Man of War Ch. 05

"Moreau, you'll be okay for the time being?"

"Yes, sir."

"Very good. Mister Pressly, with me and bring your map. It's time to gather in my cabin and go over a few more things."

Moreau wouldn't be left alone, a watch officer would join him and would call if there was a problem, but I doubted we'd have a problem before reaching the reef. It would take at least a day to make the reef, and we certainly wouldn't travel through it in darkness, dropping anchor before attempting the next day. To be honest, out of everything we could be doing, passing through the reef was possibly the most dangerous time.

The grand cabin that would be my residence during our journey appeared enormous. Because, in truth, it was. It was partitioned into two areas. My private quarters, where my bed, small desk and a couple of wardrobes were, with one large window looking out to the sea. The other area was home to a larger desk and table, where I would hold meetings and enjoy meals. It was also the area where my officers could relax while not on duty, having ensured plenty of fine alcohol was available.

Once my officers were crowded around the table, I had Pressly place his map down. "Now, ladies and gentleman, this is the known world to the Empire. We have the continent here, with the coastline we all know, and here we have the reef that has keep us secure, for the most part, since the early days of the First Empire. But what we can see is how blank the world is beyond the reef."

"Well, there's nothing, Captain," Lawson stated, "Because we simply don't know." She paused before looking up, "Right?"

I couldn't help smirk slightly. "The Imperial Archives are apparently a wondrous thing. I'm not sure if we would call them secrets or not, but since they started building this ship, scholars trawled the archives, looking for just a hint of what might lie beyond the reef. We have no real idea how large this world is, what other continents might lie out there, how long we might be sailing until we see land again."

There was a large folder on the desk behind me, which I turned to grab, before placing it over the map, tapping the cover with a finger. "Most of what is contained in here is only rumour. It cannot be considered fact, as the Dunkerque never returned, and any small sailing vessel that has tried to pass the reef cannot possibly have travelled that far."

Opening the folder, I pulled out the first map. In the middle was our continent, but even that was only partial, as there was little idea what was north of the Grampian Alps. "We are sailing west, as you can judge by the position of the sun at this time, once we pass through the reef, we will turn north-west. Scholars believe there is a landmass, whether it's a continent, an island or even an archipelago, west to north-west."

"And the assumed sailing time, if this land does truly exist?" Lawson asked.

"The scholars I spoke to estimated anything from eight to twelve weeks, and that's if we don't discover other landmasses before that."

"By the Five," Pressly whispered, "Are we truly that isolated?"

"We don't even know this land actually exists. It could be worse," Alenko added, "What if we find nothing?"

"Then we keep sailing until we do. I don't believe in sailing in straight lines without deviation. We could miss gods only knows what. We will have men continually on watch during the day, looking for any sign of land, or even another boat. During evenings, we will reduce sail but continue to move."

"And if we make contact with an unknown vessel? What are our orders?" Lawson asked.

"We attempt peaceful contact but we will defend ourselves immediately if we are attacked."

"Do you think we'll find people out there, Captain? Do you think they will be like us?" Leliana asked.

I gestured, opening the table to any ideas. "We're humans. The Batarians were humans, so can only assume they called themselves that name after their homeland, much like those from Normandy are 'Normans' and those from Bebbanburg are 'Berbers'. Is this planet full of humans or are we going to find some other people?" Jane suggested.

"I find it hard to believe we'd meet anything other than fellow humans," Pressly added.

"Not just that. What about animals and agriculture? Just imagine what sort of strange flora and fauna we might stumble across when we find land," Aela said.

"Do any of you have any interest in the sciences?" I wondered.

Lawson raised a hand. "Botany, sir."

"Astronomy, though I'm assume that would be obvious, sir."

"It is, Pressly. But you're still finding now things?"

"I just wish I had a more powerful telescope, sir."

"Zoology, sir. While working as a doctor, I took on veterinarian studies at the same time. I have a fascination with animals, wondering how alike they are to us, particularly their minds, how intelligent they are compared to humans," Serana offered.

"So we have someone interested in animals, someone in plants, and someone in the stars."

"Chemistry, sir," Chakwas added, "I've dabbled occasionally. Generally trying to find concoctions that will help the sick."

"Nothing that will put a hole in the side of my ship, I hope, Doctor?"

She laughed lightly. "Your ship will remain safe, sir."

"Okay, so in addition to your responsibilities, you will have other interests. That is good to know. Can all of you with outside interests please keep duplicate reports during our voyage, please. Keep a copy for your own records, but you will present the second report to the Emperor on our return. He wants to know of everything we discover. And, trust me on this, he will probably chew your ear off."

"Your orders for now, sir?" Lawson asked.

"For now, just keep the ship moving until we get to the reef. Pressly, let me know when we're five miles away. We won't anchor right on the reef; we'll stop around two miles back." I pulled out another map, which gave the route through the reef. It was a copy of the one given to the Dunkerque one hundred years before. Everyone leaned forward to look at it. "This is the route through the reef."

"Gods, is that how wide and deep they think it is?" Leliana wondered.

"It will take nearly an entire day to pass. Pressly, this is going to take all your skill getting us through."

"I'll admit, I look forward to the challenge, sir."

"Very good. For now, visit your own quarters and take a few moments to settle in before returning to your station. However, to celebrate our departure, I have instructed the stewards to prepare an evening meal. It will probably be the last decent meal most of us will enjoy for quite a while."

"Thank you, sir. We would all be delighted," Lawson stated. As a group, they came to attention and salute. I returned the gesture before they wandered out.

"Sister Leliana, may I have a private word please?"

She appeared surprised by my request, but stopped and waited until the rest had disappeared. I walked by and closed the doors before turning back to her. "Yes, Captain?"

"I just wanted to thank you for the kind words during your prayer before we launched. Those alone would have filled all the men and women under my command with a sense of confidence, but also pride in their commanding officer, and in this grand vessel on which we now sail."

"I merely spoke from the heart, Captain."

"Have you visited your quarters yet?"

"Yes, Captain."

"Do they appear comfortable?"

"They will suffice for the journey, Captain. I have a bed, a small wardrobe, and a small window to look out of. The only difference to my previous residence are the noises the ship makes."

"You will get used to them, Sister. Eventually they'll put you to sleep, and you'll find sleeping in silence back on land a rather bizarre concept." I fell silent, and probably should have dismissed her straight away, but she continued to just gaze at me, a slight smile that lit up her face. I'm not even sure she knew she was doing it. I finally cleared my throat, and she released a light giggle, immediately covering her mouth and blushing in embarrassment. "So, I will see you tonight... I mean, at dinner?"

"I'm already looking forward to it, Captain."

I quickly walked past her and opened the door, taking a deep breath before standing to the side. She walked by, taking a moment to stop and rest a hand on my arm. "Captain?" she said softly. I met her eyes. "I feel the same way. But we both know there are rules and expectations, not only from the others, but also from ourselves."

"You are right, Sister. As always."

"Rest assured, you are already always in my thoughts and prayers."

"I will admit that it heartens me to hear those words."

She lowered her hand from my arm to my hand, grabbing it briefly. "I believe Dibella finally answered my prayers, Captain," she whispered, before letting go, adding, "Until later."

I watched her go, swallowing hard. I think I actually started sweating, taking the handkerchief from my pocket to wipe my brow and back of my neck. Returning to my personal quarters, I sat at my desk and started to prepare the ship's official log. It was something all captains did, but while I kept an official document, my own thoughts of the voyage while adding information provided by my officers, I also kept a personal diary each time the ship I commanded left dock. It would be full of letters written to my family, as I would always send the diary home to Tromso, so mother and father could read of what I'd experienced, but also understand my thoughts at the time. I already knew I'd keep any relationship with Leliana purely professional, at least with the confines of the official log, though as for my diary, I'm sure mother would be delighted to hear that I might be finally feeling something...

Heading out onto the quarterdeck a little later after starting both my log and diary, I took my first stroll of the ship. It was something I did during every command, strolling the upper deck every day, while I would occasionally journey down at least one deck, much to the surprise of the NCOs and enlisted men. During my time as commanding officer of the Expedition, I had grown to see my fellow officers as not only subordinates and companions on the vessel, but many as good friends. While I was never as close with those further down the chain of command, I would always treat even the lowest grade seaman as a gentleman if that respect was returned. I rarely had trouble, though I sometimes felt a pang when I heard songs break out, knowing the men were thoroughly enjoying a night on the rum. As captain, I sometimes felt rather cut-off from most, but I knew my place, as much as they knew theirs. Another reason why I was happy to have Jane along, as having her in my quarters often wouldn't raise eyebrows.

Finding myself stood at the bow, hands behind my back, I removed my hat and took a moment to enjoy the feeling of the wind in my face, closing my eyes as I felt the ship ride the waves. There is no greater feeling than standing on a great ship, but knowing you were at the mercy of the sea. A freak wave had capsized more than one ship, though those were far smaller than the Normandy.

"You appear rather content, Captain," Lawson said beside me.

"I love the sea, Lieutenant." Opening my eyes, I glanced at her before gesturing down the ship, "Out here, I feel most at home."

"Now that we have a moment alone, may I ask a personal question, sir?" I nodded. "How realistic do you think it is trying to find the Dunkerque?"

"Between you and me, Lawson, and please don't repeat this," she nodded her head, and made the gesture of the Five, her word now assured, "We won't find the ship. That's gone, either to the bottom of the sea or as a wreck on some unknown shore. I know we won't find it. But the people on board? I refuse to believe three, four hundred people all went down with the ship. I have faith we'll find survivors, Lieutenant."

She nodded again before saying, "It would make quite the story if we somehow did find it and dragged it back home."

"Unless they found some way of managing to keep it ship-shape and riding the waves, or found friends who had docks that would allow repairs, there's no way a ship can continue to ride the waves."

"Thank you for the honest response, Captain."

"I would like to be honest with everyone, but I want to keep confidence high for as long as possible. This journey will be difficult as it is, without thinking it's a waste of time. But being my XO, you should expect my honesty at the very least."

"And it is appreciated, sir." She saluted and returned to her station. Being the first day out of port, and knowing we would stopping for the night, to be honest, there wasn't much a lot of us would be doing. The enlisted men and petty officers in charge knew their jobs and what was required, and they didn't need the likes of me observing their every move. My orders were for my XO, the Master and Acting Lieutenant, and occasionally the Master-at-Arms or Quartermaster.

Tomorrow would be the reef, where I would remain at the bridge alongside Pressly until we were through. After that, it was out into the unknown, and only the gods would know what we'd find after that. Hopefully something. Anything, so we could call the expedition a success.

Returning to my cabin, one of the stewards I had hired was preparing the table for the evening meal. He turned upon seeing me enter and saluted. As a civilian, such gestures were not required, though I'd found stewards would, as a sign of respect. A salute was always greeted with a nod of the head in return. "Steward Ramsey, what we can we expect tonight?"

"As we have the freshest of supplies, sir, I was thinking braised beef with gravy, gratin dauphinois..."

"We have milk?"

"I ensured some was brought aboard today for the evening meal, sir. It will be the last time we'll have any for however long we are gone."

"Fresh vegetables?"

"Yes, sir. I was thinking a simple medley, a mixture of tastes to delight the senses, with that added crunch. To top it all off, I have made sure there is wine that will complement the meal perfectly."

"What of the supplies for the rest of the journey? Satisfied?"

"I am used to working with such ingredients, sir. Rest assured, you won't go hungry nor will you find too much to complain about."

"Good to know." I checked my watch, surprised by how much time had already passed. "I suggest we sit down in two hours."

"Perfect, sir."

I was never one for whiling away the day in my cabin writing in logs or diaries, or continuously looking over maps. I was a man for the outdoors, and re-joined Pressly and Moreau on the quarterdeck. I could see men continually moving up and down rigging, some sitting up on the masts, tightening or loosening rigging where required. The balance it took for men to work so high, with no sense of self-preservation, took immense courage.

Pressly was continuously judging our course and speed. "We're travelling at five knots, Captain. We should be at the point of anchorage within the hour."

"The Normandy sails fast, Mister Pressly."

"Not only does she look wonderful but she rides the waves like a dream, sir. I can't wait to get her beyond the reef and really see what she's capable of."

The closer we approached the area we would anchor for the evening, Pressly would relay orders, ordering reduced sail. The rear sail was the first to be taken in completely, followed by the main sail, until only the front sail provided forward momentum. During the last half-mile, even that would be pulled in as the anchor was lowered. It took time for it to catch on the sea floor. We didn't have to be exact tonight. Pressly would take measurements and our position in the morning, and we all knew that it was when entering and then crossing the reef that being exact was necessary.

Once the ship was stopped and at anchor, the enlisted men readied the ship for the evening as officers slowly retired to my cabin. Steward Ramsey had prepared the table for dining, and I had to take a moment to look at the crockery and cutlery. It was what one would expect to find in a noble's house, not a warship. Retiring to my private quarters, I changed out of my uniform into something slightly more comfortable though still signifying my rank. My manservant on board, Jeeves, eventually knocked at the door, informing me everyone was now present.

Most had chosen to change as well. Leliana looked beautiful in a flowing white dress, with just a hint of her bust on display. I could see Kaidan looking across the table at my sister, though he noticed my glance and looked away, obviously embarrassed. I didn't take offence, and I doubt Jane would have either.

"Please be seated," I stated, everyone immediately relaxing into their chairs. They were comfortable with leather seats and backs, made of the same wood as the ship, though a slightly darker colour. Conversation soon flowed as this was the first opportunity all of us had the chance to relax in the company of everyone else. At the head of the table, I had Miranda immediately to my left, with Alenko, Pressly and Serana lined down the table. To my immediate right was Leliana, with Jane, Aela and Jacob. At the other end of the table was Chakwas. It was unusual a Chief Petty Officer would dine with commissioned officers, but I invited Aela on purpose, knowing all of us would be working closely for however many months ahead.

Steward Ramsey wasn't lying. The meal he prepared was utterly delicious. I believe decorum may have been broken more than once as people scoffed their plate before returning for seconds. We also enjoyed the wine, though everyone was relatively well behaved, partaking in no more than a glass or two. Once dinner was complete, he surprised us with a cake, stating he had just enough milk left over to make batter. For providing such a meal, I made sure he at least had a piece, as thanks. He appreciated the gesture immensely.

After everything was clear away, most of us lit up to enjoy a post-meal cigarette, Jeeves placing ashtrays on the table, also leaving a bottle of brandy and glasses. After finishing the cigarette, I poured each of us a glass and rose to my feet, quickly followed by the others.

"We don't know each other that well at the moment. It is understandable. But I looked around the table and I can see what makes the Empire great. Different people from different nations, coming together for a common purpose. Your records are all exemplary, which is why you now serve on the Normandy. I believe that this journey will be a success as long as all of us work together. Have faith in me, and that faith will be returned." I raised my glass. "To the Normandy!"

"Long live the Emperor!" Jane added.

"And long live the Empire!" Miranda finished before we all consumed our small glass.

It was now late, and it was time to turn in before an early rise the next morning. I shook hands with nearly everyone as they departed, kissing my sister on the cheek and giving her a quick hug. It was allowed, as neither of us was on watch. My handshake with Serana lasted longer than the others, before I wished her goodnight. Last to depart was Leliana. She kissed me on both cheeks as usual.

"Will I be in your prayers?" I asked quietly.

"Every time, Shepard. Will I be in yours?"

"More my thoughts, but also my prayers."

"Good thoughts?"

"Always." I paused, before taking a chance, "You look beautiful tonight, Leliana."

Her face lit up in a smile, her eyes shining bright in the candlelight, colour appearing in her cheeks. "I wore it for you, Shepard." Ever wanted to kiss a woman so much, you can barely stop yourself, but you know you shouldn't? That was me in that moment. I eventually had to take half a step back. She rested a hand on my chest and looked up. "Goodnight, Shepard."