I feel like I should clarify, for I have insulted them now at depth: the Mamluk soldiers stolen from distant lands who can barely tread water are genuinely admirable warriors. Terrifying ones—when they fight Franks or rulers who don’t pay them. They are astonishingly skilled riders, knowledgeable in weapons I’ve never even heard of, and well disciplined. But they’re not locals. They’re not seafolk. And facing off against crazy sailors and divers who could swim before they lost their milk teeth in the middle of a midnight bay?
