Standing on the deck of the ship, Kaden could only stare at his creation in wonder while Skully’s first word still hung in the air. Skully had been so cute as a skull-spider. As a lumbering Bone Behemoth he was less cute but considerably more dangerous. Undead could not normally become enlightened, meaning speech was supposed to be impossible. “How? What happened to him?”
“I went to Xiao first, of course,” Eve said. She nodded to Skully, who kneeled down and bent his arms forward to provide a chair for Eve to sit. “Then, after negotiations were complete, I collected Skully and headed to the Guild to get a pedestal. We have the first functioning shrine to Nurav at the gate of the Holding. Let me tell you, she adores the [Plague Crows] in Skully, and the moment she began speaking to him, he spoke back. Somewhat. His vocabulary is limited. Also, she asked for an offering of [Plague Crows] and I was afraid to say no.”
“I’d be afraid, too,” Kaden said. “The nest will generate more, but she needs an impregnated skull.”
“I’m well aware. Please, never ask about that,” Eve said. “Vip was the best girl. She didn’t even growl.”
*Slow*. Vip wasn’t proud at all, though Kaden couldn’t express his gratitude. “Well done. So now, as High Priestess, you have to go out and convert people?”
“Absolutely not. I’ll be happy to fill you in on my duties when the party’s all present. For now, suffice it to say that every time I use [Life Explosion] or [Life Endowment], I’m fulfilling my duties.” Eve stood and stretched. “I’m exhausted. I’ve been up for what feels like days. Are there crew cabins where I can sleep for a few hours?”
Trella flagged down Captain Targ, who bowed to Eve and then offered her his cabin.
“Is it all right if Vip goes with me?” Eve asked.
Kaden picked Vip up to give her a squeeze and let her nuzzle him. “Vip’s the best girl. She’ll take care of you.”
“Thank you.” Eve opened the door for Vip and headed in. A moment later she opened the door. “Did someone leave a meat puzzle in the bed? It’s a corpse. I think the corpse is all there but I don’t have the focus to try and resurrect someone this far gone at the moment. Perhaps tomorrow.”
“Dead is dead, later’s good,” Trella said. “Come on, Kaden. I’ll start teaching you positions—not those positions. Where to go when the captain calls locations. Sailing is a lot like party combat. It’s the crew versus the ocean. Learning will make us better at working together.”
Kaden could hardly wait.
###
The gusting wind struck Kaden in the face as he stood at the front of the ship, determined not to sink into depression as they headed further and further out to sea. The sun sank deeper and deeper on the horizon, turning the sea red where it touched, and in the distance, clouds gathered. It was time for him to go underwater and prepare an ambush for any pirates.
“Are you ready?” Trella asked. “You could go below deck with Sara but this underwater attack is the best ideal you’ve ever come up with. Or the worst, but if you pull it off, the best. Hiding under a ship to attack a pirate is something I’ve never heard of.”
Kaden was. “The [Flip-oar] fish is following the ship, and even if something eats it, it’s a sea. It’s full of beasts. I’ll bind another. Skully?”
“He’s waiting at the back of the ship. Sara put chains through him so he can’t fall off and sink.” Trella put a hand on his cheek. “You don’t have to do this.”
“Says the woman who spent months in a dungeon learning to sail.”
“Not just sailing. I learned a ton about [Pirates] and a good amount of [Deception.] Be ready, if there’s anything I’m sure of, it’s that the pirates will either be smart or desperate and both are dangerous.” Trella followed him to the back of the ship, where Ashi stood on one side of a heavy chain and Sara stood on the other. The chain looped up and around Skully’s spine, then trailed off into the water, where it went all the way forward to the front of the ship.
Ashi handed him a stone. “If the darkness becomes powerful, this will give you light in equal measure. If you are hungry, if you are thirsty, I will know and tell the others.”
Sara started to speak and stopped. “Be careful. Don’t drown. I’ll have you pulled up once a day at sunset to have Eve check you over.”
There was no putting it off.
Kaden stepped to the rail and dropped over the side, clinging to the chain, which sank into the water and then ran along the underside of the entire hull. Kaden didn’t need to breathe, so he sank underwater, and quickly used a strip of leather to loop himself to the keel-chain. Now, he didn’t need to hold on.
The seawater was cold, and the movement kept a constant current across his face, pulling at his hair and gently flaring the leather ties on his armor.
A splash above him heralded Skully crawling hand over hand along the chain to Kaden—then positioning himself over Kaden. The Skeleton began to shift, molding his bones. The jaw-rib cage opened wider, enclosing Kaden and then stabbing the hull so the enchantments flashed yellow.
The world was dark, any semblence of sun through the seawater had disappeared. The gentle rock up and down of the ship was the only movement.
Then the sharks came.
The first were normal sharks who rammed Skully until the skeleton grabbed one and smacked it against the hull. But the blood drew others. As the Time Of Monsters set in, the sea below came to life with hundreds of spawns, some so distant they were embers of light far below, and glowing orbs of red that said that bosses were nothing new to the sea below.
A squid half the length of the ship swam up and settled in to snack on Skully—only to find itself Soul-Bound. This was magnificent. Fantastic. Kaden let his squid friend loose, studying the skills it came with.
[Explodius - Sea Boss]
The bomb-squid are not known for the strength of their arms, but their ability to detonate in the mouthes of predators, turning their hunters into easy meals—or at least driving them off. But let a bomb-squid reach adulthood and what remains is a nightmare capable of wrecking a ship, or worse. This particular bomb-squid had spotted a tastey meal and is currently wondering if that was a great idea. *Beast Knowledge - so we took the bomb squid, and we stuffed it down his throat. Felt bad for the squid but the result was exactly what we hoped for.
*Uncertain.*
Skills: Splode, Regenerate, Claw
Talents: Rubbery Flesh, Knotty Nature
At his command, the Explodius swam alongside, and when sharks came too close, it moved to attack. Then he thought of something even better. Instead of killing them, it was better to have Explodius drag them close enough for Kaden to reach through Skully’s rib cage and bind them. He dropped [Water Breathing] for [Water Born] which let him not only breath but move freely, and at his command, Skully moved forward, releasing Kaden to trail along under the ship.
With only a thought he had Explodius drag Kaden with him, never more than a few hundred feet from the ship, but now he could descend to tame a [Barrel-cuda] or go shooting up toward the surface to stop a swarm of Furrahnas from gnawing at the ship.
The sea was vicious, that was true, but with each passing spawn Kaden’s army of beasts that were either bound or at least cooperative grew.
You have completed a Quest - Times Ten - Tame a thousand beasts. This quest is repeatable.
Quest Master is active.
You have received: 2x Soul Binding Slot.
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Perfect. There were thousands of beasts in the sea which meant thousands of slots for Kaden to use.
Warning. Your Soul Attribute is low. Soul limits bindings.
Kaden swore and deposited a point into Soul. It would increase his ability to hold beasts, but he’d really been planning on more agility. But every slot could be a different skill. Maybe he was fast enough.
Speaking of skills, the exploding ability from Explodius looked like fun, but the [Regenerate] ability was truly magnificent. Oh, how easy it was to see a spawn, attack it with a random fish and then have Explodius drag them in to meet Kaden. So many fish, so many emotions, all of them hungry or angry or horny. So, not that many emotions but enough to keep the sea alive.
Far below, Kaden focused on a shark that spewed swarms of smaller sharks from boils on its skin. Wraped in a bubble of red, it was deadly without question. He willed Explodius closer. The best attack would be one where an explosion destroyed the swarm and Kaden bound the boss. Timing was everything.
Without warning, he flew backwards, upwards as the chain on his belt yanked backward, clattering against the hull until he burst from the water, dragged upside down. Kaden spat out a mouth full of water and clambered up to the deck. “Pirates?”
Trella stared at him as he dripped. “No, it’s near dawn and we were worried about you. The crew’s been on guard for monster spawns but nothing attacked.”
That made Kaden laugh, as Explodius hauled itself up the chain to loom behind him. It waved with all of its tentacles to almost every sailor. “Say hello to Explodius. We’ve been working to keep the ship safe.”
From behind Trella, someone groaned. A broad chested, skeletal man who looked more undead than alive spoke in a whisper. “Taming sea monsters. Never, ever a good omen. The beast will drag you into the depths, mark my words. He’ll drag us all.”
“Kaden, meet Captain Senegal, he was the pile of body parts tucked inside the mattress Eve found,” Sara said. “He’ll be recovering from the resurrection for a while, but helping guide Captain Targ. Eve has a meal ready for you. How is Skully?”
“He likes fish. Can’t actually digest them but it doesn’t stop him from taking bites out of them and then throwing them back, which brings sharks, which is ok, because Skully likes sharks better than other fish.” Something smelled amazing. “What is that?”
“Fish stew.” Eve carried a bowl up to the back of the ship. “I packed yours with meat. Your health is high, I don’t see any status conditions. Why is there—No, I won’t ask. You and your giant squid have a good meal.”
“He’s not a giant. In fact, Explodius is small as squids go. A giant could pull this ship to pieces.” Kaden grinned at the thought. Of the giant squid, not the ship being torn to pieces. He slurped the soup and then drank every bit. “Pull me up at sunset, or sooner if the water gets all bloody and it looks like my blood.”
Trella gave him a kiss. “We’re two days from where Cutter’s ship would have passed closest, but anywhere from here on out could be hostile waters. Get some sleep. If we yank the chain but don’t pull you up, it’s because there’s a problem.”
Kaden stepped backward, letting Explodius wrap a tentacle around him, and then together they returned to the sea, where Kaden let Skully cage him to the boat and fell asleep to the cold rush of water.
He startled awake when the ship lurched upward and plunged down on a squall wave. Even ten feet below the surface, the waters calmed. Kaden quickly ordered the [Bearacuda] he’d tamed to circle the ship in a widening circle, and then hold that radius. By daylight, the sea was a desert devoid of life with only distant schools of fish.
Once, he caught a glimpse of a turtle the size of a ship, but when Explodius turned toward it, it dove deep and fast, leaving a trail of boiling water in its wake. The ship moved at a rate that made Kaden want to hitch up whales and pull, but the whole point was to bait the pirates into an attack. Moving faster would run against everything they’d worked for.
Evening found him quickly drinking and devouring a meal. There were monsters coming and chances to tame more beasts. While he clung to the underside of the ship, he practiced ideas with Skully, things Skully could do during an attack. The ideas were simple, like throw people off the ship,’ ‘swing people like clubs,’ ‘break the masts,’ or ‘bite faces,’ but most importantly, raise pure mayhem.
Tonight, the monster spawns avoided the ship. Sharks, of course came, but Kaden had tamed a dozen sharks and now only bothered when an elemental one showed its toothy face. And [Bearacudas]. One could never have too many of them, even though he could only afford to bind a pair. Vip, Rocky, Trinity, Skully, Burny, the Drake and Wyvern left only eight slots and Kaden juggled creatures, feeding some to keep them loyal. A [Drill Fish] was just too valuable to risk losing - the horn on its nose tip would damage even enchanted planks, and punching holes in the attacking ships was a key strategy. He’d know exactly which ship he was going to take and which would be left for the pirates to escape on. The escapees would tell the story that would let them slip into port.
As Kaden waited, a pattern in the deep began to worry him. Bosses spawned and winked out, like something had killed them—or cut off his view. Such a creature would be unthinkably large, but Kaden kept thinking it anyway.
*Kaden.*
He startled at Sara’s mind speech. None of them had actual training with the skill. She must be down in the hold right next to where he clung to the hull.
*Hey. How’s life in the air breathing world?*
*Dark. I have to stay in the hold and I’m losing my mind. Ashi is up in the crow’s nest. She tied a rope to the top of the mast and used [Hover] to rise even further.*
Kaden smiled—then winced as another boss disappeared. *There’s something down deep in the sea. It’s huge, large enough that it’s eating boss spawns. There’s no evidence of it coming higher, but the sailors should know.*
*I’ll tell them. It’s past midnight, get some sleep. If there’s going to be an attack it will be in the next two days and I think it will happen at dawn or sunset.*
For the next few hours, Sara kept him company as Kaden tamed another electro-shark and an octopus the size of his fist, imbued with death mana. Four hours to sunrise, he drifted off to sleep. The gentle bump of his chain being pulled didn’t disturb him until his head broke the surface.
The tension on the ship was thick as a preserved biscuit soaked in sewage and then used as a roulette game piece. Ashi wasn’t visible at all, Eve kneeled by the side board. “Please. I know you have [Prophecy]. Have you sensed or seen anything? Even if it’s wrong, it might help.”
“Not a glimpse. But I have a small army down here. The best army I can build. I’m going to put Vip in my soul, just in case.” Kaden pulled on the soul binding and relaxed as Vip disappeared into the depths of his soul. “Where’s Trella?”
“Consulting with Captain Senegal, Captain Targ, and Bliss. Targ wants to kill all the pirates, Senegal wants to turn back. Listen closely and quickly - I don’t trust Senegal. His resurrection felt wrong. Sara and the others know. Trella wanted to kill him just to be safe, but if we do, the [Sailors] might mutiny.” Eve hesitated. “I’m going to reserve enough mana to kill him if he turns on us. I hope I’m wrong. I really hope I’m wrong.”
Kaden wasn’t ready to kill the man, but if Eve had a hunch he wouldn’t ignore it. “Sara’s been using [Mind Speech] to talk to me. If anything happens, use it.”
“I can’t. Every time I try, I wind up talking to Sara or Trella. But I’ll yank your chain as soon as possible if anything goes wrong.” Eve stood and looked back. “Quick, the shift’s ending.”
The ocean welcomed him back
Days underwater made his skin feel dry in the open air, and something was wrong about that. Explodius did not speak. Squid were not given to thought, which didn’t mean they weren’t intelligent, it was simply that squid knew what it wanted to do. There wasn’t an internal argument in its mind, decisions were easy as biting a shark.
Kaden couldn’t help appreciating the clarity that Explodius enjoyed. [Beast Soul] let some of that leak in, and he began to present decisions to the squid. The mess of interconnected quests to re-establish his town? Explode it. The mana stone miners in Deshun becoming bandits again? Explode them. Ashi’s failure to find love? Explode it. The clarity came at a cost, true, but it was refreshing.
Evening came, and Kaden recognized the sunset before the relentless pulling hauled him back up toward the deck. Trella waited there as she pulled on the chain, but when he went to hug her, she recoiled. “Are those crabs hanging off your chest?”
He glanced down. “Maybe.”
“Are they trying eat you? Where did you even get crabs? The ocean floor is so far down!” Trella reached for one, which snapped at her.
“I think they were in the stomach of that carnivorous whale.” He watched her blank expression. “The whale that came to eat the manta ray. The ray? The ray that came to eat the shark? Oh, look what Skully tore out of a whale!” He fumbled, unsure of how to use Inventory for a moment and drew a metallic hand. “It’s enchanted.”
[Hand of Dog]
This hand belonged to the legendary [Sailor] Dog. Dog doesn’t need it anymore, the same way he doesn’t need his belt or his bones, but his hand is still around. The weilder of this hand has absolute knowledge of knots and can tie them one-handed. The weilder of this hand will never lose his grip on a ship. This hand doubles the effectiveness of [From Hell’s Heart].
Trella studied the artifact. “Eve told you how she feels about Senegal. About how his resurrection didn’t take? I want to use this. When I’m around him, I feel like he’s staring at me, even when he’s looking another direction.”
“You’re going to cut your hand off just to tie knots ?” Kaden asked, shaking the sea-brain free enough to focus.
Trella shook her head. “The Sisters told stories of dark spirits who cling to souls who spend too long dead without moving on. They’re drawn to artifacts. Maybe he’s not focusing on me. Maybe it’s the [Ink Blades]. I’ll have Sara carry it. If she gets the same treatment, I’m going to arrange an accident for him.”
Kaden ate quickly. “Days suck. Nothing attacks. Nothing comes near. There’s plenty of fish if you look down, but they don’t want to die, so they leave us alone.”
“That’s a good thing. Sailors are trained to fight off monsters.” Trella put a hand on his cheek. “You look strange. Wild. I don’t think this is good for you, and if Sara gets much worse I’m going to need to drug her.”
“Just explode her—sorry, I’ve been spending too much time with a squid.” Kaden shook his head. “Where’s Eve?”
“We had an outbreak of explosive sharting after the ship’s cook didn’t clean everything. She’s been using [Blood Burn] on everyone. We haven’t seen Ashi in forever but Sara says she’s ok.” Trella looked overboard. “Are you going to try and tame another boss?”
Kaden nodded. Then squinted. A chill ran through him even as he clung to the back of the ship. “Alert everyone. There should be bosses out. I don’t think it’s pirates. I think that monster beneath us is coming.”
With that, he dove off into the water. If death was coming from below, he was swimming down to meet it.