"You surely took your sweet time. Did you get the eavesdropper?" Evangielle asked, arms crossed in front of her chest. She was standing at the end of the path leading from the village to the beach. Despite the broad blue hat, her nose was a bit reddened from the sun. Dozens of little ornaments, woven into her hair, jingled softly. The village children, of course.

Her eyes widened when she saw the state Alastair was in. He had only thrown on his shirt, britches, and boots, and the hair was still wet. "What happened to you?"

"Two jaguars happened. And it was Nico who eavesdropped."

Evangielle eyed him closely. "Are you alright?"

"It's nothing."

Together, they walked down the beach toward the long-boat. The fine sand was already getting into their boots, but Alastair ignored it. Evangielle lost her patience, as she always did, and pulled her boots and stockings off. With a relieved sigh, she dug her bare toes into the warm sand and slung her boots over her shoulder. She didn't say anything, but her glances were loud enough.

A lifetime spent together hadn't enabled Alastair to hide anything from his sister, so he gave up and finally told Evangielle about the fight with the jaguars, the conversation with Nico about trust, and what had happened at the lake, albeit not in detail.

Evangielle smiled. "I think he really likes you. And if you say we can trust him, it might be finally a way for you to.."

Alastair interrupted her with a scoff. "This isn't one of those romance novels you like to buy in every harbor. It's a convenient arrangement. I don't need any more problems, as you know."
She reached out and gently stroked his left arm. "I know. But he might help you ease up a bit. Did you tell him about your arm?"

"No. He will find out sooner or later, since the whole crew knows. But they don't know how far it is. This Harrison, however... He knew it. I could feel it. He is one, too. I never thought I'd meet another. But he must have been more careful. He has much more time left." Alastair stopped walking as even the slight touch of Evangielle's hand on his sleeve suddenly felt scalding.
She shuddered and hugged him, letting her boots fall to the ground with a muffled thud. 

Instinctively, he pulled her closer, burying his face in her sweet-smelling hair for a moment. The little ornaments felt cool on his skin.

"You don't have to do this," Evangielle murmured. "I always told you that there are other ways. We can win this war without cheating, you know."

Now it was his time to shudder at her words. But he stayed silent. Because she already knew what his answer was. He had made a decision a long time ago, and he would stand by it until the end. As he had said to Nico: every victory had its price. And there were far worse things to lose than his life - or his soul.

***

"I've never given that thing any special attention, but it was always clear that it wasn't any normal currency. I'm eager to see if you're right."

Alastair and Evangielle were standing in front of the main mast, eyeing the silver coin nailed to it. It was much larger than any known currency, with a hole pierced in its center and intricate markings on it. The warm glow of the evening sun reflected on it, making it look even more mysterious.

Alastair pulled his dagger from his boot and carefully pried the nail loose. The coin was rather heavy when he finally held it in his hand. He gave it to Evangielle. "See what you can make of it."

"I will. And you better find a replacement, or the crew will protest. The larger the coin, the more luck we'll have," she reminded him as she turned around to leave for the war room to inspect the coin.

After a few moments of searching, Alastair found an Albian golden ten rial coin in the pocket of his coat. With the hilt of his dagger, he drove the nail through it, pinning it to the mast. It would remind everyone aboard that they were about to strike at the heart of the Empire.

Then he went under deck to change his clothes and get himself presentable again before he gave some orders to Lucky about Nico and then joined Evangielle. They were the only ones aboard who knew how to read the secret navigational charts, so his guess was that the markings on the coin used the same ciphering system. Evangielle had gotten far better in reading it over the years than him, but he was in no state to wait patiently for her to finish. After all, this could still be just a stupid yarn and the coin nothing but a pretty trinket.

Alastair's doubts were immediately scattered when he entered the war room. Evangielle was sitting at the big table, her face reddened from excitement and the sun combined. She had pulled out a large map of the known world and was scribbling notes on a parchment so quickly and messily that half her hand was already covered in ink.

"This is it! That thing is real!" She exclaimed. "There are tiny markings on it, but they're written in our code system. There are six coordinates and the description of the other artifacts! They can be put together to form a new deciphering disk that will reveal the coordinates of the way to the unknown world to us!"

She gestured him to come closer and pointed to a sketch she had made. "The silver disk we have is the base. There are some indentations on it, see? The second piece, a smaller gold coin, is placed in the middle and can be rotated when all the other pieces are in place. In the east, south, west, and north are placed four big jewels: a ruby, a diamond, a sapphire, and a black pearl. In the center goes a bone carving in the shape of a skull."

"So those artifacts are even smaller than the silver coin we have?" Alastair frowned. "I doubt they'll be found in the given coordinates after all this time. Anyone could have taken them away, especially if they're precious stones and worth a fortune."

"I think you're wrong for once, my dear brother. The markings say that the artifacts were given, I quote, 'as a gift to our enemies to adorn their symbols of power'." Evangielle put a finger on the map, right in the center of Jeraine. "I deciphered the coordinates of the ruby first. It is in Coroné, the capital of Jeraine when it's united under the rule of a Grand Duke. And you know the stories about the crown of the Grand Duke that no one has seen in decades because the duchies could never agree on a ruler. It has... a giant ruby in the center! I have no doubt whatsoever that this is the ruby we need."

"So we have to steal a crown jewel from Jeraine? And let me guess: our dear friend, the Empress of Albia, has another?"

Evangielle smirked. "You're right. She has the sapphire. And the pearl is supposed to be among the holy relics of the Great Mother of Shawa. If Shian Fu really joins us, she should fetch it, and Lavertine can get the ruby. They know their own countries best." Then her face grew serious again. She looked down at her notes, fiddling with the quill in her hand. "But you won't like the location of two of the other relics. Remember what I just said about a gold coin? With an intricate design on it?"

Alastair took a sharp breath. "You don't mean..."

"I do. Back in the days of the first pirates, before it was annexed by Albia hundreds of years later, Caera was ruled by a High King. All of the High King's former treasures are still kept in his old castle. Remember the glass case above the fireplace in Father's study?"

"I always admired that coin when I was in there. And it was right under our noses the whole time, just like the silver coin..."

"Are we ready to go back there? Since our ship is the fastest, we can rob the sapphire in Albia and get the coin from Caera in one neat tour."

Alastair put a hand on Evangielle's shoulder and squeezed it lightly. He felt that she was trembling. "We're ready. And I think that damn golden coin was always ours, to begin with. We just take it back."

He took a few moments to steady himself. Unbidden memories from his childhood were flooding back in his mind, but he tried to shove them down. This was not the time.
"And the other location I won't like?" he asked.

Evangielle took a deep breath. "Qiristan. I hope we'll find a solution."

Alastair didn't answer. "What about the last piece?" he finally asked. "Where is it?"

"The skull is on one of the remotest islands of Akalu, south of here. Since it is the nearest place to the unknown continent, I suggest we all gather the other jewels and meet there to put everything together." Evangielle touched Alastair's hand on her shoulder with her own, smearing some ink on it. "Do you think we can do this?"

"Yes," Alastair said softly. "We'll get to the unknown continent, and whatever awaits us there, will give us the power to defeat Albia. To defeat anyone standing in our way. We'll be free - forever."

Free - or dead. Both siblings knew what the other one was thinking, but both remained silent.

***

Nicolas took some time to return to the village, letting the warm air dry his skin and clothes. Although Alastair hadn't said a word about it, it was clear that they would not show up together in their respective dishevelled states. Nicolas might have proved himself in some ways and gained a new status, but that didn't mean that the whole crew should know about their... what? Nicolas couldn't call it a relationship. An arrangement, maybe. He would have to be patient and see where it led.

Some crew members were still at the village, eating, flirting with the pretty young village women and men, or getting their hair braided. Nicolas even saw John getting a new tattoo on his upper arm. He would have bet a year's salary that the man never left the ship. A villager, covered in intricate tattoos, was carefully pricking the skin with a bone needle.

"Come 'ere, boy! We've been lookin' for ya!" John had spotted him, of course. "There I'm tellin' ya not to get yourself ate by a jaguar, and what? Capt'n tells Lucky you helped killin' two of them beasts! Ya either the bravest or the stupidest man me ever met!"

Nicolas couldn't help but grin at this praise from the usually gruff cook. "It was self-defense."

"You also rescued the capt'n. That's way more than self-defense." Lucky was exiting the big hut, joining them. His hair was neatly braided into small rows lining the top of his head. "I also got orders to promote you when he heard that John is satisfied with your work. You#re now officially a deck hand."

"And who's gonna help me peel potatoes now?" John protested. The villager barked some sharp words at him, presumably reminding him to stay still.

"We'll get a new cabin boy. The Elder's grandson has been begging her for almost a year now to join us. I just talked to her about it." Lucky pointed to the hut he had just left. "And speaking about the Elder: Nico, you have to go in there. She wants to meet you."

Nicolas quickly straightened his shirtsleeves and combed with his fingers through his hair to make him look a bit more presentable while Lucky and John grinned. "Anything I should know about her?"

"Be honest. She'll know when you're lying," Lucky replied.

Nicolas nodded and went to the hut's entrance. Since there was no door, just a curtain made of stringed pearls and shells, he had no way of knocking.

"Come in!" An old woman's voice was calling from inside. Nicolas obeyed.

The hut was consisting of one large room, richly decorated with woven tapestries, cushions, and wind chimes made of bird skulls hanging from the ceiling. The village elder gestured for him to sit down in front of her. In the semi-darkness of the hut, her eyes glittered like a hawk's.

"You are the new one. The one who fought two sacred beasts alongside Wavebringer." It was a statement, not a question.

"The... sacred beast attacked me, and Captain Blake came to my rescue. The other one attacked him, and I killed it," Nicolas clarified. "I'm sorry if killing the jaguars was a sacrilege to your people. We were just defending ourselves."

The Elder smiled. "Oh no, do not worry. When our young come of age, they are sent into the jungle to find and kill a sacred beast. Only if they bring back a spotted pelt, they are allowed to call themselves true warriors. By killing a sacred beast, you have proven yourself to be a true warrior, too. Wavebringer is fortunate to have you among his crew."

"Wavebringer... is that your people's name for Captain Blake?" Nicolas asked. Now that he had heard this strange word for the second time, his curiosity was piqued. "Why do you call him that?"

For a moment, the Elder looked suprised, but then her enigmatic smile was back. "You will find out for yourself. There is great power to a name. And I can see that you don't know your real name, yet. You were born under a different one than you are using now, and you have used others before. But none of them are real."

Nicolas stiffened. How did the old woman know? Or was she just guessing?

"You have to find your true name, young one. And you will have to make some important decisions. Until then, you will be known to us as... Truthhunter."

"Thank you, madam." Nicolas replied, still unsure about this situation. "I hope I can live up to your expections."

"Not mine, young one. Your own. Now go. And do take care of Wavebringer. He will need you on the journey ahead."

Nicolas got up and exited the hut. The sky was reddening with dusk, but it was still so bright outside in comparison to the darkness of the hut that he squinted his eyes against the sun. 

Lucky and John immediately fired questions at him, wanting to know the name the had been given. When he told them, they congratulated him on such a good name, slapped their hands on his shoulder and told him it was time for a little drink to celebrate his new status. Nicolas didn't protest.