Wayfarer (Wanderlust 2)

Chapter Six

It was still dark when they got up the next morning, and cold, which didn't seem to bode well for their trip. Ivern roused all of the men for them, so Tanden could stand on his bulwark and give one final speech before they left.

Tanden's voice rang out easily in the quite morning. "Gentlemen, this morning, Soren and I will be leaving you for our trip inland. We don't know exactly how long our trip will last. While we are gone, Ivern will be acting captain, with Jerios and Roan acting as first mate and quartermaster. I expect you all to treat them with the same respect you would treat me and Soren. You still work for me, after all, and Ivern will be reporting back to me when we return. You will be sailing down the coast, trading along the way, and you may go to West Draulin if time allows. I trust every man on this ship, or I wouldn't go on a trip like this. Take care of each other, lads, and take care of our Lady Wanderlust."

The men cheered, and wished them good luck. While Ivern stepped up to take charge, Jerios and Roan helped Tanden and Soren with their luggage. They met Jale at the edge of the city, exactly where they had planned.

She was directing a group of men as they loaded some boxes onto an open carriage. It had tall sides and no roof, and a bench ran around the inside. It was under the bench that the men were putting the crates. Tanden left the others to add their crates to the pile, and walked over to join Jale.

"Good morning."

"Good morning," she replied. She was once again wearing her thick furred jacket, but not her knitted hat. Her choppy hair had been tied back into a little bun on the back of her head. She eyed Tanden. "You're going to wear that?"

Tanden glanced down at himself. He was wearing his usual, his long nautical jacket over pants and a white tunic. "Why not?"

"Do you have the clothes I told you to buy?"

Tanden nodded. "Yes, in our boxes."

"All right," Jale shrugged, and with one leather gloved hand waved at the carriage. "Well, this is our home for the next... however long it takes. Are you any good with animals?"

Tanden looked at the furry cows that were harnessed to the front of the carriage. They seemed docile enough, but they had large curved horns. "I'm decent with horses. And cats. But cows—"

"Kyloe," Jale corrected. "These girls are as friendly as they come."

"But they have horns," Tanden pointed out.

Jale cast him a sideways glance. "So clearly you know nothing about kyloe."

Tanden nodded sheepishly. "Maybe assume I don't know much about anything on land. I'm a sailor, not a wayfarer."

"I can do that. Just stay out of the way until we're ready to go."

Tanden didn't like being dismissed, but he also knew that he had to listen to Jale. That was the whole point of hiring her. So he walked back over to where Soren, Jerios and Roan were standing. "Those cows are called kyloe," he announced.

"Are you pretending you already knew that?" Soren asked.

"No. Just sharing some new knowledge," Tanden replied. "Roan, Jerios-thank you for the help. It brings me quite a bit of peace of mind to know that you two will be backing Ivern on the Wanderlust. Good luck."

"Thanks, cap'n," Roan replied. "But dunno if we're the ones who need luck. That's not exactly a ship."

"Sure it is," Tanden said, with a laugh. "That's the... Wayfarer."

Roan nodded. "Right. Well, Soren, good luck, mate."

"And you enjoy the trip back to West Draulin," Soren said. "Jerios, are you going to ask that girl to marry you?"