“Rosh,” Jenna said with a smile on her face as she sat down at the table.
“What?” The large man grumbled, assuming she was about to tear into him for something or other.
“Just saying hi,” she offered, winking at Jodyne who brought a bowl filled over to her.
Rosh closed his mouth and looked at her, one eye narrowed suspiciously. “You right in the head?” he asked.
She laughed and nodded, then began to eat. He continued to watch her for a moment, then shrugged and worked on finishing up his own meal.
Kragor came down the aft stairs with Bailynn behind him, planning on their own mid day meal. Bailynn paused when she saw Jenna and glanced around anxiously. She started to back away and turn around when Jenna turned and saw her. She smiled and motioned her over, swallowing a hot bite of food before speaking.
“Plenty of room, Lynn, come and eat,” she offered.
Nervously, the former slayer made her way over and sat down across from the elf. Rosh glanced up again, alarmed and confused. Jenna continued to behave abnormally, which was to be cheerful and nice towards their latest deckhand, and he had run out of stew to eat.
He pushed his bowl away and stood up. “Somebody hit their head,” he muttered. “I’m thinking maybe it’s me,” he added, turning and heading aft.
Xander emerged from the crew quarters he had been assigned and nearly ran into the large man. Rosh sneered at him and barked out a “Boo!” making the wizard jump back and away in fright. Rosh chuckled and headed up the stairs, feeling a little better that some things remained normal.
“What’s he about?” Dexter asked, coming down the companionway from his cabin.
“Your elf’s actin’ funny,” Kragor said, drawing a smack from Jodyne as she passed by him and handed Dexter a bowl of stew.
“Life’s too short out here to not appreciate your friends,” Jenna said, shrugging and smiling.
“This coming from an elf,” Dexter said with a playful grin. “Might be he’s on to something.”
Jenna assumed a pouty expression and then stuck her tongue out at the Captain of the Voidhawk. Kragor coughed into his stew, splattering it and earning another slap from Jodyne. Xander approached cautiously, clearly anxious about joining the rest of them. Bailynn looked a little less nervous, but still apprehensive.
“Sit, wizard, and tell us about yourself,” Dexter said, chuckling. “Don’t be worried, we’re harmless.”
“Hardly that, I think,” Xander muttered, sitting where Rosh had left. “You’re not of a mind to abuse me today?”
“Well,” Dexter said thoughtfully, “it is early yet.”
The twinkle in his eye made Jenna laugh, which let Xander know that the Captain was not quite as temperamental as he had believed he might be.
“We’ve our health, the wide open void before and behind us, and a good meal for our bellies,” the last Dexter accentuated by raising a steaming spoonful of stew and winking at Jodyne. “It’s a good day.”
Xander glanced around the table and realized that, perhaps, it was his time to earn some of the respect he was due. He leaned back a bit and took in a deep breath, then opened his mouth.
“Captain, can I talk to you?” Jenna asked, beating Xander to the punch.
Dexter looked at her, raising an eyebrow. He shrugged. “Sure, talk.”
“Private, I mean,” she said, rolling her eyes at him in a decidedly non-elvish fashion.
“The elf’s cracked, Dex, careful,” Kragor warned his friend and Captain under his breath. Jenna actually smiled sweetly at him by way of retaliation, which caused Jodyne to snicker softly in the background.
“Aye then, let’s go have a look at that head of yours, see where the bump is,” Dexter said good-naturedly. He stood up and handed Jodyne his half-eaten bowl of stew, then followed his arms mistress back to her cabin.
“Never seen an elf go daft before,” Kragor mumbled after they had left.
Jodyne shook her head and sent a warning glance his way. Bailynn smiled a little, though she kept it to herself. She wondered if, perhaps, Jenna had seen herself in a new light since they had been forced to work together. The elf still confused and terrified her, but that was not in the least because she could still feel the connection between the two of them. She realized she needed to talk to Bekka, the strange woman that seemed to want to help her. Bekka alone had seemed to have a talent at unraveling the magic that made her what she was.
“Temperamental lot, elves,” Xander said, trying to sound sagely. “As I was about to say-“
“Kragor,” Jodyne said, interrupting the wizard but having the courtesy to at least flash a brief smile his way, “I’m for needing another barrel of salted meat from the steerage.”
Kragor sighed then shrugged and stood up. “Listen to an old dwarf and stay single, wizard.”
Jodyne stared at the ceiling beseechingly and shook her head; she knew better than to listen to her husband’s blustering. “You want to eat?” She asked him.
Kragor grumbled something then grinned and winked at her as he made his way to down the hall to the cargo bay that hosted the trap door that led to the steerage between their feet and the Voidhawk’s hull.
Xander looked around, noting how his crowd had diminished to the shy little girl and the cook, who was back working in her kitchen. He sighed and stirred his stew morosely.
“I’d like to hear,” Bailynn said softly, glancing up at him then looking away quickly.
Xander looked at her and nearly laughed scornfully. He paused though, realizing that he needed to start somewhere. Rightfully someone of his rank and prestige deserved better, but given the circumstances, he reminded himself that he had to make do with what he could. He nodded and smiled at her, and began to tell her of himself.
“You’re not going to be taking your clothes off again, are you?” Dexter asked as the door to Jenna’s room shut behind him.
She turned and smiled at him. “I thought you’d never ask!”
“No!” Dexter said too quickly. He grinned. “I mean, you’re a pleasing sight to my eye, but that just complicates things.
Jenna pouted a little and reached up to her vest, then winked at him and let her arms fall to her side. “Captain, I want to stay with you.”
“Stay with me? Like in my cabin?” Dexter asked, confused.
Jenna beamed at his idea. “I hadn’t thought of that, but okay, I accept.”
“What? I didn’t offer nor ask!” He protested.
Jenna laughed. “A girl can try,” she offered before letting her smile fade and turning serious again. “No, I mean I want to stay with you…with the crew… with the Voidhawk. I don’t want to leave at our next port.”
“Oh!” Dexter said, relieved and a little disappointed all at once. He had liked the forbidden thoughts that had entered his mind involving her in his cabin. “Why the change of heart?”
“Something Bailynn said to me,” Jenna said, shrugging it away as unimportant. “She reminded me of what it means to be an elf and that I don’t want to be one.”
Dexter stepped closer to her so that he could place a reassuring hand on her shoulder. “Jenna, nothing wrong with being an elf,” he said. “No more than it’s bad to be human, dwarven, or anything else. The problem’s not with what you were born with, it’s what you do with it that counts.”
Jenna looked at him for a long moment, her eyes searching his. Then she smiled and nodded. “Captain, I need you to know something.”
“What?” Dexter asked, concerned.
“I don’t plan on ever leaving your service or side,” she said with a twinkle in her eye that hinted at excessive moisture. “And that I’m looking forward to the game we play going on for a long, long time… or until you give in and accept me.”
“What game?” Dexter asked, knocked off balance by his mercurial second mate yet again.
“The game where you pretend you don’t want me,” she said, leaning in a little towards him to break the barrier of personal space between them.
“I do want you,” Dexter admitted solemnly. Then, with a grin he added, “otherwise I’d have to promote Rosh to arms master! There’d be no living with him then.”
Jenna’s mouth fell open in surprise, then she laughed. “That’s the game I mean, Dexter. I’m an elf and I’ve got plenty of time to wait for you to come to your senses.”
She winked at him and backed away, turning and heading towards her trunk. “I need to get changed to head up on deck.”
“Meeting’s adjourned then?” Dexter asked her, noticing that the way her hands were moving in front of her she was obviously not waiting for him to leave before changing her clothing.
She looked over her shoulder at him and smiled, “yes, Captain, as long as you’ll have me on your crew.”
Dexter chuckled. “I’ll think about it and let you know,” he said mischievously before turning to leave.
He paused at the door and said, “Oh, Jenna?”
She turned to face him, her vest hanging open in the front and allowing him to see her as she slid it from her arms. “Yes, Sir?” she asked softly.
“I thought about it,” he said quickly, forcing his eyes to stay on hers. “You can stay… matter of fact, I was never going to let you leave in the first place.”
She raised an eyebrow and laughed, then blew him a kiss as he turned and stepped out of her room. Dexter stood outside of it and shook his head, knowing he should not encourage her but also knowing that he enjoyed it so very much when he did. Whistling softly to himself, he started down the hall back towards the galley, then decided he might be better off to head up to the main deck.
Kragor grunted and moved through the dimly lit hold. His dwarven eyes made it easier to see in the poor light, but the shadows were still deep. He kicked aside a crate and made his way over to some barrels that were lashed together. He stumbled on his way and glanced back at whatever had tripped him. Curious, he bent low to examine it, wondering how a tree limb had made its way into the hold.
The limb moved, coiling up slowly and reminding him not of a tree limb anymore but more of a tentacle. He cursed and backpedaled quickly, trying to figure out what it was. He crashed into the barrels and fell on them, breaking apart a weakened one. He grabbed some of the wood and held it up, noting that he should be laying in a pile of salted meat. The wood showed signs of being worn down and eaten away, and the contents of the barrel were missing completely.
“Elf balls,” Kragor cursed, thinking up stories of what the tentacle might be. He tried to lunge to his feet but another tentacle lashed around his arm, yanking it out from under him.
The dwarf crashed again to the hull, air exploding from his lungs. Another tentacle wrapped around his chest and a third covered one leg. He pried at the one on his chest and gasped for air, trying to recover his breath. He smelled a musky odor that had not been there before, and noticed how much darker the hold seemed to be. A dark shape coalesced above him and moved towards him. He tried to hold his free arm up to ward it off, but his arm seemed so heavy he found he could not move it.
Jumbled thoughts and images crashed through his mind, trying desperately to put a name to the terror that came across him. He managed to cling to the tenaciously stubborn will that was his racial heritage and roll to his belly. Dragging the leaden tentacles behind him, he began to crawl towards the square of light that promised escape and freedom into the cargo bay above. Each hurried breath sucked in more of the musky odor, however, and each attempt at pulling himself closer to it made it seem farther and farther away.
Dexter watched Rosh and Keshira working on deck. They worked side by side to assist Bekka in the smooth sailing of the Voidhawk through the void, trimming the sales and tying off the rigging when necessary. Both possessed great strength, a necessary feat for running the ship with a skeleton crew, and endurance that was near legendary. The great difference between the two was that Rosh would eventually tire. Keshira worked endlessly.
Set on a new course after tacking, the work slowed down. Rosh finished coiling up a rope and tossed it into its place next to one of the wings of the Voidhawk. He turned and grinned at Keshira, then let his expression fade when she just stared at him blankly. From the forecastle Dexter sighed and wondered how long it would take until the pleasure golem started to show signs of thinking and acting for herself.
“Keshira, you ever going to figure out what a great team we make?” Rosh asked her, grinning anew in hopes of not being rebuffed as he usually was.
“What Rosh?” she asked him, clearly confused.
“You and me, we do good work together,” he said again, his grin fading.
“I could do it myself,” she said.
He chuckled and waved. “Sure you could, but you wouldn’t be so fast as us together.”
She paused and then nodded. “That is true.”
“So, we make a good team then?”
She hesitated a bit before saying, “Team… yes, we work faster together than apart.”
“Now we’re talking! We’re team mates, and that means we ought to-“
“Rosh, you seen Kragor?” Jodyne said, interrupting the large man as she climbed up the staircase onto the deck.
“What? No!” He snapped, scowling at her. “We’re busy here, can’t you see that?”
Ignoring the man, she turned to Keshira, “You seen him, Keshira?”
“I have not seen him for many hours, Jodyne,” the pleasure golem said.
Jodyne frowned then turned and looked about. She saw Dexter up on the forecastle and started towards him. Seeing her expression, Dexter figured he should move her way and save as much time as possible. He had more than enough experience at being on Jodyne’s angry side.
“What’ve you done with Kragor?” Jodyne asked, an unpleasant expression on her face.
“I’ve not seen him since I left your table,” Dexter explained defensively. Captain of the ‘Hawk or not, he still found himself intimidated by Jodyne when she was feeling feisty.
She frowned. “He ain’t off fixing something or other?”
Dexter shook his head. “’Fraid not. What’s he done wrong this time?”
Jodyne’s look melted Dexter’s mischievous grin from his face. “I sent him to fetch me up another barrel o’ meat but the damn fool’s been gone more than an hour now.”
Dexter frowned, his mood turning serious. Kragor had been known to dodge his wife before, but usually with Dexter and with the help of some ale to drown their troubles. Those times were long past, since they had reconditioned the Voidhawk and set sail on her. He nodded at length and glanced at Rosh and Keshira, who were both listening intently.
“Search the ship, Kragor’s missing,” he told them.
He turned to Jodyne and motioned for her to lead the way. With a firm set to her jaw she turned and headed back towards the spiral staircase that led below. Rosh and Keshira spread out but followed, looking as they went.
On the cargo deck Dexter and Jodyne waited while Rosh and Keshira both looked through the crew quarters that Xander and Rosh were sharing and the two staterooms. Finding nothing in the aft of the ship Dexter knocked on Jenna’s door next.
“Jenna, it’s Dexter,” he said, announcing his presence.
The door opened partway and Jenna said, “how many times do you need telling you’ve the run of the ship, you can… oh, what’s wrong?”
The seriousness of the situation helped Dexter keep from chuckling at her surprise. Jenna saw the small gathering behind him and excused herself for a moment. She returned a moment later, silk sash wrapped and tied around her body in such a way to provide enough modesty to frustrate the likes of Rosh, but to prevent much from being left to the imagination. She was buckling on her weapons belt as she shut the door behind her and joined them in the hallway.
“Any chance you’re hiding Kragor in there?” Rosh asked her, ogling what she had on display.
She rolled her eyes and turned to Dexter and Jodyne. “What happened? Can’t you find him?”
Jodyne shook her head but did not speak. Her jaw set tight with frustration and emotion she refused to show. Dexter shook his head as well, but spoke. “Nay, we’ve only looked up top and in the aft thus far, but Jodyne poked her head up front earlier, I’m guessing.”
The cook nodded her head. Dexter frowned. “He was supposed to be fetching a barrel from the stowage.”
“Fool dwarf probably tripped and hit his head,” Rosh muttered.
“You’re the fool,” Jodyne snapped at him.
“What, he runs into plenty of things,” the large man said defensively. He glanced nervously at Jodyne, knowing well her deadly accuracy with anything she chose to pick up and throw.
“Aye, but his skull’s too thick to put him down,” she said.
Rosh blinked and then chuckled a little. “Aye, you’ve the right of that.”
Dexter chuckled as well, but it was Jenna who spoke up. “Let’s check below decks then, seems that’s the next place to go.”
“It’s on the way to the front, we might as well,” Dexter agreed.
They filed forward, pausing only to check in the sail locker before coming up to the double sized doors on opposing sides of the companionway that led into the cargo holds. When they entered the starboard cargo hold Jodyne pointed to the open trap door in the floor.
“That’s how it was when I came to check on him,” she said, her voice subdued. “I called his name and looked down in there, but he didn’t respond.”
“Didn’t you go down and look?” Rosh asked.
Before Jodyne could answer Dexter stepped forward and peered into the darkness of their hold. He grunted and squatted down, trying to peer inside himself.
“Captain,” Jenna said, her fingers brushing his shoulder lightly as they rested on it.
He glanced up at her, then looked at her fingers. Her touch was reassuring, but under the circumstances it seemed inappropriate. He cleared his throat meaningfully and she removed it, smiling briefly at him as though they shared a private joke.
“What is it?” he asked, turning to glance back into the hold.
“There’s something… odd,” she said. Her nostrils flared as she knelt down beside him and stuck her head into the hold to look around. “A strange odor, I’ve not smelled it before.”
“I don’t smell nothing,” Rosh muttered.
“You’re a human,” Jenna snapped at him. “You’d have trouble smelling yourself if you made a mess in your pants.”
“I’m a what?” he said, confused by why being human was bad.
“This ain’t helping Kragor none,” Dexter said, silencing the two of them.
“Captain,” Keshira said, breaking her silence and stepping forward. “Let me go.”
“Why?” Dexter asked her.
She hesitated, opening her mouth a few times before finally speaking out her reasoning. “I am stronger and faster; if something is wrong I will survive longer,” she explained. “And if I do not, it is better I die than you.”
Dexter frowned. “My thanks, but you’re all my crew, my responsibility. I’ll be the one sticking his neck out.”
The Captain turned then and climbed down the steep staircase into the hold, stooping his head when he reached the bottom to avoid cracking his skull against the timbers that supported the floor above. “Someone pass me a lightstone,” he muttered, realizing he had forgotten to bring one with him.
A few moments passed and Dexter heard footsteps as one was fetched. He peered around the steerage hold while he waited, trying to force his eyes to pierce the gloom. He thought he heard something at one point, but when nothing further developed he dismissed it.
Jenna landing lightly behind him made his heart jump in his chest, however. He cursed softly at her and saw the smile on her face. She held up a stick that had a glowing crystal tied to the end of it. It shed enough light to chase away the shadows for half a dozen feet or so.
“What are you doing?” Dexter snapped.
“Bringing you some light, Sir,” she replied smartly.
Dexter scowled and glanced past her at the trapdoor, then realized it would be useless to try and order her away. He turned instead and moved deeper into the hold, looking for some sign of Kragor’s passage.
He found a knocked over barrel and the shattered remains of another. “Jenna!” He hissed, pointing to the broken barrel.
She nodded and moved off to the side, stepping around a pile of spare lumber they had tied together for emergency repairs. Smoothly she drew her weapons, then let out a gasp of surprise.
Dexter scrambled over the long timbers, drawing his long sword in the process. He hesitated in surprise when he saw a flicker of energy leap up and down the blade, shedding a faint light of its own. His hesitation and distraction cost him though. He came down on a tentacle and stumbled into Jenna, sending her off balance as well.
The tentacle he tripped on wrapped around his legs and tripped him further, sending him crashing to the hull. He tried to roll free but was held up by the thing around his calves. He hacked at it, feeling the energy that coursed from the blade and into the tentacle channel back through his legs.
Jenna rolled out of harm’s way, or so she thought. She bounced off a crate, stunning her and bruising her shoulder. Another tentacle wrapped around her arm, pulling her off balance and making her drop her short sword. She kicked at the tentacle, doing no damage but granting her enough momentum to twist around and hew at it with her sword.
Jenna’s first swing cut into the leathery hide but did not sever it. It yanked at her, surprising her with its strength, and pulled her across the uneven flooring. She could only grit her teeth as her side and legs were scraped against the wood. She looked up when the momentum slowed and saw a mottled brown shape detach itself from the floor. She saw six tentacles attached to it, with one of them having hold of her, and in the midst of the triangular shaped creature a circular orifice rimmed with tiny teeth, something that reminded her of a leech.
She smelled the puff of gas almost instantly, and recognized it as a much stronger version of what she had smelled in the cargo hold above. She held her breath and struggled, but it was too late; she had already inhaled enough of it to affect her. A slow paralysis gripped at her, numbing her skin and then her extremities. Her sword managed to sever the tentacle that held her, but before she could lift it again it fell from nerveless fingers.
“Dexter!” She gasped, reached out for him as he was being pulled toward the creature as well.
Dexter hacked at the tentacle again, being ready for the shock this time, and lurched to his feet when it recoiled from him. He saw Jenna ahead and faintly heard her cry, which caused him a rush of adrenaline fueled by anger. He lunged towards her and stumbled, seeing what the creature had left behind. Kragor lay on the decking, limp and unmoving.
Another tentacle swept in, slapping him in the side and knocking him off balance. He turned, growling in rage, and swung at it, realizing too late the strange odor that had surrounded him. He disregarded it as his sword severed the tentacle, the electrical effect from the blade causing the dismembered tip to spasm and contort for several seconds.
He tried to advance on the stowaway but found his legs not obeying him. His ankle turned on the first step, and his other leg refused to move fast enough to catch him as he teetered and fell. He looked up and watched another tentacle approach him. It came in slower, obviously cautious of the weapon that had caused it such pain. Dexter was unable to react to it, other than to watch it approach and wrap itself around his torso. It pulled him back towards the sucking orifice, with Dexter furiously struggling as a prisoner inside his own body.
“What was that?” Rosh asked, looking at the others. “You hear something?”
“Captain!” Keshira said, diving through the open trapdoor.
Rosh recoiled back, surprised, then looked to Jodyne. She looked back, equally confused. Rosh shrugged and moved down the stairs as quickly as possible, his tall frame cramped in the hold. He pulled a dagger from his belt, wishing he had thought to bring his sword. A glance at the low ceiling made him realize how pointless his massive sword would be. Likewise he had no pistol at hand.
Keshira brushed aside barrels and crates as she moved like an elemental force through the hold. She reached her destination and grabbed on to the tentacle that was wrapped around Dexter. Using her great strength she dug her fingers into it and pulled, tearing it apart slowly and stopping the advance Dexter made towards the creature.
With Dexter safe she turned to Jenna, who already lay in front of the thing that had stowed away. She grabbed a hold of Jenna’s legs and pulled the helpless elf back, easily ignoring the puff of gas that enveloped her. A tentacle wrapped around her arm and another around her leg, pulling at her. The pleasure golem bent towards it, then regained her balance and pulled back. It slid across the decking towards her, then tried to release her from its sinuous arms.
Keshira grabbed hold of the one around her arm, pulling on it and dragging it closer to her. It slid alongside Jenna, who was oblivious by that point, and then was within range of the fury of the pleasure golem. Keshira’s fingers dug into its body, pulling it up and throwing it against a box. She pounded her other fist into it, pummeling the boneless body of the creature mercilessly.
“Keshira!” Rosh said, coming upon the scene and trying to get her to stop. The creature she was battering was obviously beyond any hope of defending itself.
She pounded it for another minute, stopping only when it tore in half. The gore of its entrails stained her and the hold. She looked at it and then turned to Rosh, who was shaking his head and holding on to the pile of lumber to keep from falling.
“Are you hurt?” she asked him.
Rosh shook his head, almost losing his balance as he did so. Speaking slowly and carefully he said, “No… sleepy.”
“Go back, I will get the others,” Keshira told him, turning already and gently picking up Dexter.
Keshira had to wait while Rosh struggled to climb back up the stairs. Jodyne, of all people, helped from above by pulling his arms once he made it to the stairs. Once Rosh collapsed on the deck and fought the effects of the cloud, Keshira deposited Dexter’s unconscious form before returning to bring up the others.
Kragor’s body was still and pale, with little warmth remaining in it. Jodyne collapsed next to it and felt desperately for breath and then a pulse in dwarf’s neck. She threw her arms around her husband and clung fiercely to him while her body shuddered with grief. There was no signs of life to be found.
With less than a skeleton crew to run the ship, Bekka let the ship float aimlessly in the void. She hurried down to lend her first aid skills, but was frustrated and unable to do much. Even Xander was pressed into service, but while his knowledge of arcane things was considerable, he had little to offer by means of restoring health. Necromancy, he asserted, was not an interest of his.
Rosh came back around first, being the least exposed to the noxious fumes the creature released. Still unsteady, he was nevertheless able to stand by the time that Dexter and Jenna began to awaken. Both were nauseas and had little in the way of a sense of balance for some time, but regardless of that, Dexter insisted almost immediately on learning of the fate of Kragor.
With Bekka’s help, he staggered to the hold where Kragor’s body lay still on the decking. Jodyne sat next to him, arranging his clothing and beard so that he would be looked upon respectfully in the afterlife. She looked up as Dexter came in then looked back, only her stubborn will keeping her grief stricken eyes from spilling tears that would not stop.
Dexter collapsed to his knees beside Kragor’s body and took his friend’s cold hand in his own. Tears ran from his own eyes, but he blinked them away mostly and bowed his head respectfully. Finally, after many minutes had passed, Dexter looked up into the dwarf’s face and nodded to him.
“Rest well, my friend,” he whispered. “We will miss you.”
Jodyne sniffed and Dexter rose unsteadily to his feet. He turned and staggered back to the door of the hold, where Jenna was watching with tears of her own streaming down her face. Keshira and Rosh were nearby as well, though everyone was respectfully silent.
“Why do you grieve?” Keshira asked, breaking the silence.
Jenna looked at the pleasure golem and smiled sadly. “We were elf and dwarf, so we bickered.”
She turned to Jodyne, who glanced at her and then looked away. “Kragor was loyal and skilled. He served the ship and crew well, and though we argued often, he was my friend. I think he would say the same of me, though I did not do him the justice of showing my nature.”
Jodyne looked up at her again and nodded, then had to look away to blink away fresh tears. Keshira remained silent as she pondered what Jenna had said.
“His spirit will always be with us,” Dexter said consolingly. “My heart is heavy now, but it is brighter for having known Kragor so well and so long.”
“Jodyne, what would you have us do with him?” Dexter asked her softly.
She shivered for a moment but quickly gained control of herself. “This ship was his home, Dexter, and having us together beside him made him happiest.”
She paused and took a deep breath, pausing only to brush an imaginary strand of hair from Kragor’s cheek. “He loved sailing the void, give his body to it, so he can sail forever.”
Dexter nodded and motioned for Keshira to pick him up. He did not trust his voice, so he was surprised when she correctly interpreted him and stepped forward to gather up the fallen dwarf in her arms. She was surprisingly gentle as she picked him up and then led them all out to the main deck.
Atop the stern castle she waited. The rest filed in and stood quietly. The collective mood was understandably somber. Dexter looked to Jodyne, wondering if she had any final words to share. She stared at her husband’s body mutely, however.
It was Xander who broke the silence. “Captain, I have a simple spell I could use to help preserve his body…”
Dexter’s eyes narrowed for a moment, then he looked to Jodyne. “I don’t ‘spect Kragor’d be wanting any magic put on him, thanks all the same.”
Jodyne nodded appreciatively and Xander stepped back. “It’s just a small spell,” he muttered to himself, though it was easily overhead by others nearby.
Dexter, if he heard the wizard, ignored him. He turned back to Jodyne. “Jodyne, is there anything you’d like to say or do?”
The dwarf took a deep breath and stroked her beard. She closed her eyes and let it out, then shook her head. Staring at Kragor’s body she whispered something in dwarven to him, then turned to Dexter. “Let him go, Dexter.”
The captain nodded and turned to Keshira. He opened his mouth but could not make the words come out. Keshira leaned over the railing anyhow, having received Dexter’s command through the bond she had with him. Kragor’s body dropped to the gravity plane of the Voidhawk and bobbed up and down a few times until it settled on it. Then it slowly drifted away from the ship, floating in the same way that the debris and space junk they came across did.
Kragor’s body slipped out of the bubble of air that surrounded the Voidhawk, his inertia continuing to move him away from the ship. They all watched as the dwarf’s body diminished from view and disappeared.
“Rosh, take the helm when Bekka’s shift is done,” Dexter said. “Everybody else back to their posts.”
They fell in, finding a sense of purpose in following his orders. Jenna alone looked at him for a long minute, something clearly on her mind. He caught her gaze and shook his head, letting her know that now was not the time for it, whatever it was. Instead Dexter followed Xander as the wizard returned to the crew quarters he shared with Rosh.
“Something you need, Captain Silvercloud?” Xander inquired rather stiffly when he realized that Dexter had followed him down the stairs and seemed to be interested in following him further.
Dexter nodded and gestured into the cabin lined with bunks, chests, and a couple of small tables. He turned and shut the door behind them after they entered. Then, surprising Xander immensely, Dexter grabbed him with both hands on his robes and threw him onto one of the tables.
“I’m a might curious why it is I’ve had nothing but trouble since running across you and your place,” Dexter said, his tone deadly serious. “First the pirates you happen to be captured by. Sure, there’s cause enough for that. But where’d that thing come from in my hold? Wasn’t there before. I don’t much care for coincidence.”
Xander stared up at him, his eyes displaying shock, surprise, and more than a little fear. He tried to stammer out a reply but failed miserably at making any intelligent or decipherable noises.
One hand holding the wizard down, Dexter reached down with his other and drew his pistol. He cocked the hammer back on it and placed it against Xander’s chest, poking him none-too-gently in the ribs. “Care to try again, or do you want your body to join Kragor’s floating through the void forever more?”
“I didn’t do anything!” Xander cried out desperately. “I don’t know what was in your hold either! Some kind of scavenger, I don’t know how it got there!”
“I’ve seen scavvers before, they aren’t looking like that thing,” Dexter growled. “Small things, snakes with wings… this was nothing like that.”
“Your construct demolished it before I could study it,” Xander said, his fear turning to anger in spite of the pistol in his side. “And I have nothing to gain from destroying your ship or crew.”
“I have nothing at all, save my life and my spell books, which you saved for me,” Xander reminded him. “My home, my research, my wealth… it’s all gone! And what’s worse is that I owe you my life, although I’m beginning to wonder if it’s worth it.
“The truth, Captain Silvercloud,” Xander continued, though he spoke Dexter’s name with emphasis, “is that when you drop me off at the next port I’ll have to start from nothing and rebuild everything I’ve had. I’ll have to perform parlor tricks to earn a meal and scrape together what coins I can in the hopes of one day reestablishing myself. And then I’ll have to worry about finding a way to pay you back one day for saving me.”
He paused and stared up at Dexter, the shock now missing. “Now either let me up or kill me, Captain. Either one would be appreciated.”
Dexter stared at him for a long moment, considering the wizard. Finally he consented and lowered the hammer slowly on his pistol. He straightened and held out his hand to Xander. “Think you’d have been able to figure out what that thing was or where it came from if Keshira hadn’t mashed it up so bad?”
Xander’s eyes narrowed suspiciously, but he accepted Dexter’s offered hand anyhow. He let the man help pull him upright and then rubbed his back where it had bitten into the table. “Perhaps,” he offered. “I’m not familiar with anything with tentacles though, as your crew described it. Creatures are not my primary interest, although I have dabbled some in them.”
“What is your interest?” Dexter asked.
“Magic,” Xander said with a shrug. “Instilling it into whatever I can and making it last. Extra-dimensionality, for example, or making the sounds of a bell ring more clearly.”
Dexter raised an eyebrow. “Extra what?”
“Dimensionality… remember what remained of my tower? It seemed larger on the inside than it was from without, that’s an extra-dimensional effect.”
“Oh,” Dexter said, pretending it made sense. “Wait, you mean you can make an area bigger on the inside than it really is?”
“Well, that’s a simplistic way of saying it, but with enough time and effort, it’s possible. It can require special thaumaturgic materials as well,” Xander explained.
“Thauma-what?”
“Metals, powders, jewels, and other items that can be imbued with magical properties,” Xander explained with an aloof smile.
“Huh, well that’s something then,” Dexter offered. He gave Xander a brief smile then said, “might just find a use for you after all.”
Xander’s smile faded as Dexter turned away and opened the door. He stood there, trying to come up with something witty or justifying but the door shut behind the Captain instead.
Jenna pounced on Dexter as he passed her cabin on the way to the ship’s bow. “Dex- Captain, can I…can we talk?”
Dexter slowed as she fell in behind him. He frowned a little but let it pass. “What do we need to talk about?”
She was silent a moment, allowing them to pass the cargo holds and come closer to the ship’s bow. “About Kragor…and Xander.”
Dexter pulled up short. He turned to look at her and then motioned towards his cabin door. She nodded and moved past him to open it and step in. He followed, shutting the door behind him.
“What is it?” Dexter asked, turning to face her and finding her standing far closer than he expected. He jumped a little, but the door kept him from moving very far away from her.
“Dex,” she began, looking directly into his eyes with a seriousness that left him uncertain.
Dexter opened his mouth to respond but she held up her fingers and pressed them to his lips, silencing him.
“I won’t pretend to know how much Kragor meant to you, but I know it was a lot,” she continued. “I just want to say that I’m here, if you want to talk. I know you probably won’t, but you should.”
Unbidden, memories of Kragor popped into his head. He forced them down and smiled around the sudden lump in his throat. “Thanks,” he said softly. “But you’re right, I probably won’t.”
She scowled. “Damn you and your kind,” she snapped.
“Back to being a human hating elf already?” He inquired with a sweetness that was designed to infuriate her.
“No,” she snapped. “I’m talking about you being a man! All men do it, elf or human.”
“Oh,” Dexter said, at a sudden loss for words.
She looked at him and crossed her arms, frustration evident on her face. Finally she let out a grunt and, catching the captain off guard, hugged him.
Dexter looked down at Jenna, confused and uncertain of how to respond. On the one hand he felt uncomfortable; he had not invited the contact or wanted the intimacy. On the other hand he was intently aware of how long it had been for him since he had been that close to a woman, especially a woman that had declared her interests in him. Ultimately, Dexter’s feelings of appreciation for her attempts at offering consolation won out. He placed his hands gently around her and returned the gesture.
“You’re not so good at this either,” Dexter pointed out, realizing that she had seemed just as awkward and uncertain as he was about sharing an emotional moment.
“With all due respect, Captain, shut up,” Jenna replied. “I’m trying something new too, something someone I respect very much taught me.”
“Oh? What’s that?” Dexter asked, amused.
“Putting aside what I’ve always done and doing what I know should be done,” she said, looking up at him. “Now tell me how you and Kragor met.”
Dexter thought for a moment, his mind traveling back to a time a few years past. He smiled in spite of himself, then tried to push it away and deal with the present.
“I appreciate what you’re doing… really,” he said with a genuine smile. “But I’m keeping those memories for myself. I’m not hiding or denying, death’ll find us all out here sooner or later.”
She nodded after a long look into his eyes. She smiled her understanding and detached herself from their hug. “Just remember, if you want to talk…”
The Captain nodded and smiled. “Now what about the wizard? You said you had something to say?”
Jenna shrugged. “I lied; needed to get you alone…sorry.”
Dexter frowned but found himself chuckling at her expression in spite of himself. “Alright, but don’t let it happen again.”
“Yes Sir,” Jenna said, slapping her fist to her chest in mock salute.
“”Way I see it, I got a rough choice off my bow,” Dexter said, moving past Jenna and sitting down in his chair. He gestured towards his bed and she raised an eyebrow then sat down on the edge of it.
“What’s that, Captain?” Jenna said, glancing at his bed and wondering if she might be stretched out on it anytime soon.
“I’m not knowing if Jodyne will be staying with us,” he admitted thoughtfully. “Rosh’s dying to have a chance to boss people around, and Xander’s no stranger to wanting control. Bekka’s got no interest in it either, I’m for thinking. What about you? What’s your take on it?”
“On what? First mate?” Jenna asked, guessing correctly what Dexter was pondering. Her only surprise at his question was that he mentioned the wizard’s name.
Dexter nodded.
“Why the mage? He’s a castaway, not crew.”
“He got nowhere worth going and nothing to help him stand on his own. Might be we could use a caster on here. Plus he’s got some tricks that might help out, stuff like adding dimensions or spaces or something to the holds.” Dexter shrugged in admittance of his lack of understanding things magical. “It’s magic, I don’t know it and that don’t make for smart sailing. Might be handy having someone around that does.”
“Bekka’s got magic,” she pointed out.
“Aye, but she’s the first to admit hers ain’t book learning. She knows what she knows because it just comes natural,” Dexter replied. “Xander’s got his nose high enough to snag it in the rigging, sure, but he’s also got some book learning on all that finger wiggling.”
“You didn’t tell me about yourself yet,” he pointed out before she could pursue the matter further.
Jenna smiled and shook her head. “A week or two back I’d have said yes. But now I don’t think I could fill Kragor’s boots.”
“Not with them dainty elf feet,” Dexter said, altering his voice in a poor imitation of Kragor.
They both grinned at the good natured jest. A brief moment passed before Dexter said, “alright, it’s done then.”
“What’s done? Who’s it to be?” Jenna asked, her curiosity making her lean forward. “Don’t tell me I have to answer to Rosh!”
Dexter smiled and stood up. He moved past Jenna, who stared at him with suspiciously narrowed eyes. She stood up as he opened his door and stepped out, heading towards the staircase to the main deck. She hurried after and caught up to him as he was calling everyone that was on the deck together.
“The ‘Hawk needs a new First Mate,” Dexter said loudly. “Ain’t a one of you that can replace Kragor, nor anyone out there that could. All the same, after me, Jenna’s in charge of the ship. Treat her like you would me… except better, since you don’t treat me half as good as you ought to.”
Jenna glared at Dexter. She had suspected he might do something like that, and she knew better than to protest, especially in front of the others. Instead she turned to look at the others, which consisted of everyone except Bekka, who was on the helm.
Keshira and Bailynn said nothing, they simply accepted it. Bailynn did look somewhat fearfully at Jenna for a moment, but the expression quickly passed. Rosh, on the other hand, looked frustrated. Xander seemed unconcerned about the change of events, and maintained a look of placid uneasiness that bordered on misery at his homeless situation.
“Xander, you admit to owing me a debt; you just became the ‘Hawks wizard. When I don’t have you doing wizarding things, you’re to help out on the deck,” Dexter said.
Rosh opened his mouth to protest but Dexter cut him off. “Rosh, you’re the new Arms master.”
Rosh’s expression changed to one of introspection, which then morphed into a grin. “Hey Cap, does that mean I get my own room?”
Dexter frowned and could feel Jenna staring at him without even needing to look in her direction. He opened his mouth to respond but saw Jodyne staring at him from behind the rest of them. He found he did not know what to say, but Jodyne saved him from the awkward moment.
“I’ll move my things,” she offered.
Dexter nodded, feeling small and petty for having not thought the situation through. He realized he could have and should have handled it better, but now it was too late for any of that.
“Take your time, Jodyne. There’s no rush and don’t let Rosh tell you otherwise,” Dexter said. “Besides, he only gets Jenna’s room.”
“Now get to work, the ‘Hawk don’t fly herself!” Dexter snapped, anxious to keep everyone busy and to get himself some time alone to beat his head against a wall. His only pause before shutting himself in his room was to stop by the bridge and inform Bekka of the crew changes. She nodded distantly, her mind split between manning the helm and listening to Dexter, but offered him a smile of support at his decisions. Dexter was grateful for that, at least.
He spared himself any feelings of true relief until he was alone in his cabin, with both doors barred and a bottle of brandy and two cups sitting on the table in front of him. He filled them both then just stared at them as he finally gave in and let the memories of his lifelong friend come to him.
Dexter had met Kragor when he was just a boy maybe a dozen years old. The dwarf had stopped him from picking the pocket of a sailor that was heading into a bar, in fact. Considering himself busted, Dexter panicked and tried to escape the iron grip of the dwarf, but he had been unable to do so. Instead of turning him in though, Kragor had sat Dexter down and had a talk with him, convincing him that nicking purses was only the way to an early grave.
They had become friends, if a bit unlikely, and had shared many adventures over the years. Dexter sniffed and reached for his drink, raising it slowly while staring at the amber liquid in it. He smiled and saluted the other glass on the table, already missing his gruff but fun companion.
Dexter coughed and sprayed the brandy out his mouth and nose as he tried to drink it. He jumped to his feet, gasping not only from the stinging pain in his sinuses, but also from the sight that he had seen. Standing next to the table and staring at him with a smile was a ghostly image of Kragor.
“I’m mad then,” Dexter mumbled after several moments of trying to recover his wits.
Kragor reached for the small tumbler of brandy but scowled when his hand passed through it. He looked back to Dexter and shrugged, then winked and faded quickly away. Dexter stared at the spot until the apparition could no longer be seen, then he stared at the spare cup. His eyes widened when he saw that it had been knocked over and the alcohol spilled onto the table.
Dexter grabbed the bottle and drank straight from the mouth, having no other recourse left to him. He coughed at the fire in his throat and belly, but stared around wild eyed. Kragor was dead and gone, his body given to the void. If he had seen him, even a ghost of him, surely Dexter was losing his mind.
The captain kept drinking, trying to make some sense of it. Instead of lucidity though he only found the peace of an alcohol induced sleep. His last thoughts before passing out were that he must keep his vision to himself, or else his crew would know him for being crazed and sure to mutiny against whatever he planned.