Loss of the Resolute: A Dark Fantasy (Fractured Lands Book 1)

by Greg Alldredge

  The ship took a sudden lurch when a massive wave struck the port side, causing the ship to roll to the starboard. Kanika’s assailant had been bent over her body, his pants down around his knees. Unable to compensate for the sudden movement and the loss of stability, he pitched over, landing on top of Kanika. The weight of the man knocked the wind from her, causing her ploy of unconsciousness to fail.

  The surprise became much greater for the sailor. Kanika used the change provided her to go on the attack. Even with muscles sore from the abuse she’d suffered from the likes of the ass on top of her, she forced herself to attack. Her legs wrapped around the man’s waist, and she used every ounce of her remaining strength to lock her ankles and crush the wind from him.

  His face close to hers, he shouted, “Bitch, stop it!” She fought back the vomit from the stench of the man’s breath. His howl briefly drowned out the chanting thumping in Kanika’s head.

  She smashed her forehead into the man’s nose. Blood burst from his broken nose, splashing down his face, but his bad day was getting worse. His eyes crossed, on the verge of unconsciousness. With a crunch of her abdomen, she lifted his throat closer to her mouth.

  Needing him quiet or dead, like a trapped animal, she used the only weapons left to her. Mouth wide, she sank her teeth into the exposed flesh of the man’s throat. A soft squeak escaped his lips when her jaws locked on his windpipe, she felt the bones and cartilage crunch under her might. Forced to fight for his life, he pummeled her head with blows from his fists, but it was too late for him—his hyoid bone and larynx crushed. In a fit of rage, her head jerked and ripped his voice box from his throat.

  Blood sprayed her naked body, his squeak became a gurgle while he tried to speak, his life’s blood emptied first onto Kanika then filled her cell. His body eventually went limp between her legs before he dropped on her chest.

  She spat the remains of his neck into the water and kicked his corpse off her. The thought of what she had done struck her; she vomited.

  Breathing deeply, she tried to think clearly. Her head throbbed with pain, the rush of adrenaline the only thing that was keeping her going. An inspection of the cell and she realized the key remained in the cell door. She might’ve killed her attacker, but her means of escape might as well be across the crack from where she stared at it. The cell door swung open with the key lodged in the lock.

  “Damn it,” she cursed softly under her breath, body slumping in disappointment.

  “Check his neck, the keys for the shackles should be around his neck,” Lizzie whispered. “Hurry, more might come at any time.”

  Kanika shot her eye to the hatch where the dead man entered. A shot of fear ran through her soul. She swore as the sound of footsteps approached overhead, walking towards the ladder. Over her lifetime she had spent years running the decks barefoot. With practice, her toes became flexible. She now used them to push back the blood-soaked cloth of the sailor’s shirt, where she found a cord tied around his neck.

  The footsteps returned, echoing through the space. Her total concentration on the cord, she lost track of her surroundings and what happened beyond her little world of the cage. The occupants of the pen across the narrow path followed her progress intently.

  “Hurry!” the witch in the next cage hissed and began softly chanting again.

  Kanika found the key. She would chew the man’s head off if she could reach it. The cord, soaked in blood, made it hard to grip with her toes. Taking the utmost care, she lifted the strap from the man’s neck.

  The hatch opened. Sure she would be caught before she freed her hands, two feet appeared on the top step and stopped. Laughter and jokes were interchanged from above. The key free of the corpse, Kanika raised her feet over her head and handed herself the key. There arose a collective sigh once she grasped the key in her hand. The entire cargo hold had held their breath watching her movements.

  With a single click, her right wrist became free. With help from the chain, she set herself upright and unraveled the bindings from the crossbars of the cage. Before she finished, the feet on the ladder continued down the steps, and the hatch closed.

  The shackles now free of the bars, Kanika held a ready weapon. She’d only a few moments to devise her attack. She crept aft, best she could, considering the damage to her body. Once around the first corner, she waited. Her swing would need to be timed flawlessly, or all would be lost. The approaching slaver would raise the alarm before she killed him.

  The approaching man hesitated in shock when he found his dead comrade sloshing about on the deck. Before he had a chance to think, Kanika bolted from around the corner, the manacle on the chain’s ends a perfect weight to swing as a weapon. The added force from the whip of the chain crushed into the man’s head, sending four teeth and a spray of blood flying into the cell.

  He dropped like a keg of nails. Kanika wanted no chance of his returning to fight again. She beat his head with the shackle until gray matter showed through the bloody hair and bone.

  Satisfied he was dead, she reached for the key in her cell door. More men might come at any moment, she needed to free as many as possible and take the ship. The first rescue was the shit-covered witch in the cell next to her. Unsure if the chant helped her, she felt it was the best she could do.

  “You must free the men first, as quietly as possible. We’ll have a chance with more help,” Kanika told Lizzie as she unlocked her.

  As much as Kanika wanted to free the few women, most looked unready to fight. They hid cowering in their cells as best as their chains would allow. The witch took off to release as many as she could.

  The men were not individually chained. They had rings attached to both wrists, and a chain was run through them before it attached to the deck, effectively pinning them on their backs. Once the first lock clanked opened, ten men were freed. While the witch ran off to free the others, Kanika searched the two corpses in her cell. Unfortunately for the cargo, the slavers were smart enough not to bring weapons into the hold when they came to rape their captives.

  She had freed a small army and had no way to arm them. “Shit,” she whispered to herself. She inspected the bodies one last time, hoping to find anything that might be used as a weapon and found nothing. At least we can tell them apart from us. They are dressed, we are all nude.

  She listened as the freed men plotted their next move. Before they got the lot of them killed, she headed for the ladder to stop any premature attack. She arrived just in time, the first batch of men approached her blood-drenched body sitting on the steps.

  “Thanks for setting us free, woman, but now is the time for the men to take this ship.” The largest man stepped forward. She inspected his body, his muscles would make a pleasant diversion for the old Kanika, before the abuse her body had recently undergone. She had little use for such things now. Especially a man with a chip on his shoulder.

  “If you climb those stairs, we are all going to die.” Kanika held her ground sitting on the steps of the ladder.

  “She is right,” a familiar voice rang out. It was Bran, the bosun from the Resolute, her former ship. She fought the urge to jump up and hug him. There was another matter to fix first.

  “Look, we just want out of this hole. If we die fighting, at least it will be in battle, instead of locked up like animals,” Muscleman whispered.

  “I would rather only the bastards above us do any dying. Let’s plan for an attack. I am sure we outnumber them…” She paused to estimate heads. “Three to one. All we must do is attack wisely, and they will not stand a chance against us.”

  Muscleman placed his hands on his hips, hissing through his teeth, “And who are you to give orders?”

  Before Kanika answered, Bran cut in. “That is Kanika, first officer from the Resolute, my first officer. I was her bosun.”

  “I don’t care who you are, to me you’re a worthless slave like the rest of us,” Muscleman hissed trying to be quiet.

  Kanika knew there was no time for this. I
f the idiot didn’t shut up, the crew above their heads was going to discover the escaped cargo and quell the rebellion before it got started. With Bran at her back, she was ready to kill Muscleman where he stood. Before she struck, the men standing behind Muscleman parted. She saw the look in their eyes as they studied someone moving between them. It was a look of fear and disgust, Kanika had seen it many times in the past.

  The men continued to part until the witch Lizzie stood directly behind Muscleman’s right arm. She spoke with the voice of an angel, so softly Kanika barely heard, “Who are ya ta be given orders? You did nothin’ to free us. Now stand aside before ya die.”

  Kanika witnessed the expression change on Muscleman’s face. Open defiance turned instantly to fear, and before he spoke his voice morphed into reluctant bravado. “Stand aside, witch. It’s time for men to do the heavy lifting. You women stay in the back and get ready to cook.”

  Kanika watched as the short woman pointed her right index finger at the man’s chest. Lizzie whispered, “Do ya risk ma touch? If this finger touches, ya will not see the next sunrise. Your soul will be damned to the hole, forever fallin’ never to return.” She moved to touch her finger to the center of his chest over his beating heart, and he backed away. “Now stand aside, and let the woman who rescued ya lead. If she is killed, then ya will have your chance.”

  Kanika had never witnessed such a huge man shut down so quickly from such a small woman without violence. However, she knew the fear of a witch’s reputation was as mighty as a sword.

  “All are free. What ‘chur orders, ma’am?”

  “We wait to strike when the time is right, not a second before,” she whispered to everyone standing.

  <=OO=>

  All in place, they just needed to wait for the right moment to spring the plan into action. It had been some time since the first two victims entered the cargo hold. Eventually, someone would come to torment the captives; that’s when they would strike. Kanika would let no one test the hatch to discover if it was unlocked, she didn’t need to. Anyone with a sense of security would recognize the need to keep as many locks between you and the people that wanted to kill you. She was sure if they tested the hatch and it was locked, it would alert the crew above that the cargo had gained their freedom.

  The moment to act came, announced by the footfalls on the deck above as someone approached the hatch. Kanika’s assumption was correct, from her new vantage point she clearly heard a key open the lock above. She briefly wondered what the signal was for the two dead bodies to exit the hold when they were finished. Shortly it would not matter if her plan worked. They were about to escape the hold and fight their way through the crew deck.

  The feet of the crewman appeared in front of her, standing on the top step to close the hatch. She grabbed his feet and, with all of her might, pulled as hard as she could. Jerking the man in front of her off-balance, he fell out-of-control face first into the treads. Before the man moved, another woman wrapped her chain around the back of the man’s neck and pulled with all her might between the steps. A sickening crunching sound filled the cargo hold as the man’s neck bones were crushed, killing him instantly.

  Now was the men’s chance to vent their frustration. Muscleman led the way up the ladder, trampling the man’s dead body. It has been said that familiarity breeds contempt. The crewman tasked with securing the top hatch was not ready for the attack. The first body up the ladder filled the hatchway, grabbed the sentry by the throat, and pulled him down into the hold. His massive hand latched on to the guard’s windpipe, cutting off any cry for help. He never stood a chance to cry out again, his body was torn into by the cargo, like wild animals finally able to reach their captor.

  Kanika knew this would be a hazardous point in the attack. She assumed it was night, and as such, many of the crew would be on the next deck, sleeping or preparing to sleep. In the dark quarters, the wrong person could be attacked. Better to let Muscleman lead the way into danger, she would follow close behind. Besides, quickness of action was required now. From her location under the stairs she knew she would not be able to be on the front line of this attack. Better to delegate it to someone more expendable.

  She admitted to herself Muscleman seemed adept at killing. She heard soft moans and groans as the crew was murdered in their sleep. It would’ve taken a keen ear to hear any of the men’s deaths. The vanguard of the attack already up the ladder, she followed close behind. She did a quick inspection to ensure the crew quarters were indeed theirs, no survivors left to sneak up behind them. To her disappointment, they found no weapons. They would have to do this hand to hand, the old-fashioned way.

  They discussed at great length the need for stealth for this attack to work. She was surprised that, so far, the men followed her directions. Leaving the men behind, like a cat she wove her way through the dead bodies to the aft ladder.

  If the ship was like the Resolute, it opened below the sterncastle. A ship with the night watch set sailing the cracks had possibly four crew on deck. The officers secured under the sterncastle. The bosun locked in his quarters under the forecastle. She found no lanterns burning at the helm, so they must be traveling dark—or as dark as it can be with two moons.

  Kanika moved back to the group waiting for their orders. “I can’t find the watch, at most they’ve four men on deck. We need to take out the forward watch. Then maybe three by the helm.”

  “How can you be so sure?” Muscleman still questioned her.

  “I’m not, it’s called an educated guess. Do you have a better idea?” She hoped it wouldn’t be a constant battle with him. He was handy in a fight. “We still need someone to take out the forward watch.”

  None of the men spoke up. Kanika felt she could handle the job, but she was not in peak condition. Before she resigned herself to handle the task, a familiar voice spoke up.

  “I’ll do it,” Lizzie said in a breathless voice.

  “He should be on the forecastle.”

  “No worries, I’ll go invisible. They’ll never see me comin’.”

  Kanika had heard stories of a witch’s magic, though she’d never seen it at work. She paced with Lizzie to the aft ladder, leading her away from the others. “Are you sure about this?”

  Lizzie winked and silently padded up the stairs. Kanika lost sight of her as soon as she left the hatch. Whether from magic or stealth the tiny woman covered in shit blended into the shadows out of sight.

  Kanika found the waiting unbearable. In her mind, she walked the path the witch would need to take to reach the forward watch. It wasn’t far. Even trying to be invisible, she imagined herself making the trip, killing the sentry, and working her way back to the safety of the hatch. It took too long, something must have happened. Worst-case scenarios began running through her mind and the best way to extricate themselves from failure. She waited double the time it should take, then waited a bit more. When no alarm sounded, she took a tentative step up the ladder, only to be met by Lizzie’s head poking into the hatchway.

  “All done,” she whispered.

  Kanika whispered back, “What do you mean all done?

  “There was five, not four, they’re all dead. The ship is ours except the captain, officers, and bosun. Their doors are all locked. The crew carried no weapons.”

  Kanika found herself lost for words. The diminutive witch did something she thought impossible. Perhaps there really was magic flowing through her veins. The lack of weapons didn’t help, but there was still work to do. It didn’t matter now, they needed to take out as many officers as possible.

  Kanika stood in the small patch of moonlight at the foot of the ladder. With a motion of her arm, she called the cargo to her. “I’ve a plan for the aft part of the ship. The front part of the ship will be a little trickier.” She pointed at Muscleman. “Think you can handle a little messy work with a couple of your friends?”

  His fingers interlaced, he cracked his knuckles in front of his chest. “I’m ready for a standup fight, t
his sneaking around is getting old.”

  She moved closer and tapped him on the chest. “You need to take your friends and stand outside the bosun’s door. When we make the attack on the captain’s cabin, all hell can break loose. The bosun will come out swinging, you need to disarm and kill him. We will take care of the aft part of the ship. Think you can handle that?”

  “You just give us some heads to crack, and he’ll be dead before he hits the deck.”

  “You’re about to get your wish, but you must wait until we’re ready.”

  “I understood you the first time.”

  Kanika led them to the top of the ladder. Muscleman and his group took a position outside the bosun’s cabin.

  She scanned overhead. The ship was doing well on the course that had been laid in. As long as the wind didn’t shift, or the waves didn’t change direction, the steady rocking and sound of the ship should keep the officers asleep until the attack started.

  She grabbed four men that looked like able-bodied seamen. “Do you have experience handling ropes?” After she got a few nods from those she picked, she said, “Good, we’re going to lower ourselves over the edge and bust in through the cabin windows. If they are open or unlocked, great. If not, we will break through them with our bodies. Do you understand?”

  They all nodded their understanding. Kanika did a quick scan of the helm area and found that Lizzie was right, there were no weapons to be found. She went for the best thing at hand, grabbing a belaying pin, she slapped it in the palm of her right hand. Unfortunately, she had no pockets since she was still nude. To lower herself over the side with the rope she would need to bite the chunk of wood. She found long enough pieces of line and ensured the other four were ready to go tying each off the top end with a secure knot. At the stern rail, she watched the wake flow from under the ship. One leg followed by the other over the side, she began lowering herself down, followed by the four men. She hoped with luck the windows would be open and they would lead to the captain’s cabin.