by Henry Vogel
“Forgive me, my boy,” Garrett said. “I’m still adjusting to the idea that the niece I spoiled so horribly is a married woman, now.”
Callan rolled her eyes. “You and Daddy, both!”
Nist called, “The airships are in firing range!”
I could see Martin trying to get the attention of the patrol ship captains, but they were too busy maneuvering to pay him any attention! His ship too damaged to maneuver, Martin began a rapid, controlled descent. Surprised by Martin’s move, the patrol ships’ first few shots flew harmlessly over the stricken airship. If Martin could hold out for another few seconds, we’d be in among the patrol ships. We were no more than a hundred yards away from the battle when a ballista bolt hit the airship’s envelope at just the right angle. Instead of punching straight in, it sliced along the edge of the envelope, ripping a gaping hole in it.
Gas poured through the rip and the envelope began to crumple!
Chapter 17
“Nist, find the fastest way to get me to Martin’s ship!” I cried, rushing to a coil of rope on the Pauline’s deck. “Garrett, you’ve got to find a way to call off your patrol ships!”
“How?” Garrett demanded.
“Keep waving the flags. Shout. Jump up and down. Whatever it takes. Just get it done!” I said, tying one end of the rope to a docking cleat. “Nist, does the Pauline have enough lift to help Martin land safely?”
“Not at the rate he’s losing gas,” Nist replied, “but if we can get the patrol ships to stop shooting and help, I think we can do it.”
“Then do whatever you have to do to make sure those patrol ships see Garrett!”
Nist grinned and began making course corrections. Seconds later, Nist squeezed the Pauline through the narrow gap between two of the patrol ships. With the Pauline steaming just feet from both patrol ships, Garrett—waving, jumping, and shouting—finally got the attention of the crews. Those two airships broke off their attacks as Nist dove toward Martin’s flailing ship.
The third patrol ship finally spotted the Pauline and, more important, Garrett in the bow. The ship broke off its attack, too, leaving a clear path to Martin’s airship.
“With the envelope flapping around, this is as close as I can get,” Nist called to me a few seconds later.
We were twenty feet above the deck of Martin’s ship and ten feet from its railing. It was farther than I’d have preferred, but I clutched the rope and took a running jump from the rail. Eight hundred feet of empty space yawned beneath me, then I crashed onto the deck of the stricken airship. Crewmen took the rope from me and rushed to tie it to an envelope mooring cleat.
Through all the commotion, I could hear Garrett shouting orders to his patrol ships, instructing them to render all aid to Martin’s airship. I hoped they had some kind of procedure for aiding damaged ships, perhaps something similar to what I had done?
Half a minute later, I had my answer. Patrol ship crewmen began jumping to the deck, each holding the end of a rope. Lines were tied off and our descent began to slow. It finally stopped about a hundred feet from the ground.
Martin was kept busy directing the three patrol ships, the Pauline, and his own crew during the short flight to Pingor. Only when his ship was docked, did Martin come talk to me.
“I’ve got bad news, David,” he said. “Not only is Callan right about Windslow being behind these kidnappings, I discovered he’s not working alone.”
“Who’s working with him?” I asked, certain I knew the answer already.
Martin grimaced. “Raoul.”
Chapter 18
Before I could ask Martin for more information, the voice of Tristan Agrilla, well known as the Desert Doctor for his work among the southern desert tribes, rose from below deck.
“Martin! I need stretchers and stretcher bearers for the wounded.” Climbing onto the main deck, Tristan’s eyes focused on me for the first time. “Good to see you, lad! Could you please nip off and arrange a room for my patients?”
“How many have you got?”
“Too many! Twenty-two,” Tristan replied. “None of them are very serious, though, so there’s no need for an operating theater.”
“I hear and obey, Mighty Healer!” I sketched a bow.
“Bah! You sound just like that scamp, Nist,” Tristan replied. “Begone, boy!”
“Once the wounded are taken care of, you’ll need to tell us what happened,” I said to Martin, then dodged through the crowd to find Garrett.
Moments later, a line of stretchers was headed into Garrett’s palace. Callan and I watched them pass, our worst fears ameliorated when Milo walked off the airship. His head was bandaged but his stride was steady. Milo gave us a smile which took on a strained quality when Callan pulled him aside and started checking him over.
“I’m fine, Cal— um, Your Highness,” Milo protested. “You know Tristan would have me on a stretcher if I’d taken more than a bump on the head!”
“Just stand still and let her satisfy herself, Milo,” I said. “It’ll be easier for us all in the long run.”
Callan had just finished giving Milo the once-over when Martin joined us. The four of us went to join Lord Garrett in his sitting room.
Garrett was busy reuniting with his family, one arm around Michelle’s waist and the other holding Ann. Ellen was hugging one of Garrett’s legs, a big smile on her face. Brolan stood nearby, looking like he wanted to join in the hugging if only no one was watching.
“Now that I’ve had a chance to think about what’s been happening,” Garrett said, “what on earth do you think you’re doing, Callie?”
“What do you mean, Uncle?”
“I understand why you engaged this ex-raider,” Garrett pointed at Martin, “to fight the trog army, but the Royal Navy is no longer scattered to all points of the compass searching for you. So why isn’t the capital fleet escorting you?”
“Ask Brolan,” Callan replied. “He figured it out.”
“Did he?” Garrett looked at his son. “Well, my boy?”
Brolan bit his lip and then blurted, “Because the admirals would still be making plans and keeping Callie under guard and the king and queen would be dead before the navy could find them!”
“I think you do our naval commanders a disservice,” Garrett said, “though I suppose there is some truth to your reasoning.”
“But?” Callan asked.
“But by now the navy is bound to be mobilized and starting another search for you, Callie. So your objections to dealing with the navy are no longer valid,” Garrett responded. “Now it’s time for you to return to the capital and let the navy handle this matter. If you apologize for the insult to the navy brass, I can persuade the admirals to chalk all of this up to the impetuousness of youth. No lasting harm need come of it.”
“No lasting harm? The navy excels at many things, Uncle, but subtlety is not one of them,” Callan said. “Windslow would see the navy coming from miles away. He’d have plenty of time to kill my parents and make good his escape before the navy even knew where Windslow was hiding.”
“That’s another thing,” Garrett said. “Your only evidence of Windslow’s involvement is the confession of a dying assassin! What if he was lying?”
“He wasn’t lying, Lord Garrett,” Martin said. “The damage to my ship occurred when we were attacked by Ardhan Windslow and Prince Raoul!”
Chapter 19
“Remember the airship I was waiting for yesterday?” Bane asked. “Apparently Windslow and Raoul convinced—or bought, more likely—the loyalty of the ship’s captain. I expect it happened sometime after I worked with the captain in Faroon. He was probably already working for them when I put the word out last night that I was hiring ships.”
“A raider who sells out to the highest bidder?” Garrett sneered. “I’m shocked at his disloyalty!”
“Perhaps he simply took after the sterling examples of loyalty shown by some of your royal commanders!” Martin shot back. “There’s the example of the
western squadron captains thirty years ago, handsomely paid to sit idle and watch while a Tartegian fleet sailed across the border to attack. Or raiders could emulate Windslow, himself. How much does one have to pay the captain of the Royal Guard to mastermind a plot to kidnap a four year old princess?”
“Stop it, both of you!” Callan commanded. “Uncle, you will stifle your opinions and work with Martin. If you cannot do that, I’ll take my leave of you right now and make do without the benefit of your advice.”
Callan glared until Garrett nodded.
“As for you, Martin,” she whirled to face him, “despite your obvious change of heart and your heroics at Faroon, you were a raider for fifteen years. It’s going to take time to convince people you’ve changed. Learn to deal with it!”
“As you command, Highness,” Martin said, flourishing a bow which was, for once, devoid of irony.
“Good. Continue with your report, Martin.”
“As I said, I was waiting for one more airship, the Kestrel, before heading north to coordinate the search. When he arrived, Captain Stubb and a few members of his crew came aboard for their briefing. Once we were below decks, the crew of the Kestrel swarmed aboard and had my men at sword point before they even realized what was happening,” Martin said. “That’s when Windslow and Raoul showed themselves. They wanted to know where they could find you. Stubb incidentally, wanted to take all the valuables we had onboard.”
“Wait,” Callan said. “They knew I hadn’t been kidnapped?”
“They suspected it,” Martin said. “I tried to lead them astray, Your Highness, telling them I had been hired by David to find you.”
“Didn’t they wonder why I wasn’t with you?” I asked.
“Indeed. Alas, you were severely wounded defending Her Highness,” Martin said. “You sent your trusted page, Milo, to me with instructions to find your wife.”
“And they believed you agreed to help out of the goodness of your heart?” Garrett interjected.
“No, they believed I agreed to help because Princess Callan is my one and only patron among Mordanian royalty,” Martin said. “No offense, David, but Raoul seems to think your good will is of no consequence without Callan.”
“In that respect,” Garrett said, “they are sadly mistaken.”
Callan rewarded Garrett with a smile before nodding to Martin to continue.
“I told Stubb where to find our valuables and told my men to cooperate. Stubb’s crew didn’t appear eager to put us to the sword and I began to hope we were going to get out of the situation without a fight,” Martin continued. “That’s when Milo came up on deck. Tristan had sent him to see what was going on. I guess seeing Milo reminded Raoul of everything that happened in Faroon. Anyway, when Raoul spotted Milo, he lost all of his composure! Raoul drew his sword and attacked Milo!”
Chapter 20
Garrett looked at Milo. “Raoul is a grown man. The lad can’t be any older than Brolan.”
“I’m fourteen!” Milo said, with the vehemence of a teenager accused of being younger than his true age
“Even so, it’s still not very noble of Raoul to attack such a young lad,” Garrett growled.
“As David has observed in the past, Raoul isn’t particularly noble. Besides, ‘tried to attack’ is a much more accurate description of events,” Martin said. “Raoul’s leg buckled before he could reach Milo. I’d say that stab wound you gave him still hasn’t fully healed, Your Highness.
“While Raoul struggled back to his feet, Milo darted below deck. Once he was on his feet, Raoul hobbled after him. With all the attention on Raoul, I elbowed Stubb in the stomach and ran after the prince,” Martin said. “Raoul chased Milo into the surgery, hitting Milo on the head with the pommel of his sword. Tristan stepped between Raoul and the boy then tried to talk sense into Raoul. As most of you know, that’s a waste of time, words, and breath. Raoul looked as if he was about to attack Tristan when I tackled Raoul from behind.
“I put a dagger at Raoul’s throat just as Windslow and Stubb reached the door. They were backed by a couple of crossbowmen, so we had a bit of a stand off. Raoul makes a good bargaining chip—that’s the one thing he’s proven to be good for—and it’s apparent Windslow doesn’t want to risk upsetting the Tartegian royal house,” Martin continued. “I ordered Stubb to pull his men back to his ship and to take Windslow with him. I promised Windslow I’d release Raoul once they were off my ship. In return, Windslow promised to leave in peace once they had Raoul. I kept my part of the bargain. Stubb, encouraged by Raoul, broke their part and attacked after our airships separated.
“My ship and crew weren’t prepared for battle, so I took a page from your playbook, David. I Boosted and jumped across to Stubb’s ship.” Martin smiled, “You know, it’s rather fun to be the dashing hero every now and then—even if there isn’t a beautiful princess to rescue! I ran Stubb through before he could draw his sword—not very sporting of me, Lord Garrett, but Stubb did break his word! I slashed two crossbowmen who were taking aim at my crew and then had a clear run at Raoul.
“Raoul, meanwhile, had a clear run below deck. He took off as fast as he could hobble. I chased the coward into the captain’s cabin and was ready to kill him right there. I thought I might get a medal from the Tartegians for taking care of their embarrassing Spare Prince. But I’d forgotten about Windslow. He followed me into the cabin, hit me on the head with a belaying pin, then shoved me over the railing of the captain’s balcony!”
Chapter 21
“The only thing that saved me from a very long fall was the flagpole for the Beloren flag Stubb flies from the stern of the Kestrel,” Martin said. “Since I was still Boosting, I was able to catch the flagpole, swing around it, and pop back up onto the balcony. Windslow was just looking over the rail to watch me fall, so I plowed into him, knocking him backwards into Raoul. The two of them crashed to the deck and were just lying there helpless. I would have taken the opportunity to finish them off except a bunch of Stubb’s crewmen piled into the cabin.
“Even Boosted, those were odds I just didn’t like. I jumped from the balcony to the railing above and pulled myself onto the main deck. During the confusion, my ship had separated from the Kestrel and pulled away. They were circling nearby, waiting for me. The Kestrel’s port ballista crew was watching my ship, just waiting for a chance to fire on it. I charged into them and knocked two of the crew overboard. That was too much for the remaining two crewman and they ran. I spun the ballista around to aim at the Kestrel’s port engine and fired, blowing away the propeller. Then I took a running jump to my ship.
“The second I landed on the deck, the helmsman swung away from the Kestrel and we made a run for it. Despite the confusion on board, Stubb’s crew managed to get off one good ballista shot. It nearly destroyed our steam engine. With Stubb wounded and the airship down to a single engine, the crew of the Kestrel didn’t press the attack.” Martin wrapped up, “We made what repairs we could then limped here for full repairs to the engine. And, thanks to the fine welcome we received, my ship also needs repair to its envelope!”
“Don’t go there, Martin!” Callan warned.
Martin raised his hands in acquiescence, then said, “There is one more, rather important bit to the story. I think I know where Stubb is taking Raoul and Windslow. Unless I miss my guess, it’s to wherever they’re holding the king and queen.”
“What makes you think that?” I asked.
“Stubb had a navigation chart laid out on the table in his cabin,” Martin replied. “I only got a brief glance at it, but instructed my implant to record the image. If Lord Garrett has charts for the mountains northwest of here, I think I can show you where they’re going.”
Moments later, Martin selected a chart from those Garrett had ordered brought to us. Martin’s finger pointed into the mountains. “Here. Stubb’s chart had a mark right here.”
Garrett leaned closer, “Of course! I can’t believe it didn’t occur to me!”
“W
hat didn’t occur to you, Uncle?” Callan asked.
“They’re headed to the Aerie, a long-abandoned mountain fortress,” Garrett said. “That’s got to be where Windslow is holding the king and queen!”
Chapter 22
“I admit it’s compelling evidence and agree it’s the first place we should check,” I said, “but why would Windslow use any place on Mordanian soil, much less an old Mordanian fort?”
“The Aerie was Windslow’s first post after he joined the military,” Garrett said. “The fortress was built centuries ago to guard the only mountain pass between Tarteg and Mordan. The Tartegians have a similar fort at the other end of the pass. When airships came along, the fortress became obsolete. Who needs a mountain pass when you can just fly over the mountains? It was kept manned out of force of habit until my father closed the place. I was quite young when it was abandoned, but my personal guard told me all about the place.”
“Was Windslow your personal guard?” Callan asked.
Garrett nodded. “The Aerie has been abandoned for forty years, it’s hard to reach without an airship, and well fortified. It would be perfect for hiding royal hostages. If you’d had this information last night, Callie, you could have gotten there long before Windslow and Raoul. There’s no chance of that, now.”
“That’s not necessarily true,” Martin said. “They’ll have to repair the port engine or limp along at half speed. Either way, a small, fast ship like the Pauline might get there before them, if it could make the entire run at full speed.”
When I explained the situation to Tristan, he readily agreed to let us borrow his airship again. “You know Nist and the Pauline are available any time you need them. But you must take me along, too. Their Majesties may need medical care, especially if Windslow’s men have been treating them roughly!”
