[ His expression screw up at the mention of turning, and his face seems to blanch to an even paler shade of white, his skin taking on more blue and purple undertones, his eyes flashing red again. There's no question, his fear of transformation is far greater than drowning in the ocean, but the odds of him manning a ship - even a small vessel - on his own and surviving?

He has always been one to freeze, not flee, to his own detriment.

Astarion doesn't scoff back at him when he says I can't just leave. He stares at him for a long moment, uncertain, whatever scraps of bravado he'd been clinging to on their mad dash to this village has been shredded in his desperate grasp. ]

You can, and you should. Because I am not mad yet, and I need you alive to get out of here! Not traipsing off on some guilt-fueled suicide attempt... [ he glares at Cid, eyes flashing with fear again ] - I want to live! And I won't - I can't be turned, I won't end up like them...

[ His speech peters off into more panicked rambling, only interrupted by noises just outside the cottage door. ]