“Oh, I don’t know. I think the sea in the early morn when the sun kisses the horizon contests it all.” I sighed. In that glittering orange cast, when the sun played on the shifting surface, even the finest ships paled in comparison like mundane hunks of wood. So here, too, the city dulled in contrast to the surrounding majesty of the sparkling sea.

Ketner placed his hand on my shoulder. “Your love for the ocean rivals my love for medicine. But does your homeland not meet the same adoration?”

That perhaps was an unfair assessment, as my veneration of each came from a different place inside. “The sea provides for Cava as the heir provides for a king.”

Though its impressive palace might suggest opulence and lazy wealth, the Isle of Cava was first and foremost a successful fishing town. Nearly two thirds of the populace made their living from the ocean’s bounty, which kept the shores lined with schooners, rafts, and fishing boats. While the largest of the ships would journey to the deep sea for their catches of ocean-bound fish, traps for crab and lobster spanned the rocky shoreline. There was even a small profit to be made in oysters and pearl diving amongst the coves and coral reefs. It was a prosperous island, not only for its King but for its people as well.

“Aye, Captain. But the heir is nothing without its ancestry. We are all built from the foundations of our upbringing.” Ketner squeezed my shoulder. “I wonder if your home”—he tapped my heart—“lies within, rather than on land.”

Home had dual meanings to me, and the sea bridged the two. “My heart will always be among my crew on a journey to fulfill the mission started at my birth.”

“And we feel the same, Captain. Our home and our hearts are in tandem with yours.” He dipped his chin, lowering his dark lashes to brush the milky lines below his eyes. Then he moved with haste toward the gangplank.

Across the impressive portside docks, red and gold flags flew high in the clear blue sky. A small crowd gathered to greet us: finely dressed retainers, royal soldiers, and navy men dressed in red and gold uniforms. They filled the boardwalk, stretching over frothy white currents that lapped the beach. Behind us, the ships of the impressive Royal Navy rocked amidst the waves, their sails fluttering regally against their rigs. Anchored out at sea, they protected Cava’s shores from all intruders who might dare cross King Delphi. While the fight against our common enemy kept the four island nations busy, we feared what our neighbors might dare, should they lose too much to the creatures.