One thing I was thinking is that the captain might have intended to make that new life on his own, not realizing he'd been followed until the familiar, but unexpected sound of claws on the top deck.<br/><br/>Also, with the portal - it might be controllable, but neither of them have any idea how to control it.  Possibly some of the other realms have tech or magic that allows for controlled travel, but until they discover it, it's fairly random (think Stargate, to a degree.)