“I am no servant of Manwë, but should the winds be unfavorable, I can provide a draft of heat if necessary… I do not believe there is enough of my, ah, element, aboard for me to move the craft by will alone, but I could attempt it in a crisis.”
Sauron paced around deck, muttering such considerations to himself while inspecting whatever knot or pulley came under his hands. The crew made their exit with many a curious glance backwards, but there was little fuss.
His wayward pirate thrall he noted was churning with questions– though not the intended recipient of his ring, Ji’s mind was still an open book via the bond with its master.
“You are wondering why this is novel to me– this ship, this voyage, the sea. You presume that I was at leisure during my passage to Numenor to take in the sights, and not bound in iron and mithril deep within the hold.” He mentioned coldly while the wraith was in hearing. “It is not your place to ask, but I will tell you anyway: I recall nothing but that it was dark, and cold, and damp, and that I was groundless; without bearing or sense of where I was going, and all around I felt the hostile power of the sea growing dense around me, closing in, wishing to crush and bury me. …It was a tense voyage.” Gold eyes flickered, askance.
“The sea itself does not frighten me. I am duly and appropriately cautious of the powers that govern it, and aware that in its demesne I am at my weakest. I do not relish, Ji, the helplessness that water engenders in me. But today I am determined to overcome these obstacles and attempt something I have never done before. That is why I require help, and this assortment of gear whose usefulness I am not entirely assured of. I do not know yet what I will need, so I shall take every precaution. And I am glad of your help though, in truth, had you chosen to withhold it, I would have commandeered your ship myself.”
He cocked his head, gold ornaments chiming. “…Not as a personal slight, you understand. I am merely determined to see out this little experiment, and your vessel, with its particular enchantment, is the only one that will do.”
As they cast out to sea, the dark lord drew a deep breath and steadied himself, watching the horizon. It was a peculiar sensation to feel so vulnerable, as if he were another mortal with only his wits and tools to keep him afloat. But the wits and tools of men had been enough for them to travel the world over, and his own, he considered, were a formidable force in themselves. He kept his senses tuned to his Cousin’s presence, reassuring himself that for the time being, he remained far afield… That suited his purposes for the moment.
The moment the last corsair stepped off the ship, the many rowboats slowly moving away, closer to the shore but never landing, just slowly rocking nearby the cliffs in the gentle waves, Ji Indur felt two things- a sense of loneliness to have his ship so empty and abandoned and the sensation of a cornered animal as he himself could not go anywhere now unless he’d decide to jump into the water. But nay, that would be foolish and look just ridiculous. T’was not that he was /afraid/ of his master. Not at all. At least he kept telling himself that, and right now it seemed there was little for him to worry about besides moving the ship which already had started to jerk forward as the sails had been set, catching the gentle breeze.
But before he could step to the helm he was addressed by the Maia and once again harshly reminded that even not speaking his mind would not save him from trouble as the ring gave his master ample possibilities to peer directly into his servant’s mind, even without Ji Indur’s permission. How he loathed this connection as it left him without any defenses but he forced himself to remain calm, bowing his head lightly as if to apologize for his curious thoughts.
While he felt compelled to ask more, curious questions about his master’s time in Númenor, the corsair felt it would not be wise to remind Him of the period in His existence where He had been a prisoner and treated with little respect. So no, no word and no thought would be there willing to ask for more, instead Ji Indur focused on the tasks at hand and the question as to what Sauron had planned and was seeking to accomplish on this element that was under the command of Osse. To think that the Dark Lord felt /weak/ here would not change anything about how easily He could dispose of an unruly wraith would Ji Indur seek to cause trouble or disrupt His scheming.
And being told that Sauron had considered taking the ship against the wraith’s wishes did do little to soothe the worries and the tension that was still taking hold of his mind and body. Ah yes… That…particular enchantment. For now it would not cause him any harm he hoped so maybe the Maia even found it amusing that one of the Nine had been blessed by the Master Of the Seas. Taking a deep, albeit unneeded breath, the wraith then walked up to the wheel to take control and guide the Kraken out into the open sea. Of course he too wanted to know now what Sauron had planned but all he could still think of was that He’d try to bait Osse somehow and capture him like a fish and if only for a moment. In a fight Maia against Maia with their elements not there to help them…who would win?
The ship’s prow pushed through emerald blue waters at a brisk pace, the winds behind them accommodating the strange two-man journey with neither wrath nor mischief. The sun held steady in a cloudless sky, and the Kraken cut a white-lipped ripple through the untroubled sea.
Sauron, having acclimatized somewhat to the roll of the deck, stood at the stern’s rail and observed the foam-flecked trail fanning out behind them. His helmsman had grown quiet during the journey, both in voice and thought. He’d erred in reminding the pirate how much of his mind was open to him… it was often best to let Men retain the illusion of privacy, to preserve goodwill.
But his attention was not on Ji, but the waves, and the sleek creatures that dove and dogged their wake– like wolves, but in play, rather than hunt. They were nearing the depths he desired, and his heart thundered.
“Here. Steady her here.”
Master if you are listening, bend your thoughts on me and shroud me from Uluboz this day… The maia rubbed his palms together, centering his will.
There was work to be done; and despite the dangers, the surge of excitement made him giddy.
First the rope. It was as long and sturdy as he could have hoped for– what it had previously been designed for he did not know. Perhaps a ship’s anchor, which would be appropriate. To its end he affixed a heavy iron cast hook, used for lifting cargo. When that was to his liking, he moved up the rope and tied the green glass buoys at intervals along its length. Five seemed sufficient. Then the rope he looped and slipped about the main mast, and tied it with a firm and clever knot.
The entire span of rope weighed as much as a deep chest of coins, but to the lord of anvil and iron it was no difficulty to shoulder its coils and heave it over the side. The length from the mast ran taut as the bulk of it sank, reaching a strange equilibrium between the iron hook and the air-filled baubles. There– he tugged his beard, pleased.
Next, the net. It was a finely crafted work indeed; he could smell Teler hands and Teler silks in its lightweight weave. He wondered briefly where Ji might have acquired such a thing– but a pirate has his ways.
There was no elaborate preparation needed here. He folded the net carefully and set it to one side. It, like many of the items, was not essential in itself, but rather a precaution. Or at least, he mused, a interesting diversion. Time would tell.
Finally, it was his turn to prepare.
Large hands nimbly removed the gold bands from his ears and wrists and fingers– all save one. Then the cover from his head, the coat from his broad shoulders, and the shirt beneath, were laid all aside; waves of slate-colored hair fell over his bare back, unrestrained. He stripped down to nothing save an undercloth and a sash, into which he tucked two daggers– curved and wicked as fangs– and the folded net.
Then he turned to his helmsman. “If anything goes wrong, know that this line here is my way back to safety. If I am unable to return to the surface on my own power, I will send a vibration up this rope, and you, Ji, will need to pull me aboard. Do not hesitate to use the power of Failaya, understand?”
The dark lord grinned, sharp and white. “Wish me luck.”
With that he balanced himself catlike on the ship’s rail, and dove overboard.
MisbehavingMaiar: Tumblr Archive 