I made sure we got to stay in a nice clean building that wasn’t about to collapse. After seeing Bombasar’s lackadaisical attitude about keeping things… whole, I wasn’t sure we could even find one. 

“There be one by the outskirts,” Bombasar said. “It should be fine. Fetch Andre after you leave here. He will escort you there. But there was some problem in there…”

Bombasar thought for a moment then waved a hand impatiently. “Ah, must have been nothing important. The house is whole and unused.”

Why was the house unused was my first question, but I would just wait and see now.

We arrived at the house shortly after, escorted by Andre, who was apparently Bombasar’s manservant as well as a pirate. He was tall as all Trola were, and his dark blue skin was pierced with golden hooks.

The house itself was relatively close to the Salty Winds tavern. But not too close. I had the distinct feeling it was going to be that noisy day and night, and I didn’t want to find out how much drunken singing I could tolerate before doing something regrettable.

I had impressed this to Bombasar, and the Pirate Prince had instantly admitted that his pirates might be a bit rowdy, but the house should be a distance away. This was good. Not only did my pregnant mother need enough rest, but I had learned from my stay at the governor’s house that Veena was very particular about her sleep, and would reach unholy levels of crankiness if she didn’t get enough.

The house stood on a narrow street going uphill from the harbor. It had two floors and a little yard behind it with a few trees and an empty chicken coop. The front door stuck when Andre tried to open it. He gave it a shove with his shoulder and turned to us with a smile.

“Good house.”

Mother looked past him into the dark entrance.

“Has anyone cleaned it? Like ever?”

“Yes, lady.”

“When?”

Andre considered that for a moment and scratched his chin. “Not since the owner died.”

Mother sighed and went inside and we followed her.

Fortunately it wasn’t nearly as bad as that exchange suggested. The downstairs had a large table and a cooking area with a stone hearth. There were cupboards with dishes in them, and the shutters opened to let in the evening breeze. The floor was dusty around the edges, but the house didn’t smell damp.

There were two more rooms in the lower room that were built so that they centered the hearth in the kitchen to spread warmth. Other than a thick layer of dust, they looked whole.

“We will want mattresses brought,” I said.

“Yes, I will bring,” Andre said and led us upstairs.

Upstairs were two more rooms and a smaller room at the back that had apparently been used as a workshop. There was a heavy bench with a three-legged stool with many tools in a messy pile. Additionally, there were bits of metal in the room, as well as nails scattered on the floor.

In the corner there was a tarnished old brass bell with a broken handle.

“That looks nice,” mother said. “I wonder why it was left there in that state.”

I shrugged and looked around the room. There was something weird in the air. Like a sense of… unease. I couldn’t put my finger on it, but the moment I left the workshop it went away. That was pretty weird, but I had bigger fish to fry than strange hunches. Mostly, I was really hungry.

*

Bombasar’s men came back an hour later with blankets, warm water and enough food to make father stop worrying for a while. There were exotic fruits and cuts of meat, as well as a basket of bread that was still warm.

Whether Bombasar thought we were his prisoners or guests, was hard to say with the man intentionally blurring the line. But at least he brought good food.

The crew of Fardream wasn’t treated quite as well, but they were also allowed a house nearby. Except they were all crammed into it and placed under house arrest. For now, I couldn’t help them without burning up Bombasar’s patience. I made sure they had food and beds, and father went over to speak with the captain while mother got things ready.

He came back looking unhappy.

“They’re being fed,” he told me. “The captain says two of his men got hurt during the boarding, but nothing too serious.”

“That’s good.”

“He asked if we had any word about when we could leave.”

I sighed. “I wish I knew. I think Bombasar has some plan for me.”

Father nodded and helped mother carry the food to the table.

“Do you think it involves that thing we saw?” mother asked immediately.

Everyone kind of… stopped. They all realized that possibility instantly.

“I don’t know, mom!” I cried out. “I’m just a baby!”

“I am not letting you anywhere near that monster!” 

“Moooom! Let me just hear what Bombasar has to say before you tear this island down.”

Father sniggered, and mother lunged to bite his shoulder. He yelped but then pushed her into his back affectionately. She wrapped her arms around him and closed her eyes.

“You never help me with him,” she murmured into his back.

“I pick my battles,” he said. “And besides. You should worry, and I should encourage. Perfect balance.”

“That just makes me the bad guy,” mother said.

“You’re not,” I said. “It's annoying, but I want you to worry, mom. I know I get a little intense. It’s good for me to have someone ground me. Keep doing it.”

She turned to smile at me. “Okay, little gem. But you should listen to your mother more.”

I groaned while my family chuckled. Then turned my thoughts to the situation I had created.

Bombasar clearly wanted to use me, but then again I wanted to use him. A mutually beneficial relationship, provided he kept his promises. He seemed to enjoy reminding me that there was a calculation behind everything he offered. Maybe he expected me to appreciate it.

I was dealing with a complicated man.

But the important part was that he was going to teach me a new form of magic! I couldn’t wait to understand how he had controlled the wind and waves themselves. I already wanted to run off and find him, but I figured it was best to sit with my family and eat first.

Mother had warmed the meat with some chopped vegetables and a sauce that smelled spicy. Father found cups in the cupboard, and Veena wiped them clean before putting them on the table.

I tried to help by moving the plates with kinetic magic.

“Carry them normally,” mother said.

“This is easier.”

“One at a time, then.”

I had no idea what she thought would happen. I had gotten very good at this.

Still, I delivered the plates one at a time.

Soon enough we were all sitting down, and for a while nobody had much to say. Alik was eating with the concentration of a man practicing an important Skill. Father watched him finish his first serving and pushed the platter closer.

“Have more.”

“Thank you.”

“You look better already.”

“I feel better.”

“That isn’t difficult,” Veena said. “You looked dead.”

Alik took another piece of meat. “I felt dead. I don’t like the sea. I chose to become Hunter for a reason.”

“I respect your opinion, wrong as it is,” father said sagely.

I chuckled and reached for the bread.

“That Pirate Prince…” mother muttered after a moment.

“I don’t like him,” father said, ripping a loaf in half.

“You shouldn’t,” Veena said and bit into a fruit. “He is a scoundrel. Pirates are not to be trusted. My uncle will have him executed.”

“Not before I’ve learned from him,” I chimed in.

“I don’t like that you’re making deals with him,” mother said. “Are you sure all this is a good idea?”

I shrugged. “No. But I have chosen to trust him.”

“Trust him?” Veena asked. “A pirate?”

“He is actually rather easy to trust,” Danek said. “I think you are correct in your assessment, Luka.”

I nodded to him. He knew what I was thinking.

“What do you mean?” Alik asked.

“He plays games, puts on a show and keeps you uncertain,” I said. “But ultimately he is a creature of pure self-interest. I can trust that his self-interest is consistent.”

“But that is not trust,” mother said. “He is a bandit. He might break his promises on a whim.”

“I trust him to do whatever benefits him,” I said. “Right now, that means keeping his promises.”

“And if that changes?” mother asked.

I shrugged. “Then he’ll regret it.”

Father reached out to ruffle my hair. “My boy is sure growing up to be formidable.”

“Daaad,” I protested and swatted at his hand. “Anyway, talking with him is kind of annoying. It would be better if Danek could handle it, so I could just learn about this Spiritcasting.”

For some reason this made the whole table laugh. I really had a weird family.

Danek swallowed and wiped his mouth. “I will be happy to discuss matters with him when he lets me. Although I think you should handle any threats about sinking his ships.”

“Fine,” I said. “Division of labor.”

Mother shook her head and put more vegetables on my plate.

There was a scraping sound above us and then a loud thud.

We all looked up.

“Shutters?” father asked.

“Maybe,” mother said.

Father got up and headed upstairs. We listened to his footsteps while continuing to eat. A door opened, and there was another short scrape.

When he returned, he sat down and reached for his cup. “Stool fell over in the workroom. Must have been standing badly.”

“Wasn’t it standing on three legs?” I asked.

Father just shrugged.

Well that was pretty weird…

Veena was trying to cut open another fruit. It had a hard red skin and soft yellow flesh that stuck to the knife.

“What is that?” I asked.

“I don’t know. It’s good.”

She cut a piece off and put it on my plate. It was initially very sour and almost offensive. But once you bit into it, it overflowed with sweetness. I liked it.

“Tastes just like you,” I said.

Veena blushed crimson instantly “What is that supposed to mean?!”

Mother tried some too, and soon we were passing the whole thing around. Father suggested there might be seeds we could take with us, which led to a conversation about whether it would grow on Baros.

Then something scraped upstairs again, and we clearly heard the shutters slam shut. Danek flinched.

Father slowly lowered his cup and stood up.

I climbed off my chair, but mother caught the back of my shirt.

“Where are you going?”

“I want to go look.”

“Your father is already going.”

Indeed he was. Alik had put down his fork and followed him, although he gave his unfinished meal a regretful glance.

I activated Mana Sight and peered towards the ceiling. I couldn’t see much through the floorboards. There was a little movement of mana, but nothing that gave me a useful idea of what was happening.

Father called down.

“The stool fell over again. And the shutters are now shut.”

“Could be rats,” Veena said.

We looked at her.

“Large ones,” she added.

“I don’t think it’s rats sweetie…”

Father and Alik came downstairs and just shrugged. They didn’t see anything, but things were messy. Someone knocked on the front door, and Danek went to answer. It was one of Bombasar’s men, carrying a bundle of folded cloth under his arm.

“More bedding,” he said.

Mother thanked him and took it. He was about to leave when something clattered upstairs.

He looked at the ceiling.

“Ah.”

Mother looked at the man rather impatiently. “Ah?”

“A retired pirate lived here. One of Bombasar’s men. I think they had a falling out.”

“A spirit?” I asked.

He nodded. “He worked here. Made bells and things. Metal things,” The sailor scratched his jaw. “Sometimes he still does.”

Mother’s hand tightened on my shirt. “Has it hurt anyone?”

The pirate shrugged. “Nobody been here since he died.”

“Does Bombasar know about this?” father asked.

The sailor shrugged. “Everybody knows. But Bombasar steer many ships. Maybe he forgot.”

“Why didn’t anyone tell us?” mother asked.

“Good house,” he said, apparently believing that answered the question. “Roof’s been fixed. Old man mostly stays upstairs. Just… don’t make him upset.”

“Is this why the house is unused?”

The man shrugged. “Everybody knows there be a spirit here. We have our own houses.”

Mother looked like she wanted to stab the man with a fork. Father must have sensed this, because he came to her side and placed a hand on her shoulder.

“Can a Spiritcaster talk to him?” I asked.

“Suppose so.”

“Has anyone tried?”

“Don’t know, little sorcerer. You ask Jalani. Anything else you need?”

“A warning would have been nice,” she said.

The pirate just shrugged and left. Mother looked like she wasn’t finished with the conversation, but we went back to the table. My family discussed what they wanted to do with the spirit upstairs banging around. I let them talk while I thought.

There was a ghost upstairs. Naturally, I had many questions.

Could I use Spiritcasting on this spirit? What did it want and what had caused him to become a spirit?

“What do you know of Spiritcasting?” Danek asked Veena. This plucked me back into the conversation.

“It is a magical tradition of the Trola,” she said. “I hear it used to be very powerful. There were some legendary Trola Spiritcasters who could control primordial spirits.”

“There are different kinds of spirits?” I asked.

“Yes, all kinds of classifications. Spirits of dead animals and people, spirits embodying a place or an event, and so on. I don’t know much, though.”

“So the man upstairs is still the man?” father asked.

Veena hesitated.

“I think so? Some of him, anyway.”

Father considered that and looked towards the stairs again.

I wondered whether he was thinking about people we knew who had died. I hadn’t really considered that part yet.

“So what are primordial spirits?” I asked.

Veena shrugged. “Some kinds of gods, I guess. Maybe the stupid pirate will tell you more.”

“I sure hope he will,” I said.

Mother gathered the empty plates while father wrapped the remaining bread in a cloth. Alik offered to help clean up, and Danek took the unfamiliar fruit over to the light to examine its seeds.

I had finished everything on my plate. Even the vegetables.

“Speaking of which,” I said. “Can I go now, mom?”

She gave me a tired look.

“To ask about the spirit,” I added. “And the lessons. Both seem pretty useful right now.”

Mother looked at father. He sighed and stood.

“I’ll walk with him.”

“I know the way.”

“I know you do.”

I decided not to argue. If father wanted to accompany me to my first lesson in a whole new magical tradition, he was welcome. He carried me on his shoulder across the murky docks and rusty bridges and told me how the nets the Trola used were stupid. I enjoyed this, but mostly my mind was on the lesson on Spiritcasting I was about to receive.