Moonlight on the Water (Chapter 2)

>The star burns brighter than ever before.
>A boom is heard in the distance followed by another.
>As the light grew brighter, you could tell whatever this object was, it coming straight towards you and your ship.
>You could tell how big it was, but you were not sticking around any longer.
>Running to the helm you immediately turn to starboard and held on till you made the turn northbound.
>It was coming in even faster.
>If it hit the masts or the sails, then you would have no way of going home.
>You grab the halyard and begin to lower the sails. This way there would be less for the object to hit and destroy.
>Another boom and this time it was closer.
>The sky almost lit up as if it were day as the falling star explodes into a brilliant blue explosion.
>You felt certain it was going to hit.
>Instinctively you duck down and closed your eyes. You felt the violent rush of air and heat pass over you and your ship.
>The noise is cancelled out by the falling object striking the water behind your ship.
>Almost like rain, the water that got splashed out from the ocean begins to drizzle over you and your ship but it ends quickly.
>Getting up to your feet, you look around and it was dark again all around you.
>Taking out several oil lamps, you light each one and scan the waters.
>Whatever hit the water was out of sight and probably sunk to the bottom of the ocean.
>Was it a meteorite?
>You look up to the mast of the ship, luckily nothing seemed to have been hit or damaged.
>That was a rather exciting little escapade.
>There was nothing now but the sound of silence and the gentle lapping of the ocean on the side of your ship.
>From the darkness of the water you hear sounds of water gurgling and gushing. You quickly run to the side of the ship and hold one of the oil lamps out to try and get a better look.
>You could see bubbles rising to the surface, and a dim blue light begins to emerge from the depths.
>In the corners of your mind, you began to remember those stories your brother would read to you.
>Stories of ancient sea monsters that would rise from the depths, threatening to devour all those who roam in its territory.
>You didn’t bring nary a weapon to defend yourself.
>You crouch behind the railing and peered over the edge as you gazed into the oceans depths.
>The water almost began to boil as the light shined brighter.
>It was getting closer.
>In a whoosh of spray, a glowing outline of something finally breached the water’s surface.
>In a knee-jerk reaction you ducked for cover, but your curiosity wanted to know what it was. Although fearful, you looked over the edge and gazed back towards the ocean.
>The glow was beginning to fade around this creature, but you could see that it was very big at all.
>In fact, it might be slightly smaller than you.
>The clouds in the night sky began to shift. A familiar bright round object greeted you and casted its eerie glow on you.
>Just as the moonlight was shining down, you could see the light reflect off this creature in the water that still had not move an inch.
>You could make out some of its features, but what caught your eyes were its hair and a pair of wings.
>What in God’s green earth was this?
>Was this the thing that fell from the sky?
>It sounded crazy, but what if it was an angel?
>Your mind began to race, should you risk going into the water or let it be?
>Nervously you paced back and forth, occasionally glancing at it.
>Time is of the essence.
>Grabbing a line, you tie it around your waste and mentally braced yourself.
>What a time to be scared of deep dark waters.
>You hanged onto the side of the schooner and slowly lowered yourself into the frigid water. Instantly you inhaled sharply, but you had to go through with it.
>The moonlight assisted you, but still it was hard to tell just what it is.
>For all you know it could be dead.
>As you approached it, your mind drifted with thoughts of something slithering up from the dark cold depths and dragging you under.
>You had to keep your focus.
>Finally, this creature was within your grasp. Grabbing onto it, you could see that it had a pair of wings for sure, but there was something queer about its hair.
>The clouds began to move again and soon the moonlight was shut out.
>Whatever this thing was, it was pretty light. Holding onto it with one hand, you focused your attention on pulling the both of you back to the ship.
>You could feel your limbs and joints go numb, but you had to make it back to the ship.
>Your breathing was becoming much quicker as the ice cold water kept on sapping your energy.
>A mix of fear and determination dwelled in your mind as you made it closer to the side of the schooner.
>Now for the tricky part.
>You hoisted the creature over your shoulder, but your mind was too focused on the task at hand to take note of its features.
>Pulling on the rope, you lift yourself up out of the water and placed your feet into the small holdings on the side of the schooner.
>The wet clothing clings to your body, but even out of the water this thing was still light. Despite its size it probably didn’t weigh any more than a small child.
>But you were having great difficulty climbing over the side of the side. All your strength was nearly gone and your arms were burning from the strain.
>You are not a particularly strong man, but you did not consider yourself a weakling either.
>Even as your arms began to feel as though they were going to lock up, you were close enough to the top that you could toss this thing over the edge on onto the deck.
>With a final push, you push it over the railing and you hear a thump as it rolls out onto the deck.
>Catching your breath, you pull yourself up over the edge and plop down onto the deck in a wet heap.
>Despite being in all that water, you found yourself parched and your throat dry. Your limbs and joints felt stiff and sore almost instantly.
>But now that you’re back on the ship with your prize, you glanced over to look at it.
>You couldn’t believe your eyes at what you saw.
>It didn’t make any sense; it defied logic!
>It was a small horse with a dark coat of fur, and a seemingly ghostly mane. It also sported a horn upon its head. And what’s more, there was a queer marking upon its flank. What in God’s green earth was this creature?
>Whatever it was, it was still breathing.
>You looked back up to the starry night sky, and there you caught the last glimpse of a bright burning celestial object seemingly fizzle out and disappear into the black abyss of space.
>Visibly shaken from this, you had difficultly wrapping your mind around the fact that this horse-like creature just fell from the sky and is still breathing.
>Was it dangerous? How badly hurt was it from the crash?
>It seemed to be sleeping, but when it wakes up, you couldn’t be sure how it would react.
>Picking yourself up, you hasten to light up several oil lamps on deck that were put out by the fall of water from the crash.
>Upon closer inspection, this horse had wings both folded up on its sides.
>A seraphim?!
>No, wait. Those have six wings.
>You could’ve sworn you’ve seen a creature like this before. Something about Greek mythology as you recall. Perhaps one of the books down in the lower deck has something on the subject.
>You were soaked to the bone and the frigid night air was already sapping your energy. Best to get below deck and warm up for now.
>You open the hatch to the lower deck and hoist the small frame of the horse over your shoulder. No sense in letting this creature freeze to death.
>After all, this was quite a find.
>Making your way to the forecastle of the ship, you set up the small stove with some coal and ignited it. The heat radiating off it was enough to heat up the small living quarter.
>You carefully lay the animal down on the floor next to the stove and went to get some towels and a set of dry clothes for yourself.
>Taking a few sheets, you patted down the animal to get as much water off it as possible.
>Likewise, you took your wet clothes off and dried yourself. You take the remaining dry towels and place them under and over the creature to help it keep warm.
>As you slipped on some dry clothing, you looked down to this horse and took a good look at its mane. It seemed to shimmer and sparkle, almost like the night sky.
>But another thought occurred to you. If this thing woke up, you didn’t know how it would react or if it did, what damage it might do rampaging.
>You went off to the cargo hold and found a length of rope. Tying one end around its neck, you assured it wasn’t going to strangle the creature if it pulled, but it wasn’t going to slip off its neck either.
>Your fingers and toes still felt frozen from your late evening swim and you proceeded to stay by the small stove to warm yourself up.
>Once your hands and feet warmed up, you looked over and saw that it was still breathing; almost as if it was just sleeping.
>If this animal wakes up, it’ll need food and water. You didn’t want it dying on your ship and certainly not before getting back home.
>In that case, you’ll have to make sure you get back home right away.
>Remembering about the books in the cargo hold, you went to select any book you could find on the subject of Greek Mythology.
>Upon finding a book on Greek Mythology, you also found a book on mythology. Taking the two books, you began to scan through the index to look up any useful information.
“If I recall the name was... Ah ha. Pegasus, page 251.” You quietly spoke to yourself.
>Flipping through the pages you come upon the chapter and remember the stories of a winged horse. The text gave you more clearly definitive answers.
Pegasus. A winged stallion of pure white colour...
>You glanced over to the horse and looked upon its dark coat. Wings, yes. White coat, no. You continued to read.
Born from Poseidon and Medusa and brother to Chrysaor....
>There wasn’t much to read aside from the symbolism of what a pegasus represents. There were several drawn pictures of the legendary horse in the book, but none of them depicted any with a horn on their head.
>You closed the book sullenly, but you turned to the other book and glanced through the index. The topic of mythological creatures came up and from there you were able to find a heading for ‘Unicorns’.
>Turning to the page, there wasn’t any groundbreaking info that you haven’t heard before.
>A single horned horse of pure white, its horn has magical properties and can make poison water drinkable. Another interesting bit was that it can only be captured by a virgin.
>This unicorn whatever fell out of the sky and you saved it, so it better not run off.
>The time was running late, and again you could not uncover any new information about your new catch. It had both wings and a horn. A mix of two legendary horse type creatures.
>Either way, this was a rare find; a living, breathing specimen of a creature from mythology. This will surely be the scientific discovery of the century.
>Your mind begins to race with thoughts of fancy.
>The fame this will bring, your name will go down in history as the man who discovered a creature of legend.
>The revenue you will procure from touring around Canada. No, the United States! No!... The world!
>Anon and his spectacular discovery baffle scientists!
>Anon hailed as the luckiest man in the world!
>Paying my brother back for this schooner will seem like chump change by the time you make some money.
>You could hardly wait to get back home!
>But rest is needed, and so is the welfare of this animal. It’s best to not let it get stressed out or fly away from you now.
>You get yourself ready for a night of sleep in one of the bunks, but the thought of your fame and success was almost too much to bear. Oh the looks on their face will be priceless indeed!
>You will sail into the dock, and once you land you will be there with your animal. Everyone will want to see it, this... this uh...
>You open your eyes and glance over to the animal. What shall you call it?
>It wasn’t quite like a pegasus or a unicorn.
>Pegacorn?
>Unisus?
>You did discover it after all; the least you could do was name it. But that would have to wait till morning.
>As you began to drift off into a slumber, your mind was still filled with thoughts of fame and fortune.
>Eventually, everything went dark.
I present to you the discovery of the century! Man has long sought this magnificent beast, and it came to me on my voyage out at sea!
>You pulled the drapes away to reveal the stunning creature standing behind iron bars in a cage. It’s mane sparkling and flowing ever so majestically. It spread its wing like an eagle ready to take flight.
>The crowd is amazed and chatter rises up. Nothing like this has ever been seen before.
>People begin to throw money at you and shout your name in praise.
>A young boy steps from the crowd and asks you, “What is it? What’s its name?”
Why, my dear lad, this creature is called... uh...
>You began to choke. You completely forgot its name! Was it a unicorn or a pegasus?
>With a nervous chuckle, you reassured the young boy and the crowd that waited for your answer.
Yes, this creature does have a name. It’s called a... it’s uh...
>You look to the horse, as if looking for an answer. It looks to you, and you could see something in its eyes. As if it was trying to say something.
>Finally it opened its mouth and weakly replied “Luna...”
>The world around you went blank.
>All that was there were you and this horse that just spoke.
>It just stared at you, and you were at a loss for words.
>Its voice, or rather... her voice sounded as if she was in pain.
>You were woken by the sound of something falling over. Shooting up from your bunk, you look down over to the horse that was still sound asleep.
>Creeping out of the covers, you go over and see that it was only the books that you were reading that fell off the shelf and hit the floor.
>What time was it?
>Checking your watch you see it’s almost 7 o’clock in the morning. You figured you had plenty of sleep and it was high time to make sure you get home right away before you ran out of supplies.
>Once you made it to the top deck, the sun was quite high in the sky. You figured as much since you’re several hours ahead of your normal time zone.
>You checked the sails and made sure everything was in one piece from last night’s encounter.
>Checking for your compass, you patted yourself down and realized it wasn’t on your person. You quickly checked everywhere on the top deck for it.
>It had to be here. You remember using it last night until...
>Then the realization hits you.
>The compass is gone. It must’ve gone overboard last night when that creature flew over head and sent stuff flying!
>This is not good news at all.
>Without a compass you may as well be sailing blind!
>Now was not the time to panic. Maybe by some dumb luck you brought it downstairs or had a spare.
>You could only pray that you do.
>As you went back down below deck, you head to the forecastle where the animal was sleeping.
>What did it say in your dream? Luna?
>It spoke to you in a voice that sounded like a woman. But of course that’s silly, animals don’t talk.
>As you sifted and sorted through the quarters trying to find your compass, your search turns up fruitless.
>This was bad, really bad.
>Not only are you lost at sea, but now your discovery was sure to die if it didn’t get food and water.
>You walked over to the sleeping animal and took off the towels. Laying on its side, you could see it’s dark blue coat and the marking on its flank.
>A crescent moon.
>Luna...
>The ancient roman myth of a goddess that was the divine embodiment of the moon.
>You looked at the folded wing and gently you pull at it and fold it open. It was quite an impressive wingspan, and the feathers were quite soft and delicate to the touch.
>The wing instantly pulls away from you.
>You stumble backwards as you were startled by the wing retracting to violently, like a child pulling away an injured hand.
>The animal began to stir in its sleep; finally it begins to open its eyes.
>The eyes are rather large and expressive, much like a humans rather than a horse. The pupils, although large at first shrink to accommodate the lighting in the room.
>Its head tilts up and its sight is set dead on you.
>You could feel your skin crawl as it stared at you.
>Maybe talking to it softly will calm it down.
Shhh, it’s OK. You just need to relax.
>With a rather inquisitive look, it noticed something around its neck. It jumps to its hooves and begins to struggle frantically. With wild kicking and bucking, the animal pulls with all the strength it could muster.
>You were afraid to approach it in fear that it might injure you. Yet you insisted on talking to it.
Calm down! Everything is fine!
>It stops thrashing and with a rather displeased look, it turns to you and its eyes begin to glow white.
>”WE DEMAND THAT YOU FREE US THIS INSTANT!”
>A loud booming voice, like that of an angry female, echo in the quarters as the creature started talking to you.
>This was unbelievable, this animal just talked! It can talk like a human!
>You were too stunned and amazed to comprehend the request it made, and it took insult to your lack of response.
>”BE THAT WAY! WE SHALL FREE OURSELVES!”
>The horn on its head began to glow.
>What sort of madness was this?
>The colour of glow from its horn enveloped the rope around its neck and began to twist at it.
>It felt as if the whole ship was violently shaking.
>Just as quickly it began, it stopped.
>The creature’s eyes begin to fade, and so does the glowing of its horn.
>With legs shaking, it falls to the floor in a crumpled heap.
>It was out cold again.
>You realized your heart was beating terrible fast. You thought you were to suffer from a heart attack.
>Whatever this creature was, it could speak and it didn’t seem very happy being here.