Early morning sun rays peeked from the horizon to tinker on ChuChip's face making her eyes squeeze tight. The rowing oar had slipped out of Kai's hand as he had obliviously drifted off into a small nap, although it was his turn to row the boat.

A weird sound, which was neither a squawk nor a quack, woke him up. He suddenly snapped his eyes open and fumbled to grasp a hold on the oar stuck in its rowlock.

"Good morning, lad." The talebearer greeted him as he hovered above his head, "I see you are awake."

"Are we there yet? Where are we?" Sheila wiped a drool from the corner of her mouth, as she wondered groggily.

The golden bright light seemed to fade into blurriness as they ventured into a sinister fog that kissed the calm water. Sheila rubbed her eyes to ease herself into alertness. She shook Gabby and Zaren awake.

Kai stood up and released the oar from the lock and held it out, ready to fight anything​ that lashed out of water.

The strong iron taste lingered on their tongues, as they inhaled the foggy air. It was cold, almost stinging inside their noses, soon the stench of it became apparent - the stench of rot.

"Are you sure this is the way to the mainland?" Kai stammered scanning all around the boat, but all that appeared was a thick and cloudy fog.

"Indeed. We are only few yards away, I can almost see it." The seagull announced and Kai let out a breath of relief. But the weird noise again, nearing him stealthily didn't let him overcome his fear.

"Who is it? Reveal yourself." Kai screamed to no one in particular. He licked his chappy lips to open his mouth again, but Zaren was up and wrinkling his nose already.

"I knew it. I shouldn't have given you the chance at all." Zaren clenched his jaw as he held his dagger ahead. The boat suddenly shook, setting everyone's heart beat on race. Sal and kids slowly woke up, one after the other wondering at the fog that almost made their faces invisible to each other.

There was another jolt to the boat.
"Do you see anything down here? Around us?" Kai looked up into the sky to find the talebearer, but it was impossible to see through it.

"Not that stupid bird again, Kai." Zaren darted ahead to hold Kai by his collar. He spoke grinding his teeth, "it's only because of you, that we are---" he paused as the boat tilted to a side, only a little with a slow but echoing creak. A damp and hairy snout materialised through the fog, then a pair of black eyes.

Kai released himself out of Zaren's grip and bent towards the animal that was resting it's chin on the strake of the boat. "It's an otter," he chuckled, "it's just a sea otter."

Chuchip hopscotched on the wooden bars to crouch beside Kai.
"It's like a bear," she giggled extending her finger to touch the nose. Only thing that never faded from Chip's eyes was that amusement. She never stopped trying and poking things, no matter what.

"Hello li'l lady." The otter squealed, more like quacked. It went over all other's heads, but for Kai, it was loud and clear.

"Hi there." Chip went on to touch it, the otter wasn't intimidated at all. It even gave in for her touch, as if it was craving for it since years. Chip gasped, flinched and then bursted into an unstoppable giggle as Tibby and Bo joined in with her.

"Where are you people headed, may I ask?" The otter enquired, Kai had never witnessed any body speak to him with so much politeness before.

"Uh...the mainland, where ever it is." Kai replied. Scratching his head, Kai tilted his face up to look for the seagull again, but it was futile.

"Don't say you can speak with this dumb animal too." Zaren whined. Much for his shock, the otter growled on his face. Kai grinned with a snort making Zaren hesitate, as he tried to flee the attack from the otter.

"It's the humans like you who are to be called 'dumb', not animals, siré." Kai had understood the otter's remark clearly.
"Coming back to the mainland," the otter cleared his throat, "which mainland exactly? Where do you hail from?"

"We...we are pirates of Ramirez. We are the survivors of a huge fire accident. It uh it..." Kai explained, his voice slowly fainted to a mumble as his eyes impaled to the memory of the fire, the smoke, Chip and his dad falling into water and the sea smothering him alive.

"I see..." The otter nodded, as another otter revealed floating prone on the surface. On the second otter's belly, there was a small furry pup which squealed and cried in a feeble voice.

"It's feeding time, Rynn. We should go hunt, the pup is getting my nerves." The second otter squealed in a feminine tone.

Kai's eyebrows arched upwards, 'what in the world?!'

"Now, if you'll excuse us, we need to go find some mussels to feed our hungry baby." The second otter wailed before turning away to leave.

"No. Listen Lhea." The first otter, now apparent that it was a male, stopped the second one. "They are headed to the mainland," it hushed.

"So?" The second otter almost deadpanned.

"They are pirates." Rynn whisper-hushed pointing at them.

"Rynn, they are just a group of passer-by humans, trespassers to be precise." The second otter gave a mean remark.

"And they survived an arson." The first one almost squealed, unable to contain the hysteria. Kai's and Sheila's heads moved back and forth to keep up with the heated conversation between the two otters, but Sheila couldn't understand a word.

Finally the second otter fell silent for a moment only to glare at all their flabbergasted, transfixed faces.
"Err..." Lhea cleared her throat and signalled the other otter to a side so that they could have a small talk. "Give us a moment, We will be back soon."

"What did it say?" Sheila whispered into Kai's ear, whilst his face was still pale after listening to otters speak with each other.

"Nothing significant yet." Kai nodded, not caring to look at her. His hands started fidgeting as he painfully waited for the otters to return. Meanwhile, Sal yawned loudly, cracking his stiff bones.

Not only Kai, but all of them stiffened, including Zaren as the otters returned. "If I am not wrong, I think I have something that belongs to you." The first otter informed holding its fore arms in a welcoming gesture.

"And what is that?" Kai's heart thumped louder and faster against his chest. Every vein inside him pulsed and itched to know about the 'thing'. Because, somewhere behind the back of his mind, he knew what it was.

The second otter with the pup on her abdomen swam across the calm water to arrive at them flapping her hind limbs. Along with her pup, there was something else on her belly as well, a very shiny thing perhaps. Kai identified it without a second thought. As soon as it neared them, the first otter handed the treatise over to it's rightful owner - Kai.

Kai untangled the slippery kelp wrapping the book and dried it with his shirt, and it's transparent leaves appeared as fresh as ever.

"The book showed us about you. Now that you have it, complete the task you are chosen for." The second otter smiled - which only Kai could appreciate of course - and dashed back into the sea, sprinkling water all over their faces and they all cringed harmoniously.

"Oops. Sorry!" The female otter blurted and went deeper into the kelp clogged water. The first one nodded very proudly before dismissing himself from them.

Kai gazed at the rippling water, half overwhelmed and half tired at the idea of owning the unlucky book once again.

"Let me see it." Zaren tried to grab the book from his hands, for which Kai resisted. "Why wouldn't you let me see it? Just give it to me."

"Zar, please stop it. You'll tear the book apart." Sheila stared daggers with her eyes to her whiny little twin brother and it worked magic when he finally gave up and settled down to row the boat.

As they passed through the thick fog, there was a romp of otters all quacking, chirping and growling, as if they were cheering them for something. Kai's breathing escalated quickly reliving the otter's words, 'complete the task you are chosen for? What am I chosen for?'

"Can I see it?" Sheila requested him and tilted her head adding, "only if you want to..."

"Sure."

"Seriously?" Zaren shook his head in dismay, "you denied when I asked earlier."

"There's a difference between requesting and robbing." Kai scoffed, a bitter bile of lies churned his stomach instantly.

"It's beautiful. It's just...I don't have words, who gave this to you?" Sheila's finger traced along the bizarre spirals etched on the book spine.

"My mom." Kai mumbled.

"Yeah, it's her family heirloom. She said that she inherited it from her grandmother. It's pretty unlucky in my opinion. Whoever touches it, either dies or ends up rogue or pauper." Sal-e-nan chimed in, his eyes fixated onto the book.

"Why do you say that, Sal? If Ramirez finds this, he'll trade a chest of gold for this." Sheila grinned scanning Sal's face.

"I'm the example. My whole family is an example." Sal chirped, trying to shroud the gloomy reality of the book in her hands. Kai, for the first time ever, laughed at his father's usual funny insinuations.

"Then I probably shouldn't touch it." Sheila raised her hands in dismissal, before lending it back to Kai.

"Hmmm... Did I miss something?" The seagull perched on Kai's shoulder and squawked. "I couldn't see through the thick mist."

"Nothing." Kai acted all natural as he tucked the book at the back of his trousers.

"Come on Kai. You can't lie to me, can you?" The talebearer cocked his head scanning his back. "Liar liar, pants on fire." He sang into his ears. By then Zaren pulled the treatise out of Kai's bottom and held it high up in the air. Kai could never match Zaren's height, so he couldn't claim it. He gave up and sat back with Sheila.

Zaren, now beaming with utmost pride, started examining the book in every angle possible. But, nothing took shape on the transparent empty scale like papers, except for bony spine with bizarre spirals.
"What the hell does it say?"

"I don't know. Seems like a different language to me." Kai added, now composed to cover up the obvious anger boiling inside him.

"I agree with Kai. I have come across that language in some medicinal books as well. I never understood it though." Sheila rather shrugged, her eyes staring into the foamy waves, but right in time she whipped and turned her head around straining all the muscles in her neck and grinned baring her teeth. "I think I have an idea."

"What is it?" Kai straightened his back, so did Zaren, Gabby and Sal. But kids were busy playing with the seagull again, although talebearer kept an ear awake towards the conversation.

"Gimme the book, Zar." Sheila flicked her fingers towards Zaren. He obeyed without a word, for once in his lifetime.

"Here, look at the spine. It has spirals, if you look closer all five are different from each other. Each spiral is divided inside into small parts by radial spokes. If we open up the spiral and lay it straight and count them, we will get a number. And that number should be the order of the alphabet." She squalled like a baby, "Eek! I am so proud of myself right now. Anyways fingers crossed."

"Okay, I am going to pretend that I understood everything." Kai spoke light heartedly, although he couldn't hide the appreciation in his eyes for her.

"Then what are we waiting for?" Zaren demanded, his demeanour rather impatient.
____________________________________________________________________________

Word count - 2010

*Ain't that otter just cuuuuttee?

*1 vote for the otter couple - Rynn ❤ Lhea. 😝😝
*Just kidding, Thanks for being here.