Accidental Champion Boxed Set

by Jamie Davis

  “Copper for your thoughts, ma’am” Helen asked.

  “I missed this, Helen. I missed it a lot. You know what I mean? I just wish everyone that’s been lost could be here too.”

  Helen lowered her voice so the others couldn’t hear her. “Don’t dwell on the past, Cari. Those that have been lost are lost. You saved all you could. We have to focus on those we can save now. No one faults you for the decisions you’ve made.”

  “No one but me.”

  Helen laid a hand on Cari’s shoulder and gave her a gentle squeeze. The first mate turned away and went back to her duties leaving her young captain alone at the ship’s wheel.

  Cari didn’t like to dwell on all the people who’d been lost when the Vengeance sank in that final battle as she ran from the Duke’s attempt to trap and capture Jaycee. There were times, however, when the loss weighed heavily on her.

  It was at times like this she wished she could talk to her mom or even her dad. That was, of course, impossible. They were a long way away, back home. At least, that was where she figured they were. If they had come after her, they would have caught up with her by now. They’d have also taken her home, or tried to, at least.

  “Sail ho,” the lookout called down from the single central mast

  “Where away?” Cari called.

  “Well off the port bow, captain. Just over the horizon now.”

  Cari lamented the fact that she didn’t have a proper spyglass on board. Captain Wheldon had taken anything that might’ve been of any value up to his home when the ship was in port. There was very little aboard other than some essential navigational tools.

  She’d have to rely on the lookout’s eyes as to what she could make out. Cari turned the ship to starboard and called out to the bosun. “Trim the sails. Let’s see if we can urge a little more speed out of her, Francesca.”

  “Aye, ma’am. We’re on it.”

  Cari called up her seamanship skill menu, along with the navigational skill menu and studied the overlay of colored vector lines showing her where the sea currents were and where the winds blew past and around the ship. Between the two, she made an adjustment to their course, plotting the best course to take them away from the ship to the left.

  It was probably only a merchant vessel, but Cari couldn’t take the chance. She knew there were plenty of the Duke’s naval ships in the area patrolling all along the western coast of the Empire. The closer she got, the more likely it would be she’d run into one of them. She had to make sure she was in a position to outrun anyone she encountered.

  Cari looked down at the main deck. Jaycee was seated there on a hatch cover with two of her rag dolls next to her. She’d been upset that she had to leave her new porcelain dolls back at Captain Wheldon’s home. Francesca and Helen had managed to make a family of rag dolls for her, though, using scraps from around the ship and donated by the crew. After a while, it seemed as if she didn’t miss the other dolls at all anymore.

  Cari wished at times like this she could have the worry-free life of a six-year-old. Of course, this six-year-old had seen her entire family die at the hands of pirates and had herself been captured or rescued on more than one occasion during a terrible sea battle. Given everything she’d been through, it was remarkable Jaycee was as well-adjusted as she was.

  Cari called up to the lookout. “Keep a sharp eye out Alison. Make sure you watch in all directions. If it’s a naval ship, there are likely to be others in the vicinity.”

  “Aye, aye, Captain.”

  Cari probably didn’t need to tell Alison how to do her job. The woman was a capable and experienced sailor. That said, it paid to be thorough. The naval ships tended to run in packs, all of them spread out along a line so they could cover more area.

  If that was indeed a naval ship to port, there might well be another one not too far to starboard. Cari adjusted course again and steered between the boat they’d spotted and where she thought another ship might be.

  Helen had joined Cari by the wheel, watching as her captain adjusted the course again. “Worried there might be more of them?”

  “Yeah. Call it a hunch. I figure they’ve got to be looking for us or just looking for anyone coming from the Cairn Islands. They all want to have as much information on where the princess is so they can try and take her for themselves, or make sure she’s perished at sea,”

  “If we can’t get into Tandon, where do you think we will be able to land?” Helen asked.

  “I’m not sure.” Cari shook her head. “We’ll just have to take our chances and find a place along the coastline to anchor long enough for everyone to get ashore.”

  “Are you planning on abandoning the Sailfish?”

  “I don’t see any other choice. We could put the five of us ashore and leave Sylvie in charge of the Sailfish to try and get it back to the islands. Honestly, though, I think there won’t be anything back there to return to. My guess is Captain Ivarson has taken over the council. He won’t be too happy to welcome anyone back who helped me and Jaycee escape. So, they are stuck with the rest of us, at least for now.”

  “Well, it’s nice to have a crew again.”

  Cari chuckled. “It’s nice to have at least one optimist in the crew, Helen.”

  “Happy to oblige, ma’am.”

  “Sail ho. New ship off the starboard stern.”

  Cari spun around to look behind them to the right. She could just make out the sails of the trailing ship coming over the horizon. “Damn, I knew it.”

  “Sometimes, Cari, I hate it when you’re right.”

  “It’s not like I’m asking for trouble, Helen. Sometimes, I feel like it just finds me.”

  Helen glanced at the sails and then at their compass heading. “That new ship has the angle to push us towards the other one. It has to be a naval vessel. We’re going to have a hard time slipping between them.”

  “I know. I don’t think we’re going to be able to make the turn to get into Tandon ahead of them. We’re going to have to make a landing somewhere else. We should be able to outdistance them, though. At least that will give us enough time to put ashore before they arrive to come after us.”

  Cari spun the wheel again, turning them back to port again. She was going to try and split the difference between the two ships and race out from between them towards the coastline. Hopefully, there would be a safe anchorage there they could use to land and get to safety.

  She hoped they had the time to pull off her plan.

  The next two days on board the Sailfish saw the crew on edge and the tension showed in a few sharp words and scowls between the crew. Cari noticed it but did little to address it. She understood why it was there. They were all still doing their jobs and that was what was important.

  Cari did try and keep them all busy, though. She made constant adjustments to the course, watching the currents and the wind direction carefully. Her navigational display helping her make minor corrections, trying to work out every bit of speed she could from the sleek schooner. The crew worked hard to keep the sails trimmed so they took advantage of Cari’s skilled ship handling.

  They did manage to pull away from the ship to their stern. She and the lookout had lost sight of it after about a day. But the ship to the port side had actually gotten closer. It was a naval frigate. They were not going to be able to race out of sight of it before they reached the coastline. It was going to be touch and go.

  “Sylvie,” Cari called. “Get the schooner’s longboat ready to deploy in a hurry. We’re not going to have much time to load up and get ashore before that other ship arrives.”

  “What kind of things do you want me to put in her, Captain.”

  “Put all the remaining food supplies we have aboard. Try to pack them in satchels in such a way that we can quickly carry them from the boat once we get ashore. Also, add any weapons we might be able to carry with us from the Sailfish. I’m not sure what we’re gonna run into once we get on dry land.”

  “Aye, ma’am.”
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  The lookout spotted another ship just as Sylvie finished loading the longboat with the weapons and supplies.

  “Sail ho. One ship dead ahead.”

  Cari stared straight ahead trying to make out the ship in front of them. The masts were just visible above the horizon. It was approaching fast, coming directly at them.

  “How had they known we were here?” Cari wondered aloud. “It’s almost as if they had radio communication, which is, of course, impossible.”

  “Radio?” Helen asked. “What’s that?”

  “Never mind. It’s just something from where I come from. They probably got some sort of magical communication that allows them to speak to each other from ship to ship. That means they knew where we were going and got ahead of us.”

  “They’ve got us trapped then.”

  “Maybe, but maybe not.” Cari looked at her navigational overlays. As they got closer to shore and the seabed got closer to the surface, the current sometimes did strange things.

  There were several places where there were cross-currents moving perpendicular to the primary current to and from shore. As Cari watched them move between the Sailfish and the incoming frigate, the beginnings of an idea formed in her mind.

  There was a chance, if luck was with her, that they could use one of those cross-currents to maneuver in such a way as to avoid any incoming cannon fire. It should work at least long enough for them to get out of range and pass by the ship ahead of them.

  Cari looked back over her shoulder. She knew there was at least one ship behind them, and another vessel to port. In all likelihood, there were probably more ships all along the coast.

  The only thing she could do was keep running for land. All she had to do was get ashore. The ships wouldn’t be able to chase her once she had her feet on dry land. She could get lost, at least from the naval forces.

  “Put on more sail, Bosun. We’ve got to pick up speed.”

  “What’s your plan?” Helen asked.

  “We can’t run away from them anymore. So we’re going to run straight at them.”

  “That’s suicide. All we have for weapons are those silly swivel guns. The tiny cannonballs they fire won’t even put a dent in another ship that size.”

  “We’re not going to fire at them. We’re going to out sail them. “

  “Look, Cari, I know you’ve demonstrated some amazing seamanship. But you can’t outrun a cannonball.”

  “I don’t have to outrun them. I just have to be able to outmaneuver them. Cannonballs are pretty slow when you think about it. All we have to do is wait until they’ve committed to firing and then get out of the way.”

  “So now we’re dodging cannon balls? I’d want to see how you do it if it weren’t for the fact that I’m on the ship you’re planning on using for target practice.”

  Cari couldn’t believe she was going to say this. It sounded suspiciously like something her father would say. “Helen, I know you don’t believe we can do this, but trust me. I have a plan.”

  Quest accepted — Dodging cannonballs

  She turned her attention to watching the currents and the wind direction again. Bearing down on the ship ahead, Cari made minute adjustments to their course. It all was going to depend on how fast they were moving. Speed was the key.

  The schooner was far more responsive than a more massive ship. All she had to do was get past the ship ahead of them. They were less than a day’s travel away from the coastline. There couldn’t be more than this one ship ahead of them. Once they were past this one, it would be clear sailing.

  As they drew closer to the other ship, Cari could make out from the sail pattern that it was an imperial naval vessel for sure. It was also a capital ship. That was both good and bad.

  The capital ships of the imperial navy were huge and carried a complement of 22 guns in each broadside. When you added in the bow and stern chaser guns, that came to 48 cannons altogether. That was the bad news.

  The good news was because the ship was so large, it would not be able to turn nearly as quickly as the tiny schooner could. All she had to do was sail past, carrying as much speed as she could. With a little luck, she’d be in an area where she could catch one of those sideways currents at the right moment.

  This was going to take every bit of navigational and ship handling skills she’d accumulated in her time on Fantasma. Only someone who could see the currents and the wind patterns the way she did would be able to pull it off.

  The first chance she got to try her new plan came when they first arrived in range of the approaching ship’s bow chasers. The massive cannons mounted directly in the front of the vessel on the forecastle, fired as soon as the Sailfish was in range. Cari saw the puffs of smoke from the cannon fire before she heard the boom of the shots. The cannonballs almost looked graceful as they arced in her direction.

  Cari shook her head and smiled.

  They’d fired a little too early and the cannonballs splashed harmlessly into the sea a hundred yards ahead of them. The next shots wouldn’t miss that way, though. They’d be well in range by that point.

  Cari checked the currents and adjusted her course slightly to pass to the starboard of the naval vessel. That was where she could spot the nearest perpendicular currents in a row that would pass by at the same time they were going by the bigger ship. If luck was with her, those currents would help her dodge the incoming cannon fire.

  First, though, she had to dodge the next shots from the other ship. Two more puffs of smoke followed by the booming sound of cannon fire announced the next round of attacks. This time Cari adjusted the course once again and caught one of the perpendicular currents just as the cannonballs soared in at them.

  Just as planned, the current popped the small schooner sideways in the water as it cut forward through the waves. It was suddenly out of the path of the incoming cannonballs and they splashed harmlessly to the port side only about hundred feet from the side of the vessel.

  “If I hadn’t seen it with my own eyes, I wouldn’t believe it,” Helen said. “How did you do that?”

  “If I thought I could teach you, I would. For now, you’ll just have to trust that I can do it again because we’re about to pass by that monster’s broadside. “

  “Dodging two cannonballs from the bow chasers is one thing, Cari. Dodging twenty-two is quite another.”

  “There’s no time like the present to see if the plan works. Get everyone up in the forecastle by the longboat. If things go badly, we’re not going to have much time to lower it and get aboard before this tiny vessel sinks.”

  “It’s nice to see you have so much confidence in your plan.”

  “Just taking precautions. Get Percy and Jaycee up there by the boat. Sylvie and the others can sail this thing. I want you, Francesca, and Percy by Jaycee’s side in case you have to get over into the smaller boat. We’ll only have one shot at this.”

  They were at an angle now to the side that the bow chasers couldn’t fire any longer and she could see the men aboard the imperial vessel crowding to the rail on the starboard side of their ship, manning the guns, ready to fire on the tiny schooner. Cari concentrated and poured every ounce of her will into activating her navigational and seamanship skills. It was now or never.

  They were about a hundred yards off the Imperial ship’s starboard side when the first broadside fired at them. Cari was glad they’d waited as long as they did. She had just entered the first sideways current and she spun the wheel turning the schooner so that it now faced almost directly away from The Imperial ship.

  With the schooner now turned to present a narrower target and racing away from them at high speed, all but one of the cannonballs fired at them missed. The one that did hit them struck at the stern rail just behind where Cari stood at the wheel. It splintered an entire section of decking and railing but causing no other damage that would affect their seaworthiness.

  Cari immediately spun the wheel to port and turned the schooner once again catching another c
urrent headed towards the shore along with the more favorable winds to sail them past the Imperial ship. The other ship’s crew would have reloaded by now. She had to be ready to react.

  She was almost to the next perpendicular current, this one carrying them back in the opposite direction. She was taking a chance, but she expected most of the gun crews on the Imperial vessel would be aiming high expecting her to turn away again and get farther away, rather than closer. If they did as she expected, Cari could sail right under the gunfire.

  The belt of smoke billowed from the side of the Imperial ship announcing another broadside. This time Cari spun the wheel to port and now sailed directly at the Imperial ship catching another of the swift perpendicular currents.

  Once again it propelled the Sailfish at a higher speed than expected and she managed to sail past all of the cannonballs as they were aimed too high. They all sailed over her ship.

  As soon as the cannonballs passed, she spun the wheel again to catch another current headed to shore.

  Cari laughed aloud into the wind blowing past her. They were past the broadside guns. The other, much larger ship would not be able to turn in time to keep them in range or in their sights. Now all she had to do was avoid the double stern chasers and they were home free.

  This was going to be a little trickier.

  “Sylvie, be ready to have those sails aloft and add as much sail as you can. We’re going to have to sail faster than they can reload. If I’m right, that will only give them one shot at us.”

  “One shot might be all they need, Captain,” Sylvie said.

  Cari shrugged. She wasn’t wrong. A few minutes later they were directly astern of the other ship and sailing away from them. As soon as they were in the sights of the stern chasers, the gun crews fired two cannonballs. They arced out towards them.

  Cari searched the waters ahead but there were no currents to slide her to the side this time. All she could do was hope their aim was bad.

  One of the cannonballs missed wide to the port side. The other, however, drove straight in and slammed into the center of the deck on the small schooner, tearing up planking and throwing up hatch covers like it was kindling.