[OL - ship] The Thessalonike

[Ross Fisher]

Waves curled along beneath the boat, caught by sunbeams into a thousand crystal sparks.
A fresh ocean breeze shoved at the sails and dragged them onward to the mainland. The salt spray was cold and refreshing, and did much to soothe André's thick headache - even as the lurching deck was playing havoc with his stomach. 

De Royne leant nonchalantly on the quarter deck rail - for all the world like a man who hadn't led a thorough debauchery the night before, and was, instead simply out for a pleasant jaunt this fine Sunday morning. 
He inclined himself towards the younger man;
"It occurs to me that you may have a bigger problem once I make landfall." He offered.
"Oh?" asked Giefaux. He didn't trust himself to open his mouth any further without voiding his stomach. 
"I don't know what your allowance is like, but I imagine your dear father might cut you off after a stunt like this? You'll need an income. One won't keep a ship and crew like this for long if one can't afford their maintenance."
"Huh." he replied. He had never earned a penny in his life. The romantic dreams of the night before were meeting the cold light of day. Was this all going to be short-lived?
"I have an offer. Of course, you're welcome to refuse - it does come with a degree of danger. You'd be smuggling an item to a certain gentleman on Oleon."
André's head snapped towards de Royne. The Margraves of Giefaux had spent much of their history trying to wipe out smuggling between Hernsey and mainland Corrington. Was the man he admired just so much sea scum?
"Oh don't look at me like that," de Royne observed. "It's nothing illegal. There's no crimes being committed here."
"Then why is it smuggling?"
"It's like this;" he struggled, "Certain privileged individuals have exclusive knowledge. Other individuals need access to that knowledge. They pay me to provide that. But it involves a degree of discretion. Even after the secrets are exposed, no-one can suspect my involvement."
"So you're a spy."
"Ungh!" de Royne tensed up with frustration. "I am a gentleman. I work to ensure conflicts are resolved long before they cause issues for the parties involved."
"And which nation are you currently betraying, cousin?" he felt so stupid for having come on this boat ride. He was going to have to find his own way home somehow. And he had been so excited at this chance. 
"I'm not betraying *any* nation. I work freelance for private individuals. On this occasion I'm working for a businessman based out of Durmont sur Doix. I gathered together some information on one of his rivals in Carno - trade secrets, client lists, bidding strategies, that sort of thing - honestly it's better if you don't know specifics."
"And, what, you're going to sell these secrets?"
"No. You're going to sell them."
"Me?"
"Less my 10% finders' fee, of course. You'll act as my agent, so I'll let you keep another 10% cut. You'll put the rest into keeping the Thessalonike running."
"So businesslike," answered Giefaux, unsure of whether he was impressed with the organised thought behind this, or whether he was put off by the way a dashing nobleman (and one he admired) could act like such a tradesman when it came to subterfuge.

"I mean it," de Royne continued. "Don't think you can gamble this and come away with a bigger pot. Made that mistake once or twice at the start of my own voyage and it nearly cost me everything. Since the main thing you have to lose is actually mine, this is one lesson I'd prefer you didn't learn for yourself."
"This all seems a little overwhelming."
"You didn't imagine setting out on your own would be easy? The world would just fall in your lap like - do they still have strumpets in Hernsey? 
Life is hard - even for those of us lucky enough to be born to silk sheets. If you want to build a fortune of your own you're going to have to work bloody hard for it. There will be times when you'll doubt yourself. You'll be tempted to give it all up and run back to the shadow of mummy's skirts, but you mustn't. 
Stay the course! Fortify yourself with the joys of independence; emancipation; freedom. Take satisfaction in working hard and with cunning. And when you do earn your reward, by all that is holy, put it to good use!"
"You really ought to go into speech writing, William." answered André.
"You think?" He replied. "I'll look into it."
And as they skimmed along, the two men settled into a relaxed quiet. 

Edited September 6 by Ross Fisher

[Khorne]

Very sleek design! Lovely little boat. Another good read as well, with the beginnings of André's journey and some tidbits of world building.

Interesting to see where this goes. It starts with a little polite smuggling for your uncle and next thing you know, you're stuck in an international crime ring or part of a pirate gang .

[Ross Fisher]

1 hour ago, Khorne said:

It starts with a little polite smuggling for your uncle and next thing you know, you're stuck in an international crime ring or part of a pirate gang

Story of my life. 

But seriously, I'm going to have some fun with this. He'll almost certainly run across Section 13 at some point, and the Freemasters' Lodge could be a lot of fun to explore. 

[NOD]

On 9/4/2024 at 2:51 PM, Ross Fisher said:

"Ungh!" de Royne tensed up with frustration. "I am a gentleman. I work to ensure conflicts are resolved long before they cause issues for the parties involved."

Excellent description of his work!   Giefaux can learn a lot from De Royne. This is a funny story and I look forward to more stories.

[Ross Fisher]

3 hours ago, NOD said:

This is a funny story and I look forward to more stories.

Thanks! I'm hoping it might be a little more funny or freaky than the Archbishop. 

[Keymonus]

Nice looking ship! Fast and agile, as her task will require! All the best luck to the Thessalonike and her crew, the story is intriguing and I hope to see learn more about Giefaux and his  deeds soon!