"So I said to him," cackled Enden between bites, "I said, 'Chongo longo! If I wanted to maroon the two of you, I'd throw him overboard and beach you on his fat behind!'" The lizard man listening to his story exploded in a hissing blast of laughter, slapping the table. While their masters' laughter lasted, the servants scrambled to refill the glasses and serve the next course of the meal.

"Ssso, what did you eventually do with them?" asked Hilaa, finally regaining control. "Humourouss sstory or no, crew disscipline iss a sseriouss bussinesss."

"I know that, Captain," sighed the human, gesturing for a plate clearing. "But on my ship, I have always believed that the punishment should fit the crime. They were betting men; I bet them that they couldn't climb back on board. I tied ropes to their legs and forced them overboard while we were at full sail. If they could climb back up the rope, all would be forgiven. I even allowed betting; I owed them that much." Captain Enden took another draught of wine. "We bet on them several times that day -- the last being which one the sharks would strip first. And there's your answer, Hilaa. On my ship, better that I kill them than they kill each other. That's discipline on the Wind Razor."

"Hmm. I musst agree," mused the lizard man. "But I would have been much more ssswift in my punisshmentss." With a gesture, he willed a magical flame into existence on his upturned palm. It threaded along his upturned claws and through his fingers in an intricate dance before dissipating.

"Yes, so I've heard. Rumor has it that all your sails smell of burnt hair and smoke."

Hilaa ignored him. "Ah, here they are." One of the servants timidly approached with a clear, high-rimmed bowl in which two mice were huddled. "Bring them here. Would you like one?" It was difficult to tell with Hilaa's steady, unblinking gaze, but Enden suspected that the lizard man might have been taunting him.

"No, thank you," he said blandly. "I prefer my meat cooked."

"Asss do we. But thesse are conssidered a delicacy among my people." Pulling one of the mice from the bowl by its tail, he leaned his reptilian head back, opened his mouth wide and slowly lowered the mouse in. Captain Enden noted his companion's neck distending as the mouse slowly travelled down the lizard man's throat.

"Really? They're considered vermin among mine." Enden smiled a thin smile. May you choke on it, he thought to himself. I hope that the j'taten mouse voids its bladder in the back of your throat. Hilaa, busy savoring his "delicacy", unsurprisingly did not respond.

Captain Enden glanced out the window and down over the town that he and Captain Hilaa had been given charge over in the Admiral's absence. He was new with the fleet, having signed articles only a month before, but he was no fool. He could guess how the Admiral thought, and saw this test for what it was. If he made an attempt to seize power here or betray the pirate armada in any way, the lizard man across the table would cheerfully destroy him.

In the past week, he had grown accustomed to the luxury of the mansion, and to the savagery of his companion. Hilaa was a brute: a fearsome sorcerer and a powerful opponent, but more reliant on force than finesse. Enden, on the other hand, was a thinker. He saw how the breeze blew, and knew how to set his sails to catch any rising opportunity. In that respect, he was far more dangerous than Hilaa could ever be.

A dark-skinned sailor ran past the entryway, skidded to a halt on the marble tiles, and scrambled back into view, where he dropped to his knees in a posture of reverence, his labored breathing indicating haste. "A thousand pardons, Captains," he wheezed. "There has been a development that Harbormaster Isook thought you should be apprised of immediately."

"Who isss thisss cur?" demanded Hilaa. "By the blazesss of Bogwash! How dare he interrupt usss at our-"

"Calm yourself, Captain. News is like the wind; it comes when it comes," Enden sighed. "Speak. What is it?"

"A ship approaches, coming in from the Southeast. – not one of our fleet, but a catamaran. It is on a direct heading for our harbor."

"And what of it!" hissed the lizard man. "Ssssss. They are tradersss, no doubt, and of no consssern to usss."

"Trade is limited to those merchants who know that we are here. Have you investigated further?"

"Aye, Captain. When the call went up, Isook called for Hassan to take a closer look."

"Ah," smiled the Captain, nudging . "One of mine. 'Three Day Hassan', we call him. The best lookout ever to mount a crow's nest in the Twenty Seas. By the Fire Moon, that man can spot a freighter sail days away."

"It was Hassan who confirmed the style of boat, Captain. And made out the nameplate. He says he craft is called the Rum Runner… when Hassan said that, Isook got very excited and ordered me to bring this news to you."

"I ssstill fail to sssee how thisss jussstifiesss your interruption, you-"

Captain Enden let his glass drop back to the table, and quickly placed a hand on the lizard man's arm to forstall the impending curse. "Wait, Hilaa! Think for a moment. How many twin-hulled ships are there in all the Twenty Seas? And called the Rum Runner? Only a smull-brain could be fooled by such a poor disguise. Don't you see what this means? This is the very ship the Admiral left to find! Coming here!"

"Quickly!" snarled Hilaa. " How much time do we have?"

"Hassan says two, perhaps two and a half hours before it signals the gate, Captain."

The lizard man jumped to his feet, tail lashing excitedly. "Noy j'tat! Thisss iss our chanssse, Enden! We mussst prepare before it arrivesssssss! You! Alert the guard to prepare for attack! Call the ogresss to the chain, and load the defenssssive weaponss. By Davron'sssss beard, we'll blow that ssship clear out of the sssurf." The sailor nodded vigorously, and sprang to his feet to spread the alarm.

"No! Belay that order," Enden barked. The messenger froze in the doorway. "By the Abyss, Hilaa, have you lost all your senses?"

The lizard man hissed angrily, and for a moment, the temperature in the room seemed to jump noticeably. "You would dare to challenge me?"

"In an assault, no. But think, blast you! If they're coming here, they obviously don't know we're looking for them! The fish is headed straight for the net – would you scare it before it gets there?"

"We have a chanssse to dessstroy the Admiral's enemiesss…"

"An activity best done by the Admiral himself. And we will be the ones to deliver both ship and crew to him. Think of the status that would bring us both." Captain Enden said, rising slowly from his cushioned seat. He turned to address the sailor. "Carry this message to Isook: Allow them to enter and dock. Then attempt to stall them for as long as possible with paperwork, resupply permits, repairs if they need them, anything to extend their stay and keep them here in Serpent's Coil. And tell the cur to get as much information about ship and crew as he can. We will handle the rest. Now go." The messenger nodded vigorously and left the room at a sprint.

Captain Enden chuckled to himself and moved to retrieve his cup of wine, when the lizard man charged around the table and shoved him backwards against the wall. Stunned, Enden reflexively groped for the hilt of a sword he was not wearing, and gasped for air, pinned by a scaly forearm across his throat. The other captain crouched down to his eye level, cocking his head to one side and baring a menacing row of sharp, yellowing teeth. Before Enden could free himself, Hilaa barked a few harsh syllables and a plume of magical flame flared from the elemental wizard's open claw, arcing up perhaps a knife's width from the pirate's midsection and up towards his face. Enden stopped struggling.

"You are a crafty one," hissed Hilaa. "I will remember that. And you, human, you will remember sssomething from dissscipline on the Salamander… The sssenior officer iss the one who givesss the ordersss. Never undermine my authority again." The wizard then thrust the flame spell out at the table in an illustrative gesture, blackening the tabletop and setting the floral centerpiece ablaze. He released his human companion and backed a few paces away, still tensed for action.

Captain Enden stepped away from the wall and pulled out the long knife he had hidden in the small of his back, looking enraged. He held it out threateningly, watching for further attack as he weighed his options. A few tension-filled moments later, he lowered the weapon, his composure apparently restored. He smiled and executed a small bow to his companion. "You are quite right, Captain. Please accept my most humble apologies. May I suggest, then, that you compose our message to Admiral Kriton to turn his fleet about?"

Hilaa studied the human up and down without answering, the slow lashing of his tail the only sign of disturbance. Then he turned and left the room, claws clicking against the tile as he went.

Enden glanced down at the tabletop and noted that the other mouse in the flame-blackened glass bowl was dead, all the fur singed from its body. He stabbed the creature and studied it on the point of his knife. No blood ran down the blade. Cooked meat, he thought with a sneer. By the Shadow Moon, that won't be happening to me. I'll find a way to string that wizard from his own yardarm first. And I thnk I know how…

With a flick of his knife he sent the mouse's body out the window for the gulls, and headed off to make arrangements with his subordinates.

Authored by: Ken Lipka E-mail me: krlipka@yahoo.com

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