Drew stood on the deck of Thren’s flagship, The Talon. It had been one of the ships that unloaded troops on the counter Tzmoa Kai raid.

  He watched in fascination as a flight of large manta ray creatures slipped down from a nearby cloud bank, soaring next to the ship. The rays were the size of a small car, their pectoral fins flapping in oscillations and undulations.

  They glided effortlessly, riding invisible currents only they seemed to understand.

  It was hypnotic.

  A sailor working the rigging nearby noticed Drew watching them.

  “Skyrays,” he said with a grin. “Good luck. And good eating.”

  There was a hint of longing in his voice.

  The curtain of clouds directly ahead parted to reveal a large island.

  The call went out.

  “Deadwake ahead!”

  The sky was filled with a wide variety of craft, from canoes, to sky catamarans, to zeppelin like craft with the envelopes made of vine and wicker with a small gondola below.

  Upon a closer approach Drew could see that the Island of Deadwake was not one contagious island, rather a collection of smaller islands connected by bridges, netting and vines. The core consisted of several mid-sized islands, with scores of smaller ones branching outward, some no larger than a football field.

  Most of Deadwake was a sprawl of squat warehouses and shops, their chimneys belching dark smoke into the sky.

  Set above them, slightly up current, was a separate island altogether.

  Upon it stood a structure Drew could only describe as a manor/fort.

  Set as a three story rectangular stone house, with a five story keep rising from each corner. The bottom levels of the structure were unadorned, severe. The top two stories, however, bore carved heraldry and more elaborate stonework worked into the fa?ade.

  Turning the to the sailor next to him Drew asked, “What is that palace on the smaller island?”

  The sailor grunted.

  “The Casa Solariega. Some noble’s house. Also a casino. They host balls there.”

  Skeptically Drew asked, “Pirates have nobility?”

  The sailor roared a deep belly laugh, having to hold on to the railing to stay upright.

  “Heavens no,” the man choked out. “Nueva Trujillo nobles own the Casa Solariega.”

  Creaking deck planks and wicker announced Thren’s approach. The sailor, still grinning, quickly gathered his tools and made himself scarce.

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  “Impressions?” Thren asked.

  “Of Deadwake?” Drew paused. “It’s eclectic and dirty, with the exception of Casa Solargia.”

  “The nobles are… the real pirates,” Thren said, clicking his beak. “Deadwake itself is governed by a council of twenty three pirate captains and merchants. Influence is measured by the islands they’ve contributed.”

  He paused.

  “Tsk. Governed is the wrong word. Your friar would say it’s ruling by crabs in a bucket.”

  A Nueva Trujillo sky galleon descended opposite The Talon, escorted by two caravels, its vast hull casting a long shadow across the docks. Layered gun decks, downward facing cannon ports, and crowded masts made it feel less like a vessel and more like a moving piece of imperial architecture.

  All three ships bore white flags bearing a golden shield, bordered in deep red with small gold crosses. The face of the shield filled with arranged blue circles.

  Drew was struck in awe of the size and the majesty of the sky galleon, the only vessel so far he had seen that was constructed fully of wood. Its multiple masts and hanging sail vanes giving it the presence of a floating fortress rather than a ship.

  Thren spying the galleon looked pleased.

  “That would be the reward for the Tzoma Kai heads.”

  The comment shocked Drew back from the wonder of this new world to the reality of the group he was now associated with.

  “The Black Keel Hall,” Thren continued, “where you will learn the arts of shipbuilding, navigation, coin, and combat.. tsk….is a dangerous place. Diego will watch you.”

  He beckoned one of the pistol armed bodyguards who habitually accompanied him.

  “Under no circumstances tsk… eat food, or drink ales Diego has not given you.”

  Diego gave a short bow to Drew leaning into the strong silent archetype.

  “I see great things for you, Drew,” Thren said. “But only if you do great things for my flight.”

  The massive pterodactyl stepped closer, looming over him. He raised his remaining wing.

  “Do not fly too close to the sun.”

  The wing erupted in blinding light.

  “Do not fly too low to the clouds.”

  Drew rubbed furiously at the spots burning in his vision. He was fairly certain Thren had just threatened him.

  “Here,” Thren thrust a letter into Drew’s hand. “From your Fray.”

  Drew unfolded the rough parchment having difficulty making out the content due to the sensitivity of his eyes.

  Drew,

  May the Breath that bears the islands also bear your conscience. You go now to a place where clever hands are praised and clean souls are considered wasteful. Learn what they offer, but do not kneel to it.

  Many there will tell you that survival is virtue and success is absolution. These are old lies, well-practiced. Rise neither too quickly nor too cheaply, for heights gained without patience invite judgment, and depths chosen for safety rot the spirit.

  I will pray that you are not spared from danger, but that you recognize it when it speaks kindly.

  Fray Hernando

  Not ominous at all.

  Drew carefully refolded the parchment along the fold lines, hands shaking. Unbidden, his mind conjured the image of Ametzu collapsing back filled with arrows.

  The Talon descended slowly toward one of Deadwake’s outer islands, roughly the size of Thren’s Reach. This island held fewer docks and far more warehouses. Each was whitewashed, immaculate, and laid out with deliberate order, a stark contrast to the slapdash structures crowding Thren’s Reach.

  A single gantry dock led inland to a low, thick wall, also coated in whitewash and arranged in a star shaped pattern. Within the bastion stood the warehouses themselves, clustered neatly around a lone, multi-story defensive tower that watched the island in silence.

  Drew immediately noticed the overlapping fields of fire offered by the fortification, but wondered at the lack of defenses against arial assault which seemed to be an oversight for a sky pirate.

  The Talon docked and Drew exited the gangplank stepping on to Deadwake.

  [SYSTEM LOCATION UPDATE]

  Location: Deadwake Status: Neutral Territory

  Modifiers:? +10% Crafting Experience (Unregulated Innovation) ? +10% Social Risk (Faction Volatility)