One look at the arms and surcoats of the two knights warned away potential predators that whatever profit might be squeezed from them in the slave pens, it wouldn’t be worth the trouble. Sandreena got that third look, for despite the dark circles of fatigue under her eyes, road dirt, sweat, and filthy hair, her face was still beautiful. Still, she was armed and any Knight-Adamant of the Order of the Shield of the Weak would offer far better than she received in a melee. The other Knight and the dwarf would instantly be dismissed as far more trouble than they were worth. So the three proceeded through the city untroubled.

Sandreena pulled up before a stable near the docks and found the owner. A quick round of haggling got her enough gold to buy a boat. No boat owner in Durban would take anyone to Sorcerer’s Isle, no matter what the price, so she knew they were on their own.

A quick stop in an inn for food, then they took possession of their craft. The boat was small, less than twenty feet, and should they encounter bad weather on their journey, it could mean a watery end. So Sandreena mustered up her meager sailing skills, and said a prayer to the Goddess, and they departed.

Sandreena had one gift at sea—she knew how to read the stars, and she had no doubt she could find Sorcerer’s Isle. She dead reckoned her first day, going north by northeast, and would adjust that night. Farson and Keandar were both ignorant of boats and got a swift instruction in what she needed for this little craft. It would be cramped and uncomfortable and there would be no privacy, but they had had none on the road, so they were used to one another.

Little was said. They were all exhausted and Sandreena had gleaned all she could from Keandar with questions while they walked their horses or let them rest. None of them had slept for the last two days, and only one night’s rest in the last four had been granted.

From what Keandar had told Sandreena, along with what she had seen, she knew this discovery was far beyond her ability to judge. Nothing she observed, nothing he had told her, made sense in any fashion, and right now she felt a driving need to bring order from this chaos.