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The journey to Wrothsport was a long and slow march, first along the old road, following the broken flagstones until they met the black stone of the Great Iron Road, then on through wilderness until they were almost to the coast. A few cold nights were spent in the tent, camped out under the stars. By the time they reached the port city, Karin had them on half meals, stretching what little food remained for the journey, until she could buy supplies again. As the grasslands finally gave way to paved roads once more, the city rose ahead of them, a huge mass of mismatched buildings built across many past ages that spread along the coast as far as they could see. The wind whipping through sails and ropes and masts came whispering through the city’s streets as they arrived, a welcome from the continuous stream of passenger ships, trade ships, fishing vessels, and even huge commanding warships lined with cannons that came and went from the open sea beyond. Cirrus led them through the wide roads of the city all the way down to the harbourside. Grais was reminded of Port Isaris, but this was on a scale she had never imagined possible. There were hundreds of ships moored at the jetties and pontoons, and the harbour walls were packed with people. The port was so vast it had three huge light towers spread along its walls, tall stone buildings painted red and white with huge lenticular lenses built around the fires that burned under domed roofs at their tops.
The pack dismounted at the edge of the harbour wall, tying the beetles up to hitching posts that ran along the pavement beside the wide road where carts and wagons thundered past as frequent as walkers in any other town. Grais stood staring at the scene, taking in every detail of the crowds and the ships and the buildings.
“No time for sightseeing!” Cirrus shouted, patting her on the shoulder, “Come on.”
She made sure everyone stuck close together and kept Jarrah in front of her all the time so the girl couldn’t run off without her seeing. They pushed through the crowds until they reached the city side of the road.
“If you get lost,” she said, trying to make sure everyone heard her, “return to the beetles and wait for everyone else. I’m going to get us a boat for this afternoon, if I can.” She looked up at the huge clock that hung from great iron chains over the harbour wall. “Be back by midday.”
She pushed her way into the crowd, shoving Jarrah along in front of her, and left the others to their own plans. Karin dragged Dog off with her to find the market so she could get some food for the journey ahead while Sira and Ki stayed to keep an eye on the beetles. There were a lot of valuable items strapped up on Rook’s cargo harness and they didn’t want to find they’d been robbed before they reached the boat.
Melody circled around Asten and Grais as they walked out along the harbourside. She was wary that the Wooden Knight may have predicted their choice of departure point, or even that they might be here by chance making their own way ahead to the Endless Plains. She soon gave up and just stuck close by Asten’s shoulder; it was impossible to see any distance ahead through the thick crowds that cluttered the pavements and roads in the city. Grais gave an excited little shout when she spotted a small clothes shop hidden away up a little alleyway. She slipped the coin pouch from Asten’s bag before he could stop her and vanished up the road. Melody stopped him chasing after her and they continued out onto the jetties to look at the ships that were moored there.
“Which one do you think is ours?” Melody wondered, looking out across the vast collection of masts.
“The Bluebird!” Jarrah cried excitedly as she pushed her way between them.
Cirrus came running after her.
“Hey. We got a boat.” she sounded out of breath.
“It’s over there! The one with all the cannons!” Jarrah grinned.
“We were in luck. The only ship leaving for the Endless Plains today was a military vessel.” Cirrus explained, “They’re assisting in the evacuation, so the captain agreed to take us free of charge when I told her what was going on.” She lunged forwards suddenly, but too late. Jarrah was off running out along the jetty to get a closer look at one of the ships that was pulling into the harbour. “Argh! Pup!”
“Solbren was right about the exodus from the northern shores then.” Asten said sadly.
“Looks like it. The ship’s Salvian. Apparently the knights got anyone they could to help out.”
“When do we leave?”
“Four.” Cirrus let herself relax but kept an eye on Jarrah as she ran from ship to ship and got in the way of the disembarking sailors and passengers. “So long as the wind stays in the right direction, otherwise we’ll be stuck here overnight.”
Jarrah came running back and skidded to a stop in front of the others. Her tail wagged excitedly behind her as she pulled at Melody’s hand.
“Come on! You can see the Bluebird better from the end!”
She led them down the jetty, between the annoyed crew of the ships who had been working around her, and out to the very end of the wooden walkway.
“It’s got sixty-four cannons!” she announced, “The captain is called Kaitlis, and she has a metal leg after she got hit by cannon fire. And it has blastiron shields they put up in battle.”
Jarrah’s excitement at sailing on the vessel only grew as she rattled off everything she’d learnt about it. She bounced up and down and talked until she ran out of breath.
As the clock over the harbour wall rang out midday, Grais came running along the harbourside dressed in a deep blue jacket with an elegant white leather corset beneath it. The rest of the pack were already gathered by the beetles, and everyone had some idea of the plan because Jarrah couldn’t help but tell them all the second she arrived.
“Nice of you to join us.” Cirrus said with a wave as Grais came along by the hitching posts, “We’re heading out at four, on the Blubird, the huge warship over on jetty twelve. Captain wants all the beetles loaded by two thirty. Karin, can you help me sort that?”
Karin nodded.
“Everyone else be ready to go. Last few hours to shop for anything you’ll need, and then we’re meeting on the jetty. Okay?”
Everyone agreed, and the pack broke up once more. Cirrus always felt secure when she had a plan to work to and hummed happily as she untied the first of the beetles ready to ride down to the ship. It was difficult going, the jetties were narrow and wet and full of people who had to stand aside to let them pass through, and that was only with Scarab and Jackal. To get Rook on board would take a coordinated effort with the help of the Bluebird’s crew.
The Bluebird was vast, a massive naval warship designed to sail the open waters beyond the jaws of the Salvian Sea. It had four gangplanks along its side where the crew were loading boxes of medical supplies and huge crates full of food for the journey. At the third gangplank, one of the sailors waved to Cirrus as he pulled the little chain aside to let her and Karin ride the beetles right up onto the deck. Once on board, the crew took control, leading the beetles over to the cargo winch and lowering them carefully down into the hold. Cirrus was pleasantly surprised at the care with which they treated them and found they weren’t the only animals down below the deck when she went to peer into the opening where the heavy wooden grates had been slid aside. She could see down into the deep hold where Jackal was being unloaded from the straps of the crane and Scarab was being shut into a little pen of her own. The crew hung troughs of sugar water for them as she had instructed, and she could see a bucket of oranges that had been added alongside the grains and wheat for the shire horses that were stood in the other pens.
Once all the beetles were below the deck, Cirrus and Karin turned to leave. As they headed down, they almost passed by the young woman climbing up the gangplank, until she tipped her hat to Cirrus. She was dressed in a fine military uniform and had a small gold charm in the shape on an anchor hanging about her neck. Her hair was pulled back in a tight business-like bun beneath the deep red tricorn hat she wore. Her one long black boot clicked on the wood, her other leg, a finely wrought metal device that was strapped up just above her knee made a dull clunk with each step.
“All loaded already?” she asked.
“Yeah, just finished. I see your crew were well prepared for them.”
“Of course. We don’t take passengers lightly, and I like to treat them with respect.”
“Thank you again, captain.” Cirrus said with a little bow.
“Quite alright, my queen. We leave with the winds; I expect a timely departure.”
The captain walked on up the gangplank without another word.
“She’s stern. I like her.” Karin smiled.
Sira was the last to board the boat. It was ten to four, and she’d spent an hour trying to track down Jarrah in the city until she eventually found her browsing the charms in a little magic shop run by a blind old Cawcaasi mage. She came running along the jetty with Jarrah in her wake and skidded up to the gangplank, shoving the girl on ahead of her.
“Never go off again! Never go off again!” she shouted over and over while Jarrah apologised.
Captain Kaitlis watched her passengers arrive from the quarterdeck. She stood tall and straight-backed behind the railing as she looked out over her ship, the perfect model of the Salvir North navy’s pride and dignity. Everyone who should be was on board, and everything was ready to sail. She looked over to the harbour clock and ran through the final checks in her head as the last minutes ticked away. When the minute hand clicked into place at the two minute mark, all but one of the gangplanks were pulled up onto the deck and stowed away. When it clicked the final minute, she stepped over to the helm and ran her hand over the curved surface until she reached the wheel’s handles. Her metal leg hissed with vapour as she locked its position with a special modification she had had built into it to allow her to focus entirely on the ship without having to think about the device at all. When the harbour clock began to ring out the hour, she called from the helm.
“Mainsails! Foresails! Mooring!”
The last crewmember on the jetty heaved the heavy mooring rope from the bollard it was looped around and carried it up the gangplank which was pulled up after her. The sails unfurled from above, filling as the wind took them. Kaitlis allowed herself a smile as she gently moved the wheel, just tiny fractions, and the ship began to part from the jetty.
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The Saga of the Iron Gods - Wormwood
Chapter 38: The Bluebird
The journey to Wrothsport was a long and slow march, first along the old road, following the broken flagstones until they met the black stone of the Great Iron Road, then on through wilderness until they were almost to the coast. A few cold nights were spent in the tent, camped out under the stars. By the time they reached the port city, Karin had them on half meals, stretching what little food remained for the journey, until she could buy supplies again. As the grasslands finally gave way to paved roads once more, the city rose ahead of them, a huge mass of mismatched buildings built across many past ages that spread along the coast as far as they could see. The wind whipping through sails and ropes and masts came whispering through the city’s streets as they arrived, a welcome from the continuous stream of passenger ships, trade ships, fishing vessels, and even huge commanding warships lined with cannons that came and went from the open sea beyond. Cirrus led them through the wide roads of the city all the way down to the harbourside. Grais was reminded of Port Isaris, but this was on a scale she had never imagined possible. There were hundreds of ships moored at the jetties and pontoons, and the harbour walls were packed with people. The port was so vast it had three huge light towers spread along its walls, tall stone buildings painted red and white with huge lenticular lenses built around the fires that burned under domed roofs at their tops.
The pack dismounted at the edge of the harbour wall, tying the beetles up to hitching posts that ran along the pavement beside the wide road where carts and wagons thundered past as frequent as walkers in any other town. Grais stood staring at the scene, taking in every detail of the crowds and the ships and the buildings.
“No time for sightseeing!” Cirrus shouted, patting her on the shoulder, “Come on.”
She made sure everyone stuck close together and kept Jarrah in front of her all the time so the girl couldn’t run off without her seeing. They pushed through the crowds until they reached the city side of the road.
“If you get lost,” she said, trying to make sure everyone heard her, “return to the beetles and wait for everyone else. I’m going to get us a boat for this afternoon, if I can.” She looked up at the huge clock that hung from great iron chains over the harbour wall. “Be back by midday.”
She pushed her way into the crowd, shoving Jarrah along in front of her, and left the others to their own plans. Karin dragged Dog off with her to find the market so she could get some food for the journey ahead while Sira and Ki stayed to keep an eye on the beetles. There were a lot of valuable items strapped up on Rook’s cargo harness and they didn’t want to find they’d been robbed before they reached the boat.
Melody circled around Asten and Grais as they walked out along the harbourside. She was wary that the Wooden Knight may have predicted their choice of departure point, or even that they might be here by chance making their own way ahead to the Endless Plains. She soon gave up and just stuck close by Asten’s shoulder; it was impossible to see any distance ahead through the thick crowds that cluttered the pavements and roads in the city. Grais gave an excited little shout when she spotted a small clothes shop hidden away up a little alleyway. She slipped the coin pouch from Asten’s bag before he could stop her and vanished up the road. Melody stopped him chasing after her and they continued out onto the jetties to look at the ships that were moored there.
“Which one do you think is ours?” Melody wondered, looking out across the vast collection of masts.
“The Bluebird!” Jarrah cried excitedly as she pushed her way between them.
Cirrus came running after her.
“Hey. We got a boat.” she sounded out of breath.
“It’s over there! The one with all the cannons!” Jarrah grinned.
“We were in luck. The only ship leaving for the Endless Plains today was a military vessel.” Cirrus explained, “They’re assisting in the evacuation, so the captain agreed to take us free of charge when I told her what was going on.” She lunged forwards suddenly, but too late. Jarrah was off running out along the jetty to get a closer look at one of the ships that was pulling into the harbour. “Argh! Pup!”
“Solbren was right about the exodus from the northern shores then.” Asten said sadly.
“Looks like it. The ship’s Salvian. Apparently the knights got anyone they could to help out.”
“When do we leave?”
“Four.” Cirrus let herself relax but kept an eye on Jarrah as she ran from ship to ship and got in the way of the disembarking sailors and passengers. “So long as the wind stays in the right direction, otherwise we’ll be stuck here overnight.”
Jarrah came running back and skidded to a stop in front of the others. Her tail wagged excitedly behind her as she pulled at Melody’s hand.
“Come on! You can see the Bluebird better from the end!”
She led them down the jetty, between the annoyed crew of the ships who had been working around her, and out to the very end of the wooden walkway.
“It’s got sixty-four cannons!” she announced, “The captain is called Kaitlis, and she has a metal leg after she got hit by cannon fire. And it has blastiron shields they put up in battle.”
Jarrah’s excitement at sailing on the vessel only grew as she rattled off everything she’d learnt about it. She bounced up and down and talked until she ran out of breath.
As the clock over the harbour wall rang out midday, Grais came running along the harbourside dressed in a deep blue jacket with an elegant white leather corset beneath it. The rest of the pack were already gathered by the beetles, and everyone had some idea of the plan because Jarrah couldn’t help but tell them all the second she arrived.
“Nice of you to join us.” Cirrus said with a wave as Grais came along by the hitching posts, “We’re heading out at four, on the Blubird, the huge warship over on jetty twelve. Captain wants all the beetles loaded by two thirty. Karin, can you help me sort that?”
Karin nodded.
“Everyone else be ready to go. Last few hours to shop for anything you’ll need, and then we’re meeting on the jetty. Okay?”
Everyone agreed, and the pack broke up once more. Cirrus always felt secure when she had a plan to work to and hummed happily as she untied the first of the beetles ready to ride down to the ship. It was difficult going, the jetties were narrow and wet and full of people who had to stand aside to let them pass through, and that was only with Scarab and Jackal. To get Rook on board would take a coordinated effort with the help of the Bluebird’s crew.
The Bluebird was vast, a massive naval warship designed to sail the open waters beyond the jaws of the Salvian Sea. It had four gangplanks along its side where the crew were loading boxes of medical supplies and huge crates full of food for the journey. At the third gangplank, one of the sailors waved to Cirrus as he pulled the little chain aside to let her and Karin ride the beetles right up onto the deck. Once on board, the crew took control, leading the beetles over to the cargo winch and lowering them carefully down into the hold. Cirrus was pleasantly surprised at the care with which they treated them and found they weren’t the only animals down below the deck when she went to peer into the opening where the heavy wooden grates had been slid aside. She could see down into the deep hold where Jackal was being unloaded from the straps of the crane and Scarab was being shut into a little pen of her own. The crew hung troughs of sugar water for them as she had instructed, and she could see a bucket of oranges that had been added alongside the grains and wheat for the shire horses that were stood in the other pens.
Once all the beetles were below the deck, Cirrus and Karin turned to leave. As they headed down, they almost passed by the young woman climbing up the gangplank, until she tipped her hat to Cirrus. She was dressed in a fine military uniform and had a small gold charm in the shape on an anchor hanging about her neck. Her hair was pulled back in a tight business-like bun beneath the deep red tricorn hat she wore. Her one long black boot clicked on the wood, her other leg, a finely wrought metal device that was strapped up just above her knee made a dull clunk with each step.
“All loaded already?” she asked.
“Yeah, just finished. I see your crew were well prepared for them.”
“Of course. We don’t take passengers lightly, and I like to treat them with respect.”
“Thank you again, captain.” Cirrus said with a little bow.
“Quite alright, my queen. We leave with the winds; I expect a timely departure.”
The captain walked on up the gangplank without another word.
“She’s stern. I like her.” Karin smiled.
Sira was the last to board the boat. It was ten to four, and she’d spent an hour trying to track down Jarrah in the city until she eventually found her browsing the charms in a little magic shop run by a blind old Cawcaasi mage. She came running along the jetty with Jarrah in her wake and skidded up to the gangplank, shoving the girl on ahead of her.
“Never go off again! Never go off again!” she shouted over and over while Jarrah apologised.
Captain Kaitlis watched her passengers arrive from the quarterdeck. She stood tall and straight-backed behind the railing as she looked out over her ship, the perfect model of the Salvir North navy’s pride and dignity. Everyone who should be was on board, and everything was ready to sail. She looked over to the harbour clock and ran through the final checks in her head as the last minutes ticked away. When the minute hand clicked into place at the two minute mark, all but one of the gangplanks were pulled up onto the deck and stowed away. When it clicked the final minute, she stepped over to the helm and ran her hand over the curved surface until she reached the wheel’s handles. Her metal leg hissed with vapour as she locked its position with a special modification she had had built into it to allow her to focus entirely on the ship without having to think about the device at all. When the harbour clock began to ring out the hour, she called from the helm.
“Mainsails! Foresails! Mooring!”
The last crewmember on the jetty heaved the heavy mooring rope from the bollard it was looped around and carried it up the gangplank which was pulled up after her. The sails unfurled from above, filling as the wind took them. Kaitlis allowed herself a smile as she gently moved the wheel, just tiny fractions, and the ship began to part from the jetty.
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A knight, given superhuman powers by a magical engine, a pack of wolf-like Aarouan pirates, and the missing prince of Silverdale travel across the world to reunite him with his dying father before it’s too late. But with a murderous stained knight on their trail, they unknowingly end up tangled in the strings of the Drowned King, an immortal being whose century-spanning plans they are now all a part of.
A knight, given superhuman powers by a magical engine, a pack of wolf-like Aarouan pirates, and the missing prince of Silverdale travel across the world to reunite him with his dying father before it’s too late. But with a murderous stained knight on their trail, they unknowingly end up tangled in the strings of the Drowned King, an immortal being whose century-spanning plans they are now all a part of.
Category Story / Fantasy
Species Unspecified / Any
Gender Any
Size 120 x 120px
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