Yazwa lay on her back, staring up at the wispy white clouds drifting through the sky. A little wave splashed against her bare feet before withdrawing back into the sea. She took a deep breath, taking some small comfort in the fresh air after being cooped up in Hilt for the last three days. Not that it was very far. A stand of palm trees on the tiny island blocked the view of the city, but she could still hear its hustle and bustle over the sound of the waves. "Is anyone coming yet?"

"Some ships are going back and forth between Hilt and the other island," Saiyun said, perched on a piece of driftwood. "But none have come our way."

"Great," Yazwa sighed, lifting her head to look across the water. A forested island on the outskirts of Hilt played host to hundreds of the Vathlanri's twin-hulled ships. The smaller ones were pulled up on the beach while the larger ones floated in shallow waters nearby. At their distance, she could make out people tending to the ships, but not much else. "You don't think they just abandoned us, do you?"

Saiyun took a deep breath. "No. It would have been easier just to leave us in Hilt. We just have to be patient."

Looking back up at the sky, Yazwa figured being marooned by the Vathlanri would fit with how the last few days had gone. Aven's silver had been enough for five nights at a seedy inn. It had taken three days to find someone from the Tavada ata that would listen to them. When they were finally allowed onto a boat the crew had dropped them off on the tiny islet and paddled away with nothing but garbled instructions to wait. So they did. "Do you think we'll be back for sundown?"

"Worst case scenario, we can ride back on Swift Tanlin after the sun goes down. I can't risk anyone noticing I'm a Vao," Saiyun said. "If they haven't come the last three nights, I doubt they'll be there tonight."

Yazwa closed her eyes and splayed out her arms, digging her fingers into the sand. It would be the night they were stuck that Aven and Ji would come back. Maybe they were horribly injured. Maybe one of them had been captured by a Blood Achali and needed to be rescued. Maybe both of them were captured and tortured. They could have already found the Blood Achali and started killing and the city guard was hunting for them. With no one else to turn to, they went to the docks only to find no one waiting for them.

Gripping the sand tightly in her fists, Yazwa did her best to force the thoughts aside. Even if Ji wasn't acting rationally, Aven was with her. He knew his way around places like this. They would watch over each other. "I hope they're both safe," Yazwa said, half to herself and half to Saiyun.

"Me too," said Saiyun, shielding his eyes from the sun. "I think I see some ships coming towards us."

Yazwa sat up and brushed the sand out of her hair. Three of the small ships were approaching fast, triangular sails unfurled to catch a gentle wind while Vathlanri on either side dug their oars into the water. "Do you think this is a good sign?" Yazwa asked, climbing to her feet.

"I have no idea," Saiyun said with a shrug. "Aven would be the one to ask."

They watched in silence as the three ships closed in on them. Yazwa counted seven Vathlanri in each boat before the one in the middle drifted to a stop. The two on the wings kept going, angling their course so they landed on the beach at a distance on either side of Yazwa and Saiyun. As one they jumped onto the sand and held their short, double-barreled guns at the ready. One circled away from each group around to the opposite side of the island. "Should we...say something?" Yazwa asked as the two groups stared in silence. "How do you greet Vathlanri? Aren't you supposed to open your mouth or something?"

"Let's let them set the pace," Saiyun said, eyeing the group to their left. "I think I recognize one of them, the one with the burn scar."

Yazwa peered at her, squinting in the bright sunlight. She was older, green topknot faded and streaked with gray. A nasty burn scar covered the side of her head above her ear and her right arm was decorated with dozens of tattoos of small interlocking circles. "You're right," she said. "That's the one that boarded our boat first back in Adoti."

A sharp whistle rang out from the other side of the island and the burned woman nodded. She put one hand to her mouth and let out another whistle. "Wait here," she said in clipped Gray as the third ship started to row towards them. "Sayel wants to hear what you have to say."

Before long the third ship beached itself and a single woman jumped off. Her hair was gray and her face was wrinkled and weather-beaten, but her ice-blue eyes were sharp and piercing. "Where is Aven?" Sayel asked as she strode up to them, locking eyes with Yazwa. "Where is Bill?"

"Jail," Yazwa stuttered. "Well, Bill is. We don't know where Aven is right now, but he told us how to get in touch with you."

Saiyun reached out and patted Yazwa on the shoulder. "I would rather speak of Azun's treasure fleet first. Have you heard the rumors?"

"What rumors are those?" asked Sayel. "The sea is vast and holds many tales."

Yazwa rubbed her arm and glanced at Saiyun. It seemed like dozens of languages were spoken in Hilt, but the only one she knew was Gray. Even so, she had heard Azun's name come up in a lot of conversations by the docks when she waited for Aven and Ji. Who knew how the stories had grown with each telling? "The ones about Azun's treasure fleet and his treasure ships," she said.

"At least those rumors are true," Saiyun added. "We saw them and were briefly held captive before we made our escape. There is much we can tell you."

"If you are here and Bill is in prison, he must have failed to destroy the fleet," said Sayel. "What of Tsen? Is he dead?"

"No," Yazwa said with a gentle shake of her head. Tsen seemed to guard the secret of his true nature closely and they decided to keep his secret as best they could. If only to prevent the dragon from coming after them someday. "He had a bargain with Bill to attack the fleet. He managed to destroy a few of the treasure ships before Bill changed the bargain to help us escape."

"How many were destroyed?" Sayel asked quickly, leaning forward.

An ember of hope flickered in Yazwa. She was interested, that was good. "Three. That's what he told us. We only saw him break the masts off the Golden Colossus."

Sayel frowned and crossed her arms over her chest. "Only three. I suppose even Tsen has his limits."

"Three out of twenty," Saiyun spoke up. "Not sunk, damaged. That means other ships from the fleet will need to aid them. It will slow and weaken the fleet until the ships can be repaired."

The old Vathlanri squinted at Saiyun. "I hope your plan was not to convince me to attack this fleet. The loss of three ships will weaken that fleet as much as a splinter weakens a whale."

"No no," Saiyun said, reaching into his bag. "We want to show you where their shipyard is."

"What?!" snapped the burned woman.

Yazwa smiled as the rest of the Vathlanri murmured to each other and the burned woman ran to Sayel's side. Everything depended on the Vathlanri being willing to attack the shipyard. It was a good first step.

"I managed to steal the logbook from the Golden Colossus, as well as one from the ship we escaped on," Saiyun said, pulling a black book and a single large page out of his pack and handing them over. "The first few positional entries are in code, but Bill and I managed to break it. It's on an island in the Ketrin Sea. I wrote the coordinates on the big page."

The two Vathlanri examined the book, and Yazwa shot a hopeful look at Saiyun. "We have the other logbook stored away for safekeeping," she said. "But you're welcome to keep that one."

Sayel and the burned woman whispered back and forth to each other in their own language for a while before Sayel folded up the single page and tucked it into the logbook. "Why?" she asked, handing the book off. "Why come to us, what do you want?"

"I need to find someone named Yia," said Yazwa. "She sails with the Achara ata, I have a curse that Tsen says only she can remove. The last I heard, she was up in the Sacar Islands, and I need a way to get there."

"My story is...more complicated," Saiyun said, shifting his weight back and forth. "To keep it short, my country and his are at war. I will earn great rewards and renown if I have a hand in the destruction of his treasure fleet. Our interests align, and we will happily sail with you into danger. We would also like your help getting Bill out of jail."

A quiet moment passed as the gentle surf washed up and down the beach. "How does that help us?" Sayel asked.

Yazwa frowned. "He hates Azun and he's a great warrior. Wouldn't you rather have him on your side?"

"Hilt does not benefit from Azun's fleet sailing the seas either," Saiyun added. "If you approached the Senior Batore of Hilt, I'm sure she would release him to you. Perhaps even send along a few ships with you to help in the attack."

Sayel's eyes softened for a moment, and she shared a look with the burned woman. "What about Aven? Why did he send you instead of coming to meet with us himself?"

Their original plan was to lie, but now that she was face to face with Sayel, Yazwa had the feeling she would spot any falsehood in a heartbeat. "He is occupied hunting Achali who broke the blood taboo. We think they're working for Azun."

"He and our other friend Ji are better at sneaking around than we are," Saiyun added quickly. "They are closely following some leads while we do work more suited to our skills."

"First, we will examine what you gave us," Sayel said, gesturing to the book held in the burned woman's hands. "If it is the truth, come to us in seven days, and we will carry all of you with us in gratitude. If Bill kept you on his crew, you must be able to handle yourselves. After seven days, we will set sail with or without you. But we will not help you set Bill free."

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"Why?" asked Yazwa. "All he wants to do is kill Azun! I've seen him fight, so you should be begging to have him come with us."

Saiyun nodded along. "All true. I was told you have some influence with the leaders of Hilt. Surely there could be no harm at least trying to get him out."

"Wabaro is a clever, scheming sort," Sayel said curtly. "If she still has Bill imprisoned, that means she has plans I don't want to be caught up in. As you said, the fleet is weakened and slowed. This is the perfect time to attack, and we will not waste such an opportunity by playing the Favor Game with her."

"But-" Yazwa said.

"Seven days," said Sayel. "It will take us that long to make ready. Bring Aven and your other friend, and we'll bring you with us if what you gave us is true. Don't expect us to wait for you. Uvenli! Bring them back to Hilt!"

Yazwa stammered, trying to think of anything else to say as Sayel walked away from them and hopped on the boat.

"With me," the burned woman called, beckoning them over to her ship.

The ride back to Hilt was swift and silent, save for the Vathlanri's rowing song. With some help, they got back up on the dock, and the Vathlanri were on their way without another word. Yazwa was careful not to make eye contact as they passed by curious sailors and didn't speak until they were clear of any eavesdroppers. "I really thought they were going to help us get Bill out," she said after taking a look up and down the quiet street.

"At least we know they're going after Azun," said Saiyun, leaning against a wall. "And maybe if we can make contact with Aven before they leave, it will help entice him and Ji to join up with us again."

"So we have seven days to find them and seven days to get Bill out of jail," Yazwa said, blinking when Saiyun looked away. "What? You're not thinking of leaving him behind, are you?"

Saiyun flinched. "Well...we have to think about it logically. Right now, we both have what we want. You can find the Achara, and I can do some damage to Azun. Should we take any more risks?"

"After everything we've been through?" asked Yazwa, lowering her voice when someone passed by. "He took us onto his ship, and if it wasn't for him we'd be in prison in Channan Harbor. Don't you think we owe it to him?"

"Do we?" Saiyun asked, meeting her eyes. "He didn't help us out of the goodness of his heart. He was playing the Favor Game. We got out, and he got a Vao and an Achali on his side. By those standards, we're even. Leaving him is the smart thing to do."

His words stung, but Yazwa couldn't deny that they made sense. Bill wasn't some noble hero; he was a pirate that would probably have abandoned her if it was convenient. The whole reason she was out here was to find Yia so she could go back home. Trying to break a notorious pirate out of prison could wind up getting her tossed in herself. Saiyun was right.

But could she really go home knowing she left a man who'd helped her so much rot?

"It might be the smart thing to do," Yazwa said slowly. "But it's not the right thing to do."

Saiyun took a deep breath and hung his head. "Yeah. I know," he said, straightening up. "That means we've only got one option. Tomorrow, we reach out to my Ambassador and see if he's willing to help us."

-

Aven crouched low behind the stack of barrels that had been their hiding place all night, peeking over the top. A dim light was glowing in the eastern sky, and soon the dawn would light up the building he was certain held a blood Achali. The pier was small and raggedy, especially compared to the grander ones further down the shore. Only local goods came and went, so the customs inspectors didn't spend much time poking around here. All the other warehouses had old, rusty locks, but this one had locks that were shiny and strong. There were no houses nearby, so there was no risk of neighbors overhearing whatever went wrong at night. But what really convinced him was the guard.

An older man with a bad leg, he limped his way around the warehouse a couple of times every few hours, waving a lantern to light his path. From what he'd been able to gather, this warehouse was mostly used to store and dry cords of wood. In all his life, he'd never met anyone willing to hire a guard to protect firewood.

"Are we going yet?" Ji hissed behind him, the tip of her tail tapping against the dock. "We should just go now. We can take him out."

"It's almost time," Aven hushed, crouching back down. "He leaves at dawn, and it will be hours before one else shows up. We can get in and get out without anyone knowing we were there."

Ji scowled in the darkness. "There's a Blood Achali in there. People will know we were there after we kill him."

"They won't know it was us if we do it right," Aven said. "If we're lucky, we can even get rid of the body. We don't want them knowing someone is looking for them."

"I do," growled Ji, clenching her fists. "I want them to know death is coming."

Aven struggled to find something to say to that but was saved when he spotted the guard hang up his lantern and walk away from his post. "There, he's gone. Follow me."

The old wooden boards of the pier creaked the second they set foot on them. Aven flinched, but he knew any sound would seem loud after a night of silent watching. Aven froze as he set foot on a loose board, waiting for the squeak to echo out into the quiet dawn air. There was no sound, and the hair on the back of his neck rose. They were alone on the pier, but he swore he could feel eyes on him. He glanced up on the roof and down into the water, expecting to see some hidden enemy, but there was no one there but Ji.

"Why did you stop?" she whispered in his ear. "We're almost there."

Holding up his hand, Aven glanced behind them. The pile of barrels blocked them from sight from the street, no one could be watching them from behind. Even if someone on the other side of the bay had a telescope it would be hard to pick them out in the dim morning light. But his instincts were screaming at him that they were being watched.

"Something's wrong," he mumbled, turning around to face Ji. "We need to stop and try another time."

Ji's eyes narrowed into furious slits. "No. I've waited long enough. If there's a Blood Achali in there, I'm going after him with or without you."

Aven blinked.He could tell she was dead serious. All the good reasons to bail out bubbled up in his mind, but he knew none of them would convince her. Ji's gaze was cold and hard as steel, and the thought of how much attention she would draw to herself if she went on alone scared him. "Fine, fine. We'll go, just follow my lead."

When she said nothing, Aven turned around and crept forward, ignoring the pit in his stomach. It might all be in his head, just nerves from being so close. It was probably that, nothing more.

Peeking around the corner of the pier, he saw it was empty, merely an extension of the path around the outside of the warehouse. The door faced out into the bay, giving him plenty of time and cover to work on the lock. "We take it slow when we go in," Aven said as he pulled out his lock picks and got to work. Like the one at the front of the warehouse, the lock was suspiciously new and strong. "Keep to the shadows until we know what's inside, and then we'll start searching."

"He won't know what hit him," said Ji with a twisted smile. "Ca Diro said the others weren't as strong as him, so this will be easy."

"We don't know that for sure," Aven said, gently working the lock until it clicked. The creak of the hinges made him flinch as he carefully swung the door open. The warehouse was full of free-standing shelves packed with bundles of wood that stretched almost to the ceiling. The long shelves stretched into the warehouse, their height blocking the dim light streaming in through the vents between the walls and the ceiling. Everything Aven could see was wreathed in gloomy shadows. "There might not even be anyone here. We're going to keep close to the wall and walk the length of the room."

Ji followed in Aven's footsteps, stepping lightly with her tail twitching back and forth.

Step by step, Aven advanced to the corner of the warehouse and then deeper in, hugging the wall. The shelves blocked all lines of sight deeper into the warehouse, it was impossible to tell what was deeper in. Or who. The old floorboards creaked and groaned as they crept forward, shelves looming over them. Once they made a full circuit, they would push deeper in and find whatever secrets it was holding.

A shadow flitted across the wall above them.

"DOWN!" Aven screamed, dropping to a crouch and rolling forward just as something whistled through the air above him. By the time he got back to his feet, his long knife was out and his gaze darted upward to find the threat.

In the dim light, he made out a humanoid figure crouching on top of the shelf above them. From what he could see, it had incredibly long arms that ended in three sharp claws that had nearly sliced him to pieces. Its face had one massive eye running top to bottom and two smaller ones on each side. Flaps on either side of its head fluttered as it hissed and darted backward out of sight.

Ji bolted past Aven, sprinting the length of the shelves and rounding the corner. "You can't run from me!" she bellowed as she disappeared.

"Wait!" Aven called, running after her. Whatever that thing was, it knew the layout of the warehouse. It could be leading them into a trap for all he knew. He weaved through the shelves, following the sound of Ji's voice until he emerged in an open space in the middle of the room. There was a desk and chair, along with a wide wooden table that Aven could tell was bloodstained even in the dim light. He couldn't help but notice the shelves blocked the open space from view as he rushed to help Ji.

The creature, whether it was a summon or an Otzen, had dropped to the ground, and Ji was relentlessly pushing the attack. Though mostly human in shape, its skin was mottled gray and black, with a rough surface like a frog. The unnaturally long arms seemed to be made solely of sinew and muscle, they whirled and slashed, trying to keep her away as it backed up, weaving around the furniture towards the shelves.

"Don't follow it!" Aven called as Ji ducked under a wild swing and surged forward, landing a solid hit to the creature's chest that made it stagger backward. It launched a sharp jab at her that she easily dodged as its claws sunk into the wooden floor.

"Got you!" cried Ji as she lunged forward.

The sound of snapping wood ripped through the air as the creature yanked its arms back, tearing a huge chunk out of the floor just as Ji committed to her attack. She let out a scream of rage and shock as she plunged through the hole and vanished from sight.

Aven stumbled as he heard a harsh, hacking laugh behind him. There was someone else in here.

He ran forward, putting on more speed as he raced down one of the shadowy aisles, barely avoiding another slice from the creature as he passed by. He heard it jump up onto one of the shelves again, but he didn't bother looking behind him. The back door slammed open as he burst through and hurled himself over the railing into the bay. The tide was low and the water was only waist-deep, but it was enough to cushion his fall. "Ji!" Aven coughed, sloshing towards the wooden supports that held up the pier, knife at the ready.

"Come on!" she called, staring up at the hole. The three-eyed creature stared down at them, unmoving. "Come down here and fight me!"

Aven grabbed her arm with his free hand and tried to drag her away. "We have to go! Someone will have heard that and they'll send the guards to investigate. We can't be here when they show up!"

"Let me go!" Ji shouted, yanking her arm out of his grip. "He's right here! We can kill him!"

As Aven reached for her again the water next to them erupted in an explosion of froth as something with a wide, toothy mouth lunged at them from beneath the surface.

A mix of reflexes and sheer dumb luck saved them as Aven plunged his knife into the onrushing creature's mouth. In a heartbeat, it shivered and was replaced with a blast of pressurized water. The force of it blew them through the water to the next pier, where Aven staggered to his feet as saltwater burned his eyes. "If they have one they have another! We have to get out of here, now!" he said, grabbing her arm and pulling her along with him toward shore

Ji let out a feral roar and slapped the water, pointing at the pier. "I'm coming back for you!" she screamed, pointing as she stumbled backward.

Aven turned and followed her gaze. On the edge of a pier, a person stood, staring back at them. The dim light of morning was just enough to see a pair of glowing green eyes watching them stagger away.