A New Voyage, Ghosts and Sailors (Auldwin)

[Erik Windsea]

Timestamp: Season of Fall, Day 45, 511 A.V. Breathing in the salty, sea air Erik grinned as he finished untying his ship from the dock. Preparing to set sail once more had almost erased all of his thoughts of the previous night, thoughts of strange noises that seemed to come from the belly of the ship and belongings that had a mind of their own. With a quick pull on a few ropes the sails of Gale’s Burden unraveled and caught the wind, pushing the casinor forward. It was time to leave Riverfall, their business done and their minds uneasy Cassidy and Erik had agreed to leave the city as fast as possible. The previous night they had been assaulted by flying objects as it seemed that their own ships rebelled in protest to their stay in Riverfall. Erik believed that they were being haunted, simply because of their destination. The new and only passenger on board‘s destination was none other than Black Rock, a island surrounded by ghost stories. It seemed to him that they were truly being chased away from Riverfall, as soon as they left the dock the strange noises and flying objects dispersed. Despite the eerie quiet that settled over his ship, Erik was feeling quite good. Squall had retreated to Erik’s cabin after being chased around the deck by a bucket and their passenger Auldwin had disappeared into Erik‘s cabin, not that Erik minded sharing. It was a small ship and in his nature to share with friends, at least he considered Auldwin a friend. Not only that but most of his attention was focused on guiding the ship away from the docks. Once he tied the sail into place with the wind in it’s sails he moved to the rudder, using it to guide the ship on it’s course. Thirty minutes later Erik had sailed his way safely out of Riverfall, leaving the coastal city behind in the distance. They would be heading south, to Black Rock. Their course would bring them through the Vanti Islands and then on to the Luvis Islands before entering the Okalla passage and arriving at Black Rock. The next two weeks would be easy sailing, as long as there weren’t any disturbances like what they experienced in Riverfall. With the ship on course Erik figured he would have a few hours to relax before having to check their course again. With that in mind he walked towards the cabin, it was time to see what Auldwin was up to.

[Auldwin]

It took some work getting those Svefra on schedule, but with a sufficient amount of haunting it seemed things were well on their way now. The Ghost took note of the direction and bearing that Erik moved the ship as they left the harbor area of Riverfall. When it came to the sea, Auldwin often felt his sense of direction failing him, and would always take care to keep land in sight at all times. Even the Ghost could understand using the sun as a directional indicator, but physically sailing to a place with someone whom actually understood the correct nautical directions would be a wealth of information. Thus, Auldwin watched when he could without being caught doing so. Much of his time was spent seemingly ignoring Erik, not because he didn't enjoy the company of the man, but because his ability to Materialize was not strong enough to be kept stable at all times.

The darkness was Auldwin's best ally in that venture, and like some creature of the night he seemed to keep away from the direct sunlight blaring down from the sky. If one would have asked to describe Auldwin, he would seem like a quiet man, one that kept to himself. He didn't ask many questions, and he didn't give many answers. He didn't plan to keep his Ghostly existence a secret forever, but he needed to get to Black Rock first. After that he could reveal himself to Erik and see what that did to their sailor/passenger relationship.

As a Ghost it was difficult to do too much in his spare time, so most of the beginning trip was spent thinking and trying to keep up appropriately with the movement of the ship. Auldwin knew he had to be ready as well, for when Erik came to visit he had to be quick with his Materialization, lest he give away his true nature prematurely. It was lucky that Auldwin had been taking it into consideration, for as he heard Erik coming into the cabin area he quickly sought to gather up his Soulmist and make himself solid.

"Captian." Auldwin addressed the man, "I've always been curious, how does one keep their bearings while out at sea. I know the general direction of Black Rock, but if you asked me to get there by sea I would have a difficult time describing it. Will we be venturing far from the mainland?" best to keep a living man thinking, it kept the mind focused so that hopefully Erik wouldn't worry quite so much about the inconsistencies in Auldwin's form. Even now it would be the low light that would play to the Ghost’s best advantage, any shimmer of illumination from the outside playing across his Soulmist, giving him an almost ethereal glow, while keeping his opaque form. He couldn’t keep his Soulmist so uniformly maintained forever though, eventually he would have to relax and go back to his more translucent state.

[Erik Windsea]

Erik walked into the cabin, expecting to see Auldwin studying charts or doing something at least. Instead he was greeted by the man merely waiting for him. It was strangely unsettling to know that Auldwin had heard him coming and was ready for him the moment he entered the cabin. Despite being unsettled, the fact that he was addressed as “Captain” gave a slight boost to his confidence. It had caught him slightly off guard, Auldwin’s question that is. Erik usually just followed the land masses, letting his knowledge of the sea guide him on his way. He had never really thought about how he knew where to go or really even noticed that it was a knowledge he possessed. Up until now he had assumed that everyone knew how to get around in the water. “Well, I‘m not sure how I would explain this. You sort of just know, once you‘ve done it long enough. I‘ve lived my entire life here on the sea, knowing where to go and where you are just comes naturally to me. Though for someone who hasn‘t learned that you‘d have to get charts, compasses and all sorts of other things. You‘d look for landmarks to lead you on your course and you‘d want to stick close to the mainland. Along with that, you wouldn‘t be able to take a ship such as my casinor here very far from the mainland. Sure you could go out far, but one large wave could capsize your ship easily. Out on the ocean storm‘s can pop up very quickly, their winds can change in a moment’s notice and suck your sails away from you. It isn‘t safe to take such a small ship out to the open water, but we‘ll be fine. It‘s easier to stick to the western shoreline past the two island formations and through the passage to get to Black Rock.” He paused, he was receiving a look he knew only to well. One that meant the listener to his most recent ramble did not know Fratava fluently. Erik quickly switched over to Common, shooting for the quickest way to explain it. “You learn from being on the water very long. Sailors know their routes by heart.” He gestured westwards, towards the shore which could be seen in the distance. “Stay close to the mainlands, and watch for landmarks is how you learn. We will stay near the west shore for the voyage.” He paused, once more thinking of how to phrase his next sentence. “I was taught by my family. Svefra‘s teach their own the routes they travel. Others can use charts and compasses.” His Common was rather crude, Erik was definitely going to have to improve on it if he was going to be carrying passengers around. Usually Cassidy was the one that talked, while Erik was the sword behind those words. Either way, with Auldwin on board it was now his responsibility to make sure he enjoyed the trip. Even if it meant using a language he couldn’t even write in. Not that he could write in Fratava either, writing simply wasn’t one of his strong suits.

[Auldwin]

All the while Erik spoke, Auldwin was able to grasp every third or fourth word. That left some very interesting room for interpretation. Just from the intonation and the body language with which he spoke, Auldwin could tell that at least Erik was at home in the water. That was more than could be said about the Ghost. Of course Auldwin didn't show any overt signs of fear or insecurity, after all what could possibly happen to him that hadn't already? Death? Been there. Horrible pain and agony? That was basically his existence. Every moment that he did something to burn his Soulmist, whether it was moving objects about, taking over the faculties of another living creature, or even simply appearing less translucent, there was that undeniable pain.

It was the pain of his essence wasting away. It probable would have made a normal person sick, vomiting up the contents of their stomach if they had to be subjected to it for a prolonged period. Luckily Auldwin didn't eat, and had no stomach with which to contain digested items. The pain was still there, but thus was the way of the Ghost, you just learned to deal with it.

"I see." Auldwin finally replied when Erik started to put his thoughts into words of the Common tongue. The Ghost was thankful Erik knew as much Common as he did, or they would be at a loss for words, literally. Auldwin's Fratava was barely passable, and definitely not enough to have a conversation with. Maybe he could ask something their name, or get a pointed finger in the direction of the nearest city, but that was about it. "I'm trying to learn the ways of the Sea myself. Direction wise that is. You see I was born on land. Besides swimming in the hot springs near Syliras I can't say I've had much of a sea-going life. I know where I want to go though, and I know this is the fastest way to get there. Can't say my family taught me all that much."

What an understatement. When Auldwin thought about it, is father hadn't even taught him how to swim, anything he learned of the water he discovered by himself. His father had went through something of a mid-life crisis early in his years and went off to see the world, leaving a young but functional Auldwin behind. Sure, Auldwin had learned how to shave and cook a basic meal from the man, but the more the Ghost thought about it, the more he realized that the tight ties in family that many of the other cultures he intermingled with had, he completely missed out on. It seemed the Svefra were much like this, when it came to the intimacy of their social structure. "This is what you want to do then? Sail as needed by the client? Though I suppose perhaps you've seen it all at this point, having spent your life at sea."

[Erik Windsea]

Auldwin was certainly asking some very hard questions. Erik was once more sent into thought, he had no idea what he wanted. Ever since he left his pod he had simply followed Cassidy around, going on whatever strange adventure she cooked up. “Not all. There is much to see on the sea, and much more I want to see.” Erik was beginning to believe he would always need to stop and think about how to talk in Common, no matter how many times he did. “Sail is what I do. We go all over the sea, still much more to go. I deliver cargo, passenger and goods.” He was speaking literally, below the deck goods and cargo could be stored in the hold. “If no one needs to go somewhere we deliver goods. Ale, silk, food, things like those.” A wide grin spread across his face, he knew how to correctly answer Auldwin’s question on what he wanted to do. “I want to go everywhere. You need big ship to go there. Casinor can only go certain routes. Big ship can go anywhere it wants! To get big ship you need mizas. Svefra trade for ship, but everyone else want coin.” It was a dream held dear by Erik. He wanted to get a larger boat so that no one could tell him where to go. In cities his small casinor had to give way to larger boats, at sea a strong current or large wave could move him around as it pleased. With a large ship he could go anywhere he wanted, with no one to boss him around, well maybe there was a few people that he wouldn’t mind listening to.

[Auldwin]

"Ah, cargo." Auldwin repeated as he thought about that for a moment, it made sense. In the beginning the Ghost had only thought of the life of a sailor to be made for the carting of other people about, but spices, textiles, ore and other things needing to get from one place to the other made sense too. Auldwin didn't know much about geography, but knew enough to understand that the Suvan essentially connected nearly everything. Several cities, including his own Syliras lay upon the Suvan, with boats that went two and from the harbors. Even the mysterious Black Rock had docks, as small as it was, although Auldwin wasn't exactly sure what type of things a place like Black Rock would import.

"Well, I suppose I'm quite the same then. I used to keep only to my home city, but now I find there is...more pressing matters I must attend to, and so I also seek to visit as many places of interest in Mizahar as I can. Sadly, my sense of direction is not quite so in tune as yours. As it is, I'd be lucky if I could get anywhere on the sea, but I suppose following a landmass could help." All that talk of cargo and miza's made Auldwin wonder, was there much coin to be made at sea? When he was alive he always made enough to live, but not enough to really enjoy life. Now he couldn't enjoy life even if he had all the coins in the world, but he still found himself needing them for one thing or another. Buying the service of the living was the most obvious choice for having money, buying training or information was probably second. What else could he do with it, send it back home? He wasn't even sure he had a home to go back to.

"Tell me, how much does a bigger boat cost?" he asked, the very nature of the value of a boat was totally lost to Auldwin. He understood property and housing, having built quite a few structures in his time as a laborer, even having oversaw the creation of such structures, but never once had he dealt with something that floated upon the water. He had seen the great ships that came and left the large port of Syliras, but never stopped to think how those that piloted them had managed to come across the coins to keep them. Some were so big that appeared to be floating mansions, and Auldwin could only imagine the cost to be astronomical.

"Is there much to worry about sailing at sea? Besides the weather and a rogue wave that is. I'd say I don't know much about the water, but that would be an understatement. When you live on the land, you hear tales of large sea going creatures pulling boats down to their watery graves, but really I figured those to just make scary bedtime stories." inside that Soulmist Auldwin's mind was working, trying to determine of getting his hands wet in the world of sea trade was worth it. He had plans for making coins of his own, but everything had it's risks. Depending on how steady the income from a sea trade could be, he might even seek to invest in someone like Erik so he could get his bigger boat...of course that was assuming Auldwin could benefit from it.

[Erik Windsea]

Erik nodded, silently wondering what exactly it was that was so pressing to draw Auldwin out of his home. At the mention of costs and buying a sheepish grin formed on Erik’s face. “I do not know exactly what the costs are. My ship was go away gift. Most cost much more than this one.” Truthfully speaking, Erik had no idea how much a larger ship was worth. Most of the ships they had in his pod were…acquired by means other than the standard trading of mizas. It was just another one of those things that the brains in their shipping operation took care of. “Worry? No, no worry for monsters.” A rather devious look was forming on Erik’s face, his facial expression was changing every second. “Come! I can show you how we deal with monsters.” Erik shot right back out the door, leaving it ajar. He moved across the deck with a purpose, heading directly for a large mound of sheets towards the middle of the deck. Reaching the mound it was quickly revealed that it was not a mound, rather it was as single sheet laying over what appeared to be a large crossbow. In fact it was a heavy harpoon, next to it was a barrel. The seemingly useless piles of rope that were attached in various places on the casinor now had a reason for being there. They were used to pull the bolts back once they had been fired, of course that was only if Erik had attached a rope to it first. Erik popped of the lid, selected one of them, and waltzed back to the cabin entrance. “See! You use this. Rope goes here, load it in harpoon, and then fire!” He pointed to the metal ring at the back of the bolt. It was large enough for a thin rope to slide through and a not to be tied in it. The harpoon was usually used in fishing, it’s large hooks made to slide in but not slide out. “The other side of the rope ties on the boat, you can catch big things like sharks with it. But if you don‘t tie it down…” The devious smile returned as Erik pointed to the bolt’s pointy tip and the hooks that protruded from it. “…Then you have a weapon to shoot the really big things with.”

[Auldwin]

Inheriting a boat? It made sense, Auldwin supposed. After his father had left Syliras it was he had inherited his father's old home where he and later his wife lived. So the Svefra treated their boats just like livable property then? Auldwin shifted slightly when the boy started to mention his particular method of dealing with monsters. As Erik quickly ran from the cabin, Auldwin found himself following, at least partway. He didn't fully step out into the light, but he came out far enough to see the various different ship parts the Svefra was going over. Even the look in his eyes shared some of his surprise when the large crossbow mounted to the front of the ship was revealed.

"Well, isn't that something..." he admitted softly to himself. It was smart to have one of those around. Certainly Auldwin would have had to believe that the seas were a far bit safer than getting anywhere by land, but only a fool would go without a means of self-defense. "Sharks? Ha, I can't think of what to do with a shark." Eat it? The Ghost couldn't even imagine. He knew a few cultures made things from the bones and teeth of such animals, but even in his living days he'd never tasted any part of a shark, though he'd heard they were indeed edible.

The Svefra boy was actually quite amusing. He seemed to have a lot of energy to him, something Auldwin envied. Not that he couldn't be particularly enthusiastic as a Ghost, but realistically those types of feelings came upon him less and less as the day of his death became further and further away. The thoughts and feelings of being Human were once so strong that he could replicate them simply by imagining hard enough, but now some of them were totally lost. Speaking of eating shark, the taste of food was particularly difficult to remember. Only non-specific tastes such as salty or sweet could be vaguely recalled by the Ghost. To use a phrase that something, for instance, 'tastes like chicken' would leave Auldwin completely at a loss now. He had forgotten how chicken tasted.

"Smart to have that aboard though. I imagine the Svefra don't have many enemies out at sea, so I suppose a good length of sword doesn't get much use. The same could be said in Syliras, where the Knights pretty much had driven out any hint of a criminal element, although I've heard of a few cultures that makes their very living off of villainy." there was something else Auldwin was interested in as well. As far as he knew, the Suvan, that which existed beneath the surface was a vastly undiscovered place. To a Ghost, going 'down' was just as important as going 'out'. Sometimes Auldwin wondered just what type of answers were below the waves of the sea, "Tell me, what do you know of the Suvan Sea?"

[Erik Windsea]

“You do! Sharks are good food.” Erik moved to place the bolt back in it’s barrel and cover up the harpoon again. He was definitely having fun, showing off to Auldwin. Most passengers that they had where quiet or just simply avoided talking to the two Svefra. With someone finally taking an interest Erik was eager to show off. “On the sea no, no one would attack us here. On land I have this for that.” He tapped the sheathed cutlass at his side. The weapon could easily be drawn from it’s sheath and Erik was not one to hold it back. “Some people get rude. Or do not like Svefra. Cutlass makes them see differently.” Erik laughed, he seemed to be joking, but he had the cutlass because people could get like that. When they didn’t like his presence in a pub or didn’t like the deal Cassidy caught them into. Though as Auldwin voiced his next question Erik’s smile faded. He was silent for some time, deep in thought on what to say and how to say it. “I know lots about the Suvan. I know how to sail from the Southern Suvan to the Northern Suvan. I can show you how to go about sailing the Suvan anywhere you want.” He paused, deciding on how to continue again. “But, I do not know all that lies under the Suvan. I have never gone below farther than a few feet. There are things down there…things that should stay down there.” Erik stopped again, thinking back to his travels and the things that lived under the sea. “And when they come up we have to make them go back down. There is a race of fish people. I heard someone mention them once in Riverfall. They live down there and they come up here sometimes. Those fish people know what‘s down there.” The silence came back, Erik was lost in thought. Thinking about what was actually under the sea. He really had no idea as the only time he really got in the water was when he had to clean the barnacles off his boat. Then suddenly Erik’s energy returned, a happy grin formed back on his face and he was moving towards the rail of the ship. “But Svefra know everything on the Suvan! And the Windsea, we know what‘s above it as well!” At this he shot into the cabin and came back up holding a squawking Squall. The seabird was trying to peck his arms, but Erik had him by his feet and was doing a good job at avoiding Squall. “Take to the sky you lazy bird! Show me how to fly. You‘re a seabird aren‘t you? Get up there and prove it!” After a few more comments on Squall not knowing how to fly, Erik let him go as he started flapping his wings. Before flying up to circle the boat Squall dove at Erik pecking his head for good measure. Erik laughed, enjoying seeing his Tavan awake and not hiding in the cabin. “There‘s my bird! Up there in the blue sky!” Erik watched Squall circle his boat. The seagull often flew around it or perched on the mast, watching for dangers ahead of the ship. His family, the Windsea had an unfair advantage over other sailors. Their Tavans were always seagulls and you could always see some of them flying around their boats. The gulls helped them avoid flash storms and rogue waves. If one of their birds saw something the entire pod would be ready for it before it even came into view.

[Auldwin]

Auldwin nodded at his various comments involving the Suvan. The boy knew his way around then, that was good. Auldwin had a fair bit of knowledge of the Endrykas, the Sea of Grass, and parts of Falyndar, but naturally there was much more to Mizahar than that, as he was slowly finding out. The world was vastly larger than he had originally believed, and with the small population covering it's surface, when he wished to float about aimlessly until he found the next bit of civilization he could be traveling for days. A string of days without finding anything but creatures of the land here and there would have it's toll upon his sanity. Being away from people wasn't good for his...Ghostly health. Conversely, being close to people, speaking to them like this, made him feel all at once more whole. It was almost therapeutic.

"Oh good. Maybe I'll have you do that one day. I've sometimes thought of getting into the trading business myself. I know fishing by boat doesn't truly bring in the amount of income it should. Some people think it's not worth it, because the fish rot before you can make it back to a settlement. If only there was a way to make ice..." Auldwin mused to himself. The Ghost was certain there was probably some magic that could be wielded for the sake of creating ice to keep seafood fresh until it could be sold, and honestly he was surprised no one had really done such a thing yet. Perhaps he was overstepping the bounds of magic. If a Ghost riding a vessel and talking to a Svefra was possible, there had to be a way to create some ice shavings out there.

Speaking of possibilities, that was the first time Auldwin had heard of 'fish people'. There were fish people? Sure, why not. By this point he had already met snake people, so why not give fish the same opportunity. Still though, it was enough cause for him to repeat, "Fish people? Are they dangerous?" The Ghost couldn't imagine that they were, he had never really feared fish, even in life. Unless perhaps there were shark people, that could be fairly hazardous.

While Auldwin thought on that for a while, Erik left again, only to return with a bird. Where did that bird come from? Did he catch it out of the sky? "A bird? You've a bird?" It was clear the passenger was more than confused, but when he heard Erik speaking at the creature in Fratava he could have sworn the bird was responding. At the very least the avian wasn't fleeing the area after being man-handled by Erik. In fact they seemed to have something of a comical love-hate relationship. What Auldwin knew of birds was mostly what he learned Possessing them. They were pretty independent and, at least toward him, unreliable, "Isn't that something, how in the world did you get a bird to listen to you? I've seen it in horses and dogs, but never birds."