Li felt certain that the conversation with Ardlac, during which they had talked so much about their lost lovers, had brought them to an even deeper understanding of each other. He couldn't deny that he felt more connected to Ardlac, or that he now sought out time with him, even if they spoke little.

But they did speak often now about the loves they had lost. They would sit or lay together in their cabin and Ardlac would relate stories of Seith's brave actions during fights or the games he would teach the crew to play when struck by boredom. In return, Li would talk about Ash and how kindhearted and hardworking he was.

Garstin and Aricka continued to note their improving relationship, and how much more himself Ardlac was becoming, according to them.

"I'm not sure how you managed it," Aricka commented to him, "but I'm glad to see he's doing better."

Li, unwilling to admit exactly what had transpired, just shrugged. "He simply started to talk, and I listened."

She smiled and smacked him on the back hard enough to make him gasp. "Well, I hope he keeps talking and you keep listening. And the other way around," she added, almost as an afterthought.

Li nodded. "Of course."

It wasn't long before the lookouts spotted a ship on the horizon. As they slowly drew nearer, Captain Mond declared it to be a pirate ship and ordered the Gryphon made ready for battle. The pirate ship altered course to meet them.

As they drew closer, Li could see that the ship was almost as large as the Gryphon, and he could hear drums beating. Whether the drums were meant to intimidate the crew of the Gryphon or excite the crew of the pirate ship, Li didn't know. Perhaps both, he surmised. He was relieved to hear Hayel declare no necromancers on board.

The first round fired by the Gryphon's cannons shredded the sails and rigging of the pirate ship. Their drums falted and there was clear panic on the deck, but the crew quickly regrouped and began firing arrows onto the deck of the Gryphon. The Gryphon's crew took shelter, but the arrows still found flesh.

"I just healed that arm," Aricka muttered as she managed to pull an arrow from her shoulder. "Least they aren't barbed," she added, looking at the bloodied arrowhead before tossing it across the deck. Her partner, Calso, quickly bound her wound in a strip of cloth, though the spot of blood on her sleeve continued to expand gradually.

The cannons boomed again and the Gryphon rolled from the force of it. Li noted the gun crews were using wooden shields to protect themselves as they worked. The firing of the cannons was followed by arrows shot from the Gryphon. Li heard the threatening calls from the pirate ship turn to cries of pain and anger. The drums continued to falter.

It seemed an eternity before the Gryphon finally bumped up alongside the pirate ship and Mond commanded the crew to board. Li gripped his sword and followed Ardlac through the haze of smoke to the side.

Much to his surprise, there was little fighting to be done. By the time he and Ardlac reached the ship, the pirates who were still determined to fight had been killed by the first to board. All those who remained were surrendering. It appeared their captain had been killed by an arrow from the Gryphon in a fortunate shot. Li's group was instructed to search the hold for others.

As they descended the ladder, weapons still in hand, Li was struck by the smell of the hold. The stench of excrement and urine nearly made him gag, and when he heard the bleating of the goats he understood why. The hold was full of them, well over fifty in number, he guessed. He covered his nose with his sleeve as he looked them over. The hay they'd been given was old and dirty, and many of the animals were thin or wounded. He was saddened to see there were a few dead ones among the herd. All were the brown-and-white spotted breed common to Berk - Li had seen them when he'd traveled to coastal markets with Ash. They were one of the larger breeds, and had long, drooping ears and short, rounded horns. Li recalled that they were prized by cheesemakers. If the pirates had kept them all healthy and alive, they would have brought good coin.

He was startled by a shout somewhere else in the hold. Ardlac and the four others with them heard it as well, and all turned to a short corridor running away from the goats.

"Do they have prisoners?" Garstin asked.

"They might," Ardlac replied. He started toward the sound and the others followed.

At the end of the short corridor they found a locked door. A voice from inside called, "Please help us, if you aren't pirates too that is."

"We're privateers from Mahlon," Garstin's partner, Jayce, replied. "Who are you?"

"Thank Quelin," the voice said, and it was echoed by others in the locked room. "We are sailors from Berk. We were taking the goats to Algoma when the damned pirates took us."

"Wouldn't the Pass through the mountains have been safer?" Gastin asked.

"Now I would say so, but not usually. The weather, mountain cats, and other travelers are usually a greater danger to the flock than the sea. This is the first I've dealt with pirates so close to Algoma."

"We'll find a way to release you and get you to shore," Garstin replied.

"Thank you!"

Unable to locate a key in the hold, they reported their discoveries to Captain Mond. A questioning of the ten pirates resulted in a key being located in the captain's cabin. The fifteen Berk sailors were freed, and assisted in moving the goats from the pirate ship to the Gryphon. With little to feed them aside from the same old hay the pirates had supplied, Mond chose to set a course for Algoma and the first port city they could reach. The pirates were held as prisoners, while the Berk sailors were welcomed as guests, though those who were uninjured agreed to assist with duties on the Gryphon in place of members of the Gryphon crew injured in the battle. Thankfully, no members of the Gryphon's crew had been killed in the fighting, but several, like Aricka, were nursing wounds.

Finally, the pirate ship was set ablaze as the Gryphon sailed away, with Elri at the stern, his Altmyr chain trailing in the sea, channeling the wind to speed the ship toward land as quickly as they could safely go, hoping to save the livestock in the hold.