The ship had pursued them all through the night, growing closer with each passing hour. Yazwa held her empty breakfast bowl in hand, watching it push through waves in its pursuit. It was close enough to see the banner flying from the mast, a blue saber-toothed tiger head with its fangs bared on a white background. The same banner the ship flew when they fought over at the Emerald Arrow. The pursuing ships' cannons were rolled out on deck and people were rushing around them. Yazwa assumed they were getting the guns ready to fire.. On the stern, a man held a cone to his mouth and shouted the same warning he had been giving since the sun came up.
"Mystery ship!" the man called, voice hoarse. "Mystery ship! Strike your sails and prepare to be boarded for inspection! If you do not strike your sails we will fire upon you!"
"Not if I have anything to say about it," Yazwa chuckled, tapping her staff against the deck as the man repeated the call in a different language.
"You should get down from there," Cai said, kneeling by the ship's wheel on a pile of blankets and pillows donated to spare his old knees. He gently turned the wheel, keeping them on a straight course. Beside him was a stack of his pistols and plenty of powder and shot to keep them loaded for a long time. "They're close enough to start firing warning shots with muskets. Can't have you getting hit with a lucky shot before the fun begins."
Yazwa stepped away from the railing to join him, steadying herself as the ship plowed through a wave. "No, no, we can't have that. Are you going to try any last-minute maneuvers to throw them off?"
"Of course not," Cai scoffed. "The whole point is to make him think we're some small timers that panicked and ran for it. If I start getting fancy, they'll start getting suspicious. We go in a straight line until they pounce."
"And it's just about time too," Bill said, beckoning from the stairs that led up to the stern castle. "Stop eyeballing our new friends and get down here. Time to get going."
Yazwa bounded down the stairs and followed him into the captain's cabin. Light shone in through the windows, lighting up the table covered with a map of the ocean around them. A quick look showed her it was heavily marked and annotated. Before she could read any of it Bill pulled it away and set two cups and a spoon down.
"Does this mean I'm dining with the captain?" she asked.
"After this is over, I will buy you any meal you want." Bill grinned, arranging the pair of cups on the table. "There's going to be plenty of loot to go around."
The door to the cabin swung open, and Saiyun stepped into the room. "You called?" he asked, half-sewn doll in hand.
Bill beckoned him over, frowning at the doll. "That's not the second one, is it?"
"No," said Saiyun, tapping the pouch hanging at his side. "I have the second Swift Tanlin doll ready to go. I thought I'd get started on a third while I waited."
"You're out of time," Bill said, grabbing a cup in each hand. "This cup is our ship, this cup is their ship, and this spoon is you two."
Yazwa watched as he shifted the cups around so the ship chasing them was slightly behind them. "Right, got it."
Bill placed the spoon down so that their ship was between the spoon and the enemy ship. "I'm going to send you two and both Tanlins over the side,and you're going to swim west, keeping us between you and Azun's ship at all times," he said, pushing the spoon to the edge of the table and then looping it around until it was behind the other cup. "Once you can't make out our banner anymore, you're going to circle around and come up behind their ship, then come up alongside them to put their cannons out of commission."
"No problem," Yazwa nodded eagerly.
"I see one," Saiyun countered. "I can see the logic in not charging at them directly, since they'd likely fire on us before Yazwa's curse could take effect, But going that far on Tanlin's back will be exhausting. Why don't we just go over the side when they get close?"
"Because by the time you've built up speed to keep pace with them, some alert watchmen will blow you away," Bill said, rapping his knuckles on the table. "All eyes will be on us as we get closer and closer; no one will be watching their aft. You can sneak up and match their speed so you can sail alongside them. Make sure you hold on to your staff, Yazwa."
"Will do," Yazwa said, tapping it on the deck and smiling at Saiyun. "They might not be able to shoot at us, but I'm sure someone will take a swing or two. Don't worry, I'll hold them off."
"For how long?" Saiyun asked. "Their deck is almost at wave level. If we want to keep close enough to nullify the cannons, we'll be in a very dangerous position."
Yazwa frowned, glancing out the window at the ship slowly bearing down on them. It was true, the deck was so close to the waterline that it would be possible for someone to strike them with a fist and even easier with a weapon or a boat hook. Surprise wouldn't last very long. "I'm leaving my obsidian onboard, so I won't be able to cut with my staff. I couldn't hold off the whole crew on my own for long."
Bill reached out and grabbed one of the cups, holding it sideways. "If they wanted to blow us to pieces, they'd load their guns with solid shot, angle them flat, and blast away from a distance. Is that what they're doing Yazwa?"
"No," replied Yazwa. "They were loading them and aiming them upwards."
Bill turned his hand until the cup was facing upwards at an angle. "They don't want to sink us, they want to stop us and search us. Best way to do that is to load their cannons with shrapnel and shred our sails with a full volley. Only way to manage that is to get very, very close. You won't have to linger for long."
A quiet moment took hold of the cabin. Yazwa ran the scenario through her head as butterflies fluttered giddily in her stomach. "How do we know when to leave?"
"When our ship starts to veer towards you," Bill grinned, grabbing the cups and knocking them together. "Once their guns fail, we'll make a hard port turn and smash our side into them. This old tub may be slow, but it can turn with the best of them. The sudden shift in tactics should confuse them long enough for us to fire a volley and board them."
"So we back off and when the ships come together we join you on deck," said Yazwa
"I can have the other Tanlin go under the ship and leap up on the opposite side," Saiyun nodded. "Hitting them from two separate directions will give even more of an advantage than surprise."
Bill shook his head. "No. Once you pull away, you stay away until the fight is over and I call you back."
"What?" Yazwa demanded. "I can't miss out on this!"
"I agree," Saiyun said. "There is much both of us can offer to this coming battle. To not use us to our fullest would be foolish."
"You know," Bill chuckled, cracking his knuckles, "It's not often I get called foolish on my ship. You need to stay back because you're more important in the battles to come. This ship might not have a Vao on board, but the next one probably will. I'm going to need you to spot them for me Yazwa, and I'm going to need your summons to help fight them, Saiyun. There's plenty of action to go around, and you two are irreplaceable."
A warm, fiery feeling rushed through Yazwa and she leaped to her feet. "Well what are we waiting for?" she shouted, grabbing Saiyun and pulling him up. "Let's get going!"
—
Some time later, that warm, firey feeling had not faded, which was fortunate since Yazwa was shivering and soaked to the bone. Swift Tanlin's body was hard and smooth with nothing to grab hold of. For the long swim, she and Saiyun had hung onto Tanlin's undulating body with their legs and wrapped their arms as far around as they could reach. Every joint in her body ached, and every muscle burned with exhausted fire.
But they were in position.
The wake of the ship provided relatively calm waters for their close pursuit. Yazwa kept her eyes fixed on the stern, but no eyes looked back at her. Bill had been right; no one was bothering to watch the rear of the ship. "Ready?" she whispered, looking over her shoulder at Saiyun.
"W-w-w-we have to w-w-w-wait," Saiyun said through chattering teeth. "Until they're r-r-ready to fire."
Yazwa switched her staff to her other hand, flexing her fingers and shaking out her arm. She had to be ready. She couldn't fail. "There are only four cannons on each side, so try to get us right in the middle of them."
Before Saiyun could respond, a voice began barking orders from Azun's ship. "Mystery ship! You have been warned. We are the Tsilen Navy, and we demand you stow sail to be boarded and you have refused our demand to halt for inspection. Now you will be fired upon!"
"Go!" Yazwa shouted, but Tanlin was already moving. Its powerful flippers churned the water as it propelled them into the wake of the ship. The wave washed over Yazwa's head and she held on for dear life as the world went quiet underwater. The silence did not last long as they burst to the surface, racing forward.
They passed the first gun, pulled away from the side, and pointed up at the sails of their ship. Yazwa switched her staff back to her other hand and choked up on the grip. They were so close, the side of the ship was grinding against her shoulder. The trough of a wave dipped them down, but the next wave lifted them as they passed under the second gun. A man in a blue uniform bellowed orders, pointing at the ship. Yazwa was close enough to see the expression on the gun crew's faces as they pulled the cords to fire the cannons.
Every single cannon failed to ignite.
Yazwa let out a gleeful cackle.
The man in the blue uniform raced for the side of the ship, drawing a sword as he approached. Another wave dipped them down, and when they came up again Yazwa was ready. She jabbed her staff at his face, but the waves threw her aim, and she struck the man in the stomach just as his sword cleared the scabbard. He staggered backward and pointed with his blade as the waves dipped her down again.
When they bobbed up again, the gun crews were swarming her, swinging poles and trying to grab them. She did her best, swinging her staff with her right hand and warding off blows with her left. A big wave smashed her head against the hull and she swayed, fighting for balance as a pair of hands grabbed her right arm. She thrust her staff wildly into the crowd again and again until the hands released her. Tanlin dived into the trough of a wave again and the blood thundered in her ears as she prepared to rise again.
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A pair of arms wrapped around her waist, and Yazwa lashed out as a tremendous creaking groan filled the air. Tanlin flared out his fins, and they stopped dead in the water, the ship surging head as if fired from a bow. "Let me go!" she bellowed, reaching behind her and pounding her fists down on the man who grabbed her.
"Yazwa, it's me!" Saiyun coughed as Yazwa pounded his back. "It's me, it's over!"
She froze, breath coming in short sharp gasps. "Oh, Saiyun! I'm sorry! I thought I thought–"
"I know!" Saiyun groaned, sitting up straight and rubbing his back. "I know. Look!"
Turning around, Yazwa saw their ship heeled over on one side, every timber protesting as it turned hard to port towards Azun's ship. "YES!" She screamed, voice lost amidst the crash of waves and the bellowing of orders.
-
Ji hung onto the railing for dear life as the ship turned hard. Her side of the ship lurched upward and she was treated to a view of the other ship as they veered towards it. Uniformed men scrambled away from their guns towards racks of weapons tied to the mast. A man in blue bellowed, waving his sword frantically and clutching his stomach with one hand. The other ship turned, but too late.
"Here we go!" Bill shouted, clinging to the same railing as Ji. Batro and Aven were there too, along with other members of the crew bearing their own weapons. The rest of the crew was on the other side of the ship closest to their enemy, cradling muskets in their arms. "When we hit, they shoot and we jump!"
The ship jostled, and Ji wrapped her tail around the railing as the angle got steeper and the ships closed in on each other.
"Do you want to die today?!" Bill bellowed.
"No!" the crew shouted in response and Ji found herself joining in.
"Do you want to be rich?!" Bill shouted.
"Yes!" the crew replied and Ji found herself joining in again.
"Then don't stop!" Bill cried, looking up and down the line of crew clinging to the railing. "Don't stop until the ship is ours!"
Ji closed her eyes and took a steadying breath to calm her hammering heart. "I'm going into battle, En Chitei," she murmured to herself. "To danger and death. All I ask is to be as your mightiest storms and most ferocious gales. Watch as I sweep my enemies away like leaves before the wind. Watch as they topple like trees. I am your servant and your acolyte. Show me the way."
A shockwave rippled through the deck as the two ships collided. Guns roared like thunder as the crews fired at each other. "Now!" Bill bellowed.
Ji's eyes snapped open, and she released her hold on the railing. The downward slope of the deck made it easier to run as she darted forward. The way ahead was obscured with smoke, but she knew where she was going. Bill was two steps ahead of her, leaping into the air and shifting into a mass of water the second he pushed off the railing. Ji was right after him, hurling herself into the smoke. If she remembered right, the spot she was aiming for was just beyond the cannons and well clear of the mast.
As she flew through the air the smoke thinned and the deck rushed up at her. Ji braced to land, but the ship lurched down. She hit the deck boards hard and rolled to break her fall until she smashed into the opposite railing. Ignoring the pain in her side she leaped to her feet, eyes sweeping over the smoke-shrouded deck as her ears rang.
More bodies flew through the air as the others joined the battle, landing hard and jumping to their feet. Bill reformed and rushed two sailors armed with axes. The man in the blue uniform shouted over the din of battle and waved his sword through the smoke. Other sailors scrambled to their feet, clutching pistols and hatchets. Along the railing to Ji's right, a kneeling sailor lifted a pistol and pointed it right at her heart.
Instinct took over.
Ji twisted her hips, spinning in a circle. Her tail whipped out and struck the pistol just as the sailor pulled the trigger. Searing pain burned her tail but she pushed through it, completing her spin.
The sailor gasped as the pistol flew out of his hands into the sea.
Ji used her momentum to slam her fist into the side of his head, sending him crashing to the deck.
A wave of pain rushed up her tail and Ji looked over her shoulder. Had she been shot? Was her tail broken? Did the bullet hit anywhere else on her body?
The battle cry of a sailor saved her, snapping her back into focus. The tall, bearded man rushed her, ax held high to swing down on her head. Ji held her ground, bobbing on her heels until he came close enough to swing. She darted to the left as he came at her and the sailor tried to stop frantically as he slammed into the ship's railing. With his rear unguarded, Ji stepped forward and landed a hard blow against his back that sent him toppling over the side into the water.
She pushed the pain in her tail out of her mind as she refocused on the battlefield. Bill was fighting his way up the stairs to the ship's wheel, driving a man swinging a boathook back. Batro had crossed swords with the man in the blue uniform, the sound of steel on steel ringing across the deck. Aven darted backward, avoiding the wild swings of an ax from two men. A sailor leaned on the mast, ramming powder and shot down the muzzle of a rifle and putting it to his shoulder.
Ji surged towards, feet pounding on the deck. The sailor heard and spun around, pointing the weapon at her as she closed in. Ji dropped to a roll as he fired, the shot passing harmlessly over her head. Jumping to her feet she dodged a clumsy attempt to club her with the butt of the rifle and launched a flurry of blows at his face. The third knocked him out, sprawling on the deck.
As he fell Ji's instincts screamed and she darted forward, feeling a sharp pain in her tail and leg. Spinning around, she saw the man in the blue uniform, raising his sword for another strike. She darted backward and slowed as she felt blood soak her pant leg. This man wasn't like the rest. He had training and it showed, each slash he made at her leaving no opening for her to attack. Backing up, she avoided thrusts and slashes, looking for a way to slip through his guard or break away. She stumbled over a body and the man's eyes lit up as he lunged for a killing blow. But before he could land it he twisted away, just barely avoiding a decapitating slice from Batro.
"You won't get away that easy," Batro snarled, left eye purple and swelling shut.
Ji found her footing and went to Batro's side, advancing on the man in tandem.
He made a few wild lunges at them, eyes darting back and forth before he seized something hanging from his neck. He pressed it to his lips and blew, sounding a shrill whistle.
Ji tensed, but Batro clamped a hand on her shoulder as the man in blue dropped his sword to the deck. All around them the sound of battle went silent as the sailors threw their weapons to the deck and raised their hands.
"Would you look at that," Batro grinned. "We won."
-
"How much longer is this going to take?" Bill asked, looming over Aven.
Aven sighed, pulling his ear away from the safe in the captured ship's cabin. It was smaller than Bill's but held a cot, desk, wash basin, and the tough little safe Aven was trying to crack. "I have to listen for the gears and I can't do that if you're looming over me. I should be out helping patch people up."
"Cai and Batro know their way around a wound," Bill huffed. "So do I. But you're the only one who can crack a safe. So get down to it."
"I'll work faster if you're not breathing down my neck," said Aven, glaring at Bill until he got the point and left.
The safe was nothing remarkable at first glance, a squat iron box like any other. But rather than having a single keyhole, it had two. Double-key safes had been showing up more and more in the last few years. It was a clever idea. The captain of the ship held one key and someone on land held the other. Even if the ship was taken over, people like him couldn't get into the safe without the other key. It was a foolproof way to protect secret correspondence and private orders.
At least in theory.
Aven pressed his hands together and breathed, willing the shaking to go away. The battle had been short but fierce. The survivors of Azun's ship were huddled at the bow, watched over by armed guards as everything of value was stripped from the ship. Musketballs whisked by his head twice, close enough to hear the wind whistle around them. He'd nearly been gutted when one sailor caught him off balance and-
The battle was over. It was time to focus on the safe.
The trick to cracking double-key safes was to figure out which order the keys needed to be turned in. Some needed them to be turned at the same time, which was the most challenging. But this was a small safe on a small ship, he doubted it was one of those. Tuning out the noise from outside Aven gently slid his lockpicks into the empty keyhole, feeling out the resistance until he heard the lock click. Reaching out he stuck the captured captain's key into its hole and turned. The safe door swung open silently.
"About time!" Bill barked, making Aven jump. He pushed him aside and pulled a pair of folders out of the safe, dropping them on the desk and yanking them open.
Aven left the cabin, quite happy to be ignored. Outside the ships lay still in the water, lashed together with ropes. Muskets, barrels of powder, and boxes of shot were being pulled out of the hold and brought over to their ship. The cannons had already been unlashed from their mooring and tossed overboard, along with the ship's mainsail. Aven weaved around the plunder and climbed up onto the deck of their ship where he quickly found who he was looking for.
Ji lay on the deck face down, bandages wrapping her tail. Saiyun and Yazwa sat next to her, still drying out from their long swim. "Aven!" she called when he climbed into view. "Did you get the safe open?"
"I did," Aven said, kneeling next to her. "How are you?"
"Fine," answered Ji with a smile. "Cai says that the burn isn't serious and the sword didn't cut very deep. It hurts, but it won't slow me down."
Aven reached out and examined the wrap around the tip of Ji's tail. It was tight and the knot wouldn't brush against the ground. The same could be said about the bandage wrapped around its base. "I thought you had two sword wounds?" Aven asked.
"I do," Ji said, pointing. "The same slash got my tail and the top of my butt. Cai said it didn't hit anything but muscle and fat."
"I'll take a look at it," Aven said, only to be stopped when Yazwa and Saiyun obnoxiously cleared their throats. "What?"
Saiyun looked up from the doll he was stitching. "I'm sure Cai did a thorough job."
"No need to disturb the bandages," Yazwa added.
Aven glared at both of them. "It can't hurt to have a look."
"Especially because I've never ever stitched anyone up before," Cai added sarcastically as he lugged a barrel up over the side. "The wound is fine, Aven. You'll have to find another excuse."
Ji blinked. "Excuse? Excuse for what?"
"I opened the safe for Bill," Aven said, changing the topic with lightning speed. "There were a lot of papers in there. I'm sure he'll find something out."
"At least he has a good excuse for not helping us," Cai said with a cough, looking directly at Yazwa.
"I did my part," Yazwa laughed. "I hung onto that thing so long I felt like my arms were going to come off. They still do."
Cai huffed and took his leave, carrying the barrel down into the hold.
"Well, at least we'll have more food," Saiyun said, watching the parade of boxes and barrels get hauled aboard.
"Not that much," Aven said, reaching out and gently feeling the tip of Ji's tail, testing the knot that held the bandages on. "We have to leave them enough to survive on."
"I have to say I'm surprised," Saiyun said, setting down the doll and shaking out his hands. "That we accepted their surrender. Not the sort of thing you'd expect out of pirates."
"It's the smart thing to do,” Aven said. “If they expect you to kill everyone they fight to the death. If you respect a surrender they stop fighting a lot quicker. We take all their weapons and their mainsail. It means they can't fight and they're dead slow. They get to live and we don't have to worry about them."
Saiyun was silent until Aven drew away from Ji. "What are the chances of that happening again?"
Aven sighed, feeling the shake come back into his hand. "Low. These guys were off on their own. The closer we get to the fleet the more backup they can expect and the harder they'll fight."
"I'm ready," Ji said, clenching her fists.
Yazwa patted her head. "Me too. I want in on the next boarding party. Batro's getting away with all the good souvenirs."
A muffled cry of glee floated up from the other ship. A split second later, Bill followed it, hurling himself up on deck, folders tucked under his arm. "Get these ships unlashed! We've got places to be! Move it! I don't care if they have gold bars for ballast, we leave now! Cai! Set a course hard east!"
Aven stood as the crew scrambled to obey his command. "What did you find?"
Bill opened the folders to reveal a long list. "Just how many warships are nearby, which ones have Vao on them and which summons they know," he said, a manic smile spreading across his face. "They won't know what hit 'em!"