Page 67 of The Rake OR The Orca Who Met His Match in a Selkie Desiring Revenge
Aegir laughed, retaining his partial shift for the moment. "This is better, actually. At least now he isn't trying to pretend like he is being serious. Usually, he thinks I don't know he has explosive plans, so he's trying to act normal, which is exactly what tells me that he is anything but."
“Should we have avoided a plan that involves explosives then?”
If Jokith was a loose cannon, he could mess up their rescue. This might be heronechance to get Feann back.
“No, including the explosives is what will keep him on task and give him the chaos he needs to find Seelie’s brother. We’ll know exactly where he is, what he is doing. Sure, when sailors abandon ship, he will likely take the opportunity to chomp a few here and there, but he’ll stick to the plan, because the plan serves his goals.”
Elspeth pursed her lips. She was certainly not familiar with any military service or spy tactics, but she’d been under the impression that such things involved a level of control and discretion. Frowning, she pursed her lips and turned back to Aegir, careful that her voicedidn’t carry.
“Should he be out here at all? In the Empire, I mean.”
Aegir winced and blew out a string of bubbles. “Honestly? Probably not. When I go home next, I think I’ll have to tell Hanne I tried, but that she needs to find another post for him. Not every plan requires explosives and that’s the only sure-fire way I have found of containing him.”
“I just don’t understand… from what you’ve told me of Sanctuary… it seems like such a peaceful place.”
“It is, which is perhaps part of the problem. The man’s got a lot of anger, and cooped up in Sanctuary, he didn’t have a lot of places to channel it. We thought, my commander, Hanne, and I, that perhaps doing something more active to fight the Empire might help. Maybe it does, when it’s in the ways he likes, but in others, I think it just makes it worse.”
“What happened? You mentioned thinking it might have to do with Seelie.”
“I think so. It’s one of those things where our age differences get in the way. I remember how he was as a little kid. A little excitable, perhaps, a little impulsive, so I can understand the munitions fascination. But the anger,thatwasn’t there before. I’ve spent the better part of the last ten years on the water, so there’s a lot that goes on at home that I don’tknow about.”
He shrugged, as if it didn’t matter, but it felt like when he was putting on an act.
“The point is, today, he’s doing just what he wants to do. Maximum damage, hitting the Empire where it hurts most, and as a bonus, something for his sister. He’s as happy as a clam today. He’ll stick to the plan.”
It eased some of Elspeth’s worries, but Jokith going rogue was really the least of them.
After several minutes of swimming, the flotilla came into view, and drops of rain fell on the surface of the water. It appeared there were around fifteen boats in the formation. As they'd planned, Elspeth and Jokith broke off to the side. Aegir blew her a cheeky kiss and headed off to start his own disruptions.
As she closed in on the nearest hull, Elspeth gripped the pedals of the borer, if a bit firmer than it required. This was it, her chance to rescue her brother, and she couldn't let him down. Her hands shook as she pressed the device up against the hull, at the spot Aegir and Jokith had said would lead into the cargo hold.
Backing it off, she started the spin, bringing it up to speed before gently touching it to the side of the hull. She had to do this twelve more times, so there was no need to go overboard and tire herself out. Her arms ached from the day before but it was a good sort of pain; thekind that reminded her that she was an active participant in her brother's rescue, rather than a bystander.
She spun the pedals, turning and cranking with a sustained speed until she pitched forward, the machine breaking through the thick wood. Pulling herself back, she stood to the side as Jokith swam forward, shifting briefly to his human form to set the explosives. He held his breath, and seemed relieved when he was done and could resume his great white shark form.
It was so strange to her that he could not simply shift to have gills, or increase his lung capacity like Aegir. Perhaps it was harder than Aegir let on, and she simply hadn't realized.
They continued that way, boring and setting the charges until when they neared the end of the group, hearing splashes and shouts above the water. Near the center, Aegir swam in his full orca form, bumping against the hull of another large boat.
He darted around, faster than any normal whale, taunting the sailors above. He zipped away from their harpoons, drawing their fire and forcing them to burn through their ammunition in advance of the true attack. The boat he’d targeted rocked back and forth wildly so that the crew held onto the railings with whiteknuckles.
Elspeth turned to Jokith and gave him the signal. He held the detonator in his mouth, rigged to be triggered by a bite instead of by hand. With what could only be described as a smile, he waited for Elspeth to shelter under the main boat and chomped down. Shock waves from all sides inundated her, making Elspeth feel dizzy. When she opened her eyes and shook her head, it was pandemonium. All around them, boats were on fire, with sailors plunging into the ocean to escape.
For the last time, Elspeth approached the boat Aegir had targeted, anticipation humming through her. She struggled with the borer, keeping it against the side of the boat was a trial, but eventually she was through, giving Aegir an opening.
Once she was through, he approached at speed from behind her and rammed his head against the hole, making it larger until he could rip chunks away with his teeth. When the hole was large enough, he shifted and he and Elspeth slipped inside. Water poured into the cargo hold where they’d entered and the boat continued to rock from Aegir’s previous attack. The shock waves from the explosions only amplified it, and above, Elspeth could hear screams of terror.
"Shark!" Someone called above. Jokith had revealed himself and had likely begun chumming the water with elves.
"That's our cue!" Aegir grabbed her hand and tugged her toward the door to the rest of the ship. Before they opened it, Elspeth slipped off her pelt, freeing her legs and secreting the pelt safely within her pack. She grabbed a simple shift and threw it on. Who cared what she looked like during a rescue? Plus, perhaps the disorientation would work to her favor. Aegir donned his own clothing, a Pathian uniform, and melted his vibrant orca covering to a plain, elven one. Once they were both dressed, he opened the door and they climbed the stairs out of the hold.
As they'd hoped, most of the crew was above deck, dealing with the freak shark attack. The hallway where they emerged was dark, but Elspeth could already smell the faint scent of her brother's pelt. It was a scent she knew as well as her own. It was a smell she'd grown up with, it smelled like home.
Her nose led her immediately to one of the rooms they'd not marked off as an option, their blueprints had marked it as a closet. When she twisted the knob, the door was locked, but her brother’s pelt was undoubtedly inside.
“Feann’s pelt is in there,” shewhispered.
Aegir nodded, reached around her, and pulled the door clean off its hinges. She raised her eyebrows at him and he winked.