Forbidden Magic

Chapter 19

As soon as the last bit of cargo was carried onto the ship, the crew of sailors immediately sprang into action. Men scurried about, attending to every part of the ship as the anchor was hauled from the waters below. The Captain barked orders from the helm, and the sails dropped and were filled with wind, pulling the ship away from the shore and into the vast expanse of the open sea.

Prudence stood at the rail, watching as the land shrank in the distance. The ship bobbed with the current of the water, causing nausea to crawl through her body. She gripped the railing painfully, trying to take deep breaths to ease the feeling twisting at her insides. However, after a few more rises of the boat, she leaned over the rail and emptied the contents of her stomach into the ocean.

"Never been on the wat'r before, eh?" A sailor asked and chuckled as he walked up to her. Prudence could only shake her head to answer him, but that was a mistake as it made her dizzy. "Don't wor'y about it, Should only last fer a few days. Then you'll be right as rain."

Prudence nodded as another squeeze of her stomach caused her to lean over the railing again. The next two weeks were going to be long and arduous. She pushed herself away from the edge of the boat and slowly made her way towards the stairs that led below deck. The constant movement of the vessel made it difficult to walk without stumbling, but she managed to make it down the steps without falling flat on her face. She bounced off the walls of the hallway that led to her room. Prudence used her arms to brace herself from being battered around too harshly. She did not even care to close the door when she entered her room. Instead, she flopped on the cot and buried her face into the blanket.

A servant girl carrying two buckets appeared in her doorway, followed by Myam. He had given her more space since they boarded the ship, but only because she could not go far. The servant sat one of the pails down by her bed. From what Prudence could see, it was empty. The second had water in it. Using a tin cup, the girl scooped some water out of the bucket and held it out for Prudence.

"You're going to want to drink as much water as you can until the seasickness passes," Myam instructed, his face displaying a smug grin as if he was amused by her discomfort. Her face took on odd shades of green and white. Myam could not help but laugh at her predicament, as he remembered his first time at sea with Lord Dumont.

Prudence slowly sat up, groaning as she did so. She reached out and took the cup from the young girl, bringing it to her lips and sipping down the cool liquid. As she drank, her stomach began to protest with a dull ache. Prudence winced and scrunched her face, placing a hand over the offending organ in an attempt to ease the discomfort.

"I'll leave this here for you," the servant gestured towards the water bucket, "and that is so you don't have to run to the deck." she slid the empty bucket toward Prudence. Then she bobbed her head in a bow and left, with Myam behind her.

Sleeping on the ship was as difficult as Myam said it would be. Prudence soon realized it took a special skill to stay in bed as she lay there trying to rest. The ship rolled with a wave and crashed back down into the water, causing Prudence to be tossed from her bed and onto the floor. She let out an irritated sigh as she stared up at the ceiling, too weak to move. She was miserable.

***

Prudence spent the next few days in her bunk, trying her best to keep down any meals and water she consumed. The servant came in often to check on her, filling the water pail and emptying the other when needed. By the fourth day at sea, the uneasiness of her gut began to dissipate. She took the opportunity to venture back on deck.

The sunlight was overwhelming, as she walked up the stairs. Prudence placed a hand above her eyes to shield them from the brightness. Gulls called overhead and plunged into the water after bits of waste were thrown overboard. The air brought with it the scent of salt water as it blew into the sails. Prudence took a deep breath of the invigorating air.

As she stood there, absorbing the beauty of the day, her eyes caught a glimpse of something troubling in the distance. The clouds were gathering, seemingly expanding in size and darkness as they stretched across the horizon, foretelling an impending storm. A sense of uneasiness crept up inside her, gnawing at her belly and making her heart race with dread.

"Looks like you're feeling better today," Myam uttered. Prudence flinched, startled by his sudden appearance next to her.

"Yes, sir, much." She answered before her eyes fixated back on the storm in the distance.

Myam followed her gaze, "Sailors are saying we might run into it. The Captain is having them prep the ship just in case. You'll want to be in your room if we do. Don't need you falling overboard."

Prudence felt her stomach churn at the thought of being tossed into the water. Fear of being dragged under by the current never to see the surface again, or of being stranded with no way to paddle to shore and no hope for rescue crossed her mind. Although she was dissatisfied with the direction her life was taking, she did not want to die.

"Don't worry, the crew has gone through many a storm. They're experienced enough to get us through it." Myam spoke up as he seemed to be able to feel her anxiety.

Later that night, they did indeed move into the storm. Thunder claps rattled the sky and ricocheted around her head. Swells collided against the hull, harshly tossing the ship. Prudence watched as items slid across the floor of her room, slamming into the walls and then back again with each wave. She sat crosslegged on her bunk with the empty bucket in her lap, praying to the Gods to ease her misery, as her stomach rolled with the ship.

She heard the crew above start shouting loud enough to be heard over the storm. Their voices carried with it a sense of fear, and it made her blood run cold.

"Rogue wave!" one hollered and another echoed. Prudence did not know what that meant, but she had a feeling that it was not good.