83 Survival (1/2)

I sighed deeply as I dived deeper. Beside me, Terrick swam along, a dangerous calm had seeped through his mind as his presence thinned.

He had been shaken by the appearance of the huge snake. Seeing his crew's strength and all they had achieved together had lulled him into a false sense of security. Only now that his crew's bedrock had been challenged had he begun to question his own position in the crew.

Of them all the captain had been the most proactive, driving himself ragged with every passing day to keep the crew aloft and ensure their strength. The first mate had acted as a stable foundation he was the sane to the captain's insane, the calm to the captain's frenzy and by far one of the only useful characters on the ship.

Even when he had been injured he had lurked in the background, a psychological bedrock to the entire crew's crazy shenanigans.

The snake had shocked him, what had he achieved today? He could not help but question as the water around him bubbled with the force of an oil pan thrown into a cold lake.

What had he done to justify his own existence on the crew? Heck even when the snake had arrived it was still the captain who was conscious enough to drag him into the calm sea, he had just stood there, gawking at the strange sea creature.

As these thoughts began to run through his head a strange and cold chill ran through his mind. A clarity that he had not felt in forever had descended over him.

Before he had joined the crew, he did not have a strong leader, now his leader was strong and he had become weak.

The chill that had began in his brain seeped into every crevice in his body, the muscles in his hands and legs galvanized and his intent sharpened.

He was an assassin first and foremost, and now the situation he was in was unfavorable.

”Captain, you think we can stand out among the coming horde?” he asked softly as his captain surfaced, a cold smile on his face.

Lorean looked at him for a second, taken aback at the sharp contrast in the aura surrounding his crew member. Before he had always felt like a ruffian who had been called an assassin, now he felt like an actual assassin.

With a ruthless smile Lorean nodded and the assassin was off.

In front of them a scaly tail surfaced, the water swiveled around them as the air turned frigid, saturated by a wild and beastly killing intent.

The sea began to toss and turn, waves forming on the surface the size of a minor tsunami. Around them a horde of heads began to pop out, saliva falling off their juvenile yet razor sharp teeth.

With a minor push of his feet Terrick propelled himself into the assembled crowd. A thin bladed dagger in his hand that he had pulled from a strap in his boot.

With a hiss of challenge a beast lunged towards him, a host of them looking on from behind. With a dangerous swivel he barely avoided the head.