The trip to the Dark Continent began with drama.
Not monsters.
Not storms.
Not ancient curses.
Wardrobes.
Bunny and Nyxian packed as if they were relocating permanently to another civilization.
Not exploring.
Not scouting.
Moving.
Bunny brought dresses, casual outfits, festival outfits, backup festival outfits, sleepwear, swimwear, emergency swimwear, and a collection of accessories that required three separate trunks.
Nyxian was worse.
She insisted that a succubus visiting the ancestral homeland of demonkind had to be "properly presented."
Apparently, proper presentation required six gothic dresses, twelve pairs of boots, five corsets, three travel cloaks, four makeup kits, and one trunk labeled:
Emergency Seduction Options.
Jax stared at the trunk.
Nyxian stared back.
"You never know."
Jax decided not to ask.
The packing situation became so extreme that Llandra had to step in and remind everyone that they were traveling by ship, not conquering a continent through fashion superiority.
Bunny blinked.
"Can't we do both?"
Nyxian nodded thoughtfully.
"That is a valid strategy."
Jax sighed.
The Horizon had not even left port yet, and he already needed a drink.
Unfortunately, that led to the second disaster.
Nyxian discovered that the Pixie Mead and Fairy Cider had been stored in the trade hold.
For trading.
Not consumption.
She reacted as if Jax had personally betrayed the foundations of marriage.
"You packed it where?"
"The trade hold."
Nyxian's eyes narrowed.
"As cargo?"
"Yes."
"Not as emergency wife stabilization supplies?"
Jax stared.
"That is not what that means."
"It is exactly what it means."
Pixelle agreed immediately.
"She's right."
Lexi nodded as well.
"It would be irresponsible to travel without morale supplies."
"It is literally on the ship," Jax argued.
"In storage!" Nyxian snapped.
"Accessible storage!"
"Not emotionally accessible!"
The debate lasted nearly an hour.
Jax lost.
Several kegs of Pixie Mead and Fairy Cider were moved into the Vixens' dimensional quarters.
Only then did the voyage officially begin.
The Horizon glided out of Oceanside like royalty taking to the sea.
It was more than a ship.
More than a luxury vessel.
It was practically a small cruise liner.
Four decks of polished wood and enchanted reinforcement.
Dimensional living quarters.
A full kitchen.
A stocked lounge.
Private baths.
Emergency flotation enchantments.
Crew quarters nicer than most inns.
And enough food, drink, supplies, books, weapons, and personal nonsense to survive a minor apocalypse.
The first week passed without issue.
Which meant the Vixens treated the journey like a vacation.
Bunny sunbathed.
Nyxian day-drank.
Pixelle held court from a tiny cushioned throne someone had definitely made for her without Jax's approval.
Lexi read novels in full-sized form while occasionally pretending she was not enjoying the ocean breeze.
Llandra spent most mornings reviewing route maps with Jax before eventually being dragged into relaxation by the others.
Zee called it "forced wellness."
Jax called it "organized laziness."
Nyxian called it "marriage maintenance."
By the second week, however, the ocean changed.
The waters grew darker.
The currents became strange.
Old navigation maps copied from Adam Lightbringer's records led them toward a region marked only by a faded warning.
Devil's Pools.
At first, it seemed like a name meant to frighten sailors.
Then the whirlpools appeared.
Massive spirals churned across the sea ahead, dragging foam and debris into dark centers that looked far too deep to be natural.
The Horizon was large.
Too large.
Even with enchanted reinforcement, navigating through that maze would be dangerous.
Then came the second problem.
Three ships appeared behind them.
At first, they were distant shapes on the horizon.
Then they gained ground.
Miles became hundreds of yards.
Hundreds became fifty.
The crew became nervous.
Then terrified.
A cannon fired.
The shot struck the water ahead of the Horizon, throwing up a violent spray.
Warning shot.
Someone on deck shouted the word everyone was thinking.
"Pirates!"
The crew panicked.
Some grabbed ropes.
Others ran to secure cargo.
One young sailor looked ready to cry.
Jax stood at the bow, calm as ever.
He saw danger.
But more importantly—
He saw opportunity.
"Stop the ship."
The captain stared at him.
"My lord?"
"Don't try to outrun them. Let them come."
The crew obeyed, though not happily.
One sailor swallowed hard.
"Should we raise a white flag?"
Jax turned slowly.
He looked at the man as if he had just suggested adding bull dung as a dessert topping.
"No."
The sailor wisely stopped talking.
The three pirate ships approached.
They were smaller than the Horizon, but elegant.
Sleek hulls.
Fast sails.
Sharp angles.
Built for speed and maneuvering, especially around treacherous waters like the Devil's Pools.
Boarding hooks were fired.
Planks dropped.
The pirates came aboard.
A mix of sea folk and hardened sailors flooded the deck.
One captain had the head of a shark, broad shoulders, and rows of teeth that looked designed specifically to ruin someone's afternoon.
Another had squid-like lower limbs and wore tiny spectacles over tired eyes, as if piracy were merely a deeply inconvenient accounting job.
Then the third captain stepped aboard.
And the air shifted.
She had crimson-red hair, wild and wind-tossed beneath a black pirate hat.
Her tight corset, long coat, flintlock pistol, and curved sword made her look like she had stepped out of a legend.
Or several wanted posters.
Her boots hit the deck with theatrical confidence.
"Well, slap me sideways with a barnacle-brained kelp donkey," she announced. "What do we have here?"
Several crew members visibly recoiled.
She grinned.
"A bunch of land-loving, squid-legged, soft-bellied puddle sniffers stuck near the Devil's Pools?"
The shark captain laughed.
The squid captain adjusted his spectacles.
The Vixens were less impressed.
Llandra looked mildly annoyed.
Zee looked disappointed that her book had been interrupted.
Lexi marked her page with a sigh.
Bunny wandered past Jax, found a lounge chair, laid down, and put on sunglasses.
Nyxian and Pixelle were not involved at all.
Both were passed out drunk while sunbathing.
The pirate woman noticed the lack of fear immediately.
That was unusual.
People ran.
People begged.
People drew weapons.
People screamed.
These people looked bored.
Still, she pressed on.
"I am Emberlyn Stormtide, Siren of the Seas. You are trespassing in our waters. There's a toll."
Jax smiled.
"And what is the going rate for trade through the free depths of the ocean?"
Emberlyn's grin widened.
"Everything."
She stepped closer, pistol angled lazily toward him.
"You give us your cargo, valuables, maps, luxury goods, and anything else that sparkles. Then we let you crawl home alive."
Jax remained perfectly calm.
"And if that price is too high, are you willing to negotiate?"
Emberlyn tilted her head.
"Are your lives not worth more than your goods?"
The tone was meant to chill blood.
It did not work.
Bunny yawned.
Llandra rolled her eyes and walked toward the drink station.
"Let us know if you want help sinking their ships and killing their crew, Jax."
Lexi and Zee simply walked past two pirates, retrieved their books, and resumed reading.
Emberlyn stared.
The shark captain frowned.
The squid captain leaned closer to Emberlyn.
"Did she just call him Jax?"
Emberlyn's smile faltered.
"What?"
The squid captain adjusted his spectacles again.
"The man. She called him Jax."
Emberlyn looked more carefully.
Blondish-brown hair.
Confident posture.
Ridiculously calm.
A group of beautiful women treating pirates like a minor inconvenience.
One bunny girl with blue hair.
One green-haired healer.
One blonde elf.
One fairy in full-sized form.
One red-haired succubus currently sleeping off Pixie Mead.
The realization hit her like a cannonball.
"Oh, salt-crusted shark droppings."
She was trying to rob Jax Darquebane.
Hero of Solmere.
Founder of the United Kingdoms.
Dragon slayer.
Liberator of slaves.
The man who had ended the Empire.
Suddenly, the Vixens' indifference made perfect sense.
Emberlyn pivoted instantly.
"Well," she said loudly, holstering her pistol with forced casualness, "this hunk of floating drift junk isn't worth our time."
The crew of the Horizon collectively gasped in offense.
The ship was magnificent.
Emberlyn kept going.
"We'll let you off with a warning."
The shark captain blinked.
"Are we not robbing them?"
Emberlyn's eye twitched.
"No."
"But they have a luxury ship."
"No value."
"And cargo."
"Terrible cargo."
"And probably money."
"Awful money."
The shark captain frowned harder.
"But this ship is clearly expensive."
Emberlyn turned slowly.
Her smile became dangerous.
"Captain Ruktooth, I need you to use the small fish rattling around inside your skull and stop talking."
Ruktooth did not understand the hint.
"But our ships can navigate the Devil's Pools. Theirs can't."
Jax's smile widened.
Emberlyn closed her eyes.
The squid captain whispered, "Oh dear."
Jax stepped forward.
"But yours can?"
Ruktooth puffed up proudly.
"Of course ours can!"
Emberlyn looked like she wanted to throw him overboard.
Jax reached into his inventory.
Peacemaker appeared in his hand.
The massive double-bladed dragon sword caught the sunlight as he twirled it effortlessly between his fingers.
Every pirate on deck took a step back.
Even Ruktooth.
Jax rested the blade against his shoulder.
"I think," he said pleasantly, "we should reevaluate the terms of your surrender."