I lost time. There was blackness, flashes of memories, bits of sights, sounds, and smells followed by a return to my senses. The damage I’d suffered must’ve put me into a kind of trance. It had likely been the closest I’d ever been to experiencing sleep.

I heard slivers of conversation. Kyren, Hrig, Dorsia, Stone and Jade were talking in hushed voices, likely to keep from waking me. I strained my senses, trying to eavesdrop.

“-not a scratch. I watched the beginning of his fight, I’m certain his armor cracked,” said Dorsia in a hushed tone.

“I don’t think his armor has ever had a knick or a scratch actually. I never really paid attention to it before,” said Stone.

“You call yourself a dwarf? Come now, what’ll we hold over elves if we can’t even notice the condition someone’s armor is in?” That voice was new, Jade I assumed.

There was a scoff from Stone, “Adhering to stereotypes certainly doesn’t help anyone. Besides, we’ve been a little too busy to care about whether or not his armor has knicks or not.”

“What should we do?” asked Hrig.

“Nothing for now,” said Kyren, “let’s go back up to the deck, the captain invited us all to dinner. We can talk it over with full stomachs.” There were murmurs of agreement and they all quietly shuffled out of the cabin.

I felt as if I had a stone inside me and it was rattling around, rebounding all around my interior. I was panicking. Obviously armor was supposed to wear down over time, but I’d been repairing every nick and scratch almost as soon as I got them. What did they know? Did they realize I wasn’t Sevald, or worse, that I’m not human?

I took a moment to calm myself, trying to settle the rattling sensation I was experiencing. All I knew was that they’d realized my armor was repairing itself. I could only wait and see what they said about it and react from there. At this point, the thought of killing them to protect myself was one I found unconscionable. These were my friends. Aside from that I’d have to kill the entire crew of the ship as well. It was an immoral and impractical option. I’d just have to wait and see what they said. Worst came to worst I’d leap into the ocean and walk until I found a shore.

I buckled my shield to my back and tied my scabbard about my waist before making my way upstairs. It was awkward, walking while adjusting to the movements of the ship as it rose and fell with the waves. Pebble had fairly well established sea legs from his long journey from the University at Usalaum, but trying to walk the way he did at Sevald’s height just made things worse so I focused on adjusting based on my own ability.

Up on the deck I was greeted by a spray of sea air and the sounds of crew deep into their cups. It was evening and a silver half moon hung in the sky lighting the ocean in silver light. For just a moment the sight caused me to forget my concerns. All of my meals except Byn had seen the ocean, but those memories seemed a poor imitation for the real thing.

I moved toward the nearest group of sailors. When they noticed me their boisterous and bawdy voices shifted into hushed tones and worried glances in my direction. Had my companions told them something? The panic set in again, but I pushed it down.

“Can you point me to the captain’s cabin?”

They exchanged glances until one of them pointed toward the aft. I nodded my thanks and went that way, pushing down more panic and resisting the urge to make a preemptive jump into the ocean.

Light danced under the captain’s cabin door and I could hear the sounds of light conversation drifting from it. I braced myself, and opened the door.

“Sevald!” said Stone. The room was mostly familiar faces, aside from a tall burly man with a thick, but neatly maintained blonde beard at the head of the table. Everyone was smiling and affable. I felt some of the tension I’d been feeling melt away.

“Hail Stone, everyone.”

Kyren moved to drag a chair so that I could sit between her and Hrig and across from Stone, Jade, and Dorsia. I sat and turned my attention to the Captain, offering my hand. “It’s nice to meet you, thank you for your help captain…?”

The man smiled and grasped my hand firmly. “Jase, welcome to the Nedra, and it’s no trouble I’m being paid for it.”

“Exorbitantly, in my opinion,” muttered Stone.

“Moving you out of the city might cost me business with Talen. You’re paying for my assumption of that risk.”

“I told you, he’s being taken down. His whole operation should be crippled by now.”

“I’m not so sure,” Dorsia chimed in, “you definitely dealt him a blow, but you also brought all of his enemies into the open. If he can come back from it, he’ll be stronger than ever.”

That thought put a damper on the otherwise jovial atmosphere.

“Hmm, perhaps I should’ve charged even more then…” said Jase, stroking his beard.

“What will really hurt him is whether or not Donyin is alive,” Dorsia turned to me, “Sevald? We never heard how your fight ended and Stone told us he couldn’t tell through all the smoke.”

“He killed him, obviously,” said Hrig before I could respond, “He promised he would.”

I nodded, taking pride in her confidence, “It’s true. He’s dead.” I took a moment to think about how much of what he told me I should mention, but decided they were better off knowing everything. I described what happened. The fight, what Donyin had said about his siblings, how the fight had ended, and Talen’s gold eyes. When I was finished everyone sat in silence for a few moments.

“Aurum?” asked Kyren. “You're sure that’s what they said?”

“Yes, Donyin said that he, Talen, and the goblin chief were all ‘Sons of Aurum’.”

Kyren frowned, “I’ve heard the name, but it's old. It’s only ever mentioned in the rituals I told you about before, the ones that use draconic. It's probably something only those further into their church’s mysteries have access to. When we put in at Buryn I’ll visit the cathedral there and make some inquiries.”

“Buryn? Is that where we’re headed?” I asked.

“Yes, but we should hopefully just be passing through and making our way inland. Clara, or someone who works for her, will have a job for us there,” said Kyren. Hrig’s expression showed she was thoroughly displeased with the idea.“There’s something else we should probably talk to you about too.”

I felt the mood of the room shift, and panic took hold again. If they all tried to restrain me it would be very hard to escape without hurting them.

“Dorsia pointed out that we’ve never seen so much of a dent in your armor,” started Stone, “even after your fight with Donyin in which I’m certain I noticed several cracks, those are all gone now. You’ve not had a chance to repair them yourself, besides which I've never noticed you carrying repair tools of any kind.”

I managed a nod. I was too afraid to try and come up with excuses.

Stone looked around the table, “I think,” he paused, taking a breath,” it’s magic, and... I think we should sell it.”

My concern turned to a mixture of relief and confusion. “Sell it?”

“Aye lad, think of the profits! Magical items are rare and ones as practical as a self repairing suit of armor are even rarer. A lord would pay an incredible fee for it. We could buy an estate with such a thing,” his eyes were alive with excitement at the possibility.

“He took a godly oath to wear it, Stone. You of all people with your own oath should know the value of that. You gave your left nut for your last one,” said Kyren.

“Well I’d give my right nut for the profit from that armor!”

Kyren rolled her eyes, “I told him you wouldn’t be interested, but he’s been arguing with us about it since Dorsia brought it up.”

I laughed, feeling the last bit of tension leave me. “I’m afraid I’ll have to decline Stone. I took an oath and I intend to keep it.” I’d have to avoid telling him about my new shield.

“Are you sure you can’t at least remove it while you’re on the ship?” Jase interrupted, “ It’s a death sentence you know, if you fall overboard you’ll drown. It’s making the men uncomfortable, it’s like seeing a dead man walking.”

I hadn’t considered that. Mostly since I don’t need to breathe and swimming has never been an option for me anyway. “I’m afraid it has to stay on.”

Captain Jase shrugged, “I guess there’s no helping it, but between that and the women we’ve brought on board, I’ve had to ration a bit of extra grog all around to keep the crew from letting superstitious nonsense bother them.” He paused, “Honestly though seeing a man in heavy armor on a ship even gives me the willies,” he said emphasizing the last word with a shiver.

The rest of the dinner passed uneventfully, but pleasantly, with Stone telling everyone a story about Dorsia botching a pickpocketing attempt that left her with a red face on top of her usual wry expression.

…

The next morning I left the cabin later than everyone else. I had no reason to rush and wanted to avoid making the ship’s crew uncomfortable as long as possible. When I did make my way to the deck I was surprised to find Dorsia, Hrig, and Jade locked in combat. They were surrounded by cheering sailors about whom Stone walked, taking small bundles of coins and etching notes on a small clay tablet.

I approached Kyren sitting at the edge of the crowd. “I’d have thought everyone would’ve been sick of this type of thing after what we just went through.”

She let out a heavy sigh, “I would’ve thought so too, but Hrig was up here training alone before anyone else came up. Seeing her swinging that axe of hers around got Jade riled up and Dorsia joined in once she and Stone realized there was coin to be had with a bit of betting on the side.”

“Should Hrig and Jade be doing this with their injuries?”

“Probably not, but after their losses I think they’re just eager to get stronger.”

I nodded and watched as Hrig landed a solid blow to Dorsia’s leg with an oar she was using in place of her axe. Training was an interesting thing. I had memories of it from all of my meals. They’d spent hours honing their crafts, learning, and developing. Their abilities were the product of years of diligence, focus, and will. All I’d needed to do was eat them to gain the same mastery. I wondered if I would be able to learn something in that way. I certainly had some innate skills, but whether I could develop something that wasn’t given or taken was unknown to me. What would I even choose to learn? I’d been focused on what I could learn from the essences I’d eaten, but eventually there’d be nothing left to gain from them.

There was a crash followed by groans from more than half of the sailors. I returned my attention to the fight. Dorsia was the only one still standing, holding two short sticks. Hrig was disarmed and Jade was lying on the deck panting.

“That’s surprising. She’s a great fighter, but I don’t think I’d have bet on her over Jade and Hrig.”

“It’s not that surprising. She’s the only one who wasn’t severely injured recently. I assume that’s why Stone bet so much on her.”

I glanced at Stone who was grinning ear to ear as he collected coins from disappointed sailors and paid out the few that had also bet on Dorsia. He then approached us and handed Kyren a small handful. She’d apparently had the wisdom to bet a few coins herself. He then pulled a small pouch from his belt and handed it to me. I reached out and took it.

“I don’t recall placing any bets.”

“It’s the money from the goblin camp job, minus my fee and your part in paying for our passage. I did promise everyone they’d get their cut after all.”

I nodded, taking the pouch and tying it to my belt.

Hrig, Jade and Dorsia were preparing for another bout and the sailors began calling to Stone, for their bets. Stone went to return to them, but hesitated, looking back. “I already said this to the others, but thank you, lad. We were all in a jam because of me, but everyone came through and I just wanted to let you know that I’ve got your back, always.”

I held out my hand and we grasped each other firmly by the wrist. Friendship was something I’d been lucky enough to be granted only a short while after I’d become capable of it. I would do everything in my power to be worthy of it, even if it had been granted under false pretences.