The sending off party turning east from Corsaña had been well enjoyed by all. Although it was true that it did mark a major departure towards the unknown for many of the sailors they still had a long way to go before they reached, or even turned for, the South. Thus the business of the pirate ship continued, merchant ships were stolen from, stolen goods were sold, new members of crew were acquired, and those resistant to joining were ransomed off. Although the crew remained in good spirits Sezjeck could not help but notice its makeup was shifting. Although numbers wise they had had a net gain in members, they had had lost many more individuals than was common. Much more noteworthy and indeed disturbing to him was the fact that those either missing after battle or else had not returned to the ship after port were almost entirely from the crew that had elected the captain and set out from Goldhaven. Perhaps he was being paranoid but he did not like it. He pushed the thought from his mind. Of a much more pressing concern was the buzzing cool stillness in the air, and the dark clouds gathering on the horizon. He looked to where Erika stood on the forecastle observing the same horizon.

"Navigator" he said.

"First mate" she responded thoughtfully biting her lip.

"How bad is it?" He asked.

"Really fucking bad Sezj, really fucking bad" she fidgeted unable to stand still.

Sezjeck looked to the navigator. He had sailed with her longer than another member of the crew except the captain. He had never known her to be needlessly nervous or to exaggerate danger, typically quite the opposite. Her tense regard for the clouds on the horizon worried him.

"Erika," he ventured "how bad?"

She signed and pinched the bridge of her nose and covered her mouth with her fingers, then removed them.

"Here's the first thing" she said. "We can't harbor from this storm. This coast is nothing but sheer cliff for miles." She paced in front of him. "no shelter from a storm is nothing we haven't faced before so the second and third problems are keeping our course. To our port are treacherous ship breaking rocks a full league out from the coast. So you would think we would be safest to just steer clear away from the shore to starboard but that brings us to problem three Sezjeck, not very far at all on our starboard side are the doldrums which we cannot risk without the magic or oars to escape them."

"So what's the plan Erika?" Sezjeck asked evenly.

She stopped her manic pacing and rested her head in her hand. "We keep as true as we can, and we pray if we are so inclined." She answered.

"That sounds to me like the same way we have gotten through every storm before." Sezjeck said laying a hand on her shoulder. "I assume the captain already knows." He asked.

"Yes I told her as soon as I knew. She and Ruben are talking now."

"Then you have done what you can. All that remains is to go forward, and through."

"Aye first mate forward and through." Erika replied. "I'll see you on the other side of all this Sezjeck." She said and walked away presumably to speak again with her husband and the captain before the storm hit.

Erika's words had only confirmed Sezjeck's own feelings of unease. This oncoming storm did not bode well.

After the shouting of crew members over the screaming of the wind, the pounding of the rain, and the great heaves of the ocean Erika looked up to the stars and where they met the sea on the horizon's line and felt rather than heard the silence. She reached out her hand to measure them. She felt the air around her. The very air that had whipped and scraped across her face a mer hour before was now still and limp. They had managed not to wreck and break to bits on the coast of Northern Continent, but they instead had been blown into the doldrums. Erika crossed the deck and went into the captain's quarters without knocking. Esmerelda sat up in her bunk weary and disheveled but unable to sleep. Her own husband was collapsed in the cushioned seat of the window.

“Bad enough not to knock?” Esmerelda asked.

“This is no time to be glib.” Erika countered.

“It's what we feared then.” Esmerelda asked.

“Yes captain.” Erika responded.

“You are sure?” Esmerelda asked.

Erik a crossed to the desk and moved the small model of the ship on the map from the relative safety of the coast out into the treacherous windless waters of the monstrous sea far from either the northern or southern shore.

“I am sure captain.” she nudged the model a final time.

“Well it has been crossed before hasn't it?” Esmerelda asked.

“Corsaña to North Town is one thing Captain.” she gestured at the map to a wide swatch of windless sea “This is a swift death and only if we are very, very lucky.”

“How often are there winds in the doldrums?” Esmerelda asked.

“Seldom and not strong. We would need another storm to blow us to shore.” Erika responded.

“And just drifting how far can we hope to move in a day?” Esmerelda asked.

“Barely but not nothing.” Erika answered.

“Do we have the supplies to last?” Esmerelda asked.

“Perhaps, though I could give no promises. Captain, this is the very worst we could have feared for.” Erika said.

“Then we will not give in to fear.” Esmerelda gripped her navigator by the shoulders.

Dawn was rising outside.

Erika turned at the sound of a knock on the door and its opening. Sezjeck walked in followed by Seanathan and Petrianna.

Esmerelda straightened herself up and asked. “Well then what's the report?”

“Well the ship at least is in one piece.” Seanathan said with a smile. “We are still seaworthy captain.”

Esmerelda sensed that this was the end of the good news. “And what of my crew?” she asked.

“I am closing wounds and setting bones. No one was beyond help although it seems near everyone has been hurt in one way or another.” Petra said.

Esmerelda was surprised. She braced herself again for bad news. “Sezjeck?” she asked

“All crew are accounted for, by some miracle none went over.” He answered.

Esmerelda nodded. This was good. Perhaps the storm was not so much of a disaster as she had dreaded.

“Are we all just going to stand around pretending that this is not the worst possible position for us to be in?”

Esmerelda turned towards the quarter master's voice. She had not noticed him come in.

“The ship is still sailing, all members of crew are accounted for, and none critically injured. After a storm that goes in the win category quartermaster, unless we are playing very different games.”

“Yes a sailing ship and a full crew. What a blessing! We can all die together in this doldrum.” Etheldred said.

“We are not dead yet quartermaster so I will take what victory we can from this.” Esmerelda responded keeping her temper.

“I was right to say this plan was foolish from the beginning. Between the doldrums and the storms on the coast a voyage to the South was never possible in this ship.”

“Do not pretend like you know about the storms on these seas quartermaster.” Erika said quietly but nonetheless drawing the room's attention.

“Oh enough of you claiming your heritage makes you know the seas better. You are as much at fault for this as the captain.” Etheldred said.

Esmerelda put an arm out to block Erika moving towards Etheldred but she easily dodged around her.

“You think you could do better quartermaster?” she asked. She had been holding her temper against this man for years and she was ready to let it out.

“I think you overstate your competence at every turn and now it has finally caught up to you. No sane navigator would have chosen this route.” He said.

“I'm going to explain to you why you are wrong and I am going to speak very slowly to make sure you understand.” Erika balled her fists at her sides and felt power swirling in them. “The storm season on these seas is in Spring, the late fall is the safest time to sail this passage because although the coast is treacherous the waters typically are not. This route was chosen for that reason among others. This route is also highly trafficked full of either easy pickings in good times or help in bad. Also perhaps you don't know this as you have not been on this crew as long as some of us but the Bonnie Bounty used to call these waters home. We had only been a short time on the western coast when you joined with the crew.” Erika took steps closer and closer to Etheldred as she spook forcing him to give ground “it is not just my heritage that gives me knowledge of the seas. It is my people and and what I learned from them, it is my experience, it is my life on the sea that give me the knowledge I need. Knowledge you do not have.”

Etheldred looked at her and huffed. “well you'll get the life and death on the sea you so want. Much sooner than I think you expected.”

Erika drew back her fist to punch and felt a familiar hand holding her back. “Lani” Ruben whispered in her ear. She took a deep breath and calmed lowering her arm..

“Captain.” she said nodding towards Esmerelda and exited the room. The door closed behind her with a slam and a thick silence pervaded the room.

“You really aught to keep a better control of your wife helmsman.” Etheldred said to Ruben as he straightened his shirt and tried to look unaffected.

Ruben rubbed his palms together. “There are rules about fighting on this ship quartermaster, rules which I respect. But if you ever speak to my wife like that again I'll murder you, provided she doesn't do it first. And that's a fucking promise mate.” he turned towards Esmerelda “Captain” he nodded and followed his wife out on to the deck.

A tense silence filled the room.

“There are people I to whom I should attend, my I be excused?” Petra asked desperately wishing to flee from the tension.

“Of course, you're dismissed Girlie, go.” Esmerelda said and waved her off.

Etheldred shook his head as he watched Petra go, “you have lead us to ruin, Captain.” he spat the last word and left without being dismissed.

“If my vote is counted on the matter I say you just let Erika punch straight through his smug face next time Captain.” Seanathan said in the still crackling silence.

“Your vote is not counted on the matter.” Sezjeck said

“Right well” he said with a clap of his hands “ if you have no further need of me captain,”

“No you're dismissed”

“Thank you captain, first mate.” he nodded at each of them and left.

Sezjeck watched the door close behind him.

“I really am inclined to let her kill him next time.” Esmerelda said.

“What is a Captain that kills her crew?” Sezjeck prompted her.

“No fit Captain” she completed. “But it certainly can't be any worse than one who gets her crew killed.”

“None were lost in the storm captain.” Sezjeck said

“Not in the storm, no. But how many are going to survive this crossing? If you can even call sitting in water as still as a puddle crossing.” Esmerelda said.

“I don't have an answer for that captain.” Sezjeck responded.

“Was this a mistake? Have I doomed us all?” She asked

“Like Erica said Captain, we have sailed these coasts before and not met with a storm like that. This could not have been predicted.” Sezjeck answered.

“And yet here we are.” Esmerelda said.

“Yes Captain.” Sezjeck said.

The Captain leaned against her desk and pinched the bridge of her nose. She was exhausted from sailing through the storm and the tense meeting had not helped matters. “is there anything else to discus Sezjeck?” she asked.

Sezjeck hesitated a moment weighing if now was the time to tell the captain about the shifted makeup of the crew. He took a breath and began, “I did want to talk to you captain regarding the crew.”

“What about the crew?” She asked.

“We have gained a lot of sailors from ships we have taken, but we have also lost a fair number from the original crew. The new crew is nearly two thirds of the ship.” He told her.

“How have we lost so many?” She asked.

“Some never came back to the boat in port. That's not entirely unusual. It has happened on every voyage we have ever sailed. Others killed while taking ships. Again not uncommon, it's a dangerous life we lead.” He said.

“Then why are you telling me Sezjeck.” She asked.

“Something about this doesn't sit right captain. I am uncertain what is to be done.” He answered.

“As of now I don't know if anything can be done.” Esmerelda said.

“So we keep sailing.” Sezjeck said resolutely.

“So we keep sailing.” Esmerelda echoed. She stood and walked with Sezjeck from her quarters.