The sea's only boundary was the long, unbroken line of the horizon. The horizon didn't change, but the sea never stayed the same: blue one day under a cloudless and sunny sky, melancholy green and grey the next as clouds rolled in; and at night, always black and endless around and under them. They were one wooden ship in the midst of this vast endlessness; what chance would they stand against the sea's wrath?

Maranda thought if she went below decks, away from the vastness, she'd feel better. But below decks, she couldn't ignore the fact that only the hull separated her from the infinite depths. Thankfully she avoided seasickness, and according to the captain of the ship Viscount Tethras had hired, they'd only be on the open ocean for a few days. It was still a few days too long for her liking.

Theo's motley company at least proved interesting, and she wondered again how her baby brother had managed to bring together such a disparate group of people. Perhaps the world just worked like this, though; the Ostwick Circle certainly hadn't been a diverse slice of life.

She wandered up to the top deck the second day out. Her hands tingled and she squinted up at the cloudy sky. "We are headed for the Storm Coast," Theo told her when she mentioned it to him. He leaned against the railing, staring south-east as if he could will their destination into sight. The wind blew his dark hair back from his face and his nose was pink from too much sun the day before. "Do you think you made a mistake coming along?"

Maranda shrugged. "Hard to say. It didn't seem right to head back home, but I didn't know what I'd do if I stayed in Kirkwall."

"Other than read Varric's books?"

"I got about a third of the way through All This Shit Is Weird and had to put it down. Not a favorite."

"He'll be absolutely wounded if he found out." Theo grinned. "At least he was when I told him I didn't really have any interest in reading it in the first place. It wasn't personal, I just don't want to relive things that way." He turned around and leaned backward against the railing. Maranda's stomach dropped with fear, but he didn't flip back overboard. He was at ease on the sea, and she tried to feel some of that same confidence, but couldn't.

They watched Fianna and Cardenio circle one another in the center of the deck. The Queen had been elusive and quiet; she and Theo gave each other wide berths, refusing to acknowledge one another: an impressive feat, considering that on a ship there were only so many places to go and ways to avoid one another. The few times Maranda had passed her, Fianna just bobbed her head in shy greeting before hustling away.

Right now, however, there was nothing elusive or quiet about her as she dueled with Cardenio. The ship's crew sat on the railing or on the steps up to the helm and cheered them on. The Iron Bull and his Chargers watched, and up by the helm itself Varric and the captain counted money and made notes in a ledger. Maranda's interest perked up; the Ostwick Circle had been boring, but they'd made their fun when they could. She left Theo, skirted around the sailors, and approached Varric.

"What are the odds at?" The Viscount looked up at her, mildly surprised. "I used to run the books at the Circle. Off the record, of course," she added.

"Fletch didn't mention that you could work numbers that way." Varric watched as Fianna dodged Cardenio's lunge. He winced when she disappeared behind the main mast, only to reappear behind Cardenio, daggers sweeping out at him. Cardenio barely dodged and Varric released his breath.

"Theo and I have really only gotten to know one another in the last few months. I'm doubling your wager, betting on the Queen," she said after glimpsing the columns of numbers in his book. She kept her eyes fixed on the fight. The captain, a Rivaini with sun-toughened skin, chuckled. "I'll do the same with your odds," she offered.

The captain raised a bushy eyebrow. "How well do you know those two?" he asked.

"Don't know her at all, and only met him when I thought he was trying to kill my brother."

"How much are you paying me again?" he asked Varric, who told him. "Sure, why not lass. If anything you've hooked my curiosity."

Maranda scanned the numbers once more and added her wager in with a wax pencil. Cardenio was better armed; the sun glinted off any number of blades he had, and Maranda knew he had more in places no one could see. Fianna, in contrast, had only her two light daggers and she focused on moving and sweeping them while Cardenio pulled out his tricks. Fianna easily dodges his throws, whichthunked into the deck and the masts loud enough to hear. Each time a blade hit, the crew gasped and elbowed one another.

It was an exhibition fight, but that didn't mean there wasn't blood. Fianna had ghosted by Cardenio, drawing her blade lightly across his shoulder. One of Cardenio's smaller blades grazed her ear as it whizzed by. Out of the corner of her eye, Maranda saw Theo leaning back against the railing, studying Fianna and Cardenio. Dagna was working below decks to enchant the runes on his prosthetic arm, as they'd had to leave sooner than anticipated; but Maranda had little doubt that her brother intended to continue learning how to fight one-armed.

The crew erupted in a chorus of groans: Fianna had reached around the smallest mast and had Cardenio pinned with her daggers across his throat. "Yield," Cardenio called out, but he was grinning. Fianna dropped her daggers and sheathed them at her hips. "Well played, Warden." He bowed, a hand at his throat. "You've kept in practice."

"You can say it, you know. I'm old." She shook Cardenio's hand. "All the same, thanks for the practice. Anyone who wants to fight the loser, go for it! I need to rest this old body." Fianna bowed low and the crew applauded, but quickly began grumbling as they made their way to the helm.

The captain glanced down at the ledger, then up at his crew. "You all bet on the Antivan?" he asked, incredulous. "I would give you your bets back, but…" He gestured to Maranda. "Someone else took a bigger risk with the odds."

For one moment Maranda's stomach sank into her feet and she was certain she'd find out just how deep the ocean was in these parts. Being the former Inquisitor's sister wasn't going to hold any weight in this no-man's land. "It's alright, I don't need-"

"A wager's a wager," one sailor said. "Besides, I think we can win that coin back."

Maranda glanced up. Theo was talking to Cardenio, who nodded. "A challenger approaches!" Cardenio called, a huge grin on his face. "Place your wagers!"

"I'm betting on your brother." Fianna Cousland settled next to Maranda. She tied her auburn hair back and squinted in the sun. Cardenio and Theo whispered about something on the deck and Cardenio replaced his knives in his various holsters. "He's scrappy and has nothing to lose." A ghost of a smile touched her lips.

This close, Maranda saw the faint lines around Fianna's eyes and the hollows of her cheeks were more pronounced. With a start Maranda realized Fianna was actually younger than she was. Then again, Maranda knew little about the Wardens; whatever had made Fianna a Warden must have also contributed to her aging. "One could say the same about Cardenio," she said at last.

Fianna shook her head. "He's flashy. He has a reputation to maintain, and that makes him get careless. He's talented as shit with those knives of his, but get right down to it and you can see why no assassins guild would take him."

"You can tell all this just by looking at him?"

"Nah. We chatted a bit back in Kirkwall. I drank him under the table."

Maranda laughed; Fianna was thin and flexible and didn't like like she could hold more than a glass of wine. Then again, she'd been matching the Iron Bull shot for shot, and he was easily twice her size. "Cardenio may be flashy and get a bit careless, but he still has two arms. That and Theo just started working with knives fairly recently, so I'm going to be cautious on this wager." She held out her hand. "I'll take your bet."

Fianna shook it. Her hand was hot, and Maranda thought she felt some strange magic there, but Fianna withdrew her hand quickly and they turned to watch Theo and Cardenio on the deck below. The sun bore down overhead, and nearly everyone on deck had short or no sleeves; many of the crew had taken their shirts off. Fianna wore long sleeves, even though she radiated heat. She rested her elbows on the railing and watched.

Cardenio lunged and swiped at Theo, who evaded it with an elegant back step and pivot. Cardenio heaved a knife Theo's way, but he sidestepped that and ducked out of the way of Cardenio's follow-up swipe. Cardenio buzzed past him, jabbing with one knife while he extricated his other from the door to the captain's quarters. Sweat ran down his face, but he paused to acknowledge the crowd; the sailors laughed. Cardenio nimbly hopped up the stairs and grabbed Maranda's hand, meaning to kiss it, but she jerked her hand out of his.

More laughter, and Maranda blushed furiously. Cardenio winked, all but daring her to use the same force spell she'd used against him before, but this was Theo's duel. Theo, for his part, had hopped up the steps to the helm on the other side, weaving through the gathered crew members. He heaved his knife at Cardenio, who dodged and backflipped off the railing and back onto the deck, bowing to the applause below. "It would seem you are disarmed," Cardenio called, stooping to grab Theo's knife.

"He's not very original," Fianna observed. Suddenly she spun around. "Give it back," she snapped.

"Just borrowing," Theo said breathlessly, his face red and glistening with sweat, and he held one of Fianna's daggers. He launched himself off the railing and back to the deck before Fianna could snatch it back. He hit hard and rolled, jumping to his feet as Cardenio came after him. He circled around Cardenio, who lobbed his knives at Theo; Theo ducked; Cardenio sprung off of a windlass, grabbing the rigging hanging from the lowest crossbeam of one of the masts. He kicked Theo in the back; Theo stumbled forward. Fianna's dagger skittered across the deck. Cardenio swung down and landed next to Theo, scooping up Fianna's blade.

Theo went for one of his hidden knives, but Cardenio stepped on his wrist. Maranda gasped without meaning to. Cardenio knew this was just an exhibition, didn't he? He wasn't really an undercover assassin, hired by any one of Theo's enemies. Her mana welled up, force magic pulsing at her tingling fingertips as Cardenio bore down on Theo with Fianna's dagger. "Yield?" he asked with a grin.

"Yield," Theo said with a sigh. The money started changing hands as he got to his feet. His shirt was soaked with sweat and he struggled out of it, using the wad of clothing to wipe off his face. He dropped it on the deck as someone tossed him a water skin. He retreated to the railing and drank deeply as he stared out to sea.

Fianna dug into one of the belt pouches at her waist and pulled out a small bag of coins. Maranda shook her head, but Fianna shook out the money and handed it over. "A wager's a wager," she said with a hint of a smile before she headed below decks.

Maranda rejoined Theo. "It was a good fight," she said after a moment of silence. "I'm sorry you lost."

Finally he shrugged. "I knew I'd lose."

"The Queen bet on you."

Theo snorted. "Probably felt bad for me." He set down the water skin and ran his hand through his hair, pushing it out of his face. "Honestly, I just need all the practice I can get." He trailed his fingers along the scarring that covered the end of his upper arm.

"What do you think we're going to find when we get to the Storm Coast?" Maranda stared out at the horizon. "You keep talking about learning to fight again and how important it is to you, but why? What's out there?"

"Varric says his Tevinter contact mentioned slavers. If the Warden Queen's along, there's probably darkspawn. Other than that? No idea. I'd just rather not be caught defenseless, you know?" She nodded. "You can hold your own in a fight, right?" He peered at her, brow furrowed. "When you agreed to come along it never occurred to me to ask. I suppose I'm just used to mages who can fight."

Maranda conjured a small ball of lightning at her fingertips. The arcs of electricity danced between her fingers before she waved her hand and the spell dissipated. "When my-our-uncles came to take me to the Circle, they made it clear that I was lucky our father had called them and not any other templars, with what I could do." She saw the telltale darkness in the sky to the west. "Uncle Cadan, especially, made me promise to be good and to focus on keeping the peace. Keep your head down, pay attention to your lessons, be a good girl, he told me. I never thought much about combat magic. Of course, then the whole system went to shit, so I suppose it doesn't matter."

Theo glanced over at his sister. "So… what can you do?"

She shook out her hands and focused on the clear, bright eastern sky. "I hope we don't have to find out."