As Caspian expected, he found both Garman and Lorica in the captain's quarters. They leaned over an enlarged map of Eltheria, the southernmost continent. At Caspian's entrance, Garman paused in the middle of pointing at a red-marked spot.

Garman smiled. "The slumbering beauty joins us at last."

Caspian shot the man a scowl as he spun a chair around and dragged it to the desk. "Next time you have to handle a fight, I'll make sure to be as obnoxious as possible during the night," he said as he settled into the backwards seat.

Garman's brow cocked in a silent challenge, but he let the topic drop as he turned deferent eyes to Lorica.

As if sensing the gaze, she dove into explaining the situation. "We are trying to deduce where the Unwoven and Wolfbane could be going."

Wolfbane. The name alone sent red flashing across his vision. His magic awakened, feeding on the rage like kindling. Now summoned, it reached out, seeking land to leach power from, but the closest was miles below water. It was for the best. He could all too easily recall the events on the Cove.

Peering closer at the map to distract himself, Caspian realized what the red marks indicated. They were the spots either with a higher magical presence in the area or local myths that could match one of the magical treasures.

Over many sols, they'd investigated multiple locations. They'd found a few cursed individuals this way, but never any artifacts or their incarnations. Most of their crossed-out spots of interest lined the coast of the continent.

As his eyes roamed the map, his stomach twisted into tighter and tighter knots. Would they have to dive deep into the land to follow the Unwoven Scion?

"What about the girl?" Caspian asked, concealing the desperation driving the question. "Didn't you grab components at the Cove to cast a tracking spell?"

"It's an average spell, so it will only guide us in the right direction. Until we get closer, all we can do is predict where they're likely to go." She didn't look up from the map as she spoke. Her finger paused at the edge of the northern bit of the continent, and then it trailed upward.

It landed on a strip of land that looked as if it had been cleaved from the rest, allowing a barrier of sea to separate it from the continent. The letters of Astamare took up most of the cramped space.

"No," Caspian said, unable to stop himself. The southern continent was the largest. Wolfbane couldn't be heading back there of all places.

Lorica didn't respond. The longer her attention remained on Astamare, the harder Caspian found it to breathe. It was like breaking the surface of water when she finally pulled back her hand.

"We're missing information," Lorica mumbled, more to herself than to either of them. With a sigh, she stood upright and rolled her shoulders. "This is all guess work. We won't be able to piece together any more on this until we draw closer."

Despite his relief to escape any subject close to Astamare, Caspian frowned. He had a horrible flashback to the lunes while Willow and Linden were on their mission. The Nightwraths hadn't sat around twiddling their thumbs. They'd even managed to locate another cursed individual before a Scion could discover and kill them.

The old... young man... Whatever. His age didn't matter. Either way, he and his family had settled in the Haven, just like almost everyone else they saved. Which was unfortunate because his son-or-brother-or-whatever had been a fun little troublemaker whose constant pranks brought Caspian a great joy.

As spectacular as saving the cursed citizens of Somniox was, it wasn't the Nightwraths true mission. While the Nightwraths may not have been stagnant, their search for the artifacts was. They'd had to wait and wait and wait.

They finally had a clear goal in mind now, one very important to their end goal: save the Blade's incarnation. And Wolfbane... Well, that was part of Caspian's personal mission, but the wretched man dangled mockingly in front of him.

How long would they have to just wait around this time?

"What about the Scions?" Caspian asked, combing his mind for other tasks they needed to do. "Were you in contact with any others besides Emis?"

Lorica pressed her lips into a thin line. She felt things deeply, but Caspian found few things actually managed to get her to show emotions. Emis' death did, though, despite how rare he interacted with the Nightwraths. Caspian had a feeling she blamed herself for his death, and he mentally kicked himself for bringing this up.

Garman reached over and placed a hand on her shoulder but said nothing. That simple act provided enough comfort that Lorica found her voice again. "I know of a couple others through Emis, but I don't have a way to get word to them, nor do I believe they'd be quick to provide us information after seeing the consequences Emis faced."

Garman's lips curled in disgust. "They'll use him as an example."

"So that's it? We just wait?" Caspian kept the words neutral despite the dread roiling within. Or he tried to, at least. Based on the sharp look from Garman, some of the bite slipped through. He forced himself not to drop his gaze despite the drop in his stomach. No matter how grumpy he was, Lorica never deserved his frustration.

But Wolfbane was out there, so close to their grasp but evading it because they were just waiting.

"Unfortunately," Lorica said slowly as she scrutinized Caspian. "Once we're within a day's travel to the Southern Continent, we should be able to use the spell. Until then, all we can do is sail in its direction."

He forced a smile and nodded. "Then I suppose we're done here?"

She and Garman shared a glance, and Caspian's mood soured even further. He'd only been thirteen when Lorica found him, and although he was the first of the crew, the bond she had with Garman, the second, would always be different. Even if Caspian knew Lorica had a soft spot for him, Garman had been the adult. The one who could understand Lorica in a deeper way that only came from experiencing life.

It wasn't that Caspian was jealous. He liked that they'd proven good for each other, even if they always danced around being with each other. What he didn't like was feeling separate, like he was still that child they'd taken in.

Or maybe that was just his grumpiness peeking through. He didn't care to dig through his emotions to figure that out.

"Yes," Lorica finally answered. "You two are dismissed."

With salutes, both Caspian and Garman left the captain's quarters. Before Caspian could escape to find a snack, Garman placed a hand on his shoulder.

"Come with me," Garman said.

Caspian deflated but nodded. After the shared look, he should have expected as much.

Garman led him to the poop deck. While Garman rested his hip against the railing, Caspian leaned over it, taking in the sea and enjoying the salty breeze.

"So, did she send you to give me a lecture?" Caspian asked.

Instead of giving an answer, Garman said, "I hear you've not slept well since we left Varno Cove."

Caspian shrugged. He could feel Garman's eyes on him, but he refused to meet his gaze. "I do sleep after my watch shift, and I just slept for, what, twelve hours last night?"

"You go to sleep for maybe two hours before coming back up to help with the day tasks," Garman countered dryly.

It was actually only one hour. Caspian spent the first hour in his room tossing and turning. He switched tactics but kept his tone just as airy and casual. "It's only been four days, Garman. I don't get why you're so concerned."

Garman gave an exasperated sigh. "Is it from what happened on the Cove or because of him?"

Caspian appreciated Garman's avoidance of Wolfbane's name, but not enough to clarify that it was both of those things haunting the bits of sleep he managed. "Sleep evades all of us sometimes," he said instead.

"Come on, kid. Be honest with me."

Kid. One word that made Caspian's defenses crumble. It was a familiar nickname that Garman used on him. Including back when he was just a kid, angry and hateful and alone. That word had somehow made him feel safe. Or maybe it was how Garman first used it, when he found Caspian huddled away in a dark corner, and he reached out a hand, promising him it was okay to be in the dark, but it was better not to be in it alone.

Except he wasn't in the dark anymore. He was fine, and he didn't need Garman fathering him.

His shields slammed back into place. Garman must have noticed, because his expression hardened.

"Don't do that," he said.

Caspian put on his biggest, most chipper grin. "I don't know what you mean. Everything's fine, and you're wasting your time worrying."

Garman tended to have a grumpy expression, but when he was frustrated, it became an intimidating scowl that even made Caspian want to step back. "You're not a waste of my time."

Patting the larger man's shoulder, Caspian said, "Ah, but you see, I said worrying about me is. I know I'm a gift to every person I meet."

He didn't give Garman time to argue. With a wink, he slipped away. It would have been easy enough for Garman to stop him, but he escaped unhindered. All except for the deep, world-weary sigh from behind him.

Caspian paused for only a moment before forcing himself onward. Because no matter how much he denied it, Garman had seen straight to his true meaning.

And no matter how hard Caspian fought his personal tide or how far he went, he wasn't yet ready to see what hid beneath it. Perhaps he never would be.

Or perhaps the one time he tried, he'd see how much of a waste he truly was.

*****

Angsty Caspian is fun xD Who'd have ever thunk that all the flippancy and smirks hid an emo kid that in modern time would listen to way too much Panic at the Disco and My Chemical Romance?  But more importantly, I got to show off more Garman VwV Not super much, but a glimpse into his role in Caspian's life, and dad!Garman is my favorite Garman.

Let me know your thoughts on the chapter down below, and if you enjoyed it, don't forget to vote and comment! I also have a discord open to anyone who wants to join, and we have a section there to discuss the book :D Let me know if you want to join!