Chasing the Lantern(64)

Lina slipped the hip flask from her belt. Ryan had given it to her after rescuing everyone in thanks. She'd refilled it from his cask. Now she uncorked it, holding the open end out in front of her, away from her face. The pungent scent brought instant tears to her eyes.

"Pfaugh!" cried Allen. "What is that stink?"

"Pet food," said Lina absentmindedly.

"Gah. Smells like rotten apples." The young Mechanist spoke overloud, as if trying to comfort himself in the dark room. "Lina, you don't think your captain will take us through the Stormwall again, do you?" He shuddered.

"No," replied Lina. "I overheard him talking with Lucian. We're bound for Breachtown as fast as the propellers can take us. There's an opening there we can use to get out to the Atalian Sea, and then back home. Dawnhawk's a good ship. No need to threaten her in that mess, aye? Especially since we don't have to worry about being chased anymore. No way Natasha will get after us again, and the Queen is pretty much done for."

The Mechanist digested this, then he nodded. "Well ... good. But there aren't any aetherlines that run up toward Breachtown. It's going to take a few days trip, and there are still all sorts of weird, dangerous creature out here." He shuddered. "I've heard tales."

Lina ignored him. She crept between the stacked barrels, sloshing the container of Cure-all back and forth.

Something made a noise.

Lina paused. She shook the hip flask, sending a pungent vapor of liquor wafting about. "Hey, there. Hey there you runty little monster. Are you back here?"

The noise came again, from the far side of the room. There the casks met the rounded walls of the airships hull to make a small space. Lina crept up softly toward it. She made soft but obvious sounds and kept up a constant stream of low-grade baby talk.

Lina walked up to the last row of barrels and stopped. The shuffling noise echoed out from behind the barrels. A thousand thoughts raced through her mind. This is madness. Worse, it's stupid. How do I know it won't just attack me? The scryn had actually done that, until she'd gotten it drunk. She took a breath. Ah well. Nothing ventured, nothing gained. And the creature really seemed to like the Corsair's Cure-all. She turned the corner, smiling.

A pirate stared back at her.

He was only average height, but bulky. A round gut strained beneath his sweat-stained shirt, open down to the middle of his chest. His beard was thin and his hair long and wild. He stared at her like a cornered animal.

The pirate leapt at her with a snarl. Surprised, Lina yelled. She pulled instinctively back as the man rammed into the casks to her right. His outstretched hand grabbed at her shoulder and just missed, still slamming her hard enough to spin her around as she dodged. Lina fell to the wooden floor.

"What's going on?" asked Allen plaintively. "What was that noise?"

"Get help!" yelled Lina. She didn't recognize the pirate. He must have been one of Natasha's Reavers, hidden belowdecks when they'd taken the ship.

"Shut up!" snarled the pirate. "Shut yer yap, you whore!"

He leapt at her from where he'd fallen. His bulk landed on her legs, trapping her feet while he grabbed at her head. She yelled out again and blocked him.

"I'm coming, Lina!" yelled Allen. The light at the back of the room grew momentarily brighter, then stopped, shaking madly as he got caught in the first path back through the barrels. The young Mechanist cursed.

Allen would be useless in a fight. No, you idiot. Go get help!

The pirate was crawling on top of her, still grabbing at her face. He aimed clumsy blows at her head, but she was quick. Even though she was trapped, she ducked and weaved and bucked away from them. Lina knew she couldn't keep that up for long though.

She needed a weapon. The way he flailed, she couldn't risk grabbing for the heavy dagger at her belt, one she'd yet to return to Henry Smalls. Worse, it was trapped between her hip and the wooden decking. She realized she still held the hip flask in one hand. The contents splashed everywhere, mostly on the pirate.

Metal's metal. Lina ducked a clumsy blow and went on the offensive. She grabbed the pirate around one forearm and pulled it aside, just enough so that she could lash out at his head with her impromptu weapon. It landed with a thunk that jarred her arm and cut his eyebrow. She lost her grip on the flask and it fell, splashing Cure-all everywhere. The pirate screamed as the burning liquor seeped into his eyes. He scrabbled backwards, clutching at his face.

Lina moved, too. She crawled away from him, between the barrels and back toward Allen. The pirate growled behind her and she whirled, sitting up, drawing her dagger in a smooth motion and holding it before her.

Natasha's Reaver had his back to the hull, facing her. He pressed the palms of his hands to his eyes, groaning. Pulling them away, he glared blearily at her. The skin around his eyes was swollen and puffy. Blood seeped down his face in a steady stream from the cut on his eyebrow.