Mythical One Shots

1 - Devil of The Sea pt.1

 image above: https://dwarffortresswiki.org/index.php/File:Sea_monster.jpg

x x x

Captain Magnus looked out over the dark sea, placing a hand on the icy metal rail.

The fresh smell of salt water filled his old, withered lungs. He was close to sure that it was the only thing that kept him alive.

The year was 1740, nearly seven long decades since he was born. Putting a piece of tobacco in his mouth, he turned his gaze away from the dark liquid abyss and to his crewmates. There was Jón; a slim man with a few frail stands of wispy hair both on his head and clinging onto his chin. He looked to be around 80, though he claims he's only forty.

Then there was Josef; his head was as smooth as his brain, but he was strong and stood tall, a few inches above Magnus himself. Both were sitting on a makeshift bench, made of stray planks of driftwood they had found on this run down ship. Josef was stroking his large, bushy beard thoughtfully, while Jón was resting his chin in the palm of his hand, tired from keeping watch for...

How long was it now? Weeks? Months? Magnus couldn't bring himself to remember how long they had been sailing the sea, looking for him.

He could feel a storm brewing, like a nervous thrumming in his bones. 

Magnus heard another bout of thunder in the sky and walked back into his cabin. He could only smell dead fish and the stench of men who hadn't bathed for weeks.

What are you even looking for, Magnus? he thought, sighing. He cast his tired eyes onto the small desk, littered with yellowed parchment paper and maps. Magnus looked down at his frail, curly handwriting amongst all the big, bold letters of the book he was reading. He let out a sad chuckle, brushing a bruised and darkened hand through his thick, wavy gray hair.

He had always thought he was special. No, no, he had known he was special. After all, who else in his class could calculate distances so easily? Who else in his class could answer questions in the time span of a mere minute?

He had never needed to try hard to excel. This is why he was able to do so much with his life. This was why instead of studying, he would take long midnight trips out to the seashore and learn how to sail boats and how to manage a crew. He knew everything about the art of sailing; dropping an anchor where it wouldn't hurt the environment, how to go at the exact speed necessary, he even trained his eye to keep watch for strange things the size of a pebble.

And yet, and yet, he couldn't find something that was supposed to be the size of a house.

Magnus grunted in frustration and banged his hand on the table, knocking off a bottle of ink and staining the floor. He backed away from it, cursing.

"Why can't I do this?" he whispered. Looking up at the sky, he fell onto his knees. Magnus didn't know who or what he was talking to, but there had to be someone up there, right? Maybe his mother, or maybe God himself. "Please, please, please!" he begged. "If I don't do this right, my daughter will be thrown out! Please!"

At this point, Magnus was certain that the men outside could hear him begging, but he stopped caring around five seconds ago. He was desperate.

His daughter was out of money from all her gambling. She couldn't pay rent, and her husband wasn't willing to help. Magnus was out of options, especially since nobody believed he was telling the truth.

Who would believe him? He had stolen before. He had been convicted of crimes. Framed for a few robberies, even. But his daughter didn't deserve this, no matter what choices she may have made.

Hearing no reply from the forces above, Magnus screamed, "Why can't I find this stupid kraken?"

AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH

Magnus leaped up from the floor and whirled around.

What the hell was that? he thought, heart beating wildly in his chest. Running outside, he squinted against the heavy rain that pounded the ship's upper deck.

His crewmates gathered around Magnus, trembling as they ever so subtly got behind him. Magnus paid no attention to their frivolous whimpering and stepped forward from the shade of the upper board.

He could make out a dark shape looming over his ship, obscuring his entire view to the east.

Could it be...? Magnus yelled at his crewmates to grab the net they had prepared, though not even he could hear what he was saying. The Kraken?

Magnus was soon to be proved wrong.

So very, very and utterly wrong.

x x x

to be continued...