Chapter 575 – Raiders in the Water!

When the last of them had been dealt with, Thedia and Rubenard poked their heads out to look. The self-appointed governor of Flotsam walked over to the hole in the floor and laughed at the men swimming back. Petyr, having realized that she essentially helped out an old family foe, cursed under her breath.

"Haha! Now ain't that a sight? If I had more wealth, I'd hire you all full time as my muscle. Maybe then, all of Flotsam will know who's in charge!" Rubenard cackled.

"You mistake yourself, Rubenard." Petyr loomed over him menacingly. "You would only be in charge by our mercy."

"Uh… Yes, of course…" He stammered.

"Come on, Petyr. We've got work to do!" Kanae pushed her towards the exit.

Back out under somewhat fresher air, they found the two lookouts knocked unconscious. Vestrid helped sit them up, and Kanae casted Flash Heal to magic away the big bumps on their heads.

"I can't believe we're going to lend Rubenard DeSalle our aid," Petyr growled.

"Well, our goals technically align. Somewhat. We want to get to Nu-hauta, and the folks living there are raiding Flotsam. What I want to know is if we can trust Rubenard. Gretchen?" Kanae turned to the high elf who knew him best.

"I don't remember the exact timeline, and I've only heard secondhand from Errenard many years ago. Rubenard DeSalle was ordered by Emperor Eugene to chart a habitable island some distance off the Crescent Cove, but a winter storm swept his ship away from course. There were rumors of desertion, especially since someone as seasoned as Rubenard would be familiar with the ocean's weather patterns. In the end, he was just written off as dead. If we're worried about whether or not he still holds loyalty to Ortesia, that is very much doubtful," Gretchen explained.

But was really just here in Flotsam all this time.

Petyr folded her arms and added, "Rubenard is nothing but a deserter and coward, which makes giving him a hand even more outrageous. I'll help catch those raiders, but I won't be happy about it."

"Thanks, Petyr." Kanae smiled.

"Hmph." She turned the other cheek.

They returned to The Seductress together while Thedia stayed behind to talk business with Rubenard. Hilde wanted to buy something to eat for her pets, but all Flotsam had were fruits and fish. Fresh cuts of pork, cow, and chicken came with a premium price tag. Fortunately, Kanae had the means to afford them for her.

Vesh, Motta, and Qoro were hanging out on the upper deck when they got back. The trio sat on the mast beams, tossing a head-sized ball to each other. Rown sailors carried cargo to and from Flotsam. The initial wave of visitors had dwindled now as many went back to minding their own business.

Motta tossed the ball a little too hard. When Qoro tried to catch it, he leaned back too much and fell.

"Oh, shit!" Vesh gasped and was about to leap off the beam.

Kanae flew up to catch the young elf first, then descended gingerly back to the deck. Hilde had gone to catch the ball in the meantime.

"Sorry, Qoro! I'm still getting used to my strength!" Motta shouted apologetically and came down.

"How about we play catch on the ground instead?" Kanae suggested.

"There's still too many people around. Qoro can't fly either, so it's not like we can play over the water either. Where were you all anyway?" Vesh asked.

"Getting some information. Looks like Flotsam really is getting raided by natives from Nu-hauta. Often enough that it threatens their livelihood here," she explained.

Qoro tensed up all of a sudden in Kanae's arms. She put the elf down, and he immediately started scanning his surroundings.

"Are you okay?" Kanae grabbed his shoulder.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Thanks for catching me! I'm feeling a little tired, so I think I'll go inside and lie down," Qoro said, disappearing down into the ship.

"I know you're soft on him," Gretchen began quietly, "but Qoro reacted to the mention of raids on Flotsam by Nu-hauta. Why would he ask us to bring him to the archipelago but shudder at their mention?"

"I'm sure he's just shaken from almost cracking his head on the fall." She brushed it off.

The sun started setting over the ocean. With no mountains and land, it felt like the days lasted a little longer than usual. Kanae and Hilde sat together on the upper deck, watching the calm waves. Well, Kanae watched. Thedia had kindly brought back some materials for Hilde to paint with. A canvas, paintbrush, and color was all she needed to begin. But because Thedia couldn't find an easel, Kanae offered to let the canvas lean against her back while Hilde painted.

"How's it coming along?" Kanae asked.

"Sh. Don't speak. The vibrations from your voice can easily jeopardize my delicate brush strokes. Even the slightest utterance might ruin this piece," Hilde warned.

Kanae gulped.

"Hah! I merely jest. There is no way your speaking will mar my painting!" Hilde burst out into laughter.

"Leagues away from land, and I still can't escape you and your sisters' teasing." Kanae groaned.

"I'm glad I can be here to continue their work. There! I've finished." She lifted the canvas from her back.

Kanae turned around to marvel at Hilde's work of art. It was a stunning, picture-perfect landscape of the sun setting over the ocean. The deep blue ocean dappled in orange. A cloudless sky tinged bright purple and red. Hilde raised the painting up to frame against the real life backdrop she conceived it from.

"Now, to put this somewhere safe until we return to Radevic. I think I'll have this put up in Claudia's room. She always liked sunsets," Hilde said.

"The flock of gulls are a nice touch. I'm surprised you didn't add the rowboats in the distance." Kanae squinted.

"What rowboats?" she asked.

They swapped glances between the painting and the ocean. The small crafts were getting closer and closer, followed by the rhythmic beat of a drum.

"Kanae, those are the raiders!" Hilde shouted.

"Of course, they are!" Kanae launched herself across the ship and rang the bell. "The raiders are coming! All hands on deck!"

Rown sailors were quick to act. Within minutes, the deck swarmed with armed men ready to fight. Flotsam, on the other hand, wasn't as quick. People ran for their homes and locked the doors. A haphazardly put-together force of scallywags and self-serving opportunists jumped into action, fighting amongst themselves over claims to spoils.

"Where are they?" Vestrid climbed to the upper deck with Thedia, Gretchen, and Petyr in tow.

"I see a dozen off our port side, rowing into Flotsam." Kanae pointed.

Vestrid narrowed her eyes in that direction and said, "There's a lot more than a dozen. This isn't a raiding party. It's a full on—" She paused, exhaling a mist of cold breath. "Bocchiri."

Kanae felt it next, the same frigid chill in the air when she had fought the elven Saint Priest.

"I've defeated him before, and I'll defeat him again," Petyr said, marching off the ship and into Flotsam with her warhammer in hand.

"Petyr, wait!" Vestrid shouted, but the high elf refused to listen. "That muscle-headed idiot. We're at a severe disadvantage out here in the middle of the ocean."

"Because with Permafrost, Bocchiri can essentially turn the entire ocean into his weapon. How are we supposed to fight him here?" Kanae asked.

"We need only repel the raiders. Holy Armament: Bow and Arrow!" Gretchen forged a longbow from holy magic and lifted into the sky.

Kanae and Hilde, who charmed a Rown sailor into bringing her painting below deck, joined the inquisitor. Soaring above the ocean, they saw the extent of the numbers raiding Flotsam. Long rowboats scarred the waters at incredible speeds. Every person rowed in unison to the cadence of a drum beat at the back of the ship. They were so fast, it was almost like watching a race horse galloping on land.

"Bocchiri should be somewhere among them. Be careful and do not engage him alone!" Kanae instructed.

"Yes, Your Majesty—"

"Yes, Knight-Commander—"

The clash of steel rang out below on The Seductress and Rown ships. Nu-hauta raiders had boarded them without notice. Thedia drew two sabres to fend off the attackers. She kicked one off the ship and climbed up the mast to escape being surrounded.

"Leave the flotilla to us!" Thedia shouted to them.

Kanae led her subordinates right over the rowboats. Many looked up just in time as they casted Mass Charm to turn as many as possible around. There were still more. Gretchen shot from her golden bow, piercing the drums on each boat to silence them. Arrows fired back at them in retaliation. As she descended closer, it came to her attention that nearly all of the raiders were elven and tattooed up the ass.

One man stood up on the rowboat and chucked a javelin. Kanae tilted her head, letting it whizz past. She aimed her Ring of Scorching Ray and unleashed a sustained beam of flames. The raiders jumped into the water as the ring's spell cut through the ships. They swam with almost perfect form and endurance to nearby rowboats. These were people wholly accustomed to the seas to begin with. Taking out their ships might not be enough.

"Turn away now! You can't hope to win here!" Kanae shouted, brandishing the Blade of the First Temptress.

They responded by throwing more javelins. A well-aimed one grazed Kanae's arm. She winced and casted a Flash Heal over the wound.

"Alright, you asked for it. Sleep!" Kanae casted it through her earrings Doom & Gloom. What was a single target spell magnified to affect a wide area, putting a large swathe of raiders into a deep snooze on their rowboats.

A gust of wind blew past. Riding on her red dragon, Hilde ordered the mighty beast to breathe fire. However, ice started coalescing on the body. She jumped off before being caught herself. Too heavy to continue flying, the dragon slowly plummeted into the ocean and began to sink.

"No! Return to me!" Hilde rubbed her necklace, drawing the dragon back inside the magic item.

Bocchiri!

"Where are you?" Come out for round two!" Petyr boomed.

They whipped around to find the high elf paladin on a dinged-up raft, being rowed out by a couple of dockhands who clearly didn't want to be there. Their craft stopped abruptly, then raised into the sky by a pillar of ice.

"This is a very different battlefield we find ourselves in, Petyr. It won't end the same way," Bocchiri said.

The Saint Priest himself was standing on the very front of a rowboat. He wielded none other than Permafrost in one hand. Unlike his usual mode of dress in Radevic, he was shirtless and covered in the same tattoos as the others around him.

"Fuck you! Wait until I get down there!" Petyr yelled from above.

"Bocchiri, Archbishop Patrice demands that you return to Radevic and return Permafrost," Kanae said.

"I'm sorry, Amethyst. I will not follow her orders." Bocchiri shook his head.

"Will you listen to me, my friend?" Vestrid had rowed out on her own lifeboat, the same ones attached to The Seductress.

Kanae glanced around and noticed Gretchen had disappeared from the battle. The high elven half-succubus was nowhere to be seen. Nor was she up on the ice pillar giving Petyr a hand.

"No. I won't, my friend. You know how much this matters to me. For years, I've petitioned Radevic to lend aid. They refused. I served, hoping to earn their ear. Nothing. We have found a way to save Nu-hauta, and I will not leave until I know that with certainty," Bocchiri explained.

"You don't mean… the volcano?" Kanae asked.

He nodded. "That is precisely right. As we speak, lava continues to flow from it. When cooled, they become a solid surface that can be terraformed into a habitable place. Volcanic activity underwater will stabilize the sinking islands, too. Do not interfere. Otherwise—"

Another pillar of ice trapped Vestrid. Seamist coalesced into frozen spikes all around Kanae and Hilde.

"Stop!" Gretchen shouted, carrying Qoro by the scruff of his neck.

"Gretchen? What are you doing?" Kanae gasped.

"Tell them the truth. Tell them what you told me, boy." She dangled him over the water.

"I… I am Qoro, son of Toro Squa," Qoro confessed.

"Prince Qoro?" Bocchiri hesitated, his eyes snapped open.

The Nu-hauta raiders were shocked as well. Many hesitated to continue fighting. Some outright dropped their weapons to kneel.

"Leave now, or the boy dies." Gretchen put a dagger to his throat. "We've been granting Qoro our hospitality, but that ends if you continue this foolish attack. You've served me before, Bocchiri. Do you take me for a liar?"

"Tch." Bocchiri whistled sharply, and a series of whistles spread throughout the raiders.

Those that were already on Flotsam hopped back down to their rowboats, and the ones attacking the ships grabbed their wounded to leave. The Nu-hauta raiding party turned around to disembark.

"Do not even dare think about bringing Prince Qoro to Nu-hauta. It isn't safe for him. And if anything happens to him, you will have more problems than a volcano," Bocchiri warned before signalling his rowboat to leave, too.

Miraculously, no one died during the melee. Save for some bad injuries and pillaged supplies, the Nu-hauta islanders departed without incident. Kanae and Hilde helped bring Petyr, Vestrid, and trapped sailors down from the ice pillars. Gretchen was waiting for them back on the ship, still holding Qoro tightly by the shirt as if it were a leash.

"You can say it, Gretchen. I should've trusted your intuition," Kanae said.

"It is my job to sniff something suspicious out, but you have the unfortunate role of leadership to weigh what to do with that information. I've been in your position before, Your Majesty. I hold nothing against you." Gretchen bowed.

"So, Qoro." She turned to the saddened elf. "You're Toro Squa's son?"