Caleb took a moment to absorb what Sienna had just said.

We better have a damn good reason why we’re not out of the Maulding Shoals yet. The Myrkur have other ships prowling out there besides their flagship. But repairs and riches are an interesting combination to say the least.

“All right,” he said. “you officially have my attention. Start with the losses.”

Sienna swallowed hard. “That broadside killed three of our gun crew. Jaime Quinton, Myles Fitzgerald and Willow O’Deen. Two more died in the clash with the boarding parties from the Savage: Rian O’Neill and Robyn Dowley. Five souls, all told.”

Caleb looked down at the splashcat sprawled out across his lap. He was quiet for a moment as he continued to stroke Breena’s soft fur. He got a satisfied purr in return.

“I can’t help but feel crosswise about it,” he sighed. “That’s a shorter casualty list than I’d feared. But if we lose any more of our crew…”

“We’re going to have problems,” Sienna agreed. “Handling the mainsail in strong winds, taking it down quickly in case of storms, that will be more of a challenge. We definitely won’t have anyone to spare for a gun crew anymore, either.”

Tavia stomped a forehoof with a clack. “Surely there are some things that I can do to help with this shortage of labor!”

Maybe, Caleb thought, before part of his brain added: And don’t call me Shirley.

“I’ll have to think on it,” he said aloud. “As useful as unicorns are, I doubt you’ll be able to climb the rigging in a storm.”

“Thou shouldst not forget that a griffin could fly to the top of the mainmast!” Shaw added, from the hallway just outside the cabin. “No matter the weather, I shouldst add.”

“I guess I did forget,” Caleb said, stifling a laugh. “But we’ll put a pin in that for now. At present, I want to know where the ship’s located, and why that location isn’t far, far outside the Maulding Shoals.”

“As for the exact location,” Sienna said, gesturing towards Tavia, “I’ll have to leave that to our new sailing master.”

“Really?” Caleb gave the mare a look. “If you can help us navigate more easily, then you’ve already helped solve part of the labor shortage. How did you…”

Tavia looked abashed. “Chance, really. After using up the last of my magic on treating the wounded, I retreated to the great cabin for the night. I usually pull down a couple books to read. If you recall, I chanced upon a book of lunar charts a while back.”

“I do recall that, dimly.”

“Well, this time I found a couple more books on the floor, likely knocked loose during the cannon fire we sustained. One contained some charts of the Mirovian Ocean – the sea we sail upon. Another was a text on using an octant, a compass, and an astron in concert to determine positions at sea.”

He frowned at the news for a moment as his mind raced.

Wait a minute. Tavia thought that I’d left out that first book for her, yet somehow it just fell out where she’d find it. Then two more surprisingly helpful tomes fall out due to ‘cannon fire’?

“I hate to look a gift horse in the mouth,” Caleb said, “but that is awfully lucky.”

Now it was Tavia’s turn to frown. “A gift what?”

“Never mind. I mean, it is awfully lucky.” Breena chose that moment to yawn cutely, before jumping down off his lap and strolling out the door. “You can explain the techniques you’re using more to me later. For now, where do you figure we’re located?”

“At the very southern tip of the Maulding Shoals, just off Barrel Creek Cay. Based on the name, my guess is that it’s a watering hole and rum stop for vessels on the way in to Gilarska. Currently, it’s home to a very scared bunch of merchant crewmen.”

Caleb’s face brightened as he finally understood.

“Repair and riches,” he said. “When we reversed our course, we ended up back at where we left that fully loaded schooner Dromos Bay, didn’t we?”

“Aye,” Sienna grinned, throwing Tavia a look. “Didn’t I say that the Captain would see the truth of it early on?”

“I don’t recall disputing that assumption,” Tavia pointed out.

“In any case, the Dromos Bay is no longer a ‘fully loaded’ schooner,” Sienna announced. “And while we’d love to take her as a prize, we just don’t have the crew to spare. So we’ve been stripping her of what materials we can to repair our damage. Donal’s true love is carpentry, so he’d been in heaven this past day.”

“I bet,” Caleb said, impressed. A thought occurred to him, so with a flick of a finger, he brought up his Quest Window. Sure enough, there was a new entry, one that must have popped up while he'd been having a surprise chat with Goddess Danu.

Adventurer’s-Level Quest: Complete the looting of your first merchant ship taken as a prize. STATUS: FORMERLY FAILED, NOW CHANGED TO COMPLETE.

“What were we able to take off her?” he asked.

“Enough timber to repair the hits taken from the Stone Angel, for starters,” Sienna replied. “We replaced all our broken railings with hers. Patched up the ship’s wheel. And best of all, we’ve just managed to replace our broken boom with hers.”

“That’s a relief. But it was awfully risky. We’d have had to reef in our mainsail while you did that. Leaves us a sitting duck out here, and that cay’s not going to give us any cover.”

“‘Twas no risk!” Shaw protested. “Now that I have been healed, the glory of combat is within mine own grasp once more! I would have welcomed the chance to plunge headlong–”

“Aside from our resident griffin’s overly aggressive nature,” Tavia put in, “we’ve been keeping Aiden and Ethan aloft as lookouts. However, it’s unlikely that any sailing vessel will be able to hunt for us effectively right now.”

“Aye,” Sienna agreed. “The wind’s been either a wisp o’ the breeze, or a dead calm these last thirty-six hours.”

Caleb nodded. “Sounds like you thought of everything, then. That covers the repairs. What about the ‘riches’ you mentioned?”

“Luckily, the longboat we took aboard before and two of the chicken coops survived our passage of fire with Delacroix’s frigate.” Sienna listed off more points on her fingers. “We’ve refilled our stores of grain, sugar, and rice. Evie O’Breen’s got enough salted meat and dried codfish to keep her happy and us well fed. A dozen bolts of cloth in various colors. And we’ve brought over more than one hundred cakes of powdered indigo dye. We find the right port, and that’ll be worth a good sum of gold.”

Sure enough, as she spoke, yet another screen popped up in Caleb’s Quest Window.

New Adventurer’s-Level Quest: Sell the booty captured from your first merchant ship taken as a prize for a profit. 20% Bonus XP if said booty is on the Specialized Cargo List. STATUS: ONGOING.

Caleb noted that the Specialized Cargo List was highlighted text, as if clicking it would reveal more content. He made a mental note to check it later when the conversation was done.

“What do you mean by ‘the right port’?” he asked.

“Dyes aren’t like foodstuffs or coinage,” his Quartermaster replied. “It’s kind of special. Since not everyone can use indigo powder, only certain places are willing to put their gold out for it.”

“Wait, that reminds me…” Caleb thought back to just before the battle with the Gilarskan pinnaces had started. “Captain Terrell of the Savage said something about that. He mentioned a trading port called Boruta.”

Tavia tapped a hoof in thought. “I don’t recall seeing that name on the charts. But I was only researching our local area. I’ll take a look at a larger map–”

The unicorn’s ears perked up as her voice trailed off. Before Caleb could ask what the matter was, he heard something as well. A thump, followed by a multitude of footsteps above them, on the main deck. That was followed by the muffled sound of people arguing.

“‘Tis not the sound of combat!” Shaw declared from outside the room. “Wait, someone doth come at a run. Perhaps they shall have the knowledge we seek.”

A moment later, a short, blond boy slipped past the griffin’s bulk and stuck his head into the infirmary. His short blond hair was tousled, his eyes wide with alarm. Sweat beaded on the lad’s forehead and his chest heaved, evidence of his run.

Caleb recognized him as Ethan, one of their two lookouts.

“Captain!” he exclaimed, between breaths. “Thank Lir you’re awake!”

“That I am,” Caleb agreed. “What’s that sound above decks?”

“Oh, you must come quick, sir! There’s fighting amongst the crew!”

“Treachery!” Shaw hissed. “Say the word, and I shall slay thy traitors!”

“Bide a moment,” Sienna cautioned. “Who’s doing what, and to whom?”

Ethan looked as if he might cry. “It’s the crew! They’ve got Ferris Pender and the Murray triplets up against the steerboard railing. They’re going to beat them up, maybe even hang them!”