Fuck. Fuck fuck fuck. This was why she didn't like ocean travel.

Awoken by the thunder early, Verdant could no longer return to sleep. Sometimes she wondered if it's a good thing to be able to hear loud noises now. The first time she transfigured into the human form, the thunderclap sent her running for cover. She had never liked it ever since.

Then it just got worse, the final bit of thunder sounded way too close and not alone. Oooh no. No no no no. This was her worst worry, and it came true.

There were screams. A rush of dark water. And the unforgettable sound of a ship's spine breaking.

Nope, she's out of there. As panic began to mount Verdant dropped on the floor, the bundle she carried unravelling into some sort of serpentine skull with a length of the spine attached. Its eyeholes lit with an otherworldly green glow as it slithered up a pillar and onto the ceiling in a complete disregard of minor things like gravity. The tail end of the spine hooked onto the dirt-green robe and on very close look one can see a tiny snake curled nicely inside the skull.

Out of the death trap, on to the deck. The roiling water occasionally illuminated by peals of lightning didn't look safe at all, but sure beats going down with the ship. In a single lunatic decision, the serpent cast herself into the darkness and hoped for the best.