[centre][h1]The Journey to Tendlepog: Chapter 1[/h1][/centre] The crew aboard Zhengwu had found it surprisingly hard to adjust to the movements of such a smaller vessel. As opposed to the mammoth size of Jiangzhou, the tumultuous waves of Nanhe actually manage to rock the ship quite a bit, inciting a most vile, crew-wide disease - which, upon reaching calmer parts of the river, turned out to merely be a lack of sea legs. The sails had, however, proved worthy of the voyage so far, granting Zhengwu more speed than any oar or current ever could. The southern winds struck diagonally across the curved sail, shooting the boat forward despite it going against the gusts. A wonderful feat of physics, Qiang Yi though to himself - a grand blessing from the Exalted Creators, surely. The young man sat on deck next to a small table, upon which laid a page of rice paper and a small ink bowl. He dipped his brush, his dearest possession, into the ink, gently brushed off the excess droplets and bore it over to the page. With a stiff arm and a firm grip, he brought the brush down and let it dance across the white surface like a leaf on the wind. [centre][i] Swish, swish, swish: The dancing waves below With pitches high and low, Guide our journey, O. Swish, swish, swish. Tock, tock, tock: The feet of crew at work, Their skill without a quirk, Through darkness and through murk. Tock, tock, tock. Drip, dri-- [/i][/centre] Qiang Yi tipped forward, causing his brush to strike over the characters he had already written, erasing them utterly. He let out a vexed grumble and stood up. “What happened?” he boomed. “Apologies, captain! We had to avoid a silt pile!” first mate Zhen-zhen shouted from the helm. Qiang Yi blinked and rose to his feet, hurrying over to the bow. His glistening, blue eyes became saucers as he glanced outwards across the vast, unending blue on the horizon. He was soon flanked by several more crew members, all awestruck by the presence of so much water. “The Exalted Creators be praised,” one of the deckhands next to Qiang Yi whispered. Qiang Yi grinned and squeezed his shoulder. “Behold, faithful crew - the ocean!” The crew burst out into loud cheers and clapped their hands. Qiang Yi grinned smugly and turned to the helm. He crossed the deck and ascended the stairs to the ship’s stern. Then, he sat down next to Zhen-zhen, who was manning the tiller. He gave her a nod, which she returned diligently. “Have you gotten used to steering yet?” Qiang Yi asked with a wry smile. The girl grinned and nodded. “Yes, captain! The rudder is heavy, but provided the waters are gentle, it shouldn’t be too much of an issue.” Qiang Yi hummed in approval. “Good. We will keep a steady course along the coast for as long as possible, making certain to avoid the stronger currents closer to the shore while keeping a keen eye on our relation to the continent. If we reach open sea…” The two looked gravely at one another. “... Prayer shall be our sail,” Zhen-zhen said reassuringly. Qiang Yi pursed his lips and nodded. “Prayer shall be our sail,” he said ominously. “Keep up the good work, first mate Zhen-zhen.” “Yes, captain,” she yelled and returned her gaze forwards. Qiang Yi stepped over to the railing at the front of the helmspost and observed the deck: The crew was diligently readjusting and tightening the sails against the strong southern wind; some brough buckets of water around for the deckhands to drink from. All in all, Qiang Yi thought, the journey had started quite well. He took a moment to breathe in the distant sea air, not yet crowded with the fragrance of the jungle - just pure and clean. “...tain..” The sounds - oh, by the Creators, these waves were not like those of the river. Even from here, he heard their thunderous chorus battle with the gentle laps of Nanhe’s delta. Such a foreign, exciting tune. “...aptain..!” If he listened ever closer, he could swear that he heard-- “Captain!” Qiang Yi snapped to and rubbernecked in most directions until his eyes fell on a group of three standing on the stairs to his left. He knew them - not well, but well enough. They were Li Shan and Li Gongxiu, both from the Skilled caste, and Wang Huangxia of the Noble caste. The speaker seemed to have been Wang Huangxia, for he came up the staircase and bowed to Qiang Yi, who bowed back. “Captain, are you well? You seem a little faint. Would you like to rest for a minute, perhaps?” Wang asked warily. Qiang Yi shook his head. “Your concern is appreciated, Wang Huangxia. Pardon my reverie - I just felt so inspired by the sights; so many beautiful motifs for poetry, don’t you agree?” Wang nodded with a cordial smile. “Certainly, captain. Would that I had your eyes and ears for the arts, and by the Exalted Creators, would I record them all with diligence.” Qiang Yi smiled back and nodded. “A stellar wish, master Wang. Now, if I may ask, did you have something for me?” “Certainly, captain. I would not have bothered you otherwise. These two gentlemen from the pumping room have a message for you.” He stepped to the side and allowed the two servants to step forth, both bowing to Qiang Yi, who bowed back. “Captain,” said Li Shan in a deep voice, “we have solved the remaining issues with the windmill pump. Now we are ready to untie it at your command.” Qiang Yi smiled and bowed to them again. “Stellar work, master Li, master Li. You may tell the rest of the Skilled to stand at the ready in the pumping room for when the strong unfurl the sails at sea. We should break into brack in an hour or so. Shortly thereafter, we should be turning northwards to catch the southern winds. Then, we will release the restraints on the windmill.” “Yes, captain,” the two Lis said simultaneously and went to work. Qiang Yi turned back towards the bow, only to notice out of the corner of his eye that Wang Huangxia was still present. He turned his head and raised a curious eyebrow at the opposite man. “Was there anything else, master Wang?” Qiang Yi asked. Wang Huangxia hesitated, but then nodded. “Forgive me, captain, but did His Lordship tell you anything about how our bodies may react to saltwater?” Qiang Yi blinked, his smile fading into a frown. “No… No, His Lordship did not, I am afraid.” Wang looked up with disbelief in his eyes. “B-but His Lordship knows well that our spirits require pure fresh water to subsist. There is no telling what may happen to us if we are exposed to too much salt. Did you not ask him before we left?” Qiang Yi looked away at the slowly approaching ocean and sucked in a deep breath. “Remain calm for now, if you can. Go out to the crew and tell them to make certain that their undressed body parts are especially well covered with their skin. Do -not- tell them of the unknown risks of saltwater exposure, master Wang. Morale is high for now; we need it to remain that way.” With a heavy nod, Wang Huangxia let out a sigh and bowed. “Yes, captain.” Then he went down on deck. Qiang Yi felt his breathing accelerate ever so slightly. “A little salt should be fine, even if it passed through the skin,” Zhen-zhen mumbled from the tiller. “However, to fall overboard--” “No one will fall overboard,” said Qiang Yi, perhaps a little too firmly. “If we stay the course, the weather should be on our side. His Lordship have traversed the skies several times without experiencing a single storm.” “Certainly,” Zhen-zhen said in a monotone voice, “though Jiangzhou is a holy vessel, and the skies are bound by different laws from the sea. His Lordship said it himself: Ours is the first sea voyage - we know not what we will encounter.” Qiang Yi sucked in a deep breath yet again and let out a sigh that morphed into a groan. “I realise this, Zhen-zhen, but we cannot spread fear among the crew. We are the first, after all - the risks are like a menacing shadow in the shrubbery: We cannot see them clearly, but we know they are there. Uncertainty leads to fear, fear leads to panic, panic leads to--” “Mutiny?” Zhen-zhen suggested. Qiang Yi paused, then looked over his shoulder down to the deck. “Yes… Mutiny,” he whispered warily. Zhen-zhen shook her head. “I apologise for my tone, captain,” she confessed. “One should not speak such words aboard a ship - they may bring back luck.” Qiang Yi nodded and shot one more look down on deck. There, the deckhands were jogging to and fro as the vast dark blue approached the bow. Some were retying the mast lines; some were running water rounds around deck; some were taking in the views; and some were staring back at him. “... Yes… Bad luck,” Qiang Yi echoed quietly. [hr] The brackwater brushed against Qiang Yi’s skin as they reached the lower edges of the delta. It itched, a little like a miniature cut. He stood at the front of the bow with one and on the railing and one shielding his eyes from the heliopolis. He felt his breathing speed up again as the surrounding crew members began to rub and scratch their various exposed parts. This certainly would not grow vexing over time, he thought angrily to himself. This was, however, no time to think about such nonsense. The grey silt began to vanish from the water surface and give way to darker and darker sea. This was the time. In an almost rehearsed motion, Qiang Yi turned to face the helm while he raised his hand. The crew simultaneously braced themselves. Qiang Yi shot a glance back at the sea, the abyss below signaling that they had left the delta. “NOW!” Qiang Yi boomed. The crew rocked to the side as the rudder was violently jerked to the left, sending the ship on a sharp curve northwards. Some brave individuals let go of whatever they had been holding to turn the sails. Good, Qiang Yi thought. Everything was going according to pla-- There was a blood-curdling snap as the south wind caught the sternward sail harder than anticipated. The rope holding the sail snapped the hook it clung onto straight out of the woodwork, sending it like a morning star-tipped whip straight into the chest of Li Gongxiu, who had been manning that part of the sail. The force tossed the man off balance and against the railing - then another gust rocked the ship and sent him overboard. Qiang Yi felt the colour drain from his eyes. “MAN OVERBOARD,” he roared and the crew all charged towards the stern to help him. Rope was found and weighted with a stone and tossed after him, but the crew stood in horror as all they saw were the man’s clothes floating emptily on the water surface. The gusts gave out. The only sounds that coloured the black soundscape were the breezes from the south and west, and the tweets from the jungle back on land. A whimper grew louder and louder. “Gongxiu-... GONGXIU!” Qiang Yi let his eyes fall on Li Shan, who knelt in tears by the railing, his shoulders filling with the hands of his fellow crew members. He felt a nauseating clump fill his throat, one he could not seem to swallow for the life of him. He gently pushed his way out of the crowd and up to the helm. He stood at the front of the helmspost, scanning the deck from above. Slowly, the eyes of the crew began to fall on him. Qiang Yi tried once more to swallow, but felt himself choke. “Did His Lordship know about this?!” came a voice from the crowd. Qiang Yi blinked and looked away. “H-his Lordship did not inform me of this. We had no idea th--” “But His Lordship must have known! We should have known! Why were we not told?!” “I-!” Qiang Yi had to pick his words carefully. “I cannot answer why - for I do not know, either! We must have faith, however, that this is part of His Lordship’s plan!” “No master should plan their servants’ death!” came a particularly angry voice, this one from a source Qiang Yi could place. Wang Huangxia stepped forth in the crowd. Qiang Yi felt moisture collect on his face, apart from the seabreeze. “His Lordship certainly did not plan for us to die, but we are th--!” “Yes, we are the first to sail the sea,” Wang Huangxia continued, “and yet we were not told about this. His Lordship likely hypothesised of this effect, but needed proo-!” “Wang Huangxia!” came a voice from the railing. Qiang Yi recognised it as Li Shan's, but it was broken with emotion and tears. The red-ringed eyes of the carpenter burned with fury as he walked over and stabbed a finger in Wang Huangxia’s face. “His Lordship may have left out some details about our bodies, but you will -NOT- stand here and use my friend’s death to speak ill of His Lordship, is that clear?!” Wang Huangxia stood in shock at the gesture. The crew had similar expressions. Eventually, Wang recollected himself and got down on all fours in a kowtow. “This servant apologises profusely for its heretical words.” Li Shan nodded and looked at Qiang Yi with somber, yet determined eyes. “Orders, captain?” Qiang Yi remained frozen for another second before his mind absorbed and processed the question properly. He blinked a few times and stared at the crew, who were all staring back. There it was, that curséd clump. “First of all,” he began a little weaker than intended, “get the sternward sail under control. Then ascertain the status of the ship. Then…” Qiang Yi looked at Li Shan. “Then we will take a moment to remember Li Gongxiu.” Li Shan’s eyes teared up again and he rubbed them profusely with the sandy back of his hand. As the crew dispersed to perform their tasks, Qiang Yi felt his breath escape him. “You have a lot of loyal people aboard, captain,” Zhen-zhen mused from her seat next to the tiller. “You’re a lucky man.” “They’re loyal to His Lordship, first mate Zhen-zhen, not me,” Qiang Yi answered shamefully. “If you continue to do His Lordship’s bidding, they will be,” Zhen-zhen said with a sad smile. Qiang Yi turned his head and sent her a sideways glance. He prayed that he would be worthy of such. He prayed dearly. [hider=Summary] The scene opens with Qiang Yi doing poetry on deck. The ship sails lazily down Nanhe, though the waves are felt more strongly in such a small vessel. A sudden maneuver interrupts the poetry, but just in time for Qiang Yi to notice the beautiful ocean ahead. A consisting of three people, Li Gongxiu and Li Shan from the Skilled caste and Wang Huangxia from the Noble cast, come over to inform Qiang Yi that the windmill pump is ready. After they have informed him, Wang Huangxia remains and asks if Qiang Yi knows what may happen to them if they get into contact with saltwater. Qiang Yi says he sadly doesn’t know, which upsets Wang Huangxia. Qiang Yi tells him to remain calm and inform the crew that they must harden their skins before they break into brackwater. Zhen-zhen reasons that a little seabreeze won’t do much harm, but that falling overboard will be painful. Qiang Yi reassures her that nobody will fall overboard and that the weather is on their side, which she is skeptical to. Later, they reach the end of the river delta and are about to cross into the coastal ocean. Upon breaking out of the brackwater, they turn hard to starboard side (right) in order to avoid crossing too far into open ocean. However, the southern winds are too strong for the sails, and a terrible accident causes one of the crew members, Li Gongxiu, to fall out. He dies instantly. This infuriates the crew, and Huangxia blames Shengshi for not telling them about the dangers of salt water. Li Shan, who is broken up about losing his friend, is having none of that heresy speak, however, and shuts him up. Qiang Yi later reemerges from his dumbstruckness and gives the crew new orders, growing increasingly aware of the difficulty of his role. [/hider] [hider=The Journey So Far] [img]https://i.imgur.com/Da3E0XZ.png[/img] [/hider]