The Azure Cove... it's good to be home. Xavier thought as his ship pulled into the docks of the pirate hideout.

The cold air stung his exposed skin while saltwater lingered in his nose. Boxes of rare goods from afar lined the floor of his medium-sized boat and more were in the lower deck for storage.

The pirate closed his sails and let the boat drift into one of the spots reserved for ships under his flag. "Ahoy lads!" He waved to the two workers hanging around the dock as he stopped his boat.

The two men sauntered over to the wooden dock and sized up the ship. "'Ey mate this space is reserved for-" As he noticed the flag the first worker shut up.

Xavier jumped off the boat and took off his black button-up coat. It was summer so the weather was warm enough that he could lose the heavy coat. "I see the ole Dockmaster got new workers then. I haven't been gone that long, just over two years." He mused.

"Didn't you have a whole crew?" The other worker asked while the first peered into the boat.

Xavier nodded. "Aye. They'll be back in due time. Now, my friends, I believe my permit for my dock space is still good for another year so if you'd be so kind as to unload the goods on the deck and bring them to the market I'd quite appreciate it." The captain pulled out a sack of gold coins and dumped a few in both mens' hands.

The two workers eagerly climbed aboard the ship and started grabbing the boxes. "Careful with that stuff lads! And don't throw your backs out, take as much time as you need. I'll be at the bar if I'm needed." Xavier slung his coat over his shoulder and walked off.

The summer weather still didn't make things very warm. They weren't called the Isles of Ice for nothing. The Azure Cove was fairly chilly even in this season and got brutal during the winter which made Xavier's ice powers extra useful.

He was dressed in a white long-sleeved button-up shirt, black trousers, a gunsword strapped to his back, and had a black hat with an oval brim partially covering his brown hair.

The rest of his hair spilled out of his hat in every direction which tended to happen after two years of no haircuts.

The cove hadn't changed much over the last two years. Most stalls and shops were still in the same places and it was still bustling with all sorts of people.

The sun still reflected off of the water beautifully and highlighted the crystal clear ocean full of sea-life the cove was famous for. The familiar sound of waves crashing on the shore was enough to make Xavier feel nostalgic.

Xavier walked past a few foreigners and up the hill away from the beach where much of the cove's people lived. The island was made up of sloping land that eventually turned into jungle and a large mountain.

The arms of the island stretched out far on both ends and watchtowers were stationed on both ends to keep an eye on any visitors.

Learning that Kingston hadn't invaded Xavier's safe heaven had been a great relief to him. It likely meant that in his time away, not too much had changed.

Xavier arrived at the tavern he had spent much of his youth in and pushed open the doors inside.

The tavern's interior hadn't changed much at all but Xavier didn't recognize many people inside. Fortunately, he spotted a pair of friends at a table and walked over to them.

"Hello lads, mind if I have a seat?" Xavier asked.

The two pirates were both leaning back in their seats and had already piled up plenty of beer mugs. One of the pirates, Cannonball, looked over at Xavier and shot to his feet.

His usually beet red face turned pale white before he rubbed his eyes with his meaty hands. "Xavier? Is that you?"

The other pirate, Marius, looked over as well and had a similar reaction. Xavier began to laugh while a few other guests at the tavern stared at the group of three. "Yes lads, drink it in. I've returned!"

The two pirates gave him a firm handshake and then sat him down at their table. Xavier ordered a round of beer for the three of them on him.

"I was beginning to think you'd never show yer face again!" Cannonball shouted. "What's the Great Blue like?"

Xavier shrugged. "Not much to see if I'm being honest. Though it's not like we could stop and sightsee anyway. But I'll say this, if you think the archipelago's sea is massive then you don't know what massive really is."

Marius grinned and nudged Xavier's shoulder. "So where's the rest of yer crew? Making them work while you party?" He joked.

"Something like that," Xavier responded. "They're all still out finishing the route I imagine."

Cannonball raised an eyebrow. "Hm? Then how come you're back? And didn't you only have the one ship?"

Xavier nodded. "Indeed, but we managed to commandeer an entire commercial fleet." He let the reveal sink in before continuing. "We had stopped at an island with a bay to resupply and noticed a whole fleet not far away. So I had my crew line out canons all along the bay and created some mist. Then my wind and water mages pushed the ships our way and before they knew what was happening we took out their defenses and had them surrendering."

Cannonball and Marius's mouths were agape like Xavier had just insulted their mothers before the two stirred and started hooting and hollering.

Xavier continued his explanation. "We had so many goods that I sent part of my crew to continue the original mission while I took some stuff back to sell here for a greater profit. The whole operation went as well as it did because apparently magic is different where those ships were from... or foreign at least. I couldn't understand them well and they'd never heard of us or even the Scalliers."

Cannonball and Marius both punched Xavier's arm and congratulated him. "That's an incredible score for your first big journey out of the Isles."

Xavier shrugged. "I've been doing this for five years, it's not that impressive."

"Not that impressive?" Marius repeated with a snicker. "Lad you started your crew at 20, went into uncharted lands for a chance of finding other people to sell goods to, and then captured an entire fleet with no resistance. Very few captains can do that in 30 years."

Xavier put his hands up. "Lads, I got lucky." He repeated. Xavier didn't like the idea of being oversold by his drunken friends. "Had they been better equipped for magic, we wouldn't have gotten the haul we did. I was only trying to pull away one of the ships not the whole fleet after all."

The two pirates dropped the subject and moved onto other topics. "How do you know your crew won't just take your ships and leave?" Cannonball asked.

Xavier chuckled. "Well for starters, I trust my crew. But more than that, the majority of our funds are locked away here in the Isles. And all of them know just how much we could make with all these new ships under my command."

"So what's the plan from here?" Marius asked. "Thinking of retiring?"

Xavier laughed at the prospect. "Certainly not. But assuming we get a good profit from the ships already out there, I'll be able to expand my operations. And in the meantime, I can make a pretty penny doing smuggle work."

Cannonball and Marius eyed each other. "Maybe, maybe not."

Xavier sighed. "What's happened while I was gone?"

"Mostly the same old same old," Marius said. "Clamerates and Kingston seem to be escalating tensions and word is that there'll be another war soon. The Scalliers have been getting more aggressive with pirates but then the Stormcasters went and sunk half their fleet which stopped them for now."

"War again?" Xavier rolled his eyes. The two nations were the largest in the archipelago and had been fighting wars with each other for as long as there was history.

Cannonball nodded. "Great for trade,"

"But terrible for safety." Marius finished.

Xavier finished his first glass of beer and turned order more when he noticed a young blonde walking up to them.

She had distinctly jade eyes and was wearing a red cloak with fire mage symbols on it. A hood covered most of her face but Xavier could see tufts of brown hair poking out and her facial features.

The girl seemed to be around his age or maybe a little younger and held a wooden staff in one hand part of her cloak in the other which she used to try and conceal her face.

Xavier waited for the girl to arrive at their table where she took a deep breath before speaking. "Good day pirates, would any of you be willing to help me get to Kingston?" Her voice was soft but stern and her Kingston accent was apparent in her speech.

Marius and Cannonball began to hysterically laugh and Xavier looked at them questioningly. Marius got control of his laughter first and answered Xavier's unspoken question. "Oh Xavier, that's right you haven't heard. Kingston's gone dark!"

He raised an eyebrow. "Gone dark? What's that supposed to mean?"

"Some sort of mysterious barrier is around the island. Anyone who tries entering is immediately detected and jailed. Lost a few good pirates over the last few weeks before people caught on and stopped traveling to Kingston entirely."

"Curious." Xavier wasn't certain what all that meant. But he looked at the girl and her expression confirmed that what they were saying was somehow true. "So you knew and yet you're asking anyway?"

The girl looked around and clutched her staff tightly. "Please! I need to get home! I'll pay you triple your rate upfront and I can pay you more afterward!"

Xavier raised an eyebrow. "Where are you getting this money from? You look barely a year over 20."

The girl glared at him and leaned in. "Look, I'm part of a noble mage family in Kingston. I assure you I can get you more than you could ever deserve to pilot a boat."

Xavier sighed and looked to his two friends and then back to the girl. "Alright, I'm in."