Chapter 93: Far From Anywhere
Simon spent his first few minutes on the new level just trying to figure out what in the hell was going on, and answers were not forthcoming. Up the stairs, he found a sparsely crewed top deck, and though a few sailors glanced at him disinterestedly, no one asked anything of him, which was good because he had no idea what it was he would tell them.
He learned little as he wandered around the deck beside the fact that he was on a large sailing ship somewhere at sea in the middle of the night. At least, not until he found a lively dice game going near the prow of the ship. It was there he found people who were willing to talk if he was willing to lose a few silvers, and he always was. This time, it was a little easier because he had no idea how to play this game.
He’d played Crown and Anchor, Liars Dice, Seventh Son, Fortune’s Fool, and any number of other games that were basically the same with a few minor variations over the years, but he’d never played Plunder before, and Simon was forced to endure a little mockery and a high-handed explanation before he was able to find out anything that was actually useful.
“You see, it’s not just a matter of what you roll,” the gap-toothed sailor explained, “It’s where the die lands. If it’s inside the circle here, then—”
“What kind of gambling man on a ship ain't never heard of Plunder before, that’s what I want to know,” a younger man interrupted, looking at Simon suspiciously.
“Oh, leave off!” the first sailor said, beating his junior back. It was obvious that he had eyes only for Simon’s coins. The hungry-eyed sailor would have overlooked a pair of devil’s horns if the man attached to them had a nice full coin pouch.
Simon did his best to let them empty the small pouch that was the remains of a turnip sack before the end of the watch. He didn’t want anyone to think he might have something worth stealing when he finally went to bed. He could produce more coins from his boots if he needed to later in this voyage.
It was a successful strategy, and he learned a lot. He was on a three-masted Carrack named the Sea Seraph, and she was bound for Ionar to resupply freshwater and then from there, they’d continue another week east to Abrese before they circled back and started west again.
“Sailing back and forth through the straits of Ennorah ain’t as exciting as some of the other routes I’ve been on,” an old salt said, holding up his right hand to show the three missing fingers he claimed to have lost to a cutlass, “But it pays the bills and the women by the quay is prettier than most. What more can you ask for?”