The knock on her door came just before sunrise. Brysys started slightly, accustomed to sleeping lightly, but her eyes adjusted to the darkness of her now familiar room. No light filtered in save for the moons outside of her window, one half full and the other a crescent. 

She fetched a thin robe of unknown origin from a hook near her bed and went to answer her company. She hadn’t used the garments that came with the room initially, but over time she gathered that they’d prepared the room for her, so she told herself the clothes were purchased and not just left over from some other tenant.

She just parted the door from the frame initially, looking out into the hallway with clear eyes. She’d always woken up quickly, years of sleeping out in the wilderness had reinforced the trait.

“Captain.” What was he doing here at this time of night? “Have you slept? What is it?” He wasn’t normally awake until the afternoon, nevermind sunrise.

“What? Of course I haven’t slept.” He held out a hand as she opened the door further. “Are you ready to become a pirate?”

She blinked and then rubbed at her face. “What have I been for  the past two months?”

“An applicant!” 

Brysys nodded and then looked down at herself. “Can I get dressed first?”

Xasan shrugged. “Can’t see why you’d want to, but if you insist.”

She left him in the hallway while she pulled on clothes. When she emerged he smiled warmly and offered her his arm to lead her out above decks. He gestured broadly to one side of the ship and she followed his hand to a large mountain extending out of the sea. “Welcome to Trove!”

No. There was no city here. There was hardly any plant life here. The vegetation was just scrub brush and weeds. Mostly it was just rocks. Barely anything could live on this, at least above the surface of the water. “That’s a mountain, and not even a good looking one.”

He chuckled, having a seat on a crate and crossing his arms as they sailed past the barren piece of land. “Just wait.”

Brysys nodded and sat on the deck. Several sailors were working to steer the ship, but that was usual. They hadpeople at all times, day and night, directing the Maiden’s Folly to wherever she was supposed to go. Brysys hadn’t learned how to do any of that yet, although she had convinced one of the navigators to let her look at the star charts. They’d been quite interesting. 

After a few minutes Xasan confessed. “I may have brought you here early.”

Brysys nodded, but kept sitting. Didn’t seem like there was any use going back to bed now. “I’ve been meaning to speak with you anyway. It didn’t seem important enough to bother you while you were working. I know you’ve been researching something or other.”

He waved a dismissive hand. “Nonsense, I’m never that busy. What do you need?”

“I suppose you’ve answered this somewhat already, since this was all an audition, but Deelah mentioned something about another druid being on board?” Xasan looked at her in concern. “Someone named Terry?”
His concern vanished into mirth immediately. “Oh! Terry! Of course! Love Terry.”

“Just, if you already have a druid on board, I’m not sure why I’m here?”

He frowned. “You mean, aside from your mission?”

Right. She’d wanted to go to Trove for a reason. “Yes, obviously that, but what are you getting out of this?”

“Well, you can’t have too many druids!” He protested. “Druids are very useful, and you each bring something different to the table! You can turn into giant birds and rip ships apart. You can bring people- well, whales, but I assume people too, back to life! Very useful!”

That was all true. She had done that. “Right, and what does Terry do?”

“Terry? Oh! It’s wonderful! Let me show you.” He called over his shoulder to no one, “Terry!”

The call was picked up until someone went running off after the person in question. They sat in silence a little while longer while more and more color crept into the sky. “There’s something about sunrise, isn’t there? A cleansing feeling, like a beginning.” She was just thinking out loud, but he picked up the conversation.

“Sunrises always feel final to me. You have to finish whatever you've been doing and get back to your normal routine. The night doesn’t matter anymore, because the day has come. You’ll get another chance at freedom tomorrow.”

Brysys considered that a moment. “I suppose, if your days are spoken for. But you can do whatever you like, can’t you?”

He smiled, but it was a grim thing. “We all have restrictions, Brysys, some just make them look intentional.”

Her frown deepened and she lapsed back into silence. She liked to think of herself as free, but she knew that she’d chosen paths that forced her hand at times. Did those count? She’d let her behavior be governed by the beliefs of others, even though those people would never see her again. Is that what he meant? How many of her choices were her own decisions, and how many had been carved out since childhood?

Before she could fall too heavily into self-doubt, a thin human appeared. She’d seen him in passing before, but they’d never spoken. Xasan called out to him. “Terry!” But then glanced back at the mountain. “Oh, it’s almost time! We should all go inside for this part.”

Brysys, Xasan, and the thin human all went into the captain’s chambers. Xasan led them to the seating area near the still unlit fireplace and took his seat in the arm chair. “Brysys, this is Terry, Terry, this is Brysys. She’s our other druid.”

“Yeah, I heard.” His voice was higher than Brysys expected. Maybe he was even younger than he looked. “What do you need, Captain?”

“Oh, the usual Terry.”

Suddenly Brysys was concerned. Why had he brought them into his chambers? What was his usual anyway? Terry straightened up, but then seemed to disappear. She blinked and realized that he must have shifted. She wasn’t used to watching that happen to other people.

His clothing was gone, transformed with him. She searched the carpet for what he’d transformed into, and it took her a while to even find him. A worm. A small thin worm on the plush red carpet. 

“Pick him up! Pick him up!” Xasan encouraged her. 

Brysys did as he said, carefully scooping the worm into her palm. It stood up, like it was looking around before bowing and then beginning to wiggle in- a dance? She raised an eyebrow at the golden man in confusion, but he was staring at her hand in delight. “Isn’t it wonderful?”

The worm began to shift and wriggle to an unsung tune while Xasan clapped and cheered him on. Brysys wasn’t sure what to think. It was cute enough, but was it really worth keeping someone around for? She could probably do that, and she didn’t eat lunches where it could inconvenience the crew.

“Oh, that gets me every time, “ Xasan leaned back in his chair, pleased and satisfied. Terry started crawling off Brysys’ hand so she set him down and he transformed back into a man.  “Go get me coffee Terry,” Xasan commanded, glancing over at Brysys as an afterthought. “Would you like coffee?”

“Oh, umm, sure.”

“Two coffees, Terry.”

“Yes, sir.” Terry did a little bow and ran from the room.

Brysys let the door stay closed long enough to be certain he’d gone before speaking. “So he danced for you and gets you coffee?”

Xasan nodded. “Well, he won’t bring the coffee. He’ll just tell the kitchen.”

That was even more confusing. “Don’t you have a-” she pointed at the phone he’d spoken into on one of their earlier meetings.

“Well, yes, but this helps him feel useful.”

It seemed odd that he kept people around who barely contributed, but then she could have counted herself lucky he did. She still didn’t have any particular job to do day to day. “You don’t make me do any of those things.”

He grinned, “Did you want to dance for me?” Before she could answer, or get offended, he continued. “Terry isn’t as powerful as you are. He serves his role on the ship, and you serve yours. I wouldn’t ask Deelah to- No, that’s a bad example. I would absolutely ask Deelah to get me coffee, but I wouldn’t drink any coffee she brought me.”

“Why not?”

He just smiled and shook his head. “Deelah and I have a relationship built on a foundation of annoyance and reciprocation. I needle her, she threatens to stab me. It’s all very enjoyable, but if I want her saliva in my mouth I’d sooner get it directly than from a drink.”

Brysys frowned and then put it together. “She’d spit in it.”

“Oh, guaranteed.”

“What makes you think the cooks aren't spitting in your meals?”

He considered that and then shrugged. “They could be, but it isn’t really the spit that bothers me. It’s the principle of the thing. Can you imagine her satisfaction if I just drank what she gave me without hesitation? No, I have to wriggle a little bit or she wouldn’t get any joy out of it at all.”

“That sounds rather complicated.” She preferred transparency in relationships. She couldn’t manage anything but a direct approach. Why bother playing games with people? 

“Complicated works for us.”

She drummed her fingers against her knees. It didn’t seem prudent to pick apart his other relationships, so it was probably best to change the subject.  “Was there a reason we needed to see the dance in here and not outside?”

He looked up suddenly, having been distracted by his thoughts. That worm dance always made him feel so light, like there was still some joy in this world after all.  “Well, we didn’t. They’re about to bring the ship in, and it’s better that bystanders get out of the way.”

“Oh.” Brysys looked around for a window, but found none. Before she could ask the Captain where they could watch there was a lurch and the ship started jostling violently. She hadn’t noticed how they’d slowed until she felt the pull of the boat being shifted one way and then the other more rapidly than she thought it should. She took a deep breath when it finally stopped, surprised to see that the shaking hadn’t dislodged anything in the room. “What was that? Is it done?”

Xasan grinned and stood up. “We’re here.”

He offered his hand and Brysys took it. He escorted her back out onto the deck. The morning sun was forgotten, sheltered as they were by the volcano’s walls. Seeing Trove always brought a broad grin to his face. It was home, after all, and he didn’t see her nearly often enough. “What do you think?”

Brysys looked up and around, the buildings nestled into the walls of the mountain with bridges swinging across the broad gaps in the middle. People were alert and active, even at this hour, trading and calling back and forth, racing along the docks that fed into the water filling the base. “It’s a flooded volcano?”

“It’s not active,” Xasan assured her. “She’s incredible, isn’t she? It’s a great secret how we get our boats inside-”

“Tides.” Brysys stated simply, cutting off Xasan’s planned grandiose. 

“Well- How did you-”

“Well, it’s obvious. The tide is coming in, and if you look at the wear on that channel from the current-” She frowned because she was far from the only person good at reading the signs of nature. If she figured it out then someone else would have. “How do you keep people out?”

Xasan’s smile returned. She hadn’t figured out everything after all! “We can close it.”

She looked at him, with that concerned face she so often wore, “Wouldn’t they just go get reinforcements?”

He leaned towards her, her voice turning sinister, “Not if we close them inside.” He shrugged, “Or close it on top of them.”

It was a gruesome end. She glanced back at the way they’d come before deciding that she didn’t want to dwell on that thought and turning her attention back to the city. “I’ve never seen anything like it. How do you get up there?” She pointed to the buildings at the very top ring of the circle.

“So many ramps,” Xasan supplied. “I hope you aren't afraid of exercise.”

“I’m not, but should we get that coffee first?”

“Right. I’d forgotten about that.” He was so excited to introduce her to Trove that he’d forgotten he’d ordered breakfast. “Well, shall we?”

She joined him back on deck for the meal. She’d been sampling some of the food as they traveled, largely on the Captain’s behest. She didn’t mind just eating what she conjured, but she had to admit that his cooks did an excellent job. Somehow they even knew when she’d be joining him, and always kept to her dietary preferences. She still didn’t bother eating normal food otherwise, but it was nice to have something more substantial to eat every now and again. 

She asked him about Trove, how it came to be in a dormant volcano, what the people were like, if there were any customs she should be made aware of. He was dodgy about answers, whether he didn’t know or wanted her to find out for herself was unclear to her. Probably a bit of each. 

“I’ve got that sketch finished for you,” he informed her at the end of their meal. “We can bring it in first thing, if you like. Deelah will handle all the docking procedures, see to the unloading of everything.”

“Sure, if you don’t mind. That would be wonderful.” There was an odd sort of anxiety building in her chest. It felt good to have a lead, but if she never followed it then it could never disappoint her. What would she do if they couldn’t help her? Did she want to stay on the ship? They might see plenty of ports, but what were the odds that he’d ever be at one of them? Trove was her best bet here, and if no one here could help her, then she knew she should probably go someplace else.

But she’d just started settling in here. She was making friends, and did she want to throw that away on a dream she had nearly a hundred years ago? It was pathetic. 

“Are you alright?”

Xasan’s question drew her from her spiral. “Oh, yes, I’m fine. I’m just nervous about meeting new people.”

“You’ll be alright.” He held up a finger as a new thought struck him. “I have an errand I need to see to. I’ll need to drop you off at the searchers and come fetch you when it’s done.”

“You’re going to leave me there?” 

He didn’t care for the panic in her voice. “It won’t take me long.” He didn’t think it would be a big deal, but given her reaction it must have been.

“Then you can bring me with you. We’ll see to my questions afterwards.” The place he was going wasn’t for the faint of heart. He didn’t want to bring her, but she was emphatic and he wanted to argue even less. “I don’t know the rules of this place, and if you leave me alone I’ll probably get into some sort of trouble. Better if I stay with you and then you can take care of the local customs.”

He wasn’t opposed to that, but he really didn’t want her seeing the Archivist. “That makes sense, but I don’t think you’ll want to be where I’m going.”

“Nonsense. I’m capable, and if it’s somewhere unpleasant, then that’s all the more reason you shouldn’t go alone.”

She didn't know what she was talking about, but he wasn’t inclined to have an argument about it. He wasn’t one to suffer under social pressures, but she seemed the type. Maybe the trip would be enlightening. “Alright, you can come with me, but I did warn you.”