The Sail Weaver

by Morrigan, Muffy

  “Riggan?” he called.

  “Here, sir, we have visitors,” Riggan answered.

  “What?” The boatswain walked towards them, then stopped, a shocked look on his face as he recognized Thom and Tristan. “Mr. Barrett! I never thought I’d see you again!”

  “Thank you, Shearer, it’s good to be back,” Thom said, shaking his hand. “How many loyal crew can we count on?”

  “More than Fuhrman knows, that’s for sure.” Shearer laughed. “Even some of those that supported him at first are not so sure now. It’s the death scent of those sails hanging above us. The Rogue can’t get them to fly, and Stemmer told them to run under power to a rendezvous to get a, and I quote ‘proper Interface for the sails’ which, as I’m sure you know, can only mean one thing.”

  “A slaved dragon,” Tristan said.

  “Yes, and while there are those that still think that’s the only way to win, there are others who are beginning to doubt it. They’ll support you, Mr. Barrett.”

  “Captain,” Tristan corrected him.

  “What?” Riggan asked, delighted.

  “Admiral O’Brian said that the Joint Chiefs had restored Captain Barrett’s rank, and he is now rightful Master of the Winged Victory,” Tristan explained, hiding a smile when Thom blushed.

  “Good. Finally things are settling down the way they should.” Shearer beamed. “We’ll have to take the ship deck by deck.”

  “I figured as much,” Thom said. “Once we get to the brig, we need to get everyone out without alerting the rest of the crew.”

  “You’ll need a distraction to manage that.”

  “We’ll figure one out. The quieter we can be at first, the more success we’ll have when we reach the top decks. There are two frigates inbound to support us, I’m not sure that they’ll be here in time.”

  “Fenfyr and Taminick are also waiting to join the fight at our signal,” Tristan added.

  “First things first,” Thom said. “We need as many of the loyal crew who are off-watch to get down here so we can formulate a solid battle plan. And can you get us sidearms?”

  “Yes, Captain!” Shearer snapped off a salute. “I’ll be back as soon as possible.”

  “Thank you, Shearer.” Thom waited until the man was gone before turning to Riggan and Sheea. “Report, Riggan.”

  “Well, sir, it’s like Mr. Shearer was saying, some of the crew that supported Stemmer and Fuhrman are losing their courage in the face of those sails. Even their staunchest supporters are unsure about slaving a dragon on a Navy ship. Sure and there’s a few who still think that the Vermin tech is the only way to beat the Vermin—fight fire with fire—but more think what’s been done has put a stain on the ship. Some of the more superstitious are convinced that the dragons are haunting the ship, what with all the odd noises they’re hearing on the crew decks.” Riggan grinned. “Not that I know anything of that, of course.”

  “Of course not.” Tristan smiled back.

  “The Air Weavers are being held in officers’ territory when not on deck. I managed to get Sheea away when they were taking her to the brig.”

  “The brig?” Thom asked.

  “I refused to work with those sails on the ship,” she said firmly. “I told them they could toss me overboard like they had the two of you, but I was not going to help them with that filth.” She shuddered. “So they were taking me to the brig with the promise that I was to be a…” she swallowed unable to continue.

  “You know what Fuhrman had in mind for her, Captain Barrett, sir,” Riggan said. “His perversions are well known. So, on the way down to the brig, the ghost of the dragons struck and poof she disappeared right from the lift! Mr. Aubrey disappeared from the sickbay, and we’ve tried to get to General Muher, but they keep him chained in the Captain’s cabin.”

  “We’ll get him out of there, Riggan,” Thom assured him.

  “I know you will, sir. I never doubted that you and Master Tristan would be back. It’s why we opened up the hole and have been waiting for your signal ever since. We knew you’d come, and that once you were here—well, sir, we knew you would be wanting the ship.”

  “I do, and more. The Vermin are coming and we have to be there to stop them. The fleet doesn’t stand a chance without us, and I’ll be damned before we miss that battle!”

  “We’ll be there sir, you haven’t missed a battle yet,” Riggan said.

  “How hard will it be to get the sails up, Tristan?” Thom asked.

  “It shouldn’t be too hard, not if the men cooperate and the dragons help. Once the Vermin sails are gone, it should be only a matter of rehanging them. They were bonded to the ship, and they still recognize the Interface, so it should be simple.”

  “That would make things a lot easier.” Thom paced. “We need to be quiet as we take the decks, so I think blades as much as possible if people won’t join us. Riggan, is anyone in communications with us?”

  “Officer Brown is, sir, and I believe this is her watch.”

  “Can you get word to her to lock down communications from the lower decks?” Thom asked.

  “Consider it done,” Riggan said and slipped away through the darkened hold.

  “I have no idea how he gets around, but he appears and disappears all over ship,” Sheea said. “Before they brought me down here, the rumors of the hauntings were already starting—odd clanks and other sounds would come through the walls. Several people disappeared on their way to various places and the Weaver’s quarters have been sealed from the inside and, at least before I was taken, they were still unsure how to get in. There’s a rigged charge on the door so they can’t cut through.”

  “Riggan is a handy man to have on your side,” Tristan said.

  “Very,” Thom agreed with a grin.

  The sound of the lift and the door opening had them moving into the shadows. A large group walked out of the lift. Tristan guessed the lift had to have been over capacity to carry so many. Patrick Aubrey was with them. He stopped once they were out. “Captain?” he said to the dark.

  “Aubrey,” Thom said, stepping out so he could be seen. “It looks like you’ve gotten your promotion back as well.”

  “Thank you, sir,” the man said, a feral glint in his eye. “I’ve been looking forward to the chance to explain to Fuhrman once and for all that I outrank his sorry ass.”

  Tristan was a little surprised. He’d taken Aubrey for a steady, older officer who was content with his position on the ship. Of course, now he realized that the Second Officer was probably originally the First Officer and Thom’s second-in-command. A man didn’t reach that rank without a few battles under his belt. Now that he had a chance to show his true colors, Aubrey’s place as a fighting man seemed obvious. The sword at his side seemed natural.

  “I know you have, Patrick, and I’ve been waiting to have the same discussion with Gary Stemmer.” Thom grinned as Aubrey handed him a pistol and a sword. “We need a plan.”

  “I’ve been thinking about that for a long time,” Aubrey said. “The next deck is nearly empty. Thanks to the hauntings, the crew has been avoiding the lower half of the ship. The few that remain are security on patrols, two patrols per deck, the size of the patrols vary. They walk the deck, and their circuit takes about fifteen minutes from bow to stern. If one group takes the secondary lift and the other the primary, we should be able to take out both patrols simultaneously. We should be able to take the bottom four decks that way. Brown has communications blocked, even though everything is showing as green.”

  “Good start.” Thom nodded.

  “What about the other decks?” Tristan asked, accepting a sword and a pistol from one of the men.

  “It might get tricky. I have no idea how many men are on those decks right now. More than the bottom few, less than usual. There is a twenty-four hour guard on the brig doors.”

  “Okay, we need to take those decks as quietly as possible, words by choice, blade if they fight, try to keep gunfire to a minimum. Once we’r
e out of this hold, sound is going to carry,” Thom said and the group nodded. “We will continue up until we can rendezvous on the brig deck. We’ll come at them from both sides. If communications are down, the only problem we have is if someone gets away.”

  “No one is getting away, sir!” one of the men shouted. “If they are loyal they will fight with us, if they are Stemmer and Fuhrman’s men, well, they can just go quietly into the brig or die like the Vermin filth they are.”

  A ragged cheer broke out at the man’s words and Thom glanced over at Tristan. “The Master Weaver said that once we have the Vermin sails gone, our sails should go back up quickly. Once they are in place, we are heading off to meet the Vermin, they’re coming in, men, and we’re not going to miss this fight!”

  “No, sir!” they chorused.

  “Now, remember, quiet is the key, and we will rendezvous outside the brig. Once we’ve freed the others from there, we will decide how we want to take the upper decks. Understood?”

  “Yes, Captain!” Aubrey said, and the others shouted agreement as well.

  “Okay, let’s go.”

  A small group formed behind Thom and Tristan. To his surprise, Tristan noticed that Riggan had rejoined them, sword in hand. Thom nodded to Aubrey and they set off, Thom’s group headed towards the primary lift while the others moved through the hold to the secondary lift. Tristan stepped in beside Thom, aware of the weight of the weapons he was carrying. After the bombings, all the Masters had weapons training, but he didn’t think the classes were intended for re-taking a warship. Still, he had no intention of being left behind. As the lift slowed, his stomach gave an odd twist.

  Thom was out the door first, signaling the others to silence. In the quiet of the deck, all Tristan could hear was the breathing of their group and the hammering of his heart. After several seconds, Thom indicated they should follow him and he slipped silently down the corridor, holding up his hand when the sound of a door opening echoed through the hallway. Three men stepped into the corridor and stopped dead, staring at Thom and his group. One of them turned to run, but Riggan was on him faster than Tristan imagined, driving the man to the floor, his blade held against his throat.

  “By act of the Joint Chiefs, I am legally Captain and commander of this ship, are you with me or against me?” Thom asked quietly. The men regarded him with round eyes.

  “You’re a Guild lover,” the man on the floor said, spitting in Thom’s direction. Before anyone could say anything else, Riggan slit the man’s throat.

  “I ask again, join me or fight me, your choice. He made his.” Thom pointed to the corpse on the floor.

  “With you, sir,” one of the men said.

  “Good.” Thom looked at him. “Are there more?”

  “Not with us, sir,” the man said. “No one would patrol this deck.”

  “Okay,” Thom said, turning back towards the lift. “You can keep up your patrol. I’m trusting in your word that you are with the crew. If I find out differently…” He let the threat hang in the air as he glanced at the body again before he gestured for the group to move out. “I need a volunteer to stay here and make sure this deck is secure.”

  “Here, sir.” One of the men stepped out.

  “Thank you, Ortiz, if you have any trouble, solve it simply.”

  “Yes, sir,” Ortiz answered, grinning at the two security men. “Clean and simple is my favorite way.”

  Thom nodded and they piled back into the lift. The next two floors went smoothly, the men surrendering even before Thom could open his mouth. Tristan was getting the feeling that they were being set up. Whether it was intentional or not, the vague sense of unease was answered on the next deck. There were seven security men waiting by the lift. Thom must have sensed something was wrong as they reached the deck—he shouted “Down!” to the group, shoving Tristan aside. As soon as the doors opened, the security patrol opened fire. Tristan heard one of their men shout in pain, and he was aware that Thom jumped out of the lift, blade drawn and, without hesitating, ran the front man through without a word.

  The rest of their group was pouring out of the lift now, two of the patrol broke loose and started running up the corridor. Waving his sword, Riggan led a party of men after them. Tristan was pushing himself up when he sensed movement headed towards him. Instincts he didn’t know he had kicked in and he was dodging the blow from the sword before it could connect with his head. He came up under the man’s swing and kicked out towards the middle of the man’s mass, the way he’d learned in his self-defense classes. It didn’t do any damage, but it did serve to surprise the man long enough for Thom to step in and neatly disarm the man with a blow that removed his arm below the elbow.

  “That was a little more difficult,” Thom said, wiping sweat off his face. He turned, ready to fight again when pounding footsteps echoed through the passageway. He relaxed when Aubrey appeared. “Patrick?”

  The man walked over, blood splattered his uniform. “They were waiting for us. I think we have a traitor in our midst. We should change our plan. They probably have half the crew waiting on the next deck,” he said, his voice so quiet Tristan could barely make it out.

  “I agree. Straight to the brig?”

  “Yes, sir, but we let the men think we are still going deck by deck. There won’t be time to warn anyone that we’re headed to the brig.”

  “See you there!”

  “Yes, sir!”

  “We got them,” Riggan said, walking up, his sword bloody. “Sorry it took so long.”

  “You made it in time, we’re about to head up.”

  Riggan looked at Thom for a long moment, then over at Tristan. “Aye, sir. Understood.”

  Tristan had no idea how Riggan had guessed that the plans had changed, but he knew somehow. He could tell when Riggan stepped closer to him, blocking him from the men in the lift and from the door, so that if they were fired at again, he would be in the way of the shot. Tristan was opening his mouth to say something, when Thom shook his head. With a sigh, Tristan held his tongue.

  Once they were in the lift, Thom shielded the buttons from the other men and punched the deck for the brig. The lift slid into motion and a few moments later the door was opening—not on the deck the men thought, but on the darkened corridor of the deck that held the brig. Some of the men muttered, but they all stepped out at the ready. Thom glanced over them, as if he could figure out which one had betrayed them. Of course, it could have been one of Aubrey’s men as well. It was a full minute later when Aubrey and his group appeared. With a nod at Thom, they all set out for the end of the corridor, the men moving into the cover of the various openings and cargo, in case someone opened fire.

  Tristan’s hands were shaking and his throat was dry. This was the most exposed he’d been in the whole process and the walk from the lift to the brig seemed like miles. There was no guard on the door, he heard several men comment on that in quiet tones. In fact the entire deck was empty.

  “They set the trap below us,” Thom said. “We weren’t supposed to jump over it.”

  Even so, they approached the door to the brig cautiously. The odd eerie quiet was all around them as Thom keyed the door open. It slid back to reveal two guards. Riggan and Aubrey were on them before they had time to draw their sidearms, and then Thom was hitting the button that opened all the cells. Rose Webber was one of the first to come out.

  “Doctor? What are you doing in here?” Thom asked as she walked towards them.

  “I disagreed with Fuhrman’s treatment of his new… servant,” she said, anger snapping in her eyes.

  “Is he still alive?” Tristan asked.

  “Oh, yes, I think that bastard plans on keeping him alive as long as possible. He’s even made it impossible for Chris to kill himself.” She frowned. “Are we retaking the ship then?”

  “Yes, ma’am. Captain Barrett and the Master Weaver have come back to lead us to victory,” Riggan said, sounding far too happy for the situation.

  “You’r
e enjoying yourself, Riggan,” Tristan said.

  “Yes, sir, I am, sir, and wait till we get to the upper deck.” He laughed. “Just wait.”

  “We need to deal with the situation first,” Thom said.

  “Situation?” Webber asked.

  “We have a traitor in our group, somehow they alerted security we were coming.”

  Riggan growled. “A traitor? I’ve had enough of traitors.” He glanced over the group surrounding them. “You know,” he said, his voice loud enough to carry over the crew. “I remember when I served with Captain Barrett before, we had a crewman who gave our position away to pirates. Vermin-lovers at that. You should have seen what he did to the man before we could stop him. I never knew you could actually tear a human apart, and then… then he gave him to the dragon to finish off.”

  Tristan was staring at Riggan, wondering what Thom would say, when one of the men towards the back of the group started edging away.

  “Stop him!” Thom called. The man was dragged up before them. “You’re lucky I’m in a good mood. I’m throwing you in the brig for now. We’ll discuss the rest when the dragons join us.”

  “You’re the traitor, Barrett. You know the only way we can win is to fight them on equal ground, just because you are a dragon lov…” He didn’t finish. Riggan had grabbed him and thew him into one of the cells, hitting the close button on the door.

  “So, sirs, shall we proceed to the top decks?”

  “Are you all with me?” Thom asked the group.

  A loud “Aye!” answered him.

  “And now,” Thom said, grinning at Tristan, “It’s time to call in Fenfyr and Taminick as well.”

  XXVIII

  The group gathered in the brig, looking expectantly at Thom. As they stood there, Tristan could see the change in his friend. Thom had always had an easy authority about him, but there was something more. He was in command, and it showed—his shoulders were square and even as they considered the seemingly impossible task of retaking the rest of the ship, he accepted it easily. It was his due, his ship and it was that simple. Thom motioned for Tristan, Aubrey, Webber and several of the freed officers to join him in the small space that separated the cells.