The Flying Dutchman groaned under the crushing weight of the ocean's abyss. The ship felt more alive than it had any right to be, its warped timber creaked as if it resented every inch it was forced to sail.
The boy swam quietly behind a Fish-Man that led him down the narrow, dim corridors of the dutchman. He wore dark trousers loosely rolled up to his knees, a pair of suspenders hung loose at his sides and a white dress shirt covered his back, it's buttons were undone leaving his torso exposed for all to see.
He observed his surroundings with starry eyes, his gaze lingered on the planks and tools that shifted as the Dutchman swayed from side to side.
The boy's curiosity got the better of him as they passed a floating coil of rope. He slowed, reaching out to touch its frayed surface, his webbed fingers brushed against it as he explored its texture for the first time.
The Fish-Man felt is absence and turned back only to find him playing with some rope. "Stop fooling around,!" he snapped, "The sooner we get to where we need to be the better..."
The boy blinked, completely unaware that he'd just been scolded. Abandoning his new favorite toy he glided ahead, slowing just enough to comfortably drift behind the Fishman once more.
He tilted his head to the side, Peking past the man's broad back, "Hey mister, where are you going?" he asked, his tone curious and innocent.
The Fish-Man let out an irritated grunt, not bothering to even turn back to face him "Shut yer trap!" he muttered, his voice a deep rumble, "You'll know when we get there."
The boy nodded, unfazed, and continued following behind him until, they stopped infront of a cabin door near the end of the corridor.
As they approached a door, the Fish-Man stopped infront of it and without a care, he raised his fist and slammed it against the door with enough force to rattle its frame. "Karna, get out here!" he barked, his voice cut through the muffled quiet. The impact reverberated through the flooded halls, vibrations rippled outward, carrying the sound farther than it had any right to in its stifling stillness.
"HEY!… the hell are you doing!? Are you trying to break my door down!"
A sharp voice echoed down the corridor, drawing the attention of the Fishman and the boy.
A beautiful mermaid, none other than Karna swam into view, her reverse zebra-patterned tail swayed hypnoticly behind her as she slowly drifted to a weary halt.
Her long black hair drifted around her face, laced with pale strands that shimmered like the moon against the night. A crimson wrap hugged her torso, its edges fluttered subtly from the water's gentle drag, its vibrant color a bold slash against her cool-toned skin.
Slung across her torso, a rugged side bag swayed gently with the current, its pouches stuffed with well-worn tools and bits of salvaged metal. Her amber-gold eyes locked onto the Fish-Man, narrowing with barely suppressed irritation.
"Is that your idea of knocking?" she snapped. "Why don't you go ahead and punch a hole through it—I've been meaning to get a new window"
"Come here kid," the Fish-Man barked, his eyes fixed forward as if Karna hadn't spoken at all. The boy swam into view, his open vest stirred in the water as his gaze eagerly darted between the two "H-hello uh… miss Karna". The Fish-Man jabbed a webbed thumb toward him. "This here is the newest recruit of the flying pirates, a cabin boy and a nameless nobody I'll forget about by the time I get to the bottom of my fifth keg… show him the ropes, feed him, and get him settled," he said. "It should take about, a month or so," his tone was flat, making it clear he wanted nothing further to do with the boy.
Karna arched an eyebrow as her tail snapped behind her, sending a wave of ripples through the water. "Me?" she said, that single word held an untold amount of rage. "I'm already doing most of the work around here, and now you're trying to dump this on… me?" Her eyes shifted toward the boy, giving him a quick once-over before turning back to the Fish-Man with a sharp glare. "Find someone else," she snapped. "I don't have time to add 'babysitter' to my long list chores."
The Fish-Man's lips pressed into a thin line. His voice dropped as he leaned closer. "Don't push it Karna, those are the captain's orders... you know what happens if he has to ask twice, you'll do as your told if you know what's good for you."
Karna let out a sharp exhale, her frustration showing in the flick of her tail. "….Fine!," she screamed.
The Fish-Man let out a smug snort, clearly satisfied with himself. He turned and began to leave. The boy instinctively paddled after him, the Fish-Man stopped short, glancing back over his shoulder with a look that screamed disgust.
"Where d'you think you're going?" he barked, jabbing a thick finger toward Karna. "You're her problem now." With that, he turned his gaze back around and stalked off down the corridor, his broad frame soon swallowed by shadow.
Karna snapped around, irritation flaring in her eyes as she surged through the hall, cutting a swift path to her cabin door.
She slowed to a halt just shy of the cabin door and flipped open her side bag in one sharp motion, she rummaged through it for a moment before pulling free a rust-speckled key, its teeth had worn over the years, yet somehow, it still worked.
With a sharp thrust, she jammed it into the lock and gave it a twist; the mechanism gave a soft clank, followed by a dull clunk. She yanked the door open, bubbles peeling away from its frame as it creaked wide.
She glanced back at the boy, the faint dark rings beneath her eyes betraying sleepless nights, and held up a hand. "…Wait here," she said firmly, then slipped inside without another word.
As soon as the door closed behind Karna, the boy's focus drifted. A flicker of silver darted past—just a fish meandering lazily through the corridor. His eyes lit up. With a light chuckle, he pushed off and gave chase, paddling after it with a playful grin on his face.
The fish twisted and looped, darting just ahead with a cocky little smirk tugging at its mouth. "Wahahaha You're on!" The boy giggled as if it were a game of tag, weaving through crates and broken nets with the single-minded joy only a child could muster.
Inside, muffled stirrings of movements filled Karna room, punctuated only by the distant hush of the ship around her. Eventually, the door creaked open. She emerged with a list in hand and tired frustration still hanging on her expression—then she paused. The boy was gone.
"Kid?" she called, voice sharp. She swam out further, scanning the corridor. "Hey!… Where'd this idiot run off to, can't he follow simple instructions…,"
A faint thud echoed behind her, prompting her to whirl around just as the boy drifted back into view, upside down and breathless with laughter, his arms outstretched like a pair of azure wings.
"That was fun," he said with a beaming grin. "I'll get him next time, Shishishi"
Karna glared at him. Her mouth opened, then closed. Finally, she sighed, she was too tired to get mad. "You'll be working under me from now on," she muttered.
The boy tilted his head, his curiosity unchanged by her sharp demeanor. "Work?" he asked, his tone light and unbothered.
Karna's eye twitched. She let out a long breath through her nose, biting back whatever she actually wanted to say. "Just… do what I tell you to, alright?" she snapped, her voice clipped and edged with exasperation.
Karna thrust the parchment toward the boy, watching as it drifted slightly before he grabbed it. "This'll be your first lesson," she said, her voice low and sharp.
At the top, scrawled in jagged ink, read: Repairs to be addressed by the end of the day. Below it, a list of arduous tasks awaited.
He turned the parchment upside down, then to its side, squinting at the unfamiliar symbols spread across it's page. "What's this supposed to be?" he asked, brows furrowed.
The markings reminded him of something he'd seen when he first woke… but just like then, he couldn't make sense of it.
Karna frowned. "You can't read?" she asked bluntly.
The boy ran his fingers through his snowy hair, turning the word over on his tongue. "Rea… reead… that's a thing?"
Karna groaned, dragging a hand down her exhausted features. "Of course you can't," she muttered. "Unbelievable." With a flick of her tail, she turned and swam off… down the hall—where shadows clung to the grain of timber-laid walls
"It's like I'm talking with a newborn," she grumbled.
The boy's gaze lingered on the symbols, as though trying to piece them together on his own.
When he finally decided to look up, he was met with the sight of the corridor stretched out before him—empty. "miss Karna?" he called out.
"Where'd she go..."
A flicker of movement caught his eye—the tip of her tail slipping deeper into the dark. "Wait, hold on, don't wander off you'll get lost!" he yelled, as he pushed off swam after her, just before the shadows swallowed her from view.