World Sphere - 212 - Bringing Home the Bacon

Chapter 212: Bringing Home the Bacon

The ship smelled of freshly milled lumber and lacquer. I took the captain's cabin with the cats as we shadowed the Maelstrom. They would remain visible, matching our best speed without draining our aether crystals too rapidly and remaining invisible. The two ships had echo stones on the bridge to communicate when needed, but I planned to spend my time working and in the cabin after a mentally taxing few days and let Bleiz and Rippon handle the piloting.

It would take just over a day at the Spicy Fortune’s top speed to return to Skyholme. Even with an aether shield, once a ship’s speed crossed the sound barrier threshold, the aether requirement increased drastically. The drain of the invisibility also increased the faster we flew. Since I had split the six harmonized aether crystals from the Maelstrom, we proceeded relatively carefully, knowing the Maelstrom did not have a bottomless reservoir of aether.

It gave me time to fine-tune the runes I had artificed on the ship. I had miss-calculated the center of gravity on the Spicy Fortune, and the ship was wobbling slightly when we turned at high speeds. It meant I had to add another series of feedback runes to smooth the ride—just a few minutes work for me but would have taken any other artificer a day.

I also spent time writing out a new runic plan on blank schematics the dwarf shipwright had provided me. All the updates I had done were very half-hazard and didn’t even have secondary fail-safes that kicked in. If a primary power or the control pathway was damaged in a fight, things could go downhill very quickly without secondary systems. The solution was adding multiple pathways linking runes from various locations and placing backup runes. 

With having more runes, the challenge would be the cost of mithril, gold, and aether crystals to power them. My final calculations would need to wait for Remy’s mass estimates on the dungeon hardwoods we would be delivering, but it would be significant. The good news was that these dwarven ships could be easily customized as the design was simple. If my people were relying on these ships, I wanted them to have great speed, maneuverability, aether shielding, and the ability to go invisible. 

Although my plan for these ships was for them to serve as part of roaming delving options, they also needed to defend themselves. Rather than invest in aether cannons, I opted for three swivel-aether cannons with modest output. The downside to these smaller cannons was their limited range and power. The advantage was that each could operate independently of the ship's aether power core since they would possess their own aether crystals, allowing them to be quickly relocated to different mounts around the ship.

They could not take on a warship, but lesser pirates and the normal array of flying creatures should not be a threat. I sorted in my dimensional closet for a suitable plan and found something that fit what I sought. With mithril runes, it should have an effective range of about a mile and a refire rate of about ten seconds with a tier five crystal—the number of shots would depend on the size of the cystal.

These aether swivel cannons were only a slight upgrade to what I planned for the skiffs to hunt the bulettes, so I penciled in adding two more for use on each of the two skiffs. It would give the captain of the ship some versatility—they could put their seven total cannons on the ship or skiffs for defense and attack. They came with a steep cost, though—five thousand gold before including the cost of the aether crystals was factored in. 

All these thoughts had made me look at crew compliments, as each of these weapons had a suggested crew of two: a spotter and a gunner. That meant each ship would need fourteen crew for weapons. The rest of the crew complement would be a captain, artificer, navigator, three bridge watch officers, a shipwright, two skiff pilots, two skiff navigators, and at least ten marines to defend from boarders. Add two dungeon delve teams with ten members each, and I was looking at a complete complement of fifty-five!

Remy could redesign the upper deck to accommodate the larger crew than initially projected. But I was now in a position where I was essentially training my own Navy. I had talked with Mira before we left to purchase the Spicy Fortune, but instead of crewing just a single ship, she was going to have to crew a ship every four months. She was not going to be happy. Neither was Talia, who would have to develop two delve teams for each ship.

I was also worried about crew competency. If one of these ships came under attack and was lost, not only the lives of valuable people would be lost, but also a massive investment. I knew all too well how a powerful foe could tare through a fleet.

I rubbed my brow while trying to figure out how large guild operations made such endeavors profitable. To my knowledge, the Dusk Hunters only had a single skyship, preferring to use the ancient portal network in the Sphere and restricting most of their operations to large dungeon cities. I was sure Remy would generate a chart showing me how long it would take to get a return on my investment of just this first skyship. 

Granted, I could save tens of thousands of gold by artificing them and sourcing the lumber through my delve team operations. That could be the solution. I would sell two of the three skyships produced yearly and only have to crew one. If Skyholme didn’t want to purchase my excess ships, there should be enough merchants trading on the islands who could help me unload them for a healthy profit. I just needed one thing—powerful aether crystals to power the ships. I would ask the Duskhunters if they knew of any dungeons they could be sourced.

I turned to do some paperwork before artificing echo stones to meet my quota. Kiara’s voice intruded into my mind. “Father does not like the flying ship’s name.” I had been filling out some paperwork to register the ship in Skyholme when we returned.

I chuckled. “Not really. Spicy Fortune sounds like something you get with a questionable meal. What would you call it?” I turned to look into the red eyes of the growing cat.

Kiara didn’t reply immediately, so I thought she wasn’t interested. Then, she spoke in my head, “Bacon and Eggs.” I laughed out loud. Kiara’s favorite meal was two pounds of lightly cooked bacon and a dozen hardboiled eggs. She would eat her plate slowly, savoring the food while Adrial wolfed hers down in seconds. Then, Kiara would purr softly while her sister drooled incessantly, watching her eat.

“I don’t know who would want to captain a ship called Bacon and Eggs, girl.” I said with a chuckle but scratched her massive white head.

“I would.” She stated matter-of-factly in my head, which caused me to laugh again. Adrial's head looked confused at the conversation I appeared to be having with myself. I returned to my paperwork.

A few hours later, the ship alarm sounded, and I rushed to the bridge. Rippon was in the pilot’s chair with Bleiz standing behind him, and the echo stone was sounding with Remy’s voice. “…five ships coming in fast from port…about one hundred and fifty miles out…eleven minutes to range…”

“Pirates?” I asked, frustrated my ship did not have any type of aetheric radar. The view on the bridge was limited to just forward viewing, and I would have to go on deck to see the ships moving to intercept.

Remy seemed uncertain. “I don’t think so. They came from the lake we passed over minutes ago. There was a large city. My estimates have them moving at 850 miles per hour.” There was a long pause before Remy came back a little more certain. “Aelyn says they are flying the flags of the Bruton Kingdom. They are listed as unfriendly orcs in the guild directory. They probably think they can catch us,” Remy chuckled nervously.

“Accelerate hard to port and make it look like you are going to head back to attack their capital, but just circle around and rejoin us,” I decided. It seemed like the best plan, and I was surprised anyone would try to attack a ship flying fifty miles above the surface.

“You want us to leave you unguarded?” Remy said uncertainly.

“We’ll be fine. If they can see through our invisibility and attack us, I’ll make them regret their decision.” I immediately began pulling items from my spatial closet to prepare for a fight. I had been in several skyship battles, and one thing I excelled at was not playing fair.

It turned out there was no need to worry as the ships veered toward the arcing Maelstrom and left the Spicy Fortune alone. When the Maelstrom came up on our stern alone thirty minutes later, I briefly dropped our invisibility so they could locate us and take the lead.

I started pulling books from my closet to read about the Bruton Kingdom. It was just over five thousand miles from Skyholme and was involved in a lot of conflict in the region. It was a simple caste system with warriors, politicians, and laborers. They tended to attack anyone who came close to their country, but I found it interesting that they were not known for having a fleet of skyships. 

Remy was certain all the ships that had tried to intercept the Maelstrom were warships, so they had acquired a fleet since the entry was written. The Adventurer’s Guild in their kingdom was restricted to only orcs and not well-regarded from the notes. I wrote up a brief report for Loriel and her consort, Prince Antioch. This threatened the region, and they could take appropriate measures with our allies. I did not feel the desire to get involved.

When Skyholme was just a speck in the distance, I disabled the invisibility on the Spicy Fortune and pulled behind the Maelstrom as we approached. Since I aimed to land at the Black Spire, I wasn’t surprised when two Wasps moved to escort the unfamiliar ship even in Maelstrom's company.

Pakkam greeted me after I disembarked. “High Mage, that is one ugly ship.” I laughed as we shook wrists.

“It is a bit boxy but grows on you after a while.” I did not think it looked terrible—I would call it functional. Pakkam laughed and patted my shoulder. My Wolfsguard captain had a good sense of humor. 

I handed him some papers. “I am going to rest in the Spire. Can you register the ship for me?”

“Of course, High Mage.” He shuffled the papers and squinted his eyes. “Bacon and Eggs?”

“Yes, I am told it is the best breakfast.” I chuckled. It was my ship, and I would name it whatever I damn well pleased. “The Maelstrom should be here soon. They were dropping the trade delegation off at Skyhold. You can also deliver this report to Admiral Sebastian.” I handed him the report on the attack from the Bruton Kingdom orcs.

I returned with the cats but didn’t get much rest before Aelyn joined me. She had the luxury of being able to sleep on the way back. Still, I welcomed her attention as the cats guarded our room.

The next morning, I was awakened as Aelyn left, and Bleiz was standing in the archway. “Don’t tell me, I’m going to be late for class.”

Bleiz chuckled, “It is the seventh day, Storme.” That was the day off at the Dungeon Academy. “But Admiral Sebastian is waiting on you below, and Sana asked to meet with you when you had time. Talia has asked for an hour of your time to discuss the new delve teams. Mia is pulling her hair out to satisfy your requirements to crew the…Bacon and Eggs.”

My mind flashed back to filling out the paperwork. I was almost certain I had written Spicy Fortune. Maybe Kiara’s will had influenced me somehow. I needed to take more frequent breaks from our connection. I suddenly felt the connection vanish—had I just upset the phantom cat? The connection was so persistent that I usually didn’t even realize it was active any longer. The cat was growing up and had learned how to keep quiet and only speak when necessary in my head.

I hit myself with a cleanliness spell and dressed. “I will meet with Admiral Sebastian first. Afterward, I will travel to the Dungeon Academy and meet Sana. You can tell everyone else to meet me there.” Bleiz nodded with a wolfish grin and left me. He was becoming my seneschal and most valuable friend—a role I always thought Gareth would fill.

I descended to the Spire to a large common room. Admiral Sebastian was in his new Skyholme uniform—a long black jacket with gold buttons and dark blue pants with black boots. He offered a smile and wrist shake as he stood at my approach. “High Mage, glad to see you are back safely.”

“It was a productive endeavor,” I replied, waiting for the Admiral to explain his visit.

“I saw your acquisition. It looks quite—sturdy,” he replied.

“It is. I plan to use it to ferry my dungeon teams to the lowlands. I still need to acquire sufficient-sized aether crystals to power it.” I waited for the Admiral to tell me why he was meeting with me.

He nodded and, seeing I would not ask, got to it. “I have two Harbingers that could use your expertise.”

“Just have them dock here at the Spire one at a time, and I will handle it,” I said dismissively. My reimbursement for my work had steadily declined, and I was paid a pittance for skilled artificer work in renewing runes, but I had just accepted it as my duty to Skyholme.

I could tell the old Admiral didn’t want to continue, but he sighed and got to the real reason for his visit. “Your report about the Bruton orcs—we were aware of them as they have attacked two trade ships in the past month—we’re in early discussions with the Sadians about a joint assault on their growing fleet.” I waited. “We were hoping you would accompany the assault fleet: six Sadian Hawks, two Harbingers, and six Wasps. We want to ground their fleet permanently before it becomes a serious problem.”

I hesitated. I could see why they wanted to attack first: to eliminate a threat before it grew. Sebastian continued talking. “The World Walkers destroyed a number of ancient portal stones. Skyships are becoming more prevalent in this region. Loriel is looking to seize the opportunity and become a force for stability.”

I shook my head, disappointed, “It is too soon to extend so far. Skyholme still has not recovered from the Black Marauders. We cannot police the lowlands.” I was also not going to be used as a weapon and threat by Loriel. That is what I was sensing from Sebastian’s reluctance. She wanted me to go raise hell and then could point to her High Mage and say, ‘you mess with us, and I will unleash him on you.’

“You can have all the aether crystals from the Bruton skyships,” Admiral Sebastian countered. Damn, that was one thing that might make this venture worth my time.

“I will consider the offer,” I said, standing, shaking wrists. “Let me give you the tour of my new toy.” I walked Sebastian through the Bacon and Eggs and he was much more impressed than he thought he was going to be.

“It is well built and, as you say, highly customizable. It is a good purchase, Storme.” The admiral admitted.

“I can deliver two such things to the Skyholme Navy every year. General mithril and gold artificing completed by me, but aether crystals not included,” I made my pitch.

“How much?” Sebastian asked with a curiosity.

“Two hundred and fifty thousand,” I said seriously. I had done the math in my head, and the metals in the runes would be about fifty thousand, the cost to source the dungeon lumber about twenty-five thousand, and the cost to the dwarves was another fifty thousand. So, I just doubled that price.

“That is as much as a Harbinger,” Sebastian said doubtfully.

I chuckled, “I know with inflation, a Harbinger is costing Loriel about three hundred thousand these days and may not settle back if demand keeps increasing. Plus, as you noted, these ships could be made into scouts or warships based on how they are configured. Let’s not discount the value added due to who is artificing them.”

“So, now you are a skyship salesman?” the Admiral chuckled. He held up his hands, “I agree it is a good deal to bolster the islands’ fleet. I will talk to Loriel, but finding half a million gold annually will not be easy.” We shook on it and I was certain the Admiral would push Loriel toward my proposition.

As we were leaving the Bacon and Eggs, an eager young Wolfsguard was boarding. I recognized Rebekah, the wide-eyed, reckless pilot. The fact that she was already here meant Captain Cilia had jettisoned her from her ship. I thought one of the skiffs might be more her speed rather than the responsibility of the ship with fifty-five crew.

Bleiz, the cats, and I took the Maelstrom to the Dungeon Academy to go to my next meeting…

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