Korra dragged us into her house and to the table. "Now you just sit tight, I'll have everything on the table in a jiffy!" She was true to her word, seemingly she had only been waiting for the food to finish cooking before our arrival. Plates of steaming fish, a pot of seafood soup, and a pan of steamed roots soon filled the center of the table. I could still hear the amused laughter of the guards outside. Once the food was placed, Korra swiftly served everything out, though there was still ample food in the serving dishes. "Don't let it get cold now, eat up, you two!"

  I clasped my hands together and began to say Grace. It got odd looks from Korra and Jenna when I started it with Our Father, rather than Our Divine Mother or something, but I continued through till the end. "Why do you pray to a Father? Shouldn't you be praying to the Goddess?" Jenna asked curiously.

  "Well, you know I'm not local. Not even remotely local. There we say God the Father. That's how I was taught. Though God doesn't really mean a Male, because they aren't a corporeal existence. As such, they aren't truly Male or Female. I guess it's just a habit to say Our Heavenly Father. Maybe you can help me remember to say something about the Goddess instead. I'm not trying to be rude or change anyone else's faith. It's outright impossible to change anyone's faith anyway. Either you have Faith, in which case it's unshakable, or you don't, in which case I'm not changing anything, but giving you a chance at having a Faith."

  "Just where bouts you from that you don't know the Goddess?!" Korra was incredulous.

  "Mary is from further away than should even be possible. The Goddess herself must have brought her to us in our time of need. You'd never believe it. I wouldn't believe it, were I not Mary's Slave. It's that amazing." Jenna leaned against me for a moment.

  "None of that at the table, Jenna! Save that for when yer on the couch... or better yet in the bed with not but yer skin on." Korra chuckled.

  "When's Donna coming home? I didn't see her in the crowd." I looked at Jenna, wondering just who Donna was, and so I almost missed the crestfallen look on Korra's face.

  "Yer other Ma... she was lost overboard bout six weeks past. Was a pretty rough storm, too."

  "Have you searched the area where the current flows to see if she washed ashore anywhere?" I asked. Korra looked at me in confusion.

  "What are ye on about, Mary? 'Tis the Sea, not a River to have currents." I put my palm over my face.

  "The sea has tides; those tides moving across the seafloor create a current around the whole world. If I can see a map of the coast as far as people know, I can probably pick spots where she might have washed ashore. I know about Marine Currents, so it's possible she could have washed ashore on an island, or several hundred kilometers in either direction."

  Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.

  Korra leapt up from the table, ran into another room, and raced back with a crude sea chart of the area. "Will this do?!" Jenna looked tense and hopeful.

  "It's fine. Remember, this is only a chance. Don't get your hopes up. Maybe we'll find her body, maybe nothing. I want to say we'll find her alive and well, but that's a pie in the sky hope. It's better than nothing, but it's not surety." I took an idol bite of the fish, and it wasn't bad, but it was bland. Still, I spread out the chart and looked at the contours of the shoreline. "What I see here, says she either washed ashore here about sixty kilometers to the south, or else she got pushed out to sea here. Is there an island out there? If so, that's a place to check."

  Korra marked the two locations and looked at me, eyes sparkling. "Aye, there is an island out there, Tonya knows where it is, took me there once. I'll be right back." Out the door in an almost literal flash.

  "Did she use some sort of movement skill just now?! I swore she flashed."

  Jenna chuckled slightly. "That's my Ma for you. Donaa, though, she's the one who birthed me. I hope you're right!"

  "Why isn't there any salt in the food? With the sea right there, salt should be cheap."

  "What does the sea have to do with table salt. Sure, the sea tastes salty, but table salt is mined."

  "My people extract salt from seawater. It's said to be the healthiest form, since it's easiest to dissolve, which means it takes less of it to make the same taste. Not sure how true that is, but it's not hard to get the salt out of the water, just time-consuming, so you need to keep the process working non-stop."

  "If we can do it, then we should. It will bring in a lot of money for the territory and the town in general."

  "Let's try to set something up tomorrow. After a good night." I winked. "Keep you from worrying too much about Donna. If you fixate on it, then it will be worse for you. We'll keep ourselves busy till we know what's what, okay?"

  Jenna nodded, blushing. "Okay!" She responded timidly.

  Korra came back in hopeful, but worried. "Tonya is setting out in her skiff now. Says she can check both places in less than two days. If she's out there, she'll bring her home." Jenna nodded.

  "We're going to make a salt bank tomorrow, maybe even see some crystals forming before night comes."

  Korra looked at me, confused. "What's that then?"

  "It's a way to extract salt from seawater. Probably take most of the day to build it and get it working. Just the sort of project to keep people distracted. Plus, it will produce salt for the village. I'm sure even your cooking will improve by leaps and bounds if you have access to cheap salt."

  Korra nodded. "I'll help with getting what you need and a place to build the thing. Best finish supper and get you two to bed. You'll be needin a bucket of warm water and a cake of soap, I expect. Can't do anything important if'n ya can't wash first." She was grinning at Jenna's bright red face.

  "Ma, please! It's embarrassing!"

  "As if I din' know it, what with you two having matching tomatoes as faces." She chuckled as she finished her meal, while we, burning hot, did likewise.