Chapter: 2 Sink or Swim
Five months earlier...
"Tomas...Tomas..." a female voice whispered. Tomas looked up to see a transparent woman with long, curly hair.
He quivered at the sight. "Nora?"
THRRRRRABOOOOOM!
Tomas jolted himself awake to the booms of thunder and lightning. His living quarters shook as the wild ocean waves bombarded the ship. He hurried outside to inspect the situation. The thunderstorm amplified itself as Tomas opened the door. Rain barraged against his face, helping to awaken his groggy self. Without wasting a moment, Tomas slid across the deck and helped the ship's crew dump excess water. By this point, Tomas' tunic was drenched and weighing heavily upon him. He scooped a bucket of seawater and heaved it overboard.
"Rise and shine, Tomas!" exclaimed a man at the ship's helm. Tomas looked up to see the Arendellian Captain of the Guard, Alek. "Get your ass up here and help me steer!"
Tomas sprinted up the slippery stairs and grabbed hold of the wheel. Together, he and Alek yanked it leftwards, attempting to stabilize it. With one more mighty lunge, the duo steadied the ship against the waves. "There," panted Tomas as rain battered his face. "Nothing to it. I've got your back, old man."
Alek glared at his younger comrade and was going to scold when a crew member yelled, "Loose cargo!" The two peered over the ship's wheel to see a massive sphere tumbling across the deck and barreling through the crew.
"That's no cargo..." groaned Alek with a roll of his eyes.
"That's a Benjamin," facepalmed Tomas.
SLAP!
Tomas rubbed his face, "Youch! What was that for?"
Next to him stood Zi, dressed in her form-fitting red gi. "That's for facepalming! You keep doing that, and you will not have a face to palm!"
"Ummmm guys?" worried Benjamin as he rolled on the deck like a rogue bolder, flattening all who stood in the impact zone. "Little help?"
"I got'em," smirked Zi. She wrapped her arm with a rope and cut the knot with her dao sword. As she rode the lift up to the mast, she hollered back down, "Remember Tomas, I only slap because I care!"
"That woman," Tomas shook his head with a huff.
"No time for goo-goo eyes," snapped Alek. "Back to the helm. We've got bigger waves incoming!"
Meanwhile, Zi scoped the deck from the mast and then dove down. She swung off another rope and bounced on Ben's huge belly, bringing him to a stop. She then helped him to his feet as he grumbled, "Thanks Zi...I rather despise sailing."
"I thought you were adventurous," said Zi.
"Aye, I am. But this oceanic churning, wave rumbling...stomach jiggling...Is enough to make anyone hate sailing!" He belched, "Hold that thought." Ben thrusted himself against the ship's railing and threw up. "Why don't we let this sea monster rumor slip? Then we can head back to Arendelle and nice...stationary land."
A colossal wave bashed against the starboard side, spinning the ship and leaving it sailing in calm waters. everyone gazed up at the now clear night sky with skepticism. The rough waves had ceased, the storm quieted down. "What the-?" pondered Tomas.
"We must be in the eye of the storm," observed Zi.
A lanky crew member hummed in thought. "Does the eye of the storm have a blueish glow to it, per chance?"
Tomas glanced over with a skeptical brow, only to gasp at the horrific sight. A reptilian beast was emerging from the sea. It had the body of a lizard with an elongated neck and snout. Rows of jagged teeth poked out across its maw, and thin spikes lined its back and tail. The creature's arms had silver scales, and its clawed fingers were webbed. Its bioluminescent, blue eyes fixed themselves upon the lanky sailor.
Alek sneered, "I'll be damned...it's a-"
SNAP!
Like a python snatching a mouse, the sea monster devoured the lanky sailor in one bite and roared at the others. "WATER DRAKE!" screamed another sailor.
Zi immediately grabbed the bow off of her back and equipped an arrow. With precision aiming, she fired it into the drake's snout. It hissed and dove underwater. As it did so, its titanic tail scraped across the boat, knocking sailors overboard and denting the mast. Men ran for harpoons and lances while Tomas formulated a plan. "Zi, get to the top of the mast and scout for this monster. Everyone stay away from the edges!"
"Don't have to tell me twice, Tomas my boy!" jittered Ben as he waddled to the center of the deck. Another powerful bash struck the bow, and soon the creature's tale grazed the stern.
"Dammit, Tomas." growled Alek. "We can't kill what we can't see!" He gripped his sword and assumed a fighting stance.
Tomas groaned, "Zi! Anything?"
Zi had perched herself at the apex of the mast and readied an arrow. She soon exclaimed, "Port side!"
The water drake lunged out of the sea, spraying the crew with water before slamming onto the deck. Alek pointed his sword at the beast and ordered, "Kill it!" Like the valiant captain he was, Alek was the first to charge into battle. Tomas had always admired that about him.
Alek thrusted his sword into the drake's foot while Tomas drove his blade into its thigh. The drake snarled while several of the crew's spears struck its neck and shoulder. Zi shot her arrow from above, and it met its mark just above the monster's eyelid. Enraged, the drake roared, releasing the spikes on its back like a volley of arrows. The projectiles whizzed in every direction. While most of them tattered across the ship's woodwork, others impaled crew members.
"Take cover!" barked Alek before he rolled behind a barrel. One of the spikes landed just between his legs and he sighed, "I never wanted children, but this is ridiculous!"
Tomas slipped against the flooded deck and collided with Ben. "Tomas," he began. "Perhaps this is the perfect time for that new weapon of yours?"
"Right," he affirmed. "Come with me."
"Why?"
"I need bait."
"It's because I'm fat, isn't it?" mumbled Ben.
"We don't have time for this!" urged Tomas. "Just come with me."
Ben hung his head. "It's cause I'm fat and juicy. It's cause I'm the perfect snack for a monster."
"No it isn't," assured Tomas. He thought for a moment and sulked, "Yes it is."
The water drake clawed at a sailor when Alek launched a spear into its arm. The creature turned and locked eyes with the captain. He stood firm and gripped another spear, "Come on then!" he taunted. "Come on!"
The drake acknowledged and barged forward, swatting away any mere sailors who dared oppose it. Alek threw his spear, but the drake caught it with its mouth and snapped it in two. "Dammit," cursed Alek. The beast struck him with its tail and sent him spiraling into the base of the mast. "Double dammit," he winced. As the captain attempted to stand, the drake moved in for the kill.
A red-feathered arrow struck it in the head and Zi jeered, "Up here! Come and get me!" The monster growled and began to scale the mast. With each surge upwards, the entire ship shook with ominous vibrations. Zi continuously shot at it, her arrows barely wounding the drake as it closed in on her.
Tomas dashed into his living quarters and grabbed for the trunk underneath his bed. As he did so, a tiny snowgie remained sleeping on the pillow. It awakened with an alarming squeak. "We got trouble, Lucky!" explained Tomas. He stretched out his hand, "And I'm going to need all the luck in the world for this one." The snowgie squeaked again and hopped into his palm. As Lucky made his way to Tomas' shoulder, he opened the trunk labeled:
THE GUARDIAN
"Ben!" yelled Tomas across the hall. "Ready?"
"Gimme a second!"
"WE DON'T HAVE A SECOND!" replied Tomas exasperatedly.
"Hey!" snapped Ben. "If I'm going to be bait, I'm going to be delicious bait!"
Tomas facepalmed.
As the drake drew closer to Zi, she took aim with her arrow and whispered, "Let this...be the arrow." She launched it into the creature's head. The beast shook it off and kept climbing. She aimed again, "Let THIS be the arrow." She fired, yielding the same result as the previous attack. She quickly grabbed another arrow, "Let THIS be the arrow!"
FWOOSH!"Maybe this one!"
FWOOSH!
"This one?"
FWOOSH!
"This one?"
FWOOSH!
Zi gulped at her next arrow, "PLEASE, let this be the arrow?" By the time she aimed it, the water drake was already at the top of the mast. "Oh forget it!" She unsheathed her dao and took a swing, dislodging one of the monster's teeth. The drake's forked tongue felt around the bloody spot where its tooth once was. Its ominous blue eyes stared at Zi with pure hatred. "Oh boy," Without hesitation, Zi jabbed her sword again, but the drake chomped on it and flung her off of the mast.
Captain Alek ran up with his arms raised high. He planted his feet and intoned, "I've got you!" Zi's collision was harder than anticipated, and both she and Alek went tumbling against the flooded deck. The sea monster then leapt off of the mast, using its tail to snap it in the process. It boomed onto the deck while the mast timbered into the sea behind it.
In that instant, the water drake heard Benjamin holler, "Yoooooohooooooooooooooo!" It twitched rightward to see the Coronan explorer covered in assorted spices and seasonings. Even his mustache was sprinkled with some garlic. Altogether, Ben smelled like his own royal buffet. He shook a can of paprika to lure the beast in closer. He trembled, but did his best to remain composed. "You''ll never have a finer meal than I, my scaly friend!" Ben used his long-brimmed hat to fan the smell over to the creature. One whiff of those delicious odors, and the water drake charged. "Tomas, you'd better appreciate the things I do for our friendship!" He slid across the deck as the drake snapped its jaws at him.
Above the ship's secondary mast, Tomas had just reached the top and yelled, "You're doing great, Ben!" He turned to the snowgie on his shoulder, "Ready, Luck?" He squeaked in compliance. "Alright, Guardian. Let's see what you can do!" Tomas held up an enormous, steel crossbow with a black handle. Three thick, wide-nozzles barrels protruded out with a sight shaped like the head of a falcon. Projectiles launched from the steel bird's beak and down its honed sights. The back of the crossbow was lined with wire to produce a grappling hook effect if needed. Tomas only had to switch triggers to choose which missile was fired.
He took aim at the water drake and fired. A wired, steel arrow blasted out of the Guardian and lodged itself into the creature's neck. The arrow penetrated its thick scales, causing it to screech and flail. Lucky leapt into Tomas' pocket as he swung down from the mast, using the grappling wire as support. As the drake flailed, the wire began to wrap around its neck and bring Tomas in closer. During the wrangling, Benjamin scurried over to join the surviving crew members.
Tomas held onto the Guardian so tightly, that his palms began to burn against the handle. He placed a boot on the drake's silver neck and established a foothold. "Now, Lucky!"
The little snowgie hopped onto the crossbow and flipped a third trigger. This activated the lower barrel, and a short blade unsheathed from it. He then removed the arrow and jammed the blade into the monster's neck. With the scales dislodged, the blade was able to cut right into the beast. As Tomas dug his weapon deeper into the salty flesh, the water drake loosed a deafening screech before it twitched about. As its struggle lessened, the drake's eyes lost their blue glow, and turned to a dark silver. The monster fell dead against the deck, smashing and cracking its wooden frame. Tomas stepped off of the beast while reloading his crossbow. Lucky joyously hopped on his shoulder when the crew began to cheer.
Still breathing heavily, Tomas sloped against the nearest stack of barrels and coughed. "Nice work, Tomas!" complimented Zi.
"You did great yourself, Zi. We all did. And Benjamin, excellent baiting."
The explorer cleaned his circular glasses, "All in a days work, dear boy." Lucky jumped from Tomas to Ben and gave his seasoned cheek a tasty lick. He chuckled at the feeling, "I need a good bath."
Lucky then scurried over to Zi and squeaked in her ear. "What's that?" wondered Zi. "Did Tomas facepalm again while I was busy? One squeak for no. Two for yes." Lucky let out two squeaks, and Tomas cringed for the impending result.
SLAP!"Now Tomas..." assured Zi. "You know I slap because I care. I don't want you to keep hitting your face! It's a terrible habit."
"A habit you correct by hitting his face?" pondered Benjamin.
SLAP!
"Yes," nodded Zi as Ben rubbed his now reddened, seasoned cheek. She couldn't help but give her hand a lick. "Mmmmmm...Basil."
The rest of the crew was still celebrating the defeat of the water drake.
"We killed it!" hooted one.
"We've saved the trade ships!" shouted another.
"We're sinking," intoned Alek.
Everyone observed their surroundings and began to panic. The entire ship was falling apart and its remnants were about to capsize. "To the longboats!" yelled Zi. She, Tomas, Alek, and Ben joined four crew members in one boat. The other was filled with eleven sailors as both dropped into the sea.
Everyone watched the ship sink until nothing remained by quiet, eerie waves. Everyone sat in silence, paying tribute to the valiant sailors who ha been lost in the battle.
Moments later, Tomas broke the silence. "Their deaths were not in vain." We found and stopped what was destroying our trade ships. Now we're just stranded at sea."
"JUST stranded at sea?" snapped Captain Alek. "There's ocean in every direction. We don't know where the hell we are and-"
"We have to stay optimistic," replied Tomas. "It's the only way we're going to survive this."
"He's right," nodded Zi. She placed a gentle hand on Tomas' shoulder for reassurance. "The worst is behind us."
"Ummmmm I hate to be the bearer of bad news but..." worried Ben as he watched the waves begin intensify again. "We're not in the eye of the storm anymore."