Stepping off the ship and onto the main port of Eska, I'm quickly immersed in the bustle of the place. I move with purpose, knowing exactly where to go to find out the information needed to locate Azula, if it isn't already too late. My heart begins pounding at the thought of her not being ok, and I have to shake myself, taking a deep breath to calm the rising panic. I know Zu is alive, I can feel it in my bones. I'd know if she were dead, wouldn't I? Surely some part of my subconscious would feel her death, it would recognise her absence from this world.

“Burcham? What a sight for bloody sore eyes!” a familiar voice calls, jerking me from my thoughts.

“Oliver Flint,” I answer, turning around to face the man. “Just the man I was looking for.” I glance around at the busy streets, bustling with the life and the vibrancy this town is known to exude. I gesture to a quieter side street, and head towards it without another word. We walk across in silence, dodging between people. It doesn’t seem to matter how often they’re raided, how many times their homes are burned, the people of Eska always rebuild and always carry on as if it never happened. They were either a town gone mad, or perhaps they had it right. To face fear in its face and tell it that they wouldn’t back down or ever give up. They refuse to live in fear here, choosing to live full lives, no matter the danger.

“You were looking for me? Funny, I thought it had been made clear you weren't to have anything further to do with my sort,” he says, snorting derisively as we reach the side street.

“Your sort?” I inquire, my eyebrows raising.

“Your father's words,” he clarifies, wiping a blackened hand on his trouser leg before extending it out to me.

I clasp his forearm and lean in, clapping him on the back a couple times. “It's good to see you, old friend.”

“Then why is it you look so serious, James?” he questions, releasing my arm and stepping back. He wipes some sweat from his brow, as he arches it in question.

“Azula...” I trail off, feeling a lump fill my throat.

“She said no?” he asks, his eyes widening slightly in shock.

“I never got to ask, she... there was a raid on Carysi, the vampirates came.” I pause, swallowing thickly. “They took her, damn it!” Abruptly, I smash my fist into the wall of the building beside us. I shake out my hand, the pain smacking some sense into me instantly. Taking out my rage on a wall isn’t going to help matters. Cradling my now bloody fist, I turn back to Oliver.

“She's dead?” Oliver asks tentatively, in a voice laced with sympathy.

“She's not dead. I know it sounds crazy, but I can feel it. She’s alive,” I say, meeting his eyes with a determined stare.

“Maybe it would be better if she was dead, you've heard the stories told about those places...” he trails off.

“I have to get to her. I know they run two islands, which do you think they would take her to?”

“You can't be serious. You've gone insane!” he cries.

“I'm not here for your assessment of my mental capacity, Flint. I'm here for answers. Where would they have taken her?” He continues to look at me like I've lost my mind, but I don't care for his concern right now. Every second is precious. “Please,” I beg.

“Tatlin. If they take her anywhere it'll be Tatlin. It's closer, and from what you've told me, Azula's a pretty girl. Tatlin is...well, they have more use for the pretty ones there,” he answers me, his voice carefully devoid of emotion. I can see the disgust and condemnation for the place in his eyes though, and I can't blame him. I know the feeling must be reflected in mine too.

“How do I get there?” I ask.

“You don't,” he replies firmly, leaning against the building.

“I'm not asking for your opinion,” I remind him.

“It's not an opinion, it's a fact. Only pirates survive a trip to Tatlin,” he replies.

“Those pirates that survive, are they all vampires?”

“Most.”

“But not all?” I continue to push unwaveringly, and he sighs.

“You're determined to find a way, whether I help you or not, aren't you?” he questions back.

“Yes.”

“Fine. No, not all the pirates that survive Tatlin are vampires. They have an agreement with the ruler of the island. Pirates welcome, fangs or no, so long as you don't breach any of the rules while on the island. It’s a terrible place, though, James.  The island is filled with depraved, the desperate, and the dirty. Your father thinks me scum, but he should look no further for such things than Tatlin.”

“I've heard some stories myself. I figured that if these stories made their ways to the taverns here on Eska, then some visitors of the island must be human.”

“That's a lot of logic for a man that's lost his mind,” he jokes lamely, though neither of us laugh.

“I need to find a pirate crew to take me there,” I muse aloud.

“No, that's both ridiculous and dangerous. They would never take someone like you there, anyway. You'd never be able to blend in.” He waves his hand in a dismissive manner, as if vetoing the idea.

“Where can I find pirates?”

“No.”

“Unless you have a better idea,” I say through clenched teeth, “tell me where to find a damn pirate crew!”

“You look tired, and you're not thinking straight. Come rest for a few hours, and we can continue this conversation then.”

“This is a waste of time,” I say, pushing past him and heading towards one of the sordid taverns. If Oliver wouldn’t help me, I'd get my answers elsewhere.

“Wait!” he calls after me.

“What?” I shout back, not slowing my pace.

“You're really going to do this, aren't you?” he yells.

I turn, and continue on, walking backwards. “What, in everything that I have told you about Azula and how I feel about her, would lead you to believe I’m not serious about this?” I ask, before turning to face forward. People seem to shift out of my way as I walk, splitting a path right through the crowd. I hear Oliver jogging to catch up.

“Then you won't be moving forward with this ludicrous plan of yours alone,” he says, slowing as he catches up with me, matching my pace.

“I won't?” I ask, with a raised brow. He runs his fingers through his shaggy black hair.

“You won't. Let's be honest, you'd just get yourself killed without me.” My eyes narrow, and I open my mouth to argue. “Look, you've got plenty of book smarts, I'm not questioning your intelligence or capabilities. But you wouldn't survive around these types of people. I spent a few months on a pirate ship, James. I thought I could handle it...I was wrong,” he admits.

“You never told me that before,” I reply, starting to turn left towards Oliver’s house.

“Actually, it would be best if we headed for Rosethorn Tavern,” he says, continuing straight ahead.

“Why?” I ask, doubling back to follow him.

“That's where we find our introduction to a captain,” he answers me with an empty smile.

“You don't have to do this—” I begin, but I’m cut off.

“Yes, I do. You saved my life, James. I owe you that debt, and now I have a way to repay it,” he replies firmly. I think back to that night, and it seems so long ago already.

“I told you, you owe me nothing.”

“But I do. Now come on, pretty-boy, let’s go save your girl.  Then you can finally ask her what you should have asked a year ago. She'll have to say yes if you save her from vampirates,” he replies with a harsh laugh, smacking me on the shoulder with his right hand.

“I hope so, Oliver. I really hope so.”