Retribution

by Benjamin J Boswell

  My dearest Asserius,

  I, too, miss our conversations and time together. I understand your position and agree with your decision. I do remember meeting Yasmin and look forward to getting to know her better. She seemed like a very lovely and kind person. Although it will be difficult for me, it gives me comfort knowing that she will be there to comfort you in my absence.

  I believe the worst of the sickness of pregnancy has passed as I have had fewer bouts of nausea lately. It is exciting to know that our child is growing within. Your loving Queen, - Esther

  When she finished, she folded the paper and slipped it in an envelope, took some sealing wax out of her desk, and warmed it over a candle. She rubbed some off onto the envelope, then pressed her ring into the red wax, stood, and walked over to the door to the dining compartment. Mac was sitting at the table inside, a tray with a teapot and some cups on the table next to him. Captain Kassim and Mr. Malik appeared to have left.

  “Esther, are you alright?” said Mac, concern tinging his voice as he stood and scooted his chair under the table.

  “Yes Mac,” she said, her voice sounding bland and toneless in her own ears. “Please have this letter delivered to the courier and tell Captain Kassim to depart to deliver it to King Asserius as soon as he is able.”

  “Yes, Your Majesty,” Mac said, taking the letter. “Esther, are you—”

  Esther shook her head and turned away, heading back into the great cabin. She walked over to the door to her bedchamber, closed it behind her, and threw herself on the bed, burying her head in her arms to muffle the sound of her sobs.

  Chapter 17

  Friends and News

  The two weeks since she’d arrived back in the Tewksbury area had gone in the blink of an eye. She’d celebrated her birthday at home with her parents and family a week ago on the 7th of December. She had waited to open Asserius gift until then, at first out of anger, and then simply out of traditions sake once her feelings had settled. She couldn’t be angry with Asserius—she really did understand why he was doing what he was doing, and she had sent him her permission…but it still hurt. Her friends and family had distracted her however, and it was so nice to be able to talk and relax with them.

  The Piruz’ tour was nearing its end and the Adena, her replacement, should be arriving soon, which reminded Esther that she couldn’t stay here forever. Christmas was only eleven days away and she was planning on leaving the day after. It was nice to see her family and friends again, but her crew also had family and friends back home in Hadiq who needed to be with their families. If open war broke out soon, who knew when they’d get to see them again?

  Esther focused her mind back on the present and she looked at her reflection in the mirror above the cabinet and washbasin she’d had installed in her quarter galley as part of the renovations. She looked a lot healthier than she had a month ago. The blockade and standoff with the Madrausan fleet had been hard on her physically and mentally, and the added challenge of pregnancy had caused her cheeks to hollow out and, with the exception of her growing baby bump, had given her somewhat of an emaciated look. The presence of the Madrausan fleet within striking distance and the need to strike out at them for all the pain they had caused had been overpoweringly strong. Even now, the lust for revenge rushed through her veins when she thought about it, and it was intoxicatingly potent. With the benefit of time and distance, however, it didn’t drive her to exhaustion anymore. Her face and body had filled back out to a more healthy weight and she slept regularly now. Esther touched the end of her hair. It now hung almost two inches past her shoulders. It still wasn’t as long as it used to be, or as she would like it to be, but it was getting there—and Marigold styled it so beautifully that she didn’t mind it not being longer.

  She dipped her hands in the washbasin, then toweled them dry, dumping the remaining water into the privy. When the Retribution prepared to get under way, she’d stow the washbasin and pitcher securely inside the cabinet, but since they were at anchor, she left them on top of the counter.

  She opened the door back into her great cabin and was met with a gush of laughter from where Tanya, Marigold, and Charity sat around a table filled with food and drink, talking and eating. It had taken nearly the whole two weeks working with Marigold to get her ready to see Tanya and Charity again, but Marigold had finally felt like she could handle it, so Esther had sent one of the longboats—or cutters as the Navy called them—into town to invite Tanya and Charity to dine aboard the Retribution anchored back at her parents homestead. Marigold seemed to be doing very well, and as the evening wore on, had come out of the shell she’d initially erected between her and their two other friends. They still didn’t talk about anything to do with the raid or her father, but it was just like old times hanging out at the Rosebud otherwise.

  “Did Esther ever tell you about how she first met her husband?” said Marigold, catching Esther’s eye as she sat down. Esther groaned.

  “I thought it was when she came tumbling out of the rug?” said Charity, but Marigold shook her head vigorously.

  “Well I guess she hasn’t then!” Tanya said with a huge smile. “Do tell.”

  “Well,” said Marigold with a smug look, “She was shopping in the marketplace for a lovely dupatta scarf when the King and his guards arrived. Well, Esther being Esther, she was concentrating so hard on trying to get the lowest price she could for those head scarfs that she didn’t even notice it, and when one of the King’s guards grabbed her shoulder to move her out of the way, she pulled out her dagger and held it to the guards throat!”

  “No!” said Charity, horrified.

  “Oh yeeesss,” said Marigold, her head nodding up and down.

  “She’s lucky they didn’t kill her right,” said Tanya matter-of-factly and Esther nodded her agreement.

  “So what happened?” asked Charity.

  “Well, I wasn’t there personally, but from what Nkiru said, Esther immediately let go of the knife and dropped to the ground. Several other guards drew their swords and come running over, but the King ordered them to stop. He climbed down from his horse, came over to Esther and asked her to stand. Then he talked with her for a couple of minutes.”

  “Really?” said Charity, “He just…talked?”

  Marigold nodded. “And then he picked up Esther’s dagger—the one she’s wearing on her belt right now—and handed it back to her before turning and leaving.”

  Tanya laughed loudly and slapped the table.

  “But what did he say?” asked Charity.

  “He just asked where I’d had gotten such a unique looking dagger,” said Esther. “He also told me he was surprised by my reaction when the guard touched my shoulder.”

  “That’s it?”

  “Pretty much,” replied Esther.

  Just then, there was a knock on the door to the great cabin and it opened as Sergeant Taavi entered. “Pardon the interruption, Your Majesty,” the marine sergeant said, “but a diplomatic courier ship just arrived.”

  “Thank you, Sergeant Taavi, please have the courier report aboard.”

  “Yes, Your Majesty,” he said, bowing.

  “Well,” said Tanya, standing, “It sounds like you have business to attend to, so we should probably—”

  “No,” said Esther, standing as well and waving her hand for them to stay. “Stay and finish eating. I’ll meet with the courier in the other room.”

  “Are you sure?” said Tanya.

  “Of course,” said Esther. “Asserius has had my letter asking to remain in Tewksbury until after Christmas for a while now. Most likely there is a letter from him and perhaps some other purely logistical correspondence which I can hand over to Abdel.”

  “Alright,” said Tanya, sitting down once again and lifting a large mug in toast. “To Esther! For providing such a wonderful meal! And to the rest of you, for providing such wonderful companionship!”

  “I’ll toast to that,” said Marigold, lifting her own mug and Esther smiled
as she turned and strode out the door.

  - - -

  Abdel Najafi was waiting for her in the dining compartment when she stepped through the door. Uh oh, she thought, something big must be going on. She raised a questioning eyebrow at him.

  “I don’t know the particulars,” he said, “But it sounds like the Madrausan’s launched an attack against one of our border cities. Where, I don’t know. The courier should be here momentarily with the dispatches.”

  Esther bit her lip. She had hoped that further hostilities with Madraus would wait.

  There was a short knock on the door and Sergeant Taavi opened it, allowing the same diplomatic courier she had met before, Mr. Malik, and his captain, Kassim to enter.

  “Your Majesty,” both men said, bowing.

  “Captain Kassim, Mr. Malik. It’s good to see you again.”

  “Thank you, Your Majesty. If only it were under better circumstances.”

  “Indeed,” she replied. “And what circumstances are those?”

  “Initial reports say that Madrausan forces attacked one of the disputed islands in the Gulf of Dunai,” said Captain Kassim. “If that is true, then Oxathres is the most likely target, but we had heard only sketchy initial reports before we were ordered to leave for Ardmorr, dropping messages in Lancaster before coming here to deliver a dispatch from the King.” Mr. Malik pulled a sealed envelope from his bag and handed it to Esther.

  She took it and examined the seal as her thoughts began to spin. If what Captain Kassim had said was true, then full-scale war was just around the corner—or may be even now upon them. She felt her stomach drop when she thought about the implications. She turned to Abdel. “Mr. Najafi, please have Mac bring refreshments in for Captain Kassim and Mr. Malik, then sit and debrief them to find out all that you can while I read this,” she said, holding up the letter. “As soon as I am finished, I will rejoin you.”

  “Yes, Your Majesty,” Najafi replied.

  Esther turned and strode back into the great cabin. Her friends looked up at her expectantly, but she just waved her hand and slipped through the door to her bedchamber. She sat on the edge of her bed, near its head where the lantern light was best, and used her dagger to open the envelope. Pulling out the letter, it read:

  My dearest Esther,

  I received your letter and appreciate your understanding during these difficult and trying times. The wedding was a simple affair with a small dinner reception after the ceremony at the temple. I tried to take your honor and dignity into account while balancing the need to make it special day for Yasmin as well. I wish you could have been there. I know how difficult and unfair this must be for you and I apologize for asking you to do this.

  Esther felt her stomach clench as she thought about the wedding and all that it entailed, but tried to let go of the hurt feelings by reading further…

  There are several matters of business that I must inform you of. I received the treaty that you and Ambassador Admatah had gotten the Ardmorrans to sign and ratify and it looks splendid. You achieved more than I could have hoped for. I signed it and a copy was returned to Ardmorr.

  You may have already heard, but there have been several skirmishes with Madrausan forces along the borders and commonly used airways. However, last night, things escalated when there was a major attack against our island city of Oxathres, which Madraus has always claimed. There are additional reports of massive fleets gathering at Port Kashmir and the city of Dunai.

  By the time you receive this letter, I will have formally declared war on Madraus due to the unwarranted attack on Oxathres. There is an urgent need for you to return to Lancaster and provision for a journey to the Northern Kingdoms to secure a military treaty with them as soon as possible. I know that you desired to stay with your family until Christmas, but now that the treaty with Ardmorr has been signed, we really need to expand it to include the other Northern Kingdoms so that they can lend ships to the protection of Ardmorr. Many of our ships currently protecting Ardmorr will likely be needed elsewhere very soon. Hadiq can’t fight Madraus directly and protect every target.

  We have commissioned several ships to be built in Ardmorran and Hadiqan shipyards, but neither ours, nor the Ardmorran economy has been on a wartime footing. It will take time for production and supply lines to catch up to the need.

  Please return to Lancaster and proceed to the Northern Kingdoms as soon as possible to secure that military alliance. I have sent word ahead to Ambassador Rashad who is assigned to the Northern Kingdom of Ciel. He will prepare for your arrival. I think about you and our child every day and you have my deepest respect and love.

  – Asserius

  Esther folded the letter and stood. She had hoped that the defeat of the Madrausan fleet would have discouraged the them and calmed things down, but that wasn’t the case, and now the world was at war—or at least, Madraus was at war with the Hadiqan-Ardmorran alliance and she was supposed to go and draw the rest of the Northern Kingdoms into it as well. Well I’ve seen the Madrausan’s barbarous nature and I have no problem killing to stop them, so if war is what it takes to do that, then I have no problem with bringing others into it as well.

  Esther stepped out of her bedchamber into the great cabin and walked over to the table where her friends were sitting. Her hands were shaking a bit and she steadied herself against the table so her friends wouldn’t notice how the news was affecting her.

  “Well, my friends, I’m afraid we’re going to have to cut this dinner short after all,” she said. “Madraus has attacked the Hadiqan city of Oxathres and King Asserius has formally declared war, which, according to the treaty that was just signed and ratified by parliament, also means Ardmorr is now at war with Madraus as well. I have been instructed to leave for the Northern Kingdoms by way of Lancaster at once. I’ll drop you off in Tewksbury on my way.”

  “We’re at war?” Charity said, alarmed. “Are we going to be safe here? I mean, they came here before, what’s to stop them from doing it again?”

  Esther reached over and placed a hand on her friends shoulder. “Yes, Charity. You and Ger will be safe here. The combined Hadiqan and Ardmorran fleets protect Ardmorr now. Remember, the last time it was totally unexpected and we didn’t have Hadiq’s aid either. It is war and nothing is certain, but for now, I believe that you’ll be safe enough. I’m heading to the Northern Kingdoms to try and secure their aid as well. I don’t believe that Madraus can stand up to an alliance of Hadiq, Ardmorr, and the other Northern Kingdoms.” Esther straightened and clasped her hands together. “I’m really sorry, but I’ve got to go set things into motion. You’re welcome to finish eating. I need to go see my family, and then we’ll be getting underway.”

  Chapter 18

  Assassins!

  A sound woke the man. He grabbed his knife on the nightstand and sat up. A knock came at the door. The man got out of bed and walked over to the door, opening it a crack.

  “The Retribution has returned,” said a voice.

  “It’s about time,” the man grumbled. “Assemble the team and see if our source has dropped any information for us.”

  “Yes, sir.”

  The man closed the door and smiled.

  - - -

  It had been hard telling her mother and family that she wouldn’t be able to stay for Christmas after all. Watching the lights of Tewksbury recede into the distance as she left her family and friends behind once more was difficult. At least she had other friends who were with her—Marigold, Geoffrey, Mac, Joel, Oluchi, and others.

  They had made their best speed getting to Lancaster and provisioning supplies in the middle of the night from the naval yard had not been as difficult as Esther had assumed it might be. It had started to snow during the night, but that hadn’t slowed them down much either.

  Esther had considered waiting to depart until morning, but had not wanted to delay the journey to the Northern Kingdoms any more than she had to. She felt the urgency of war upon them now. The last of the provision
s were being loaded aboard and they would soon set sail for Rodheim. She decided to get some much needed sleep—but first, she was going to take a nice, warm bath.

  Now that fall was soon to give way to winter, Mac kept the stove set in the wall between the great cabin and the port-side quarter galley where her bath was going full-time to keep the chill of the frigid air at bay. Esther stepped into her bathing quarter-galley and made sure the thick burgundy drapes hanging over the darkened windows on the aft wall were closed all of the way before stepping up next to the copper tub. She took off her belt and scabbard, placing them on the small table next to the bathtub as she usually did, and pulled off the rest of her clothing, placing it in a neat pile on the floor. She blew out all but one of the lanterns, leaving it lit to suffuse the room with its warm glow, then stepped on the small wooden stool and into the tub. She gently lowered herself down into the warm water with a long, contented sigh, placing a hand on her growing belly, her thoughts focused on the infant child.

  Though still small, her belly was getting bigger every day and she began to wonder if her mother and Charity were correct. Maybe she was having twins—she didn’t remember any other first-time mothers being this big, this early. Esther sighed again, letting her thoughts and worries go. Like everything else, she would handle it if and when it came. Right now, she was content to simply enjoy this bit of luxury. She wished she could have had the water warmer, but it wouldn’t be healthy for the baby, so she would content herself with lukewarm water until she gave birth.

  She reached over and grabbed the soap and her shaving razor. Beginning with her legs, she lathered on the soap and began the careful effort of drawing the razor across her skin. Performing this menial task was therapeutic in a way as she went from the frenetic activity of taking care of everybody else, to the slow-paced effort of caring for herself—even if it was simple grooming.