Beyond the Sea - Chapter Five (Patron Reward) (Patreon)

[This is a pledge reward for a patron~ Thank you so much for the support!]

Ash spiraled in the wind. A scream begged for mercy. Glass broke and wood snapped; boots hammered the floorboards of stores and the cobblestone of the roads. Bullets popped sporadically and steel clashed one-sidedly against steel.

Two horns clinked together. A cheer bellowed from the tavern as tables were rattled with excitement. A dozen men applauded the cunning of their captain, Luckless Leonie. The assault on Port de Désir had gone better than any dream would have envisioned. Sparse navy soldiers opposed them, and those that took up arms were immediately beaten down. Townspeople defended themselves with rakes and shovels and table legs, but the ferocity of the pirates overwhelmed any civilian that stood up to them. Children cried in horror as they fled with their parents, forsaking their livelihoods to gluttony and greed; the pirates had taken over the town with whiplash force, and as the chaos continued, the captain celebrated.

“What a hell of a haul!” Leonie guffawed. Mead spilled over her horn as she swung it side to side, uncaring of what went to waste -- there was so much to spare, and none of it was her own. Such was the attitude all her crew shared, cheerily causing messes and uprooting anything they wanted to take. She surveyed the plundering from her seat atop the bar, her feet kicked up onto the stools. “To think some of ya’ were worried we’d starve -- look at us now! A real gift from the seas, you never know what she’ll give ya’!”

The mood was bright and prosperous for those not bound and gagged on the floor. At the boots of these pirates was a huddle of men and women, all roped together -- hostages for Leonie to utilize. The tavern staff had forfeited themselves quickly when threatened, and others that crossed the captain’s path and caught her interest were taken off the streets. Where these innocent lives sobbed and sought mercy, Leonie saw piles of ransom money, if not a fine treasure worth trading some slaves for.

Only one among the hostages dared oppose Leonie, and she opposed her with scorching anger. Clara had been kidnapped, one of the first to be captured. It was her lighthouse that the pirates first approached and sacked, overwhelming her just as she had returned. Her children were at risk, and so she had no choice but to surrender both herself and the lighthouse to the fiends. Yet, that did not mean she would go silently. In traditional Clara spirit, the aging woman rioted incessantly, raising hell for her captors as they were otherwise allowed to drag her into town. Even gagging her was only able to muffle her ranting into an indistinct rage, her teeth chewing hard through the cloth in endless protest.

Fortunately for the pirates, the partying and plundering drowned out her spitfire complaints. Rowdier than anything Clara could do in protest, the pirates stomped and slammed everywhere they went within the tavern, turning the lovely locale into a den of discord. Captain Leonie cherished the chaos, feeling right at home in the ruthless environment. Attracting her sneer at the moment was a scene involving the chef, muscled out from the kitchen by two surly grunts while he kicked and spat. His arms were roped behind him, followed by his legs; shoved along with the other hostages, but his growling did not stop.

“You’re making a terrible mistake! All of you will regret this!” the chef declared to the two grunts, but Leonie was keen on listening in as well. “I’m telling you -- monsters! One attacked us, j-just look at the roof, for god’s sake!” He awed at the ceiling himself, still terrified by the events of last night when the giant tore into the tavern. It was so easy for such a powerful creature, but clearly the remains of its rampage was not convincing enough for the pirates, though the story was entertaining to them.

“We’ve sailed all over the west coast,” one pirate chuckled down at the chef. “Ain’t any monsters out there.” His partner scoffed, “This shabby hole you call a tavern is falling in on itself. All there is to it.”

“Have you looked at the church?!” the chef exclaimed, wriggling up into a seated position. “Open for prayer yesterday, now broken down into scrap! It was a monster, I-- we all saw it! We--”

Cutting the chef off was a toughened heel of a boot striking him on his crown. The man slumped forward in pain while Leonie rested her foot on his hunched back, herself unmoved from her perch on the bar. “This town’s a dump,” the captain said. “Blame it on sea monsters all ya’ want. You ought to be more scared of running that mouth off in front of me.”

On cue, her first-mate approached Leonie’s side, refilling her mug. “Makes ya’ wonder though,” he humored, “where did those navy bastards scuttle off to? Captain, do ya’ think they’ll be comin’ back?”

Leonie chortled, “Of course they will. Eventually. Gates ours, though. They can have my good luck getting in.” The pirates around her joined in drunken amusement, spilling their beers over the heads of hostages. “They’ll burn this town down themselves to get to me, and we’ll be long gone.

“In the meantime…” Leonie hopped off the bar and onto the floor. Her stroll through the tavern demanded space from her minions, all of whom backed away without question. With the attention on her, she continued, “... we’ll make the most of this town’s little light problem. If that tower’s out, lotsa ships will be smashing into the shallows, and that means lotsa loot for the taking. The treasure is practically swimming up into our hands!”

Another roar of cheers swept the tavern as the pirates raised their drinks and clapped on tables. Leonie submerged herself in the glory, only pulled out from her dream when her first-mate pondered another question. “Captain, there’s only one ship here big enough for all of us and all this treasure,” he began. “Durok’s ship.”

“We’ve borrowed from the navy before,” Leonie chuckled, gesturing up at her iconic headwear. It was a captain’s hat, tarnished and defaced after being won over in a bloody battle. “No problem in sneaking off with a ship.”

“It’s Durok’s,” he emphasized. “And scouts came back claimin’ it to be haunted. Heard screaming from outside it.”

Leonie shook her head, pacing back over to where she had been seated. “This is why I never read books,” she groaned. “Monsters and ghosts, they get in your head. Keep talkin’ like that and I’ll have you cozy up with that cook.” Her glare was severe -- the first-mate dutifully stood still, never one to disobey his captain. Leonie swung an arm towards the exit, “Take lookout. Tell me the moment you see a single navy dog beggin’ to be let in.”

The first-mate disembarked to take his position, swearing to not bring fantastical stories back to Leonie. The captain may not believe them, but Clara did, having listened in on the pair. The story of ghostly screams from Durok’s ship resonated with her; she stewed with the knowledge that it had to be Sophie, trapped somewhere within. Dread of her powerlessness drowned her, the aunt only able to stare out towards the dock in hopes her niece might somehow survive this dangerous situation.

At a port watchtower commandeered by the pirates, the first-mate made his ascent to its peak. On his way, he was called down to by the scouts posted above. “Sir! Y-You need to s-see this!” one frantically barked. Another gazed through a scope in disbelief, muttering aloud, “Giant woman! G-Giant woman!”

The first-mate groaned, “You’re not posted here to be staring at the damn locals. What the hell is wrong with you?” When their panicking did not cease, he marched faster up the stairs and snatched the scope from his subordinate -- but it was unnecessary. Rising over the hills was an extraordinary sight, that of which had just been described to him. A colossal figure garbed in unusual attire charged towards Port de Désir, and at its heels was a ferocious swarm of navy uniforms being led by her fury.

The scope slipped from the first-mate’s hand. “What in the world do I tell her…?”

Moana’s focus was sharp and cold like the unusual weapons rallied behind her. Winning the support of Durok’s soldiers had inspired her as much as she had them; filled with purpose and enabled to be a charismatic leader, Moana felt her spirit soar like the sails of her people. Though admittedly more fitted for sea battles than land charges, she was confident she would triumph with her other advantages. If she must be a giant in this land, then she would use her size for the good of innocent people.

Before reaching the gate, Moana felt harmless scratches raze her skin. She narrowed her vision ahead, discovering that the cause was of the pirates’ lackluster defense. Pistols and rifles greeted her, but left forgettable wounds, if even that. Unphased by these weapons, Moana’s thundering approach continued, each hurried footfall alarming another pirate to abandon position and retreat into town.

“Hold the doors!” a commanding pirate shouted to the others down by the gate. “Do not let them through! Put everything behind those doors!” And so every remaining effort was dedicated to bolstering the entrance; cargo, metal, and the grunts themselves all put their weight against the stone doors, anxiously awaiting for the giant to attempt breaking it down.

But there was no slam, not even a knock at the gate’s door. The thundering on the other side had crescendoed dramatically, but then it ceased, just as the pirates expected the first impact. What they had not realized was that Moana thought first for herself, and so she leaped over the knee-high wall and into town. Her shadow alone carried with it an implied weight that had even the most callous criminal cowering, but it was the crash itself that crippled their positions. Moana’s landing brought a powerful tremor that riddled Port de Désir, a wave that knocked pirates off their feet and sent them crawling for safety. Those up against the doors were now cornered between the gate and the giant’s impressive debut, her height not even yet fully reached as she remained crouched after the jump.

Orders to shoot at the giant were met with hesitation as Moana uncurled from her squat. Those that opened fire on Moana relearned how ineffective their attacks were, and a glare of annoyance from above sank whatever motivation they had. Within seconds, nearly all the pirates bunkered at the gate had dispersed, and Moana had done little more than make a crater in the street.

Moana looked about with her hands on her hips. “Huh. I was… kind of expecting a little more,” she idly commented, but would not argue with the results. Her attention then went to the gate, a greater obstacle for the navy than it had been for her. She lurked over the wall as she knelt by the door, seeing that the soldiers were steadily making up the distance she had made ahead of them. She coiled a fist, then blasted it through the doors, barricades and all, with an explosion of casual strength. Moments later, just as the dust from the demolition began to clear, the forefront of the navy forces rushed in through the opening. They entered with their weapons loaded and ready, cheering for the giant as they dashed into the fray underneath her.

Navy soldiers clashed with scattered pirates, waging battles inside buildings and through the alleys. Moana sought her own purpose, a way to use her innate power to help overrun the pirates. She surveyed the town, horrified by the fires she saw set ablaze by the pirates. This was their plan, Moana figured, to burn down as much as they could as they set off on their escape. Fleeing had to be their instinct, afterall, when staring down a giant woman leading an army, and the fires would be a cruel distraction while they sailed off.

Regardless of the pirates’ plot, Moana feared the flames and how much they could consume. While the soldiers handled the pirates, she would tame the fires, and so she rushed forward to do that. A nearby home had been set ablaze across its bottom floor, threatening to collapse the entire structure. Moana wasted not a beat to step onto the scene, wary of the panicked homeowners that were at her feet. They had been drawing water from a water silo and desperately running the buckets to the flames, but they now trembled before the giant, expecting fate to be even harsher while at her feet.

But the titan was their savior, and Moana had come up with an answer to the fires. Leaning towards the nearby silo, she uprooted the structure off its supports and held the tank itself in her arms, her fingers prying open the top like it was meant to be opened in such a way. Water splashed over the rim and leaked out the sides, but it functioned well enough as a bucket that she then carried it over to the house, all while the homeowners watched in awe.

“Look out!” Moana warned. The family scrambled away as she tipped the silo, unleashing a pour of water into the front of the house. Waves crashed along the floor and the furniture, flooding all within the walls but ultimately saving everything from being burned. What few embers remained could easily be handled by any non-giant, and there were more fires sparking for Moana’s attention. The homeowners were amazed and paralyzed with gratitude, but before they could even mutter a thanks, Moana was skipping ahead to the next disaster, leaving behind a trail of puddles in her wake.

Dashing between houses and across streets, Moana tended to every blaze that was beyond controllable for the people below. The silo’s tank proved effective in not only dousing these flames and saving the property, but for washing out violent outbreaks and putting pirates down long enough to be subdued. It was a terror to behold for the outlaws, the quaking approach of a giant woman spilling forth torrents of water to undo their dirty work. A particular gang of the pirates suddenly found themselves between the stomping feet amidst the chaos, drawing pistols and rifles to pepper the ankles while the titan poured water over a shop. It took merely a glance from Moana, simply checking what was itching her heel, for the pirates to shrivel under intimidation and flee into navy forces.

The tides were rapidly changing. From complete control over the town to being overrun by a giant-led navy, the pirates were well on the retreat, scrambling towards their shambled ship if not outright abandoning Port de Désir’s walls. Moana surveyed the colored roofs for another objective, cherishing her victories with a swig from the water tank. Such an intermission was short lived, as there was still more to be done; near the center of town, a plume of smoke rose into the air. Only blocks away from the church’s remains was the tavern, set aflame by the pirates.

Moana perked forward with a glare, water still dribbling down her lip. “Hey! I-I have to fix that still!” she exclaimed, and so she hurried ahead with the silo’s tank, bounding over battles being waged in the streets and avoiding panicked people on the tips of her toes. It was an uneasy dance to consider such factors while also balancing the tank -- uneasy enough that it took only one unexpected horse, frantic and startled, for Moana to make a crucial misstep.

“Wh-Whoa! C-Calm down!” Moana flinched away from the horse as it winnied from fright up on its hind legs. Having to adjust her footfall at the last second, Moana instead tripped over herself and fell backwards onto the road, the tank’s remaining pool of water splashing up into her face as the structure cracked and leaked from the drop. Moana instantly jerked up and examined her landing -- a few fissures and craters made in the cobblestone street, but no one was injured -- before casting an annoyed expression down at the horse.

While sitting up, however, Moana realized a detail regarding the animal. “... You!” Moana pointed down at the animal as it continued to kick and stomp. It was the same steed Clara had taken into town the previous night, whose galloping through the streets had led her to that very tavern. The surrounding chaos had thrown the horse into a craze, unable to run free while tied down behind the tavern. Moana wondered what this meant, but a flash of fire from the roof earned a more rapid reaction. She sat up on her knees to overlook the building, sweeping the smoke aside with wide waves of her arm before peering inside through the roof she had broken prior.

She was surprised to discover a pile of survivors, just as the survivors were surprised to see her loom over the tavern. Unfortunate customers and staff were left behind to be devoured by the fire, making the situation more dire. She reached into the box-like building and pinched at a tied-up hostage, but they were withdrawn especially quick into the air. “Erk!” Moana winced; being giant did little to weaken the intensity of the flames eating at the floorboards and tables.

After setting aside the first rescued person, Moana decided to first quell the fire, at least enough to not burn herself. She leaned away, temporarily leaving the view of the hostages as she took a mighty inhale of fresh air. With her lungs filled, she aimed her puckered lips and released a hard blow of wind to whip the fires out. The gust proved wildly powerful, like a miniature tornado summoned by her command. Bottles and kegs were blown off their shelves, tables were upturned and strewn about, and the survivors within were clearly winded, but the fire had been successfully reduced to dying embers.

Moana’s face overtook the roof’s gaping hole as she caught her breath. “That… worked,” she stated, though her lips quivered as she saw how fumbled the people inside were by her blowing. “M-Mostly worked. Good enough.” Without further delay, she dug into the tavern and scooped three people out at a time into a curved palm, gently handling them to the ground outside where navy officers were there to undo their bindings.

The haste at which Moana moved came to a halt as she lifted the last of the hostages. All had squirmed and writhed in the giant’s grasp as they were carried out, but this particular person kicked and threw herself with much more vigor, even once pinched between the fingers. Moana huffed sarcastically, “You’re welcome--” she blinked and her fingers curled around the woman’s body, remembering the shape in her hand. “Hold on-- you’re the lady from last night! Th-The one that ran away…”

Clara was indeed in Moana’s possession once again, and she would be raging just as much as she had back then if it were not for the ropes and gag. Moana’s vision narrowed in on these tiny knots, and with careful plucks of just the tips of her nails, the bindings were undone, resulting in an immediate shriek the moment Clara was no longer gagged. Even with her impressive size, Moana’s eardrums were pierced by the shrill noise.

Addressing the matter bluntly, Moana plugged Clara’s mouth with the pad of her thumb. Try as she might to lift it off of her, there was no besting the digit’s strength. “Yep, I remember that scream,” Moana joked to herself. “It must run in the family, you and Sophie both…”

Clara’s eyes went wide at the mention of her niece’s name. Still unable to speak over the thumb’s pressure on her, she resorted to wildly smacking at the hand and shaking it however she could. Moana’s interest allowed just enough of a window for Clara to pry the thumb off her face, giving her the air to shout out, “Sophie is in danger!”

Moana felt a serious chill in Clara’s tone that was not to be underestimated. She sat up straight once comprehending what had been told to her, alarmed by its grim vagueness. “What happened to her?”

Clara swallowed on the fear filling in her mouth. Even after the thumb was angled away, her hands remained frozen upwards as they had been when shaking it. Overwhelmed by a direct conversation with a giant, she stuttered to speak at just a modest volume, “Sh-She’s on Durok’s ship…! He trapped her somewhere, a-and it’s going to sail away! The pirates are going to take her with his ship...!!”

Pressed by this complicated situation, Moana jumped to her full height, a movement that disregarded how Clara endured such rising speed. High above the buildings, Moana could see across the town and out to the bay where a stock of ships were harbored. A palm flat with her brow gave her eyes shade as she looked over each ship, raising Clara up to chest-level so that she could use the vantage point as well. “Which boat?” Moana asked, strictly to the point.

“Errgk… U-Uhh…” Clara groaned, sickened by all the motion and terrified of the height she was hoisted to. She steadied herself in a crawling position before finally finding their target. “Th-That barque! With the navy flags!” she described, pointing at one of the largest ships at the docks. “That’s his ship! Durok’s! The pirate captain said sh-she was going to take it to escape!”

“It looks like it’s setting sail now,” Moana grimly noted, her glare concentrated on the barque and how its sails were being unrolled. Somewhere past that hull, Sophie was being held prisoner to the pirates. Deep in Moana’s gut, her emotions toiled over this fact, that the only kind and trusting person she had come across in this foreign world was being abducted by dangerous criminals. Sitting in her palm, Clara felt a resonance of this anger in how the fingers furled during Moana’s stare over town.

Moana dismissed Clara, kneeling down and placing her along the other hostages. The lightkeeper stumbled into the support of two navy men, all turning to see the giant step over a row of businesses without a passing word. They were dumbstruck by the tension as Moana’s shadow swept past them, on route to clash with that pirate-helmed barque.

The passages to the port had been blocked with any obstructions the pirates could create on their rush to the ship. Only the most loyal of the crew were in position to depart from Port de Désir, leaving all others behind as stragglers meant to distract the navy. With only a handful of crewmates left, Luckless Leonie persisted towards her goal of escaping the town with a new ship under her boots. She barked orders at what few men remained, directing them around the ship so that they could set sail as soon as possible. What was out there, after all, was approaching -- that tall and powerful woman whose steps rattled the town.

Leonie had not believed it until it was seen with her own eyes. She was led to the roofs by her first mate, berating him incessantly for wasting her time, only to find herself stunned into silence. Out at the gate that circled around town, the giant of rumors had appeared, bypassing the wall altogether and then opening the entrance wide for navy forces to charge through. Sailortalk was slung in every direction afterwards as Leonie leaped into motion. There was a significant change in plans, but she had always been a gambler that readied herself for a bad hand; she knew how to cut her losses and still sail away with what she wanted, even if those losses were taken out of her own crew.

Sails whipped to life as the last of the pirates leaped on board, dragging with them sacks of loot. The boarding bridges slipped out of place and clapped against the wooden docks as the barque drifted forward, pushed by a fortunate breeze out towards the sea. Leonie remained posted at the stern, watching from the ship’s second level as the blockades to the port were being dismantled. Navy forces flushed onto the docks, but they were too late to stop their own ship from setting sail. They were never of Leonie’s concern; only the giant, wading through the roads of town, posed an issue.

Her first mate joined her side, observing the giant’s approach with wide eyes and an open mouth, but Leonie was levelheaded. He scoffed, “We’ve been through a lot, but nothin’ like this. What is that thing?”

Leonie shrugged with a grin. “Not sure. Let’s first see if she can swim.”

Navy sailors stood at the edges of the dock, dumbstruck with their prized barque sailing off under pirate control. They were shaken into movement when they felt a quake shiver through the wooden floor. Behind them was Moana, entering the port by stepping over a storehouse and using a watchtower as support. The uniforms beneath her cleared out in spaces as her feet swung over their heads, allowing her to near the water. But at the port’s edge, she stopped and stared out to where the ship was, already a fair distance from the coast.

Moana’s chest puffed forward with a long inhale. She glanced down at the sailors at her feet, her toes curling in thought. “Move,” she warned them. When they did not immediately move, she urged it again, “Get far back. Now.”

There was no passivity this time as the sailors responded swiftly, sprinting up the docks and up into town. As they did, Moana began her encroach into the seawater, dipping her foot into the bay until she could feel the jagged land underneath the docks. Another step gave credit to her warning as her entrance into the water produced rocking waves that barreled onto land, shifting the ships that were anchored nearby. With each further step taken, more of these waves swirled about as her massive form submerged into the water. Then, once up to her waist, Moana made a sharp leap forward, diving into the surface and splashing behind her a series of wide waves that crashed into the docks fiercely. Onlookers were amazed by this taste of the giant’s power as specks of seawater drizzled over them in a mist.

The first mate hunched forward in despair. “Looks like she can swim,” he sourly remarked. Contrary to his reaction, Leonie remained content, even gleeful as she observed the giant’s long strides through the ocean. Sweat dotted the first mate’s brow as he asked, “Uh, Captain? Do we have a plan here?”

“Let her come close,” Leonie chuckled, “I love having all the attention.”

Sweeping swings of her arms carried Moana forward in her hurried swim to the ship. It was her first time back in the water since the storm, and so it was only then that she realized how different the ocean felt at her bigger size. She felt heavy and disoriented, but she pressed onward, gradually shortening the distance between her and the barque. Knowing that Sophie was at risk of being stolen away into the vast sea inspired her to power through the waves, all while enduring the stabbing pain that was the cannon wound in her side.

A glimpse above the surface allowed Moana to see the criminals she was in pursuit of. They studied her from the stern, the captain most proud in the center. Beneath the waves, Moana growled against their gazes, despising how they gazed at her like a wild animal chasing after them. She was soon near enough that the splashing of her arms was enough to rock the boat ahead of her -- one good lunge was all she needed to have caught up with the pirates.

But Leonie kept grinning, her plan unfolding exactly how she wanted. She gestured at Moana with a curling wave towards her, a taunt to have her come closer. “Let us have a good look at ya’, lass!” she mocked. “What are ya’ ‘sposed to be, anyway? Some sort of walking whale?”

Moana huffed angrily between strokes. She lifted her head high enough to call out, “You better stop that boat now! Last chance!”

Leonie chortled, “Well, I’m the kind of woman that loves to press her luck.” A devilish gleam in her eye was pointed to a large tool she had left blanketed with a tarp before her. With a fast pull, what was unveiled to Moana as a stark surprise was a complete cannon -- drilled into the barque’s stern, it was of the few cannons Durok and his sailors could not roll out in their hunt after Moana. Rather than serve the navy in the woods, it would instead serve its purpose out at sea, neatly aimed right down at the swimming goliath.

Moana gasped a mouthful of saltwater when she realized the weapon the pirates were equipped with. Stunned by this reveal, her progress came to a sluggish halt, hesitating before reaching out towards the ship. With how thick the water felt to be trudging through, Moana knew dodging a point-blank shot would be nearly impossible. The mere sight of the cannon ready to fire was enough to reignite the pain of where she was shot earlier; another blow like that could very well cripple her out in the sea.

Giggling with confidence, Leonie unpocketed a chunk of flint to light the fuse. Impatiently did she strike up sparks, anxious to see bloodshed. “You’re an easy target, lass! Being big ain’t all it’s cracked up to be!” she laughed, her comedy rallying the crewmates that gathered nearby. They shifted away and plugged their ears, held in suspense by the dwindling fuse.

All of Moana’s instincts failed her. Posed against unfamiliar weapons in an environment that was innately alien to her, Moana felt a twinge of helplessness. Raising an arm over her head as a shield was the most defense she could muster while caught in the rocking waves. She closed her eyes, clenched her teeth--

A shrill scream cut through the winds. A woman’s voice, high-pitched and frenzied, raged above a flurry of footsteps slapping against the deck of the barque. The Luckless crew was blindsided by what they saw, and Leonie never turned to see it coming; a girl in an oil-stained gown and utility belt charged straight at the captain, heralding a broom high over her head. The shriek was sharply deafening, stunning the pirates into stillness as the broom swiftly arced down mercilessly.

Snap! A blunt thud matched the harshness of the broom’s head cracking off. Leonie’s skull was the target, bashed into hard enough to make her stolen navy cap fly off into the sea. The direct hit could not have been more precise, striking the center of Leonie’s scalp like lightning. The ambush was met with a roar of gasps, all eyes of the crew darting to the attacker. Not one had expected to see Sophie standing over their fallen captain, a civilian from town that none had realized was a captive in Durok’s brig.

Of course, neither had Moana expected this kind of upset. Her eyes flashed open, baffled by the scene they returned to. She stammered, spasming back into a swim, “Sophie!!”

“Ahoy!!” Sophie was panting after her attack, but adrenaline yet fueled her to bounce to the stern’s railing. She leaned over the edge and hoisted her utility belt over it, gesturing enthusiastically at her host of tools. “I’m sorry about all this-- but look! I broke out!” she yelled excitedly. “Durok’s not that bright, he isn’t!” Indeed, Durok had underestimated the engineering capabilities of his prisoner, never having thought a lightkeeper would be equipped with both the tools and knowledge to pick a lock when needed.

But Moana was not at all relieved, pointing madly next to Sophie. “No, Sophie, p-put out that fire!!”

Sophie hiccupped, then processed Moana’s words. After noticing the fuse on the cannon was still lit and only a hair away from completion, Sophie threw herself into action. Landing hard on her knees, she reached forward and caught the fuse in a fist. She bit her lip, “Eep…!” she squeaked as the flame scorched her palm. Time appeared frozen until her hand opened, revealing the final inch of a burned-out fuse.

Moana nearly sank from how relieved she was. “Sophie!” she cheered, thrashing back into a swim with an eager grin. Sophie weakly laughed back at her, but the celebration did not last long. Moana’s eyes widened with fear, “Look out!”

Sophie turned, then ducked prone onto the deck -- a blade narrowly missed her head, swung by an enraged pirate captain. Leonie had hobbled onto her feet and immediately cast herself into violence, cursing as her cutlass flew just over her target. Sophie shivered onto her back, yelping in fright when the blade was raised into the air, aimed at where she lay. She scrambled backwards, affording her only a near-miss -- the sword sliced between her split legs, creating a long cut in the center of Sophie’s dress.

“I’m so sorry I’m so sorry I’m so-so-so-so--” Sophie stammered in half-full breaths as Leonie craned into a crooked stance. The captain’s glare was ferociously stern, as if her stare alone was pushing Sophie away in a backwards crawl. When Sophie jumped to her feet, she immediately had to dodge another slash, then another. So wild were Leonie’s attacks, her cutlass ended up lodged into the stern’s railing, and rather than rip the steel back out, she instead pushed further until she completely tore through the wood. Wherever Sophie stumbled to, the other pirates were sure to shift away from -- all of them knew not to interfere with Leonie’s rage, lest they desired to get cut-up in the mix.

“You stupid girl…!” Leonie snarled, spitting her frustration onto the deck. She swung her sword at Sophie, forcing her to dodge aside -- with quick reflexes did Leonie catch her out, snagging her ankle with her boot and causing the lightkeeper to trip hard onto her knees. “Someone shoulda warned you about sneaking up on pirates…! You’ll have to learn that lesson at the bottom of the ocean, wench!!”

Leonie lunged with a slash, angled at Sophie’s heart. What would have been a lethal blow was barely thwarted by the broom handle Sophie still held, used to divert the blade a key inch so that it only cut into her arm. Wounded nonetheless and with the broom shattered by the attack, Sophie could only stumble away, her back against the cannon and a sword’s shadow cast over her frightened expression.

But when the captain stepped forward, the entire ship rumbled and shook. This was no wave crashing into the hull, but a jolt that affected the whole barque, enough of a push to have many of the pirates lose their balance. Leonie was among them, stumbling to the side and landing with her cutlass impaling the deck for support. She hissed while shooting her glare out to the sides, hunting for whatever would interrupt her bloodlust, but a second shockwave threw her onto her back, a quake far stronger than the first.

A loud creak stretched over the scene, the distinct sound of wood and metal straining to keep together. The ship was on the rise, lifted from below as though a wave were propelling it. Sophie screamed as everything shifted unexpectedly, clawing the cannon’s base in a relentless grapple so she would not be thrown overboard -- a fate a pair of pirates faced as they tumbled over the railing. Within the panic, the truth of their situation was shouted by a crew mate in despair, “It’s the giant!!”

All eyes turned to port where a geyser of seawater sprayed forth from the ascent of something massive. Curtains of water revealed that to be Moana, risen from the sea and taking the ship into her arms. While Leonie was enthralled attacking Sophie, Moana had dove under the water and hurried underneath it. From that angle, she rose up with a mighty push, grunting for air the moment she resurfaced. As huge as she was, the barque was only so small to her, and so lifting the great ship out of the water required an impressive amount of strength, a feat that chilled the spines of her pirate onlookers.

Yet in all this chaos, Sophie looked upon the rising Moana in awe of her splendor. Her mouth was agape while watching Moana exert such power, her muscles surely aflame as she lifted the huge ship. “M-Moana!! You’re incredible!!” she yelled in a cheer, still gripping the cannon’s base. Then, a loud crack whipped from below, the sound of mighty wood starting to snap, sudden enough to make Sophie shiver. “Uhhrr, Moana…?”

“It’s… not gonna… hold…!” Moana spat with what little breath she could spare. Her grimace extended wider as she tried to pull up on the ship further, her hands and arms shuffling under the hull to maintain balance. It was simply too long for her to carry, and so the rear and front parts of the ship began bending towards the sea, the deck and sides of the barque fissuring like ice under pressure. Another significant crack riddled the ship, causing a split to form in the rear where Moana could not support its weight. Her expression admitted it clearly; the barque was going to break.

Most of the pirates took initiative, but Moana enforced it, “Everyone off!” The demand needed no extra convincing as the remaining souls on board leaped into the water, diving away from the mayhem. Sophie still clung to the cannon’s base, struggling to find an opportunity or angle in which to flee. Similarly, Leonie also did not immediately leap into the water, but instead turned to Moana, undigging her cutlass with murderous intent glowing in her eyes. Against the steepening slope of the deck, Leonie marched towards the giant, unwilling to sink without first sinking her sword into the beast’s unmissable throat.

Just as Leonie intended to lunge, she was tackled from behind and brought down to the wooden floor. As soon as she did, her and the weight on top of her began a rapid slide down the tilted deck. Leonie spun with a grunt; Sophie earned her glare, hugging the captain by the waist so that she would be dragged off the baque. Both yelled into the open air as they plummeted backwards into the water, splinters of the barque raining down after them.

“S-Sophie--!” Moana winced, her grip slipping from worry as she watched the two bodies splash through the surface. There was nothing she could do, and with the barque continuing to crack, she feared that her one friend in this tiny new world would be sunk to the depths under the wreckage she made. She hoped to fling the ship away, but its weight was too grand, its structure too unstable in her arms.

In her stubborn attempt anyway, the barque completely collapsed. It broke first into three distinct segments, followed by the middle caving in as Moana’s arms squeezed what she held into a sudden embrace. Wood and metal alike pounded her chest where the ship fell apart while the rear and front crashed into the ocean with just a touch more grace, submerging violently while retaining most of their shape. The masts fell just after them, tipping over like lumber and hitting the surface with impressive impacts. It appeared to be a wild shipwreck with Moana as the obstruction, as though the navy barque had charged into her, and lost.

While Moana was afloat in a bold stance, there were a dozen others scattered around her waist, all thrashing in the water as they fought to swim through the debris and waves. They called to one another for aid, unsure where they could safely swim to. Moana’s concern stretched even to these pirates, for they were people regardless of their crimes -- but in her hasty headcount, she realized neither Leonie nor Sophie was among them.

Emotion flickered in Moana’s glare. She barked, “Move away from me!” Like her previous command, this one was immediately obeyed by the pirates. Once given enough space, Moana inhaled a deep breath, then dove straight down into the water, her head first curling beneath the surface, followed by a whale-like kick of her legs as she descended vertically. As far as the pirates had swam away from her, this spectacle was still enough to wash them over with heavy waves, but their curiosity was unphased as they looked down below at the massive person swimming beneath their feet.

The ocean floor was soon reached, and so Moana turned upwards in a hunt for the two bodies. Submerged underwater, her hair drifted apart like an inky cloud, contorting to the fast movements of her head whipping side-to-side in pursuit. A ventilated exhale created a stream of bubbles to jet up towards the surface, but then she found them, two silhouettes weakly writhing next to each other, struggling to loosen themselves out of a net that entangled them. A glance of the scene spoke grimly of their fates, and so Moana thrusted into action, grabbing Sophie and Leonie by the net and dragging them back up to the open air.

Moana’s head erupted without warning from the surface, at first rising upwards with a flood of water waiting to cascade in that following second. Black hair messily covered her face, but was all flung backwards in a victorious swing of her head. She raised high the prize she had swam down to retrieve, panting heavily for air; Sophie and Leonie had been saved, both sputtering with saltwater amidst the net’s knots.

“Sophie! Sophie, are you alright?!” Moana asked first, blinking as drips of water came over her face. She thought little of how loud her voice must have been, directly adjacent to the smaller bodies. A worried finger found its way to Sophie, stroking the entangled body gently. “Are you hurt?! I-I didn’t think you’d fall in, I w-was just--”

Sophie spat and coughed hard, clearing her throat in a painful attempt to speak. But through the soreness, a smile emerged, and a giggle chimed. “Y-You… saved me… Moana…!”

Moana’s expression softened, breaking into a chuckle of her own. “You saved me, remember?” she said, still having to catch her own breath. Her eyes twinkled with a sense of pride as she continued, “It’s way more impressive that you saved a giant like me.”

“Impressive?” Sophie repeated. She shook her head, as much as she could with her long hair messed in the ropes. “Hah… D-Don’t even start… talking about… who’s impressive…! Y-You just… just sank a whole ship…! I-I saw it happen!”

Moana smirked bashfully, having thought nothing of her feat while in that moment. It was a major relief to have Sophie safe and sound, but when she saw Leonie grunt and twist, she remembered all the other pirates of the Luckless crew. Being this far out into sea, it would take a miracle of endurance for all of them to swim back to shore and not drown on the way there. They were especially lost without a captain to order them, and so Moana found herself casting an uncomfortable glare over the crowd. These criminals were guilty, but death by the sea was no just punishment.

“Gather around! Get over here!” Moana commanded, her voice steely and cool -- a strict tone that came from her years as chieftain. She motioned for the pirates to near her with her free hand, “I’m not leaving anyone behind. Grab on to me and hang on, because I’m taking us back to port!”

It was blatantly an unorthodox rescue, to cling onto a giant woman as she swam back to shore, but it was very well the only rescue pirates like them would ever get. Some delayed, but eventually all of the Luckless crew were attached to Moana in some fashion; some were held in her muscular arms, others held onto rope-like hairs, and a couple more hugged her shoulders. Sophie and Leonie remained knotted in the nets, which Moana carried by a bite of rope in her mouth. More than a dozen people were in Moana’s possession as she trudged back to Port de Désir, utilizing a tiring single-arm stroke to carry her weight across the water.

After all that had exhausted her, Moana was back onto shore, her feet breaking into the rising sea floor as she grew nearer. She did not hear it at first due to the rolling tides, but when her ears were unclogged of water, she found herself welcomed back with cheering and applause. Yet still Moana did not falter, her pace unceasing until she was at the docks, using their outcroppings to support her fatigue. The pirates were not keen to disembark into navy hands, but without anywhere else to turn, they willingly forfeited themselves into custody upon returning to land.

Among those to be detained, of course, was Captain Leonie. She was presented to a unit of officers, still tangled in the net like an animal that had been caught. Even as navy soldiers cut through the ropes to release her, Leonie put up a struggle, barking and spitting furiously back at the giant. “You…! You walking whale…! I’ll have your corpse sunk just like that ship! I swear on it, giant!!” Leonie shouted, her threat undermined by navy officers fitting her wrists into manacles.

Moana had been mostly deaf to the threats, her ears much preferring the cheers and joy coming from the crowds. All sorts of the community had gathered at the docks to celebrate the defeat of the pirates, madly spreading stories of how the giant reopened the gate and dashed through town to help those in need. They spoke of her dousing fires and chasing off criminals, but many had been there themselves to witness her wrestle a navy barque beneath the ocean’s surface. It was a spectacle few could be compared to, an act of heroism amplified to absurd proportions.

Each smiling, grateful face was a light that sparked Moana’s spirit. Like scanning the sparkles off a crystal, she was dazzled by the response, especially so with how differently she was treated just that morning. She had washed ashore on Port de Désir, chased off as a monster, but returned as a savior -- for the first time since striking land, Moana felt her heart rise like the air.

Under the hollering was a call to Moana that she could not miss. “Moana! You really deserve this!” Sophie exclaimed, her positive energy unphased by how she was still entangled in the ropes. Realizing this, Moana began carefully untying Sophie, her wide fingertips struggling to do so when Sophie was jittering with excitement. Where the knots were too tight and damp to undo for Moana, a precise bite proved effective. “I-It was unreal! You-- You fought off a whole pirate crew! Y-You sank their ship, a-and everything! I almost died!”

Moana was slow to keep up with how fast Sophie spoke, but she chuckled in reply, “Yeah, almost…” She glanced up the dock, noticing a fissure in the crowd coming her way. “Good thing I didn’t let you. I’d be hearing it from her, wouldn’t I?”

Sophie turned, at least as much as she could while bound in the net. Behind her, running up the dock, was her aunt Clara. “Sophie! Sophie, dear goodness, Sophie!” Clara elbow bashed and stomped her way through the cluster of navy uniforms, appearing before Moana and Sophie with her arms wide. She gasped at the condition her niece was in, “Wh-What happened?! How on earth did you end up like this?!”

“I fought pirates, Aunt Clara!” Sophie laughed, her body twisting as it hung by the ropes. “I stopped a cannon from going off! A-And I broke out of a cell in Captain Durok’s brig!”

Clara reached up and pulled Sophie towards the dock, taking over from Moana in untangling her. “Please… Please tell me you’re confused with one of your story books, Sophie…”

“She’s, um, not lying...” Moana answered, drawing both faces to look up to her. She winced under the pressure of Clara’s gaze in particular. “I would have been shot down if… if it weren’t for Sophie… Things would have been different if she hadn’t been brave back there…”

Clara scowled, tugging hard to break one of the problem ropes. “All this trouble…” she grumbled a thought aloud. “... Only trouble has followed since you came here… If my niece had died in any of this, Lord beseech me--”

“A-Aunt Clara! She rescued me, you know!” Sophie flared up, offended by Clara’s tone. It was unusual for her to speak up in such a way against her aunt, but adrenaline fueled her boldness. She slinked through the loosened ropes and stood in front of Clara, her back straight and tall against the hunched woman. “She helped Port de Désir. She saved the town, j-just like she saved me!”

Clara maintained her glare, but others joined the conversation. A soldier stepped forward from the rest with a hand raised, “It’s true, lightkeeper! The giant came back for the town!” Another joined him, “We were there -- that coward Durok would have let the town burn!” “She led a charge back here! She’s more of a fighter than Captain Durok ever was!” “Certainly she cares more for the townspeople than that dog!”

The voices of the navy berated Clara into a soft growl, but her anger was softened by Sophie’s confidence, that persistence to believe in herself. She noticed just how tall Sophie stood, and how that compared to when her parents left her at the lighthouse all those years ago. Sophie was an adult now; not a child lost in her fantasy books, but a capable engineer ready to face the world.

Clara lowered her head as she fell onto Sophie in a hug. Not having expected this, Sophie nearly toppled back from the weight, but she shared the embrace just as passionately. “You had me worried to death, Sophie…!” she spoke into her niece’s shoulder. “I am so relieved that… Moana… could help us...”

Sophie grinned, “Not much of a monster, is she?” With Moana in mind, Sophie turned a glance over towards her -- she then separated from her aunt, caught up in a worry. “Uh, M-Moana? Are you feeling well…?”

She had good reason to ask upon realizing how Moana’s body swayed and tipped with a lack of balance. The waves splashing at her waist seemed nearly powerful enough to trip the titan with how weak her posture had become, still having to use the docks themselves as supports under her arms. Even when spoken to, she blinked sluggishly in response, as if having forgotten where Sophie stood from her.

“I-I’m fine,” Moana eventually replied, unconvincingly. The wood of the dock creaked as her weight asked too much from the structure, a noise that spooked a few of the sailors and townspeople back. “S-Sorry! I-- uh, didn’t mean to-- I’m trying to just…” Her words were mixed and fumbled, a result of dizziness swelling swiftly in her head. She clutched her brow while trudging forward in the water, making a scene that only raised Sophie’s concern.

Moana’s body rose from the surface with wild splashes produced with each thrust of her knees. Once close enough to the stair-like port and its multiple stone-brick levels, she entered a graceless crawl, hesitating in front of a crowd of people. They had gathered at the port to celebrate her triumph over the pirate threat, but now, her shadow demanded that they vacate. She gestured with shrugs and nods, muttering to the townsfolk, “I-I need space, j-just for a… minute…”

Dizziness overcame her as the adrenaline of the day was finally fading. Moana understood it herself, that she had been ignoring her injuries, her exhaustion, and her hunger -- and when faced with dozens and dozens of little people staring up at her, vertigo claimed her. As soon as the space was cleared, Moana pulled as much of her body as she could onto the port, reclined along the levels of roads as though they were a chair meant to be lounged upon. Her frame lay limp but ever heavy there on the port, uncaring to the traffic she blocked.

The many wounds speckled down her body caused little twitches while she entered a slumber, and her mind continued to swirl anxiously with fears of little people under every ounce of her weight. One complete exhale later, Moana’s vision went blank, her thoughts adrift as though she were lost at sea yet again.