Sorcerer… Cyborg???

Chapter 132: The Fleet

The waves grew higher and higher and more and more anxious voices joined the few that were already calling out to their commanders, some of them crying out about how they could not swim, others wailing that their bones would be lost to the ocean, their families deprived of a chance at fulfilling their last rites.

"Hold fast! Everything is going according to plan!" Tam yelled out, convincing himself as much as he was convincing the soldiers. The waves were as tall as man now, and the coastline was now hidden from, only a faint line on the horizon. 

Boson shook his head internally, surely the boss didn't expect all the soldiers to believe this, there was nothing in sight, and they were out amongst the waves and wind without the slightest hope.

Tam, resolute, strained his eyes in to the distance, the gloom of the heavy clouds laying over them. There! He glimpsed the flutter of what had to be a sail.

Heavy raindrops began to fall, splattering down on to the soldiers, who were already soaked from the ocean spray.

"Steady men! Sails on the horizon, soon we will be joining our allies!" Tam yelled out, he could see the silhouette of the black ships of Anteris' fleet, sweeping through the water like hungry killer whales.

All the others, Tam's Lieutenants included, stared as hard as they could into the distance, but there wasn't even the slightest glimpse of a sail, where were the ships? Surely Tam's sight was not so much better than theirs.

Even Boson, who had held true to Tam, felt a sliver of despair enter his heart, Tam was seeing ghosts amongst the gloom of the clouds, that would bring the storm that would surely swallow them up.

"No, I see them! An entire fleet, black ships, ominous to most, but a blessing to our eyes!" The hawk masked man yelled out, pointing into the distance, projecting his voice as loud as he could.

Gradually, more and more joined him, and soon enough, the despair and fear that had been on the face of most of the soldiers had turned to joy and relief.

Their admiration for Tam only grew, he had coordinated an impressive feat, within a day of leaving the very midst of the jungles of Kalun, they were rendezvousing with ships off of the coast. 

No one could have expected this, Anteris' fleet was supposed to be on the opposite side of the entire Isle, off the coast of Newport, what in the world were they doing here.

[I have to admit, as foolish as I think this war is, Tam is both an innovative and though commander. This was a gamble to be fair, but well worth it. Nobody at all would expect the spearhead of Ursten's forces to be on the opposite side of the Isle.] Silane sounded impressed, and her doubts were fading away.

Kothar didn't reply, he only smiled. He had felt the doubt and anxiety that Silane felt, and the rush of relief that had flooded her as he had spotted the ships, shortly after the hawk masked man. 

The first of the ships had a familiar figure on the prow. His long silver hair blew majestically in the strong winds of the sea, and his eyes met those of Tam, whose gaze mirrored his own. A mix of respect, familiarity and the slightest amount of madness. As their gazes crossed, the pair of them started to laugh uproariously, neither had expected the other to uphold their end of the bargain. 

Tam was sure that Anteris would lose himself in plundering the easy prey on this side of the coast, where few cities expected any kind of pirates or invaders. While Anteris thought that a man as careful as Tam, would truly take such a gamble, expecting the agreement to be nothing more than a test.

When the ship was a few lengths away, Tam leapt easily from the raft he had been standing on, landing softly on the deck of Anteris' command vessel. 

"I thought I'd see a few rafts, maybe with one of your Lieutenants." Anteris grumbled as Tam shook his hand. 

"And I thought you'd be plundering one of the Empire's lackeys, I'm sure there are few pirates around." Tam grinned at Anteris, his respect for the man had grown.

"I wouldn't want to warn them of anything before we're ready. Also, are you calling me a pirate! I'll have you know that I'm a Duke, as well as a Grand Admiral." Anteris laughed, beckoning one of his men over, who held a bronze circular magical tool.

"Pick up every single one of those soaked landlubbers off of those sorry rafts and their gear. If I find out you've missed even one or pilfered any supplies, I'll have you keeled." Anteirs growled into the device, his voice sounded out across the many vessels. 

There were cheers all around as the men were hoisted up from the precarious rafts onto the far more secure decks of the ships. A few men who were vomiting, not able to handle the constant rocking motion of the ocean, made much worse on the rafts, passing out as soon as they reached the decks.

"You're all a mysterious bunch. Just don't try anything funny, alright." A balding man with a large scare that crossed his face said with a clenched mouth, as he and his men helped the unitless soldiers and Kothar on board their galley.

Murmurs of assent came from behind the many masks, helmets and devices obscuring their faces. 

"Where to now?" One of the Ursten soldiers asked a nearby sailor, who was helping up the last of the men from their raft. 

"I believe we'll be heading for the Multas Islands. Should be plenty of drink, food and women once we're done with the place. Not sure why we sailed all this way just for that. But I'm not complaining." The sailor chuckled, and began to whistle, running off to tie off a loose rope.