Chapter 130: Someone's Dead

For the first few days, the Great Baladin Conqueror sailed not far from the coast. Every morning, when Jess got up and left his cabin to look out through a window, he could make out a faint line of green near the distant horizon.

Contrary to his fears, the passengers and sailors weren't nearly as vicious as he'd imagined. There were merchants, laborers, plenty of craftsmen and hunters from Stranglethorn Vale, and even a few minor nobles with recognizable names.

From their conversations he learned that humans had already established some settlements in Stranglethorn, including small villages and camps. After the Gurubashi Empire's disastrous defeat in its war with Stormwind, the trolls had largely stayed within their cities. They hadn't troubled those human settlers.

Overall, these were ordinary people. They talked, laughed, drank, shared a little dried food, and got to know one another. For a while, differences in birthplace and culture hardly seemed to matter.

Then Jess woke one morning to find that the green line on the horizon had vanished. So had the various seabirds that had followed the ship before. The deck was so quiet that it felt strange.

He spotted a retired soldier staring out at the sea.

"Sir, are we sailing out into open water?" Jess asked.

"Yes. We may already be near Menethil Bay. Next we'll turn northwest toward Southshore."

"We're not stopping at the harbor?"

"Probably not. Saves time," the veteran said. "But Baradin Bay has never been a peaceful stretch of water. I've got a bad feeling."

The reason for that feeling appeared sooner than Jess expected. Not long afterward, a bearded passenger nearby grumbled to his friend that they might be heading into a storm.

At noon, the goblins in the corridor discussed whether they should put in at Menethil Harbor. But First Mate Gazik said the captain wanted to reach Southshore as quickly as possible and had no intention of wasting time in Khaz Modan.

By evening, Jess could see from the bow that the water ahead of the Great Baladin Conqueror lay under a wall of darkness.

"Are we really sailing straight into the storm?" he asked a goblin sailor.

"What else would we do?" the sailor replied. "Turn around now and let the storm catch up with us? That'd be worse. Relax, human. Nothing's going to happen. Go back to your cabin and stay there till tomorrow."

Sailors were sailors. They certainly knew more about the sea than Jess did. He went back to his cabin and checked his luggage, making sure nothing important would be lost if the storm got rough.

A chapter from the author's official page appears here without permission; the author's own posting is the supportive version.

He remembered scenes of ships caught in storms in movies. In case things became as terrible as that, he tied his warlock bag and staff to his body first, made sure he hadn't left anything valuable lying around, and stretched out on his bed to wait for the weather.

At some point the ship began pitching in a more irregular rhythm. Jess had almost grown used to life aboard, but now his stomach started turning again.

He got up to walk along the corridor and distract himself, planning to get some fresh air near a hatch. But the constant footsteps overhead, bursts of confusion, and occasional frightened cries only made him more uneasy.

He looked out through the nearest window. Huge black waves rolled past, one after another, while thunder rumbled in the sky. Compared with the violent sea, the ship was holding steady remarkably well.

"Holy Light... Holy Light..."

A pale-faced man stumbled toward the stern, praying as he went. Jess had been fairly calm until then, but watching the man panic made him nervous too.

A wave crashed against the hull with a roar. White spray burst through the window and soaked him with droplets. Jess fastened his cloak, hid the warlock bag beneath it, pulled up his hood, and headed for the deck.

Just as he reached the exit, a fierce wind swept over him, so strong that he could barely keep his eyes open.

Icy drops stung his face. He couldn't tell whether they were rain or spray thrown up by the sea.

"Should we haul the lifeboat higher, Razvi?" a human shouted outside.

"If you can haul it higher, then do it! Why are you asking me?"

"Trugil, check the stern! Hurry!"

Jess noticed that the sails had already been furled. The thickly wrapped masts swayed with the ship beneath heavy black clouds.

"Back to your cabin! Nothing to see here, human!" a goblin screeched from above.

Jess turned and descended the stairs. He had barely reached the bottom when the ship lurched violently. Something clattered and crashed beneath his feet, as though cargo had fallen over.

In the next instant, a sheet of water splashed through the hatch behind him. For a moment he thought seawater was pouring into the ship. But it was only spray, splashing over the opening without flooding inside. The rain had begun.

"How is it out there? Everyone down here is scared out of their minds."

Gred suddenly appeared beside him. Apparently, he too had wanted a look at the deck.

"Seems fine so far," Jess answered. "The goblins told us to stay inside."

The words had barely left his mouth when Gazik leaped down from above. The first mate hurried along, shouting at someone Jess couldn't see.

"Hurry up, Novil! Check the cargo hold! Is something loose? If I find out who was responsible for securing those crates, I'll fucking..."

He stormed to the end of the corridor, his voice fading with his footsteps.

"In my experience, this isn't much of a storm," Gred said. "Should be fine."

"Maybe the worst is still ahead," Jess said.

"Don't let the sailors hear you." Gred laughed. "They'll tie you to the bow to calm the sea god's anger."

He hadn't finished laughing when the ship shook violently and then pitched upward. Gred flailed for something to hold and finally managed to catch a doorframe. Jess wasn't much better off. He slammed his shoulder against the other side and grabbed it, gritting his teeth in pain.

Before either could steady himself, the ship listed sharply. Wood creaked all around them. Clattering came from every direction, mixed with screams and shouting. Then both of them were thrown hard onto the floor.

"How big was that wave?" Gred demanded, scrambling up.

Lightning flashed through the corridor, turning their faces white for an instant. From deep below the ship came a hysterical scream so loud it almost matched the muffled thunder outside.

"Did you hear that?" Jess asked.

"I heard it."

"What did he say?"

"Sounded like... someone's dead."

They nodded to each other, then turned together toward the passage leading to the lowest hold—the direction Gazik had disappeared.