The rogue that some knew as Jon Chess slept fitfully but that was not the amazing part; that he was having the best dream he'd had in years was. Jon Chess had recently been tortured, which had included a shadow priestess rewiring some of his emotional responses in an attempt to make Chess homicidal when he encountered Ren'dorei. The shadow priestess had not been subtle; she had not expected no Chess to survive for long beyond his use as her killing tool.
Fortunately, she had not had a chance to finish her job. Unfortunately, her psychic surgery had left Chess plagued with images and flashbacks whose horrific content precluded sleep. It was only by accident that Chess had stumbled across the fortune teller Sayge at the Darkmoon Faire, and ended up seeking guidance from the Shrine at Aviana.
At the Shrine of Aviana he could sleep.
During his torture, Jon had also been addicted to Sa'Diablo, a narcotic hallucinogen with healing effects; since the alternative was looking like a human Wretched, Jon had obtained a supply and kept himself awake with the doses he had to take to keep the harmful symptoms of the Fel addiction at bay. Every few days, he found himself compelled to travel to the Shrine of Aviana, so that he could sleep deeply, and recharge in some small part the reserves called upon by the Sa'Diablo.
If he was fortunate, he would not dream. This night, his dreams manifested in the form of a memory.
Jaina Proudmoore, when she had established Theramore, had appealed to the former head of the Alliance intelligence service, now retired as a modest seller of cheese in the city of Stormwind, and asked him for assistance.
"Master Trias, Theramore is young and must survive. it could become the cornerstone of peace between the Horde and the Alliance. I need your help!" she had begged.
Her pleas had not fallen on deaf ears. Trias had recently found a fellow who he had sent to Ravenholdt for training; Ellng Trias was not quite so retired as he would have the world believe. When that student returned from his training with Ravenholdt, Trias sent him to help Lady Proudmoore.
Lady Proudmoore had established her fledgling intelligence service under Captain Kestralil, head of the merchant company *Universal Exports*, based on her ship Blackblade, docked in the Theramore harbor. Jon traveled to Theramore, where he reported to Captain Carran Vimes, the commander of Theramore's military forces. "The guards of Theramore are the finest group of Alliance soldiers based in Kalimdor. It is our duty to uphold the laws of the Alliance even so far away from our homes," he had said to Chess when Chess has reported for duty. "They are Lady Jaina's strong Right Hand of the Light - but that will not always serve. I am going to send you to Captain Kestral, who handles some of the more... nefarious issues to be dealt with. You might say she is Lady Jaina's Left Hand of Darkness."
He had taken a letter of introduction to Captain Kestral and gone to where the Blackblade was berthed. He started up the gangway but was stopped by what appeared to be a Black Iron dwarf, festooned with weapons and what appeared to be grenades and other explosive devices.
"Ye don't hae permission to come on board!" she objected.
Jon Chess tossed the dwarf a salute and presented his letter from Captain Vimes. "I'm the new crew member, darling lady."
"Ach, that is no way to greet someone. Lazy sod of a human. Well, stay right there, and I'll see what is to be done." The dwarven lady called out. "Hey Dalrick, come watch this fellow for me, I have to ask the Captain."
"Happy to, Gloriarn" responded a rather shift looking gnome, with flaming, unruly red hair under a flamboyant, jaunty hat with a purple feather. A thin, long mustache stuck out from his upper lip like a
rat's whiskers. He wore dark leathers of the type favored by SI:7 operatives.
"Are you a member of the crew, too?" asked Chess.
"Nah, just making a delivery f some medical supplies!" exclaimed the gnome. "But I'm an old 'friend of the family', so to speak." The gnome extended a gloved hand. "Dalrick Cogspinner, at your service."
"Pleased to meet you, Master Cogspinner," replied Chess.
Gloriarn returned. "Thanks, Dal," she said, dismissing him. She turned to address Chess. "You there, Captain Kestral will see you in her quarters."
"Excellent... uh.. where are her quarters?" Chess replied bashfully.
"Ugggh... landlubbers!" the dwarf exclaimed in mild disgust. "Dal, can you show him?"
Chess followed the gnome down a stairway and to the door to the Captain's quarters. Dalrick knocked on the door and whispered "You wait for an answer. Never knock twice..." and disappeared back to the top deck.
"Come," came a shout in replay to the knock. The voice was deep and husky, and all woman.
Chess opened the door and stepped into Captain Kestral's quarters.
Like most shipboard cabins, the Captain's cabin made a science of the economy of space.
"Welcome to the Blackblade, Master Chess," began Captain Kestral, turning her desk chair away from her desk, where she had been working on ledger entries. "This says you were recommended by Elling Trias,and trained in Ravenholdt; good enough for the secret side of what *Universal Exports* does, but as for the rest... have you ever been part of a ship's crew before?"
Chess took a very brief second to appreciate the attributes of the woman before him. She stood a few inches shorter than Chess but was slender but strong as a willow sapling. Her black hair tumbled away from her face in shoulder-length dark waves. Her skin, once fair, was deeply tanned by her life aboard ship. Her breasts were the size of large apples, set high on her chest, and tightly restrained undershirt and leather vest. She had a red sash around her hips, which flared out gently from her waist and tapered into thigh-high leather boots. Her forearms were covered in stiff leather vambraces, and Jon noted the throwing knives sheathed in the undersides. A heavy weapons belt was hung around the end of her chair, supporting two scabbarded daggers as long as her forearms.
"No, Captain, I have not. The boat from Menethil Harbor was my first time on the big water," said Chess. "I spent the whole trip at the rail; apparently I am not a good traveler."
"That's too bad... well, I have to find a job for you if you're going to be part of the crew..." Kestral said thoughtfully. She looked at his thickly-muscled body, clad in right leather armor. "I know... you can be my Cabin Boy"
"What does a Cabin Boy do?" asked Chess suspiciously.
"The Cabin Boy is the Captain's personal servant," she said, grinning mischievously. "Your duties would include whatever I say they are, really... sounds ideal as a cover for your other duties. And it will give you time to learn something about how the ship operates, just in case you might actually be needed to function as part of the ship's crew."
She gave him an amused look.
"You didn't think this was all just for show, now did you? Until Jaina asked me to come into the service of Theramore, the Blackblade has been a nimble little shark in whatever waters the Kul Tiras crown needed information, but *Universal Exports* is a legitimate trading company, with cargoes and inventories. We just happen to go places that Jaina finds convenient, where we listen at keyholes and expedite a positive change in a surreptitious manner. It would be useful if you knew your way around a ship, though - we don't have crew berths for your kind of specialist."
