[Child of the 7th Age]

Luindal awoke with a start. Outside, it was still dark. He peered out the ship's porthole and glimpsed the outline of the Bay: the sun was just rising and the waters appeared placid. Still, there was a feeling of uncertainty in the pit of his stomach. He hastily tossed on his clothes and pushed back the door to walk into the corridor, continuing down the hall and climbing up the ladder to the main deck.

A brisk walk around the deck gave no hint of anything unusual. Most of the crew of the Spirit were asleep, worn out from their exertions the day before, or just rousing from their beds. The crew assigned to the kitchen had already begun their labors, which he could tell from the enticing aroma of breakfast that wafted over to the spot where he was standing. Yet, despite the apparent calm and usual routine, Luindal felt uneasy. He scanned the Bay, but, here too, all appeared quiet. One or two Lossoth fishing vessels, the last ones sailing before the winter, were bringing home a final catch.

Luindal plucked the spyglass from his vest pocket and adjusted the tube, focusing the lens on the Corsair ship. The ship looked quiet enough, with only one or two pirates visible on deck. He swung the instrument around and did a general sweep of the beach. This time he stopped, refocused his lens, and looked a second time as his jaw dropped open. The entire entourage of Lossoth and Corsairs appeared to be hiking north along the Bay, heavily laden with tools and weapons and bound for some unknown destination.

Surely, this is coincidence. I haven't even told my own men where we are going yet. They must be trekking somewhere on their own to search for the Stones, or perhaps going off on a hunting expedition to replenish supplies. But an uncomfortable sensation persisted in his stomach. In frustration, he pushed his left hand deep into his pocket and, by chance, felt the rough texture of the button and fabric that Rôg had said came from the south. He hadn't had time to think about it before, but it seemed unlikely the cave would house such a thing. When he had found the cloth, it had been dry. That meant the cloth would have had to get there quite recently, since otherwise it would have been soaked from the previous incoming tide.

Luindal spoke to one of the Elves on deck: "Please go below to rouse my trusted officers, as well as those Lossoth who have proven to be staunch friends. Ask them to report immediately to my cabin."

Privately he thought that they could ill afford to wait the full two days to depart. Tired or not, the Elves and Lossoth would make their preparations today and leave the next morning. Luindal was determined that they take extra precautions and travel fully armed. He was probably being overcautious, and all these extra preparations were not needed. But who knew? It was better to be prepared.

With this in mind, he beckoned another Elf to remain behind for a moment, leaning over and whispering something in his ear. The young Elf's eyes widened as he listened to the captain's words. "Twenty lengths of rope each thirty feet long? But, sir, we don't have that much in our supplies."

"I thought so," Luindal rejoined. "Go to the Elders and have them gather the ropes for us, and see if you can borrow one of those reindeer they have to pull a sledge. We will need to stack the supplies somewhere. And we may need that reindeer for other things as well." There was a grim edge in Luindal's voice.

"And what shall I say if they ask why I need these things?"

Luindal grinned back at the Elf, "Just tell them you have a captain who is slightly jittery and a bit daft, but you have no idea why he wants these things."

The young Elf nodded his head and beamed back, "That won't be hard, sir, seeing as I really have no idea what you'd do with this much rope and a reindeer."

"Go now, quickly, and do the errand quickly."

**************

An hour later, the most trustworthy of the band had gathered together in Luindal's cabin. The Captain had finished explaining about the shoreline to the north where they would search for the Stones and how all should pack their bags today and prepare to leave in the morning.

After he had finished, he added, "We need to be very careful in the north. We have no ideas what these cursed Corsairs might do. Make sure to go fully armed. And I have another question."

He stopped for a moment, not quite sure how to phrase his words. In the end, he just said the thing straight out: "By any chance has anyone seen or heard anything suspicious or unusual over the last few days, something that caused you to take a look and wonder what was happening.... something you can't otherwise explain. If so, come speak with me today in the cabin....."