A Motley Sisterhood of Pirates!  BOOK Three  (Part Fourteen: Blog Seventy-six)

By Dan Watt and Taylor Norris, co-authors of the Rita Walker series

Note: 

As Master-at-arms “Dizzying Blade” Sadie finishes rubbing the ointment onto her chest and belly she sees the Cannibal, Thelma, climb into the rowboat.

“Is that how we travel?” the Cannibal asks in a sweet mezzo-soprano voice Sadie instantly doesn’t trust.

“Yes,” she hears Umi say with too much pleasantness.  “I’ll help you if you like.”

“That would be wonderful,” the Cannibal replies.

Sadie notices that the Cannibal’s normally voluptuous figure is gaunt and now has a blue tinge to it.  She wonders how much the skin webbing between the Cannibal’s large, flatfeet will give an advantage swimming under water.  But it’s the Cannibal’s weapons that draw her attention the most.  A long silver straw, a two-edged dagger with one side sharp and the other with curved teeth like a shark’s.  An indentation runs along the centre of the blade.  And the pommel, made of animal or human bone, hammered into the shape of a horse’s hoof.

“Be safe, and great success,” First Mate Zala says from the seat with an oar.

“Be safe,” Areso, who is now one of the meds on the Nagua, echoes.

“Now,” she hears Umi say, as the “Ship Protector” drops off the gunwale of the rowboat into the warm sea water.

Holding the gourd breather in one hand and pinching her nose with the other, Sadie pushes herself off.  She raises to the surface just as the Cannibal drops into the water.

Areso lowers all three floating buckets.

“Follow closely,” Umi says, and pull gently on the line between us if we need to slow down.

Underwater, Sadie inhales through the semi-U-shaped gourd, as she watches the blue outline of “Ship Protector” Umi ahead. 

Taylor Norris, RMT, as First Mate ‘One Eye’ Olanis:  taynorris@gmail.com (Kitchener-Waterloo)

With thanks to Joanne Gosling (Navigator ‘Storm Caller’ Master Jo Anne): Joanne is an Interior Decorator who specializes in closets: Jgosling@calclosets.com Calclosetsjoanne or Joannegosling22@gmail.com

Leah Weir (Helmswoman ‘Wheel Turner’ Synthia): model and cover editor (pictures by: professional family and baby photographer Kimberley Lee (kimberleyleephotography.co.uk); (El Cid Rapier by blades-uk.com)

Andraya Watt as Assistant-Master-at-Arms, Amelie

Maegan Curlyo as Master-at-Arms “Dizzying Blade” Sadie (pictures of Maegan by Ben Kraehling)

With Thanks To:

Fire & Steel for the Medieval Rapier:  http://fireandsteel.ca/

Alex Watt for background pictures

Daiana Duca for background pictures

Krissy Karmaschek for background pictures

Tags: Pirates, Science Fiction, Story Telling