Sea

Now we are ready to head for the horn! Weigh hey, roll and go!

Song rose from the deck of the Eagle as sailors scurried above and below deck, preparing the ship for launch. Her hull was freshly-painted, with golden yellow above the waterline and thick black paint below, and the sails had all been refit and the rigging fixed; instead of old sails, dirtied and damaged from months at sea, the ship was equipped with new sheets of bleached white cloth. The ropes that stretched all across the ship had been tightened and many replaced; the masts and rigging were far more secure than they'd been since the ship had last set sail.

Twilight sat at the bow of the ship, looking out at the eastward ocean. The waves were painted with the cloudy grey of the sky above, and the wind blew hard against her back. One of her legs draped out over the water, while the other was firmly planted against the base of the bowsprit. She listened to the waves, to the singing of the sailors, to the ringing of the ship's bell, and she sighed.

Our boots and our clothes, boys, are all in the pawn, to be rollicking randy dandy oh!

Somerset sat at the desk in the cabin. A large old map lay across the table, depicting Eastedge in its entirety and a small part of the surrounding ocean. A line was carefully drawn from Sunsport, near the eastern edge of the map and around the middle vertically, to Archangel, which sat at the very northernmost point of land on the map, slightly west of the center. He had an abacus on the deck, and had ticked small marks along the route - where he was planning to be at noon of each day.

Heave a pawl, oh, heave away! Way, hey, roll an' go!

Cross sat in a small coffeehouse on the quay, looking at the Eagle. She'd decided she would only come aboard just before the Governor was giving his speech; she didn't want to deal with any undue drama. She had a cup of hot coffee on a table in front of her, and read a fairly new newspaper. She sighed when she read the first headline - 'Governor Confirms Reports of Prophet in Sunsport.' She put the paper down and instead took a look out the window.

A stallion came up behind her with a shy smile. He coughed, getting her attention, and asked if she'd like him to buy a drink. She shook her head, indicating her own coffee. The stallion looked dejected for a moment before turning around and making his way back to a table. Cross returned her gaze to the outside, lost in thought.

The anchor's on board and the cable's all stored,

"That's enough!" the boatswain yelled as another set of barrels of supplies and ammunition were lowered into the deck. Crewmen helped the pallet come down into the open center of the deck, before running to perform other duties. The boatswain signalled to the ponies that were manning the crane to leave their posts, before heading up to the stern deck to more effectively monitor the crew. He blew his whistle, calling the crew's attention. "The governor's going to be here in less than five minutes! Get yourselves presentable and be on your best behavior! I'll be handing out demotions to anyone who so much as steps out of line!"

To be rollicking randy dandy oh!