“We don’t rightly know that, mate,” Roolo replied. “He and our shipmate, Fishbum, was on night watch and disappeared just as the Wrackshees were attacking the Daring Dream—they seems to have vanished. Don’t rightly know where they are now.”
Breister, shaking his head in wonder, cast a bemused look at his comrades, who were chuckling among themselves.
“So, this great and daring Sea Captain—just so I understand—this great and daring Captain, abandoned his watch at the first sign of trouble and fled?” Breister said with a laugh. “And that might make a beast like myself wonder if there’s anyone on your ship fit to be Captain? Let’s see, we have four seabeasts, including the Captain and his mate on watch, all of whom saw an attack coming and all went over the side rather than warn their friends?—Why, it’s a crew of mad-beasts!”
“Beggin’ your pardon, friend,” Bomper said with a hint of edge in his voice, “but Capt’n Gumberpott would never abandon his ship ’n crew—lessin’ he thought he could save ’em somehow—that’s just the plain truth and I’ll be thankin’ you do drop the snickering about him!”
“Fairly told, friend,” Breister smiled, “I was dashin’ to the finish before I had legs to run on—but I’m just a humble carpenter and don’t much understand the ways of seabeasts. No, I just don’t do things quite like yourselves! A Wood Cow would never abandon home and friends, and now I see that is your way, too. So, I’ll be askin’ your friendship and pledgin’ mine ’till we rescue your mates. I’ll be pleased if you forgive that your ways give me good humor.”
“Just hold it a-time, there, Breister,” Toshty said. Pointing to the point, not far distant, where the curve of the beach hid the sea beyond, he cried, “Scum-Ralleys comin’ ashore! Rummer Boars!”
Breister glanced quickly at the three-masted ship turning around the nearby point and emerging from the trees that had concealed its advance. Flying the Rummer flag—black shark on crimson background—there was little doubt who was coming for a visit. Although he had never encountered them directly, Breister knew about the Rummers. His Cougar friend Annie was from a seafaring family, and told many stories about the feared freebooters. The “black shark and blood” flag was known to all.
Breister quickly surveyed the situation: open beach, concealment possible only where the forest thickened in the direction of the Rummers, and the only route of escape being the way the he and his friends had reached the beach—a steep open hillside. Breister gave directions: “We gain nothing by fleeing—no time to scale the hill. Let me do the talking and follow my lead. I don’t have a plan yet, but I call on the Ancient Ones for help. If all else should fail, I will use the flicker pole before they can take us captive.”
Within minutes of the ship rounding the point, it had dropped anchor and lowered two longboats. The longboats pulled rapidly up to the beach. A tall, long-tusked Boar, sitting in the prow of the first longboat to touch the beach, was the first Rummer to step ashore. The seabeast, from his luxurious dress, was obviously the Rummer Boar captain: he wore a heavy black damask waistcoat—black because Rummers’ clothes were traditionally darkened, if not completely blackened by the smoky soot of fires used to roast shark meat; gaudy shark-leather breeches; tall lizardskin boots reaching halfway up the thigh; an oversized hat with numerous crimson ostrich feathers fluttering in the breeze; a bandoleer of flash gourds; a cutlass and dagger at the belt; and, around his neck, a gold chain hung with dozens of golden shark’s teeth. His authority as Rummer captain, however, was summed up by the Boar’s unusually fearsome curving tusks—which were unnaturally long and sharpened to a point like a dagger.
“I am Sabre Tusk d’Newolf,” the Rummer Captain announced.
Breister saluted the Rummer in a friendly, but not submissive, manner and declared boldly, “I am Breister, Chief of these Beasts of Fortune and I see that you, too, have a quick eye for profit!” He walked to Roolo and Bomper, giving them a quick wink. Then, poking and pinching their muscles, he declared, “I grant you that these two are not great prizes in their physicals. But what is the richest thing you have to trade for what they can tell you?”
A brief jolt of shock shot through Roolo and Bomper as they realized they were pawns in Breister’s deadly game. Stalwart and bold as Captain Gumberpott himself, however, neither seabeast betrayed fear or surprise. Instead they took up their part of the dangerous gamble.