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Salt and Blood - Chapter 68
🕑 Added 2024-11-07 10:01:40 +0000 UTC<< Chapter 67 | Table of Contents | Chapter 69 >>
1.68 - Voyage of the Damned
Only those who are touched by fate remain unaware of how catastrophic it can be for us regular folk. I guess it’s hard to think about the downsides of being one of the tide’s chosen when it’s showering you with its gifts. It’s a pirate’s life for me, but that doesn’t mean I want to spend every day living in suspense.
-Excerpt from ‘Observations on Fate and the Tide’ by King Dadaris, former Captain of the Goldcrest Pirates
Trent looked nervous. The seas were calm… ish. There was a tailwind giving them a solid pace towards the Sunblessed Sea. He should’ve been excited to return home, even though there may not have been the greatest memories associated with it.
Chiefly the festering wound on his chest. Rose still wasn’t able to forget the gruesome sight of his organs hanging out and his ribs poking through the skin.
Frankly she was in disbelief that he was actually alive and walking around. Even being immersed in the wonder of the tide since birth and seeing her own abilities grow beyond the realm of regular humans hadn’t driven home quite how… magical it was.
But seeing her captain living and breathing with a rotting heart and half his body gone was a potent message that this world was far weirder and more dangerous than she realised. It wasn’t all bad though—the goal of this voyage was finding a cure.
Her pencil scratched across the page, the black of the charcoal not abyssal enough to do artistic justice to the festering rot that had permeated his insides. Rose wasn’t sure why she’d decided to recreate it, but art wasn’t always sunshine and rainbows.
Skill up!
Drawing 17 > 19
Your occupation has advanced!
Apprentice Scholar 19 > 21
Clearly the tide agreed. She sighed. Sometimes she wished she was able to decide when moments of inspiration struck, but her creative flair was as fickle as the wind.
At least it wasn’t dumping walls of words on her anymore. The adaptive display was one of the best parts of the entire ordeal.
She opened her status. In just a few days she’d advanced in leaps and strides. Most of that was driven by the blessing, but no god had a hand in her drawing.
Name: Rose Everblue
Blessings: Minor Blessing [Sylack]
Race: Human
Occupation: Apprentice Scholar 21
Title: Quintessential Skill
Available Titles: Murderer, Apprentice, Quintessential Skill, Ambitious Harvester, Godtouched
Bound Items: Sunsplitter 51
Skills: Cleaning 12, Reading 12, Fishing 21, Swimming 10, Writing 16, Butchery 10, Cooking 7, Herding 2, Focus 16, Drawing 19, Sailing 15, One Handed Weapons 5, Blades 14, Pistols 11, Firearms 5, Unarmed Combat 2, Endurance 7, Precision 6, Arcane Attunement 8, Light Attunement 6, Stealth 8, Athletics 10, Toxin Resistance 2, Appraisal 1, Climbing 1, Crafting 1, Dual Wielding 7, Arcane Resistance 1, Divine Attunement 1, Water Attunement 4
Traits: Sensitive Line, Deft Hand, Good as New, Tunnel Vision, Endless Inkwell, Quick Consumption, Knot my Problem, Reliable Duelist, Steady Slash, Smooth Strokes, Agile, With the Grain
Oddly, she realised her occupation hadn’t given her anything at level 10. She was in a strange position when it came to her knowledge.
Her parents hadn’t really explained much as she ran away from home before becoming an adult in their eyes, which left her fumbling in the dark. However, she suspected that leaving had also given her the opportunity to learn things she never would have otherwise.
She could ask Trent, but it was more fun to figure things out herself sometimes. She sighed and stared at the drawing of her captain.
I want to give it to him, but I’m not sure what he’ll think. Rose puzzled over the problem, wondering if he would be insulted or impressed. In the end, she decided to keep it to herself.
Standing up and stretching, she looked out over the picturesque oceans. Medium sized waves buffeted the ship as they carved through the water and she saw a splash in the distance.
Squinting her eyes, she gasped as she saw a dolphin pierce the surface and soar into the air. It flipped gracefully at the zenith of its leap before diving back into the depths.
Three more dolphins followed suit, each one twisting in their own unique manner. Catching sight of dolphins wasn’t unheard of, but it was a novel moment for Rose.
It almost made her want to sit back down and start drawing again, but her stomach rumbled loudly. Nasar had been hard at work and it was time to indulge in another delicacy.
***
Her stomach felt as though it was going to burst. She wasn’t usually so unrestrained, but Nasar’s cooking had an addictive quality to it that was difficult to resist.
Somehow he managed to create enticing new flavours almost every mealtime, despite having access to the same ingredients. Rose suspected there was one or more skills at play there.
She savoured every bite of fish with newfound respect. She hadn’t been ungrateful for food before—she knew how hard her parents worked to feed her—but after the vision she had a deeper understanding of the cycle of life and the sacrifice that each creature made when it was turned into sustenance for another.
Reclining in the chair, she felt herself beginning to doze off. Snapping her eyes open, she demanded her body make space for the most important part of the evening—dessert.
Today it was simple, roasted spiced apples. Nasar had a knack for making the simplest of dishes into unforgettable delights. Biting into the flesh she moaned.
It was soft with a gentle crunch, the spices lighting up her taste buds like fireworks as warmth filled her body. Usually she wouldn’t behave in such an unrestrained manner, but Felix was similarly occupied with his dessert, Trent hadn’t arrived yet, and Nasar was all too pleased to see them enjoying his hard work.
Once she’d finished, Rose let out a burp that echoed through the ship. Right at that moment, Trent walked into the mess and snorted.
Her face went bright red and she coughed while Nasar and Felix burst into laughter. Trent sat down beside her and a steaming plate of fish, vegetables carved into the shape of various creatures, and a bright red sauce appeared in front of him.
Taking a measured bite of fish, he chewed it thoroughly before nodding in silent appreciation. Nasar joined them at the table and the pair both turned their gaze towards Rose, making her squirm.
Neither man spoke for an uncomfortable length of time, but eventually Trent sighed. He finished his mouthful of sculptured veg.
“Frankly, I’d thought it was impossible to awaken an arcane core at your age, but you’re a walking disaster. I’m no longer surprised by the ridiculous things that happen around you, Rose,” he said, jabbing his fork at her to punctuate his words.
She frowned and pushed the fork to the side. “Don’t do that, it’s rude,” she complained. “I’m not that weird, am I?”
Trent scoffed. Even Nasar coughed, hiding it behind a closed fist. “You’re a pirate, dear girl. Of course you’re weird. That doesn’t mean there’s anything wrong with you,” Nasar reassured her with a smile.
“He’s right. We’re all freaks, the lot of us,” joked Trent. “Well, the cooler ones anyway. There’s boring bastards in every line of work.”
Even Felix nodded at that. Rose perked up a little but she still wasn’t happy with the way Trent described her. She was just… Rose. It wasn’t her fault things had been crazy lately, that was just life at sea… right?
“Anyway, it’s not important. Learning how to use it properly is essential. We don’t need you exploding in the middle of the ship,” he said, making her pale. “The core charges on its own, absorbing the latent tidal energy that’s all around us. Once you’re able to harness that energy, you can do all kinds of crazy shit,” he explained.
Nasar interrupted with a wave of his hand and a snort. “What this ruffian means to say, is that your arcane core is the source of all power in your body. Skills, traits—before the Pantheon gave us the tide, we only had the power of arcane energy,” he said with a glint in his eye.
Seeing that Rose was still confused, he continued. “Think of it like a meal. If I just grilled a fish plain with no spices it would probably still be tasty, but a little boring and unforgettable.”
“However, if I add a pinch of salt… it transforms into another experience entirely. The better the blend of spices, the more suited they are to the dish I’m crafting, the greater the impact,” he said.
Rose nodded slowly. She thought she understood. Nasar’s explanation was far better than Trent’s, nuanced and detailing the intricacies of how arcane energy worked.
It didn’t really help her understand how to control it better, but both of them and Yasmin had told her that figuring it out on her own was for the best. If they tried to force their own understanding on her, it could harm her progress.
At that moment Yasmin walked in, eyes darting around with a sheepish expression on her face. “So you know how I mentioned there was just one problem I needed you to solve…”
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