Deep Sea Ember

Chapter Five: Intertwined

The massive shadow rolled in, and everyone on the White Oak witnessed a moment they would never forget.

It was an ancient and imposing three-masted warship—in an era when steamships were no longer a rarity, the sailing warship emerging from the thick fog seemed as if it had stepped out of a century-old painting. Its masts soared high, its hull steep, and a ghostly green flame burned on its dark wooden hull. Its massive sails billowed in the void, condensing roaring illusions and layers of flame—such a scene, even on the terrifying, boundless sea, only appeared in the most horrific shipwreck legends.

"We're going to crash!!!"

a crew member cried out in alarm. These men, known for their bravery and ruthlessness, who made their living at sea, couldn't help but lose their composure when faced with such a behemoth. They shouted and ran, some trying to find shelter on the deck, others clinging to anything they could to secure themselves, and still others kneeling amidst the turbulence and waves, praying with unprecedented devotion and chanting the names of the storm goddess Gomona or the death lord Bartók.

On this boundless sea, the blessings of the gods had waned, but the power of these two righteous deities still looked equally upon all their subjects.

But not all the crew members lost their composure. The first mate immediately turned his gaze to his most trusted captain. He knew that sailing on the boundless sea was fraught with danger, and an experienced captain was always the key to determining the fate of the entire ship. Lawrence had been at sea for over thirty years. This captain, now over fifty, might not be as strong as he once was, but his experience surviving on this vast ocean might still offer everyone a glimmer of hope.

The ship that emerged from the thick fog clearly didn't resemble a vessel sailing normally in the real world. It seemed more like something emerging from the spirit world or "deeper." If it was some kind of extraordinary phenomenon, then perhaps it could be countered with some kind of extraordinary power.

The old captains who sailed on the boundless sea had more or less experience in the face of extraordinary visions.

However, the first mate only saw fear and shock on the captain's face.

The old captain held the steering wheel motionless, as if he didn't notice that the entire ship was completely shrouded in shadow, he stared at the shadow of the ship that was crushed in front of him, the muscles on his face were tense like a stone sculpture, he finally squeezed out a few words from between his teeth, but those words were colder than the wind on the cold sea: "...... It is the "Lost Home" ......"

"Ship...... Captain?! The first mate was startled by this name that floated into his ears, and like everyone who begged for a living on the boundless sea, he had heard it from many of the crew members who were older, more senior and more superstitious than himself, "What did you say?!" That ......"

"Lost Home!!

Captain Lawrence didn't seem to hear the first mate's voice, he just held the steering wheel of the White Oak with all his might, roaring as if he was about to roar at something, and almost as soon as his words fell, the majestic hull of the Lost Homeland finally touched the bow of the White Oak.

Almost all sailors screamed.

However, the expected earth-shaking impact did not appear - the giant ship burning with green flames was like a grand phantom, sweeping across the deck of the White Oak with a whistling illusion of flames, thick hulls, eerie cabins, dimly lit corridors, and flaming keels and pillars...... The sailors' eyes widened in horror, watching as they crashed into the vision of the ghost ship, and the green flames burning on the ghost ship swept past them like a web of fire.

Lawrence also watched the flames roar towards him, but before that, he first saw the flames sweeping past the first mate in front of him - the first mate's body suddenly turned into an illusory spirit body in the illusory flames, and the bones in the spiritual body burned like firewood, and he saw the pastor next to the prayer platform in front of him, and saw the flames on the pastor's body flickering and dimming. It was as if the gods behind him were still using meager blessings to protect him from being devoured by the name of the lost home.

Then the flames also burned on Lawrence, and he saw the same changes in his body, and a strong sense of weariness, obedience and fear filled his body, and the sea amulet he had hidden on his body began to work, and a feeling of alternating heat and coolness barely maintained his sanity, and in the remaining sanity, he "passed" through the cabins and corridors of the Lost Home.

The gloomy and oppressive cabin came and whistled away, rotten ropes and barnacles wrapped around the ancient wooden pillars burning with green fire, he saw a huge warehouse quietly lying with all sorts of strange things that should have been buried in the deep sea, and he saw a luxurious cabin with a wooden goat head on the table in the center of the cabin.

The goat's head turned around and stared into Lawrence's eyes indifferently.

Finally, Lawrence raised his head with all his might, and he saw the figure at the helm of the helm - next to the rudder of a classical ship, a tall figure in a black navigator's uniform seemed to be majestic and terrifying like the lord in a nightmare, that figure dominated all the ghostly flames, and even the sea, which was already in the depths of the spirit world, seemed to be intimidated by his majesty, tearing a crack behind him.

Lawrence closed his eyes resignedly—he knew he was now part of the Lost Home, and the nightmarish captain needed some sacrifice to satisfy his never-ending emptiness and loneliness.

But the next second, he mustered up his courage and opened his eyes, he felt that all the courage and madness of his life seemed to have converged in these few seconds, he recalled the knowledge he had gained from books and legends, and looked at the terrifying captain standing on the lost country with as honest and calm an attitude as possible.

"You don't need to take everyone - take me away and spare my crew."

However, the tall figure did not answer, he just cast his gaze indifferently, and there seemed to be a little curiosity in his gaze - as if he was curious why a small mortal captain dared to bargain with him.

Lawrence finally couldn't hold back and let out a roar: "They all have wives and children!!"

The figure standing on the Lost Homeland finally reacted, he stared in Lawrence's direction, as if he had said something, but a loud whistling sound sounded from the side, and in the whistle, Lawrence only vaguely heard some movement, but he couldn't hear a word clearly.

The response from the Lost Homeland dissipated in the roar of the waves -

"What did you say?! The wind is too strong for me to hear!!

In the next second, a loud noise rushed into Lawrence's ears, mixed with the sound of wind, waves, and the shouts of sailors outside the door, and out of the corner of his eye, he saw a green flame fading quickly, and the last remaining phantom of the Lost Homeland dissipated from the air like fog.

Lawrence took a sharp breath, and then noticed that his hands, which had been burned by the green flames, had returned to their original state, and even the others in the cab had turned into flesh and blood again, and the devout priest was lying on the prayer table, gasping for breath, while chanting the holy name of the storm goddess Gemona, while the unknown purple-black smoke from the incense burner gradually dissipated, and what rose from the copper stove cover was pure white smoke.

It took Lawrence a long time to catch his breath, and then looked around suspiciously, as if he didn't believe that the nightmare just now was over, until the first mate's voice came from the side: "Captain!" The ship - the Lost Country is gone!

Lawrence was a little distracted, and reacted for a few seconds before muttering, "...... He actually let us go?

The first mate didn't hear clearly for a while: "Captain? What did you say?

"That Captain Duncan......" Lawrence muttered subconsciously, but then slapped himself as if he had accidentally mentioned some taboo word, and then he suddenly raised his head to look at the first mate, "The whole ship is called up, quickly!" Look at what people are missing on the boat!

The first mate immediately nodded and took the order, but just as he was about to leave, Lawrence immediately stopped him again: "I also have to see if there are any more people on the ship!"

The first mate was stunned for a moment, and then he reacted, with a hint of suspicion and fear in his eyes, he took a deep breath, chanted the name of the Storm Goddess in a low voice, and then quickly ran to the deck outside.

Still sailing on the white oak in the spirit world, the sound of the assembly bell rang like a life.