A dark and stormy night... (OPEN)

[HG]

The young Holder had taken his time thinking over the journey. He was certain that the Conclave this Turn was going to be a highly explosive one and he was thankful he would not be there for that. His father had sent him on this quest to save them all, to save Pern. A self righteous young man he thought only of how he would succeed and not of the setbacks that might occur. Tonight was not easy. The shipped seemed at the mercy of the storm, rocking whichever way the wind blew it. This would set them back.

Nevarre would have liked that to be the only problem as he leaned once more over the side of the boat. Vomiting was the worst thing he'd ever experienced. It became apparent shortly after they set sail that he was not meant for sea travel. He ate little and vomited often. If anything had been of help it had been the cheery nature of the sailors. "Oh if only I were as used to this as they were..." He felt alone in this weakness. Nevarre was not someone who liked to admit weakness in himself.

The ship rocked to one side again. The shouting of the sailors brought his attention to the helm. Oh dear Faranth... "MAN OVERBOARD!" He heard one man shout. Where? Who?!!! He struggled to the other side of the ship, sliding across the wet wooden deck. Please let it not be one of the Holder's daughters they had promised to remain below! If anything happened to anyone on this mission it would fall on his shoulders and Koldyn's. At least he shared the burden he supposed.

"Who is it sailor?" The young man asked as he came to the other side. His question was met with thunder loud enough to make his heart quicken. Lightening flashed in response to the thunder and suddenly he had the most horrible feeling of all. Helplessness.

[firethorne]

Koldyn had never been one that could sit and wait.

Since starting the journey, the holder's son had rarely stayed in his cabin, instead choosing to wander the ship and watch the waters endlessly rolling by. By Faranth's hide, he wished he could see something besides ocean! The blue expanse stretched as far as he could see in every direction, and the boy was beginning to wonder just how long this trip was going to take. Of course, meeting the rest of the expedition the first few days had been a nice distraction, though Kol had already pegged a few he rather thought they could do without. At least Nevarre had seemed entertaining....until he began spending his days emptying his lunch over the side of the boat, anyway.

Surprisingly, Koldyn himself had no problem with the swaying motions of the great ship, able to eat as he liked without trouble. And so it was this night, after having what he considered a meager fare for supper, that he wandered out to watch the captain and the waves. Yet now even Kol's stomach threatened to betray him, the storm becoming more violent and the boat beginning to rock enough to turn his face green. As he pressed the back of his hand against his mouth, forcing down the wave of nausea that gripped him, the holder heard the terrible cry. 'Shells...' He thought, amber eyes widening. Who had fallen?

Staggering towards the source of the shout, the boy wasn't surprised to see Nevarre already there, trying to speak to the sailor. With the thunder and waves crashing in the air, the holder could not hear his words, and struggled to keep his feet to approach the co-leader. This was their responsibility, and Koldyn was not about to fail his father in this. He had worked his entire life to gain the approval of Kosta, and by Fall and Fire, they would not let this quest go awry. Finally able to stumble to the other holder's side, Kol grabbed Nevarre by the shoulder and shouted, "Who was it? Do they know?" hoping that he could be heard above the raucous noise.

[Yuu Kanduet]

Jerezen sat on his make-shift seat amongst the rope piling and attempted to finish reading over a passage of a song he had been working on for a few days. The wind was ripping at his paper, and Jerezen knew the rain would soon follow the bright flashes of lightning and deafening claps of thunder. All the same, Jerezen was determined to finish re-checking his work.

A loud cry of "Man overboard!" startled Jerezen and his grip on his papers slackened for a margin of a second. That moment was enough and his paper was torn from his grasp and tossed by the wind into the waves below.

Snarling, Jerezen leapt to his feet. How dare someone go and try to drown. Their stupid routine had cost him a whole sevenday of work. As he furously marched up to the railing of their ship, Jerezen looked down into the water for the drowning man.

Jerezen dearly hoped the man would survive. The apprentice harper wouldn't be able to exact his revenge if the poor peasant died.

[Marnark]

Cemar was placidly winding up some rigging rope on one long forarm, feet planted solidly on the deck at slightly more than shoulder width apart. Though he'd never been on a boat in his life before this trip, he seemed to have taken to it without much of a hiccup. Though he did feel bad for the fellows who were racking up their guts over it. It made him glad that wasn't him. The deck was pitching and heaving like there was going to be no tomorrow ... and the way the storm was looking, it might well be true at that.

During one sudden lurch and heave in the other direction, a bucket popped off of the hook its bail was hung on and skittered across the deck, under the rail, and into the ocean. Cemar watched it go for a moment, and then looked around the deck. The swabby wasn't going to be happy about his bucket getting away. Probably was going to blame someone for stealing it to carry retch, until it was discovered to actually be missing.

"What was that?" Rolgar asked, stumbling over. While his stomach was sound, his feet most decidedly were not. And staying below decks with the sickies was not exactly going to help them stop being sick. So the Healer had come up for some clear air. If salted to crustiness could be called clear.

"A bucket." Cemar answered, winding rope on his arm again.

"A bucket. So now we're shy a bucket too?" Rolgar asked.

"Yep."

"Oh well. Can't exactly get it back, then."

Cemar hesitated a moment, looked at the rope on his arm, and then grinned. "Watch me!" With that, he shook the rope off his arm again, looped the end around his waist, and then jumped over the rail backward.

"Hey -!" Rolgar yelped, diving for the rail and catching it in both hands just in time to see his nephew and childhood friend disappear under the choppy water with a terrific splash, the thick rope trailing after him like a living serpent.

For a moment, he just stood there, not believing what he'd just seen, until one of the deckmen bellowed something about a man overboard. Heaving a sigh and shaking his head, Rolgar straightened and tried to not go overboard himself. Cemar was a nut, and that was all there was to it. But he had no doubt that Cemar would be alright ... and might even get that sharding bucket back, too. He'd need help getting back aboard, of course.

"Over here!!" Rolgar called with no idea as to whether or not the call was in reference to Cemar or not. He reached to grab that thick rope before it hit the end, where it was tethered to a metal contraption on the railing. It would be best if the stop was gradual, rather than a sudden jerk. As a Healer, he knew that any damage Cemar took, he'd be tending himself. "I need help pulling him in!" Stout he might be, especially for his profession. But Cemar was a rather big lad, and heavy on top of that. Add soaking wet to the equation, and Rolgar would be lucky to just hold his nephew steady much less reel him in.

[HG]

The shouting increased over the loudness of the storm. Suddenly Koldyn grabbed him by the shoulder and Nevarre turned slightly to see him. Looked as if he was still adjusting just fine. Not that he was jealous. "Can't be sure but the girls had better remain below..."

He had more to worry over without them around. He heard Rolgar's shout as it was carried through the air and shot a quick look in that direction. He needed help it seemed. "Come on." He said to Koldyn as he walked as carefully as he could toward Rolgar.

On his way over he touched Jerezen's shoulder lightly, "We'll be needing you too. Come." It was not a request so much as an order. Nevarre was used to ordering others around though most the people on the expedition had so far held their tongues about how this actually made them feel. He never expected anyone would disobey him or challenge his authority as a Lord Holder's son.

"Who is it?" He asked Rolgar as he approached. Looking at the rope in the other youth's hands he began to follow suit and pick up the rope. He was not all that strong himself and wondered how many of them it would take to pull the other young man aboard. Maybe four would be enough. The sailors were too busy to help them.

[tragedy]

Sea sickness was not something that Dereo had had to deal with during this voyage, though he did have a hard time keeping his balance on the swaying ship. He wasn't made for ships, he enjoyed the open fields and trees, he hoped they would arrive at southren soon, or at least that the storm would cease. The runners below deck were quite frenzied by howling wind and the rocking boat, screaming their distress.

They would probably be fine when the storm died down though. He had gone above deck to see if there was anything he could do to help out, when someone cried 'man overboard'. He rushed to the source of the shouting, finding the holder sons and some others already there trying to haul someone out of the water by a rope.

Looked to him like someone had tied himself to a rope and jumped in.

But what kind of sharding idiot would think out going for a swim in the middle of the ocean in stormy weather? Even if this person was a strong swimmer, the rope could snap, or the current could drag him under, or a wave could smash his body to battered pieces against the boat. Oh yes, there were many horrible ways to die.

He didn't think twice about grabbing the rope, probably quite a bit stronger than Nevarre. "let's pull first and ask questions later"he told the holder reasonably enough. It made a lot more sense to spare their breath for hauling the person on the other end of the rope out, what did it matter who it was?

[firethorne]

As Nevarre turned, Koldyn could see the other holder was just as concerned as he was. Of course, who could blame them? The responsibility of this quest lay on their shoulders, and if they failed, their fathers would never hold them in the same regard again. The women? "Shards!" Kol softly cursed, amber eyes narrowing. He wouldn't be surprised if it was that dim-glowed trader girl he had been forced to bring along, her constant questions and defiance an absolute thorn in his side. In truth, Phaerie had been a good member of the expedition so far, doing her share and keep out of the sailor's way, but Koldyn held an ungracious attitude for her. She would never gain favor in his eyes no matter how hard she tried.

Quickly snapping his head up at the shout from the healer, Koldyn promptly followed the other holder, wondering just what had happened with Rolgar. Had he seen who fell over the side? Hoping whoever had fallen could be saved, Kol paused as Nevarre ordered Jerezen to accompany them, wiping water out of his eyes. The waves were beginning to spray the boat, and conditions were becoming uncomfortable.

As they finally slipped their way to the side of the boat, Koldyn was absolutely relieved to see it was a male bobbing in the ocean, and it seemed they could reel him back in. Thank Faranth it wasn't one of the women. He grabbed the rope as well, nodding at the others as they too jumped in to help. Right now, it didn't matter who was a holder and who was a crafter, they had an job to do and no one but them could do it. Nevarre took the lead, asking who had fallen, and Kol scrunched his eyes, trying to identify the man in the water.

Gritting his teeth, the Lord Holder's son tried to find purchase on the slippery deck and pulled with all he had in him, doing his best to keep his footing. Koldyn liked to work out to keep his body looking good, and he was trained in personal defense, but he doubted he was anywhere near as strong as the hearty crafters aboard. Snapping his amber eyes toward Dereo, Kol realized the sensibility of his words, but something in him didn't like being told what to do by a beastcrafter. Oh shells, he was right; they needed to save that man!

[magic]

Lyunne hated the confines of being below decks. She hated being in such a small space, so grabbing her cloak and knowing she was going against Nevarre's orders she headed out onto deck. Who had put him in charge any way? She wondered as she climbed the steps and felt the wind as it tore across the deck, blowing her cloak around her legs. She frowned, the weather had gotten steadily worse, thankfully she had never suffered seasickness. Not like some of the girls and that was another reason to be on deck. At least there was a fresh, salty tang in the air.

It took Lyunne a couple of moments to get her wits about her. She saw the sailors struggling with...well she didnt know the names of them, but they were shippy things, ropes, and other things that looked rather daunting. She heard the shouting as she made her way on deck. The boys were grabbing a rope, pulling at someone who had gone over board. Stupid, going overboard in this weather. Why would anyone want to swim today? She frowned as the ship seemed to roll as the storm grew, the lightening colored the sky and she had a feeling things were gonna get worse before they got better.

The others were trying to get the idiot oout of the sea, and what a surprise, Lord Nevarre was there all ready, giving out orders. She gritted her teeth and took a couple of steps. The deck was slippery and she almost lost her footing, grabbing the rails to keep herself on her feet. She swore as the wind hit and she suddenly knew this was not gonna be as easy as she had first thought. But she was not about to give up. She was made of sterner stiff than that.

Taking a breath she took smaller, steadier steps, and joined the rest, the hood was up on her cloak and she knew at a glance she could pass as a boy. She looked at who was there, and then got behind Koldyn, taking hold on the rope and getting ready to help them, “what can I do?” she asked Koldyn, not daring to approach Nevarre, she didnt want to get moaned at just yet. Although she might get it from Koldyn.


<Quintre>

It was not a nice place to be. Why he had come up onto deck he didnt know, he had found a nice little place to stretch out and sleep below decks, but no, he had followed the others, wanting to be included in things. He was a Lord Holder's son as well, he had a right to be included in things. But they just seemed to over look him. Not as if you could over look one as tall as Quintre, but he hadnt exactly pushed himself forward.

The weather was getting bad, and he heard the cries of “Man Overboard” he watched as the other expedition members who were on deck rushed to see who had taken a tumble, and Nevarre and Koldyn took charge. He felt himself bristle, he wanted to be seen as well. He might not be as old as them, and he was the 6th son, but he was still someone who shouldnt be ignored.

He saw someone in a cloak arrive and frowned, but there was a shout and someone had a rope, the sailors were too busy to help so it was up to them to help whoever was taking a swim. “Who is it?” he shouted, hoping his voice would be heard over the screaming wind. “Can I help?” he followed with, carefully making his way across to the others. If someone needed help then it was up to them.

[HG]

For all his brave talk and actions, Nevarre was still feeling very queasy. In fact he doubted that he was going to be able to help haul the youth out of the water if his stomach kept turning as it was. Despite this he tried to ignore his stomach and focus on the task at hand. Seemingly easy enough though even with a bunch of people now pulling the young man was still not out of the water. The storm and the water was trying to defeat them. He was not going to lose this early on in the mission.

He heard people shouting at him over the noise of the wind and the thunder. First Lyunne, who he had a feeling would defy him the first chance she got. Well he was not going to stand for that and Koldyn would back him up if she sought some support from him. Let Koldyn deal with her, he thought to himself. Seeing as Quintre had come to help too, although young he was a Holder and deserved some respect. "Quintre get behind me. We should all pull on the same count..." He added thinking that some organization would be better than everyone simply pulling at different times. "One, two, three... heave!" Of shards. He felt like he was going to heave.

Nevarre was pulling with every muscle in his body or at least all the ones he was aware of. He was a bit more disoriented with each passing moment. The sooner they arrived on land the better. In fact he may never travel by boat again. Either he would die looking for the dragonriders or he would be flying on one back to his father successful in his quest. Either way he would not be travelling by sea again he thought as his face became an ashen gray.

Rolgar and Dereo were the only people in front of him. Unfortunately for Dereo he was the closest to him. So when Nevarre could no longer contain himself he vomited right onto Dereo's back. HE had not let go of the rope though and continued to try to save this other boy's life. Oh flame it all! Now he was sure to have made enemies of the larger youth and through no real fault of his. A life was worth more than risking vomiting on someone. Although the smell of the vomit was certainly not helping him now...

[shinachan23]

Feeling sick and queasy admist all the tremoring and stumbling about, Senyrae thought it best to leave the cabins of the ship and head up to the deck. Yes, she knew there was a storm going about, and yes, she knew there was the chance of her getting thrown overboard or some other natural disaster sending her to an early grave, but she personally didn't care at the moment. Below deck, there was no space. Everything was cramped together, and there seemed to be no room among the fellow passengers to get around. It was too crowded, too cramped, too... intimate. She needed some fresh air.

Opening the door to the upper deck, Senyrae was greeted with a sight that she did not anticipate. A group of the sailors and male expeditioners, along with Lyunne, were holding onto a rope for dear life, as if it were a lifeline. No... surely not. It couldn't be! Racing to the rail that barricaded the lines of the ship, whilst avoiding a strayaway broom in the process, she gasped in horror to see a sailor thrashed about by the vicious ocean waves, keeping his head above water for only slim amounts of time. Running to the group, she noticed Nevarre, the Co-Leader, just retch himself upon poor Dereo, looking like a washed up canine just returning from a bath.

Taking a hold of the rope in front of the Jorneyman Beastcrafter, Senyrae yelled above the roaring waters and thunder, "Really, Nevarre! If this is what you're like during a thunderstorm, I can only imagine what it will be like when we face the dragons!" A grin snaked up her face, knowing full well it would anger him. But that was the idea. With a little extra strength and sudden push, we might just be able to pull the drowning fellow out of the water! Her bearings slipping from the sudden idea, she steadied herself, a wave coming and htting them full blast with salty tears.

Gripping the rope under her hands, she pushed her feet on the wood of the ship, and with a mighty pull yelled, "Heave! You heard what Nevarre said. Heave! Heave!" With a strength even she didn't know she had, she pulled with all the muscle in her arms that she could use, keeping a steady balance against the floorboards and not trying to trip onto the boy in front of her. "Heave!" Knowing she was going to get a well round of reprimands from Nevarre after this, she ignored the daunting thoughts entering her head and continued to tug. A life was on the line, and they were the only ones who can save him!

[Yuu Kanduet]

Jerezen bristled at the order given to him, but said nothing. He wanted to get back at the idiot who had cost him time and work. Jerezen could only do that if the wherrie head survived. So the apprentice harper followed the other males to the rope that was apparently secured to the person they would be hauling up.

Grabbing on to it, Jerezen found footholds and braced his feet on the deck. It wouldn't do to slip and send his clothes into disrepair. Jerezen was squeezed between two people who he had never bothered to learn the names off, but at least he wasn't near that shrieking girl. They could pull without her screaming in their ears. They had heard Nevarre well enough.

[tragedy]

He only flinched when the young holder retched on him. He would worry about that later, the rain and the waves sort of dealt with the problem in any case. The wave that crashed over him washing away most of the sour smelling stuff. He sort of pittied the holder for his sickness. So rather than snapping or yelling at him for it, he glanced over his shoulder"you feeling ok Nevarre?".

It didn't bother him much that the girls had come over to help, but he was sure that Nevarre would not enjoy seeing his orders so openly disobeyed by at least 2 of the girls, but who really cared, the girls where brave if not capable if they were out here, braving the storm to help them out.

He really pulled his weight into it as they started to heave, trying not to lose his grip on the slippery and wet rope.

[magic]

<Lyunne> wanted to laugh loudly when she saw Nevarre sick up the contents of his stomach all down Dereo's back. But she controlled her mirth, she might have a steel stomach, but sea sickness was nothing to be laughed at. She took hold of the rope, braced herself, making sure she had a good footing. She didnt want to join the poor wretch in the water. Or make herself look like a fool if she should slip and land on her behind. No, she would show that the girls could help, they were as much part of the team as the boys were. Senyrae was another that Lyunne found hard to stomach, but then the other girl was a Holder's daughter, where as Lyunne was a mere crafter, she was sure there would be clashes between the various members of the group before long. It was no surprise when Senyrae decided to take charge, "sharding holders" Lyunne muttered, pulling the rope to try and keep her bitterness inside. They were all here for the same reason, so why did certain members of the group feel the need to pull rank?

<Quintre> was only to pleased to be told where to stand and what to do. He didnt care about rank, or how people precieved things, all he wanted was to rescue the poor soul, and then get below decks, out of his wet clothes and dry again. But it wouldnt happen if they didnt do something. He felt sorry for Nevarre. Sickness was hitting a majority of the group hard and he knew he had been fortunate up to now, but he had felt the queasy a couple of times. "Dont worry Nevarre, Dereo isnt worried, and neither are we. Lets pull him out then we can all get below decks and warm up." He said, taking up the strain of the rope. He looked at Senyrae, blushing, he wasnt sure hwat he thought of the girls yet, he hadnt had much to do with them at all. Females were strange things, they always smelt good and that made him feel...well....funny inside. And he didnt want any of those confusing feelings this trip. No, he would leave them well alone. The others could fathom out what made the girls tick, Quin had no inclination to try that yet. "Right, lets do this" he said to himself as they all pulled together, saving the sailor and fighting the elements.

[Marnark]

Rolgar looked over as more people arrived, but could only barely note who it was for the driving wind and the water splashing all over the place. "It's my dratted idiot nephew." Rolgar answered, trying to be heard over the storm as he hung onto that rope. He loved Cemar to bits, probably would never have a closer friend. But ... sometimes the other lad was just downright ... irritating. Idiot idiot idiot lad.

Well, there certainly wasn't any lack of help. Rolgar had no idea if Cemar had managed to catch that bucket or not, but frankly? He didn't care. He was going to get his childhood friend and nephew back again. Idiot!

In the water, Cemar knew darn good and well what he was doing. It wasn't the first time he'd been swimming in stormy waters. Granted, it had been one of them big lakes, not an ocean, but hey. Stormy water was stormy water. This was just ... salty. He spat out a mouthful of the stuff after he resurfaced the first time. Long and strong, Cemar had no trouble swimming and staying on the surface. The waves tried hard to take him under, but being more or less fresh and not at all shocked or scared to find himself in the water, he was completely coherent.

The bucket bobbed about crazily on the waves, twirling and nearly sinking a few times. In short order he managed to reach the thing, but just as he reached out for it, he felt the rope around his middle tighten. Someone was pulling him in already!! Argh!! He dove through the water again, swimming against the rope now, and then managed to snag the bucket by the bail.

Once he had it, he simply tread the rough waters, allowing that rope to slowly draw him back toward the boat again as he tinkered with his belt. Finally getting it unfastened, he ran it through the bail of the bucket, and then refastened it securely. There. Prize acquired!! Rolling over in the water, he started swimming for the boat again, undoubtedly making it lots easier for those reeling the rope in again.

The first impact against the side of the ship was a taddddd rougher than he bargained on. Grunting as the wave slammed him into the sturdy wood creation, he knew instantly that was going to leave a lasting mark. Reaching up as the water started receding again, he knew that if he didn't get up fast, he was only going to get slammed again. Obviously, that was not a fun prospect.

Grabbing the thick rigging rope in first one hand and then the other, Cemar started hand-over-handing his way up the rope, not even bothering to try to brace his toes on the side of the ship. He was more than strong enough to haul himself up and a bucket full of water, too. Reaching the lip of the ship, he freed a hand from the rope to grab a hold of it. Every muscle in that arm bulged as he hauled himself up over the ledge ... only to have the bucket catch and nearly knock him back into the ocean. "Argh!"

"Cemar, you idiot!!! What are you try to do, get yourself killed?!" Rolgar demanded, having dropped the rope the moment he saw Cemar grabbing the edge. Grabbing the rail with one hand, he leaned down and grabbed his nephew by the back of his heavy tunic and hauled him up over the ledge.

Cemar rolled onto his back, and then burst into laughter, water slopping all around him from not only the bucket but the next wave to crash on the side of the craft.

Rolgar kicked him in the shoulder solidly, before pulling him up to his by an arm. "You idiot. Don't ever do that again, or I may well leave you to it!" He threatened, meaning every word of it. For the moment, anyway.

Cemar staggered to his feet, before getting his rocking-ship balance back. Freeing the bucket from his waist, he tossed it at a sailor to catch it. "I knew what I was doing." He answered, smugly. And then he blinked at the assortment that had gathered, apparently to haul him in, surprised. On one hand he was touched that that many had roused to 'rescue' him, but on the other hand ... why had it taken so many? He was repaid for his musings by getting slapped upside the back of his head by Rolgar. Who, while not as strong as Cemar, was still a rather hefty lad just from his heritage. "OW!"

[firethorne]

Koldyn squinted his eyes against the onslaught of the storm, feeling his feet slip occasionally. He had never been in such adverse conditions in his life, and he knew that somehow, after this quest was done, he would never be the same. Whether the holder was stronger or weaker after the ordeal, he wasn’t sure, but he knew he would be a changed man.

Feeling the weight of the rope move behind him, the holder’s son glanced around to see a girl take up the line, and his first instinct was to give her a good tongue-lashing. By Faranth, hadn’t Nevarre specifically told those wherry-headed ladies to stay below deck? However, she spoke before he could, and the boy abruptly realized the foolishness of arguing in the middle of the sharding storm with a sharding man in the sharding water about to sharding drown if they didn’t sharding DO something. Biting back a reprimand, Koldyn shouted so he could be heard above the raucous noise. “Just pull as hard as you can with the rest of us on the signal!”

Waiting for Nevarre to give the call, Koldyn bunched his muscles and stubbornly planted his feet, pulling with all he had in him. The waters were rough and strong, and he was surprised that they could wield such resistance. Teeth gritted, the holder was doing surprisingly well…that is until his co-leader vomited all over the man in front of him. Blinking, Kol felt his own stomach heave at the sight, and worked furiously to shove his rising gullet down. Oh shards and shells, why did Nevarre have to go and do a thing like that? For a few breaths, the boy worked to control his sickness, then finally threw his whole strength against the rope once more after mastering himself.

Surprisingly enough, the beastcrafter seemed unbothered by the fact Nevarre’s latest meal now resided on his back, and the boy had to give him points for that. Koldyn grunted as yet another woman took the rope, this time in front. Fall, fog, and fire! If they had to be stupid enough to prance around on deck, did this one have to push the bounds even more by being that close to the ocean? All it took was one slip, the rope snapping maybe, and she would be out there in the same situation as…whoever it was that was already in the water.

Good Faranth! Where was everyone else finding the breath to talk with?? Koldyn was almost panting as it was, pulling with all his strength, and speech all but deserted him unless it was utterly necessary.

Finally, the man was safely aboard the ship, and Koldyn dropped the rope, putting his hands on his knees to take a few deep breaths. His muscles were shaking, and he had to admit that he had never worked that hard in his life. Sure, he was a pampered lord holder’s son, but he had trained, exercised and mastered self-defense. The boy had done a bit of work in his life, not much but a bit, and that had taxed him. Straightening after regaining his breath, the holder narrowed his amber eyes on the newly-rescued body, noting with some perverse pleasure that the healer had kicked him fairly hard. Not hard enough, though. Shoving his drenched hair out of his eyes, Kol stepped forward, to Nevarre’s side, and glared at the laughing smith. While he enjoying watching Rolgar thump him on the head, the holder knew that was not going to be enough to resolve this matter. “Cemar, explain yourself!” Koldyn said, more venom in his voice than he intended. He had not expected to hear the man had planned to jump out of the boat, and that just irritated him. “No, wait, everyone below deck, first! Let’s get dried off and out of this weather. Don’t you think?” He turned to Nevarre, waiting for the other holder to agree. Sure, there were holder’s daughters and one other son, but they hadn’t shown any incentive in leading so far.