No Mourners, No Funerals

5.✓

"Let's go inside, shall we?" Inej sweetly asked the little girl and picked her up in her arms.

Instantly the girl wrapped her hands around Inej's neck. A small smile appeared on her face.

"What's your name, sweetie?"

"Nina."

"What a beautiful name! You know, my friend's name is also Nina," Inej told her, smiling brightly as Nina's curvy frame came to her mind.

"Really?" The girl finally looked up with bright eyes. "Where is she?"

At the question, Inej's smile disappeared as Matthias's dead body appeared in front of her eyes.

Wiping off the tear that suddenly threatened to drop, she said, "Far away doing something really important. You know, she is really brave and you'll have to become like her. Okay?"

The little girl nodded her head with excitement. Her huge smile eased off Inej's tension.

"How many friends do you have, captain?"

"Five."

"Back in Ravka, I had eight friends.... "

Inej listened to her tale of Ravka and games with her friends with patience. Sometimes her mind wandered to the past when she had learned rope walking with her dad by her side. She carried Nina to her cabin. The place was small and dark but warmer than the deck. Placing her on a cot, she covered her little frame with a quilt.

She was about to leave when Nina's question halted her steps. "Are we going back to Ravka?"

***

Kwet was informed of her room being available. She quickly collected what little she owned and made her way through the polluted city, towards the Slat.

She attempted to make her room cozy with what she had; a few handmade blankets, a few native carvings, and of course, Idgeka who was busy eating what was left of Kwet's pastry.

"Well, looks like this is our new home," she said as she sat on her bed, incredibly comfy considering she was use to sleeping on a dirt floor.

The falcon let out a high pitched noise that made Kwet's ears ring.

"Quiet, we have neighbors," she scolded.

She glanced around the dreary room. She would need to get a few more things to make it have the illusion of home, but nothing could compare to the warm, deer skin huts of her homeland. She had made a date for her tattoo to be done a few days from now, and she felt excited. She had gotten a tattoo at age five, something traditional from her clan. A small tribal tattoo around her wrist resembling the innocence of childhood. She didn't have the others most girls in her clan would, one for when they officially became women, one for those who turned eighteen, ones for those who married and had children. But now she would never have those beautiful tattoos.

Sybia watched the Slat from her perch on one of the ledges of a building. The sea air tickled her nose.

"How can I gain their trust?" she asked herself.

She had observed Kaz and his crew for awhile now. It was not Kaz's crew she'd want to join though. She hid in the shadows as her target walked beneath, unaware of her presence.

"I will get my revenge on you." She slipped down from her rooftop. "You may not remember me but I will never forget you, Inej Ghafa."

***

As Nina went to sleep, Inej left the cabin and went outside. The little girl's question affected her to the core.

She asked herself, Why can't be go back to Ravka?

If counted wisely, maybe they could reduce the meal per person to ensure that it could last for few more weeks. But that won't be the right thing to do and it was not meals that were a big problem but fresh water and weather. If going to Ravka would mean risking the lives of so many people then it was not an option.

All these questions were running inside her head when someone pulled her out of her thoughts.

"Not sleepy, Captain?"

Inej turned around and saw her second-in-command in a black, buttoned down shirt and slacks.

"Not really. Why are you up though? Anything wrong?"

"No, but I thought I should discuss with you what will happen after we reach Ketterdam. We aren't going to leave them on fifth harbor and start another sail, so what's the plan?"

The question was indeed thoughtful and valid. If they went to Ketterdam, they'll have to leave soon or work according to the preference of the people. That was why she recruited Caiden, for his emotions and skills. He was not much older than Inej, maybe a year or two, but his experience at sea was much more than Inej. Besides, he knew how to hide his emotions well and take decisions that were be best for the situation.

"You are right, but that will depend on the people. If they wish to stay in Ketterdam, I'll not force them to leave."

"Right."

"How much time will it take to reach Ketterdam?" she asked.

"Not more than a week, I guess. You look eager to be there. Is someone waiting for you?"

At his last question she sighed and murmured, "I'm not sure if he is..."