"THEBEHRENESE FLEETis of no consequence," Maisha Darou, the notorious pirate, told his guests. Standing well over six feet, with a shock of unkempt black curly hair, a full, thick beard, and blue eyes that crossed well over the line of intense and into the realm of wild, Maisha cut a figure that Aydrian and the others would not soon forget. His imposing appearance only enhanced his reputation for ruthlessness, and those eyes . . . those eyes spoke of torture and malice, of uncontrollable and ultimately deadly fury.
"They are busy," Maisha Darou went on with a wicked grin. "The defense of Jacintha will prove no easy feat."
The other pirates in the crowded hold of Oway Waru , "white shark," Darou's flagship, all murmured and grinned, obviously pleased that the yatol warlords, even the Chezru chieftain of Behren, now found themselves under trying circumstances. A revolt had begun in the west, the visitors from Honce-the-Bear had learned: an uprising among the To-gai-ru tribesmen of the steppes that had swept across the desert like a sandstorm.
For the pirates, such a great distraction of the lords and their soldiers meant more opportunities for profitable mischief.
"We never counted on the Behrenese fleet to be of any importance," replied Marcalo De'Unnero, sitting between Aydrian and Sadye. "Why would they come to the aid of Honce-the-Bear? And if they seized the opportunity presented by any chaos in the northern kingdom to cause even further havoc, then so be it."
"They are of no consequence to us ," Maisha Darou clarified. "With the warships of the Chezru otherwise engaged, the pickings are ripe for me!"
Again came the murmurs and chuckles, the eager pirates thinking that times would be good for them indeed.
"Why would we sail north for you, then, De'Unnero?" Maisha Darou asked skeptically.
Marcalo De'Unnero grinned and didn't blink, even nodded his head in agreement. That recognition that the pirate's reasoning was perfectly logical made Maisha Darou's blue eyes only twinkle even more intensely, as if he understood that De'Unnero was prepared to make it worth his while.
Without a word, De'Unnero hoisted a small bag onto the table, its lumpy contents bulging. Staring hard at the pirate, the former monk slid the bag across the table.
Maisha Darou opened the drawstring, upended the sack, and poured a pile of gemstones, glittering red and green and amber, onto the wooden table.
Some of the pirates gasped, some even lunged forward at the tempting sight, but Maisha Darou held them back, his expression calm and steady. "Payment for our services?" he asked doubtfully.
"Payment to you for allowing us to come here and speak with you," said De'Unnero. "My gratitude that you and your fellows took the time to grant us an audience."
Aydrian's face crinkled and he turned at his mentor, thinking that handing over such a treasure was absurd for the few hours of Darou's time that they were taking. He saw that De'Unnero seemed perfectly content, though, and so did Sadye, sitting on the other side of the former monk.
And when Aydrian turned back to take note of Maisha Darou, he understood it all so much more clearly. The pirate was trying to retain a calm façade, but there was an unmistakable erosion there, a bubbling of anticipation.
And why shouldn't there be? Aydrian realized. If De'Unnero could so casually toss out a treasure of gemstones for a mere meeting, then what might he provide in exchange for Maisha Darou and the Behrenese pirates' securing the southern coast of the Mantis Arm in the event of civil war in Honce-the-Bear?
"By the time you are needed, the Chezru will likely no longer be at war," De'Unnero explained. "Will they then turn their formidable fleet back upon Maisha and the pirates in vicious retribution?"
"Aye, we may well be in need of better hunting grounds," Maisha Darou conceded. He was hardly aware of his movements, Aydrian noted, as his fingers played with the small pile of gemstones.
"Even if you are not in need, even if the Behrenese fleet is scuttled in Jacintha harbor, giving you free rein to raid the coast, you may find the waters north of Entel far more profitable," De'Unnero remarked, a clearly teasing note in his voice.
"Might be, indeed," said Maisha Darou. He gathered all the gemstones back into the small bag and pulled it off the table, taking it from the view of his cutthroat crew.
"We will speak more of this tomorrow?" De'Unnero asked.
"If you are paying as well . . ." Maisha Darou began, but a great frown came over De'Unnero's hard features, stopping the words and the thought cold.
"I expect this payment to cover all meetings," De'Unnero said rather harshly. Again, as when he had presented the bag of gems in the first place, his abrupt change of tone surprised Aydrian, and he turned to look hard at his mentor.
De'Unnero wasn't backing down an inch from his stern stance. "Tomorrow," he said again, this time stating and not asking.
Maisha Darou sat back in his chair, very straight, very tall, and very imposing - though if he was getting to De'Unnero at all, Aydrian's mentor hid it well.
Aydrian's hand instinctively went to his pocket, where he had stashed the few gems he had taken with him from Olin's ship, including a serpentine and a ruby. The plan had already been set: in the event of trouble, Aydrian, De'Unnero, and Sadye would quickly join hands, with Aydrian bringing up a serpentine protective shield over all three, then following quickly with a devastating fireball.
"Tomorrow," the pirate chief replied, breaking the tension, then bellowing with laughter, which was taken up by all of his fellows immediately.
"What do you know of it?" Sadye asked Aydrian a short while later, when the three had returned to their private cabin on Olin's ship. "Are you going to enlighten us or keep it to yourself?"
Aydrian looked at her curiously, then turned to De'Unnero - and found the man sitting in a chair, arms crossed over his strong chest, as if waiting for Aydrian to answer.
"It?" Aydrian asked Sadye. "What are you talking about?"
Sadye and De'Unnero exchanged knowing glances and smiles. "The war in Behren," the bard explained. "When Darou spoke of the fighting, your expression revealed that you knew something about it."
Aydrian looked at her incredulously. How could she know?
"Or at least that you had some interest in it," De'Unnero added, "which surprises me, since, as far as I know, you have never been south of the Belt-and-Buckle before this occasion. How could you have, after all, living in Wester-Honce, where there are no known passes through the mountains?"
"I have never been to Behren," Aydrian answered, "have never before stepped on Behrenese sand, at least, if you consider these waters part of Behren."
"Then why did you so care about Darou's tales of the war?" Sadye asked.
"Simple curiosity," Aydrian lied. "I know little about war, though I expect that will change in the coming years."
"More than that," De'Unnero remarked. "Will you tell us? Or do you think it wise for you to keep such potentially important secrets?"
Aydrian moved to the side of the small room and sat on a three-legged stool. He took a deep breath, trying to think things through. Though he would have liked more time to consider his words, he said, "I may know the one who leads the To-gai-ru."
That widened the eyes of both his companions!
"If my guess is right, it is a woman - Brynn Dharielle," Aydrian explained.
The other two looked at each other.
"She was trained ahead of me in the arts of the ranger," Aydrian admitted. "The Touel'alfar sent her south for just this purpose."
"Since when do the affairs of humans concern the elves?" asked De'Unnero.
"This is an interesting turn," said Sadye. "If you are correct, I mean."
"I was thinking the same thing," said Aydrian. "Though if it is Brynn, and if she is even still alive, I doubt that we'll find her much able to help our cause for some time to come."
"Nor would we want the help," De'Unnero surprised him by saying. "Olin's downfall has ever been his tie to Behren."
"You just spoke to Behrenese pirates," Aydrian protested.
"Any help that we receive from Maisha Darou and his thugs will take place on the high seas, away from the eyes of easily swayed common folk. Any help that your friend in the southland could provide would be more direct, and would thus be far more politically damaging."
"But if we are successful," Sadye reasoned with a grin, "perhaps any connections you have to Behren - or to To-gai, if this war ends in freedom for the western kingdom - will prove invaluable."
"The mere fact that the troublesome yatols are engaged in a war helps our cause," reasoned De'Unnero. "It will prevent them from taking advantage of any trouble that might befall Honce-the-Bear. Long has the Chezru chieftain insisted that Entel belongs to his kingdom and not ours."
"A bluff," Sadye replied. "If the Chezru chieftain was so interested in attaining Entel through force, then Olin either would have already assisted him or would distance himself from him."
Aydrian let his mind wander from this discussion, which seemed to him to be nothing more than useless speculation. He turned his thoughts to Brynn Dharielle, remembering his old companion and hoping that she was leading the To-gai-ru in this civil war. How grand it would be to meet her again as the king of Honce-the-Bear, as the ruler of a kingdom greater than the one she had just conquered!
Aydrian's smile widened as he thought of the many ways he could exploit his friendship with Brynn. She would prove to be a strong ally, if he could correctly explain the actions he had taken to secure Honce-the- Bear. Her previous knowledge of him would probably make her view his explanations favorably.
And then Aydrian could take things further, could, use Brynn's friendship to gain advantages for Honce-the-Bear over Behren and To-gai.
Yes, this could get even more interesting.
Whoever said that he would have to stop with the conquest of Honce-the- Bear?