The following day, they arrived at their destination. It was now up to Kaer to rescue Ea, Salvianna's sister. The followers of the Santher vilge were hiding in a deep forest. There might hardly be ah keen eyesight who could observe the armed men oops of trees looking around.

  A few roads crossed the woods, leading to a huge crete house, a bunker, and two small houses. The forest was thid rown; sunlight hardly peed the tall, overshadowing trees. Moreover, it was hard to perceive the hidden ptforms and ropes ireetops, as the foliage was too dense. Camoufged armed men merged with the surrounding enviro with plete ease. A few homes and ste buildings were visible; those seen were made ed, anic materials that allowed them to blend well into their surroundings. The narrow serpentine forest roads were barely visible from a distahe crete structure dwarfed the shapes of the trees iural background. There was a sense of mystery and prudehin the whole setting; only a keen observer would notice the hidden residents and houses.

  The pu st of pine needles mingled with the wet earth as he molded his back to the rough tree bark. Save for the distant barking of dogs and the occasional creak of wood as one of the guards moved, the deceptive silence of the woods was broken. Kaer slowed his breathing, feeling the tension hum through him like some kind of uhread.

  He looked up at the watchtower and saw that all the guards were mesmerized by something far off along the horizon. He looked down at his scuffed old leather boots and could hear a whisper with each geep on the ground. He moved left with a great degree of precision, dodging thick tree trunks and bushes until he saw, a little way off, a darkened path leading down to the smaller dwellings.

  He remembered the stories he had heard: whispered tales of dark moonlit ceremonies and screams shrieking through the night. Kaer used Stealth to sneak into the vilge held by the notorious, dangerous Followers of the Santher. He had to be careful, as the group reportedly exhibited extreme violend little pity towards others.

  He saw two men in a watchtower. Both were armed with crossbows. Kaer had no choice but to sneak around.

  Silently, Kaer stepped up to the watchtower, careful not to creak a floorboard or rustle a leaf. Light of foot, he strode up to the solid stru. He could see the two on guard—one pag bad forth with his crossbow, the other leaning casually against the tower.

  Kaer khe sloug guard unscious in an instant with a single fident, swift blow to the head. The uard spun around in surprise, but before he could raise an arm, Kaer had his dagger against him, his face distorted in a feral grimace. When he learned what he o know about the whereabouts of Ea, Kaer drew a small vial from a pocket and spilled the tents onto a piece of cloth, then cmped it over the guard's il he slumped into unsciousness. Everything was in absolute silend as quick as an instant. Having opened some doors, Kaer finally saw Ea—a stunning, unruly woman.

  "Don't be afraid, and don't scream. My name is Kaer, and I came here after speaking with your sister, Salvianna. Are you able to walk by yourself?"

  "Where should I go?" Ea asked, her fusion evident as she didn't uand what was going on.

  "We're going to your house. Your sister is waiting for you."

  "Salvianna?"

  "e on, take it slow. Lean on me. If you 't, I'll carry you."

  When Kaer inquired repeatedly about a female warrior known as Aspera, Ea respohat he had never heard the name before.

  Kaer igwo wooden buildings before returning to the ship. As the fire devoured the structures, thick plumes of bck smoke billowed into

  the sky. The bzing edifices radiated intense heat, casting a ghostly glow throughout the neighb woods.

  Through the chaos of this moment, urgency propelled Kaer aa into a sprint toward the ready ship; their silhouettes danced in the light of the fmes. Kaer clutched tightly to Ea's arm as they dodged tree trunks and leaped over fallen logs. The boat materialized betweehick leaves, assuring them that security was at hand amidst the din of destru. Kaer held Ea's hand tightly as he hurried her along in their flight.

  Gartonk's pirates formed a safe boundary and stood watch so that Kaer aa could move bad fall behind them. The shouts of angry guards grew closer. Adrenaline coursed through their veins, and the two quied their pace as the pirates covered for them. Finally, they reached the deck of the craft.

  "Kaer," Gartonk began, leaning back, "normally, an isches any pirate or adventurer curious er to ge things. But, on a while, you find yourself on the wrong side of it."

  Gartonk rarely spoke about his past uhere was a good story to tell, and this seemed to be one of them.

  "I noticed the isnd after weeks at sea," Gartonk tinued. "It looked like a quiet pce, the kind of pce where we pirates like to hang out for a while and iigate things. Before we got too close, we wao see what the natives were up to—ibals or some other crazy stuff. We sent a small crew—five of our best guys—to go ashore and see what it was all about. They had the usual s with them—dried meat, beads, and shiny cloth."

  "And the natives?" Kaer asked.

  "Savages. Covered in paint, feathers stig out of their hair, but friendly enough. They liked our offer. As we were about to leave, they made a gesture I thought meant something like gratitude. They offered us women!"

  Kaer raised an eyebrow. "Iing offer."

  "Yes, indeed. Of course, I didn't uand their nguage, so I took one of the most beautiful women, thinking I'd made some allies. The only problem was that I'd hit on one of the king's wives. We were just about to leave the isnd when I saw the king and his warriors st down the beach after us, guns drawn."

  "What have you done?" Kaer asked.

  "The king was a massive man—bigger than me if you believe it. He had his whole army ready to skin us alive. Bows, arrows, spears. We couldn't fight them all and live to see the day. We returned his wife, safe and sound, along with chests of gold and precious stones we'd plundered from other pces. It was enough to make him stop.

  The king, being a clever fellow, knew I would return to retrieve my possessions. After all, no pirate worth his name leaves anywhere empty-handed.

  We snuck back to the isnd two days ter, thinking I was clever, but they were expeg this. They had already hidden my ship in a cove I thought was safe. And wheried to take back what we thought was ours, they caught us."

  "Must have been a problem," Kaer ented.

  "It was," Gartonk admitted, though his smile never faded. "But the king made me an offer I couldn't refuse. He promised to let me and my crew leave if I gave him something iurn—a map of all the isnds and hidden pces I knew about. For a whole month, we drew detail by detail. In the meantime, we made friends. He was more of a pirate than most pirates I know, always looking for new opportunities and nds to plunder. I swore I'd go back to visit him someday. And I will fulfill my promise soon. Along with you."

  "And the woman?" Kaer asked curiously.

  "Ah, it is the green-haired woman you saw on the isnd of Ranallonda," Gartonk said. "She was given to me as a gift without my asking but as a sign of respect. A gift of friendship, I might say."