Clang.

The sound shook Watson for a bit, forcing him to quickly anchor the Victory back to the harbor. He then went and checked the entire Strider for any scratches or damage. To his relief, he found absolutely none. Then he hid behind the Strider and waited for a bit, to ensure that nobody would try to trail them at the harbor.

It’s a miracle nobody is even awake here, Watson thought to himself. Even the harbors don’t run all day; what in the Waters is the Vicegerent doing not putting this city on full watch? I will never know. I never understood it, to be quite frank with you.

Watson climbed up the Victory and scanned its size. Watson wanted only the larger of the two Strider variants so he could accomodate as many hunters as possible. And ideally, as much quarry as possible. Especially if they were of the heavier kind. Watson knew that, given the severity of the expedition, any situation that would allow them to store the most amount of food, for the longest amount of time, would be the most favorable for him. Even when they were travelling out in the cold.

Confident he could unfasten the Striders whenever he needed to, Watson dismounted the Victory and prepared to head home. When a light hand touched his.

Startled by the contact, Watson instinctively reached for his harpoon and was about to aim the iron at someone. He actually did, and pointed the flue near the neck of someone, only to be shocked by who it was. “Pisces?!” Watson asked.

She cowered away very quickly, shielding herself from the sudden irons. Watson quickly drew back his harpoons and rushed to Pisces. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to frighten you,” Pisces said.

“What in the Waters are you doing here?! And never startle me like this again!” Watson insisted. “I could’ve almost killed you by accident!”

“I’m sorry. I couldn’t sleep, and I saw you heading over to the harbor,” Pisces insisted. “I didn’t know what to do.”

“Where are Bergmann and Allen?”

“Still at home, they’re sleeping. I didn’t want to wake them up.” Pisces insisted.

“You followed me to the harbor?! How did you even-?” Watson asked before shrugging away the question. “This is very dangerous. You need to go back home now!”

“I was looking for you,” Pisces said.

“Let’s leave the harbor first and then we can talk, we’re not supposed to be here now,” Watson insisted. “Come on, let’s go okay?”

“Dad,” Pisces said. “I’ve given this some thought and I wanted to tell you. I want to go with you on this expedition.”

“What?!”

“You heard me,” Pisces insisted.

“We are leaving this harbor now,” Watson said.

Watson lifted Pisces off the seafloor and carried her away from the harbor down the nightly streets of Tridention. Watson headed to the open square near the Slaughterhouse, then checked to make sure it was empty.

He immediately turned to Watson. “You were awake the whole time thinking about this damned expedition?”

Pisces lightly nodded, but lightly receded.

“You’re a fool to think it’s a good idea for a girl to embark on this expedition, let alone my own daughter!” Watson insisted. “You’re not even a hunter. Why in the Waters are you thinking this right now?”

“You’ve been hunting for a very long time, and left me alone in the city. I don’t want to be alone anymore,” Pisces said.

Watson knelt on the ground and approached her. “Daughter, I don’t want to either,” Watson said. “But I never had a choice. That is what hunting is like. You’re protected here in the city, and you are safe.”

“I’ve been safe for long enough,” Pisces said. “I’d rather be in your company than be here in the city. Why else have you been training me to use harpoons ever since mommy left?”

“I only trained you so you could defend yourself inside the city walls,” Watson explained. “Not to go out hunting for your own creatures. That’s not your job! That’s not what you’re supposed to do. Women don’t hunt, they only gather. They go to Victory Gardens, fish farms, and help make sure we have enough fish to feed on throughout the seasons. You don’t even do that, so consider yourself lucky.

You have friends in the city. Alphestes looks after you just fine. You have everything you could want here in Tridention. What in the Waters are you thinking?”

“If only you knew what Alphestes actually does once you leave for an expedition,” Pisces said. “And I have to sit there and wait, for a very long time, wondering if you will ever come back. And then when you come back you’re always busy, either patrolling the walls, or schooling other hunters, or hunting for something out in the wild. I miss you all the time when you leave; I’m sick and tired of it.”

“What do you mean what Alphestes actually does?” Watson asked. “You’re saying he doesn’t do his job and look after you?”

“Not as often as you’d think,” she said. “I usually look after myself in the city. With the spare harpoons you left me at the house.”

“Oh my Lord Wayne,” Watson noted. “I’ll be having words with that sneaky swine.”

“I know you don’t want to hear this right now,” Pisces said. “But I had to. I couldn’t hide this from you anymore.”

Watson cradled Pisces’ head in his arms, smothering her cheeks slowly and kissing her on the cheek. “I’m not mad at you, daughter,” Watson said. “But this is very serious. You don’t understand how serious this is. The truth is, even I don’t know how serious this is.”

“How so?”

“All the stuff Bergmann and Allen have brought up,” Watson said. “The High Arctic. The Northwest Passage. The freezing cold. Some even have said that the northern regions are also nicknamed something rather infamous. The Unforgiving North. Because of how abysally cold it is up there. It’s ridiculous. I don’t even think I fully know what to do. And here I am embarking on the expedition, risking everything to settle a simple matter.”

“Do you think Bergmann and Allen are speaking the truth?” she asked.

“There must be some truth to their claims,” Watson said. “But truthfully, I want to end it all. If I could, I would end it here and now. But it would be a coward’s way out.

I had you and mother while I was still a hunter. Now I’m not a hunter, and mother decided to leave. I only have you now. I can afford to risk the expedition going wrong, and proving that Franklin actually died. And leaving all of that behind. But I could never risk losing you. I would rather die before you do. Do you understand me?!”

Pisces nodded lightly, staring right into Watson’s demonic gaze. She lowered her head down and surrended to the notion.

“I’ve had enough for one day,” Watson said. “The Striders can be let go, but we’ll need someone to stay at that harbor at all times. To somehow convince the stridewrights and harbormasters that the Striders are the same normal count. I also won’t tell Alphestes anything else anymore. I can’t trust him after what you told me. I’ll have to rally the hunters in the morning, if any of them will even consider going at this point.”

Watson would carry Pisces back to their home. And once Watson finally arrived at his house, he would collapse onto the bed and slumber. Awaiting for the morning that would dictate how well-prepare their expedition would actually be.