When you look at the Peregrine and the Timbergrove side by side, I can't help but think of a majestic mother standing next to a child who wanted to dress herself. The result is a frigate smothered in too thick armor, overly large cannons, and a siege weapon. The Peregrine on the other hand is an experienced model of both beauty and function. The vessel, other than being significantly larger than the Timbergrove, is impressively sleek. The ship has four side masters and three top ones. Its hull is smothered in gold runic lines that look not only functional, but even artistic. Forty total gunports, twenty on each side lay closed, hiding the weapons within.

With a bit more focus, the vessel's information pops up in my vision.

Peregrine (Three-Mast Cored Brigantine)

Max Speed: 28 knots

Construction: Wood

Modifications: Gale Channeled hull, Arcane Barrier, Expanded Mana-reserves, lightweight construction.

Hull Integrity: 22744/22744 Mana

I lick my lips for a moment before turning my head to Irmgard. The woman stares at the ship, practically glaring at it. Not that she's angry at the ship. No, she's angry over being locked up for several days.

"So this ship is ours, right?" I ask.

Her glare shifts to me. "Yes. Why do you keep asking? Have I not shown you the full documentation and explained the legal way that I've obtained this vessel?"

Because this ship is worth a literal fortune! This is the equivalent of coming back from a weeklong trip only to be told I'd won a lamborghini.

"I just feel like this is too good to be true. You'd think there would be some kind of more tangible… cost."

"There are several costs both paid prior, paid now, those to be paid later." She crosses her arms, her gaze returning to the Peregrine. She begins walking towards the plank while I tighten my grip on her shoulder. "The costs already paid involve the paperwork and your survival against the [Bounty Hunter]. The costs now involve departing this island as soon as possible. The costs to be paid later are in regards to politics. Malthazar is a high-ranking member in the Ravens guild. His death and the seizure of his vessel will have significant ramifications that may or may not involve bounties placed on our lives."

"Ohhhh." I grin. "We're going to be hunted."

"Most likely." She answers. We walk up the plank and arrive on the deck of the ship. The deck is smothered in snow on account of the ship being empty for several days. She strides to the entrance, inserts a key, turns, and opens the much larger door. As the door opens, warmth rushes out towards us. Inside, pulsing runes on the bottom of the walls seem to produce heat.

The inside of the vessel is, as expected, far larger than the Timbergrove by several orders of magnitude. More storage, larger rooms, better kitchen, a far too massive [Captains] quarters, and most impressively of all, an internal helm at the top. The helm is a small room, a fraction of what you'd expect from a larger vessel. It has a single chair next to the crystal core and a table with a rolled out map. All of which I find far less impressive in comparison to the view. The walls are almost completely made out of glass with only enough wood to add support. Even the ceiling has glass tiles.

After another hour of checking the vessel, with Irmgard scribbling rapidly in a book, we finally exit the ship and head down the plank. When we reach the bottom, the woman stops and closes her book. "The ship needs only a few supplies before we can depart. While I handle that, return to the Timbergrove and inform Myers, Auranta, and Cillian that their presence is required. We depart in two hours."

I hop off her shoulder. "Two hours seems a bit rushed."

She grimaces, her teeth gnashing. "I do not wish to deal with incompetent bureaucracies." She turns away and starts walking.

Huh, who'da thought a jailer wouldn't like to be jailed.

Shrugging, I rush back to the Timbergrove.

When I enter my ship, I'm met with the sound of laughter and the smell of food.

When I enter the kitchen, the first person to notice me is Mishka, followed by Boriss. The Russian raises a mug, "Comrade fluffy!" He yells, "Come, join. Is much drink."

Clay rushes to me and opens their arms with a grin. "Fluffy!" Clay yells.

I roll my eyes and hop into the child's arms, wherein I am transported onto the table filled with food. Apparently, they'd chosen to have a party while I checked on our new ship. Not that I can blame them. The weeklong trip had many points of contention.

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The only ones not present in my crew is Auranta.

"[Captain]." Julia lays a bowl of milk in front of me before rushing to the kitchen.

For the next ten minutes, I allow the party to continue unimpeded as I enjoy the sweet divine nectar of the gods. Over those ten minutes, I listen to the inaccurately grander tales told to those who'd stayed behind. Clay getting very clearly interested over how Boriss conquered Mishka.

The wolf in question lays next to the Russian and gnaws on a large piece of meat. The beast seems agitated by the new smells and noise, though the meat is adequately a good distraction. Regardless, I'll need to keep an eye on the wolf.

Once my bowl is done, I walk to the center of the table and clear my throat. This causes all to go silent.

As I open my mouth, the door to the ship's entrance squeaks open. I pause and look back as I hear the sound of two footsteps. Several moments later, Auranta enters, followed by a human woman. The woman wears a backpack on her back, a rucksack in one hand, and a familiar staff in the other.

The woman looks different from before. Her auburn hair is no longer in a bun and is now loosely hanging two feet from her head. Her clothes are now replaced with something lighter and more fitting in comparison to the armored robe she'd worn before.

"Perfect timing." I exclaim to the two. I shift my head to my crew. "First, let me introduce Ayda, a [Mage] and new member of the crew."

"Velcome, comrade!" Boriss raises a glass.

"If the Matriarch accepts you, then so will I." Nepenthes exclaims.

"You'za prity," Cillian waves an empty mug.

"Your presence will be a boon. Thank you." Yuto does a slight bow.

The rest of my team welcomed her with open arms. When Julia returns from the kitchen, she glances curiously at the new woman. Even going so far as to look her up and down. "Leave your bags on the floor and take a seat at the table. I will bring you a plate and prepare a room."

"Before that," I interrupt. "I just want to mention we've got a new ship- you can ask for the details from Irmgard later. For now, Myers, Auranta, and Cillian are to make their way to the Peregrine. "We're departing the island in two hours from now."

"Already?" Emma asks aloud, her voice echoing enough to turn all the heads to her. She blushes at the attention, but pushes forward. "I-'I'm learning a lot from Alvar. I was hoping we'd have a couple more days."

"I did too." I answer. "But part of keeping the new ship involves leaving immediately."

"Waya da fook do ai hav ta go?" Cillian wiggles a bottle that may or may not be empty.

"Because the ship is filled with supplies."

"Sooo." He whines. "I con chak it latr."

"I saw several barrels of wine."

"A'll go naow!" He announces quickly. He wobbles off the chair and tries to make his way to the exit.

I shake my head. "Auranta, get him a jacket and escort him to the ship. I don't want him getting frozen or lost."

"Yes, [Captain]." The woman says. "Though why is my presence needed on the vessel?"

I shrug. "Not sure, but Irmgard asked specifically for you."

"Then I will go immediately."

As Auranta grabs a jacket and forces it on the Scot, my attention shifts to Myers. The man is staring worriedly at Clay.

"The kid will be fine here, I'll make sure of that. Just go to the new ship and pilot it for a bit. We'll decide what to do after."

The man sighs and gets up. He puts on his jacket and follows Auranta and the stumbling Cillian outside.

"How long do we have?" Emma asks. "I'd like to say goodbye to Alvar."

"Less than two hours- by the way, were you able to finish my gauntlets?"

She nods. "I did, they're in my room. I can show you them later." She stands up, "I'll be back in less than an hour."

She takes her jacket and rushes out of the ship.

As I watch her leave, I can't help but feel a bit sad. Emma is quite young, so being forced to leave someone they'd recently gotten attached to is going to hurt.

"So, this new ship." Micheal leans forward. "Are we going to transfer into it? Is it bigger?"

"It's massive compared to the Timbergrove. And yes, we'll probably transfer into it at another port. I'd rather do that now, but there is no time for that." I grimace. "Shit, I forgot to ask Myers about our next location." I shake my head. "I'll do it later, then."

For the next hour, the team eats, talks, and drinks until the time is near. Everyone returns to their rooms while I make my way up with Boriss. As we exit onto the deck, Emma silently passes us by with icicles near her eyes.

Once she's inside the ship, I have Boriss remove the ropes keeping the ship connected and to raise the plank. With everything ready, I hop on the crystal ball and connect to the ship. With a flex of mana and my mind, the vessel's masts move and sails open. The Timbergrove slowly retreats from the port, turns and then accelerates away from the island at a downward angle. After a good several minutes, we pass enough clouds to have a better view. What we find is the Peregrine waiting patiently.

"Is big smooth ship like clean pig. Is nice." Boriss comments.

I give a subdued chuckle.

With a command, I accelerate the Timbergrove and quickly reach the other ship. Once I'm close enough, I see Auranta take off from the vessel's deck and fly towards me with multiple bundles of connected rope. She lands just near me.

"Need something?" I ask and she nods.

She raises the robe. "Myers wishes to attach the Timbergrove to the Peregrine to increase speed and allow a safer entrance into the slipstream."

That sounds risky. Then again, It's Myers. The man probably knows what he's doing.

"That's fine. Boriss, you know what to do."

"Da," He nods and takes the ropes. In moments, the ship is properly secured.

"I'll inform him everything is ready." Auranta flies off and returns to the ship.

Not five minutes later does the Peregrine accelerate quickly. Then the ropes become tense, followed by the Timbergrove violently lurching forward. I adjust the sails and limbs to reduce strain.

For the next minute, we glide slightly faster than our max speed. My disappointment at the slight improvement immediately disappears as the hull of the Peregrine begins to glow.

One moment the wind was generally calm, and the next, it became a small storm raging around us.

The Peregrine lurches forward again as does the Timbergrove, the speed instantly doubling.

As we fly through the sky, I can't help but feel that I probably forgot something.

_________________________________________________________________

Within the bowels of both ships, two individuals find themselves saddened. One is Julia as she stares at the numerous broken plates on the ground with whatever food was left over from the party.

And the other is Cillian. The man glares part angry and part horrified at the water filled wine barrels aboard the ship.

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