Nexmaroc
Forgot the controls.
The bow of the Prominent: Present Day
Waves crashed against the ship, making its creaky hulk lightly sway to and fro. Sailors bellowed and cursed at each other as they unfurled and tied away sails. Aurum's honor guard groaned as they helped in whatever way they could, be it scrubbing the deck or manning the oars, or even ladling out gruel at dinnertime. Sure the work could be considered below their station, but it would be good for them. Every one of them will command one day, Aurum thought, let them work for it.
The small thunk of wood on wood returned Aurum's attention to the chess board. The captain, whom Aurum had had to practically force to take a moment to relax, smiled toothlessly across the table at him as he swiped a badly painted black rook from the battlefield. "Not so bad fer a beginner, eh, First General?" Aurum smiled back at him. Despite the man's glee, the rook had just told him how he would win.
Knights in front, pawn in back, bishop across the board, both queens taken. 45 moves.
Still, the captain was an honest, good-natured fellow. Might as well let him believe that he was smarter than he was.
The afternoon sun beat strongly on their backs as they exchanged pieces. Antiga had long since faded in the distance, and with each mile Aurum relaxed. He had missed this. The sea and salt. The honest folk. The feeling of adventure. Would that he could have taken the helm and steered them to some far off land undiscovered by man. Duty bade him otherwise.
"Captain! First General!" two voices shouted at once.
Lieutenant Haren and some sailor, most likely the first mate, ran shoulder to shoulder up the stairs to the upper deck. At first they spoke over each other, their words mingling unintelligibly. A hard stare from the captain silenced them both. Aurum nodded to the sailor, much to his lieutenant's disappointment.
"Captain! Ship sighted off the starboard bow. T'ain't flyin' no flag."
"Pirates." the captain grumbled. He turned to Aurum. "There's been an infestation of 'em. Ain't no way we can out run 'em. Not with our load."
"Don't worry about that." Aurum said, standing. "My men can take care of them."
Unable to wait any longer, Lieutenant Haren jumped in. "Their not pirates! Ship is too small." "Of course their bleedin' pirates you half wit! Any sailor who knows his salt can spot a pirate!" "And any soldier worth a damn knows a warship you blockhead!"
"Enough!" Aurum's shout silenced the whole ship it seemed. He could be very intimidating at his full height, and he was more than a little annoyed at the two boy's bickering. Pirates or no, a ship with no flag was a dangerous thing on the open sea, and Aurum didn't like the thought of an unknown ship in Celaise. At best it was a trading vessel with a lazy crew. At worst...
"Captain. Ram the ship."
"E-excuse me?"
"Now."
The crew scrambled to follow his orders, even as his own men scrambled to prepare for battle. Aurum simply walked towards the bow. Underfoot, the Prominent groaned as its girth swung towards the ship in question. At first glance, it looked like a normal Gracian trading galley. Poison and peaches often come in the same crates. Even loaded with meats and produce as she was, the Prominent proved to be a fast ship. The distance between the two ships closed in a matter of minutes, and soon Aurum could see the other crew scrambling to move their ship out of the way. It would matter if they succeeded or not.
The moment they were close enough, Aurum broke into a dead sprint and leapt onto the other deck. The smell of dung hit him like a hot wave as he landed, and only years of discipline kept him standing. Around him, shirtless sailors and armored mercenaries drew their weapons. Not well enough maintained to be soldiers, and too new to have seen hard use.
Smugglers.
Aurum's right hand shot out to his side. For a moment nothing happened. A small light began to burn in Aurum's palm. It twisted and jerked like fire, burning brighter by the second before finally erupting out in a long, slender shaft of brilliant white fire. Aurum gripped his lance tightly in both hands, and rushed forward.
The first man hadn't even had time to react before Aurum rent him in twain, both pieces burning at their ends. The second raised his sword in defense, but the cold steel melted before he to was slain. "Surrender or die." he shouted. They rushed him all at once. Fools.
Aurum began to flow through the forms, years of practice making his movements effortless. He spun in place, his lance darting in and out of the fray, felling men wherever it landed. It spun around his body in wide arcs and shallow thrusts. Blades whooshed by his head and torso just barely out of reach. Even without Celaise's blessing, this would have been a slaughter. Soon enough, it was over. Twenty men lay burning around him. The others threw down their weapons in fear.
Behind him came the the thud of grappling hooks and boarding planks. Both his men and the sailors of the Prominent came rushing over, weapons drawn and snarling, ready for a fight that was already done. Aurum began to bark orders above the noise.
"Orest! Tie up these men and take them as prisoners. Don't harm them unless they fight. Haren, take three men below and find out what the hell they were smuggling. Captain, I believe you were about to take my queen." The captain just gaped at him.
Twenty minutes and one checkmate later, lieutenant Haren marched up to him with a look of utter bewilderment. "Sir. Its.... wyverns. They were smuggling wyverns."
Interesting. "How many soldier?" "26"
Aurum didn't let his shock show on his face. Wyverns were very, very expensive and very, very rare. If properly trained they could be flown vast distances in very little time. Aurum didn't get his hopes up. Riding wyverns of any worth came with special saddles from breeders at a premium cost. These were black market wyverns most likely captured in the wild. He'd heard one story about a man who tried to ride one bareback. One very brutal story. Hundreds of times.
"I'm assuming they didn't have any tack."
"They did."
This time the shock did show on his face. Black market riding wyverns. Just when you think you've seen everything.
"Those beasts could save us a weeks worth of travel. Get them saddled Lieutenant."
Haren saluted and ran off with his orders. Wyverns. They could be in Alexandria's borders by nightfall. What an incredible stroke of luck. Praise be Celaise! Not much daylight left though. Wyverns didn't do well in darkness. They would have to make camp during the night.
"Captain. Do you know of any villages within a few hours flight from here?"
The Captain tugged on his fluffy white beard for a moment. "Not really a flyin' man sir. No, my feet were made for salt. Most maps I've seen say a village called Sunspan is pretty close to Antiga though. Might be close to here."
Aurum nodded. Sunspan was a small hovel on Alexandria's southern border, if he remembered correctly. It would be a perfect place to land.
Wyverns. By the goddess there is no way I get that lucky twice. If I didn't know any better, I'd say that whole village is going to be on fire.
Waves crashed against the ship, making its creaky hulk lightly sway to and fro. Sailors bellowed and cursed at each other as they unfurled and tied away sails. Aurum's honor guard groaned as they helped in whatever way they could, be it scrubbing the deck or manning the oars, or even ladling out gruel at dinnertime. Sure the work could be considered below their station, but it would be good for them. Every one of them will command one day, Aurum thought, let them work for it.
The small thunk of wood on wood returned Aurum's attention to the chess board. The captain, whom Aurum had had to practically force to take a moment to relax, smiled toothlessly across the table at him as he swiped a badly painted black rook from the battlefield. "Not so bad fer a beginner, eh, First General?" Aurum smiled back at him. Despite the man's glee, the rook had just told him how he would win.
Knights in front, pawn in back, bishop across the board, both queens taken. 45 moves.
Still, the captain was an honest, good-natured fellow. Might as well let him believe that he was smarter than he was.
The afternoon sun beat strongly on their backs as they exchanged pieces. Antiga had long since faded in the distance, and with each mile Aurum relaxed. He had missed this. The sea and salt. The honest folk. The feeling of adventure. Would that he could have taken the helm and steered them to some far off land undiscovered by man. Duty bade him otherwise.
"Captain! First General!" two voices shouted at once.
Lieutenant Haren and some sailor, most likely the first mate, ran shoulder to shoulder up the stairs to the upper deck. At first they spoke over each other, their words mingling unintelligibly. A hard stare from the captain silenced them both. Aurum nodded to the sailor, much to his lieutenant's disappointment.
"Captain! Ship sighted off the starboard bow. T'ain't flyin' no flag."
"Pirates." the captain grumbled. He turned to Aurum. "There's been an infestation of 'em. Ain't no way we can out run 'em. Not with our load."
"Don't worry about that." Aurum said, standing. "My men can take care of them."
Unable to wait any longer, Lieutenant Haren jumped in. "Their not pirates! Ship is too small." "Of course their bleedin' pirates you half wit! Any sailor who knows his salt can spot a pirate!" "And any soldier worth a damn knows a warship you blockhead!"
"Enough!" Aurum's shout silenced the whole ship it seemed. He could be very intimidating at his full height, and he was more than a little annoyed at the two boy's bickering. Pirates or no, a ship with no flag was a dangerous thing on the open sea, and Aurum didn't like the thought of an unknown ship in Celaise. At best it was a trading vessel with a lazy crew. At worst...
"Captain. Ram the ship."
"E-excuse me?"
"Now."
The crew scrambled to follow his orders, even as his own men scrambled to prepare for battle. Aurum simply walked towards the bow. Underfoot, the Prominent groaned as its girth swung towards the ship in question. At first glance, it looked like a normal Gracian trading galley. Poison and peaches often come in the same crates. Even loaded with meats and produce as she was, the Prominent proved to be a fast ship. The distance between the two ships closed in a matter of minutes, and soon Aurum could see the other crew scrambling to move their ship out of the way. It would matter if they succeeded or not.
The moment they were close enough, Aurum broke into a dead sprint and leapt onto the other deck. The smell of dung hit him like a hot wave as he landed, and only years of discipline kept him standing. Around him, shirtless sailors and armored mercenaries drew their weapons. Not well enough maintained to be soldiers, and too new to have seen hard use.
Smugglers.
Aurum's right hand shot out to his side. For a moment nothing happened. A small light began to burn in Aurum's palm. It twisted and jerked like fire, burning brighter by the second before finally erupting out in a long, slender shaft of brilliant white fire. Aurum gripped his lance tightly in both hands, and rushed forward.
The first man hadn't even had time to react before Aurum rent him in twain, both pieces burning at their ends. The second raised his sword in defense, but the cold steel melted before he to was slain. "Surrender or die." he shouted. They rushed him all at once. Fools.
Aurum began to flow through the forms, years of practice making his movements effortless. He spun in place, his lance darting in and out of the fray, felling men wherever it landed. It spun around his body in wide arcs and shallow thrusts. Blades whooshed by his head and torso just barely out of reach. Even without Celaise's blessing, this would have been a slaughter. Soon enough, it was over. Twenty men lay burning around him. The others threw down their weapons in fear.
Behind him came the the thud of grappling hooks and boarding planks. Both his men and the sailors of the Prominent came rushing over, weapons drawn and snarling, ready for a fight that was already done. Aurum began to bark orders above the noise.
"Orest! Tie up these men and take them as prisoners. Don't harm them unless they fight. Haren, take three men below and find out what the hell they were smuggling. Captain, I believe you were about to take my queen." The captain just gaped at him.
Twenty minutes and one checkmate later, lieutenant Haren marched up to him with a look of utter bewilderment. "Sir. Its.... wyverns. They were smuggling wyverns."
Interesting. "How many soldier?" "26"
Aurum didn't let his shock show on his face. Wyverns were very, very expensive and very, very rare. If properly trained they could be flown vast distances in very little time. Aurum didn't get his hopes up. Riding wyverns of any worth came with special saddles from breeders at a premium cost. These were black market wyverns most likely captured in the wild. He'd heard one story about a man who tried to ride one bareback. One very brutal story. Hundreds of times.
"I'm assuming they didn't have any tack."
"They did."
This time the shock did show on his face. Black market riding wyverns. Just when you think you've seen everything.
"Those beasts could save us a weeks worth of travel. Get them saddled Lieutenant."
Haren saluted and ran off with his orders. Wyverns. They could be in Alexandria's borders by nightfall. What an incredible stroke of luck. Praise be Celaise! Not much daylight left though. Wyverns didn't do well in darkness. They would have to make camp during the night.
"Captain. Do you know of any villages within a few hours flight from here?"
The Captain tugged on his fluffy white beard for a moment. "Not really a flyin' man sir. No, my feet were made for salt. Most maps I've seen say a village called Sunspan is pretty close to Antiga though. Might be close to here."
Aurum nodded. Sunspan was a small hovel on Alexandria's southern border, if he remembered correctly. It would be a perfect place to land.
Wyverns. By the goddess there is no way I get that lucky twice. If I didn't know any better, I'd say that whole village is going to be on fire.