You push open the door and step into the tavern, thankful for the warm air after so long outside on the chilly plains of mount othrys. You get yourself a mug of warm water, and go to sit down when an old man says to you:
Oy there, laddie. I’ve got a story to tell, an’ ye are the only one not busy enough ter hear it.
Annoyed with the old man yet still curious, you walk over and sit down.
You have the look of an adventurer, laddie. One who’ll go off this cursed mountain and save us from the fishies.
The old man takes a drink from his mug.
But even if you do save us from the fishies, there’s still one threat - one threat! that’ll keep us from going back to normal life. I can see the confusion on your face, laddie. No, I’m not talking about the sea beasts or the sirens, no I’m not. I’m talking about the Darkened Saber.
“What’s the Darkened Saber?” you ask, taking a drink of your water.
The Darkened Saber is probably the most dangerous ship in the sea these days. I’ve heard tales of it, always just barely within sight, just far enough for you to think it’s a mirage. But no, it’s more real than my left thumb!
The old man holds up his hand. Sure enough, his thumb is missing.
Whenever someone sees the Darkened Saber, it doesn’t attack, doesn’t flee, doesn’t do anything but stay there. Just watching. It scared my almost out of my shirt the one time I saw it.
“So does this “Darkened Saber” have a crew? Is it a ghost ship? Is it an Atlantean ship? Who’s the captain?”
No one knows. But I think the captain is one Albatross Darkwood. He was an almost… notorious… merchant before the Dark Sea invaded. He’d just gotten a massive ship he’d commissioned, and then he disappeared. No on knew where he went.
As for the crew, I’d say they’re ghosts, cursed by the captain to sail for him forevermore, searching for something Albatross wants-
The door bangs open. An out of breath Grand Navy Major rushes in. “I have news,” he pants. “The supply fleet we sent to Shieldguard, the one that disappeared three weeks ago, it was found. There was nothing left but driftwood and torn sails. We hope that the fleet was destroyed by waves, not the Atlanteans or some other hostile force, because one of them had a map to a valuable treasure that could help us eradicate the Atlanteans. We ask you to remain calm, as that map is likely at the bottom of the ocean by now. Thank you for your time.”
The major leaves. There is silence for a moment before conversation breaks out again.
Hah! I told you! That must’ve been the Darkened Saber, claiming a vicitim at last! Albatross Darkwood wants that treasure! I knew it!
“Yeah,” you say, seemingly unconvinced. However, though, your thoughts are churning. If this Albatross Darkwood, Darkened Saber, and this mysterious treasure are real, who knows what could happen to the refuge on Mount Othrys…
“Finally, after all these years, I’ve finally found it! The Aether Lightning curse… Such beauty in this one cube… It’s everything I’ve dreamt of…”
Definitely not foreshadowing