life revolves around discovering the secrets of the powerful and selling them to the highest bidder. If any of your crew could speak an honest word of ill about you, you would be best to leave him on these shores and replace him with someone who cannot malign you."
"You are suggesting that I have secrets?" Rrru-eeth asked.
"I know you have secrets. Everyone has secrets. I am suggesting that you alone know if any of them might be harmful if someday one of your crew will be offered a thousand pieces of gold by a Finder to tell everything about you that might be worth money, and one of your crew will take the gold and tell."
Rrru-eeth frowned and looked from Bemyar to Kithdrel to Greten. Each of them shook his or her head fractionally, and Kithdrel said, "We are all officers, and share guilt for any decisions you might have made."
"But the regular crew does not," Rrru-eeth said.
"No." Greten was frowning into her iced water. "They do not."
"You know of something that could be used against you?"
"I do."
"How many know of it?"
"More than half the crew."
Ry gave a low whistle and said, "You cannot count on loyalty from so many."
"I cannot. So I must act." She closed her eyes and rubbed the bridge of her nose between two fingers.
"Goft has sailors aplenty to fill out an interim crew," Kithdrel said.
Bemyar nodded. "It's a good port; I'd have no trouble replacing most of our roster from here. Some of your current crew might resent being left here."
"Generous severance pay would prevent that," Kithdrel said.
"Not so generous that it would interfere with my plans."
"Of course not. That would be pointless."
Greten said, "Perhaps a message to the old crew that you have heard of sickness in the city of Calimekka, and you are going to continue on, but that you refuse to put them at risk."
"No," Ry said. "The simplest stories are the best and where no story will adequately serve, none should be offered. Simply tell them that you release them, offer more than the money they were due, and take on your new crew. If they don't know why"he shrugged "well, that is your privilege as captain."
Bemyar nodded. "He's right. No explanation is best. I should go over the list with you of those we'll keep and those we'll release."
"Release all of them. Let there be no appearance of favoritism."
Greten's eyes went wide and she started to protest then, without making the slightest sound, she closed her mouth and looked down at the table, her face gone pale and her lips pressed into a thin, hard line. Rrru-eeth didn't notice. Interesting, Ry thought. With whom among the soon-to-be-departed crew did she share a secret? And how much of a secret was it? Enough to make her a possible ally?
Ry liked Greten and Yanth, who had found hiding places aboard the ship in which to meet with her every day since they'd sailed, adored her. Ry thought it would be happier for all of them if she were not hanged with her mistress and if she helped the ship return to its rightful captain, she would be absolved of any previous guilt.
Something to think on, and something to tell Yanth.
As they finished eating, Rrru-eeth said to Bemyar, "Gather the remaining crew on deck, and tell them the whole ship is released on leave for a week. Go ashore with them, and begin quietly hiring on new crew. When we have enough people aboard to be sure we will not be overrun, we will announce that the old crew is permanently released." She turned to Kithdrel. "At that time you will give out final pay and severance bonuses. Any who dispute you are to receive the pay, but not the bonus. Make that clear at the outset."
She closed her eyes. "I think, however, that I will keep my Keshi guardsmen. They owe me their lives I can trust them as much as I can trust each of you."
Maybe even more than that, Ry thought, and had to suppress the smile that tried to reach his lips. He and Ian's loyal crewmen that Kithdrel would sneak back on board, and the new crew that would do anything to avoid being tarred by the mutiny of an old crew, would have little trouble containing Rrru-eeth, the few loyalists she would retain, and two or three Keshi Scarred.
Bemyar and Greten had already proved unwitting allies. He hoped they would prove as useful in the next stage of his plan.
* * *
"I can find not a single sailor who will board a ship sailing for Calimekka," Bemyar said a day later. "The city has been devastated by plague, and all who have heard of it fear for their lives should they sail even within the harbor. They say ships lie at anchor there, some with corpses still rotting on the decks from the day that they fell. They speak of rats that pour like rivers through the streets, and of a river so clogged with corpses that the water will not flow, and of flies so thick in some places that when they take to the air they darken the sun."
Ry thought of the blast of magic he'd felt all the way in Heymar, the blast that told of the death of the Mirror of Souls. The Mirror had not died alone he'd known that at some level, but had not thought through to the consequences that fact might bring. The sailors would be happy enough if they knew they were going to sail south along the coast; he would be able to get a full crew. But he couldn't tell the first mate the truth; Bemyar was loyal to Rrru-eeth.
Kithdrel, he thought, and smiled. "Bemyar, send Kithdrel to hire them. He knows to the tenth-piece what you can afford to pay crew. I'd bet anything he'll be able to find some who will willingly sail into the jaws of death itself for the right price."
Bemyar thought about that for a moment, then shrugged. He glanced at Kithdrel, who said, "I'll do what I can. I don't have his confidence, but I might find enough for a skeleton crew to get us into harbor though we may have to work double stations, and I know I'll have to pay more than the going rate."
"It will be worth it." Ry smiled at Bemyar. "The captain wants to find her way into Calimekkan society. Moving in now, while society is in confusion, will give her an edge. If she can appear and offer stability when stability is the thing the people of Calimekka most need, she'll build a base of loyalty that nothing will later dislodge."
Bemyar rose from his bench and said, "I'll go talk to her. Perhaps you should come with me, Ry, to tell her what you've told me."
* * *
They sailed a day later, their scant new crew secretly augmented by Ian's loyalists, who of necessity stayed hidden in the holds. All of the new crew, once under way, were told Rrru-eeth was a mutineer who had stolen the ship from its rightful captain and abandoned him and some of his crew in Novtierra. The old crew confirmed this, and added that the ship was to be returned to its true captain, who was to be restored to his rightful place much was made of the gratitude he was sure to feel and the rewards he was s
ure to pay to those who helped him regain what was rightfully his.
So when they were off the southern point of Goft, in what could truly be called open sea, Ry gave the signal, and Ian's men caught Rrru-eeth, Bemyar, Greten, and Rrru-eeth's Keshi guards and brought them onto the main deck at swordpoint.
When they were assembled with the new crew gathered around them, Kithdrel stepped forward and held up a paper, and read from it. "You, Rrru-eeth Y'tallin, cabin girl of the Peregrine sailing under Captain Ian Draclas, are charged with capital mutiny, and with inciting mutiny, and with inciting the murder of crew and participating in the murder of crew by willful abandonment in a place hostile to human survival, and further, you are charged with the attempted murder of your rightful captain by the same means, and with impersonation of a deeded captain, and with capital theft of a deeded ship. How plead you to these charges?"
Rrru-eeth looked around her, at the strangers who stood on the deck facing her, and she smiled to Kithdrel. "Is that what you told them, Kith? That I was a mutineer? Do you, then, plan to become captain of the K'hbeth Rhu'ute by lying about me? You know as well as I do that I was first mate of this ship under Draclas, and that he and much of his crew were lost in battle with a Wizards' Circle off the coast of North Novtierra. You've seen to it that none remain who can vouch for the truth save these you hold with me... but you seem to have forgotten that you have left none aboard who can vouch for your lies, either."
"Call the witnesses," Kithdrel shouted.
Ian's loyal crew stepped out onto the deck from the holds below, and Rrru-eeth's face went hard. "Ah. So you've found a few who will lie with you in hopes of gain, I see. Have you promised them riches, Kith? Have you promised them my portion of the wealth in the holds?" She turned to the new crew and said, "Beware, all of you. If you conspire with these traitors, you will be as guilty of mutiny as they are and I'll see you hang for your crimes. The only one who could judge the truth of this matter is Captain Ian Draclas, and if he were still alive, he would be the first to tell you of my brave service as his first mate, and my valiant attempts to save his life."
Ry stepped out of the crowd and gave Rrru-eeth a mocking bow. "I'm so glad to hear you say that, Lady Captain, for we sail to meet up with Captain Draclas this very moment."
For an instant he saw raw fear flash across her smooth, dark face. Then that vanished, replaced again by arrogance. "If Kithdrel told you he knows where to find Captain Draclas, he lies. He had found someone who will pretend the part, and has convinced his witnesses to say the imposter is truly Draclas."
"I think not," Ry said. "I know my own brother."
"Lies," she shrieked. "Lies! Ian is dead! You all conspire against me." She turned to Greten. "Tell them! Tell them the truth!"
Greten said, "I was not with you when you sailed to Novtierra. I don't know the truth."
"Bemyar! You were with us. You know what we faced! Tell them."
Bemyar looked at Rrru-eeth and saw his neck in a noose, for he shook his head and backed away from her as much as the swords at his back would allow. "They speak the truth, Rrru-eeth. Whether the captain lives or not, I don't know. But I do know that you did everything they said you did."
Her eyes narrowed and she snarled, "You coward. Do you think if you turn on me now that will save your neck from the noose it so richly deserves? G'graal, G'gmorrig, tell these poor fools the truth, and save them from themselves."
The two Keshi Scarred gave each other long, measuring looks, and stared down at their feet in unison.
Rrru-eeth said, "Tell them! I command you!"
But neither Keshi said a word.
"I am the captain of this ship," Rrru-eeth howled, "the master of your destinies! I will see you all dead for your betrayal! Dead!"
"Confine her in the brig," Kithdrel said. He turned to Bemyar. "You can earn your way clear of capital mutiny charges if you help us now. Take over the helm of the ship and sail us toward Costan Selvira. We go there to meet up with Captain Draclas Ry knows where he is."
Bemyar stared at his hands. "I'm a coward, Kith. I always have been. I'd join you just to save my own life."
Ry said, "If what you know to be right is also the thing that will save your life, there's no shame in taking the safe path. You do not brand yourself a coward by doing so."
"No. I branded myself a coward when I let myself listen to Rrru-eeth. I'll never rid myself of that mark." He hung his head. "But I'll serve you now. If I cannot repair the damage I did in the past, I can at least prevent myself from embracing new sins in the present."
Kithdrel said, "Then take the helm, First Mate. Ian Draclas will see that you have served him well." He turned to the concubine. "Greten, you were not a part of the mutiny, but you are loyal to Rrru-eeth. If you attempt to cause us trouble, we'll have to kill you. Do you wish to be confined to the brig with her? You will not face capital charges, but you will be set ashore when we take on Captain Draclas and his people."
"I don't know what I want," Greten said. "Confine me to my quarters if you choose I swear on God Dark that I will not cause you trouble."
"I hear your oath and witness it," Kithdrel said. He looked at Ry.
"I, too, bear witness to your oath. Gods adjudge you if you break it."
"You need not confine yourself to your quarters. You may not, however, approach the brig. The rest of the ship is yours, as ever."
Greten nodded and left the deck.
And that left the two Keshi Scarred. "She owns the two of you," Kithdrel said. "Does she own your loyalty?"
Neither Keshi said a word.
"As acting captain of this ship," Bemyar said, "I have the power to grant them their freedom. Once she does not own them, they may speak as they choose, and decide their loyalties without incurring the death penalty for betraying an owner."
"Free them, then," Kithdrel said.
Bemyar said, "Before Tonn, god of the sea, I declare you freemen. Your only bonds are to your gods and your consciences from this day forward."
"I hear and witness your oath," Kithdrel said.
And Ry said, "I hear and witness."
"Gods adjudge you if you break it," Kithdrel added.
The Keshi looked at each other, and one, though Ry could not tell whether that one was G'graal or G'gmorrig, said, "I will take oath, then, as a freeman, that the charges Kithdrel brings are true." His voice was so deep and his accent so thick that Ry had a hard time making out his words.
The other Keshi said, "I take oath with my brother."
Kithdrel said, "Then you are free aboard the ship, save only that you may not approach the brig. If you do, you will die."
The Keshi nodded.
Kithdrel turned to the sailors. "The matter rests until we take on Captain Draclas. I hereby turn the ship over to Acting Captain Bemyar Ilori. Captain." He bowed. "Ry Sabir will tell you how to find the captain."
Ry said, "South. Toward Costan Selvira."
Bemyar pointed at one of Ian's men and said, "You, Wootan. You're acting first mate. Tell the men to set all sails and take us down the Inner Current, fast as you can."
"Yes, Cap'n." Wootan began shouting orders, and the sailors scattered to their places. The white sails dropped and filled, the ropes sang in the stiff breeze, the ship cleaved through the chop like a knife through boneless flesh.
I'm on my way, Kait, Ry thought. And I'm bringing help.
Chapter 46
Kait, carrying a pack full of the few things she'd managed to save from the House, trudged along the road with the rest of the refugees, headed for Costan Selvira. If she looked back, she could still make out the top curve of the airible's envelope behind the growing wall of trees. When they topped the short rise they were climbing and headed down into the next valley, she would lose that view for good.
She felt less torn about leaving the House this time. She had her sister and niece and nephew with her, as well as Dùghall, and Ry was sailing back to her. She could feel his presence in the back of her mind
; he was using her as the compass by which he directed the ship that raced toward them.
They could have stayed on the beach where the airible had landed, but the road south from Calimekka was a dangerous one inhabited by bandits, and the airible would certainly draw those bandits to investigate. She and the rest of the grounded escapees didn't want to fight, and Kait knew Ry would be able to find her no matter where she was, so long as she left her shield down at least a little.
She hoped the bandits wouldn't destroy the airible when they found it empty, on the theory that what they didn't understand would be worthless to anyone else. They'd make a nice profit off of the machinery if they managed to hang on to it; the Gyrus paid richly for anything mechanical that still worked, and two of the airible engines were still in working order. The other two could be salvaged for parts. The envelope, though badly damaged, was of high-quality waterproofed silk that would surely be useful for something; the bladders inside were made of specially treated airtight skins also bound to be useful for something, though Kait couldn't imagine what at the moment. Even the furnishings and struts would have some value in the barter market, provided the bandits could find a buyer who would believe they truly happened across the abandoned vehicle and didn't murder Family to get it.