Standing on a pier, Samer breathed in the cool ocean breeze, letting it flow over him and rumple his hair. Growing up in Astros, he had always been a stone’s throw away from the sea and couldn’t help but enjoy the scent of the salty air. He considered this something of a personal achievement. As a child, he had been terrified by the ocean and largely stayed confined to the safe walls of the Academy. Looking back, it was hard to figure out why. His memories of his life on Earth were blurry, especially the time before he transferred, but something about seeing the open expanse of the ocean filled him with dread.

One day though, a particularly frustrating lesson drove Samer to storm his way outside. Caught up in his emotions, he hadn’t paid any attention to where he was going. The ground beneath up suddenly switched to sand, and he realized he was standing on the city’s main beach. Instead of immediately running away, he felt transfixed by the sight of the ocean, the sunlight glittering on the rolling, gentle waves. Something in his mind snapped, as if an all-encompassing vice of darkness unfurled from around his chest. He collapsed to the sand and began sobbing, an immense feeling of grief coursing through him. A few minutes later, he was lying spread-eagle on the sand, exhausted and desperately wanting some chocolate cake. But he when stood up, he lingered, and could feel now that the sight of the ocean brought a strange sort of comfort. The soft breeze gave him warmth, and a hint of a memory of love and compassion. His fear had lifted.

He surveyed the large sailing ship that would be their home for the next couple weeks, the Espial. Since Kalasin lacked a teleportation portal, they had to rely on a good old-fashioned boat to transport them there. He spied Roisin standing on board, attempting to calm herself before practicing using Gust to fill the sails with wind. Hopefully, she’d get the hang of it and this would ensure they made good time.

First though, the Council had come to see them off, along with Jie’s family and a few of their friends. Or so Samer thought, until he saw a large crowd of people starting to congregate in the marina.

He tapped Dayo on the shoulder. “Any idea what this is about?”

Dayo grinned. “What, don’t you know we’re kind of a big deal now?” Seeing Samer’s skeptical look, she continued, “We haven’t even gotten on the boat yet and you’re already acting like a wet blanket. Come on, enjoy it while it lasts. We’re about to spend months away from civilization.” She gave Samer a playful elbow to his side and moved to greet some of her ranger friends.

Still perplexed, Samer looked around for Amara, before spotting her attempting to console an anxious looking Tal. He noticed Tal was surrounded by a mountain of suitcases, in all shapes and sizes. Among the pile was a birdcage, covered by a thick sheet.

Amara caught sight of him and beckoned him over. “Samer, the Council has decided that Tal will join you as well as an adjunct expedition member.”

Samer nodded slowly, trying not to show his surprise. He would have thought that an expedition was the last place Tal would be. “What, uh, led the Council to this decision?”

Amara replied, “You’ll need assistance with administrator duties. In order to get off to a fast start, your group will be questing almost every day. Tal will stay back and manage the new settlement while you’re away.”

She gave Tal a hearty clap on the back. “You’re a whiz at taking care of business, right Tal?” Tal bowed distractedly in response, her eyes fixated ahead on the boat. Her face was ashen.

Amara sighed and pulled Samer to the side. “She’s terrified of sailing, so she’s likely to stay below deck the entire voyage. Truth be told, even though I’m going to miss her dearly, I’m confident this will be good for her. She needs to get out and live a little. Case in point, I think she packed everything she owns.” She smiled ruefully. “Also, that raven is her prized possession, so you all need to help take care of it. She’ll murder you all if anything happens to it.”

“Shouldn’t be a problem. Dayo is a natural with animals. But are we talking about the same Tal that won’t even attend a mage duel, for fear of seeing somebody get hurt?”

Amara simply shook her head and said, “Pray that you never see that side of her. All right, time to give everybody what they came for.” She tapped the side of her throat and cast Amplify. Her voiced boomed out over the harbor.

“Thank you all for coming to send off our brave adventurers. The Council of Elders expresses our deep gratitude to the head of the expedition Samer, and his team members Dayo, Jie and Roisin, as well as the dozens of citizens who signed up to accompany them. With good fortune, they will successfully set up our foothold in Kalasin, so that we might continue to grow our world and bring new opportunity and excitement to all. I will now present our expedition members with their charter.” She waved her hand grandly, and a golden rectangle shimmered into sight. Cursive letters wrote themselves into the air.

**Expedition Charter**

Leader Responsibilities

Found a settlement Establish campus of the Academy of Magic Establish outpost of the Arboreal Lodge Establish garrison of the Hall of Valor Establish lair of the Thieves Den Protect the town from enemies Oversee town council meetings Conduct quests to accrue questing points to be applied to expanding the settlement Delegate leadership positions.

Each of the council members stepped up and with a flourish, added their signature. After going last, Amara tapped the rectangle, which burst into a spray of sparkling dust that settled on Samer’s head and shoulders. The crowd cheered, a few children excitedly pointing at him.

Feeling his cheeks burns from being the center of attention, Samer attempted to duck onto the boat, but Dayo grabbed his sleeve and pulled him back onto the pier. “Not so fast. Now it’s my turn to add a little something to the proceedings.”

Amara’s voice boomed out. “Each of the four leaders will receive a token of gratitude from the Council. Thank you Ranger Dayo for putting your expert negotiation skills to the test and securing worthy items for your team.”

Dayo pantomimed as if opening a door, accessing her hidden inventory. She pulled out a large brown bag, full of lumps from the items inside.

She spoke loudly enough for the crowd to hear. “I hope these items will give us the extra edge we need to show Kalasin who’s boss. Samer, I purchased you a weapon, since even though you wield a mean book, you’ll need something that can survive a little dampness.” Samer blushed, hearing a few in the crowd chuckle. Dayo pulled out a long obsidian staff that culminated in a transparent orb. “It’s called the Artifact Staff. The orb detects items of historical or questing value and the staff itself can deliver a pretty good thumping. Seemed appropriate for you.”

Despite himself, Samer was highly pleased. This will definitely come in handy. He accepted the staff and gave Dayo a quick hug of gratitude.

“Where’s Roisin?”

Roisin leaped from the ship to the pier, using Gust to land softly. Dayo rolled her eyes. “For the show off here, I have a pair of Elemental Gloves. Each can be charged with a single spell that you can combine with any spell you cast. With your new talent for instantaneous casting, you will be a force to be reckoned with.” Roisin’s eyes lit up as she accepted the gloves and eagerly pulled them over her hands.

“For you Jie, I have what’s known as an Instascroll. You can use it to send messages back and forth with your family.” She pulled out two electric blue scrolls with digital interfaces and handed them to Jie. Tearing up, Jie’s mother ran over to give Dayo a quick kiss on the cheek. Jie quietly murmured a thank you, his voice betraying a slight tremble. Samer was amazed at Dayo’s thoughtfulness; she had always displayed a knack for figuring out what mattered most to people.

“Last but certainly not least, myself!” She pulled the final item from the bag, a large, mahogany bow, carved with ornate symbols. “It’s an Elven Bow from Singida. Now I can finally use Multishot!” She twirled it around in front of her, a pair of arrows appearing as if from thin air. She drew back the string and let them loose with a sharp twang, and they sailed over the ocean, disappearing over the horizon. The crowd let out another cheer, the group of rangers in attendance even letting out a few whoops.

“All right everybody, that concludes our goodbye. Let’s get this show on the road,” Amara said. She tapped her throat again, canceling the spell.

A quick flurry of activity and all was loaded on to the Espial, though one of Tal’s suitcases rolled over and almost fell into the water. What could she possibly have in there? Samer wondered.

After a few last embraces, the group assembled on the deck, standing in line to wave farewell. All told, there were over one hundred people, and Samer took a deep breath as he symbolically put on the mantle of leadership that he would need to wear from here out. He gave the signal to unfurl the sails, which cascaded down and billowed with air. The crowd let out a final, boisterous cheer as the ship began separating from the pier.

Samer looked at Amara one final time, as distance started to build between them. She gave him a nod of confidence and encouragement.

The city grew more and more faint, as the ship weaved its way through the many islands of the archipelago. Samer felt a surge of adrenaline. This is it, there’s no going back.