Help!

The dot was tiny at first, so small that Devrim wondered how his wife had spotted it in the middle of the shining ocean. 

After many minutes, the spot gradually grew and took form.

"Just as I suspected," Schwinn muttered.

Coming towards them from their starboard was a ship.

"First one we've seen since leaving port," Nurlan squinted at the other vessel.

Aurora pondered that for a moment, "Is that unusual?"

"If we were traveling between port cities or even the islands, seeing other ships is pretty common. But we are heading south, no other vessel has any reason to be heading this direction." Schwinn tried to keep any emotion out of his voice, but Aurora could still sense his tension.

"Perhaps it was thrown off course by the storm?" Devrim suggested. "Sailors use the sun and stars for navigation, neither of which were able to be seen until today."

"It's possible. We were helped in our journey by the waves, but that would not be true of someone trying to head east or west…" Schwinn nodded slowly, considering just how off course the ship could have been thrown.

"Captain!" The barrelman called from the crow's nest.

"I see it," Schwinn bellowed back to the boy.

The Infallible, the smallest sailing in the convoy, raised a yellow flag. Although the three ships in the group were sailing close enough to yell between the decks, flags were more efficient and left less room for confusion when it came to short messages.

This particular flag meant that The Infallible had also spotted the newcomer.

"What do I tell them?" The young man queried his leader.

The captain tapped his chin. Walking over to the main mast he spoke loudly so that he would not be misunderstood. "Tell them to stay the course at present. The ship is still a long way off. It may yet decide to avoid us. In fact, if it is smart, it will!"

Schwinn ambled back toward the bow to find that in that short span of time, someone had brought the Empress a chair and table from below deck. A warm blanket was being tightly wrapped around her by Dervim as a second chair was being brought for the Emperor by the faithful Nurlan.

"Why would they want to avoid us?" Aurora asked, her blue-flecked eyes staring at the Captain with curiosity. "We won't hurt them."

Schwinn smirked. "We know that, Your Majesty, but they don't. As a general rule, you don't approach an unfamiliar force that is much larger than you unless you absolutely have to."

"I think they will absolutely have to." After setting down the chair for the Emperor, the burly general had returned to the railing to continue his study. 

Schwinn furrowed his brow. "Why do you say that?" 

"If I am not mistaken... actually, I would prefer if you looked, Captain." Nurlan's use of the man's proper title alarmed everyone. 

Without delay, Schwinn rushed to the side of the ship and craned his neck toward the incoming vessel. It had grown only slightly since the last time he had viewed it, but the difference was enough for him to notice something particular about the watercraft. 

"The main mast is...broken?" Schwinn pulled at his chin. "No, it is straight enough that there cannot be a major crack. But the whole thing is at an odd angle. It's lilting something terrible." 

Indeed, the ship was sailing with one side riding lower than the other. It was still moving at a decent clip, but not nearly as quickly as it would be if it were upright. 

"It must be taking on water," Nurlan said, "Or at least it did during the storm. I wonder how much they are having to bail to keep her from sinking completely?"

"I supposed that changes things," Schwinn sighed. 

With his wife's encouragement, Devrim joined the other two men. "What seems to be the problem?"

"The ship over there is sinking. Maritime law says we need to help if we can." Schwinn rubbed the back of his neck.

Part of him wanted the Emperor to order him to ignore the ship in need, but the Captain knew that such a move would weigh on his conscience forever. 

Fortunately, Devrim's initial response was not an order at all. "Can you help them? I mean, are you even able?"

The Emperor had very little idea of what went into sailing. He was willing to listen before making any judgments.

Schwinn and Nurlan both hummed softly. Their tones were just enough off-key to make Devrim wince.

"Best case scenario? We might be able to help them patch up their leak and send them on their way." Schwinn shrugged.

"What are the odds of that?" Devrim leaned heavily against the railing as if the small distance would give him more clarity.

"Based on the tilt of the hull, not high. I'm impressed that she is able to move through the water at all, no less gain on us. Must have a determined crew," Schwinn chewed his cheek.

"What is the worst-case scenario?" The Emperor was pretty sure he knew what the Captain would say, but he needed to be sure.

"Worst case—either we lose a ship to head back to port with the newcomers or we bring those people along with us to the South. I would be lying if I said that I liked either of those options." Schwinn scratched his forehead. "So I suppose we will hope for the best."

Devrim relayed the information to Aurora. The news was distressing to her, but there was not much they could do. With a lot of waiting in the small fleet's future, the Empress reluctantly agreed to take a short rest.

Brinn was coming up the steps just as the Empress was descending. Her face looked less green.

"You are looking better," Aurora said through half-closed eyelids.

"And you are looking exhausted," the elf retorted.

"She needs a nap. I told her nothing exciting will happen for a while and she should grab a hammock and sleep." Devrim had his hand on the woman's waist as he began to help her down the stairs.

"You know what? I think I will grab some shut-eye myself." Brinn turned on the top step and began heading down behind the Royal pair.

"Really?" Devrim raised one eyebrow.

"The cook gave me something to settle my stomach. Had some human-grown roots in it. I wouldn't try it before, but I got desperate. I haven't slept well since we left port and I don't want to miss my chance to rest peacefully in case that blasted nausea returns."

The two ladies found a spot below deck, and with Devrim's help, they slung two hammocks and climbed inside. The Emperor waited for a while to see if either of them would need anything. When their breathing fell into a soft, even rhythm, he had a soldier find Sav to take over his position.

"I don't want anyone to disturb them," he ordered the young woman.

Coming back to the main deck, the commotion had grown as the ship neared. Alvar, Gandr, and Reyan had joined the gawking crew. Devrim noticed the sails had lowered. He had felt the boat slow a short while before, but now it seemed they were stopping entirely for the boat to catch up.

"We figured it would be better that we chose the spot for the meeting than continuing to let them gain on us slowly," Schwinn explained when the Emperor came by his side. 

"I still cannot figure out how she is gaining on us at all." Nurlan's mouth pinched tight in contemplation. "Boats have changed a lot since my sailing days."

"I agree that it doesn't add up. The crew must have been able to lighten her load. Probably desperate enough to catch us that they threw everything else overboard." Schwinn was less confident than his words implied. Something did not sit right in the pit of his stomach.

"We can ask them about it when they near. I don't think we should let any of them aboard until we get at least a few answers about their situation." Devrim watched as both the Captain and General nodded.

"Agreed," Schwinn turned away for a time and barked orders to his crew. If they were about to take on a whole other crew, even for a short time, they would have to make some preparations.

The ship came closer every moment. The green sails seemed in decent shape, so if they could fix the hull, the ship would likely be in condition enough to get to a port without help.

If they could fix it...

"You recognize that emblem?" Nurlan asked the Captain. "Looks a bit weird... like it was patched over..." 

"It probably was. And I cannot say for sure that I recognize them. It looks vaguely familiar," Schwinn knew hundreds of ships by sight, and nearly as many by name. This one did not ring a bell.

"Another question we will have for them..." Nurlan grunted. 

And their questions would be answered soon. The ship was slowly coming within speaking distance. 

Onboard, a large man in a black cap was leaning far over the drooping railing. 

In his hand, he was waving a white flag. "Help!"