We left the town in ashes, leaving the poor survivors of our mayhem to rebuild their lives entirely. The fires had gone out and the crew, content with their share of pillage and plunder, had slowly slinked back to the ship just before the morning sun. The sky was a beautiful shade of purple as we sailed south along the coast. At first, there was a great commotion among the twenty-three of us as we divided and divvied up our shares, which ended up equaling out to one hundred and fifty florins for each man. We had only lost three men in the attack on the town and just another two injure. To commemorate their lives, we opened up a fine casket of Musil Gold that someone had found in a merchant’s house. It was a merry morning and one that I will remember for a long time, but alas it had to come to an end. By noontime, Alexander and Isabel had decided that we had traveled a safe enough distance down the coast to disembark and continue the rest of their journey by foot. They told me they intended to travel to Cronosia together before they finally parted ways. Going on foot would not only greatly reduce suspicion of their involvement in the attack on Bracchano, but would also provide them with a few extra days together before they must say goodbye.
It was with a heavy heart that I bade them goodbye on a small strip of beach not too far from the Cronosian border.
“It is not too late, you know. You could still join me and sail alongside Dandolo under the Fishermen’s banner. With the amount of plunder we could drum up, I’d reckon we’d live like kings, the three of us would.” I remarked.
“And deal with that psychotic Priestess? Are you daft?” Isabel countered. She was wearing her ridiculous plumed hat. “No offense meaning to you, of course.”
“And none taken,” I smiled. “I pray that we never meet each other on the opposite side of a ship. It would be a pity to dispose of a great captain first.”
“As I said before, old man, I’d like to see you try.” She kissed me gently on the cheek. She smelled like citrus and sandalwood. “Take care Dagomar.”
I turned to Alexander and he stared at me with an innocence that he had upon meeting me for the first time. Never had I met a better bard than this mercenary who pretended to be one. Despite everything that had happened between us, I was as proud of this man as if he were my son. He is a man more skilled than I ever was at his age and I knew with certainty that the world will be his and what he makes of it.
“Well, boy,” I said, feeling a knot in my stomach as I did. “I reckon this is it.”
“I reckon it is,” he said. We stood there awkwardly for a moment before he unexpectantly embraced me in a hug. “I hope that one day you can forgive me for all the terror I have put you through.”
I squeezed him tighter. “It is like I said before, there is nothing to forgive. You have given me everything I did not know I have needed; you have given me life again and an opportunity to finally move on. I am in your debt, son, if there is a time you ever need my assistance, I’ll be there for you.”
We savored each other’s presence for one final second before letting go.
“Right,” Alexander said as tears welled in his eyes. “I believe it is time we got underway Isabel.”
As I watched the two leave, I could not help but already reminisce fondly on this mad adventure. I knew not if I would ever see either Alexander or Isabel again, but I was proud to have considered them friends. When I set out originally, I thought the only thing that would fill this hole inside me was the death of Ascianus, but instead, I found his death hollow. It had done nothing and filled nothing, but that is because I realized it had already been filled. The storms along the Swallows, the failed mutiny, the touch of the Priestess, the rush of battle, the fear of death, the beating by Alexander, the stories of our past told around the fire, that is what filled it. I wasted five years of my life in a rotting shack in an unforgiving wild, but I would do it all again if it meant I could relive this entire experience and bring myself back from the dead.
I find myself now next to the Priestess, who is sleeping calmly beside me. Her chest heaves softly with every breath as we rock along the waves. My time with the Fisherman has been joyous and I have felt a happiness I have not experienced since Natalie was alive. We continue to wreak havoc among the Antiban Sea, where I shall live forever as a king.