Jay sliced blindly with his sword, unable to tell the pirates from his own shipmates. The heavy fog that had settled heavily on them wasn't helping.

Arrald shouted something about the weather to him across the boat.

The boy inched his way closer until he could put his back to Arrald's. "What did you say?"

"They've got a powerful mage onboard!" Arrald yelled. "He's playing with the weather! We need to find out who it is!"

Jay glanced around, trying to use his Sight to track the source of the strangely golden magic, but it appeared to be going into several of the pirates.

"It seems like it's most of them!" He yelled back. Arrald cursed before stabbing at a smaller pirate. The pirate jumped backwards, narrowly avoiding his friend's sword. Jumping up, the little pirate swung himself above their heads. Enhancing his Sight, Jay saw that the pirate had his feet shoved into a crack in the topmast. The fog and recent rain had made the wood slippery, and the pirate clung to the mast like a desperate sailor, which, in a way, he was. Rain began pouring down, stinging Jay's face and making the pirate look like a drowned rat. Jay glanced around. Everyone else seemed to have the fight well in hand. The pirate on the topmast was the only one who wasn't being challenged. Before he could think twice, he sheathed his sword and started scaling the topmast.

It was harder than he'd thought, with the wood fully saturated and himself out of shape. He focused on the rope in his hands, refusing to let himself look down. Jay braced his feet against the wood and lunged up with his hands. He repeated the process.

Jay was almost to where the pirate hung when his foot slipped and his too-loose shoe flew off. For a few petrifying seconds, he was dangling in the air with nothing under his feet. He swung away from the mast, and was just realizing this meant he would swing back and hit it when a rough hand gripped his wrist, halting his progress.

"Brace yourself, boy." The owner of the hand ordered, then Jay was yanked up by the pirate on the mast as lightning cracked nearby.

The pirate deposited him beside the mast, on the pole the sails hung from, and took a step back. Jay knelt and recovered from his fright, not bothering to defend himself from the pirate who stood beside him. If this pirate had wanted him dead, he wouldn't have rescued him.

The rain lessened, until it was just a gentle patter on his back. Shouts of fighting still came from below, but they were quieter, somehow. Everything was subdued, like it was coming from underwater.

The pirate stepped forward, and then stopped. He reached out a hand, and then pulled it tightly against himself. Finally, the pirate knelt beside him and put a cautious hand on Jay's shoulder.

"I guess you haven't climbed in the rain before, huh, boy?"

The gentle words pulled the prince back to himself, to where he was, to the story they would say if pirates attacked. Fear wasn't hard to fake as he stammered, "Please don't hurt me, sir."

The pirate sighed and stood, leaving Jay on his knees. "What's your name, boy?"

Justin. From the Copper Isles. Captured by the others, who would claim they were slave traders. "Justin, Master-" He let his voice trail off into a silent request for the other boy's name.

The pirate let the question slide, instead asking, "Master Justin, where are you from?"

"The Copper Isles, Master…"

Again he ignored Jay's question and asked, "Why are you on a Tortallan ship, Master Justin?"

Jay gave up on finding out the pirate's name. He forced himself to turn red and look down. "They caught me, sir." He mumbled, too low for the pirate to hear.

"Speak up, Master Justin." The pirate had a sarcastic tone to the "Master Justin", but Jay ignored it.

"I'm their slave, sir." He said, louder. "They caught me. Sir."

The pirate studied him for a moment before softening considerably. Was it really that easy to lie to the unSighted? "We won't hurt you, Justin. If I may call you that."

"Of course, sir." Jay said, bowing his head. He would play the part of the grateful slave to save his life, but he hated to be on his knees before this pirate who should be hanging from a rope.

A hand was offered to him, the clear sign of a captor sparing their captive. "I'm Anastasia." He looked up, unable to contain his surprise. This pirate was a girl? But before he could get used to that idea, she added, "Ramone Dominica." Anastasia Ramone Dominica? She was one of the most ruthless pirates around, and the best who'd ever tormented Tortall. Now she was offering him his life? Rather hesitantly, she extended her hand further. "Welcome to the White Death." But she didn't seem so sure of herself.