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The fleet arose in the distance, the sails of the tallest ships first But at Gavin’s speed, it wasn’t long before he could see all of thehies to galleasses to the square-rigged three-uns that Gavin had taken froship They’d left Garriston with over a hundred ships, but hundreds otten out earlier had joined them within days for protection from the pirates who lay thick in these waters Last, he saw the great luxin barges, barely seaworthy He hireat open boats to hold as ees as possible If he hadn’t, thousands of people would have died

And now they would die regardless, if Gavin didn’t turn the sea deain, a hu six feet out of the water Its skin was still placidly lu straight toward the fleet Its path would take it perhaps a thousand paces in front of the lead ship

Of course, the ships theap, but the sea de so quickly, Gavin dared to hope that it wouldn’t matter He had no idea how keen the sea de in the saht well make it

Gavin couldn’t take his hands away fro precious speed, and he didn’t knoould deliver a signal that said, "Don’t Do Anything Stupid!" to the whole fleet at once even if he did He followed directly behind the sea de to cut perhaps five hundred paces fro toward the fleet?

Gavin could see lookouts in the crow’s nests waving their hands violently to those on the decks below theh Gavin was too far away to hear theency was on the fleet far faster than any of thes, eneive chase Storms could blow out of nowhere in half an hour--but this had happened inthe tonders now--a boat traveling faster across the waves than anyone had ever seen in their lives, and the huge dark shadow in front of it that could only be a sea demon

Be smart, Orhola at all Please!

Cannons took time to load and couldn’t be left arht shoot aform, but that should be too small a disturbance for the h the waters four hundred paces in front of the fleet and kept going straight

Gavin could hear the shouts froship was holding his hands to his head in disbelief, but no one did anything stupid

Orholanal , and Gavin’s hopes bellyflopped in the sea He swore that all the shouting on every ship in the fleet stopped at once And then began again a moment later, as the experienced sailors screamed in disbelief at the terrified idiot captain who’d probably just killed them all

Gavin had eyes only for the sea dereat undulations, another hundred paces Another hundred Maybe it hadn’t heard

Then his skiht past the entire beast as the sea demon doubled back on itself faster than Gavin would have believed possible

As it completed its turn, its tail broke the surface of the water It moved too fast for Gavin tored-hot, the color of iron angry fro--hit the water, the concussion nal mortar’s report sound tinny and small

Giant swells rolled out from the spot its tail had hit From his dead stop, Gavin was barely able to turn his skimmer before the waves reached hireen luxin forward, er He was shot upward by the next swell and flung into the air