Hmm. Here's my recommendation: I would have Doran finding a survivor from the
Dawn or the
Might. That way he can find out the
North Wind is sunk and the Gondorians captured. Then he can maybe find wreckage from the
Yonder Bound, and maybe sail for the island, knowing it's the logical place to look for survivors. My reasoning is below. It's long because we're actually dealing with
four ships, not counting Doran's!
~*~
The
North Wind sank fast during the fight. (Remember abandoning ship during the battle, moving the wounded and all?) What wreckage left would be just bits of wood, rope, maybe personal effects, etc. - nothing substantial, just floatable things that came loose. Most of the ship's on the bottom of the sea.
The
Regal Dawn (I looked up the name!) was the ship that the Gondorians captured and took over when the
North Wind sank. They were able to capture it partly because they did such a good job of battering it with the
North Wind's catapults. Unfortunately, that's why they hadn't a chance as the
Might of Realge came up; the
Regal Dawn was crippled. I find that no one said what happened to it after the Gondorians boarded the
Might of Realge and were captured. I think the
Might's captain would've sent men to repair it, presumably with the help of whatever remained of the
Dawn's crew. (I assume they were imprisoned below, although we never said.)
Cripple and/or under repair, the
Regal Dawn wouldn't have been able to accompany the
Might of Realge to the rendezvous with the
Yonder Bound. So we just don't know what happened to it, if it was far from the storm and rode it out better, or if it sank as well. If it somehow survived, I would think it would've been blown a very long way off course; it was in no shape to fight against the wind.
I'd think the
Might of Realge, after transferring the prisoners, either went off on orders, or stayed to accompany the
Yonder Bound. I didn't mention it being nearby in the storm post, but that means nothing because I doubt they'd have been able to stay together in the storm.
The way the
Yonder Bound sinks, more by breaking up than by capsizing, there would probably be quite a bit of floating wreckage, both at sea and on shore.
Now, as far as Doran coming across wreckage:
The fight between the
North Wind,
Regal Dawn, and
Might of Realge takes place far out at sea; I doubt if Doran would run across the site by accident. Also, this would be taking place a
minimum of 24 hours later
and after a storm, so the wreckage would have been scattered far and wide and not be a very significant indication of any battle. Not to mention that a storm had just been through. If you saw a wrecked house just after a hurricane, wouldn't you think the storm had did it, instead of jumping to the conclusion that it had been bombed? Maybe not the best analogy, but I hope you get the idea; Doran would have to be paranoid to assume a battle.
As far as the
Regal Dawn and the
Might of Realge, it's a lot more open with what happens. You could write that one or both sink, break up or whatever, and Doran could find wreckage or even a forlorn survivor. That'd be even better for finding out what happened. Keep in mind, the storm would still have sent any wreckage a long way.
All that said, I must admit I don't know what Doran (in the
Rapscallion?) is even doing and where he's supposed to be. If you know more you can work out something else, maybe.
I hope I haven't confused you - so sorry for the length!
One last thing: For story continuity, it might be best if you waited until the Gondorian storyline starts, just to establish their presence on the island. Other than that, please go ahead - happiest BarrowDowner!
