A Public Humiliation

They sat in relative silence for a while, the healer of thieves and the deadrouser captain. The sugary cubes made their fingers sticky, and every now and then they cleaned their hands. Serenica didn't know why, but it felt important and relevant to her profession somehow to keep her fingers clean.

"It's nearly sunset," Spade finally said. "I miss my wife. Will you fetch her for me?"

"Of course," Serenica said. "Who am I to deny you her loving company?"

She did as he asked, finding Myorka in her workspace. It appeared like the bookkeeper had been crying, but when spoken to, her voice was stable and soft.

"You are getting along with him," Myorka said. "That is good."

"I'm still afraid of him," Serenica confessed.

"That's very rational of you."

"How are you?" the healer asked.

"Afraid of the future," the bookkeeper replied. "But that, too, is rational, isn't it?"

Serenica had to agree.

She went to clear her thoughts with a portion of premium quality pipe tobacco, on the deck. Even though the element of the world of the dead was more visible there, there was something about being able to see the sky that calmed her.

The calm didn't last long. Seppei was having a quarrel with the man who had eyed Myorka in a lewd way.

Serenica tried not to listen, but once her name was mentioned, she felt too involved to back away completely.

"She is nothing but bad luck! Bad, evil omens have appeared while Serenica has been aboard!" Seppei insisted.

The man with no manners cleared his throat. Surprisingly, he was defending Serenica. Perhaps he did have a semblance of decency. "And how can you be sure it is about her? I don't want to step on your toes or anything, but it seems clear to me she's worth her weight in gold. All good healers are."

"Yet the songbird died on her arms," Seppei quipped.

The idea of John's death being her fault stung too much to ignore such a blatantly insulting suggestion. Serenica stepped into the invisible ring that was drawn by the footsteps of the belligerents.

Seppei glared at her. "Spyin' on me?"

"It's pretty damn hard not hearing you screaming your fat mouth off on the deck, of all places," Serenica said. Incredibly enough, the encounter with a decomposed body had poured new courage into her. She had never been afraid to hold her ground, but the pirates were different. In a potentially mutinous conversation like this, it took every bit of the wiser woman inside her to look Seppei in his eyes and stay still.

"You threatening me?" the young man snarled.

"Depends on how bad you want to slander me," she said, crossing her arms across her chest to appear bigger and sturdier.

"Slander? It's the bloody blazin' truth!"

"What is happening here?" one of the living Johns asked and walked towards Seppei.

It seemed like the scurvy-ridden scoundrel of a man was taking the side of the young fellow.

"Seppei is blaming me for all the problems in the world and maybe all problems outside of it as well," Serenica replied, hastily, as her blood began to boil.

"Has the witch considered Seppei may be right?" John asked.

"Fine, then," Serenica snapped. "Die from scurvy, I don't care. These baseless accusations are testing my patience. Mother of worms! The punishment I get from trying to help you damn fools..."

"Did you just tell him to die? Did you just curse him?" Seppei asked with astonisment and horror on his face.

"We better do something before she does it to everyone," John said and raised his right hand, but he couldn't even get it across the space between himself and Serenica before another hand with slender fingers grabbed him and violently yanked him away from the healer.

The Admiral stood there with a storm brewing on his noble temples. As he was much taller than John, he could easily intimidate both the scurvy wretch and Seppei just by keeping his posture straight.

"You want to hit women on my ship?"

John did not try to get away from the first mate. He seemed to know he couldn't.

"You want to get in the business of hitting weaker people? I'll give you a taste of that."

Serenica wasn't the one in danger, but she still held her breath. The tension in the air could have been cut into neat little cubes and sold as an exotic delicacy.

The captain had made his way on the deck as well. He wasn't about to intervene, that much was clear. He watched. He caressed his hair and watched the warlike scene play out as if admiring a work of art.

The Admiral slapped John on the left cheek so hard that the pirate staggered and could hardly stay on his own two legs.

Serenica had to hide a smile.

Seppei looked downright demotivated after this public humiliation. The first mate had made it very clear with the slap that he would not tolerate violence against Serenica on the Princess. Spade, in turn, had accepted this act with his silent presence. Of course John could have been merely bluffing, but given the insanity that had taken over the entire ship it was doubtful. Serenica had no delusions about Seppei and this particular John accepting her.

"Thank you, Mister Admiral," she said and nodded towards her friend.

"The least I can do on this wretched boat. Call me William."

Serenica felt her heart swell from the display of trust.

"And thanks are also in order to you," she said to the formerly lewd man. "I barely even remember your name, yet you defended me. You are on my good list for now."

"Just speaking my mind," the man said, scratching his impressive beard. "Don't get too excited. Every man with any reason knows healers can make it or break it. The name's Blaik."

"I like your way of thinking, Blaik," Serenica said, bowing a little. She knew it was no small feat for a newcomer to resist someone with more status.

It would not take many more offenses for John the Scurvy Dog and Seppei the Mutinous to lose what status they had left on the Princess.