T’ruck glanced over his shoulder to see Deun Burn striding down the beach towards them, his skull tattoo a stark white against his sun-darkened face and his swagger setting his cloak swaying and the axe attached to his belt swinging. Many folk hated the Riverlanders, considering them vagrants and thieves even among the isles. Some even believed they carried diseases wherever they went and infected water supplies with their mere presence. T’ruck didn’t entirely believe the stories, but it was plain as the sun in the sky and the water in the sea that Deun Burn didn’t like T’ruck Khan.
“Admiring the ship?” Burn said as he closed in. T’ruck had hoped the man would simply walk on by, but hope, like happiness, often turned to ash.
“She is small,” T’ruck rumbled. It wasn’t entirely true, but Berris Dey was smaller than North Gale, and that was all that really mattered.
Burn made a sound between a click and a sigh. “Riverlanders believe it is not about size, but where you stick it.”
T’ruck snorted. “Your sister thinks otherwise.”
Burn snarled out some incomprehensible words that were likely an insult. T’ruck had no interest in learning the Riverland’s guttural-sounding language and even less interest in knowing what the fool had said to him.
“Your mother too,” he said with a smile.
Burn hissed out some more gibberish, followed by a tug of his earlobe. T’ruck yawned and burped at the smaller man.
“They were glad of a real man after all you” – T’ruck glanced at Burn’s crotch – “little Riverlanders.”
Deun Burn looked set to pick his axe from his belt and make the last mistake of his life, so T’ruck decided to spare him the death. “Oh, it appears we have a boarding party, and… fuck!”
Burn’s snarling hisses turned to smiles as T’ruck realised the new ship, Berris Dey, was filled with men and women whose faces were covered in tattoos.
“I should let me do the speaking, barbarian,” Deun said with a sneer. “They won’t care for your language, or your face.”
T’ruck grumbled, but the man running from the Berris Dey towards them looked like he was in a right hurry, and the scales painted on his face did little to hide the fear there.
“Friend of yours?” T’ruck said.
“We Riverlanders are all family,” Burn said, his voice cold.
As the newcomer drew near, T’ruck could see that the tattoo seemed to go all around his head, even under his hairline. The man almost looked like a snake, he was so scaly; not to mention his nose was so small it seemed to disappear amidst the inked lines.
The two Riverlanders started to hiss, screech, snap, and click at each other. T’ruck was sure it was actually some form of language, but the sounds the men made were so ugly they actually hurt his ears. To distract himself he wondered if the Riverland’s women made similar noises while they fucked, and how off-putting that would have to be to the men fucking them. It was likely why there were so few of the people. Sex should rarely involve bloody ears. Although there was that one time with P’elpy, his first wife, which had involved bloody ears, nose, lips, and cock.
“Khan,” Burn snapped.
“Huh?”
“Flen spotted a fleet just five days ago. He says four ships, including the largest he has ever seen.”
“Did they chase him?” T’ruck was already intrigued by the mention of a giant ship.
Burn babbled some words at the scaled Riverlander, who prattled some nonsense back. “No. They ignored him.”
“Then why should we care? There are fleets all over the world these days.”
Again Burn hissed and clicked, and the other Riverlander responded.
The skeleton of the Man of War, still sitting on the beach, caught T’ruck’s eye. It was a giant, a behemoth. He wished he’d seen it before it had been stripped to build the town. He wished he’d been the one to take it.
He turned back to the two men. “How big was the ship?”
Burn and the other Riverlander ignored him.
“How big was the ship?” T’ruck shouted. “As big as that?” He pointed to the bones of the Man of War.
The scaled Riverlander waved his arms emphatically, and T’ruck didn’t need Burn to translate. The new ship in pirate waters was even bigger.
T’ruck grinned. “Ask him where it was going.”
Chapter 49 - Fortune
“Well, it’s fair to say Tanner got here first,” Drake mumbled as they approached the island of Ash. He was looking through his monoscope and giving what he saw the frowning of a lifetime. Three ships: The Black Death, Blu’s monstrosity Ocean Deep, and Hearth Fire. “Looks like Barklow threw in with Tanner.”
“Three ships apiece,” Princess agreed. “Seems fair. If any shit does start we’ll be evenly matched.”
“If any shit does start it’ll be the end of us all. Not to mention the isles.” Drake shook his head. “We can’t afford to be divided anymore.”
Princess groaned.
“Out with it,” Drake snapped.
“Ya really reckon Tanner’s just gonna see sense and pull in behind our flag, Cap’n? He might see the need for unity right now, sure. But Tanner ain’t exactly the type to take orders from anyone, least of all Drake Morrass.”
Drake hated to admit it, but Princess made a good point, and it was a thing that had been on his mind for the entire journey to Ash. “I’ll just have to be convincing,” he said with false cheer.
“Or,” Princess said cheerily, “we could just kill the fucker and see if that fleet of his falls in line. I’m just saying, Cap’n, options there.”
Drake smiled. “Something tells me his fleet wouldn’t just fall in line. Even if we killed Blu as well, I think his ships would rally around that damned daughter of his. We’d still be fighting a war against them, and Sarth and the Five Kingdoms would sail in and slaughter us all. No, mate, we do this the peaceful way. Tanner’ll see sense.” Drake wished he believed his own words.
“You’re the cap’n, Cap’n. I’ve always wanted my own ship.”
Drake shot Princess a glare, but the man was grinning. “Sail us in. Signal Stillwater and Poole to stay close. Just in case.”
“Just in case,” Princess echoed and walked away to carry out his captain’s orders, just as Beck joined Drake at the railing.
The woman was looking less an Arbiter and more a pirate every day. Her skin had darkened from the constant exposure to the sun, her coat was a distant memory, and the shirt and britches she wore were stained and mended from heavy use. Beck kept her hair tied up tight beneath her new tricorn hat, and the brace of pistols she carried attached to her leather jerkin had seen a lot of use of late. Unfortunately, despite the burgeoning transition, the woman had still managed to keep herself out of Drake’s bed, and that was as frustrating as her changes were welcome.
“I’ll be coming with you,” Beck said, her blue eyes staring out towards the island.
“Wouldn’t have it any other way,” Drake said. “I’ve got used to having you around. You make me feel all safe and cosy.”
“Don’t get used to it. I’ll wager as soon as we’ve killed those Drurr who are after you, the Inquisitor will order me back to Sarth.”
Drake almost laughed. He very much doubted Hironous would ever order Beck back to Sarth. She was as good as a pirate now, and Drake’s brother would happily leave her as a bodyguard to the soon-to-be pirate king. He wondered if that was why Beck had been sent. Eventually Drake would need a strong queen to sit at his side. Sometimes he wished his brother would share more of what he saw in his visions of the future.
Ash was a small island alone in the surrounding water, little more than a rock covered in smaller rocks and even smaller trees. There was no wildlife to speak off – the island was too small to sustain any – and the trees were little more than wiry bushes clinging to what little life they had in such harsh conditions. The wind around Ash was relentless and merciless, gusting first one way then the other, and many a ship had accidentally got too close and gutted itself on the hidden rocks beneath the waters. The island was littered with the carcasses of ships and the bones of their sailors.