Chapter 2

  "That's odd", Minot exclaims.

  "I know, right?", Iv adds scratching her head. "That's the first time I'm seeing waves on the Night Ocean. Did you see them while you were fishing?"

  Minot thinks but he was so focused on catching the fish he did not notice the waves.

  "Couldn't tell ya. Was busy catching fish."

  Iv scoffs in disbelief. "How in the stinkin' Depths did you manage that? Catching fish without noticing the waves?"

  "Maybe I should've opened my eyes", Minot chuckles. "At least we'll have something to tell when we get back."

  "If we're fast we can sell the scoop to the press and get some big money!", Iv comments jokingly.

  "Hah! Don't gimme ideas." Minot closes the bag and puts his harpoon and club back. "I'd burn through the money like instantly. On food and equipment alone."

  "That's why you have your wonderful and smart Fairy Iv to manage your funds."

  The two joke around for a bit before Iv goes back to the steering console, releases the anchoring and makes the ship ascend again. The fish add some extra weight which makes the trip back to the harbor a bit longer. As they move up the rocks return. Minot returns inside the cabin and relaxes on the bed, crosses his arms behind his head. After a long day of throwing his harpoon, beating the fish and dealing with Iv he feels a bit tired. He wouldn't mind to close his eyes and nap for the duration of the trip. Despite his body calling for a moment's rest his mind is still processing the sight of the waves. For all his life as a fisherman he has never seen waves splashing on the Night Ocean. It is known for how calm, mysterious and dangerous it is. People have always told him that whatever falls into the sea never swims up again. They said, the sea itself pulls you down to feast on your soul. The calm surface is to lure in naive sailors.

  Minot was skeptical about those rumors. For one, fish seem to live and thrive in it. Granted, the fish look weird, but any fish taken out of the water looks weird, right? Also, what does the sea want with your soul? Those are questions he didn't spend much time thinking about because they didn't change his work. Those are probably tales to scare sailors straight. A sailor dumb enough to jump into calm water has had it coming, he told himself. But the waves did give him pause. Waves usually mean movement, be it wind or currents. The wind was calm and hardly a factor, so maybe... something below the surface was stirring.

  "Ahh!", Minot yells. Iv jumps and almost hits her head on the ceiling.

  "What are you screaming for, you brainless parrot?", shouts Iv, recovering from her near-heart attack.

  "Head hurts. Been thinking too much."

  "Then stop thinking, you barnacle. It doesn't suit you anyway."

  Minot gets up and moves out again. "Good idea", he says and leans against the bulwark. A few moments of gathering his thoughts later Iv flies out. They have ascended a good few kilometers already and the first islands start to become visible above them. The blue shift that comes with distance gives way to their proper Brown and Gray colors. Here and there are some strokes of Green from the plants sprinkled with Yellow and White of the flowers. Hard to imagine that above those floating islands people live and thrive.

  "Aight, auto-ascend can handle it from here", Iv states. "What d'you think we can make with the fish today?"

  "Depends on who the receptionist is", Minot replies, balancing himself on the bulwark with both arms. "I hope it's not Marlon, the piece of shit."

  "Eugh, hate that guy", Iv agrees with a tired look on her face.

  "He always pays pennies for a full sack. I swear this guy has it out for me."

  "What did you do? Banged his girlfriend?"

  "I wish, but I doubt that grease monkey has even seen a woman closer than 5 meters."

  Both laugh, joined in the dislike of a petty receptionist at the harbor. Marlon has always been unfriendly, petty and condescending towards Minot and Iv. Whenever they returned from a fishing trip and Marlon was the one buying the fish from them he would always pay the bare minimum, and only after haggling and threats. If Minot could he would do something about Marlon's behavior, but his hands are tied since the receptionist is the one that receives the fish and pays out. Also, Minot doesn't have many options for filing a claim or reporting him because of his reputation as a rowdy and combative sailor. Even if someone higher up were to lend him an ear, they probably would take Marlon's side. Because of that Minot takes the bad pay and doesn't cause a scene.

  "Thankfully we don't have to deal with that idiot today", Iv tells him. "I looked it up, today's receptionist is Lise."

  Minot suddenly becomes very still and his eyes wander up into the distant sky.

  "Ya like hearing that, don't ya", Iv teases him. "I bet you've missed her."

  Minot refuses to comment and play into Iv's teasing.

  "Aww. Are you rehearsing what you gonna say to her in your head?" Iv giggles like a super villain learning about the super hero's weakness, flying in front of his face. "Do you want me to help? Just say the word."

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  "Shut it, Fairy." Minot turns to the side and tries to stop a blush. As he feels his cheeks becoming warmer he knows he failed. Iv laughs very amused. Lise is also a receptionist at Porto Branco, but she doesn't work there often. Most of her work is done at the capital of Relva Hesfor and occasionally she replaces Marlon. Whenever she is there Minot gets generously paid - compared to Marlon - and she treats him decently. Most people at the harbor don't interact with him much. Be it because of his reputation or because they have other things to do. Schalk and Lise are the only two aside from Iv that give him the time of day. Unfortunately, Minot stiffens up and can hardly get a word out when he talks to Lise. He can't get his eyes off her and loses almost all social skills. He hopes she doesn't think of him as a weirdo or creep, but she always greets him with her genuine smile.

  "Oi, get back to steering before we crash into an island."

  "Aye, aye, tiger"

  Iv returns to the console and resumes manual control. The blush slowly fades from Minot's face. The journey upwards continues for another few minutes. The ship passes the first bigger islands with full vegetation and animal life on them. On one island a tree reaches high. With branches covered in leaves and spread apart it bathes in the sun's light. Hidden between the leaves are a few fruits still growing and ripening. It will take a few weeks before they can be harvested. A furry little animal isn't too keen on waiting and is already rushing up the trunk and checking out the fruits. It's a flying squirrel. On its way it broke a few twigs and plucked some leaves. All in order to get a bite. The long and furry tail wraps around the branch for stability while it looks around. A few sniffs and test bites later it picks a fruit from the twig and eats it. Its big black eyes don't look satisfied. It jumps off the tree and scuttles into a bush. Minot gets hungry from watching the scene.

  "Minot?", Iv calls. The bare-bones radar on the console displays an unfamiliar signal in between the rocks. "Found something odd again."

  "What? Are there more waves?", he jokes.

  "Look port, 310, slightly above us."

  Minot raises an eyebrow. He walks over to the other side of the ship across the narrow deck. On the way he picks up his club and holds it lightly in his right hand.

  "Slightly above..." As Minot looks up he sees it. It is odd indeed, it looks like a... "Is that a bird?"

  On top of a rock stands a figure quietly observing the aircraft. It's shaped like a heron with its head down, stands straight and has its wings pulled close to its body. The feathers are white with orange gradients at the base and gold accents. White-yellow mist seems to be emanating from the tips of its wings and back of its head. It locks eyes with Minot. Those gold-glowing eyes don't express compassion, but a deep seated disdain.

  "A bird?", Iv asks, leaving the console momentarily to look at the strange creature. "It looks like a statue the way it just sits there."

  "Does it also look to you like it gonna swoop us?"

  The bird answers in Iv's stead by spreading its wings, showing its wide wingspan of over 2 meters. Not a heartbeat later it lunges from its rock and dives towards the ship.

  "Get down!", Minot yells, ducking and holding his club with two hands. The bird flies so fast the air parts and creates a high pitched "zip" sound. "Iv, stay the course and speed it up. I'll deal with the freak ass bird."

  "Aye!" Iv rushes back inside and boosts the ship's engines. The whirring noise gets louder, joined by sputtering and knocking. The sudden spike in acceleration almost knocks Minot off his feet, but he catches himself in time on the bulwark.

  "Alright, you dusty feather ball. I worked hard for these fish!"

  Minot gets up and scans the sky for the bird. He finds nothing. Did they escape it?

  "In front of us! 12 o'clock!", Iv shouts.

  The bird has moved below the ship after its first swipe and circled around to come up ahead of them. It pulls its wings back and dives again.

  "Ram it!", Minot yells to Iv.

  "What? No! My ship ain't a battering ram!"

  Iv attempts an evasive maneuver, but the speed of the bird is too high and it strikes the top of the cabin with its talons. Two thin cuts appear within the blink of an eye across the metal roof.

  "What's this bird's problem?!"

  "STOP SCRATCHING MY SHIP!"

  It circles around and prepares to strike again. As it flies in Minot swings his club but misses. The bird has to evade and doesn't scratch the ship. The fight continues that way, where the creature swoops and Minot swings at it. The ship gets more cuts here and there despite Minot's efforts of defending it.

  "Minot, are you swatting flies?! Hit that flying bastard!"

  "I'm trying!"

  The aerial assault is unrelenting. During one attack Minot misjudges the timing and gets his left arm cut. He has instinctively stepped to the side to prevent a deeper cut. A stinging pain spreads across his body. Blood starts dripping, flowing down his arm and onto the club. A few drops hit the ground. He lets out a pained groan, then grits his teeth. Those talons are indeed sharp.

  "Not too deep. Lucky."

  The sight of a successful hit seems to make the bird more aggressive. Minot can only defend himself with his right arm because the pain is too much. It continues to fly in and swoop, but it isn't trying to hit. It is taunting him.

  "That's it!" Minot puts the club in his left hand and steps back to grab his harpoon. "I'm gonna make shish kebab outta you!"

  The bird is circling the ship again with high speeds. Minot is quietly scanning it and reading its patterns. Whenever it strikes he ducks, rolls and weaves, then returns to scanning. More cuts appear on the ship. With each swipe and dive he understands the bird's movements. He holds his breath. The harpoon is readied in his hand. One more time the bird dives.

  "Hit it!", Iv yells.

  The assailant swipes across the ship's deck with impressive speeds, trying to hit Minot. He evades with a small step to the side, his eyes following the bird's movement. For an instant that felt like forever he lockes eyes with the white bird. He sees it move past him far enough away to not be cut by its talons. A split second later it has already flown several meters, but Minot has its path analyzed. He uses the momentum of his sidestep, twists his torso, extends his arm and aims a few seconds ahead of the bird's path. At the peak of his arm's movement he releases his grip on the harpoon and sends it flying.

  Two seconds later, the harpoon intercepts the bird's path and strikes it square in the upper body.

  "Catch! Reel it in, Iv!"

  The rope stiffens and the mechanism starts to reel the harpoon back in. The bird screams in pain, but it sounds different from any bird wailing Minot has heard before. It sounds echo-y and strained. While it gets reeled in Minot grabs his club with both hands and prepares to strike.

  "Payback time, you fancy feather duster."

  It flutters wildly trying to resist the harpoon's pull and the ship's speed, but it is in vain. More mist is expelled as feathers fall off and dissolve. Upon a closer look, the bird doesn't even look it it's bleeding at all.

  Minot raises his club. The moment the bird reaches his range he swings in the opposite direction of the harpoon's pull, striking it across its head with enough force to behead a dragon. More blood spurts out of his wound. Surprisingly, instead of a beheading the bird explodes into a cloud of white and golden mist. The only thing other than a "poof" Minot hears is two objects falling to the ground. One is the harpoon, now without prey and zipping back inside, the other...

  "What's this?"