Friends of the Crown - Book 1 of Heroes of the Realm by Scott Van der Haeghen
Chapter 13 – Home again
The remainder of the voyage home was uneventful, even relaxing. Even with a shorthanded crew, the routine of the ship was smooth and well run. The day the Braydon sailed into Groden harbor was sunny and warm.
“Hold to the buoy, Nev!” called Greer. “The master will send for us when it is our turn.”
“Aye!” Nev replied. “Prepare to lower sail!” he yelled to the hands on deck.
Brey stood next to his friend, enjoying the view of their homeport. “It sure is good to be back, Nev.”
“You can say that again.” he agreed. “Lower sail! Prepare to drop anchor!”
In a matter of minutes they had dropped anchor and stopped ship right next the marker buoy in the harbor. While they waited for their turn at being pulled in the harbor, everyone set about securing the ship from open water sailing; ropes were coiled and stowed, the sails were secured and the deck cleared. That complete, they all sat on deck and drank in the site of their home port.
After and hour, a Navy skiff was rowed out to the ship. “Ahoy, Braydon! Lieutenant Kadon requesting permission to come aboard!” called a young officer in a crisp uniform.
“Granted!” called back Mallen from the rail. A rope ladder was let down and the young officer nimbly climbed up on deck. “Pleasure to have you aboard, Lieutenant.” he said shaking the young officer’s hand.
“The pleasure is mine, Captain -” he left the name hanging, waiting for a name to be supplied.
“Our captain was lost to pirates; I am a Chief Mate, Mallen by name.”
“’A’ Chief Mate? There is more than one?”
“Indeed; myself and Mr. Greer there share the rank. Captain Report didn’t feel like choosing between us, so he made it equal. A sound decision in the end, really.”
“I see. Well, it seems I should speak with the both of you then.”
“Better make it all five of us.” said Greer as he approached with Brey, Nev, and Micah right behind. “We’re all that’s left of the crew and its only fitting.”
The officer looked over the small group before continuing and nodded. “As you wish.” he then motioned for all to sit, as he himself sat on a rope locker located by the rail.
“The first item I wish to address is how you came to be the last of the crew of the Braydon and how you reacquired her from the pirate, Blunt.”
Mallen’s eyes narrowed slightly as he regarded the young naval officer. “How is it you know of this, if I may ask? We have only just arrived in port and have spoken to no one here.”
“The Naval crew you have aboard reported to the ranking officer while you were in Saladin for supplies. A corvette was dispatched immediately to bring the news that Blunt was almost certainly going to be captured. We have wished to have him in our custody for some time now.”
“I bet you have.” snorted Greer. “All right then, here’s how it was.” The burly carpenter went on to tell about the pursuit of the Braydon by the pirate ship, Report’s order to remove the young men from the ship, and their subsequent marooning. He told of their retaking of the ship in fair detail and finished up with their meeting up with Captain Posen of the King Roland.
“I see. That is quite an adventure.” He turned and looked at Nev. “Tell me young man, do you believe you and your mates helped to affect the capture of the pirate, Blunt?”
Nev felt defensive almost immediately. “Of course we did! We may not have had to cross swords with him on the island, but leaving him marooned worked just as well, didn’t it?”
Kadon seemed unruffled by Nev’s apparent offense at the question. “That remains to be seen of course, but should he be captured, then I would agree that your actions were indeed helpful in bringing him to justice.”
Greer leaned forward a bit and scowled at the young man. “Now, the Navy wouldn’t be looking to take full credit for Blunt’s capture and deprive us of the reward hanging over his head, would they?”
Kadon quickly raised his hands saying, “I am not saying anything of the sort, I assure you. I am only here to gather the facts of the matter.”
“Good.” was the terse reply.
Kadon stood and clasped his hands behind his back and paced a few steps. “Now to the second matter.” He turned a faced the small group. “It seems the ownership of the Braydon is in transition. It is my understanding that this ship is a Queen’s trader registered to Captain Martin Report?”
“That is correct.” answered Mallen, fearing what he was about to be told.
“Did the Captain have any financial partners or heirs who may claim her legally?” Mallen shook his head.
The young officer sighed heavily before continuing. “In that case, with the passing of Captain Report, possession of the ship and her cargo must pass to the Crown.” He raised his hand to forestall the objections jumping to everyone’s lips. “It has been taken into account what you have gone through to regain the ship and to return home safely; as a result, possession will not be officially taken for another week. This should allow for each of you to seek lodging and perhaps placement with another ship; however, the manifested cargo will be off-loaded tomorrow or perhaps the next day.”
Mallen had been furiously stroking his thin beard since Kadon mentioned the ship would be taken; now he spoke. “What if we were able to pay off the remaining amount to the Crown? Might we be allowed to finish Captain Report’s contract and assume ownership of the Braydon ourselves?”
Kadon shook his head slowly. “I am sorry. Queen’s traders are specific to only one contracted individual or group. Had payment been made while Captain Report lived, the source would have been irrelevant, and ownership passed to him. Legally speaking, the Braydon became Royal property the moment he passed on; I am afraid the Crown has owned this ship for some months now. You could, of course, purchase her outright if you’ve the funds to do so.” he finished.
“How much is that?” asked Nev, without pause. The idea of losing the Braydon after all they had been through on her seemed unbearable.
“I couldn’t say; that is a matter for the Harbormaster, as he is the Queen’s agent in determining a ship’s value for sale or contract.”
Kadon asked to be shown the ship’s manifest and the log. Mallen had been making log entries since they recaptured the ship and showed the young officer the log entries corroborating their accounting of the events surrounding the loss and reacquisition of the ship. The log was left aboard ship, but the original manifest was to go with Kadon ashore.
After a few more questions, Kadon bid the crew of the Braydon farewell and disembarked, taking the sailors that had helped to bring the ship home with him. Handshakes and thanks were exchanged as they young sailors made ready to leave.
“I thank you for your help in bringing her in, lads.” Greer stated simply. “You made for a fine crew.”
Soon the crew of the Braydon stood alone on her deck.
It was morning before the Harbormaster sent for the Braydon to be brought in. She was towed by two longboats and many strong men to a berth near the main pier. Lieutenant Kadon was waiting patiently with a squad of sailors and several dockworkers to remove to the cargo and log of the Queen’s Trader Braydon.
Epilogue
Two weeks on dry land and the crew of the Braydon had been very busy. This was a good thing, much had happened to them and staying busy was definitely the best medicine.
Shortly after their arrival in Groden, they discovered that the Braydon and her manifested cargo were forfeit to the Crown due to the death of their friend, Captain Report. While this was painful for them, particularly for Micah who had idolized his brave captain, it was not unexpected. The contract was in the name of Martin Report and no other, and he was unable to complete his contract.
Then there was the matter of the reward on the notorious Captain Blunt's head. One hundred gold pieces for information leading to the capture of the pirate; that much gold wou
And the crew had not been idle in the pursuit of their inventions either. Soon after arriving in port, Mallen had been in contact with the Navy regarding his storm sails. The crewmembers 'borrowed' from the King Roland had been happy to provide an endorsement and assured the procurement office that the sails had performed quite well. An order for two sets had been received and an advance provided to pay for the material needed to make them. Needless to say, the slender sail maker had been quite please.
Not to be outdone, Greer and Brey finalized their plans for the cargo loader they had devised and presented the idea to the Harbormaster. He agreed that such a device could be valuable and told them they could demonstrate the device once they had a working model.
For their part, Nev and Micah helped on both projects as they were able. The young man had also begun teaching the boy the basics of cooking in the small house they all shared. Micah had only been the cook's assistant aboard the Braydon and he aspired to be the cook when they set sail in the spring.
It had been generally agreed that they would try for the Crystalline Sea again once the cold weather had passed. It had been the Captain's goal as well as Brey and Nev's, so it seemed the only choice. Soon they hoped to realize some profit from their inventions. If so, between the reward and any income from their inventions, they would be comfortable until spring and perhaps even build enough funds to get their own ship.
As they had promised to do before setting sail months earlier, the young men wrote to their mothers and related their journey in detail, they added the request that they share the letter with their mentor and friend, Barlow.
While returning to their lodgings after posting the letter, they reflected on their adventure to date.
"You know, Brey," said Nev, stopping for a moment, "even though things haven't gone quite as we planned, I would say our adventure has been, well - adventurous!"
The tall and wiry young man laughed and stroked his auburn whiskers, a habit he had recently picked up from his friend, Mallen. "That's the word for it, sure enough. And come spring, we will finally get our chance to reach the Crystalline Sea!"
"Do you think we will really make it this time?"
"I've no doubt, Nev." he replied. "Just as I knew in my heart we would get off Kulu Island and get back home, I know deep down that we will make it to the Crystalline Sea and beyond!"
Nev smiled at his friends certainty; he too felt deep down they would make it.
Then the young men walked on through the streets of Groden trading thoughts of what they would do with the riches they discovered in far-away lands beyond the Crystalline Sea.
The adventures of Nev and Brey will continue in the next volume, To The Crystalline Sea.
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