We arrived at the capital of the Pirate Islands. A port town named Troltuga. The barnacled wood of the docks was made of some dark green wood, and so were the warehouses by the shore. Gnarled trees that could somehow survive the salt water grew out of the shoreline like a barricade. A crowd was waiting for us at the docks, dressed in greens, blues and yellows. They wore a lot of jewelry, mostly gold, and while many were sailors and pirates, like Bombasar himself, there were also citizens and a handful of people who looked like Jalani, which made me think they were Witch Doctors.

The docks and the warehouses were busy. There were narrow market stalls and people grilling fish over charcoal and open fire. One of the stalls looked to be catching fire, and a grumbling old man with a white beard was dousing it with a bucket, while a woman yelled at him and swatted at him with a fishing net.

There were dozens of ships in the harbor, and they had been packed in there in a distinctly chaotic manner. I would salute anyone who managed to finesse their boat out of that mess. Only Bombasar’s flagship was given wide berth on a large dock in the middle of the harbor.

Father was looking at two men hoisting a large swordfish out of their boat into the docks. He leaned over the railing. Mother caught his sleeve before he could get any ideas.

“We haven’t even docked yet.”

“I was just looking.”

I chuckled and didn’t believe him for a second. I was happy he would be getting opportunities to work with his Fishing. 

Around the warehouse, people were rolling barrels and carrying crates inside. At the doors was a man smoking a pipe and using thick green paint to brush over something that distinctly looked like the House Salakin symbol. That was certainly a way to handle imported goods.

“Look, Veena,” I said brightly, pointing in the opposite direction. “They have training facilities here.”

Indeed, there was a spot in the harbor where a crowd had gathered. A gangplank was set between two small boats and on the gangplank two pirates were trading blows with cutlasses.

They moved with such speed and agility while they danced around each other’s swings that they had to have pretty high Skills. One of them jumped over the other and kicked him in the back of his head as he vaulted to the other side of the gangplank. The one receiving the kick fell into the water and the crowd around them cheered.

Okay yeah, that was a Class Ability.

One of the pirates next to us laughed roughly. “That be no training. That be a duel.”

“Looks like good training to me,” Alik said and rubbed his chin.

Bombasar had been quiet for the rest of the voyage, but seeing his people animated him again.

“Trola, people of Pirate Islands,” he shouted towards the crowd, hanging from the figurehead. “Bombasar return again, and come with gifts!”

The crowd cheered and many people came to help with docking the ship immediately.

“But da crew met the Leviathan again! We lost a few good men to the sea, but that be da price.”

The crowd was saddened but clapped and gestured to Bombasar to continue.

“But we find a nobleborn. We can sell Veena Salakin for her weight in gems and gold. And we find dis strange boy! Look!

Then he scooped me up and hoisted me on his shoulder. “Show your power, sorcerah.”

I shrugged and shot a water spear at the gnarled trees of the beach. It ran through half a dozen of them, sending the trunks flying.

The crowd cheered.

“Bombasar has captured this strange power! We will use it to fight da Leviathan!”

“I’d like to know what is going on and what is the Leviathan.”

Bombasar smiled at the cheering crowd and patted me gently on the back.

“All in due time, mon. For now, smile and wave.”

*

We were taken into something of a mix between a manor and a tavern. It was a three story ramshackle building that must have used magic to stay together. It creaked on the docks and as we approached, following Bombasar, I heard the lively bustle inside. Violin and piano were played with high tempo, drinking, gaming and arguing could be heard far before we were at the door. Bombasar smiled and I could tell he was happy to be home. He burst into laughter when someone threw a man from the third floor into the water.

“Bahaha! You be caught cheating in dice again, Gambani?”

Gambaine spat out water and joined Bombasar in laughter. I watched them and made an interesting observation…

“Are we supposed to sleep here…” my father muttered to mother.

“I was thinking the same thing…”

I turned to them. “I’ll talk to him about it.”

“No no,” mother said hastily. “I don’t want you to take risks with him. He is dangerous.”

“He is,” Alik said. He walked next to us in graceful long strides. He was clearly happy to be on land again. “But Luka is dangerous too. And I think Bombasar respects that.”

The inside of the tavern was exactly the kind of whirlwind I expected.

The common room had a long counter around the bar and several small round tables pushed so closely together, the servers needed to be really creative to work around them. It was hot inside and it smelled of grease, smoke and spilled beer.

There was a piano against the far wall, with a fiddler standing on top of it. Both musicians kept playing through the noise. A tankard struck the wall beside the piano, and the fiddler shouted something that I couldn’t hear before continuing.

 I cast a massive barrier to envelope Danek and my parents from the flying tankards, chairs and people. One drunk pirate stumbled into Veena. 

“How dare you touch me?!” she shouted and slapped the pirate so hard he went unconscious instantly. Bombasar just watched and laughed and led us upstairs.

We arrived at an office with a nice view to the harbor. The sun was setting and it cast a beautiful soft orange glow on the town. The windows were open and a nice sea breeze wafted inside. I could see Bombasar’s massive flagship towering over the rest of the harbor. I bet the Pirate Prince loved the view.

I looked around the room.

The walls were covered with so much stuff, I could barely see the wood. There were curved swords and painted masks, and a large map made into leather. Danek looked at with great interest. On a rack in the corner hung expensive-looking silk jackets with fur collars. They were tacky as hell, but apparently Veena liked them, because her eyes kept drifting towards them.

I wondered how much of this room had been decorated with stolen goods. Probably all of it.

There was a good rug on the floor, although somebody had burned a hole in it near the window. Underneath, the boards were dark with damp. While I watched, a drop of water fell from the ceiling and disappeared into a gap.

Interesting standards of maintenance for a man with this much wealth.

Bombasar sat on a desk made of black wood, decorated with gold and silver. The table was full of jewelry, coins, scrolls and anything valuable he could fit on it. There was no work done on this desk. It was clearly just there as an ostentatious display. He put his ruby-encrusted boots on the table and leaned back in a massive chair.

“Impressive,” I said dryly.

Bombasar flashed me a toothy grin. “Now, sit, sit. You must have much to ask.”

I looked around and found there were no other chairs in the office. I gave him a look, but he just watched me and smiled. Everyone else sat on the floor, except Veena whose pride wouldn’t allow that. I shrugged and used some kinetic magic to boost me onto the table. I sat down on a stack of gold bars and crossed a leg over a knee. Bombasar steepled his hands and looked at me with mirth in his eyes over his many golden rings.

“Confident boy,” he said. Then he laughed again as was his wont. “Good. Confidence is good. Bombasar does not like a coward.”

I smirked. “This was funny, but you are getting a chair for my pregnant mother.”

Bombasar tilted his head and snorted. Without removing his eyes from me, he shouted. “Andre! A chair!

Soon enough my mother was sorted out. Finally we could talk about interesting things.

“What was that thing?” I asked. “The Leviathan.”

“A spiritual thing," Bombasar said. “What exactly, nobody knows. It emerged a few months ago, and has already eaten two of Bombasar’s ships. There is no tale of such a beast.”

“Sounds troublesome,” I said. “You haven’t tried killing it?”

“Kill it?” Bombasar snorted. “Even your power, it cannot kill it.”

That was likely very true, as much as I didn’t want to admit it. The way the great sea monster had just chomped a vessel for a snack put it in a league of its own. 

“Jalani, he leads the Witch Doctors. There be plans to subdue de Leviathan. Maybe you can fit de plans.”

“Maybe,” I said noncommittally.

Bombasar watched me and said: “But you be needing spirit-casting to help.”

I perked up immediately and gave Bombasar a winning smile.

“Too easy,” Bombasar laughed and slapped his knee. “I like you, boy. You be honest. Tell me. You be having a free skill slot, mon?”

“I have one, yeah. Will I need more than one?”

“One will get your started on de journey,” Bombasar said. “But true spiritcasting is not skill, but lifestyle. The Pirate Islands be doing this for centuries on centuries. We have classes, culture, teachings, fetishes, tools, rituals, skills known and skills hidden. “One skill start de road. De rest take years.”

“So what can I learn?”

Bombasar shrugged. “I be teaching you de first skill, Spirit Communion. De rest is up to you.”

I considered the Pirate Prince’s words. He had an interesting way to him. Generous, but constantly taking. This was in the way he wanted to take our ship and ask ransom for Veena, but treat us as honored guests. And it was here again, him offering me the magical traditions of his people, if I helped him of course.

“What if I can’t help you against the Leviathan?” I asked.

The Pirate Prince shrugged. “Bombasar be thinking you cannot. But he be a generous lord. He teach you dis ting. Sow a day, reap a year. Who can say?

“So I’m an investment to you?”

He grinned at me. “No, no, no. You be honored guest. It be a pleasure to teach you da ways of da spirits. How much you can learn, we be seeing, mon.”

“You really like to dance, don’t you?” I said and smirked at him.

He smirked back, and there was that predatory glint again. “No, mon. Bombasar don’t like to dance. He LOVES it.”

Then he burst out into another laughter, and this time I joined him. My family looked at us like we were a bunch of lunatics. Maybe they were right.

“Then let’s continue the dance,” I said. “Give my people a home and teach me and I’ll keep dancing.”

“Ah tut tut,” Bombasar said. “Take take take. Besides, what be wrong with my home, Salty Winds?

I gave him a look and made one of the gold bars levitate. Everyone watched it with curiosity as I moved it to hover on a spot on the floor I had watched water drip for the conversation. I let go of the spell. The ingot plummeted through the floor and crashed into the lower level.

“OYE! SONOFA—”

Bombasar burst into laughter. “That one do be needing a fix. Very well, Bombasar understands. This no place for your mother who waits. You, mother. You want de spirits to tell you which one it be? Boy or girl, hm?”

Mother looked at Bombasar and gave him a polite smile. “Who says I don’t already know?”

“Hahaha! Bombasar see where the boy gets it from! Good! We find you lodgings! Then you will learn of de spirits, boy.