S. Welles - To Ocean's End

The morning Rammus finally let me out, I was waiting by the door, wearing just my pants and sandals, and a towel slung over a shoulder. I wasn’t planning on staying small enough to wear clothes for long. There was no time to waste.

Rammus smirked. “Eager for a shower, Captain?”

“No time.” I stepped out into the pale light. “Call—” The entire crew was gathered near the railing, all wearing relieved smiles. I was flattered but… “Why is everyone here?”

“How are you feeling, Captain?” Cancer asked.

Horrible. “Pressed for time. All of you…” I couldn’t bring myself to say it, to explain that they all had to come with me into almost certain death, because Amphitrite would assure their deaths if they didn’t.

“We’re headed for Newport. We skipped the San Juan shipment, as ordered. Now what’s going on?”

I turned around and tried to contain my panic. We were wasting precious seconds, but it was better now than later, while we weren’t surrounded by monsters. “I was born and raised in Newport, Rhode Island. It’s the only thing I have left from before I was cursed. It’s my home, and Amphitrite is threatening to wipe it off the map.” I pulled the towel off my shoulder. “As to why now, it’s my punishment for what went down in the cave.”

“So she’s destroying your home for breaking her heart?” Ted said. “That doesn’t make any sense.”

“It doesn’t have to.” She’d made twisted sense in the nightmare, but there was no way I was going to reveal that this personal attack was meant to break me. I clutched the towel in both fists so they wouldn’t see my hands shaking. My thoughts were racing because of the lengths she’d go to spread her misery to me. “She’s the sea. We’re at the mercy of her whims.”

“This is nuts,” Scully said unhappily.

“Captain,” Jacobi said, “you’ve had nothing but problems ever since you took her on board.”

“I didn’t take Jessie. She found her own way here.”

“Still, you kept her. You should’ve dumped her in Port Chesapeake.”

Jessie was giving the back of Jacobi’s head a look of death. Mido held her tight, his posture taut with contained rage. I was feeling just as pissed off for having someone else think they better knew how to handle curse-related people and problems than I did. That was like me telling Mido how to cook, or Cancer how to administer healthcare. The rest of the crew looked disgusted with the crap coming out of Jacobi’s mouth. “You’re very wrong. Now shut up about things you don’t understand.” I tried to start for the bow.

“No. I think you need to listen to me for once.” He unfolded his arms.

“Oh really?”

“I believe one of those two has you under her spell and is toying with you nonstop. None of this would’ve happened if you hadn’t kept her,” he said, pointing over his shoulder with a thumb. “She’s been nothing but trouble since the day she stepped foot on your ship. You need to listen to me and throw her overboard right now, and be done with her. You’re not yourself anymore.”

Oh, he’d picked a bad day to piss me off. I called water to me with a thought but kept it hidden below the railing. I took a step forward and spoke in a dangerously low voice. “Jacobi, tell me what to do with Jessie again and I’ll throw you overboard myself.”

“You wouldn’t dare.”

I dropped my towel and, in one swift motion, socked him in the gut with a fist of water, sending him sprawling, and pinning his wrists to the deck with rings of water. I kept pressure on his wrists like a waterfall pounding on rock, and held a globe of water in front of my fist. I poised it over him like I was priming to punch him as I straddle his sides. He stared up at me, eyes wide, as he gasped for breath.

The rest of the crew backed away. I took a deep breath. “I wouldn’t be on this ship right now if it wasn’t for her! Don’t you see? Because of her avatar status, she was able to come rescue me! She just saved me from a very long imprisonment where you would’ve all died of old age before she let me out! She braved sea monsters, the wrath of a goddess, and put her own life on the line for me! She didn’t have to but she did, and you’re still demonizing her? She even told me the naiads tried to get her to take you with her, but she refused, even after being advised otherwise. You have no idea how much gall that took. You owe her your life!” I paused to see if he was paying attention. He stared up with wide-eyed surprise. “She is our ally and an asset to the crew. Do I make myself clear?”

“Yes, Captain.” He swallowed. “I was worried because you’re not acting like yourself.”

Of course I wasn’t. I was stressed out of mind. My home, my last link to my curse-free humanity, was in danger, along with the entire crew, all because of me.

Scully said, “Cut him some slack, Jacobi. He’s been through hell.”

Rammus said, “I wouldn’t be myself either if my home, wife, and kids were in danger.”

“Mine are,” Sam said unhappily, fidgeting with his belt. “Captain, I’m as anxious as you to get home.”

Still glaring, I said, “Then let’s get going. And you,” I said to Jacobi, “will stop testing my patience with your vendetta against Jessie. Do I make myself very clear?”

Jacobi looked at me with a healthy dose of fear and remorse in his eyes. “Yes, Captain. I’m sorry.”

The apology was unexpected. I lowered my fist and water sphere, then stepped back and jerked him to his feet with the water around his wrists, just to give him another moment of feeling powerless. He let out a startled gasp, then stood there like an animal in shock while holding his arms up in surrender. I released his wrists and sent the water back into the sea.

The rest of my crew looked like they wanted to cheer for what I’d done but were afraid I’d snap at them for it. I didn’t want any praise for laying Jacobi flat. It was bullying to an extreme. Still, he probably needed to be put in his place, but what really bothered me was the fact that I’d snapped like that. It was a positive indicator that I was cracking, breaking under the pressure, just as Amphitrite wanted.

Jacobi lowered his arms, studied me a moment, then looked at Jessie. He went over and stood before her. “I still remember the night when those things came. All I heard was them wanting to take me. I thought you were in league with them, but you didn’t turn me into a prisoner and you brought Captain back all by yourself. I still don’t what to think about all that and I still don’t trust you, but… it’s…”

“I understand,” Jessie said. “I forgive you.”

“Thanks.” He ran a hand through his hair. “Please help Captain. I hate seeing him like this.”

“I’m trying.”

I picked up my towel, balled it up, and tossed it to Rammus. “Don’t worry about manning the wheel. Just stick her in neutral and drop anchor when I tell you to. I’ll take care of the rest. Everyone else go to your bunks and sit tight. And Rammus, go join them once you’ve released the anchor.” I looked at Jessie and bit back my comment about my impending telepathic communication with her. I didn’t feel comfortable letting the rest of the crew know we could do that while I was transformed. I didn’t care if she told Mido. She probably had while I was in lockdown. I needed the shred of humanity in their eyes.

“What’re you doing, Captain?” Rammus said.

“Going water demon and taking you all for a ride, so don’t leave your bunks until I’m up to full speed. Now where are we exactly?”

“Oh. Uh, the Caribbean. Somewhere between Venezuela and Puerto Rico.”

I nodded as I filed the geographical information and calculated my route. My crew hesitated, then started filing below deck. Of course their minds were a bit boggled. After all these years, this was the first time they’d heard me declare I was about to transform on purpose, and this would only be the second time for me, the first having been after Rhode had instructed me to. All the other times I’d been forced to, or had dipped too far into demon strength when commanding water.