As the crew prepared to set sail, Silius the navigator had a few things to say first.

Everyone was already in their positions. He was stood at the helm of the ship, next to Dawn, who was by the wheel, ready to steer.

"Until I awaken this Sailor System, we will have to use the standard methods of navigation to avoid navy bases. We float around the sea until then, and once enough of us has gained these powers, we use Rose’s father’s hat to guide us to the nearest island, but only if it’s safe. Is everybody fine with that?"

Silius looked around at the crew members scattered across the deck.

"Aye!" they grunted.

The noise was like music to Roseus’s ears.

He was stood on the quarterdeck, overlooking all of his crewmates beneath him.

They had decided to call themselves the Redflower Pirates. He had no complaints.

"Alright then," he roared, loud and proud. "Let’s set sail!"

The ropes binding the ship to the pier were loosened and thrown free, slapping wetly against the deck. Kruger pushed off the damp rock wall with a long pole, forcing the ship away from the pier.

"Careful... if we crash into the cave walls, our journey is over before it even started," Silius muttered.

Dora turned the wheel slowly. The ship responded sluggishly at first, drifting sideways with the pull of the tide.

The ship scraped close to the cave wall, but just barely managed to miss it before slipping free into deeper water.

"Now! Catch the current!" Silius shouted.

Jackson, who was a young man in charge of the sails, unfurled them with a heavy snap. The sails immediately caught the wind that rushed around the cave, causing the ship to lurch forward.

Gradually, it gained enough momentum to carry them toward the cave’s narrow exit.

The darkness began to thin. Ahead, the mouth of the cave came closer.

For a moment, the tide fought against their ship, dragging at it as if trying to keep them inside the cave.

But eventually, they broke through.

The ship surged out into the open sea. The vast stretch of the First Ocean was now before them.

Roseus couldn’t believe it. He looked up at the night sky, and then down at the tides as their small ship began to sail across the gentle waves.

Down on the deck, he saw his crewmates playing their parts. Those who didn’t have tasks to do stood on the deck, watching the seas, specifically Adriana, who carried a rifle and aimed it out towards anything that she might end up seeing.

This is it. We are actually sailing.

Roseus turned back with his hat in hand and looked towards the distant shores. He lifted his spyglass to his eye and saw his house in the distance, resting atop the hill that he had been pushed from by his mother only days before.

His body still felt sore, but he didn’t even think about it at the moment.

Just as he was about to put his spyglass away, he thought that he could see a group of people huddled around his house.

They were too far away for him to make out any faces, but it wouldn’t have mattered. His mother had no friends, so there was no way they would be people that he recognised.

Not by their faces, anyway. Though he recognised their colours.

White and gold.

Roseus put his spyglass away and cursed. "Shit!"

Dawn turned and looked up at him, keeping a hand on the wheel. Her face was filled with worry.

"Captain, what’s wrong?" she called out over the noise of the waves.

She had drawn the attention of the other crew members, and they were now all looking at him.

Roseus didn’t want to worry them, but at the same time, he didn’t want to lie. Transparency was part of making a good crew.

He clenched his fists with anger.

"My mother’s called the navy. If I had to guess, my brother’s there. She will tell them that we’re setting sail tonight."

The words hit the crew hard.

"Shit!" Kruger swore. "Our only benefit in sailing from the BlackRock Pier at night was its secrecy. If we end up being chased anyway, then..."

He didn’t need to finish for Roseus to know what he was implying. Their attempt to set sail was hopeless.

"The rumours are true..." Lucas One-Hand suddenly spoke. "The navy make it easier for pirates to set sail so that they can lure us out and execute anyone with ambitions!"

There was fear in the orphan’s voice, so Roseus wanted nothing to do with it, not at the moment, not whilst he was thinking.

He rubbed at his chin and thought over their options. Should they turn back to the pier and set sail another day?

No... the moment they touched the seas, they had been marked as criminals. Each of them would have a bounty, even if it was only worth a few coins.

Does that mean our only choice is to keep sailing?

That idea came with many problems. Everybody knew that navy ships were partially steam-powered, allowing them to travel faster. Pirates preferred to rely on the Sailor System to speed up their ships, as they had no access to coal when out in the seas, unlike the navy, who remained close to land.

As he went over these things in his head, a deep groaning sound came, seeming to rise from the greatest depths of the ocean.

Startled, he looked around. No one else seemed to be reacting.

Wondering if the sound was just in his mind, he waited for a few moments. Then, it came again, this time even louder, like it was getting closer with every passing moment.

Roseus felt a rumble through his body. It attacked his bones and spirit, forcing him to drop to the floor. He wanted to clutch at where the pain was, but he couldn’t. It was everywhere.

He heard footsteps hurrying across the deck and travelling towards him, but he couldn’t focus on whoever it was.

The deep rumble came again, but this time, it was intelligible.

Roseus could make out what exactly the groaning was.

Words, and they were followed by a question entering his mind directly.

[Sea God ’Nammon’ Reaches out to you. Will You Answer His Call?]