I lost ti. There was blackness, flashes of mories, bits of sights, sounds, and slls followed by a return to my senses. The damage I’d suffered must’ve put into a kind of trance. It had likely been the closest I’d ever been to experiencing sleep.
I heard slivers of conversation. Kyren, Hrig, Dorsia, Stone, and Jade were talking in hushed voices, likely to keep from waking . I strained my senses, trying to eavesdrop.
"—not a scratch. I watched the beginning of his fight. I’m certain his armor cracked," said Dorsia in a hushed tone.
"I don’t think his armor has ever had a nick or a scratch, actually. I never really paid attention to it before," said Stone.
"You call yourself a dwarf? Co now, what’ll we hold over elves if we can’t even notice the condition soone’s armor is in?"
That voice was new; Jade, I assud.
There was a scoff from Stone. "Adhering to stereotypes certainly doesn’t help anyone. Besides, we’ve been a little too busy to care about whether or not his armor has nicks or not."
"What should we do?" asked Hrig.
"Nothing for now," said Kyren. "Let’s go back up to the deck. The captain invited us all to dinner. We can talk it over with full stomachs."
There were murmurs of agreent, and they all quietly shuffled out of the cabin.
I felt as if I had a stone inside and it was rattling around, rebounding all around my interior. I was panicking. Obviously, armor was supposed to wear down over ti, but I’d been repairing every nick and scratch almost as soon as I got them. What did they know? Did they realize I wasn’t Sevald, or worse, that I wasn’t human?
I took a mont to calm myself, trying to settle the rattling sensation I was experiencing. All I knew was that they’d realized my armor was repairing itself. I could only wait and see what they said about it and react from there. At this point, the thought of killing them to protect myself was one I found unconscionable. These were my friends. Aside from that, I’d have to kill the entire crew of the ship, as well. An immoral and impractical option. I’d just have to wait and see what they said. If worst ca to worst, I’d leap into the ocean and walk until I found a shore.
I buckled my shield to my back and tied my scabbard about my waist before making my way upstairs. It was awkward, walking while adjusting to the movents of the ship as it rose and fell with the waves. Pebble had fairly well-established sea legs from his long journey from the University at Usalaum, but trying to walk the way he did at Sevald’s height just made things worse, so I focused on adjusting based on my own ability.
Up on the deck, I was greeted by a spray of sea air and the sounds of crew deep into their cups. It was evening, and a silver half-moon hung in the sky, lighting the ocean in silver light. For just a mont, the sight caused to forget my concerns. All of my als except Byn had seen the ocean, but those mories seed a poor imitation for the real thing.
I moved toward the nearest group of sailors. When they noticed , their boisterous and bawdy voices shifted into hushed tones and worried glances in my direction. Had my companions told them sothing? The panic set in again, but I pushed it down.
"Can you point to the captain’s cabin?"
They exchanged glances until one of them pointed toward the aft. I nodded my thanks and went that way, pushing down more panic and resisting the urge to make a preemptive jump into the ocean.
Light danced under the captain’s cabin door, and I could hear the sounds of light conversation drifting from it. I braced myself and opened the door.
"Sevald!" said Stone.
The room was mostly familiar faces, aside from a tall, burly man with a thick, but neatly maintained blond beard at the head of the table. Everyone looked smiling and affable. So of the tension I’d been feeling lted away.
"Hail, Stone, everyone."
Kyren moved to drag a chair so that I could sit between her and Hrig and across from Stone, Jade, and Dorsia. I sat and turned my attention to the captain, offering my hand. "It’s nice to et you. Thank you for your help, Captain…?"
The man smiled and grasped my hand firmly. "Jase. Welco to the Nedra, and it’s no trouble. I’m being paid for it."
"Exorbitantly, in my opinion," muttered Stone.
"Moving you out of the city might cost business with Talen. You’re paying for my assumption of that risk."
"I told you, he’s being taken down. His whole operation should be crippled by now."
"I’m not so sure," Dorsia chid in. "You definitely dealt him a blow, but you also brought all of his enemies into the open. If he can co back from it, he’ll be stronger than ever."
That thought put a damper on the otherwise jovial atmosphere.
"Hmm, perhaps I should’ve charged even more, then…" said Jase, stroking his beard.
"What will really hurt him is whether or not Donyin is alive." Dorsia turned to , "Sevald? We never heard how your fight ended, and Stone told us he couldn’t tell through all the smoke."
"He killed him, obviously," said Hrig before I could respond. "He promised he would."
I nodded, taking pride in her confidence. "It’s true. He’s dead."
I took a mont to think about how much of what he’d told I should ntion, but decided they were better off knowing everything. I described what happened. The fight, what Donyin had said about his siblings, how the fight had ended, and Talen’s gold eyes. When I was finished, everyone sat in silence for a few monts.
"Aurum?" asked Kyren. "You're sure that’s what they said?"
"Yes, Donyin said that he, Talen, and the goblin chief were all ‘Sons of Aurum’."
Kyren frowned. "I’ve heard the na, but it's old. It’s only ever ntioned in the rituals I told you about before, the ones that use draconic. It's probably sothing only those further into their church’s mysteries have access to. When we put in at Buryn, I’ll visit the cathedral there and make so inquiries."
"Buryn? Is that where we’re headed?" I asked.
"Yes, but we should hopefully just be passing through and making our way inland. Clara, or soone who works for her, will have a job for us there," said Kyren. Hrig’s expression showed she was thoroughly displeased with the idea. “She was smart to clear out at the first sign of trouble, sha she couldn’t have warned us about Talen.” He turned to look at ."There’s sothing else we should probably talk to you about, too."
I felt the mood of the room shift, and panic took hold again. If they all tried to restrain , it would be very hard to escape without hurting them.
"Dorsia pointed out that we’ve never seen so much as a dent in your armor," started Stone, "even after your fight with Donyin, in which I’m certain I noticed several cracks. Those are all gone now. You’ve not had a chance to repair them yourself, besides which I've never noticed you carrying repair tools of any kind."
I managed a nod, too afraid to try and co up with excuses.
Stone looked around the table. "I think," he paused, taking a breath," it’s magic, and... I think we should sell it."
My concern turned to a mixture of relief and confusion. "Sell it?"
"Aye, lad, think of the profits! Magical items are rare, and ones as practical as a self-repairing suit of armor are even rarer. A lord would pay an incredible fee for it. We could buy an estate with such a thing.” His eyes were alive with excitent at the possibility.
"He took a godly oath to wear it, Stone. You of all people with your own oath should know the value of that. You gave your left nut for your last one," said Kyren.
"Well, I’d give my right nut for the profit from that armor!"
Kyren rolled her eyes. "I told him you wouldn’t be interested, but he’s been arguing with us about it since Dorsia brought it up."
I laughed, feeling the last bit of tension leave . "I’m afraid I’ll have to decline, Stone. I took an oath, and I intend to keep it."
I’d have to avoid telling him about my new shield.
"Are you sure you can’t at least remove it while you’re on the ship?" Jase interrupted. “It’s a death sentence, you know. If you fall overboard, you’ll drown. It’s making the n uncomfortable. It’s like seeing a dead man walking."
I hadn’t considered that, mostly since I didn’t need to breathe, and swimming had never been an option for anyway. "I’m afraid it has to stay on."
Captain Jase shrugged. "I guess there’s no helping it, but between that and the won we’ve brought on board, I’ve had to ration a bit of extra grog all around to keep the crew from letting superstitious nonsense bother them." He paused. "Honestly, though, seeing a man in heavy armor on a ship even gives the willies," he said, emphasizing the last word with a shiver.
The rest of the dinner passed uneventfully, but pleasantly, with Stone telling everyone a story about Dorsia botching a pickpocketing attempt that left her with a red face on top of her usual wry expression.
* * *
The next morning, I left the cabin later than everyone else. I had no reason to rush and wanted to avoid making the ship’s crew uncomfortable as long as possible. When I did make my way to the deck, I was surprised to find Dorsia, Hrig, and Jade locked in combat. They were surrounded by cheering sailors about whom Stone walked, taking small bundles of coins and etching notes on a small clay tablet.
I approached Kyren sitting at the edge of the crowd. "I’d have thought everyone would’ve been sick of this type of thing after what we just went through."
She let out a heavy sigh. "I would’ve thought so, too, but Hrig was up here training alone before anyone else ca up. Seeing her swinging that axe of hers around got Jade riled up, and Dorsia joined in once she and Stone realized there was coin to be had with a bit of betting on the side."
"Should Hrig and Jade be doing this with their injuries?"
"Probably not, but after their losses, I think they’re just eager to get stronger."
I nodded and watched as Hrig landed a solid blow to Dorsia’s leg with an oar she was using in place of her axe.
Training was an interesting thing. I had mories of it from all of my als. They’d spent hours honing their crafts, learning, and developing. Their abilities were the product of years of diligence, focus, and will. All I’d needed to do was eat them to gain the sa mastery. I wondered if I would be able to learn sothing in that way. I certainly had so innate skills, but whether I could develop sothing that wasn’t given or taken was unknown to . What would I even choose to learn? I’d been focused on what I could learn from the essences I’d eaten, but eventually, there’d be nothing left to gain from them.
There was a crash followed by groans from more than half of the sailors. I returned my attention to the fight. Dorsia was the only one still standing, holding two short sticks. Hrig was disard, and Jade lying on the deck panting.
"That’s surprising. She’s a great fighter, but I don’t think I’d have bet on her over Jade and Hrig."
"It’s not that surprising. She’s the only one who wasn’t severely injured recently. I assu that’s why Stone bet so much on her."
I glanced at Stone, who was grinning ear to ear as he collected coins from disappointed sailors and paid out the few that had also bet on Dorsia. He then approached us and handed Kyren a small handful. She’d apparently had the wisdom to bet a few coins herself. He then pulled a small pouch from his belt and handed it to . I reached out and took it.
"I don’t recall placing any bets."
"It’s the money from the goblin camp job, minus my fee and your part in paying for our passage. I did promise everyone they’d get their cut, after all."
I nodded, taking the pouch and tying it to my belt.
Hrig, Jade, and Dorsia were preparing for another bout, and the sailors began calling to Stone for their bets. Stone went to return to them, but hesitated, looking back. "I already said this to the others, but thank you, lad. We were all in a jam because of , but everyone ca through, and I just wanted to let you know that I’ve got your back, always."
I held out my hand, and we grasped each other firmly by the wrist. Friendship was sothing I’d been lucky enough to be granted only a short while after I’d beco capable of it. I would do everything in my power to be worthy of it, even if it had been granted under false pretenses.
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