Ravensblood Forest look the weather in the lee

For @Raleska — THIS WASN'T MEANT TO GET THIS LONG!!

So he would be going at this wild goose chase alone. At first, the pirate thought he had simply been sent to scout ahead, but upon returning to where he had last left his crew he had discovered the flaw in his thinking; he had believed they would stay true to their word. Oh, what a fool he was! Surely he had been running long enough with them now that he knew never to trust a fellow pirate.

Apparently not.

It was their surgeon, Lynford, who had confronted him and told him he was to retrieve the young Alizarin for them. For what purpose, he did not know, but Kingsley had been a fan of the lad; he would have made a great gunner-in-training. A little soft in places, but they could have been hardened had he stuck with them for a few more months. He wasn't exactly a fan of the plan (what happened to being a crew?) but the old mercenary agreed to it, if only out of respect for Lynford.

So he returned to the coast, slightly more than a little pissed but still with a leisurely swagger to his stride. He supposed he wouldn't have to put up with their bullshit for a couple of moons, at the very least, and the search for the little deserter could begin in earnest. Kingsley had veered his path from coast to inland, plunging deep within a forest that echoed with raven calls. A hushed, roughly sung yet somehow jolly shanty joined the chorus as the man stalked the wood, searching for even a hint of Alizarin's whereabouts.