The Adventures of Larson and Garrett, Quest of the Crusader

Chapter 9

The crusader sailed from Port Shau, a bustling trade city brimming with all races and classes, around the eastern coast to a port town called Rangelle. Rangelle was on the southern coast of Ruvonia, barely more than a stone's throw from the port of Ixtitlan, which lied on the northern tip of a country called Actitchuan. From Rangelle, Yoris hired another ship to sail around the southern coast to the western coast.

On the way to Port Jul, while gazing over the bulwarks of the old, groaning brigantine, he spoke to the ship's captain, asking for news of the western coast. The captain admitted he had heard tales of turbulent waves, numerous shipwrecks, and denizens of the sea. The captain also thought it was all horse apples. He told Yoris that often times, as seasons changed, the undercurrents were quite chaotic, and that more often than not, shipwrecks were caused by inexperienced sailors, poor ship design, and drunken captains.

Weeks had passed since the crusader's journey from Port Shau. Yoris pondered the captain's implications, yet his dreams of the sea were consistent; shipwrecks, tidal waves, scales, a trident. He asked everyone aboard if they had ever seen monsters at sea, but only the old boatswain maintained that sea monsters ran afoul Port Jul. The shifty-eyed elf added that the problem was that no one worshiped Pantooka, Goddess of the Sea, anymore, and she was angry, showing her rage by wrecking vessels.

While Yoris believed such a thing a reasonable explanation, he was uncertain of the man's veracity. Figuring there was more information to be obtained in Port Jul, he focused on reading and re-reading The Tenets of Crusaders.

During his time at sea, he focused on inner silence, observing the gentle swale of ocean waves. He told no one of his past in an effort to erase personal history, yet the abstract practice entailed creating a mystery around oneself. The idea seemed to suggest that if no one truly knew the man, he was free to come and go amongst the masses without drawing attention. How that was to aid him in his quests was still beyond the young man, but he wanted more than anything to be the right hand of the God of War.

He also made certain to keep his feelings at bay whenever anyone slighted him. It didn't happen much during his travels, but when he neglected to answer questions about his past, the sailors around him grew agitated. Some even swore at him. The Tenets of Crusaders explained that by eradicating self-importance, a man could no longer be swayed to act against his desires, and since Yoris's desires were to be the ultimate crusader, he did his best to abide by The Tenets of Crusaders.

By the time the coast was in view, one bright and sunny day, the calm blue began to churn. The sailors stayed their course with relative ease. They were an experienced band of sea merchants. An hour later, they were docked, and Yoris clomped down the damp plank to take in the view of Port Jul.

Though the sky was clear, a strong wind blew. Waves smacked over rocks and sprayed the wooden planks. He overheard some men complaining about the troubles with fishing an angry sea.

Walking down a stone street, rife with dirt, grime, trash, and horse dung, he slowed to gaze at men and women rushing hurriedly by the short wall, which separated the sea from the town. Most of them looked to be the families of sailors. Others were peddlers, who tried to sell their goods at cost to the merchants or tourists.

Ignoring those who were busiest, he asked a gentleman sitting on a bench, reading a book, about an inn. He was referred to The Mangled Mutt. Yoris thanked the man, who immediately went back to his book.

The inn was but a few blocks away. At The Mangled Mutt, a small place decorated with stuffed dogs, paintings of dogs, and even needlepoint dogs, he asked the barkeep about the sea. The old woman had heard nothing of danger at sea and claimed that too many drunk and old sailors needed to build up some form of excitement since the town was imminently safe.