“Cobal, come quickly,” a voice sounded outside the door to his room in the inn. He got up, still tired. It was early in the morning, with only the first rays of light hitting the small window. He yawned and moved over to the door, finding Sebastian on the other side. “Is something wrong?” He asked.
“Well, not yet, but there’s been people saying that pirates are raiding the coast. A ship with a black flag docked south of the village and people are scared.”
“Why would a pirate ship attack Ravadier all of a sudden, that makes no.” He stopped mid-sentence. “Oh.” He turned around to get dressed quickly. “I’ll come with you, I think I might know what’s going on.”
He followed Sebastian to the docks where a small crowd had already gathered at a safe distance. The pirates seemed unbothered by this display, slowly unpacking their goods and making sure everything on the ship was in order.
“I saw their captain, she looks terrifying. I bet they’re the ones that have been kidnapping people,” he heard a woman say.
“I agree, they probably put strange lights on their ship to distract people and then kill them.”
“Don’t say that, my Ralod hasn’t come back for days. I don’t want to think about what might have happened to him.”
Cobal pushed through the crowd and made his way to the docks, Sebastian hesitantly following him.
“Couldn’t you have at least changed out the flag?” Cobal pointed up.
Miyara grinned. “She told us not to, you know how she can be.”
Cobal gave the old woman a hug. “It’s good to see you again.” He looked around. “Where is she, anyway?”
“Probably getting drunk in the local inn already. She ran off as soon as we docked. I thought she was going to find you, but apparently she didn’t.”
“No sense of responsibility.” Cobal remarked. He heard footsteps from behind him and turned around. The man stopped. It was the fruit vendor whose name he couldn’t quite remember at the moment.
“Do you know these people?” He asked, looking from Cobal to Miyara with a worried look on his face.”
“They are friends of mine. They mean no harm to the town but are here to help us find the missing people.”
“Really? You’re friends with one of the most famous pirate crews in the region?”
“It’s a long story.”
“Can you guarantee that there will be no danger to the town?” Another voice said from the crowd that had inched a little bit closer to overhear what was being said.
“I can,” a voice said from behind the crowd. Everyone turned to look as Diana pushed through them and walked up towards the dock where Cobal and Miyara were. “Who do I speak with? She asked.
“I am Miyara, second in command of the Tidesetter. This ship belongs to Captain Tidescreecher.”
“A pleasure to meet you, Miyara. His highness, Cobal Blueyerd, informed me that you might be coming to our region to assist in some of our trouble. For that I am thankful, however,” she paused, the look in her eyes suddenly very different. “If any of your crew steps out of line, you’d best be out of town before I find out. We have a long history with sailors finding out why we’ve stayed safe and prosperous for generations the hard way.”
Miyara chuckled. “A fine threat and although I’d love to test your resolve, that’s not why we’re here. I promise that we will not harm the town and its people while we’re here to help Cobal.”
“Then be as you are, and if you need my assistance send someone for me.” She looked at the crowd of villagers. “Disperse, there’s nothing left to see here.”
With some hesitation the crowd slowly drifted back towards town to start their regular day, with stories quickly spreading.
“Cobal, Lady Vadier, why don’t you join us on deck for a drink.”
Cobal looked at Diana who shrugged. “Not the first time I’ve boarded a pirate ship.”
“Really?” Cobal asked in surprise.
“Yes, but the last time it was to arrest every single person aboard.”
“Let’s hope we can avoid that this time,” Miyara said, chuckling to herself.
After speaking with Diana and Miyara for a little while, Cobal accompanied Diana back to the Vadier Estate. As they walked, Diana put her arm around his. “It’s been a while since we’ve walked together, hasn’t it?”
“We walked together last year when you were in Saphestan, did we not?”
“That hardly counts as a good walk, we weren’t even properly outside for most of it.”
Cobal smiled. “You know, I wouldn’t have thought about it that way last year, but I think I get it now.”
“You’ve changed a lot, you know that right?”
“A little bit.”
She stepped in front of him and grabbed his hands. “I’m serious, I barely recognized you when you came into my office yesterday.”
“That’s probably just the facial hair, I’ve been neglecting it a bit lately.”
She smiled and shook her head. “No, that’s not it. You’ve become more interesting. You were always a kind little boy and I had a lot of fun dragging you around, but you were always a little bit distant. As if you were never fully living in the moment. Which was a little bit off putting if I’m honest. You no longer give off that same distance, I feel like you’re actually here now.”
“Thanks for the compliment, I guess.”
She smiled. “It’s her influence, isn’t it.”
Cobal nodded and smiled as well. “She’s incredible, you know? She taught me so many things that I never thought I would have to care about. I was such a sheltered person before I met her. I thought my way of thinking was always right, but she proved me wrong again and again. It was quite frustrating at first, if I’m being honest with you, but as time went on I came to accept and even appreciate it. She’s almost like an older sister now.”
“A sister? That’s high praise. Not a possible partner?”
Cobal shook his head, surprised by the weird comment. “No, that would be weird.”
“Good.”
“Why is that good?”
“Look, we’re back at the estate, would you come say hi to father?”
“If it’s not a problem with him, I don’t want to disturb his rest if I don’t have to.”
“I think it would make him quite pleased to have you visit, but I’ll ask him before I bring you in.”
“Then definitely.”
“Prince Cobal, to what do I owe this visit?” Guthir Vaider looked frail, much more so than he did the last time that Cobal visited the Vadier estate with Mana.
“My friend Mana wanted to come help out with the strange disappearances on account that Cassandra – Sebastian’s Daughter – asked us for help. I decided to come along as well, and I wondered how you were doing, so Diana said we should pop by.”
Guthir smiled. “How kind of you to think of me. Please, have a seat.” He rolled his wheelchair over to the table and poured Cobal and Diana some tea. “As you can see, I’ve seen better days, but I have a very capable daughter who is doing all the difficult work for me so that I can spend my days sipping tea and reading. Forgive me for not getting up and giving you a proper greeting.”
“No forgiveness needed, I didn’t come here to demand a formal greeting, I came to see how you were doing. I wish I could do something to help you.” Cobal pulled up a chair and sat right across from Guthir. Diana stood next to the door, arms crossed.
“How are things in the capital?” Guthir asked.
“Not great.”
“Would you like to go into it?”
“Well, my brother – as you will have heard – has decided to abandon his country in favor of some promises of glory and the destruction of those who’ve come here from a different world. My father and the council have been in meetings for weeks on end about what to do with Mana. I think if she wasn’t already accepted as a member of the Milinia council – giving her noble status – they would have either killed her or locked her up. Mana’s been doing poorly under all of that stress, so coming here was a nice escape from all of that if I’m honest.”
“And what do you think?”
“About coming here?”
“No, about this theory that strangers coming to our world is dangerous.”
Cobal paused. Was he going to be honest? He’d known both Guthir and Diana since he was a child, but their politeness towards him could just be indicative of the respect they were supposed to show his station. He shook his head. No, I can trust them. He looked from Guthir to Diana and then back to Guthir. “I agree with the sentiment. Letting in people from other worlds is incredibly dangerous. They have access to knowledge that is so different from the world we know that them being here could be an incredible danger to our lives and the balance of the world. But that doesn’t automatically mean that all the people who have come already are dangerous.”
“There are multiple?” Diana asked.
Cobal nodded. “No more than a handful, as far as I’m aware, but Lysa had heard of some others.”
“Who is Lysa?” Diana asked.
“Lysa Drant, senior librarian at the Ruby Observatory. We spent some time studying with her while we were in Marsolin.”
Guthir smiled. “You’ve grown so much. You used to be a timid and unimpressive little boy. I spoke with your father once about you, and he also agreed that he worried about you. Your brothers were much more steadfast and confident than you. But I’m glad to see the person you’ve become. I’m sure your father is also very proud of you, even though I don’t think he’s the sort of man to say it out loud.”
“I appreciate that. Diana said similar things to me and it’s honestly been something I needed to hear.” He felt a lump in his throat so he decided to change the subject. He spotted Guthir’s wheelchair off next to his bed. “Is there any way that I or the hero can help you with your predicament?”
“I appreciate that, but you shouldn’t waste your time worrying about an old man like me. I’m tenacious. Us Vadiers have been around for a long time and I won’t just topple over from some muscle disease. And even if I do keep getting more frail, the region is in great hands.”
Cobal looked at Diana. “I don’t know about that last part.” They all laughed.
“Well, it has been a pleasure speaking with you again, Prince Cobal,” Guthir said. “If there is any assistance you require during your stay in Ravadier, please do not hesitate to contact us here at the estate. I’ll make sure that Madeline – our head of staff – is aware of this promise as well.”
“I will keep that in mind. We will be fine. We’ve brought some pretty reliable friends with us after all.”
Guthir frowned. “I didn’t think I’d see the day where a wanted pirate would dock at our town without any issue, yet here we are.”
Cobal smiled. “She’s not as bad as her reputation makes her seem.” He paused for a moment. “I think.”
“I hope you’re right, because the bills for any damage to our town will go directly to the crown.”
Cobal chuckled. “I hope I’m right too.”
After saying goodbye to Diana and Guthir, he was led out of the manor by one of the servants. The rain had picked up once more but he didn’t mind. The cold air made him feel awake and he was able to think clearly about everything that was happening. The leaves filled his vision with beautiful colors that improved his mood even more. A smile crept onto his face without him realizing it. Being told by two people from his youth that he’d changed for the positive had given him a big boost in morale. He was very much doubtful about his decision to come here instead of fighting for Mana’s position back in the capital, but after today he was convinced he had made the right decision. He was not going to be king, it would be much more productive for him to continue building up the bonds with nearby countries and regions. If people respected him, they were more likely to be on good terms with his brother and his father as well. Not to mention the fact that having Mana actually perform actions worthy of a hero would put her in the good graces of the people. If word spread of the hero and the prince saving villagers from an ocean curse then it wouldn’t reflect well on the council members and their scheming if they did decide to get rid of Mana or exile her. With newfound energy he made his way back down the pathway to town. His destination was the Iridescent Seashell. Eliana wasn’t on the Tidesetter when he went there to speak with Miyara and he was relatively confident that the best place to start searching for her would be the place where the most alcohol was. The laughter coming from the tavern as he approached all but confirmed that he was correct in his guess.
Opal Kaharis 