Grey Save the Swift: A Tale of Resilience and Noble Bonds

"I don't know what's more terrifying," Richard de Grey said softly as he stared out the porthole at the mast of the other ship, "The fact that we're surrounded by those things or that they're actually sailing in some sort of formation."

"They aren't even trying to hide their actions, Sir," his First Mate observed. "They've taken their time gathering up all these ships and now they're just roaming around like they own the ocean."

"Do you think that's why we haven't been able to spot them?" Richard asked, still staring out the porthole. "Because they're so confident in their numbers?"

"Could be," Sir Henry replied, "Although I doubt it. If I were a Captain, I'd want to keep my distance from these things. They aren't normal pirates."

Richard reluctantly turned away from the porthole and walked over to the map on his table. He pointed to the island where their target had gone missing and then shifted his finger up towards their current position. He turned back to Sir Henry. "We're less than a day's sail away from where Swift was attacked," he explained, "And yet we have no idea how many islands are in this region. How can we be sure of our bearings?"

Sir Henry scratched his chin while looking at the map. "We could ask Lieutenant Hammon," he suggested, "He knows this area better than anyone else on the ship."

"That's true," Richard agreed, "But do we have time to search for him? We need to move now if we hope to catch them before they reach home." He looked out of the porthole again and shook his head. "We're missing something here, Henry," he said as he moved back over to his desk, "They're moving too quickly for this to be a simple attack." He took a deep breath before asking a question that had been weighing on his mind ever since discovering that Martina was one of the remaining passengers on the Swift: "What could those creatures possibly want from her?"