“Honestly? With so many of us around by now, and with how long we live, it wouldn't surprise me if most of my kind got a song or two sung around them. Especially so for those of us that've been around the longest. Practically all of us got legends about our lives out there, unless you’re one of the really quiet ones like Jerrod.

And even he got his own legend for raising that city of his!” - Aideen deVreys, the Silver Maiden, circa 679 FP.

“Honored-respected Madam is acquainted-familiar with the Captain-Skipper of the Black Falcon, yes-yes?” asked the rotund therian merchant with obvious surprise when Cal and her group returned to the port city the next day and told him of their impending plans to head to the north of the island to meet up with Arquivaldo’s Le Faucon Noir.

“Black Falcon? Huh. I guess that’d be one way to translate that ship’s name,” said Cal in realization as she recalled that Arquivaldo’s flag had indeed included the silhouette of a black bird of prey on a field of blue, amongst other things. “Yes, I’m sort of familiar with him. Why did you ask?”

“The Captain-Skipper is a patron-benefactor of the Goldclaw Union-Group and Tribe,” said A’ng-Whu with obvious reverence in his voice. “He was the first to introduce us to the idea-proposal to sail-cross the great ocean-seas and trade-profit with the lands far-distant from our little islands. We revere-worship him as our eternal-forever patron-benefactor and the source-origin of our wealth-prosperity, yes-yes.”

“Oh. Never heard that part about him,” said Cal with some surprise. Her acquaintanceship with Arquivaldo was not that close after all, and while the unliving man was fond of telling tales of himself, he probably had far too many tales to tell in a single trip, considering his age. “Then again, I could see it since he’s been plying the trade routes for the last few centuries. Mostly heard tales of his pirating days, though.”

“Piracy? That I have not heard-listened to,” said A’ng-Whu with some consternation, his rat-like face twisted into a confused expression. “I had thought patron-benefactor was always a merchant-trader, from the stories-tales my ancestors had told-relayed.”

“You want to meet him? I can introduce you if you’d like,” Cal offered the rotund merchant. She had been rather thankful for the warm welcome he had offered her, and definitely wouldn’t deny that his help definitely made their stay on the island a good bit more convenient as well. Introducing him to Arquivaldo was something she could do easily enough to repay the favor. “My appointment with him is still in another week, but I assume he would have arrived here before that for trade purposes anyway.”

“That would be a great-big favor, Madam. I am very happy-pleased to accept-receive, yes-yes.”

******************************

After the party had finished what little business they had on the port city - mostly shopping for souvenirs and gifts for others - they departed on the next day, headed for the northern port of Gloomshine Isle. While the locals called it the northern port, in actuality it was located more to the north-east, since to traverse the deep oceans directly north of the Isle would be little other than suicide due to the presence of the various large monsters that inhabited the deep seas.

Intelligent monsters that could be reasoned with like Ragiula were very much in the minority after all, and the vast majority of sea monsters were just wild predators that preyed on anything that encroached upon their territory. Given their prodigious size and ferocity, along with the home field advantage of fighting in the ocean, nobody sane was foolish enough to trespass into their territory.

The party left the southern port on a large vessel, one easily double the size of the ship they had traveled to the island in. The massive ship was apparently the Goldclaw Union’s flagship, and A’ng-Whu’s personal vessel at the same time. It was primarily a cargo ship, though given their location out at sea and the frequent activities of the local wildlife, it was outfitted with enough ballistae to give most pirates a pause as well.

A pause before they fled in fear, that was, since A’ng-Whu’s Golden Rhapsody carried enough dwarven-made ballistae on its twin hulls to potentially sink a typical galleon-type ship that was more commonly seen on the mainlands in a single salvo.

Despite its massive size, the ship was fast and light like most local ships. That inherent lightness meant that the local ships could often keep themselves afloat despite damage that would have sunk most other ships, and the double-hull construction they favored further helped with that. Where most modern battleships relied on thicker hulls to take more punishment at range, the local ships of Gloomshine were lighter, much faster and more maneuverable, and could take damage that would have sunk most ships while remaining functional.

From the southern port of the island to the northern one, it was a short trip. They departed early in the morning, and had arrived by mid-afternoon. The trip itself was uneventful since they mostly remained near coastal waters, where it was the safest and the seas were calm.

When they docked on the port, Cal immediately noticed the familiar black ship that was already docked there. Le Faucon Noir, Arquivaldo’s ship, was already at the port, which suggested that he had come earlier since he was also running his regular trade routes along the way. A quick query at the ship revealed that he was not on board though.

“Maybe try one of the local taverns,” said Iosif, the old goat therian who served as the ship’s navigator when Cal paid the ship a visit. “Cap was bringing some of the lads and lasses out for some fun, so I’d suggest looking for the biggest, rowdiest tavern around. If you see a brawl, that’s probably them.”

True to his words, Cal found Arquivaldo, along with Avigeya and Uruza, in the middle of a massive brawl in the largest tavern in town.