In the officer’s mess aboard the Bared Fang, <\/i>the evening meal was just starting to wind down when a young, flaxen haired human stuck his head in the door.<\/p>\n
\u201cPardon the interruption, sirs and mesdames,\u201d the youth said, \u201cbut Lieutenant Garn thought this too important to wait. The lookout reports a ship on the eastern horizon.\u201d<\/p>\n
The wolf at the right of the table’s head frowned. \u201cGarn wouldn’t have sent you down here without more details than that.<\/i> Out with it, ensign.\u201d<\/p>\n
The junior officer swallowed hard, taking a deep breath before managing, \u201cIt’s… the Silver Pennant, <\/i>sirs, mesdames.\u201d<\/p>\n
On those words a heavy silence fell.<\/p>\n
\u201cHave Garn signal the fleet,\u201d said the greying vixen at the head of the table. \u201cAll ships are to come to battle stations and move to surround her.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cY-yes, ma’am.\u201d The young man saluted and disappeared.<\/p>\n
Cutlery rattled on plates. Sighs broke out that had nothing to do with the good food being left on the table. One of them trailed into a low murmur of, \u201cThis is madness.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cStow that trash,\u201d snarled Dalis Kerin, the Bared Fang<\/i>‘s lupine captain. \u201cWe’ve a job to do.\u201d<\/p>\n
The woman who’d spoken winced, but held her head high. \u201cPlease forgive the outburst, Captain, but it’s my duty to mind the crew, and all of them are just as uncomfortable with this mission. They’ll follow orders, but they are understandably hesitant about fighting their own countrymen.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHesitation could cost lives,\u201d said Admiral Evelyn Granther, who’d ordered battle stations moments ago. \u201cAlik, I will need to address the Silver Pennant<\/i> in a manner that her crew cannot fail to notice. It would be to the good if the Fleet can hear it as well, as I explain exactly why we must do this. Can that be done?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cLetting the Fleet overhear? Easier than not,\u201d said the ship’s leonine wizard, rising to his feet. \u201cI must make some preparations, but I will be at the ship’s prow inside five minutes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cVery good,\u201d Granther acknowledged, and Alik slipped into the corridor.<\/p>\n
The Admiral turned her attention back to the ship’s physician and healer. \u201cSublieutenant Velin.\u201d<\/p>\n
The young woman stiffened. \u201cMa’am?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI am aware that I have a reputation for ruthlessness. There is no need to spare my sensibilities,\u201d she added when the healer started to object. \u201cI’ve leaned on that reputation often enough. It is true that I take grim satisfaction in doing the nastiest and hardest tasks the Navy has to offer, and doing them well. But you \u2013 and any of the crew who make their dissatisfaction known to you in confidence \u2013 may rest assured that this is still unpleasant work for me, and I take no joy<\/i> in it.<\/p>\n
\u201cIsaac Norvin was my colleague for forty years. We served together on the Sapphire of Callas<\/i> on our first cruise. In many ways he has been as a brother to me. But he and his cadre betrayed the honour of Callistar when they stooped to poisons and assassins at Aristad, and again when they lay the blame for that on the merchant captains they’d duped. Two weeks ago I learned of his role in these things, things that will stain the good name of the Queen if we do not take prompt, decisive steps to remedy them.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd that day I also learned that one of his fellow conspirators made an attempt on the life of our own crown prince \u2013 a treasonous murder which, again, would have been blamed on another. One of the same captains from before \u2013 one of those who managed to escape ruin or execution for crimes he’d not committed.<\/p>\n
\u201cIsaac Norvin is now a greater threat to the royal family I serve than Red Sebastien at his worst ever was. For the well-being and honour of Callistar, ladies and gentlemen, we must bring him in \u2013 or send him to a watery grave today.\u201d<\/p>\n
On that sober message, Admiral Granther left the cabin.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
As a warship of Callistar closes on one of the nation’s most wanted, its commandant makes clear why their target is marked and why they must fight.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[88],"tags":[84],"class_list":["post-454","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-broken-isles","tag-flash"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/furry-tales.net\/shurhaian\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/454","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/furry-tales.net\/shurhaian\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/furry-tales.net\/shurhaian\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/furry-tales.net\/shurhaian\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/furry-tales.net\/shurhaian\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=454"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/furry-tales.net\/shurhaian\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/454\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":455,"href":"https:\/\/furry-tales.net\/shurhaian\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/454\/revisions\/455"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/furry-tales.net\/shurhaian\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=454"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/furry-tales.net\/shurhaian\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=454"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/furry-tales.net\/shurhaian\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=454"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}