Dragon Choir (20 page)

Amber pulled
out a jar from her satchel and gave it a rattle while clicking the
stump of her tongue and popping her lips in a tune of fire licking
spring tinder. The room flared an eerie blue-white, lit from the
jar full of twigs.

“
I can hear people calling out further down,” said
Elrin.

“
Follow,” said Hurn, stooping as he moved off into the depths
of the ship.

Elrin took Amber’s free hand and pressed on after the ogre.
She rattled her jar of twigs as they went, the cold blue light
falling on a grim scene of carnage. They passed body after body.
Most were dead, or soon would be. They littered the deck, groaning
with wooden debris lodged in their flesh and gashes across their
skin. Hurn guided them deeper still, past more of the dead. The
design of the galleon was similar to
Juniper
, but far bigger. The shouts
and screams were clearer now, the prison hold had to be
close.

Cannon fire
pounded the galleon with such force it lurched and groaned,
knocking Elrin off his feet. Hurn helped him up and pointed down
the nearby stairs. The young Calimskan hoped it was safer from the
cannon and hurried on, descending into knee high water and a sea of
panicked faces imprisoned behind bars.

Minni was
tackling the locks in the dim, her face tight with worry. She had
only managed to open one cell and the prisoners’ panic had risen
with the infiltrating water. Delik was trying to keep the calm, but
his face was grim. If the pirates kept up the endless barrage,
water would flood the whole deck before Minni could pick every
lock.

The ceiling
leaked, heavy drips falling upon Elrin’s head. Stepping to the side
he wiped his face and his hand came away slick with blood.

The prisoners
wailed and cursed, jostling to get to the cell doors. Amber took
the jar of light to Minni, holding it steady beside the lock. Minni
brightened, rolling her shoulders and flexing her fingers before
trying the lock again.

Elrin helped
Delik settle the prisoners. “You must calm down. We are here to set
you free. We will have you out soon. Our ship is waiting for you.
You will all be safe. Preserve your strength.” Elrin and Delik
repeated themselves over, helping some, but others were too lost in
their craze, banging on the bars and screaming. Elrin had never
heard such distress.

As soon as
Minni got another cell open she moved to the next, determined to
beat the rising water. The prisoners rushed from the cell with
Elrin and Delik pointing to the stairs. It would be useless trying
to guide them out; they would have trampled anyone in their way.
The prisoners panicked in the other cells, grabbing at Minni and
Amber. They pleaded, they cursed and the water kept rising.

Cannon fire
rocked the ship again and the prisoners screamed. Minni lost her
composure. Her hands shook, dropping a pick into the water.

“
There’s too many,” she said, fumbling with another pick from
her kit. “They’re all different! I can’t get to them all in
time.”

Elrin went to
her side and put his hand on her shoulder. Her dark eyes were
brimming with tears. “You’re doing fine, Minni,” said Elrin. “I’ll
keep their hands off you. Just imagine it’s the door to the
Calimskan treasury. You do what you do best.”

The young man
gave her a reassuring smile, but he knew Minni was right. There
were too many cells in the room and not enough time. Minni didn’t
say anything more. She wiped her eyes and returned to the lock. She
had light and friends at her back. Her fingers eased through a
series of manipulations with renewed confidence. The lock released
and the door burst open, knocking Minni and Amber into the water.
The prisoners poured out in a desperate rush to escape, trampling
over any who stumbled.

“
Stop!” Elrin reached into the water and grabbed for Minni. He
looped his arms under hers and heaved her up and out of danger. She
was warm, pressed close, water dripping from her hair down her
cheeks, over her lips. She was soaked through to her skin, but her
chest rose and fell; she was alive.

Hurn was not
so delicate. He plunged his arm into the crowd of prisoners wading
to their escape and swept them back. He scooped his hand into the
water and plucked Amber out, placing her back on her feet.

“
Elrin?” said Minni, placing her hands on his shoulders. “You
can let me go now, I’m fine.”

“
Yes, of course, I ...” Elrin blushed, releasing Minni from
his embrace.

“
You were meant to keep those hands off me, weren’t you?”
Minni gave Elrin her wicked smile, then moved straight to the next
cell lock.

Another attack
blasted the side of the ship, lurching it to the side and tilting
the deck, knocking Hurn hard against the bars. The ogre regained
his footing, pushing himself away from the cell, now misshapen from
his impact.

“
Hurn!” called Elrin, wading over to the ogre. “Quickly. You
have to break them all out. Bend those bars!”

“
Should ask sooner,” said Hurn, furrowing his brow. “Leave
late.”

Hurn sloshed
through the water to the next cell. He grabbed the barred door and
heaved, his muscled arms rippling. The door buckled, he heaved
again and the door bent open. The prisoners pushed their way out,
some managing to call their thanks as they passed. Hurn moved to
each of the remaining cells and broke the doors open. The prisoners
soon calmed when they saw the ogre’s work, standing back and giving
him room to bend the metal.

The last of
the prisoners waded out as a barrage of cannon fire rocked the ship
again. The galleon tipped and wrenched, its wooden bones splitting
with an awful groan and crack.

“
Follow me,” said Minni, leading the way out.

Elrin grabbed
Amber’s hand and helped her out of the prison hold. Hurn came after
them with a face full of worry, his eyes stark. They climbed out of
the flooded room and up through the decks. Delik followed behind
Hurn, urging the ogre to press on through the chaos.

Sunlight and water spilled through jagged holes piercing the
hull. The galleon leaned and rolled in the sea like a drunkard. The
incline of the deck made a straight run impossible, forcing them to
scramble over cannons tied down with block and tackle, dodging
fallen debris and the dead, and slipping on the blood-slick deck.
Finally they made it out through the hatch, only to see that the
brutalised galleon had rolled too far for them to jump back to the
safety of
Juniper
.

The crippled
vessel was sinking fast. Bubbles boiled from the tortured hull,
churning the water into a lather. Kobb’s pirate ships loitered in
the haze of smoke with cannons out like eager dragons, protruding
through the bulwark ready to spit the five hells upon them.

The freed prisoners balanced on the ship’s sloping hull, as
close to
Juniper
as they could manage without falling in the sea, grasping for
the rope ladders hurled down to rescue them. Hurn moved into the
crowd with careful steps and grabbed a woman, lifting her above his
head. Men shouted and one punched at the ogre’s back, though he was
too busy helping the woman to notice.

“
Calm down!” hollered Elrin. “Can’t you see he’s saving your
skins?”

Hurn lifted
the woman high enough to climb through a cannon port. Once the
prisoners understood, they clamoured to be the next one to be
rescued. As he passed up the last child, the sinking ship lurched
onto its side, tipping everyone off their feet. The remaining masts
and their tattered sails slapped against the agitated sea.

Delik and
Minni fell into the water. Hurn caught hold of a rail as he slid
and grabbed Elrin’s belt, saving him from going overboard as well.
Amber was nowhere to be seen. Hurn hoisted Elrin up to the rail,
then onto the exposed hull. When the ogre pulled himself up, he was
pale with fear. Elrin thought to ask what was wrong, but was
distracted by muffled shouts and thumping on the hull. The young
man scrambled to where the sound was the loudest and kicked his
heel onto the timber. The shouts and thumping became more frantic.
Hurn followed Elrin’s lead and jumped with all his weight onto the
hull. It creaked a little, but held strong.

Amber appeared floating on the water, ferrying people
to
Juniper
. Her
legs were like a little raft, magically buoyant, shunting flotsam
to those who couldn’t swim and pushing them to safety. Minni and
Delik treaded water beside
Juniper
, helping people up onto to
the ladders after Amber dropped them off.

“
Amber! We need your help!” Elrin waved his arms to show where
they were.

Amber dropped
her legs into the water then rose to the surface like a cork. She
ran over the water and up the hull to them, making a strange
swishing noise with her mouth like a quart trying to escape a
wineskin. Hurn continued to stamp on the hull. An arrow sped past
his head and landed in the sea. Another two followed, thunking into
the hull.

Elrin couldn’t
understand why the pirates were taking shots at them. When would it
end? He crouched down on the hull and tugged on Hurn’s arm, getting
him to do the same. A smaller target would slow them down.

“
Amber, can you freeze water?”

Amber nodded.
And made her dripping hand freeze over. Elrin shivered.

“
Freeze the hull right here.”

Amber placed
her hand on the hull and whispered. The wet wood bulged and
crackled, freezing a small radius around her hand.

“
Bash that, Hurn,” said Elrin.

He hesitated
at first, staring at Amber’s frozen hand.

The screams
and thumps from below grew louder, more frantic. Hurn clenched his
fists like great mallets and clasped his eyes shut. With monstrous
force he brought them down, shattering through the hull. Inside,
men gulped for fresh air, floating amongst lacquered black stars,
kegs and refuse. Amber iced another section of the hull and Hurn
battered through, revealing more trapped marines. From water murky
with blood and thick with the dead they pulled the living, one
section at a time, until no more cries for help could be heard.

Arrows fell
around them and Elrin was glad for the wind and swell, which
hampered their precision. The archers on the brightly coloured
carrack laughed as they shot, joking with each other. An arrow
lodged in Hurn’s shoulder while he lifted a marine to safety and a
roar of laughter and cheers went up from the carrack. Hurn pulled
at the arrow shaft jutting from his muscular arm, tearing it out
with a grunt. Blood slid from the wound.

“
We’ve done all we can for these Jandans,” said Elrin. “The
ship wont float much longer. Even if it did, those idiots will hit
one of us again.”

Amber pointed to
Juniper
.

“
You’re right. We should get Hurn to a ladder before all this
blood attracts sharks or a clan of koprani.

Elrin and
Amber prepared to dive in, but stopped when Hurn rumbled.

“
Hurn Ga Kogh not swim, Hurn Ga Kogh sink like
ship.”

Amber shook
her head then reached around the ogre’s waist. She swished a liquid
rhythm from puffed pulsing cheeks and her arms glowed sea green,
creating a radiant ring around Hurn’s waist. His complexion drained
of colour in fear of what was to come.

“
It’s safe, Hurn.” Elrin dove in to demonstrate how easy it
was. “Don’t be afraid. Amber’s magic won’t let you
sink.”

Hurn wasn’t
convinced.

Amber wrapped
her hand around his thumb and waited as though there was no hurry.
Her honey coloured eyes warmed the ice blue panic in his. Her
gentle smile and understanding melted his fear. They dove in
together, making a great splash. His body bobbed out of the water
like an awkward duck, thrashing around.

Once he
realised he couldn’t sink, he calmed, allowing Amber to ferry him
across to a rope ladder. It snapped under his weight, dropping him
back into the sea. Elrin waved them over to a thick, knotted rope
and Hurn hauled himself up hand over hand. Elrin scaled a ladder
and swung over the gunwale to safety.

“
That’s the one,” said Coalman, his voice shaking. “He can
operate the signals.” Coalman’s eye was black and swollen shut. A
gash on his cheek and a busted lip bled down his face. Beside him,
brandishing a hooked blade, stood a man decorated face to foot with
black swirls of ink.

Two men in
motley colours seized Elrin. They took his sword and scabbard and
marched him past the gathering mass of rescued prisoners on the
main deck. He resisted at first, but the men just twisted his arm
until the pain stopped him. They pushed him up the stair onto the
quarterdeck. Minni and Delik were waiting, each with their own
escort holding them in check.

The pirates
had forgotten to take Elrin’s dagger. If he got his hands free, he
might have a chance. The young man gave Delik a wink and prepared
himself.

Delik warned
him off the idea. “Kobb’s taken the lot, lad. Save your fight now.
Plenty of time for that yet.”

“
How did they take all the ships? What about
Tikis?”

“
We had to surrender,” said Delik. “That fluyt was full of
men. It would have been a slaughter.”

“
What do we do now?”

“
We give Kobb whatever he wants,” said Minni, her neck scraped
and bleeding onto her blouse.

Elrin hung his
head.