A'kos smiles at the tale.

"Smart man to listen," he notes drily.  "if for no other reason than the Goddess of the North is a woman."

"A wise choice indeed," Jaleh agreed, flashing the captain a smile in thanks. "I try to always listen to the gods even if I do not understand them. It has not served me wrong yet."

Chuckling, A'kos asks, "So you listen to your gods, eh?  They speak to you?"

She laughed, "I listen to any of them that speak to me. Do you not listen to yours?"

"Hah!  I listen to the sun and the rain, and the roar of the wind in my ears as I ride the open plains!  I've yet to have a god speak directly to me so that I could hear," he replied.  "I suppose if one truly wished to speak with me, I would hear them."

He chuckled as he pulled back on the oar.

"Very well, Loukas.  Pleased to meet you."  He watched as the crewman took to his station and loyally performed his task.

Then the Frank noticed another crewman, and a woman at that, chattering away with the Magyar and ignoring her duties completely.  He shook his head and wondered if the Captain would seek any discipline.  Either that, or he ran a loose ship.

Jaleh laughed as well while she rowed right alongside A'kos. "Perhaps they have and you just did not understand. Did you not say that you listened to the sun and the rain, and the wind in your ears? Those are the voices of the gods. You just need to understand them."

Roderychus smiles to himself and says under his breath "No wonder they say women are bad luck on board."

As if to prove the near silent words of Roderychus wrong, a near gale force wind catches the sails and the dragon ship is propelled forward with a great increase in speed.

Dobryny calls for the oars to be pulled in and the ship operates on full sail for the time being. The Varangian smiles over at Thorfinn, who smiles back, each of them knowing the reason behind the gust...or at least thinking they know the reason.

Most of the crew who are manning the oars are free to do as they please for the time being since the Norse contingent of the crew takes over the sailing portion of the voyage.

The Rus gets up from the bench and stretches his shoulders and arms towards the sky. "It has been too long since I manned a bench. It feels good to be back at sea. Soon I will be among my own people when we reach the mouth of the Danube."

Jean moved over to Roderychus to have a friendly word with him.  "Roderychus, is it not?  I am Jean, and was relatively new to Constantinople.  Are you from this region?  Do they use ships for traveling so often?  I'm accustomed to riding my horse."

In reply to Miroslav (msg #38):

Standing himself, Loukas also stretches his arms. "How long have you been away from your homeland?"

Wiping the sweat from his forehead, "Are you parting from us there at the mouth of the great river?"
This message was last edited by the player at 19:20, Wed 29 July 2009.

"Well met Jean. I have to confess being more used to the horse as well, but waterborne travel is as common as it can be in this blessed land. I have seen most of my days in northern Thracia, but my religious formation has taken place in Constantinople. What about you, brother Jean?"

In reply to Loukas Ouranus (msg #40):

"I make a trip back every few years, so it has been almost two years for me now. I came south with a band of Varangians ten years ago in service of Nikephoros, the last emperor and we captured Crete back from the Muslims." He stops talking and looks towards Armin for a second.

He continues..."I will be staying on for the whole trip. Pereyaslavl is now the capital of the Rus. Knyaz Sviatoslav has moved his base from Kiev to the mouth of the Danube now that he has taken the areas from the Bulgars. He says it is the hub of all commerce from east to west and that it should be held by the Rus over Kiev. I agree with him but I fear your Emperor may have designs on the city.

"Well, if those are the voices of the gods," laughed A'kos loudly, looking at the full sail, "they must be shouting now!"

He turned the full affect of his smile on the young woman, a broad jaw framed by the thin line of a goatee'.

"I am no religious scholar," he smiles after a moment.  "I do believe in spirits, and purpose, but devote my life to no particular force but my own.  It is a simple life...far simpler certainly than the cults that devote their waking moments in ostensible service to some supposed greater cause."

Jaleh turned to sit sideways on the bench to face A'kos once they had pulled in the oar. She smiled brightly at him when he trained his smile on her. "That is not so different from the way I live. I listen to the gods, I do not serve them." She leaned forward to speak more softly to him and with the way she was sitting, it pushed her leg firmly against his side. "They are fickle and insane. It would be foolish to serve them. So I just listen and try to make the best of it while serving myself. I like your beard. It really suits you, makes you seem more commanding." She reached out to touch it gently.
This message was last edited by the player at 09:52, Thu 30 July 2009.

In reply to Miroslav (msg #42):

Loukas appears to consider Miroslav's words, but it is possible that he is doing so more out of politeness than interest, "Yes, well, only God and the Emperor knows what the Emperor wants, I suppose... My mother was from Kiev and I have cousins and whatnot there, but I am a Byzantine and must trust that the Emperor is doing what is best for us."

Looking about and reveling in this relatively free moment, "Quite an interesting group of travelers that have joined us, eh? A Frank and a Persian! The latter seems important... Think he's hiring? To be honest, I would love to see the country and wherever they are going, it would be more interesting than returning to Constantinople."

A slightly embarrassed smile appears and he looks quickly at the ship's deck, "I love the City, but I think it is time for me to see more and my family does not seem interested in what I do..."
This message was last edited by the player at 17:40, Thu 30 July 2009.

"Until fairly recently, I had spent most of my life in the Kingdom of the West Franks.  It was a good enough life, but the time came to leave.  Unlike my brothers, I decided to see the world and seek adventure elsewhere."

"I visited the Holy Roman Empire, as well as made a pilgrimage to Rome before making my way here.  I'm hoping to one day complete a pilgrimage to Jerusalem."

In reply to Loukas Ouranus (msg #45):
"I can tell you for sure that he is hiring...in fact I am hiring for him! When we reach Pereyalaval I am to hire a number of retainers to go further on the journey with us. If you are truly interested, and it is my bet that you are, I can discuss the situation with Thorfinn and he will surely release you from any contract, just as long as I find a replacement among the Rus."

Miroslav then says in the language of the Rus..."blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah Rus blah blah blah blah blah."
This message was last edited by the player at 16:20, Thu 30 July 2009.

In reply to Miroslav (msg #47):

When Miroslav says that the Persian is hiring, Loukas sits up a bit straighter,"You are? Please, my friend, I can use a blade and speak Rus. I even speak Persian as my family's business often put us in touch with traders from there!"
This message was last edited by the player at 17:43, Thu 30 July 2009.

A'kos enjoys the warmth of Jaleh's leg where it lay against his thigh, the gentle caress of her hand against his chin...

"The Holy Land would be a glorious sight indeed... I hope to prove myself worthy of beholding it someday."

Roderychus turns to face the sea "And about the task that has been set for us, Sir Jean, what judgement do you make of it?"

Jaleh laughs softly as she studies A'kos then asked, "Did I steal your words away?"
This message was last edited by the player at 11:04, Fri 31 July 2009.

"Protecting a mapmaker?  I have never heard a song sung or tale spun about anyone who protected a mapmaker.  It sounds like we will be going to pagan places barely even civilized.  Hard to say how much danger there will be, but the payment will come in useful."

Balthazar replies to Miroslav in "common", "Yes, I speak a great many languages.  Probably why I was brought onboard for this trip.  Unless the Emperor is aware of some of my ... darker secrets."  He laughs loudly, thinking this a great joke.
This message was last edited by the player at 18:21, Fri 31 July 2009.