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Augustin snapped out of his unpleasant reverie, stormed up to the boats, withdrew a spyglass and studied the warship with his one good eye, though as he confessed to Olympia, the goo eye was in fact quite bad now. And as he looked, the crew on two boats exchanged fearful mutters. Olympia spared a glance at them and was trying to find a way to speak with her companion in private, while keeping an eye on the sailors as well. But while she wrestled with dilemma, Augustin spoke loud and clear in his now almost good Genoese:

"Dutchman. A three-masted war-sloop, though there is trouble with her mizzen it seems, so she runs on just two and she runs quite bad. There is something wrong with her, my braves. Come, spy a look."

Augustin passed the spyglass to One Eyed Battista, as the senior most man among them (by stature and respect, not rank, for the Scotch navigator of the "Fortune" was among the men on shore).

Battista studied the warship intently and then nodded:

"She sails wrong. And she looks battered. It is not just the mizzen. The mainsail's torn and dirty as well. And the two aft-most gun ports on her starboard side are... stove in and she lacks figurehead."

"Ah, I did not see that, then again your eye is better than mine, brave Battista. Let us return our ships and go and help our stricken Brothers in Christ upon waters."

And thus the terrified men on the shore became brave heroes off to rescue their fellow Christians, and Olympia could naught but blink. And as for Augustin he gave her a wink and a flash smile and hopped into the boat with ease of a man without a burden. He found a spot by tiller and fairly sprawled out, while Olympia found a place by his side and boats were oared to their respective ships, and spoke low and in a kind of English few born outside filthy villages of Merseyside could master:

"Are we in danger?"

"We are on the far side of the world and far from home. We are always in danger."

"Ash, please speak true."

"I am, but I shall speak more plain. Forgive me, maiden fair, for sounding as I was at a pulpit. That ship may be a danger to us, yes. But she now seems far less a threat when I laid my eye upon her. When we get close, we may see what are her intentions and capabilities to making those intentions true. For now, enjoy the company of a dashed handsome one eyed fellow with an almost manly beard who has just discovered that which men of sound kidney and big foreheads dubbed a myth. Smile, dearest maiden. There are not many days as such, when you get to stand the whole of the world of men of letters on its head and laugh at them as they fall flat on their face trying to find balance."

All this was said with a smile of the purest joy and Olympia found herself discomforted. She could balm the fears tearing at her companion's soul and reassure that he was as intelligent as any other, but this...? She had not much art in cooling fevered visions of grandeur. Nor did she ever think such art would have to deployed with the man now sitting by her side and whistling - yes, whistling - "Maid of Amsterdam."

As for the whistling tune, it made the Frenchmen and Englishmen at the oars perk up and smile.


And thus, while Captain Kelly and his officers (of which there were three) of the "Female Bastard" were in a state of nerves on the ship, by the time the boat carrying Augustin, Olympia and the other Bastards came abreast, the boatmen were all whistling the tune and exchanged smiles.

"Ahoy there, Cap'n. Permission to come aboard?" asked grinning Augustin.

Captain Kelly blinked and managed a nod. As caught off guard by the airs of Augustin as Olympia. Augustin clambered aboard, saluted and eyed the tops.

"Who's in the crow's nest of the main, Cap'n?"

"Giüsèpp."

"Splendid."

And with that Augustin climbed the rigging like a monkey.

Still confused Captain Kelly turned to Olympia:

"Is the warlock... discontent?"

"Sir Augustin of St. Ives is in good humors, I should say," said Olympia without my feeling. Whatever tattoo her heart beat against her ribs and the trail of sweat snailed down her spine, she would show no fear or hesitation on the part of her companion, much less of herself. She moved off to the side and withdrawing the secondary spyglass of Augustin, studied the warship. She was no sea-wolf, but she knew violence and what she saw spoke of in great volume. It was not just the gun ports that were beaten, the whole side of the ship looked as if was hammered at by angry giants armed with planks. Some of the cannons fixed to side lay on their side. Still others were hanging at an angle in their irons as if broken on a hinge. There was blood upon the, uh, lower sail of the mast in the middle. And there were bodies on the deck. Some moved. Some did not. The "Bastard" ship was in no danger.

Across the decks, tops and amidships, the crews of the two-ship fleet reached much the same decision. And by the time Augustin skylarked down, he was met with smiles.


"Captain, I know not what that ship carries. Let us espy a look? Though we should keep distance, lest the carry ill humors or mayhap a plague."

This brought on a more somber mood.

The signal was passed to the "Fortune" as well, so that the two ships approached the aimless warship from starboard and port side, ready to rake at first sign of trouble. But no trouble was to be had, and only pale faces of men with parched lips peered over the splintered and shattered sides and hoarsed in Dutch and some other tongue for water, food and shelter.

Augustin spoke foreign back to them.

"This is the 'Sea-Rooster.' Dutch East India Company ship. Sailed out of Batavia and made for West, so she could, uh, then go East. Though I may be missing something in translation. Or they could be just addled."

Augustin spoke more foreign.

"They were attacked by savages while mapping new lands. He mentioned New Zeeland. Curious."

Still more foreign then passed.

"No plague, just much blood loss and death. The savages attacked in canoes and fairly overwhelmed them for they got too close to shore. They were out here alone and though they managed to kill all the natives, they lost too much men and suffered too many grievous wounds to be able to effectively sail. Cap'n, please be so good as to lower a boat. We should offer assistance, as well look to their logbook."


The desolation on the deck was heart rending, and even the most warlike among the Bastards and Fortunes could not help but give aid to the dozen survivors. As for Augustin, accompanied as he always was by his copper haired heavily armed shadow, he made an inventory below decks, after he had taken the ship's log and journals from the captain's cabin, with no one to stop him.

He found no cordage, spare spars or much in the way of powder, but was heartened to find a strongbox full of colorful glass beads and good steel knives, along with iron nails.

"Our hosts were quite prepared to barter with natives. Though it appears they met those who preferred war to trade."

"What now?"

"We give aid and comfort, barter and leave them to fate."


And so it would have passed, 'til Augustin read the journals and letters of the 'Sea Rooster.' These he set aside in his cabin and gave sigh. Then rubbed the bridge of his nose and breathed deep. Olympia studied these actions with practiced caution. The last time she saw her companion do this, he ended up putting a blade into a French officer's lung.

"Yes?"

"They were out here to find us."

"Us? Are you sure?"

"Yes. Two ships hurried out by the Dutch East India Company once they were told we were set to sail. Well, not as soon, for they got an order by packet from the offices in Christendom long after we passed the Pillars of Hercules. 'Home Church' was sent off to go West, then to comb the Tranquil Ocean towards the lands thought to be Australia by some, thereby stealing our thunder and, uh, more. While the poor ill lucked 'Sea-Rooster' here was sent eastwards from Batavia and then told to make her way west, to find Australia from a different path and were given sealed orders to sink us should we be found. There were to be no survivors. This ship had sixty men on its rolls, of whom only thirty were sailors. The rest were soldiers."

"They wished for our death."

"Most profoundly. But then stumbled into a war party of savages by sailing too close to shore. The man in charge of the ship, Abel Tasman, could not help himself. He was an explorer. His journals, letters and log book are quite well done. He mapped parts of Australia without knowing what he found. And thanks to him, I know now the dimensions of the great continent better and its northern shore I should think once I study the maps better with a more clear carriage of mind. He hugged the coast fairly snug til he found the sea of reefs and then he struck more westwards and south, the poor man. He..."

"Beloved, what of the other ship? What of this 'Home Church'?"

"Still out there. No tonnage, nor men listed here. It is not out of the realm of reason to think they too have orders to kill us all. Pity. I had wanted to explore Australia better, but now we must fly."

"I was worried you would want to stay here, til you saw all of the wondrous land."

"Olympia, I know you think me a fool who needs watching..."

"I think no such thing. I am..."

"I may be a fool, o maiden fair, but not so much a fool as to come out here and survive all of this, only to be sunk by some Dutchmen and have my glory be stolen. No, no, no. The immortality here does not belong to the first Christian man who sights Australia and maps her, but to the fellow who is then able to return to Christendom and prove his tale. History is a harsh mistress and will not tolerate half-success."

"What shall we do with the Dutch?"

"Must I say it out loud?"

"No, but I just wished to make sure we were of the same mind."

"Aren't we always?"

Olympia did not mention the whistling, nor the grand speeches, and neither did she choose at this time to speak to the strange habit her companion acquired of calling her "maiden." She just smiled and gave nod.

It took less than five minutes for every single surviving Dutchmen to have their heads bashed, throats slit, smothered or strangled. The ship was stripped of all that could be used, then left adrift, but not before Augustin made a copy fair of all logs, journals and letters and then set fire to them in the Rooster's great cabin.


Augustin climbed halfway up to the first cross tree of the main, turned and addressed the sailors.

"They came to kill us. We struck the blow first. It was not very Christian. But neither is them coming to sink us to deny us our glory immortal. Still, there is one more Dutchman out there, prowling the waters, with more metal to throw at us with one side than we can with both sides of both ships put together. We have made good fortune and while we did not get all we could, I say we must not tarry. Let us sail for home, and then I shall form a joint stock company to finance the next voyage, with each man here given free shares, so that all of us on our next journey to these rich lands will not only come here as sailors, but merchants and bankers of our own making. What say thee?"

At this a cheer was given and the two ships tried to sail home, but the wind did not aid.

"South," said Augustin without appearance of forethought. Though in truth he had studied the Rooster's log intently for three days and two nights, along with notes collected by good Abel Tasman, and knew there were winds that blew fairly from West to East south that nearly carried off the Rooster and spared her doom at the Murders' Isles (née New Zeeland). And so South they went. Until they could fly East, and thus they did then fly, rich, content and dreams full of glories. And let us leave here on a happy note, for there were much doom in the previous chapter ending foretelling of warship.