Chapter 37: Fire Herald
Be that as it may, the technician's verdict had been unequivocal: patching the pipe was no problem, but the overheated boiler itself, even after repairs, would only handle "slow ahead" at best. Any load above the absolute minimum would blow it apart with near one-hundred-percent certainty — microfractures, excessive stress in the metal, and the simple fact that there was no way we could properly weld the thing back together out here.
In short, unless I had a burning desire to one day end up stranded in the middle of the sea without an engine, we needed to head for port and go into drydock for repairs.
Though we needed port anyway. Four holes in the hull below the waterline did very little to improve the ship's buoyancy. And frankly, at this point I was beginning to suspect Vasin of secretly being a waterbender too, because I still had no idea how we hadn't sunk already. Hm. Maybe he was the Avatar too, just keeping it quiet?
"Tandao, what's our nearest base with a shipyard capable of handling this?"
"Hm." The first mate thoughtfully scratched at his stubble. "Probably only Yu Dao. Pohuai Stronghold is technically closer, but they're more of a land garrison and don't have the materials we need. Everything else is back on the Archipelago, and I'm afraid we won't make it that far."
"How long to the colony?"
"At our current speed? About a week and a half, maybe two," the engineer answered. "Assuming the boiler holds."
"I see. Estimated repair time at the shipyard?" I asked next.
"That depends on what the yard has available. But no less than a month and a half. Welding the hull plating in drydock won't take long, but replacing the boiler is impossible without fully dismantling the entire engine assembly."
"A long time, but we don't have alternatives. Tandao, set a course for Yu Dao. Vasin, do everything possible to preserve the boiler's functionality and keep the ship afloat."
"Yes, sir," the officers answered, straightening immediately.
"Xinlan," I turned to the chief medic, "status of the crew?"
"Three dozen lightly wounded who don't require any special care, and two with crippling injuries. They won't be returning to duty, but their lives aren't in danger," the medic reported.
Well, at least we'd gotten relatively lucky there. I wouldn't have to make the particularly unpleasant choice between pushing for more speed at the risk of the engine dying completely and abandoning seriously wounded comrades to their fate.
After dealing with the larger issues, we moved on to specifics: organizing shifts on the pumps, assigning boiler watches, plotting the course, and all the other routine work.
When the officers finally dispersed, only Suki and I remained in the cabin, along with the report I needed to send to Fire Lord Ozai's office.
Suki had stood nearby the entire time, silent as a shadow.
As a commander, she had every right to attend meetings like these, but she hadn't really had anything to add. There'd been no issues with the Kyoshi Warriors, so there was little point in making reports for the sake of reports.
"How are your girls holding up?"
"Better than it could've been. Worse than I'd like." Suki sighed softly. "We were trained as warriors, and traveling with you, we've seen death and killed people ourselves… but losing our own is much harder. How do you deal with it?"
"Humans are the sort of creatures that can get used to anything. Yeah, losses hurt, but war without them is impossible, unfortunately. The only thing we can do is remember the comrades we've lost… and avenge them."
Looking at Suki, I realized she needed a little more than just words.
"Though..." I rose from my seat and wrapped an arm around her. She leaned against me without hesitation, proving I'd read her mood perfectly. "I should admit that if it weren't for you, this would all be a hell of a lot harder on me."
"Me?" The surprise on her face was almost comical. "But I'm not doing anything! If anything, you're always the one supporting and encouraging me!"
"You're here. That alone matters a lot." Flattery wasn't just vile and underhanded — it was also incredibly useful when used at the right moment. Besides, I hadn't lied even once. Heh-heh.
"Well, if that's the case, then I'll stay with you from now on." She smiled and leaned toward me.
"Someone didn't get enough last night?" I smirked.
"That's funny. I didn't notice you complaining. But if you're against it…" the little menace pulled away, laughing brightly.
"Oh no you don't. You're not getting away from me that easily now." Catching a girl who wanted to be caught wasn't difficult at all… Hm. On second thought, the report for headquarters could wait a little longer.
***
A hawk carrying new orders arrived a week after the memorable meeting. The sealed packets of orders and appointments, stamped with the Fire Lord's personal seal, contained quite a few interesting surprises.
First of all, the Fire Lord congratulated me (!!!) on my diplomatic successes and on bringing Kyoshi Island into his domain, as well as for my achievements in the struggle against the "enemies of the Fire Nation," the expansion of our fleet through captured enemy vessels, and my general heroism overall.
As recognition for the sum of my accomplishments, I was granted a house in the Capital and a bungalow on Ember Island.
That part genuinely stunned me and left me momentarily speechless. Yes, my family already owned homes in both places, but all of that belonged to my father — one of the Fire Nation military elite. I had only been the heir. But a gift like this from the Fire Lord was official recognition of me — Captain Chan — by the Fire Nation elite, placing me on equal footing with distinguished commanders and admirals.
And I'd be lying if I said it didn't warm me tremendously, pleasantly scratching at the remnants of the ego I'd inherited from the "original" Chan and never quite managed to get rid of.
All of this came alongside an order appointing his faithful Herald to the rank of commodore, which, after such a status-laden gift, was only logical. Besides, I'd already "earned" my own flotilla of ships by this point. Considering that a commodore usually had between three and five vessels under his authority, I'd technically earned enough for several flotillas by now.
(End of Chapter)
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