Author's Note: I've spent the past month moving to college, and I got my connection up just now. Sorry for the wait.
No Ordinary Voyage, Chapter 25: Long Shadows
At the end of my dreams, and in the silence, it was their whispers that woke me. I found that once again, I'd been moved away from the controls, and Felix - Captain Felix - had taken over. So had Leandro.
"So," he asked, "what's Wendholme like?"
He was sitting as close to her as possible. Even with her hands full at the controls and his injured leg, he somehow sat close enough for their heads to be inches apart... What bothered me was that the look in his eyes was not lewd and sinister, but almost innocent and shy. He had no hidden agenda whatsoever.
Her eyes brightened, and she smiled. "I haven't been there in years. But when I last saw it, it was wild all over. Like a desert island, only a whole planet. Jungle everywhere, and mountains, beaches, and lagoons... It's beautiful." The look that came over her face was of pure rapture, as if the place she described was paradise, and she couldn't wait to get there. She was a wonder to behold in the elegance that happiness and starlight cast across her face. I noticed, though, that I was not the only one who had to catch my breath.
Leandro smiled, too. I tried not to react; I was supposed to be asleep. Yes, I was happy that Felix had begun to smile, but I still didn't like the idea of Leandro sitting so close to her. After all, I had done the same thing just moments before.
"It sure sounds beautiful," Leandro answered. She raised her eyebrows and smiled at him, and he laughed. Again, something had passed between them, and I hadn't caught it - something unspoken but understood. Leandro lowered his voice and moved his mouth closer to her ear. He whispered for a while, and then they laughed softly together.
He sighed and leaned against the side of the boat. This placed some distance between him and Felix, but he still kept his eyes on her. "I bet when we get there, you'll get a royal welcome. The one you've always deserved," he said afterward. "You're not a pirate. You're a princess."
She turned to face him then, and even in the darkness, I could tell that she was giving him her intense, curious, searching gaze, and her intriguing feline smile. My heart sank, and while I wanted to close my eyes, I kept them in a squint to see what was happening.
Leandro gently reached across her lap and pushed her hand off the control, setting it on autopilot. She blinked, surprised, as he placed his hand on her arm and began to pull her closer. Her eyes widened, and she blinked in a nervous, silent panic, but I saw his thumb brush against her arm, relaxing her. She seemed to tremble, but Leandro didn't mind. He smiled, and then began to bring them together...
The soft whistle from the other boat startled us all before their lips touched, and Felix turned, alert. She stood up and moved to the center of the boat, leaving Leandro at the controls. She looked down at me then, and saw me awake. She blinked in surprise. "I - I didn't know you were awake."
I didn't answer, though, because the other longboat pulled up beside us, and Baewong was waving a ratty piece of paper. I recognized the chart right away, and Felix asked him what was wrong.
"We're approaching Hicxon's Cove, Captain!" he shouted.
Felix's eyes widened a moment. Then they steeled, looking cold. "What?"
Baewong nimbly leapt into our boat, waking Dalaga and a few more crewmen upon landing, and then showed Felix the map. He held up a lamp.
"This's an old map of your father's, Captain, from - from his old days. There's a dangerous asteroid belt up ahead, but there be a pass narrow enough to get through without a scratch. Only problem is, Captain, that the pass is ambushed from this crescent here, Hicxon's Cove. It orbits with the belt, Captain."
Felix frowned, and her brows furrowed. "Is there a way through without having to pass the crescent?"
Baewong shook his head. "Only if you want a way to our deaths, Captain."
She bit her lip and nodded slowly, thoughtfully. She studied the chart, searching the sector for another way to Wendholme. But Baewong was right. To go around the belt would use up all our supplies, making the effort futile. The pass was the only way.
"We can't take an ambush from Hicxon," she said. The only way we'd get through would be to ambush them."
Someone snorted, but when Felix turned with a questioning glance and an eyebrow raised, her crew fidgeted in their seats. "What?" she asked. "You don't think we can do it?" Suddenly, the image of Captain Amelia passed through my mind.
We were all afraid to answer. She must have been driven crazy, we all must have thought. I know I did. Ambush a shipload of pirates? There were only ten or twelve of us there, not including Dalaga, Lakan, or Leandro, who couldn't fight. Felix had to be crazy.
But she rolled her eyes and sighed, and she crossed to the stern and rummaged around in the little supply cabinet. Finally, she pulled out an old copper-colored box wrapped in an old navy cloth, and when she opened it, we saw seven long, copper-colored tubes. Each gleamed from the light of the solar sail, and Felix nimbly picked one up and twirled it in her fingers.
"My father and Ranga made these," she said, holding it up and raising her voice, just a bit. You'll see that one end is closed and the other is open. Before I can continue, though, I'll need all you light feet to come forward." Then, as an afterthought, she said, "Sylik, too."
Sylik's eyes widened in surprise, and he watched Felix warily as she motioned for him to come closer. Then in one, swift move, she put his arms behind his back, jammed the open end of the tube in his neck, and pushed in the closed end. Sylik blinked rapidly, dazedly, and then he fell to the floor. Those of us in his boat had to move back in surprise, causing it to rock a bit. There was an uproar.
"Oh, will you all shut it?!" Felix yelled at last, when Luygef threatened to tip his longboat over by reaching for her neck. "I didn't kill him! He's just asleep." We were silenced, and we looked at Sylik. Sure enough, his chest rose and fell quietly, even though he was as cold as stone.
Felix tossed Baewong the tube, and he examined it. Before anyone asked, she answered, "I told you, my father and Ranga made these. They're filled with a toxin the people on Wendholme use when hunting. They're usually used in darts, and they're usually deadly."
A few of us couldn't help but look at Sylik again.
"I said usually," she muttered. "These ones are like syringes, so you have to shoot them directly. And instead of toxin, my father put in a very powerful sleeping potion." She glanced at Sylik, who lay at her feet. "I know it sounds dramatic, strange, and impossible, but it's true. Here's your proof before you."
"Now pay attention. Pe - Peter once told me that Hicxon must have at least three or four dozen men. What we need to do is even the odds." She gave Luygef a wink, and he answered with a rumbling laugh. "Like I said, I'd like six of you light-footed men to come with me - preferably those who know where the major arteries are, Engot, so you can't come." In the back of Luygef's longboat, a spindly-legged creature scratched its head sheepishly with its toes and gave what looked like a grin.
"We'll dip low, out of sight of the crow's nest. We'll board the ship from the hull." She turned to me then. "Jim, I want you and Bugoi to take over the helm and engine room. Baewong, as usual, will go to the crow's nest. I'd take you, Luygef, but you're too heavy, so we'll have to go with..." And she picked out four more crewmen, handing each one a tube. I thoughtfully ran a finger over the metal instrument, and Bugoi whispered the location of several arteries into my ear.
"Gentlemen," Felix said sharply, "I want you to move silently. We'll be quieter than shadows... You and Leandro will pilot, Luygef, and stand guard. Get us as close to the ship as possible and undetected."
"Aye, Captain," the two chorused.
Felix nodded and then turned to each of us. "Leave Hicxon for me."
No Ordinary Voyage, Chapter 25: Long Shadows
At the end of my dreams, and in the silence, it was their whispers that woke me. I found that once again, I'd been moved away from the controls, and Felix - Captain Felix - had taken over. So had Leandro.
"So," he asked, "what's Wendholme like?"
He was sitting as close to her as possible. Even with her hands full at the controls and his injured leg, he somehow sat close enough for their heads to be inches apart... What bothered me was that the look in his eyes was not lewd and sinister, but almost innocent and shy. He had no hidden agenda whatsoever.
Her eyes brightened, and she smiled. "I haven't been there in years. But when I last saw it, it was wild all over. Like a desert island, only a whole planet. Jungle everywhere, and mountains, beaches, and lagoons... It's beautiful." The look that came over her face was of pure rapture, as if the place she described was paradise, and she couldn't wait to get there. She was a wonder to behold in the elegance that happiness and starlight cast across her face. I noticed, though, that I was not the only one who had to catch my breath.
Leandro smiled, too. I tried not to react; I was supposed to be asleep. Yes, I was happy that Felix had begun to smile, but I still didn't like the idea of Leandro sitting so close to her. After all, I had done the same thing just moments before.
"It sure sounds beautiful," Leandro answered. She raised her eyebrows and smiled at him, and he laughed. Again, something had passed between them, and I hadn't caught it - something unspoken but understood. Leandro lowered his voice and moved his mouth closer to her ear. He whispered for a while, and then they laughed softly together.
He sighed and leaned against the side of the boat. This placed some distance between him and Felix, but he still kept his eyes on her. "I bet when we get there, you'll get a royal welcome. The one you've always deserved," he said afterward. "You're not a pirate. You're a princess."
She turned to face him then, and even in the darkness, I could tell that she was giving him her intense, curious, searching gaze, and her intriguing feline smile. My heart sank, and while I wanted to close my eyes, I kept them in a squint to see what was happening.
Leandro gently reached across her lap and pushed her hand off the control, setting it on autopilot. She blinked, surprised, as he placed his hand on her arm and began to pull her closer. Her eyes widened, and she blinked in a nervous, silent panic, but I saw his thumb brush against her arm, relaxing her. She seemed to tremble, but Leandro didn't mind. He smiled, and then began to bring them together...
The soft whistle from the other boat startled us all before their lips touched, and Felix turned, alert. She stood up and moved to the center of the boat, leaving Leandro at the controls. She looked down at me then, and saw me awake. She blinked in surprise. "I - I didn't know you were awake."
I didn't answer, though, because the other longboat pulled up beside us, and Baewong was waving a ratty piece of paper. I recognized the chart right away, and Felix asked him what was wrong.
"We're approaching Hicxon's Cove, Captain!" he shouted.
Felix's eyes widened a moment. Then they steeled, looking cold. "What?"
Baewong nimbly leapt into our boat, waking Dalaga and a few more crewmen upon landing, and then showed Felix the map. He held up a lamp.
"This's an old map of your father's, Captain, from - from his old days. There's a dangerous asteroid belt up ahead, but there be a pass narrow enough to get through without a scratch. Only problem is, Captain, that the pass is ambushed from this crescent here, Hicxon's Cove. It orbits with the belt, Captain."
Felix frowned, and her brows furrowed. "Is there a way through without having to pass the crescent?"
Baewong shook his head. "Only if you want a way to our deaths, Captain."
She bit her lip and nodded slowly, thoughtfully. She studied the chart, searching the sector for another way to Wendholme. But Baewong was right. To go around the belt would use up all our supplies, making the effort futile. The pass was the only way.
"We can't take an ambush from Hicxon," she said. The only way we'd get through would be to ambush them."
Someone snorted, but when Felix turned with a questioning glance and an eyebrow raised, her crew fidgeted in their seats. "What?" she asked. "You don't think we can do it?" Suddenly, the image of Captain Amelia passed through my mind.
We were all afraid to answer. She must have been driven crazy, we all must have thought. I know I did. Ambush a shipload of pirates? There were only ten or twelve of us there, not including Dalaga, Lakan, or Leandro, who couldn't fight. Felix had to be crazy.
But she rolled her eyes and sighed, and she crossed to the stern and rummaged around in the little supply cabinet. Finally, she pulled out an old copper-colored box wrapped in an old navy cloth, and when she opened it, we saw seven long, copper-colored tubes. Each gleamed from the light of the solar sail, and Felix nimbly picked one up and twirled it in her fingers.
"My father and Ranga made these," she said, holding it up and raising her voice, just a bit. You'll see that one end is closed and the other is open. Before I can continue, though, I'll need all you light feet to come forward." Then, as an afterthought, she said, "Sylik, too."
Sylik's eyes widened in surprise, and he watched Felix warily as she motioned for him to come closer. Then in one, swift move, she put his arms behind his back, jammed the open end of the tube in his neck, and pushed in the closed end. Sylik blinked rapidly, dazedly, and then he fell to the floor. Those of us in his boat had to move back in surprise, causing it to rock a bit. There was an uproar.
"Oh, will you all shut it?!" Felix yelled at last, when Luygef threatened to tip his longboat over by reaching for her neck. "I didn't kill him! He's just asleep." We were silenced, and we looked at Sylik. Sure enough, his chest rose and fell quietly, even though he was as cold as stone.
Felix tossed Baewong the tube, and he examined it. Before anyone asked, she answered, "I told you, my father and Ranga made these. They're filled with a toxin the people on Wendholme use when hunting. They're usually used in darts, and they're usually deadly."
A few of us couldn't help but look at Sylik again.
"I said usually," she muttered. "These ones are like syringes, so you have to shoot them directly. And instead of toxin, my father put in a very powerful sleeping potion." She glanced at Sylik, who lay at her feet. "I know it sounds dramatic, strange, and impossible, but it's true. Here's your proof before you."
"Now pay attention. Pe - Peter once told me that Hicxon must have at least three or four dozen men. What we need to do is even the odds." She gave Luygef a wink, and he answered with a rumbling laugh. "Like I said, I'd like six of you light-footed men to come with me - preferably those who know where the major arteries are, Engot, so you can't come." In the back of Luygef's longboat, a spindly-legged creature scratched its head sheepishly with its toes and gave what looked like a grin.
"We'll dip low, out of sight of the crow's nest. We'll board the ship from the hull." She turned to me then. "Jim, I want you and Bugoi to take over the helm and engine room. Baewong, as usual, will go to the crow's nest. I'd take you, Luygef, but you're too heavy, so we'll have to go with..." And she picked out four more crewmen, handing each one a tube. I thoughtfully ran a finger over the metal instrument, and Bugoi whispered the location of several arteries into my ear.
"Gentlemen," Felix said sharply, "I want you to move silently. We'll be quieter than shadows... You and Leandro will pilot, Luygef, and stand guard. Get us as close to the ship as possible and undetected."
"Aye, Captain," the two chorused.
Felix nodded and then turned to each of us. "Leave Hicxon for me."