DEAD MEN TELL NO TALES

Had to press LS into service once again for this 'ere chapter, which if ye haven't guessed from the title has to do with piratey things. Arrrr. ~ DK

…

The sun had long since dipped below the horizon when the cabin boy for the Siren's Call woke up to the sound of the mate in the nest shouting and the crew around him springing to life.

He rolled out of his hammock more on instinct than anything else and rushed toward the deck with the other sailors. He'd barely gotten to the main hatch when the midshipman, who was able to see up to the deck snagged his arm and pulled him back.

"All hands don't mean you tonight, kid," he said and shoved him into the captain's cabin.

"What's goin' on?" the six-year-old scanned the cabin for any sign of Captain Eva, but she was gone and her blanket lay crumpled at the foot of her berth, like she'd kicked it off in a hurry.

"Ship's pullin' up close," the midshipman told him. "Maybe they just need a tow, but if it's somethin' else then you're best in here. If you hear anything going awry, then you hit that emergency beacon to let Lord Blackwell know."

The cabin boy fired off a "yes, sir!" but the midshipman was gone before he could say a word. Instead he lit Captain Eva's lantern and started to fix the bed to have something to keep his hands busy while he listened to the muffled sounds from the deck. He'd only pulled the blanket up halfway when there was an almighty crash and Captain Eva bellowed: "Boarding party!"

The cabin boy froze. Boarding party? A boarding party meant they were being attacked, but - but that couldn't be right. This was a fishing voyage! The Siren's Call was a fishing vessel, not a warship.

The sound of screams and clashing steel on the deck cemented his suspicions and he scrambled to the porthole to see what was going on. He couldn't see whatever was happening on the deck, but he could barely make out the aggressors' ship and the banner they were flying. Barely visible in the light cast from the decks, it was a blue stream on a red banner.

He clambered back to the holotable and quickly booted up the emergency beacon. He was no expert on heraldry, but he knew what that banner meant. Lord Blackwell had to know!

…

Lana paced the floor, bouncing the screaming toddler on her hip. Dalla was teething and nothing was making the pain any better.

"Please let me take her for awhile so you can get some sleep." Shara beseeched her. "It's why I asked Jamos to change the fishing schedule, so I could be here to help you out."

Lana sighed. "Maybe it will help for her to have someone new." She passed the baby over.

There was a break in the squall while Dalla looked up to see who had her now and then it began again in full force and she reached out for her mother. "Mama!"

Shara returned Dalla to her mother. "I'm sorry, Lana."

"It's not your fault." Lana half smiled as she resumed pacing and bouncing. "Remember when I couldn't wait for her to be able to say, 'mama'?"

"Would you like me to make some caff at least?" Shara asked.

"That would be lovely."

Shara made her way towards the kitchen. Caff was definitely in order and maybe she would warm up some biscuits as well, and maybe there was something frozen in the conservator that Dalla could chew on to bring her some relief...

But as the toddler's cries receded, another sound caught her attention. She'd never heard anything like it. It was an alarm! Was there a fire? It was coming from the comm room.

Just as she was wondering if she should wake someone, Marlon came barreling down the hallway. He half apologized as he rushed past her.

A moment later Jamos was on his heels. "Marlon already heard it?" he asked.

"Yes, what is it?"

"Emergency beacon. It means one of our ships is in trouble." He hurried off after his brother.

Lana followed behind with Dalla who was now quiet, distracted by the disturbance. "Better get that caff going. Sounds like the men are going to need it too."

…

When Marlon pressed the activation button he wasn't prepared for what he saw. Not a ship tilting as it took on water, nor a fire raging in the background, but the terrified face of a six-year-old cabin boy.

"Please help!" the child screeched, too young and too terrified to remember any of the proper callsigns.

Marlon checked the transmitter's information for a split second: the ship's name, the captian's name, and their current location. Considering the kid's age he took a wild guess. "Are you Captain Eva Murphy's cabin boy, on the ship Siren's Call?"

"Yes! Please help, they're coming!"

"Who's coming?" Marlon demanded. Now that the transmission had begun running for a few seconds he could make out the unmistakable sound of fighting outside the chamber.

"They pulled up next to us an' we thought they needed a tow, but they sent a boarding party and now -."

They didn't have time for this. "I'm sending help for you now, son. Now take a deep breath and tell me who is boarding your ship."

The lad was about to answer when there was the sound of a splintering door and he scrambled out of the holofield only to be snagged back by a beefy arm. The arm's owner stepped into the field, confirming Marlon's worst suspicions.

Hugo Bralykburn held the cabin boy in one hand and a harpoon in the other. "Commin' a friend, are we?"

"Let the boy go, Hugo," Marlon ordered. "He's only following orders."

"Speaking of orders, why isn't your brother's tub here?" Hugo demanded, still holding the cabin boy. "He's supposed to be on this route, not this lot!"

Marlon was starting to suspect Hugo's reasons for this plunder, but he could play hardball too. "This crew did nothing wrong. Let them go home to their families and I'll forget this."

"Aye, you will. You and your whole damn clan will forget it just like your spoiled kriffing brother and his southern witch forgot about us the last time." He punctuated his sentence by waving the harpoon in a dangerous arc and Marlon stayed quiet to avoid provoking him into a larger gesture which could hurt the captive boy, intentionally or not.

"Hugo, what happened last year was a terrible tragedy," he said, keeping his voice as low and even as he could. "But it was an accident. Jamos and Shara couldn't get a signal out, there was no malice in it."

"Then there's no malice in this, either," Hugo growled. "You bring out that witch of a beast master or I swear Blackwell, this'll happen again, and again, and again, until I get my hands on her. And when I do, what happened on this tub will look like a game."

He jerked his arms and the cabin boy screeched. Hugo didn't even notice, but Marlon zeroed in on him. "Hugo, he's a cabin boy. He didn't do anything. Let him go."

Hugo looked down, as if he'd just remembered the boy was there, before yanking him front and center. To Marlon's immense relief, the harpoon arm fell to his side.

"You can remember important things?" He asked and the boy nodded frantically with his eyes squeezed shut.

"Good. I'm going to give you a message for Lord Blackwell. When he comes to get you, you deliver it to him."

If the message wasn't the best insurance he was going to get that Hugo wouldn't harpoon the boy, Marlon would have demanded he speak to him directly. Instead he watched while Hugo whispered into the boy's ear.

"Hugo, this is your last chance," he said when the older man was done whispering. "Leave them alone and I will seek no vengeance for this."

"I'll let my messenger do the rest of the talking," Hugo announced, then released the cabin boy and slammed his harpoon into the comm unit.

…

"Then there's no malice in this, either." The image of Hugo Bralykburn growled, swinging the harpoon.

Lana cried out in horror, having just walked in on the moment as Marlon replayed the message for his brother.

"Quiet." Jamos hushed her. Not trying to be rude but trying to catch every word of the Pirate's ultimatum.

"... again, and again, and again, until I get my hands on her. And when I do, what happened on this tub will look like a game."

"What did he say?" Jamos asked, pausing the recording. "What was that part we just missed?"

Marlon sighed with anger and frustration. "He wants Shara. He thinks somehow she could have prevented what happened last year during the storm."

Lana was still staring at the frozen image of the pirate with his harpoon so dangerously close to the poor cabin boy. "The child wasn't hurt was he?"

"No." Marlon went to her. "No, as far as we know he left the boy alive. Jamos and I will head out right away to…"

"Why would he… It's insane! We didn't even know his family was on the water! Couldn't have possibly gotten word to him even if we knew! And he blames Shara for this?" Jamos paced the comm room.

"Thinks she's some sort of Jedi witch." Marlon shook his head. "That's how she's been bringing in all the great catches. She just commands the fish to jump straight into the net and they come gladly."

"She has a talent, aye, but there's nothing magical about it." Jamos huffed. "He's fracking jealous, that's what he is, but I never thought he'd resort to this." He gestured to still image.

"Shara can not know about this," said Lana.

Jamos shook his head. "I don't like lying to her."

"But if she knew he was doing these terrible things in her name…"

"It would destroy her, Jay. You know that." Marlon laid a hand on his brother's shoulder. "She might even try to hand herself over to make it stop."

Jamos warred with his own emotions. He didn't want their relationship to be built on deceptions but if it put her in danger… "Sailors talk. She'll find out about it eventually."

"Aye, she probably will, but hopefully the two of you will be off to fix this before that happens." Lana sighed. "I think I can keep her distracted well enough here." She glanced at the holo image again and shuddered. Then she squared her shoulders and gave the two brothers her best northern woman glare. "Well do you know where he is? Where he'll be heading next?"

"We'll be able to follow the emergency beacon from this holo to find the Siren's Call." Marlon smiled gratefully at his wife. He didn't know how he would ever perform his duties as Lord without her ability to keep him on track and her confidence in him.

"He knew what the schedule of the voyage was supposed to be, at least until I changed it at the last minute." Jamos didn't like to think what might have happened if the Polaris was on it's charted run. "He must have gotten ahold of our plans somehow. I'll check in with our ships that are in that area and ask if they've seen him already and if not to keep a lookout."

The three put their heads together, making plans and putting out comms to the crews that were on the water and those who were still in dock instructing them to be on the lookout and to prepare for the coming trouble. Lana had just finished a comm to the Harkons and the brothers were in deep conversation over a holomap when Shara and Dalla arrived pushing a cart with the caff things spread out on top it. All three of them went as silent as the salt gods halls.

"What?" Shara asked. A moment before she had been smiling at her little 'helper', but all merriment dropped from her expression when she sensed the seriousness of the room. "What happened? It wasn't another storm?" They hadn't gotten any bad weather at the Hold but that didn't mean a squall couldn't have blown up over the sea where one of the other ships of the fleet were out fishing.

Before either Marlon or Jamos could speak Lana rushed to pick up Dalla. "I'll get her back in bed. Thanks, Shara for taking her and settling her down. Looks like whatever you gave her for her gums did the trick." She gave Jamos a look as she passed him and he gave her a slight nod in return.

They waited until she had left with the toddler before Marlon stepped forward and helped himself to the caff on the cart. "Aye, thanks, Shara. I was just wishing for a cup."

"But what's going on?" She asked again. Once Marlon had finished pouring, she immediately began to prepare a second cup for Jamos exactly the way she knew he took it with blue cream and sucrose. "The alarm? The planning?" She nodded towards the maps and datapads.

Jamos looked as if he wanted to explain but he was holding his tongue. She handed him his cup and he took a hasty drink burning his mouth in the process.

"It wasn't a storm." Marlon finally began and Shara turned to listen. "It was something I hoped we'd never have to deal with."

"Hugo Bralykburn…" Jamos spat.

But Marlon cut him off. "The Bralykburn clan have once again gone pirate."

"Well, you'll be getting the Polaris crew together." Shara gathered. She wiped her hands on her apron, ready to get down to business. "We'll be setting off to go and…"

"Not the Polaris!" Jamos exclaimed and then tried to shrug it off. "You'll be staying here to help out Lana with Dalla."

"It's my responsibility as Lord to go and confront Hugo." Marlon said heavily. "We'll be taking Alon's Hand. I've asked Jamos to come along with me for the negotiations since he's had experience with the Bralykburns in the past."

None of it good. Shara thought to herself. And Jamos would only leave behind his ship if he thought Hugo had some plans to do it harm during the confrontation. She pursed her lips, worriedly.

"You will stay with Lana so she doesn't worry about this brother of mine while he's off laying down the law?" Jamos set down his caff and asked, his eyes pleading with her.

"Aye. Of course." She told him.

Marlon smiled awkwardly. "It really would put my mind at ease knowing you're here with she and Dalla while we're gone."

And from the look Jamos was giving her she knew he would feel better about Lana staying with her.

…

At the dock Shara looked to her left and saw Marlon saying goodbye to his wife and daughter. To her right, she saw Maris and Ness wrapped up in each other's arms. Before her, Jamos stood awkwardly.

She had to ask him before he left, now that the others weren't around to tell him not to. "It's because of me, isn't it? Hugo Bralykburn is still angry I couldn't help his family."

Jamos cringed. "That wasn't your fault and neither is this."

She nodded, understanding why he didn't want to tell her. "Please be careful." and then before she could talk herself out of it, she stood on her tiptoes, pulled his face down to meet her and kissed him fiercely.

His arms slipped around her and he pulled her close. When their lips parted with a shared gasp, he stuttered, "Does that mean? W-what did that mean?"

"We'll talk about it when you…" Then she shoved him away. "The sooner you leave, the sooner you'll get back."

…

Any delusions Marlon had about the Bralykburns taking mercy ended when he saw the Siren's Call floating aimlessly, its sails torn to shreds. As his crew pulled up to the side and dropped the gangplank, it was clear to everyone that even if the sails were intact it wouldn't have mattered. There was no one left to steer.

Marlon's stomach churned, staring at the deck and the few bodies. They'd been left where they fell, with slit throats and harpoon wounds in their chests, their backs, their stomachs. The woman who he recognized as the captain lay slumped over the wheel, her shirt stained completely red.

"Salt gods…" one of his crew gaped.

"Where in salt gods' halls is everyone else?" Another whispered.

He closed his eyes and then addressed his crew, who was still on the other side of the gangplank. "Bury them," he ordered, and pressed his thumb to his lips before extending his palm outward. "In the light of the salt gods."

The crew repeated the gesture and filed onto the ship as silent as the dead. Marlon walked past them to the hatch and descended belowdecks, hoping and praying he'd find the rest of the missing crew, but the only evidence someone had been here was a set of bloody boot prints leading to a kicked-open door. He followed them, careful not to step in any of the evidence, and cautiously pushed open the door.

It was the captain's quarters, and they were empty except for the toe of a small boot sticking out from behind the comm table.

"Hello?"

The boot jerked back and Marlon took a careful step toward it. "I am Lord Marlon Blackwell. Is someone here?"

It only took another step for him to reach the comm table and look around it. The cabin boy from the hologram cowered against it, hugging his knees to his chest.

"Hello there." Marlon crouched down to the boy's level. "Have you been here this whole time?"

The boy nodded.

"What's your name?"

The cabin boy slowly met Marlon's eyes and whispered "Colin."

"Nice to meet you, Colin. I'm Marlon." When Colin didn't respond Marlon kept going. "Colin, we can't find any of your crewmates. Do you know where they are?"

Colin flinched. "They took 'em."

"Who took them? The Bralykburns?"

Nod. "He gave 'em a choice to swear loyalty to him, or they'd sit in a dungeon at the Keep. Or feed the Chirns."

That wasn't good. "If he took everyone, then why are you still here? Were you hiding?"

Colin shook his head. "I had to tell you something. He said to tell you that the southern witch could have prevented this and she could have prevented what's going to happen next."

Marlon's stomach sank. This was, if possible, worse than what he imagined. Not only did Hugo have salt gods know how many of his sailors locked in his dungeons, but he was planning to strike again? The next crew might not be so lucky as to be given the choice this one had.

"Alright Colin." He momentarily shook off his worries and reached out to the kid. "Message delivered. Now how about you come over to my ship and we can take you home."

"Home?" Colin repeated.

"Aye, home," Marlon said. "Your momma and papa are probably worried sick."

He covered the boy's eyes when they reached the deck since his crew hadn't finished taking care of the carnage. Now that he looked closer he could see the fallen were from both sides - the Siren's Call put up quite a fight before they were overtaken.

He suppressed a shiver while he led Colin over the gangplank to his own ship. Gods only knew if the missing crew was paying for that fight right now.

…

"Colin Kretash." Jamos looked up from the holo log he was studying and smiled warmly at the boy when his brother set him down in the Alon's Hand commcabin.

"Yes Sir, Captain Blackwell." And he saluted smartly almost as a reflex. Though he was called captain and they had never met, the younger Blackwell brother had the reputation of being something like the admiral of the fleet. He took care of his crews (the Siren's Call notwithstanding) and the young man was Colin's hero, the reason he had wanted to sail under Blackwell banners. And here he was addressing the boy as if they had always known one another.

"I have it on good authority that I have the pleasure of meeting a very brave and loyal crewman, Mr. Kretash." Jamos stood from his desk and went to kneel at the boy's eye level.

Though exhausted and traumatized by the recent series of events, Colin cracked a smile. "I tried to do my duty, sir."

"You've done brilliantly and I think you deserve a rest and a good meal and then we're going to see you home for a short leave. How does that sound?"

The boy nodded gratefully.

"He can sleep in my cabin." Jamos looked up at his brother. Who motioned for another crew member to take the boy and get him settled.

Jamos stood, watching Colin exit with a sad smile.

Suddenly the boy turned back to his mentor. "It'll only be a short leave, aye Captain?"

"Oh aye." Jamos assured him, knowing that after this fateful voyage his family would most likely be lothed to let him go off again so soon. "In fact, when you're ready to return to active service…" He laid his hand on Colin's shoulder but looked to his brother. "Wasn't I just remarking the other day, Lord Marlon, how I found myself in want of a capable cabin boy aboard the Polaris?" He winked.

Marlon caught on and played along. "Why, aye, I do remember us having such a conversation."

"Really, Sir?" The boy looked back and forth between the two brothers. "On the Polaris?"

"Would that suit you, Mr. Kretash?" Jamos grinned.

"Aye, sir, Captain Blackwell, sir." He saluted again.

"Right then. I expect you to make the most of your leave. Get rested up, back in tip top shape, and ready for action."

"I will, sir! I promise!"

The crewman saw the boy out and Jamos sighed and walked back towards his desk.

"You handled that masterfully, little brother," Marlon told him when the door was shut and the two of them alone. "It was good to see the hope return to that boy's eyes."

"Aye. Just hope I can make good on that proposal. If he was my kid and he'd just been through an ordeal like that, I wouldn't be in a hurry to send him off on another voyage." He rubbed his aching head. "Seven dead that we know of, Marl, four from the Siren's crew including her captain and three from Hugo's."

Marlon didn't comment on his brother's, 'if he were mine' statement but it did bring to light the fact that Jamos was much more in favor of having a family of his own than he once had been. "Doesn't seem to matter to Hugo whose banner they flew under. He left his own dead on the deck just like the rest, in his hurry to be away."

"Aye, but where away?" Jamos brought up a holo map with the last known positions of every currently sailing ship in the Blackwell fleet. "There were thirty-five souls aboard the Siren's Call. Four dead on the deck and poor Colin left for us to find, assuming Bralykburn kept the rest of them alive as leverage, we can only hope," he unconsciously made a sign to the salt gods. "That's thirty captives he's got to stow somewhere until he can bargain for them."

"You don't think he'll try to hit another target until he's unloaded the first." Marlon gathered.

"I don't see how he could unless he had another vessel ready to take on the catch so he can move on from there unencumbered."

"So we could be chasing more than one craft." Marlon frowned at how much harder their task had just become.

Jamos nodded and stroked his beard. "I've already commed our ships that are most likely in the path…"

"And which way do we sail?" Marlon stared at the map and deferred to his brother's greater knowledge of the sea.

"I think we should do what we told Colin we were going to do and take him home." Jamos suggested.

"What? Not chase Hugo?"

"We don't know exactly where he's going. Might as well be chasing drexls if we try to follow him into open sea away from the Hold. But Colin's parents are vassals of house Harkon. If we sail towards Harkon Hall, we can see the boy home before he has to witness anymore battles and we can recruit Glover and his ships to help in the search."

Marlon nodded. "It's a good plan. Glove has dealt with Hugo as well, sheltered him and his daughter after the wreck. He would be a good man to have along. Alright, I'll give the order."

…

Leagues away from the Alon's Hand and Siren's Call, two other ship were pulled up alongside one another. Dxun's Fang had dropped it's gangplank to the deck of Chirn Hunter so that it's cargo of human captives could be unloaded.

Hugo gave his orders to the other captain. "Straight back to the Keep and get 'em in the brig. Except the kid who lost the eye." He added in a lower voice. "Make sure he gets whatever treatment he needs. And," he scowled disappointedly. "Try not to rough the rest of 'em up too much. Might still have need of 'em when the Blackwells come to call."

"Aye, my lord. You'll be headed out for another bounty? Will you need us to meet you for another pickup?"

"Nah. If all goes well. We'll have a brand new vessel to bring the next catch home in."

The other man gave Hugo a smile and a salute. "Happy hunting, my lord."

Hugo grinned as he watched the last of the cargo stowed below decks and the Chirn Hunter pull away. His plans were going swimmingly. There had been the brief hiccup when they had come upon that other craft instead of his real target but this would work out even better.

His only regret, Hugo thought with a frown, was the boys. The cabin boy had looked to be of an age with Talia. And the other one, probably on his first voyage as midshipman, reminded him of Dominic… Neither of 'em deserved what they got. But Dom didn't deserve to die either.

"Heading, my lord?" The navigator asked from the helm.

Hugo shook himself from his memories. "South by southwest."

"But, sir, aren't we goin' after the next ship on your list?"

Getting the Blackwell comm officer drunk in that pub and copying down the shipping schedule had been the best idea he'd ever had. "Nope. Let 'em think we're goin' that way. We're gonna sneak around behind them for the bigger prey."

"Aye, my lord."

Hugo nodded as he watched his orders being fulfilled. "Where's Mr. Slone?"

His own weasley comm officer, he was more of a comm slicer actually, came forward at the mention of his name. "Yes, my lord, captain?"

"I'm gonna need you to work your magic when we get close. You can disrupt all their long range comm frequencies so they don't know we're coming and they can't signal for help?"

"Of course." The man gave a slight bow. "May I ask what our target will be, Lord Bralykburn?"

This was where the genius of the pirate expressed itself. He had laid the false trail. The supposed lord of the north and his whelp of a brother would be far away on a wild chirn hunt. And all the time thinking that his pretty little ship and prettier little beast master were safe at home. "We're headed to Blackhold."

To be continued…

…

Thank you Starwarshobbitfics and Hope Reigns On for your reviews! LS and I LOVE the reviews! Keep 'em coming! They keep us going! And you do want us to keep going. You wouldn't want us to just leave you with an awful cliffhanger like that, now would you?