274 AC
Oldtown is the second largest port city in all of Westeros. Boasting one of the largest harbors in all of the Seven Kingdoms, rivaling King's Landing and Lannisport in size, it has been the centerpiece of wealth for one of the Reach's greatest families, the Hightowers, for centuries.
"The sea pearl of the Expanse," I thought, passing by another pier, where a ship with green sails was moored, showing that it had arrived from Tyrosh.
And, like any other harbor, Old Town lived a hectic life as a major port city. Hundreds of ships and schooners moored here throughout the year, bringing and taking away hundreds of various goods. Pomegranates and oranges from Volantis, fine wines from the Arbor, colorful feathers and woods from the Summer Isles, Yunkai peppers, Western gold, Northern leathers, lace, mirrors and harps from Myr, Tyrosh colors and much, much more. There was not a single item that could not be found in Oldtown. Unless it's from the Far East. Our path lay on one of the shipyards located on the outskirts of the port and the Shepotov Bay.
The conversation with the conclave was very difficult. Most of the archmaisters, when they got to the heart of the matter, simply wanted to flog us and put us in stocks, so that, in their words, "piss would come out of young and stupid heads." But my statement was official and completely serious, and they, despite all their desire, could not do it.
Disputes began. Only the intercession of Archmaester Valefar, chief architect of the Citadel, and Archmaester Barog, bearer of the greatest knowledge in the science of hammer and anvil in all the Seven Kingdoms, did not allow these nineteen goats ... ahem, personalities in masks, rings and wands, to expel us from the university in disgrace, beating beforehand. In the end, after six hours of eating my poor brains with a blunt spoon, the conclave mercifully drove us out of the Citadel, depriving us of all the chains we had earned in advance and forbidding us to appear on the territory of the educational institution for the rest of our lives, under pain of corporal punishment.
You could say we got off lightly. After all, they could simply expel us, depriving us of all past achievements and announcing this to the whole world, leaving a very black spot on our reputation. And so we still have credit certificates, certified by archmaisters, proving that we once had these links and we are quite smart and educated people.
Thanks Valefar. Thanks Barog." – With warmth I remembered two people, thanks to whom everything went so well. - "At our next meeting, I am due"
With these two archmaesters, I got along very quickly at the beginning of my studies, because they were very erudite and well-read people, always open to new knowledge. It was very easy and pleasant to communicate with them, because in most issues they were not only equal in knowledge to me, but also significantly superior. They were one of the reasons why many years later I will remember the Citadel with warmth and nostalgia.
"And now it's time" - I thought, going into the area of shipbuilding docks, where a new milestone in my life will soon begin.
Felix, can you tell us where we're going? Joen's interested voice interrupted me from my thoughts. What is he talking about?
"Exactly. I didn't tell them about them." - Remembering this little oversight, I slapped my forehead, once again remembering my holey memory. Although it is not surprising - too many worries have piled up lately. Vaughn, in the last month only spent the night in the library. "Well, better late than never."
Let me explain everything along the way. - Slightly accelerating and rounding the drunken sailor coming at me, I said. – As you remember, the main goal for which I sought to get to the Citadel was knowledge. Knowledge about the world around us, the people living in it and the opportunities it can provide. We are all commoners. Even I, the son of a boundary knight, until I receive the title of "sire", in fact, no one calls me anything. After all, you don't want to look like a mob in the eyes of the lords for the rest of your life, without rights and freedoms? A mere bargaining chip to be used and thrown away?
Everyone immediately shook their heads, because any normal person with at least a piece of the brain understood perfectly well that if in Westeros you are not a rich merchant, knight or lord, your life is worth less than a penny.
- There are only a few ways to climb up the hierarchy. The first to become a knight, to distinguish himself in battle, to receive the title of lord and the lands attached to it. Or to please some grand lord, so that he "bestowed us with his mercy" The second is to get rich. Wealthy merchants are often offered petty lordships to stay in the area and start investing there. The first one is not available to us, due to the fact that now in Westeros there are simply no wars and nowhere to show your strength. Yes, and not warriors or mercenaries, we are with you to risk our lives. And there are too few such fools ... ahem good-natured people like Titos Lannister in this world. Not everyone is as lucky as the Cleganes. The only option left is enrichment. This method has only one disadvantage, which disappears depending on the size of the wallet. Respect. The lords do not respect and do not like merchants, considering them the same mob that rose with the help of one gold, and not as it should be - with a sword and a spear in their hands. But I see no other way, so my friends, we will become merchants.
Numerous whispers were heard behind them, full of disbelief and incredulity. For the guys, this news was a shock, because most of them believed that after the Citadel we would disperse around the world, starting a new life. Joen, Rick and Dick planned to use the money they earned in the Chamber of Literacy to use to open their own jewelry store. Piper wanted to open his carpentry shop somewhere in Dorne, on Greenblood, where good carpenters were highly valued because of the orphans who lived there. Only Robin decided to stay with me from the very beginning, knowing my Napoleonic plans for the future, and this was his chance to see the world and climb higher.
- Um, Felix. - Finally, the voice of the most enterprising in this company was heard - Ginger Joen. "You yourself know perfectly well that all trade routes and contracts on land have long been controlled by merchant clans patronized by lords. It is almost impossible to get in there, without good connections or support from above.
Here the redhead was right. In Westeros, and indeed in Essos, most Rogue Traders are members of merchant families or guilds. Each of these families has its own exclusive trade route, which is used only by them. You won't be able to get in there from the bay, because you will need to conclude a huge number of contracts with customs officers, who have long been bought by certain people and specially raise prices to heaven for other merchants, and buyers, most of whom have already entered into contracts with other merchants and switch to they have no desire for new suppliers. The route and the contract worked for hundreds of years? So why touch it and do something new? No need. And then, even if the business works out and everything works out, I will have to work like Carlo's dad, and only my children will start receiving the net profit.
"How narrowly they think" - A smile of its own fit on my face. We have almost reached the right dock and soon I will be able to look at their shocked faces.
- And who said that we will travel by land? - I said just at the moment when we went to the right shipyard.
- What are you saying-and-and ... sh. - Joen's question, which had begun, quickly subsided when he saw these three beauties.
Three new, only recently descended from the stocks, shebeks, standing at the pier, even with lowered sails, seemed like a real work of art. 50 feet long, 15 wide at the largest amidships, they towered a good 40 feet above the water, with their very appearance pressing on the one who first saw them. With three slanting sails, copper-studded rams, intricate carvings all over the hull, and prow figures made by one of the best carpenters in Oldtown, these ships were my pride, commissioned almost half a year ago and only recently launched.
Felix is...
Yes, these are our ships. - I said proudly, walking slowly to the piers, where the teams were already making final preparations before sailing. "One of the finest creations of the Old Town Shipyards. An oblique iron-born sail system that allows sailing in any wind, three decks, where one of them is completely for cargo, one and a half hundred crew members, 40 oars. These are some of the fastest, most maneuverable and cargo-lifting ships in their class. Gentlemen, "Purple Rhino", "White Tiger" and "Black Panther" are just waiting for us!
The shock written on the faces of the guys was a joy to me. Almost a year ago, when further plans were determined and, due to my language practice, acquaintances were made with most of the people in the port, I decided to order these beauties. Finding a good artel of shipbuilders, ordering good northern timber from the local trade guild, and finding a finished project in one book of the Citadel took a little time. The construction lasted almost 4 months and cost me almost seven hundred golden dragons for each ship.
Very, very big money, no matter how you look at it.
In fact, I even overpaid, since one ordinary xebec cost about 550-600 gold. But the timber, as well as the installation of slanting sails, and, accordingly, the hiring of carpenters from the Iron Islands, cost a pretty penny.
Soon the guys died and immediately rushed to inspect the new "toys". No one stopped them, because everyone present saw that they came with me - the owner of these ships and their employer.
- Mr. Felix. "Immediately after taking the deck of the Black Panther, chosen by my flagship, three people approached me, just by looking at whom one could understand that they had spent much more time at sea than on land. - Welcome aboard. We are almost ready to sail and will be able to go to sea in half an hour. It remains only to place the last batch of cargo in the holds.
- Thank you Edward, Victarion, Hoare. Nodding to the three captains of my ships, I headed to my quarters to place my last belongings. Since it would be too inefficient to occupy the captain's cabin, I settled in the ship's doctor's cabin, which was still empty, which, unfortunately, could not be found. I only hoped that this flaw could be corrected later, in Volantis or Tyrosh. Having put all my few possessions in a locker and locked it with a key, I had only to go up on deck and wait for the start of sailing.
The sailors, under the numerous mats of Edward and his first mate, a middle-aged man, whose name I do not remember, quickly rolled the last barrels of corned beef and sacks of crackers onto the deck, straightened the sails and checked the integrity of the hull and gear, preparing for an early departure. The same thing happened on the other two ships, where Victarion and Hoare led the same orderly chaos.
The only thing that stood out from this picture was my friends, like little children, looking at every inch of the ship, always getting under the feet of working sailors. Except for Piper.
- Where did you find captains and teams? - He had long since come to his senses and was now standing next to me, on the bridge, leaning his hands on the railing, still looking around in disbelief. Too abrupt changes occurred in his life in just one day. Yesterday he was reading the historical works of Maester Pilate in the library of the Citadel, and today already on the ship, preparing to set sail. "You yourself told us that finding a good captain, for whom the gallows does not cry and heavy debts do not hang, like a needle in a haystack, is possible, but almost impossible. I don't even want to mention the sailors.
"Do you remember that little boy I brought to the Citadel three months ago?" – I asked, slightly turning my head towards Piper.
- Of course I remember. Then you dragged Ambrose by the scruff of the neck from his bedroom to the operating room and left with him only a few hours later.
It was Edward's son. - I pointed at the black-haired sailor, who at that moment was scolding one of the cabin crew. – The boy had a torsion of the intestines, and he needed an operation to remove the blind node. The man spent all his money on medicines, and he was deceived by some charlatans. If I had not found him in time, the boy would have given up his ghost in a few days.
- Inversion of the intestines ... - Thoughtfully scratching his bristles, the old carpenter looked unseeingly beyond the horizon. Although he did not receive a silver link, he was close to him. So he knew about this disease. "To cure this, you need very good skills in medicine ... No wonder you asked Ambrose. In addition to him, in the Citadel, only the Mortuary could carry out such an operation. What did you give him in return that he agreed?
- A keg of Borsky gold. No matter how hard he tries to build a saint out of himself, he loves to drink.
- Hmm, so this sailor began to serve you because you saved his son. But are you confident in his skills?
- Yes. Before his son fell ill, he was one of the best captains in the service of the Hightowers. I have no idea why they refused to help him, but it only plays into our hands. He is one of the few captains with a perfect reputation.
- What about the other two. Piper asked, nodding his head to the rest of the ships further along the dock.
- Hoar and Victarion, as you understand by their names, are ironborn. They were both good captains, but their former lords got too carried away with piracy and sent emissaries from King's Landing over their heads. These two, like many other captains, were given almost all the blame, deprived of all means and expelled from the Iron Islands. I found them in the slums of Oldtown and went out. They were then on the verge of death from hunger and red fever. After that, they swore allegiance to me and decided to become my captains.
- And what about their personal qualities? – Meticulously looking into my eyes and raising one eyebrow, Pipe asked. Although he was a resident of the Reach, where the ironborn are not hated as much as in the Western lands, but ... he has a dislike for them.
- Not everything is perfect, but they are the best option that could be found. "Remembering how many ironworkers I personally killed while walking through the local slums, I was trembling with nerves. "At least they are neutral about the New Law and other religions. The main thing for them is that I feed them on time and let them go ashore.
My answer did not fully satisfy the old carpenter, but he himself understood that it was not customary to look a gift horse in the mouth.
- What about the sailors?
- Some were invited by acquaintance, others were lured away from other ships, and others were found by Edward. So I trust most of them and even know them by sight and by name. - I said, watching the ships slowly moor, and the rowers take their places. In the light of the still rising sun, the picture of the departure of the three ships looked majestic and graceful. It was only the sour face of my friend standing next to me that spoiled everything. Don't worry Piper. Swim with me for a couple of years, see the world, save money, work, because I didn't forbid you, and open your own carpentry workshop. Maybe even in some port you will finally find a wife for yourself. Otherwise, you will soon be able to boast along with Aegon the Unworthy that you have slept with nine hundred women.
My simple and uncomplicated joke made this man, who was two times older than me, smile and adjust to the oncoming wind.
No medieval harbor smells good. The smell of rotten fish, unwashed bodies, dead cats and rats, waste flowing from all over the city into the sea, created such a killer "aroma", hitting the head no worse than ammonia. But all this was gone, as soon as a fresh sea breeze blew. The smell of the sea soothed, gave peace and rest to the nose, ears and eyes, which had long been tired from the bustle of the Old Town.
Our three shebeks, like arrows, flew through the bay, catching surprised and envious glances from the shore. Not every day you can see such beautiful ships here, just launched. In just half an hour, despite the headwind, we reached the open sea of the Shepotov Bay. From here to the open sea it was only thirty-five leagues to sail, which on our ship took hardly five hours. Soon we will enter the Redwin Strait, which separates Arbor Island from the mainland, and we will be able to go anywhere in the world. The stormy and unexplored waters of the Sunset Sea, the capricious and warm expanses of the Summer and Jade Seas, and the evil and inhospitable, like hundreds of demons, waters of the Icy Ocean, were waiting for us, beckoning with their secrets and mysteries. All of them I planned to visit, to see every island hidden in the ocean, every country found on the map, every city I read about in books. I was going to get to know this world to the maximum.
- Mister Felix! Where to keep the course? - From my fantasies and dreams of distant lands, only the voice of Edward, who had long been standing at the helm and distributing commands to the sailors to the right and left, could bring me out.
Exactly. Our next destination. Well…
"Goodbye Old Town." - I thought, looking towards the receding White Tower. "Thank you for everything you have given me. For all knowledge, acquaintances, meetings and partings. We'll see you again, but not soon. It's time for me to go"
- We are heading for Bear Island! I shouted at the top of my lungs so that I could be heard even on other ships. "Captains, get us there safe and sound!" Otherwise, I'll even tear off your heads in hell!
- Yes, m'lord! - A loud roar almost immediately became my answer, forcing me to smile and expose my face to the fresh sea breeze. I've been preparing for this almost all my life and now my journey begins.
"I am not a lord, but soon I will be."