Prince of The Abyss

The first wave met them sooner than expected.

It didn’t crash against them, luckily, since he wasn’t sure yet if the boat could even handle it; instead, it lifted them.

The dinghy rose slowly, the bow climbing the dark slope of water as if scaling a moving hill.

Being inside the boat, this was still a very horrifying sight, one no captain would want to see, but when it happens, you have to take responsibility and survive.

The wood groaned beneath the strain, ropes pulling tight as the sail snapped violently in the rising wind.

Aether’s feet stood firm, trying not get swept off in the water. And yet he didn’t hesitate.

He pulled the tiller slightly toward him, angling the boat so it wouldn’t take the swell from the side. The hull cut diagonally into the wave instead of meeting it flat. The climb steepened. For a moment, the sky was all they could see.

’Well, this is not what I was expecting to do today.’ His grip tightened on the tiller.

Then the bow tipped forward.

They slid down the other side.

Water sprayed over the deck, soaking the wood and pooling at their feet.

’That isn’t good.’

The dinghy dipped hard at the bottom, nearly burying its nose before lifting again.

Another wave rolled toward them, taller.

Aether adjusted the sail, loosening the rope just enough to spill some wind. The canvas shifted, catching less force this time. The boat steadied slightly as he corrected its angle with a careful push of the tiller.

He was able to handle it, to keep it under control, which surprised him, since he had never actually driven a boat through a storm, but this was just the beginning, plus, it was only going to get harder with time, as he slowly got more and more tired.

The second wave struck harder.

Aether frowned, feeling the weight of the tide.

The dinghy climbed again, but this time the wind hit mid-ascent, dragging the sail sideways. The boat tilted sharply. The mast creaked. The moment he saw it, his face paled in horror, but he knew that if he just froze in fear, they were going to die without a doubt.

...He wasn’t going to let another die because of him, not again.

Aether shifted his weight without thinking, bracing his foot against the inner frame and forcing the tiller into counter-pressure. The rudder bit into the water. The hull corrected just enough.

They crested.

Yet he didn’t know if the boat was just in a good mood anymore; he may have forced it, so he was scared that it was going to stop responding to him.

He, of course, wasn’t talking about the boat, actually; to him, that would be stupid, but it may no longer work, no longer able to keep up with the tides.

Foam exploded over the bow, cold and blinding. The sail snapped violently as they descended.

Knowing that the whole boat was fifty embers, he was scared that the sail might break, but it seemed like it was able to keep up. So maybe it was worth the embers.

Of course, he still regretted not getting the one the man offered, but it wasn’t the time.

The sea beyond them was worse.

Looking at that sight, he sighed, thinking just how much longer he was going to have to endure this, and the bad part wasn’t his stamina, but rather that of the boat.

The waves no longer rolled in clean rhythm; they collided, merging into one, getting bigger, definitely not something you want to see if you’re the one they aim to take down, plus, they were unpredictable. It wasn’t a straight path through; it was a maze of moving water.

’When we get to shore, we are going to spend a long time in Stormfell, before we get back in the boat...’

Aether stopped trying to go directly forward.

Instead, he steered between peaks, angling toward the lower troughs, riding the sides of swells rather than challenging their height.

The dinghy weaved, climbing half-waves, cutting diagonally across faces of dark water instead of meeting them head-on.

If he did, he didn’t think it could put that much of a fight, really.

A large swell formed to their right, beginning to curl inward.

Seeing this, his eyes widened, but he reacted on instinct, his hands flying to push the tiller to the left.

The boat turned just as the wave collapsed where they would have been, a near death expirence, he would have probably drowned, and since the boat would have probably fallen with him, Kade would have nowhere to help him get to, and would get exhausted.

Yet, as luck would have it, the shock of it rocked the dinghy anyway, rattling every plank.

And he felt it under him, under his own feet, the boat shaking, knowing that it wasn’t going to last a lot longer.

Water sloshed across the deck again. Wetting his new mantle, but he didn’t have time ton grief. The sail strained, but held.

Another gust tore through.

But it wasn’t going to be like last time; he wasn’t going to let it.

This time Aether tightened the line instead of loosening it, letting the sail catch enough wind to power them up the next rise.

’Here we go... how did grandpa put up with this? I’m exhausted after one storm...’

The bow lifted sharply, slicing through foam instead of being swallowed by it.

They crested again.

Beyond this wave, the pattern shifted.

His face lit up as he saw it.

The swells were still large, but less chaotic, spaced farther apart. The worst of the crossing was behind them.

He exhaled deeply, almost saying a prayer under that long breath.

The dinghy continued to rise and fall, but the violent side-pulls eased. The wind slowly steadied. The waves grew longer instead of steeper.

Aether didn’t let go of the tiller.

Not yet.

He guided the boat through two more rolling crests before allowing the sail to settle into a smoother pull. The wood still creaked, but no longer like it might split, and it was the same for the captain; he was still nervous, but with the storm dimming, he was growing calmer.

The rough part stretched behind them now, looking back, it almost made him wonder how they had even survived.

The sea ahead was still restless.

But it was no longer trying to throw them back.

And not a long time after... Aether let go of the tiller, collapsing next to Kade, who had curled up while he did all the work. But... at the same time, he knew this was going to happen someday, and he knew he had to do this. The boy just now decided that he wanted to grow stronger, and it was more the will burning inside of him that made him do it.

He also couldn’t have known that his training would include having to face a rough sea in a small boat.

Aether glanced at the boy again. He wasn’t moving.

”The storm is over. I handled it pretty well, huh?” He nudged him, but the boy didn’t respond, which confused Aether.

He leaned closer, lifting Kade’s head, to see that the boy had... fallen asleep.

And his face fell as he saw that. So he had been trying his best to make them survive, to drive through that storm that could knock them off and kill both of them when it wanted, and the boy was just sleeping like nothing was going on. It was very irritating... but the boy had been through a lot, he also had to understand him...

Aether sighed, looking at the boat.

It was in rough condition, but it seemed as if it could still hold. Plus, it was going in the right direction, surprisingly, so... was there harm in taking a little nap himself?

Sure, monsters may come from the water and eat them while they are asleep... but at the same time, if they found another storm while they were tired, it would be worse, since their death wouldn’t be painless, and would last a lot.

...

Aether leaned into Kade, resting his head on his shoulder.

Truly, he had no idea what awaited them. They still had a lot of the road there, more than four hours left on the sea, so at least he was going to get some sleep. But when they finally got to Stormfell? None of them knew that place, what it was like, or what the people were like.

Sure, he had the compass, but it wasn’t going to help him navigate.

And yet... at the moment he didn’t care about that, he was going to find a way, he had to take after the him from Frozen Crown, who just went into unknown areas without preparing at all.

Being so careless... it was such an easy life. Not having to worry about things.

What he was going to do after was a job for future him...

Right now, all he wanted...

Was rest.