Tantamount

by Thomas J. Radford

  Ears ringing, she risked opening her eyes. Impossibly Quill still remained on his feet, wreathed in lightning now as he raged against another thaumatic, fighting to exert his influence over the Tantamount. The Loneliness was still above them, wreathed in discharged smoke and mist. And she could make out the obsidian golem and its mistress.

  The pair began to fall, rising, she realised, towards the Tantamount. She heard a snarl from Quill, pure rage and frustration, and knew who had been fighting him. The golem and its payload flashed in the void as they passed between envelopes, spinning and shooting through the Tantamount's envelope to come crashing down to the deck. Splinters flew, kicked up from the golem's massive weight and the ship shuddered. Next to her Quill was thrown bodily to the back of the bridge, the resistance he'd been fighting vanished as the source steadied herself on Nel's deck. The Tantamount lurched then, free to move again, throwing crew around like rag dolls. Above them the Loneliness moved off to resume its pursuit of the breakaway ships, content to ignore them again.

  Nel clawed at the bridge railing, hauling herself up to see Onyx open his bladed arms on the main deck, Scarlett stepping out from them, wands clutched in both hands. Steam rose off her body, flushed from her exposed skin. The crew members around her were already battered and broken, too shocked to react to her presence.

  Scarlett's arm whipped out, wand extended. A cascade of thaumatic charges flew from the shaft. Crewmen started to fall, started to scream, the deck turned into mayhem as people ducked for cover or scrambled to find weapons.

  Jack was the first to react. One of his massive harpoons in hand, he charged the golem with a roar. The harpoon struck the golem's raised forearm, carving a gouge in the unblemished hide. Jack struck again, but the golem lashed out, snapping the weapon in two. A backhand caught Jack, lifting him into the forecastle. He rose again, too stubborn to stay down, swayed and fell forward onto his face. He didn't get up a second time.

  As Nel watched, several of her crew attempted to engage Scarlett. One attacked her with a cutlass, recoiling as Scarlett caught the bladed weapon on crossed wands. The wands were thaumatically charged—touching them to metal was like grabbing a navigator's bare skin, more so since Scarlett was a thaumatic herself. The woman ducked and weaved her way through clumsy attacks, the golem advancing in her wake.

  Nel reached back with her wand, drawing it past her shoulder and whipping her arm round hard. The concussive charge should have taken Scarlett in the head but something made the Guildswoman turn. She caught the charge on one wand, pivoted to her side and redirected it. It struck Cyrus, pitching him off the edge of the Tantamount with a shriek abruptly cut off once he cleared the envelope. Scarlett spun around, meeting Nel's eyes across the deck.

  Violet crashed into the captain, tackling him around the knees and bringing him down to the deck. Wand fire flashed through the air where he'd been standing. The captain scrambled beneath her, clutching at his wand, trying to stand back up. He gave a squawk, echoed by Violet as the air was squeezed from her lungs, the cause being Piper as he dived onto the pileup to take cover from the firefight.

  “Stay down, both of you,” Violet yelled at them. Only Bandit seemed to heed her, burying his head under the captain's jacket. She risked a peek over the railing, enough to glimpse Scarlett and the skipper going at it, exchanging fire from opposite ends of the ship. She saw the golem and something that made her cover her mouth to keep from crying out. Cyrus.

  Violet ducked down again, putting her back against what was happening. “Captain,” she said, loud as she dared. “I've got an idea.”

  “Will it get that damned golem off my ship?” The captain climbed to his knees, brandishing his wand.

  “Yes. Only . . .”

  “Never mind that, Violet, just tell us what to do,” the captain snapped.

  Violet told them. Piper and the captain stared at her, then at each other.

  “She has been spending far too much time with the skipper,” Piper rumbled.

  “And doesn't it show,” Horatio agreed. “All right, Violet, get to it. But you need a distraction.”

  “I know. I need a few minutes.”

  “Leave that to me. No golems on the ship, should never have broken that rule.”

  Violet sucked in a fast breath. If she stopped to think about it she'd never do it. She rose to her feet, flinched at a near miss and ran for the side. And jumped, vaulting over the ship's railing.

  Bandit squawked his alarm and darted after her. The two disappeared from sight.

  Claws scraping against wood, snarling his frustration, Quill stood up beside Nel. “I do not like this woman,” he hissed.

  “I'm going to kill her,” Nel whispered. Scarlett smiled in response, turning away as another crew member made a vain attempt against her.

  “Good,” Quill stated grimly. “I'll deal to that golem.” He raised both hands, slamming them down and then wrenching them to the side. On the deck the golem shuddered, the boards under its feet cracking in protest, then Onyx was pushed towards the side of the ship. Scarlett looked up, raising one arm. The golem's journey stopped abruptly.

  “Not so fun, is it?” Quill said through gritted teeth. “She's stronger than me . . .”

  “No golems on my ship! It's a rule!” someone cried out. The captain appeared, gods only knew where he'd been. He had his wand in hand and promptly used it against Onyx, though the charges just ricocheted off like they had for Nel. Scarlett lined up the captain and dropped him with a clean shot to the head. It was done almost casually. The captain fell backwards, lay there motionless.

  “Captain!” Nel called out. It wasn't fatal, she told herself. He isn’t dead, he couldn't be.

  Quill gave a triumphant cry and the golem slammed into the side of the ship, smashing through the timbers. Scarlett caught the construct just in time, hauling it back with brute force onto the deck of the ship. The golem reached out, taking firm hold on the nearby rigging with its rocky hands.

  “Skipper!” Quill snarled. “Get her!”

  Nel vaulted over the rail, down to the deck. Her ship cried out in protest at even this modest impact but Nel couldn't take the time for that. Too many of her crew were dead or dying. She stalked towards Scarlett, yelling for her crew to get out of the way. Those who were able staggered or crawled away, dragging those who couldn't. Nel whipped her wand from left to right, sending charge after charge the Guildswoman's way.

  The first winged Scarlett's shoulder, startling her out of her reverie. A scowl darkened the woman's features. She started to flick aside Nel's incoming fire, redirecting it on her wands as she had earlier. Nel had never seen anyone do that before, didn't know it could even be done. But Scarlett's aim was indiscriminate now, she wasn't trying to hit anyone, her actions purely defensive. Nel kept closing the distance between the two of them.

  She heard timbers creaking all around Onyx. The golem's body shook as it was pulled one way then another by Scarlett and Quill. Then Nel saw something that almost made her lose her own concentration. Piper appeared with a massive sledge hammer in his hands. She thought he meant to pummel the golem, maybe crack its obsidian shell, but instead he turned his attentions to the deck itself. He struck at the planking by the golem's feet. Strained and stressed by numerous hardships, the decking gave. Onyx crashed through to the bowels of the ship. Piper went with him.

  A yell brought Nel's attention back to Scarlett. Free from distraction the Guildswoman directed her full attention against the skipper, lashing out at close range with both wands. Nel caught one blow on her own weapon, locking the wands hilt to hilt. The second hit she caught on her bracer. The hardened leather took some of the sting but she still felt the jolt of electricity run up her arm. Gritting her teeth, she twisted her wrist, catching Scarlett's own. Nel squeezed, refusing to let go even as the thaumatic grief poured into her. Keeping the other arm locked against her wand Nel forced the smaller woman towards the edge of the ship.

  She felt Scarlett's arms shaking, str
uggling against a stronger opponent. Nel had been sailing most of her life—this wasn't a contest she would lose. Those same years taught her that desperation bred foul play. Nel slammed her forehead against the bridge of Scarlett's nose, staggering the woman, blood gushing from her face, her rose tinted glasses shattered.

  Nel drew back her wand, ready for the final blow. She was hit by the dirty trick then, later than she'd anticipated. A crate, the remains of a barrel, some debris from the broken ship, whatever it was slammed into her side, throwing her against the forecastle. Her head spun. She saw Scarlett, bloodied, above her, wands raised.

  Then something happened to her. The woman's eyes rolled up into her head, showing only the whites. Scarlett staggered, leaning against the railing. She grabbed at a hawser, looking dazed. Nel saw this, recognised the opening but couldn't find her wand. She reached, desperately searching the deck around her. Nothing.

  A massive weight rushed past Nel, making the air squeal. It missed her, but not Scarlett, sweeping her clean off the ship. The woman didn't make a sound.

  “The hells,” Nel gasped, struggling to her feet. Her head was pounding, blood ringing in her ears. There was a trench carved through the Tantamount's deck next to her. The edge of the ship where Scarlett had stood was gone, leaving a jagged hole in the woodwork. Nel clambered to that hole, grabbing hold of stray rigging to keep her balance.

  “Do not fall.” Quill grabbed her arm, steadying her. She clung to him.

  “That's Scarlett,” she breathed out, watching the figure tumble away.

  “I hit her with the anchor,” Quill explained. “It was still attached.”

  Sure enough there was the anchor, floating free and trailed by lengths of severed rope.

  “It's hard to tell,” Quill muttered, studying the mass of empty space surrounding the Tantamount, “but I believe that is the golem out there too.”

  “What?” Nel stared. Damned Kelpie must be seeing things.

  “There.” Quill pointed. “Against the mist.”

  “Maybe.” Nel was dubious. She could make out the silhouette against the mist, far away and falling further. It could be the golem. “The hold. Piper.”

  She found her wand and, with Quill steadying her, made her way to the other side of the ship where Piper and the golem had crashed through the decking.

  The hold was a mess, even worse than the deck. The golem had rampaged through here but there was no sign of it. Or of Piper. What there was, was a hole, all the way through the bottom layers of the ship. Black void and starlight on the other side, trails of mist swirling around the breach.

  “The golem didn't fall straight through,” Quill observed. “These holes are not aligned for such.”

  “Hells,” Nel muttered. “Watch my back, Quill.” She didn't wait for his response, kneeling down by the breach and swinging herself down into the hold.

  It was dark inside but with the two breaches she could see well enough. Everything within reach was destroyed. Smashed or torn apart. The golem might have gone mad but there was still no sign of it and precious few places something that big could have hidden. Maybe Quill had seen it out in the void after all. She stepped up to the second breach. It was smaller and the timbers leaned outwards, like they'd given way. Nel leaned over.

  A dishevelled, upside down head stared back at her. “Skipper!”

  Nel flinched back, falling flat on her backside. “Godsdammit, Violet!” she yelled.

  Violet's hands appeared at the edge of the breach, testing carefully for purchase. One of those small hands held a broadaxe almost as big as Violet herself. The girl swung herself inside the hull, making the transition from one plane to another look easy. She stood up with a rueful grin on her face. Bandit climbed up the girl's back, perching on her shoulder, chattering excitedly.

  “It worked, Skipper,” Violet panted as she spoke. Then she made a face. “Just like Sharpe said . . .”

  “Sharpe?” Nel exclaimed.

  Violet grimaced. “What he said when he first came aboard about being able to walk on the outside hull. The floor was already weak from what Sharpe did so when Piper brought the golem down into the hold it just needed a little work and it gave.” Violet spoke in a long, breathless spiel, hefting the axe for emphasis. It was amazing she'd been able to swing the thing.

  “Where did you even get that thing? Never mind. Piper. You two planned this?” Nel seized the girl by the shoulders. “Piper? Where is he?”

  Violet craned her neck, looking worried. “Uh, I don't see him. Bandit? Go find Piper.”

  The loompa's head shot up, scanning the hold. After a moment's consideration he dived off into a dark corner.

  “Follow him,” Nel ordered.

  They trailed Bandit through the wreckage of the hull. They found the spare bubble, stowed out of harm's way. It was cracked, a spider's web of cracks spreading across one hemisphere. There was blood, a thin, sticky trail that widened as they followed it.

  Piper was by the stairs, one hand wrapped around his stomach, head resting on the third step. He raised his head when they approached, managing a bloodstained smile when Bandit fussed over him, pawing at his face, trying to clean the blood off.

  “Hello, little one,” he said to Violet.

  “Piper,” Violet's voice was very quiet as she knelt in front of the big man, taking his hand in hers. “We did it. We got rid of him.”

  Piper smiled. “Good, we did a good thing then.” He spoke very slowly, measuring out each word. “The captain will be pleased.”

  “Lying down on the job, Piper?” Nel said, kneeling down beside him. She ran one hand down his face, pausing at his neck. His skin felt cold and clammy to her touch, the pulse sluggish.

  “Apologies, Skipper,” Piper said. “I will not be down here much longer, I promise.”

  “You're going to be all right,” Violet told him. “We did it, Piper. We did good.”

  “Yes, we did.” Piper nodded gravely. “You did very well, little one. You too, Bandit.”

  Bandit chirped once in response.

  “Violet, would you go check on the rest of the crew for me?” Nel said. “I need to know how the captain is doing.”

  “I . . . I want to stay.”

  “It is good that you do, little one,” Piper smiled, “but I would like a moment with the skipper. We have things to say.”

  “Ok, Piper.” Violet stood up, wiping at her eyes with one sleeve. “You'll take care of him, won't you, Skipper?”

  “I'll stay with him,” Nel promised. “Go find the captain. Take Bandit with you, he'll only get in my way.”

  “Come on, Bandit,” Violet called, scooping the unresisting creature up. As they walked up the stairs together Bandit waved to Piper with one small, black hand.

  “What are you covering up there, Piper?” Nel asked quietly once the sound of footsteps faded.

  Piper moved his hand slightly, revealing the broken spar that had impaled him. The splintered length of wood had pierced all the way through his abdomen and out the other side.

  “Oh Piper,” Nel sighed.

  Piper covered his wound again. The two were quiet for a moment, then heard footsteps coming back down the stairs. The falls were heavy and clipped. Quill.

  “Ah.” The Kelpie navigator took in the scene without need for explanation.

  “Go away, Quill,” Nel whispered. She didn't want to have to deal with Quill right now.

  The Kelpie navigator shifted his weight from one foot to the other, but didn't leave. He met Piper's eyes. “You are not long for this world, are you?”

  Piper bowed his head, his chin almost touching his chest.

  The Kelpie hissed, letting his breath out slowly. “Is there . . . anything?”

  Piper closed his eyes. For a moment Nel thought he was gone.

  “We did a good thing today. I am glad it is you two . . . here.” He opened his eyes once more. “You will look after the little ones?”

  “Yes,” Quill said.

  Ne
l wasn't sure if Piper had meant to include Quill in his request but he looked pleased with the answer. Nel nodded her head as well.

  Piper sighed, content. “My friends . . .”

  And he was gone.

  Chapter 12

  “It's not over yet.”

  “What do you mean, Quill?” Nel asked tiredly. They were back above deck, both of them squinting against the change in light.

  “I came to get you.” Quill pointed. Sharpe's two breakaway ships, the two that had cut by them, chased by the Killing Loneliness, had been caught. Unable to match the speed of the privateer frigate, they were now within firing range. The Loneliness was finding its bearings, firing intermittent test shots as it closed the remainder of the gap. It was only a matter of time.

  “What do you wish to do?” Quill asked.

  Nel closed her eyes. “Dammit, Quill, we barely slowed them down last time. And look what they did to us.”

  “What would the captain say?” Quill asked.

  “I'm acting captain,” Nel muttered darkly.

  “Then what does the acting captain say?”

  Nel swore. “To hells with it, Kelpie. Make for the frigate.”

  “Excellent.” Quill grinned. “Though with the ship as it is we likely won't make it in time.”

  “Go plough yourself, Kelpie,” Nel snapped. “Just fly the damned ship.”

  Nel made her way to the forecastle where she'd last seen the captain. She passed crew members still picking themselves and their comrades up. As she reached the forecastle she found the wounded laid out in a makeshift infirmary.

  “Jack.” She clapped the ex-convict on the shoulder, surprisingly pleased to see him up and about. Parts of him were wrapped up in cotton wool. He didn't seem happy about it, reaching under bandages to scratch at things.

  “Skipper.” His eyes were glassy, not quite focusing on her.

  “Not helping with the wounded?” she asked.