Limitless Seas 2, Chapter 21.

Chapter 21.

“Land ho!” The lookout called out as Stratwall Harbor finally came into view. The trip back hadn’t been difficult and gave both Larson and Tarley time to drill their crews. While not exactly a well-oiled machine just yet, Larson could see the crew’s improvements. Given the healthy share of treasure each crewman was going to receive when they arrived back in port, they were understandably excited to see their journey coming to an end. Larson was somewhat concerned over Bug Bartholomew, the ogre had sought out Shada’s help on at least two occasions, complaining about headaches in both his heads. Healing didn’t seem to alleviate his pain, and Bug eventually decided it was due to the knowledge he had absorbed from the artifact.

“Here we go again,” Shada said as the crew took in sail, slowing their approach so they could enter the harbor at a more sedate pace. The small customs barge approached, and Harbormaster Willoughby was standing in the bow, flagging down their two ships. Larson was annoyed with the man, but unless something drastic had changed, they had come to something of an understanding. Larson would pay a reasonable bribe and Harbormaster Willoughby would send them on without any further trouble or delay.

“Ahh, Captain Larson, good to see your vessels return safely to our lovely port once again. I take it you had a successful voyage,” Willoughby said as he boarded. The man was followed by a pair of harbor guards that were used as customs and tax inspectors. Unlike last time, the harbormaster didn’t demand to scour his cargo holds for goods, and he didn’t even bother to send a boarding party over to the Lost Soul, which had hove to next to the Sea Venom.

“We did, and likely saved Stratwall Harbor from a new threat that had emerged, one that even the Imperium was concerned about,” Larson said, motioning toward Wrend and his soldiers.

“Well, I suppose we should discuss their status aboard, and whether they should be considered passengers and subject to the visitor tax. I do say, your ship is looking, a bit, well, let us just say it’s been updated from what I can remember,” Willoughby said, looking quizzically at Cassia’s serpent-like figurehead.

“Please, join me in my cabin so we can go over our tax obligations,” Larson said, wanting to end the back and forth as quickly as possible.

“You missed out on all the excitement while you were away, the town has had quite a shock with the allegations against Lord Mox,” Willoughby said as Larson counted out what he felt was a reasonable “tax” on his ships. While he would never condone corruption, he knew it was a necessary evil in a port like this. The mention of Lord Mox was something he had hoped to hear. Keeping his expression neutral, Larson pried a bit more into the matter.

“Oh, what’s going on with Lord Mox? Is there some kind of trouble?” Larson asked.

“Quite the trouble, Lord Buxton and several others on the council have accused the man of associating with pirates and profiting from their larcenous acts at the expense of the city,” Willoughby said. Larson could see the excitement in his demeanor, the man loved to gossip, it appeared. Larson would have to make sure he didn’t provide any fodder for the harbormaster’s wagging tongue. The last thing he wanted was for the harbormaster to go blabbing nonsense about his ships and crew.

“Was he guilty of the accusations? From what I remember, Lord Mox was a respected member of the council,” Larson said, digging for more information on what he was sailing into.

“The evidence is damning, but Lord Mox wields much influence and there are those that proclaim his innocence and seek to turn the blame for any piracy toward Lord Buxton and his faction. It’s a mess and one that will likely not be resolved very quickly. The council argues and postures, but they will eventually come to a decision. I am but a humble servant of Stratwall Harbor, but if I were to guess, I think Lord Mox is done for,” Willoughby said conspiratorially. Larson didn’t think the man cared one way or another, he would seek to support whatever faction that allowed his continued presence as the harbormaster.

“Well, politics is not something I care to be involved in. I take it this will suffice for our tax?” Larson said, pushing a small pouch of copper and silver coins over. Willoughby placed the pouch into the tax collection box, and then snatched up the fatter purse Larson dropped on the table, making it disappear into his clothing with remarkable skill.

“Yes, this will be sufficient, the same docks you were berthed at before, eleven and twelve, are available for as long as you need to stay. Good day to you, Captain Larson,” Willoughby said, going so far as to shake Larson’s hand before leaving. It was quite a change from their last encounter, but Larson wasn’t going to count the harbormaster among his closest friends anytime soon.

“At least I didn’t have to heal up his injuries this time, I take it that your meeting went well?” Shada asked as Larson emerged from his cabin.

“Aye, we have an understanding with the harbormaster, and won’t see any trouble from him anytime soon. Unfortunately, it appears that the business with Lord Mox isn’t quite over just yet. He’s in irons but seems to be putting up a good fight against the charges that Lord Buxton brought against him,” Larson advised.

“Where does that leave us?” Shada asked.

“I don’t know until we get more information. For now, we’ll pay the crew and let them get started on some shore leave. With a second successful return, we should have the pick of the litter when it comes to signing on new hands. Maybe this visit, we’ll have enough time to get a full crew, all our equipment, and finish everything aboard that still needs to be done,” Larson said.

“What do we do about Theo?” Shada asked.

“I’m not sure, for now, we’ll keep him hidden. I suspect that once word of our arrival reached Lord Buxton, he’ll already have plans in place for his son,” Larson said. They docked without any trouble, and the guards seemed genuinely glad to see that the two ships had returned. Passing out some coin, free meals, and helping them to fight off a Makon attack had garnered him quite a bit of goodwill among the rank and file harbor guardsmen.

Larson had a good time passing out the pay shares to the crew and officers. Many would begrudge handing out so much wealth, but he knew the value of a loyal crew. Treating them fairly would help ensure that most of them returned aboard after their leave was over and perhaps it would even entice others to sign on. After assigning a watch schedule, the crew took off to spend their hard-earned coin. The gnolls volunteered to stay behind as part of the watch crew, only sending one of their pack members into town to deliver funds to their families.

“We’ll take our leave, Larson. The deal stands, and I’m glad to see that you’re a man of your word, despite being an officer,” Wrend said. Larson wished them well but was glad to see the Imperium soldiers off his vessels. The tension between them and Shada had built during the trip home, and he didn’t want their deal to fall apart if Wrend or one of his soldiers had a change of heart and started something with Shada.

“Thank you again, sir, for dealing with that,” Shada said. Larson looked hard at the orcish ship’s surgeon, nodding in approval when he failed to detect any hit of whining.

“It’s over, and we can get on with our business,” Larson replied.

“What do we have planned next?” Shada asked.

“Recruit, upgrade, and taking a breather would be nice. I figure the city may have some task for us to take up, or if not, we’ll keep our ears open in the taverns and try to figure out what parts of the sea the local pirates are festering in. For now, you and Tarley can see to recruiting us up to full strength and getting both ships resupplied. I’ll approach Lord Buxton and see if I can finagle a little more coin for our troubles, especially now that we have proof of the threat that the portal represented. First, though, I need to see a tailor and have a chat with our favorite smith,” Larson said, indicating his new pair of arms. The leather backing for his armor had been torn up pretty bad during his transformation, and since then, he hadn’t been able to wear it and had even been forced to cut extra armholes in one of his shirts to accommodate his new body.

“I’m sure tailor and the smith will both be happy enough to have the work, though the ship's coffers will take a hit if you keep changing on us,” Shada joked.

“Simple business expense, never fear, if any of you grow extra arms, heads, or legs, I’ll be sure to have the ship’s treasury reimburse you for a new wardrobe,” Larson told her before heading into his cabin to chat with Theodore Buxton.

“Okay Theo, you’ve done well, and earned your wages,” Larson said, throwing the young man his share. Despite the passenger being foisted on him, the kid had worked hard and his efforts were noticed and respected by the crew.

“I don’t need this, but thank you, captain. So, what do we do now?” Theo asked. Larson waved back the coin, the kid had earned it regardless of how rich his family was.

“Now, I’ve got some things to take care of in town, and one of those is reporting the results of our voyage to your father. I’m sure he has something planned for you, I can’t see him making you skulk about inside the ship for who knows how long,” Larson advised.

“I’m sure he does, but if you’d have me aboard, I’d like to stay, sir,” Theo offered.

“We’d be glad to have you, but we’ll have to wait and see what your father has to say about it. I’ll not risk trouble with the city, just to keep you aboard. For now, stay put and stay out of sight. I’m sure word of your arrival will make it out eventually. Given the number of our crew on leave, I’m sure a drunk sailor or two will spill that you were with us. With Lord Mox locked up, you should be safe enough here aboard the Venom,” Larson said.

As Larson started to disembark, Dredge, the one-armed siege weapon gunner hailed him.

“Captain, so, have ye decided?”

“Decided on what?” Larson asked.

“Decided on whether or not you’ll keep me aboard,” the old man asked. That was right, Larson hadn’t given him a permanent slot and their last voyage was to be a trial run. The man had done well and had taken an active hand in teaching the other crew about using the ballista that the Sea Venom mounted.

“You’ll do, sailor, welcome aboard as a permanent member of the crew. Now, don’t get drunk and wander off before we sail again, I expect that both ships will be packing more in the way of siege engines and I’ll need your help to train up any new crew that we bring aboard,” Larson said.

“Thank ye, sir, I’ll see to the boys is ready to smash any ship that crosses our path,” Dredge said. The man had a spring in his step as he left the ship and headed toward town.

“Captain, and my people, are we also part of the ship's crew now?” Ghonen, the gnoll leader, asked.

“I haven’t kicked you off yet, you and your people are welcome aboard as long as you behave and keep working as hard as you have been,” Larson confirmed. With all the concerned crew candidates taken care of, Larson had time to disembark and start on his other business. The closest stop was at Felicia’s smithy to have his armor looked at.

“What did you do to my work, no scratch that, what did you do to yourself!” Felicia exclaimed as Larson approached with the battered armor in hand.

“I had a bit of a change while I was out, and I’m sorry to say this happened before I had a chance to take my armor, or my shirt off,” Larson replied, handing over the armor.

“Nothing I can’t fix, it’ll take some time though,” Felicia said, looking him over. Larson could see the gears moving in her head, already figuring out how to make the necessary adjustments to equip someone with two sets of arms.

“Good, we’ll also need the weapons and armor for the crew, have you made any progress on that while we were gone?” Larson asked.

“Yep, not quite finished yet, but you can send someone over to collect what I’ve completed so far,” she replied, showing him a corner of her shop where spears, swords, and shields were stacked up. Several bits of armor were also on hand, but it didn’t look like she had made much progress on that front.

“Good work, but what’s with the armor, we’ll need that done as well,” Larson asked, a bit disappointed in the progress, but given she was working on her own, it was actually quite impressive what she’d accomplished in the short time they had been away.

“Before I dug too deep into getting new armor ready, I wanted to show you something and see if you wanted to make any changes,” Felicia said, searching beneath the counter where she pulled out a hardened leather vest.

“What’s so special about leather armor?” He asked. It was good work, but nothing revolutionary enough to have halted his order for equipping the crew.

“It’s what’s in between the leather that counts, look,” Felicia said, unfastening several tie-downs and pulling out a white armored plate of some kind. After looking at it, Larson could see it was steelwood, just like the rings on the armor she had made for him.

“Is that steelwood?” He asked.

“That it is, I had a breakthrough and figured out how to hammer it into shape without destroying it. The process takes a lot longer to complete and get the right shape compared with steel, but when it’s forged this way it’s stronger than steel, won’t corrode from the seawater, and weighs less than half of what a metal plate would. I figured you might want to change out your order to include some of these instead of the ring armor we had planned,” Felicia said, handing over a dagger so he could test the strength of the plate compared to a similar steel plate she had on hand.

As she had told him, the steelwood held up as well as the steel plate and was considerably lighter than he had figured it would be. The leather armor shell was a nice touch, and though it would leave some gaps in the armor, it would enable them to swap out damaged armor plates with fresh ones. It turned out that steelwood would shatter and crack rather than dent and deform as a metal plate would have. Felicia assured him she could reforge any damaged pieces, which would be cheaper than forging new ones.

“I like it, how much will it cost and how long will it take you to turn out enough of it to outfit my crew?” Larson asked.

“Well, it’s not cheap, but I can keep the cost down if I use standard leather rather than more exotic materials for the shell. Still, it’ll cost you a bit more than double what the other armor would have. This new design takes a lot more time and material,” Shada said. The cost was steep, but with their last haul, he could afford to do it, and not leave the ship’s coffers empty.

“Get to it then, let me know if this won’t cover it, oh, you should also see about hiring on some help. I’d like to have this done before I sail again, and you never know how long that will be,” Larson said, handing over a good chunk of his available coin.

“I’ve been trying, but not many want to learn their trade from a halfling,” Felicia said.

“Hmm, if you’re willing to work with unusual sorts yourself, I may be able to find some help for you. We’ve taken in a few strays that are staying here in town. Why don’t you get together with Lucian over at his shop and I think he’ll have someone that’s more than happy to learn a trade from you,” Larson said, thinking about the gnolls. They were strong enough for the task and it would mean more income for the pack while the others were away at sea. He was also curious if Felicia would be willing to work with the gnolls. Sure, she was annoyed at being looked down on because of her race, but was that enough to overcome what seemed to be a natural aversion of the people of this land to the gnolls?

“I’ll do just that; I can use the help. I’ll start on your armor later today and then get to work on some for your crew, along with the last of the weapons,” Felicia said.

Larson made his way to Lucian’s shop. The man was glad to see him and had started to turn a small profit now that he had more help. The gnolls warriors had signed on as guards and did a good job at scaring off any troublemakers and thieves when the shop was closed. The warehouse they had rented to store goods had also been used as housing for the rest of the gnolls, and many of the ones not taking care of the children were helping to organize and move stock from the warehouse to the shop.

Lucian, thankfully, didn’t make a big deal over his new appendages, but Millie couldn’t stop staring at them, finally declaring that they were “neat”. They had arrived in port during the afternoon, and now that was starting to get dark. With most of the shops, including the clothier’s, shutting down for the night, it was probably time to head back to the ships. There was a lot to still do, and not the least of which was finding out what was going on with Lord Mox