by Peter Grant
She shivered. “Thank you… and I’ll tell the world – and my father, when he gets here – that you have those qualities too, Taghri. Thank you. You’ve done so much for me already, and now this! I’m sure my father will also approach the Satrap of Talima, to ask for his help in locating and releasing my ladies.”
“May the gods grant him success.”
“And the goddesses, too!”
He grinned. “Yes, the goddesses too. Thank you for your prayers to Kokat. I think she had a lot to do with my – ah, with Ali’s success.”
“I’ll keep on praying, then. Who knows what success she may bring in other areas?”
“I’d like that. Thank you, Gulbahar.” He dared to raise his hand and caress hers lightly, as it lay upon his arm. She shivered, but did not move away.
The Governor’s wife coughed discreetly from the far end of the balcony, and said softly, “I think we should go inside now. Supper will be almost ready.”
The warm glow stayed with Taghri for the rest of the evening. Commoner he might be, but the princess was clearly not averse to his company.
When Princess Gulbahar’s father arrived the following week, he rapidly made it clear he approved of Taghri, too. He sailed into port in a large galley of state, equipped with a hundred oars in two banks per side. Twin twenty-four-pounder cannon thrust menacingly from her bow, and a platoon of heavily armed guards stood ready to ward off any threat to her royal passenger. Unusually for a galley, she was rowed by free citizens of Kalba instead of slaves.
“We don’t use slaves on our warships,” Malik Dregat informed him after they’d been formally introduced by the Governor, and had a chance to talk privately. “Kalba’s a maritime kingdom; small, certainly, but with a big harbor and a lot of ships. It’s been a tradition with us for centuries that every man serves in the kingdom’s navy for one to two years before they’re considered adult, able to engage in trade or whatever on their own account. It binds us together as a people. When I announced I’d sail to Alconteral to fetch my daughter, half this year’s service class volunteered to row the royal galley, and a lot of former navy people offered to fill the remaining benches. They consider it an honor to bring their future Malika home again.”
“It speaks very well of your people that they feel that way, your majesty,” Taghri agreed. “If you’re a maritime kingdom, perhaps you might like to look over the chebec I bought in Lakibi a few weeks ago. She’s nailed and pegged together like a galley, rather than sewn like a traditional baghlah or boum, so she can carry cannon.”
“Yes, I noticed her as we sailed into the harbor. I’ve heard of chebecs, but never seen one before – that design isn’t common in these parts. I’d like to look over her, along with the officers of my galley. Shall we say tomorrow morning at the tenth hour?”
“I’m entirely at your disposal, your majesty. The tenth hour it is.”
At a formal reception at the Governor’s Palace that night, Malik Dregat invested Taghri with the Order of Distinction of the Kingdom of Kalba. It was a central gold medallion set upon a silver star with no less than thirty rays, suspended from a blood-red ribbon that went around the neck. “The red ribbon denotes that the award is for valor in combat,” the Malik explained as he hung the medal around Taghri’s neck. “Your rescue of my daughter certainly falls under that. A blue ribbon would signify particularly valuable non-combat service.”
“Congratulations, Ra'id,” the Governor added. “I think this is the first time a soldier, even a former soldier, of the Sultanate has earned this award.”
“Will it be in order for me to wear it, your excellency, since it isn’t one of our awards?”
“I see no reason why not. I’ll give you a letter authorizing it, and I’ll write to the Sultan to ask him to confirm that.”
He wasn’t able to meet privately with Princess Gulbahar, carefully chaperoned as she now was by ladies of her father’s household, but she was able to murmur to him in passing, “The Order looks good on you, Taghri. It goes well with your arm rings for valor.”
“Thank you, Gulbahar,” he replied as quietly as possible, conscious of the many eyes upon them. “I’d gladly give it up, though, for the chance to spend some time alone with you, and to talk freely.”
“I share that wish, but… for now, it is not possible.”
After the reception, Taghri hurried down to the harbor to alert the chebec’s crew to their royal visitor the next morning. They spent the entire night cleaning the ship and making sure that everything was in top condition. By the time the royal party arrived next morning, the vessel was as neat and tidy as when she’d first been delivered.
Taghri welcomed them aboard, but immediately deferred to her crew. “Your majesty, I may own the ship, but I’m still a novice when it comes to sailing – although I’m learning as fast as I can. Captain Elhac will answer your questions about her construction, rig and sailing qualities, and Gunner Prasad will speak to her cannon. He’s teaching all of us to use them.”
Malik Dregat glanced at Taghri’s hands. They were clean, but their callouses spoke volumes. “I’m told you’ve been tallying onto a line with the sailors.”
“I have, your majesty, and also joining a gun’s crew. So far, I’ve learned to clean out the bore and ram home the powder and shot. Aiming is more of a problem, especially on the upward roll – I haven’t yet learned to anticipate it fully – but I hope to be advanced to gun captain in due course.” Chuckles came from the crew as they listened.
“I approve. That’s the way to learn, by getting your hands dirty. One can’t learn to sail or shoot cannon by merely reading scrolls.”
The royal party took a full two hours to inspect the chebec, examining every detail and asking a lot of questions. They clearly knew ships very well, and were able to understand and assess the chebec’s advantages as a fighting ship.
“She could carry more guns, couldn’t she?” the Malik asked as they came back on deck.
“Yes, your majesty. She’s smaller than many of her kind, according to the shipyard, but they told me she could mount as many as eight nine-pounders a side. The trouble is, that many guns, their powder and shot, and their crews, would weigh so much, and take up so much space, that she couldn’t carry cargo. Her holds would have to be converted to berths for the gunners, and store-rooms. She’s set up for mixed use right now, as a fast cargo ship that can defend herself.”
“I see. I wonder if we can persuade you to bring her to visit us in Kalba? I’d like our shipwrights to go over her, and perhaps take off her lines. It’d take some experimenting, but I think we could build something like this if we put our minds to it.”
“I’ll be glad to, your majesty.” And that may let me see Gulbahar again, Taghri mentally rejoiced.
As the royal party left the ship, the Malik took him aside. “My daughter speaks very well of you – more highly, in fact, than I’ve heard her speak of any man before. Speaking as her father rather than as a king, may I ask your opinion of her?”
“Ah…” Taghri struggled for words. At last he said simply, “Your majesty, I’m a commoner. Here in Samha, I’m forbidden to even think, much less speak, of any noblewoman – much less a royal princess – in any way but as my superior. I wouldn’t dare admit any feelings for her other than respect. You’ll understand that makes me very nervous to discuss your daughter with you.”
Dregat smiled. “I do understand. I know it must be very difficult for you. Even so, between ourselves alone, what do you think of her? Speak freely. I won’t take offense.”
“I… I think very highly of her indeed, your majesty. If I were anything other than a commoner… but I’m not. It’s useless to speculate about that.”
The Malik sighed. “It pains me as her father to see her frustration. She feels for you in a way I’ve never known her feel for anyone else. I want you to know I’m satisfied you’re not just an adventurer, trying to use her for whatever advantage you can get. I’m truly grateful to you for rescui
ng her. Your courage and ability speak for themselves, particularly in your raid on Quwain. You’re a man to be proud of.”
“Thank you, your majesty.”
“I don’t hold your mutual attraction against either of you. It’s just that the sons and daughters of nobles and royalty are pawns in the web of alliances and influence, within and between nations. Their father has to weigh their wishes against the interests of his house or his kingdom. An arranged marriage with a royal or noble scion of another family can produce greater prosperity and security for his people, even though that may mean engineering a marriage his child may not want. It’s a burden for the parents, too, but they were raised and married under the same system. I suppose we’re all trapped in it, to some extent.”
Taghri’s heart sank. “I… I understand, your majesty.”
“I’m sure knowing that doesn’t make things any easier, for either of you. I’m sorry.”
As he watched the Malik’s party walk back to their coach, Taghri wondered whether it would be wise to visit Kalba. To see Gulbahar again – if he was allowed to see her, which wasn’t certain – was likely to produce frustration and longing in both of them… not a good idea, particularly if her father had a marriage of state in mind for her. He paused as a sudden thought struck him. If a king’s children were given in marriage to increase or benefit a kingdom’s power or position, could there be more than one way of doing that? Was it purely a matter of bloodlines, or were there other avenues?
I think I’d better go back to the Temple of Kokat again, and offer sacrifice, he decided. This calls for more influence than I can muster. I’m going to hate to see Gulbahar sail out of the harbor tomorrow on her father’s galley.
13
Two days later, Taghri was out at his estate, putting more recruits to his personal guard through their paces. He’d bought the property, but would have to protect it himself, because the City Watch didn’t patrol beyond the walls. The threat from raiders was real enough to require proper defenses. He’d passed the word among those who’d gone to Talima with him, and hand-picked another score out of the many who’d applied. With the ten he’d previously hired, that gave him a useful guard force, thirty-five strong. He’d keep half a dozen at the town house he’d rented, and the rest on the estate.
Sergeant-Major Hadi issued all the guards new equipment from the Feringhi weapons and armor captured at Quwain. Taghri promised to buy new uniforms for everyone as soon as he had refined the initial design he’d come up with after the capture of the pirate galley, some months before. More horses were on order to augment the twenty he already had, and he’d hired a builder to erect a barracks and bath-house on the estate for the guards’ use, paying extra for fast construction. The contractor was already at work. Until the new buildings were ready, the guards would camp out in one of the storage buildings. The winters were relatively mild in this part of the world, so that shouldn’t be too great a hardship for them.
“You’ll be working both on land and aboard ship, when I travel,” he told them. “That’s why I’ve hired sailors among you, as well as soldiers. At sea, they’re going to help us figure out better ways to attack enemy vessels. Since naphtha worked so well against buildings during our recent raid, I see no reason it can’t work just as well against pirates.” There was a rustle of interest among the new arrivals. “Slingers, you’ll have to learn to throw those clay jars of naphtha at ships; and archers, you’ll have to use fire arrows to set them alight. We won’t use burning wicks in the naphtha jars, as we did on land, for the obvious reason that if one breaks aboard our own ship, we’ll all burn. I’d really rather not do that.”
Sergeant-Major Hadi shivered. “Not a good way to die, sir.” The guards vociferously, emphatically and profanely voiced their agreement.
“In due course, I’ll expect all of you to learn enough to function as both sailors and soldiers, as well as gunners on a cannon’s crew,” Taghri went on. “You’re going to be my source of trustworthy leaders for future raids – and yes, there will be raids, if I get the chance. I haven’t forgotten those pirates who attacked the caravan. I’m not going to sit back and let them treat us like sheep to be sheared! I already know your quality, from past experience. Once I’m satisfied you’ve learned enough, you’ll be placed in command of raiding teams to do particular jobs. You’ll be the equivalent of corporals and sergeants, and I’ll pay you and allocate your shares of loot accordingly.” There was a pleased rumble of approval from the guards.
“Now, let’s –”
Taghri was interrupted by a loud croak from behind him. He spun around, to see a large black raven approaching. It backwinged as it drew nearer, heading straight for his face, and he instinctively put up an arm as he stepped back. It landed on his arm, claws digging into his skin through his shirt sleeve. It stared him straight in the eye for a long moment, then threw back its head and croaked again as it launched itself into the air. It sped off to the northeast, flying faster than any raven he’d ever seen before, vanishing into the distance.
The guards exclaimed in awe. “It’s like that raven we saw after the attack on Qisha!” one cried. “That one flew right over the Ra'id’s head.”
Taghri’s mind was racing. What lay in a northeasterly direction from here? Before long, the bird’s flight would take it out over the sea, heading along the coast towards… towards Kalba! The Malik’s galley, carrying Gulbahar, had left Alconteral yesterday afternoon, and would take four to five days to reach their home. Was the raven trying to warn him that they were in danger? Was its speed a message to him to make haste to their rescue?
He paced to and fro, head bowed, worrying at the problem. What might threaten the ship? Could it be Abu Reis and his remaining sons? If they knew the vessel’s course and likely speed – not hard to find out, given the number of sailors gossiping freely in Alconteral’s taverns – they could try to capture it. They would hold the Malik for ransom, and have their revenge on his daughter for the death of Sidi Reis. He cudgeled his mind to visualize a map of the area. Abu Reis’ stronghold on the Gaidah Peninsula was three days by galley from Alconteral. The Kalba vessel would pass within thirty parasangs of it on its way home. If some of Abu Reis’ galleys intercepted it…
He was concentrating so hard on the problem that he didn’t hear the susurration of amazed comment from his guards. “Bloody raven lands on his arm! They don’t do that!” “Well, this one did!” “What’s he gone all quiet for? Anyone would think the damned bird brought him a message!”
Taghri straightened in sudden decision, cutting off the comments as if with a knife. “Attention! Sergeant-Major, get me every man of my bodyguard who was a sailor, or knows anything about fighting on ships. We’re sailing aboard the chebec, going after the Malik of Kalba’s galley.” He pointed in the direction the raven had flown away. “I think he may be in danger. My ship’s at least twice as fast as his, given favorable winds, so we can catch up to him. Get the men aboard as fast as you can, complete with weapons. I’m going straight to the ship, to see that supplies are loaded and the crew assembled. I want to be under way in two hours. Get me slingers and archers as well, and bring some of those jars of naphtha, and empty jars for practice.”
“Aye, sir!”
Taghri spun on his heel and ran for his horse, muttering a fervent prayer to Kokat and Hobal for their help. It was only as he finished that he realized he’d invoked the goddess first, ahead of his patron. He hoped Hobal wouldn’t take offense.
The chebec cleared the harbor mouth precisely two hours later, her crew still hurriedly striking below all the boxes, bales and barrels they’d hastily loaded from the warehouse. Elhac conned her onto a northwesterly course, trimmed the three big lateen sails, and nodded in satisfaction.
“We’ll be making good at least eight miles every hour, sir, maybe a little more if the wind picks up,” he reported. “With her single sail, the galley’ll do no more than four to five. By now, she’ll be about sixty miles ahead of us. We’ll ca
tch up to her by soon after dawn tomorrow.”
“Good. Summon the crew.”
“Aye, sir!”
As soon as everyone was assembled in the waist, looking up at the forward edge of the poop deck, Taghri said, “Let me tell you what I think is going to happen.” He described the potential threat from Abu Reis. “I have no certainty about this, but I’m worried enough about it that I’m willing to make a fool out of myself if necessary, just to be sure. If this is a wasted trip, you’re free to laugh at me. If it’s not, we’ll have a good laugh at the enemy’s faces when they see us!” Cheers from the crew, who were grinning. They clearly didn’t mind the sudden change of pace.
“Gunners, I want you ready to fight, not just to practice. Prasad, what do you think? Are we ready?”
“Sir, no gunner ever admitted to that, in case anything went wrong!” More laughter. “Still, everyone’s worked very hard. There are still some rough edges, but there’s nothing like a good fight to grind them down. I think the gunners are ready, sir.”
“Good. I’ve brought some slingers and archers from my bodyguard, too. We’re going to see whether jars of naphtha, flung from slings, can hit enemy ships. If that works, our archers can use fire arrows to set them aflame. Question is, where best to put the archers and slingers?”
“Not together, sir!” Prasad said instantly. “The archers will need a flame to light their arrows. That’s too risky to have near naphtha. I’d say put the slingers in one group, well away from anyone else, and far from the cannon. The archers can stand somewhere else, watch where their jars land, then shoot at that place.”