Man of War Ch. 09

Leaving Alenko and his marines to clear up and issue instructions on what to do with the prisoners, watch officers also pitching in with a few sailors, I gathered my officer's, including Pressly, and gathered them around the table in my cabin, dropping all the paperwork on it with the sword. They all looked at that, then at me. "A trophy of success, obviously. And I'll instruct the marines that we take their bell. We'll hand that to the Lord Admiral upon our return."

"And the paperwork?"

"I would like us to look over it once we've departed. They speak the same language as us, so I'm hoping their writing is the same."

"How... How do they speak our language?" Jane wondered.

"I honestly don't know. So we will obviously need to interrogate some prisoners." I glanced at Pressly. "Master Pressly. Once all prisoners are aboard, we will need to hoist sails and depart. We will drag the other ship with us until we're cruising, then we'll cut the lines and let it drift. Unfortunately, the wheel was destroyed, so we can only hope it drifts away from us. We'll unload a volley from the lower deck into the ship and hopefully that will send it to the bottom, without having it explode too close to us."

"Why not just leave it to float?" Lawson asked.

"I've considered that, but I don't want them finding the ship and dragging it home. It's still floating and could be salvaged. If they prove to be a thorn in our side in the future, I'd rather take away any advantage they have." I looked around the table. "Anything else?" No-one had anything to add. "Very well. Alenko and the marines will finish up escorting the prisoners. Officers can be interrogated here; enlisted men can be done on one of the lower decks. Have Aela ensure all prisoners are shackled and kept away from anything important. Other than that, resume your duties and I'll have new orders once we've departed."

I kept watch as prisoners were brought on board the Normandy, assessing their condition and demeanour. Those who survived without injury were slightly more defiant than those bruised and bloodied, and there were more of the latter. Far more of the latter. I wasn't sure how many were eventually brought on board, Alenko could tell me the count later, but no more than thirty or forty. There were a lot of dead left on the Batarian ship.

All prisoners were soon on board, so men were then sent below to grab their supplies. I gave them an hour to do that, grabbing as much as they could, before I called a halt. It was time to leave. The boards were pulled back, the ropes remaining tethered loosened or cut, the call to weigh anchor was given, the sails unfurled. The wind was blowing kindly, but it took time for the ship to move, the added weight of the ship next to us not helping, but we finally started moving.

Pressly judged our speed, and once I thought we were fast enough, I ordered the lines connecting the Normandy to the other vessel cut. It was the moment of truth, and the gods were kind, as the other ship immediately veered to port. Pressly knew what to do, keeping the Normandy on course for a little longer before turning to port as well. The other vessel had barely any speed with only one mast, and it took little time for us to be alongside it once more. The cannons fired again, both decks aimed at its single cannon deck, and ripped the other ship to pieces. It was already sinking by the time we turned away, heading directly north.

The excitement died down, and light quickly started to fade, so I decided to put all the paperwork to one side and wait until the next morning. Instead, I offered to host dinner for my officer's in celebration of our first victory. I would have rather have had a friendlier introduction to life on the ocean blue, but as we'd met Batarians before, how it played out wasn't a surprise.

Steward Ramsey and Jeeves managed to knock us up something decent for dinner. Beef and pork for meat, with a little gravy. We still had an absolute tonne of potatoes, not literally... or, at least, I don't think there was. Anyway, some potatoes too, with hard biscuit and, as always, it was all washed down with alcohol. All the chatter was, of course, about finding a non-Imperial ship but also the fact that there was a chance we might find out more information about the world we inhabited. I admitted to looking forward in regards to interrogating one of their officers.

Clinking my fork against my glass, I rose to my feet. "Officers of the Normandy, I must congratulate each and every one of you for a job well done today. You all performed admirably and courageously, with special commendation for Captain Alenko and his Imperial Marines. This was our first real test as a warship, and though I believe there can be improvements, and I'm sure you already have ideas for the future, the important matter is that we were successful and, even better, we suffered no casualties." Raising my glass, I simply said, "To the Normandy!"

They all raised their glass before swallowing the contents. Like most nights we shared dinner, they slowly but surely started to filter out, no doubt to return to their wardroom and perhaps enjoy a couple more drinks before turning in for the night. I did notice Jane and Alenko leave together, and I was left thinking that, though they might not be courting, perhaps there was mutual interest. I wouldn't involve myself unless I had to, or unless Jane asked for advice.

Leliana remained behind as always, and once I closed the door, she rose to her feet and approached me. I glanced at Jeeves, who immediately made himself scarce. Standing before me, I always had to look down, only slightly, but she was shorter than me. "Were you scared, Shepard?"

"No. I didn't have time to be scared, and I'll be honest, the thought of fighting doesn't scare me, or at least it doesn't too much. Usually the adrenaline is pumping too much. There was only ensuring we were victorious and that the ship survived. Though I'm glad you stayed safe."

She just smiled before grabbing my hand and leading me towards my private quarters. Closing the partition door, she led me to the lounge, sitting me down first before she sat down next to me. Turning towards her, she made the first move, but although she kissed me, I think she just want assurance that I was absolutely fine, as her hugs were rather tight though much appreciated. "I think you're worried than me," I said quietly.

"It's the first time I've ever even been close to something like that. And when the man I care about is leading the fight, I'm bound to worry." She leaned back and smiled. "There were many, many prayers."

I cupped her cheek and stroked it with a thumb, earning such a smile, I returned it without even realising. She kissed me again, a soft kiss far that suggested everything she felt for me. I wrapped my arms around her before positioning them in such a way that I could lift her up, causing her to start giggling before we ended up on the bed together. I knew we wouldn't do anything. I'll be honest in admitting I was definitely ready, but I knew she still worried. I wasn't exactly sure about what, but I wasn't sure how to broach the subject.

My hands may have wandered as we made out. Though she was rather slim, she still had a full bust, with a particular white dress she may have been wearing that showed much of her milky white skin, and my hand as we lay back may have wandered down towards her arse. She didn't stop me as I gently caressed it. In fact, she reacted rather positively though started to giggle when I gave it a squeeze. "As long as you behave," she whispered.

I did as she asked, and she eventually snuggled into my chest as I held her, and making sure I blew out the candle before went to sleep.

The next morning, after we shared breakfast and I had escorted her to the wardroom, where she would begin preparations for the triple session of prayer for that evening, I returned to my cabin and instructed the highest ranking Batarian officer be brought forth for interrogation. I gathered everything I'd taken from their ship and placed it on the table, instructing Lawson to remain on the bridge while I was away, but the order was to remain on the same heading for now.

The prisoner was escorted in. He was tall for a human, with brown hair and eyes, and he had a decent build. He was rather dirty, though he had done his best to make himself presentable. I ordered him unshackled and he seemed to understand what was going on as he came to attention and saluted. I returned the salute.

"Name and rank?"

"Chief Petty Officer Lanton Bakkoral."

"No commissioned officers remain alive?"

"No, Captain. I believe Captain Razak would have been the last of them to die. Most of them were killed in the barrage."

"Very well. Please take a seat. We obviously need to talk."

Alenko sat at the far end of the table to observe, two more marines stationed behind the seat where the Batarian sat. I kept a dagger on my body, ready to use at a moment's notice if he tried anything, but, on first impression, I believed he would co-operate. I offered him a drink, which he accepted.

"Before we begin, I have to ask a question. You're human, like us. It might sound like a stupid question but... How?"

He just shrugged. "That's who we are. That is how the gods made us."

"Gods? You are religious or your society has religion?"

He shrugged again. "Some of us are believers. But it's not particularly important to most of us."

I could have asked more questions, but I wanted to learn more about what they were up to. "So, your captain chose to close on us and was readying to fire. What made him want to do that?"

"He thought your ship would have made a great prize on our return to Bataria. We have been raiding Turian shipping lanes for the past month."

"Who are the Turians?"

He didn't appear surprised, but still asked, "You haven't met anyone else, have you?"

"No." So I stood up and offered him the map I'd grabbed from their ship, and showed him our map. There were clear and obvious differences. "You're Batarians. So we have Turians too. Are they like us? Humans?"

"No. They're... weird. Very different to us. Beady little eyes, just like a bird."

"But they are native to this world?" He nodded. "Who else?"

"You have the Asari. They look similar to us, but they're blue, and no hair on them at all."

"Blue people?"

"And they're all women too. Or that's what I've been told. Never been to their homeland but I've seen a few of them."

"How is that..." I was already realising there was a hell of a lot of the world we didn't understand and we'd have to learn. And blood quickly. "Anyone else?"

"You have the Salarians. Never met one myself but apparently they are just as weird as the Turians. Then you have the Quarians. Only seen one of them before. Look similar to us, with some noticeable differences. The glowing eyes definitely stand out. Apparently they live on ships for some reason."

"Is that it?"

"That's all the people we know of or have met."

"And are you friendly with all these people?"

"Not particularly."

"How do you speak the same language as us? What I mean is, we have at least six different regional languages in our Empire, yet a common tongue shared by all. Yet you can speak our common tongue?"

"I'm sorry, Captain, but some of these questions are either beyond my pay grade or my knowledge. I'm a simple sailor, and certainly not educated like some others. What I can tell you is that we have two languages. The one we're speaking now, which is spoken by everyone, and there is a regional dialect spoken by half of our people."

"Where were you heading before meeting us?"

"We would eventually head back home, skirting your reef, before heading north-east to Bataria."

"There's no north passage?"

"Not unless you have a ship that can break through thick ice. And that's if the ice and snow doesn't cover land. People assume there is water under all of it, but who knows?"

I gestured at the map I'd grabbed. "Is this map accurate?"

He looked at it, then glanced at ours. "Well, your one is a hell of a lot emptier. But yes, your map is accurate. But I can't tell you how long it will take to sail. I'm no navigator."

"Okay, so you know these other people. Who should we approach?"

I wondered if he would lie, but his immediate response of, "Not the Turians," suggested he was telling the truth. He added, "We've pissed them off a few times recently by raiding their shipping. They're ships are superior to ours but a lone ship is still susceptible. But you'll want to approach the Asari. They're a more peaceful bunch, though convincing them you're not us might be difficult."

"What about our ship? How does it compare to theirs?"

He shrugged. "Perhaps equal. But considering you easily sank one of our best... We have nothing like this in our navy."

"You're being surprisingly open?"

"Frankly, my life is forfeit now, Captain. If I get back to Bataria, they'll throw me in prison for allowing myself to be caught. We're expected to go down with the ship. All of us. So I'm just wondering what you'll do to me now."

"We don't have cells on this ship and no-one sails without working. Therefore, you will be put to work to earn your place to sleep and three meals a day. We won't expect your loyalty, but you will be searched constantly for contraband and weapons. My CPO will explain the expectations when you are put to work, and what punishment to expect if your fail to meet them."

"Some of my men are wounded..."

"And will be treated by our doctors individually, though under guard." I leaned forward. "Rest assured, if one of your man injures one of mine, they will be punished. And gods forbid they kill one. Understand?"

"Yes, Captain."

"But you are humans too, and somewhere along the line, we must have come from the same place." I shrugged. "As you said, that's for someone much smarter than myself to figure out. You may keep your uniforms or clothing, but it will be marked so we can identify who you are. We will also break you up and put you to work with other people. Don't want any of you getting ideas."

"Captain, I think you'll find most of us will be surprisingly co-operative. Let's just say some of the men under my command did not sign up of their own volition." I couldn't help raise eyebrows at that confession. "Many are press-ganged into service and kept in chain on the deck." He raised a hand to stop my next question. "Apologies, Captain, but you know little about us. However, I would be willing to sit down and discuss with you at any time who we are as people. I can offer you this, though. Treat us right, and we'll even swear loyalty to whoever leads you."

"I'll certainly take that into consideration." I rose to my feet and he followed suit, offering another salute. I would not shake his hand. Not yet. If he offered his loyalty to the Emperor and the Empire of the Twelve Realms, then he would receive my handshake.

The two marines shackled the prisoner and led him out, followed by Alenko. As soon as they departed, in walked Miranda and Jane, who saluted before waiting for orders. "Spread word. The Batarians will be kept as prisoners for three days. Full rations and ensure they are kept safe and warm. We will not treat them unkindly. Let watch officers know that after three days, they will be released and will work alongside our men. They are to be watched while on shift, and searched before shift, every two hours while on shift, and at the end of shift. If they are found with weapons, they are to be arrested immediately and presented to Chief Aela. We will deal with it then."

"Punishment detail?"

"Will be decided at the time. You have your orders. See they are carried out."

"Aye-aye, sir," they stated, saluting again before turning and walking out. Left alone, I pulled the Batarian map towards me. It didn't look like a full map. The Empire was pretty much missing. Bataria wasn't particularly large, or at least the coastline mapped wasn't. But there was a large landmass to our west, and there was an ocean passage south. Far to the south. Possibly thousands of miles. We'd need weeks of favourable winds to even consider it.

But that was all for later. My first concern was how my crew would react to having Batarians among them. We hadn't grown to hate them because of their attack. We didn't know them. Most people only knew of it threw newspaper articles or word of mouth. The stories were not embellished. The invaders were either killed or thrown back into the sea. The only thing we were still not sure about is how they crossed the reef.

Most importantly, one of two issues was possibly solved. We hadn't found the Dunkerque yet. I still didn't believe that we'd ever find it. But we now know for certain that we were not alone. Now it was a case of sailing towards them and making contact, and hope it went much better than our first contact with another people.