Voyage of the Lanternfish

by C S Boyack

  "No, sir. I can do ciphers, but nothing like this. Wish I'd have paid more attention to father's charts and mother's arithmetic."

  "Seems to be a theme aboard this ship, lad. Wish I'd have paid more attention too." He finished his calculation, checked his work, then turned to the sextant. He adjusted the odd vernier by a few degrees, then rechecked the numbers.

  He took a deep breath, then yelled forward to Johnny Jump Up. "Weigh anchor."

  Johnny saluted and his crew started raising the anchor. Lanternfish dipped as the anchor held fast, then rocked the other way as it lost its grip with the ocean floor.

  James sat cross-legged on the deck. "Keep a firm grip on the wheel, sir. I don't know exactly what's going to happen."

  "I don't understand, Capitan."

  "Me either, but we're about to find out." James lifted a chain over his head then inserted the black key in the sextant. "We're about to learn a new trick, or die horribly, one or the other." He turned the key.

  Chapter Thirty-Seven

  Lanternfish dropped approximately two feet with a resounding splash, then was hit by a large wave from the rear. It lurched forward.

  "Don Velasco, make sail, head us west northwest. Mule, help me get this stuff to my quarters. We need to adjust the constant, then check it against the tide charts," James ordered.

  Men boiled up from the lower decks, many of them armed. "Go back to your bunks, lads. There might be a few more bumps tonight, but it's nothing to be afraid of," James said.

  They bundled up the books and charts to the sound of Don Velasco barking orders, unfurling sails, and waves crashing against the distant rocks on their port side.

  Mule set up everything on James' desk. "Seems like you could do all this from right here."

  "Everything except take a current reading," James answered. "The ship moves, so we have to read, calculate and adjust quickly. We won't have time to run back and forth. This will take some time. You can curl up on my bed for a while if you like."

  "No, sir. This is all fascinating. Don't want to miss it. Can I get you some tea or something?"

  "Actually, that sounds wonderful. Do you know where the galley is?"

  "Explored the whole ship today. Be right back." Mule weaved through sailors fastening and adjusting lines, as the sails went taught. He worked his way down to the galley, then asked for a pot of tea for the captain.

  Bill made him wait while he placed a pinch of sugar on a bit of cloth for Trouble. "Take me a minute to let it brew, lad. Slide that kettle inside the warming oven for me." He pointed at a porcelain kettle hanging from a hook on the wall.

  Trouble scurried off with his sugar, and Bill added leaves to the hot water. "How you likin your first day?" Bill asked. "Miss your pa?"

  "I've never had so much fun in my life. I'm sure I'll miss them, but not today. We're navigating tonight. It's pretty interesting."

  "Never learned how to do that myself. Was always the cook aboard whatever ship I been on."

  "Seems like an important job. All these people have to eat."

  "It is, and they get mad if it ain't good. Gotta make stuff that's tasty enough cold, too. Sometimes men's working when it's hot, but a bit of cold roast on a biscuit goes down easy enough."

  "My mother used to do things like that. She'd cook a large bird, but we couldn't eat all of it. We'd have the rest the next day."

  "If'n you cook it, it's not as likely to go bad. Plus you can put a lid on the roaster and keep the flies off. Now grab a towel and pass me the kettle." Bill placed everything on a platter to make the cups and things easier to carry. "Sure you can handle it, lad?"

  "I'm stronger than I look, thank you." Mule carried everything up to the captain with only one minor spill as he passed by the caravan.

  "Look here, Mule," James said. "I already wrote out the formula, then added the coordinates of our arrival. All we need to do is take a reading, then add those coordinates. I adjusted the constant, so we're going to try five miles this time."

  "What about the tea, sir?"

  "We're going to have it right now." James poured, then double checked his arithmetic while he drank. He sat the empty cup down. "If we hurry, we can take another turn, run back down, then have another cup. Let's go."

  They ran back upstairs, and Dan had spelled Don Velasco at the wheel.

  "I'm sorry, Dan, but we're going to need your chair for a moment," James said.

  "It's fine. I have some miles on this leg now, and I can stand."

  James situated Mule like before, then took his readings. This time, when he turned the key in the sextant, the ship only plopped down about half a foot.

  "I swear the stars just moved positions when that wave hit," Dan said.

  James winked at Mule, who smiled back. "I saw it too. What do you think it means?"

  "Don't know. Probably going to be a severe tide along the coast somewheres."

  "Old friend, we may have found a way to sneak through the back door into Hollish," James said. He explained what the sextant does, and how it would give them an advantage.

  "But you can't keep plopping Lanternfish into the water like that. You could knock a hole in her."

  "That's why we're running these tests, to make sure we have smooth landings. Besides, if Big Boogah didn't knock a hole in her skipping us across the waves, a little knock like this certainly won't."

  Dan chuckled. "That was quite the ride... Drop anchor. Don't think none of us expected that."

  "We're going to go below, do some adjustments, and try for ten miles. Then it's time for bed. We'll see you back here in a bit." They scooped up the kit once more then scurried back to James' desk.

  "These calculations are tedious," James said. "Why don't you take Mister Philson a cup of our tea and give me some space? When you get back, I should be ready to carry it all topside again."

  "Aye aye, Captain." Mule poured some tea in James' cup then left.

  James plotted their location on one of the charts, there was nothing but open sea in every direction. Mule returned and they hustled up once more.

  Movement of ten miles went off with barely a splash. "It's a good start. Halfrid said we could go up to a hundred miles, but not until we adjusted the constant. Tomorrow night, we'll try even further."

  "It's kind of scary," Dan said. "By all rights we should just be getting past the reef and them rocks back at Mule's island."

  "True," James said. "You know, there's nothing out here but water..." He put a hand to his beard and made a twitching sound, before adjusting the sextant for another ten miles. He turned the key, and they jumped ahead once more."

  "Damn it, James! That's dangerous and you know it," Dan said.

  "Why, exactly. It isn't like there's a coastline we have to worry about. What if we're off a mile one way or the other? There's nothing but water around us." He adjusted the sextant then moved them ten more miles.

  "You could land atop another ship, or even another whale trawler," Dan protested.

  "If we land on another whale trawler, we can simply move off of it the same way we got there. Another ship is a risk, but it's a small one, like a grain of pepper on an entire tablecloth. I'll let you have a peaceful night from here on. Adjust your heading to west northwest, and hold that course."

  Mule left James for the night, then went back to the figurehead. He hung his conch trumpet on the same bolt the rod was on, then organized his bedding. He barely slept that night. Not from discomfort, but excitement. The glow of the lanterns, the ripple of the jibs, and the lapping water provided a heavenly elixir for a boy his age.

  He awoke to the sound of rustling against to the figurehead. Serang's quarters were adjacent to his own. He scurried out the hatch and saw her at the foot of the mast with her flute.

  "Did you stay in there all night?" she asked.

  "Yes, ma'am, if that's alright, ma'am."

  "Doesn't matter to me." She glanced at the pre-dawn sky. "Don't forget to extinguish the lanterns after it gets brighter."
She grabbed the rope then climbed to the top of the mast.

  Stuttering Lewis approached him and offered a new shirt. It had laces on the front, and a small ruffle around the laces. It fit perfectly.

  Lewis took some measurements, then made some marks on his tunic. "Make a nnn, nnn, nice v-v-v, vest."

  "Thank you, sir. Am I supposed to wake the captain?"

  "D-d-don't, nnn, know. Best let B-b-b, Bill."

  Root monsters showed up to help Trouble clean the chamberpots. He'd grown in stature among their clan, somehow and supervised the activity.

  Mule wandered below decks and watched men gathering eggs, shoveling up after the livestock, and using the dipper to get a morning drink.

  Biscuit Bill was busy, so he didn't bother him. Back topside, he crawled back inside the figurehead then extinguished the lamps. Serang's music drifted overhead as he went around the ship putting out the rest.

  Johnny Jump Up manned the wheel. Mule asked when the captain usually awoke.

  "Aboard ship, the captain keeps his own hours. Sometimes he mans the wheel at night and sleeps all day. No predicting what his schedule is. Biscuit Bill will take him his breakfast soon. Then you can find out what he wants you to do."

  Mule leaned agains the rail and sighed. He wanted to do a good job, but didn't know where he belonged.

  "Look here," Johnny said. "Takes a bit of muscle to turn the ship, but in a straight line all you gotta do it hold the wheel steady." He stepped back. "Try it out."

  "Do you mean it? Really?"

  "Yeah. Nothing to it until we need to adjust course, or get into a fight."

  Mule took the wheel. He tried to stifle the smile on his face, but failed.

  "I'm going to go below. Get me a cup of oatmeal, maybe some tea. Then I'm stopping by the officer's head. Think you can handle the job for, say fifteen minutes or so?"

  Mule gave a resounding, "Yes sir."

  "Nope. You're a sailor now. We say aye aye."

  "Aye aye, sir."

  "Alright. I'm counting on you. We all are. Be right back." He made a wave toward Serang. She nodded her understanding, and Johnny left.

  It didn't matter that the weapons master was supervising him, Mule was at the helm of a genuine pirate ship. He wondered if there was another boy anywhere who could claim that experience.

  For the next fifteen minutes his imagination wandered to cannonades, sword fights, and mountains of golden treasure.

  Johnny returned and placed a mug of tea on the deck. "Anything to report, Master Mule?"

  "No, sir. Smooth sailing."

  "Good man."

  "I thought all the officers ate with the captain."

  "There's always some of us on duty. Ship has to be manned at all times. Bill's coming on deck right now. Let him wake the captain, then you can find out what your orders are."

  "Thank you, sir."

  "Wait."

  Mule stopped in his tracks.

  Johnny pulled a red bandana from his pocket. "Until we can get you a proper hat, you ought to keep the tropical sun off your head." He wrapped the cloth over and around Mule's head, then knotted it in the back. "You look like a proper pirate. Now get off my deck."

  "Yes– I mean aye aye, sir." Mule dropped down to the quarter deck and followed Bill into the captain's cabin.

  James rubbed his eyes and slid up against the headboard. "What do we have today?"

  "Just a scramble with potatoes, and the last of the scorpion meat. Got biscuits and all the trimmings too." Bill set the table then left.

  Mule stood off to the side. Dan and Fala came in then helped themselves.

  "Nothing but smooth seas during the night," Dan reported.

  James opened a biscuit then reached for the butter. Mule silently passed it to him.

  "What are we going to do with Mule today?" James asked.

  "He's your cabin boy," Fala said.

  "I want to train him to be a proper sailor. How are we fixed for powder bags?"

  "Johnny says we need more," Fala said. "I can get Stuttering Lewis or Chappie to show him how to fill and sew them."

  "That sounds like a start. We have lots of cannon to feed, and it isn't like we won't use them. It's good honest sailor duty. See to it would you?"

  "Aye aye," Fala said.

  They finished their breakfast in peace. Fala looked at Mule and wagged her head toward the door. Before Mule could open it, Stowaway burst inside. "Ship on the horizon, Captain."

  James grabbed his telescope then headed for the forecastle. The distant ship was smaller and faster than they were. "I'm afraid we'll never catch her."

  "She looks to be a Hollish merchant, sir," Stowaway said.

  "I'm aware of that, but she's ahead of us and faster."

  "Couldn't you just nudge us ahead with your magic sextant?"

  James collapsed his telescope then turned to face him. "Who the hell told you about it?"

  "Well, um, I heard it from Boss, and he heard it from Trouble, who learned about it from Biscuit Bill, who–"

  "Stop. Apparently the whole ship knows. It only works at night. I have to take a reading off the stars to make it work."

  "Yes, sir. Sorry, sir."

  "Can't help what you were told. We'll follow her. See if we can't determine her course." He strode for the poop deck to issue orders.

  Johnny stood ready. "Orders, Captain?"

  "We'll never catch her. Follow her and determine her course before we lose sight of her. We may be able to catch her tonight. With the height of the deck, she's no farther than fifteen miles away. We'll hold that course until the stars come out, then see if we can spot her by leaping ahead."

  "I like the plan. It's good to capture something early in the trip."

  "Yes, a happy crew tends to follow orders better." James headed back to his cabin.

  That evening, James stalked around the deck. He placed observers before the stars came out. He moved to the poop deck and stood beside Dan at the wheel.

  "There's a couple of stars out already," Dan said.

  "Not good ones. I need an accurate position before we jump ahead."

  "Can you just jump ten miles like last night without a reading?"

  "Possibly, but I need to calculate along our course. Otherwise we could be off ten degrees and miss them. We'll just have to wait."

  Mule brought up the sextant, books, and quill. He set everything up beside the chair, then lit the lamps. Stowaway brought a group to man the rear mortar.

  The stars eventually arrived, James did his calculations then moved the ship ahead fifteen miles. "Report!" he yelled toward the observers. Nothing was seen.

  "They outran us for a whole day," Dan said. "We were already fifteen miles behind. Maybe we find them in another jump."

  "Agreed." James jumped the ship along the same course without taking readings.

  None of the observers spotted anything. Boss yelled down from the crows nest. "Ship!" He pointed dead ahead.

  "We've guessed the horizon is fifteen miles," James said. "At crows nest height, she could be twenty miles ahead." He took a fresh reading, then did his calculations.

  When he turned the key, Lanternfish dropped a couple of feet and washed sideways with one of the waves. "Report!" James yelled again.

  Dan grabbed him by the shoulder and spun him around. They were ahead of the merchant ship by about ten miles.

  "Bring her about," James ordered.

  "How far did we jump?" Dan asked.

  "About twenty five miles. I don't want to hope they'll close with us. If we aim at her, we can cut them off.

  Dan brought the ship about. Don Velasco barked orders to adjust the sails. McCormack and Serang broke out the weaponry.

  James took the wheel. "Find Johnny Jump Up and get him up here."

  "Aye aye." Dan clumped down and went about his assignment.

  James adjusted his course and closed on the merchantman. Johnny arrived and asked for orders.

  "We'll take her from the port sid
e. Just a warning shot at first. If she wants to fight, we'll give her one. Are you sure these bells will work?"

  "Like a magic charm. Stuttering Lewis painted numbers beside the knots. Just jangle the number of the deck you want to fire, and we'll take care of the rest. I'll fire the warning shot myself."

  "Good man. Off with you now." Johnny left for his post. James stared at the beautiful monkey's fist knots that held the ropes in place like doorknobs. He hoped the sailors would sensibly surrender.

  Chapter Thirty-Eight

  Lanternfish closed on the merchantman. Johnny fired his warning shot and clipped their forward mast. It leaned to their starboard side, then snapped and fell into the sea.

  "Run up the Prelonian flag, with ours underneath it," James commanded Dan.

  "Aye aye."

  The merchantman fired a volley that largely went high, but punched multiple holes through Lanternfish's sails. It tore down some of the high rigging and lines.

  James grabbed the monkey's fist knot that signified the lowest deck and jerked it upwards.

  Lanternfish gave a volley in return, tearing through the merchantman's gun deck.

  Pirates poured out from Lanternfish's belly. They manned the grapnels, planks, and muskets.

  Lines flew across to the merchantman, then the pirates pulled them tight. Rifles and muskets kept the sailors from cutting the ropes.

  The root monsters scrambled across the ropes then swarmed over those sailors who tried to remove the grapnels.

  Once they were secure beside the merchant ship, planks went into place. Fala gave them a round from her blunderbuss, then fell back to reload.

  James strode across the plank and boarded the enemy ship. Serang swung across from the high rigging.

  Pistols echoed in the night, their muzzle flashes betraying the sailors who fired them. James shot one across the deck, then killed another man who rushed him with a cutlass. He dropped his pistol and drew his sword.

  He slashed his way across the deck, then worked himself into a decent position with his back against the officer's cabins. Serang was visible through the smoke, killing all who dared approach the forward deck.

  James crossed swords with a young officer. The man was good and he was unable to gain an advantage. The man tried to box him against the staircase, to limit his movement, but James countered by moving further down the wall protecting his back.