Ray awoke to the muffled sound of shouting and the clack of metal. He lurched up on the couch and looked quickly around the room to find Kerry and the Rose Thief gone. A pile of new clothes was neatly folded on the table in front of him, clearly meant for him. His glasses had been put gingerly on top of the pile. As he put on his glasses and picked up a loose black shirt, the door creaked open, letting in a sea breeze. A familiar man dressed almost entirely in white entered quietly and shut the door behind him. He smoothed his dark hair back down and grinned at Ray when he realized he was awake.

"Good morning," said Caleb. "Those clothes are for you." Caleb wore a long white tunic that reached to mid-thigh and was belted at his waist by a white and yellow rope. The sleeves just barely covered his fingertips. His pants were undyed and fell loosely to the top of pale brown shoes. As Ray pulled his shirt off and donned his new one, Caleb walked over and plopped down next to him on the couch. "How are you feeling? We set sail earlier at dawn with the low tide, and we're worried you might get seasick."

Ray plucked at his billowy sleeves and the v-shaped neckline. "I'm fine for now," he said.

Caleb smiled again and patted Ray on the shoulder. "Well, if you ever feel nauseous, just come see me and I'll fix you right up." He helpfully handed Ray the pants from the pile and stood up again.

"What's going on out there?" Ray asked, nodding at the door. Caleb glanced at it then back and laughed.

"Ray and - uh, the other Ray and Kerry are fighting. Oh, don't look so alarmed! They do this all the time. They're both pretty good with the sword, so they like to challenge each other to duels. Especially if they haven't seen each other in a while."

"What about you?"

Caleb smiled and flicked his wrists to pull his hands out of his sleeves. "I don't use a sword. I hate the things." He started for the door. "You should catch the end of the fight; they're pretty good at what they do."

Ray stood and nearly stumbled as the ship swayed beneath him. It would take a while for him to get used to the pitching floor. Caleb stepped back to steady him. The two of them exited the captain's room and Ray expected to see two men fighting on the main deck, but as he leaned against the railing he noticed all the crew members were looking up. He heard a laugh that he heard many times editing videos.

"Is that all you got, Kerry!?"

"I'll show you what I've got if you come at me, cousin!"

The Rose Thief and Kerry were on the horizontal bar of the main mast on opposite sides of the great wooden pillar. The Rose Thief brandished his rapier, and Kerry wielded a slightly heavier blade with a simpler guard and hilt, his unarmed hand gloved in thick leather. The Rose Thief, too, had changed outfits, this time wearing a loose white shirt and a masculine corset belt. Kerry lunged at him and he slid back and smacked the blade away. Then with a flourish of his left hand he jumped off the mast. The smell of roses filled the air as a strong breeze suddenly picked up. The Rose Thief flipped in midair, his legs perfect and straight, and he landed back on the main deck easily. Kerry jumped for the mast and wrapped his gloved hand around it. He spun around and around, descending back to the main mast as the Rose Thief landed.

The crew applauded as the two duelists lunged at each other, their swords colliding and pressing against each other. Their grins were wide as they leaned into each other. Then, with a twist of the wrist, Kerry slid his blade down and shoved the sword out of the Rose Thief's hand. It flipped over and stabbed into the wood of the deck. Kerry brandished his sword, the tip hovering inches from the Rose Thief's throat. They were both breathing heavily and sweating, but beaming.

"I win," Kerry said happily. He lowered his sword and extended his gloved hand, which the Rose Thief took. As Kerry tugged off his glove and tossed it at the nearest crewmate, Ray realized for the first time that the Rose Thief wasn't wearing his white gloves. The Rose Thief's hands - his hands - were covered in tattoos.

"Nice show!" Caleb called. Ray nudged him.

"What's with the Rose Thief's hands?" he asked.

"Huh? Oh, you mean his tattoos?" Caleb tilted his head and gave him a confused and pitying smile. "Do you not... know about tattoos?"

"I'm not from here, Caleb. I don't know anything."

Caleb sighed and looked back at the two duelists as the Rose Thief shook hands with Kerry and retrieved his sword. "Hmm. Okay, I'll start at the very basics. There are three types of people in this world, Ray. There are normal folk who can't do a lick of magic, and there are Mages that can do a lot. And then there are people who have potential that needs to be unlocked through spells tattooed onto their skin."

The crew dispersed as they realized their show was over. Kerry and the Rose Thief bounded up the stairs to join Ray and Caleb, their faces shiny with perspiration but relaxed with the conclusion of play. "Teaching him about magic?" Kerry asked, clapping Caleb on the shoulder. He leaned forward to look at Ray. "Caleb here's a Mage! Some say he's a better healer than even that man Ryan up at Achievement City!"

"Aw, Kerry, please," Caleb protested, but he didn't look too annoyed. The Rose Thief drummed his fingers on the railing, drawing Ray's attention again. The back of the left hand had a relatively simpler tattoo than the right, and was decorated with a pale blue triangle with a line cutting off the top third. Rosy red and darker blue designs embellished this triangle. The design on the right hand was not restrained to the back of the hand. A red and pinkish glyph dominated the back of it, but swirls and runes expanded from it, wrapping around the hand and the fingers. The Rose Thief noticed Ray's gaze and smiled nervously, tucking his hands into pockets.

"Gloves are too hot and slippery for sailing," he explained quietly.

"Anyway," Caleb continued. "A Mage has to apply the spell to those with potential, and only Mages can tell if someone has this potential. Like for Ray here, I gave him the cleaning spell on his left palm after his-"

"Fascinating," the Rose Thief said shortly. Ray frowned as his doppelgänger pushed off from the railing. He drew his sword and offered it handle-first to Ray, then nodded at Kerry. "Why don't you show him some of the basics?" Ray took the sword and the Rose Thief swept away, disappearing into the captain's cabin, presumably to clean up. Kerry and Caleb shot each other quick looks, sharing their confusion. Then Kerry took one look at Ray awkwardly holding the sword and groaned.

"Alright, alright," he said, grabbing Ray by the arm and dragging him down the stairs. "It is physically painful for me to see you hold that sword. Come on."

~~~~

Caleb followed the Rose Thief into the captain's quarters. He got straight to the point, not even letting the thief sit down before he asked him his question. "Why are you being so secretive?" he demanded. "Why are you hiding information from yourself?"

The Rose Thief rubbed one hand with the other and turned to stare hard at Caleb. "He doesn't need to know all that shit. He just needs to get back to where he came from and move on with his life."

"He's going to be here for at least another two months or so," Caleb pointed out. "I know you don't like talking about it, but he's going to find out whether you tell him or not."

"Not if I can help it. Now shoo, I need to clean up."

~~~~

"You're holding it all wrong, like this - no, not that tight. Are you kidding me? If you hold it that loose, it'll fly out of your hand when you swing. Were you raised by a dog?" Ray sighed and tried to do as he was told. He twisted the sword around in his hand and mimicked Kerry as he showed him how to hold it. Finally, Kerry seemed satisfied enough to move on to the footwork.

He tapped at Ray's shins with the flat side of his own blade. "Assuming you're the same as the other Ray," he said, "then your right foot should be forward. A bit further... not that far. Good. You should be solid but light. You'll likely be moving a lot. If you're in an actual fight, you'll probably be constantly shifting your weight from foot to foot so you can move at a moment's notice."

Kerry circled around Ray and judged his standing position. At the same time, Caleb exited the captain's cabin and nodded at the pair before disappearing into one of the lower doors. That reminded Ray to ask Kerry one of the questions that had been burning at him for a couple days now. "Kerry, do you know why one of, uh, Ray's outfits would be at the castle in Achievement City?"

Kerry stopped circling, pausing a couple paces in front of Ray, and put a hand to his chin. "I'm assuming you're talking about the outfit you showed up in."

"And that he seems really nicely dressed for a thief," Ray added. Kerry nodded thoughtfully.

"He is. That's because, up until about five years ago, he used to live up at the castle." Ray opened his mouth, but Kerry continued. "He and I both, in fact. There was a training program for knights that we both partook in. He'd been there long before me, though. I'm originally from the Ruby Kingdom, so most of my training was done there, and I came here to complete it and become a knight in Venator - lots of people from the Ruby Kingdom end up living somewhere else."

"So why'd you both leave?"

Kerry studied him and seemed to consider his response before answering. "He was going to be executed, and I helped him escape. I gave up my career as a knight to help him - not that I really care; I've always enjoyed sailing, but sometimes I miss my other friends at... the... castle."

A loud thump echoed behind them, causing Kerry to trail off and pale. The Rose Thief had jumped over the railing and landed on the main deck, and he looked fucking furious. Ray was still processing the information that his other self had been on death's row when the Rose Thief marched over.

It was obvious the Rose Thief had heard enough to figure out what they were talking about, but he didn't mention that. He didn't need to. He glared at both of them, his nostrils flaring and his eyes wide beneath his furrowed brow. He had changed his mask to another white one, though this one had long trailing ribbons in the back. He stood by Kerry and stretched out his hand. When Kerry didn't react, the Rose Thief coughed and twitched his fingers in a give me that motion. Kerry mutely handed over his sword.

"He - he hasn't done any motions yet, we - we've just been working on basic positions..." Kerry started pleadingly.

The Rose Thief shut him up with a wave of his hand, and Ray gulped. He realized now that his doppelgänger was mad at him. The Rose Thief took a position two or three paces away from him and raised Kerry's sword. Ray shifted his sweaty grip on his own sword, but the tip of it exaggerated how much he was trembling. The Rose Thief nodded at him, silently telling him to attack.

Ray had no idea what to do. He didn't feel particularly like fighting his doppelgänger, though he was sure that even if he tried he couldn't hurt him. Plus, he was so out of shape that holding the sword upright for however long he and Kerry had been working on his form made his upper arm ache with the effort. He tried to remember all the sword fighting he'd seen in movies, maybe some Olympic fencing, but he was blanking. So, he did what any sensible man would do in this situation.

He ran forward and lunged.

The Rose Thief sidestepped and swept his foot under Ray in a single, fluid, spinning motion. Ray's foot caught on his doppelgänger's and he slammed to the deck, his palm skinning itself on the wood planks as he flailed and shouted expletives. He just barely held onto his sword. By now, several members of the crew had stopped what they were doing and observed from afar.

"Up," the Rose Thief said. "Get up."

Ray studied his injured palm for a moment and shakily stood. The ship pitched beneath him, and while Kerry and the Rose Thief kept their footing easily, swaying with the ship, Ray stumbled. The ship steadied again, and Ray raised his sword to point it back at the Rose Thief. His left palm burned at his side, and his cheeks felt flushed and warm. He was conscious of every eye on him.

Running and lunging hadn't worked. So instead, Ray ran and swung. He sprinted forward, his sword raised and swinging down, and the Rose Thief moved faster than he could react. The Rose Thief flicked his wrist, and the blade of his sword danced before Ray's eyes. Before he could comprehend what was happening, Ray's sword was being pushed out of the way by his opponent's blade, following his momentum. The Rose Thief rotated with his blade, and his free hand darted out and shoved Ray in the back. Ray stumbled, but managed to stay upright. A bead of sweat trickled down from his hairline, and Ray wiped it away with the back of a hand.

He was starting to get frustrated - angry, even. What was his fucking deal? The Rose Thief was being secretive, and now Ray was being punished for being curious and finally getting at least some answers. Not just punished, but publically humiliated. The Rose Thief was toying with him. Himself from a different universe was toying with him! Did he really hate himself that much? Did Ray's actions really deserve this response? This time, Ray didn't wait for the Rose Thief to egg him on. He lunged.

He expected the Rose Thief to dodge again, but his lookalike met his blade. The two blades angled away from each other, pressed against each other, and slid down each other so that the two fighters were locked at their swords' guards. Ray ground his teeth and angrily heaved his weight against the sword, but it was painfully obvious that the Rose Thief had him beat on physical strength. The blades quivered for a few moments that felt like forever.

The Rose Thief twirled his hand, and Ray's wrist twisted with his sword to the point where he was forced to let go. With a triumphant flourish, Ray's sword flipped out of his grasp and plunged its tip into the wood of the deck, where it stood, shaking comically. Ray fell to his hands and knees, exhaustion and humiliation pulling him down. The Rose Thief loomed over him, studying him as the crew studied them in silence. Finally, the Rose Thief tossed Kerry's sword back to the captain and spun on his heel. As he strode away, back to the captain's cabin, he said, "I expect a hundred pushups and a hundred sit-ups."

It was only when the door slammed that people started moving again. Kerry slid his sword back into a loop at his belt and, with a glance at the red double doors, yanked Ray's borrowed sword out of the deck. He offered his free hand to Ray, who ignored it and pushed himself back so he was sitting on the floor.

"Don't be a baby," Kerry said. "Caleb can heal up your hand, and then you can do your exercises. Ray might be... mad, but it's not a bad idea."

Ray looked up at Kerry and squinted against the sunlight. Sweat was already soaking Ray's black shirt. "Kerry... I can't fucking do a hundred pushups and sit-ups."

Kerry sighed and glanced around the deck. His hand was still outstretched, offering. "Just... do as many as you can, then. Eventually you'll do a hundred no problem. Afterwards, you can get cleaned up and take a tour of the ship." When Ray's stomach growled, he laughed and added, "And have a meal!"

Ray honestly didn't want to move. He was stuck on this ship for two months, with maybe a couple stops to get more supplies. The only thing he had to occupy himself with was exercise - he couldn't hope to be of any help to the crew. He was still trying to process the Rose Thief's anger and secrecy. He was hungry but didn't want to eat. He just wanted to disappear where he sat right then and there. A significant portion of him thought he wasn't ever going to get back home.

Kerry's hand was still outstretched. The captain was patient, staying near Ray. Something about Kerry's presence wanted to urge Ray on. The small bit of him that was optimistic begged him to get up, to eat something, to get moving again. One day, he'll get back home, this small bit said. It might take a while, but if he kept moving, eventually he'll get back home. The only way he would never get back home would be if he stopped trying. Something brought him here, so something can send him back.

Ray took Kerry's hand, and the captain helped him up off the deck.