Hello and Happy Weekend to everyone!
The Elder has asked me to tell you that if anyone wishes him to tell a particular story, they can let him (or me) know using either a review or a private message.
(Special thanks to UTHEMAN who inspired this idea)
(Basically, this is code for: "There are a ton of folk tales in the world and Ardent Aspen can't decide which one to use next: please help!")
Why, hello there, welcome back! I was beginning to think I'd frightened you away, my young friend. You asked me for a tale of the sea, and I admit that my knowledge of such things is more limited than I'd like. You see, the closest thing we have to an ocean is the Sea of Rust, near the Hydrax Plateau. I spent some time in the archives, however, and I found a great many stories indeed! Some of them were a little familiar, such as the Seven Voyages of Sinbad-we have a version called the Seven Voyages of Sentinel Prime. I'm not certain that fits the description, though, as most of Sinbad's adventures take place on land.
I did find one fascinating tale of a ship that could never make port. Imagine being left to wander for all eternity! I have yet to find a Cybertronian equivalent to the story, however, so I will endeavor to tell it as it is told on Earth, but taking place on my own home world. Please, do not hesitate to tell me if some of the details are not correct.
The Ghost Ship
A ship called the Lost Light was traveling from Tyrest to Altihex, across the Sea of Rust. The captain was called Hyperion. His temper was short, and his stubbornness great. On the day that he set out across the sea, he was warned that a great storm was coming, and he would not be able to navigate around the Hydrax Plateau. Hyperion ignored all the warnings, for he had made up his processor that he would make it to Altihex without stopping once. And once Hyperion made up his processor, he was immovable.
The Lost Light made good time, at first, and spirits were high among the crew. Then, the storm came, sweeping over their vessel with terrible power. Tossed back and forth like a Sparkling's toy upon waves of rust, the crew cried out to Hyperion. "We must turn back," they reasoned, "We shall be destroyed!" But Hyperion would not hear of it. Cajoling and threatening by turns, he convinced them that they could outlast the storm, and that they would soon make Altihex. He was wrong.
The winds began to howl over the hull of the Lost Light, and the plating began to creak as the rust began to eat through. Horrified, the crew whispered among themselves, "Hyperion is mad! We will certainly be dashed upon the coast!" And they begged him to steer the ship into a protected cove, and not to attempt sailing around the Hydrax Plateau. The captain was enraged, and declared them all to be mutineers. He ordered them off the bridge, and single-handedly took over steering of the Lost Light.
A friendly vessel was sent from the shore to the Lost Light's aid, but they were turned away. The last thing the would-be rescuers saw before the Lost Light disappeared into the storm was Captain Hyperion, frantically rushing from post to post on the bridge, wildly cursing the storm. In the midst of the waves and the wind and the acid rain, one brave crewmate dared to come once more to the bridge. "Captain, will you not turn back?" she asked. "No! A thousand times no!" Hyperion screamed, "May the Thirteen be witness: let me be eternally cursed if I do, and sail this sea until Cybertron's end!"
A brilliant light blinded the captain and the crewmate. When it faded, Vector Prime stood on the bridge before them. "I grant your wish, Hyperion, Captain of the Lost Light," he said sternly, "As you have spoken, so shall it be!" And so the ship, her captain, and her crew are bound to sail the Sea of Rust until the end of time. On stormy nights, if one dares to venture to the edge of the Hydrax Plateau, one might just catch a glimpse of the doomed ship, still sailing and never reaching a destination.
You don't think that Captain Hyperion is scarier than the Flying Dutchman? Well you can't say that, you haven't seen him! No, I haven't see him, and I sincerely hope I never do. If I did, I might begin to question my sanity, seeing as I only just made that story up! Oh, you think that's amusing, do you? Well, I suppose it is, a little. Imagine a great old mech like me, thinking I saw make-believe monsters!
Ah, it is a fine afternoon. Have you nothing else to do today, little one? In a departure from the usual, neither do I. Would you like to come to the archives with me? I will show you where the stories are located, and if you wish me to tell you one, you need only point it out to me. All settled then? Very well, hold on tightly!