Bombasar prepared a fleet of three ships. One fast frigate aboard which we were, and two heavy gunships that would be anchored on a reef, where it would be difficult for the Leviathan to reach. Those gunships would suppress the great monster when it surfaced, while Bombasar and Jalani, along with his apprentices, would provide spiritual assistance.

I watched on the upper deck as the Spiritcasters made pacts and the buccaneers got ready.

The deck was busy with men carrying crates and ropes and other… sailing stuff.

Look, my expertise was magic.

Jalani had prepared several bags of refined mana that he was now handing out to his apprentices. This was apparently to be traded with the spirits, but they also used some to charge their fetishes and staves.

I would have liked to watch more closely, but my family was fussing over me as was their wont. It was always too much, but I loved them for it.

Father placed a hand on my shoulder. “Are you sure we shouldn’t come? I am a Fisher. I swim fast.”

“I am not letting you get anywhere near that thing,” I said. “It gobbled up a full trading vessel as a snack.”

Father sighed, but mother glared at me.

“Then I’m coming,” she said.

“You’re absolutely not coming,” I said immediately and father nodded.

Mother frowned. “Why, because I’m pregnant?”

“No, because you’ll worry so much you’ll make me worried.”

Father laughed and hugged mother, who leaned against him and grumbled something under her breath.

Veena was about to open her mouth, but Alik put a hand on her shoulder and shook his head.

“Tut, tut,” he said. “Look at master’s face.”

“I see a fool, who is too proud to accept help,” Veena said.

“I am not taking any of you with me. Only my father was a reasonable consideration. What are any of you going to do in the water?”

Danek stepped forward. “We worry. This is dangerous. That is all.”

I relented and sighed. “I know. I appreciate it. But I can’t be watching my back making sure you guys are safe.”

Danek nodded. “Then we will come with you and stay on one of the gunships.”

“That is a great idea,” mother said immediately. Then she turned to me and gave me a smirk. “Isn’t it?”

I looked at father, but he seemed to like the idea too. Alik had already taken his hand off Veena’s shoulder. He was blushing and looking at his hand.

Apparently the discussion had moved on without me.

I groaned and turned to the Pirate Prince. “Bombasar. Are the gunships going to be safe?”

He turned to me with a confident, wide smile. “Of course. Bombasar guarantees your family will be safe. As for you… well one can hope.”

Mother frowned at that, but it actually reassured me and I gave Bombasar an appreciative nod. If he was honest about my part being dangerous, I figured he was honest enough about the gunships being safe. Even if something unexpected happened, my father was strong and an excellent swimmer. Mother and Alik were apparently half decent too, even if they didn’t have the Skills.

Mother crouched in front of me and straightened my blue poncho. There wasn’t anything wrong with it, but I let her.

“You come back to us,” she said.

“Of course I will,” I said. “I always do.”

She looked at me for a moment, then kissed my forehead and pulled me into a hug. I hugged her back. Father squeezed my shoulder before helping her up. Then they went down towards the gangplank, with the others following. Veena looked back once and pointed at me.

“You’re coming back, is that clear?” she said in a demanding voice. “You made a promise to my family. You’ll embarrass me if you don’t keep it!”

After preparations were made, we set out to sea. Hundreds of people were gathered at the port. I saw spirits great and small swirling around in the docking bay. Bombasar spoke to them all.

“I have trained the little sorcerer for this day!”

The crowd of Trola cheered and called the Pirate Prince’s name.

People stood on crates to see over each other. A few had climbed onto the roofs of the buildings facing the harbor, and there were children sitting on their parents’ shoulders. I supposed everyone wanted to watch the people who were going to fight the giant sea monster.

Hopefully they would get to watch us come back too.

“And now he will do Bombasar’s bidding and go slay the Leviathan. When we return, Bombasar will grant him many boons for his deed, for our island will be richer than ever once the beast is gone! This, Bombasar promises you!”

Then he lifted me on his shoulder again. “Smile and wave, little one.”

I did. From up there I could see mother and father by the railing of one of the gunships. Father raised a hand, and I waved at them specifically.

Bombasar seemed very pleased with the reception. He let the cheering carry on for a while before finally giving the order to depart.

Finally we departed. It was a windy day, but the sun was high in the morning sky and the sea breeze was warm and gentle. The water glittered as we glided through it towards the spot we would lure the Leviathan out.

I looked back towards the gunships where my family was. They looked reassuringly solid. I had seen what the Leviathan could do to a ship, so that reassurance was probably worth very little, but I appreciated it anyway.

But if the plan went well, this frigate would be the one in action, and the gunships would be safe. I really hoped the plan would go well. I did not enjoy my family being anywhere within a hundred sea miles from the Leviathan.

“How are we going to keep it occupied?” I asked Bombasar, who was leaning against the ship’s wheel. “If we evade its initial attack and start shooting at it, why doesn’t it just submerge?”

“That be a good question, mon,” Bombasar said. “The reason be, because the Leviathan is a greedy beast. It will grow restless without a meal.”

“I’m assuming this is the same reason you expect to meet it in a place we choose?”

“It be a beast, not a great general, boy,” Bombasar said and laughed. “It be driven by hunger.”

He looked past me towards the water. Even while we talked, he kept checking our surroundings and the ships behind us. Once he interrupted himself to give the helmsman a small correction, then went back to watching the sea.

I was glad somebody here knew what he was doing.

We passed a few islands on which some Trola were fishing. I looked at the gunship behind us and wondered what kind of a lecture father was giving on how he would do things differently. I smiled to myself and enjoyed the wind in my hair. I had decided to leave my cool wizard’s hat home for this.

“You remember the plan?” Bombasar asked.

“We go out into the open and lure it,” I started. “Then we return full speed near the reefs. The gunships will fire and weaken it. You and Jalani will Spiritcast to suppress the Leviathan. Press water against it, so it will have difficulty moving. Then I will climb on top of it and use my abilities.”

“You be sure them abilities are enough?” Bombasar asked me. “We can only do this once, boy. I made an ugly deal with Old Bones Zamadi to gain enough power for this. I be having many spirits with me now, but this cost me a lot.”

“Feel free to risk your life instead of me, if you’re hesitant about this.”

Bombasar chuckled. “We must be all playing our part, mon. You sure you ready for this?”

Ultimately I would only know once I tried. I had visited Zamadi that morning for a bit of pep talk. We diced and he enjoyed the rum and tobacco I brought. It was mostly just me chatting him up and getting to talk to someone who understood what I was going up against. He was very understanding. He also told me I had been ready since we had our first talk. When I asked how, he just gave the same advice as previously. Untangle the spirits, and that would release Tiamat and the Leviathan would likely die.

That just sounded soooo easy, didn’t it?

Still, Zamadi had been confident that I was ready to face the Leviathan. I wanted to believe him, but the hell did I know? Well, some magic was what I knew, but how much would that help?

Either way, I had decided to trust the Baron. He seemed to be a knowledgeable fellow, being a god and all that.

The plan was to climb on top of the Leviathan. I had four wind spirits accompany me. If my most foolish plan of landing on top of the giant sea monster would somehow, inconceivably go wrong, I would jump in the air, use kinetic magic, and let the wind spirits use their powers to carry me back to the ship.

They were around me now. I could feel them through our connection, although they were more interested in the wind filling the sails than in my worries.

I gave them a little mana and went over what I wanted again. Carry me towards the beast when I asked. Carry me away when I asked that instead. Preferably with some urgency.

They sent back a sense of understanding, and a gust lifted me onto my toes.

“Not yet,” I muttered.

I felt amusement from one of them. For them this was ultimately a game.

Equipped with the most foolhardy plan and a crapton of gumption, we approached the place we were to execute the plan. It was at the edge of a reef where the two gunships anchored and we drifted past them towards the open sea.

The reef’s edge was easy to see from the deck. The water was much clearer and I could see dark stone with colorful corals glittering in the sun and shallow waves. I saw a manta ray glide across it, casting a shadow on the rocks.

I saw my family on the deck of the gunship. I waved at them and they waved back. I think I saw Veena leaning over the railing and shouting something, but it was lost in the wind.

There was a shared quiet moment between me and Bombasar. We just looked at each other and nodded. This was the first time I saw the Pirate Prince like this. I had seen him theatrical, I had seen him repress his predatory side, and I had seen him severe in danger.

Now I saw a glimpse of the real man. Despite all our differences, and him being a glorified bandit, I would have to trust this man now. There were no games, no predatory undercurrent. Just two people working towards a goal as well as they could.

I nodded at him, and he nodded back.

Not even the crew chanted their normal sea-shanties or competed in swearing. We all just looked out to sea, listening to the screech of seagulls, the rhythm of the waves hitting the hull and the creak of the ship as it moved. We moved out maybe a quarter of a mile from the reef and just waited. We didn’t anchor the ship, because it was too deep, and we needed to be able to move immediately.

Jalani was sitting down on his knees with his apprentices around him. They were talking in low voices,and all of the apprentices looked nervous. 

I sat down on the upper deck between barrels that were tied to the railing. I wouldn’t be needed before the Leviathan was suppressed.

The morning turned into noon. I meditated during this time. Bombasar wasn’t talkative, and I wanted my mind to be in a peaceful, focused state. It had been a while since I had just sat and breathed. I listened to the flitting waves hitting the ship’s hull. I listened to the slow creak of the ship and the mutters of the nervous crew.

And in all that idle noise I centered myself with meditation.

I went over who I had become in a short time, and what kind of a person I was becoming. I found I liked who I was. I had a growing family I loved, and I got to meet interesting people in interesting places. And I kept finding new magical phenomena to investigate.

There was going to be another baby in the family. I wondered what that would be like. Would they be interested in magic too? I hoped so. I had already learned quite a lot that I could teach them.

I wanted to be a cool big brother.

My life was good, and I cherished it. I sat in this feeling, and enjoyed myself. There was nothing I needed to improve for the next few breaths. I didn’t have to work out a spell formula or squeeze another bit of efficiency out of my cultivation. For a little while, it was enough to sit on the warm deck and be pleased that I was here.

I let my mind find tranquility before the plunge.

Then across the waters, an eerie wail sounded. It came from somewhere deep. A whale call so long and thin, like it was stretched into something unnatural. I opened my eyes and saw dark clouds gathering above us, and immediately a cold rain fell on us.

“It comes,” Bombasar said quietly before turning to the crew. “Turn the ship! Jalani, call the spirits!”