Bending the metal slab, I wrapped it around the joist to better support the new layer of wood I had installed.

The window that had been there was now gone. Now there was a new section of wall. Once the metal piece was firmly situated, I went to hammering the last few boards in place.

As I worked, I ignored the woman behind me. She had arrived a few boards ago, and hadn’t said anything yet but I would recognize that happy smirk she was wearing anywhere.

Though lately I hadn’t gotten such a grin from a woman. Not even Renn, regrettably.

To be honest I had kind of expected Renn to get a little more… personal with me during this trip.

Yet she hadn’t. Even though we’d been having more conversations lately, even more personal ones, she still felt a little distant. As if she was afraid to get too close to me for some reason.

We had opened our hearts a little to one another that night in Lumen… before all the chaos. So I had expected a little progress, yet here we were. Tip toeing around each other.

I knew it was likely because she blamed herself for what happened in Lumen. Her heart was still reeling from the shock and pain.

Not everyone was like me. Able to get right up and keep going as if nothing had ever happened. If anything I should be happy that Renn was actually not doing too bad. She was definitely trying her best to be up-beat and joyful, but it was far better than the alternatives. Her heart although bruised and broken, was still beating.

Hammering the last nail in place, I stepped back a step to admire my handiwork.

Yes. It was fine. The window was gone, so they’ll need to use another lamp around here… but now they’d not get soaked by rain. And it’d keep the temperature down a little too.

It was only one of many holes and broken windows I had fixed, and luckily the last one. The few other spots on the ship that needed attention could honestly be ignored, they were that minor. Little stuff like cracked boards, or hinges that wouldn’t move properly. Stuff that would break even more down the road, but nothing that would make the entire ship sink.

“You’re pretty handy,” the woman finally spoke.

“Sometimes,” I said as I bent down to grab the leftover pieces of wood and the few nails I hadn’t used. The children ran around this floor barefoot, didn’t want them stepping on these things. They were so old and rusty they’d definitely get infected, being human.

“You uh… want to rest?” the woman asked as I turned to look at her.

Frowning at the woman who was smiling at me in a very obvious way, I wondered how long it’s been since any of these women had a man in their midst.

Considering this was the third woman who was offering me her bed today, it must have been some time. Maybe this region really was as bad as Roslyn was saying. If it was so bad that they were even asking me of all people for such a thing…

I mean, I’ve never had any real problems with women, but usually they didn’t just throw themselves at me like this. Especially not when I wasn’t even trying to attract their attention.

The weirdest part was they didn't even seem to be doing it in hopes of money or food. The last woman that had asked made such a thing clear before giving up.

She coughed and smiled a little brighter. She gestured down the hall, likely towards her room. “I’m really good. I promise it’ll quick,” she said.

It was too bad Renn wasn't here. I'd have loved to see the look on her face upon hearing such a thing.

“I’m sure you are. But my companion would chop me into shark bait if I even thought of it,” I said to her.

For the tiniest moment… the pirate woman glared at me. But then she erupted into laughter as she stepped forward and patted me on the chest. “She probably would!” she shouted happily.

She laughed as she stepped away, and I shook my head at her. What a way to take rejection.

I sighed as I stepped down the hallway, heading the other way. I had found a storeroom earlier full of supplies, like the wood and metal pieces I had been using, so I planned to go and put them back properly.

“Vim!”

I paused as the captain’s daughter ran down the hallway towards me. The little girl was a bundle of energy, even though she was thin and always hungry. She had long hair, which right now was all tied up into little bows and pigtails. I noticed Renn's handiwork in the braids, sometimes Renn tied her hair in similar ways. She happily ran up to me, bounding up to me and extending her little hands in expectation.

Kneeling down, I put aside the hammer and nails and helped her onto my back. She giggled away as she wrapped her arms around my neck, clinging to me as I stood back up.

“You’re going to make Renn jealous,” I said to her. I made sure to bend a little as I stood up and returned to walking. She was not riding on my shoulders, but she was still a little higher than my own head. If I wasn’t careful there were spots she could bang her head against the ceiling or door frames.

“She’s always jealous, so that’s not a problem!” Rosie said.

Well… she wasn’t wrong.

“Speaking of Renn, where is she?” I asked the young girl.

“With mom,” she said.

Right. Great.

I… didn’t know yet exactly what Renn was scheming, but I had a very strong suspicion. It was obvious after all.

It wasn’t like Renn knew any method as to feed a bunch of women out in the middle of the desert… so it’s not like she had many options available to her.

But until Renn or Roslyn actually came to me and addressed me concerning that matter… I had to play the fool. I had to play along, and let it be.

Hopefully Renn knew what she was doing…

“Maybe I should start forcing my will upon Renn,” I mumbled as I rounded a corner.

“Don’t rape your wife, that’s weird,” Rosie said as she patted my head.

I frowned at the little girl’s words of wisdom. “You’ve been spending too much time with pirates,” I said to her.

She giggled, and then her giggles turned into full on laughs. She obviously found that hilarious.

Yet I hadn’t.

This little girl was likely not even ten years old. What was the world coming to? Saying such a thing…

“Look at’er,” some of the women giggled and teased Rosie as we passed them by. Most didn’t seem to have any qualms with her being so close to me, which was odd.

They obviously had done something drastic to separate themselves from the men in their lives… so it was a little odd they were so comfortable with me being around their children.

Though maybe it was because of Renn. They all saw how happy she was and comfortable, so my presence was… less dangerous, in a sense.

Rosie squeezed some of my hair as I entered the storage room. I had leaned back a little, which made her lean back too, as to make sure she didn’t thunk her head on the door’s frame.

She laughed as I kept leaning, even as I put stuff away. “I’m going to fall,” she said while laughing.

“Please do,” I said, and leaned the other way.

The young girl reminded me of Lomi. They had a similar laugh, one that came from the nose more than not.

“Where are you guys going, Vim?” Rosie asked as we left the supply room.

“South. To the sea,” I said.

“Ah. It stinks there,” she said.

Did it? Maybe she didn’t like the smell of the sea. Some didn't.

“Where you from, Rosie?” I asked her.

“Huh? Here?” she asked back.

I see. So she had been born on this ship.

Interesting.

Though… was it? I really didn’t want to get too involved with these people. Even if Renn, especially if Renn, was doing her damnedest to do so.

“Where are you from?” she asked.

“The moon,” I said.

She laughed and ruffled my hair. “Come on!”

“Fine fine… I’m from the bottom of the sea,” I said as I headed down another hallway. One that led to a stairwell that would take us back up to the deck.

“Gosh. You’re as bad as mom,” she grumbled.

“What’s this? Little Rosie, did you grow taller?” a woman paused before us. She had been about to enter a room, but had noticed our approach.

Rosie giggled as she shuffled around, nearly falling off my back in the process. “I have! I told you I’d get taller!” Rosie declared.

“Why yes you did. And you, if you’re in the mood to play horsey later just let me know,” she winked at me as she stepped into her room.

“Horsey?” Rosie asked as I stepped past the woman’s room.

“I worry for your future Rosie,” I said honestly.

“Eh, don’t. I’ll be a pirate like mom,” she said proudly.

That’s what I’m worried about…

Rounding a corner, I carried Rosie up the stairs to the deck. I made sure to duck so she’d not hit her head, but she kept trying to grab the beams and door frames as we passed them. Luckily she didn’t hurt herself, since most of the wood this ship was made out of was still prickly and not smoothed, but she was a little hardier than most little girls her age.

“Hm… Maybe they’re downstairs,” Rosie said as she looked around, and found both her mother and my Renn missing.

“Probably. I wanted to check the masts and anchor though,” I said as I headed for the nearest mast.

“Only the left anchor works,” Rosie told me.

“That’s good to know,” I said as I walked around the mainmast. It looked… fine… except for the large crack forming a few dozen feet up its center.

It was simply old. If Rosie was telling the truth, which she likely was, and she had been born on this ship… then well…

It was likely a decade or two old. At the best. Although this river was a fresh water one, it was still a river in the desert. A hot, humid place. And if it hadn’t been receiving any maintenance then… well…

There was no wonder as to why the ship was falling apart. It had reached the end of its short lifespan, and was barely hanging on.

The other two masts were in better condition, but their rigging and sails weren’t so lucky. The mizzen mast’s sails were haggard, to the point I doubted they really got much worth out of them even while fully unfurled.

Such a state would have gotten the whole crew whipped back in my day.

“See? It’s stuck,” Rosie pointed at one of the anchors as I took us to the bow.

Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation.

The anchor chains were in the floor of the deck. They both had their own levers and pulleys, and the chains were rather small. Likely a good thing, since it meant the women of the ship could probably work it without much issue. The left anchor was fully wound, calmly sitting a few feet over the edge of the ship’s bow. It didn’t move an inch as the ship swayed and floated, telling me it was fine. The right anchor however was dangling off the side of the ship, rocking and scraping against the hull.

It wasn’t hanging low enough to have been the cause of the hole, but it’d not surprise me if it created another hole all the same.

“Can you fix it?” Rosie asked as I studied the mechanism that held it in place.

It looked fine on first appearance. All the chain links, the pulley, the rotating wheel that the chain wrapped around… nothing screamed broken in my eyes as I studied it.

“Depends on what’s wrong with it,” I said as I reached over to grab one of the metal bars that controlled the mechanism. I tugged on it lightly, to see if it’d engage or not. It didn’t budge at all.

I could tell I could tug hard enough to free it, but I refrained. Last thing I needed was for the chain to snap or flail and kill the little girl on my shoulders. That chain, even though a small one, had enough tension in it to tear a normal person in half. These things didn’t hurt when they malfunctioned, they killed. Brutally.

“Well?” Rosie asked as I stepped back from the lever, and knelt down as to get a closer look at the section in the floor where the chain disappeared into, past the wheel mechanism.

“I might be able to. I’ll check it tomorrow,” I said. The sun was starting to set. And although I was willing, and able, to work through the night… I honestly didn’t want to. I’d rather spend the night with Renn.

“Can I watch?” Rosie asked.

Reaching up, I picked Rosie up off my back. She fought me for a moment, complaining, but eventually settled down as I put her onto the ground.

She huffed at me. “Rude,” she said.

“I am,” I agreed, as I went to stand up.

“You’re not as soft as Renn. Maybe that’s why you don’t have ears,” Rosie said with a sigh.

The ship creaked and jolted. Rosie let out a tiny cry as she fell forward, grabbing my leg right before she fell to the floor.

Calming myself, I stood up fully as I stared down at the little girl. Her bows and pigtails danced in worry as she looked all around, looking for the source of the ship’s sudden jolt.

There was none of course. The river was calm, the only reason we could hear splashing right now is thanks to the ship suddenly listing as it had. We were far away from the banks. All was well.

Or at least. It should have been.

For the smallest moment… I weighed it.

This girl’s life.

Her mother’s.

All of the other women and children.

The entire ship.

A ship I had just spent two whole days fixing and repairing… I was now debating sinking. Destroying and burning, sending it to the depths alongside the crew.

But before I could make the decision, and before my hand grabbed the young girl’s skull… she looked up at me in worry. “Vim? What did we hit?” she asked me. She clung to my leg, for safety. For comfort. For surety.

My hand reached her head, and I sighed as I patted her bundle of hair in an effort to comfort her. “Nothing. All is well,” I said to her.

She frowned at me in a way that told me she didn’t believe me.

Taking a deep breath I glanced around. The deck was still empty… for now. I knew soon the other women would come up top, to see if we did in fact hit something.

I shifted a little and Rosie swayed a little, as if in conjuncture with the ship's. She tilted her head at me in a way only children could do, and smiled at me.

“I don’t have ears, or a tail,” I told her.

Rosie blinked and smiled as she stepped towards me, grabbing my elbow excitedly. “She has a tail too?” she asked.

I nodded. “I’m more like you, than her,” I said.

“Oh…?”

“Not scared of her?” I asked the little girl.

“She’s nice. She even shares her snacks,” Rosie said.

“She is nice, isn’t she?” I agreed with a sigh.

Too nice.

Had she shown the little girl on purpose? Or had it been an accident?

Did it matter…?

What was I going to do with that woman?

No matter what I did, I needed first to address my own self. After all I had known she would have done something stupid. The way she had pushed me out of that room last night had made such a thing obvious.

But…

“I have rules,” I whispered.

“Rules?” Rosie asked, and I realized she was focused entirely on me. I shouldn’t ignore her and get lost in thought.

“Have you told anyone, Rosie? About Renn?” I asked her gently.

She frowned and shook her head.

“Why not?”

Rosie opened her mouth, then hesitated. She looked around, as if to make sure no one else was listening… and then hesitated.

Kneeling down, I got on her level and held eye contact with the young girl. She shuffled a bit, and then sighed.

“Last time I told mom… bad things happened,” she whispered.

“What kind of things?” I asked.

Rosie’s eyes began to water, and I realized I should probably back off. The little girl didn’t need to be traumatized any more than she already was and…

“Daddy was going to sell us. To the Nation of Stone. I told mom,” she said softly, revealing it without a fuss.

Cold understanding washed through me, and I regretted hearing it.

Great. Just wonderful.

It’s never one thing alone, is it? It’s always something worse.

Taking a small breath I nodded. “It’s okay. Thank you for keeping her secret. I’ll let her know you’re someone she can trust,” I said to her.

Rosie perked up at my words, taking them as the great compliment that they really were. She nodded happily, and smiled at me.

I stood as some people stepped out onto the deck. They walked slowly, wearily, and were looking around. Likely brought onto the deck thanks to the sharp movement of the ship from earlier.

“Rosie? What happened?” one of them asked.

“No idea!” the little girl hurried away, running over to them.

As she explained to everyone that we had been checking the anchors when the ship suddenly jolted wildly, her mother stepped out onto the deck. She looked around, and Rosie ran into her mother’s arms before she could really come to any conclusion.

Stepping away from the anchors, I sighed and debated my next action.

If the little girl had honestly not told anyone… there was no reason to kill her. Especially so if Rosie didn’t find anything strange about the situation. We were only a few days from our destination, and odds are the girl was young enough that she’d simply… forget about Renn and her ears. Or at least, the memories would fade and become just a distant dream. Something she’d never know if were real or not.

And even if she did tell the rest… well…

Studying the women as they talked amongst themselves, and to their captain, I noted the scrawniness of the group.

Yes. Malnourished. Weak. Broken.

“Won’t last long anyway,” I whispered.

Roslyn put her daughter on another woman’s back, and then after a few words sent them all back into the ship. Rosie complained as she was carried back into the ship… and eventually the only ones left on the deck were I and the captain.

Oh? Was she going to try again to ask for help?

Maybe Renn hadn’t agreed to anything yet. If so I’ll need to praise her. I had honestly expected her to roll over for them already.

Cats usually weren't so sympathetic. If not for the Chronicler making it clear she was a pure-blooded one, I'd think she was more a dog than not.

Roslyn coughed as she walked over to me, her eyes scanning the deck as she approached. I noticed the way she studied the few spots I had messed with throughout the day. A railing I had fixed to be better secured, and not fall off. The pulley they used to lift the smaller boat, so that it’d not get tangled as often as it had been. A hole was now missing near the bow of the ship. The spot I had fixed wasn’t far from where I now stood.

“You’ve been busy,” Roslyn said once she was close enough.

“Better for me that way. The busier I keep myself, the less opportunity I have to get in trouble,” I said.

Roslyn smirked and nodded. “Renn says the same thing.”

“She’s smart,” I said.

“That she is…” Roslyn whispered.

Studying the pirate captain, I patiently waited for her upcoming request. Her begging. Her demands, maybe, even.

What would she offer? She had in a way already offered her body and the bodies of all the other women on board… so what else could they possibly have to give? They had no wealth. Little food. Less water.

Honestly the only thing she, or any of the women, had that was worth anything were their children… and if she offered them, then… well…

I doubted Renn would have remained silent if they had done such a thing. Even she wasn’t gentle enough to forgive such a thing.

“My husband and the rest… had planned to sell us,” Roslyn then said.

Ah. An attempt to tug at my feelings is it? To make her pity her?

It worked, but I never allowed it to change anything.

“So I’ve heard,” I said.

“Renn told you?” Roslyn asked, surprised.

“Your daughter,” I said.

Roslyn’s surprise melted into a gentle smile. “I see. Yes. The poor girl blames herself. She thinks she got her daddy killed,” Roslyn said.

“Children see it that way, yes.”

She nodded. “They can’t comprehend that their fathers would actually sell them. They never do, until it happens. Sometimes even afterwards they still don’t believe it,” Roslyn said.

I noted she was speaking from experience.

A harsh life you’ve lived, pirate.

“He was stupid enough to plan it while she slept in his arms. Men can be so stupid,” Roslyn said.

“We can be,” I agreed.

“Do you find it wrong?” she asked.

“What?”

“What we did?” she specified.

Shaking my head, I frowned. “No? But I’m not… normal. So don’t expect such moral standards from me,” I said.

Roslyn smirked and nodded. “Right. Not normal at all.”

Ah…

I shifted again, and the boat listed.

Roslyn noticed immediately and went white in the face. “How the hell…” she mumbled as she stared at me.

“Choose your next words very carefully, Roslyn. More than your life rests upon them,” I warned her.

Roslyn started to shake in fear, and stepped away. A part of me expected her to turn around and run away… but instead… miraculously, she regained her composure.

Color swiftly returned to her face, to the point it went beyond normal. She actually became flushed, as if suddenly embarrassed or heated.

“Your wife says I have a choice,” she said.

“So make it,” I said.

Roslyn gulped. “How do I know you won’t hurt my people?” she asked.

“Any more than your failure's have already, you mean?” I asked back.

The pirate flinched as if I had just slapped her across the face. She looked away for a moment, and then nodded before looking back at me.

“You’re right. We had over fifty people a year ago. A year before that we had a dock, near the Crumbling Cliffs. Two years before that we had two ships more,” she admitted.

“Everyone stumbles eventually,” I said.

“If that was all it was, I’d not be so scared Vim,” she said.

Well… that was true. They weren’t stumbling. They were drowning. Nearly had done so literally the other night.

Roslyn gulped. “I’m worried I’m doing what my husband failed to do all those years ago,” she said.

“I do think Renn would have doused such worries by now,” I said.

She nodded. “She has. She’s… made it clear we’d not be slaves. But more like employees. Workers, even,” she said.

“Renn’s many things, but a liar is not one of them,” I told her.

“I can tell,” she said with a smile.

I sighed as I looked away from the pirate captain and to the nearby riverbank. There was a small group of trees alongside it right now. They were thin, dry things that looked as if something had eaten all the leaves off them.

“Where’s Renn anyway?” I asked.

“Gathering our dinner. She’ll likely be here in a moment,” she said.

Our dinner…?

Roslyn stepped towards me, but hesitated. “My mother. She knew of your kind. Told me the stories. Well… she told lots of stories. About all sorts of things. I never believed them… until now,” she said.

“All legends have a grain of truth,” I told her.

She smiled and nodded. “Yes. It seems so.”

The pirate then gestured behind her, to the door that led into the ship. “Make sure you tell your wife not to smile so happily around these parts. This land has become so desolate and full of sorrow that anyone who sees her smile like that will want to steal it from her,” she warned me.

“It’s a fault of mine. Yes. I’m never able to crush my people’s spirits,” I said.

“Might seem like a fault to you, but I find that very pleasing to hear,” Roslyn said.

“Also… she can smile as much as she wants. The whole world may try to take it from her, I’ll not let it,” I said to make sure she understood.

Roslyn studied me for a moment, and then nodded.

“You have been given the option. Renn has invited you. I can’t do anything until you make your choice. But know this…” I turned to watch Renn. She had a wooden bucket in her arms, and was hurrying up the stairs to the deck. “Compared to the struggles of my people, yours are not worth worrying over. If you join us you will have new worries, yes, and some will be dire… but you’ll never again need to worry over your daughter having food, a warm bed, or a long life,” I said.

“Vim!” Renn shouted at me as she hurried onto the deck. The bucket she carried splashed wildly, and not just because of her haphazard running… were those fish in the bucket?

“She’s lovely. I can only pray that my daughter grows up to be like her,” Roslyn whispered.

“You can have that chance, if you’d like. You must only make the choice,” I told her.

As Renn hurried up to me, I found myself relaxing a little. The tense worry that had been building in the back of my neck immediately disappeared as she skidded to a stop in front of me, showing off the contents of her bucket.

“Vim! Look at these things! They’re slimy and wiggling so hilariously!” Renn was laughing as she showed me the eels.

Smiling at her I nodded as I reached in and grabbed one of the wiggling things. It tried to slip out of my grip, but couldn’t. “They’re tasty too,” I said.

There were at least twenty or so eels in the bucket… which was surprising. Weren’t they running low on food?

“They snuck in during the flooding. We found them in a barrel!” Renn explained.

Huh… really.

Studying the squirming eel in my hand, I smiled and debated taking a bite. But I knew if I did, Renn might yell at me.

“Well let’s get to cooking them. Over dinner we can talk, pirate. Maybe before Renn gets a stomach ache you’ll be able to convince her why you should be allowed to join our Society,” I said as I dropped the eel back into her bucket.

Renn’s eyes went wide as she turned to Roslyn, whose eyes were locked onto my own.

Roslyn nodded without hesitating, and didn't even notice when one of the eels flipped up and smacked Renn in the face.