The Waters of Dawn Cove
~Story 8~

Jermin looked down at his guard Qualpey who'd been struck down by some mysterious illness. Although maybe she just couldn't handle traveling by boat. Whatever the case may be, she was frightfully pale and in no capacity to do her job. Jermin knew that travel was a dangerous venture. He'd seen plenty of his fellow merchants hurt or even killed. Some of them even had some skill in self-defense. And Jermin knew his talents lay elsewhere. So he'd prefer to cure his guard before he went much further. Sailing his small vessel along the coast of the Gremynian coast, he could only hope to find some friendly vilage where he could take refuge. And hopefully he wouldn't be heading into some den of bandits.

Ikram sat on the small pier and waited. He had a few lines and nets set up. As soon as one moved he'd need to jump on it and reel in whatever fish had been caught, but until then, it was a calm day with warm sunny rays and a soft breeze. His wife, Vauthel, had gone off to forage some additional roots and greens to season their dinner with. Ikram'd be the one cooking it if they wanted it to be edible so he'd already started a fire and prepared some fish from their catch.
But company came from an unexpected direction. A small ship with a single sail rounded a corner and a man with bright red hair started waving at him. Ikram recognised distress when he saw it and was on his feet in mere moments, running to the edge of the pier.
"What's wrong?" he asked.
"I've got an injured person." the man called back, "Is there a village nearby, preferably with a doctor?"
Ikram shook his head.
"The village I live in, is further inland. Can your friend walk?"
Jermin was just about to reply when Vauthel appeared from the forest edge. She was carrying some root-vegetables and a few mushroms. Ikram noticed the sailor tense and immediately went to reassure him.
"That's my wife Vauthel, we're the only ones here."
Now Vauthel was the one to tense. Ikram was always quick to believe strangers. They could not see belowdeck and for all they knew there were three people hiding there, waiting to pounce on them.
"We have nothing he can steal but a few fish." Ikram added to his wife.
"He doesn't know that, Ikram." Vauthel replied.
"I'll buy your fish." Jermin replied desperately, "I just need to get somewhere with a doctor where I can dock my boat."
Ikram wanted to start speaking again but Vauthel stopped him.
"I believe there is a new settlement not too far from here that's right on the coast. We haven't had dealings with them but I've been told they are merchants too. A caravan group."
"Any bad rumours?" Jermin asked just to be sure.
"None." Vauthel replied just as Ikram started:
"Well... nothing about the people..."
Vauthel sighed. She loved her husband but he was too honest for his own good. The slender sailor would likely not dare venture to Dawn Cove now. He at least seemed careful enough to have a sense of self-preservation. Vauthel swept back her long black hair and tried to salvage the situation:
"They're silly rumours made by people who had too much too drink. And even in their stories nothing bad happened."
Jermin decided that knowledge was power and as much a commodity to trade in. He started with transactional talks, the one thing he was best at:
"Care to explain?" One needn't always pay for things after all. It was best to ask for a freebie first.
"Some talk about a big creature in the water with a long tail but it wasn't a fish." Ikram stated, "Vauthel is right though. The creature apparently prevented the man from getting into trouble."
"I say he just made up a story to avoid getting into trouble." Vauthel added.
From below deck, Qualpey called: "Jermin, what's happening?"
She'd been fitfully dozing, her body trying to keep from ejecting everything in a violent vomit. As it went, her pride as a guard was suffering. She should be the one talking to the locals, keeping her charge safe and not the other way around. The conversation appeared to be growing in tension and she wanted to defuse it.
"It's okay, Qualpey, just making certain we can go to this place." Jermin called back.
The merchant made a decision and turned back to the couple:
"So how do I get there?"
Vauthel started explaining but it soon became clear that Jermin would have a difficult time finding the unfamiliar landmarks. So Ikram did what he did best.... he offered help:
"Let's pack up and take him, Vauthel. We might as well visit the place and get some information on it too."
Vauthel sighed, "I guess that would be the fastest."

The coast fell away, leaving the boat in more open water. Down below, Ikram was tending to Qualpey which mostly meant trying to keep the tanned guard cool and comfortable as that was all they could manage. Vauthel was up on the prow, directing Jermin to sail where she wanted to go.
"Why are we keeping further away from the coast?" he asked her.
"I don't know for sure but this looks like there might be hidden rocks and shallows. I'd rather not run us aground when we're so close."
Jermin thought she might be joking but then he noticed a mast sticking out from the water in an inlet and decided he'd follow her lead since she was local.
"So how close are we?"
"If the rumours are true, then Dawn Cove should be around the next bend. I don't know whether there are many buildings at the shore, but there should at least be a dock since they supposedly branched out into seatrade recently.
Jermin startled at that bit of news. Would they welcome him if he might be competition?
"Don't worry, word is they never turn people in need away." Vauthel said.
"Isn't it your husband's job to reassure people?" Jermin asked.
"He's rubbed off on me." Vauthel smiled.

Qualpey opened her eyes and was surprised to feel that the world wasn't lurching anymore. She tried to get up but immediately got dizzy.
"Take it easy." a woman told her, expecting Qualpey to follow the command.
Being that she wasn't feeling well, she sagged back down and tried to look around. Her eyes fell upon a sturdy woman reading a little ways off.
"Where am I?" she asked.
"Dawn Cove. I'm Lief, the resident nurse."
"So we made it." Qualpey said.
"You did. Though luckily all that's ailing you was a bad case of sea sickness. Being on land should restore you. I'd advice you against taking jobs on the water though. The way you were affected I doubt you'd even be able to stomach a river trip."
Qualpey sighed. She'd never considered that she might not be able to travel by sea. All she had was a healthy, strong body. Speaking off, her stomach made a few sounds of protest that told her she was indeed on the mend.
"I have some tea and bread for you. If you can keep that in we can get you something more substantial next time." Lief said and brought her a tray of basic fare.
Qualpey once more tried getting up and was relieved to know that she could at least sit up now.
"You're managing well." Lief praised and that perked up the young guard even more.
"Can I go out after I eat? I'd like to get my bearings."
"No problem. I'll stay with you just in case you get another dizzy spell."
Qualpey ate, trying not to wolf it down, and thentried to stand up. Embarrassingly, she needed some aid from Lief but she did manange to keep standing and then to walk. Lief's house appeared to be just a stone throw from the water. a wooden walkway extended into the water and Qualpey sat down.
She was just sitting when a bright green head poked up from the water.
"She good?" Bernoul asked.
"Didn't we agree you'd stay out of sight?" Lief asked her Nekrat.
"She's one with potential." he replied.
Lief shook her head and then turned to Qualpey.
"Apparently we'll be making you an offer. I'm guessing it will extend to the others of your group as well. It usually works that way. So you'll get the details when everyone is here. Until then, I hope you do better in the water than on it."
"I can swim, if that's what you mean." Qualpey replied.
"That's great." Lief smiled.

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[INTRO] [STORY] ° [IKRAM] [VAUTHEL] [JERMIN] [QUALPEY]

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All images found with google
Nekrats impressed at Lantessama Isle