The Blue Kingdom

Walking straight during a battle over rough seas was a feat only experienced sailors could master. Em had spent an entire life with such skill, but without hands to hold on and legs deprived of any strength, the way through the corridor became an incessant swing of blows against the walls. “If I can't stop you, at least let me help!” Obiko said, reaching out to Em's side and pulling with little conviction. “I'm not keeping you alive so you can get killed by your stupidity!”

Em grunted, and swallowing the little pride he had left, passed his half-arm over the doctor's shoulder. The aid eased the blows but did not put an end to the rocking and while half the corridor had been a one-man struggle, the rest was going to be shared by two.

The Luxury let out a cannon burst and bowed furiously to the starboard. Even being in the bowels of the ship, Em could see the battle as if he was on deck. "The engagement is over, doctor," he said. “Whoever is chasing is as stubborn as stupid.”

Retaliation happened as expected, and as Em anticipated, in the form of a splash. Obiko, the type of man who lives among books, was fantastic with his doctoring but not with his seamanship. Trembling like a leaf, the little mouse adjusted his specks and let out a dull mumble. “Do- doesn't seem over to me.”

The Luxury swiftly gained speed securing the coveted weather gauge. No more shots would reach them, and with the lousy ineptitude to foresee such an advantage, the pursuer was sailing straight to a terrible end. Obiko, too scared and inexperienced, didn't know it yet and Em, curious to steal a glance through the loosely tethered door at his front, fell silent to gain some sneaking time.

The brotherhood’s ship was not only a marvel of fantastic construction but also a treasure chest of technological surprises from the north. Many innovations Em, during a long life travelling, had seen here and there, but never on a single ship. Electric lights, reinforced hull and hybrid propulsion were amongst many, but what surprised him the most was a telegraph system lacking any cable to send a message, something he’d never seen before. When Adan, the Luxury’s quartermaster, explained such improvement was common in their fleet, Em couldn't stop the feeling of anxiety from chewing his guts even harder than his illness. The tentacles of his own pursuer were not only stronger but much longer than he ever imagined.

After incessant poking over a metal button and scribbling madly on a paper, the signalman hurried outside. "You shouldn't bring the Tiger here, Obiko! He needs to rest!" Complained the young man while disappearing up the stairs as quickly as he had gotten up from his seat.

“I know pretty well what he needs, I'm the doctor here!” Obiko said, struggling to put himself and his load into motion again. “All these airheads won't stop nagging about what I should do with you, and they all turn into butter puppies when the Tiger is around. What a nuisance this ship's crew is!”

“I thought you liked it here,” Em said.

Obiko halted at the first step. "Like? I love it! There's no place in the world I'd rather be. I love the fools, love the cap’n, love the ship." Em smirked and nodded to an old yet familiar feeling.

They motioned to step up, but the ship's sudden turn nailed Em’s feet to the wood, preventing the doctor from moving. The Luxury tilted, and its timber groaned to the flex, announcing the imminent whiff of iron from the lower decks. The distant impacts and the shouts of joy became the following proof of victory Em knew well it was coming.

When they reached the outside, all hands were set to the tasks required after a battle. Riko's sailors were not only experienced but diligent. There were no mistakes from the lubbers and no complaints from the seasoned: just determined legs and skilled hands. The Luxury, perfectly veiled to take advantage of the wind's full power, was cutting through the insolent sea with an assertive elegance. In her stern, a ship soon to be wrecked was struggling inside a ball of smoke and fire, and further, two small vessels were cowardly retreating, seeking the protection of the thousand kings.

In a corner of the starboard and avoiding the jogging crew, Ivy was waving a blunt in timid swings: her warm-up before the practice. After days on the Kraken ship, she was more rested, yet her appearance was way more worn than before their rescue. Even with Riko's oath to protect them from Vega's clutches, Ivy couldn't hide how little she liked being around the people she hated the most.

No matter how busy they were, everyone crossing paths with Em took a moment to salute, whether with a straight back and a snap of a boot or a more restrained finger to the forehead. Feeling the pride of glorious past times, Em straightened his posture, but noticing the display of respect from former enemies was pushing her niece into a gloom of disappointment, his soul wrinkled with guilt.

"Captain, would you mind telling your men to stop saluting me? My girl doesn't like it." Em mouthed before reaching his destination.

Riko, stoically facing the horizon, answered without moving a muscle. "I will, although I can't promise they will obey. You are who you are and I cannot force them to ignore it."

"I'm just an old smuggler from the Blue." Em turned towards the sinking ship. His chin raised, and he pointed with puckering lips. “I truly appreciate your help but you and your men risk too much for the sake of someone who doesn’t exist anymore. It would be better if you left us on one of the islands before the White Owl`s Captain stops requesting formally and joins the hunt.”

Riko balled up a piece of paper and threw it overboard before surveying a palling signalman with his usual, extremely intimidating gaze. “Don't blame the boy,” Em said. “You have modern toys but still use semaphoring language.”

“Vega’s men are not into us yet. Those were just free pirates,” Riko motioned his arm over piles of rice sacks newly put in the middle of the deck. The captain's unconventional tea breaks were whimsical rituals opposed to the strict military rule his ship was governed, and strangely enough, was a time Riko eased his self-restraint to indulge in menial chats of little importance. The Luxury’s captain was a man of little words and the one in charge of brightening the stories was Adan. The quartermaster could turn any boring event into the most hilarious anecdote ever experienced, and although it seemed impossible, he also managed to put tiny smirks on a man who seemed to have never learned how to express happiness.

Even though he didn't feel well most of the time, Em truly enjoyed the tea breaks. There were no questions on essential matters nor diggings into unspeakable secrets; only three veterans surrounded by a bussing crew moving around smoking pots and brimming trays. The waiter-wannabes struggling to please them over a heaving deck turned out to be one of the most comical things Em had seen in a while and, doing his best to honour their efforts, he motioned towards the seats without uttering the ingenious mockery crossing his mind.

Midway, faced with the nuance of the sea and a disease stubbornly fighting to return, his legs gave out to a crumble. Obiko, with a quick and decisive move, showed a man his size could have the needed strength to prevent an embarrassing fall. Two more came to the aid, and surrounded by arms exactly as if a squid had captured him, he reached at time for a first delight of coffee. With the wonderful aroma filling his lungs a smiley sailor-turned-waiter, reached a cup to his lips: There was no more shame for being fed as a baby. Not if coffee was involved.

“Aren't the transfusions enough, doctor?” Riko asked.

“Adskino is the only mate with friendly blood, and unless you want him dead, he needs to rest.” The doctor's face reddened and his next words came out with the disdain of someone who doesn’t want to explain himself. “ I need to treat what is creating the infection inside but that's not a shirt he’s wearing, Cap’n. The metal is tied to the bone with nuts Erdinn's eyes could not even see. Our poor blacksmith could barely lift the main plate without fainting from stress, and I tell you what! Under that frame, there were disgusting slimes that we don't even know what they are!”

Em regained some of his composure and let the waiter pour the entire glass in. Regretting not taking the drink more slowly he stammered behind a handkerchief rubbing over his lips. "Thank you for not throwing up on my insides, doctor."

“Is’dat nee good, m’Admiral?” said the Kraken waiter. “Coffee from da’Red, it is!… Mad’it masself dis one!”

“It is delicious, indeed,” Em said. “But no Admiral, please. I’m no Kraken anymore.”

“Even if tears or blood erase the ink, a brother is always a brother,” The smiley waiter said with a clear and concise tone he lacked moments before.

Em took a deep breath, knowing he was about to spit words he’d later regret. “I was a member of a Brotherhood who cared and helped people. You still sail the seas under Vega’s colours and carry out his subversion. Shame on you all!”

All around, eyes lowered and faces gloomed. Impasible, Riko put one leg into a four and his head on the rest. "The world is a disgusting place, Admiral Kabir.” He said with restrained calm. “You decided to forget it, we decided to embrace it. But just because we navigate in filthy waters doesn’t mean we agree with Vega’s doings. Down here we are quite far from his reach and we can do things our way. We may be vermin, but we are not monsters.”

Adan, after chewing a sugar biscuit which spread across his beard, interrupted with a nervous stutter. "Do… Do you remember the assault on Adinalla? Cap'n, I think you weren't with us yet, but-"

“If you don’t like the way he rules the mates,” Em spoke with a scornful tone. “Why won’t you do something, then?”

“I was in Sweetwater, Admiral,” Riko said. “Although your actions there became an inspiration for many of us, I never understood why you didn't finish the job. You could have ended him and all the vileness he has done since then. Instead, you ran away and hid. The shame is as much yours as it is ours.”

Adan fidgeted. “Do you folks remember the Grand Fair of Wonders? It was a week before the events of Sweetwater. Do you remember the-”

“It is, I suppose,” Em said with a nut inside the throat.

Riko was right: He had the chance. But at that time, If Em had killed him, the war between the brothers would have been savage. His choice was a mistake aimed at saving lives with the terrible cost of letting a monster loose. “I'm sure a warmonger like you would have solved it directly. But the Kraken was a complicated beast in those days. Vega wasn't the only one acting maliciously. The plan was to divide, weaken and then rebuild. I did my part but my so-called allies didn't do theirs.”

“There was a division, Admiral,” Adan said. “ I know it well, I was in the Fullrows. The fleet lost a third after Sweetwater. Many erased the squid from their arms just like you. Others, like the captain, decided to travel to the forbidden south under hidden colours.”

Riko raised, crossing hands at his back and returning to his daydreaming. This time though, not over the ocean but towards the small corner where Ivy was practising her mastery. Hesitating to continue without his captain’s presence, Adan continued. “Vega was just one of many who desired a change for the worse. There were many more than you knew of and, the ones who stayed to keep the old values alive ended up being not enough.”

Em deflated, feeling his energy fading at each breath, and not even the new coffee politely put on his lips could lift his spirits. Shattered by painful memories he let the captains' next words sink him into misery. “They all died in their sleep or retired too early, leaving the old Brotherhood to what it is today.” Riko continued from his corner, eyes fixed on Ivy’s practice. “Vega didn't create the beast but being the most rotten of all of them, he didn’t need much to claim supreme control after his return.

“The dream of the old ways was suppressed but never erased. Knowing that you are alive, the division you created has been revitalised stronger than ever. Vega’s thirst for revenge is his weakness, and we will-”

“I had no interest in political brawls before, nor do I have it now," said Em, uncomfortably realising the draw on Ivy Riko was trying so hard to hide. "And I'm not going to let you drag my girl into such dangers, either.”

Riko's head turned over the shoulder with its jaw muscle clenching tightly. Adam's hands shook between the two. “Gentlemen, gentlemen! The captain has no intention of putting you in danger. He’s a true man of his word! What we want is only the ideal of who you once were. Let us be the voice of your legend, and we will do the hard work!”

Em requested to be excused and, held by the armpits, stood in front of Riko with the little grandeur a dying man can master. “Don’t dare to meddle with her in your tribulations. I heard what you are, and you know what she is. All that means nothing!”

Em coughed, and Obiko rushed to wipe reddened saliva from his lips. Seeing the garment, Riko sighed and narrowed his eyes. "The world we know is cruel and belligerent. She has to learn in order to survive."

"She is not a war tool like you," Em gasped. "And she'll never be."

Wrapped in a marine whistle only broken by the swings of a sword cutting through the air, Riko and Em shared a moment in which it was difficult to ignore someone executing blows of such deadly perfection was not destined to battle. "I once thought it was a masterpiece of war, Admiral," Riko said. “I was a conceited, ignorant brat whose blindness brought suffering to many. I was deeply wrong and it took me years to realise it.

“As a rarity myself, I’d like to mentor her through a path I stubbornly ignored all my life and help her unleash the full potential our kind can offer for a better world. You are the redemption of my brothers, and she is mine. But I swear, even with such desire in mind, I'll never approach her without your permission.”

“Then is good to know you are a true man of your word, captain,” Em said. “Because the permission is denied.”