Lea's Liberation

Down the Coast

Down the Coast

After another four days, Lea was feeling a great deal better. She no longer needed to be kept drowned in medication and her arm was finally starting to properly heal. It would take some time yet for the wound to completely seal, but it was no longer festering and that relief would finally give it the chance to do so. She was still tired and worn down, but she wasn't incapable of walking by herself for any appreciable distance any longer.

Addie finally agreed that she was well enough to travel and, with her permission – this was technically her mission, putting Lea beneath her in the chain of command – Lea asked Colette for a ship to be prepared for them. Nothing too large or obvious. She didn't want to make a spectacle of themselves as they went down the coast.

Mostly for Emilien's sake. He was a high ranking officer of the Gascony army, and injured and retired soldiers had a decent chance of recognizing him. Since his majesty hadn't technically forgiven Emilien of his crimes – which would have required Emilien to be there in person – the chances were high that he would be treated as a prisoner. Lea could force them to treat him well, but if the people became angry and mobbed him, he could be hurt or killed before Lea or Addie could stop them. Hurt feelings weren't easily tamed or soothed.

Colette, who still didn't recognize Emilien, since he never lied about his name or position amongst them, her eyes didn't see him as anything more than what he claimed, didn't quite understand their need for such subtlety, but Nicolas did. He was happy that Emilien was going to be out of his city and was only too eager to prepare a ship for them.

After some discussion, it was decided that they would forgo a crew as well. All three of them could pilot a simple airship and would therefore take turns doing so. Since they would, essentially, be town hopping down the coast, they didn't need a full crew.

The small ship – which had a single room with two bunks below deck – was loaded with plenty of water and rations. Colette provided them some basic weapons in case they needed to protect themselves as well as a few changes of clothes.

Once everything was ready, Lea was escorted down from her room. She was offered the chair since the descent from the manor to the docks was quite a bit further than the short walks she had been taking down the halls and gardens of the estate. However, she declined it with confidence. She felt better than she had in a long time and the walk wasn't a difficult one for her.

Colette and Nicolas were down by the ship, waiting for her. Addie had already arrived and was making herself familiar with the controls and the ship like a child unwrapping a new toy.

As Lea approached, feeling good from the small workout, Colette beamed at her.

"What do you think?" She asked, gesturing to the boat. "Cute, isn't it?"

"Adorable," Lea said, more just to agree with her than because she thought the boat so appealing. "Are we all ready to go?"

"Just waiting for one more," Nicolas said, looking past her, back up the road.

Lea turned to look back and wasn't surprised to see Emilien walking their way, escorted by a pair of guards. They hadn't left him alone once in his stay here.

Upon catching sight of him, Lea's heart immediately started pounding and she had to quickly avert her eyes. Not quick enough to avoiding catching his gaze or seeing the way he grinned at her. Her reaction to him was hardly subtle. She could just imagine what he thought.

Emilien nodded at Nicolas, bowed his head to Colette, then smiled at Lea, before continuing up onto the ship with Addie. She was waiting for him and was eager to show him around, as though the boat had been hers for years rather than minutes.