"Well, whaddya know, lads? Look who finally decided to show up!" Zérèn and his crew cackled at the gibe, and Vivi, seeing Aenwyn's indignant look, could not help a chuckle of her own. The old captain of the Onyx hadn't changed a bit since she saw him last; his grey hair—which, if anything, had grown just a bit thinner—was, as always, draped messily over his shoulders; he was wearing the same grey overcoat as he had on the day she first saw him two years ago and which, if the rumors about it could be believed, was older than the Onyx herself; and his sense of humor was still, at the least, four decades out of date.

"You sound impatient, Zérèn!" Aenwyn shouted back, putting a hand on her hip and rolling her eyes. "Did you miss me that much?"

"Nay, not on your life!" Zérèn responded, swinging himself over the railing as the ships finally drew close enough and landed semi-gracefully on the deck in front of Aenwyn, a large part of his crew following him. "But we've spent the better part of the morning waiting for you lot—and I even told you when to meet me this time. What kept you?"

"Your message was... briefly diverted. You can thank Vivi and Nerikas for us even being here—without them, we wouldn't have gotten it at all," Aenwyn said, gesturing briefly towards Vivi. Zérèn looked surprised for a moment, then finally turned and spotted her.

"Well, wouldya look at that!" he exclaimed, stepping forward to give Vivi a friendly clap on the shoulder. "Little Miss Blackwood herself saved the day, huh?" He paused and looked around again for a moment. "D'you happen to bring Owen with you, or did he get lost back there in the land of elves?"

Vivi smiled. "Oh, don't you worry. He's belowdecks with Terry."

"Ah. Well, I can always hope, can't I?" The old captain laughed boisterously for a moment but then quickly moved on. "Now," he said, turning to Aenwyn, "I'm sure you're dying to know what we have been sent here for, heh?"

Aenwyn, who Vivi knew would never admit how curious she was, simply cast Zérèn an unimpressed look. "Well, spit it out."

"Aye," he chuckled in response, "I figured you'd say that." Reaching into his coat pocket, he produced a scroll and, unrolling it while casting Aenwyn a glance, began to read. "Posted by Baron Eltoris of E'harius: Ten thousand gold pieces to whoever brings in one Captain Nijem of Reykjaa, dead or alive." There was a quiet but audible gasp from the crew at the mention of such a generous reward, and Zérèn smiled smugly.

"Well, what's the catch?" Sergius spoke up from the back of the ship. "Why ten thousand pieces for just one man?" The rest of the crew mumbled in agreement, and Zérèn nodded.

"A fair question," he said, turning the scroll over to reveal a picture of the target: a stern-looking centaur with long golden-brown hair and green eyes, dressed in only a cloak around his shoulders according to the custom of his people. Vivi raised her eyebrows in surprise: centaurs were rare nowadays, and she had never seen one in person. "He's an Eskiholti privateer, one of the most daring to ever sail the abyss, they say. He and his crew have been pestering Brolzoni ships for years... Although he should have known better than to mess with the Robber Baron." He paused for a moment, smiling wryly. "Not only is the centaur himself very dangerous, but a few other crews have challenged our claim to this job, so you can see my hurry to get here first. But considering how late we are... we should be prepared to have to fight for the spoils."

"Daring privateer or not, centaur or not, no Eskiholti is going to stop me," Aenwyn said calmly, her arms crossed. "Especially not with ten thousand gold pieces at stake. And as for any crew that would come to steal our prize, I'd like to see the ship that can out-sail the Ajdaha."

"Aye, that's the spirit!" Zérèn shouted, and the rest of the crew cheered in agreement, their confidence restored. "And now," he continued, "to the point. My source has told me he made harbor in Nar Badhir"—he pointed with a gloved hand towards the island off into the distance—"and as far as we know, he hasn't left."

"We'll have to be stealthy, then," Aenwyn mused. "Badhir is a big island, and most of it is uninhabited. If he slips away into the forest, we may never find him again."

"He's a centaur," Vivi mumbled, rolling her eyes. "How hard could he be to find?"

Zérèn laughed. "That's right, Miss Blackwood," he chuckled. "We'll just have to be stealthy, aye?"

"Stealthy and quick if the situation is as urgent as you say," Aenwyn replied. "Shall we get to it?"

Zérèn nodded and gestured for his own crew to return to the Onyx. Putting one hand on the railing and preparing to swing himself back to his ship, he turned around one last time to grin widely at Aenwyn. "Let's go catch ourselves a centaur!"