“I like her,” she said. “She has my vote.”
“How do the Clerics vote?”
Brother Hernhold leaned forwards and nodded to Elaina. “The Clerics vote in favour of the proposal.”
Elaina’s heart was fair trying to hammer its way out of her chest, and she wished the Council would do their voting all at once, but traditions were traditions and the Queen of Blades had warned her how it would go.
“How does the Thirteenth vote?” the Queen continued.
Armen Vert, guild master of the Thirteenth and a royal bastard from the Five Kingdoms, looked unimpressed. “We vote in favour of Captain Black.”
Elaina almost questioned the man’s decision, she’d been so sure he would vote the other way, but good sense asserted itself and she kept quiet.
“How do the Fallen vote?”
Carowell stood up and fixed Elaina with a black stare, her dark hair framing her pale face in anger. “This is a mistake. They are pirates. They will…”
“The time for discussion is past, Carowell,” the Queen of Blades said firmly. “How do the Fallen vote?”
“Against,” Carowell snarled, and sat back down. Elaina had no idea what had caused the plump woman to bear so much anger against her. It certainly seemed possible she’d lost something at the hands of pirates.
“How do the Red Hands vote?”
Terk Ferrywold gave Elaina a sympathetic look. “You should have sided with me instead of the Drurr. I vote against.”
“How do the Civil Sons vote?”
Jeneus Lo’ten yawned wide and loud. “Whichever way you vote, my dear bladed queen. For the pirate. Why not, eh?”
At the sixth vote in her favour Elaina’s stomach turned over, and then over again. It felt as though her insides were dancing a nervous jig. One more would secure her support no matter how the last two guilds voted.
“How do the Broken Spears vote?”
Blunt, guild master of the Broken Spears and a man with impeccable taste in fine suits, smiled at Elaina wide and long. “I vote in favour of Captain Black,” he said in his deep, rumbling voice.
A couple of the guild masters started shouting, and those who didn’t all seemed to be busy in quieter discussions. Elaina wondered if major decisions made by the Council were always like this. The Queen of Blades fought for control of the situation and eventually managed to quieten her peers long enough to take the votes of the two remaining guilds. Elaina heard none of it. Her blood was rushing through her ears and a whoop of joy was threatening to escape her, but she held it in. She needed to maintain a measure of composure despite her victory.
With both Chade and Larkos behind her, there was no way anyone could dispute her claim to the throne, even if she did have to sit it beside Drake Morrass. There was also no way her father could be anything other than proud, even with the loss of her own ship. Tanner had sent her on an impossible task and she’d succeeded regardless.
“Captain Black,” said the Queen of Blades, and Elaina realised the entire Council had fallen silent.
Straightening up again, she faced the Drurr. “Aye?”
“The Council has voted in favour of your proposal. What is left is a discussion on the amount of support that will be entrusted to you. If you would like to return to the antechamber – this could take some time.”
Elaina nodded enthusiastically, a wild grin plastered to her face. “Aye, I can wait.”
The Queen of Blades bowed her head slightly. “Congratulations, Captain.”
Chapter 28 - The Phoenix
Keelin looked up at the Bloody Bride and felt a shiver travel up his spine, across his neck, and then back down his spine for good measure. He’d always felt the name of the ship was a bit macabre, and now the thing looked downright spooky. The majority of the rigging was no longer made from rope, as one would expect from most ships, but from the silk woven by that terrifying monster of a ship’s pet that Captain Zothus kept. It made the Bride look like a giant floating nest of spiders.
“Can I help ya, Captain?” said a voice from behind, and Keelin turned to find the bald captain standing there, watching him with an amused expression. Zothus wore no shirt, and an extensive tattoo of a serpent wound its way all around his chest and arms.
“How can you stand it?” Keelin said.
“What’s that, mate?”
“The spider.”
“Rhi? She’s quite friendly once ya get to know her. Reckon she’d take right to you. She loves the scared ones.”
Keelin shuddered and glanced behind at the ship, his eyes darting around the rigging, looking for the cat-sized monster.
“What do ya want, Stillwater?” Zothus said with a laugh and a shake of his head.
“Do you still work for Drake?”
“I sail for Drake,” Zothus said. “I work for my crew.”
“Good enough,” Keelin said quickly. “The whole of the Pirate Isles sails for Drake these days. I’m wondering if you’re heading back there.”
Zothus nodded slowly.
“And how would you like an escort?” Keelin said. “Seems Elaina’s got some ships, and I have some slaves that need to find their way back to Drake.”
Zothus narrowed his eyes. “Drake don’t much like slavery. Neither do I.”
Keelin held up his hands. “I purchased them to free them, Zothus. We need folk back in the isles. Folk to sail, fight, and work. They’ll be delivered as slaves, but as soon as they’re handed over, I want their collars removed.”
“And you want me to direct these ships and free folk back to the Pirate Isles?” Zothus said. “Why not you?”
“I have another stop to make first. Might be a while, and the isles need reinforcements sooner than later.”
“Send them my way.” Zothus nodded. “I shall deliver them to Drake as safe as the sea allows.”
It wasn’t far to The Phoenix from the Bloody Bride, and Keelin hadn’t expected any trouble, which made it all the more confusing when he realised he was sitting in a busy tavern with a drink in front of him and a man dressed in a white robe on the other side of the little table.
“How did I get here?” Keelin said as he looked about himself and recognised the tavern as one very close to the docks.
“I brought you here,” said the white-robed man in a soothing voice. “I am sorry for the method, but I needed to talk to you and I did not want to rouse any attention.”
“Right,” Keelin said, still fighting the fuzzy feeling that clouded his head. “But how did I get here?”
“You walked, Captain Stillwater. Just not under your own volition. I suggest you drink. The feeling will fade very soon.”
Keelin looked down at the mug in front of him. He smelled alcohol, and strong stuff by the whiff of it. Looking up, he found the white-robed man regarding him with deep yellow eyes. Keelin had never seen yellow eyes before, and they were unnerving to say the least. The rest of the tavern seemed to be going about its normal business as if nothing out of the ordinary had happened. Folk drinking, boasting, singing, drinking some more.
“Who are you?” Keelin said. He knew he should be angry, or worse, but something about the man set off a warning in Keelin’s head and he knew without a shadow of a doubt that no matter how quickly he might draw his swords, it wouldn’t be fast enough.
“I am the Oracle, Captain Stillwater.”
“Drake’s Oracle?” Drake had mentioned the man a few times.
“The very same. And now you know I am not without power. I hope it will go some way towards convincing you that I am no fraud.”
“Right.” Keelin picked up his mug and sniffed at it. “What is it you want from me?”
“Right now I wish to tell you a story. The story of this city. Did you know Larkos was once part of the Dragon Empire? Long ago it was the sister city to the capital of the Dragon Empire, Soromo.”