Gaven Matthews stood at the mouth of the Leviathan's open cargo-hold door, the hot wind tossing his auburn hair about wildly. His green eyes were focused on the rocky ground slowly passing beneath the airbeast. The widely varying terrain of the Ottoman empire lay below, its vibrant colors and bustling activities were a wonder to behold from the air.
As the sun touched the horizon, the hazy sky turned a dark blue, shades of purple and orange randomly streaking across it. However, the beauty around them was wasted on Matthews.
In a matter of minutes, he and two other shipmates—Thomas Robbins and James Spenser—would be led by Midshipman Dylan Sharp on a secret mission. As far as Gaven understood, the only one who knew exactly why they were headed on this mission was Mr. Sharp, their commanding officer. He thought it a squick odd to be under the command of a lowly midshipman.
However, everyone aboard had heard of the way Mr. Sharp had risked his own life to save Midshipman Newkirk during the battle of the Dauntless. He figured that there were worse people that could be in command. Gaven sternly told himself that the young man's rank shouldn't matter, considering the fact that Mr. Sharp was a decorated officer and a brave young soldier. Not to mention, he was a fellow Scotsman.
Matthews shifted his mind to the task at hand, which was to get from the airbeast to the ground safely. After all, a keelhaul drop was a risky maneuver and required one's full concentration.
He heard Mr. Sharp ask if they were ready and the three of them gave swift nods.
He felt the airship slow a few moments later and the bosun, Mr. Rigby, said, "Twenty seconds, I'd say."
"Clip your lines!" Ordered Mr. Sharp and the men obeyed. They watched the terrain slowly slide past—it changed from tall palm trees to scattered dots of scrub grass and rock, finally switching to flat stretches of light brown sand.
Coming into view below them was the Sphinx, a natural rock formation and the signal for the landing party to drop.
"Get ready, lads." Mr. Sharp told them. "Three, two, one…" The four of them jumped from the airship and slid down their lines, swiftly descending toward the earth.
Mathews' heart was pounding loudly as he felt the rope slip through his safety clip with a distinct hissing sound, accompanied by heat from the friction on the cable. He chanced a quick glance at the other three as the ground rose to meet them.
It was coming at them fast; too fast for his liking. Gaven did what he had been taught and attached a secondary clip to his line, in order to slow his descent. Out of his peripheral vision, he saw the other men doing the same.
A moment later there was a sway in his line from the airbeast's engines slowing a squick. This forced their ropes to swing forward and then slowly backward, making the four of them almost stall in midair and hover a few yards above the ground.
"Now!" Mr. Sharp shouted and all four of them removed the secondary clip from their lines.
With a sudden lurch they were swiftly dropping to the ground, like rocks in a pond. It was a textbook keelhaul drop and everything was going perfectly.
That is, until Matthews' feet hit the ground with a bone jarring thud.
He landed where a rock protruded from the sand. It was in the perfect spot for his foot to land wrong. His right ankle twisted sharply with a sickening, creaking sound.
Gaven tried to keep his feet, but still ended up on his bum. His cable whisked through his safety clip and lashed out at him before slithering across the beach with the others. He assumed the crewmen on the airship would be hauling the lines up into the cargo-hold any moment now.
For a brief moment his adrenaline kept him from feeling the pain in his ankle. However, it was beginning to protest fiercely, making sure he knew of its injured status.
"Everyone alright?" Mr. Sharp called to the group.
Mathews heard his comrades answer, "Aye, sir."
Gaven swallowed against the pain in his ankle, resolving that he was not going to let a wee twisted ankle make him look like a ninny.
As Matthews attempted to stand though, he could not keep from letting out a soft groan. He rolled into a ball as he fell back to the ground, grasping his throbbing ankle.
Gaven saw Mr. Sharp move quickly toward his position on the sandy peninsula.
Knowing he had to be honest, he informed his commander through clenched teeth, "It's my ankle, sir. I've turned it."
"All right. Let's see if you can stand." Mr. Sharp said, then called for the other men.
Mr. Sharp turned away and slipped off his pack, stooping to check on whatever was hidden inside. Then he quickly closed the pack, not letting anyone catch so much of a glimpse of the top-secret contents it held.
Gaven felt a squick of vexation at himself and the predicament he was putting the team in.
No twisted ankle will bloody-well keep me from completing the mission, the Scotsman told himself sternly. His body had other plans, however.
Robbins and Spencer stood him up and Matthews placed his right foot on the ground. As much as he tried, he couldn't hold back a cry of pain. He swallowed hard, not wanting to consider the possibility that he was more seriously injured than he had thought.
"Set him down." Mr. Sharp ordered, then let out a slow breath.
Matthews could see the truth in his commander's face—his ankle was stuffed. There was no way that he could possibly walk across the two miles of rocky peninsula and back. If they tried to take him along, he would slow them down and make it more likely for them all to get caught.
Dread filled Gavin's heart and he wished that he could turn back time and redo the landing, repositioning his feet slightly so that he missed that barking rock in the sand.
He was compromising everything right now!
"You'll have to wait here, Matthews." Mr. Sharp said, sounding apologetic but firm.
Gaven nodded and said, "Aye, sir. But when are they picking us up?"
His commander hesitated in answering and finally said, "I can't tell you, Matthews. Just wait here and don't let anyone see you."
Gaven understood why Mr. Sharp wasn't saying when the Leviathan was returning. If he or the other men were captured, then the Ottomans couldn't set a trap for the airbeast.
He nodded and unconsciously shifted his ankle, making it smart painfully and he couldn't help but wince a wee bit.
"Trust me, the Captain won't leave us behind." Mr. Sharp said reassuringly.
Spenser and Robbins half-carried Matthews to a crop of rocks that he could hide behind, which was well away from the beach. This kept him out of sight of the water a few yards away and any enemy soldiers that might be patrolling the area. They gave him most of the water and some bully beef.
Soon the three men were headed down the ridge, leaving Gaven all alone.
As he watched and then listened to the three men move away, Matthews couldn't hold back the wave of loneliness and a squick of fear—both of which he pushed down fiercely.
He took a deep breath and let it out slowly. Gaven would likely be alone for hours, but at least he was no longer hindering the mission. Soon enough the men and the Leviathan would be back.
His job now was to stay quiet and hidden.
Note: This story takes place in the second half of chapter 23 and 24 in Behemoth (book two of the Leviathan trilogy). I hope it was enjoyable!
All credit goes to the amazing Mr. Scott Westerfeld!