The ship rocks gently and the terrible might of the sun beams down from its place high in the sky. You breathe heavily and a bead of sweat makes it down your back.

“HEAVE!”, you hear the boatswain call, The ropes are digging into your calloused hands and you and your fellow deckhands heave together, again and again. You hold your eyes shut, the pain in your muscles growing steadily.

“HOLD! And… that's it! You can let her down gently now!” We slowly walk the slack back into the ropes and all take a sigh of relief. On the other end of the ropes, the artifact is gently lowered onto the deck, little pockets of the coral still gushing out saltwater. Behind all the sea anemones and barnacles lay a solid wooden block with decaying metal all around the edges sealing whatever is inside deep under the surface.

You never would have guessed that there was anything inside of an object like this but you believed your captain, she had never led you astray before. The captain slaps the back of the boatswain so hard dust rises off his tunic and she lets out a bellowing laugh. You wipe the sweat from your brow and join your crew who were all gathering around it, trying to spot gold or silver somewhere behind the algae and clam-covered shell. Your captain motions to the boatswain and he quickly runs across deck and brings the captain a large ax. With one terrifying swing, the artifact is broken clean in half.

The crew gasped at what they saw inside, but you did not see it. You had noticed sudden darkness descend upon the deck and had looked up. The sun had disappeared and the clouds are circling above you, a storm brewing in a matter of seconds. You have never in all your years on the sea seen such a change and your stomach drops, you are all in grave danger. You clasp your hands together and drop to your knees in prayer, to the old gods perhaps, to the sea and sky so they might save you, to anything that could be listening.

Your crew suddenly stopped chattering when a growl echoed below the surface of the water. They listened but they were too late to react. The tail of a great water serpent shoots up out of the water and comes down like a hammer against the top deck. Splinters get blown in every direction and the boatswain had not uttered a scream before he is thrown from the ship and into the water. All around you the crew is running, screaming, and jumping off the deck. You catch a glimpse of the captain in the madness who has her sword in hand, ready to defeat the beast single-handed on her sinking ship. The deck shakes again and amongst the chaos, the artifact is left exposed, the crew no longer paying its mind. You are taken aback as you see whats inside it for the first time. In its center is the most beautiful thing you've ever seen, a perfect glass orb which shines with light and swirls like fog. The longer you look, the longer you think you see a shape moving around deep inside, but you can’t make out what it is from this distance.

You rush to your captain's side, grabbing a sword from the dead hands of a fellow sailor. The captain screams like a banshee. You don’t have time to even think about how you'll help before she grabs you and throws you a rope.

“Quick! Tie this down!’ she screams and ducks as the giant tail of the beast narrowly avoids her head, taking the feather of her hat with it and dragging it down into the depths below. She ties down another line quickly and pulls a kaig of gunpowder into a bundle of fishing nets. She pulls the bundle into the air on one of the ropes suspending it from the mast.

“When I give the order you cut this line!” she screams at you gesturing to the rope, and before you can question she grips her sword in her teeth and climbs up the mast. The other end of the deck is slipping slowly into the water and you hold the sword out clumsy in front of you, trying to feel ready for anything. Suddenly you feel water drops on the back of your head. You look up to see the full height of the serpent above you. You hold out your sword pathetically but then, another shape jumps down from the mast. Your captain! She lands on the creature's head sword flailing like a demigod descending from the heavens. She skewers it squarely in the neck wripping a hole from its ear down to its throat before getting stuck. The beast opens its mouth to let out a massive shriek, angrier than ever.

”Now!” Your captain screams. You turn and you slice clean through the ropes, the bundle of gunpowder and fishing line comes crashing directly into the beast's mouth, igniting on a sharp edge and blowing the head of the beast into little pieces. The blood and meat come raining down on the wreckage of the ship and finally the sea is quiet again.

You grab hold of one of the lines as your feet are now deep in seawater. Where was your captain? You rush to the edge of the ship, which was now almost entirely gone, and spot her tangled in some of the masts looking a bit dazed. You jump into the water without thinking and untangle her from the wreckage. You pull yourselves onto a large chunk of the hull which seems sturdy enough and you both sit there quietly catching your breath. A few of the crew are still alive, although most are in bad shape. You are grateful to be alive. You work together securing pieces of wreckage together with lines and nets. Someone even managed to find some teeth of the great serpent floating around in the water. No one saw the orb sink quietly into the sea.

You are rescued by another vessel and return to land with your crew. You decide not to return to the sea, instead you decide to start a small business selling fishing tackle and wares. Sometimes your old captain comes in for some supplies. You live a long time but you never forget that day.