The setting sun has gone down, and the night has swallowed up the glimmer of light. The sea was endless, and the distant outline of the south was lost in the rising darkness. From dusk to night, the fighting and shouting disappeared, but the only thing that remained unchanged was the mighty sea breeze, which continued from east to west without stopping.
"Huh!...Huh!..."
The east wind filled the sails and made them creak and sway. The two long ships, covered with traces of battle, were swaying and flying towards the west.
The wind was very strong, so the torch was lit at the bow of the boat, and several people were protecting it in the middle, so that the fire could barely stay. The figures on the boat swayed, bandaging each other's wounds, and then collapsed on the deck in silence. Everyone was like jellyfish that had lost their strength, blowing bubbles silently, and could not even hear the sound of breathing.
The old militiaman Chihuaco stood silently on the bow of the boat, motionless, like an old wooden wither. He stared at the dark night, covering the lightless sea. The fire behind him went down from the deck to the depths of the cabin, then reappeared a moment later until it returned to him.
"Captain Qi..."
Hearing this call, the old militiaman trembled, and his face finally became more angry. He stretched out his red palms and covered them above his eyes, as if to block the dazzling firelight. He has always liked the light, but at this moment, the darkness will be more tolerant to him.
"How about it?"
The voice of the old militiaman was a little hoarse, maybe because he was too tired, or maybe he hurt his throat by shouting too much. And the trembling in the voice seemed to be fearing something.
"There are... twenty-nine people left on the flagship. Fourteen are slightly injured and seven are seriously injured. They are all bandaged as much as possible..."
Hearing this, the old militiaman pursed his lips and said nothing, but his fingers couldn't stop shaking. He had forty-two men on board before the afternoon breakout began. There are more than one hundred and sixty people in the entire fleet. And now...
The old militiaman raised his head and looked at the sea behind him. There, another longship that broke through also raised its sails and tried hard to follow the flagship.
"How are they?"
"It should be about the same as us. As for the specific number...you have to wait and ask with a flag during the day. Or, you can stop the ship now..."
"Can't stop! Keep driving."
The old militiaman shook his head. He stared at the dull sea, feeling the increasingly strong wind, and gritted his teeth.
"The storm is behind us, chasing us...and there is not much food on the ship..."
"Yeah. I saw it, and it's enough for three days... The good news is that at the current ship speed, three days is enough for us to cross the hostile Totonac coast!"
Hearing this, the old militiaman raised his head and glanced at the torch for the first time. Under the dim and swaying torch, his eyes were a little cloudy and red. He stared at it slowly for a while, looking at the flickering firelight, and nodded slowly.
"You are right, Mecat... I should have made a decision earlier and let the fleet enter the deep sea..."
“Lord God bless us!…”
Priest Mecat held the torch, carefully shielding it from the wind. He prayed quietly before sighing.
"Captain Chihuaco, you have done a great job! ... No one would have thought before this afternoon ... that the Totonacs would gather such a fleet and bring so many warriors with them. They had no warning, not even Without hesitation, he pounced directly on us...like...like a poisonous snake that had been waiting for a long time and had already taken aim..."
"Venomous snake..."
The old militiaman pursed his lips, lowered his head, and chewed on the word. After a while, he spoke again.
"Are the... people in the cabin... okay?"
"Yes. None of the four children were injured. When I went down just now, Didan was still confused and asked me where my grandpa had gone..."
"What did you say?"
"I told her, don't worry. Grandpa will take good care of them...always take care of them..."
Hearing this, the old militiaman stretched out his hand, slowly pressed it on his heart, and breathed heavily for a while. His eyes gradually became clearer and deeper, just like the sea at this moment. He stared silently at the Mecat priest in front of him, who also looked at him. And the flickering torch was right on their chests, illuminating half of their faces and leaving the other half in the shadows.
"Meikat..."
"Captain Qi?"
"I want to ask you a question."
"You ask."
"This afternoon, before the breakout...why did you force Ti Carlo to die? Do you really...don't believe him?"
The old militiaman's voice was soft and hoarse. Priest Mecat raised his brows and glanced at the dark sky, but saw no stars that could be used to navigate. He looked at him in silence for a while before replying equally softly.
"For the kingdom..."
"For the kingdom?"
"Yes. Tikalo, he is uncontrollable."
"Can not control?"
"Um."
Mercat nodded and explained calmly, with a faint and rare killing intent in his voice.
"He knows King Avit and has always wanted to send the Mayapan royal family's hostages to the capital city in the lake... But the place where these two children really should go... is the capital city of Qincongcan... They belong to the kingdom! Not the alliance. "
"..."
Hearing this cold answer, the old militiaman Chihuaco pursed his lips and didn't speak for a long time. He just stared at the magnanimous Priest Mekart with deep eyes, looking at him in silence for a long time, as if he recognized him for the first time.
Finally, the old militiaman Chihuaco shook his head, looked at the Mecat priest in the shadow, and sighed softly.
"Perhaps you are right... His Majesty should hand over the fleet to you..."
"No."
Priest Mecat also shook his head. He raised the torch, looked at Chihuaco in the firelight, and answered sincerely.
"The Lord God witnesses! Captain Qi, you are the best captain!..."
The wind became stronger. After just a few breaths, the torch held high was blown out by the howling east wind, and the conversation ended there. The two people on the bow stood in the darkness, looking side by side at the lightless sea and the unknown road ahead.
Behind them, a deep storm capsized on the sea, pursuing them turbulently at a speed faster than a long ship!
"O Lord God! May you protect us and survive the storm!..."
The speed of the storm was very fast. There was no sunshine in the early morning of the next day, only the strong wind rolling up the waves and the falling raindrops. As soon as everyone on the boat shouted out their devout prayers, they were swallowed up by the sweeping wind and rain. The two broken long ships were like toys in the hands of Poseidon, rocking and undulating in the violent waves, unable to control themselves at all.
However, Poseidon's moods and anger are always unpredictable, like a fickle child. She made waves, played with the wooden toy for a while, and then threw it to the west. After a long time, her interest came back, so she picked up the wooden boat again, rotated it, played with it casually for a while, and then threw it out again.
"Lord God! No! Don't!..."
This casual play lasted for three full days! Until everyone on the flagship screamed in panic, watching the other longship behind them completely disintegrate in the storm, turning into pieces of wood and people sinking to the bottom of the sea one by one. Then, a big wave several meters high hit, and all traces disappeared in an instant!
It was only then that Poseidon seemed a little tired of playing. She turned the direction of the storm, and the dark clouds turned a corner. After a day, they roared and left.
"The sun?...The sun! The sun is out!..."
"Ah! The Lord God protects us and sends down the sun!"
"We...where are we?"
Everyone on the flagship was hungry and tied themselves tightly to various parts of the longship. The bright sunshine falls from the blue sky and illuminates the sparkling sea, like a beautiful scene in a dream.
】
The only thing that remains unchanged is the strong wind blowing to the west. It is far more patient than the storm and continues, taking the longship further west, west, and west to the sea!
