Last Legacy

Chapter 4

By the end of the next day we made it to Wales.

It was more developed than the last town we stayed in, only because Wales, like the old man said, was a crab port.

I don't think any sane human being would have lived there otherwise.

It was cold, and the air was moist with sea mist and fog, making it feel even colder. The wind blew in from the dark sea as if trying to blow Wales right off it's foundation.

We arrived there in the evening, just as the sun was going down, making it look even more daunting. There was no dazzling sunset like last night. It was too cloudy for that. Instead, the angry looking sky grew steadily darker...and stormier.

Steve and I parked the car at the small local airport and brought all of our luggage down to the dock with us. The airport keeper was more than happy to let us keep the car there, I think because he knew who Steve was, but he didn't say anything. Steve had his iconic, round shield zipped inside it's bag and slung over his shoulder, but the circular shape definitely gave him away.

The sea crashed against the side of the concrete dock as we walked down the row of ships, looking for The Warbonnet. The ships were huge, and stacked full with crab pots. There were ships that looked like oil barges, and ships that looked like old shrimp rigs, but none of them were named The Warbonnet.

We walked passed several people as we made our way down the line of ships. Some gave us unwelcome glares, and some looked at us with confusion. I'm guessing it wasn't often that they got visitors.

"Surely it's here somewhere." Steve said as we neared the end of the dock.

"Yeah." I said, and pointed to the last boat in the lineup. "That one."

The boat was obviously a retired Navy ship of some kind. The neutral grey color gave that away right off the bat. It looked as if it was built to sail through anything nature could throw at it. On the front was a long deck filled with crab pots, and the captain's control room sat farther back, with antennas galore decorating it. The thing was built like a brick, and I had no idea how it floated with all that heavy steel, but hey, I wasn't an engineer. What gave it away as The Warbonnet was the name written on the side, right behind the painting of a Native American chief that was looking out in front of the boat to watch the horizon.

In any other state, they would have been sued for being politically incorrect.

"Oh my gosh." Steve gasped. It was easily the most impressive looking ship in the fleet. "It's a Navy Cruiser."

"That it is." Said a gravely voice behind us. We whipped our heads around to see a scraggy, unkempt younger guy with some gaps in his teeth and shaggy hair. "Can I help you?" He asked, but it didn't sound very inviting. It sounded more like he was asking, 'What do you want?'

"We need to speak with the captain of this ship. I was told his name is Adrian?" I said.

"What about Adrian?"

Steve and I spun around to see who asked the question, and were faced with yet another weathered face. The man was tall, about as tall as Steve and had shaggy brown hair. He had all his teeth, but they appeared yellow from years of tobacco. His nose was big and squarish and his eyes looked tired, like he hadn't slept in a week.

"We need his help. Do you know where we can find him?" Steve asked.

"You found him." He said holding out his hand. "What can I help you with?"

Sometime during our exchange the other guy with bad teeth turned and left, which I was grateful for since there was no one around to hear me when I took his hand and said, "We have to get across the Bering Sea and into Russia. We were told you could help us get there." I told him with a straight face. He pursed his lips and turned deathly serious.