The fish started to struggle again, and Claire almost lost her grip on the rod. She forgot Paddy and clung to the line while the fish dragged her around.
Paddy’s barks competed with the howls of the wind.
"Dammit, get on board you damn fish!" Claire shouted.
After twenty exhausting minutes, she hauled the fish alongside, leaned over, and punched it squarely in the head.
The fish looked offended.
Paddy barked in approval.
Claire roared like a warrior on an ancient battlefield as she finally dragged the big tuna aboard, where it immediately filled up almost all the space on the deck.
Paddy was quick to put his paw on its tail, barking loudly, declaring this catch as his.
Through deep breaths, Claire laughed at the presumptuous dog as she slid down to the floor. Her arms and legs were very sore, like she had done an hour-long workout. "Don’t even think about it Paddy. What would you even do with a fish this size?"
Paddy barked and opened his mouth, showing off his teeth. Claire could have sworn that the dog was saying, "Eat it, dah!" and then he rolled his eyes.
She snorted and wiped beads of sweat from her forehead with the back of her right hand. "Did you poop?"
Paddy didn’t even bother with a bark. But the look he gave Claire was rather resentful. As if she was accusing him of something he would never do.
Claire drank some water and then pushed the tuna into the cold freezer. She checked on the rainbow ribbon fish. It was still alive. She walked to the edge of the boat, adjusting her grip on the railing. A wild, foolish thought crossed her mind. Maybe I should just take a quick dive. Just a little peek...
Before the thought could take root in her mind, a violent heave sent the boat to the left. Claire stumbled, grabbing a metal cleat to keep from flying overboard.
The calm pod-green water suddenly churned like a washing machine. Big, dark waves rippled outward from the center of the green patch, crashing against the hull with loud, terrifying cracks.
Paddy sprinted to her side, planting his paws firmly on her boots and barking frantically at the water.
His ears stood up, pointing forward, his eyes darting between Claire and the raging water. He was practically shouting: We are in danger and we need to leave now!
"Okay, okay! Message received!" Claire yelled over the roar of the rising tides.
The water turned from a placid green pond into a boiling, churning nightmare. The tides rose and fell aggressively, tossing the heavy boat around like a foam toy. Claire scrambled back to the steering wheel, hit the ignition, and the boat engine roared to life.
As the boat lurched forward, carving a path away from the wild, raging sea, Claire touched the pearl and thought of the shores of Driswen. "Send me there," she requested frantically.
Suddenly, the water shoved her boat forward as if it had hands. The boat sailed as if it was racing against time. Paddy couldn’t handle the speed. He wobbled like a drunk sailor for a bit before collapsing.
Claire looked back, but she couldn’t see the green part of the sea anymore. "I will be back," she whispered.
****
Back at the docks of Driswen, everyone was getting restless.
Vidar paced back and forth across the wooden planks, his boots thudding a nervous rhythm. His eyes never left the open sea. Every few seconds, he’d shield his eyes, lean forward, and squint at the horizon, hoping to spot a familiar boat.
Diggy ambled over, wiping his hands on his patched coat, and leaned against a wooden post. "You know... maybe the noodle lady isn’t coming back."
Vidar froze mid-step. He whipped around, his face reddening instantly. "Claire!" He shouted, his voice cracking slightly. "Her name is Miss Claire!"
He took a sharp breath, his heart hammering against his ribs. He was yelling mostly because he was half-terrified by the truth in Diggy’s words. He had practically sworn on his life to Prince Stellan that he’d played all the cards right. He had assured the Prince that the mysterious merchant lady would 100% return to Driswen after all she liked the sea food, eggs and useless birds.
Heck, she had even left some of her property behind in town! She had to come back. If she didn’t... well, Prince Stellan would take out his anger on him.
Just then, the clatter of armored hooves echoed down the stone pier. A royal knight dismounted his horse in a flurry of shiny steel and rushed straight up to Vidar.
"Sir Vidar!" the knight panted. "His Highness Prince Stellan demands an immediate update on the merchant’s arrival!"
Vidar hissed a string of curses under his breath, his eyes darting around wildly. "Tell the Prince that-"
"LOOK! A BOAT!" a child shouted from the end of the pier, pointing a chubby finger toward the water.
Vidar dropped everything and sprinted to the edge of the dock, almost tripping over a coil of rope.
Indeed, a boat was coming.
It was a boat, cutting through the waves like a silver blade. Claire was late today-- ruining Vidar’s nerve endings in the process-- but she had come. The merchant had returned!
Vidar let out a breath so huge his shoulders sagged. He turned to the royal knight, slapped him on the shoulder, and puffed out his chest like he hadn’t just been sweating plasma five seconds ago. "Go tell the Prince that Miss Claire has returned. Exactly as I said she would."
The moment the boat bumped gently against the wooden dock and Claire tied off the ropes, Vidar practically jumped aboard. He couldn’t control the big, goofy smile spreading across his face.
"You came!" he beamed, looking like a man who had just been pardoned from the gallows.
Claire stepped off the boat, wiping a smear of salt spray from her forehead, and gave him a dry look. "Of course I came. I don’t make empty promises."
Vidar chuckled, but as he looked past her onto the deck, his eyebrows knitted together. The floor of the boat was drenched in water. Paddy, her magical mount was on the floor, looking completely disheveled. His fur was soaked and sticking out in wild, static-charged spikes like he’d survived a whirlwind.
"Did you... encounter sea trouble?" Vidar asked, his voice dropping an octave.
"Oh, no, not really," Claire said casually, waving a hand. "I just took a little detour first. Decided to tour the sea to see what else was out there."
Vidar’s smile vanished completely. His face went pale.
"You toured the Abyssal Sea?" he asked, horrified. "Miss Claire, the sea is not a garden! The deeper you go, the more lethal it becomes. You must not wander around! You could have easily run into a Mymarid, or a Sciren, or worse!"
Claire burst out laughing. "A Mymarid or Sciren? Come on, Vidar." Did he mean a mermaid or siren?
Her first initial thought was that he was just trying to scare her-- a classic sales tactic so she’d feel unsafe and depend on the Driswen market entirely. But as she looked at him, Vidar didn’t laugh back. His eyes were wide, his jaw tight, and his posture stiff as a board.
Oh crap, Claire realized, her laughter dying instantly. He’s not bluffing. She winced, shrinking back a little. "Uh... well, good thing I didn’t run into any of those, then! But I did catch some pretty good fish. Better than anything that you have given me so far!"
Vidar frowned, looking suspiciously at the empty deck. "Fish?" May I have a look? Not everything that lives in these waters is edible."
Claire’s eyes widened slightly. "Of course. Please take a look and give me your advice. And your men can start unloading my stock while we look."
She led Vidar to the live tank first. He leaned forward and instantly froze. His frown deepened so hard his eyebrows almost met in the middle of his forehead.
"Quickly, show me what else you fished from the sea." He bellowed.
Claire took him to the freezer and showed him the other two fish she had caught.
Vidar stared at them. Then he looked at Claire. Then he stared back at the fish.
"Miss Claire..." Vidar whispered, his voice trembling with sheer, unadulterated bewilderment. "Where in the King’s name did you get these creatures!?"