The breeze rippled through Friedrich’s auburn hair as he watched the island come closer and closer. He stood on the bow of the boat. The journey had taken almost two weeks, but he was finally here. Friedrich placed his hand upon the fox mask that hung underneath his tunic and breathed deeply, glad to be one step closer to fulfilling the spirit’s request to see the golden sands of Kai’roh as he had done in life.

“We are almost there,” said Teleri, her golden skin shining in the sun and her flowing hair the colour of the sands of the island.

“Thank goodness,” said Marina, clutching the railing of the boat.

She had had a much rougher time on the journey than both Friedrich and Teleri. Upon departing from Akatfall, she felt fine, but once Captain Alden took them out to sea where the waves were choppy, she took ill. The crew mocked her relentlessly for her seasickness, which didn’t help matters. It was meant in good fun, but Marina did not care for sailor humour in the least.

“Stand up straight, Marina!” chuckled Captain Alden, making the crew laugh. “We’re almost there and you don’t want to make a bad impression now, do you?”

Marina ignored him and continued to lean against the wooden railing.

As they sailed towards the small town of Port Balsia, Friedrich was more taken by what he could see of the area outside of town. Somewhere across the desert, towered a colossal statue. It was holding something high above its head. Was it a sword? A spear? Whatever it was, Friedrich wanted to know. On the cliffs to his right was a large bridge of white stone that ran for hundreds of metres. It didn’t look to be bridging anything so he thought perhaps it was a walkway of some kind and the top could be reached by the two towers at the opposite ends.

He marvelled that this place held such intrigue to him and he had yet to put a single foot on the island. It felt almost familiar to him, yet he had never even seen a picture of Kai’roh before. Running his hand over Kitt’s mask, he knew that it wasn’t his own feeling of familiarity, but an imprint left by the soul within the fox mask.

“Is it a nervous tick?” asked Teleri, looking at Friedrich’s hand.

Friedrich was in a world of his own. “Hmm? Oh,” he said, taking his hand away from the mask. “I don’t know why I always do that.”

“I would rather you fidget with the fox mask than the minotaur mask. At least if you go feral as a fox, we can drown you in a barrel.”

“That’s what you want to hear from your friends, death threats.”

“I am only assuring you that if you lose control of your body, we will take care of things for you.”

“Consider me reassured,” he said to Teleri giving her an exaggerated smile.

“I am glad,” she said, not realising he had not meant it.

The dockmaster and his men guided Captain Alden into the harbour and helped them get docked before leaving the crew to their own business. Marina was the first one onto the walkway and she lay on the ground staring up at the bright blue sky with a big smile on her face.

“Sweet land,” she said. “Sweet, sweet land.”

“She’s a bit of a wild’un, ain’t she?” asked Captain Alden, laughing. “We haven’t had this many laughs on a journey in a long time.”

“We might have to pay a premium for teleportation to get back to Mercia,” said Friedrich. “I don’t know if she could take another boat journey.”

“Good thing she was vomiting the entire time,” said the captain. “Pretty girl like that on board? The crew would be throwing lines at her constantly, trying to convince her to marry them.”

“I don’t think they would have had much luck, Captain.”

“Nah, course not!” guffawed the captain. “She’s only got eyes for you, lad.”

Friedrich laughed. “We’re close, but it isn’t like that.”

Captain Alden slapped him on the back. “Whatever you need to tell yourself, Friedrich. Even when she’s complaining all day and night, it’s obvious. How you managed to have two beautiful lasses accompanying you across the ocean, I don’t know. That elf friend of yours, Blackjack, she’s a little standoffish to say the least, but I’ve never laid eyes on a more beautiful lady. If only she didn’t hide it under that hood so often. Even she gives you looks sometimes—”

“Do you need a hand offloading your supplies?”

“Eh? Nah, we’re good, Friedrich. Go and explore. If you do decide you need a ride back, then we’ll still be here for a few days. Next time we’re passing through will in about eight weeks.”

Friedrich shook the captain’s hand and thanked him once again for giving him passage to Kai’roh. Captain Alden assured him it was no trouble and he paid his own way anyway.

“Ready to go?” asked Friedrich as he approached Marina and Teleri. Teleri was busy trying to pull Marina to her feet, but Marina insisted on lying down for a little longer. “Just be careful they don’t mistake you for cargo and put you back on the boat.”

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“Alright,” sighed Marina, letting Friedrich help her to her feet. “I’m just very glad to be on a flat, unmoving surface again.”

“I know,” laughed Friedrich, “but we’ve got an entire island to explore. Time’s a-wastin’!”

“It is?” asked Teleri. “We have nothing but time, Friedrich.”

“Well, I suppose that’s true,” said Friedrich, rubbing his chin. “Even still, it’s a beautiful day and we’ve got requests to fulfil and riches to find.”

“You know how you want to buy a boat?” asked Marina. “Well, I think you can count me out now.”

“We’ll get you some potions of anti-seasickness next time,” said Friedrich. “That’ll take care of your little nausea problem.”

“With the amount she will require, we will all be poor after a single journey back to the mainland,” said Teleri.

“Speaking of kupons,” said Friedrich. “I still don’t know what it is that Kitt wants, so I think it’s only fair that we find a way to earn some money.”

“Perhaps the palace on the hill will pay well,” said Teleri, pointing towards the golden-domed castle that lay at the far side of town, overlooking the entirety of Port Balsia. “I believe Captain Alden said that it is where the King of Kai’roh resides.”

“I don’t think we’ll get an audience with him so easily.”

“You do not know if you do not try.”

“I’m thinking we go small scale for now and find ourselves an adventure. It’ll let us earn some money and, at the same time, get a better lay of the land. The captain told me about a man who sells treasure maps.”

Marina raised an eyebrow. “Are you talking about Adajun? The same man that Captain Alden called swindler?”

“Yes.”

“And you’re still going to get a map from him?”

“He said the maps were legitimate, but Adajun overcharges for them.”

“Friedrich,” said Teleri, “I believe you need to start thinking through your actions for the long term.”

“I am very much a long-term planner,” said Friedrich, dismissing the Alaurian’s concern and wandering along the walkway and into town. “I’ll make sure we get a good deal.”

The streets of Port Balsia were quiet, certainly compared to Akatfall. The ocean-facing town was the capital of the island, but it felt more relaxed. There were more than enough people going about their business, but if you bumped into someone it would be intentional. Unlike Akatfall, the tanned citizens of Port Balsia eyed the trio with much more suspicion, as though they were not used to seeing many foreigners in their land.

Friedrich, Marina and Teleri walked along the main strip. It was lined with market stalls and half the owners were beckoning them over, while the other half simply stared at them. Friedrich looked around, hoping to see Adajun, who Captain Alden said spends most of his time on the strip, but he could not see a single person selling maps.

“Excuse me,” Friedrich asked a grumpy-looking fruit vendor.

“Eh?” replied the man.

“I’m looking for a man named Adajun, do you know him?”

The man didn’t say a word as he raised a long finger and pointed towards a two-storied building up a small set of steps. There was a red canopy hanging over the sandy walkway along the front of the building and a few rickety tables and chairs sat outside where a few patrons were drinking from pewter flagons.

“Thank you,” said Friedrich, heading towards the tavern.

The party walked up the stairs, past the patrons and pushed past the curtain in the doorframe that kept the sand from blowing in. The inside was dimly lit, but the firepit in the centre gave the place a warm vibe as the chef roasted a pig, filling the air with a delicious, spicy aroma.

Friedrich walked up to the barman, admiring the large assortment of wines lining the shelves behind him. “Would you be able to point me towards a man named Adajun?”

“Who’s asking?” asked the barman, squinting to see the young Mercian more clearly.

“Friedrich.”

“Don’t know no Friedrich.”

“I’m new around these parts. I’ve been told by Captain Alden that Adajun sells maps.”

“Maps, eh?” The barman slammed his hands on the wooden countertop and smiled. “Well, you’ve come to the right place. I am Adajun.”

Friedrich’s face lit up. “Excellent! I need to buy a treasure map.”

“You’re going to need to give me a little more detail, young sir. I have a lot of maps and I don’t know what you’re looking for.”

“I don’t know what I’m looking for. Anything that can earn us a few kupons and let us explore the island.”

“You aren’t going to make this easy for me, are you?”

Teleri stepped forward, growing impatient with Friedrich’s uncertainty and dilly-dallying. “Adajun. My name is Blackjack. What we seek is an abandoned ruin halfway across the island, where nobody will think twice if we take what’s left inside. We will pay you no more than twenty kupons for something that meets this description.”

Adajun grinned. “Thirty kupons and I will give you a map that leads to the Ruins of Kotuga. It was the treasure vault of an old king, but most die before they reach it and the rest die before they escape. How does that sound?”

“Thirty kupons for certain death?” asked Marina as Friedrich and Teleri exchanged intrigued looks.

“Twenty-four kupons,” said Friedrich, looking to his companions. “We’ll each throw in eight and it’s a fair split.

Marina shook her head. “Wait just a—”

“Done,” said Adajun, heading into a back room for a moment and then returning with a rolled-up piece of parchment.

Friedrich and Teleri handed over eight kupons each, while Marina hesitated before passing the barman her share. With a sly smile, he counted them and handed Friedrich the map.

“Pleasure doing business with you. If you’re lucky enough to make it back to town, feel free to spend your findings here.”

The party headed back outside and Friedrich unrolled the map. “It looks like we’re going…west.”

“Are you sure?” asked a still wary Marina. “You have had trouble with maps before.”

Friedrich spun the map around and showed her. “West?”

Marina looked at it for a moment and then nodded. “Alright, it does seem to be west…but are you sure we should seek out these ruins? We don’t even know what we’re looking for!”

“We’re looking for treasure.”

“I can’t believe you’re going along with this, Teleri,” said Marina, turning to the high elf.

“I would pay twenty-four kupons any day to save myself the embarrassment of having to watch Mercia’s worst negotiator,” said Teleri. “In any case, I believe Friedrich will get distracted by something along the way and we will not venture into the ruins.”

“You have so little faith in me?” asked Friedrich, feigning offence.

“I have faith on you for what it is appropriate to have faith in you for. For this? I do not have faith in you.”

Friedrich looked towards the west of the strip, following the path with his eyes until it reached a large stone archway of sandstone. “Off we go, my friends,” he said excitedly.

“If you say so,” sighed Marina before muttering under her beath. “I think I would rather be back on the boat.”

Friedrich strolled confidently along the road, keen to see what Kai’roh had in store for him. He reached under his tunic and pulled out Kitt’s mask so that it rested on top. He would find whatever it was that Kitt wanted to see while making himself rich along the way.