Chapter 5
Basileo met with the new crew members sent by the Portuguese crown. Despite his tattered language skills, Basileo was able to get the general points across. The new crew members were all hard working which made them a great addition to the team. The preparations were progressing very smoothly as Basileo estimated his ship to begin her journey in a few days. He was still at a loss of words at how quickly his fortune turned around. It wasn't that long ago that he and his crew were packing their belongings to return to Naples. Basileo would still be a fortunate one since he would still be a captain back home without the promise of thrill and adventure that came with expeditions.
Back in Naples, Basileo was a captain of a small trade fleet that helped ship trade goods across the Mediterranean. Pirates did exist but they were in such small numbers that the escort fleet was more than enough to deter the attacks. Basileo always loved the feel of being on water which couldn't be rivaled by land. Yet, his tasks of heading small trade fleets eventually became mundane once he got over the initial excitement of seeing the exotic goods that might be aboard his ship from time to time. Then, he heard of stories about possible new lands waiting to be discovered and, to do so, one must sail ships across the vast oceans past the many dangers that await in the shadows. Basileo scoffed at these stories at first thinking they were nothing but bedtime stories for children.
It wasn't until news in the west reached Naples did Basileo finally take the stories more seriously. First, islands called Madeira and the Azores were discovered by the Portuguese. Basileo never even imagined such islands existed in the Atlantic which has been shrouded in mystery for centuries. Then, there came news about the infamous Cape Bojador which was considered impassable at one point. The fact that someone managed to overcome it opened up a large number of opportunities. This accomplishment was also a much needed motivation for Basileo and his crew who, at that point, encountered a number of rejections resulting in relatively low morale overall. The motivation kept them going seeing them eventually arrive in Portugal and getting their much sought out funding.
Many of those in his crew had been following Basileo for years. They were hand picked sailors of Basileo because he knew their work ethics and experience. They, much like their captain, were finding their work rather mundane where nothing exciting ever happens. Life was short so they weren't particularly content with spending their entire life in their profession until retirement. Therefore, it didn't take much for Basileo to convince them to join him in their journey of finding sponsors for expeditions. Along their journey, they encountered others who also sought out more excitement in their life so Basileo's crew grew larger. After going through some very difficult times, they were rewarded by the funding of the Portuguese crown and the ship, Lobo.