"All set," he said.

They made their way up, to find Brother Cyric already present, fully armed and armoured.

Athgar marvelled at the Temple Knight's mail. "Impressive armour, Cyric," he said.

"Thank you," said the Temple Knight, "though to be honest, it's quite archaic."

"Archaic?" said Athgar. "Why would you say that?"

"Full plate armour is all the rage these days."

"Then I'm surprised that's not what you’re wearing," stated Natalia.

"My order wears chainmail to symbolize its humility," the brother said, "but the other orders all wear plate." Cyric turned to the captain, "What do you see, Harnen?"

"Two galleys," the man responded. "Now that they're closer, we've a better idea of what we're up against. They're ahead of us, on an intercept course."

"Can we outrun them?" asked Cyric.

"'Fraid not," said Runell. "Their rowing is faster than our Water Mage's spell, but it will take some time for them to get close enough to threaten us."

"How will they attack?" asked Athgar.

"If you look closely at their ships," said Runell, "you'll see a ballista mounted on each of their foredecks. They'll likely fire a grappling hook at us when they're close enough, then winch us in tight to them. Once they've done that, it'll be hand to hand. They'll want the ship intact so they can make off with its cargo."

"What is our cargo?" asked Natalia.

"Aside from you," said the captain, "just grain intended for the Temple Knights' horses in Corassus."

"Meagre pickings for pirates," mused Athgar.

"Hey now," said Natalia, "I resent that."

"Well," corrected the Therengian, "aside from you, there's little of value."

"Thank you, that's much better," she added.

"You've sailed these waters before, Harnen," said Cyric. "What kind of numbers are you expecting?"

In answer, Captain Runell looked to the enemy vessels that were drawing closer. "I would think no more than two dozen per ship, each eager for plunder."

"I would have said more," offered Athgar. "It must take close to a hundred men just to crew those oars."

"More like fifty," said Cyric, "but they'll be slaves, not pirates. These ships are not unlike those of the Temple fleet in Corassus."

"Are you suggesting they've captured church ships?" asked Natalia.

"No," said Cyric, "but the design is similar. In the temple fleet, each oar is manned by a Temple Knight. Be thankful that is not the case here."

"How are you at fighting?" asked Harnen, looking to Brother Cyric.

"I'm a Temple Knight," he responded, "trained to fight."

"And you?" asked the captain, looking at Athgar.

"I was trained in the Fyrd," the Therengian replied.

"What's a Fyrd?" asked Runell.

"A local militia," Athgar replied. "It dates back to the last years of Therengia. Every man and woman of age had to train in axe and spear. It's a tradition that was handed down to us. How about your own men?"