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Archives: Building an Empire at Sea

Chapter 1: Gathering All Ye Salty Dogs

    Malak Erstwiel was an imposing man, it showed how the many people on the streets moved out of his way as he walked by. It had been three years since he had work on a ship, and with most people forgetting the Bloody Shrike, it was a time for him to gather forces and renew his desire to return to the seas.

    He had the gold to buy a ship of his own and enough to pay the crew if he got one. He knew that gathering forces was his best bet first, and with that in mind he headed to the port district of Raiden, and to the little known bar of the “Salty Dog”. Here it was known to those in the ranks of the Shadow Guild that many pirates rested their sea legs, the barkeep himself being a pirate of some renown twenty odd years ago.

    Malak entered the bar with a sneer. At mid day it was already full of the stench of unwashed pirates, alcohol and sea brine. Malak didn’t mind the last two, but the first bothered his refined tastes as he wrinkled his nose in disgust. He walked over to the bar and knocked on the wooden surface. The old barkeep turned around and at the sight of Malak dropped the glass he was currently cleaning. “I see you remember me Thom,” Malak said, his voice low. “I’m looking for salts to join my crew. Any suggestions?”

    Thom shook for a moment before coming to his senses. “I heard ye died. Dammit Erstwiel, don’t ye be scaring an old salt like that. I nary lost me nerve seein’ ye old scared face.”

    “I repeat myself, Thom,” Malak’s voice lowered in pitch, as it always did when he started to get angry. “Where can I find some salts to join my crew?”

    Thom grabbed a glass and poured some spirits into it, placing it before Malak, Thom gave the younger man a small nod. “These are not yer caliber of pirates, mate. I suggest that ye find somewhere else to find yer salts.”

    Malak downed the glass quickly. “I’ll try my luck here first.” He took out a sack of coins and placed it on the bar with a heavy thud. It seemed to gather the attention of the masses. “I am looking for some sailors. I need to crew my ship, and I came here to find men willing to join me in my search for...” He paused slightly and gave a broad grin. “...gathering mercantiles.” There was a hoarse laugh amongst the many in the bar. “I need at the least, ten men willing to risk their immoral lives for the sake of getting rich. You sign up here.” With his speech ended, he waited for the in flood of interest.

* * *

    Lilly had just entered Raiden for the first time. She found her grandfather-in-law’s house fine, but no one was in it. She had brought enough to go to an inn just in case, but she had wished to meet her husband’s grandfather Midau and deliver her husband’s letter to him.

    The streets were crowded with all makes of people, but none willing to slow down and talk to the noble. She grabbed a nearby urchin by the shirt and held him aloft. “You seem like a smart boy,” she held a Raiden piece in front of his eyes. “Take me to where pirates gather and this will be yours.”

    The kid nodded and took her by the hand. He took her down to the docks and turned around. “A tavern called the Salty Dog.” The child held out his hands for the piece greedily. Lilly placed the coin in his hands. As soon as the coin was in his hands, the urchin fled.

    Lilly bit her lip and looked around for the Salty Dog Tavern. She went in expecting to get the usual leers and lecherous remarks from the patrons. She was dressed no differently than normal, but for men that was usually misinterpreted as a cry to be fondled and gawked at.

    The bar was silent, and it seemed that there was not a single patron willing to make a move. An imposing man stood at the bar, a large bag of what she could only imagine were coins behind him. He carried two short swords at his sides, and had a rather regal look to him. She bothered a man near the door. “What is the situation?”

    “A pirate tryin’ to cap a crew,” the man said, his breath reeking of strong spirits.

    Lilly pooled her courage. This may be a way to gain some information on my uncle. She approached the large man and nodded. “I wish to join your crew,” she stated matter-of-factly. There was a ruckus of laughter at her request but she stood firm and waited for him to answer.

    Tornalin had been playing a game of dice with some patrons, he’d been winning until Malak arrived and made his announcement. Hearing the announcement he lost his concentration, making a bad call he lost the round. He looked at the young human dourly and shook his head, his voice was a bit on edge, “You got lucky kid, don’t think you’ll beat me next time we play.” He then collected his money and stood up, pushing his way through the crowd he walked over to where Malak was and cleared his throat. This was a chance he would not pass up, finally he could get back out to sea and be free from the confines of land again.

    The large man at the head of the room caught Mudan’s attention too. He was looking for another ship, and this was the first opportunity he’d seen. The dwarf excused himself from their game of dice, which Mudan was grateful for, since he’d lost several gold and silver so far. He should have known better, he had little luck with gambling.

    “I’m out too,” he told the man who the dice belonged to and left with what coin he had left. Following not far behind the dwarf, the slim, exotic lad hurried into the hastily forming crew. “I’ll join you too!” Mudan called.

    “I wish to join as well captain,” Tornalin stated with a gruff call, this was his ticket to vanishing from this place again. He was already worried that his actions had been found out here, now was a good time to get out of town before the storm hit him.

    At the other side of the bar, people were yelling at each other. A group of rather large sailors grouped around the scenario. “I ain’t no loser. You cheated!” roared a big man in the center.

    “You’re nothin’ but a sore loser,” barked a strong, female voice.

    “Oh yeah?”

    “Yeah!”

    “I’ll show ya your place, little missy. Try some—”

    Two loud thuds later, and a gruff sailor fell backwards, hitting the ground heavy and hard. He was out cold. Some of the men laughed. “Anybody else want a taste of that? Huh?” The crowd grew quiet. “That’s better. Now get out of my way.” And from the crowd came a surprising person. Compared to the man who she knocked down, who was over six feet tall, the woman that walked out was only about five feet and four inches. She had muscular arms, but her mere size made her look weak.

    “Hey Thom,” she said, sitting next to the announcing captain. Under her arm was a cage. Inside the cage was a gray falcon, hooded and everything. Falconers were of amazing use to sea captains and were rarely denied membership, simply because of the rarity of their skill. Many a story told of ships saved from being lost by the keen eyes and commanding skills of a falconer hunting for land. “I need something harder,” she said, waving her hand in the air. “His skull hurts.”

    “Anything for ye, T,” he said, pulling out a shot glass and pouring some liquid in.

    The small bar brawler grabbed the glass, put it in her mouth and held it with her lips. Her head bobbed back, taking the glass and whatever was in the glass with it. The ship engineer inhaled deeply through her nostrils and popped the glass into the air, catching it inches from the bar. She slammed it on the counter, sighing. “Just the way I like it: terrible.”

    She needed a captain. She really did, but she didn’t intend to ask. She never had to and she wouldn’t start now. Some upstart woman was demanding to be on the ship, another man approaching as well. While the snooty girl looked intelligent enough, she doubted that the woman knew anything about how to rig a ship. The papers were covered with technical drawings of ships, rigging, and other ship things. While not all of them were actually hers, about half of them were her own work. The others were reference—things she had learned from when she started out.

    Inwardly, Terelyn hoped he would just ask her. She hoped he had the intelligence to know that she needed a ship. Assuming he wasn’t one of those pompous fools who thought women couldn’t handle themselves, her many talents, she hoped, would attract him to her. Besides, finding a ship for a woman was always hard, no matter the skills. And if toughness was the problem, she hoped that the convenient one-hit bar fight would convince him that she could stand up with the best of them...

    Malak’s lips twisted to a small grin. “A lady, a dwarf, and a boy,” he chuckled. “Well, that is three down.” He surveyed the crowd. Many of the men wouldn’t look the red eyed man in the eyes. “Well four is better than one.” He surveyed his would be crew with his eyes. The light in here was dim enough that he could see rather well, better than any of the people here. “Welcome to my crew.”

    He turned to Thom and gave the old man a little rap on the shoulder. “Ye be needin’ somethin’?”

    Malak pushed the sack of coin towards Thom. “Keep the crewmen coming. I need to go ‘procure’ myself a ship.” Thom gave a solemn nod, and Malak excused himself from his crew. He knew where he could get a ship, one that would be good enough for him and his purposes. At least, till they stole one better. He started to head out to the ports, and to the place where he could buy himself a tub.

    Hmph! He ignored her! That was a first. Terelyn pulled her cage up and reached in, pulling off the hood of her majestic bird. “Well, he was either a pompous fool or blind. I haven’t decided which yet,” she said to Solarus, who cocked her head and glanced around.

    “So quick to jump for a job. Sounds like a bout o’ desperation to me,” Terelyn said to those that had jumped up to the man’s call. The red-headed falconer and ship engineer leaned her back against the bar. “How much experience do you all have out there?” she asked, nodding her head towards the port outside.

    Although his intentions were to leave the bar, the sudden comment of the red head he had overlooked caught his attention. “Neither.” He stopped short of the door. “I figured you’d be coming with me, girl. You and that bird have sharper eyes than I do, and I expect you to help me find decent vessel.” He cocked a soft grin. “Time for talk is later, at this point we have two goals: people and a tub. Thom will cover the people aspect, but I need you for the second aspect: the ship.”

    Sitting in the back of the Salty Dog, listening to the man attempt to get a crew and to begin with getting a girl, a boy and a dwarf, Varun was sipping his ale. He was waiting to see if anyone else would join as he studied the would be captain, judging his potential. When the red head spoke up, and seeing the would be captain speak was enough to convince him that this one could help him in his goals. Standing up tall, placing his arms across his chest after cracking his knuckles, Varun spoke, “Sign me up as well. From the looks of it you might just have what it takes to be worthy captain for once in a long time.”

    Malak’s grin crept across his face wider. “Welcome aboard then,” he gave the newest speaker some recognition. Crew mates were coming to him like flies to honey. He gave another quick search around the room. He didn’t want to overlook anyone like he almost overlooked the redhead with the falcon.

    “My experience is limited,” Lilly told the red haired woman. “I’ve never worked on a ship, but it’s in my blood, and my teachers have taught me well. If you’ll excuse me, I have a question to ask of our captain.” Lilly cleared her throat. “Excuse me, captain. I was wondering, if we are to call you captain, what is your name?” She curtsied a little and introduced herself. “My name is Lilly Atru Erstwiel.” She knew that she wouldn’t fit in with all the rough and tumble people here, but she was a noblewoman first, a wannabe pirate second. It was only polite to introduce oneself.

    “Who cares what his name is, sweet pea,” Terelyn said. “You call him captain,” she said sharply. Ugh. Fresh blood, she thought. Inexperienced sailors were the type to get a crew killed. Everyone had to be at their best at all times. She would keep a watch on this little snatch of womanly “learning”.

    “And as for you, Captain...” she said, a glare in her eye. “You would be right about one thing. Our eyes are sharper than yours, across the waves of the sea and the curves of a boat. They say assumptions make a fool out of you and I...” She looked down for a moment, then looked back up, her steel gray eyes carrying a glimmer of fire in them. “I like that. The more danger, the better.” She winked. “Now lets get you something better than an empty pocket and a schooner filled with holes, shall we?”

    “Erstwiel,” Malak said under his breath. “Yes, captain will do for now. Pardon my rudeness, milady of Alecrast.” He gave a grand sweeping bow in partial mock. “Shall we, my red haired firebrand? I’d like to get my damned ship before I rot of old age.” Malak wanted to leave his young niece there before she could figure out who he was. Damn it Sophia, she was not supposed to come here! he cursed inwardly. Malak went outside the bar without another word and waited for the red haired woman.

    “Damn noblewomen,” Terelyn muttered as she left, cage in one hand and her engineering portfolio in the other. Fresh recruits were one thing, but petty nobles? “That woman better be of better use than she looks,” the sea-faring falconer said to the captain in a low tone. “I won’t be waiting on anyone and I won’t be providing womanly comfort.”

* * *

    Red Ear entered the bar and random men in the bar shouted, “Red Ear!”

    “Gah!” Red Ear replied, still drunk from the night before. He stumbled his way to the bar but stopped at the pretty maiden. “How does something so sweet find her way in to such a retched bar, full of the best scum I know?” Red Ear asked Lilly as he twisted his mustache and eyebrows. It was too early for his best game, but he would try anyway. He could smell her clean and alluring perfume and right away could tell she was high class. Meanwhile, his cat, Ghost, took to purring and rubbing on Lilly’s legs.

    Lilly flushed at his awkward comment, the smell of alcohol reeking heavily on his breath. “I...I...” she stammered, unable to think of anything to say. At the cat rubbing at her legs, she took a hasty step backwards, and fell into the lap of an unwashed pirate. He groped her bottom without hesitation and Lilly’s good mannerisms and class went out the proverbial window. Grabbing the man by his hair she smashed his head into the table repeatedly until his teeth came loose, showering her clean shirt with a spray of his blood. She rose to her feet and kicked the man’s chair out from under him, making the pirate spill onto the floor without much grace.

    “I am waiting for my captain to return,” she said finally, coming back to the conversation. She placed the heel of her boot on the man’s face and held him down. “He’s looking for some good sailors, if you think you have what it takes to be one of them.”

    Looking around at his new shipmates Tornalin laughed, setting some winnings on the bar he looked to Thom. He was in a mood worth the occasion, hopefully this trip would be a long one.

    “A drink for all on the crew Thom, make mine an ale!” He then spoke to them, they should get his name now, “Tornalin Stoneshard, pirate and smith is who I am. You can call me Bloodscar, if any of ye need extra equipment what is in my shop is free.”

    Taking a drink of his ale he sat down near the others and waited for the captain to return, looking around for a game of dice to join in on. Looking over to Mudan he motioned for him to join him, he had been losing but with enough practice he could change that. “Care for a game of dice between just us, you need not bet just to kill time?”

    The lean young pirate leaned against the counter of the bar where Malak had been standing. He was considering flirting with the young woman, but a much older man was the first. Throwing a beautiful girl like that into a bar full of pirates was like throwing a lame animal to a pack of wolves. But, she soon made it apparent that she could take care of herself.

    Mudan couldn’t understand what these dirty, fat, old men though they could get out of a young, lithe noblewoman consensually, but they didn’t seem to have a chance. He tore his eyes away from Lilly to listen to the dwarf. “I’ll have an ale too,” Mudan ordered from the barkeep, then returned his attention to Tornalin. Dice with betting was good enough for him, he had a hell of a hard time winning anyway. “Sure, I’ll join you.”

    Lilly removed her foot from the man’s face. He had groped her but she felt a little more reasonable outside of the passion of the moment. She took in the barrel of a man with a side long glance. “Pardon for my abrupt show of violence. I do not take well to people touching me without my permission. Say, you seem like a well traveled man of the seas,” She said softly. “Would you know a man by the name of Katricos Alans ‘Bloody Shrike’ Erstwiel? I am looking for him.”

    Too far gone to pay close attention to the brutal man handling, Red Ear picked up Ghost and started to pet her. “Bloody Shrike you say?” Red Ear thought for a second. “Nope, never did heard of him,” he replied. “Now you say your Captain be looking for men on his ship eh?” Red Ear pushed another drunken sleeping sailor out of chair and took a seat; the thought of going to sea again was more interesting then tiring to pick up on the maiden. “Sound like it could be fun. Me name is Red Ear, but a maiden so bewitchin’ as yourself my call me what you please.” Red Ear let Ghost go about her own business.

    Lilly gave a short scoff at his off handed remark to her again. “I’ll call you Red Ear, if that is fine.” She sighed. “Yeah, the captain would probably like you to join on, if you could. I think that Thom is taking care of the details.” She pointed at the old barkeep. She scratched behind Ghost’s ear and gave her head a little rub.

    Taking measure of each one of the crew, and seeing what Lilly could do to that pirate, Varun didn’t have any more doubts about the young woman as finished his ale. Hearing the offer of Tornalin Stoneshard, he raised his hand. “Ale for me as well.”

    Walking over to the dwarf and young man, Varun introduced himself, “The name is Varun, it seem we will be on the seas together.”

    “Hey, I’m Mudan,” he introduced himself and extended his hand to shake Varun’s.

    Tornalin pulled out his dice and checked the weight, after that he set them down on the table. This crew seemed competent, after two ships and over ten years he had seen many new people com and go, this time would not be like the last he hoped. “As such should be, a crew like this should do well for the cap’n. Ye care to join us, I’m gonna show the lad here some stuff about the game that might make lady luck give him a break.”

    He took a swig of his ale and set it down, he had not yet burned the last body. In fact, he had not cleaned the room as well so he was leaving evidence behind. To him though he did not care, a little arson would cover it all up. “Ye can test the dice, assuredly their balanced and equal weight on all sides.”

    Shaking his head slightly, Varun took a swig of his ale. “I rather just watch for now. Maybe another time.”

* * *

    Malak gave a soft nod. “The girl is a second generation sailor,” he mentioned offhandedly. “She may be young and a noblewoman, but she is by no means a priss. She’ll be treated no differently than any other crewman, that includes you, miss.” He shortened his stride to match hers. “So, the ship we’re looking for is going to be dilapidated and broken down, for a good reason.” He gave her a cocky grin and pointed to a merchant galleon. “We’re going to take that for our prize, but we need to look helpless, and having an Alecrastian noblewoman aboard: who would dare question her to see if she were a pirate?”

    “I’ll need your name though. As much as I can be called captain, I like to know the names of my people, if only to know who I share my bread and gold with.”

    “Call me what ya want. My mother called me Terelyn. Your friend at the bar calls me ‘T’. Make up what ya want, if it pleases ya...” she said, looking over at the merchant vessel. Terelyn already had a good idea of what he was planning. It was her business to know, whether or not he chose to share it. “If ya want busted, there is plenty of that. I was thinkin’ I would have to actually try. Ya don’t find good quality ready-made. Only commissioned stuff is worth it anyway. But, for a captain, ya got good eyes. You only picked one of the most expensive types of ship you can buy.” The short engineer stopped close to the ship and began to look it over from afar.

    “Ya see that odd curving there on the hull? Its new design. Port boys around here think its something great, but don’t let their talk make you think it will save ya. It’ll move faster, but ya still need a good pilot to take advantage of it. A regular ship with a good crew can still catch that one. Can’t say for certain, but when we get away with this, I’ll have to be redoin’ those mast lines. Bad organization. Wrong circumstances come about and ya won’t be able to do anything with em but cut em down. Pity, really...” She returned to step past their goal. “You want a beat up ship and ya can probably find someone to give it to ya if you are smart...”

    Malak nodded. “I see. Well, Terelyn, you seem to have more than a keen eye.” He marveled at the woman’s prowess for seeing the most minute details of a ship. This was the type of woman he could find appropriate to marry, had he either the will or whim to explore that area of life. “Very well then, let’s go find us our inexpensive meal ticket.”

    “Sure... You want the south end of the docks. Lower quality docks mean lower quality ships.” The designs of ships started out more as a hobby than anything. By the time she left her last crew, she was the second in command just because of her extensive knowledge in ship-craft. She had even overrode her captain before, taking them from disaster to survival. “Junkers will be near the end. If you want your junker for free, you’ll find it being ready to be decommissioned. Lead on!”

    Malak followed her directions, continuing until he found a perfect vessel to carry out his plans. “This should do,” he pointed at the ship. “I’ll go talk someone about the ship.” He walked over to the captain of the vessel.

    “What da ye want?” the old salt asked. “I’m sayin’ goodbye ta me old gal.”

    Malak thumbed his chest. “I’m looking to buy your ship.” The old man laughed at the offer.

    “Fine. Buy me a pint and she’s yers,” he laughed. “Why would anyone want her, she’s on her last legs. If ye knew anything about ships, ye’d know that.”

    “I’m quite aware of that,” Malak stated. “She seems adequate for my current adventures. I’ll let my first mate look it over. Terelyn, I’m gonna buy this old man his drought, you take the reigns and look the ship over, give it a once over. I’ll be back as soon as things are smoothed over on our end.”

    “Yeah... Hold these,” she said, shoving the bird cage and the large folio of drawings into his arms. With her items in his hands, she took it at a dash. Walking up the plank was so boring. Terelyn took it to the line that held the ship in place, walking up it at a swift pace. Walking ropes was just one of the many height stunts she did in the circus. It was nothing to her. Second nature. With a swing and a lift, she was over the side and onto the deck.

    The ship was everything a sailer wouldn’t want. Just by looking at the sides, she could tell that it wouldn’t survive more than a few weeks at sea. The hull, even above water, was worn down. She wouldn’t be surprised if it was leaking already. The sails were all patched. Terelyn boarded the vessel and listened to the boards creak. The planks were mismatched, from years of repair. The mast poles were all different ages and the rope was splitting. The only thing that seemed to work well was the steering mechanisms. Where everything else was dead or dying, the wheel was still in good condition. Well carved. Someone liked to lead in style, she thought. Didn’t help anything, though.

    Terelyn leaned over the side of the ship and called out to her new captain. “Aye, it’ll float, for a few weeks at most though. The way it is now, he’d be lucky if he could pay someone to take it off his hands. All its really good for is one final float off and a whole lot of firewood. I think its just what ya lookin’ for!”

    Malak grinned fiercely. “Perfect.” He held the cage and folio rather awkwardly. “Well then, old man, you have yourself a deal.” He gave Terelyn a small wink. “Damn girl, you have all the grace of an elf on those ropes. We’re going to seriously have to talk about your many skills.”

    Terelyn grinned and moved away from the edge. “Incoming!” she yelled out before taking it at a dash. With a proper lift over the side, she launched herself off of the side of the vessel and landed only inches from the edge of the docks. Her balance was perfect, though she stood only on the balls of her feet. She stood up straight and rolled back onto the full of her sole. “I grew up in a circus,” she said, taking back her objects of affection. “I did the acrobatics. You would be surprised how useful that is repairing ships. Hanging from ropes, tight-rope walking... There isn’t anywhere I can’t get.”

    Malak’s grin split from ear to ear. “I see,” he handed her cage and folios back. “Well then, let’s return to the Salty Dog and gather our eccentric crew.” He clapped the old man on the back. “I’ll have your ship and you drunk before you realize it.” He waited for Terelyn before returning to the bar where his crew were gathered.

    Terelyn took a moment to make sure her falcon was not upset and handed it a little treat before keeping up and taking off towards their next goal.

    It took Malak, the old man and Terelyn a little while to get to the Salty Dog from the other side of the port. Malak entered the bar. There had been an addition to the group of haggard sailors here. A man with many red rings in his ears, and Malak’s niece near him. “Careful, he bites.” Malak prodded the woman in the side and went to the bar.

    “Thom, your finest ale for this old man. Get him drunk fast and hard. The faster and harder the better.” He turned to face his rabble. “Listen up you slimy bastards,” Malak shouted. With most of the people recovering from hangovers, it would drill it into their heads a little more. “Last call for my crew. We’ve got two women, a dwarf, and two boys. Any other salts interested?” Thom pointed out the man Lilly was talking to. “You, man with cat. What say you?”

    When Malak made the comment of two boys Varun had to hold back his rage. No one had called him a boy in years, mostly because he towered over most men, including the captain, and had already over ten years on the seas. Resting against the bar, tapping his fingers over it as he thought to himself to keep his cool and not let any of his thoughts ripple into his body language.

    “Uh, captain, the men over there are hardly boys, sir,” Lilly pointed out. She hated being a stickler for attention, but it needed to be pointed out. She gave a small glance back to the red head who was allowed to accompany the captain on his boat buying trip.

    “Out to sea with so many women? Sounds like bad luck and thats my kind of luck; count me in,” Red Ear replied then he stood up and gave a bow. He then looked up from the bow and gave a crooked smile. “Shall we?” he said to Lilly offering his arm. Ghost gave him a dirty look and got ready to follow along.

    Terelyn’s eyes went from ice to fire in an instant at Red Ear’s comment. He was asking to get hurt. She was inches away from bringing him down, just like the man that got dragged out before. She held her temper for the captain. It didn’t do well to knock out their ship mates before she had them prisoner on the ship.

    Malak grinned. Women were better luck at sea than most people gave them credit for. Everyone underestimated a woman’s prowess, and as such the others would not understand the beating they would get from underestimating Lilly or Terelyn. “I’ve never found women at sea bad luck.” He placed his hand on Terelyn’s shoulder to calm her anger. “They are most likely some of the most ruthlessly evil pirates I have ever met. They don’t hesitate at the sight of blood, they have a higher pain threshold, and they are better to look at than any of you scum.”

    When Malak returned, Tornalin looked back and heard him make another call, finishing his ale he headed back to the bar after picking up his dice. He was going to have at least one more, something stronger though as the last one was a bit weak. “Thom another ale, something stouter and with more body if you got it.” Taking his ale he heard the remark about women and laughed, that was certainly true though not all women. He had a bit to add there, something that was true, “Yer forgettin’ about the fact dwarven women have beards too cap’n, though their charm is not for most.” He then sat back down and looked to Mudan and Varun. “Not enough time right now, once we have time out at sea I’ll give ye a few lessons.”

    Mudan noticed how Varun seethed at being referred to as a boy. He didn’t care much for it either, but he probably was the youngest out of all of them. He merely shrugged it off. “Alright,” Mudan replied to Tornalin. “Hey, do dwarven women really have beards?”

    “That they do, but to me their as beautiful as the sea itself. Anyways let’s not keep the cap’n waiting, I’m an old sailor who longs for the sea,” Tornalin replied to Mudan.

    Actually, Varun could barely hold back a laugh listening to the fellow, Red Ear, since he missed watching lady next to the captain take down someone with ease. He was enjoying the thought of seeing a repeat of that. He was surprised by the noblewoman, and he had to admit first impressions could be fooling. He was going to have to keep an eye on her to see if she can take care of herself as well on the seas as she did on land.

    Lilly gave Red Ear a look of disinterest. She took his arm none-the-less. “I’ll help you move old timer, I know that’s why you offered me your arm.” She shifted his arm up and over her shoulder. “Unless of course you would like a piggy-back instead? I’m sure I could support you.” She gave a devilish grin to Terelyn. “We all know how we must help the elderly and the frail.”

    Malak withheld his laughter, although the scene was priceless. She had her mother’s bravery and her grandfather’s legendary sense of sarcasm. “Regardless of dwarven women, drunkards or little girls pretending to be walking sticks for the imaginary elderly, we have a date with the sea, and as I am punctual, I’d like to keep it.” He knew that the merchant ship would be sailing soon and he needed to be in the water and away from Raiden if he was to get his prize. He claimed his sack of coin and dumped a share of it into Thom’s hands. “A drink for everyone on me. Everyone but my crew that is.” He took his sack and started for the door. “Let’s go,” he barked.

    Red Ear enjoyed the fact that the crew had a sense of humor. “Well played my lady, there might be hope for you yet,” Red Ear said, knowing that every pirate should have a cunning tongue. He took his arm back and gave a big smile. Ghost ran outside ahead of the gang and waited.

    Tornalin stood up and joined the rest of the crew as they left the tavern, his gear was with him and he had all he needed. Taking a look back at Raiden, he would have to wait several years before returning.

    Mudan gave a chuckle at Lilly’s remarks. Red Ear didn’t have a chance with her. With a glance back down at Tornalin, he tried imagining a dwarven woman and the image conjured was very unappealing. Well, it wasn’t as if he had to sleep with a dwarven woman—thank the gods! The young man tossed the rolled up blanket he left behind his seat over his shoulder and joined his new crew.

    Varun moved to follow the captain out of the bar. The crew seem to becoming well rounded as any crew could be, now it would be the test on the seas to see if it can handle the pressure of what the captain was going to want them to do.

    Terelyn trailed far behind, and, after they had all left the bar, she returned to Thom. She reached into her side bag and pulled out all of the money she had. “Take care of them for me, ok?” she asked, looking into the bartender’s eyes.

    He looked at the money and nodded. “I’ll get it to them tonight.”

    She swung around and walked to the door.

    “T...”

    She stopped.

    “They miss ye. Ye should visit them.”

    Terelyn let the door close behind her.

    Moments later, she caught up with the captain. “Sorry. Just a little last minute business.”

    “It’s not a problem. We need to get in the water fast, do you think you can make the ship lurch out to sea as quickly as possible? We need to make us look as pathetic as possible in the water.” Malak thumbed the scars on either side of his cheek. “If that is at all more possible than our leaky tub can assure us.” He smiled and lead the way to the ship. It was neither pretty nor fast, but it would be their ticket to a bigger, better ship than money could afford for now.

    “Give me a few years and I can get a ship to fly, captain,” Terelyn replied, nodding her head.

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Chapter List | Building an Empire at Sea Storyline