Singer Sailor Merchant Mage

“Competitions is pretty much the essence of everything, it gives humans drive.”

Ashton Eaton

As we watched the diving competition I looked at my skill progress. Horse riding had levelled higher reaching Lv 10. A large gain for a single loop around the island. I wondered how many of the competitors would also see their levels and stats rise due to the experience gained by the public competition for prizes of wealth. Grandfather had often said no kill no skill but was competing for gains other than life or death equally effective? I would have to talk to the other riders later to see how they gained their skills if Lady Acacia did not already have another training program in mind.

Next up was the swimming competition. For these, they were taken back out onto the lake. The first one back won. It was hard to see who would be coming first as many of them would disappear under the water or behind the waves. But boy could they swim and they shot through the water towards us. Occasionally leaving the water to jump over the waves rather than swim under them much like dolphins. Stats were insane in what they allowed the human body to achieve and skill equally so.

Grandfather continued to list out possible skills to Aleera and me. “Of course, they have swimming above 75, then there is breath control, double stroke, double kick, not to mention propel. We watched the competition cheering for their progress but not invested in the results. It would be different when it came to the sailing competition.

Despite Lady Acacia’s request that we not compete, Father had insisted that there would not be a sailing competition without him to win it. The sailing race much like the horse riding race was to be around the whole island and they had placed buoys out on the lake to prevent them from circling too close to the shore. He was limited to the boat he used for sailing the lake rather than the one we used to go to sea. So it would be a match of strength and skills rather than seeing whose boat was the best. It looked like it would be a contested race as the diver’s daughters were out in full force with two of their boats entering into it and they too planned on winning it.

Father was at a little bit of a disadvantage in that he had got used to sailing with the pair of us who were always able to bring the wind whenever and wherever he wanted it. However, since Lady Acacia had taken over the majority of our time he had at least gotten used to sailing on his own again.

There were 7 boats in the race. Thankfully it was not too many that they needed three flags to do a regatta 5, 4, 1-minute countdown and Lady Acacia’s voice with her magic or skill was loud enough for all of them to hear.

“Ready,” Sails were raised.

“Sail,” The ships surged forward powered more by skills than the wind they shot forward over the line denoted between the flag and the marker on land. This meant that there were no dip starts or need to go round the end flag again.

We all cheered as they set forth. Father even took the time to wave at us as he shot forward with the rest of the boats. They race forward and were soon out of sight behind the curve of the shore.

“Who do you think will win?” I asked Aleera.

“Father who else.” She replied

“They all looked fairly equal to me,” I answered a little worried. The boats had stormed forward in a pack over the starting line and although they had begun to spread out a little there was not much in it at all as they had disappeared out of sight.

“Impossible to say for sure. They all used a skill or two to get going but it depends on how many they have left and how often they can use them.” Grandfather joined in on the conversation.

Lady Acacia joined us to add her own opinion on the matter. “Win or lose it doesn’t matter. What matters is how the family handles it. If you win, are you gracious in your success without boasting? If you lose, will you be humble and generous in your loss? This event is all about winning hearts and minds. Look at the people this is the most entertainment they have ever had on this pioneering island in certainly the children’s lifetimes if not some of their parents too. This is what you have to capitalize on.” She outlined the politics of what we were attempting to do.

We turned to look at the people rather than searching the lagoon for the boats to come around the isle. Everyone appeared excited and engaged in the outcome. They were buying food from the stalls Mercurio had helped set up. There was an air of festivity to the whole day. A break from the monotony of life, something new to experience and they appeared to be loving it on the surface.

Taking her advice on board we turned back to look for the boats to come into sight. No longer worried about the results we waited expectantly to see what they would be. Only for Lady Acacia to add, “Of course, it would be the cherry on top if your father won by a clear margin.”

We waited . . .

And waited . . .

I guessed this must have been what it was like for them when they waited for the horse race to finish. So much of it had been out of their sight but it had all gone by so quickly for me at the time.

Finally, we saw two sails appear head to head they were battling it out. One was our father’s the other one of the diver’s daughters. They were racing towards us but seemed to move deceptively slowly due to the distance.

They raced closer and closer.

Until finally pipped to the post by a body’s length the daughter’s boat passed the finish line. The crowd cheered loudly as the two boats shot across the finish line. We cheered too but it was sad to see that our father had not won the race.

“Remember humble and generous in defeat. Show that you enjoy the celebration of the day and that most of all you are not sore losers. There will always be another competition. Especially if you are the ones to be organizing them.” Lady Acacia leaned down to talk in our ears.

Father could be seen bringing his boat to shore. He shrugged as he walked onto dry land before telling Grandfather. “Next time we are hauling my sea boat up the cliffs and down to the lake. I was this close to winning.” But he did not seem too down about his loss.

“Better luck next time.” The diver’s daughter couldn’t help herself from shouting as she returned to her jubilant family.

“Better luck, hmph, I’ll have a better boat,” he said to Grandfather once more who finally nodded in acquiescence that he would help him haul the boat up the cliffs the next time we help a set of Silversea Games.

. . .

With the competition finally completed it was time to award the prizes. Once more Lady Acacia’s voice rose as the crowd's hustle and bustle silenced.

“Pioneers of Wester Isle, we gathered here today to celebrate the success of Wester Town and the inauguration of Lord and Lady Silversea. The contests have been a fine demonstration of your stats and skills and they are here to present the prizes.”

There was loud cheering from the crowd and the winners and competitors stepped forward to collect their prizes. We handed out the homegrown pearls as prizes. Even the diver’s daughter seemed pleased by the size of the peal she received.

Grandpa Smit keen to keep building up the goodwill wasn’t quite yet ready to let go o the success of today. “First round for each competitor is on the house at the Compass Edge Tavern.” He shouted to an enormous cheer from the crowd making up for the lack of magic through the sheer volume of his shout. The people piled into the boats of the race and a few more that had been shuttling the people across in the morning as everyone made their way back to Wester Town.

Many of the people came to congratulate my sister and I on our elevation to Lord and Lady. Although just as many congratulated Grandpa Smit rather than us on the creation of a new barony so far from the capital of Ponente. Some though were quiet on the matter thinking silence was the best policy for their opinions. Still there was not an angry word said so today at least was a success.

The next day though there were sure to be some heads hurting despite the strength of their owner's stats.

. . .

“Well, that went well.” Mother said at our evening meal. “Despite your loss dear.”

“I would have won with my new boat.” He deflected the loss.

“A bad workman blames his tools.” Grandfather couldn’t help the dig at his loss.

“You help me carry the boat up next time and we will see who wins.” He defended his statement.

“Regardless of who won and lost. The competition, food, prizes and now drinks meant that the people did not object at all to your inauguration. It was a successful first introduction to society such as it is.” She returned to the main point of the games.

“It wasn’t cheap though,” Father grumbled although I doubt he actually realised how much it cost and who or rather how we were paying for it all.

“You have no taxes, no costs, it was hardly an outrageous sum for a singular event and it should hopefully ignite interest in the products your isle can produce. I would not be surprised if there were several people interested in working for you or at least with you and your branch families after today's display. You just need to give them some time to reel them in." She explained.

"In fact, while we are waiting for the fish to bite do you think you would be so kind as to take my home pigeons to the nearby islands to begin linking us up a little more?"

"I don't see why not," Father answered always a sucker for sailing or fishing sayings. I wondered if he had ever noticed that. Mother certainly seemed to have employed it for long enough and Lady Acacia seemed to have picked it up fairly quickly.

"There are birds ready?" Aleera asked surprised and if I had been questioned myself I would have also had to say that I was surprised too. The pigeons had hardly been here long enough to have hatched. From what I understood of homing pigeons at least in my former life they were required to be born in the place they were expected to return to. It had something to do with the magnetic fields of the location in relation to the north or the south pole but I couldn't remember better than that without delving into my memories and attempting to recall and reconstruct them better. Maybe it was different in the Compass Kingdoms. All I could do was ask.

"How will they know where to come back to?" I asked intrigued adding my question to Aleera's before Lady Acacia had a chance to respond.

"In response to your questions if you will be so polite as to allow me the time to respond before tacking on another one? First to answer Aleera while many of the pigeons that Mercurio brought were indeed full-grown pigeons capable of flying back to the islands he brought them from he also brought me some eggs. The eggs were held in stasis fields and prevented from hatching till they had reached the location they needed to return to. I have hatched them and am looking forward to Mercurio taking the mini beasts out of my hands as soon as possible. However, there is no reason we can't get the system up and running before he leaves and have your father Kaius take a bird or two to Wester Levante and Little Wester while we wait for Mercurio to set sail."

She explained how she had birds ready to fly but paused for a sip of wine before answering my question.

"As for your question Kai, we are not entirely sure how the pigeons know which direction to take but they always fly home on the shortest direct bearing from where they are released so it is speculated that they too follow the lines of the lodestar. So much so that they are favoured animal of the Lodestar Church due to this." She explained.

It made me realise once more that a lot of my thoughts and guesses about the world, while many of them might still be wrong, might be more accurate than the prevailing beliefs of the time and place. Would my knowledge of magnetism be considered heretical by the Lodestar Church? Something to take into account before I opened my mouth. We really should visit there sometime just to get an understanding. I was a little confused why we hadn't been before as a family seeing how there was so little to do on the island one would have thought that would have been as attractive an outing as our Silversea games at least on a regular weekly basis.

"Would you be able to take them tomorrow, Kaius?" She asked once more.

"Sure I doubt they will be doing much in town tomorrow, there are not many of them that will be able to stop at having only the one drink." He chuckled at the idea of half the town having a hangover. We had stayed behind to sort out the island after having so many visitors and had not attended the final celebrations of the day.

"Can I go?" I asked keen to see a little more of the world even if it was only the nearest two islands.

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