Prince of the Blood, the King's Buccaneer

by Raymond E. Feist

‘Spies?’ asked Nicholas.

  Amos said, ‘A great deal of trouble for little gain. If the Royal Gull comes sailing into any Kingdom harbor, there’ll be a lot of questions, and those copies aren’t going to escape close inspection. Much easier to just slip a couple of folks into Krondor, or Crydee, or wherever, like that Quegan trader who came to Crydee before the raid. No, this is something else.’

  Nakor said, ‘We can find out. It will just take some time.’

  Nicholas said, ‘I think we’re almost out of time.’

  Amos said, ‘Why?’

  ‘A feeling. Calis said that many of the prisoners have already died. We don’t know if it’s from these copies or what, but if we’re going to save any of them, we must do it soon.’

  Amos shrugged. ‘From what Calis said, they’re not going to be in much shape for running.’

  ‘Nakor, how far is it from the place the prisoners are being held to the tunnel?’ asked Nicholas.

  ‘Not far,’ he answered. ‘But it would be difficult. The prisoners would have to move into the big house, past the kitchen, and close to Dahakon’s quarters.’

  ‘How many servants and guards did you encounter?’ asked the Prince.

  ‘Not many, but there could be more close by.’

  ‘Calis says not,’ said Nicholas. ‘Whatever else, the Overlord and his Adviser both seem to base their power on reputation, not on hundreds of armed men.’

  ‘Maybe they don’t want a lot of witnesses, and don’t have that many men they can trust,’ ventured Amos.

  Nicholas said, ‘As soon as Calis locates the girls, I think it’s time to get out of this city. If we can get the prisoners to that burned-out house and have some boats waiting there, we can head downriver to the sea, and pick them up.’

  ‘Which means we have to steal one of those ships,’ said Amos.

  ‘Can you do it?’

  Amos looked grim. ‘We don’t have enough men. With thirty-five men … I need at least two dozen to go out and take that ship out of the harbor, and that few only if there’s only a station-keeping watch aboard and the rest of the crew is out in town. If they have even a dozen men aboard, it could be a close fight, and I might not have enough crew to get her under way before others come aboard.’

  ‘That would leave me with only eleven to get the prisoners out,’ said Nicholas.

  ‘You could get some help,’ said Nakor.

  ‘Perhaps Vaslaw would help,’ said Nicholas.

  Amos said, ‘Those men of his are probably great fighters when it comes to riding around on horses making a great deal of noise, but we need some practiced skulkers to get in and out of that estate.’

  ‘Maybe Brisa could speak to the thieves?’ suggested Nicholas.

  Amos rubbed his hand over his face in frustration. ‘Perhaps, but from what she said, they sound like a pretty shy and sorry lot; nothing like our Mockers. Maybe Praji and Vaja could find us a half-dozen reliable lads who’ll show some courage for the right amount of gold.’

  Nakor said, ‘You’ll find someone. It will be good.’ He turned for the door.

  ‘Where are you going?’ asked Nicholas.

  ‘I’m going to sleep,’ he answered with a grin. ‘Soon it’s going to be very noisy and busy, with lots of running around.’

  He left, and Amos shook his head. ‘He is the strangest man I have ever encountered, and I’ve met my share of strange men.’

  Nicholas had to laugh. ‘But he’s been a great help.’

  Amos remembered Arutha’s caution about listening to Nakor and felt his own smile fade. There was something dark coming at them, and fast, and Amos knew that when he’d had that feeling before, good men had died.

  Saying nothing more, they returned to the common room.

  Anthony said, ‘Nicholas, can I talk to you?’

  Nicholas, who had been returning to his room, nodded, waving for the young magician to follow. Anthony closed the door to his own room, crossed the hall, and entered after Nicholas.

  ‘What is it?’ asked Nicholas, stifling a yawn. The tension of waiting for Calis to return was wearing him down to a nub. He sat on the bed and motioned for Anthony to sit at the single chair next to the small table provided by the hostler.

  Anthony seemed to have trouble speaking, and Nicholas tried to be patient. He pulled off his boots and flexed his left leg.

  ‘Does it hurt?’ asked Anthony.

  Wiggling the toes of his left foot, Nicholas said, ‘No. Yes. I mean no, not really. It’s … a little stiff, that’s all. It’s not a pain, just … I remember how it hurts, when I get overtired. It’s anticipating the pain, if that makes sense, as much as any real discomfort.’

  Anthony nodded. ‘It makes sense. Old habits are hard to forget, and old fears are habits.’

  Not in the mood to talk about his own worries, Nicholas said, ‘What did you want to talk about?’

  ‘I feel useless.’

  Nicholas said, ‘We’ve all been feeling that way, having to wait –’

  ‘No, I mean even when there are things going on, I don’t feel as if I’m much help.’

  ‘Might I remind you that if you hadn’t been able to track Margaret, we might all still be out on the sea, dead from starvation and lack of water?’

  Anthony sighed. ‘Since then.’

  ‘You kept at least three men I can count from dying. Isn’t that enough?’

  Anthony let out a long sigh. ‘Perhaps you’re right.’ He reached into his tunic and pulled out the talisman that Pug had originally given to Nicholas. ‘I sometimes wonder if it’s time to use this. Pug said I would know.’

  ‘If you don’t know, don’t use it,’ answered Nicholas. ‘He said it was to be used when there is no other choice, according to Nakor.’

  Anthony nodded. ‘That’s what he said. But we still haven’t found Margaret and Abigail.’

  Nicholas leaned forward and put his hand on Anthony’s shoulder. ‘We’ve all been through a lot to find the prisoners, Anthony. I know how you feel about my cousin …’

  Anthony lowered his eyes and appeared thoroughly embarrassed. ‘I try to hide it.’

  ‘Mostly you do a fair job.’ Nicholas leaned back again. ‘I feel something for Abigail, too, though lately it seems more like a childish affection.’ He looked at Anthony and added, ‘But I can see your feelings run deeper. Have you said anything to her?’

  ‘I didn’t dare,’ said Anthony, almost in a whisper. ‘She’s the Duke’s daughter.’

  Nicholas smiled. ‘So? We’ve had magicians in the family before, and Margaret’s not exactly your run-of-the-mill court lady.’

  Anthony said, ‘I’ve felt terrible thinking that I might never get to say anything to her.’

  Nicholas nodded. ‘I understand. Still, if we can get just one of those poor wretches home again to the Far Coast, we’ve done right by those who look to the crown for protection.’ Grimly he said, ‘Even if it’s too late for Abigail and Margaret.’

  ‘You have a plan?’

  Nicholas sighed. ‘I’ve had nothing to do but sit around and plan. I think we’re running out of time. I can’t tell you why, but there’s a … feeling.’

  ‘An intuition?’

  ‘Perhaps. I don’t claim any magic powers. I just know that if we don’t act soon, it will be too late.’

  ‘When do you plan to move?’

  Nicholas said, ‘I’m going to speak to Praji and Vaja first thing in the morning. I don’t want too much time to pass between recruiting some swords and acting – less time for the Overlord’s “Black Rose” to discover what we’re doing. If we can get twenty reliable men, we’ll go for the ship after dark tomorrow, and the prisoners before dawn. If we don’t have twenty, we’ll move with what we can hire the night following.’

  Anthony said, ‘It will be good to act.’

  Nicholas nodded. Anthony rose and let himself out. Nicholas lay back in his bed, staring at the wooden ceiling and thinking. Was he really feeling some sort of intuitive leap t
hat would get them on their way home before further disasters struck? Or would his impatience lead them into another tragedy? When he was with Amos and Ghuda, talking wth the others, he felt firm in his decisions. He knew that his training at home had been designed to give him the best tools possible for making difficult decisions, but when he was alone, the doubts returned, and his fears with them. His foot always throbbed at night before he fell asleep, and he knew that wishing it away would not suffice. He needed to be right. Lives depended upon that. He felt like crying, but he was too tired.

  Calis listened and waited. Two men walked below, speaking softly and ignorant of his hovering above them, safely hidden in the shadows of a tree. The heavy foliage and the darkness masked him from view. He waited until they had disappeared around a corner of a wall, then lowered himself, landing on the inside of the court. He waited, listening. He might be on the other side of the wall, but that didn’t mean the two men might not have heard him.

  His caution was excessive; no human could have heard the faint sound of his passing; no cry of alarm was raised and no attack came. He looked around the garden. It was a small one, with a single bathing pool in the middle. Overhead a soft gauzy cloth cover had been placed to cut the harsh rays of the sun during the hottest part of the day, while keeping the garden bright. Large doors and windows opened on the small sanctuary. Calis had already investigated two other similar gardens, finding both deserted, overgrown with weeds, their ponds filled with stagnant water. This one was well tended and clean.

  Calis hurried across the relatively open expanse and peered into the window. It was shuttered, but through the lattice he saw a figure on a bed. Her hair was pale yellow in the lantern light, but Calis couldn’t make out her features. It was likely to be Abigail, from the description he had heard several times. Margaret he knew by sight, but this girl was unknown to him, having come to Crydee after his most recent visit prior to the raid. A less cautious being might have chanced that it was one of those he sought, but Calis knew the patience of a race that counted lives in centuries.

  He left the window and examined the door. It was wood, with a single handle and no apparent lock. He listened for several minutes and heard no sound of movement.

  He reached for the handle, but something made him pause. He returned to the window and looked again. He had heard a sound, though he hadn’t been conscious of it. Now he saw the source. Another girl sat on the bed next to the first, and Calis’s eyes widened. She was twin to the first.

  Calis stepped away from the shuttered window. He had seen the horrifying vision in the large enclosed yard, and had gleaned that somehow alien creatures were being transformed by arcane, dark powers into copies of the people who had been kidnapped. Obviously it was being done to Abigail.

  Then Margaret walked into view. But instantly, senses more acute than any human’s recognized that this was not Duke Martin’s daughter. The movement was wrong, the way she held herself was wrong, and her expression was not human.

  At a loss for what to do, Calis waited. That was something that came easily to him.

  Nicholas got out of bed. It was an hour before sunup, but he couldn’t sleep. He went to the large room where a dozen men were sleeping, six beds against each wall, and picked his way to the pallet where Praji slept. Vaja was lying across the aisle from him. Nicholas shook Praji’s shoulder gently, and the mercenary was instantly awake.

  Nicholas motioned for him to follow, and Praji walked after him. He didn’t bother to put on his boots or cloak, as Nicholas was also barefoot and wearing no warm outer garment. In the deserted common room, Nicholas said, ‘We’re going to have to make some decisions, both of us.’

  Praji said, ‘You’re going to tell me the truth?’

  Nicholas said. ‘It’s a long story. Sit down.’

  Praji pulled out a chair while he stretched and yawned. Sitting heavily, he said, ‘Make it interesting, Captain. I don’t like being awakened prematurely. Most of the time it means someone needs unexpected killing.’ His smile was not a pretty sight in the predawn gloom.

  Nicholas told him everything, save of the Lifestone and the Oracle of Aal, that stood guard over it deep beneath the city of Sethanon. But he told of his father, and the Kingdom, and the raid on Crydee. When he had finished, dawn had broken, and Keeler had come into the common room, making ready for the day’s business. Hot bread was delivered from the bakery two doors down, and fruit and cheese shortly after. Without interrupting, he brought over a meal for Nicholas and Praji, moving quickly enough to ensure he couldn’t be accused of overhearing their low discussion. Keeler was experienced enough with the way of mercenary companies to know that ignorance often meant staying in business or, more important, alive.

  When he was finished, Nicholas said, ‘I need a dozen men – twenty would be better; they must be trustworthy, and I’ll make it worth their while. They have to be willing to sail out with us and be dropped off up the coast, so they have to be tough enough to make their way back as best they can. Can you do it?’

  ‘Can’s not the question. Will is. How much is worth their while?’

  ‘What would you judge it worthwhile to steal something very precious from the Overlord and his wizard?’

  Praji grinned. ‘For me, it would be a pleasure to do it for its own sake. I still have that bastard’s name on my list. If I can’t kill him personal-like, then I might as well irritate him. But for fellows to go against his soldiers, especially if it’s them Red Slayers, well, that’s real pricy.’

  ‘How pricy?’

  ‘A year’s wages for a caravan guard, I’d think. Say a hundred golden draks – better make it a little more.’

  Nicholas considered what that was in raw weight, and how much gold he had taken from Shingazi’s Landing. He said, ‘If you can vouch for them, I’ll make it two hundred draks a man, with another hundred extra for you and Vaja to make sure they are trustworthy and follow orders. I don’t want any Black Rose agents with us.’

  Praji nodded. ‘I know twice that number of rough fellows from my years on the road. None of them would be likely agents. It may take me all day to track them down, and I’m going to have to lie to those I don’t want coming along.’

  Nicholas nodded. ‘Tell them we’re getting ready to transport a wealthy merchant and his family upriver, ten boats taking household and servants. Tell him the merchant is very fussy and wants your personal guarantee, so you can’t hire anyone you don’t know well.’ Then Nicholas said, ‘How’d you like to be a captain?’

  ‘My own company?’ He scratched his chin. ‘Wouldn’t hurt my standing any.’

  ‘Fine, then tell anyone who asks that the merchant will give you enough to form your own company and you’re taking only men you know well.’

  Praji smiled and nodded. ‘You’re one sneaky bastard, Captain. Few men want to join a company just starting out, unless it’s old friends. Now, where do you want me to muster the boys?’

  ‘Tell them to stay close. Put them in inns nearby, in twos and threes, and have them ready to move as soon as I give the word.’

  ‘Well, I better go wake up Vaja, and let him eat something – he’s like a cranky old woman if he doesn’t break his fast in the morning – makes him difficult to put up with during a siege, let me tell you.’

  ‘Send Tuka to me as well,’ said Nicholas.

  Praji nodded and left. Others started drifting into the common room as the day broke, and by the time Tuka put in an appearance, sleepily scratching his head, Amos and Harry were eating at the table with Nicholas.

  Nicholas said, ‘I’m going to need your talents today.’

  Tuka said, ‘What must I do, Encosi?’

  ‘How difficult is it to get ten riverboats for a journey northward?’

  ‘Not difficult, Encosi.’

  ‘How long will it take?’

  ‘I can secure such boats for you by noon. Ensuring they are worthy for the journey will take the rest of the day.’

  ‘Do it in half th
e time. By sundown I want them tied up at the docks, fully provisioned.’

  Amos rested his elbow on the table, his chin in his hand. ‘We’re leaving?’

  ‘Soon,’ said Nicholas. ‘I want you to make a list for Harry and Brisa.’ To Harry he said, ‘Go wake up Brisa. You two go with Tuka. Inspect the boats with him; then go shopping for stores. See that everything you can get is delivered to the docks by afternoon, and have it aboard the boats by sundown. I’ll have some soldiers guarding them all night. I want to be able to move with an hour’s notice.’

  Harry nodded. Between his ability to scrounge and haggle, and Brisa’s streetwise sense, they should be able to get what they needed quickly, without calling undue attention to themselves. The City of the Serpent River had enough foreigners with strange accents conducting business that, with a little circumspection, they would pass almost unnoticed.

  Nicholas said to Amos, ‘As soon as Marcus and Calis return, I want you and Marcus to go fishing.’

  Amos signed and heaved himself from the table. ‘I expect you’ll want us to see what the catch is like near those two warships?’

  ‘Exactly. This will all come to nothing if we can’t take one of those two ships and sail to the river mouth to pick up the stores and prisoners from the boats.’

  ‘You’ve got the men?’

  ‘Praji will have another twenty for us by sundown.’

  Amos said, ‘That’s still cutting it thin. I’ll need most of the men from Crydee to take that ship. I can’t count on hired swords, and few of them may have any experience in boarding a ship.’

  Nicholas nodded. ‘I’ll keep Ghuda, Marcus, and Calis, but you take as many of the others as you need. I’m putting Harry in charge of the river boats.’

  Amos glanced around as the room filled with hungry soldiers and sailors. ‘Well, most of the lads will be glad to be doing something. This waiting around was beginning to get on some of their nerves. No fights yet, but some testy remarks and short tempers.’

  ‘I think they’ll have plenty to keep them busy, very soon,’ said Nicholas.

  Marcus and Calis entered the inn an hour later, and Calis said, ‘We’ve found them.’