[centre][h1]The Journey to Tendlepog: Chapter 4[/h1][/centre] “Steady!” Tong Lao murmured loudly through the dreadful torrent of lethal water pouring through the cracks in the wood and barkwork. They had finally managed to lean some planks up against the wall - soon, they would tip the planks to the side using wooden poles and, with Li Shan still in recovery, his apprentice, Tong Lao, sitting in a tall, tared wickerbasket, would be pushed over and begin to tie and hammer away until the plank stuck. Tong Lao felt a choking clump in his throat - already, three of his carpenters had had to be rescued from saltwater exposure. He stole a glance over at the three figures, all of whom were each tended to by two others who watered them and washed off the salt. “We’re ready, sir,” said the man to his right holding the stick that would tip the plank. Tong Lao took a deep breath. “Do it,” he said. The two reluctantly nodded and pushed. While the sudden sensation of floating freely in water was initially daunting, the carpenter could not allow himself to lose focus. Through sheer force of will, he kept his mind from succumbing to panic, even as the only barrier between him and death was one inch of old, tared straw. He peeked out of the basket and saw the approaching wall. A stinging pain bit into his foot like the fangs of a beast. He looked down and felt his heart freeze - the basket was giving out. “SOMEONE GET ROPE! HE’S SINKING!” came the shouts from the outside. They were backed up by the hammers of panicking feet against wood, but Tong Lao felt himself grow strangely calm. As he felt the sand fall off his feet, he took in a deep, shaking breath. [i]Aah… So it would seem my time has come after all… Mei Hua, make certain our daughter grows up to serve His Lordship well… I’ll be swimming ahead.[/i] Suddenly, the hammering stopped. Tong Lao turned his head slightly, searching for the sound again - had he died already? Then suddenly, the basket flipped backwards and crashed to the floor. Tong Lao clutched his head and crawled out onto the dry floor to see the-- Wait, dry floor? He looked up to see his crew mates in a state of dumbstruck awe, some seemingly unable to move while others fell to their knees and hands. The crowd kept whispering prayers and praises to the Exalted Creators - though one specific name came up often. “Her Holiness Ashalla watches over us!” one of them exclaimed. “It’s a miracle! The Queen of the Ocean has blessed us with a miracle!” another one shouted roofward. Some sprinted upstairs to spread the word. Tong Lao laid on the floor, his eyes unblinking in the face of the sight: Where the crack in the hull had been less than a minute ago, there was now ice - crystalline, beautiful ice. Tong Lao felt his hands almost automatically fold together as he whispered a weeping prayer of gratitude to Ashalla. “Oh, thank you, You blessed, most blessed sovereign of the sea,” he managed to squeeze through the hulking sobs of joy. However, a gentle dripping sound brought him out of his euphoria and he spotted small droplets pitter and patter against the floor in front of him. He traced their origin back to the ice and let out a fearful gasp, pointing at it with a shaking finger. “TH-THE ICE IS MELTING! QUICK, FETCH WOOD AND ROPE!” His crewmates quickly broke out of their trances, too, scrambling to grab the materials and tools requires to bind and stuff the hole up properly. Cold moisture clung to everyone’s faces as they made certain not to break the ice during the repair. Eventually, enough cloth, rope, bark and planks had been stuffed into or wrapped around the hole that Tong Lao felt brave enough to say: “I-... I think we did it.” There were weary nods of consensus and joyous laughter around the carpenter group, all of them much too worn out to celebrate. Tong Lao squeezed the shoulder of the woman on his left, who gave him a tired smile. “I will inform the captain. You have all deserved a rest.” The carpenters hummed and voiced their agreement, trekking further into the ship to sleep. Tong Lao looked at the former crack again and let out an agitated sigh of relief before he climbed back up on deck. [hr] The deck was busy as ever, Tong Lao having considerable trouble making out the captain’s purple robes among the crew members zooming left and right with materials, water and sand. He tapped one of the least-looking passerbys on the shoulder. “Pardon me, comrade, but would you happen to know where the captain is?” The deckhand shrugged. “Heard ‘e was ‘eadin’ te shore. Said ‘e was goin’ te gather us some lumba’.” Tong Lao nodded. “Thank you, comrade.” The deckhand nodded and continued his work. [i]Well, seeing as the captain was no longer on board, perhaps he could pay his master a visit[/i], Tong Lao thought. The man walked over to the central mast, the place he had last seen Li Shan. Upon arrival, he saw that he was still there, the stumps on his legs having grown a little longer. Tong Lao knelt down next to him in a seiza position and inclined his torso. “Master… Are you awake?” he said gently, though firmly enough to be heard over the bustling deckwork. The man in front of him opened his crusty eyes and his mouth formed a faint smile. “Lil’ Lao…” he whispered coarsely with a snicker. Tong Lao’s mouth straightened out and he looked down with squeezed eyes. He gave his left one a curt rub before looking back at Li Shan. “Yeah… Yeah, it’s me. Are you well?” he asked. Li Shan lifted a quivering hand up to Tong Lao’s face, but could not seem to lift it high enough. The apprentice caught it and held it firmly. “Lil’ Lao…” the carpenter repeated faintly. Tong Lao squeezed his eyes shut again and held the hand so firmly he was certain it would break. After a moment, he loosened the grip again. “I-... I have some good news. We managed to seal the breach - all thanks to the Queen of the Ocean. You should have seen it - one moment, there was water - the next, nothing! It was an unfathomable miracle! You’ll have to come down and inspect the work we did… Although I,” he snickered somberly, “I’m almost certain you will chew me out for it.” Li Shan didn’t respond. His eyes had shut again and his head laid resting against the mast. The apprentice’s skin lost all colour and he shook his hand gently. “M-master..? Master?! MASTER!” Suddenly, he was pushed aside, losing his grip on Li Shan’s hand. “Please forgive us, Tong Lao,” said one of two women who had taken his place by the master carpenter. The speaker then began to pat sand Li Shan’s legs from a sack he had brought with him around while her partner slowly poured water into the carpenter’s mouth. The water bearer looked at Tong Lao with somber eyes. “Forgive us, comrade. Master Li Shan has lost a lot of water. His spirit is very weak. We’re afraid we… We cannot promise that he will be the same when he recovers.” Tong Lao slowly got to his feet and have the women a somber nod. “Keep up the good work,” he said with a cracking voice as he flicked away some tears. As he walked off to the stairway downwards, he shot a glance over at the shore. Hopefully, the captain had been just as lucky as they had been. [hr] Qiang Yi stepped off of the makeshift raft and onto the white beach of the Kick. He took a deep breath and savoured the familiar scent of jungle and moisture, yet found himself put off by the ominous lack of wildlife sounds, the only sound clouding the empty soundscape being the other crewmates pulling the raft onto the shore. The occasional bird squeak aside, the forest ahead was devoid of life. A cooling sensation irked him. “We will gather what we came for and leave post-haste…” he said firmly. “Be wary of any movements in the foliage.” His crewmates can him a nod, and with axes and saws at the ready, the group entered into the woods. The first trees to fall were the ones similar enough to the original tree used to make the frame for Zhengwu - visual similarity was, however, not a very adequate quality to assess from, so many of the initial planks were too soft. Qiang Yi picked one up, bent it slightly and shook his head in disapproval. “No, this one will not do, either - look for an older tree. There may be some over there.” The servant nodded and followed Qiang Yi’s finger deeper into the woods. Qiang Yi stepped over some of the undergrowth and stopped next to a servant of the Strong who was busily chopping up a smaller palm. Qiang Yi eyed the tree and shook his head again. “That one may do for rafts, but little else. We will use the trunk to reinforce the raft we have, but afterwards you will move over there in search of larger trees.” “Yes, captain,” said the sailor and kept chopping. Qiang Yi sighed and stepped further into the jungle. There were no rivers here, either - only creeks and becks between the tall and short trees. Had His Lordship not given any thought to this place? Had he perhaps considered it unworthy of his blessings? Perhaps… Perhaps such a reason was linked to why everywhere was silent. Qiang Yi felt his brow moisten. He turned back towards the shore, but not long had he walked before one of the sailors came running over to him. “Captain!” he said and extended a hand. Qiang Yi nearly jumped out of his skin. “Please, master Gong’er, don’t frighten me like--” Qiang Yi’s eyes fell upon the material in his hand - or more specifically, the pile of material. It was black as the night, yet parts of it reflected light like a mirror - twinkling at alluringly at the two. “What… What is this?” said Qiang Yi as he picked up a small, black grain. The sailor known as Gong’er shrugged and shook his head. “We don’t known, captain. We found it by the hillside over there. Do you think it’s valuable?” Qiang Yi rolled the black grain between his fingers, inspecting its every blinking surface. “It is quite heavy for its size, this grain. It may be related to gold.” “To gold, captain?” Gong’er said excitedly. Qiang Yi nodded. “Have the men make a wicker basket. We will gather as much as we can of this sand and bring it to His Lordship as a gift when we return home.” Gong’er nodded frantically while grinning and sprinted off into the foliage. Qiang Yi gave the grain in his hand one last lookover before flashing it a wry smirk and pocketing it. He then strolled back to the shore. [hr] A few hours had passed and many trees had been felled and turned to planks. The raft they came on had been outfitted further with palm trunks and leaves. It was filled with planks and sawdust to the point where they had to paddle back to the ship twice. Qiang Yi stood on the shore, staring outwards across the sea past the ship. He took out his brush and gnawed lightly on the top of its handle. He heard footsteps behind him and turned. Out from the woods came two sailors, Gong’er on the left and one known as Lai Lei on the right - between them was a tall wicker basket that seemed to nearly drag the two sailors down to the ground with it. “By Nanhe’s delta, this stuff is heavy!” Gong’er exclaimed. The two put the basket down before Qiang Yi and the captain knelt down and ran his hand through the black sand, scooping up a handful and letting it drizzle down. He could not help but feel like there was something about this mineral - something potent. “Stellar work, master Gong’er, master Lai Lei. Once we are back on the ship, make certain to store it safely so that it does not spill. His Lordship’s gift shall remain whole until he receives it - nothing less is acceptable.” “Yes, captain!” the two sailors voiced simultaneously. Soon thereafter, the raft returned and the three men boarded. The were ferried back to the ship, and the raft was then tied behind it after use. As the crew zoomed back and forth, bringing the wounded below deck and the newly arrived materials to the damaged areas, Qiang Yi moved up to the helmspost. He scanned the deck. Slowly, but surely, the wounded crew members were restored to vitality, returning to their work. “His Lordship certainly made us durable - when we’re not busy falling into the sea, that is,” came a voice from behind. Qiang Yi turned and felt his lips part in a smile. By the newly fashioned tiller that led to the fresh rudder sat the familiar bookworm, except that she was missing her book this time. She flashed Qiang Yi a playful grin. Qiang Yi let out a gentle chuckle and nodded. His eyes fell on her left arm, its chalk-white sand gently contrasting her otherwise dark beige body. She followed his gaze and let out a snicker. “Right?” she added. “Yeah… He certainly did.” He paused. “Where’s your book?” he asked. Zhen-zhen shrugged. “Dunno. Might’ve gotten lost during the attack for all I know.” She straightened her back and bowed her head in respect towards Qiang Yi. “It doesn’t matter in the face of my duty, anyway.” Qiang Yi’s smile faded a little and he walked over to place a hand on her shoulder. Zhen-zhen flinched a little and slowly looked up, her smile also missing. “Don’t blame yourself, Zhen-zhen,” Qiang Yi said. “I’m happy you wish to be more diligent, but know that no one aboard this ship blames you for what that monster did.” Zhen-zhen’s eyes grew misty for a moment and she looked away. “I-... I wish I could avoid it, captain, but…” She paused, sniffed and cleared her throat. “There is at least one person aboard this ship who blames me for it, and she isn’t really the forgiving sort.” She hid her tears behind a broad smile and gently patted the hand on her shoulder. “Thanks, though. You’re a good man, captain,” she said warmly. Qiang Yi felt his cheeks blush and cleared his throat. “Th-thank you, first mate Zhen-zhen,” he said and pulled away, eliciting a smug snicker from the girl. Qiang Yi flashed her a slight smirk. “Set a course around the northern coast of the Kick, helmsman,” the captain said. “Yes, captain!” she answered with a smile. [hider=Summary] The post opens with Tong Lao, the carpenter Li Shan’s apprentice, going on a suicide mission to fix the breach in the hull. To protect himself from the water, he sits in a wicker basket, which soon starts taking in water. As she prays in his final moments, Ashalla’s aid deus ex machinas him and the crew shortly thereafter fix the breach. Tong Lao then goes up to see to his master. Li Shan is still quite wounded, and due to a dangerous amount of water loss, his spirit is damaged. He acts therefore as if he has suffered heavy blood loss. Tong Lao cannot seem to get in proper contact with him, but tells him about all the wonders that have happened regardless. He is interrupted when two medics come to heal Li Shan further. On the shore, Qiang Yi leads a team of lumberjacks to gather wood for planks. Save for a few birds, the jungle is devoid of life, something Qiang Yi finds eerie. After a while, a sailor named Gong’er comes over to Qiang Yi with a handful of black, ominously desolate sand that they found. Qiang Yi considers this strange metal to be highly valuable and decrees that a basket of the stuff shall be brought to Shengshi as tribute. The sailors agree. When they return to the ship, the wounded are transported downstairs along with the materials. The ship is repaired and Qiang Yi talks with Zhen-zhen about her not having to blame herself for the fish attack, to which she responds that she probably will, regardless of what he says. She is, however, still thankful for his support and the two share a moment. Qiang Yi then tells her to set a course northwards. [/hider] [hider=Journey so far…] [img]https://i.imgur.com/c6gZuXN.png[/img] They didn’t actually move, so they are still where they left off in chapter 3. [/hider]