Unsettling thoughts visited her dreams. A stifling stench of burning soil crept inside a long and dark, endless tunnel. She shuffled her weary legs on a carpet of her kingdom's fallen flags, seeking for a beacon. Shrill cries and wails of mothers mourning for their lost children, echoed through the night...Drops of serpent's venom splattered inside a golden goblet.

...Don't drink it!...

She looked up into the starlit sky. Ignited pieces of paper drizzled upon the battlefield, landing on her skin, searing it. Earth turned into sea. She sank, deep into the bottomless darkness.

The entire Realm sinking with her.

...No. No. NO!...

Selenya gasped and opened her eyes widely. She panted frenzily and stretched her arms, expecting to feel the wooden floor of the deck and soldiers marching for her defenseless position, with the sun in her eyes. Instead, her fingers wrapped around the folds of a soft fabric. Her vision started to adjust to the darker environment and saw several pendent oil lamps dangling on the wooden roof. Hurriedly hung curtains surrounded the corner-bed in which she laid, under a thick layer of blankets. Her belongings where neatly folded on a small wooden chair beside her.

Where was she?

In the midst of the soporific and continuous rumble of engines, she heard a door opening from behind the curtains. Two black silhouettes walked around, bickering in a humming whisper. Then one of them approached and lifted the curtains.

"You're awake!" exclaimed Jun breaking the silence.

The other unknown silhouette shushed him while it seemed to open and close drawers and cabinets. Jun glared behind him and then turned to Selenya.

"How're you feeling?" he whispered while kneeling beside her bed.

Selenya sat up slowly. Her hair was set loose on her shoulders and a small, bloody gauze was wrapped around her left ear. The pain from the gunshot wound was definitely alleviated but she still felt slightly baffled.

"Better. I think," she replied.

"Oh, good, good," he sighed in relief.

"Where am I, Jun? Which part of the ship is this?"

"This is the captain's cabin. Well...Yoon's cabin, I mean," he looked around, "He gave it up for you and Jinghim until you get better. We set it up like an infirmary, see?"

He pointed at the curtains, with a strangly satisfacted smirk, as if he was proud of his handiwork. Selenya presumed that Jun made sure that she was safely isolated from indiscreet eyes. Even if those eyes were of his own brothers'. She couldn't help but grin.

"How is he?" she asked referring to the prince, "And what happened to the ship?"

Before Jun could answer, the second silhouette parted the curtains and popped its head inside. A tender, square-shaped smile and a pair of affable smiling eyes, lit under a fringe of thick, sallow hair. Taehberius, another bastard brother, Physician's Apprentice, stepped in Selenya's temporary tent.

He wore a white lab vest on top of a crimson shirt, dark checkered trousers and brown leather boots. Shiny medical gear and potion vials where sticking out of the pockets of his vest. A pair of azure stone earrings hung from his prominent ears, standing out from the rest of his plain and professional outfit.

"He'll be alright," Taehberius said softly with his mellifluous deep voice, "As long as he gets a good night's rest. And don't worry, we won the battle and now we're safely sailing in open sea."

"Taeh!" Selenya smiled excitedly with a thump in her chest and a burning sensation on her cheeks, "I didn't know you where here! I haven't seen you in ages!"

So he was the ship's Surgeon.

"I've been traveling with Yoon for these past few months. We were sailing south when we received news from the capital...and...well..." Taehberius sighed woefully while sitting on the bed, "...We took a sharp turn back."

"Have you been working with Yoon?" Selenya lifted her pillow behind her back to support her waist and crossed her legs.

"Not exactly. Six months ago, by order of the King, my Scholar and a dosen other Physicians and Alchemists left for the battlefields in the South to aid our armies. I only received two letters from her since then, telling me about a plague growing among the soldiers and the people in the nearby villages. After that, nothing. So I decided to go find her and help her, if I can," he averted his eyes grimly.

Selenya could tell that there was something bothering him, but she decided not to press on. Jun seemed to have noticed as well.

The rest of the conversation shifted to the latest events. Selenya and Jun shared a quick summary of their daunting escape from the capital, till they recalled the most dreadful event of all. The King's death. It was the first thing Jun had said to his brothers while Selenya and Jinghim were resting.

Taehberius sighed.

The two boys didn't have any legitimate reason to shed a tear for their father. They were the sons of his concubines and treated as such. Snobbed and neglected. If it weren't for the queen's and Jinghim's compassion, that rose them onto a higher status, they would have plummeted in the lowlife of the city, or sent to die at war. The queen provided them with professional opportunities and Jinghim treated them like his true brothers. But, the news of his death had them concerned at any rate.

"Isn't it strange, though?" Jun commented after a brief pause.

"What do you mean?"

"How he died. He was much too of a proud arse to commit suicide."

"Maybe that's exactly why he did it," assumed Taehberius, "He wanted to leave a message, that he'd rather die on his own terms rather than let a bunch of squabbling politicians take his throne and imprison him, only to be used as a negotiating tool for his enemy."

"And abandon his legitimate son, heir to his throne, in a den of wolves," Selenya added bitterly.

They all looked at Jinghim's direction, somewhere in the cabin. Selenya stared at Taehberius who bit his luscious lips contemplating.

Her stomach squeezed for some unknown reason, which forced her to avert her eyes embarrassed.

"Anyway, people, supper will be served soon and I'm starving to death," Jun said dismissively to lighten the mood, and stood up, "No reason to linger here any longer"

"I'll be with you lads in a jiffy," said the girl while Jun exited the tent.

But, to Selenya's surprise, Taehberius remained seated. He seemed to be pondering whether to speak his mind freely or not. So he waited till his brother was out of audible reach.

Selenya felt a sudden nervousness.

"How are you, Selenya?" he gulped and smiled warmly.

"B-Better...M-My ear feels much better," she replied with another jittery flutter in her chest.

Taehberius leaned closer and ran his fingers through the side of her hair, brushing it behind her injured ear. His touch sent a sizzling shiver down her body, which utterly petrified her. His sparkly eyes searched her face, his handsome smooth features filled her vision. Her hand lifted inadvertently and capped around his own, caressing her cheek. A tear flooded her eyes, memories and sentiments enfolded her.

"Selenya," he whispered her name delicately, his eyes turning red, "I---"

The door opened. The girl almost heard the moment shutter like glass.

"Taehberius, sir" a sailor called out quietly, "The captain is requesting your presence on the deck. Miss Selenya as well."

The boy sighed and withdrew his hand. He sat up from the bed, smiled nervously and exited the curtains. Selenya dressed up quickly, wore her coat and tied her hair into a ponytail. Before leaving the captain's cabin, she checked on the prince, also surrounded by clumsily hung, old curtains. He was buried under the blankets of a second corner-bed in the room, appearing to be sleeping soundly. The color of his skin was restored, presumably by the results of Taehberius's meticulous efforts to heal him.

Relief settled in her. Prince Jinghim and his brothers were all she had left, she thought while climbing down the staircase of to the main deck.

A loud gaiety from drunk, singing and dancing sailors, the smell of rum and food roasting on a bright bonfire on the deck, had turned the alarming mood into a festive one. Two full moons poured light on a serene sea, seemingly blessing their voyage.

Selenya spotted the three brothers sitting with the tall dark-skinned quartermaster and the sailoring-master, gathered on the quarterdeck, eating and chatting. She went and joined them.

Yoon, munching on some fruits, rose from his seat and offered it silently. Jun and Taehberius mimicked him in a clumsy and competitive delay, but the girl had already thanked the young captain and sat. She took a mug, filled it with water and drank a sip. Yoon dragged another chair next to her.

"Thanks to you the shields are working better than ever," he told her while popping some bread in his mouth.

Him and his officers weren't fiesting in the galley of the ship. Instead they joined their crew uptop, indicating his modesty. Despite his efforts to assume a rigid attitude, everyone could see through his inner gentle and sensitive nature.

"I'm glad. Although there are still some adjustments to be done. I'll take care of it tomorrow at dawn," she replied.

"Hmm," he frowned in agreement, focusing on peeling a fig.

"So, Yoon," Jun called out sitting on the ground with crossed legs, "You were telling us how you became captain."

Everyone turned, except for Taehberius and the officers that apparently new the story, and looked at Yoon curiously.

"I told you, I'm Acting Captain until we vote for an actual one," Yoon mumbled with his mouth full of his fig, "I am not yet of age, nor do I possess the experience."

"And we told him that we'd rather have him on the lead," said the quartermaster, "With all due respect, sir, but you grew up on this ship and before our captain died, he made you his First Officer."

The Sailoring-Master agreed.

"Wait! Captain Lee died?" uttered Selenya incredulously, "How? When?"

"That's how I became Acting-Captain," Yoon began, "We had made harbor around the islands of Kartarr to restock, Taehberius was with us. We spent a night there and Captain Lee had gone drinking with some old friends from the naval academy, only to come back on a cart, knifed to death and robbed clean."

Selenya and Jun gasped.

"I tried to save him, but he had lost too much blood already," continued Taehberius while dismembering a piece of meat, "Also, he was so drunk that his brain was at a breaking point."

"And that's how the great Captain Lee, the man I've always looked up to, lost his life in a drunken brawl, robbed of a few coins won out of a card bet," Yoon said bitterly and tossed the tubers of the fig overboard, "And of course, as first officer, I was named Acting-Captain. After that, everything went down south. Jinghim sent a telegraph, telling us about a planned coup. We started sailing back to the Capital, when pirates attacked us. Then a storm almost rammed us on the cliffs of our home island...We lost several men in the process," Yoon concluded.

"It's the women!" shouted a drunk sailor while wobbling by, "Bad luck having women on board!"

"We've always had women on board, you dimwit!" barked Yoon aggressively, "Ms Edith! Take this drunken fool down at the orlock and make sure he's asleep, or I might feed him to the sharks!"

"With pleasure, sir!" the woman replied and left the bonfire circle.

"Bloody hell," scoffed Jun while shaking his plate upside down, trying to unglue his caramelized potatoes, "No wonder you were late."

"So, what happened to the king?" asked the Sailoring-master.

"It appears that our father committed suicide," replied Jun, now bashing his plate on Taehberius's chair.

"Are you sure it wasn't an assassination?" inquired his brother, irritated by Jun's battle with his sweet potatoes.

"Everything we saw lead to the conclusion that it was suicide," explained Selenya, "He had closed every possible entry to the throne room. He was alone. Besides, why would they want to kill him before getting caught? The soldiers were right at the gates."

"From the description he must have drank Golden Viper's blood", thought Taehberius.

"Yes, that's what I thought, too."

"Perhaps he realized that things were out control and couldn't take it anymore," added Yoon after sipping rum out of his mug, "The war in the South, they say it's a catastrophe. The Easteners with their technology and industrial development, the plague slowly killing his army---".

Taehberius got up, "Sorry, lads I need to stretch my legs."

Before they could inquire, he had already vanished behind the staircase. Selenya bit her lips preoccupied.

"What's up with him?" Jun asked his brother.

"Don't know," Yoon eyed Taehberius that was moving through the sailors.

Selenya, the two bastard brothers and the officers, conversed and filled their bellies with food. Jun joined a knife throwing contest with the crew and the officers went to check on the ship's condition, leaving Selenya and Yoon alone on the quarterdeck.

"I'm sorry about all this," he apologized.

"About what?"

"About getting you involved in this situation. You're now a fugitive because of us," he explained calmly.

"That's sort of unfair," Selenya complained.

Yoon looked at her puzzled.

"Don't look at me like that. You guys are all I have left! The last people I can call family."

"You don't owe us anything, Selenya," he whispered intently.

"I know and that's why I chose to come with you!" she jabbered and then whispered back, "I remember who treated me like an enemy and who like family! If it weren't for Jinghim, I would've ended up as another of the king's concubines!"

"But---"

"But what? When does any prince ever welcome a war prisoner into his family?" she continued.

"But...your parents...," Yoon persisted, "They were---"

"Executed by the King, I know," she complete his sentence, "I've known since I was little. But it was the King's decision, not Jin's, or yours! You were only children! So, stop blaming yourselves for it! I want to be here, even as a fugitive, I don't care!"

Yoon did not insist on the subject, although Selenya could tell that he was touched by her reaction.

"So, what's next?" the girl asked after a pause, "Where are we headed?"

"The plan is to reach the port of the commercial City Of Jajusek and meet with Jihmm and Hosea. Buy a small airship, find Namjuniel, cross the Continent and reach the small free Kingdom of Balus, hoping that they give us political refuge."

"Well that sounds easy enough, if you except the fact that we are hunted down! No to forget the war and the plague and...Oh, I don't know...Maybe that the Kingdom of Balus might refuse to aid us!" she exclaimed shockingly.

"We don't have much of a choice. All we can do is hope."

The young captain finally wished her good night and went to sleep. Selenya was left hanging. She couldn't wrap her head around of how crazy this journey was going to turn out. Of how many things could go wrong. All of her weariness was replaced with restlessness, so she decided to stretch her legs and take a stroll around the ship.

She avoided the boisterous crew members and arrived at the forecastle deck, at the tip of the vessel. There stood Taehberius gazing at the dark horizon. She approached hesitantly and leaned on the wooden rails, the ocean breeze chilling her skin.

"It's beautiful isn't it?" sighed the boy, "The calm before the storm."

The girl understood his metaphor. He referred to their turbulent journey ahead of them.

"I'm sorry I left you...," he said quietly.

"Don't worry, we're all a bit upset."

Taehberius turned towards her and gripped her hand firmly.

"I meant...I'm sorry I left you last year," he said and Selenya's stomach went numb, "There's not a day that goes by that I don't regret it."

The girl felt her voice stuck in her throat, but her fingers clinged around his hand.

"You had your reasons, Taeh,"she uttered, "War was brewing, famine...People needed help...Besides, we established that we both wanted to dedicate ourselves to our studies. Carreer first, and all. We had ambitions to become the best in our field..."

"But, that's not a good enough excuse---"

"You wanted to save lives, Taeh," she said encouragingly, "You wanted to dedicate yourself to charitable work. Help those in need...How am I more important than that...?"

A faint nervous chuckle escaped her. Speaking those words caused her more pain than she had anticipated.

"But, you were...Y-You are...still more important," the moon light could not conceal Taehberius' flushing cheeks.

Sudden relief stroke her.

"The way I left you, too...It was inconsiderate and boorish...," he continued anxiously blushing all the way till his ears, "I-I...I didn't even get the chance to...to...to kiss you...B-but...I-I was afraid that if I had...it would've haunted me...and leaving you would've been even harder..."

Selenya felt her mind entering a state of delirium. She remembered their last encounter in the city. Their first and last date, strolling around the harbor, eating toffy apple. Their favorite. The butterflies in her stomach threatened to regurgitate the food she had just eaten, her legs also went numb and her face flared up.

She stepped closer, brushed his fringe on the side and whispered, "It was my fault too, for letting you go so easily..."

Taehberius chuckled weakly and leaned even closer, placing her hand on his chest. His heart fluttered under her touch, they shut their eyes and their lips almost met.

A loud gunshot ruptured and glass crashed, followed by the sailors' guffaws. The two startled teenagers interrupted their embrace before it had even started. With the curner of her eye, Selenya caught Jun storming off after standing at the bottom of the forecastle deck.

He had witnessed everything.

Since Selenya and Taehberius had both lost their courage, fate decided to put their desires on hold and send them to sleep.

Their voyage lasted, give or take, a month, including their periodic stops along the islands of Kartarr, were Yoon's former captain was murdered. Yoon assigned Selenya and Jun certain responsibilities on the ship, like cleaning, fixing the engines, even cooking.

In the mean time Jinghim had entirely recovered and had joined Yoon and his crew with vigor, attending to his assignments diligently.

Everything felt like a routine, if it weren't for Jun's newfound jealously, or Taehberius' occasional winks, intent smiles and generally trespassing her personal space every time they would cross paths, which fluttered her heart mercilessly. Regrettably though, their schedule was busy enough and while spending most of the day with other people around them, they hadn't been able to find any solid moment of privacy.

All was right with the world and nothing could have ever presaged what was about to befall upon them, only but days before their arrival at the Southern Continent.

A monstrous tropical storm surged in the skies. Waves, tall as towers, swelled the seas. Relentless rain flooded the ship, lightning clashing inexorably.

There was no hope...

The vessel tilted marginally, crashed by the waves, until it turned upside down with its keel facing the cruel clouds. Everyone fell underwater.

Selenya swam up onto the surface...

Threw herself on a wooden board...

Fruitlessly screaming her friends' names...

Jun...Jinghim...Yoon...Taeh...

Why is the world against us...?