The Jongurian Mission Page 5

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  The men took turns sharing the two spyglasses that Edgyn and Bryn had, silently staring through them for a few moments, then passing them to the next man. Very few words were said, each quietly thinking through the odds in their head. They could still outrun the ships if the storm let up. Edgyn didn’t dare unfurl all the sails in this wind; the chance of losing one of the masts or crosstrees was just too great. So that meant that if the storm continued at its current rate, they had about an hour before the other ships would be within striking distance.

  “I figure they’ll open up with their bowshots when they’re within a few knots of us,” Edgyn had explained to them when they all came on deck and the gravity of the situation was made clear to them all. “From then it’s only a matter of time before they put enough holes in our stern to take off the rudder, and then we’ll be unable to steer. That’s if they don’t disable enough of the rigging to send down our sails first, in which case we’ll come to a near standstill.”

  “You don’t think it would be feasible to turn and bring the battle to them?” Rodden had asked, his shirt and raincoat stained from the bread and cheese he’d heaved over the side.

  “No, we’d be no match for them. They’ve got twice the guns as us already, and by turning we’d lose enough ground to them to close the gap so their guns could score some critical hits on our exposed side. Even if we managed it and came straight at them with our bowshots blazing away, we’d still run into them before both, or even just one of them was disabled.”

  “So we keep running then?” Pader had asked.

  “That’s the only option I see,” Edgyn had replied. “This storm shows no signs of letting up.”

  “Shouldn’t we take the chance and put up some more sails?” Willem had asked. “Right now with only the mainsail flying they’re catching us is inevitable. We’d better take the chance in losing a mast. If we don’t, we’ll lose the ship.”

  Edgyn had looked them over then turned his gaze to the ship around them and the rigging above. The mainsail was full and going strong, and the mast looked like it could take a great deal more from the storm.

  “Alright, you’ve convinced me. I said I’d never lose another ship after I lost the Apsalar Princess during the war, and I don’t mean to lose The Comely Maiden tonight. Sam, have the foresail and the two topsails unfurled, we’ll try to outrun them yet.”

  Their faces had broken into smiles at Edgyn’s sudden gamble and the despair they’d felt at hearing their chances of escape turned to hope as the crewmen set about climbing the rigging to let down the other sails.

  That had been nearly an hour before, and in that time they’d increased the distance between themselves and their pursuers. The sails remained full and the masts held. It appeared that their earlier worries were unfounded. Still, the men remained on the deck passing the glasses back and forth, staring intently at the two ships that wouldn’t give up the chase. Men could be seen scurrying about their decks, and it was clear that their numbers were far greater than their own. If it came to a pitched battle, they’d stand little chance. It’d already been agreed that if it came to that the men would throw down any arms they had and peacefully surrender. The ships flew no flags, but were large enough that Edgyn took them for Jongurian naval ships. He was certain they weren’t facing pirates, who’d likely kill them, so giving up without a fight didn’t seem so bad. With the odds they had, it was their only option.

  Iago asked about the two small lifeboats that were fastened securely to the starboard railing. Edgyn quickly said that it would prove almost fatal to take their chances in those boats in a storm like this, and all talk of abandoning the ship to try and sneak away off into the vastness of the ocean quickly ended.

  Edgyn stared through his spyglass, then returned it to his pocket and looked at the men. “We’re still putting distance between us. If some of you want to go back to the cabin to dry off, now would be a good time. We’ll let you know if anything changes.”

  Millen and Rodden were happy to hear that and did the best they could to keep their balance while walking down the stairs as the ship tossed. Iago and Pader looked through the glasses for a few more minutes as if to make sure that the ships were truly further behind them then they were an hour earlier, then they too headed down the stairs and toward the cabin door.

  “Do you know where we are in relation to the land?” Halam asked Edgyn after the others had left.

  “I can’t be certain, but I think we’re about ten leagues off the coast.” He looked up at the sails again as if he could will them to stay strong with only his thoughts. “If I had to guess where on that coast we are I’d say somewhere south of Bindao or the Dongshui River, but I couldn’t be certain.”

  “So we wouldn’t even be back in Adjurian waters for a few days, then.” Halam said.

  “Aye, more like a few days to get to the mid-point of the isthmus.” He looked at them and flashed his bright white teeth in a wide smile. “So let’s hope that the wind stays at our backs.”

  As if the weather were mocking him for speaking too soon, a loud crack split the air around them. They looked up to see that the foremast crosstree had snapped leaving the foretopsail whipping in the wind.

  “Sam, get up there and see what you can secure, and be quick about it,” Edgyn said in a calm voice, although he had to yell to be heard over the roar of the wind and waves. Sam, Fess, and Dell all began to scramble up the rigging as fast as they could to ascertain the damage done to the ship. Before they were able to make it up to the whipping sail, however, another loud snap was heard, and the top of the foresail came loose. The shroud whipped about and caught Dell, sending him flying through the air. He landed with a loud splash in the water off the starboard side.

  “Take the wheel, Bryn,” Halam said as he and Willem moved over to help Edgyn. The men had a line over the side within seconds and were pulling soon after that. They put all their strength into it, and it paid off. After a few minutes they had Dell back on the deck coughing up half the sea out of his lungs. Flint and Conn had gotten over by then and helped him to the cabin while Edgyn took over on the wheel. Jal came up and pointed to the rigging.

  “The foremast crosstree is finished,” Bryn heard him shout over the wind, pointing up at the damaged topmast. “Sam has managed to get the mainsail fastened down, but the line’s broken. It’ll take a while to get another one up and the sail unfurled again.”

  Edgyn nodded and handed him the wheel, turning to look back at the ships behind them, which Bryn had nearly forgotten in the sudden excitement. He pulled out his spyglass and stared back at the two ships fast approaching now that The Comely Maiden was down to just two sails. The ships were much closer now and he didn’t need the glass to see the men on the ships. There was a large group of them huddled about the bow of each staring back at him. They had surely seen the incident that had just occurred with Dell and the distance it had gained them. After a minute Edgyn put the glass down and turned to them.

  “They’ve gained on us considerably with that turn of events,” he said. “I don’t think we can outrun them.”

  After that things moved quickly. Bryn was sent back to the cabin to tell the other men, who were already aware that something had occurred when Jal was escorted into the cabin soaking wet and coughing up seawater. When told that Edgyn thought their chances of escape had vanished, the cabin became a flurry of activity. Packs were quickly found and what weapons they had were made ready. There weren’t many. This had been planned as a peaceful trade mission and any need for weaponry hadn’t even been considered. Only Iago regularly carried a longsword strapped to his belt, and that would be little help against two full ships of men bent on their destruction.

  “We’ll be needing weapons, then,” Iago said to Sam who stood helping Jal dry off.

  “We’ve few of those, I’m sorry to say; just wasn’t expecting any need for them. Still, Edgyn has always thought it best to be prepared, so there should be some sto
wed away down in the hold. I’ll check.” He headed back out onto the rain-swept deck.

  “I always carry a few extra daggers just in case,” Iago said, pulling three small ivory-hilted blades in leather sheathes from his pack. He handed one each to Rodden, Millen, and Pader.

  “I’ve got my own,” Pader said as he was handed the blade. He pulled out a small dirk from his pack, a simple leather-hilted blade in a matching sheath. “Give that other one over to Bryn. He’ll need it as much as the rest of us.”

  Iago handed Bryn the knife and after a moment he pulled it from the sheath. It was finely-worked Shefflin steel he saw at once as the blade caught the lamplight in the cabin and shined. He put it back in its sheath and fastened it to his belt, then picked up his own pack and secured it to his back before heading back out on deck.

  Conn still had the wheel and Edgyn was anxiously looking through his glass at their pursuers.

  “Where’d you get that,” Halam asked, pointing down at the knife on Bryn’s belt.

  “Iago gave it to me. He gave two others to Millen and Rodden as well. Sam’s down in the hold now, looking for more weapons,” Bryn reported.

  “Do you think it’ll come to that?” Halam shouted so that Edgyn could hear.

  Edgyn put his spyglass down again and fingered the hilt of the cutlass sheathed at his side. “It becomes more and more likely with each passing minute. Without all four sails up we’ve no chance to outrun them.”

  “We don’t yet know their intentions,” Halam yelled. “I’m not ready to declare war on the high seas without provocation.”

  As if the Jongurians had heard him, two loud booms rang out in the air behind them, and a few seconds later they saw the distinctive splash of two cannonballs hitting the sea just off their stern, each sending up large white columns of water behind them.

  “Is that provocation enough for you?” Edgyn asked. “Conn, go tell Flint, Dilon, and Trey to ready the lifeboats. Make sure they’re well-stocked with provisions.”

  “Aye,” Conn said, returning the wheel to Edgyn as he hurried down the stairs and climbed up the rigging to the other men desperately trying to secure the crosstree.

  “I thought you said that it would be fatal to take a lifeboat into a stormy sea like this,” Halam shouted over the wind.

  “Aye, but it’ll be just as fatal to stay on this ship while the Jongurians blow us out of the water. At least in the boats we have a chance.”

  The other men from the cabin came back onto the deck and joined them at the wheel. Rodden and Millen looked sicker than ever bundled up as they were in two large raincoats.

  Two more cannons sounded behind them and they looked back to see the white clouds of smoke rising from the bow of the lead ship, followed quickly by two large splashes in the water behind them.

  “They’re getting closer now,” Edgyn said. “A few more shots and they’ll hit the stern.”

  Sam and Jal appeared then with two large canvas bundles in their arms. They laid them on the deck and unfolded the canvas to reveal a cache of weaponry. There were four bows, each with a sheaf of arrows, as well as an assortment of small swords, dirks, daggers, and two small hand-axes.

  “Well, it’s not much, but certainly better than nothing,” Iago said when he saw the weapons. “Do you think there’s any chance of us lighting up fire arrows in this weather?”

  “None at all,” Edgyn replied. “They’d go out as soon as we lit them, or while sailing through the air. Besides, the sails of the ships are so wet right now that nothing would catch.”

  “Even if we got close enough to fire at them, with the weather what it is and their greater numbers, it wouldn’t make much of a difference,” Pader said.

  “So we take the lifeboats then?” Willem asked.

  They all looked up at the two boats that were now lying flat on the deck. Flint and Trey were carrying bundles from the cabin and the hold and securing them under the canvas coverings as they watched.

  “I don’t see as we have much choice,” Edgyn replied, his jaw clenched in frustration.

  The loud roar of cannons filled the air again and drowned out the sounds of the weather for a moment. Both ships had fired this time. Two of the shots landed harmlessly in the water behind them while another went sailing far overhead to their right. The last fared better, blowing through the rigging and snapping lines before burying itself into the mainmast with a large shower of splinters. Trey dropped the bundle he was carrying and threw his hands up to his face. Blood could be seen seeping through his fingers. Flint got him down on the deck and ripped a piece of canvas sail to use as a bandage. He twisted it around Trey’s head, and they were soon stocking the boats again.

  “So how do you suggest we proceed with abandoning ship, Edgyn?” Pader asked after they watched the bloody spectacle.

  Edgyn kept his hands firmly gripped on the wheel, but threw quite a few glances over his shoulder before speaking.

  “We’ll put seven men in each boat,” he answered after a minute, staring forward at the sea ahead of them. “Your only chance is to head toward the coast, which is a good ten leagues or more over the starboard side. The boats have a small mast and sail that can be put up or you can use the oars fastened to the sides.”

  He looked back at the two ships as another round of cannonballs were thrown their way. Two fell short while the other two landed in the water to either side of them. He returned his gaze to the rigging above.

  “Our best chance is in catching them off-guard. They’ll not be expecting us to take to the lifeboats in weather like this, and so won’t be looking for it. If I can grab their attention by swinging the ship around to come at them head on, the boats can be lowered in the water from the port-side when their view is blocked. The surprise will buy you enough time to get clear.”

  “You’re not coming with us,” Willem said more than asked.

  “I’ve stood on a lifeboat and watched one ship go down, I don’t mean to see another.”

  “But that’s suicide,” Millen shouted.

  “No, it’s suicide to have all of us take to the lifeboats and have those two ships bear down on us in a matter of minutes. We’d be sitting ducks for them. This way you men have a chance, and there’s a possibility they might just take me captive, if I give up without a fight.” Edgyn said the last with a large smile, and Bryn knew that he wouldn’t live out the night. The other men seemed to sense that as well, for they only nodded at his words.

  “Now get over by those boats and get ready,” Edgyn yelled at them. “I’ll make the turn as long as I can, but I want to still have some distance between us when I’m coming at them. You’ll have to be quick getting those boats over the side.”

  He motioned for Sam to come closer and spoke into his ear as they quickly moved down and helped the crewmen push the boats across the deck to the railing, and then halfway up it. They tied ropes to the metal rings fastened on the bow and stern of each, and then fastened the other ends to the railing, looking up at Edgyn when they’d finished. He flashed them his white smile once again, then began to turn the wheel hand-over-hand hard to the right. The ship began to turn under them so they had to move fast. Pader, Willem, Halam, and Iago pushed one boat up and over the railing while Flint, Sam, Dilon, and Rodden pushed the other. Fess, Trey, Jal, and Conn each held one end of the rope tied to the boats in their hands and slowly lowered them down toward the water. When they were just a few feet above the waves they stopped, and Flint, Sam, and Dilon tied the ropes securely to the railings so the boats would remain in place halfway down the ship’s hull and with the waves licking their bottoms.

  The sound of cannons firing continuously filled the air around them, and Bryn could feel the ship shudder as a few of the shots hit the hull below deck. Rodden and Conn were the first to throw their packs down into the boats and then climb down the ropes after them, and the others quickly followed. The ship was still turning, but they would soon be facing the other way. They needed to move quickly to
get the boats into the water before their port-side was visible to the Jongurian ships. Bryn climbed down the rope as fast as he could and dropped the last few feet to land in the boat beside his uncle and Fess, then quickly moved out of the way so Willem could do the same.

  As they began to come out of the turn only Sam and Trey remained on the deck. Edgyn appeared beside them and motioned for them to climb down the ropes. Once they were both in the boats, Edgyn grabbed the cutlass at his belt and hacked at the ropes securing the rear boat to the railing, dropping it several feet to land with a loud splash in the water while the ship quickly moved past it. Bryn looked up to see Edgyn give them one final wave before cutting the ropes of their boat. They fell through the air for a moment before splashing down into the water and very quickly the ship was past, leaving them in its wake. He saw Edgyn hurry back up to and straighten out the wheel, and the Comely Maiden was suddenly sailing straight at the two Jongurian ships.

  The cannons continued to pound away as they floated in the sea. It appeared they managed to pull off their escape successfully, for the Jongurians didn’t send any shots their way. They were too busy firing at the ship sailing straight toward them. The rigging of the Comely Maiden was falling apart around it and Bryn could see several large holes in the starboard side. A few more sails fell away with a few more shots and the ship slowed considerably. The two Jongurian ships were close enough at that point where it wouldn’t be long before they were able to board their prey.

  All of a sudden flames began to lick up the fluttering sails that still remained on The Comely Maiden, and they soon spread into the ropes and rigging around them. Bryn saw a flurry of activity from the two Jongurian ships as the men tried desperately to lower their sails, but it was too late. They glided in beside the flaming ship and soon their sails were alight as well. The night was quickly filled with the bright orange-red glow of fire.

  “What happened?” Bryn asked as all of the men on the small boat stared in shock at the growing conflagration.

  “Edgyn told me to bring up all the lamp oil that was below deck after the crosstree snapped,” Sam replied. “While the other men were up in the rigging assessing the damage and doing what they could to fix it, I was pouring oil over as much of the rigging, sails, and masts as I was able. I figure when Edgyn came out of the turn he must have dowsed a cloth in oil, lit it, then simply thrown it up. With that much oil it was bound to light somewhere, and it sure did.”

  They watched for a few minutes as the Comely Maiden burned and spread the flames to the other ships, and then took out the oars. The winds seemed to be on their side, and the waves pushed their two small boats toward land, located somewhere far ahead of them. There were enough oars for four of the men, and they pulled on them with all of their strength. Soon they were well away from the ships, all three of which were now engulfed in flames.

  The wind and rain continued all night and into the next morning and still they had not sighted land. After the flaming ships had faded over the horizon or sunk down below the waves, they couldn’t be sure due to the low visibility, they’d managed to row hard enough to bring the two boats together. The men were cold and wet, but they had to come up with some sort of plan.

  “Edgyn told me that we were most likely off the coast of Bindao or the Dongshui River,” Halam had said, every inch of him drenched with water.

  “Our only chance is to get to land,” Trey had told them, his bloodied head bandages now soaked through with water.

  “Are you crazy?” Millen had shouted. He was in bad shape. The sickness he’d felt on the ship was much worse on the small boat. “The Jongurians were ready to kill us, and you think that we should head onto their coast, right next to a city we besieged during the war?”

  “Trey is right,” Sam had said. “Our only chance at surviving is to get to land. What we do then is anyone’s best guess, but if we stay in these boats the storm will do us in or the sea will swallow us up.”

  No one had argued with him after that. Out of all of them Sam was now the one with the most seafaring experience, and he and Trey became the undeclared captains.

  The two boats managed to stay within a close distance of one another after that. They could yell to each other if they needed to, but there was nothing to say. Each man knew that they had to get to land and to do that they had to put their backs into an oar and pull with all their might. Talking didn’t make that any easier. Fess and Sam had tried to rig up the small mast on their boat, but the sail nearly blew away on them so they were forced to take it down. The storm might die down enough for another try, and the last thing they needed was to be floating about without anyway to harness the wind; their spirits were low enough already. All they could do was continue pulling at the oars and hope that land appeared soon.

  It did. While the rain didn’t let up any, the clouds did part to make the visibility better. Jal was the first to call out land from his spot on the bow of the lead boat. At first it was just a distant line on the horizon, but Bryn passed his spyglass around and each man took a good look. They could see a sandy beach with forest behind it. The relief at not spotting Bindao was great, and Rodden was the first to point out that they could probably hide in that forest for a long time if need be. The sighting gave a boost to the men’s strength and they pulled at the oars with a greater purpose.

  It was still more than an hour before they were within reach of the beach. The waves picked up as they neared the sandy shore and drove them in. Sam was able to guide his boat into the shore without a problem, and they pulled it up high enough so that it was out of the waves with no chance of being pulled back out to sea. They didn’t know where they were and might still have need of the boats, they figured.

  Trey didn’t fare so well. His boat got spun sideways in the raging surf and flipped, causing the men and all the contents to spill out into the waves. The others rushed into the water to help them ashore and to grab as many of the sacks of provisions that they could, but several washed further out to sea. They were in no state to try and retrieve them; they had used all their strength through the night just getting this far. They managed to pull the boat up into the surf and flip it over, then drag it up onto the beach next to the other. After that it was all they could do to stagger off of the beach to the edge of the forest and out of the rain. Once there they collapsed from exhaustion and quickly fell asleep.

  SIXTEEN

  The rain had stopped falling when Bryn awoke but the sky was still drearily overcast with thick grey clouds, and the wind continued to blow hard and cold. Pader, Conn, and Iago were busy walking around the edge of the forest collecting what dry wood they could find, while Halam and Willem used a flint and steel to urge a fire into existence on a dry patch of ground just within the forest’s edge. It was more jungle that forest, really. Trees, most of which were unfamiliar to Bryn, crowded together while below a thick tangle of undergrowth covered the forest floor. Several thick vines hung down from the trees while overhead the light was barely able to penetrate through the thick growth.

  The waves continued to crash onto the sandy beach in front of them. They appeared to have landed in a large, naturally-occurring bay. The land swung inland over several leagues in a round bowl-shaped formation and Bryn was able to see the points far away on either side stretching far out into the ocean.

  Halam managed to strike a spark on some dried grass and twigs and soon a large fire was burning. The men all eagerly gathered around, holding out their hands to the flames to get warm and dry.

  “Do you think it’s such a good idea to have a fire this close to the shore?” asked Millen, who was shivering a great deal. “What if another Jongurian ship sails by and sees us?”

  “Maybe an Adjurian ship will sail by,” Rodden said.

  “I wouldn’t count on it,” Pader replied. “No Adjurian ships have sailed this far east for twenty years. It’ll be another week before our absence is felt in Dockside, and then it will be a few more days before they think that
something may have gone wrong.”

  “So are we to just sit on the beach until then?” Iago asked. “Doesn’t seem like the best plan to me.”

  “The chances of an Adjurian ship coming this way, even if they do think us missing, are slight,” Willem said. “As to a Jongurian ship seeing us, I think that’s all too likely. Until we figure out what we’re going to do, I suggest we move further into the forest. It’d also be a good idea to pull those boats up further onto land, or at least cover them up somehow.”

  “I agree, but first things first,” said Halam. “The most important thing for the moment is getting warm. We’ve got to get these clothes dry. The last thing we need is to get sick.” He looked over at Millen when he said that. The Fallownian didn’t look to be improving any. His initial seasickness had turned into something far worse over the course of the night spent in the cold rain. He was coughing and shaking considerably.

  “It won’t take long for the Jongurians to realize they lost two ships chasing after our one,” Sam said. “That’ll tell ‘em that some type of battle took place. Two ships don’t go missing if their prey outran them. I’d give it another day before we start to see ships dotting that horizon and poking their noses into this bay.”

  “Aye,” Halam agreed. “I wouldn’t doubt that they’d tell all of the fishing boats in the area to keep their eye out for us as well. It’d be best to get those boats moved and cover up the drag marks in the sand.”

  “Maybe they’ll think that we all went down with the ship,” Rodden said hopefully.

  “That’s a possibility,” Pader admitted, “but I don’t think they’ll be satisfied with that idea for long. The chance that some of us survived and made it to land is too great. If any of us were to get back to Adjuria with the news that we were attacked by a Jongurian ship while on a peaceful trading mission, well, the Jongurians wouldn’ want that to happen, let’s just say that.”

  “I don’t think they’ll spend too long searching the sea,” Trey added. “There’s only so far a small lifeboat can get. When they get done searching that area they’ll turn their attention to land. It’d be best if we were long gone from here by then.”

  “But we have no idea where we even are,” Rodden pointed out.

  “We should be somewhere around Bindao or the Dongshui River, at least according to what Edgyn told me last,” Halam said. “We can’t be sure which, but if we continue to head west, staying well-enough inland but within easy reach of the sea, we’ll eventually reach a river or a city.”

  “Bindao is the last place we need to go,” Conn pointed out.

  “I agree,” Halam replied. “But if we run into the city, we can edge around it. We’ll find no support there and most likely’ll be put to a slow death if spotted.” He turned to Sam. “How far east do Adjurian fishing boats go these days?”

  Sam thought for a moment before speaking. “They’ll often head out to the end of the Isthmus, and perhaps a little farther if their holds are not yet full.”

  “So if we make it to the Isthmus we have a good chance of being spotted by a friendly ship,” Halam said, looking at the weary faces around the fire.

  “The Isthmus? But that’s got to be hundreds of leagues away, and over the Xishan Mountains besides,” Millen anxiously said.

  “Does anyone else have a better suggestion?” Halam asked, but no one responded. “Alright, it’s settled then. We’ll head west, for now at least. We’re lucky that the only major city is Bindao, which we can stay clear of. Any smaller towns or settlements along the way we’ll have to watch out for and avoid. I think our best bet will be to stay near the coast where the land will be flat, but then we’ll also have to be on guard against Jongurian patrols.” He looked over at the pile of sacks, bundles, and travel packs they’d taken from the ship and gotten ashore on the lifeboats. “What do we have for supplies?”

  Willem, Pader, Sam, and Trey got up and began to move the pile about, opening and sorting as they went.

  “It looks like we have a good quantity of hard cheese and harder bread as well as enough salt pork to last a while,” Willem reported after a few minutes.

  “There are several sets of spare clothes, bandages, a few salves, some fishing line and hooks, a good quantity of rope, and some smaller miscellaneous items,” Pader replied.

  “For weapons we have the four bows and their arrows, two hand-axes, two small swords, a dirk, and two daggers,” Sam said.

  “Alright, let’s move all of those items besides the weapons into the few travel packs that we have. We need to move as light as possible.” He turned to look at the men around the fire. “Who has the most expertise with those weapons?”

  Iago stood up. “I can use them all.”

  “As can I,” Willem replied, and Pader said the same.

  “Was never much with a bow but I’ve been in a few knife fights in my time,” Fess said.

  “I used to hunt with the bow when I was growing up around the Baltika Forest,” Dilon added.

  “Good,” Halam said when it was clear no one else would be speaking. “Iago, Willem, Pader, and Dilon, you men each take a bow and sheaf of arrows. We’ll need those for our food, so I hope you’re good shots. Whoever thinks they can best handle the swords and the dirk, grab them. Now, who else doesn’ have a weapon? Those two daggers and the hand-axes will go to you.”

  The men rose from the fire and walked over to the piles. Willem took the bow and arrows and grabbed one of the short swords while Halam took the other. Pader took one of the bows as well as the dirk, while Iago and Dilon grabbed the last two bows. Conn and Flint each grabbed a hand-axe and the two daggers went to Sam and Trey. Only Jal and Fess were without weapons, since Bryn, Rodden, and Millen still had the daggers that Iago had given them on the ship, so they took the heavier packs and swung them over their shoulders. The rest of their items were parceled out among the remaining three packs, which Halam, Sam, and Trey swung over their shoulders.

  “Now, let’s get those boats pulled up as far as we can,” Halam told them.

  They dropped their items back on the ground and headed back to the beach. Millen was in no shape to push a boat, so he stayed close to the fire. The rest took up positions on each boat’s stern, and on the count of three, pushed with all their might. The boats moved a few feet further, but it was difficult and they were forced to stop.

  “They’re just too heavy,” Iago said as he spat disdainfully on the sand next to the boat. “We’ll have to cover them with that canvas and as best we can.”

  “Alright,” Halam said. He wasn’t happy to leave the boats on the beach like this, but they had little choice.

  “Bryn, Rodden, Conn, Trey, you grab some of those fallen tree branches and sweep away our footprints from the sand as best you can. Make sure you do a good job getting those furrows from the boats covered up as well. As for the rest of us, we need to get that extra canvas out from the packs and do the best we can to hide these boats.” He turned to Jal. “You and Millen put that fire out and cover the ashes with sand. We’ll be heading out as soon as we’re done here.”

  Bryn grabbed a suitably large branch with lots of leaves still attached and headed down toward the surf. Thankfully they had all come ashore in the same area, so it was easy to cover the footprints up. Conn and Trey kicked sand into the two large furrows left from dragging the boats up the beach while Rodden followed them clearing away any sign of their passing. A few gulls cried and circled overhead and Bryn looked up for a moment to see them pass by. As he was returning his eyes to the sand he spotted a dot on the horizon. It was a large ship. Bryn dropped his branch and pulled the spyglass from his coat. Peering through it he saw that it had two masts and looked the same as the two ships that had chased them the night before. It was heading straight into the bay and judging by the sails and wake around the bow, it was coming in quickly. He put the glass back in his pocket and ran up the beach.

  “A ship, a ship!” he shouted as he ran, pointing at the ocean behind hi
m. Rodden, Conn, and Trey stopped in their tracks and looked out to where he was pointing.

  “A ship, and it’s coming straight into the bay,” Bryn said, breathing heavily when he got up to them.

  They all four turned and ran up the beach toward the boats, yelling for the others to hear. When they got their attention they pointed out the ship.

  “Bryn says it looks like the two that were on us last night,” Trey repeated when they got near the others.

  Bryn handed Halam the glass. He looked through it, frowned, then passed it on to Willem.

  “Aye, they’re Jongurian, I’d say.”

  “It looks like they spotted the fire and are turning in to have a closer look,” Willem said.

  “Let’s get that fire out quick and get into the forest,” Halam said. “There’s nothing we can do with these boats now. Best to figure that they’ve spotted us and’ll be sending out men to comb the forest. We need to get as far from here as we can before that ship puts a boat ashore.”

  They raced up the beach toward the fire. Jal and Millen had kicked enough sand onto it to put it out, but the burnt wood still showed. It was no longer a concern; the men in those ships had already spotted the fire and probably the boats on the beach as well. Willem and Trey were the first to enter the forest, choosing an area with the least amount of branches, vines, and undergrowth to slow them down. The canopy was thick overhead so there was little light, especially with the clouds obscuring what sun there was.

  Their long column of fourteen stretched quite a ways behind them. Although Willem and Trey tried to move as fast as they could, the growth was so thick that any movement faster than a quick walk was impossible. They were constantly forced to step over fallen branches and tangled roots while at the same time brushing vines and tree limbs from their faces. Willem soon took out his shortsword and began to hack his way through the thick growth in front of him. It didn’t do much good; the blade had not been sharpened in some time, so most of the branches were just bent enough to be out of the way.

  After they’d walked for some time Halam called for a halt, and they turned to their left, then began moving again. While they wanted to get away from any men that may be following their path from the beach, they also wanted to stay close enough to the sea that they wouldn’t run into any settlements further inland. It wouldn’t do to flee from pursuers in their rear only to stumble upon them in their front.

  The noise that they made cutting and hacking their way through the forest would surly have given them away to anyone who was near. At this point, however, it was deemed more important to put distance between themselves and the beach.

  When several hours had passed, the column came to a halt.

  “We need to rest,” Willem said as they all gathered together in a small clearing. The men dropped down where they stood, leaning against tree stumps or large rocks for support, or simply laying down on the ground. When they’d set out their clothes had been wet from the ocean, but now they were damp with sweat. The forest was keeping the rain from their heads and protecting them from the strong winds off the coast, but it was also stifling them with its heat.

  “Pass the water skins around, and let’s serve out some of that bread, cheese, and salt pork,” Halam said when they were all seated on the hard, wet ground. The men ate quickly and in silence, keeping their thoughts to themselves. When they were finished they lay back and rested some more. The silence was broken when Iago asked about their plans.

  “It’s certain that we’ll soon be followed, if we’re not already,” he said, looking around at the tired men lying around him. “But what’ll we do when they catch us?”

  “What makes you think they will?” Rodden asked.

  “It’d be folly to think otherwise,” Iago replied as he unsheathed his longsword and began to run it over an oily cloth. “We’re fourteen wet and tired men in an unknown land whose only destination is beyond a chain of ragged mountains with nothing but a lifeless desert beyond ’em. Half of us are old, slow, and well past our prime while the other half are young and unseasoned. You figure the odds.”

  “So we just wait here until they come for us and hope they don’t kill us where we sit, is that it?” Pader asked incredulously.

  “We could stand and fight like men is what we could do!” Iago nearly shouted.

  “We don’t even know that they want us dead,” Millen said.

  “They have a funny way of showing that, firing at my ship like they were,” Sam responded with a laugh.

  “Perhaps they were only trying to disable us. They could’ve planned to take us back to Weiling, or even Bindao. We don’t know for sure that they meant us any serious harm,” Millen tried to reason.

  “I agree with Sam,” Halam said. “I’d like to believe you’re right, Millen, but firing on an unarmed ship doesn’t convince me their intentions were anything but hostile.” He turned to Iago. “And I also agree that most of us are old and slow, but that won’t help us in a fight that’ll surely see us outnumbered. I propose we keep moving and fight only if necessary.”

  “I agree that we don’t fight,” Trey said, “but what about heading to Bindao. We may find a different set of circumstances there, even an imperial representative that we can tell our story to, or if nothing else, at least find passage on a ship. This idea of traveling overland to the Isthmus just doesn’t sound feasible to me.”

  “He’s got a point,” Pader said. “We don’t know that all of Jonguria wants us dead. This could just be some personal grudge held by that Yuan Jibao fellow in Weiling. He may have it in for all Adjurians and be acting without any higher authority.”

  “So we just walk up to the gates of Bindao and say ‘Sorry, we’re some Adjurians. We were attacked by two of your ships. Can you please send us home?’” Iago mocked. “Don’t be silly, that would be the death of us!”

  “Not anymore than continuing through a land we don’t know and in a direction we’re only slightly certain of,” Fess spoke up. “If the rest of Jonguria is like this,” he said, pointing at the forest around them, “then taking our chances at Bindao doesn’t seem so bad.”

  “I can’t believe I’m hearing this!” Iago said. “I’m telling you, it would be better to slit our own throats.”

  “We’ll get nowhere arguing like this!” Halam shouted. “We’ll have to take a vote on it. All in favor of continuing on toward the Xishan Mountains show your hands.”

  Pader and Millen were the only two delegates not to raise their hands, while Conn, Jal, and Fess chose not to side with their crewmates.

  “Well, there you have it,” Halam said. “Only five votes for going to Bindao versus the nine that think it best to continue on toward the mountains.”

  “I still think it’s better to take our chances in the city than out in the wild like this,” Pader said, “but so long as I’m in the minority I’ll go along with you toward the mountains, for now at least.”

  “You never know Pader, we may not have to go all the way to the Isthmus,” Rodden said with a smile. “We could all be captured and slaughtered first.”

  There were a few nervous and forced chuckles to that, but Pader’s face remained frozen in a frown. They rested for a few more minutes before picking up their packs and weapons and trudging on into the forest, Willem’s shortsword hacking at trees the only sound besides the beating of their hearts.

  They traveled until it was too dark to see clearly, then found an area where the undergrowth was not so thick and made camp for the night. Dilon had spotted a few rabbits during their trek and been quick enough with the bow so that they had something besides salt pork for dinner. Halam allowed a small fire and after eating they huddled around it for warmth. The forest became much cooler when the sun went down and the sweat in their clothes began to stiffen and grow cold. Not much was said that night. Bryn felt that the group was beginning to split between those wanting to try their luck at Bindao and the others who wanted to go all the way to the Isthmus. Currently the vo
te was nine-to-five, but with each passing day that they had to grope their way through this forest the chances of more men changing their minds and choosing to go to Bindao would only increase.

  SEVENTEEN

  “Raise that sail and secure those lines,” a crewman shouted to the men scattered about the ship’s rigging.

  Leisu stared up into the mass of ropes that secured the ships sails to the tall masts and was thankful that he’d chosen the life of a soldier over that of a sailor. He’d never much liked heights and the sight of the men hanging, swinging, and rushing about overhead unnerved him. He was glad to now be done on the deck.

  The teeming docks of Bindao stretched long and mightily before them. The contrast between Weiling and Bindao could not have been more striking. While Weiling had had more docks and piers than it did buildings, Bindao swelled in size the further it stretched out from the sea. The city occupied a flat plain which rose up from the coast so that those buildings located the furthest from the sea had the clearest view. From the ship Leisu could see the entirety of the city. The docks teemed with activity: large ships were coming to unload their goods and going with more taken on, fishing boats from small to large darted in between the large ships to head out to sea or just further out into the harbor to take in their daily catch, and countless workers scurried about to see to them all.

  Their ship sailed slowly into the harbor that was made from hundreds of large boulders thrown into the sea that stretched in a wide arc from the west of the city well past its middle. Some men on the docks guided them to an open berth along one of the tall piers that stretched out into the water and a short time later they were secure. Leisu told Ko to gather their things while he went to the captain’s cabin to fetch Grandon.

  Ever since he’d been seen in Weiling, Grandon had remained in the cabin and refrained from staring out at the sea as he’d done since they’d taken him on several days before. Leisu was a little troubled by this, but also felt a little glad about it as well. It served the man right for ignoring his advice to stay out of sight. If only he would have listened to him before getting off of the ship then both their minds would have been much more at ease. Truthfully, however, Leisu was not overly troubled by what had occurred on Nanbo. Unlike Grandon, who was convinced the boy had recognized him somehow and already gotten word back to the entirety of Adjuria, Leisu took a more relaxed view of the encounter. The boy, while perhaps convinced himself that he had seen the False King, would be less likely to convince the men that he was with. That was highly unlikely as well, though, Leisu had told himself after they had left Weiling. The boy was merely surprised and caught off guard by the sight of another Adjurian where he was told there’d be none. The men that accompanied him would put his story down to an overactive imagination and the incident would be forgotten. Not for the first time was Leisu happy he had changed his mind and given word for the ship to have safe passage back to Adjuria. There was little to fear from those men, but so much more to be lost by interfering with them.

  Grandon was sitting at the small table fastened securely to the cabin floor and looking out the small window at the city.

  “So now I will meet this mysterious master of yours,” Grandon said without looking over as Leisu entered the cabin and closed the door behind him.

  Leisu stood squarely with his back to the door and his hands crossed in front of him. “A small group of men will escort us through the city to him. I know it’s hot, but I would like you to wear a hooded cloak as we move through the busy streets.”

  “As you wish,” Grandon replied. Leisu had expected some argument from the man. Before Weiling he’d given him the impression that he wanted to stand tall on a high wagon for the whole city to see, happy to once again be the center of attention and proclaiming to the world that Grandon Fray was back and ready once again to seize the reins of power. It appeared, however, that Weiling had had a very sobering affect upon him, and Leisu was thankful for that aspect of the incident at least.

  A slight knock came at the door and Leisu turned to open it. Ko stood with two small packs hanging behind each shoulder and a long, thick woolen cloak hanging from his arm. “Sir, the men are ready to take us through the city now.”

  “Very well, we’ll be down in a moment,” Leisu replied, taking the proffered cloak from Ko and closing the door behind him.

  “Quite kingly,” Grandon said mockingly as he looked at the drab brown attire.

  “Yes, fit for the king of beggars,” Leisu said as he handed over the cloak.

  “Smells too,” Grandon replied as he began to wrap the garment around himself.

  “How do I look?” he asked when he was done putting it on.

  It covered him from head to toe and with the large hood drawn Grandon’s face wasn’t even visible. “Like a man that no one would pay a moment’s notice to,” Leisu said as he opened the cabin door once again and gestured for them to head out onto the deck.

  Grandon stepped past him and they were soon across the deck and walking over the gangplank and onto the pier. Ko stood waiting for them near three other men. Leisu recognized them as low-level guards for his master.

  “If you’ll follow us, sir,” one of the men said as they walked toward them, indicating the end of the pier.

  Ko fell in behind them and Leisu and Grandon followed a few paces behind. They made it to the end of the pier and onto the wooden boardwalk which separated the docks from the cobbled streets. The crowds of people increased, but few if any paid Grandon any mind, Leisu was pleased to notice, while any who might have thought to approach them to sell their wares or beg a coin were quickly dissuaded from such an act by the striking snake emblem that the three guards wore on their left breast. It was well-known that Zhou Lao controlled much of Bindao and that he wasn’ a man to trifle with.

  They came to the streets, crowded with the traffic of carts and wagons, livestock and people. They were led to a small cart with a single horse held by yet another guard. The men motioned for them to climb into the back. It was a tight fit with five of them crammed in and the other two on the narrow bench behind the horse, but they were soon moving and Leisu knew that it would only be a short while longer before he was in front of his master, his task complete.

  The streets twisted and turned as they gradually moved up the gentle rise of the city. If Grandon was impressed with the amount of people and the sheer volume of activity he didn’t let it show as he sat implacably next to Leisu in the wagon, bumped and jostled all the way. When they neared the center of the city the wagon moved off of the main streets and down a few smaller lanes. Fewer people moved about them, and with another few turns they were completely alone. The buildings looked the same as all of the others that they had passed coming up from the docks, and that was the beauty of it, Leisu knew. No one would guess that the most powerful man in all of Bindao resided here, and that was how he wanted it. Leisu was happy to have such an unassuming master; a man whose attentions were not wasted on the frivolities that power could bring, but instead on the aspects necessary to keep that power.

  The wagon came to a stop outside of a two-storey building and they all rose up and jumped down the narrow lane. Two of the guards led the horse and wagon away while the other two moved to the door. It was opened for them before they were a few steps in front of it and the men walked in and up the narrow staircase set just opposite of the entryway. They were led up to the second floor where one of the guards moved off to the left and down the hallway. The other motioned for them to keep following him. It was all unnecessary; Leisu had been here countless times, but he knew that his master was a creature of habit, and that this protocol must be followed. The guard showed them to the door at the end of the small hallway and knocked twice, then took a few steps back and stood against the wall. A moment later the door opened and Leisu walked into the room with Grandon behind him and Ko taking up the rear.

  “Leisu, you are back already,” a voice said loudly from the swivel chair behind the lar
ge desk in the center of the room. The chair was turned so that it was facing the large windows behind the desk, hiding the man who occupied it.

  “Yes, master, I’ve returned from Desolatia Island as you bid me, and have brought back the man you requested,” Leisu said. He and Ko took up positions directly in front of the desk with Grandon between them. Both stood tall with their hands at their sides and their heads held high. Even Grandon noticed their posture and emulated it somewhat, though he had a tendency to shy away from overt displays of subservience, thinking his own authority sufficient to withstand any displayed by another.

  The man in the desk turned his chair around to face them, and Leisu noticed Grandon flinch for a moment at the sight of him. It was obvious that Zhou was tall even sitting. He had broad shoulders and a thick neck, and the body under his close-fitting tunic and shirt were obviously well-muscled. His black hair was tied in a neat top-knot and allowed to cascade down to the back of his neck. Leisu knew that what made Grandon jump for a moment, however, was not Zhou’s body, but his face. A long scar ran from the top of Zhou’s head above the forehead and all the way down his face. It ran through the left eyebrow, shearing it in two, where it vanished behind a large eye-patch that covered Zhou’s left eye. The scar resumed its course along his cheek before disappearing off of his face an inch away from his pointed chin. Zhou had fitted his eye-patch with a large emerald which nearly matched his right eye in both color and shape. It was rare for Jongurians to have any other eye color than black or brown, and that sight alone was unnerving. But to now stare at another green eye of sorts on the patch of his missing eye made Zhou both intimidating and fearful to look upon. Leisu knew that there were few men who were able to even meet his frightful gaze, let alone hold it.

  Zhou stood up from his chair and came around the desk. He walked up to Leisu and grasped his shoulder with his right hand, smiling into his face, then moved over a few steps and did the same to Ko. He was now standing directly in front of Grandon. He looked the man up and down for a few moments, taking his measure, then offered his right hand to him while locking his ‘eye’s’ onto Grandon’s.

  “Zhou Lao. I am very happy to have you here your highness,” Zhou said.

  Grandon put out his hand and they shook. “Thank you for having me,” Grandon replied in as meek of a voice that Leisu had yet heard from him.

  “Please, have a seat,” Zhou said, gesturing to a hard-backed chair in front of the desk. Grandon sat down and Zhou moved around the desk to retake his chair. Leisu and Ko both moved to stand against the wall beside the door.

  “I’ve no doubt you are wondering exactly what it is you are doing here in Jonguria,” Zhou said as he reclined back in his seat, eyeing Grandon with the edges of his mouth drawn up in a slight smile.

  “Well, your man Leisu has told me a little, but not much,” Grandon replied, turning with his body to look toward where Leisu stood by the door. “Is it true that my nephew is hatching some plots in Regidia?”

  “In all of Adjuria, actually, if my understanding of the situation is correct.” Zhou put his hands behind his head and looked up at the ceiling as he explained. “Like much of my own country, Adjuria has been slowly suffocating under the lack of trade these past thirty years. It was not so pronounced while the war was being fought, mind you. Then there was enough work to keep everyone who was not fighting quite busy and rather well-off. These past ten years since the war has ended, however, have been particularly cruel, to my country most especially.”

  “Yes, I knew of the reality of this while I was king,” Grandon replied, “but what has all of this got to do with me now?”

  “The poor economy which has plagued my country for these past ten years is just now beginning to be felt more in Adjuria. Your nephew is stirring up that resentment quietly, and with little or no connection to him, all across the country. More and more people begin to question a king that will do nothing to assuage their growing concerns over a worsening economy.”

  “But I thought that something was being done. While we were in Weiling an Adjurian ship appeared full of trade representatives ready to discuss the possibility of renewing trade.”

  “Yes,” Zhou said, his eye moving from Grandon to Leisu for a moment, “I know all about that ship.” He leaned forward and fiddled with a pen on his desk for a moment before looking at Grandon once again. “From what I understand, a trade conference was recently held in your capital city of Baden. The idea was put forth by the provinces of Culdovia and Duldovia, and they convinced a delegation from each of the other provinces to attend. Your nephew Jossen headed up the Regidian delegation. He came very close to having his plan adopted by the conference, but his efforts were thwarted at the last minute and a plan put forth by the province of Tillatia was agreed to. If it wasn’t for that, then Jossen would have been on that ship you saw in Weiling.”

  Grandon looked down at his feet for a moment. “Was that part of my nephew’s plan,” he finally asked, looking up, “to come to Jonguria himself?”

  “It was one plan,” Zhou replied, his level gaze boring into Grandon, “but there are others.”

  A few moments went by while Grandon digested what had been said. It was a lot of information to process, Leisu thought from his spot along the wall. Much of it was new to him. He had no idea that his master had known about the sailing of the Adjurian ship, or the conference that had sent it. But then he realized that it was really that he who did not know. There was much that Zhou kept from him. The look that he had been given at the mention of the ship, however, gave Leisu the impression that Zhou knew about the incident with the boy. But did he know that Leisu had ordered that the ship be sunk, and then had changed his mind? Which course of action would his master have agreed to? Leisu’s thoughts were broken when Grandon looked up and spoke once again.

  “I still don’t quite understand why you wanted me off of that island,” he said.

  Zhou leaned back in his chair once again. “That was more your nephew’s desire than mine, I must confess. He thinks that you would be of aid when he begins to make his move against the throne.” Zhou put up his hand to stop Grandon from speaking, as he seemed about to do when he suddenly leaned forward. “None of this will be happening any time soon, I think,” Zhou said, casting another glance toward Leisu.

  “I don’t see what aid I can be to him in Jonguria,” Grandon replied.

  “Nor do I.” Zhou got up and moved from behind the desk to it’s front, sitting on the edge closest to Grandon. “You see Grandon, I’m trying to cement my own power here in the southwest of Jonguria. Very soon I will make a move against some of the other warlords to the north and east of me. If I’m successful, which I have no doubt I will be, then I’ll be in a good position to challenge the emperor. You can help me in this, Grandon. You have experience usurping a king, and I can use your perspective. While it’s true that your nephew has plans for you in his grand design, those won’t come to fruition for some time yet, I think. While you’re waiting I hope that you’ll act as an advisor to me.”

  Zhou’s words hung in the room for several moments while he looked down at Grandon. The man seemed to be weighing his options, but Leisu was in no doubt as to the choice he would make. To side with Zhou held the promise of wealth, power, and success, while to go against his wishes held only the promise of a painful end. Grandon seemed to come to that conclusion himself and looked up at Zhou.

  “It seems that I’ve been given a second chance at life and I don’t mean to pass it up. If you would seek my council in matters, then I would gladly give it.” It was Grandon this time that put his hand up to stop Zhou from speaking too quickly. “All I ask in return is that I be given more information concerning my nephew’s plans and my place in them, as well as how you fit into them. An alliance between Adjuria and Jonguria, even at a level such as this, is unusual, you must admit. I know there’s more that you’re not telling me, but I also know that there’s a time for everything.”

  “Precisely
,” Zhou said, edging off the desk. Grandon took that as his cue to rise, and both men shook hands again. Zhou put his arm to Grandon’s back and began to escort him toward the door. “Now, if you would excuse me for a moment, there are a few things I need to discuss with Leisu. Don’t worry, it’s nothing to concern yourself about, just some frivolous matters pertaining to our operations here in Bindao. Ko will see you out and to your quarters.”

  Grandon nodded and Ko opened the door for him. Zhou stood smiling as they both exited, then looked over at the other guard, who quickly left the room and closed the door behind him. Zhou turned around, the smile having been replaced with seriousness. He moved around the desk and motioned for Leisu to take the chair that Grandon had vacated. When they were both seated he looked across the desk at Leisu for a few moments before speaking.

  “Tell me what happened with that ship in Weiling. I’ve heard the account, but now I want to hear it from you.”

  Leisu sat up straight and steadied himself. He hadn’t been expecting thankfulness or praise in his retrieval of Grandon; he knew that Zhou did not give such things. Either you pleased him and continued in his employ, or you did not, and weren’ heard from again. Leisu hoped that his handling of the incident in Weiling pleased his master.

  Zhou’s emerald eye seemed to bore into Leisu as he answered the question. “We were finishing the process of taking on supplies when the ship came in about an hour after we arrived,” he recounted.

  “What was Grandon doing off of the ship. I gave explicit orders that he was to remain hidden until he got to Bindao.”

  “He would not listen, master,” Leisu explained. “The man is used to having his own way, and five years of exile has done little to change that. I told him that he was to remain on the ship and he asked me what I planned to do when he did not. He suggested that my only option would be to physically restrain him or harm him, and I knew that neither of those options was prudent. There was little I could do.”

  “So what happened with the boy?” Zhou asked after a moment.

  His master really did know all of that had happened there. Leisu hadn’t mentioned the boy to anyone, so how did Zhou know? He had little time to think it over, as the cold, emerald gaze from across the desk demanded an answer.

  “All of the Adjurians had gone into the town to meet with the imperial representative, a man name Yuan Jibao. I found Grandon and ushered him back to the docks, but when we were outside the offices the boy suddenly came out and saw him. It only lasted a moment, then he ran back into the building. Grandon was convinced that the boy knew who he was, however, and not just some unknown and mysterious Adjurian, but the False King. After that it was easy to get him back to the ship, although he was already sure that the damage had been done.”

  “And you?” Zhou asked.

  “I wasn’t so sure,” Leisu said, his eyes darting down to his hands for a moment before meeting Zhou’s once again. “I thought that the boy was too young to correctly identify him and that when he recounted what he saw to the others, they would simply write his story off as an overactive imagination.”

  “So what did you do then?”

  “At first I was uncertain as to what action to take, troubled as I was from Grandon’s sudden change in demeanor after the encounter.” He looked up at Zhou. “It…troubled me.”

  “Go on.”

  “I stopped one of the men about the docks who I’d seen escort the Adjurians to Yuan. I told him to deliver a message to the man telling him that I wanted their ship sunk before it could return to Adjuria. When I thought it over for a few minutes, however, I realized that that might cause us more harm than good. A missing ship full of Adjurian diplomats is quite another thing entirely from a young boy’s outlandish tale about an exiled king. I decided that the former would draw more questions, so told another dockworker to find the man I’d just spoken to and have the order rescinded.”

  “And was it?” Zhou asked, his eye narrowing as he looked to his lieutenant.

  “I’m not sure, master. I wanted us to get out of Weiling and to Bindao as quickly as possible. We had weighed anchor and left the harbor before the Adjurians had even returned to their ship.”

  “I see.” Zhou said as he once again put his hands behind his head and leaned back in his chair. “So you know nothing else of the matter, then, I take it?”

  “No, I assume the Adjurians are on their way back home by now,” Leisu said.

  “I only wish that was the case, but it appears not to be.” Zhou leaned forward in the chair again. “It would seem that your second order did not reach the man who you had given the first to.” Zhou paused and stared at Leisu for a few moments before continuing. “Two ships were sent out with orders to sink the Adjurians shortly after they’d left Weiling. I know from reports that not a single cannon was seen on the Adjurian ship, so it’s puzzling to me why the two ships did not return by the next day.” Zhou raised his eyebrows in a questioning manner, but Leisu knew enough not to speak. “When another ship was sent out to enquire as to their whereabouts, it returned with word that it had seen wreckage indicative of a sea battle involving several ships. Word was put out to the local fishermen to begin scanning the southern coasts for any sign of survivors from the three vessels.” Zhou leaned forward and folded his hands onto the desk in front of him. “Word came just an hour before your arrival that several Adjurians meeting the description of those that were seen in Weiling had been spotted on the coast north of Nanbo and to the east of Bindao.”

  Zhou leaned back in his chair once again. Leisu was not sure what to say to the news. It was so much information so fast. His first reaction was to be angry at the man that did not carry out his second order, but there was little for that now. It was obvious that Zhou was unhappy with how the events had unfolded.

  After a few moments Leisu straightened in his chair and in a slow, careful voice, went over the options that were quickly forming in his head.

  “There is nothing to do now but hunt these men down,” he said. “They should be unarmed and easy to find.”

  “Not rescue them and send them on their way back home with our heartfelt apologies at such an outrageous accident?” Zhou mockingly asked in a raised voice.

  “It’s true that pirates could have come upon their ship and attacked it, but it’s also unlikely, and the blame would still lie with Jonguria,” Leisu said.

  “Which could work out for us,” Zhou responded. “More pressure on the emperor.”

  “Yes, but the Adjurian boy’s tale of spotting Grandon will now have more credence with the botched attack upon them. Most likely they’ve already decided that was the only likely cause for such provocation.”

  “I agree. These men mustn’t be allowed to get back to Adjuria. Before the boy was rather harmless, but now that’ all changed.” Zhou folded his hands up under his chin and peered down at the desk for a few moments before speaking. “Since you’re responsible for this situation, I’ sending you out to remedy it.”

  Leisu made no protest, glad that he was not being punished further. “And what would you have me do when I find them, master?”

  Zhou leaned forward and the light from the window behind him caught his emerald eye, causing it to twinkle. “Kill them,” he said.

  EIGHTEEN

  The next morning a heavy mist covered the forest floor and the sky was still cloudy and overcast above the thick canopy. They broke their fast on the same bread, cheese, and salt pork from the day before and washed it down with water. Trey had found a small spring the night before so they filled up their water skins and washed away some of the dried sweat from their faces. The fire had gone out in the night and the charred wood was damp with dew. They scattered the ashes and burned logs and did their best to make the clearing look as undisturbed as possible before continuing the push westward. Iago took up the lead of the column, his longsword better suited to hacking the vines and branches, while Willem followed behind to clear away what he missed.

 
The going was a little faster than the day before. Around midday the forest seemed to take pity on them. The trees grew further apart and the undergrowth wasn’t as dense. Overhead the canopy became thinner and more light shone through. They were able to see further ahead and to the sides, and Iago and Willem put away their swords. An hour later the forest abruptly came to an end in front of them and a well-worn dirt road could be seen beyond its edge. Iago called for them to stop, and after a few quick words, Willem, Halam, and Sam headed up to the forest’s edge to get a better look.

  “It’s a well-used road that seems to go from north to the southwest,” Iago said when they came back a few minutes later.

  “I’d bet anything that it leads to Bindao,” Willem said. “There’ll probably be a lot of traffic on it, so we best stay clear of it.”

  “If it goes to Bindao this is our chance to stop this madness,” Pader said. “How much longer do you think we can scramble through these woods before someone gets injured or our luck runs out?”

  “Whether that road leads to Bindao or not,” Rodden said, “You can be sure that if there’re men out looking for us, they’ll be sending patrols up and down it. They know we’ll have to cross it eventually.”

  “Then I think that we should wait for one of these patrols and inform them of our plight,” Millen said.

  “We took a vote yesterday and decided that we’d continue on past Bindao,” Halam replied.

  “That was yesterday and this is today. I say we take another vote.” Pader looked around at the others. “Who’s ready to stop running scared through these forests and go to Bindao?”

  He put his arm high into the air and was followed by Millen, Conn, Jal, and Fess, the same as before. After a moment Flint put his arm up as well.

  “I’m sorry, but I’m meant for the seas, not the forests,” he said wearily.

  “Well, it’s now six-to-eight, so we still continue on,” Halam said when it was evident that no one else was going to change their mind.

  “So how do you propose that we get across this road without being spotted, then?” Pader asked.

  Halam looked them over for a few moments before speaking. “I think that we go by groups of four at a time. Run across as fast as you can, then get well into the forest on the other side before stopping. After a few minutes have passed, the next group goes.”

  “That sounds good to me” Iago said. “Who goes first?”

  “Bryn, Rodden, Sam, Flint,” Halam said, “are you ready?”

  They nodded that they were and headed up to the edge of the forest. They waited a few minutes and looked down the road as far as they could to make sure that no one was coming in either direction, then Sam counted to three and they bolted out of the forest at a sprint. The road was quite large, wide enough for two full-size carriages to go down abreast, Bryn figured as he dashed across the hard-packed dirt. There was about ten feet of clearing on the other side before the forest thickened up again and they dashed through and well past it without slowing, finally coming to a stop a good fifty feet or more past the tree line. They smiled at each other. They were breathing heavily and their hearts were racing from the excitement as much as the exertion.

  “Now that wasn’t so hard was, it?” Sam said. “Kind of fun, actually.”

  They laughed and looked out past the road from which they’d come, ready to see the other groups follow. A few minutes passed and then Halam, Pader, Jal, and Fess ran out and were by their sides a few moments later, panting and breathing heavily, but smiling all the same. Dilon, Conn, Iago, and Willem came after, leaving only Millen and Trey on the other side of the road. A few minutes went by, and then they two rushed out into the road.

  They were half-way across it when a cry went up somewhere to their left. They both were frightened to a halt by it, and stood for a moment looking down the road. When they turned their heads back to the forest their faces were a mask of fear and they ran all the faster to get to the forest’s edge. The sound of horses’ hooves beating on the road could be heard from within the forest, and suddenly four horsemen appeared on the road ahead of them. Those in the forest crouched down among the bushes and tall grasses and hid behind some trees. Iago and Willem pulled their swords from their scabbards and Dilon unslung his bow.

  “No,” Halam said quietly but forcefully. “We don’t know who they are or what they want yet.”

  “They want to kill us is what they want,” Iago said, continuing to pull out his sword.”

  Halam stayed his wrist and looked into his eyes. “If you do that we may all die,” he said. “Wait a moment.”

  Iago stared back for a moment then slid his sword back into the scabbard. “A moment, then,” he said.

  Bryn was able to see quite well from the hiding spot he’d chosen. The Jongurians wore faded brown leather jerkins and hide pants. Two of the men had their hair cropped short while the other two’s grew long and well past their shoulders. Two of them had bows slung over their shoulders and each had a shortsword sheathed to his belt. Their horses were black and a heavy sheen of sweat showed on them as if they’d been ridden hard all morning. The two men with long hair followed Millen and Trey off of the road and to the edge of the forest and called out something in Jongurian. They obviously wanted the two men to stop, and seeing that their companions had crouched down somewhere ahead of them in the forest, they did as instructed. The men jumped down off their horses as the other two men cantered up behind them and headed toward the two Adjurians. Millen looked down meekly at his feet but Trey stared intently at the men as they approached. Some words were said quickly in Jongurian to the other two men still on the road, then one of them gave a quick back-hand smack to Trey and he crumpled to the ground under the unexpected blow. The other came up to Millen but only laughed when he saw Millen staring at his feet. He pulled out a short length of rope and tied Millen’s hands together, then did the same to Trey, pulling him back to his feet when he finished. Bryn could see a trickle of blood coming from Trey’s mouth as he stood up. The Jongurians pulled them up to the road and got both of them up on one of the horses, handing the reins to one of the other horsemen.

  The two men on foot then pulled the shortswords from their scabbards and began to slowly walk into the forest. Bryn met his uncle’s eyes, and Halam put his finger up to his mouth for Bryn to be quiet while he slowly pulled the shortsword from its sheath at his belt. Bryn pulled his own dagger out and fingered the hilt nervously as the two men got closer. They moved slowly, looking all around them and brushing aside the undergrowth with their feet as they moved further from the road. They were thirty feet away, then twenty, and Bryn could feel his heart beating rapidly in his chest.

  The sound of a galloping horse could be heard in the distance, and Bryn peered through the grasses to see a rider slow to a stop by the other two men. They exchanged some quick words, then the horseman who’d suddenly appeared turned and galloped off down the road the way he’d come. One of the other Jongurians called out something to the men in the forest, and one of them turned and began to head back toward the road. The other kept coming on however. He was not more than ten feet away from Bryn, then only five. Bryn squeezed the hilt of his dagger tightly and could feel tears coming to his eyes. He looked over at Halam, but he only motioned with his hand for Bryn to stay down.

  Another shout came from the road, and the man stopped, standing still while he took a long look deeper into the forest, then turned and headed back to the road at a quick walk. Bryn let out a sigh of relief as he watched the man jump onto the horse with the other man who had entered the forest. All four horses then turned and galloped off down in the same direction that they’d come.

  After a few minutes Halam rose from the brush and called out for the other men to gather round.

  “They took Millen and Trey,” Conn said. It was obvious that he was frightened.

  “Aye, and they would have taken more of us if that rider had not come when he did,” Halam replied.

  “They
were only four, we could have taken them!” Iago said loudly to Halam.

  “And what would we have done when that other rider appeared to see us butchering his friends?” Halam asked.

  “I would have put an arrow through his heart,” Iago replied.

  “Perhaps,” Halam admitted, “but perhaps he would have rode away and brought more men down on us.

  “What are we going to do about Trey and Millen?” Willem interrupted. “We can’t just leave them.”

  “No, we can’t,” Halam agreed. “We follow the road from the forest to wherever those men took them and assess the situation. I’d like to resolve this without bloodshed, if at all possible.”

  “They’ve already spilled Trey’s blood, didn’t you see?” Iago said angrily.

  “And let’s make sure that’s all that is spilled!” Halam shot back.

  “Gentlemen, gentlemen,” Rodden said, stepping between the two men, “let’s follow the road and see where it leads us. They headed north, not south to Bindao, so there must be some small town or village, or perhaps only a camp. We follow these men to it and figure out our options then. For now I suggest we get moving.”

  Halam and Iago kept their eyes locked for a few moments longer then Iago broke off his gaze, angrily storming off into the forest in the direction the horses had gone, the others falling in behind him.

  They followed the road for quite a few hours and dusk was approaching when they heard the sound of voices from up ahead. Willem and Iago motioned for silence and the group crept forward. Several hundred feet ahead of them the forest broke into a small clearing set next to the road. Three canvas tents were erected around a large fire and several Jongurians sat around it passing wineskins while they talked. The five horses they’d seen on the road, as well as two others, were hobbled and grazing on the clearing’s grasses. There was no sign of Millen or Trey.

  “Those are the four we saw on the road,” Willem said, indicating the men that sat around the fire. “We know there’s at least one more, and judging from the horses, probably another two. They must be in the tents.”

  “That’s most likely where Trey and Millen are, then” Conn said.

  “Twelve against seven seems pretty good odds to me,” Iago said, stroking the sheath of his longsword. “Don’t tell me that you’re going to let another fine opportunity pass us by Halam.”

  Halam gave the man a hard look. “I don’t want us to be the first to shed blood. We don’t even know for sure if they took Millen and Trey here or not. Could be this is where these men chose to stay the night while some other men took both of them further on up the road somewhere.”

  “Maybe we should send someone to sneak into their camp and have a peak in those tents,” Fess suggested.

  “Wouldn’t be too hard the way those four are carrying on,” Pader pointed out. The men were talking loudly and occasionally they would let out bellowing laughs at something that had been said. “If we give them a while longer with those wineskins, they’ll be sleeping soundly and we can walk right through their camp.”

  “I’d say it’s about thirty feet from the trees to the tents in each direction,” Willem pointed out. “They’ve the tents behind them blocking one direction, and the horses off to another side of that giving more room. Once it gets darker the light from the fire will only illuminate an area of about ten feet.”

  “Someone could sneak in from behind those tents at that point,” Pader said. “You wouldn’t even have to come around to the front, I bet. You could just peek under the flap.”

  “It’ll still be dangerous,” Halam said. He looked around at the men staring back at him for guidance. “So who should go then?”

  After a moment Bryn spoke up. “I’m the smallest,” he said.

  “Aye, and also the least experienced, lad,” Iago said. “It’d be much too dangerous and the chances of something going wrong are too great.”

  “I can do it,” Bryn replied adamantly.

  When no other objections were sounded, Halam looked down at his nephew. “Do you really think you can pull this off, Bryn? You would have to be as quiet as a mouse, and as quick.”

  “All I have to do is look under the tent flaps. How hard can that be?”

  They all looked at him and smiled. “He’s a brave lad, I’ll say that much,” Jal said.

  “Best take this then,” Pader said, pulling his dirk from his belt.

  “I still have the dagger Iago gave me,” Bryn replied, showing them the ivory-hilted blade. “Besides, I don’t think I’ll be getting close enough to use it, and no one’ll be looking for me.”

  “Alright,” Halam agreed. “We’ll wait until it gets darker, then have ourselves a look.

  It only took an hour for full darkness to come upon them. The men around the fire were louder than ever, and another had come from one of the tents to join them. There was little chance that anything could be heard over their talk and laughter, so Willem, Fess, and Bryn circled around to the back of the camp from the edge of the forest. It was nearly pitch-black without the light of the fire.

  “Are you ready, Bryn?” Willem asked one last time.

  “Yes,” he replied.

  “Well, good luck, and move slow and quietly. It’s not a race.”

  Bryn nodded his head and got down on his hands and knees. He crawled until he was ten feet from the back of the tents, then got down on his belly to creep along the grass until he was right behind the first tent. The horses were near but they didn’t seem to pay him much mind, satisfied as they were with their grazing. He looked back toward the forest, but could only make out the faint outline of the trees. Satisfied that he couldn’t be seen, he reached under the heavy canvas and lifted it up, peering slowly into the tent within. It was as dark inside as it was without, so he slowly crawled behind the center tent. Light poured out into his face when he slowly lifted the flap up, and when he looked in he saw two tall Jongurian men with long black hair standing in front of Millen and Trey who were sitting on the ground, their hands tied behind their backs. Bryn couldn’t see their faces, but he could see that blood was matted in Trey’s hair on the side of his head. The Jongurians seemed to be questioning them in their own language, and Millen and Trey both shook their heads that they didn’t understand. One of the Jongurians began yelling at Millen, then came up and slapped him hard across the face with the back of his hand, sending him falling to the ground. Both the Jongurians laughed while Millen struggled to sit back up. Having seen enough, Bryn crawled over to the last tent, but it too was empty, so he crawled back toward the forest, getting on his hands and knees for the last ten feet.

  “They’re both in the center tent,” Bryn reported when he got back to Willem and Fess. “Both are tied up and they’re being beaten. It looks like the Jongurians are questioning them. There are only two in the tent with them, and the other two tents are empty.”

  “Good work, lad,” Willem said, tousling Bryn’s hair. “Now let’s get back to the others.

  The rest of the men were where they left them, anxiously awaiting their return. Halam grabbed Bryn in a strong embrace when he walked up.

  “I was worried about you, lad,” he said when he let go.

  “It was easy,” Bryn replied with a smile.

  Willem told them what Bryn had seen and they began to formulate a plan.

  “We’ll have to wait until they go to sleep,” Pader said. “More than likely they’ll place a guard or two at the tent’s entrance, and perhaps inside as well.”

  “And you’re still set against using force,” Iago said to Halam.

  “Aye, not unless they use it first,” he replied.

  “What do you call beating two men whose hands are tied behind their backs, then, if not force?” Sam said angrily.

  “The force I’m talking about won’t let you wake up in the morning with bruises,” Halam replied. “Until they do anymore than use their fists, then we’ll do the same.” He turned to look at the camp for a moment. Besides the moon
and the glow of a lantern from inside the center tent, the fire was the only light around for leagues. “We’ll need to wait for these men to go to sleep and then hope that they put out that lantern. If they do decide to post guards inside the tent, then it will be easier to subdue them in the darkness.” He looked to Iago. “Do you have any ideas on that?”

  “Besides killing the men you mean?” he mockingly asked. “Driving the butt of a dagger down atop their head will knock them out for some time, I’d think. Then it’d be an easy thing to tie their hands and gag them. If we’re lucky they won’t be discovered until morning.”

  “We’d better have the bows trained in front of that tent in case something goes wrong and the others wake up,” Willem said. “I know you don’t want any killing, Halam, but if it’s us or them, we can’t hesitate.”

  “I agree. Willem, Iago, Pader, and Dilon, you men stay here with your bows trained on that tent. If those Jongurians wake up and move in, take them out.”

  They nodded their heads and fingered their bows.

  “I figure we’ll need at least two men at the tent,” Halam went on. “One’ll have to go inside and untie Millen and Trey, the other will need to cut a hole in the canvas and serve as a lookout. Do you all agree?” No argument came, so Halam continued. “Now we just have to decide who it will be. Any volunteers?”

  “I’ll go inside,” Sam said.

  “I’d like to go too,” Fess added.

  “Alright, Sam. You’ll have to be very careful once inside. If you can manage it, get them untied without waking the guard, if there is one. If you don’t think you can, then you’ll have to knock him out cold. You have a dagger, right?”

  Sam nodded that he did.

  “I have this dirk that you can use as well,” Pader said, handing it to Sam.

  “I like the butt of this dagger better. Give the dirk to Fess, he’s got nothing,” Sam said as Pader offered him the weapon.

  “Don’t you think that I’d better crawl up to the tent with them, uncle?” Bryn asked.

  “You did well the first time Bryn, but the chances of something going wrong are just too great to risk it a second,” Halam replied.

  “I think the boy has a better chance of crawling up to that tent unseen and unheard than any of us,” Willem said.

  “Aye, he’s got a point there,” Iago added.

  Halam stroked his beard and thought for a moment. “Alright, Bryn, you go too, but stay outside the tent. At the first sign of trouble you get back to the forest. We’ll have men on that side of the tents as well.” He looked up at the sky then back at the tents. “Now we wait.”