OUTLANDER

                                                    Chapter 17

                                           A New World

As the sun was waning from its zenith toward the western sky, Dax, the Wolf Pack and twenty of the seamen from the Windlass finished getting out of boats, on the beach near where the Windlass was anchored. Everyone shouldered their weapons, a few provisions for the evening and weapons for the coming assault. Some men were carrying extra arrows for the archers; everyone except the archers had been given a few of the grenades Dax and Ruthor had made from the small pottery balls filled with the Dragon’s Breath mixture.

Eron in the lead of Vlad’s platoon led the way into the forest. The extra twenty men fell in with each of the platoons they had been assigned to. It would take until dusk started settling over the island for them to reach their positions around Fargyn’s town at the bay.

Captain Cavidar and the remaining sailors were working on their own tasks aboard the Windlass, in preparation for their maneuvering up the coastline north toward the edge of that bay, once dusk did settle over the sea. They needed to be there in time for boats to be in the surf by the high midnight hour. Then Captain Cavidar with twenty men would take to their oars and be inside the reef when the last watch on the docks changed four hours before the coming dawn.

Synchronizing such a multifaceted attack without the luxury of being able to communicate during the attack was always a risk, one miscue out of sequence could spell disaster. One early misstep could end the element of surprise. Defeat now without the possibility of reinforcements could not occur. A few hours later Cran and the archers were settling into positions along the ridge under the cover of the forest. Each man had caches of arrows for extended volleys in the early fray of Fargyn’s men being surprised and bursting from their buildings. Then individual shots at known targets during the melee that would follow. Vlad and his platoon were stationed in the trees just beyond the building where the captive women lived. Dax, Ruthor and Odin with their men were in place for the frontal assault upon the town itself. Now they all waited for the dawn to come.

Cavidar and his twenty sailors had shoved off at midnight from where the Windlass had re-anchored just out of sight form the bay, along the waves, off the southern point. His men oared quietly, using the oar strokes of practiced clandestine sneak attacks. Oars in the water turned parallel to the surface of the water and only stroked the water with for the forward stroke. Thus the blade of the oar never breaks the water surface making no noise. By the time the watch on the dock changed at four hours before the dawn, he and his boats were waiting inside the bay, already having oared past the reef. They watched as the two watchmen met and talked, then the one headed for his bed in one of the buildings away from the beach. As the new guard leaned on a pier post watching the other leave, Cavidar’s boats slipped silently along the side of the dock and beside the ships moored there. It was the First Mate’s job to silence this watchman.

Bien, slowly climbed up the pier post and raised his head to see where the watchman stood. Then he pushed upward with his biceps, until his belly was just over the dock’s edge. He silently swung the rest of his body to a lying position on the dock. Waiting just a few moments he brought his legs underneath him and ever so quietly stood erect. His eyes never leaving the watchman’s position. One foot at a time slipped along the deck and finally he was standing right behind the unaware man. Quickly he raised his right arm, a knife clutched in his hand. Just as he clasped his left hand over the watchman’s mouth to stifle any noise he might make his right hand brought the knife up and sliced effortlessly across his neck severing the man’s throat, blood gushing from the wound in pulses, until the watchman went limp in Bien’s hold. The First Mate slowly allowed the body to sink down to the deck, before rolling it over the edge to waiting hands below. Two members of the crew then let the man’s body sink into the dark waters of the bay beside the dock’s pier.

Bien took up the position where the watchman had stood, as Captain Cavidar and the rest of the party from the Windlass, slipped out of boats and made their way onto the three ships moored there. Once on board, they looked for where and what armaments were installed on each ship. Finding hwachas on each boat, the seamen began moving them such that they pointed toward the beach. It was heavy work, made more cumbersome by trying to do the work silently. Bien packed tobacco into his whalebone pipe and lit it. As the smoke wafted into the air, he hoped the archers on the bluff saw his signal, knowing the dock and ships were now taken as planned. By the first greying of the night sky in the east, now showing on the horizon there, the ships and dock were fully prepared for the eventual fight.

Cran had seen the lighting of the pipe at the docks, and he had loosed an arrow just short of the forest’s edge just in front of where Dax, and his men stood hidden in the trees. He then turned and loosed a second one beyond the building where the captive women slept, so Vlad and his men also knew all was ready.

Just as the grey along the eastern horizon began being infused with the first pink-orange of first dawn rays a cock crowed from the coop of the chickens behind the women’s quarters. Men in all the hidden parties tensed, with the expectation of activity that could follow the shrill crow breaking the calm of the night.

A few moments later men started walking out of some buildings. Stretching their arms, flexing muscles to awake and wandering about toward the edges of trees or crude out-houses to relieve their bladders. Two women came out of the women’s quarters and started buildings fires close by, one then put a large pot on a rock beside one of those, probably with water in it, for morning tea. Unseen by the wandering men, were two more women who as soon as they stepped out the building’s rear door, had hands clasped over their mouths, to stifle any surprise yells they might make.

It was Vlad and Eron who held hands over the two women’s mouths, until they whispered that they would not be harmed into their ears. Then telling them to quietly go back inside and wake all the captive women. Then bring them out, just as quietly through that same door. They continued by saying that they and others were here to rescue them and that there was going to be a fight with the men who had captured them. The women gave them looks of astonishment, but complied by backing back into the door.

A few minutes later the first of the women started slowly exiting the building through the door. Vlad with South standing beside him gave them guiding gestures toward the tree line, where Tervil and Shem stood, just barely inside the trees but visible. Eron and his Dire Wolf Sniffer were standing near the building’s corner, keeping watch for any wandering man who might approach the rear of the building. Tervil’s wolf Grey Eyes stood tensed, vigilant of the women approaching the trees.

Then one of the awakening men yelled at the two women still tending the fires. “How long before the tea water is ready?”

“A little longer it has not come to a boil yet.”

“Well, be quick about it Bitch, I am thirsty.”

The woman did not offer any answer. A third woman came out the front door and asked them to come back inside for clean cups and tea leaf jugs. It was the first woman Vlad had talked to. The two women rose from the fires and walked toward her and then into the building.

Tervil and the men with him saw two women carrying small babes in their arms, and hoped the little ones did not start to cry. There were also three more women who looked in various stages of pregnancy. Finally, it looked as if the last of them were close to approaching the trees. It was the first one who had come out the rear door and the two who had started the fires.

By now there were twenty or more men stirring about the area between all the buildings. Some had lit pipes and were smoking as they talked to others. One man looked toward the ships and waved to the guard there. Bien waved back in acknowledgment. One man looked up toward the sky and all too late heard a slight whistling noise; but was too late to see the arrow Cran had shot to the dock next to where Bien stood. Instead, like the others, the next noise was of three full hwacha’s of arrows screaming arched across the air and then falling downward into the groups of men. Followed by more arrows being shot directly at them from the bluff where Cran and the archers were. Screams of agony and yells now breaking the quiet into a din of pain and fear.

Next, men on the ships loosed volleys of rocks toward the middle ground of the town wreaking even more death before men could run for cover. Now more men were running out of the buildings, some only partially dressed, but all carrying cutlasses, swords and daggers while yelling to arms at any still asleep inside. A few ran toward the docks, but were cut down in full stride with another volley of arrows from the archers on the ships.

Vlad and Eron had started making their way toward the trees when they were spotted by three men just coming out of the nearest building. Vlad turned back toward the three men, yelling to Eron to get the women to safety.

Dax and the all the men with him had burst from the trees and were in full hand-to-hand combat with the main body of Fargyn’s forces in the central area between all the buildings. The air was now full of angry yells, the clanking of steel against steel and screams of pain as steel slashed against cleaved skin. Grenades of Dragon’s Breath were being thrown at any group of Fargyn’s men just exiting buildings to join the fight and there were fires now breaking out at the entries of some of the buildings themselves.

Dire Wolves were now in full blood lust jumping on the defenders, clamping jaws of any body part that they could and shaking those parts with all the might of their massive jaws.

Bien and Captain Cavidar with the seamen had run down the dock and were engaging the closest of men as they made it into the fray as well.

Fargyn, now startled awake, had burst through his house’s door with sword and dirk in each hand. But was cut down in full stride as he did by three arrows in quick successive piercings. The first to his heart and then rapidly the next two, one below his shoulder and the last at his midsection, loosed form Cran and two of his archers who had seen him as he had started out his door. He had only made two steps before collapsing backwards on his porch, limp and dead, before he was fully aware of the first arrow piercing him completely through the back, blood gushing from all three wounds onto the boards his body fell to.

Seeing the last woman make it to the trees, Eron turned back toward Vlad, the three men becoming five. Running toward him, he yelled behind him to Tervil and Shem. Vlad had downed one man and was parrying blade strokes with two others while South had his jaws clamped on another’s arm, trying to rip it from its shoulder socket. Eron reached his Sergeant-at-Arm’s side to attack another of the men. Tervil, Shem and their wolves close behind. Unfortunately, Vlad had already sustained several gaping wounds. As the man South had attacked started falling back and Eron finished him off, Vlad’s opponent made a fatal thrust into Vlad’s midsection, the blade piercing him completely through the back and Vlad fell backwards. South immediately jumped on the attacker’s shoulders and clamped his jaws on the man’s neck.

South was atop the man now on the ground, fiercely biting at the man’s neck, but the man was using one arm to try and hold South back. His other arm had a dirk in it, and he was stabbing at South’s ribs and side. Before Eron could find a place to put his sword into the man, and avoid cutting South in doing so, the defender finally struck a fatal stab piercing the wolf deeply, blood now gushing from the wound. South jerked briefly, but then took one last deep ferocious bite at the man’s neck ripping his throat out. Then limp jaws let the throat fall from his jaws as he fell, death taking him back and onto his master’s side. Eron turned his head briefly to the sky and let out an anguished cry of sorrow. Then he, Tervil and Shem ran headlong into the fight in front of the buildings.

Men lay about bleeding profusely all around the area, others still smoldered from being burnt by the Dragon’s Breath grenades and yet others were already dead and stone still. Men from both Dax and Cavidar’s forces and those remaining fighting of Fargyn’s men stepped onto, over and around the bodies, still parrying stroke for stroke with swords, cutlasses and daggers. Cran and his archers continued to shoot their arrows into men from the bluff above. Many of the men with Dax and Cavidar had been severely wounded, a few dead on the ground, but it became apparent that the larger losses were to the men of Fargyn. Finally what was left of the defenders, started throwing down weapons and putting their hands in the air, signaling their surrender. Dax’s men started rounding them up into the middle of where the melee had just ended, then had them all sit down on the ground, hands clasped behind their heads.

Ruthor looked for Vlad and did not see him. Then seeing Eron yelled to the tracker. “Have you seen Vlad?”

“He and South are gone, my Lieutenant. They fought to the last and killed those that killed them. I am sorry to report.”

“And the women?” Dax added quickly.

“All are safe Captain, none are even injured. It was Vlad, who saw to that.”

“Then men of Marden, we have accomplished our second objective. Although the cost has been dearly and sorrowfully won. Once again I am proud of every one of you. You are all a credit to yourselves, our comrades and our Thane.”

A chorus of heart felt “Hoo Rahs” echoed all around this killing ground. Men looking spent, mournful and yet also triumphant, although many were covered in blood, much of it their own.

“Ofid, you and your platoon, get these prisoners up, take them to one of their buildings and secure them there for now. How many of them are there?”

Ofid made a quick count of those men still seated on the ground. Then he turned to answer Dax’s question. “I count 19 left Dax”. Then he and his men started getting the prisoners standing and then walking to the nearest building that Fargyn’s men had emerged from earlier.

Dax then turned to Eron and directed him. “Eron, take your men and bring in the captive women. I would like to talk to them for a moment.”

“Yes my, Captain,” then he, Tervil and Shem headed for the tree line where a small number of seamen were guarding the women.

“Captain Cavidar, how did your seamen fare during this fight?”

“One dead, one seriously injured and two more with minor gashes. Mister Dulwea and your man, Garth are attending to them now, as well as two more of your men with minor injuries. They are all there behind me, in front of where the bastard Fargyn was slain.”

“Not a horrible tally for such a fight. Do you think you should get a crew back to the Windlass and bring her into port before dusk starts setting later today?”

“Aye, that would be a good idea. I will take men with me to do just that.”

“Good, I will make no major decisions until you are available again.”

“No, wait not on me, Captain. I am sure I will be agreeable to your decisions. In this new world, we all follow your lead.”

“Thank you, but I prefer that you, Ruthor and I be in agreement with our plans; that has worked well so far, and I see no need to change what is working well. We will see you later, after the Windlass is docked within our bay for better protection.”

Captain Cavidar gathered a dozen and half seamen and Mates and they walked to the end of the dock. Then they boarded the boats and started rowing out through the channel on the south side of the bay, avoiding again the reef.

Dax watched Cavidar start vanishing beyond the bluff. As the Captain and his men rowed past the channel avoiding the reef, he heard Eron returning from the tree line beyond the women’s building. Once Eron, his men and the women were all standing within the central where most of the fighting had been, he turned facing them.

“My name is Captain Dax of the Marden Army, this man standing beside me is my Lieutenant Ruthor. Did any of you become injured during the fighting today, or are in need of healing care?”

A strong looking woman of early middle age, in the front line of women and near its center spoke up first. “No Captain, none of us were hurt in any way. My name is Delpha, our safety was due in large part to your men getting us safely into the trees before much of the fighting started. We would all thank you and your men for rescuing us from this band of evil men.”

“Could I ask how many of you are there?”

“There are eighteen grown women here, even though some of them are still quite young themselves. Two of them now have infant babies and three more are with child as we speak. Those three will bear their babies within the next three to five full moons.”

“I see, we are all very sorry for the horrors you have had to endure. Part of our mission was to find this island where Fargyn was hiding, and then to bring him and his men to whatever justice we could. Those two we have now completed. You will be treated with deep respect from this point on. It appears that you have all been living in that one building. Is it sufficiently comfortable for all of you? If not please tell me, and which other houses you would like to have?” Dax pointed toward the house behind Eron, from which they had been ushered into the trees.

“It would be nicer, if we could also have that one standing next to the one we have previously been housed in?”

“Then it is yours. Eron, you and your men help the ladies clear out anything they do not want. Bring it all here to the square. Once the ladies are getting accustomed to their larger quarters, return to me and we will begin attending to the dead.”

“As you wish, Captain.”

Before Eron could start turning to that task Delpha spoke up again.

“Captain, could I ask if we could look at those dead, before you do whatever is going to happen to their bodies? Although our treatment here has been despicable to, say the least. Does not mean that there were not a few men here who treated us with as much kindness as they could. A few were not given much better options than we were when captured. Their choice was join Fargyn openly, or die. Ours was no choice, we were just saved from the butchery and brought here to serve men’s need. As servants, cooks, launderers and yes, objects of their other needs. I would like to make you aware of any of these few that might have lived after the fighting stopped.”

“That would be quite helpful indeed, although I would not have asked you to perform such a grisly task. In that you might see if there is any missing from after looking at both the dead and captured. That way if any escaped, we would know for sure and make plans to find any that are not here.”

“We would gladly do that for you, especially since you are allowing us to tell you of those who at least tried their best to help us after we were brought here.”

“You have heard our conversation Eron, make it so. Then come and we will talk. Cran, get some others to help you get all the bodies of the dead lined up here in the center of the square.”

“Aye, Dax it will be as you wish, shortly.”

Eron and the women walked to the building being used to house the prisoners first. Ofid, hearing the discussion had the prisoners brought in front of it under guard. Then the women walked up and down that line seeing who it was that been captured and or surrendered. Then they walked back to the central area and looked at the bodies Cran’s men were placing there. After they had seen every man, Eron took them to the two houses that were to be their combined quarters for the present. In the second house, Eron and his men carried out everything the women did not want and piled it close to where the bodies had been laid out on the ground. Then Eron, himself went to find Dax and Ruthor.

“That was quicker than I thought it would take, Eron. They need not have rushed.” Then Ruthor saw that three women were again starting to prepare cooking fires, as they had before the fighting started.

“Eron, did you tell them they need not do that for us? They are free now from such tasks.” Ruthor said as Dax was just now seeing what Ruthor was talking about.

“I did and made it plain to them that they were not servants of any kind to anyone any longer. But the woman, Delpha told me that this is what they wish to do. She said they are thankful for our rescuing them. But they are strong and wish to help in any way they can, especially seeing that we all eat well and have clean clothes to wear. So I thanked her graciously for their help.”

“That then is good. Did they name any man as worthy of considering for lenience?”

“They did, three men. Ofid has them sitting in front of the Gaol, for your pleasure when you have time. They also said that there is only one man missing. A man named Demor, they say he was Fargyn’s First Mate.”

“I thought we were too lucky, for at least not one to have escaped. He will be your task to find. I am putting you in command of Vlad’s platoon. Make preparations to start a search for him in the morning. Tonight we post guards. Ruthor select those you wish, especially at the house we are calling the goal and the two houses of the women.”

“I will not let you down my Captain, thank you.”

“You are now a Sergeant- at-Arms Ruthor, and I will tell Ofid and Cran of your promotion.”

“It was well earned during this fight, Eron” Ruthor added.

“I thank you both. I will go and inform Tervil and Shem of our mission tomorrow.”

“Good. Ruthor, let us go see these three men Ofid has outside for us.” As Dax said this he and Ruthor walked toward the goal. Once there, they saw three men sitting in front of the goal and Ofid standing close by. “So I see we have three to decide if they actually be worthy of consideration for leniency.”

“We do, according the women. This one with the long mustache is called Mesan, they say he is a blacksmith. The one next to him is Argin, supposedly a good carpenter, and the blonde haired one is Welman, he is a hunter and butcher. The lady Delpha says they were kind and treated the women as well as they could, as much as they could.”

“So, considering the terrible conditions these women have lived in since their capture. Her description of you three weighs well in your favor. But I am not so easily swayed in handing out favors to brigands. What have you to say for yourselves?”

“Captain, we had not much choice in where we are, or what we had to do here. It was this or die, like so many did when the ships we were on were captured. I for one was not ready to die. But I could also not abuse women or children. Your man is right I am a blacksmith, Argin is a fine carpenter if he is allowed to be one and Welman has provided us with much good meat when he is allowed to hunt.”

“Alright, but I think I would like to test your resolve to be free and work at your trades. So I would propose this solution. I will have Ofid let you out of the goal. But I will put a guard with each of you for now. We will call this a temporary parole. Prove that you can be trusted and that your work is good, and that parole will become a pardon. Abuse this trust, and you will become prisoners again. Can you three agree to these terms?”

Argin spoke first. “I can say for the three of us, we agree. And we will earn our pardons.”

“We shall see. Ofid, pick three men to be their nursemaids for now. Let these three and their guards pick one of the smaller houses to live in. Our men can watch them in shifts during the nights.”

“I will make the arrangements immediately.”

Dax and Ruthor walked back toward the central open area. By now the bodies of Fargyn’s dead had been piled close together and on top of one another. All the wood that had been gathered, along with things the women did not want were now piled on top of those bodies. Cran had poured whale oil from some of the grenades all over the heaped pyre. Dax looked from the grisly display and then to Cran. “Light it, when it burns down to just ashes scatter that into the bay.” Then he walked away. He could see that Captain Cavidar and the Windlass was now tied to the dock and he wanted to talk with him.

As Dax neared the dock Cavidar was coming down his gangplank. Captain Cavidar looked past Dax, seeing the fire start to rise in the night evening sky. “I assume we are disposing of the dead?”

“Only the bodies of Fargyn and his men. We will honor our dead tomorrow, if that is fitting with you?”

“Aye, it is. I would like my man committed to the sea, as is our custom. Would you like yours to join them?”

“Thank you, but no. I will have mine buried with honors on this island. We will create a cemetery, there they can be honored as people wish to. Yours would be just as welcome there.”

“Thank you for the offer. But we men of the sea join our past comrades in the sea’s embrace. I see an audience is gathering for your display.”

Dax turned to see that many of the women were gathering on the north side of the fire. He, Captain Cavidar and many of his crew started walking toward the now high flames.

“There was no need for you to witness this.” He said to Delpha, standing among many of the other women.

“We wished to see it. It adds a kind on closure to that which has plagued us for so long.”

“I think I can understand that.”

“Please do not take offense, but no man can possibly understand the damage done to a woman when she has been violated, especially after so many times and for so long. We need this closure.”

The next morning after the morning meal was over, Cran and some of the men cleared a section of ground to the North of the village and dug one large grave in the center of what they had cleared. While that was being done the man, Argin was building a large wooden casket. Ha had been asked to make it large enough for both Vlad and South. Before the sun reached its zenith, all of Dax’s men, most of Cavidar’s men and the women were all standing in the clearing as Dax spoke a few words for his friend. At the end he said; ….They lived together, fought together and lastly died together. Let them now rest in peace together. Dax and Ruthor put the first shovels of dirt back into the grave, followed by the rest of the Wolf Pack’s men. Eron, Tervil and Shem started to complete filling the grave in as everyone else started walking back down to the village.

When they arrived Captain Cavidar told Dax he was ready to take the Windlass out beyond the reef and commit his seaman’s body to the sea. Dax and Ruthor joined him. The rest of the Wolf Pack needed to return to their assigned duties. Eron and his platoon would be leaving to track the man, Demor, who had escaped. Cran and his men would be attending to several tasks around the village while Ofid and his men were now the guards of the gaol.

The ceremony for the seaman was steeped in naval tradition. Once his wrapped body slid down the plank and splashed into the sea, men saluted his passing and then turned back to the duties of returning to the harbor.

That evening Dax asked Delpha to join him, Ruthor and Captain Cavidar for evening meal. She had agreed with thanks. As the meal progressed to drinking of mead, conversation could commence in earnest.

“We would like to ask that you join us, when we discuss those plans for the island. You appear to ba a spoke person for the women here.”

“I would be honored. Women are usually not allowed to have say in such matters.”

“This is a new world. We can start any new ways of doing things as we wish, this will be just the first of many that we decide. First is, you should know that when Eron returns from searching for the escapee, Captain Cavidar, his crew myself, Ofid and Cran will be going with him. Ruthor will stay in command here until we return.”

“I had thought that you would probably not leave the island for good.”

“That is the third part of our mission. The first was to find the island, the second was to capture or kill Fargyn and his men, and the third was to establish a presence here and attempt to keep the knowledge of it as still a secret for as long as we can. In that I should tell you that the prisoners will not be allowed to leave here. Right now Mesan has started making ankle shackles for the remaining sixteen. They will be doing work as we decide on the projects to improve our living conditions, one of which will be build a more suitable prison to house them.”

“That sounds like a very good use of their labor.”

“I would like to ask if all of you would want to go with us to Jav? So that any could return to families where they came from? We would only ask that they keep our secret.”

“I will ask, but what I can say if there are any who wish to return it will be only a few. Myself, the two who have young and the three who are pregnant now and others; have no wish to return. Most of us lost families we cared about during the attacks on the ships we were on. Any husbands, sons or brothers we had were killed then. Most women would not want to endure the looks or treatment we would get if we were to return to where people knew us. We are now tainted women in their eyes. I will tell you if there are any by the morning meal.”

“I see. Could I ask what you know of the other two ships here? We know that the first ship belonged to the Lagdian Navy and we will by rights return it to them. But we do not know who the other two were owned by?”

“I do. The other women and I have talked about them before. The Cog belongs to a trader and merchant form Steldar. I do not know his name though. A few of the women were on that ship. There are women here who were on ships that were sunk. The Caravel was owned by the Captain of it. According to a woman who was on it, he was a widower and had no children, she said he had told her and her husband at an evening meal they had with him.”

“Better than we hoped then. We will take the Cog with us when we return to Jav and send word to Steldar of where it is. The Caravel will become ours. It could take six full moons for the trip to Jav and back. I am not sure, but hope we will return with at least a few more people who will want the opportunity to start a new life here.”

Dax turned to Cavidar and asked. “Do you think we could leave one of your mates in command of the Caravel while we are gone?”

“Surely. We will leave my Second Mate, Gaben Slogin. He will be the best choice. We could have need of Bein on the voyage to Jav, I will put him in charge of the Cog. I will also leave men here with Slogin as a crew for the Caravel, let’s say twelve men. That should be sufficient for his needs.”

“I agree, that is more than I would have expected.”

“Well, tonight’s discussion was most productive. Let’s go about enjoying the rest of the evening, before we need to take to our beds for rest.”

All four of them agreed and started to stand and walk around so they could talk with others of their friends there.

Over the next several days Mesan finished the sixteen sets of leg irons and as two or three were ready, Ofid brought prisoners to have them put on prisoner’s ankles. Each time a hot iron pin was hammered into each ankle shackle. As each of the prisoners were now encumbered with these restraints they were put to work during the day light hours. Since these men were working, they got better meals with everyone else, the new island council had made this decision thinking it would make men less resistant to the restraints, which it did. The first new construction was to build a stone watch tower on the bluff above the town and port. Its construction was proceeding fairly well, one small catapult and a Hwacha were hauled up beside it for use in case of an attack. Once the tower was completed there would be a watch established for continuous surveillance of the ocean and surrounding area.

Eron and his men did not return for almost half a moon cycle. When they did, they were alone. Dax and Ruthor met them as they entered the town.

“I am sorry to see that you return, having no luck tracking your quarry.”

“We found him, Captain. But he was killed while fighting us to stay free. We burned his body like the others.”

“Well then, you men are to be commended. He was the last one we needed to be sure was either dead or a prisoner, be sure that when you tell Ofid this that you can be heard by all the prisoners. By tomorrow they will all be in leg shackles and working during the daylight.”

“I will see to it, Captain Dax.”

The remaining armaments that had been installed on the Cog were now placed on either side of the dock. Thus the Cog was ready to be left in Jav for men from Steldar to retrieve when they could. This meant it was time also for the voyage to Jav.

On the second morning after Eron’s return Ruthor, Gaben and Delpha were standing on the dock watching the Windlass, the Lagdian ship and the Cog sail toward the eastern horizon. Many of the women and others staying were watching from the shore of the bay. Eron’s platoon had accepted the new duty of the watch tower. It was not fully complete yet but well on its way to being so, the prisoners working there that day had little interest in the two ships leaving the island. They were still outnumbered and now encumbered with leg chains of iron.