Juliet McKenna - Northern Storm

‘A Daish flotilla, my lord.’ The man’s confident answer was entirely unexpected. ‘A great galley escorted by two fast triremes and two heavy.’ Nyral shrugged, curly head canted arrogantly. ‘They flew the old pennants from Chazen Sari’s day but we didn’t feel inclined to try stopping them, did we, Banse?’ The helmsman cleared his throat. ‘I recognised the steersman of the galley and the shipmaster of one of the light triremes.’

‘I knew several of the swordsmen on the heavy triremes’ upper decks.’ Unbidden, the Thorn Circle’s rowing master joined them. Like the other men, he wore a sleeveless tunic and loose trousers of dirty white cotton. He wore the narrow double-edged dagger of the Aedis domain on his belt of plaited rainbow cords.

Aedis and Redigal rowers make up more than half the Thorn Circle’s crew. Even their carpenter’s from Ritsem Caid’s domain. What choice did I have? Chazen has few enough triremes left after all the invaders’ destruction and less than half the mariners needed to man them. And why shouldn’t I believe men seeking to better themselves by helping to rebuild Chazen when opportunities prove limited in the domains that bore them?

Kheda gestured towards Nyral’s dagger. ‘When you come back to the residence anchorage we should have Chazen knives for you all.’

‘Thank you, my lord.’ There was a marked lack of enthusiasm in the mariner’s voice.

‘It has always been my practice to reward loyalty.’ Kheda kept his face impassive despite noting a scowl fleet across the helmsman’s face. ‘As well as punishing laxity, naturally.’

‘My lord?’ Nyral looked puzzled but his henchmen’s expressions verged on insolent.

‘You have been lax, haven’t you, to allow these vermin to dig in like sand lice on a lizard too sluggish to move?’ Kheda gestured at the wretched captives now firmly bound hand and foot. ‘I don’t want to contemplate any alternative explanation.’

‘I’m not quite sure what you mean, my lord.’ Nyral’s words were polite but uncertainty hooded his eyes as he tried to work out his safest course here.

‘You’ve either been lax in your watch on these reaches or you’ve allowed these people to make landfall.’ Kheda shrugged. ‘What next? Will we find pirates preying on this pitiful domain, once you’ve let them spy out Chazen’s seaways?’

‘We’ve been patrolling the lesser channels, my lord,’ Nyral insisted with a hint of defiance.

Not very effectively, if this is any example of your diligence,’ countered Kheda calmly. ‘Have you built a full chain of beacons yet?’

‘We’ve done all we can but we need metal fire baskets, my lord,’ Nyral protested with every appearance of sincerity. ‘We daren’t set a blaze without one and the season grows drier every day.’

Which is one honest answer, at least. Itrac Chazen hai better add iron to the list of things she needs to trade for. The pearl harvest is going to have to be truly spectacular if she’s to secure half the things we need.

‘So if you haven’t been busy setting beacons, how do you explain your laxity in letting these vermin sneak past and make themselves at home?’ Kheda gestured towards the captives once again.

The Thorn Circle’s rowing master and helmsman slid each other dubious looks behind their shipmaster’s back.

‘We can’t be everywhere at once, my lord.’ Nyral shrugged broad shoulders with scant contrition. Kheda took a moment to pretend to consider this defence, looking past Nyral and his henchmen to the Thorn Circle’s side decks. The fast trireme’s rowers were surveying the carnage on shore, hearts close together in discreet deliberation.

Counting heads and realising that they’re outnumbered, as well as seeing that these men have had a taste of blood today. Besides, I am the warlord here. I’ve proved it in this fight

Does anyone really want to raise his sword against me and find no one follows his lead? ‘So you simply didn’t know these vermin were here?’ Kheda shook his head.

No, my lord,’ said Nyral with belated regret.

‘Yet you were close enough to hear our horns and come to see what was amiss?’ Kheda wondered, apparently puzzled.

‘A stroke of fortune, my lord.’ The boldness in Nyral’s voice ebbed away. ‘We came as fast as we could, to lend our strength to yours.’

The Thorn Circle’s rowing master and helmsman were looking past Kheda to the belligerent half-circle of the Mist Dove’s swordsmen with growing apprehension.

‘I’m glad of it.’ Kheda nodded. ‘And since you admit your dereliction, I am inclined to be merciful. You will merely be flogged and chained to an oar in the lowest bank of the Mist Dove until Shipmaster Shaiam is inclined to release you.’

Nyral’s face turned ugly and he took a pace forward before abruptly freezing.

Kheda took a step forward to match the shipmaster’s, gripping the man’s forearm so he couldn’t go for his knife and leaning close. ‘Do you want me to ask those new slaves if anyone recognises you and your ship? If they’ve paid for your blindness with loot or their women’s favours? I’ll get whatever answer I want and you can settle your account with your head. No one will lift a finger to save you.’ As he spoke, Kheda felt an unnatural tension in Nyral, the muscles cording his arm shuddering as if the man strained against invisible bonds. He looked the shipmaster in the eye and saw panic there instead of rebellion. Nyral’s jaw worked beneath his beard, the man struggling to speak even as his own mouth refused to obey him.

Dev, you disobedient, bloody-minded, lizard-eating barbarian.

As quick as that thought came to him, Kheda drew his own dagger and sunk it to the hilt into Nyral’s unprotected midriff. Pulling the mariner towards him, he drove the blade deeper and twisted it up behind the man’s ribs. Dev already had a drawn sword at the throat of the Thorn Circle’s helmsman and Shaiam had his own dagger levelled at the fast trireme’s rowing master. As Kheda stepped back, heartsick and withdrawing his dagger with remarkably little blood, Nyral collapsed dead to the damp ground. The other two men from the Thorn Circle dropped to their knees, arms outstretched, hands nowhere near their belt weapons.

‘You two can pay his penalty, for standing with him,’ snarled Shaiam. The Mist Dove’s swordsmen seized them, four or five to each unresisting man, and dragged them away. Bring me a lash!’ Shaiam bellowed as he stalked after them.

Everyone else retreated to leave Kheda and Dev isolated on the water’s edge.

‘I thought flogging was the sailmaster’s job, what with all that hauling on ropes to build the shoulders,’ Dev commented lightly. ‘Though I suppose Shaiam’s got the muscles to make a decent enough job of it.’

‘Why did you do that?’ Kheda glared at the wizard with discreet fury. ‘How could I let Nyral let live after you had wrapped him in the toils of some cursed enchantment?’

‘What was I supposed to do? Let that bastard cut your throat for you while the rest of us stood there with our hands down our trousers?’ Dev was unmoved. ‘Maybe you could have taken him in a fight. I’m no augur but I could see that turning into a battle that would leave this bead knee-deep in blood if the Thorn Circle’s men decided to make a fight of it. As long as I’m playing your body slave it’s my duty to keep you alive, and you know I’m no swordsman.’ Dev looked down at NyraPs lifeless body and poked it with one foot. ‘Anyway, what have you lost besides one half-competent and likely corrupt shipmaster? All these men have just seen you act with the resolution of an awesome warlord. That’s no bad trade for one life.’ The wizard turned from the corpse at his feet to speak softly into Kheda’s ear. ‘Besides, what are you going to do about it?’