A Trip To Tuanaki

Chapter 13

"Well, at least they've got decent docking facilities," Mal says, collapsing the spyglass with a snap. They've made good time from Drop, and it's put him in a good mood. He tucks the spyglass in his belt before calling back down the ship. "Gunny, you alright sailing her in?"

"Got it, Captain!" she calls back. Alice turns to Mal.

"So what now?" she asks, picking herself up from where she's leaning against the rail of the ship. "How's Fahrn going to find us? Or do we find him?"

"It is most certainly his job to find us," Mal says firmly. "I did as I was asked and ran off to this island in the middle of nowhere that no one's ever heard of. If Fahrn wants the cargo now, he can hunt me down and pay me for it. In the meantime, I plan on finding out what this little nowhere island has in the way of entertainment. Care to join me?"

Alice glances back towards the aft deck. "And Gunny doesn't mind watching the ship?"

"She knew what she was getting herself into when she agreed to take the ship into port," Mal says. It's not a very confident answer — he's distracted, by the sight of a ship speeding towards them. "Hang on, what's that?"

"What's what?" Alice asks, even as she's turning to look. "Is that — a ship?"

Mal pulls his spyglass back out of his pocket. "She's smaller than the Nameless — speedy, too. Probably not meant for any real range, just short-range patrols..."

Alice looks a little closer, and she can identify a small dark object that has pulled away from the main conglomeration of the island. As she watches, it appears to grow — it must be going incredibly fast.

"It looks like it's running," she says.

"Yes, I think so," Mal says. He's still got the spyglass plastered to his eye. "Gunny!"

"I see it!" she calls. "Not much I can do without turning around."

He nods. He knows that much. What he can't decide is whether it's worth trying to run.

"Is it running to or from something?" Alice asks.

"To. To us."

Alice's breath catches in her throat suddenly. It's just a tiny ship, she tells herself. It's nothing important, it's not going to hurt us—

But we're still headed straight for it.

"Gunny, if anything abruptly changes, shout," Mal says. "I'm getting our papers."

He bolts for the ladder and then is gone for a minute or two. When he's back, Alice needs a double take to make sure she's seen it correctly, but he's brought his sword. She's not entirely sure why he thinks they'll end up in a situation where he needs both their papers and the sword, but maybe he'd just said the bit about papers.

He'd need to do better than that, though, because she's most certainly staring, now.

"Mal, what are you expecting to be on that ship?" she asks as he approaches the bow where she's standing.

He glances self-consciously down at the sword on his hip and carefully closes his coat over it. "It never hurts to be prepared," he says diplomatically.

"So then you do actually have the papers?" She asks.

He procures them from the inner pocket of his coat and waves them at her. "Any more questions?"

"Yes, actually," she says. "Why is your sword on your right hip?"

Mal gives her a mystified look. "Because I'm left-handed?" he says.