“Dex,” Jodyne said, tossing a rope over the side and staring at him.
“This is our ship, they’ll be at a loss. We’ve no idea how many there be,” he argued.
“We ain’t s’posed to be here,” Rosh reminded them. “This ain’t our fight!”
Dexter looked at Rosh and nearly changed his mind at the man’s unusual agreement with him. He nodded and said, “Help them aboard, we’ll defend them here.”
“Bailynn, check on Bekka,” Jenna said, realizing the sorceress had not emerged yet. The small elven-touched girl nodded and hurried off, sliding gracefully down the staircase towards the bridge.
The men arrived singly and in pairs at the Voidhawk. They scampered up the ropes as quick as they could, sometimes having two or even three men on a rope at a time. Dexter and Rosh helped them aboard as they neared the railing, reaching down to pull them onward and upward. A few more were ambushed and cut down, but the majority that reached the ground made it back on board. Aidan and his men emerged from the ruins bloodied.
They neared the Voidhawk and a creature rose up from a pile of rubble. It leapt through the air, about to take Aidan by lethal surprise but a flash of silver through the air intercepted the beast. Jodyne’s dagger buried in it’s hip and the creature hissed in pain.
Aidan spun toward the hideous cry and called out to his men. They grabbed and bound the creature and, when it refused to stop wrestling against them, one of them clipped it on the head with the butt of his sword. Limp, they carried it to the side of the Voidhawk and hoisted it aboard. The other men scrambled upwards and waited for the impending attack by the cat-like natives of the ruins.
“My thanks,” Aidan said after he boarded, handing over the dagger Jodyne had thrown.
Jodyne nodded and took it from him, not smiling but nodding to show she respected and appreciated his gratitude.
Bailynn emerged from below, helping an unsteady Bekka to walk. The half-elf glanced around, trying to take in their new surroundings. Bailynn helped her to Dexter’s side but stayed back out of the way of his snapping orders to make ready for an attack.
“Going to make it?” Dexter asked Bekka.
“Just some dump shock,” she said, slurring her speech slightly.
Dexter nodded. Every pilot knew what it was like to be suddenly torn from the helm of a ship. To say it was disorienting was understating it. One moment you were one with the vessel, the next you were like a fish out of water, a fish that had gone from being a whale to a minnow in an instant. He shuddered in sympathy. A normal separation, where the change was gradual and the transition expected and accepted was far more preferable.
“Good, we should be busy right quick,” he said to her, offering her a brief but encouraging smile.
“Cap, they ain’t coming,” Rosh said, staring into the ruins and picking out occasional creatures hiding in the shadows.
“Why not?” Dexter demanded, turning to stare into the surrounding ruins.
“It’s their job to defend this place,” Logan said, his voice harsh and deep.
Several of them turned, surprised to hear him step up and volunteer the information.
“I was warned it might be guarded,” Aidan said, supporting the man.
“You know who they are?” Dexter asked.
Logan nodded. “An old and rare race, the Perryn. Mostly they live in the mountains, but it is said that some tribes live in old places. They guard them from men, fearful of the ancient secrets that might be released unto the world.”
“Captain, what are your orders here?” Dexter asked, turning to the soldier.
Aidan stared at him for a long minute, deciding what to tell. He looked around at his soldiers and then at Dexter’s crew. The shared blood made him relent.
He took a deep breath and let it go before speaking. “We are to penetrate into the center of this ruin. There is an old temple and within it a magical weapon that we can use to turn aside our foes. It will end the war in days instead of months, saving many lives.”
“The lives of Lord Falson’s faithful, that is,” Dexter said sarcastically.
Aidan did not deny the statement.
“What is the weapon?” Dexter asked him.
Aidan shrugged. “I do not know. Some magic or other.”
Dexter studied him for a moment then nodded. He believed the man. “What about these… Perryn?”
“I was told it would be guarded, but we didn’t know about them,” he said.
“Well, you’ve got one with you, I suggest you ask him,” Dexter said.
“As for us, as soon as we can fix the ‘Hawk and figure out a way to get past those damned mist-devils, we’ll be heading back.”
Aidan opened his mouth but then closed it and nodded. He wanted them to stay and help, or at least offer them a ride back. It was not his place to ask though, and he had his own problems to worry about. He was down nearly a quarter of his men already, and with the savage defenders waiting for them, he knew it would be a bloody job getting to the temple.
“Double the watch,” Dexter said to his crew. “Captain, can you add some of your men’s eyes to it as well? I don’t like this place.”
Aidan nodded and issued the order to assist the Voidhawk’s crew however possible. Dexter could not help but like the man, even though they seemed to have very different paths and goals in life.
“Rosh, think you can help me figure out how to fix some of the damage? Bekka, when you’re able, can you mend the sails?”
Bekka nodded.
“Captain, can I help?”
Dexter turned to Willa “I expect everybody to help,” Dexter said. “Do what you can.”
She nodded and looked to Rosh, who was busy peering over the edge at some of the damage done by the crash to the hull and landing struts. He sighed and shook his head, then glanced over at Dexter. He shrugged at his knowledge of what to do to fix the ship, but headed for the stairs to check the hold and see if they had been breached anywhere.
Dexter nodded after the man left. He may not know what to do, and he might be complicated and difficult at times, but given a task he would do everything he could to figure it out. Rosh might be short on wit and education, but he could figure things out and had a stubborn streak that would see him through to the end of a given task.
“Captain, my men and I will be departing,” Aidan said, calling up to Dexter from where he stood on the main deck.
Dexter finished retying a damaged rope to the light ballista on the front of the ship, then stood and moved to the rail. “Get what you need from your captive?”
Aidan sighed. “It died.”
Dexter’s expression clouded over. He understood the need for interrogation but did not approve of torture. Sure, sometimes things had to happen, he understood that, but still…
“It died before we could ask it anything,” Aidan clarified, seeing Dexter’s impending scowl. “We’re going to push for it, would you like me to leave a few men here to help you defend, in case we fail?”
Dexter shook his head. “You’ll be needing them more than I will,” he said. “Just don’t fail.”
Aidan laughed and nodded. “Better words have yet to be spoken. I hope to see you again, Captain. Good luck!”
Dexter waved to him. “You as well, may your Gods watch over you.”
Aidan returned the salute and turned to order his men to throw down the ropes and scale back down them. They assembled at the side of the Voidhawk and moved off in squads. Aidan had reorganized them slightly, taking their losses into account. They now moved as two heavy squads, supporting one another and leapfrogging through the ruins to minimize the threat of an ambush.
They made it without incident out of the sight of the Voidhawk. It was even quiet for a few moments as everyone looked and listened for some sign of them after they had disappeared into the broken remnants of buildings near the center of the ruins. They were rewarded with a whistle and then a sound that was not unlike a thousand cats hissing. The angry cries of men countered, and though they could not see it, they knew a battle had been joined.