Accidental Champion Boxed Set

by Jamie Davis

  As the Vengeance continued on their course, Cari watched the shaded area grow narrower and narrower. Then it stopped and held its shape and size.

  Cari brought the spyglass up again and realized the naval commander had made his adjustments. She smiled.

  It was going to be too late. None of the other ships would be able to catch her. She just had to slip past the two ships farthest to the west.

  “We’re locked in, Miss Doolan. We’ll have time for two broadsides to port and maybe a shot with our stern chaser as we pull away from them. Make sure everyone on the guns knows we’re gonna fire and immediately reload with double shot for the second ship.”

  Helen called out orders, marching up and down the line of guns on the port side. Now that both Stefan and Rodrigo were gone, it fell to her to take command of the ship’s guns.

  Cari returned to watching the approaching ships. All they could do now was wait while the gap closed between the ships.

  ———

  “Fire!” Helen bellowed from the main deck.

  The cannons on the port side belched flame and smoke as the double shot, twin cannon balls, flew out and slammed into the bow of the ship coming up on their left.

  Cheers erupted as part of the ship’s bow caved in revealing the floor between two decks. Cari saw the cannon fire had ripped down the side of the two lower decks knocking over cannons and tearing into the massed crew waiting to fire their guns.

  That ship wouldn’t be firing to port any time soon. Water also poured into the lower portion of the jagged hole, dragging the bow down and slowing the vessel.

  Cari smiled. Her plan had worked even better than she’d expected. The other ship wouldn’t be able to return fire at all and they might sink altogether before any help arrived.

  All the Vengeance had left was the western-most ship of the fleet. This one had a slightly better angle on them. No matter what Cari did or how good their broadside fire, this ship was going to be able to fire back at them.

  They’d have to take their chances, though. Cari had committed them to this action.

  Helen barked orders down on deck. “Reload and ready the guns to port again. Load single shot this time.”

  Cari turned to the bosun standing nearby. “Mr. Dawkins please organize any spare members of the crew you have and send them below to report to the ship’s carpenter. In the coming fight, he may need help with repairs below decks.”

  “Expecting us to take serious damage, ma’am?”

  “I hope we don’t, but we’ll be in this ship’s sights a bit longer than the last one. They’re going to get their shots off unless we’re fortunate.”

  “I’ll get right on it, then.”

  The next ship came up fast on their port side. Cari estimated her crew would get off a single broadside before the other ship was able to turn and return fire. The angle wasn’t right for them to cross the bow this time, as they had with the other ship. This captain would be able to turn and match their course for a short time.

  Once the two ships turned in tandem, they’d be on a nearly parallel course. That forced Cari and the Vengeance to fight this out ship to ship until she crippled the other vessel enough to break away and continue running.

  She gauged the shaded area on the course overlay in her visual field. There was no way to avoid them entirely. They would be forced into a more prolonged action this time.

  “Clear for action,” Cari called out. “Fire as you bear, Miss Doolan.”

  “Aye, aye, Cap’n.”

  A few long minutes passed before the enemy ship sailed into range. Helen Doolan stood by the first gun in the Vengeance’s broadside waiting for the other ship to enter her sights.

  “Fire! Fire as you bear.”

  The first cannon fired, jerking back against the ropes that kept the gun carriage from careening across the deck and killing someone.

  In rapid succession, each of the other guns fired, the gun’s lead crewman waiting until the other ship passed into their sights.

  As the smoke cleared, Cari scanned the other ship for damage. There were signs of some damage to their starboard rail and a few lines had been cut, causing a few of their sails to flap uselessly in the wind. It wasn’t enough to slow them though.

  Helen urged the crews to load faster but they wouldn’t get another shot off before the other ship fired their guns.

  The opposing captain was of a similar mind and turned the ship to bring the guns to bear. They were closer now and would likely do some damage to the Vengeance.

  “Brace for incoming fire,” Cari called out. “Take cover.”

  Despite the order, Cari stood tall by the ship’s wheel and watched the billowing smoke of the other vessel’s guns announce their shots just before the sound of the massed broadside reached her ears.

  Crashes and screams from down on the deck told her more than a few of those shots struck home. She felt the Vengeance shudder under the blows of multiple hits.

  Despite having two of their port guns knocked out, Helen kept the crews working and without waiting for Cari’s order shouted “Fire.”

  Once again, the Vengeance shook, but this time it was the massed broadside of her own guns causing the vibration.

  The ships had drawn even closer together by this time and her broadside struck to devastating effect, caving in a portion of the hull, allowing seawater to pour into the lower decks.

  As soon as the water started filling the other ship, it listed at a fifteen-degree tilt to starboard. The gun crews on the other ship managed to fire off one more broadside before their guns tilted to point at the water.

  Cari felt more of the cannonballs strike her ship.

  Two things happened at once.

  Shouts below announced they were taking in water.

  At the same time, Katie at the helm shouted a curse. “Damn, I’ve lost control of the wheel. They’ve struck the rudder, ma’am.”

  “Either that or a shot damaged the steering mechanism between here and there. Percy, come here.”

  “Yes, ma’am.”

  “Get below and apprise the carpenter of our problem. If we’re taking on water, he needs to assess how bad it is quickly. His priority is to keep us from sinking but if we can manage to stay ahead of the leaks with the bilge pumps, then focus on getting us steerage back.”

  “Aye, ma’am. I’ll tell him.”

  The boy scampered down the steps and jumped down an open hatch to find the carpenter and his damage control crews on the lower decks.

  Their adversary was listing ever farther to starboard now and sat very low in the water. Cari was sure they were going to sink unless they got assistance very soon.

  The distance between them grew as the Vengeance pulled away, even without being able to steer the ship.

  “Mr. Dawkins, try and angle the sails to bring us back on course until the carpenter fixes our rudder. Let’s try not to lose too much of our advantage.”

  “Aye, ma’am.”

  Cari turned and tried to gauge the courses of the rest of the Duke’s fleet. They had started their turn to follow her, but the Vengeance still had the distance and angle to pull away.

  She worked to come up with alternative course corrections depending on the time it took them to get the rudder fixed. It was while she pondered this problem that the lookout aloft called down more bad news.

  “Sail ho, dead ahead. Four ships, triangular sail pattern.”

  Cari’s head jerked up and she grabbed the spyglass and waited until the new ships cleared the horizon in their course to intercept her ship. They were definitely Sultanate ships.

  She swore under her breath. The Duke’s ships knew they had her all along. The two fleets were working together. There was no other explanation. They knew she’d try and run west to Cairn island and raider territory again so they’d set the trap and waited for her.

  “Katie, you’re not busy right now. Please go below and tell the carpenter we need that rudder back now.”

  “Ay
e, ma’am.”

  Cari turned and looked out west at the approaching ships. It didn’t matter whether they got the rudder fixed or not. There was no way they were getting out of the fight ahead of them. One fleet or the other was going to get a shot at them. The crew of the Vengeance was going to need every ounce of luck they had to get through the coming fight.

  Chapter 37

  An hour later, things had gone from bad to worse. They were able to repair the damage to the rudder, splicing a cable that ran from the ship’s wheel to the rudder mechanism to restore steering. That little bit of good news didn’t alter the stark tactical facts facing Cari and the Vengeance.

  “Cari, they’re changing course again,” Helen said from beside her on the quarterdeck.

  The sultanate ships had been arrayed in a line of four ships across the horizon. Once they saw the Vengeance coming their way, the outer ships changed course and headed towards the centermost ship directly ahead of their prey.

  Now all four ships sailed in a straight line, one behind the other, arrayed like an arrow pointed directly at Cari’s ship.

  “I was afraid they’d do this. I hoped they’d remain spread out to keep us from turning to either side. This proves they’re working with the Duke. They know what’s behind us. That’s the only way they could know we can’t turn and run the risk of the trailing ships catching us.”

  “In a line like that, they’re gonna maul us. It’ll give every single one of them a full broadside shot at us as they pass.”

  “Have a little faith, Helen. There’s always a chance we can make it by them.”

  “All I’m saying is, even if they capture us and put us in chains, there’s always another day as long as they keep us alive.”

  Cari shook her head. “They can’t afford to let any of us live. We have Jaycee with us. Most of the crew now know who she really is. They aren’t calling her Janey anymore. I’ve seen a few even bow when they pass her on the way to the ship’s mess.”

  “So, they’ll kill all of us to keep her existence a secret once and for all.”

  “Yep, and once she’s gone, there’s nothing to keep the Duke from either putting Timron on the Crystal Throne as a puppet or taking the throne outright for himself. I’m not going to let that happen. Our only option is to fight our way past them. If we can minimize the damage, we might be able to keep running west and slip away once night falls.”

  Helen forced a laugh despite the dire situation. “Ever the optimist.”

  “When there’s no other choice, why not? Let’s get everyone something to eat. They’ll be in range in another hour. There's nothing else we can do until then. Cycle the crew below in shifts for a quick meal until everyone has a turn. The least I can do is let them fight on a full stomach.”

  Helen headed down to the deck to pass along the orders and Cari returned to her usual place beside the helm.

  “How’s she handling, Katie?”

  “It’s a little stiff, ma’am. There’s more damage to the system than just that one cable, but the fix will hold well enough.”

  “Good, keep us on course directly at them. Maybe we can scare them off. After all, they’re about to do battle with the Dread Raider Cari.”

  That made Katie and the other members of the crew standing on the quarterdeck laugh.

  Cari liked hearing them chuckling and chatting amongst themselves. She had a good crew. If anyone could fight their way through this, they could. Of course, they relied on her to do the impossible and she didn’t have any more tricks up her sleeve for this one, but they didn’t have to know that.

  “Katie, go below and get some food with the rest of the quarterdeck crew. I’ll man the wheel with Percy here.”

  “Thank you, ma’am. You have the helm.”

  Katie and the others disappeared below leaving Cari holding the ship’s wheel staring ahead and testing every course correction or template she could think of using her navigation skill. Nothing changed the probable outcome of the pending fight.

  “You’re doing it again, aren’t you, ma’am.”

  Percy’s question interrupted her train of thought.

  “What’s that, Percy?”

  “That thing you do before you start breaking all the rules and sailing the ship in impossible ways.”

  “I’m just thinking, that’s all.”

  “Uh-huh,” the boy replied. He didn’t sound convinced.

  How could she tell him she had nothing to save them this time? She decided instead to give him a task in the coming fight.

  “Percy, I need to give you an order and it is one you must keep until your very last breath.”

  “Anything, ma’am.” His chest puffed up with pride at her request.

  “You know who little Jaycee is, right?”

  “She’s the Crown Princess Jaycee and next in line for the Crystal Throne. The whole crew knows that.”

  “I want you to make sure that no matter what else happens, to the ship, the rest of the crew, or to me, that you’ll keep her safe. I don’t care if you tie her to a hatch cover so she floats away from the ship as it sinks, keep her safe. Can you do that?”

  “That means I’m kind of like one of the Empress’s Dragoons, doesn’t it?”

  “Yes, I guess it does. Are you up to taking on that kind of responsibility? The Dragoons are the best of the best. The ones I’ve met are some of the toughest fighters I know.”

  “I can do it, Cap’n. I won’t let anything happen to her.”

  “Good. I knew I can count on you. Why don’t you go and check on her and make sure she gets some food, too?”

  “Yes, ma’am.”

  Cari returned to reviewing the data in her heads-up display. She scrolled through the various currents, winds, and movement vectors, trying in vain to find a way out of their current predicament.

  ———

  “Bring us about to starboard, Katie. Cross the bow of the second ship.”

  The first Sultanate ship had traded two broadsides with the Vengeance on her way past. Between the two ships, the Sultanate vessel had taken the lion’s share of the damage. The lead ship now listed to starboard and its foremast was down.

  They were out of this fight. Now to take on the next one.

  After testing several ideas as she prepared for the coming battle, Cari opted for a novel tactic to try and maximize her opportunities to inflict damage on the enemy ships as they passed by her. It also served to spread out the damage to her ship rather than taking it all on one side.

  The Sultanate ships sailed in a line spaced several hundred yards apart. There was just enough space between them to allow the Vengeance to turn and cross over the line to the other side after passing the first ship, zig-zagging between them.

  This is what she did.

  This allowed them to bring their relatively undamaged and fresh port broadside to bear. The starboard side was a chaotic mass of splintered wood and overturned cannons right now anyway.

  Her move confused the other ship at first and the Sultanate captain ordered his helmsman to turn the ship, taking it out of the battle line.

  Perfect.

  “Fire!” Helen’s bellow was loud and clear despite the sling that now cradled her broken left arm.

  The turning Sultanate ship had exposed her bow to the Vengeance’s broadside and Cari’s gun crews made them pay for the mistake. Cannonballs tore down the length of the ship, wreaking havoc both on the main deck and on the lower decks as well.

  The foremast cracked and canted to one side. Though it didn’t fall completely, the loss of its sails would keep this ship out of the fight, too, once Cari passed them by.

  First, she had to survive the remaining broadside guns of the other ship, whose crews were thirsty for revenge.

  A loud boom sounded as they fired in unison when the Vengeance sailed directly beside them, headed towards their stern.

  The effect was devastating. Bodies flew amidst splintered chunks of the ship’s hull as the cannon fire slammed h
ome.

  “Mr. Dawkins, get me a damage report from below as soon as you can. Katie, as soon as we pass their stern, bring us to Port and take us across the bow of the third in line.”

  Both nodded and responded in unison with an “Aye, Cap’n.”

  “Helen, get as many of the starboard guns back in place as you can. We’re going to try it again on number three.”

  “I’ll do the best I can,” the first mate called out in reply.

  Cari knew she would but she found herself wishing she had Rodrigo and Stefan manning the gun crews instead. Their good-natured rivalry seemed to buoy the spirits of their men and women to new heights.

  She shook her head. They weren’t here and they had their own missions to worry about. She needed to keep her mind on the task at hand.

  It looked like Helen would get three-quarters of the starboard broadside back up and ready to fire in time. It was more than she expected to see after the pounding they took.

  Most of the crews on those guns were wounded and more than a few of the crews were working short-handed. They’d only get off one shot across the bow, then they’d get pounded again.

  At this rate, she wouldn’t have any guns left at all by the time they reached the last ship in the line, if they made it that far at all.

  It was going to be a total crapshoot. At this point, Cari had no inkling what the outcome would be. As long as they could keep the masts intact and the rudder repair held, they could keep going. Once they made it past the final Sultanate ship in the line, they were home free. No one would be able to turn and catch them.

  There were a whole lot of “ifs” in her plan and each pass of another ship’s guns had a better chance of crippling the Vengeance beyond repair.

  The ship tilted as Katie spun the wheel to bring them around across to the other side of the line. This captain was ready for Cari’s zig-zag plan and held his course, waiting for his chance to fire on her.

  This time, both ships fired simultaneously in a thunderous combined blast that shook everyone to the core aboard both ships.