A Trip To Tuanaki

Chapter 15

As soon as Alice shuts the cabin door behind her she's confronted by a distant argument. It sounds like it's coming from the boiler room, and more important, it drives whatever strange thoughts are lurking in it from her mind.

"I said, no!"

Alice grins. Someone's arguing with Gunny, and it's not going well for them. She heads towards the sound, and quickly determines a few things — it's Fahrn and Gunny arguing, and Gunny would really rather get on with the shopping part of her day than continuing arguing with Fahrn. So Alice ducks just her head into the boiler room.

"Gunny? We going to get supplies or what?"

Gunny gives her a look that's somewhere between relief and annoyance. The relief is a tad stronger — as much as Gunny wants to win the argument, it's pretty clear that's not happening with someone like Fahrn.

"Yes, let's go," Gunny says.

"Oh, come on," Fahrn says. "Your captain's already approved it! Why are you being such a—"

Gunny turns on her heel and peers very closely at Fahrn. "A what?"

"A — a—"

"That's what I thought," Gunny says firmly. "You're not willing to insult me to my face, only pitch a fit when I don't agree with my captain on something. Or am I wrong about that?"

"This rather seems like pitching a fit, to me," Alice says. Fahrn gives her a withering look, but she finds she doesn't care. She'd rather support Gunny than the man who's been surprisingly unhelpful with getting their cargo where he wants it to go.

"Fine," Fahrn says, throwing his hands in the air in disgust. "I won't come with you, then. Good luck docking at Lonely Palms."

"We could also not deliver it," Gunny says. "It's up to you."

"And where would you take it, if you didn't take it to Lonely Palms? You happen to know someone who would be interested in goldenfish elixir?"

"I can think of a few, if it really has the properties you'd described. Or even if not — only gotta offload the cargo once. And some people will pay anything for something magical."

"Very well. Go on your own. And like I said, good luck getting in."

"You didn't seem terribly concerned with our prospects when the subject came up in Mal's cabin," Alice observes.

"I didn't really expect you'd be foolish enough to leave me behind again. But if you really insist..."

"I do."

Gunny's tone is firm and brooks no argument. "Fine," Fahrn says. "I'll see what I can do. There might be a ship headed that way. Can't guarantee it'll get there ahead of you, unless you dawdle some — which I can't, in good conscience, recommend."

"And we'd like not to dawdle here any longer," Gunny says swiftly. "Come on, Alice. We've got some food to buy."

And with that, Gunny leads her out of the boiler room and into the hold. They make quick time to the docks, then down off them into the heart of town.

On the ground, Gunny takes quick stock of their surroundings. Then, she heads off with such confidence that Alice has to remind herself that Gunny's never been to Headstone before. She'd never guess that from the way Gunny comfortably weaves between hordes of strangers and down twisting alley streets that seem sure to lead to a dead end.

All of a sudden, they come on a massive marketplace, filled to the brim with people. It's overwhelming for an instant, filled with so many people shouting the merits of their wares and why you should trust one fishmonger and not the other that Alice gets swept up in the exciting hum of being in the center of so much activity. She takes a deep breath — the overwhelming smell is that of fresh fish, and then the pungent odor of people and animals living on top of each other. It's comforting and familiar and she spots at least a dozen easy marks in this foolish town that doesn't expect pickpockets.