Sailing isn't exactly a pleasant experience, even if it's fast; there are still occasional bumps along the way.
Below the deck, there's no distinction between day and night. In a half-asleep, half-awake state, Gendry dreamed of the blacksmith's workshop, the forge where he stood wearing a leather apron, his arms bare as he pounded away at a sword. The forge was steaming hot, as if it were the mouth of a fire-breathing dragon.
Then the scene shifted, and Gendry dreamed of his mother. Her hair was yellow, and she was singing a song for him. But her face had grown blurry.
"Mother!" Tears welled up in Gendry's eyes. The tenderness of his mother was long gone. In these chaotic times, he needed to kill the boy inside him.
But the dream didn't last long before chaos shattered it. Shouts and noises from the deck above filled the cabin with commotion.
"What's going on?" Gendry wondered. The ship was running smoothly, and they should be close to Myr by now.
Gendry put on his iron mask and strapped a short-handled mace to his waist.
Unfortunately, he didn't have his big ox helmet or his armor. He was going into hand-to-hand combat. Compared to a sword, a mace was a deadlier weapon.
Gendry had heard Captain Dunster talk about their route.
The ship had already stopped at Tarth to resupply with fresh water and food, and then it had sped along the Stepstones without stopping at any of the islands. The Stepstones were a chaotic place where pirates and slave traders were fierce.
"Are the pirates coming?" Gendry thought. As he opened the door, he ran into Qyburn, who had also been woken up by the noise.
"Let's go see!" Gendry climbed up to the deck, with Qyburn following behind.
"Don't fight recklessly, boy. Blacksmiths, sailors, and doctors are all in demand. Even if we fall into the hands of pirates, we won't be in danger!" Qyburn was experienced.
"You're right! But I'm worried the pirates might sell us into slavery!" Gendry said. A young, tough, and good-looking boy like him would be easily sold to the pleasure gardens in Lys, where life was worse than death.
Qyburn's face turned pale. It seemed like bad luck. Gendry's concern was not without reason. A blacksmith might fetch a few coins, but a pretty boy sold as a courtesan in Lys would be worth his weight in gold.
Gendry stepped onto the deck. The sky was blue with a few white clouds, and the ocean stretched out endlessly. As far as the eye could see, the world seemed like a combination of blue and white. The sky was blue, and the sea was also blue.
When the sea wasn't angry, it was always beautiful and charming.
Gendry could also see the shadow of the Stepstones. The Stepstones were a chain of gray islands, with winding waterways and sea-eroded columns in between. It was a place where birds wouldn't even poop, favored only by pirates and slave masters.
Because the Stepstones were a convergence point for many forces, no city-state was willing to give them up to others, and in the end, no one could hold them for long.
There was no time to enjoy the scenery. Gendry saw two dark shapes approaching quickly. Two painted galleys were like fast arrows, cutting through the waves and heading straight for them.
"Pirates! Pirates!" The lookout on the "Telescope" saw clearly. The pirates had burst out from the Stepstones, intending to plunder their merchant ship. The lookout vigorously rang the alarm bell, and the sound woke up the entire ship.
"Damn it!" Captain Dunster said anxiously. "We're almost to Tyrosh. Once we get past Tyrosh, we'll be safe in the Myr Gulf. Why did we have to run into pirates now?"
"Can we speed up to outrun them?" Captain Dunster asked the navigator, who was also the head sailor.
"No way, boss. We're in for a tough fight! The longships are more agile and faster than our merchant ship!" the navigator said helplessly. A sixty-oared merchant ship, filled to the brim with cargo, could never match the flexibility of a pirate ship.
"It looks like we have no choice! Quiet down, everyone! Pick up your weapons and teach these pirates a lesson!" Captain Dunster thought for a moment, but he still had a few aces up his sleeve. The sailors were all decent Myrishmen who wouldn't be happy living the miserable pirate life on the Stepstones.
"Pick up your weapons!" Captain Dunster ordered again.
The sailors began to distribute weapons in an orderly fashion. The Myrish were poor fighters and mediocre sailors, but they were meticulous in their craftsmanship. The crossbows of Myr were quite famous.
"Don't let those pirates board our ship. We're not good at hand-to-hand combat!" The Myrish weapons were daggers, short swords, and crossbows, often poisoned.
"Don't worry, boss!" The navigator raised his crossbow. It was a special crossbow that could fire three bolts at once, expensive and incredibly powerful.
"Give me some armor, Captain!" Gendry ran up to Dunster and demanded.
"You!" Captain Dunster looked at Gendry, a young guy with short black hair, deep blue eyes, and a mask. Although his voice didn't sound like an adult's, he was tall and muscular, looking very imposing and like a real man.
"Take this, kid! Be careful, the bolts are poisoned!" Captain Dunster also handed Gendry a crossbow, a Myrish specialty. The shipyard's guests were few, and more than a dozen passengers had been armed. Even old Qyburn had a crossbow.
The crossbow was a terrifying weapon, similar to a firearm. Even an untrained person could occasionally wield it and unleash a lot of power, which is why it was also called the devil's weapon.
"Thanks!" Gendry secured the weapon. The armor was a bit small, but in battle, you couldn't be too picky. It was safer to wear it.
The Telescope waited for the pirate attack. Ideally, they would prevent the pirates from boarding, because the Myrish were always mediocre and terrible at hand-to-hand combat.
The pirate ships began to surround them from above and below, even blocking the Telescope's escape route. Hiding among the islands of the Stepstones would be even more dangerous. A bloody battle was inevitable!
The pirates waved their flags, and the longships had rams. But the only good news was that the pirates wanted to capture the ship, not just smash it into pieces!
"Abandon this ship and the cargo, and we'll send you off in a small boat! Wine, spices, timber, silk, perfume—we know your big-bellied merchant ship is loaded with good stuff," the pirates shouted. Gendry saw those colorful pirates with their hair dyed in Tyroshi styles of purple and dark red, but the pirates were happy to do it that way.
"Please forgive me, but this ship is my life! Without these goods, I'll be killed by debt collectors!" Dunster also had the lookout shout back while preparing for battle.
Before he finished speaking, thick ropes with hooks had already been flung over by ballistae. The longships accelerated, heading straight for the "Telescope."
From the beginning, the pirates never intended to let the merchant ship go!
"Fire! Shoot arrows!" Captain Dunster roared, his eyes full of bloodshot veins. The pirates would double their attacks on anyone who resisted them, and the crew of the Telescope was in grave danger.