Southunder went back to critically examining the airship. “What do you think of her?”
The Traveler was a twin-hulled dirigible with lots of horsepower and guns. “Francis said she’s fast and packs one hell of a punch.”
“I still miss my zeppelin, but I do believe she’ll do nicely. I’m not so sure about the crew, though. They don’t have to like each other, but they do need to trust each other. Otherwise accidents can happen up in the sky. In my experience I’ve found that the judgmental ones tend to fall overboard; must be their swollen heads throwing off their balance.”
Everyone aboard was a volunteer who knew the risks. Southunder was like a father to his pirates, and Sullivan trusted the knights that were accompanying them. Heinrich had seen to the recruiting, and Sullivan knew that the Fade had put together a solid bunch. So there was only one person whom Southunder could be talking about. “He’ll do what he’s supposed to.”
“We can’t have one bad apple always looking for trouble.”
“Looking for trouble is our mission… I’ll go talk to him.”
“Thank you, Sullivan. I’ll get us in the air.”
As expected, Toru was in his quarters, sharpening his sword. The former Iron Guard did not bother to look up when Sullivan entered. “Are we ready yet? I feel my ancestors grow impatient.”
“Your ancestor murdered half of this crew’s ancestors.”
“I see.” Toru replied as he examined the blade. “Then their ancestors should have ducked.”
“You going to pick any more fights?”
“Only with the Enemy, and should we live through that… the two of us have one to finish.”
“As long as you keep them in that order, fine with me. But where we’re going, the Imperium will try to stop us. These men need to know which side you’re gonna be on if that happens.”
“Do you wish me to give them my word? It is said that a warrior does not make promises, for everything we speak is a promise. If a warrior says he will do something, then it will be done. If a warrior speaks, it is a vow. I have already said why I am here. We will fulfill the duty of the Dark Ocean.” Toru finally put the sword down and glared at Sullivan. “Tell your men the entirety of the Imperium would not stand in the way of fulfilling the final command of Okubo Tokugawa. The Imperium will come to understand the coming danger or they will perish. I will make them understand the truth of this.”
In Toru’s head were the memories of a man who had fought the Enemy before and lived to tell about it. They needed him, whether they liked it or not. “You’d damn well better.”
Toru bowed in response.
Sullivan went forward, deep in thought. One small group of men were going to try to do a job that the Chairman had built the whole Imperium for. The Grimnoir were loved by few, feared by many, and hated by more. No one in authority would listen to them about the Enemy, and even some of the elders doubted his sanity. No one had seen Faye since the god of demons had been banished, so it could be safely assumed their strongest Active was dead. Half of his friends were staying in the States to fight a war of propaganda and diplomacy, while the rest of them were embarking on a suicide mission against an alien threat.
General Roosevelt had once told the 1st Volunteers that a leader fights a war with the resources he had, not the ones he wished he had. Now it was Jake Sullivan’s turn to be the leader, and his resources were a hundred men, a fancy blimp, guns, magic, and a whole lot of guts.
The view out the window shifted. The Traveler had lifted off.
The search for the Pathfinder had begun.