Chapter 13

"We'd had to stay there a couple of weeks until all the repairs were done, and we had recruited enough crew. Then we set off to trade up and down the mainland. We had loaded up with as many furs and goods as we could manage. We also had some of Sir Tony's machines aboard. We sailed up the coast towards the mainland and made landfall in a small port we know that the Brotherhood haven't got much control of.

"The man in charge can easily be bribed to look the other way, and to be honest, I don't think he really supports them. Anything for an easy life, that's his motto. Anyway, we docked there, did some trading, and found some folk who needed to be taken off. I'll tell you what: those machines of Sir Tony's went down a treat. I have orders for as many as I can get. We traded them for some of the finest wines I have ever tasted and some fantastic cloth. We also have some new crops that have been brought over from across the seas. "We loaded them up, intending to return to Small Cove. As we set off, a storm blew up and drove us off course. We were fortunate not to be separated or wrecked. It took us several days to sort out the mess. Terrified refugees and rough seas really do not mix. The fleet was strung out in a line and we were in the lead, when we saw two sails on the horizon. They were getting closer and I wondered what they were doing. I called the men to arms, and broke out the bows and crossbows. We had mounted four of your crossbows on each ship, two at the bow, and two at the stern. Heinrich had made a wonderful modification, using the ideas Sir Tony showed him when making his farming machines. This allowed the crossbow to fire one bolt after another, just by turning a handle. We had a hopper with thirty bolts in them, and we could fire ten a minute!

"As these ships approached it was clear that the ships were closing on us. Because of their position they could not see that there was more than one ship, so they continued on their course. As they closed, they saw that we were not alone. They tried to turn away, but by then, wind and tide had committed them to their course. "I called to my first officer, 'Mr Philips, send a signal to the fleet: "Action Stations". Then reduce sail to allow the rest of the fleet to close.' "'Aye-aye, Sir, ' the first officer replied. 'Malith, Gorin: Reduce sail, and order battle stations!'

"At once bells were rung and drums were beaten. Men rushed to their stations. Water was drawn up, sails were furled, decks were cleared and weapons prepared. Now came the worst part: the waiting. Slowly the ships moved closer together. Because they had tried to run, it took the strange ships much longer to close. They were desperately beating to the wind to try and turn their ships and escape. We had fallen back, and now the other ships were closing. I could see the men standing on the deck. Many were armed and we knew these were the pirates that had been plaguing this part of the coast.

"We trained the crossbows on them, and once they were within range we opened fire. They were shocked when we started killing them at over four hundred metres away. We started with the officers; one of them, possibly the Captain, tried to rally his men. We put a bolt through him, pinning him to the mast. After that, those that could disappeared below. We then put a couple of fire bolts into the rigging which caught beautifully.

"While this first ship was dealing with these problems we turned our attention to the second. We did the same to them as we did to the first. We disabled their sails and cleared their decks. They tried to return fire, but their bows did not have the range. Next we used a new tactic we have been practising; it is based on something you did in Small Cove. We brought another ship alongside and threw grappling irons. We closed the gap, and sent some men aboard. Some had shields and others were archers. The shield men covered the archers whilst they shot anyone trying to get out of the hatches. They were given a choice: Surrender or burn with the ship. It took a few minutes, but finally they decided to surrender.

"There were no officers left, we had killed some, and they had killed the remainder who had tried to stop them from going below. We used the same tactic on the first ship and soon captured both ships. We got the men up on deck, and made them cut down the burning rigging and throw it overboard. We searched both ships and found prisoners chained in the hold.

"These were captives from captured vessels. There were some forty people chained up down there; some were fishermen who had been caught in the storm, but some were refugees and crew who had been on a ship taken by them. We also found a good deal of loot. We cleared the decks of the dead and did what we could for the wounded.

"We separated the prisoners from the freed captives. I questioned the prisoners. 'Who are you? Where are you from?' I asked them.

"'We are from Estorina. We were traders and farmers until the Brotherhood arrived. They made us turn pirate.'

"'Damn lies' shouted one of the freed captives. 'You bastards have always been pirates. It's a well-known fact!"

"We took the prisoners and split them up among our vessels. 'I'll speak to you all later. When I do you had better tell me the truth. I'll hang any man that lies to me!'

"I then spoke to the captives. 'I know some of you are sailors, and others are refugees. The refugees I'll take on to my ships, but these ships need a crew. Now then, who wishes to sign on to Lord Tom's Navy and help us fight and smash these pernicious parasites? The pay is a percentage of the profits we make trading. Now I reckon that these two ships plus their cargo will fetch a pretty penny when we sell them in Small Cove. So, which of you lot wish to make some money?'

"They all looked at each other. 'Well, ' said a large man, 'if I'm going to get another fishing boat I need to get some money. With the boat gone, I'll have to do something to feed the family. So I guess I'm in.'

"'Me, too, ' said another.

"'And me! I've got a family to feed as well, ' said yet another

"There was a general murmur of agreement and they all agreed to sign up.

"Taking spare sails from the sail lockers of all the ships we managed to re-rig the ships. We made our way to Small Cove. We made good progress. We had mixed our new recruits among our existing crew. They were impressed with our conditions and training.

"We questioned the prisoners who were pirates and found out that they had several hundred prisoners. They were planning to sell them as slaves to the Brotherhood. Once we docked, most of the refugees left. Three, however, wanted to sign up. We contacted Sir Robert and he took the refugees off to feed and house them. I hear most of them got jobs either in Sir Tony's factory or in the various businesses that have sprung up there.

"The prisoners were taken off and given a choice: ten years working as indentured servants, or death. They chose servitude. We sold all our goods and made a tidy profit. We sold one of the ships to another of the merchants there, but we decided to keep the second one. It took us a week to fit out and repair the ship. We had a vote, and decided to go and attack this place. Some of our new recruits knew the area very well and we made our plans.

"The port was set in a wide bay backed by high cliffs. There was a narrow path leading up to the headland behind. The approach was by a narrow channel; if you didn't know the route, you could easily run aground on the sandbanks.

"We set out and trained hard during the trip. The weather was kind to us during this period and we made good time. We sailed into the bay, following the safe channel. We went in with the captured ship first. People lined the quay, smiling and waving, expecting it to be their men-folk returning.

"As we drew nearer, we saw the puzzlement and surprise on their faces as they tried to recognise their loved ones. Once they realised that they were under attack, panic ensued as the people ran to get their weapons. We formed up with the shields and as men returned with their weapons we fired at them with the crossbows. They were horrified at the range and accuracy of these weapons; we cleared the dock and landed. Our men swept out and set up a shield wall. Our archers joined them and picked off those who resisted. We secured the dock and landed more troops.

"I led the attack. It was as we tried to enter the town things got difficult. I ordered troops down one alley and we were pelted with stones and rocks from above. I ordered Captain Marosa, captain of one of the other ships, to lead a party up stairs to clear the rooftops. We had to do this street by street.

"From the top of the houses we could see women and children making their way up a narrow pathway towards the headland. I ordered Sergeant Patholos to take a party of men and if possible close the path. We didn't want them trying to get any slaves up there. It appears they didn't bother. They were too busy trying to save their own necks.

"As we pushed into a small courtyard, some of them had managed to get around the back of us and fired arrows at us killing several men. We turned to face them and our shield men protected us as we shot them down: the fighting was hard and desperate. They fought well, and we lost several more men in ambushes.

"As we approached one warehouse, we could see a man trying to set it alight; we could also hear the screams of those inside. One of our best archers managed to shoot him before the fire could really take hold, and we quickly extinguished it. We got inside, and the sight horrified us. The smell and the conditions of these people were appalling. We reassured them that they were safe and then headed out to clear more of the town. We fought and cleared more buildings, but we were losing men all the time.

"We went into one house, and some children were using small bows on us. We tried to disarm them, but after they killed one and wounded another of our men we had no option but to kill them. It was awful. Time after time we thought we had them on the run, but they came at us from another direction, and we had to start all over again. It seems there were tunnels connecting different parts of the town. Eventually, though, we did manage to clear the place.