Markus rolled the sextant over the parchment, placing his calculations and marking off the estimated time of arrival they would have at their next few stops. The trade winds were against them at the moment, but the time would soon be right for them to head southeast and disrupt the fleet that was set to guard the shipment of gold. But before that they needed more guns, and a battle plan. Grimey had come at the right time. Their next destination would be the abandoned fort.

Markus could tell Calliope was pleased with the reward. He had to admit he had pegged the woman wrong, for thinking her as soft as most nobles, or as an untrustworthy crew member. The crew had made the attack on the fort bloody, but Markus and Calliope had done well in their attack and she had more than pulled her weight. Against all odds, a Tyrant and a former Knight seemed to be doing rather well as a First Mate and a Captain, at least initially. 

The magic she had displayed with the book had been almost catastrophic, and he still couldn't tell if that had been on purpose. But it had worked, and he had to admit she knew more about magic than him without the book than he ever would. He had the vaguest inkling of the amulet he had given her. Something powerful and archaic that gave the smallest bit of pressure on one's sixth magesense. The Blademage was confident she would know how to handle it, and the item somehow enhanced her dark beauty even further, if that was at all possible. 

At the first mate's question, he looked up from his map at her and gave a satisfied smile. "Even now the soldiers in the brig are talking among themselves." he began. "Some will try to argue against cooperation, but give them a night without food and they'll soften up. Tomorrow at noon, we'll see which of them will accept my offer to join the crew." Outside of the Cabin, a hearty song was being sung by some of the sailors, a cheerful background noise that showed their high spirits. But it didn't give a light heartedness to Markus' next words. "The ones that refuse, I'll kill. Slowly." The last word was said hesitantly. He hated the idea of harming soldiers more than was necessary. 

Markus strode over to the leftside of his room, where he had placed a musket he had gathered from the raid, and where his brace of pistols were harnessed. The Captain unbuckled his sword belt and hooked it around the weapon's rack as he continued, taking off his frock coat to reveal his tunic suntanned and cut arms, hard from years of sailing and swordplay. "You never asked me why we attacked a fort rather than a village. It wasn't my kind heart and soft moral center..." 

"You didn't just want a victory for the men. You wanted able sailors." Calliope reasoned, and Markus gave her a grin to show she had guessed correctly. The man let out a ragged sigh and headed back over to the map, leaning over it and tracing his finger along the searoutes. "We're light on the load, and we have strong crew members... but we need more men to sail the ship or we won't be fast enough to be effective, or make the deadlines I'm hoping for. If we can get the Cannons from the Fort Grimey mentioned in three days, we'll be on schedule. We need at least two more men to join for that to happen. Hopefully three, to help with our new cannons, assuming we get more." 

He studied the map a few more moments, and then gazed up at Calliope once more. "The next few weeks will be bloody." he said, and a primal look bloomed in his eyes, very similar to Calliope's when the rum reminded her of fresh blood. "Go and celebrate while you can, and then get some rest." 
[@Penny]