He could see the Star of Jerod. It was a bit battered, some of its rigging was on fire, and a couple of sails were now laying on the deck, but it seemed to have survived more or less intact. Kern's men were putting out the fires, and he could make out Binter, Sisska, and Azakar at the rail. They were the only ones tall enough to stand out through the haze, steam, and smoke that clung to the surface of the sea after the explosion. No doubt that Keritanima had to be close by, for both of the Vendari protectors to be in the same place. That was a tremendous relief. The galleon had been very, very close to the Wikuni clipper when it exploded, and that much destructive power could have ripped the old galleon apart. It had certainly scorched her entire starbord beam, and chewed up the rigging a bit, but the masts were still standing, and it looked that Kern hadn't lost many men to the explosion. Kern would have to make repairs before the ship could get under way, but at least they'd be capable of getting under way.

One of the Wikuni drifted closer and closer to him, and he realized that it was Sheba herself. She had her back to him, clinging listlessly to her ship's steering wheel, and a very wide swath of her fancy red coat's back had been ripped away. A deep slash went across her furred back, bleeding liberally, and two small shards of wood were embedded high on her right shoulder. Tarrin grabbed the wheel without thinking and pulled her closer, seeing that she was unconscious when he turned her around. She was really rather attractive, in a feline kind of way. The Cat in him could appreciate the grace of her hybrid features, the human head sporting a cat's slender snout and wide cheeks, and a pink button-nose. Half of her right ear was missing, and the right side of her muzzle had a deep cut in it that sent a thin, steady rivulet of blood into the water.

Without thinking, he reached over as he touched the Weave, and he wove together a spell of healing. At his touch, those wicked slashes and lacerations healed over, and the missing section of her ear grew back and sprouted black fur. She was an enemy, or she had been. But now she was defeated, and the Cat held no grudges against an enemy that was honorably bested. Neither did Tarrin. She was no longer the antagonist, she was an injured victim in need of help, and Tarrin couldn't turn his back on her suffering.

If only he could heal himself.

Her bright green eyes fluttered, and she groaned. Then they affixed on him and focused, but her expression of dull awareness didn't change. "You," she said slurringly. "What did you do to me?"

"I healed you," he replied bluntly. "You were hurt."

"Why'd you have to go and do that?" she snapped at him with sudden energy. "Can't you just leave me alone now? You've won!"

"I don't think anybody won here," he replied with a calm look.

She snorted, and then to his surprise, she let go of the wheel. She slipped under the water quickly, but fortunately he had enough presence of mind to snare her around the wrist with his agile tail and haul her back up to the surface. She spluttered and spewed out a shocking amount of water from her mouth, then began to cough. She had breathed in the water on purpose! She tried to kill herself!

Grabbing her by the scruff of her tattered coat, he hauled her back up onto the wheel, letting her cough all the water from her lungs. "Are you crazy?" he demanded in surprise.

"Just let me die, you fool!" she snapped at him. "It's what's going to happen to me anyway! Either going to the bottom or getting my neck stretched, either way I know how things are going to end up!" She tried to struggle out of his grip. "At least this way I won't be humiliated by hanging from a yardarm for the amusement of a bunch of clod-grubbing, dirty humans!"

"Fine," he said gruffly, letting go of her. "I don't care about you one way or the other. If you want to kill yourself, be my guest."

She glared at him, then the corner of her mouth turned up and she winked. But any attempt to slide off the wheel again was stopped when a dark shadow loomed over them, making both of them turn and look. It was the Star of Jerod, and either it had drifted over to them, or they had drifted towards it. Azakar hung from a net ladder along the side, a dark hand reaching down and grabbing Sheba by the scruff of her neck and physically lifting her out of the sea. Tarrin felt tremendously relieved for some reason when the Mahuut youth reached his huge hand down for Tarrin, and Tarrin reached up his paw. He was pulled up out of the water, keeping a stubborn grip on his staff, then he was passed up to Sisska's waiting taloned hands. Binter was the one to grab hold of him and put him on the deck, where he was immediately smothered by Allia and Keritanima. He gasped when Keritanima crushed him in an embrace, which made her immediately back off and pull open his shirt.

"Have I told you today that you are crazy, my brother!?" Allia raged. "What possessed you to do such a foolish thing! You could have been killed!"

"The end justifies the means, sister," Tarrin told her weakly. "I knew that they'd be too busy dealing with me to press an attack against the ship. I was right."

"You stubborn, pig-headed, suicidal maniac!" Keritanima bored at him, inspecting the wound. "How dare you get yourself all torn up! How dare you nearly give me a heart attack!"

"Better a heart attack then an arrow in the chest," he told her.

Her answer to that was to press two glowing hands against his chest. It felt like the touch of a Wraith, and he rose up on his toes and gasped as furiously cold energies raced into him through his wound. That cold was replaced with a surging heat, and the fading of the cold took the pain with it. He put a paw to his chest, and felt smooth, pink skin where a charred hole had been. When did Keritanima learn to heal?

"Where is Dolanna?" Tarrin asked as he looked around. All his friends were there except for Dolanna.

"She's below, resting," Faalken replied. "The circle took alot out of her. I think one of her pupils was holding back some," he said, with an accusing look at Keritanima.

"A circle is always most exhausting for its lead," she replied primly. "I didn't hold anything back. I gave her everything she asked of me, and more."

"Well, it is much of what I can do to stand," Allia said.

"Me too," Dar agreed. "I think Dolanna took a few years of my life back there."

Keritanima turned to where Sheba was sitting on the deck with several of her crew. They were under the careful watch of Kern's men, holding swords on the seated, injured Wikuni. Keritanima's amber eyes were blazing, and the look on her face was infurated, but it didn't seem to impress the notorious pirate. "This is all your doing, you idiot!" she screamed at Sheba. "How dare you attack the conveyance of the High Princess! My father will-"

"Your father was going to pay me a bloody fortune to drag your disobediant tail back to Wikuna," Sheba interrupted. "I may be a pirate, but I have my own priest of Kikalli, wallflower. You'd be flattered to know that your father is offering a fifty thousand crown reward for whoever returns you to him." She looked away. "I saw you in the porthole, and realized that you somehow convinced that cagey old Kern to give you passage. Kern's usually not stupid enough to take on such a dangerous cargo."

Keritanima drew herself up with an icy stare, and looked down at the panther Wikuni. "I think we both know who's the bigger fool here," she said in a cold voice. "I'm not a piece of jewelry you can lock in a trunk and deliver up to my father on a velvet cushion."

"Yes, well, Trevon assured me he could counter the witch-cat Kern had on board. If I'd have known he was carrying a pack of Sorcerers to boot, I wouldn't have taken you on." She looked at Tarrin, then put her eyes on the deck resolutely. "At least do me the courtesy of letting me jump overboard."