The King's Secret

Chapter 11: The Gathering Shadows.

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Katili.

"The sea ain't no place 'fer women folk, lemme show ye where ye belong..." The revolting pungence of hot, alcohol tainted breath hit her in the face as the equally revolting face of a large pirate leaned in towards her.

Katili stepped back, away from him, and bumped into a solid body. she stepped aside and glanced back, then felt relief as she realized it was Tillis.

The other man kept coming towards her, eyeing her in a dirty way. Tillis didn't move to rescue her, but his hand did tighten on the hilt of his sword.

Knowing she had to stand her own ground, but that he was there to back her up, she drew her long knife and pointed it at the man. "No. Let me show you where you belong." She spat, glaring.

He laughed and suddenly stepped forward, grabbing her wrist and twisting it. Pain shot through her arm, loosening her grip on the weapon, but she refused to let go.

Thinking quickly, she dodged his other hand as he reached for her, kicked him in the side of the knee, and twisted her wrist against the thumb of the hand holding it. The weaker digit gave way, just as she'd hoped, and she used her momentum to spin around the now kneeling pirate, slashing a long line across his back.

In a second she was out of his reach, knife poised for battle. But none came, as all eyes watched the blood drip from the thin line in the man's back.

The man stood, and walked away without even glancing at her, obviously trying not to favor his knee. Everyone else slowly turned back to their drinks, minding their own business again as the pianist began playing again.

Katili turned her attention back to the crew she was with, receiving a nod of approval from Tillis. The captain joined a table which was playing cards, and she and Tillis stood behind him, acting as his guards.

Gossip made its way around the table, but the topic of the day seemed to be a new group of pirates in the area. Words were very well guarded around this subject, and it seemed to Katili, that there were many unfamiliar faces in the bar that were being eyed with distrust...

The room was tense, and she could feel Tillis's stress levels increasing rapidly as their captain finally spoke up. "I hear there's been some sea folk raiding the villages on Sevadda..."

At this, the other men frowned in puzzlement. "Seems odd, pirates stealing from the land..." One said as he shook his head.

"Aye, 'tis no place fer a man'o'the sea... 'Tis a shameful thing..." An older captain muttered grumpily.

"Aye..." The others chorused. But one of them glanced cautiously towards another table, where two rugged sailors sat drinking their beer quietly.

Katili waited a moment for the conversation to shift, then looked over to the sailors. There was something strange about them, but she couldn't quite put her finger on it.

All throughout the hour, as the conversation moved from one thing to another, she watched them. Finally, one of the sailors stood to get more drink, and she spotted what she was searching for.

Katili tapped Tillis with her boot, not taking her eyes off the men. On one of their belts, hung a sword. Not curved, like the common rapier of the sea, but straight, like that of land dwellers... It was remarkably similar to the weapon she was waiting to purchase.

Pulling her eyes away, she glanced at her shipmate, who taped the Captain in warning. He stood, showing no sign of anything aside from being done his drink. He tossed a few coins to the bartender, and led the way towards the door.