In a small harbour

Once again, Druuna could hear people move around above the small engine room in which she was hiding. Having remained naked during the ship?s voyage, Druuna had been coated in a glossy sheen of sweat thanks to the heat radiated from the double set of diesel engines that had dulled her hearing with their steady, loud mechanical drumming.

Her hearing slowly returning to normal, Druuna sat completely still in the engine room for what felt like hours. Several sets of feet were moving around above, and she could hear ever so often the sound of something heavy being lifted from the metal floor and carried away. There seemed to be more people unloading the boat than just the two men that had been present in it when she had first encountered it.

Finally, Druuna thought it safe to move up on deck. Hungry and tired, she felt spent from the tension that had held her in its grip ever since the beach. Stuffing her clothes into her satchel and then putting on her belt and shoes, Druuna took a deep breath and then moved up the narrow stairs, attempting to move as carefully as possible so as to not produce any noise, and slowly pushed open the small door.

Only opening the door far enough to be able to pop her head out and look around, Druuna couldn?t see anyone around, and snuck out into the open.

Dusk had come and gone during her time in the engine room, and it was now night. The flat-bottomed ship had, Druuna found, been docked alongside a small jetty, with two more ships placed in front of and behind it.

To her right, Druuna could see another jetty about ten yards away, with four ships lined up alongside it. She could see no people nearby, but there were several houses spread out across the slope leading down towards the water, and a large shack, possibly a warehouse, located on the shore, making it easily accessible from the two jetties.

Druuna could hear singing coming from one of the largest houses located on the slope, and light was emanating from more than one of them.

Faced with the option of either sneaking away from this camp on land or attempting to steal one of the ships, Druuna considered what to do. Sneaking away was perhaps safer, but slower, and she still risked being spotted. On the other hand, stealing a ship would grant her a fast-moving mode of transportation, and a fine prize to barter away if she felt like it, but she would most likely and almost immediately find herself chased by the men that she had stolen the ship from.

Then there was always the large shack, which Druuna felt herself becoming more and more curious about.