The Narrow Sea's a B-

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-(<The Narrow Sea, 277 AC, A Couple Weeks Later>)-

Justus and Liam were in the middle of a storm: the crew was disorganized, the waves kept shifting the ship from side to side, and fish constantly flew onto the boat, hitting crewmates and so on. Justus was currently trying to help give the vessel some leeway by climbing onto the mast and deploying the 'Storm Sails' (created by Skagossi carpenters and sailors, these sails are more durable and less likely to shred); however, they were taking a lot of time to be put up. On the other hand, Liam was trying to steer the ship out of the storm; it was difficult as one, he had no experience sailing a boat, and two, he didn't have a clue to where the storm ended...

-(<Present>)-

"SHIIIIIIT!!"

Justus was trying to hang onto the mast, but the wind kept pushing in every direction; the 'Storm Sails' still haven't been put up. Justus was being attacked by fish simultaneously - how the fish managed to get up so close to him on the tall mast is unknown.

"LIAM!! CAN YOU HEAR ME?!" Justus tried calling out to Liam with no success.

Liam was having trouble trying to hold onto the helm since water and fish kept striking his face over and over again. The men on the deck were trying to figure out what to do since it was total chaos: it was dark, wet, and miserable. Liam called out to his men to try and get them to help Justus deploy the 'Storm Sails,' but the loudness of the storm prevented anyone from hearing anything other than lightning, thunder, and splashing water. Liam looked around to see if anyone could heed his call to action; fortunately, one sailor nearby was trying to secure some cargo with rope. "SAILOR, TO ME!!"

Immediately, the sailor appeared behind Liam, holding onto the railing so he wouldn't sway; from up close, he wore bronze 'Dain' armor and bore House Daubeny's colors. "SIR?!"

"I NEED YOU TO TELL THE OTHERS TO GET THEMSELVES TOGETHER AND HELP DEPLOY THE 'STORM SAILS,' DO YOU UNDERSTAND?!"

The man hesitates for a moment before nodding and, with a salute, rushes to the deck and starts telling the others to deploy 'Storm Sails.'

'Fucking finally... maybe we can get some leeway now!' Liam then used all of his strength to hand-over-hand turn the helm.

With Justus, he finally managed to deploy the 'Storm Sails' with the crew's help. Justus then ordered the sailors to move down to deploy any other countermeasures to the storm; he was not going to risk relying on only the 'Storm Sails.'

-(<Later>)-

Once the final countermeasures to the storm were deployed, the ship steadied itself, and there was finally some freedom for the mariners on the ship to rest.

"Ugh..." Groaned a sailor.

"Strongest storm I have ever been in..." Remarked a sailor. "Something to tell the kids, right?"

"Sure..." Replied a sailor lying on the ground. "Do you think we lost anyone...?"

"Probably not; I have seen everyone from the voyage still on the ship after the storm..."

"Ah, that's good." The sailor on the ground gets up before falling on his ass. "AH, FUCK!! Goddamn Shit... I think a fish hit my chest..."

"Ha!"

Off to the side, Liam and Justus looked around to see if everyone was okay; there were no deaths.

"Thank the Gods, I think we were pretty lucky, man," Justus remarked.

"You think so?" Liam challenged. "I'm pretty sure getting tossed around like... some sort of 'soft ball' isn't really 'luckily' in my opinion..."

Justus then waved off Liam. "Ah, who cares about that? I'm glad everyone is alive; you should be too; think about it: would you want to tell the family that their relative had died?"

"I-" Liam thinks for a moment before speaking. "Ahh... I suppose you're right; sadly, I have a bit of learning from you."

"That's right, I am the authority, and you're my young ward!" Justus said smugly. "Here's a lesson in being a Warden; Honor to the end."

"... that sounds... like bullshit you just made up!" Liam remarked.

"Well, how about this; I don't believe in 'equality.'"

"Eh? What's that mean?" Liam was a little confused.

"What I'm saying is that some lives have more value than ours and others; for instance, people like that sailor down there have a family to look after," Justus explains. "We, on the other hand, will probably die alone."

"The fuck-" Liam was starting to think Justus was a sociopath or something.

"I MEAN, WE HAVE TO PROTECT THE WEAK!!" Justus exclaimed. "People like the Targaryens or Lannisters are a bit too posh and privileged to be able to think about the little guy, Rhaegar might be an exception, but he is probably becoming as deluded as his father in numerous ways."

"How so?" Liam questioned. "Is it because of what you told me a while ago? About the 'prophecies' or some shit?"

"Absolutely, people like Rhaegar are too 'extravagant' to care about others."

"'Extravagant?' So what does that mean?" Liam wanted to know more; he thought Rhaegar was selfless and honorable, but that might not be the case.

"He takes care of himself most of the time and forgets about the kingdom's people." Justus remembered how Rhaegar 'kidnapped' Lyanna and started a war - this was not covid kosher. "I mean, he gives off the energy of a person who would cause a war!"

"That... seems like a stretch..." Liam said skeptically.

"Ah, I guess I'm rambling anyway; just be careful around people like Rhaegar; he'd have people like you, me, or Kelemen to manage with his kingdom while he builds trust with the common folk. With his singing and fighting in tournaments." Justus gets up from where he was sitting and walks towards some rails near the ship's edge. "Right now, I just wanna go home."

"I won't deny that; I miss Skagos..."

-Pause-

"Damn, even I miss that island." Liam reaffirmed.

"I think we are far too weak-willed for the South, my friend," Justus sighed. "Maybe in the future, we will become more 'acquainted.'"

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-(<Windhelm/Skagos Port, 277 AC, One Week Later>)-

'Old Reliable' finally docked at the port a week after the storm at the Narrow Sea; Justus and Liam were glad to finally get off the boat and step on some dry land again.

"Ah... Skagos, beautiful as always." Justus remarked as several butterflies and birds flew by him. "Just peachy!"

"Huh," Liam interjected. "Strange."

"What's up?" Justus asked.

"Nothing, but... I feel like something is off..." Liam said skeptically.

Suddenly, a voice made itself known from behind a shipwright booth - it was Kelemen. "Hey, guys!"

"Ah! Kelemen! My friend, how are you doing-" Justus stopped talking when he saw something in Kelemen's arms - a baby?

"It's good to see you guys again! I hope your journey to Dorne was as pleasant as mine to Bear Island!" Kelemen said chipperly.

-Pause-

"Kelemen..." Liam points at the baby in Kelemen's arms. "Who is that?"

"Oh, her!" Kelemen said gingerly, "This is my daughter, Melina!"

"Ah, you two have arrived! Wonderful!" Spoke up, another voice from behind Kelemen - it was Dacey Mormont. "Do you two like our child?"

-Pause-

"... Goddamn it, Kelemen..."

Justus and Liam expressed their opinions in only three words; As Charlie and Tiana as their witness, Kelemen has got himself a maiden.

-(<Later>)-

"So let me get this straight... I allow you to go to Bear Island to help develop our keep there..."

"That's right!" Kelemen answers - Dacey was holding Melina in her arms, breastfeeding.

"Then you go and date Dacey for a bit, per my blessing, but you did... the 'Devil's Tango'..." Justus continued slowly, looking at Kelemen the whole time.

"Mhm!"

"And then you..." Justus points at Dacey. "Got pregnant on the first go...?"

"It was unanticipated, but I think it was expected; he is very proficient at se-"

"I DON'T WANT TO VISUALIZE IT, MY GODS!!" Liam was in another room, making sandwiches for them to eat.

"Okay... and when you two found out about the baby... you got married." Justus resumed.

"Yep! There was a big party and everything! Wish you could've seen it! Jorah was-" Kelemen was interrupted when Justus slammed his hands on the table. "You okay, pal?"

"NO!! THIS WAS EXPECTED, BUT I WASN'T THERE!! I SHOULD'VE BEEN THERE!!" Justus complained; he would've preferred anything else than traveling to Dorne at that point.

-Pause-

"EXCEPT FOR THE UNDRESSING SHIT!!" Justus affirmed.

"Oh no, we didn't do that!" Dacey reassured, causing Justus to sigh in relief; he didn't want to hear from others about them touching his companion or his companion's wife. "Kelemen didn't like the idea of men taking off all my clothing."

"Nor did you like the idea of women doing it to me either!"

The two laughed a little at their little bit of dialogue before Justus got up and walked next to Kelemen, putting his hand on his shoulder. "Sigh... you have my approval..."

"What...? But Char- I mean, we were blessed by the Old Gods already-" Kelemen didn't get to finish as Justus walked away with his hands behind his back. "Oh, I guess that means we can leave.

"Ah, let's go then," Dacey replied, getting up from her seat with Melina in her arms and leaving with Kelemen to spend the rest of their day in peace.

'My friend has become a father and a husband... yet I, his better-looking counterpart, is still maidenless...' Justus sorrowfully thought before going towards his bedroom - still tired from his journey to Dorne. 'SON OF A BITCH, I JUST REMEMBERED HE NAMED HIS DAUGHTER AFTER AN ELDEN RING CHARACTER!!"

"Alright guys, I made the- OH COME ON!!" Liam exclaimed - everyone had already left, and he was alone, holding a tray of sandwiches and wearing an apron.

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