"Oh god..not my family..."

The pure dread in Marlon's voice was very uncharacteristic of a royal, especially one in line for the throne. He really didn't like associating with his family, and with him in this condition, they'd just try to use it as an excuse to keep him home. And sneaking out all the time was starting to get a little repetetive.

By the way, he was sitting in the bed by now, using Serefina for support.

"Yes, your family. The people keeping the throne warm while you go off gallivanting around the world." She sighed, and reached up, bringing his head down to her shoulder and petting his hair affectionately. Odd behavior towards a prince really, but oh well. He seemed to need a bit of comfort.

Indeed, odd behavior towards a prince.

But in any event, Eri nodded slightly, hoping that Marlon would not get his gesture of acknowledgment. As for the family bit...

"I will have to speak to the Duvahian nobility about these events, you understand. They must take action towards the roving bands of pirates in their waters- see how much they can learn of them. Not to mention this fleet is for diplomatic matters and trade as well."

He looked towards Marlon, yet spoke towards Reinelle in a quiet tone of voice, "Are they really that bad, his parents? You have not heard anything about them, have you?"

Cinta rolled her eyes behind the back of the obnoxious lady. She had gotten a job in a little apothecary that tended to have fairly decent business on the premise that the snipey old matron who owned the shop was a witch. Cinta was convinced that she didn't actually have any magic, just acting skill. However, she needed a job if she was to escape suspicion.

She was still haunted at night with dreams of the vision she had in the swirling teacup. She knew she needed to be closer to power in order to influence these events and she felt that she was meant to do so, or else they wouldn't have spoken to her in a vision. Now, the money could buy great power, but the problem was trading it inconspicuously and waiting to make an appearance until she was sure her owners would be long gone.

She was working on the first problem with the help of the shop. Every day she brought in some Erosian coins, some piece of silk, or some knick knack of value and when someone payed her in Duvahian money, she would trade it out. It was common practice for people to come into the shop with trade instead of straight pay and wouldn't be suspicious. One of the requirements of the job was the ability to appraise.

However, the woman was beginning to get on her nerves. She demanded respect in areas she didn't deserve it in. Cinta never let on that she was a seer, but the hag put on airs that she was a great fortuneteller. It was obvious to Cinta that, at the very least in this, she was a total fraud.

The crew aboard Assa Gaunon was hard at work restoring the few damages the ship had taken, due to the time spent in the battle.

Only a few members of the crew were injured, and two fataly so. Songs of lament echoed accross sea, accompanied by the great howls of snow coloured Great Pyranese that roamed her ships. Each member of the crew shed a tear for every member lost, not just off their own vessel. For the first several hours they would be mourning the dead, after that, a feast would begin that night and would last ten days. A cremation ceremony soon to take place within a few hours. Preperations were already underway.

Sayuri also had sent Osiris, her messenger falcon, to the Persistence, bearing an invitation to the entire fleet so the few lost would have as many friends present as possible.

Lei Tong shouted orders as well as he could over the frenzy of magic and activity, in order to get his newly-assigned temporary army to position his mortars in the right spot. Once the men were in place, and after the fireworks master had been up and down the whole length of the deck, he took up a spot at the first mortar and waited for the ship to move within range of his bombs.

Fidgeting with anticipation as the oarsmen started their work, the old man flicked his iron fan open and fanned himself once or twice, then closed it again. He adjusted his hat. The little bombs would not fly nearly far enough to reach the pirates for another few hundred feet, but he found himself surprisingly content now with the idea of blowing the hell out of their boats as soon at the soonest possible opportunity. He stepped to the railing and experimentally struck a few sparks with his fan against the plate on his glove, then paced back and forth a little. Just a little bit further....

*****

After the battle, Lei Tong would remember shouting the order to fire, and just a chaotic rush of events after that until the pirates turned tail and ran. The funeral arrangements after the battle were something he was not used to, but he participated nonetheless, and swore up and down to anyone who asked about the battle that he had no idea what had happened and that he was too old for things like war. He was able to set off some fireworks properly, as well - up into the air and not at anyone.

The events really sapped him of his energy, though, and so Lei Tong took to turning in early each night. He still awoke each morning with the sun, for his exercises and a walk around on the decks, but he was secretly starting to hope for land soon, so that he could get a good long night's rest in a big, soft bed, to fully recover his strength.

"I can hear you, you know."

Marlon did have excellent hearing after all. And he was not only not asleep, bu was close to Serefina. So, yeah, Eri would have to get his question answered by Marlon himself.

"My parents are good rulers, and good people...they just want me to stay at home. Stop wandering around, like I tend to. And honestly, my sister would make a better queen than I would a king, so I try to stay away from home."

"And this is what comes of being an egalitarian country." She chuckled as she looked Eri. He, at least would understand. Both of them had been raised in effective monarchies without worrying about the class issues like Marlon had. Whether it was better or worse, had yet to be seen.

But she patted Marlon's head as she said that. "You'd make a fine king. I have that from a -very- reliable source." The adoring inflection in her tone letting Marlon know exactly who that source was.

Yes, Eri did indeed understand.

"In any event, I must relegate the tasks before us to my men. We will find out who is truly behind these incidents soon enough, rest assured. For the moment, try to relax. The Expiditionary Fleet will arrive in Duvah within a few days."

And in response to Marlon...

"And don't worry. I promise not to tell your parents that you ever set foot on the docks."

"There's no immediate repairs that need to be made below the water level." Suki stated as she swung one leg after another over the side and back onto the deck, a large puddle of salt water quickly forming beneath her where she stood.

"Make the preparations to make her ready to set sail for the Duvahian port, but do NOT set sail until my or his Imperial Highness' command." Suki ordered, taking a towel that a midshipman handed her a little sheepishly, staring at the ground awkwardly. It was then Suki realized that her shirt was completely see through and only the banding that was keeping her chest in place was preventing the crew from seeing quite a show. She wasn't embarrassed of course; nothing was showing that wasn't supposed to be showing, but the awkwardness of the young midshipman amused her. A nice hard stare given to him by her set him right though and he was able to manage the look of normalcy that the rest of the officers were adopting.

"Scrubs the decks hard too." Suki ordered, giving the top deck a glance over once more, "I want these stains to be gone by the time I've written my report to the admiralty. Send for me the moment any sail appears again. "

With that last order, Suki tromped back down below decks to either find the Prince or start working on those blasted reports that it was now her job to write.

Tati wanted to laugh outright at the statement about Elisabeth but luckily held it in just in time. She knew about the kinds of things Elisabeth did with men: both married and unmarried, but she had never said anything about it unless it was worth her while. Luckily, for Elisabeth, it hadn't been yet as royal intrigue was always more important.

"Well, I'm glad you understand that." Tati replied, apparently not very moved by Reynard's emotion, "Many people from outside of Duvah hear gossip about our circle that is not always true and tend to think that loyalty has no place here."

It had been a bad move that Reynard had made that innuendo. Tati never rose to the occasion with outright references to fooling around. In her opinion those type of things always took the outmust discretion, especially since she was the gossip queen and never wanted to be the center of bad gossip.

"But lets not squabble so fresh into our acquaintance," Tati said with a sudden change into a playful mood, "It's not polite to disagree so early! You must really try to make yourself more agreeable Mr. D'Coulais and make me laugh or I will get quite bored waiting here for Lady Elisabeth."


Of course it had been him that had been rude; never the female. Reynard would have rolled his eyes if it wouldn't have been considered rude. Although since he knew for a fact that Tati had no idea of what Elisabeth did with men and women, because no one knew. She was a widow, and therefore subject to gossip, just because there was a lack of gossip about her. Which probably made Tati jealous.

Reynard made a large flourish and bent on a knee before Tati, presenting a large blue rose, seemingly out of nowhere as if by magic.

"Forgive me, lovely lady. I was beyond rude. Say you'll forgive me or my heart will shatter into a million pieces." He was always good at playing the fool, even if he despised himself for it. Not that the 'girl' was unpretty, but she was a fool if Elisabeth hadn't let her in on her plans.

Originally Posted by seripha

"There's no immediate repairs that need to be made below the water level." Suki stated as she swung one leg after another over the side and back onto the deck, a large puddle of salt water quickly forming beneath her where she stood.

"Make the preparations to make her ready to set sail for the Duvahian port, but do NOT set sail until my or his Imperial Highness' command." Suki ordered, taking a towel that a midshipman handed her a little sheepishly, staring at the ground awkwardly. It was then Suki realized that her shirt was completely see through and only the banding that was keeping her chest in place was preventing the crew from seeing quite a show. She wasn't embarrassed of course; nothing was showing that wasn't supposed to be showing, but the awkwardness of the young midshipman amused her. A nice hard stare given to him by her set him right though and he was able to manage the look of normalcy that the rest of the officers were adopting.

"Scrubs the decks hard too." Suki ordered, giving the top deck a glance over once more, "I want these stains to be gone by the time I've written my report to the admiralty. Send for me the moment any sail appears again. "

With that last order, Suki tromped back down below decks to either find the Prince...

Who she found immediately, heading upstairs. He did not pause for anything more than a brief moment before speaking.

"I trust that the preparations are finished. Good. Before we set out, I want three salvage teams out there at the battle site, picking up whatever traces they can carry of this fight. Those ships were no ordinary vessels... and I want to find out who remodled them to move so quickly.

"Our Duvahian guest may have an answer, but he cannot confirm until we have collected proper evidence. So get some men prepared; understand?"

Tati accepted the blue rose with obvious delight. Magic still amused her, as long as it was the petty kind that could do no harm or interfere with her plans.

"Oooh! How beautiful!" Tati said, sniffing it delicately, "You are very kind."

Despite the gift, Tati was getting increasingly annoyed that Elisabeth was taking so long in making her appearance. It was always much more fun to speak with someone after one knew all the gossip about them than before. Tati knew little about the man and had never heard of him before, so she had never bothered to ask her Eriosian friends about him.

"Aye, aye, sir." Was all Suki could say to that curt order. Letting the Prince pass her so she wouldn't have the awkwardness of trying to find a way to go back up the stairs without turning her back on him, Suki felt a little frustration. He hadn't even wanted a full report. He just assumed things were done and not done.

Three teams? She didn't know if she had enough men to make three full teams for the salvaging. Not that she hadn't already sent a party out already who had come back with a few interesting pieces, but their main intent was to find survivors. She would have to bring up scant crews from all three ships to do some salvaging, the Persistence really didn't have enough men as they had been hit pretty badly. Luckily, not as many men had died as she thought they would, but the amount of men injured from the flying splinters of wood and the occasional unlucky cannon shot, was higher than she would have liked. Those men could easily die from the close, damp, dark quarters they were currently in with only one doctor to attend them.

"Mr. --" She barked as she reached the quarter deck once more, the acting first lieutenant surprised to see her once more on deck after just having said she would not be, "The Prince has shown an interest in examining the wreckage of the pirate ships. Signal the fleet with the orders to send one party with one officer per ship to pick up as much useful wreckage as possible and bring it back to the Persistence by the next set of bells."

That wouldn't be a lot of time, but it would mean that there would be several different parties floating on the water who all would find different things of value. The likelihood of them finding something valuable was much higher.

"Send a party of our own out as well. Let me know immediately if anything of particular value appears." Suki then made her way back down below decks. She did have a whole lot of reporting to do.

Cederic knocked on the door to Sayuri's room waiting long enough for her to answer and then go in, shutting the door behind him.

"It's almost time." Cederic said to her half-heartedly, referring to the burial ceremony about to take place.

Sayuri simply nodded solemnly, without her usual smile, knowing exactly what he meant.

Many of the men aboard didn't wholly believe in their old religion, but they did still hold strong to their traditions and beliefs of death. Death meant seeing your family long lost, and the ability to move freely throughout time and space, though leaving family behind, you would still be able to watch over them and safeguard them from the afterlife.

"Has the salvage crew been sent out?" Sayuri asked Cederic.

"Yes, about fifteen minutes ago." Cederic replied, mood unchanged.

"I'm ready now. How do I look?" Sayuri turned wearing silver armour with an intricately carved wolf wrapped in ivy on her greaves, a scene of a meadow twisting between snowcapped mountains on her thighs, another scene of a phoenix taking to flight on her breast plate and simple silver bracers adorning her arms.

"Battleready." Cederic replied smiling.

Sayuri laughed softly as they headed out the door and up the stairs to where the ceremony would take place.

Wearing your 'best' clothes was in no way a requirement unless you were mistress of the ceremony, which Sayuri was, being as she was Captain.

The deck had all crewmembers spread across the bow and as far up the ropes as they could go. The five that had passed were on one of the passanger boats hoisted off port side of the ship. The dead were dressed in armour and their weapons laid upon their chests. They lay upon a bed of hay soaked in ale to make the boat catch fire once the archers fired upon it.

Four other women dressed only in leather armour stood next to the rail on port side next to the boat, bows in hand.

Sayuri approached the center of the deck leaving Cederic in the crowd.

Drums began to sound, men incirled her, playing around her, a group of five women and five men came out of the crowd and began to dance between the nine playing drums. The drummers standing still, the dancers weaving in and out around the drummers and then around Sayuri, moving slowly then the dancers began to pickup pace.

Sayuri open her mouth to sing a song of lament as the boat the dead crew members were on was lowered to the sea.

On Heimdall's rainbow bridge I stand
and cast a wishful eye
on Asgard's great and lofty halls,
where my desires lie.

I strive for that hallowed place,
I strive for that hallowed place,
With gods and goddesses to feast all night,
I strive for that hallowed place.

There generous fruits that never fail
On trees immortal grow.
There rocks and hills and brooks and vales
With mead and honey flow.

I strive for that hallowed place,
I strive for that hallowed place,
With gods and goddesses to feast all night,
I strive for that hallowed place.

Soon will the gods my soul prepare
for joys up in the sky,
Where never-ceasing pleasures roll
And kinship never dies.

The entire crew then chimed in singing the last chorus together as Sayuri walked to the rail where the four women archer stood. Sayuri picked up a bow and arrow, and as she lifted the bow up to the sky, the four women followed suit, setting the arrow on fire at the same time, the boat now far enough away, waiting to fire until signaled...the final goodbye...

I strive for that hallowed place,
I strive for that hallowed place,
With gods and goddesses to feast all night,
I strive for that hallowed place.

There was a moment of silence then Sayuri let loose her arrow straight toward the small boat in the distance, followed by the other four, setting it ablaze, a smile coming back to her face at the thought of seeing them again.

Lei Tong clutched his steel conical helm in both hands and stood in his own respectful silence as the burial took place. He paid close attention to the unfamiliar customs, curious to see how they were similar and different to his own. Having traveled around a good portion of Chiazu over his many long years, the fireworks master had seen many different rituals, ceremonies, and celebrations, and it had shown him that everyone the world over seemed to worry about the same things. Across Chiazu, though, the villages and cities still shared many of the same or similar stories, gods, and heroes; Lei Tong reminded himself that things would be very different in Duvah, as they appeared to be on this ship as well.

He reminded himself to burn incense and pray for the wisdom to be accepting as he continued his work in the new land.

That was later, however; for now, he closed his eyes and listened to the funeral song. It sounded like these people had a wonderful afterlife to look forward to. Lei Tong knew that he may not be feasting with gods and goddesses after he passed on, but he could look forward to a continuation of his earthly life in the underworld - throwing festivals and shooting fireworks off for the other souls that resided there. A smile crept across his lips, fitting right in place with the wrinkles on his face. When his time came, he would have to see if he could pay a visit to these halls of Asgard anyway, and perhaps shoot off fireworks for them as well. He and his wife could go together....

Opening his eyes again to the distant flickers of the fires, he brushed a tear away as it rolled down his cheek. Watching the seafaring coffins commit their occupants to the afterlife, Lei Tong pressed his palms together and bowed his head and prayed quietly as well.

Eri was observing the Captain's room again, wondering if this attack had anything to do with what exactly had gone about in here. The captain of this ship knew, somehow, that he was going to be questioned. He knew he was endangering the quite tense atmosphere, almost setting fire to the proverbial powder keg that was under their feet.

He knew. So the captain killed himself.

Now Eri Mao was here once again, searcing for clues and hints of dissention. If this was indeed a collaborative effort of all three nations to bring about a war, he had to know who the puppetmaster was.

And in order to do that, he had to know what the man wrote and who it was adressed to.

Originally Posted by Timeskip

The salvaging would go well, for the most part, even if the Chiazans would understand nothing of the machines they were salvaging. Nobody outside of Duvah had even come close to this mechanical knowledge after all, except apparently for those pirates.

Marlon and Serefina, in that room, would both end up passing out before the salvaging was done. Serefina would just need rest after how much she had exerted herself, but Marlon would need actual medical attention after they arrived in Duvah.

Eri, much to his dismay, would not find much in the Captain's office. Any and all papers that couple have given him a clue were burned, except for a small scrap, reading a simple fragment of a word. 'Dev'.

In the end, when Eri and his ships reached the Duvah main port, they would still be clueless. And yet they would be met by the King and Queen of Duvah, the two of they meeting the prince if Chiazu that intelligence stated was on the ships.

Beyond the formalities, not much would have happened in the last few days. Marlon had been found and placed under medical care in the palace, and Serefina kept until she was well rested, but beyond that people had just been allowed to mingle. Things would be picking up soon however, as once Marlon was well enough in his parent's opinion, they would start on the discussion as to the situation.

Eri would not wait that long until things were settled.

He had a single piece of paper with one word, possibly a name. He doubted it- it was only a scrap of paper, not even an entire sheet. But it had survived, and he would use it.

The one thing that ruined any chances of him potentially finding anything however was the reception. The King and Queen themselves had come to greet him, and while they were good contacts and allies to have, it was not exactly good for reconnaissance.

Still, he kept himself level and poised, his face a porcelain mask. His frustrations would have to come later- right now, formalities came first.

"So we meet at last," he said with a formal bow, though his eyes still gazed in their direction. They would notice that his command of their language was... impressive.

A few years at sea can teach one many things.


Respect, but not trust. For all I know, they could be the very people behind this.

A silly notion for sure, but Eri Mao was not known as one who took any chances. Everyone was a suspect until he found some hard line evidence.

"We have much to discuss. It has been an... eventful journey."

The king muttered something and the queen regally nodded. "Please excuse his Majesty, he has been quite sick lately." Once Eri aceded, the King would be led from the room by a guard, leaning heavily on the man.

But the queen was just as important in Duvah, as well as strong, both physically and otherwise. Beside her was her daughter, the princess Bridget, who curtsied, inclining her head slightly to acknowledge Eri.

"Welcome, Prince Eri. While the events that occurred to bring you here distress me, it is a pleasure to meet you." The princess looked on the verge of tears. Her poor brother was unconcious once again, the doctors made sure of that, while he was being reated. THey said he'd live, but it was a small comfort to Bridget who'd wanted to rub Marlon's nose in the fact she got a griffon.

His eyes were hawkish, gazing at the queen with what seemed to be a brief air of appraisal. It was a brief thing, passing; fleeting. But if one could sense it, it was there.

The wheels in his head turned.

A formidable woman. But what of the king?

He would have to ask about that later.

"You will have to forgive the minor work on your son's injuries," he said diplomatically. "We did the best we could to treat him, given the circumstances."

He looked briefly towards the princess and noticed that she was crying. For a moment, he wanted to console her- tell her that he was going to be all right. The doctors had already done that, but still he felt the need.

But he held it in for now. They would see each other again later.

"I am grateful for the welcome, but there is a matter that must be discussed immediately. I must have the utmost confidence that what I am about to tell you will not leave this room."

They were only suspicions... but maybe talking to someone about them would make them more solid in his mind, more real. In order to prevent this from occuring again, he had to find out who retrofitted those ships and shut them down.

The queen nodded, and turned to tell Bridget to leave, but saw by the determined look in the girl's eyes that she would not be removed.

"No, you are of marriageable age. I should not send you from the room." She sighed, one child who did not wish the throne, and one who wanted no part of it all.

"Alright, Prince Eri. Tell me this news."

He looked towards Bridget and said with that same authority, but somewhat gentled, "Since you are in this room, you have the responsibility of keeping this in your confidence as well. What I am about to say may be true or not, but until I confirm my suspicions, no one outside of this room is to know."

He nodded toward her and turned back toward the queen.

"The pirate attack on my fleet, which was purely for diplomacy and trade, was not a coincidence, nor was it a random raid. They knew our route, they knew how many ships, they knew the surrounding area. We made them run off, but this was a deliberate, tactical strike."

He looked around, making sure the room was clear before voicing the beginning of his suspicions.

"You do understand that if the Lady Reinelle, your son, and myself had died... it would mean that the powder keg beneath all of us would detonate. It would mean war. Someone planned this attack, and I'm here to find out who."

The queen simply looked thoughtful, but it was Bridget who spoke. "How was it that my brother and the..." she spoke the next word with derision. "...Lady Reinelle came to be on your ship in the first place. Prince Marlon was to be on a merchanting mission to Erios..."

She realized that she'd spoken perhaps a bit much as her mother turned a thoughtful look at her, but beckoned for her to continue. "We know about the trip. We are not so foolish as Marlon thinks he is wise."

Bridget flushed brightly, but continued to Eri. "There is no reason for him to have even encountered the Lady Reinelle. I'm still confused as to why the Paladin of the Primes would be traveling with Marlon, to Chiazu in the first place. Could you explain that Prince Eri. And why there are burns much like rope leaves, on his arms. As if he was prisoner...."