Chapter 18

Sea Map

Barnacle-eyes

My beautiful sloop bobbed beside the dock. A chill wind persisted but it wasn’t as harsh as sea winds could sometimes be. I hoped the wind would stay relaxed for the rest of the day. I wanted smooth sailing and soft waves.

I lowered the gangway by rope and climbed aboard. Thrush would meet me within the hour, so I went about preparing to sail. I checked the sails, collected fallen leaves that had made the distance, and checked my quarters in the forecastle. When I went up to the deckhouse, I smelled a rat.

“A rat,” I muttered. “I wish! Slime-tooth always said ‘a good ship has always got both a crow’s nest and a rat’s nest.’ Oh Peg-tooth… …I wish Slime-tooth was on my ship.”

It was just me, but at least I had hired 1 crew member. There he came, sauntering down the dock with a sick grin on his face. I made a big wave with my arms and yelled, “Ahoy, Thrush! Come aboard! Let’s sail out!”

Thrush made a small wave with his short bear-ish paw. He set one foot on the gangway and the whole thing groaned. I heard the unmistakable sound of splintering wood. Thrush promptly removed his foot and said, “oops. I forgot.” Then he withdrew a 15.5 gallon barrel from his inventory, plucked the cork from the bunghole and chugged white beer. The glugging seemed to never end, but at last, one last remaining drop disappeared into Thrush’s maw. He promptly burped long and loud. His next step on the gangway made no sound. The wood didn’t creak or splinter. “That’s better,” Thrush said and came aboard. The ship did not sink and he told me about the Anti-gravity attribute beer. He was exuberant that he didn’t have to empty his inventory to go fishing.

“I hope you're ready,” I said.

“I’m famished,” he said.

“All right. Rig the sails, Thrush! I’ll cast us off!”

I undocked the sloop, climbed aboard, and raised the gangway. Thrush was in the middle of rigging the mainsail when he stopped to sniff the air. Something caught his interest. His ears swiveled behind him. We both turned to look out at the deckhouse when a big blue rat emerged from the door with a rusty hammer in two hands and a waterskin on its back.

“I knew I smelled a rat!” I hollered, hopping.

The rat was panicking. It’s lips were pulled back in terror and its eyes darted about. Just as the wind caught some of the mainsail, and the sloop lurched, the rat leapt overboard with a squeal.

Thrush and I ran to the aft and looked down at the sea. The water was clear enough to see a poofy blue ball of fur in the water.

I pointed and shouted, “the rat! Thrush, save the rat!”

Not a moment later, Thrush was in the water. I dodged the huge splash that came at me. When I scrambled back to the balustrade, I saw Thrush clutching the fat blue rat by the nape of its neck. He kept the rat above water while he swam ashore. I hollered, clapped, and whistled at Thrush’s save.

“Bring him back!” I shouted. “Let’s find his rat’s nest and make him comfortable! Let’s give him some meat and water!”

But Thrush didn’t bring the blue rat back. He crouched beside the miserable thing as it hacked water from its lungs on shore. They talked softly with each other for a few minutes. I had to churn the capstan to lower anchor because the sloop was impatient. By the time I’d set anchor, Thrush climbed aboard, leaving claw marks on the balustrade.

“Where’s the rat?” I said.

“That was Boggo,” Thrush said. “The blue bestie. He fell asleep.”

“So they are blue,” I realized. “I thought I had my first sloop rat.”

“He’s just scared, but he really likes your sloop.”

“I’ll have to look for a rat’s nest, just in case. For the meantime, Let’s finish rigging the sails and head out!”

I churned the capstan while Thrush raised the sails. I poured a drop of Mist Hidden attribute into a tankard of goblin spit beer, drank, and sailed through the bioluminescent wall. It was an easy wind that carried us out to sea. We avoided the cluster of goblin ships and headed far north.

Having Thrush was a blessing. His attitude was quite un-goblin-like. He made no complaint, he helped me whenever I asked, and I didn’t have to tell him things thrice. Only when we were far enough out to sea and coasting comfortably, did I relieve Thrush of his duties. I maintained the helm while he went to the bow to gaze into the sea. Whenever big fish splashed in the distance, Thrush ears pricked forward and he rose on tip-toe.

I navigated my sloop toward those splashes. We sailed further out than I’d ever gone before. There was no stopping until I fulfilled my Thousand Waves quest. The further from base we sailed, the closer I came to completing the quest. The only reason Thrush wasn’t yet in the water was because he knew this.

During our fourth hour out at sea, I finally completed the quest.

[Quest: Thousand Waves, complete!]

[Reward: Goblin skinned sea map of Far-seer]

[Made of tanned goblin skin, this thick map depicts the western sea. The map will journal your route and areas you explore, only when dipped into the sea.]

I checked my inventory and squealed in glee when I saw my brand new amazing map!

“I did it!” I hollered. “Thrush! I got my map! Let’s churn the capstan and set the sea anchor! Time for fishing!”

I dropped sails while Thrush rushed over to the capstan and churned it with but one finger. The sea anchor brought us to a halt, but then we started sinking. The planks groaned beneath Thrush’s feet and bent in. Thrush already had another barrel of Anti-gravity attribute beer in one hand. He punched through one of the staves and beer foamed in a thick stream down his gulping mouth. With every gulp, the planks beneath his feet returned to their original shape. I also felt the sloop rise in the water.

Thrush smacked his lips with a great “ahhh,” and ran toward starboard. He took a big leap and launched himself into the sea. I ran to the balustrade, threw a fist in the air, and said, “Go get ‘em, Thrush! Grab the biggest fish you can find!”