All men were the same to her. But so were women. It didn't matter which you were because back on Cera, Elowyn had been considered ugly. She always assumed that she would never marry because of this.

But here, out at sea, things were different. Chord had told her of all the fashions and customs of Thana. And he said that except for her tan skin, which would probably pale after time out of the sun, she looked much like a Thanan. He also said that she looked lovely in her blue dress.

For the first time, she could notice whether the men were good looking or not. She memorized each face on the ship. Some were old, weathered, and brown from the time at sea. Some were younger with patchy beards or so young they had not grown facial hair yet.

Most of them were ugly to Elowyn. She guessed this was a result of growing up in Suditi where concepts of beauty were apparently quite different. But the Captain was handsome. He had an appearance of rugged superiority. Erik would be cute except he seemed to be scowling all the time. And perhaps she only noticed him because he was closest to her age.

Elowyn decided Chord had the best face. His features were sharp. He had a strong jaw and defined cheekbones like Suditian men. Everyday Elowyn would sit with him and he would tell her of Thana.

Some nights Elowyn would wake thinking that she was still on Cera. She would reach out for Nayeli, who had slept beside her. But instead of her mother, there was only air. And more than a few times Elowyn had fallen off the bed, unused to her bed being elevated.

Days that began like this were difficult. She couldn't bring herself to speak, her fear and longing for home nearly paralyzing her. The crew hardly noticed a difference when this happened. Elowyn rarely spoke to any of them anyway, she was too shy to. But Chord did. And on these days he would bring her hot drinks, teas made with all kinds of herbs that Elowyn had never heard of.

One peculiar day a few weeks into the journey, Erik was the one who made her tea. She had a nightmare and woke up crying. It was still dark and Elowyn didn't know what to do, so she just sat in her bed and cried until a light knock on her door. She slid off the bed and crept across the creaky wood floor and opened the door to find Erik standing there.

"I can hear you crying," he said flatly. Elowyn didn't respond, just wiped the tears from her cheeks.

"Why?" He asked.

"I... I had a nightmare," Elowyn sniffled.

"Is that all?" He sounded perturbed. Elowyn frowned and started to shut the door on him. He stopped it with his arm.

"Come with me, I'll make you some tea."

"I don't like tea," Elowyn mumbled.

"Yes you do, Chord makes it for you all the time." He let go of the door and started to walk away. Elowyn frowned even more and hurried after him.

Erik led her to the small galley. She sat on a stool while he heated some water. Elowyn watched him with curiosity. This was the first time he had ever acted civilly toward her. She had learned from Chord that he was the same age as Elowyn, twelve. But he seemed so much older to her. Perhaps it was his way of speaking, his somber mood, or the way he performed tasks with the same confidence as an adult. Or all of them combined.

As he poured the hot water into a cup, some of it splashed onto his hand. Then a strange thing happened. All the light that had been provided by the lanterns suddenly seemed to be drawn into Erik. In an instant, the room was black. Elowyn gasped. A moment later, the light slowly spread back out around Erik and everything was as it was before.

Erik glanced at her then handed her the cup.

"I apologize. I usually don't have any trouble controlling it, but I guess I was startled..."

"You're a necromancer." Elowyn interrupted. It wasn't a question, but a statement. Erik nodded anyway. "So you are Thanan by birth?"

"Of course," he scowled, "what did you think I was?"

"I... I don't know. I just... I've never seen a necromancer..."

"I'm sure there are a lot of things you haven't seen," he replied.

Elowyn felt her face flush. Minutes passed in silence as she sipped the tea. Erik sighed as if he felt obligated to speak.

"How is the tea?"

Elowyn shrugged.

"Chord makes it better." This was a lie. Chord let it steep for too long so it was stronger and more bitter than Elowyn liked. Erik had made it just right, but for an unknown reason, Elowyn didn't want him to know that he did anything better than Chord.

Erik scowled.

"Well enjoy it anyway. I will go to bed now." He walked toward the door. Despite herself, Elowyn called after him.

"Thank you... for the tea I mean."

He didn't turn or respond, only waved a hand, and left.