Jonah's chest heaved, and his breaths came out in ragged gasps. He doubled over, his hands clutching his knees as he winced in pain, a sharp ache radiating from his ribs. His knees buckled, and his body shook with each laugh that erupted from him.

“Of course… I’m deaf… Jeremy,” Jonah just about managed. “I can’t believe… you actually asked.”

He imagined Jeremy’s response, or rather, he predicted it, continuing to say, “Yes, I am that good at lip reading.”

Then he looked up at the man and watched his brown eyes widen and stifled another laugh. “Just because I’m not looking at you doesn’t mean I don’t know what you’re saying.”

“That doesn’t make sense!” Jeremy said. “How can you know if you’re not even looking at me?”

“Is Athena whispering in my ear?”

“Is Athena whispering in your ear?”

Jonah winced again as he tried to contain his chuckle at the second mate's bewildered face. The battle with Kraken had left him with broken ribs that still hadn’t healed fully, and thanks to the Sirens. he managed to bruise them again.

“You’re too easy to predict,” he watched Delia say.

“So how in Hades does he understand you, then?” Greg asked. “If you’re so unpredictable?”

“He talks to me. He’s picked up the way I talk, I guess? And he’s a fast learner.”

“I bet it's because he’s a red,” Jeremey muttered.

“Sure, me being awakened probably plays a part,” Jonah said.

“Oh fuck. You can see what I say even if I whisper it?!” Jeremy exclaimed, before continuing in a barrage of curse words to Jonah’s amusement and Delia’s disapproval.

By the time the second mate had finished cursing — and shortly after Greg's conversation with the trio — the Flightless Owl floated into the dock of Inia Telle and settled down, anchoring into position. Jonah supposed the dock had a different name. Perhaps the people named it after the city, whatever that was, though he was technically correct since that city belonged to the country, or so he reasoned; like calling the port of Sia the port of Askern — it wasn’t wrong, per se.

They arrived at the port, whatever it was called, at night. It was a calm and clear night. The full moon was on display, casting a bright glow over the oddly yellow sandy beach, and within the beach, the light projected long, willowy shadows of the odd trees that dotted the landscape. The trees themselves were static, rooted firmly into the sand, though the hanging leaves from their crown moved gently with the cool night breeze.

Further still was the imposing cliff face. Now up close and in the moonlight, it seemed almost blue to the naked eye, and though that was probably due to the shadows cast by its protruding top face, Jonah noted it as odd; usually, cliffs appeared grey or black at night.

Jonah also searched for the odd rectangular structure he had seen through the binocular — the elevator, as Greg had called it — though it was still too far away to discern with just his eyes. It was an interesting concept, and he was curious to see it work in person.

As his eyes fixated on the spot where the elevator should have been, a light nudge on his arm made him turn to Delia. She signalled to Jeremy with her eyes.

“I’m going to go over to the Captain,” Jeremy said. “I’ll find out if anything needs to be done.”

“Are we planning to disembark now?” Jonah asked, nodding towards the assembled crew; all the ship members were standing by the gangway as though they would depart any moment. They were clearly eager to make it back onto the land, and he could sympathise with this. The past four months at sea had been cruel.

Jeremy shrugged. “I don’t know. It depends on how close the nearest town is, I guess. Let me go talk to the captain.”

“Alright, let us know what the captain says,” Jonah said.

Jeremy nodded, turning to walk away. Then he flinched and paused. Jonah expected him to turn around and say something but noticed Delia had stiffened too. The entire crew did, freezing for a moment — freezing as though Medusa looked upon them — until randomly, they moved with renewed frenzy. Even Jeremy started running off instead of walking at his casual pace.

The crew freezing almost gave Jonah a heart attack, and their renewed vigour in their activity following the moment of stillness didn’t help his panic. His hand instinctively reached for the midnight ode again, but it found Delia’s hand instead.

“Khaleel sent a message using an artifact,” she explained.

He nodded, moving his hands back to his sides. “Is it the one he was wearing on the ship? The one they wore on their heads”

“No,” she said. “It’s not the headphones that the men wore. They were a noise-cancelling device. That makes them deaf.”

He raised a questioning eyebrow. “And they’d want that because?”

“To be impervious to the sounds of the Sirens, like you,” she said. “It means they don’t have to worry about being under their influence. They can also communicate through it, so it’s much better than wax.”

“You know, I’m not completely deaf,” Jonah admitted. “I can hear humming noises. It's like background noise, and really loud noises still come through. They just sound muffled, like being underwater. I wasn’t exactly under the Siren’s influence, but I'm fairly certain that they dazed me a little."

"I figured. You were staring at them weirdly,” Delia said, with a slight frown on her face. “Anyway, that sound. Is it like a ringing? Like tinnitus?"

"No… a low hum is more like it," Jonah said. “Anyway, it doesn't matter. So what did Khaleel use then?"

"I don't know," Delia said, looking towards Khaleel's ship docked further away. "It's whatever they used to announce that they were approaching our ship before we even met."

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"What's it like?"

"The message?”

He nodded.

“It's like a shout in the ear. Or a really close and loud whisper."

"I see… I didn't hear their announcement, so it's not a mental thing," Jonah said. "Wait, since I didn't hear it if they're wearing headphones, would they be able to hear the shout in their ears? They would be, in essence, mechanically deaf, no?"

Delia turned to stare at him as though he grew mushrooms from his head.

"What?"

"I don't know the answer," she said, still staring oddly at him.

"What is it?"

"Nothing."

"Why are you looking at me so weirdly?"

"I'm not," she said. "It's just how I look."

"Sure," he agreed, making his doubt clear in his voice. 'Anyway, what was the message?"

"Khaleel said that once we are ready, we should get off the ship and meet Elrasik and Elrayn. The two other guys who jumped on our ship."

"The ones who knocked Karl out and backed me into a corner?"

"Yes," she said. "The men who accompanied Khaleel to the flightless owl. Please don't start a fight with them "

"Why would I do that?" Jonah asked incredulously, feigning hurt.

"You have that creepy smile on your face. The one you have when you train"

"I can't tell what hurt more,” Jonah said. “Thinking I'd start a fight, or calling me creepy."

She rolled her eyes. "Anyway, he said they'd wait for us by the walkways. The men would then escort us and the crew to their village. Khaleel and his other ship members have already gone ahead to prepare for our arrival.

"So we're departing now, then? If they're waiting for us by the walkway?"

Delia shrugged. "We'll see what Pa says."

Jonah nodded, turning to look over at the walkway and the sandy shores, trying to ignore the odd feeling of sadness welling within him. It wasn't a goodbye yet, so there was no reason to be upset. If anything, he should have been excited; this was going to be a new chapter in his life. He would be able to learn about the Shipwright, about the man who became his father.

All he would need to do is leave the Flightless Owl, his greatest memorabilia, behind.

His hand went towards the hilt of the Midnight Ode. He had that, at least — his old man's sword.

"Do you think the guild will ask us that riddle here?" Delia asked, after nudging his arms for his attention.

"I don't know."

"Do you think their buildings will be just as grand? I mean, back home, the nobility funded it as an exclusive place to relax," she said. "Here, half the population is awakened, right? I think it'll probably be a normal building. What do you think?"

"I don't know."

"Jonah?" she said, eyebrows slightly twitching.

"Yes, Del?"

"Why aren't you talking to me?"

He turned to face her directly, confused. "I'm talking to you right now, no?"

"You keep giving distracted answers," she said. "What are you thinking about?"

"I don't…" Jonah stopped himself, knowing that Delia would likely get annoyed if he avoided her question. Still, he didn't want to tell her he was doubting about leaving. He understood his emotional reaction. Leaving would be sad. But in the back of his mind, a small voice presented logical arguments not to leave.

Was he ready to traverse this untamed land? Could he protect Delia? Should he even be taking her with him? Greg had warned him how dangerous it would be, and now he would be walking into danger with her. He didn’t mind the danger to himself. He always enjoyed a good fight, but he didn't want to risk anyone else.

“I still don’t get what the benefit of joining the guild will be,” Jonah said, ignoring his internal turmoil. “We’ll just be tying ourselves down.”

“Pa is an adventurer, Jonah. He knows that oath, which means he is.” Delia said. “I’m sure he—”

She broke off as Karl came running towards the pair, a frenzied panic in his eyes.

“Felix. When did you last see Felix?” Karl asked with a wild fever.

“I… don’t know,” Delia said, confused. “Not since seeing him drunk on the floor after your guy's party.”

Karls's panicked eyes turned to Jonah.

“Same, I don’t remember seeing him since last night,” Jonah said. " But we've been in a room all day, so maybe ask someone else?"

The boatswain seemed to pale a little further, and he turned slightly away from them, his eyes darting at the illuminated figures by the gangway.

“What’s wrong?” Delia asked.

He whipped his head back towards them, his eyes still wide with fear, like a startled animal. "I think we lost someone," he blurted out.

"What do you mean?" Jonah said, voice laced with concern.

"I mean that he is missing. No one has seen him," the man replied, his voice shaky.

Jonah's brows furrowed, and his muscles slowly began to tense. "Did you check the bathrooms?" he asked, trying to remain calm.

The man nodded frantically, intensifying Jonah's own sense of panic. He could feel his heart begin to race, his hand reaching for the hilt of his sword as his eyes darted around the deck. Was there another threat lurking around?

“Does the captain know?” Delia said with urgency.

“Not yet,” Karl said. “I was trying to find Felix, but I've asked half the crew now, and no one knows where he is!”

“We need to tell Pa, now!”

He nodded vehemently, but before he could run off, Delia grabbed him by his wrist. “Don’t tell anyone he’s missing. And don’t make a scene. Continue looking and meet us in the Captain's quarters.”

He gulped before nodding again. “Ok...”

“Jonah, let’s go. We need to find Pa,” Delia said, grabbing him by the wrist and pulling him along.

Jonah's legs still ached from the battle with the Kraken, but he said little, hiding his grimace as they sought the captain. As they briskly walked in search of the man, Jonah turned his gaze skyward. No birds were attacking the ship, and nothing from the water seemed to have emerged. The crew was all congregated together, so if something had appeared, someone would have noticed. Still, something could have taken Felix had he been on his own.

Jonah didn’t have much time to contemplate as it wasn’t long till they found him standing near the rear anchor, talking to Cassie, the ship's doctor. The pair approached the duo, who turned to them with quizzical looks on their faces.

"Pa," Delia said in a serious tone. "We need to talk, privately."

Greg gave her a solemn nod and Cassie excused herself quickly, giving Delia a gentle squeeze on her shoulder before walking away.

“What's wrong?” Greg asked when she had walked away.

“Felix is missing.”

“What does that mean, missing?” he asked

“It means Karl's been trying to find him, and he can’t. And when he’s asked half the crew, no one knows where he is,” Delia said in a rush. “And the last time I saw him was at the deck on the night of the party. Passed out. Before—”

“Shit!” Greg cursed. “Shit, shit, shit. Delia, grab everyone from before. Tell them to come to my quarters. Jonah with me. Now.”