S. Welles - To Ocean's End

“Then be less serious.” He started slipping a hand down the back of her pants.

“I’m worried about Dyne.” The hand paused, then retracted and he began rubbing her back instead.

He stroked her cheek. “We all are. That’s why we’re trying so hard to distract ourselves. I was trying to help you do the same.”

“I appreciate it, but I can’t seem to stop feeling like I need to go looking for him, even though it’s such a ridiculous idea.”

“Keep reminding yourself to be patient and hope for the best. That’s what I do.”

“I’ve—” She sighed in frustration. “I’ve had this idea for a while now. I’ve just been waiting for things to calm down and for you to heal up a bit, in case it’s dangerous.”

He stopped rubbing her back and held her shoulders. He glanced down the hall, towards the galley. “What kind of idea?” He sounded nervous, instead of disapproving.

“Promise not to make fun of me?”

“Of course. You shouldn’t have to ask such a thing.” He kissed her forehead.

“I feel like I’m supposed to go looking for him.”

“Have you had another dream with her in it?”

“Surprisingly no. It’s just that I can’t stop thinking about how things unfolded in the cave. I’m going nuts waiting around for the chance to take action.”

“Well what can you do?”

“Isn’t it obvious?” He gave her a blank look, then shook his head. “Come with me then.” Jessie took Mido’s hand and led him onto the deck. A warm and windy starless night greeted them as the Pertinacious rode the swells. She hugged the wall and motioned for Mido to do the same. He wordlessly obeyed. She peered at the wheelhouse over the rim of the wall, checking on Rammus. His back was to the stern. Jessie tugged Mido into a walk and they snuck over to the part of the railing blocking the stern ladder. She looked out into the darkness, able to see a small ring of water reflecting the ship’s floodlights. The rest of the world lay in complete darkness.

“So… what’s your plan?” Mido stood beside her with an arm around her waist.

Jessie held onto the railing with both hands and leaned against Mido. “Did you see how the water monsters in the cave reacted to me when we were walking to the table?”

“Yeah. They went away when you told them to.”

“And remember how the dolphins came when I called in La Havre?”

“ That was impressive. I’ve never seen anything like it. They saved us a boatload of trouble, pun intended.” He winked. “Are you hoping something out there will help us find Captain?”

“I’m hoping the water monsters will help us find him.” Mido’s arm went slack around her waist.

“They attacked him.”

“They’re probably the only things that know where he is.”

“Why would they help us?”

“Those ones probably wouldn’t but I bet there are ones loyal to Rhode, Amphitrite’s daughter. When I talked to Dyne right before the cave, he explained how Rhode helped him once. I bet I can get them to come, but I don’t know if I’ll find ones loyal to her or her mother, which is why I’ve been waiting for you to heal. I wanted you to be able to defend yourself in case they attack us.”

“Are you sure this is a good idea?”

“No,” she admitted, “but this is the only thing I can think of. I have to try. You can go below if you want.”

He held on tight. “There’s no way I’m letting you face those things alone.”

Jessie felt a mix of gratitude and worry. She didn’t want to do this alone, however she felt it would be safer for the crew if she did. She had a feeling they’d leave her unharmed if it was just her, no matter who answered the call, but they might toy with the rest of the crew just to cause mischief. She said as much to Mido.

“I’m not risking you doing something like this alone. I’d rather be there, regardless of my own safety.”

“Okay. I won’t argue. Just be quiet a minute and let me concentrate.” She removed his arm from her waist and braced her hands on the railing.

“Hold on. I think we better warn the others in case this gets ugly.”

Fifteen minutes later, the entire crew was gathered on the stern, everyone but Jessie and O’Toole armed with swords. Rammus had the ship in neutral, just to make it easier for their impending company to swim up to them. Jacobi stood among the cargo pushers, radiating silent fury, but otherwise behaving. He’d been allowed to give his input when Jessie ran her plan by the crew. Even though he was outvoted, his heavy bias stole any weight from his opinion. Everyone else had agreed to let Jessie try. Cancer stood by Jacobi, also armed.

Jessie stood by the railing with her studded sparring gloves on, just in case. Wearing them brought comfort and confidence but no feeling of invincibility. She almost asked Mido to give her a kiss and wish his sea goddess luck, but she wanted to be purely herself, in case Amphitrite would try to wreak havoc through her. Jessie was trying to use her monsters for her own agenda after all. Hopefully Amphitrite wouldn’t try to hinder her, since she was trying to help Dyne, like a good avatar.

Jessie took in a deep breath and let it go, hoping to calm her nerves, then she closed her eyes. Her audience made her nervous. If things went bad, Jacobi would get his “I told you so” in and who knows where things would go from there? Would she be ask to leave, or would they go so far as to throw her overboard to rid them of the dangers her presence brought? She tried to push such thoughts from her mind as she pictured the croco-frog monsters in her mind.

A pair of gangly arms wrapped around her torso, and a head buried itself in the meat of her shoulder. Jessie opened her eyes. That wasn’t Mido, Ed, or Ted hugging her.

“O’Toole, come back here,” Sam said.

Jessie did her best to remain calm as she pried the Irishman’s arms off and shooed him away. She wanted to shove him for touching her, but at the same time she was floored by what he just did. He’d never tried to touch her before. She’d never seen him hug anyone, come to think of it. Dyne was the only person he’d fussed over, but with tears and pawing. This time he was gibbering excitedly as his empty hands reached for her. “O’Toole, stop,” she said firmly. He tucked his arms against his torso like a praying mantis. “Go back to Sam. I need to concentrate.” She pointed to Sam. The Irishman gave her a questioning whine. She pointed again. He drooped his shoulders and trudged over, then latched onto Sam.

“Hey. Stop that.” Sam pushed the Irishman off and held him at bay by one arm. “What’s gotten into you? I’ve never seen you like this.”

Scully said, “Guess he knows something’s up again.”

Jessie faced the ocean and closed her eyes. Hopefully O’Toole’s behavior was a good omen. She pictured the croco-frog monsters in her mind and reached into the sea with her awareness. She rode along the water’s surface, the sensation feeling like drifting in a boat being pulled downstream in a swift current. The sensation gave her butterflies in her stomach.

Her mind then got pulled in a different direction. The yank made her gasp and lose concentration. She blinked several times and eased her death grip on the railing, then took a few calming breaths to ease her racing heart.

“Are you alright, Jessie?” Mido said.

Looking over a shoulder, she nodded and gave him a small wave, then slipped her awareness back into the sea. Something tugged on her mind, eager to make contact with her. She let this other awareness guide her to it. Who or whatever had found her consciousness didn’t feel malicious. Sure, they might be hiding it to lure her in. If that was true, she didn’t care. She’d deal with that “what if” as it came. Her awareness zoomed along the mental river to—