Riptide; Chapter 4

Raven stops beside me on the deck. "Cannons at the ready, Captain."

I nod, watching the ensign as they finish reknotting the remaining rigging of the mainmast. If this idea worked, we just might be able to get the fixed sail up. "Are they loaded?"

"Yes."

"Good. Keep our fastest stationed near them. Make sure they understand they are not to so much as move to fire without the order."

"Yes, Captain."

"Oh, and send the sail up. Hopefully, this works," I muse aloud.

"Yes, Captain." Raven disappears, aiming for the open hatch to the lower decks.

The lieutenant I'd set to watch the ensign on the other side of the deck walks up, saluting. "Rigging fixed, Captain."

"Good." I turn my eyes to what remains of the mainmast. It had broken off below the lower nest, but it still had enough height that this plan might just work. "The next part's the fun part. Get two ropes."

"Yes, Captain?" His confusion is clear, but he still obeys.

As he goes to fetch the rope, I move towards the mainmast. The lowest crossbeam had survived. That's what had given me this idea. The crossbeam below the lower nest had been lost with the nest, but that wasn't going to deter me. If we strung up ropes between the mast and crossbeams, we just might be able to get more sails up. They wouldn't be as big, but that would be fine. They wouldn't be easy to control like other sails, but they’d be functional, and that was all that mattered. They just had to catch the wind.

I glance towards the steadily approaching ship. Putting up our flag hadn't deterred them. They were now close enough to make out the sailors going about their tasks. It wouldn't be long before they were upon us.

The lieutenant returns with two coils of rope around him. "What's the plan, Captain?" He asks, unable to hold his curiosity anymore.

I turn my attention back to the mast. "I'm going to scale the mast," I tell him as I sit to pull my boots off. I found it easier to cross the beams barefoot. "We're going to see if we can get another sail up."

When I straighten, the lieutenant is looking up at the mast. "I could go up, Captain," he offers.

"You are, lieutenant," I tell him. He looks over in question. "We both are. Which side do you want?"

"Oh. I don't have a preference, Captain."

"I do, though," Liam says, appearing beside me. "I also have an objection."

I roll my eyes. "I've scaled the mast plenty, Commander, but your concern is noted."

"Out of sight?" He prompts me.

"What better way to be out of sight than to look like another sailor seeing to their assigned task?" I counter. I pat Liam on the shoulder as I take one of the coils from the lieutenant. "You can be our spotter."

"At least use a rope to secure yourself to the mast," Liam pleads.

"Don't worry, I'll be careful," I tell him.

"I remain unassured."

"Ready, Lieutenant?"

The lieutenant nods. "Follow or lead?" He asks.

I smile at him. "Follow me if you want."

I turn, heading for the still-standing rigging. I can hear the lieutenant following me as Liam mutters to himself.

I rarely got the chance to climb rigging barefoot anymore, but the feeling is familiar. I use my toes for extra grip as I haul myself along. Reaching the crossbeam, I slide from the rigging to the beam. I raise myself to a crouch, waiting until I'm familiar with the roll of the waves before rising. If the sea were any rougher today, I might have heeded Liam's concern, but the rocking is gentle, hardly noticeable. Besides, with how much slack I'd need to give myself to reach the top of the remaining mast, the safety rope would be useless once I started to scale the mast. Reaching the mast, I slip around it so I can face the lieutenant and we can both steady ourselves against it.

I keep my attention fixed on the lieutenant, even as the Gavalish ship comes up beside ours. Stay focused. A soldier following orders. I can hear voices, but I don't acknowledge them.

"I'll go up first, so you know where I want the rope secured. I'm going to leave extra slack at the end up there so you can tie it to your rope once you're done. Do the same with yours."

"Yes, Captain."

The lieutenant then lowers himself, sliding back on the beam, so I don't have to worry about hitting him as I begin my scale. The spikes embedded into the mast from here on up prove useful, and I finally feel vindicated for my insistence in having them put up. A 'frivolous expense' I had insisted be put on my ship. I knew the sailors assigned to the nests appreciated them. I caught them using them all the time instead of climbing the rigging all the way up to the beam below the nest they needed to get to. Now with no rigging to climb, they were making this task easier and safer. I could even use the highest spikes remaining to help secure this makeshift rigging.

I start by tying off the rope, leaving plenty for the lieutenant to tie to his. I knot it around the mast and spikes before tying it off to anchor it in place. My trek back down is slower as I have to pause to keep feeding the rope free. Back on the crossbeam, I pull the coil from my shoulders as the lieutenant rises.

"I'm going to start heading across my beam. Once you get down, take it to the other end. Use the rigging to help secure it in place. Make sure the rope is taut when you're done."

The lieutenant nods. "Yes, Captain."

"I'll see you back on the deck."

I turn around, finding my balance before starting across the beam. Being portside, I can't help but glance down. That's how I notice the gangplank stretched across the gap between our ships, now fastened together. Not a good sign.

I fix my gaze back on the beam before me. Finish the task at hand. Let Admiral Coswik handle this. I can't help but feel a bit foolish for not taking the starboard side. Unless I wanted to cross all the way back across, I'd have to come down near the small cluster of Gavalish soldiers standing near the rigging. At least they hadn't seemed too interested in me or what we were doing up here.

I sit down, straddling the beam as I set to securing the rope. My hands work by memory, the motions coming easily as I set to making the knots. Once it's secured, I use the taut rope to haul myself back to my feet. Standing, I test it again. I can feel it straining, but it doesn't give. Maybe some slack would have been good. Well, if this plan worked, we could finesse it later.

I glance down at the Gavalish soldiers below before I move to the rigging. They still weren't interested, and a glance at Liam shows no sign that he's waiting to signal me not to come down, so I suppose it was safe enough. Even as I jump from the railing to the deck, they don't glance over.

Reaching Liam's side, he offers me my boots and socks. I nod as I accept them, sinking to the deck.

"This harebrained plan of yours might just work," he muses as the door of Admiral Coswik's door opens.

I can't help but notice his grim expression. I've just noticed his cutlass is gone when the young man follows him out, calmly and casually swinging what I assume is Admiral Coswik's cutlass considering his own is still at his side. The soldiers near me are stilling. I can see Liam reaching for his cutlass as they draw near. I shove myself from the deck, boots forgotten. Admiral Coswik holds up his hands, a sign to stand down. Was he serious?

Admiral Coswik leads the way to where Liam and I stand. He doesn't so much as look at me though, keeping his eyes fixed on Liam. "Commander Brinks, have word sent about the ship. Everyone is to stand down. They are to turn their weapons over to the boarding party." Liam bristles. "It is only a temporary surrender while everything is sorted."

I flick my eyes to the man beside Admiral Coswik. His dark hair is long enough to still be tossed by the wind, but not long enough to fall into his face. Like any Gavalish, his skin has a naturally tanned look, slightly darkened by time spent in the sun. He stands easily, uniform bearing no insignia. Not that mine did either. I had taken it off after the meeting in Admiral Coswik's cabin. Yet I had no doubt he was Prince Rayan. Grand Admiral of the Gavalish navy.

He casually points Admiral Coswik's sword at Liam while he signals his men forward. "And you can start by handing over yours." Liam scowls as he pulls his cutlass free, holding it out to Prince Rayan. "Captain," Prince Rayan calls, barely glancing at the cutlass as he steps past Liam to point the sword at me.

He doesn't say anything, eyes simply turning skyward, examining something. I still begin reaching for my cutlass. Admiral Coswik hadn't addressed me. I wore no insignia. Our ship flew no royal pennant. He had probably already dismissed me as an ensign. None of our ensigns had insignias. He probably wasn't going to bother addressing me. Fine.

"Not a bad idea to get another sail up," He speaks suddenly. I pause, hand wrapped around my cutlass's hilt. "No doubt your idea, your Highness," he says, eyes falling on me.