Maquesta nodded and poked Attat to keep him moving. "Won't you be joining us?" Maq called over her shoulder to the sea elf."
"I will as soon as all of you get out of here so I can get dressed."
Behind Maquesta's procession trailed a dozen tatter-clothed humans, prisoners from Attat's dungeon. They shuffled along, idly chatting among themselves. Koraf told Maq he didn't know what crimes they were guilty of, but all of that could be sorted out later. What the prisoners had in common was a fervent desire to leave Lacynos, and all of them were willing to work on the Perechon in exchange for passage. A couple of them seemed to be able warriors, as the minotaur had seen them fight in the ring and survive.
Minotaur and human passersby, shopkeepers, street corner vendors, and sailors stared at the odd parade. Maquesta's group passed by two minotaur guards who made a move toward the Perechon's captain-until she jabbed Attat and he instructed the guards to leave them alone. The minotaur lord was being too agreeable, Maq thought as she prodded him again, encouraging him to walk faster.
Halfway to the harbor, Maquesta told Fritz and Lendle to take the lead. The streets were getting busier, and she wanted someone in front of her so the minotaur lord could not bolt. Vartan stepped to her right, and Koraf, who was carrying Sando, stepped to her left. Attat was boxed in.
Still cradling her father, the half-ogre led the procession down the main street and to the dock where the Perechon's longboat was tied. Maquesta instructed the former prisoners to wait on the shore. It would take more than one trip in the longboat to get everyone on board the Perechon. Lendle, cradling his elephant, waited with the men, as Fritzen led the rest of the group out onto the dock. They were approaching their longboat, which was tied near another moored longboat filled with four minotaurs, when Lord Attat threw back his head. "Help me!" he bellowed to the minotaurs. "They mean to kidnap me!"
Maquesta cursed as the quartet of minotaur sailors drew their cutlasses and clambered up onto the dock. Their hooves pounded over the planks as they advanced. Vartan rushed past Fritzen, and drew his small sword. The half-ogre stepped back and started retreating with Melas.
"Take him to shore!" Maq called to Fritz.
Attat's muscles bulged, and he strained against the cord that held his hands. Maquesta jabbed the spear firmly into his side.
"Tell them to stop, Lord Attat," she spat, "or I'll slay you here and throw your body into Horned Bay."
Attat growled, and with a burst of strength severed the cords. His leg shot out behind him, his sharp hoof driving into Maquesta's calf. Maq staggered and nearly dropped her massive spear. But she gritted her teeth, balanced the weapon, and thrust it at him again.
The minotaur lord pivoted, the jagged spear tip piercing only his purple robe. Grinning, he lunged forward, trying to bat the spear out of her hands, succeeding instead by throwing her off balance. Maquesta fell to her knees, still holding on to the spear. Her eyes grew wide as she watched Attat bound past her, straining to reach Fritzen, who was carrying her father to the shore.
"Fritz! Look out!" she called.
The half-ogre spun about, then nimbly stepped to the side, avoiding the charging Attat.
It was then Maquesta realized the minotaur lord had not meant to attack Fritzen, but to get past him. His hooves drummed over the planks, then with one leap he was on the shore. Using the spear for support, Maq pulled herself to her feet and started after him. But a clash of swords behind her stopped her progress. She turned to see Vartan struggling against the minotaur sailors. Koraf placed Sando gently on the street and drew his curved blade.
Because the dock was not very wide, only two of the sailors could reach Vartan. The other two stood behind their fellows, growling encouragement. Wielding the borrowed axe, Vartan swung it through the air and sent its sharp edge into the chest of one assailant. The wounded minotaur roared and fell back. Vartan pressed forward and followed him down the dock, allowing two of the minotaurs to move up and the other one to step behind him. He was surrounded.
Maquesta rushed forward, close behind Koraf. Vartan screamed as one of the minotaurs drove his blade deep into the human's thigh. Another minotaur brought his cutlass high above his head, meaning to bring it down on the sailor. But Koraf was faster. Pushing the wounded Vartan out of the way, Maquesta's first mate raised his own sword and parried the cutlass.
Maq thrust forward with her massive spear, sending the tip deep into the belly of another sailor. The minotaur crumpled, and Maquesta pulled hard to free her weapon. At the same time Koraf swung his blade, striking his assailant's hand and sending the cutlass to join the garbage in the harbor.
"Surrender!" Koraf barked to them in the minotaur tongue.
The sailors quickly complied, dragging their wounded comrades with them into their longboat.
"WegothimMaquestaKarThon!" Lendle called. His small feet slapped over the deck. "Wegothim!"
Maq turned to see Lord Attat's former prisoners surrounding the minotaur. They were treating him none too kindly and jostling him back onto the dock. Behind them strode Tailonna. She motioned to Maquesta and gestured at the longboat.
"My nets will be wearing off!" she called.
Maq nodded. She padded toward where Sando stood, alone and confused. Picking up the frightened child, she felt Sando's mind touch hers.
It's going to be all right, Maquesta thought. We're taking you to your father. He's on the Perechon.
He told me you'd protect me, Sando concentrated in reply. He's waiting for us.
Maquesta looked past the sailors, to Fritzen on the shore. He gently picked up Melas, and started down the dock toward Maq.
Lendle jumped into the longboat, then reached over and grabbed the elephant cage and set it beside him. Maq carefully passed the shadowperson to the gnome. Because the sun was starting to set, Sando was getting stronger. She sat on the gnome's right side and waited for the others to join them. Maquesta, Attat, Vartan, and Fritz, holding Melas, filled the seats for the longboat's first trip to the Perechon.
Once on deck, the crew surrounded the minotaur lord, and Ilyatha rushed forward to grab his daughter and hold her close. Fritz gently laid Melas on the deck, and Maquesta sat beside him. His dark eyes fluttered open, and he coughed and winced in pain.
"Remember the lesson of my life, Maquesta," Melas whispered. "Trust no one." His mouth opened again, and she leaned closer so she could hear. "Take good care of the Perechon, Captain Kar-Thon."
Melas took his last breath, and Maq sobbed openly.
Fritz placed a gentle hand on her shoulder. "We'll bury him at sea," he said softly.
She nodded and let him help her to her feet. A sailor brushed by her with a tarp. Behind her, the longboat returned from its second trip to the dock. As Tailonna, Koraf, and a group of former prisoners started up the rope ladder, the Perechon was engulfed in a flash of bright light.
With a scream of anger, Belwar appeared in the sky above the ship's mainmast. He dived toward the deck, and the sailors surrounding Attat fled in panic, leaving their prisoner an easy target. The ki-rin's horn, aimed at the quivering minotaur lord, crackled with lightning.
"You slew my brother!" Belwar shouted. "Now I shall do the same to you!"
The ki-rin's horn sank into Attat's shoulder, and the minotaur's body was instantly covered in a pale gold, crackling light. Belwar shook the minotaur free, and let his quaking form fall to the deck, then the ki-rin placed his front hooves on Attat's chest and peered into his dark eyes. The minotaur lord was whimpering, begging for his life. Belwar ignored his feeble protests.