Chapter 4: Stress, Oddness and More Conversations
Dinner that night was something new in Anamaria's experience. She had grown accustomed to dining with the Dopplers and had learned the rudiments of what were considered good manners while in their household. That went a long way towards making her less uneasy in the company of Captain Faux-Jeton and the other officers. However, she chose to stay quiet rather than advertise her ignorance. Jack, on the other hand, was being Jack. Sitting between Ensign Alamimo and Amelia he had begun with a few slightly off color stories from his misspent youth and was now working toward the events that had lead to his meeting Amelia. These were stories that Annamaria had heard many times and her attention was wandering.
To Anamaria's right was Delbert and to her left was Ensign Lh'aer'ri. She still felt odd around the young Basheevee officer but Anamaria was growing used to him. She supposed it would not have been quite so bad had he not lost both of his arms and half an eye. She was still unclear as to how the whole incident had happened but from what she gathered it had occurred during a boarding action when he had lead an assault on a Mhinm cutter. She had also gathered that his wounds were not permanent. Ensign Lh'aer'ri thought he would be back on active duty within six months.
Anamaria glanced down the table to where Lieutenant Iharaira, the Einfassen's first officer, sat across from Brraadtt. Iharaira was as unusual as most of these people seemed to be. He was shaped rather like a tear drop with massive arms and no neck to speak of. Mounted at the end of his snout was a short horn much like that of a rhinoceros and below it was a broad, square mouth. He had huge hands with three fingers that seemed as though they would crush anything he touched. Yet when he lifted the crystal wine glass to his heavy lips those fingers proved to be quite sensitive and he barely had to touch the delicate thing to grip it. Anamaria was careful to not stare at him. She was worried about offending anyone who looked so powerful.
"...And then they made me their chief," Jack said finishing up his tale of how he and Amelia had escaped the island of Pelegosto. There were rounds of laughter and appreciative 'ooos' and 'ahs'. "And they made Amelia a god."
"A god?" Captain Faux-Jeton raised her eyebrows in surprise.
"A silly superstition of the natives," Amelia poo-pooed the tale modestly.
"From what they told us, it wasn't much of a superstition," Jack pointed out.
"First in the graduating class of '005. Youngest female captain in the Fleet. Captained the ship that actually found Flint's Trove. Now a god. Well, well. We shall have to get you better quarters," Faux-Jeton mocked a little cattily. She reached a hand out and lightly touched Delbert's wrist with her fingers letting them linger while she continued. "How does it feel to be married to a deity, Doctor?"
Anamaria noticed the gesture and glanced quickly to Amelia. It was clear that Mrs. Doppler had not missed it. Amelia's eyes narrowed ever the slightest bit and her mouth tightened.
"I..." Delbert stammered groping for an answer. "I married her before she was deified. Aahhemmn... But I think I have always worshiped her."
The compliment was a little clumsy but the look on Delbert's face made it plain that he was sincere. Anamaria smiled softly and Amelia blushed ever the slightest bit in spite of the fingers that still rested on her husband's sleeve.
"I dare say you couldn't ask for more than that," Captain Faux-Jeton said mildly. "Most would have been satisfied to make Fleet rank."
"I was satisfied, Taja," Amelia said coolly. "I just ended up in some very difficult situations and had to get out of them."
"Of course, Amelia." Faux-Jeton's tone had changed slightly. There was a glint in her eye that was not mirth. "Like when you ignored Captain Riff's orders to stay on the quarter deck during that boarding action and jumped across to the Procyon frigate's deck."
"A difficult situation," Amelia said flatly. "If I hadn't done that, Captain Riff and the boarding party would have been cut to pieces by that swivel gun.
"You left your post during a battle," Taja stated a bit harshly. "You were supposed to tend to the helm."
"Which you did quite well in my stead," Amelia shot back at her. This had been an old point the two had much debated over the years. Faux-Jeton's tone and the touch on Delbert's wrist had set Amelia on edge.
"I had no choice. While you were off getting a promotion, I was left to do the work." A resentful air filled the small cabin.
"I was not off getting a promotion, Captain," Amelia said hotly. "I was doing my duty. If you had been standing where I was you surely would have done the same thing."
An uneasy and embarrassed silence fell on the gathering. The steely looks passing between the two captains were obvious to all. Neither was backing down. Their eyes were locked and if somebody didn't do something to break the tension, blows surely would be struck. Anamaria shot a look at Jack. Jack, who was never slow in situations like this, was just about to try an anecdote when suddenly an unearthly belch rang out from the far end of the table. All eyes turned to Brraadtt who sat wide eyed and blushing a deep blue. The embarrassed silence turned to a shocked silence that stretched until suddenly Anamaria began to giggle. Ensign Lh'aer'ri followed suit and as suddenly as that, the whole cabin rang with laughter. Even the two captains chortled with dignified mirth.
Dinner ended with the officers proposing toasts and another round of drinks. The dishes were cleared away and more drinks were served. The officers began a game of cards that mystified Anamaria. She couldn't follow the complex rules and decided to watch. Jack, who had never learned to play by any rules, seemed to be unbeatable. Time after time he would bluff his way through a hand and ended the evening with a pile of blue duckets at his elbow. The unease between the two women was an undercurrent throughout but it did not spoil the otherwise good evening. The party broke up in the early watches of the night and all went to their staterooms.
The children were playing a game of hide-and-seek the next day. Jib was It and Sunny, Matey and Tillie were scampering about the ship to hide. Matey descended to the cable tier and made her way aft among the boxes and spare parts common aboard every commissioned vessel of the Imperial Fleet. She had little knowledge of and less interest in such things. All Matey was concerned with at the moment was eluding her sister long enough to avoid being It. She climbed over a heavy spar and between two large crates into a dim, open space. This would do nicely. Matey settled down and rested her back against a large box at the far end of the open space, prepared to wait out her sisters and brother. She was just settling in and getting good and comfortable when she heard something move inside the box. Being of a curious nature, the little girl crept around to the end of the box where she discovered that it was not a solid plank sided like the others but a set of metal bars. In the dim light she could see something move near the back of the box. She edged closer to the bars peering in, squinting to penetrate the shadows. In a flash, something large slammed into the bars. A clawed hand reached through and nearly had her but Matey was quick. She screeched as she scrambled away from the thing with its gleaming white teeth and black, black claws. Its malevolent, yellow eyes shone from inside the cage and a frustrated hiss rolled out softly. Matey sprang to her feet intending to put as much distance between herself and that thing as she could. But as she turned she ran smack into the knees of one of the spacers. He stood starring down at her with narrowed, unfriendly eyes.
"What 're ya doin' down 'ere, girl?" he demanded.
"H... h... hiding," Matey stammered.
"Hidin'?" The spacer glanced at the cage. "Seems more like snoopin' ta me, girl. Disturbin' ma pet you are. Cap'in won't like that. Won't like that at all."
"Pet?" Matey asked bewildered.
"Aye. Ma pet." The spacer regarded the little girl for a moment. "If I catches ya down 'ere ag'in, I'll feed ya to 'er. An' if ya tells anyone 'bout 'er, I'll tell the Cap'in you was where ya ought not be and she'll be angry. Maybe locks ya up. Maybe she'll be angry enough to tell the Empress and then maybe yer mama won't git 'er medal."
"But..." Matey said terrified that something awful might happen. If her mother didn't get the medal because Matey had been bad, Matey would never forgive herself. She thought her mother would be so disappointed. "Please! I won't tell anyone!"
"Just remember; ma pet's always hungry," the spacer growled. "And there ain't nothin' she likes better 'an a tender little girl. Keep yer mouth shut an' nothin' need be said to the Cap'in. Got it?"
Matey nodded and scrambled away through the cable tier as quickly as she could. Her little heart was beating in fear. When her sister found her a few minutes later, Matey didn't want to play anymore and slunk off to their cabin for the rest of the day.
"So what is Captain Sparrow like?" Alamimo asked Anamaria.
"Jack?" Anamaria smiled at the question. "I... I've known Jack for a while now. He's Captain Jack Sparrow. No one like 'im before. No one goin' to be like 'im after."
They were strolling along the main deck in casual companionship. Like Jack, Anamaria was not wholly at ease around Alamimo but she rather liked having a woman aside from Amelia to talk to. Alamimo was only a few years older than Anamaria and she was quite personable when not in the company of one of the other Fleet types.
"I can well imagine," Alamimo said wistfully. Her thoughts raced back to the newspaper accounts she had read.
Anamaria suddenly caught on and had to suppress a smile that nearly bubbled up into a giggle.
"He seems so different from all of the officers I've ever met," Alamimo went on. "He seems... Maybe 'free' is the word I'm looking for."
"Aye. Jack likes to be free." Anamaria smiled again. This time at the memories that came to her. Jack and freedom went hand in hand.
"The newspapers never mentioned his wife," Alamimo said not too subtly. She observed Anamaria's reaction and misinterpreted her expression. "I'm sorry! I didn't... know... I mean. The two of..."
Anamaria turned wide eyes on the young ensign. Her smile blossomed into a wide grin. "You thought that me an' Jack... It's not that I haven't had the inclination, Alamimo. It's just..."
"Oh!" Alamimo interrupted her. "So the two of you aren't mated?"
"No!" Anamaria barked and had to stifled a laugh. She was a little embarrassed now. Her cheeks grew warm. "I mean, we've sailed together a few times and I agreed to help him with Amelia and all that. You know. Getting Dr. Doppler back to his family. But there's no me and him. Not in the way you mean."
"And there is no one on your home world that he is mated to?" Alamimo asked seriously.
"As far as I know, Jack's only love is the sea." Anamaria looked sideways at the Pajakian.
"The sea?" Alamimo puzzled over that a moment. "You mean that he loves... water?"
"No." Anamaria tried to compose her thoughts a moment before explaining. "Where we are from the sea can take you anywhere. There are no borders. There are no walls or fences. There is only the sea and the horizon and what lies beyond the horizon."
"Ah." Alamimo finally said. "Freedom." She smiled at Anamaria. "So as long as I can offer him more than freedom, I have a chance?"
Anamaria returned the smile. "You can try."
