Let us take our leave of Risha, Leorin and all their friends, for awhile. In fact, let us take leave of the Eastern Continent altogether and instead return to Vinoli to spend some time with the male part of their parental unit.
After they had finished their meal, Jeraddin and Flora had returned home. There, the General had changed into civilian clothes and went out on town.
"It's possible that I won't return until late" he had told his maid. "If so, I'll let myself in. You don't have to wait up for my sake."
"Understood, General. Have a nice walk."
As he walked down the streets of the capital, Jeraddin thought of his children; wondering where they were now and what they were doing? He also wondered if their paths have crossed? If so, he hoped that his daughter had told his son about their meeting in Guanaca.
Jeraddin made a brief stop to gaze at the new arena, on which construction had begun shortly before he had left the capital. From the looks of it, it seemed as if the workers had come a long way already. Outside the construction site, there was a sign, upon which the following message had been written:
Barring any unforeseen circumstances, this structure will be available for public use next year.
-Ursula (Royal Architect).
Leaving the arena behind, Jeraddin continued on his way. His wandering, done without a destination in mind, soon led him to the largest of the capital's three squares, the one which was dominated by a statue of the Queen, standing at a height of twelve meters (or, if you prefer, 39 feet and 4 inches).
As usual, the square at this time, was filled with people. At the base of the statue, a small group had gathered. They spoke casually, one of them had an unlit pipe in his mouth, which he sometimes removed to make a point.
Jeraddin dropped a few coins into the hat of a nearby street musician, and proceeded to stroll among the stalls, where the street vendors were busy hawking their wares. At one of the stalls, a raccoon wearing a checkered coat was selling busts. As Jeraddin's eyes swept over the shelves, he caught his own likeness staring down at him.
"Ah, Sir" said the raccoon, in an accent made it clear that he came from Vinoli's southern regions. "I see that you are a person of person with an eye for the finer things, no? These are busts of the most highest qualities, depicting important Vinolian personages. Here, have a look at these one."
He took down one of the busts and placed it on the counter.
"Bust of famous General Jeraddin, only twenty-five bronze coins." The Raccoon paused in his sales-pitch and leaned forward, studying his potential customer inquisitively.
"Sa-aay" he said, wagging his index-finger. "You look-a quite like these fella here, yes?"
"So I've been told" Jeraddin said, wryly, "but I have no need for a bust of my...of the General at the moment, I'm afraid."
"In that-a case, how about-a one of-a Her Majesty, instead?" Said the raccoon, gesturing towards one of the busts of Argath. Of course, its-a bit more expensive: Fifty bronze-coins."
Why does Argath's homely mug cost twice as much as mine? Jeraddin thought, somewhat piqued by this information.
He was just about to tell the raccoon that he had no need for any busts, when an idea struck him.
"I'll take one of the Queen" he said and put the required sum down on the counter.
"An excellent choice!" Beamed the raccoon. "Would-a you like to have it delivered to your door?"
"No, I'll take it with me."
"As-a you wish. Have-a good day."
*****
When Jeraddin had first bought the bust, his intention had been to carry it down to the harbor and there, either smash it against the ground, or watch it disappear into the salty depths.
Now that he had reached his destination though, he was beginning to have second thoughts. True, doing one of the above things would bring some satisfaction, but it would be fleeting. Instead, the lynx decided that he would remove the top of the bust and use it as a waste-basket, or an ashtray. Yes, that was more like it.
Besides, Jeraddin thought, filling its head with trash will make the bust's resemblance to its model even stronger.
It had been quite a long walk from the square to the harbor and Jeraddin was beginning to feel parched. To remedy this, he headed for one of the many taverns found in the area.
The Tavern was devoid of customers. Jeraddin went up to the bar, where a gorilla was busy polishing a glass.
"Slow day?" He asked, putting the bust down on the counter.
"Somewhat, though most of my clientele don't show up until evening" replied the gorilla. "What's your poison?"
"Beer, dark."
"You're him, aren't you?" The Gorilla asked, while Jeraddin quenched his thirst. "The General?"
Jeraddin finished his beer.
"Afraid so" he said, wiping the lingering foam from his mouth with the back of his paw.
"I met a girl once who looked a lot like you" said the gorilla, as he went back to polishing glass.
Jeraddin's ears perked up. He was just about to ask the gorilla to tell him more, when the tavern doors swung open and a mastiff and a weasel, both dressed in the city-guard's uniform, stepped inside and marched authoritatively up to the bar.
"Welcome, officers" said the gorilla. "How can I be of service?"
"We've received information that the decor of this establishment does not comply with the standard law of patriotism" barked the mastiff, putting his thumbs in his belt.
"In other words" said the weasel, "there is no tribute to our beloved head of state anywhere in this place.
"Which means a fine of one gold and three silver. Or one-thousand, three-hundred bronze."
The Gorilla turned pale.
"O-one thousand, three-hundred" he stuttered. "What if I don't have that kind of money on me?"
"In that case, you would have to come with us, Sir" replied the mastiff. "Are we to assume that you can't pay the fine?"
Jeraddin had been listening to the words of the two guards with growing distaste. He decided that the time had come for him to intervene.
"If I were you officers, I would not be so hasty in carrying out my duty" he said, in a casual tone of voice.
For the first time since entering the tavern did the mastiff and the weasel become aware that there was another person in there. They both turned towards the speaker, the weasel looked as if he was about to tell him to mind his own business, but the mastiff stopped him by grabbing his elbow and giving him a cautionary look.
"What do you mean?" He asked gruffly. "General" he added, having recognized the person he was addressing.
"I advise you to take a look at this" Jeraddin replied, indicating the bust.
The Two guards stared at it and, although his face showed nothing, Jeraddin could not help but smile inwardly at how deflated they looked. As if their authority had just leaked out of them. The Mastiff was the first to gather his bearings.
"Our apologies" he muttered stiffly to the gorilla. "It seems as though we were misinformed. Good day." He touched the rim of his helmet. "General".
Once the two guards had left, with as much dignity as they could muster, the gorilla expressed his gratitude.
"You really saved my hide." He filled another tankard of ale and put it down in front of Jeraddin. "Here, this one's on the house."
"Tell me about this girl" said Jeraddin.
"She was in the company of two others; a boy and another girl. The Boy was a cat, with black-fur. Funny, I can't recall what the other girl looked like. Anyway, she asked me if I knew where they could find a ship that took passengers."
"And were you able to help them?" Jeraddin asked. Though he already knew the answer.
The Gorilla nodded.
"There's this tiger, goes by the name Cerewan. He helps people who need to get out of Vinoli. One of his crew was here that day, so I introduced them to each other."
"This Cerewan, is he in town at the moment?"
"His ship's in the harbor, so I'd hazard a 'yes'."
"Are he and his crew regulars here?"
"They are regulars at every tavern in the harbor. They like to spread their money around."
"I see."
Jeraddin raised his second beer to his lips and drained it.
"You wouldn't mind telling me the name of Cerewan's ship?" He asked casually, while twirling the empty tankard in his paws.
"I don't see what harm that could do. Its called 'the Maelstrom'."
"Thank you, you've been very helpful. Well, time for me to be on my way."
"Don't forget your thing, General" said the gorilla, pointing at the bust.
Jeraddin looked at his intended wastebasket/ashtray with disinterest.
"Keep it" he said, as he walked out the door. "It is evident that you have more need of it than I do."
******
As the sun began its descent, the denizens of the harbor flocked to its many taverns and brothels, with the Crew of the Maelstrom being no exception. Concealed in the shadows, Jeraddin watched them leave their ship. As they unknowingly passed him by, Jeraddin got his first look at Cerewan. So, this was the fiend who had robbed his little girl of her freedom. The Lynx's body tensed up and a low growl rose up from his throat. How he wanted to pounce on Cerewan and tear the out the tiger's throat with his teeth.
No, calm yourself Jeraddin. Attacking Cerewan openly would only lead to trouble for you. There are other ways to bring an enemy down.
Forcing himself to relax, Jeraddin waited until the crew had entered one of the establishments. Then, he stealthily approached the ship.
