Watho: A Novel of Gal ... by Bob Nelson - Episode 20

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I was examining a pipe-organ carriage that had taken a glancing cat ball hit, to see if it could be repaired, when I heard Captain Crain's soft voice, "First?"

It took me a moment to realize he was speaking to me. Lieutenant Kolenter wasn't dead, but he had taken a bolt in the thigh that had nicked the femoral. The Healer had stopped the bleeding, but the Lieutenant had lost a great deal of blood. There was no reason to fear for his life, but he would sleep a great deal for the next few weeks... Shoinin was in Hoget'cht as prize captain... so... I was acting First Lieutenant of the finest warship in the world. Me. Garid Fochen.

"Sir?" I turned to him.

"Leave that to the Bosun, Lieutenant," he said in his usual quiet voice. I wondered if I had really heard this little man bellowing orders in the midst of battle, when Lieutenant Kolenter went down. "Your priority is reorganizing the ship. With our two senior lieutenants lost to us for some time, and Midshipman Parenter out of action for a while, you must re-establish Hawk's watch rotation."

My face probably showed signs of disintegration, because he had mercy on me. With a small smile, he added, "You might want to think about creating a Midshipman or two." I glanced away at something, and he vanished. I would have to pay more attention to his movements. It was getting spooky.

Midshipman Ach'Ahim was at the center hold hatch, observing something happening below. Briefly, I hoped that it was not a problem with "Fochen's Team's" horses, but I hadn't the time to waste... "Master Ach'Ahim!" I cried, "You have the deck. I'll be in my cabin."

He gave me a vague hand signal, half salute and half "hello!"... but I was pretty sure he had understood.

In my cabin, I took my time setting out paper and pen and ink... I didn't even know how to begin this job. I listed the remaining officers, who would all have to be officers of the deck:

(Crain)

Fochen             First Lieutenant

Wainterin         First Ensign

Chanchargin    Second Ensign

Kort                   Third Ensign

Gods!

Captain Crain and his painfully inexperienced First Lieutenant had to be sure of the competence of each of their available officers, so I would create four Watches rather than the usual three, giving a Watch to each of the ensigns. I knew Wainterin a bit, and he seemed solid enough. I didn't know Chanchargin at all. And Kort! Kort had been my second since leaving Chendan... he had made no mistakes; he had always called me up on deck in timely manner whenever a decision had to be made. Now he would have to make those decisions himself...

And who would be the second officers for these very junior officers of the deck? I listed the them:

Lieutenant Fochen                    with ?

First Ensign Wainterin              with Fourth Midshipman Dulass

Second Ensign Chanchargin    with Third Midshipman Pasharin

Third Ensign Kort                       with First Midshipman Ach'Ahim

I stared at the paper in horror. My little Middies, Pasharin and Dulass – whose voices cracked every other time they shouted an order to the weapons-crews – would be second officers of the deck on the finest warship in the world. That was almost as mad as having a boy who graduated from O.C.S. only six months earlier as First Lieutenant...

I took a few deep breaths. There was nothing to be done, other than to do what had to be done...

I rose to go find Navigator Willder, and then remembered that I was now First. I opened the door of my cabin and told one of the guards at the Captain's door to go find the Navigator.

"Aye, Sir!"

A few minutes later, the Navigator knocked.

"Sit, Master Willder," I said, gesturing to my bunk. I was still in my Third Lieutenant's cabin, with just a small table and only one chair, which I occupied.

He sat.

"We've run out of officers, Master Navigator. I need to find two candidates for midshipman."

He blew out his cheeks. "No, Sir!" he said with some force. "There's one boy you can have, but not two. Timat Alinin is a good lad, serious about his studies and constant at his assignments... though he's only now turned thirteen years old. That's very young for the responsibilities you want to give him, but if you are careful with him, I believe you can bring him along. The others are still too young."

"We need at least two Midshipmen, Master Willder," I repeated, almost pleading. "We need one, just to complete the watch roster – to be my own second. And also, we need a spare. We cannot have all the officers in this ship already tied down!"

"No, Sir!" exclaimed the Navigator. He was a young man – in his thirties – in a post that was most often held by retired merchant captains. A Navigator had to know coastlines and winds and tides. In addition to overseeing the ship's sailing – both the set of her rigging and the course she followed – he was in charge of instructing the ship's boys and midshipmen, in everything from ABCs to spherical geometry.

Rinn Willder had risen quickly in a merchant ship, to First Lieutenant... and then drama had struck. A storm, a lee shore, and many sailors dead. He himself was not at fault: he had warned his captain about the looming danger, but had not been heeded. The captain had been washed overboard, and it had been Rinn Willder who had hopelessly tried to save the already-doomed ship as all those men died. He loved the sea and ships and sailors, so he had found a niche where he could be very useful, but would never, ever again command.

"I'm very sorry, Lieutenant..." he went on, solicitously. "And I do understand your problem... But the boys are... still boys! Even Timat is still a child, though a remarkably serious and industrious one..."

The Navigator sighed. "With the best of conscience, Sir... I cannot allow you to take any of the others. It would be to great a risk, both for them and for the ship."

I sighed in turn. This was the first task the Captain had assigned me as First Lieutenant, and I was going to fail.

"Have you asked the Bosun?" asked Master Willder as he rose to leave. "Sometimes a Bosun's Mate goes aft," he added, referring to the bunk-space of the sailors and ratings, forward, and of the officers, aft.

It seemed like a long shot, but in my mind's eye I could see a few fairly young Bosun's Mates. It was worth a try. So I nodded to the Navigator, and he said he would send the Bosun to me.

In his own way, Brinn Perinalitilis, the Bosun, was as much master of Hawk as was the Captain. He and his Mates managed all the daily maintenance of the ship, from sails and rigging to catapults and pipe-organs. He managed discipline in the foredeck, where all the crew except the officers bunked. He decided what would be reported to an officer and what would remain among the ratings.

The sailors were his affair, of course, but also the ratings – Carpenter, Healer, Cook... and even Purser, Navigator and Quartermaster – had more daily relations with the Bosun and his Mates than with the officers. Bosun Perinalitilis knew Hawk from keel to crow's nest, every rod of her. Every nook and cranny. He knew all the tasks her sailors had to do, from jib to rudder.

Importantly, Master Perinalitilis was serene in his place as senior rating, knowing the difference between his role and that of the officers. That difference was not letters (which he did not have), nor navigation, nor polished language. The difference was in the nature of the decisions that officers had to make. Brinn Perinalitilis could sympathize with the Navigator. Neither wanted to make life-and-death decisions for three hundred souls.

The First Lieutenant (that was me) did not offer a seat to the Bosun. The rules of etiquette between the Bosun and his Mates, and the ship's officers, dictated very strict non-fraternization.

He listened to my problem, and thought a moment. "Could be, Sir," he said after a moment. "You know Jeris Ross? Dark fellow, black hair and eyes? Slim build, but solid... stronger than he looks?"

I nodded. I had made it my business to meet and memorize all the Bosun's Mates, knowing that they could make or break any officer... including me.

" 'E's young, maybe turned nineteen, prob'ly not. Been in the navy for five years, about. Came to us from Flyer 'couple years ago when she paid off, already Able Seaman and qualified top-man. 'E's got 'is letters, 'n can do sums, though I don't know how high..."

"Ambitious?" I asked.

The Bosun gave me a look. " 'E's a Mate at eighteen..."

I nodded acknowledgment. "Let me put that differently. Would he want to come aft? It's a different world, and some don't want any part of it. He might prefer to go for Purser or... Bosun..." I shrugged heavily.

He nodded in turn. " 'At's true enough..." He thought again, for a moment. " 'E ain't a talker, Sir. I don't know as we ever talked about goin' aft." It was his turn to shrug. " 'At don't happen very often, so it ain't much of a topic for us as is for'ard."

"Would you prefer to talk to him, or to send him to me directly?" I asked.

Again, the Bosun considered before answering. I would not have imagined that the Bosun, with all his bluster, was a thoughtful man, but I would have been wrong.

"I'd better talk to 'im first, Sir. Don' want my people thinkin' the new First 'd go 'round me. I won't make any offer... just tell 'im you're talkin' to people, and ask 'im if 'e'd like to be one of the people you talk to."

When the Bosun left, I discovered that Master Willder had sent Timat Alinin to me. One of the guards on the Captain's door had told the boy to wait.

The boy was nervous, but not petrified. That was good. He entered and stood easy before my little table. He was slim, having lost all childhood chubbiness, but without yet acquiring any adolescent sinew. Sandy hair and pale blue eyes. Wide mouth, drawn into a tight line at the moment. His height seemed about right for his age, but that probably said more about my miserable powers of observation than about Timat Alinin.

"How did you come to be in the Navy, Timat?" I asked.

"Me Da... My Father... put me in... ... Sir," he answered.

"What were the circumstances, Timat? My parents put me in the Navy, too. Most officers started that way, and a lot of common sailors, too. But there are a thousand different ways for that to happen..."

His lips compressed even tighter. He understood that I was not satisfied with his answer, and the idea that a lordly Lieutenant might be annoyed with him was... frightening.

I tried to smile a friendly smile. It probably was a rictus. "Just describe who your Father was, and how he came to make you a ship's-boy," I said as gently as I could.

The boy nodded crisply, acknowledging that he understood the question, now. "He is a cooper, Sir," he began, obviously taking great care to speak properly. "His shop is in Dukesport, near the quays. I liked to watch the ships. When my Mother died, he was very upset. He didn't know what to do about... well... everything. He was very upset, Sir!" Timat's eyes pleaded for understanding.

"Losing close family is terribly hard, Timat... I know, because my whole family died a few years ago. ... Go on, please."

"He didn't take very good care of the shop, or of me, because he couldn't think straight."

"Do you have any brothers or sisters, Timat?"

"No, Sir... just me..."

"Alright, then. Continue, please."

"Me... my uncle could see to the shop, but he ain't got... don't have... a wife, neither. Never had. So he di'n't know what to do with me, no more 'n my Father." The boy was struggling.

"Take a few breaths, Timat," I said. "You are doing fine. There's no hurry. Just tell your story as it comes to you."

"Aye, Sir. Thank you, Sir... ... Well, Somebody remembered that I liked to spend time down on the quay, watching the ships, so my uncle asked me if I would like to go to the sea! O' course I did!" Timat's eyes lit up with remembered joy. "I been with Hawk for near on four years already!" he added with pride.

"Master Willder says you are diligent with your lessons. Do you like mathematics?" I asked.

He grimaced. "Not exactly, Sir... I wouldn't do math for fun, like Jann does..." His eyes went wide, at having revealed such familiarity with an almost-officer. "I mean, Midshipman Pasharin, Sir."

"Are you and Jann Pasharin friends, then, Timat? I was friends with both ship's-boys and with ensigns, when I was a midshipman. ... If you don't enjoy math, then why do you apply yourself?"

He looked confused. "Master Willder says we'll need our numbers to navigate. And he has to know 'cause he's the Navigator."

"Do you want to be a Navigator, then, Timat?"

Again, the boy looked confused for an instant, as though the idea of following Master Willder had never occurred to him. The his eyes cleared, and he grinned, "Oh, no, Sir! I want to be an Officer! Like you, Sir!" He grimaced bashfully, but carried on, "Jann told me that you..." His eyes went wide and he swallowed hard as he realized the enormity of his audacity... revealing that the boys and middies gossiped about the Officers.

I laughed lightly. "Remember, young Timat... I was once a midshipman... and even a ship's boy..."

"You, Sir?" he reacted in innocent astonishment. "You were a ship's boy?"

"Indeed. And I remember chattering with my mates about those godlike 'Officers'..."

"Oh..." He was stunned, trying to make sense of this astonishing news.

I let him stand there a moment... quite a long moment... collecting his thoughts. Then he surprised me.

"Yes, Sir," he said, nodding vigorously. "Thank you, Sir!"

What in the world had the boy understood?

I took a deep breath, and let a long moment pass. "Timat... Hawk has a serious problem. We have run out of officers! If we were near Bandar, we would put in and call for reinforcement... but we are a long way away, and headed in the other direction.

"But we are Hawk, young Master Alinin! We are the finest ship in the world, and we will find whatever solution we must. If we must create officers, Master Alinin, then we shall!"

He stood there, waiting for me to continue... then looked confused once again... then thought back over my words... ... and then took on a look of utter terror!

"Euh..." he gasped...

"Snap to, Master Alinin!" I made my voice sharp and hard, and the boy came automatically to attention.

"What has Midshipman Pasharin told you about being a pipe-organ section leader, Master Alarin? Did he know that job when he began? Did he, Master Alarin? Did he?" I barked.

"No sir!" the boy almost shouted in response, his eyes filling with tears.

"Does he know that job now, Master Alarin? I remind you that he has just this day led his crews through a successful battle, Master Alarin! Does Midshipman Pasharin know his duties as assistant battery commander? Does your friend know his duty, Master Alarin?

Of course the boy rose to the defense of his friend, "Yes, Sir! Everyone said that him and Orin – Master Dulass, I mean... Midshipman Dulass – done real good!"

I leaned forward, injecting a bit of totally false annoyance into my voice. "Let me tell you, Master Alinin, that your friends – I perceive that you call Midshipman Dulass by his first name, too – did not know their duties when we left Chendan! They worked very hard during all those exercises every day since leaving Chendan, to learn their duties!

"Do you imagine that Captain Crain was born knowing how to defeat a powerful enemy and set two others to rout, Master Alinin? No! Of course not! Captain Crain has been learning to be the worthy Captain of the best warship in the world... ever since he, too, was a Midshipman!

"All officers... Master Alinin... all officers must learn their duties!

"And now... young Timat... ship's boy who holds the respect of Navigator Willder... Hawk needs you to do the same as your friends... to learn to be an officer!" After a moment, I went on gently, "No one expects you to be a competent officer on your first day, Timat. You must do as you did with Master Willder: apply yourself. No one will ask for more than that..."

I leaned back, and let the ensuing silence lengthen... painfully...

"Master Alinin," I asked quietly.

"Sir?" he whispered.

"Will you try?"

He was terrified. Eyes wide and full of tears that did not fall.

"Aye, Sir," he whispered so quietly that I did not really hear him.

I let another moment of silence pass.

"Thank you, Master Midshipman Alinin. That was a difficult decision for you... and I promise you many more!"

He smiled thinly.

"Now..." I said in my best "officious" voice, "You must move your gear to the young gentlemen's wardroom. I am in the process of preparing the new duty roster. It will be discussed at dinner. All officers will be present, including Midshipmen." Whenever dinner might be, I thought...

He stood there, paralyzed.

"You are dismissed, Midshipman." I said.

"Aye, Sir," he said, and vanished.

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