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I wormed out of the ropes binding my wrists a few hours after they locked me in the cell, but it did me no good. The cell door was locked and I had no knowledge of lockpicking, but even if I did I was on a boat in the middle of the ocean surrounded by hostile sailors. I slumped against the wooden wall, curling up in the corner. Laying there in the darkness my nose seemed to realize that the ship stank horribly, and gave this message to my brain after a delay. It smelled of rot, of sweat and the signs of many people in close quarter for many days. I almost gagged, but I kept my stomach down and merely curled tighter.

Time passed; I don't know how long. I'd been hungry for quite some time before the orcs seemed to remember they had a prisoner, and sent someone down to feed me. A soft glow proceeded him, emanating from a cast iron lantern he hung on the wall opposite my cell.

"Food." He grunted, clutching a small loaf of bread in one hand. He pressed it between the bars, dropping it just at the door along with a cup of water that he actually put on the floor. As I scrambled over his features came into view, my eyes adapting to the light. Half naked, he wore a grimy loincloth and nothing more. His face was bestial, jaws lined with jagged yellow fangs and eyes a faint crimson hue. Thin slits replaced his nose, and as he watched me he snorted quietly.

"Eat." He demanded. I glanced up at him once more, suspecting some sort of trick before grabbing the bread and cup, quickly retreating back into the darkness of the cell. The orc laughed mockingly. "Not even a full day in 'ere and yer like a fuckin' animal." With that he took his lantern and left, his footsteps and glow fading away and leaving me with my bread.

It tasted terrible of course, having been long stale and slightly filthy from the orc's grip. I didn't care; even if I did get sick I'd die and find release from this. They were probably taking me somewhere, somewhere I'd rather not see. But this cycle continued for some time; me hiding in the dark corner before whom I could only call the warden returned, dropping another stale loaf into the cell and taunting me as I ate. He stuck around longer each time, watching me with what I could only assume was morbid fascination. Around day five (I'd begun counting days by his feedings) a creeping pain greeted me as I awoke, a dull throbbing throughout my body. It wasn't agony by any stretch, but it was definitely not good. The taste of the water changed, from merely filthy to downright nausea-inducing. When the warden came around again, dropping the 'food' into the cell, I didn't move.

"Get up." He ordered, rapping on the bars.

"Tastes horrible." I said, my voice cracking from disuse.

"Eat it anyway, idiot." The warden demanded, peering at me. I must have looked horrible; filthy from the cell, ragged and weak. I knew I had begun losing weight from the way my body felt, but I didn't know how much.

"No."

"Oh fer fuck's..." the orc growled, angrily striking the bars before stalking off. He left his lantern, meaning he probably intended on coming back. A moment passed, and silence filled the air. I looked up from my curled position, as usually there was the creaking of the ship and the sounds of the crew all about.

The ship lurched abruptly, sending me rolling into the bars before I could steady myself. The sounds of battle rose up, and the ship quivered once as cannons went off. Slowly the ship began to level, but with a pronounced forward tilt. I struggled to my feet as the ship groaned in protest, cursing and looking around for a way to get the hell out of the cell before I drowned in here. Jerking on the bars had no effect, as I had expected, and ramming them with my shoulder earned me only a sore shoulder. The pain in my body worsened, a hot sensation that I tried my best to ignore as I continued to struggle with the bars. The ship groaned again and shifted directions, now pitching so intensely that I had to cling to the bars to keep from falling against the far wall.

The wall that soon vanished.

I stared back at where the wall had been, blinking several times to make sure that I wasn't hallucinating from whatever they'd been feeding me. The wall just fucking disappeared. But I didn't have time to question it as water soon rushed in, an angry torrent that grabbed me and easily ripped my grip loose. I don't know what exactly happened from there on out, as the water rushed around me and threatened to infiltrate my lungs. I hit something hard, sending more pain throughout my body, but then I hung in weightlessness. The rushing torrent around me faded, and I swam furiously upwards towards the light as my chest began to ache from holding what little breath I had managed to suck down before the water hit me.

I burst through the surface of the water, gasping like a fish as I tread water. I'd surfaced next to the orcish ship, lurching at an intense angle towards me and down into the water. I realized somewhere in the back recesses of my mind that it was sinking, and the ship that hung on the opposite side of the orcish ship from me was probably responsible. It had no sails, no masts and no rigging; merely a hull. Shouts and screams of fury and pain filled the air, and cannon blasts assaulted my ears with their ferocity. A plank of wood floated nearby and I grabbed it, clinging tightly as the adrenaline from my escape faded. What happened from there is an indistinct blur, consisting of faint moments divided by nothingness. The orcish ship sank, and the other ship began sailing away. A shout. Something grabbed me, suddenly the ship was close to me. Being lifted. Carried. Darkness again.

-<>-

"Get him up! He's prolly half-drowned by now!" Cried a dwarf, hauling up a rope from the side of the ship. I hustled over to help, grabbing the rope behind him and pulling with all my might. One of the sailors leaned over the railing, bringing the indistinct shape we'd seen in the wreckage over the edge and onto the deck. He looked like a waterlogged fish, alternately gasping for air and coughing. He wore a dark tunic rendered even darker by the water, ragged pants and one boot. He'd definitely seen better days.

"He doesn't look like the corrupted ones," I said, stepping back and letting the dwarf look him over. "looks more like my kind. A kid."

"Aye, that he does." The dwarf said, nodding. Some of the crew swarmed about us, the others preparing the ship to move once more. "Oi, lad, go get th' priestess girly and tell 'er we need 'er." The dwarf spoke to one of the crewmen, a gangly human boy. He nodded and sprinted below decks as the dwarf lifted the kid, following the crewman. I didn't follow, instead turning and going to the railing, looking at the wreckage we'd caused. I thought it was a genius plan; use the spellcannons to turn portions of their hull into pure, clean air. At least it would make the corrupted ones do something nice for the world. I snorted a bit, turning and heading below decks. The Imperial Hawk had three levels, the first the crew's, the second ours, and the third storage. I headed down to the second floor, following the trail of water to one of the rooms. Voices drifted from it, and I leaned in the doorway.

"He's fine, only swallowed a bit of water." Said a long-haired elf, her white robes billowing about her as she bustled to and fro. "He appears to be suffering from some sort of illness I can't quite diagnose yet."

"Anything I can do to help?" I asked, looking at the kid. They'd stripped him, getting him out of those wet clothes and drying him off. He was sleeping fairly soundly, from what I could see.

"Fetch me some of the sheets from the closet yonder." The elf gestured towards a closet behind her as she gently touched the kid's forehead, frowning.

"Well, if I ain't needed I'ma go back t'what I was doin'." The dwarf said, shrugging and heading towards the door.

"What was that, Arkas? Drinkin' again?" I asked, with a chuckle. The dwarf turned at the door, pointing at me with a wicked grin.

"I'll 'ave ye know, t'ain't me that needs th' drink, 'tis th' drink that needs me!" With that he left, shutting the door behind him. I pulled some of the sheets down, bringing them to the elf. She was a willowy woman, tall and thin. Her hair was a deep black, bound back into a quickly done braid to keep it out of her eyes.

"I cannot identify this disease." The elf said, her brow furrowing as she moved her hands down the sleeping boy's body, lingering on points with two of her fingers. "Latas offers me no guidance, and my knowledge fails me in this."

"He looks fine, though, if a bit thin." I offered, looking him over. His ribs were slightly visible, his eyes sunken. Give him a few good meals and he'd actually be pretty cute.

"It is not the lack of nutrition that worries me, it is the corruption pulsing through his veins even now."

"Corruption?"

"Yes. An inky blackness that seeps through his blood in my mind's eye. It is not all-pervasive yet, only thin amounts at times."

"Well, he was hanging around with the corrupted ones."

"Their corruption does not spread through the air, Kejyn. Only via fluid transfer or direct injection." She straightened, rubbing her forehead as she turned and began to pace about the room. "How was he found?"

"Drifting in the wreckage. He must have been in the ship when we started disappearing their hull and got washed out like sand on the tide." I shrugged, pulling the sheets over the kid.

"If he is uncorrupted, at least physically, then he must have been a prisoner." The elf cringed slightly. "I am afraid to think of how they would have corrupted him."

"What matters now is that he's safe. It was a slaver ship, so he probably was being hauled off to be sold." I shrugged and turned to the elf. "So, Demayke, what now?"

"We continue to Hierakon, of course. If the child wishes he may remain there or continue with us." The elf looked down at the kid again, a flash of sympathy crossing her usually even expression.

"Why do we want a kid with us? I mean, he's probably not even able to swing a sword right now, and while I don't know if he's a psi or a wizard or a sorcerer or what have you I doubt he really knows any skills that can prove useful for us."

"Is that all you think of? How people can serve you?" Demayke looked up at me suddenly, one eyebrow raised.

"No, I worded it wrong, I'm sorry." I shook my head. "I mean that he'd be going into danger if he followed us in our work."

"We do not know if he has family, first off. Second-" Demayke began, but the kid suddenly jerked awake. He cried out in fear, and Demayke was at his side in a flash. He flailed around for a few moments, whimpering in fear, before he slowly came to realize where he was.

"Wh-Where am I?" He stammered, panting.

"The Imperial Eagle, bound for Hierakon. We pulled you out of the wreckage of a slaver ship." I explained, keeping my voice as soothing as possible. "You're safe now." The kid looked at me, his emerald eyes surprisingly piercing.

"Who are you guys?" His voice was weak and unsure, and held a tone like he almost expected us to do something horrible to him.

"I am Demayke, this is Urtaz." Demayke said, softly. She had a way with children, especially sick ones. The kid relaxed slightly, looking up at the ceiling. "How do you feel?"

"I hurt." He said, quietly. "What happened? All I remember is the wall disappearing and getting sucked out."

"Don't worry about it, you're safe now." Whispered Demayke. I sighed and nodded, touching her on the shoulder.

"I'm going to go get some rest. Keep him safe." With that I left, leaving her in her patient. My own room was across the hall, and after shutting the door I collapsed into the bed.

-<>-

The elf stood over me, a look of compassion in her eyes. My heart slowed from the shock of waking up with people standing over me, and I even began to relax.

"You said you hurt, child. Where do you hurt?" The elf asked. I gestured vaguely.

"Everywhere. This dull...ache."

"Now, I must ask some questions that might be painful. If you do not wish to answer them, feel free not to. Understand?" The elf said, crossing the room to a cabinet above a small trunk. With a quick glance I surmised this room was some sort of infirmary, which would really only make sense.

"Alright."

"Did the corrupted ones do anything to you?" She asked, her voice nervous as she looked over bottles on the shelf in the cabinet. "Did they...violate you in any way?"

"No. They just tossed me in a cell and fed me nasty bread and water." The elf looked me over for a few moments, before sighing and shaking her head.

"I will return in a few moments with some food, you must be ravenous. Afterward, please do get some sleep. We will arrive in Hierakon in a day's time." She began to leave, but the sound of recognition I made stopped her.

"Hierakon? I was supposed to go there!" I said, beaming. All was not lost, after all.

"Supposed?" The elf asked, raising an eyebrow in a quizzical look. I explain what had happened ever since I'd gotten on the military ship, and she spoke only after I finished. "I see. Well, we shall arrive in a day." With that she left, shutting the door behind her. I flopped back down into the bed, sighing deeply and thanking my luck.

She returned after a while with a tray of food. I ate it quickly, and the elf sat at the bedside.

"You are a wondrously lucky individual," she said, "the gods must have their eye directly upon you."

"They must." I said, between bites of a cheese so delicious at that moment that I couldn't think of anything else.

"What is your name, child? I did not ask it before." The elf asked, tilting her head slightly.

"Sigan Noghamourne." I said, gulping down water. The elf raised her eyebrow again, a corner of her mouth twitching. "What?"

"Your family name is Noghamourne?" She said, her voice even.

"That's what I said. Why?"

"A moment." She stood, smoothing her robes and leaving. I shrugged, continuing to devour the food before me. By the time the door opened again the tray was clean, and my belly happy.

"Sigan?" Asked the orc from before, looking me over. He was tall, broad-shouldered and strong of frame. His eyes were a dark amber, his hair black and hanging to his shoulders; one strand was braided with amber beads and a ring of the same material was fitted around one of his tusks. He wore a dark blue robe open to reveal a leather breastplate and loose pants over heavy boots. "Sigan, I didn't even realize it was you!"

"Uh...what?" I said, staring at the orc. He sat where the elf had sat, and she stood in the doorway.

"Where's dad?"

"Dad?" I was thoroughly confused at this point.

"Dad, Sigan, where's Cadein?"

'Confused' was now no longer the word.