Free Ranger's Apprentice 10: The Emperor of Nihon-Ja by John Flanagan Page B

square-rigged cross-tree was set seven-eighths of the way up the mast, with the big square sail brailed up on it when in port. Wolfwill ’s mast was bare, aside from a complicated arrangement of rigging at the masthead, and what looked to be a pair of carefully rolled sails lying fore and aft on the deck at its base.
    ‘All I know,’ Evanlyn said, ‘is that it’s the fastest ship I’ve ever sailed on. Look, here comes Gundar. You can ask him.’
    She pointed to where a familiar figure, huge as all Skandians were, was rolling in his seaman’s walk along the jetty towards them.
    ‘Will Treaty!’ he bellowed, startling the gulls for a fifty-metre radius into squawking, screeching flight. Will braced himself as the huge figure approached. He knew what was coming but there was little he could do about it.
    Sure enough, Gundar swept him off his feet in a breath-draining bear hug. Will could only grunt a greeting as he felt his ribs on the verge of giving way.
    ‘Gorlog’s beard, boy, but it’s good to see you! I hoped we’d run across each other when Erak assigned us as the duty ship. How have you been? What have you been up to?’
    ‘Le’ go an’ I’ll try…tell you,’ Will managed to grunt breathlessly. Finally, Gundar set him down. Will staggered as Gundar released him, and his friends were a little alarmed at the groaning intake of breath that was Will’s first, reflexive response as his emptied lungs desperately sucked air back in.
    Then, sighting Alyss, the huge seafarer seized her hand in one of his enormous fists and planted a smacking, clumsy kiss on it.
    ‘Lady Alyss!’ he boomed. ‘How can you have grown more beautiful than you were?’
    Evanlyn, it has to be admitted, pouted a little at this. Gundar had never commented on her looks and she was aware that alongside the elegant blonde girl, she was a little…tomboyish.
    Alyss was grinning delightedly at him. ‘Ah, Gundar, I see you haven’t lost any of your courtly charm. You’d turn a girl’s head with that silver tongue of yours.’
    He beamed at her, then turned his attention to the grey-bearded, slightly built figure standing behind her.
    ‘And you must be the famous Halt?’ he said. ‘I expected someone a little larger,’ he added, half to himself, as he advanced.
    Halt, experienced in the ways of Skandians, retreated at the same pace. ‘Yes. I’m Halt,’ he said. ‘And I need all my ribs intact, thank you very much.’
    ‘Of course you do.’ Instead of bear-hugging Halt, Gundar contented himself with a firm, manly handshake. Halt’s eyes glazed as he felt his fingers and knuckles crushed inside the island-sized fist. He shook his hand painfully as Gundar finally released it.
    ‘Any friend of Erak’s is a friend of mine!’ Gundar glanced around curiously. ‘But where’s that shaggy pony of yours, Will?’
    ‘We left our horses in Araluen,’ Will told him.
    Since the trip had been intended as a brief, ten-day mission to the Toscan capital, there had been no good reason to bring Tug and Abelard. They had been left in the care of Old Bob, the Ranger Corps horse breeder. Now, Will wasn’t sure if he regretted that decision or not. He’d like to have Tug with him, but the sea journey to Nihon-Ja would be a long one, far longer than any Tug had undertaken before. There would be little chance of going ashore to exercise the horses, and he wasn’t sure how they would have coped.
    Similarly, Ebony, Will’s dog, had been left behind with Lady Pauline. Ebony was only half trained and he felt her boisterous behaviour might cause problems with the rather starchy Toscan officials.
    Gundar nodded vaguely. He had no idea of the soul searching that had gone on with the two Rangers before they decided to leave their horses behind. He glanced up the quay.
    ‘And who’s this Lenny Longshanks?’ he said. ‘Is he with you?’
    The four Araluans turned quickly to look back up the jetty. Striding purposefully towards them, a pack slung