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battleship!" he said and the boat bobbed as the Hertug hurtled after him.
"The Hertug always leads!" he shouted, and almost beheaded one of the oarsmen
with his wildly waving sword.
"That's all right by me," said Jason, "but just watch where you are putting
that sword, and keep your head down when the shooting starts."
When Jason reached the bridge of the "Dreadnaught" he saw that the
clumsy-looking Trozelligoj side-wheeler had thrashed through the sea gate and
was heading directly towards them. Jason had heard blood chilling descriptions
of this powerful weapon of destruction, and he was pleased to see that it was
just a ramshackle and unarmored vessel, as he had expected. "Full speed
ahead," he bellowed into the speaking tube, and took the wheel himself.
The ships, head-on to each other, closed rapidly, and spears from the jetiloj,
the oversize crossbows, rattled off the "Dreadnaught's" armor plate and
splashed into the water. They did no harm and the two vessels still rushed
towards each other on a collision course. The sight of the low, beetle-like
and smoke-belching form of the "Dreadnaught" must have shaken the enemy
captain, and he must have realized that collision at this speed could not do
his ship much good, for he suddenly turned the ship away. Jason spun the wheel
to follow the other, and kept his bow aimed at the ship's flank.
"Brace yourselves-we're going to hit!" he shouted as the high dragon prow of
the other ship flashed past, frightened faces at the rail. Then the metal ram
of the "Dreadnaught's" bow hit squarely in the middle of the dripping boards
of the port paddle wheel and crashed on deep into the ship's hull. The
shuddering impact hurled them from their feet as the "Dreadnaught"
slammed to a stop.
"Reverse engines so we can pull free!" Jason ordered, and spun the wheel hard
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over.
A soldier who had jumped or been knocked from the other ship fell to the
armored deck of the "Dreadnaught." Howling battle cries, the Hertug climbed
out of the bridge window and attacked the dazed man, slashing him across the
neck and then kicking his body into the water. Screams, thuds, and the shrill
hiss of leaking steam came from the sidewheeler. The Hertug dived back to the
safety of the bridge just as the first crossbow bolts slammed down from above.
The propeller whirled, full speed astern, but the "Dreadnaught" only vibrated,
and did not move. Jason muttered, and threw the steering wheel hard in the
opposite direction. The ship rocked and levered free, then began to move
smoothly astern. Water gurgled and rushed into the holed side-wheeler, which
began immediately to list and settle.
"Did you see the way I vanquished the knave who dared attack us?" the
Hertug asked with immense satisfaction.
"You still swing a wicked sword," Jason told him. "Did you see the way I
knocked a hole into that barge? Ahh! There goes the boiler," he added as a
tremendous jarring thud came from the stricken enemy, followed by a cloud of
steam and smoke as she broke in two and swiftly sank.
By the time Jason had swung the battleship back towards their position, the
side-wheeler was gone and the sea gates closed again. "Run the survivors
down," the Hertug ordered, but Jason ignored him.
"There is water below," a man said, poking his head up through a hatch.
"It is sloshing over our feet."
"Some of the seams opened after the crash," Jason told him. "What did you
expect? This is why I installed the pumps, and we have ten extra slaves
aboard. Put them to work."
"It is a day of victory," the Hertug said, looking happily at the blood on his
sword. "How the swine must regret their attack on our keep!"
"They'll regret it even more before the day is over," Jason said. "We're
moving into the last phase now. Are you sure that your men know what to do?"
"I have told them myself many times, and have given them the printed sheets of
orders that you prepared. All is ready for the signal. When shall I
give it?"
"Very soon. You stay here on the bridge, with your hand on the whistle, while
I have a few more shots."
Jason transferred to the barge and planted some of the fire-bomb specials on [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
