The pressure of the water held him tight as he slowly sunk head first.
When the last bubbles left him, it got silent. He knew he kept sinking from the water moving around him while the dark below seemed to grow.

Something white glimmered it the darkness underneath.
Tan smiled and did a wave with his body to move a bit faster.

It got darker the further he went.
The white glimmered again and Valkyra showed up near the rocky bottom. She slowly moved on the spot, hovering above the seafloor.
She pointed at something to the left of her.
Tan started to swim and soon reached the cave she had been pointing at.

Another mermaid with copper hair showed up in the wide opening. His young half-sister gave him a smile, before she turned back in to the cave.
Tan followed her to the large curled up skeleton on the cave floor. The body of the sea serpent had fallen into a nest of crystals.
Tan got the small bags off his belt and handed one to Vala.
Valkyra soon joined them. She started to pry the crystals off the floor, while Vala picked the ones she had plucked earlier and put them in the bag.
With the help of the mermaids, he soon had plenty of crystals.
He tied the bags to his belt and left the cave.

Valkyra and Vala followed him while he slowly ascended to the surface.
The shadow of the Legacy was the size of his hand above him when a resonant sound swept through the water like a vibration.
Scanning the deep darkness in front of him, he heard another haunting howl, but it seemed to come from another direction.
He couldn’t see anything, but he knew they had company.

Valkyra showed up in front of him. She cupped his face and kissed his forehead. She and Vala then pushed him upwards to send him to the surface faster. In the corner of his eye, he could see them take off towards land like glimmering streaks of silver and copper.

Tan looked up and saw the underbelly of the large world-carrier.
He smiled when he saw the face looking over the gunwale. Cole simply couldn’t help himself. He just had to stare at the water until Tan came back.

Tan broke the surface and took a deep breath. He had not been near the limit of how long he could hold his breath, but in monster infested waters it would be stupid to push his luck.
He grabbed the ladder hanging over the gunwale and climbed up.

Cole stood ready with a sheet to wrap around Tan as soon as he stepped down on the deck.
“Did everything go well? You were gone for a while.”
Tan smiled and rubbed his hair with the sheet.
“It went fine, and I wasn’t gone for that long.”
“You shouldn’t be doing this when you’re pregnant.”
“I’m barely showing.”
“Still. It’s risky.”
Tan pulled the sheet down to smile at Cole.
“It went fine. Mom and Vala were there, and it’s not the first time I went diving for crystals.”
“First time pregnant”, Cole muttered and rubbed Tan’s back with the sheet.

They were interrupted when Triston came over.
“Found what you were searching for?”
Tan nodded.
“Yeah. But we have company.”
Cole’s hands stopped moving.
Tan ignored him and stayed focused on Triston.
“You saw something?”
“No. But I heard it. Sounded like a three-back.”
Triston nodded.
“Right. I’ll send a signal to dad.”

When Triston walked off, Tan met Cole’s nervous gaze.
“Three-back? Isn’t that one of the larger monsters?”
“Sort of. They are as large as whip-tails, but shorter. Quite heavy, but not as big as death-jaws.”
Cole looked anxious.
“Don’t worry. Triston and dad are experienced. They have killed plenty of monsters.”
Cole didn’t seem too convinced, but he didn’t dispute. He had agreed to tag along without any objections, but Tan suspected it was more about making sure Tan was safe rather than an interest in hunting monsters.

Tan ran up to the poop-deck as soon as he had changed to dry clothes. He found Triston by the wheel and a handful of crew members standing aft, looking down at the transom.
Cole joined him next to Triston, nervously glancing at the crew behind them.
Tan followed Triston’s gaze to the Borealis.
“He’s in position”, Triston mumbled before turning to his crew, “Drop it!” he ordered.
The men unhooked the bait.
There was a rustle of chains when the large chunk of meat fell in to the water. The chains kept rustling for a bit until it got silent.
Both ships were moving full speed, but the Borealis were closer to shore, following at a distance.

“Would you like a closer look?”
Tan gave Triston a nod and walked to the rear of the ship.
Cole followed him closely.
“What will happen now?” Cole asked.
“A three-back will hopefully notice the bait and take it.”
“Why are they called three-backs?”
“They have three large spikes on their back.”
“Right. Whip-tales and death-jaws are quite obvious. Bulgers are the once with the large bend on their backs, right?”
“Yeah.”
“And the smaller type?”
“Chompers.”
“Any particular reason?”
“Not really. I guess it took a bite of the boat for the one discovering them or something. Or maybe they excessively took the bait when people were fishing for other sea creatures.”
Tan guessed that Cole was looking for a distraction when he started to get nervous.
Tan didn’t mind. Just looking at the sea behind the ship weren’t that exiting.

He had barely finished the thought when a bump of water seemed to follow the ship. A round wave that reviled something large swimming close to the surface.
Tan turned his head to Triston.
“We’re followed!”
Triston stood feet wide, closer to the wheel, as if he was ready to brace himself. The crew did the same, holding on to whatever they had near.

Tan looked at the wave of water closing in as he held on to the taffrail. Cole did the same.
Soon, three distinct spikes broke the surface and split the water as the creature came closer to the bait. The pale eyes were vaguely visible in the dark bulge of water.
Tan put a foot out for balance, bracing for the snap. Cole noticed his movement and did the same.

With a swirl of water, a massive gap opened beneath the surface.
The large mouth made a quick snap. Tan didn’t see the bait in the water, but the second later, the chain behind the Legacy got a strong tug. The ship creaked and slowed down instantly. Tan could barely hold on to the taffrail while he heard the metallic grate from the chain.

“Shoot!”
By Triston’s order, the two men operating the large harpoons on each side of the deck took aim and fired.
The first spiked spear hit the three-back above the eye. The other one plunged near the gill.
The beast stopped the pulling and seemed to shake its head before it decided to dive. The ropes tied to the spears stretched when the three-back pulled on them.
Tan looked over the rail to see the creature leave a dent in the water when it dove. The water quickly filled the crater the creature had left, while the large, dark shadow dove under the ship.
“It’s under us!” Tan called out.
Triston muttered something and looked over at the Borealis moving in by their side.
The ropes got tighter and Tan could feel the rear of the Legacy sink.
“Is it going to pull us down?” Cole asked.
Tan shook his head.
“It can pull the ship down a bit, but it will take more than a three-back to pull a world-carrier down completely. We just hope the chains and ropes will hold. If it gets loose it might draw back a bit and charge. That will do more damage than the pulling.”
Cole looked around.
“Where did it go?”
“It’s under us right now.”

The ship started to turn while the ropes on one side made the ship creek.
“It’s moving to starboard! Ready the harpoon!” Triston shouted.
A woman turned the harpoon near the bow and stood ready to fire it. Some crew members looked into the water, trying to spot the creature in the deep.
The Borealis sailed pass them and turned around to get to the same side as the three-back seemed to be.
For a moment, everything was quiet.

With a cascade of water, the gaping creature launched itself towards the ship. Some crew members fell when the ship shook. The three-back bit into the hull with large teeth scraping the wood.
The woman by the harpoon lost her balance and missed her opportunity.
Second later, the creature disappeared again, leaving swirls on the surface.
Shortly after, the ship started to turn the other way.
Tan wondered if the creature were smart enough to actually avoid the Borealis.

The ship shook again when something hit the hull from below. The ship kept turning without the three-back showing itself. The Borealis sailed around them, waiting for a chance to take aim with its harpoons.

The three-back kept swimming in circles, changing sides and pulling on the lines.
Finally, it launched out of the water to bite the hull of the Borealis. Dhaveus immediately ordered the harpoons to fire, and two large spears hit the three-back in the head.
The creature pulled violently on the lines, but trapped between the two ships, it was kept in place while the harpoons got reloaded. It didn’t take long after that until the creature lay still in the water.

“Is it always this challenging to hunt sea monsters?”
Cole looked at the three-back getting towed behind the Legacy.
Tan smiled.
“This was an easy one. It can get considerably harder. Especially if the creature happens to be a death-jaw. The struggle can go on for a lot longer and the injuries on the ship can get a lot more severe. I have heard stories about ships with large holes in the hull barely making it back. Some don’t, but those ships hunt alone. It’s always safer to have a partner. Why you would even try it alone is beyond me, but some seem to think they are invincible.”
“Yeah… I can think of one person who would try that.”
They shared a smile.

“So. Would you tag along for another hunt in the future?”
Cole glanced at the creature being towed behind the ship. He then shook his head.
“No. I like our trading and transporting. I don’t like this. It feels too dangerous, and now we’ll soon have a baby to think about. Having you dive for crystals is risky enough, without adding monsters to the equation.”
Tan smiled and pulled Cole in for a hug.
“I might ask again in ten years or so. When the kid is big enough to stay with our crew while we’re out here with Triston and dad.”
“You can always ask...”
Tan smiled again. He then twitched and took a step back to put his hand on his stomach.
“What?”
Tan was quiet for a moment.
“I thought I could feel a movement…”
“Really?”
“Yeah… It’s so vague it’s difficult to tell whether it’s my imagination or not, but I think I felt something.”
Excitement shone in Cole’s eyes.
“Amazing.”
Cole hugged Tan again, trapping Tan’s arms to his sides.
Tan smiled at his joy.
“Give it a few months and you will be able to feel it with your hands.”
Cole let go of him to grab his face and kiss him.
“I can’t wait.”