THE QUESTERS, PART XVI
"Washton?" Alex said slowly. He didn't sound enthusiastic.
Rahne felt we had to go Washton - the ruins of the old Folk Imperial capital. I'd volunteered to get Alex's opinion about sailing the mastless ship that far.
"Can you get us there?" I asked. The look that was on Alex's face didn't inspire confidence.
Alex shook his head. "Maybe. Maybe not. It would be risky since I really don't know what the weaponex I'm doing with this ship."
So far, Alex had been captaining the mastless ship but I had no clue how he was doing it. He just seemed to vanish into the tower of the ship - and sometimes into the hull itself - and then you would hear him cursing and banging on things. The mastless ship would jerk, weave, make odd noises, and let out strange gases. Once Alex reappeared, the ship seemed to more-or-less be doing what he wanted.
Alex sighed. "Jonah... sir... I can't recommend taking this thing to Washton."
"What do you recommend?" Rahne asked from the ladder. She'd was climbing down into the tower as Alex and I spoke.
"Honored seeker, we should put ashore, destroy this ship, and get other transportation," Alex replied without hesitation.
Rahne glanced at me. I was a bit surprised that she wanted to know what I thought. It was probably because Alex and I had appeared together when we joined her band.
I frowned. "But why destroy this vessel? It might be useful in the future."
"Her spirit has been poisoned," Alex responded. From the look in his eyes, I could tell he was dead serious.
To my surprise, Rahne nodded in agreement.
However, Alex could tell that I needed more explanation. "This used to be an honest ship, sir. Well... as honest as a ship that deliberately sinks can be. But then she was taken over by vampires and used for transporting people as cattle."
A look of pity had appeared in Alex's eyes. "That hurt her, sir. Twisted her. She's in pain and we should end it."
I tried to keep my face serious. The Blood sense things that the other peoples do not. In a very real sense, they live in a different world. In addition, the sayings of the Old One are really blunt on the subject of slavery. I was wandering into territory where I had to be careful not to insult Blood beliefs.
"Slavery degrades both the slave and the master..." I quoted.
Rahne raised an eyebrow at me. Alex also looked surprised.
My full rank in the Spider-Legion is Ensign-Herald. As an Ensign, I'm expected to command a small unit of legionnaires in battle. As a Herald, I'm expected to understand diplomacy and the ways of non-Spiders. The Blood are a devout people who dominate the world. It helps to know their ways.
"You know the Traditions?" Rahne asked approvingly.
I shook my head. "Just a few parts. But I've always respected that particular passage."
Alex chuckled. "It's just about the only part of the Traditions I know," he admitted. "That and the part about making sure that your bed-partners always have an orgasm."
Rahne shot Alex a look. "That's not in the Traditions."
Alex actually looked troubled by that. "Really? I could have sworn..."
"So how do we finish the ship?" Rahne interrupted firmly.
Alex jolted back to reality. "We sail close to shore and get everyone off except me. Then I'll put her on the rocks and break her keel. We should burn her as well."
"Burn her?" I repeated doubtfully as I looked at all the steel surrounding us.
"She has a kind of blood and it's some nasty shit that burns like crazy," Alex explained. "We'll need to make sure nobody is nearby when we set her afire. She might explode."
It turned out that Alex was right about the explosion.
Alex got us near the coast and we waited until daybreak. Then he found a stretch of deep water near the shore. Getting the former prisoners safely on land was a bit tricky, but we pulled it off.
After that, Alex drove the mastless ship onto a rocky reef. Then there was a heart-stopping moment as we watched Alex scramble out of the tower and dive into the sea. He'd set his fires just before leaving and smoke was pouring out of the ship's interior. Rose watched from overhead, but the list of things that could go wrong for Alex was still pretty long.
Alex was still in the water when the first explosion rocked the mastless ship and sent rock and steel debris flying for some distance. Rose hastily used her powers to shield us from shrapnel. The noise was incredible, echoing up and down the coastline. Splashes marked where fragments of what had once been the mastless ship impacted the water.
As I waded into the surf and helped Alex ashore, there was another, smaller, explosion. We flinched in unison, holding onto each other.
"Thank you, sir," Alex said to me as we staggered through the surf. Alex had some nasty-looking cuts, scrapes, and burns, but he was already beginning to heal.
"I was scared of having to tell Sooraya that I'd lost you," I told him. Which was very true.
"Wise man," Alex said wryly. Then he turned to look at his handiwork. The mastless ship was broken and burning. It was clearly beyond repair.
"Sorry," Alex said softly. After that, he knelt in the waves at the water's edge, gathered seven water-rounded stones, and built a makeshift cairn.
Not wishing to intrude, I backed away. I didn't really understand what Alex was doing, but it was obviously important to him.
My eyes met Rahne's.
"For many sailors, deliberately destroying a ship - even a corrupted ship - is not an easy thing," Rahne explained. "The spirit of the ship must be calmed and sent on her way."
Not everyone was so solemn. I could see the former prisoners of the mastless ship watching the burning hulk. Although tired and worn, there was grim satisfaction in their eyes.
12345
"Any idea where we are?" Rose asked Alex.
"The east coast of North America?" Alex replied with an exasperated shake of his head.
"Can you narrow that down, Alex?" Rahne ordered quietly.
Alex became serious.
"South of N'Yack and Weehawk. On the Pine Barrens shore," Alex replied quickly. "But that's a big stretch of mostly empty coastline. There are some small and scattered holdings. A few fishing villages. Some lumbering and bog-iron camps. If we look, we'll eventually find some kind of settlement, but it might take a while."
"So we're stuck in the middle of nowhere," Faye said in exasperation.
Looking around, I had to agree. I'm no ranger, but I'd been in the Pine Barrens before and it has a distinctive and wild look.
Beck was looking at our ex-prisoners. They were huddling in the shade of a massive slab of gray-black rock. It was located well above the shoreline's high-water mark.
"Those people need water, food, and shelter," Beck said. Behind her, as he almost always was, Smit nodded in agreement. Those two never quite stopped being guardsmen.
"Smit, scout the woods," Rahne told our half-Blood. "See if you can find some freshwater and game."
"Yes, Lady Seeker," Smit said. Then he walked into a copse of pines and vanished.
Alex's eyes followed Smit as he left us. It suddenly occurred to me that Alex was considering going with Smit. And the odds that both of them would come back seemed long.
I glanced at Beck and hurriedly spoke up. "Corporal, can you communicate with someone back in N'Yack?"
Beck shook her head. "I've already tried, sir. No luck. Sorry, but it's just out of my range."
"Hey, we have company!" Rose suddenly bellowed from overhead. She was pointing seaward.
A pair of what looked like fishing boats were approaching our position. Crew members were lining the sides, watching our former vessel as it burned.
The boat crews were obviously puzzled by us and the burning remains of the mastless ship.
Their next big surprise was to meet Rahne and the Rose. Both are pretty well-known.
"Mamsel Seeker, you're about five miles south of the village of Nepta," the elder of the two captains said respectfully to Rahne. "And about twenty miles north of a camp that processes turpentine. When we heard the racket and saw the smoke, we assumed a ship with a load of turpentine had exploded."
The fishermen had shared out a barrel of water and some food. We - especially the former prisoners - were making short work of it. Smit had brought back a skinny deer and was butchering it. If we didn't eat it, we'd gift it to the fishermen.
"What the weaponex kind of ship was that?" the younger of the captains asked. He was squinting into the black smoke that billowed around what remained of the mastless ship.
"It had an all-metal hull," Alex said. Up until then, he hadn't been a part of the conversation. "Some kind of Atlantean design, I think. We took her as a prize."
"She was carrying slaves?" the older captain guessed. He was looking at the huddle of former prisoners.
Rahne nodded. Apparently she was comfortable with the incomplete information that Alex was supplying. Although to be fair, I wasn't sure how we would explain a vicious fight against vampires aboard a ship that could both sink and rise again.
"Is there a Temple in Nepta?" I asked. If there were, I might be able to invoke my relationship with Dee to get some help.
"Just a shrine," said the older captain. "But a wandering priestess travels a circuit that takes her through Nepta every now and then. She's there right now."
The fishermen sailed us to their village. I found that worrisome since it seemed to me that the boats were overloaded. However, Alex seemed to be comfortable, so I decided not to worry about it.
Actually, Nepta was even smaller than Weehawk. But the Blood who lived there were friendly. And much to my surprise, Rahne knew the wandering priestess who was in residence.
"Hello, Saida," Rahne said with a smile after the priestess opened the door to the tiny hut where she was staying.
Saida was quite tall for a woman and no longer young. In fact, she was on the edge of being elderly and I wondered how much longer her superiors would allow her to wander. She had a skinny, raw-boned, look about her and had probably never been considered a beauty. But her lined face had a strong sense of character. She was one of those people you tended to trust as soon as you met them. But most importantly from my point of view, she was wearing the green, red, and yellow robes of a priestess of the Lady of Fire.
"Rahne!" Saida said in obvious delight. Then she engulfed Rahne in a strong-looking hug. Rahne returned it enthusiastically.
Once they broke apart, Saida looked at the rest of us.
"Rose. Faye," Saida warmly greeted those two women. She, of course, didn't know the rest of us. Rahne performed introductions.
Perhaps it was my imagination, but I thought I saw Saida pause slightly when she was introduced to Smit. That made me wonder what a telepath saw with they brushed against Smit's mind.
"Where do you know the priestess from?" I ask Rahne as Saida chatted with Faye and Rose.
"I met her in the upper-Shen valley a couple of years ago," Rahne answered with a fond smile. "But my father knew her way before that. She tried him for murder."
Right.
Eventually, I managed to corner Saida. "Priestess, I need to talk to the Sword Priestess Militant."
She nodded. "And she needs to talk to you. Every priestess in the region got the message last night to keep an eye out for you."
Rahne and Saida had a quick conversation about arranging transport for the prisoners, and then the priestess put me in psychic contact with Dee.
*Where the hell have you been?* Dee said. It was a poor substitute for 'hello'.
I told her the entire story. There was a long pause once I was done.
*Wow,* Dee said. *Just... wow. I let you off the leash for a few days and everything goes mad.*
*We've been busy,* I admitted.
*What's next?* Dee asked.
*Rahne wants to go to Washton. She had a vision to the effect that it's important.*
*So you might say she's returning to the scene of the crime,* Dee replied dryly. To some, Rahne's overthrow of Lord Washton and the subsequent chaos was an excellent example of good intentions gone awry.
Then Dee became serious and practical. *Washton is out of my area of authority. Are you sure you want to go? You won't be able to invoke my name.*
*I think it's important, Dee.*
Something happened that was the telepathic equivalent of a nod by Dee. *You'll need transport. I can arrange a ship.*
*I may take you up on that,* I replied, *but I have something faster in mind. I'll get back to you if that doesn't work out.*
*Very well. Try not to get killed. That's an order.*
*I'll do my best.*
Then there was an awkward paused. We both wanted to say something more, but we weren't sure exactly what to say.
Then Dee sent me a memory. Nothing shocking, just a moment from the last time we were in bed together. We were in the afterglow of making love and cuddled against each other, sleepily talking about old times. It was the telepathic equivalent of a fond kiss between former lovers.
*Dammit,* Dee said faintly, just before out telepathic contact broke. That memory had been more intimate than she'd intended.
Back to reality, Saida gave me a mildly disapproving look. She'd almost certainly seen that last part.
"Telepathic amateurs," Saida growled accusingly as she carefully rubbed her temples. "You always go too far and forget that the person controlling your psychic link can overhear you."
"Sorry," I said awkwardly. There are things you really shouldn't show a woman old enough to be your grandmother. But it wasn't like it was all my fault - Dee was the one who got personal.
"You have too many women in your life," Saida told me sharply. "You drink too damn much and take insane risks with your life. It's time to stop punishing yourself for what happened to your great-great-grandfather."
"Yes, ma'am," I said, trying not to cringe. There is a downside to opening your mind to a telepath. And many Fire priestess' don't hesitate to speak about what they see inside of you.
"And if you ever bump into that ranger-girl again, grab her and never let go," Saida added firmly.
I didn't know what to say.
"What now?" Saida asked. I immediately grabbed the opportunity to change the subject.
"I need to talk to my uncle - grand-uncle actually," I told her. Then I sent her a psychic impression of the man.
Saida looked surprised, but then she shook her head. "He's an important person who undoubtedly has psychic guards. We'll have to get word to him to let us in. Do you know anyone close to him?"
"His daughter - my aunt. Her name's Gwen and she's a Spider-priestess."
A smile came over Saida's face. "One thing about this job... you meet a lot of interesting people."
*Sir, I need Ed,* I told the senior-ranking general of the Spider-Legion.
*Hell, no,* my grand-uncle sent back.
*Really?* Aunt Gwen sighed - she was also in the psychic link. *Less than a half-dozen words and you two are about to fight?*
*There's no fight,* my grand-uncle growled. *Jonah asked for Ed and he can't have him. The last time I put Ed in Jonah's service, he and Ben turned Ed into their personal servant. I lost access to one of my most useful agents for days on end.*
*It's important,* I told my grand-uncle.
I could feel the pained exasperation in his response. *Do you recall that you're in exile? Oh, and that you broke that exile just two days ago?*
*I recall that there's no good reason for my exile,* I sent back. That 'sounded' a lot hotter than I'd intended. That surprised me, since I thought I was used to my legal status.
*Mind your tone, Ensign,* came the stiff reply.
*Why do you need Ed?* Aunt Gwen asked me. When the men of our family talk, she's often the only sane person in the room. Although this was her first time mediating between me and my grand-uncle.
*I'm working with Rahne the seeker, the Rose, and the Sword Priestess Militant of Jerse,* I replied. *We might have found a way to destroy all vampires for all time. Ed would be a lot of help.*
There was a surprised silence. Because of Saida's telepathic link, both my grand-uncle and my aunt could tell I was dead serious.
Ed popped into existence in his usual pulsing field of globular blue and white energy bubbles. Then he barked eagerly and ran into me at full speed.
Saida hastily scrambled out of the way as Ed and I tumbled to the ground outside of Saida's tiny hut. Standing on me, Ed licked my face with a tongue the size of a shovel-blade. His breath was really bad.
Ed is the biggest dog you'll ever see. He's about five feet tall at the shoulder and weighs well over three hundred pounds. He really needs to watch what he eats.
Reaching up, I scratched him on either side of the tuning-fork-like protuberance that sticks up from between his blue eyes. He loves that and his tail wagged with even greater enthusiasm.
"Who's a good boy?" I asked as I sat up.
Ed barked and licked me again.