Chapter 10: Parting Ways

*****

The following morning, Jack Easterbrook took in the sight from the Valiant's bow one last time. At least, one last time for now. He hoped that there would come a time in the future when he'd be reunited with the ship and her crew, but for now, the Valiant was sailing back closer to home.

In hindsight, it wasn't an unexpected move. With the Occitanian threat at Quiller's Cove, it was essential that they scraped together enough of a force to counter any aggressive moves by the enemy task force. It still made Jack uneasy though. There were very few scenarios that promised much success of a force of cruisers going up against the two Occitanian battleships. He hoped by sending the Valiant away, he wasn't signing death warrants for the entire crew.

Despite the threat, it wasn't his business to question orders. For that reason, after sliding out of dry dock and receiving a brand-new paint job, the light cruiser sparkled under the morning sun as all hands prepared to leave the Sorellan naval base. It was a bittersweet morning. There were some among the crew that would be happy to leave the unknown portions of the Fourth Vector and return to a more traditional mission but the danger in that mission was much greater. Jack also hated having to part ways with the men and women that he'd sailed with for so long.

He sighed deeply as he looked back over to the Destiny and the Tiger. With all that was going on around them, it was with a heavy heart that he confronted it with the loss of a ship. Occitanians, Swabians, Andalucians—the list of enemies never seemed to empty. He would have killed to get his hands on more firepower, maybe even a Javan battleship, rather than to surrender another ship.

Jack squared his shoulders and walked away from the bow after giving one final tap to the railing. He had faith in Admiral Bancroft and hoped that his plan to separate them wouldn't lead to any problems of its own. He had to trust in the Admiralty. Even though it didn't slacken the heartbreak of losing the ship, it steeled his purpose toward the future and resuming their mission. For after the Valiant left Sorella, the rest of Task Force 21 would be leaving shortly after.

Around him, the ordinary sailors of the Valiant went about their tasks as the ship prepared to depart. Most of them would look his way, making brief eye contact or giving a subtle head nod. Others would go out of their way to greet him before resuming their tasks. Jack acknowledged every man in his path. They'd been together a long time, and it was worth it to thank them for all the time they spent sailing under his command. The dangers that they'd shared, the risks, the victories, and even the tragedies had a way of bonding him to every member of the task force. He just hoped he'd be seeing them all again very soon.

Jack found the nearest hatch and made his way below deck. The last thing he wanted to do before the ship departed was to have a conversation with all the head officers. The first quarters he came to was that of Kim's.

She answered the door after two firm knocks and beckoned him inside.

"I was wondering if I would see you this morning," said Kim with a morose expression on her face.

"I had to make sure I said goodbye to all the crew," said Jack as he stepped inside her quarters. It was small, like just about everyone's on the Valiant, but it was tidy. Kim was nothing if not organized.

"I bet you don't miss living on the Valiant, do you?" teased Kim. "Not with that nice, large quarters you have on the Destiny."

Jack chuckled. "It reminds me of simpler times, that's for sure. We spent a lot of time together on this ship. Good and bad."

"Yes, we have. I think I'll miss that the most," said Kim. "It won't be the same not being here with you on this mission."

Jack smiled briefly. "You guys are off to bigger and better things. There's a war out there that needs to be won. The Valiant is too important to be playing diplomatic duty right now."

Kim waved her hand dismissively. "You know that's a load of crap just like I do. After all, I think it's far more plausible that the Occitanians are coming after us in the Vector. They gain nothing strategically by attacking Quiller's Cove. But going after you and undoing our work here—that would be worthy of sending a fleet."

Jack shrugged his shoulders. "My gut feeling tells me you're right but we can't do anything about it. Orders are orders."

"Stupid orders," muttered Kim, making Jack chuckle.

"You know something, you're a damn good strategist," he said. "I'll miss having you around just for that reason alone."

Kim grinned. "Well, somebody has to keep Luke in line. I can't have him blast his way out of every situation."

"There's more to it than that," said Jack. "You keep Luke steady in other areas of life as well." He gave her a knowing look, which made Kim look away in embarrassment.

Jack put up his hands. "Nothing to be embarrassed about. You both are good for each other. You balance each other out. He's the heart and you're the brain. I'm just glad you're going to do this together. It wouldn't be right for you to be separated, and I think you're better off together."

Kim smiled. "I think so too. Even if he's rather devastated to be leaving the task force."

"Somehow, I'm not that surprised," said Jack. "He'll be all right though. Once you get a few battles in with the Occies, he'll forget all about us."

"Don't be so sure," said Kim with a giggle. "I feel bad for whatever commander we're going to end up under. Luke's ready to spit fire and be an all-around pain in the ass."

"Some things never change," said Jack as he laughed along. "Do me a favor, okay? Keep an eye on him for me? Just make sure he gets out of this in one piece?"

Kim smiled. "Of course, Jack. I'll do my best."

"I know you will. I wouldn't ask this of just anyone, but knowing how you two feel about each other, I figured it wouldn't be an outlandish request. Sometimes he needs a voice of reason to counter that hot head of his, and you do an excellent job at that."

"I can keep his head cool," said Kim. "Just as much as I can get him hot as well."

Jack laughed. "That I have no doubts about!"

In the next moment, she walked toward him and encircled her arms around his shoulders. "I'll miss you, Jack. Stay safe out there, okay? Don't get into any more trouble?"

"I'll do my best," said Jack as he hugged her back just as tightly. "You know, Luke always had you to look after him. Who's going to look after my sorry butt now?"

Kim nearly snorted. "I'm sure Abigail would more than take that job." She fixed him with a knowing look.

Jack gulped. "That obvious, huh?"

She nodded her head silently.

"I suppose I'm not surprised then," said Jack. "Anyway, I should let you get back to it. I know you've got a lot going on before you have to leave, and I have to talk with the rest of the officers."

Kim relaxed the grip on her hug. "Thank you for stopping in to say goodbye. I hope it's not too long until I get to see you again."

"Me too, Kim. Me too." Jack gave her a final wave as he slipped out of her quarters, shutting the door behind him firmly.

The next stop was Bill Norman's quarters but Jack saw that it was empty. Figuring that he must be on the bridge or somewhere else on the ship, he continued down the line until he came to the next door, which was Luke's personal quarters, a room that had belonged to him at one time.

Luke opened the door to him at once, and once he saw that it was Jack, he pursed his lips into a glum expression.

"I was wondering when you'd stop by," said Luke as he moved back behind his desk.

Jack smiled before gesturing around his former quarters. "I like what you've done with the place!"

"You mean after I fixed the broken table and got a bed that doesn't squeak like a songbird in the spring?"

"You got a new bed?" asked Jack. "That squeak used to be terrible."

"Kim made me fix it," said Luke with a cheeky grin. "She didn't like it when . . . well, you know."

"Oh, I do," said Jack. "That squeaky bed was the biggest pain in the ass. You could wake the whole ship with a little nighttime activity."

Luke chuckled. "I'm assuming you didn't come here just to talk about the bed though, right?"

"Of course," said Jack. "I just wanted to give you a proper goodbye."

Luke flinched. "Goodbye sounds so final."

"Just for now, Luke. I need you to go off and sink some Occies and keep them off our tail, all right?" Jack grinned and tried to keep his overall tone lighthearted. If he'd hoped to influence Luke's mood, the effort largely failed.

"I don't agree with this mission, Jack. I think we're doing some real good here. Look what we've managed to accomplish in Sorella. Hell, even in Lishkerra! The Vector contains a whole new world for us, one that's not tainted by everything from back at home. It doesn't feel right to leave now."

"I'll be honest with you, Luke. I don't relish the idea of you leaving. Not only do we lose the firepower, but more importantly, I lose a crew that I trust. I lose experienced officers. And I lose an experienced commander who's always ready and able to fight. That's not something that you can replace easily."

"I think it makes more sense for us to stick together," said Luke. "Especially if there's two Occie battleships out there. If the Valiant runs into them on the way back, we might as well not even try to fight lest we get blasted out the water in a number of minutes."

"If you run into those battleships, you hightail it out there as quickly as you can," said Jack. "I know you like to fight, but you won't stand a chance. You start running away and you do it quickly, all right?"

Luke nodded quickly. "I know that. I won't charge into any fight I can't win. But I do feel we're stronger together than separated."

"I feel the same way but Bancroft knows what's doing," said Jack. Right? He has to have a reason for this.

Luke scoffed. "Bancroft. I'm beginning to see why Commodore Lucas held him in such low esteem. We've barely started this war, our main fleet is bottled up, and our most experienced task force is being forced to break up. Not the mark of any great leader if you ask me."

When Jack didn't respond, Luke stood up and approached him. "If it were me, I'd assign whatever was left of the fleet out here under your command! Then we'd go hunting! We'd chase every Occitanian ship bigger than a barge all the way back to Montauban or else we'll sink 'em."

Jack started to chuckle. "I'll be sure to make that suggestion the next time I message Bancroft."

Luke waved his hand. "Don't bother. He'd rather split up our forces and let us get defeated in detail. Divide and conquer and all that garbage. It's not right, Jack."

"I know, believe me, I do," said Jack while raising his hands. "Listen, I sympathize with you. This situation sucks, and no one knows it better than you and me. But we have to do our duty. Java needs us."

Luke sighed heavily. "Yes, she does. It's a good thing she has us to balance out the dumb shits like Bancroft."

Jack laughed. "Sometimes I can never figure out how you got through the academy with a mouth like that."

"It was all brainpower," said Luke with a cheeky grin. "They took one look at me and figured out that I'd be a damn good commander even despite the rest of my flaws."

"Oh, how wrong they were," said Jack jokingly, while earning a soft punch from his friend.

"You going to be all right out there without me to watch your back?" asked Luke.

"We'll be just fine. Hopefully, we'll have some good luck in Picardy. Help the Sorellans rebuild a bit more. Keep the Swabians at bay."

"Whatever you do, don't kill all of those Swabians," growled Luke. "At least keep a few of them alive until I get back? I want to check out these bastards that are causing all the fuss in this part of the world."

"Hopefully, we'll be in the same position when you get back as we are right now," said Jack. "A two front war is the last thing we need."

"Either way," said Luke while he held out his hand. "Take care of yourself, Jack. Don't do anything that I wouldn't do."

"That's not a very long list," said Jack with a laugh as he shook Luke's hand. "You take care of yourself too. Watch out after the crew and the officers. Kim and Anna as well."

"Kim will more than likely look out after me," said Luke. "But I'll keep an eye on Anna. She's been quiet so far since the transfer but I'm sure that will change."

"I think she just needs to get away from me and possibly her sister too," said Jack. "I hope she'll be happier with you. She's a good officer, so I know she'll do well for you."

"Take care of Cory for me too," said Luke. "Don't let him get too crazy with those big guns on the Destiny."

"I've already seen him looking at them and looking a bit too happy," said Jack. "We'll keep him safe though."

"Until next time, my old friend," said Luke. "See you on the other side."

"You too, Luke. Talk to you soon. Good hunting out there."

With one final look, Jack disappeared out the door of Luke's quarters. There was one more quarters he had to try, and with a few more steps, he arrived at the door that now had Anna's name written on it.

Almost as if she could sense that he was coming, she opened the door before he even knocked. "Oh, Jack, it's you," said Anna. "What are you doing here?"

"Just came to say goodbye," said Jack before looking into her room. "How's the new quarters working out for you?"

Anna smiled. "It's not the Destiny but it'll do nicely. You should have seen the look Cory gave me when he saw my old room there."

"It's quite the upgrade for him from this," said Jack. "Can I come in?"

The smile started to drop from her face but she nodded anyway. There wasn't much of a space inside so Jack picked a spot not far from the bed to stand. There were many things on his mind but one thing in particular leapt out first.

"Are you sure you want to do this, Anna? It's not too late to change your mind."

Anna wrapped her arms around her torso. "I'm sure, Jack. This is for the best. We all can move on. You, me, and Abby. It would have been torture for all of us to stay on the same bridge together."

"I think we'd have gotten used to it in time," said Jack quietly.

"Maybe you might have," said Anna. "But it's okay now, Jack. I'm happy with my choice. I spent the last day with Cory going over everything he needs to know about the Destiny and he did the same for me on the Valiant. It's going to work out just perfectly."

"I'd feel better about it if I didn't have the feeling I was sending you into harm's way."

Anna smiled. "You're getting soft now, Jack. Worried about your ex-girlfriend now, hmm?"

"You know what I mean," said Jack.

To his surprise, she enfolded him in a hug. "I know. I'm just teasing you. I will miss you, you know that right?"

"And I'll miss you. There aren't many women like you out there, Anna."

Anna giggled. "You mean women who will just appear in your bed out of thin air?"

"Exactly what I mean," said Jack with a chuckle. "We had a good time together. I'll never forget about that."

"Neither will I," said Anna with a fond smile. "You're a good man, Jack. I think if you ever did come home to meet my parents, they would have said the same thing. I'm sure they would've seen the same thing in you that I saw. That I think Abigail sees still now."

"And what thing is that?"

"That deep down, you're a kind spirit. That your heart is a good one. You care about the people around you, and that's what makes you a good leader at heart. You might care a little too much and that may be why you get in trouble so much, but it's coming from a good place."

Jack ran his fingers through her dark tresses one more time. Anna had grown up a lot even in just the short time he'd known her. She wasn't the same girl who had just graduated from the academy several months ago. Experience had gained her a new perspective and it was an education that he was upset to let go.

"Wherever you and the Valiant go, I wish you good luck. Stay safe out there, Anna," said Jack while looking down into her dark eyes.

Anna's gaze flickered down to his lips. One last time, she pushed up and pressed her lips to his. It was a chaste kiss, one that was more goodbye than hello. And in it, it conveyed a sense of her finally letting go.

Pulling away from the kiss, she pressed her hand against his cheek. "Take care of Abby for me, okay? You two can be together. It's okay. I accept it now."

Not able to find the right words to respond to that, Jack simply nodded. There was no sense in denying it. Whatever had changed between him and Abigail in the last few days was here to stay, and the first person he needed to be honest with was himself.

All too soon, Anna slipped out of his arms. In the emptiness that followed, Jack found himself not knowing what to do with his hands. "I'll miss you, Anna."

"I'll miss you too, Jack."

With one final smile, she sent him off. Jack felt the door to her quarters shut behind him, and started the march back to the main deck. He said goodbyes to anyone he found along the way, including one last stop in the ship's bridge, where he found Bill Norman and managed to give him a proper sendoff.

It was just over forty-five minutes later that Jack found himself along the main quay as the great boilers of the Valiant began to work. Joining him at his side were Abigail and Vicky, and the three of them watched as the cruiser began to push forward from its berth. Above them, any crew still within sight waved down to their Javan comrades and shortly after, the Valiant began to leave the inner harbor.

"It looks like it's just the three of us now," said Jack to the other two women. "Our task force just got a little smaller."

"Oh, you mean Luke?" asked Vicky playfully. "We don't even need him, right Abigail?"

Abigail started to laugh. "That's right, Vicky. We're more than capable of holding up our end of the task force, Jack."

"I know you two are," said Jack with a grin. "Still, the moment is rather bittersweet though."

Vicky placed a comforting pat on his back. "Luke and the Valiant have their own mission now, just like we have ours. With some good luck, they'll be able to keep our route of supply clear of any enemy ships."

"And we can continue our mission without harassment," added Abigail. "They'll protect our flank while we get allies."

Jack smiled and looked back and forth between them. Even right now, the both of them were still looking at the bright side, still optimistic even as the cruiser drifted further away. "I'm lucky to have you both. There's no other finer commanders in the entire navy."

Vicky beamed with a smile. "I hope you're not just realizing that now."

He chuckled. "I've known it for a long time."

"So when are we leaving then?" asked Vicky. "I imagine we'll start our course to Picardy soon?"

Jack nodded. "Tomorrow. I don't want to sit around for too much longer. I have a meeting with Heron in the morning and then we'll be off by noon."

"Perfect," said Vicky. "We'll be ready to sail when you need us. I'm going to head back to the Tiger. Radio if you need anything."

"Thanks, Vicky." The dark-haired commander of the Tiger walked away, leaving Jack and Abigail alone for the next few moments. Silently, Abigail scooted a little closer to him so that her body was just brushing up against his. Something that didn't go unnoticed by Jack.

"You're feeling a little brave right now," he said with a laugh.

Abigail shrugged. "I wanted to be closer to you. Sue me."

"What about the rest of the crew? All the other sailors? I thought you didn't want them to find out."

Abigail took a deep breath. "I do and I don't. I think it's foolish for us to expect that word won't get out sooner or later. I mean, just look at Luke and Kim. It's the biggest open secret in the entire task force. We'd be fooling ourselves if we thought we could keep this under wraps."

Jack smiled. "This? What exactly is this, Abigail?"

"I don't know," she said with a giggle. "But I like how it feels. Don't you?"

He circled his arm around her waist. "I do too." His mind circled back to the last thing Anna told him before he left. "Your sister told me to look out for you."

She looked up at him. "Oh, really?"

"Mm-hmm, and I intend to do that," said Jack. "I think she may have known that we had the stronger connection and she didn't want to fight that."

Abigail giggled. "I think she was just jealous that I got to you first."

"Either way, it's in the past now. I'll miss her."

She took a deep breath. "I'll miss her too. I hope she's safe on the Valiant. I hope all of them are safe.

"They will be," said Jack firmly as the Valiant finally slipped out of sight. "Come on, let's go talk with the rest of the officers. I want to make sure that Cory is comfortable at the controls. Something tells me we'll need a crack weapons head for the days ahead. I don't think it'll be long until we have to deal with the Swabians."

Without words, Abigail pulled away from him and began to walk back to the ship. Naturally, his eyes watched her body as she walked away, especially the way her hips rocked from side to side and the way her ass filled out her trousers. Now that they didn't have to hide the way they felt about each other, there was something extremely refreshing about being able to be open with their feelings.

"Jack?" Abigail turned around to catch him in the act of ogling her. "Aren't you coming?"

"Right behind you," he said with a grin.

*****

The morning after the Valiant departed Sorella, Jack made his way down the staircase of the barracks in order to meet Heron on the first floor. It wasn't too early, but it was late enough that Abigail had already left his bed to go about her tasks for the day. Jack smiled to himself as he remembered their night. She had been insatiable once she was in bed, and he found himself yawning as he descended the staircase, not having slept much of the night due to her enthusiasm.

It was an interesting turn of events for the both of them. Especially now that Anna was gone, something seemed to have changed with Abigail while he was in the Sorellan interior. Quite possibly it was those few weeks spent apart that changed her perspective, but he found her much more open and willing to communicate her thoughts and desires. With the only real barrier to them being together now sailing in the opposite direction, Jack was pleased with where their relationship was going.

Yet part of him still felt a little guilty about the situation with Kat. His mind reeled with confusion as he thought about her as well, their last meeting sealed by long bouts of kissing and affection. While that had been all they'd done that day, it didn't mean she wasn't frequently in his thoughts just as much as Abigail. It was almost like his heart was torn. Part of it wanted to surrender to Abigail while the other half wanted to unravel the mystery of Kat. He shook his head lightheartedly. If anyone should have learned a lesson about getting caught between two women, it should've been him. Yet, here he was again. At least they weren't sisters this time.

Jack emerged into the main hallway of the first-floor barracks and entered the main meeting room. Heron was already waiting for him, sitting at the table and writing his morning orders as was his usual at this time of day. The king noticed his entry and looked up at him instantly.

"I'm trying to ignore that fact that you and your countrymen are leaving Sorella today," said Heron with a whimsical smile.

"Hard to believe," said Jack. "We've spent a lot of time here."

"And you've done a lot of good! Or at least, you've been a part of it."

"That doesn't have to end. As long as I have breath in my lungs, we'll come to the aid of our allies in Sorella."

Heron grinned. "I know that. At least I know you're going to a good place like Picardy. Even if these latest reports out of that land are a little disturbing."

"I'll let you know what happens when we get there," said Jack. "We'll send a message back. I'm hoping it's just a misunderstanding, but then again, who would send a trader away?"

"My gut feeling isn't good on this subject," warned Heron. "I just hope King Aedan is all right. If anything happened to him or the royal family, I'd be very distraught."

"We'll let you know as soon as we get there," said Jack. "Whatever is happening in Picardy, we'll get to the bottom of it."

Heron beamed with a smile. "I know you will, Jack. Anyway, thank you for joining me this morning."

"Of course. Was there anything in particular you wanted to discuss?"

"Yes, and I'm just waiting for Andros to come by, although the man is just about always late. It seems he was conferring regularly with your engineers when they were here, and he wants to show something to us before you leave. I can't imagine what kind of new invention he's come up with though."

"This should be interesting," said Jack with a chuckle. "He was quite enamored with some of those designs of his after seeing the blueprints for our ships."

"That he was. I just hope this isn't a waste of time."

"I can assure you, Your Majesty, that this will be a good use of all of our time," said a voice from the door. Both Jack and Heron looked up to find a grinning Andros leaning against the frame and listening to their conversation.

"There you are, Andros," said Heron. "Come on in. Forgive me, Jack and I were just talking lightheartedly."

"Nothing to forgive, Your Majesty," said Andros with a swipe of his hand. "But you're correct. I do have something that will be quite useful for us moving forward."

Andros produced a blueprint that was being held behind his back. He brought it over to the table in front of Heron and Jack and carefully unrolled it in front of them.

Jack studied the blueprint in front of him, quickly recognizing it as looking very similar to the ships that Heron had recovered from his brother's fleet. In front of them was the sailing ship, Hera, so named after Heron's recently deceased daughter.

"All right, so you have a ship here, Andros," said Heron after a moment. "But what am I looking for?"

"I'm glad you asked, Your Majesty," said Andros with a grin before he dropped his finger on the hull of the ship. From what Jack could see, something had been added to the hull, but it was impossible to make out just from the blueprint alone. "After a few discussions with our new Javan allies, I've learned a lot about ship construction. Most importantly, I've learned that it wasn't so long ago that the Javans themselves had ships that looked very close to ours."

"That's not that surprising," said Heron. "Our technology has always been a little backwards here but even the local powers like the Swabians and the Galicians have had the technology to make ships that look closer to Jack's than they do ours."

"Correct, you are, Your Majesty," said Andros. "But what we were missing for so long was what was the next step in designs. What separates our sailing, wooden ships from Jack's steel behemoths? The answer is iron."

"Iron?" asked Heron confusingly. "Why not steel? Why iron?"

"For one, iron will be easier for us to make instead of steel so it will be more readily available," said Andros. "But it's also the way we can armor the ships and make them much tougher to incoming fire."

"Wouldn't it make the ships too heavy though if they were built entirely out of iron?" asked Heron before turning to Jack. "Don't get me wrong, I'm sure you've found a way to do it with steel but I'm not sure if we understand how to make them buoyant enough to float."

"I believe I have a design for an all-iron ship, Your Majesty," said Andros proudly. "But that will take a long time to make, especially in our current situation. However, this is meant to be a stopgap, especially if we have to face any Swabian aggression." Andros then pointed excitedly to the hull of the ship again. "We can fit iron plates to the existing ships along the hull. Thick plates too, about four or five inches thick. If we line the entire hull, we'll make them much harder to sink."

"Can they still stay afloat with that much weight added to the hull?" asked Heron.

"They'll have a low freeboard after we're done with them, that's for sure," said Andros. "We'll need to keep them close to shore as well as keep them out of any storms, but it's not much different than what we do now."

Heron tapped his chin. "I'm not sure I see this happening, Andros. I don't see how you can keep these ships afloat. Sure, the protection sounds great, but it won't work well if they can't stay on the surface."

"I thought you might want to see a demonstration," said Andros with a grin. "That's why I had one prepared for us this morning. If you both wouldn't mind, would you follow me out to the harbor?"

Together, the three men left the barracks and moved to the main quay that held the berths of Heron's fleet. Near the end of the wharf, Andros had a small trawler tied up, but it was no ordinary boat. Jack could tell there was something odd about it, and once they were close enough, he could see that the entire hull had been plated with iron just how Andros had described. Predictably, the freeboard was almost nonexistent, only about a foot or two of the hull poked out from the waterline.

"That reminds me of some of the ships tied up at the Javan Naval Academy," said Jack as he pointed to the trawler. "Early iron-plated ships just like those. We called them ironclads."

Heron turned to Jack. "So they all rode so low in the water?"

"For the most part, but they're a crucial link in the development until you're able to engineer them to be more oceangoing."

Andros led them closer to the ship, but instead of following down the main quay where the trawler was, he led them down another quay about fifty feet away. On it, he had a cannon set up with a local crew.

"Like I said in the barracks, I thought a demonstration might be in order," said Andros confidently. "I had this old fishing trawler plated myself after placing an order with a local smelter. I hope you won't be too upset with me, Your Majesty, but I arranged to have them bill the royal treasury."

"I won't be upset if this works like you think it will," said Heron while crossing his arms.

"I think you'll be pleased," said Andros with an embarrassed look. "Anyway, I had the entire ship plated and I arranged to have this cannon brought down here to demonstrate the strength of the iron. These cannons used to be on one of our older ships that was sunk by Daimanos. They are not as powerful as the cannons he had during the war, but they'll work for this demonstration. If you'll both cover your ears, I'll light the fuse."

Both Jack and Heron did as they were asked while Andros worked on the fuse. In the space of about thirty seconds, the cannon roared to life with an explosion, followed by a spark of fire against the trawler. Once the explosion was over, both Jack and the king dropped their hands and walked back over to the cannon. Andros stood beaming proudly and he pointed to the trawler.

Jack looked over to inspect the damage. While there was a good-sized dent in the iron plating, the trawler was still afloat. Most importantly, it would stay afloat even with a shot at near point-blank range.

"If we shot any of our ships with such close range, they'd be at the bottom of the harbor right now," said Andros proudly. "But this simple modification ensured that even the most basic of fishing trawlers can survive cannon fire."

"This is incredible," whispered Heron. "I want to get a closer look at the ship. Let's walk over."

The three of them walked back over to the other quay where the trawler was. Sure enough, the dented iron plate was easy to see but otherwise, the boat showed no damage.

"How remarkable," muttered Heron. "How long did it take you to plate that boat?"

"Sourcing the iron was the hard part," said Andros. "Otherwise, it wasn't so bad of a job with all the extra help we've had lately. I imagine it won't take us long to do our four remaining ships and make them more impervious to cannon fire."

"Just cannon fire, I take it?" asked Heron. "I imagine any heavier ordnance against those plates wouldn't last as long, right?"

"Exactly, Your Majesty. But it will give us a fighting chance as we work to develop an all-iron ship moving forward."

"What you've been able to accomplish in a short period of time is nothing short of remarkable, Andros," said Jack. "I imagined you'd be able to progress our technology further, but not nearly as quickly. I'm very impressed."

"As am I, Andros," said the king while putting his hand on the engineer's shoulder. "You've done extraordinary work."

"Thank you both," said a clearly embarrassed Andros. "Luckily for our sake, we've been able to establish direct communications with the Javan naval base at Quiller's Cove by a transmitter left behind by your engineers, Jack. That way, if we need any assistance with our shipbuilding, we have a direct link."

"This is a very promising start for the future," said the king. "Never would I have guessed we'd be able to start to rebuild the navy as quickly as this."

"My thoughts on that matter are that it should take some precedence," said Jack. "After all, if you can destroy your enemy at sea, you keep him off your shores. And that last thing Sorella needs right now is another enemy on its shores."

"You and I are of the same mind right now, Jack," said Heron before turning to Andros. "Please start the modification process with the existing ships and full steam ahead with the ironclad warships."

Andros beamed with a smile. "Of course, Your Majesty."

"With any luck, we'll—"

Before Heron could finish his sentence, a whistle sounded from the entrance to the harbor. All three men turned to look directly at the jetty that signaled the entrance.

"There must be a ship on the way," said Heron. "That whistle signals the approach of a friendly naval vessel."

"Who could be coming here now? Perhaps another trading ship?" suggested Jack.

"It's not improbable," said Heron. "Come, let's find out."

"I'm going to get back to work on these designs, Your Majesty," said Andros before heading off in the other direction. Both men waved goodbye to the engineer as he set off towards his office near the barracks. Jack and Heron moved along the docks as other personnel rushed about ready to welcome the incoming ship. However, no one could have predicted the condition of the ship that slipped inside the jetty.

For one, it looked to be barely afloat. Much smaller than the Sorellan trading ship commanded by Aristides, this small ship looked like it had come out on the wrong side of a nasty shooting match. Parts of its wooden hull were scarred black and that seemed to be the lucky parts that were still attached to the ship. Gaping holes filled both sides, both above the water line and below as evidenced by a noticeable list to the starboard side. The charred remains of fire were easily visible as well, along with the tattered shreds of the sails that were still attached to the mast.

"What in the world?" muttered Heron while watching the ship come in to dock. "That's a Picard merchant ship but it's in awful shape."

"It looks like it's been attacked," said Jack. "Who would have attacked the Picards?"

"I have no idea. They're not at war with anyone. Unless it's the Swabians up to no good again."

"I'm beginning to get tired of hearing the name of those peoples," said Jack angrily. "It seems like everything that goes wrong in this portion of the world can be traced back to them."

Heron turned to look at him. "You're not far off with that accusation." He then turned back to look at the ship as it moved to dock alongside the quay. "That ship isn't going to be floating for much longer. We have to help them."

Together, the two of them began to gather a force of local dock workers and sailors who could help rescue what they could from the barely-floating vessel. As soon as they were able to get the ship anchored, a multitude of men rushed off the craft, many of them still fearful and in a bad shape. A good portion had bloody wounds or gashes on their bodies, evidence of a fight. Heron directed his men to get on the ship and start unloading while they still could, hoping to save a decent portion of the goods before they ended up on the bottom of the harbor.

It was only once all of the Picards were off the ship that the captain, an older man with fiery red and wild hair limped down the gangplank. It was obvious by the number of bruises and wounds that someone had taken their time with his punishment. He nearly collapsed once his feet hit the dock.

"Someone get me some water, quickly!" yelled Heron as he and Jack rushed to the fallen captain. "It's okay, man. You're safe now, you're safe now."

"Too many of them . . . didn't stand a chance," muttered the captain as his eyes went wide in remembrance.

"What happened, captain? Who attacked you?" asked Heron.

"Shot us with weapons. Boarded our ships. Our women, our poor women." The captain continued to mutter about in a delirious manner, unable to answer a proper question with any confidence. Jack and Heron huddled over the man while they waited for fresh water, and as soon as it was brought to them, they let the man have it. He drank eagerly like it had been days since he last quenched his thirst.

After letting him have a few minutes to drink and collect his thoughts, Heron tried again. "Who are you, friend?"

The man's eyes rolled to lock on Heron. "My name is Captain Wally Sheamus. This is my ship, the Sunflower."

"Your ship has seen better days, Wally," said Heron. "What happened to you out there? Where are you coming from?"

"Coming from Samara, sir," said Wally. "Just a simple trader, I am. We had a load of Apulian spices and Angarsk herring with us. I heard rumors that the war was over here in Sorella, so I thought I'd come down here to sell my wares."

"We thank you for stopping here," said Heron. "But what gave you the trouble? Who did this to you, Wally?"

Wally's head tilted back. Jack noticed he had a small gash on his neck, and since he lacked any proper first aid kits, he applied pressure with his own hand to stop the rush of blood from his neck. "We only ran into problems coming down the East Swabian gap. I've never seen anything like it, sir. We were set upon by a Swabian dreadnought who stopped us along the way. They told me that going any further south was forbidden and that Sorella was in civil war. They made it sound like it wasn't safe."

"Why would the Swabians be interfering in international waters?" said Heron. "They've never been so bold as to do that on this side of the ocean."

"I don't know, sir," said Wally. "But I told them I heard the war was over and that it was safe again. That seemed to placate them and they let me go. We were barely out of sight from the Swabians when they opened fire on us, sir. We took a few indirect hits but nothing serious enough to sink us right away, thanks be to the gods. Otherwise, I wouldn't be still alive right now. But I'm not stupid enough to think I can outrun a Swabian dreadnought so I ran up a white flag and waited for them to catch up to us again."

"What happened when they did?" asked Jack.

The man's face turned to abject horror. "They treated us like criminals. Like we directly disobeyed their order to turn around, even though they let us go in the first place! It made not the slightest bit of sense, sir. What came next was indescribable."

"Tell us, Wally," said Heron. "If we are to bring whomever did this to justice, we have to know the full extent. Tell us when you're ready."

Wally swallowed hard. "They confiscated all my goods. My ship is completely bare save for empty crates. All that product and all that money, gone. After they confiscated the goods, they took the women too. I had several female crew members, and all of them are now gone. Only the gods know what will happen to them. The rest of our crew were abused like this." Wally pointed to the various wounds all over his body.

"They took their turns, sir. It was the most sadistic thing I've ever seen. They seemed to have fun with sticking us with their swords and seeing who could bleed the most. The lucky ones died quickly and were tossed in the sea. Some more of them that were unlucky enough to survive the entire encounter died on the remaining voyage here."

"When did they set you free?" asked Jack. "How long did they detain you?"

"It felt like days but it was only a few hours. Once they striped us of everything of value, they just left. Thankfully, enough of us could cobble together enough of a force to operate the ship and come south."

"You're safe now, man," said Heron. "Sorella is safe again. We'll help your men get aid and get patched back up."

Wally grabbed Heron's collar. "Those Swabians are like demons, sir. Demons, I tell you. I can only imagine the fate of our women. Sold as slaves, I have no doubt. I've heard chatter on the Swabian ship when they were torturing us. They're selling slaves to the Andalucians."

Heron looked up at Jack before turning his attention back to Wally. "We've heard something similar."

"My heart aches for them," said Wally. "I just hope for a merciful and quick death for them. I don't know how it's come to this. In my entire life, I haven't seen anyone attack a trading ship. Why would they do this to us, sir? What did we do to warrant such treatment?"

"We live in interesting times, Wally," said Heron solemnly. "Unfortunately, it seems like things are going to get worse before they get better."

"I'm done with all of this," said Wally. "To hell with trading in this environment. I'm going back to Picardy once the coast is clear and I'm going to try farming again. It's not worth dying, sir."

Heron nodded. "Come, Wally. Let's get you and your men some medical attention. You've suffered so much that it's our time to take care of you now."

With a coordinated effort, Heron began to get the men of the Sunflower onto stretchers, taking them to the small naval hospital not far from the barracks. It was only just in time too, as after the last stretcher left the docks, the Sunflower slowly capsized and sank at its mooring at the dock. Just like Wally had said, the only crates they were able to recover from onboard were either empty or containing the sailor's personal effects.

With a great sigh, Heron turned to Jack. "It appears now they're targeting merchant vessels coming to Sorella peacefully. The Swabians have gotten awfully aggressive lately."

"It's important that we get moving quickly," said Jack. "I want to take our task force up this same passage and see what happens."

"I just don't get it, Jack. Trading vessels have no military value. Especially not loaded down with spices and fish. What's the point in attacking them?"

"They are tightening their hold on the waters around you, Heron. First they wanted to steal your gold and next they wanted to seal off all routes in and out of the island. An attack is coming."

Heron shook his head. "We need reinforcements. We need help from abroad. We can't stand on our own."

"We're going to be off at once," said Jack. "With a little luck, we can rope the Picards into an alliance and be in better shape." Jack trailed off at the end, his mouth falling open as he remembered a crucial detail."

"Jack? What's wrong?" asked Heron.

"They're attacking trading vessels," whispered Jack. "Kat and Vera left on the Swordfish two days ago! They are going to be in grave danger if they sail right into this Swabian force."

Heron nodded at once. "Come, we need to get you back out at sea. If anything happened to those two, I'd be very distraught."

You and me both, thought Jack. He pictured Vera's friendly smile and easy laugh. His relationship with the woman had developed into something that resembled a real friendship. There were no words for how much he enjoyed her company, but even as much as he liked Vera, his heart ached for Kat more. The very idea that Kat was now in danger with the mortal enemy of her peoples set his heart ablaze. He had to get back out to sea and make sure she was safe.

He couldn't let anything happen to her.