From Skara Brae, Lora sailed north, knowing that Dagger Isle would be just west after Verity Isle. The journey by ship was pleasant, as the sun was shining yet the air was mild - slightly warm but not too much. She even let generosity carry her away, and let her prisoner out of his cabin, tying him to the railings of the ship's deck so that he can have some fresh air as well. He was unwilling to thank her, but his enjoyment of the nice weather carried him away, and he told her, "Must be nice ta be a pirate if it's always like this!" He wanted to say that it would be nicer if he was untied, but did not dare to be greedy over Lora's generosity.
Just as they passed near the Lycaeum, Lora saw a familiar figure. Tall, handsome
and with some followers. He was at the Lycaeum, and was giving a glass sword to
Ephemerides, a kindly fellow she had known in her earlier days. She could not
understand what the Avatar was doing, though she noticed that the prisoner was
watching the same view. "See?" he giggled, "More people dealing with black market
weapons."
"Don't be silly!" she scolded him, "That's the Avatar!"
"Goody! Even 'e turned ta crime now!"
"Do not be an idiot! If he is giving that man a powerful weapon, it must be for a
virtuous reason."
"Ya, I'm sure..." he mutted sarcastically. She got fed up of his comments, and
took him back to his cabin-cell.
It did not take long to arrive at Dagger Isle, but Lora expected to find it deserted because she figured out that Bonn should already have left. She crept up to the farmhouse silently, in case somebody was there. There was no sound. She opened the door slowly, and to her horror, she saw a dead body on the floor.
She went back on the ship and spoke to her prisoner.
"There's a dead body in Bonn's house. Canst thou recognise it?"
"I never saws Bonn in me life, honest."
"Maybe it's someone else. Come with me."
Lora's prisoner followed her to Bonn's house, and when he saw the dead body, he
shook his head. "Me doesn' know this fellow. Must be Bonn."
"But why would Michael kill him if he wanted to recruit him? Or did someone kill
Bonn before Michael could recruit him?"
"Methinks he didn' want ta cooperate."
Lora had arrived late, it seemed. However, just when she was cursing because she lost all traces of Michael, she noticed a ship on the horizon. "It's them!" she shouted. Her prisoner nodded. "Me knows that ship - that's the one!" Lora boarded her ship and followed Michael's vessel.
© by Daniel D'Agostino 2002-2025