89th of Summer, 512 AV
Business was good... if you knew where to look. And Ermine Deepwater definitely knew where to look. The Djed storm had caused a flurry of activity all over the Cyphrus region, transforming birds into monsters, and altering the face of Mizahar irrevocably. The city of Kenash was not spared - while most of the Dynasties had taken shelter, along with their most valuable and trusted slaves, many of the lesser slaves had been left to fend for themselves above ground, where the wave of wild Djed changed many of them, or simply drove them mad.
The Deepwater pod suffered as well. Lia Selua was killed as the powerful waves of wild Djed swept her casinor away. Most of the rest of the ships were spared, taking shelter from the storm inside an island cave off the coast of Riverfall, but when they'd emerged, they were leaderless. Selua's eldest daughter Farrine was only twenty, and may believed her nowhere near the leader her mother was. But nonetheless, by traditions of the Svefra, Lia Farrine led the Deepwater pod... but it was Ermine who found the treasures that kept the pod going.
For many days after the Djed storm, the cities of Mizahar struggled to survive; Riverfall and Kenash not excepting. Much of the merchant fleets that plied the waters between the cities had slim pickings after the Djed storm. Few of them carried anything of particular value - of far greater value was the food and water they carried to relieve beleaguered cities deprived by the storm of their normal sources of sustenance.
But Ermine knew that only made so-called "luxury goods" even more valuable in the right hands. The last few days, he and his small pod had managed to hit two fairly small convoys going from Alvadas to Riverfall, carrying mostly grain, fruit, and water, but also a small selection of more... exotic goods. Alvadas was always good for strange objects; the city of illusions was notorious for unusual artifacts.
"Ermine!"
The shout caught Ermine off-guard, though he schooled himself to not show it. He'd been too focused on the past. Time to refocus on the present. The man who'd shouted at him, his brother Darkan, indicated with his broad hand off to port, where the barest hint of sail was visible over the waves. The weather was none-too-good; the waves were choppy and a thin fog had settled over the waves that morning, giving everything a greenish-orange tint. But the Svefra captain could feel it in his bones. There was treasure there. For that ship came from Kenash itself, which meant it probably had a decent haul aboard. After all, the city lived and died on trade.
"It's traveling alone?" Ermine grunted, his brow rising in surprise. Normally, merchant vessels leaving any city would travel in packs, much like Svefra pods, for protection. It was foolhardy to travel alone. Then again, ever since the Djed storm, many ships had been sunk and some merchants in desperation had to forego their usual protection. Perhaps today was his lucky day.
Darkan merely nodded at his brother's question. "It appears so," he replied. "It could be a trap," he added, almost reading his pod-mate's mind, "but even so, our Casinors should be fast enough to escape."
Ermine laughed; a hearty, throaty sound that would have echoed if the fog was not so thick. "Escape?" he chuckled. "I think not. Set sail. Tonight we will dine well." For a brief moment, it seemed as though that was all. Then with a sigh, Ermine turned to Darkan.
"And tell my sister we will be making a course correction," he added. He just hoped Farrine would not overrule his decision. Their take had been scanty the last few days and they could not afford to lose this potential target.
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