“The mission that we’ve been asked to complete is to find and eliminate the Leviathan. Are there any takers?”

There was a long pause in the room, then a large commotion ensued in the hall. The younger officers had gone into a panic, while the older officers stood there quietly, staring at the captain in an attempt to find out what he was thinking.

“Captain what are you thinking!?” one middle aged officer questioned.

“The Leviathan is a monster! Do you really think we’ll be able to kill it with only barely two hundred men!?” retorted one of the younger officers, unable to control his anxiety.

The Leviathan was a legendary monster. No one knows where it comes from, but as soon as you see it, you may as well resign yourself to death. The grim reaper of the sea, the Leviathan is a monster that appears every thousand years. To date, only three groups have ever successfully killed a Leviathan. These groups, however, were armies of kingdoms who possessed thousands of soldiers, with only tens of them having survived the battle. Thus, the younger officers’ reactions were quite understandable.

“I understand your concerns young’uns, however, we may not have a choice in the matter,” Captain Michael said.

“What do you mean by that, Captain?” Van Drake questioned the old man.

“The Leviathan is heading for our next port of call, the city of Litharia. Our supplies are starting to run dry, and if we change courses now, we won’t be able to reach the next city before our supplies run out. Therefore, no matter what, we need to resupply at that city. However, I know that what I’m asking is as good as a death wish, so I’m asking you if you’d like to jump ship with one of the skiffs.”

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A long silence enveloped the room as the officers began to ponder what they should do.

Then, the captain said,

“If you would let an old man like myself ask you to contemplate a certain matter, I want you to think about all the people who are in Litharia right now. Everyone there, the men, women, and children, will be wiped out if we don’t do anything. However, if we can just hold it off for even a second longer, we will be able to help the citizens there evacuate to one of the neighboring islands while redirecting the Leviathan's focus onto ourselves. Now, I’m not saying that I want you die a hero’s death, however, I am asking you to at least give staying a thought.”

Silence. Until..

“I’ll do it captain, I’m with you,” came an anxious, yet resolute voice.

The young officers heads turned to the one who had spouted the words that not a single one of them had even contemplated. What they saw was me, staring with eyes of determination toward the captain.

“Ooh? Are you sure that you’d want to do this officer Marcus? Your life has been pretty rough until now, hasn’t it?” The captain asked in a surprised, yet at the same time unsurprised, tone.

“Don’t get me wrong captain, I have as much intention of living as anyone else. Furthermore, I have no intention of playing the hero for people who I don’t even know. However, I can tell that you’re serious about this, and that whether we agree to go with you or not, you will go to Lithania to fight the Leviathan. Therefore, I can’t just simply run away as my captain is trying to get himself killed. As you said when all of us were inducted into the crew, we are family. Me and my men have no one else but the crew to call our family, and the Maelstrom to call our home. It this ship’s going down, we’ll go down with it,” I continued my proclamation.

After a pause and further contemplation, the other officers began to make their decisions as well. The majority of the officers decided to stay, however, there were some that decided otherwise.

“I ain’t givin up my life for people I don’t even know, same goes for my boys. Sorry captain, but me and my men are out,” said one of the young officers, before departing from the room to gather his men and leave the Maelstrom.

Many left due to fear and their unwillingness to die what they thought were pointless deaths.

“So, this is everyone who’s staying?” the captain asked while looking at the remaining members of the crew.

We nodded to confirm our intentions, and as he watches our heads bobbing up and down, the captain breathed a sigh of relief.

“Man, I was scared for a second that I might have to die alone! Well, let’s start planning our attack, shall we?”