Book 6: Chapter 1
Waves crashed against the hull of the Royal Avalon, tossing its occupants about. The storm wasn’t enough to capsize the ship or to send anyone but the most careless overboard, but it wasn’t anything to sneeze at either as it battered the vessel about. Sailors dashed across and below the decks, lashing down everything to make sure objects didn’t break loose, keeping the rigging furled and intact, and ensuring that the powder on the gun deck didn’t get soaked. The storm had brewed up around them suddenly and it was on them before they could change tack and make their escape and the ship hadn’t been properly prepared. Barrels of gunpowder were hustled to the magazine and anyone non essential to keeping them afloat was sent below to dry off.
Kay, King of Avalon, Class Line Progenitor of Blood Manipulation, the first vampire on the world of Torotia, and Lord of Spilled Blood, wasn’t involved in any of that. He’d been below decks in his cabin spending time with Eleniah, his former teacher, current adviser and partner in most things violent, and now girlfriend. The tumultuous events they’d dealt with at her birthplace, the Isle of Sel, capital of the Seramist Isles, had been threatening enough to prompt them to move their relationship from friends with some occasional flirting to something officially romantic. Kay wasn’t sure if the word “girlfriend” was technically correct since he didn’t actually speak the language, but the magical translation provided to him by the System that either managed or secretly ruled over this world used the world girlfriend when it changed people’s speech into English for him, so he wasn’t sweating it.
As the storm raged on and the Royal Avalon was brought to a relative standstill to avoid the worst damage an ocean storm could do to the ship, Kay and Eleniah bunkered down in Kay’s cabin, staying out of the way of anyone rushing to get work done. The shaking and tossing of the boat, exacerbated by the taller waves, made the game of chess they’d been working on ill-advised to continue and Kay quickly packed it away. When that was done he carefully maneuvered his way around the table between two seats and sat down on the couch next to Eleniah.
“What?” He asked, noticing her grin at him.
“Nothing, you just look funny when you’re trying to balance against the waves. Like a drunk clown stumbling through his performance.”
Kay scowled at her theatrically. “Oh? Well if that’s how I look to you I’ll take my stumbling self back to the other couch.”
Eleniah laughed as she yanked him down next to her. “It’s funny to watch anyone without experience stumble around while they get their sea legs. You’re too high tier for it to effect you too much regularly, so a storm like this is the first chance I’ve had to tease you on it.”
“And you’ve been holding out for an opportunity?”
“Of course.”