”Didn’t want to know what, Captain Mandek?”

The soft feminine voice spoke quietly from a short distance away. Colleen stood just a few feet away looking at Basha. After the children had eaten she decided to come check on the man who helped save her life when she saw him come out of the place the crew ate their meals. She was about to say something to him when she saw the look on his face. Something made her pause and just watch him for a moment. That’s when she heard him apologize to Raj then say he didn’t know and didn’t want to know.

She saw the troubled look on his face and knew something was bothering the man. She walked up beside him and looked out over the water as she leaned her arms against the railing. Her voice was quiet as she spoke to him now.

”Since we left Fort Glory, so much has changed. So much I don’t even know where to start. All I know is that Elija and I have discovered things about us that don’t make sense yet apparently others seem to think we are more of a threat than they can allow to live.”

She took a deep breath then stood up straighter and turned to face Basha fully. Moisture began to fill her eyes and she blinked several times to prevent the tears from falling.

”Raj made a vow to protect us from harm and it cost him his life. So please….if there’s anything you can tell me to help make sense of all of this, I would be forever grateful.”

Reaching out her hand, she gently touched Basha’s forearm as her eyes pleaded with him.

Elija stood silently as he watched Basha and his adoptive mother talk quietly. As she touched Basha's fore arm Elija walked up softly and held out an oil cloth bundle bound with a strip of leather. In a soft small voice, with his eyes cast down, Elija said "Ize thought yuze was dead, so Ize saved these Ize did. Thaze b'longs ta yuze. Ize thanks yuze, Ize do, fur savin' Mum an me." He handed the bundle to Basha then turned suddenly and ran off down the passage way. Inside the bundle was few coins, a letter whose ink had run to an unreadable smear and an old faded photograph of a woman holding a boy in her arms. The boy held up a wooden sword, a sewing kit, with needles and various small spools of thread and some bullets and a folding multi bladed knife.

Basha was surprised when the usual feminine sounds that approached from behind him were accompanied by a familiar voice. He straightened and slowly turned, acknowledging Mrs. Smith with a stone faced nod. As he listened to her attempt to fill in the gap that had formed since they last parted ways, Elija came running down the deck placing a small bundle in his hand. As he ran away as quickly as he had appeared, Basha rolled the cloth in his his hands and knew its contents without looking. A slight smile tugged at the corner of his mouth as he continued to hear, Mrs. Smith's words.

As she spoke, Colleen had the strangest feeling that Basha Mandek was more familiar with what had transpired during his absence than possible. Was he too one of those gifted with magic? The truth was made know to her when she paused after her pleading question concerning the late, Sergeant Lasekura.

Basha's eye's fell to Colleen's hand as it touched his arm, as if a hot poker rested upon it, threatening to melt his icy carapace.

"I know only what your friends in Meirathal told me about him." Answered Basha. He continued on then even before the woman could completely process the information, proceeding to add to his own mound of dirt to the gap between them.

"A week after the Fall of Glory, I woke up at the fireside of a man by the name of Angus O'Bryan." Basha kind of huffed and grunted then, apparently his version of a laugh, "Damn I cursed him for ever pulling me out of the sea. I was ready to die. I had made my peace, and I think a part of me did die when I plunged head long into that black pit. So I left everything behind me, I gave it all up and started working for my savior as soon as I was strong enough.

"Angus lived in Eyrdronis, a fishing town like Meirathal, but many of it's citizen labored in the mines of the Black Mountains, and so did he. A generous man, he offered half of the spoils of whatever he and I unearthed and it seems the Fates were smiling on us, because I hit a vein that made us rich. With money in our pockets, Angus and I decided to go to Baloc. A few weeks ago, I bought another brewery through an agent and so we loaded up our wagon and set out for the River City.

"About midway between Eyrdronis and Baloc, I'd say, we had a run in with a man who introduced himself as Marshall William Kallend of Meirathal and there was also an older woman, named Maeve who accompanied them. It was strange that they were traveling on foot, but I dismissed all my questions when they began to speak about you and Elija. The woman, Maeve, told me that you and your boy were in terrible danger and that Raj would soon be dead."

Basha then pulled out from under his shirt an ornate, bronze medallion on a chain. He pulled it off round his head and handed it to Colleen. "Your friend, William gave me this. The stone shines green when you get close to a person whose name you know and whose blood you have. It's yours now. I've no need for it."

As Basha passed off the magical medallion to Mrs. Smith, the horn of the ferry sounded and a crewman announced, "Baloc, ho!" and started to ring the docking bell. In the distance were the great river gates. The only way one traveling by boat could enter the city via the Rathilm.

Colleen called after Elija as he ran off.

”Please lock the door, Elija!! I’ll return shortly”

Thankful for the crew man who accompanied the boy, she nodded her thanks to the man as he turned and scurried after Elija hearing the sound of other crew members anno0unce the boys where abouts.

As she listened to Basha as he recounted the events that happened after Fort Glory fell, she took interest in what he told her about William and Maeve. She wasn’t as surprised as she thought she would be with this news. The Coven of Meirathal was mysterious at best and she learned not to question anything they do or how they did it. Accepting only that they did what they did through ways she had yet to learn how to use for herself.

She found comfort knowing William and the rest of the Coven were still looking out for her and the children. She just wished there was a way she could have protected Raj from his demise. But if nothing else, Colleen had learned a long time ago death was as much a part of life as living was. It was, in short, inevitable.

As Basha handed her the medallion, she gave it a puzzling look and was about to ask Basha what he meant by the having a persons blood when the announcement about arriving at Baloc sounded. Curling her fingers around the medallion, she glanced around quickly then looked at Basha again as she placed the medallion around her neck for safe keeping for now. Knowing she had to get the children ready for leaving the boat, she couldn’t leave without knowing something.

”I need to get back to the children. But I need to know…….what will you do now, Captain Mandek? Do you have plans once we dock?”