lady_mab | Mutiny - Letters

The Right Honorable

The Earl of Carneath, Clarence Temple

Dear Lord Temple,

Another letter so soon on the tails of the second -- not that it makes much difference to you.

We were attacked by pirates as we began to cross Nibiru. Further east than usual, but add that to the list of things I am uncertain and uneasy about. The storms are pulling in quick, and they attacked beneath the cover of night. I am proud to say that the Titan withstood their attack, though took considerable damage to the hull. Two brand new holes that I am currently taking a break from bailing. Grissa has taken command of the water for the moment. I will have to leave something to Ydir when we make it to Aelem, and of course give Grissa a break once we are in the clear.

To the matter of the pirates, I did not recognize the flag they flew, but they had an airship that rivaled the Titan (but not a crew to do the same, I am proud to say). They managed to get two bolts from their heavy artillery through our hull and tried to pull us in to them, but we managed to take down their masts (completely shattered them with a word from Grissa).

Pasha attacked with relentless ruthlessness. I do not think his time at Stofiss had faded any by this point, though I had hoped. I know he might pass it off as defense of Adi, especially when the pirates began to board, but I do not think that was all. I worry for him.

Ulutka was shot twice, but he assures me he is fine. He joked about needing to find a laundry service when we made port. I suppose if I could trust anyone to know if they are well, it would be our healer, but I will keep an eye on him to ensure that he is alright.

The captain squared off against me, a small gnome who showed nimble aptitude against a larger foe and with not but a thin blade. Certainly managed to give me a bit of a run for my money -- but before you start worrying, I am fine. A few scrapes and nicks, but nothing serious.

Natalya came to support me and, to my surprise, managed to put the captain to sleep with a mere suggestion. Again, I worry. Again, I am frightfully curious, but I don’t know how to press.

I called for a ceasefire. I handed the captain back over, allowed the pirates to collect their fallen comrades, and let them limp away.

Again, again, again: do people wonder why I do not press the attack? I am here to maintain the peace. I will defend if attacked, but I will not take advantage of a weakness. Let them know that Albion and Antilla are not looking for another war. I would do this even if it had not been asked of me by His Majesty, but I am glad that I do not have to go behind his back and offer forgiveness when he would prefer I destroy those in my path.

We have seen so much during the war. Why do people think we insist on perpetuating the violence? What can we do to support those who have less -- you laugh and say that I have taken on too many strays, and while that is true, I cannot add another ship to my non-existent fleet.

Besides, I think even Sebastian has a limit to his patience when it comes to my leniency. Giving a ship from the pirate contingent Albion’s flag would be a bit much.

It has been a few hours since we have pulled into port in Nibiru. It is called Stroneth, a small port on the eastern half close to the regional divide. They do not have a dry dock, so we must work quickly and, I am afraid, exhausting poor Grissa in the process. I have crew on standby below deck to help bail the water for him. I was sent to rest and tend to my wounds -- superficial though they are.

I think I shall sleep and, in the morning, finish this letter before I post it.

But in case I forget to finish it and post it as it is, know that I sign it with my love, like always.

~*~

It appears I shall not be posting these letters today as I planned. Today has been a whirlwind of activity and it is not yet even time for tea.

I did not sleep much, in fact very little, and was back down to assist with the process of bailing the water after I dressed my wounds and caught my breath.

Pasha and Adi spent the night on the shore, and Natalya and Ulutka have left this morning to explore. Several of the others have gone ashore as well, but many are helping with the dockmaster’s crew to start repairs to the ship.

The alarming event, however, is a pair of stoways that must have snuck on with the workers and decided to camp out over the side of the boat. A pair drow twins, who are probably the most exhausting people I have ever spoken to in… well… ever.

I have thrown them in the brig and, in the process, received a map from them of a Ptallo Fort on the western half of the country. I was prepared to write it off and hand them over to the dockmaster or possibly even Albian authorities in Aelem if I could tolerate them that long but they mentioned one thing which caught my attention: undead.

A disconcerting amount of undead, they say. They wish to retrieve something from the fort which, while of no consequence to me, lies through the path of said undead.

I worry. I worry. I worry.

There is something familiar about these two, but I cannot place my finger on it. At the moment, I am too overwhelmed by simply listening to them talk over each other at such a rapid pace that it’s a wonder they can even understand one another. Perhaps, after I get some actual sleep, I will figure it out, but at the moment, that does not seem likely.

Adi has returned to the ship, speaking of a small girl who was trying to find her older siblings, and, after yet another frightening display of frustration from Pasha, confessed to looking for two who stole something from a group of bandits. It does not take a scholar to put the facts together.

I have a feeling the twins aboard my ship, while not matching the description or name provided by the girl, have come to a very convenient place to hide -- even if they claim it is because there was no sign telling them they could not step onto my ship. That our flag might have been merely a colorful tapestry instead of am emblem of a unified force of Albian and Antillan governance meant to keep the peace through Assalia.

I have asked Adi and Ulutka to accompany the twins on their trip out to the fort: Adi, to keep an eye on them, and Ulutka, to investigate the rumours of the undead. I hope that it is nothing to worry about. I hope I am overthinking it, like always.

We have been stalled for several days due to the damage to the Titan, but I am glad to at least know that the ship has held up. Ptallo Fort is not too far from the border of the eastern half of the country, so I have faith that they will be able to make it there and back again by the time we have finished repairs to the ship.

All the same, I will entrust Pasha with the sending stone again to keep me updated.

For now, I will go post these letters and try to get some actual sleep, despite my mind running scenarios over and over again until I have to work myself to exhaustion.

All my love, a second time,

Ean

(a note, hastily scribbled out, not bothering with the normal formalities. It is dated two days after the last letter.)

Clarence:

The twins. I have figured out where I know them from.

It is the drow siblings from Agartha, the ones who were part of the group attempting to assassinate Sebastian.

I thought they had died. No, truth be told, I do not know what I thought happened to them.

It is true that they asked for our assistance in making it look like they had died, to trick the woman who they were working for. But after that…. I did not think that it was possible they would reappear. And in Nibiru, of all places.

I do not know if they recognize me. I look different now than I did during my time in Agartha at Sebastian’s side. I will have to ask them when they return.

I will have to keep them on the ship, I think.

I wonder if I should hand them over to authorities… or if I should simply deposit them somewhere safe and out of the way? I do not feel a thing towards them one way or another, but I worry (I know, I say this often, but it is true). Did they recognize the crest and picked the Titan because of her ties to Albion? Do they plan to attempt another assassination, to finish what they started?

Should I break my vow of ending violence to simply save us the trouble down the line? (Would I kill them? Could I even? I do not know. I do not know.)

I am writing a letter to Sebastian and Noah as well, but please, we must make a plan. I do not want to bring them back to Albion. I do not want to keep them on my crew if I know the kind of things they are capable of.

-- Ean