Prologue – The Storm
A flash of lightening rippled across the sky, as the wind howled violently against the large white sails. It was not far past midnight, the crew was nearly home after a long night celebrating the young Prince Eric's eighteenth birthday, and returning on what they thought were calm seas. The celebrations had been extravagant, with great fireworks, ale, and dancing; even Grimsby appeared to be having a good time. Not a single one of them noticed the oncoming storm and all its terror. Thunder rumbled, low and deep, as to be heard across sky, land and sea.
"Tie down everything!" Prince Eric shouted the order at no one in particular, as he gripped the sails ropes tightly, struggling against the unbearable cold of the stormy night air. Men around him were running frantically in every direction, doing their best to keep the ship right side up.
He could hear the heavy thudding of a dozen grown men's boots hitting the deck, thud! thud! thud! and for some queer reason it seemed to almost be as loud as the crackling thunder above their heads. Then, he noticed the thudding becoming more distant, getting quieter and quieter and for a moment he wondered if reality itself was fading away.
Another gush of wind straining against the sail sheets faltered Eric's grip and he was sent tumbling forward with the force of it. He heard somebody shout his name, but when he turned to reply there was no one there. His eyes searched the deck for men but there wasn't one to be found.
"Men!" he cried out frantically. He knew they would never abandon him, not intentionally, so, where were they? Had they all been swallowed by the water? "Grimsby!?" he tried, "Max?" The ship rocked heavily back and forth, and even an experienced sailor as Eric struggled to keep his footing. Without the men in their positions, the ship was quickly tearing itself apart.
It was then he noticed, that although his men were missing, their shadows were not. On the deck there were still the outlines of their bodies marked into the wood, as if they were still there but suddenly invisible. Inky black creatures rose from the floor with glowing yellow eyes. The creatures began to move towards him menacingly. Eric felt for his sword, only to discover it had become unshackled from his belt, and he was defenceless.
He flinched as he heard the hollow snap of wood coming from the main mast beam, he frantically ducked out of the way before the thing toppled down on top of him, yet he still became covered in the cloak of the main sail. He panicked, trying to rip his way out of the thin material. Yet every move he made to dislodge himself only seemed to wrap himself inside the white material further. Now, without the ability to see anything, he became even more frightened.
He heard the second sail mast fall, this time cracking the deck. The wind and water pulled apart what little else there was of his ship, and Eric felt himself sliding into the water. The water was like ice, immediately chilling him to the bone, he rolled in further, until the water reached his head, filling his mouth and nose quickly, as he struggled still wrapped in the sail.
The salt water burned his throat, and his arms and legs ached with thrashing. The less he could breathe, the less hope he had, his tugs and kicks became shallow and useless as he let the dark water take him…
