Haggart's Dawn Page 20

  “Wouldn't you miss the sea?” asked Talbert.

  “No, boy. When you've been on it as long as I have you get heartily sick of it. Cold. Wet. Pirates everywhere. No, a nice hearth, a glass of wine and the bosom of a good woman will do for me.” He suddenly sat forward. “Questioning me will not evade the real reason you're on my ship. That machine scared the living daylights out of me and I want to know what on earth it was.”

  “Maybe you don't,” said the Captain.

  “I'll be the judge of what I think I should know. Now tell me what you know and I might consider telling you want I know. How's about that?”

  “Myself and the Captain here came across one of them last year. It was... feeding when we found it,” said Haggart.

  “Feeding on a person?”

  “Yes. A living person. We tried to save him but it was too late.”

  “What in the name of Naybo is it then?” said Thomas.

  “That's what we're trying to find out. That's why we're heading to Sturgenvad,” added the Captain.

  “But why Sturgenvad? Why there?”

  “That's where we think they're being made. We believed that the builders of these machines were dead. Apparently they're not. King Aaron thought he'd wiped them out, yet here we are.”

  Thomas sat back in his chair, his face glowing in the coals of his pipe as he inhaled. Haggart took a drink from his cup, his mouth felt unusually dry.

  “I never fought in the war,” said Thomas. “I sailed food, supplies, metal, the usual stuff to both sides. The King and the Council both understood the trouble we were in and turned a blind eye. We made a packet off those deals. People were desperate, people needed our stores. Back then we had huge warehouses on Minivad, on Slow, we emptied them and filled our purses. Then the war ended. The King was gone. Things returned to normal. Sure, we had to pay shipping tax, but we expected that...”

  Silence. Haggart could see Thomas was building up to something, the struggle to tell it was clear in his eyes. They shone a fiery red in the candle light.

  “Towards the end of the war,” he continued. “The King wanted a lot moving to Minivad. This time he wasn't buying, he was fleeing. We thought nothing of it - he'd lost, it was over, perhaps these were merely family trinkets, stores of his personal items. He would never have trusted us with gold or jewels, so we just loaded up the hold and sailed. Thought nothing of it.”

  “But now?”

  “But now...” he said. “Now I think I have a piece of your puzzle.”

  “You do?” said the Captain.

  “Aye. Answer me this first - are you working for the Council?” Haggart shook his head.

  “I'm not lying when I tell you that neither the Captain, Talbert nor myself are working on their behalf.”

  “But you came from them, didn't you?” said Thomas.

  “Yes.” Thomas sighed and tapped his teeth with the stem of his pipe.

  “Dagna,” he said. “Robert Dagna sent you.”

  “You could say that,” said Haggart.

  “I don't need to - he said that to me.”

  “When?”

  “The day we set sail. The day you came on board. I had a dream in that hammock over there,” he said, pointing to it with his pipe. “I'm standing in my mother's house, the one on Slow that overlooked the bay. There's this old man there, grinning like a fool. I says 'who are you?' to him. He says nothing. He just shows me three men riding up the stone path on horses. I saw each one of your faces in that dream. Then he tells me who he is and who you are. Imagine the fright I had when you showed up that morning, on horses. I felt like death was on my shoulder.”

  “Did he say anything else?” asked Talbert.

  “No. Only that I was to make sure you reached Minivad in one piece. I figured you could do that all by yourselves after that scuffle with the pirates.”

  “I'm sorry for not being honest with you in the first place,” said the Captain. “We don't know who we can trust yet.”

  “I understand. During the war I thought the very same thing. I can tell you this though - those machines are being built in Sturgenvad. I know this because it was this ship that took the pieces of them there.”

  “King Aaron,” said Haggart.

  “Aye. That was what he wanted shipping before he died. That's what I delivered to Minivad.”

  “How much?”

  “Three journeys with full hold. That is to say - a lot. Though they were parts, I warn you, not that monster we just gave to Naybo.”

  “Then at least we know we're on the right path,” said the Captain.

  “Yes, you are,” said Thomas. “That's why you can trust me. I might not be to blame for any one who died at the hands of these... things... but I feel responsible somehow. I will help you in any way I can. My ship is yours.”

  The Captain grasped his arm in friendship. Haggart, relieved to have finally found an ally, still felt uneasy. Dagna could reach as far as the Captain of a ship. How much further? And why did he seem bent on controlling every step of their journey? He had a feeling he would find out soon enough.

  Life on the ship was hectic at times, then sedate without reason. When the wind was in the sheets the crew were worked mercilessly. Up and down the masts they went, or on hands and knees scrubbing the deck backwards and forwards. Thomas ran a tough shift too - half the men worked whilst the other half slept, rather than the preferred one third rule Haggart had seen on the King's ships. After the battle with the pirates, Haggart and the Captain took to helping out where they could, moving equipment or dishing out food for the cook. They even took turns scrubbing the deck with the rest of the crew, but Haggart refused to ever climb the mast.

  “It's not natural to be so high up,” he said once to Talbert.

  “You weren't saying that when you sent me up there!”

  “That was different.”

  “How?”

  “It was you. I'm far too important to die, but you on the other hand...” They laughed as Talbert shook his head and started up the rigging. He was on the night watch in the nest. Haggart waved a good night to him and slipped down below, finding his hammock in a much smaller cabin reserved for important guests. The Captain shared it with him whilst Talbert had to berth with the crew in one of the allocated 14 inches given for each hammock to be hung in. The Captain wasn't in when Haggart arrived. He lit a candle and and began reading instead. If he fell asleep before he returned he'd only wake him anyway.

  An hour later the Captain came in holding a bottle of clear liquid in one hand and a couple of apples in the other. The deck rolled gently beneath his feet.

  “Supper for us,” he said, passing Haggart an apple.

  “Thanks,” he replied, fetching an empty pewter mug from a hook above his head and allowing it to be filled. They saluted each other and drained the cups.

  “Another,” said the Captain, Haggart suspecting it was a command rather than a statement. They drank again.

  “How do you think they're getting on?” he asked.

  “John and Lorrie? Like a house on fire I suspect,” said the Captain. “Dagna will keep an eye on them.”

  “That's what worries me,” he replied.

  “Ah, I see now. You're bothered by the fact that he spoke to Thomas. I admit, that was quite a feat. I was shocked myself. But don't let it bother you,” he said.

  “I'm not, but it is slightly disturbing. How far can he reach out? That's the new question. Power like that doesn't come but once in a blue moon. What must it cost him to do that as well?”

  “Herbert doesn't say anything about him when you ask, but you can see in his face it's worrying to all involved. He could be listening to us right now.”

  “That's comforting, thanks for that,” said Haggart finishing the core of the apple. He washed it down with drink.

  “It's possible though.”

  “But why? What's the agenda here? I’ve never been a fan of our beloved Council and Thomas didn't seem like it either. So are we worki
ng for it or not? I'm not sure I understand where we put the lines on this one.”

  “Maybe there aren't any. Maybe we're just going to have to feel this one out as we go, try stuff, get it wrong some times. Watch the consequences. Make our minds up based on good evidence.”

  The Captain struggled into his hammock which sank with the weight. He shuffled around in it, trying to get comfortable. Then he turned to Haggart and said, “I could get used to this,”

  “What, the sea? This ship?”

  “Yeah. It's a simple life here. I like simple.”

  “All that jargon about the mast and the ropes, I just don’t get it. It's like another language. How can you see that as simple?”

  “You'd pick it up.”

  “Perhaps. Good thing we're getting off in two more months. We'll see how you feel when you're back on dry ground.”

  “Ale. That's what I'll find in Minivad first. Then a flat bed. I suppose you're right. I'd miss the company of women too much to stay on a boat for too long.”

  They sat in silence, listening to the waves slap the hull. Then Haggart heard the snores and he blew out the candle. He led in the darkness thinking about his son and wondering if he'd see him again. If he didn't at least he was young enough to make a life for himself with Lorrie. As long as there was a life to be had. He realised how desperately things were becoming now. Things were set in motion. The machines. Jurgenbraw. Dagna. He had a feeling it was going to be a long while before he saw the end of it.

  Two weeks later Talbert gave the call from the nest that a ship had been sighted on the horizon. It was following behind them at a brisk pace, the wind in their sails.

  “More pirates?” asked the Captain. Thomas shook his head.

  “I don't know. If it is then this one's getting sunk. I can't afford to lose any more of my crew.” A horn was blown and the crew began to ready themselves for battle.

  “Is this normal?” asked Haggart. “Another ship so soon after the last?”

  “No, it is not. We only expect to see one or two ships a year. There just aren't that many willing to risk getting caught these days. Nearly all trading vessels like this one are armed to the teeth, we're not easy prey.”

  “Then we should expect the worst,” said the Captain. “This one might have been sent for more than piracy.”

  “Sent for you three, you mean,” said Thomas. His face was set in a grim expression without any of the eagerness he'd had the first time a sail was seen. “'Tis a bad sign, I can promise you that.”

  The ship gained on them every hour. It bore more sails than Thomas' ship and subsequently was able to out pace it very quickly. Haggart, the Captain and Talbert stood at the rail, watching. The crew of the vessel could be seen scurrying to and fro, arming and readying themselves for battle.

  “Well?” asked Talbert, his crossbow at his side, a bolt already loaded.

  “Well what?” said Haggart. “These are no pirates, boy.”

  “What are they then?”

  “I don't know,” said the Captain. “But their leader looks fierce enough.” He passed him the spy glass and Talbert directed it towards the ship.

  “Do you recognise him?”

  “No,” he said. “Ready yourself. They'll be on us before the hour is up.”

  “I don't like the looks of him,” said Talbert, passing the spy glass back. “What colours are they flying?”

  “A blue flag with a red symbol in the middle. Looks a bit like a claw or something,” said Haggart. “Nothing I’ve seen before.”

  Thomas the Red was on deck and he called the men to ready the grapple whilst he belted on his sword.

  “A good day to die, boys,” he cried and joined them at the rail. The enemy was now upon them and had manoeuvred to the port side, it's crew lining up along the rails. Several had coils of grapple ropes in their hands.

  “Good mornin' to ya,” he bellowed across the twelve foot gap between the ships. The distance began to close. “Can we help ye?”

  “Hand them three over and we'll discuss the terms of your surrender,” cried the reply from the swarthy looking leader dressed in a faded tunic Haggart didn't recognise.

  “I'm afraid they're guests on my ship,” replied Thomas.

  “They're criminals, sir. Common criminals who must go back to stand trial.”

  “What was their crime?”

  “The destruction of the King's property and the murder of his subjects,” came the reply. The ships were inches apart, yet the order hadn't been given to board by either side.

  “There is no King,” cried Thomas.

  “There soon will be.” The leader turned his head and roared “BOARD 'EM!”

  Thomas drew his sword and shouted, “Send them back to the sea, lads!” and leapt across the gap and into the waiting arms of the enemy.

  “Here we go!” said the Captain and followed, cutting his way through two men coming right at him from the other ship, Haggart and Talbert were close behind.

  Haggart blocked a blow from his left and struck him with his shield, sending him sprawling into Thomas' men. Another tried to cross as he did and received a thrust through his abdomen. His stomach split and gushed blood.

  They crossed to the other boat and engaged, the Captain cleaving a hand from a striking bosun with a cutlass and buried his axe into his skull. Talbert loosed his bolt, then dropped the crossbow and drew his sword, cutting a swathe through the crowd towards the wheel. Haggart leapt into the gap behind him, slew one with a down stroke and mauled another by opening up his thigh. White and red flesh appeared and burst like a sausage. The sailor dropped and the Captain finished him off.

  His shield soaked up the blows that rained down on him whilst he pushed back three rowers towards an open hatch. The first one fell into the hole, the next collapsed on top of it, blocking the third man's retreat. He fell too and lay sprawled across his friend whom Haggart pierced in one stab, skewering both with a single strike. He withdrew his sword from the bloody heap in time to parry a spade aimed for his head and plunge the point of his sword into the man's throat. A gush of hot red blood sprayed in his face, momentarily blinding him.

  “Come on, Haggart. Take the decks, man!” cried Thomas, hacking away at the enemy leader with such a ferocity that he managed to force him back towards the front of the ship.

  The Captain, six kills already accrued, headed towards the wheel where the rest were waiting in a loose semi-circle for him to reach them. The first fell to an axe thrown at his chest that crunched its way through his ribs and lodged in his lungs. The second lost his arm at the crook, the third was punched to the ground and his head crushed under his boot.

  “Take the left,” he cried to Haggart over the din of battle. Haggart pushed his opponents back with a shield charge and broke off to the starboard side of the mast, cutting and slicing through the throng. He didn't have a chance to see how Thomas or Talbert was doing; the only person he could see was the Captain and it wasn't fairing well for the crew of the enemy ship. A sailor, holding his severed wrist in the air, his hand dangling on a thread of tendon, stumbled back towards the rails and was booted into the sea. An axe followed in his wake and killed the cook who came at him with a carving knife.

  Haggart slew his eighth man and stepped over the body, driving his sword deep into the chest of the last man on that side of the vessel. The Captain met him at the wheel.

  “Swing it hard to port,” he shouted, fending off two more who'd climbed the steps to the quarter deck. Haggart spun the wheel counter-clockwise and the ship lurched away from the King's Bane. The grapples snapped and any crossing the gap fell into the water. Those fighting on the ship's deck swayed but remained standing, swords still dancing in the sunlight to a deadly tune.

  “That should stop them taking our ship,” said the Captain, making for the main deck. “Let's help Thomas.”

  Haggart leapt the rail and toppled three of the crew who'd managed to surround one of Thomas' men. He helped him to his feet and stabbed d
own into the dazed sailors, killing two of them and wounding the other. Then he was moving again, cutting downwards across the back of one who stood between him and Thomas. Thomas was sweating heavily as he deflected the blows from the leader with his sword, striking back with another in his other hand.

  “You look like you need the help,” said the Captain to him as he joined the melee.

  “I was jut thinking the same thing,” gasped Thomas, sucking air into his lungs.

  Swords clashed and metal skipped across metal. The numbers of the enemy dropped to less than ten and even these were being backed towards the fore front of the ship.

  When there were only five left, including their leader, three of them threw down their swords and held up their hands.

  “Cowards!” bellowed their leader and returned the Captain's blows furiously. He saw them all coming towards him and deflected them effortlessly.

  “Surrender,” he said and stopped his attack for a moment. The man stopped and caught his breath.

  “Just... a... minute...” he managed and the remaining number of his crew knelt down with their hands on their heads.

  “They know the drill,” observed Thomas. “This isn't new to you, then?”

  “Mercy!” yelled the nearest.

  “Mercy, sirs,” said another.

  To their leader, Thomas said, “Do you yield?”

  “Do we have any choice? I couldn't sail home now even if I bested you now,” he replied and threw down his sword. Panting and leaning with one knee on a raised beam, the Captain laughed.

  “He's got a point.”

  10.

  “It is said that Thurnvad was the first to take to the sea in the early days. On a great vessel carved out of a single, giant tree he sailed. That ship beached on Ulfwen and was used to make the first mead-hall of the ancient King.”

  - Myths & Legends of Old Ulfwen

  “It would seem you're having an amazing streak of luck,” said Thomas as the bodies of the dead - friend and foe alike - were hurled into the sea. Twilight was coming in and a bell rang to mark the changing of the watch. “I've never seen so many dead and so few wounds upon a man.”