Pieter only smiled, and said, "Here's good enough I reckon." Rising to a crouch, he took a barrel of rum and tilted the entire thing overboard. With a splash, the barrel ducked down and bobbed to the surface again. Feeling a slight pang in his chest at losing so much rum, he withdrew his pistol, aimed, and shot the barrel through. "A gift of pleasure for knowledge." He called out. His voice carried something more than words. It shivered in the bones, carrying itself silently through the water. Nothing happened. Pieter scratched his beard. "Hey, you want some?" He removed a flask from his pocket. "Hana had a spot of gin. Want some?" The waves that rocked the boat grew imperceptibly softer.
___

Hana laughed, then sobered up when she tried to figure out if Berlin was serious. "I could uh, try? If you really wanted me to. Maybe. I could also fireproof the sails for you if you'd like." Glancing out to sea, she chewed her lip as she listened to her Captain's request. "I'm not really trained for battle magic, so I don't think I could be much help fighting. I can work up winds, rain and fog for the fight. I can defend myself, but beyond that, well..." She glanced back at Berlin, gauging his reaction, she said, "I could only try something with the cannon balls and Uban's lightning. If you'd like."

___
The boy dropped into a relaxed stance, keeping his eyes fixed on the blade. Wheel couldn't remember the last time he saw Rohaan focus on anything for longer than a minute. Wheel sprang away from the boy's lunge, then lashed out, blade darting. The fight had begun, and Wheel was testing and demonstrating various techniques to his pupil.