The wind howled aboard the ship, rain stinging painfully against his skin. Calian held his sabre in his hand, hesitating for only a moment as the man in front of him looked up fearfully. But the hesitation fades, and Calian slits the attacker's throat, glancing up.

Ahead of him, he can see a figure dressed in purple and a figure clad in silver battling fiercely at the prow of the ship. Their strikes were blindingly fast, each attack leaving an afterimage as the ring of steel against steel echoed through the air.

The duel between purple and silver is swiftly won, the former's skill clearly superior to the latter's. He sends him tumbling over the side rail with a kick to his torso, and Calian watches the silver figure vanish into the sea. He runs forward, a flash of lightning briefly revealing the purple figure's visage. But he does not make it, as the purple figure draws a pistol and fires.

Calian can only look down at his chest, watching the blood soak through his shirt. He had been shot in the heart, and the pain came a step later as he stumbled to his knees. He looked up, and saw grey eyes looking at him coldly. He searched higher, and now blue eyes were staring at him from within the billowing storm clouds above.

He is kicked, stumbling backwards before falling over the railing. Again, those lightning blue eyes looking down at him from their position high in the sky. But just before he hits the surface, the blue changes to a bright silver, a hooded figure crying out to him from aboard the ship. And then he crashes into the ocean, sinking beneath the waves.

Calian wiped his brow as he tied the topsail of the main mast tight, the sunlight above him bright and filled with heat. He looked down at the crew, so small from his position this high on the mast. He sat on the top yard of the ship, the lumber underneath him just slightly thinner than his waist.

The wind here was strong, and it blew pleasantly against him, cooling him wonderfully under the heat of the day. As the crew beneath him pulled at the rig, fully raising the mainsail, he tied the last portion of it to the yard, securing it in place and finishing his portion of the job.

He took a few moments to look out at the ocean, his high vantage point allowing him to see for miles into the horizon. The water glistened beautifully, a thousand sapphires underneath bright sunlight that rippled with the wind and the current. He was once again hit with the notion that the ocean would remain eternal. A part of the world that would never be tamed by man, azure that was nearly as limitless as the sky.

He gave a silent prayer to the Sea Mother, and for a few moments thought that the cool wind against his cheek might be her gentle caress.

"Are the sails secured!?" He heard his uncle Kalot bellow from beneath him, and he looked down. From this high he couldn't make out his features, but knew he most likely wore his usual scowl. The one that demanded perfection in their duties.

"AYE SIR!" Calian chorused with the other members of the crew working to secure the sails along their yards.

"Then get down here and bathe, you reeking degenerates!" His uncle commanded, and with another confirming 'Aye!' from the crew he began to climb down the mast. He took a moment to observe the sea one last time, and paused as he noticed storm clouds brewing far off in the horizon. Their presence was barely noticeable, but he decided to inform his uncle just in case.

Scuttling down the mast, he joined the crew below as Tikan approached him. Slinging an arm over his shoulder, he pushed Calian's laundry sack to his chest and looked up from where he had climbed down from.

"I simply don't understand how you're okay with climbing up there." He muttered, shaking his head as Calian chuckled. "There's not enough coin in the world that would convince me to do it."

"It's not so bad up there. The view's nice, and the wind is great." Calian reasoned as he followed the crew to grab his wash bucket, and Tikan paled.

"That's exactly what scares me about it!" He exclaimed, withdrawing his arm from Calian's shoulders to grab his own wash bucket. Inside of each bucket was a bar of saltwater soap, and Calian grabbed it to give it a sniff.

Lavender.

He groaned internally. Calian hated lavender. He preferred citrus or mint scented soaps.

Tikan grabbed his own bar and gave it a sniff, then grinned. "Nice! I got some kind of berry." He said, and Calian looked at him enviously.

"Want to trade? I got lavender." He asked, and Tikan seemed to think for a few moments before nodding.

"Sure, pass it over." He said, and they swapped buckets before walking over to Calian's father, who was pulling up a hose from the side of the ship. Next to him was Kalot, who had a hand on a pump handle that would draw saltwater from beneath the ship. Half of the crew formed a small line in front of the hose, tugging their clothes off and folding them neatly into their laundry sacks. The other half of the crew took them to the side before grabbing their wash buckets and waited for Kalot and Ashton to fill them.

Once the buckets had been filled, the ones with their buckets took out their clothes and began scrubbing them clean, as the hose was turned towards the other half of the crew who waited tensely.

"Alright you filthy reprobates, you've stunk up our ship long enough!" Kalot yelled, earning a few chuckles. Now that the sick crewmates were well enough to wash, it was time for a long overdue shower. "The water's nice and warm today, so enjoy it while you can!"

The initial shock of saltwater exploding against the crew from the hose drew gasps from them, but Kalot was right. Thankfully the water was warm, and they hurriedly began scrubbing, lathering themselves as quickly as they could before the hose was turned away from them. Three passes with the hose was all they would get, and they were determined to clean as much as possible before the opportunity passed.

Calian scrubbed himself furiously, trying to rid himself of the sick air he had been steeped in for the past week. Three days had passed since his talk with Gallow and the mysterious woman. Their chat had been pleasant enough, but they'd not extended an invitation for another talk since then. He, Tikan, and Gallow had dedicated their care to the crew, and it had thankfully bore fruit, as they were already healthy enough to stand and walk around the ship.

They most likely wouldn't be working again before they pulled into port in the next couple of days, but no one would ask them to. Most were only thankful they were healthy, as dysentery was a very real cause for concern. Gallow's care and medical had earned him a good deal of favor among the crew. Whereas before most had kept their distance, now they welcomed him among their fold.

The same could not be said for the woman he traveled with. Although Gallow said she had assisted him with brewing the medicine, her lack of presence aboard the ship had not gone unnoticed. Calian himself had no ill thoughts of her, after his pleasant chat with the duo in their cabin, but the rest of the crew had begun to form the opinion that she thought herself to be better than them.

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"I've been meaning to ask you." Tikan said beside him, scrunching his eyes as they were blasted by the hose again. The second pass, which meant they would only get one more. "Didn't want to pry, but I'm curious. What did you talk about with Gallow and the girl when they invited you to their cabin?"

Calian thought for a few moments, before shrugging. "Not a whole lot, actually. It was mostly curiosity about who I'd learned swordplay from, how I thought our voyage was going, things like that."

Tikan nodded, his scrubbing slowing down a bit before he resumed.

"You must have been exhausted, to fall asleep in their cabin like that. Gallow had to bring you down to your hammock, afterwards. " He said, and Calian glanced at him from the corner of his eye.

"What?" He asked, shaking his head. "No he didn't. I came down on my own, after our talk."

Tikan frowned, now fully pausing and looking at him in concern. "No, I was awake. Gallow was carrying you in his arms. You were passed out, kept mumbling something about a- ack!"

They were blasted with the hose again, and Tikan floundered mid sentence, hurriedly scrubbing himself as best as he could before groaning as the hose passed on. He still had sud left on his body, and Calian brushed off his earlier comments as a dream he might have had. His friend cursed under his breath, wiping his body to try and get the remainder of soap off.

"I'm still sudsy." He complained, and Calian sighed as he felt lather still left in his pits and back. He glanced at his father and uncle, but knew asking for another pass would be ignored. He then looked towards the railing of the ship, and Tikan looked with him.

Wordlessly they glanced at each other, then grinned and sprinted for the railing.

"OI! WHERE DO YOU THINK YOU'RE-" Calian's father shouted after them, but was cut off as they both leapt over the railing. The ship had been brought to a stop, hence their tying of the sailing, and both he and Tikan gave whooping laughter as they plummeted towards the water below.

The wind whistled past Calian's ears before he folded his legs up into a perfect cannonball, crashing against the surface of the water. He was embraced by the sea, the world around him quiet and comforting in the way it could only be underwater. That was until he heard more splashes reverberate in the water beside him, and he broke the surface with a gasp, looking around to find three more crewmates had joined him. His friends, Argon, Manson, and Hurrent had all joined him in solidarity, laughing as they treaded water.

Tikan breached the surface shortly after, wiping the hair out of his eyes as Calian looked at them all with a grin.

"We never get enough water from the hose." Argon said, and Calian nodded with a chuckle. His grin growing mischievous, he dipped below the water, swimming towards the closest pair of legs he could make out and grabbing the ankles. He wrenched them underneath the water, then swam up for the surface.

He saw Manson missing, and laughed loudly as the larger man broke the surface with a sputtering gasp, looking around and then glaring at Calian.

"You fuck!" He growled, though with enough humor in his tone that Calian knew he wasn't truly mad. "That was a fucking mistake!"

Manson splashed him powerfully, the salt water stinging Calian's eyes as he laughed loudly, blindly splashing back. It was a losing battle though, as the others joined Manson in his revenge against the young heir. He fought back as desperately as he could, though was laid low as in the same maneuver he had just done, he was pulled beneath the surface of the water.

He coughed up water as he breached the surface. "TRUCE!" He shouted, still laughing and coughing. "I call a truce!"

The splashing stopped, a peace treaty formed as they treaded water, still giggling. The unease and tension hanging on their shoulders faded, a much needed reprieve from the dire situation they'd just overcome.

"Hey morons!" He heard a voice call down to them from aboard the ship, and he looked up to see Kalot waving at them. He had a predatory grin on his features, wicked glee permeating his tone. "Guess what your little stunt just earned you?"

Calian felt a sudden dread take hold of him. "What, uncle Kalot?" He asked, fearing the answer.

"You five get to scrub the decks clean, after everyone's done washing!" He called cheerfully, and the five boys groaned. "Now get up here and do your laundry!"

They grumbled among each other, cursing Kalot's name. "What was that!?" The man called down to them, and they collectively flinched.

"Nothing, uncle Kalot!" Calian called back, and the large man nodded.

They swam back to the ship, pulling themselves up the rope ladder that had been lowered for them and climbing up to the top deck. Completely drenched, they stood, still laughing amongst themselves as the other members of the crew shook their heads at them. His father had a small smile on his face, but hid it beneath a stern expression.

"If you want to take a swim, do it when we've reached port." He said, barely concealing the laughter in his tone, and Calian nodded. Kalot looked at Ashton reproachfully.

"He gets it from you." He grumbled, and Ashton chuckled.

"I wonder about that." He hummed, glancing at his brother from the corner of his eye. "I distinctly remember our superiors having field days disciplining you after stunts like this."

Kalot cleared his throat, looking away before turning to the group of five. "I hope it was worth it. Now, go do your…" He trailed off as they heard a sharp intake of breath just a bit of ways, looking towards the stairs that led to the lower deck.

Calian looked with him, and saw their two guests standing there. The woman was frozen stiff, Gallow looking at them all in surprise for a few moments before hurriedly bringing up a hand to shield the woman's eyes. The woman pulled her hood down slightly, turning around and hurriedly walking back below deck as Gallow turned to look after her.

Calian looked around at all the naked men aboard the ship, either washing themselves or doing laundry, and as one they all began to burst into laughter.

"Guess this would make any woman turn away." He chuckled, and Tikan slapped his chest lightly.

"Which one of us do you think she found most impressive?" He asked, flexing his biceps, and Calian grinned as Manson flexed his own, far more impressive frame.

"Definitely not you." Manson teased, and Tikan glared at him.

"Okay, well it's not like the rest of us were fed whatever it is your family gave you growing up to become as freakish as you are." He spat back, and they began to bicker amongst themselves while Calian waved to Gallow.

"You're more than welcome to join us, Brother Gallow!" He called, and the Chaplain chuckled as the other members of the crew called out their own invitations. He had earned their respect, and was viewed as one of their own.

"I should see after her." He politely declined, and the crew all booed him as he turned and walked down below deck.

"Attached at the hip, those two." Tikan said beside him, and Calian nodded. The woman didn't so much as leave the cabin without Gallow beside her. "What do you think their relationship is? It seems to be more than members of the same church."

Calian thought about it for a few moments, then paused as a tendril of memory surfaced in his mind. Of the Chaplain referring to the woman as Lady, a title reserved only for those in high positions. "Maybe he's her protector…" He murmured to himself, remembering his skill with a weapon, and Tikan looked at him curiously.

"Her what?" He asked, and Calian cursed himself in his mind. The rest of the crew didn't know that Gallow was a Chaplain.

"Nothing." He said, walking over to grab his wash bucket. "Come on, we should finish our laundry so we can get done with scrubbing the deck."

Calian stood beside his father, now in a fresh change of clothing. Their guests hadn't come out of their cabin since returning to it, but that wasn't what was important.

"A storm?" His father asked, and Calian nodded, pointing over to the horizon. It was still barely visible, but their shape, once noticed, was unmistakable.

"I saw when I was tying the sails, and then again when I untied them." He said, and his father nodded as he looked off into the distance. Kalot stood beside them, his brow creased in thought.

"We only have enough rations for three more days, and that's with them limited as much as possible." He commented. "If that storm comes in between us and port, we won't have enough to sail around it."

Ashton tapped his finger against his leg. "So sailing through it is our only option, if it comes to it." He muttered, and both Calian and Kalot nodded in answer. "Alright. Get the storm gib ready, and our main sail and foresail reefed no later than thirty minutes out from the storm. I want our cargo secured, and have the crew members still recovering from dysentery stay below deck. Otherwise, it's all hands on."

Again, both Calian and Kalot nodded, the latter beginning to give out orders. His father stopped Calian before he could walk away. "Remember what I said when we left port." He whispered, and Calian recalled his command. By his or Kalot's side at all times. He gave a nod, and Ashton stared into his eyes for a few moments before nodding as well, letting him go.

Calian hurriedly ran to the deck, taking part in the preparations for the approaching storm.