Page 33 of Voice of the Ocean

As the day drew on, many men entered the Compass to speak with the prince. News had spread that a captain was putting together a crew at the Compass. Raiden accepted them all, and it wasn’t long before Celeste realized that him offering her a role on the ship wasn’t a compliment. The man was desperate. This crew he was forming looked about as competent as a herd of sea slugs. Raiden was a prince, so why was he accepting any schmuck who wandered into the pub? Was he a prince of a different kingdom, with no pull here in Ethoria? Celeste knew Kiyami was not from here, and Kiyami had told her she and Raiden knew each other as children, so it was likely he wasn’t from here either. Or was it rumors of his last crew all dying at sea that kept any sane person away?

Over time, Raiden’s posture began to slump, and Kiyami, bored, left the table to “chat” with the barmaid—although the chatting looked a lot more like flirting. Celeste, however, found everything fascinating. The very idea of sailing on a human ship was something she had fantasized about nearly her entire life.

Celeste learned that Bastian, as the quartermaster, was in charge of managing supplies and ensuring the crew followed the captain’s orders. Between interviews, Raiden and Bastian almost exclusively conversed about which supplies they would need, where they would get them, how they would afford them. Typically, such dry talk would bore Celeste to tears. But everything Raiden and Bastian said was a new discovery. Humans apparently needed quite a bit to survive on the ocean. Food, water, livestock (whatever that was), feed for the livestock, ale, rum—the list went on and on.

“Do ya think you’d be able to get some chickens?” Nasir asked in his soft voice as he approached the table with four plates of food balanced on his forearms. “Always a treat to have fresh eggs.” The food was completely different from what Celeste had seen in the jail. He called it chicken curry and rice, and it smelled of earthy spices and meat. Celeste nodded in thanks as Nasir placed a plate in front of her, and he gave her a warm smile in return. With his massive frame and quiet demeanor, Celeste would have thought him a warrior. But he positively lit up when talking about food.

Kiyami returned to the table just in time to eat, the barmaid watching her go with lovesick eyes as big as saucers.

“This looks delicious,” Kiyami said, pulling up a stool and flicking her long, dark hair over her shoulder. She was right. The food was delicious. As warm and as comforting as a loved one’s embrace. The complex, colorful flavors danced along Celeste’s tongue, and before she knew it, she had finished. Nasir returned to take the cleaned plates away, and Celeste couldn’t help but soften at his pleased smile when he thought no one was looking.

The door to the bar opened with a bang, and a short, broad man lumbered in, looking very much as though he didn’t belong. For one thing, his blond hair was shaved on the sides, with the rest of his hair long and braided down his back. Silver rings adorned the braid, a style Celeste had not seen on any other men in town thus far. He was also shirtless and boasted a rather impressive amount of muscle beneath many black markings. Drawings perhaps? Across his hips he wore a heavy belt, upon which hung an ungodly number of weapons. Some of them she recognized, like daggers and swords, but many others she had never seen before. They jangled against each other as he stalked into the room, silver-blue eyes scanning.

“Oh no,” Bastian breathed, shrinking in his seat.

“I’ve heard someone is hiring a crew,” the blond man shouted above the din of the bar.

“Torben!” Nasir’s eyes crinkled in the corners as he smiled, pushing through the doorway that led to the kitchens. Nasir looked upon the man as though there was no one else in the room.

“My heart,” Torben said, closing the distance between them. “Where are the men who asked for me?”

Nasir nodded toward Raiden and Bastian, both of whom were looking determinedly in the opposite direction. Kiyami snorted.

“Gentlemen,” grunted Torben, sauntering toward the table. “I have heard you requested my assistance on your crew.”

Raiden turned first. “Ah! Torben! I didn’t see you come in.”

Do all humans know each other?Celeste wondered, looking between them.

At seeing Raiden, Torben straightened. His eyes grew as wide as saucers. And a smile lit his face, as if a vast treasure had been dropped directly into his lap. “If it isn’t Captain Raiden Sharp!” Torben roared, his large hand smacking Raiden on the back. “I haven’t seen you since you were no taller than me!”

Raiden’s answering smile looked stiff. “Has it been that long?”

“Didn’t your father send you off with your own crew?” Torben helped himself to a chair and Celeste’s full tankard of ale. “Why are you lookin’ for crew in this hellhole of all places?”

The prince’s eyes narrowed. “If Romsey is such a wasteland, why are you here?” The way he said this led Celeste to believe Raiden already knew the answer. Torben’s expression darkened.

“We actually came to speak with Kiyami,” Bastian said, eyeing his captain. “We left Velluno, and Raiden heard she was last seen here. But it was our luck we ran into your husband, who told us you were”—he searched for the words—“between jobs,” he finished delicately.

Torben downed the remainder of Celeste’s ale and slammed the tankard on the table. “What’s the job?”

Raiden looked toward Celeste and then leaned toward Torben, dropping his voice. “We’re hunting treasure.”

The man’s eyes practically glittered, a devilish grin growing on his face. “Treasure?” His face sobered. “Where?” he asked, growing suspicious. “I haven’t heard of anything.”

The prince laughed, but there was no warmth in it. “You must believe me a fool if you think I would tell you the location.”

Torben’s face burned red. “Do you want to say that to me again, boy?” He spat. “Just like your father. Disloyal bunch of?—”

“I’m not sure if an old-timer like you would be up for it anyway,” Raiden interrupted.

Torben looked like a volcano, ready to erupt. “We’ll just see about that, won’t we?” he shouted, leaping to his feet. “Try to keep me away, boy! Which is your ship?”

“TheRed Revenge,” Raiden said, the picture of calm.

It was as if the prince had poured water over the man. One second he was a raging fire, and the next he was a wisp of smoke.

“TheRed Revenge? Valencia’s ship?”

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