«Told you?»
«Blade, you're not going funny in the head, are you? Khraishamo told me to come and say good-bye to you. We're going to get married.»
«Somehow I'm not surprised. I was just thinking that you two looked like an old married couple.»
«There won't be any children. I was sick two years ago, and I can't have any. But there ought to be plenty of orphans after this war's over. We can do right by them.»
She kicked the door shut, then pulled the bolt and stepped toward the bed. As she did, she unknotted the belt of her robe, then shrugged it off her shoulders. It slipped to the floor, and the moonlight played all up and down her bare body as she turned slowly in the glow from the window over the bed.
Blade found the words coming slowly as desire rose to choke him. «Rhodina, you and Khraishamo-«
Rhodina lay down on the bed beside him and put an arm around his waist. «Blade, you're about the best man I've ever met, next to Khraishamo. But you've got a trouble like all the rest. You talk too much.» Then she twined the fingers of the other hand in his hair and pulled his head down between her breasts.
Blade hadn't been planning on saying much-just that Khraishamo and Rhodina living together in Mythor might help make peace on the Sea. Everyone could see that the Sarumi weren't dangerous animals. But as Rhodina's arms went around him and her warmth and her perfume swallowed him, Blade realized that she was right.
This was no time to say anything at all.
They would have slept until noon if two urgent messages hadn't arrived for Blade.
One was from the captain of a ship just arrived in Mythor. He'd sighted a whole fleet of Bloodskin ships two days north of the city, nearly been taken, but escaped in a rain squall. He thought the Bloodskins were bound south.
The other message was from Degyat, a short letter.
Blade,
I have heard that the Pirate Folk are coming. I agree that our ships and men should fight side by side against them. I will meet you where and when you wish, to talk more of this.
Degyat,
Admiral Commanding the First Fleet
Chapter 24
The sea was flat and oily, and ships were everywhere. From the masthead of the galley Lioness, Blade could count nearly three hundred ships in sight. The Sarumi had at least a hundred and twenty, seventy were from Mythor, and ninety were in the Goharan Second Fleet under Kloret.
The Goharans hadn't been there until a few hours ago. Then they'd come up over the horizon, running fast and free, Kloret's banner flying from the two-decked galley in the lead. Mythor's strange fleet-of merchant ships and Degyat's galleys-was already on its way out to meet the Sarumi, so Kloret slipped in between them and the city. There'd been a bad moment, as the Mythorans watched for signs that Kloret was landing troops to attack the city. The city was well-garrisoned compared to what it had been, but its walls were still too weak to stand against a determined attack from the land side.
Instead, Kloret's ships paraded back and forth across the mouth of the harbor, as if Kloret was waiting for something. Then the wind died, which turned out to be a blessing. It gave all three fleets an excuse to do nothing until their admirals figured out exactly what was going on.
The Mythorans were still the worst off. They couldn't move against the Sarumi, since half their strength was sailing ships. These were crammed with Maghri archers, but couldn't move until they got a wind. Also, they couldn't be sure that Kloret wouldn't attack them once they were engaged with the pirates. To be sure, the other half of their strength was Degyat's galleys, and the Prime Minister probably wouldn't attack the First Fleet simply for joining with Mythor's rebels in a battle against the common enemy. On the other hand, Degyat was one of the Emperor's most trusted men, and any plausible excuse to destroy him might be enough for Kloret.
In other circumstances, the uncertainty might have been amusing. Nobody in the Mythoran or Goharan fleets really knew what the other might do. The Sarumi at least could be sure that the other two fleets were their enemies, but they couldn't be sure the two would act together.
Mythor's fleet lay in three lines, the sailing ships in the middle and the galleys on either side. Five miles toward shore lay Kloret's fleet, and five miles farther out to sea lay the Sarumi. Aboard Lioness, Blade and Khraishamo were making a brief inspection tour, since there didn't seem to be anything better to do.
Lioness moved slowly down the line of sailing ships. Peacock, Sigluf's ship, was coming up. Her deck was nearly empty, except for the normal number of guards and sailors. Good. The Sarumi couldn't board without getting close, and if they got close they were in for a nasty surprise from the archers.
Blade didn't see Sigluf among the men on Peacock's deck. He picked up the leather speaking trumpet and shouted down, «Where's the chief?»
«Asleep,» came up faintly from below. Blade laughed. Sigluf had spent last night saying farewell to all his Mythoran lady friends. He'd finished his work first, though-getting three thousand Maghri with bows and war clubs aboard the ships of the Mythoran fleet. Sigluf had a right to sleep late.
Blade turned, to scan the horizon in a complete circle, then stopped with his eyes toward the land. A new squadron of galleys was coming up to join Kloret's fleet. In the lead was an even bigger galley than the Prime Minister's. At this distance even Blade's eyes couldn't make out the banner, and he wasn't certain of the galley's color. It certainly looked like Harkrat's King Bull, though.
He hadn't heard that the Emperor was joining his fleet before Mythor, but if he was, the fighting might take some interesting directions. Blade swung himself over the railing of the top and into the rigging, calling for Khraishamo as he scrambled down to the deck.
The pirate met Blade as his feet struck the deck. «Have our battleflags hoisted, and pass the word to the rowers to keep their weapons handy. I suspect we'll be doing more fighting than rowing in this battle.»
«It's starting?»
«I'll be surprised if it doesn't in another hour. The Emperor may be joining Kloret's fleet.»
«The Emp-«
Blade put a finger to his lips. «Yes. At least I think I recognize King Bull. Harkrat's arrival may get Kloret moving. If it does, the Sarumi will have to attack before the two fleets can join against them.»
Khraishamo nodded. «We'll be moving up to the head of the line?»
«There will be plenty of fighting all along the line. No one will question our courage if we stay here. I want to be where I can watch Kloret's movements. The man himself, not just his fleet.»
Khraishamo showed all his teeth in a grin. «I won't ask what your plan is, Blade. But if you need me at your back-«
A shout came from the masthead. «Hulloooo, the deck! The Bloodskins are getting underway toward us!»
Blade's eyes met Khraishamo's, and he smiled. «Thanks. I may need you very badly.»
The lookouts all along the lines had seen the same thing. Blade heard their shouts and saw men running on the decks while battleflags appeared at the mastheads. They still hung limply in the still air.
From far away, a faint murmur reached Blade's ears-the drums and flutes of the Sarumi as their ships got underway.
For the moment, Blade's biggest and nearly only job was to keep track of what everybody was doing. Khraishamo could give any urgent orders aboard Lioness and the other ships would be fighting their own battles. So he scrambled aloft again, and reached the masthead just as the Sarumi's tactics became clear. Their fleet was dividing itself into two lines, to pass down both sides of the Mythoran fleet.