As I left the Tavern I found William and Lia waiting for me outside. I am grateful to William for waiting but he should have listened to me and went on. I will not force my problems on my friends.

Lia led us to where her ship was docked and we negotiated passage with the captain and it was agreed that we would leave as soon as the sun touched the horizon. William, Enrique, and myself bedded down for the evening or what there was left of it. As the sky began to turn blue with the dawn we woke to find men already preparing to cast off. The captain was almost ready to get under way when a man came running up the dock shouting for us to wait. He was not dressed as a noble but his cloths were a bit odd. Baggy and with many pockets that were apparently full of different articles and he was carrying a large satchel.

He was introduced to us as Coleson and the owner of the items currently in the ship's hold. Apparently he had originally booked passage to transport these relics, as he called them, to a buyer in Eisen to the north but had not had money for the entire passage. The captain was apparently going to leave him here and attempt to sell the cargo at the next port to make up for the lost wages. Coleson was almost a total wreck pleading with the captain; saying that if they would only complete the journey they would be well rewarded when they reached the destination. The captain was going to have him removed from the ship when William and I spoke up for the fellow pointing out that what we had paid for our passage more than made up for the back wages and fees owed the ship. I of course told Coleson that we would expect a share of the payment for the items and William pointed out that Coleson could work off his passage as a deck hand or cabin boy. Coleson was less than pleased with this but being a practical man he accepted his losses and agreed. The captain agreed as well, though grudgingly.

With that matter settled, the ship began to be poled out into the river as quietly as possible so as to attract notice. It would appear that our luck was still holding to its normal course however because a band of armed men came running down the dock toward the berth we were slipping out of! One cried for us to halt! The captain put his hand to his ear and made as if he did not understand while the men on the poles began pushing for all they were worth as stealth was no longer an option.

I recognized the man in the lead as William's noble Musketeer Captain du Chevalier, with several Musketeers and a band of city guard. They fired at us a few times but by then we were already well into the river and unfurling sail to make good our escape. I rather enjoyed watching du Chevalier scream at us from the dock. Much nicer than watching him shoot me full of holes, of that I am certain! We were away quickly and soon making good time towards the east and our eventual destination of Ussura.

Not long into our journey we were set upon by a Castillian war ship. They hailed us and told us to prepare for boarding. It was then that Coleson and the captain mentioned that the cargo was undeclared and we did not have enough money to pay taxes on it. I didn't think that would matter much as it would probably be seized to help finance the war going on in Occupied Castille anyway. The captain had both the two cannons placed on the side of the ship the Castille crew intended to board and when they came in range we opened up. I will say this; I have never been in a naval battle but I honestly don't want to be in one again! I much prefer swords to cannon balls any day.

We somehow prevailed however, and managed to cripple the Castillian ship. We limped away on a ship that was heavily damaged. We are currently making repairs to our good ship. The masthead has been changed and the old charter burned and replaced with a new one.

We have also had a change in captains, as the old captain is now the first mate! I get the feeling that the crew is old hands at this sort of thing and I am very thankful that they are. I have been helping Coleson with our cargo and have discovered that he is carrying at least a few Syrneth artifacts amongst the other items. They are all very interesting with many stories behind each one. Just ask Coleson and he will tell you at great length! But the man is obviously a scholar of no small measure and I did my best to learn as much from him as I could stand.

Lia has put ashore to speak with what appears to be a growing number of refugees on makeshift rafts going down river towards Montaigne waters. The Castillian, Enrique, has gone ashore for something or other. I will relate this one last example of the Enrique's poor character. Apparently he thought it would be funny to wake Coleson up one morning by pouring one of the full chamber buckets over him! The man may have some redeeming qualities but humanity isn't one of them. He is getting on better with the group but I fear he has destroyed any hope of a good relationship with our new partner Coleson. The Castillian is just insufferable it seems. His disdain for others is almost comical considering his own shortcomings. Once again I can only say that Theus' will is hard to understand. I will write more later, as Coleson is about to throw his back out with a crate and I think I hear Lia coming. I can't look like a lazy man with a lovely lady about now can I?