Geoffrey smiled and pinched his nose. “Oh good, you were starting to stink.”
“Get out, you big oaf!” she said, walking over to the door and pushing him out. She closed it with a sigh, trying to calm the fluttering feeling in her heart. Geoffrey was a good doctor and a skilled surgeon, but he was also a handsome man, and his close proximity the last few days caused her heart to do things it wasn’t supposed to. She clamped down on her feelings and walked over to her wardrobe. She planned on going to see Ambassador Rashad about getting the treaty talks going again. She turned her thoughts away from Geoffrey, and focused on getting dressed instead. Unconsciously, she found herself picking out outfits that she thought Geoffrey would like.
Chapter 28
Anne-Marie And The Retribution
It took two weeks of hard work and long days, but the delegations from Hadiq, Ardmorr, Lothaekin, Ciel, and Rodheim had finally hammered out the details of the treaty and the scribes had written up copies. Esther still hadn’t heard any word from Adeline though. She had thought that since they had already come up with the framework before Christmas, it wouldn’t take that long to work the details out, but it had seemed like every word had caused a hang-up. It was done now, though. She just hoped Adeline could convince King Yngvarr of Riaseth to come sign the blasted thing!
The treaty talks had taken up most of her time and she hadn’t talked to hardly anybody outside of the delegates, with the exception of Geoffrey, Marigold, Nkiru, Oluchi, and Mrs. Stolman. She hadn’t seen Ann-Marie, Gregory, Mr. Najafi, or practically any of the Retribution’s crew since they had come to visit her briefly upon regaining consciousness after her illness. She decided to go see Ann-Marie first, and after that, she would go see Mr. Najafi.
Oluchi was on duty for her guard detail this morning. He wasn’t assigned as the head of her Guardsmen, or even in their chain of command, but the Retribution’s marines always deferred to him, as did the Imperial Guardsmen assigned to her. They knew that Esther trusted him more than anyone else. After all, even though he was young, he was still an Easterner Warrior, and they were known to be the best in the world, and he was contracted to protect their Queen—or so they thought—and Easterner contracts were inviolate. Only Esther and Mr. Najafi knew that no such contract existed. Esther didn’t need one, for his loyalty was unconditional and surpassed any contractual obligation, the same as his sister Nkiru.
When Esther walked out of her suite and into the hall, Oluchi nodded to Corporal Dilshad and they both followed her out. She walked down the hall to Ann-Marie’s suite and was about to knock on the door when Oluchi spoke.
“She is not there,” he said. His Hadiqan had improved drastically, but he still had a strong Easterner accent.
Esther raised her eyebrows, surprised that the at-times reclusive Ms. Graves had gone out. “Do you know where she and Midshipman Gregory went?”
“Yes. They are at the airfield.”
“The airfield?” said Esther, even more surprised.
“Yes. Many days they have been there.”
“Doing what?” she asked. Oluchi just shrugged. “Well let’s go to the airfield then” Esther continued, “I wanted to see Mr. Najafi next anyway.”
She hadn’t been in one of the Northerner carriages since she returned from the tour of the timber-harvesting operation. She rather liked the big carriages. Their large wheels tended to ride more smoothly than the smaller Ardmorran wagons or Hadiqan carriages she’d ridden in, and she loved to look at the massive horses.
As they rode into the airfield towards where the Retribution was moored, she noticed that there were a few things decidedly different about her beloved ship. First, it hovered in the air well above any other ship, its mooring lines extended almost as far as they could go. Some ships did that from time to time if they needed to extend their keel masts while moored to do maintenance or repairs. Indeed, the Retribution did have its keel masts extended, but now there were spars on them, with furled sails attached to the spars.
Esther recognized the design—it was one that she, Ann-Marie, and Gregory had discussed, and which Esther had reviewed the drawings for almost a month ago. She hadn’t expected to see it implemented yet, however. She knew she hadn’t discussed moving ahead with it. She hadn’t even decided if she wanted to implement the design because at the time they had discussed it, they hadn’t figured out a way to hinge the keel masts so that they could be drawn up parallel with the bottom of the ship the way the old design was, and still have them be strong enough to attach spars with sails on them to push the ship.
The carriages pulled to a halt and Esther, Oluchi, and Corporal Dilshad stepped out. Two Cielian guardsmen and a couple more of her marines stepped out of the other carriage. Whomever had been standing watch on the Retribution must have seen the carriages approaching, because the main platform was already being lowered. Mr. Najafi was standing on it as it touched the ground.
“Your Majesty. So good to see you up and about,” he said.
“Thank you, Abdel. It’s good to be up and about. It’s also good to see the Retribution again. It’s been too long. Although I almost didn’t recognize her at first.”
“Yes, well, those modifications you, Ann-Marie, and Gregory came up with were quite extensive.”
“Yes they were. I was a little surprised to see that you had implemented them already,” said Esther, trying to keep her voice neutral.
Mr. Najafi froze, complete shock evident on his face mixed with a hint of worry. “You mean, you didn’t authorize these modifications?”
“No. Not unless she came to me while I was delirious with fever, which couldn’t happen because Dr. Scott wasn’t letting anybody see me then.”
“Well she came to me the day you went on your tour of the Lugos timber mine and said that you wanted these modifications done. She gave me a written script signed by you, releasing funds to her. I didn’t get a chance to confirm it with you before you fell ill.”
Esther smiled. She knew Ann-Marie Graves could be a very dominating presence when she wanted something done. Esther just wondered exactly which modifications were being made to her beloved ship. “Alright, Abdel, why don’t you take me up and show me what we’ve gotten ourselves into.”
He nodded, relieved by her tone. Esther stepped onto the platform followed by her marine guards and Oluchi. The Cielian guardsmen would wait with the carriages. Mr. Najafi signaled and the platform began to rise.
One advantage of coming up on the main platform instead of one of the side platforms was that she got a good look at the new keel masts as they passed them. Construction work crews scurried about on the aft keel mast, installing the last spar. Esther was glad to see that each man wore a safety harness and lanyard.
“So what do you think of these new keel masts, Mr. Najafi?”
“Honestly, Your Majesty, I was very nervous when Ms. Graves first brought the designs to me, and a bit surprised that you hadn’t discussed installing them with me beforehand.” He smiled. “I guess now we know why. But I have to say, I’m actually quite impressed with the way it’s worked out. After we had installed the fore keel mast, I asked for volunteers to train using it and practice setting sail, getting commands from the quarterdeck, and stowing the mast.”
“Did Ann-Marie figure out a way to stow it then?” she asked. “On the last design I had seen, we were having trouble with that and the design had it as a fixed mast.
“Yes. She created a new type of metal casing and pinion design and had it fabricated. It gives the mast more stability when it’s secured in the vertical position.”
The platform finally drew up into the hull of the Retribution and Esther stepped off of it onto the deck of the Orlop. “What about the rigging, such as the shrouds and stays? How do you stow the mast if it has all that rigging securing it?”
“That’s another ingenious part. When the mast is dropped vertically and secured in the ‘sail’ position, the shrouds are dropped and attached, as is the rest of the riggin
g.”
“Hmm,” Esther nodded, her eyebrows raised in pleasant surprise. “I can see how that could work. It must take a lot longer to set sail, I would think.”
“At first, I thought it would as well, but these men have been practicing, and when I tested the top and bottom crews, they both finished about the same time. Although in truth, I think it’s because some of my best riggers volunteered for the bottom’s crew and they also wanted to prove themselves. I do think it would probably take a little longer under normal conditions—it would have to. The top’s crew doesn’t have to secure their mast or attach their rigging.”
“I saw work crews working on the aft keel mast. I’m assuming that you haven’t take the Retribution out on a trial run yet?”
“Correct, Your Majesty. We’re hoping to be finished with the aft keel mast today, but the Retribution’s propeller housings—both old and new—are spread all over the main deck and some of the gears should be delivered and ready for installation tomorrow. I’m afraid that it’ll be another week, at least, before we can do a full trial run with the new masts and propellers.”
“New propellers? Ann-Marie and I discussed the possibility of adding additional propeller stanchions, but I hadn’t even seen drawings for them when I saw her last.”
“Yes, well there are four more now, and I still have severe reservations about installing additional propellers, Your Majesty. We aren't Madrausan's that can't sail without propellers, and they require additional crew and take up more space. We’ve had to move four cannons up onto the main deck and it’s getting mighty tight.”
“That’s very true,” said Esther, “but we also must adapt, and if these gears really do make us that more effective, then it will be worth it.”
Najafi just nodded, clearly not convinced, and led her up the companionway. When they came out onto the main deck, Esther could see that Abdel’s description of the propeller housing components being were spread all over the deck was accurate, or perhaps even a bit understated. Esther shook her head—what a mess.
“Ms. Graves and Midshipman Gregory were working on a project in your great cabin when I saw them last,” Najafi said.
That statement made her nervous. She liked her cabin and was afraid what those two might be doing to it, given what state the rest of her ship was in.
They walked aft into the ante-room/dining compartment and through the door into her great cabin. Her stove was missing from the section of the wall between the quarter galley and her great cabin and that section of wall had been returned to its original state. Ann-Marie and Gregory were hunched over what looked like a bunch of metal pipes that had been installed against the reinstated section of wall.
Oh boy, she thought, what have they done? I’m going to have to wear a coat in my cabin now, and my bathing quarter galley will be freezing.
“Your Majesty!” Ann-Marie said enthusiastically. “It’s so good to see you! Have you come out to inspect the work?”
Esther smiled, trying not to let her feelings of dismay show. “Yes, thank you, Ann-Marie. So…what are you working on here?”
“Oh, this was Gregory’s idea. When I told him how much you hated the soot from the stove dirtying your nice clothing, Gregory had the idea of using hot water running through pipes to provide the heat. It’s clean, and provides a much more even temperature. So we moved your stove down to the officer’s wardroom one deck below—we figured they might like it and wouldn’t mind the soot as much—and then installed some piping here that runs down to the stove, which heats the water causing it to flow through these pipes and radiate heat into the room. Gregory is working on installing a valve that will let you adjust the amount of hot water flowing through the pipes. That way, you can have more or less heat. We’ve installed another set of set of pipes in your bath quarter galley. I think this may be the way we will heat all of our indoor space in the future—although it was very expensive. We may need more funds soon.”
Esther couldn’t hide the look of surprise. Not only was this contraption that Gregory came up with amazing—if it worked—but if Ann-Marie had burned through all of the funds Esther had provided her already, Asserius probably wasn’t going to be very happy. She would have to send for more money. There had been quite a bit, and she had expected that money to last for quite a while. Still, their accomplishments were amazing, and Esther would love to not have to worry about the soot anymore. But the cost…!
She couldn’t criticize Ann-Marie or Gregory though. They had only done what they thought she had wanted them to do, and any rebuke would only stifle their creativity. Instead, she smiled at them both. “Well done, both of you. You have exceeded my furthest expectations and I’m excited to see how this new heating system will work, Gregory.”
“It should be done today,” he responded enthusiastically.
“Fantastic.” Esther planned on taking Ann-Marie aside privately later and discuss getting formal, written approval before doing any further modifications. She was just glad that the Retribution didn’t need to go anywhere at the moment. Which reminded her…
“Ann-Marie, why are all of the propeller housings torn—” Esther paused and chose a different word, not wanting to give the impression of disapproval, “um…disassembled?”
Ann-Marie’s eyebrows drew down, frustration evident on her face. “Well we were supposed to get the gears I had commissioned from the foundry delivered two days ago, but they took a lot longer to manufacture than the blacksmith originally thought. I wanted to get a jump start on installing them so…” She shrugged. The look on her face then turned sheepish. “Oh, that reminds me, after refitting the Retribution with the keel masts, the sails, all of the rigging, and buying the materials and piping for Gregory’s heating system—piping is expensive you know—well, I kind of had to convince the foundry to make the gears on credit.”
It took every ounce of willpower and diplomacy skill she’d learned for Esther to keep her face neutral. “I…see,” she said, her tone a bit flat. “I suppose that’s alright this time, but let’s be sure and get written approval from myself or Commander. Najafi before committing the Crown in the future.” She hadn’t wanted to say anything negative about what they had accomplished, but obligating the crown was way outside of bounds…and she wanted Gregory to hear that too before he picked up any bad habits.
“Oh, yes, of course, Your Majesty! Thank you!” Ann-Marie said.
Esther nodded, happy that she had taken the rebuke well and seemed happy to move on from it. “Thank you both, for all of your hard work,” she said. They both beamed back at her. There was nothing like knowing you had done something wrong and being forgiven for it, and then being recognized for your efforts on what you had done right.
“Would you like us to demonstrate stowing and re-rigging the forward keel mast?” Mr. Najafi asked.
“Yes,” replied Esther, “I think I’d like that very much.”
Najafi led them back out through the ante-room and onto the main deck. He turned and looked back towards the quarterdeck. Esther followed his gaze and saw that Lt. Annan currently had the watch. Normally there would only be a skeleton crew on duty while the Retribution was in port and the rest of the crew would be rotating out on liberty, but with the extensive modifications and refitting going on, it looked like there was almost a full watch.
“Lieutenant,” said Najafi, “we’re going to demonstrate keel mast stowing and keel mast preparation-to-sail procedures. Could you have the ‘bottom’s’ sail crew report to the fore keel mast please.”
“Aye, sir.”
A whistle blew and Lt. Annan gave the orders as Mr. Najafi turned and led them down the companionway. They descended back down to the Orlop. Two hatches had been installed on either side of each of the keel masts, fore and aft of the main platform that sat in the center of the orlop deck. Men were already dropping through the hatches.
“If you’ll step onto the platform, Your Majesty, we’ll lower it enough so that you can see the men in operation
,” said Mr. Najafi.
Esther nodded and walked onto the platform, followed by Mr. Najafi, Oluchi, Ann-Marie, and Gregory. She couldn’t help a bubble of excitement from welling up inside her. Airships had always fascinated her and to see ideas that she had conceptualized and which Ann-Marie had taken and engineered into something workable—and then built and applied—was an amazing feeling. And then to have it all executed by such a skilled crew led by Mr. Najafi sent chills up her spine. She grabbed Oluchi’s hand and squeezed it in excitement.
The crewmen manning the capstan disengaged the brakes and began slowly turning it. The platform descended about a third of the way down the keel mast when Mr. Najafi signaled for it to halt. It stopped descending with its characteristic jerk, and swayed slightly. It was a perfect day to be observing the operation from a platform hanging from the bottom of the ship. There was practically no wind.
Esther watched with absolute fascination as the ‘bottom’s’ crew descended quickly down along the keel mast and prepared it for stowage—although descend may not be quite the right term since they were more or less sliding down two rope ladders that descended from each of the hatches and ran the full length of either side of the keel mast. Each of the riggers wore a harness attached to a rope that ran up through the hatches to blocks, or pulleys, where other crewmembers were ‘belaying’ them and keeping the slack out of the ropes to keep them from getting tangled. It seemed to help overcome some of the psychological barriers to working in the rigging underneath an airship.
The sails were already furled and secured to the spars, so the ‘bottom’s crew’ moved to disengage the shrouds that ran from the sides of the mast up to the turnbuckles attached to chain plates that had been installed on the bottom of the hull along each side of the ship. Because of the frequent need to disengage the shrouds and stays, it looked like they had installed additional blocks, or pulleys, to assist in quickly tightening or loosening them. After the shrouds and all but one forestay attached to the bottom tip of the mast had been disengaged, the crew ascended the rope ladders along the sides of the keel mast and used halyards to pull the shrouds and roll them up, then secure them to the bottom of the hull. They did the same for the stays, winding them around cleats also attached to the underside of the hull along its centerline. The riggers then gathered at the keel mast’s base where it was secured into the metal casing, and disengaged the bottom pinion which would allow the stay to rotate along the top pinion of the casing. The keel mast now hung freely from the bottom of the ship. A crewman whistled shrilly and the remaining forestay began lifting the bottom tip of the free-hanging keel mast forward until the mast sat parallel with the bottom of the ship’s hull.
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