As I let my arrow fly, I pushed the enchantment even harder, and the arrow ripped out from my bow with tremendous force. The bow spins in my hand as my relaxed grip tightens, holding it in place. My arm already feels sore, but the result was worth it.

  The arrow zipped faster than anything the sailors had ever seen, and as it plunged into the water towards its target, the pressure from the displaced air and later the displaced water left a trail like a bullet. Before the fish even realized the imminent danger, the arrow had already plunged into its eye and deep into the body. It turned protectively and desperately as blood began to blossom from the wound, but that only opened up its side to the barrage of slower attacks. Many were repelled by the scales, but some dug in deep enough to knock scales loose or draw blood, but my hit was clearly the one that the fish felt the worst.

  It tried to run but to no avail, as our ship rode it with our tethered harpoon. It changed tactics. Instead of a direct assault, the fish swam to the edge of its tether and then straight upward, leaping into the air trying to break free. However, the captain didn’t miss his chance to send another volley to catch it in the air where it wouldn’t be protected by the water. This time I switched out my penetration shot with a kinetic anchor, an arrow that locked its position briefly, resisting all motion after impacting its target.

  A deep breath, a pause, and right on time the captain called the volley. Timing my arrow with the new bow was a challenge since it held so much more power, but my arrow zipped out ahead and landed right where I wanted. I had too much practice to even consider the notion of a miss. Unlike before, when my arrow went straight through the fish, this time the arrow anchored itself into the fish's eye. With the fish's upward-angled momentum, the arrow ripped the entire eye from the socket, but this time, instead of helping, the arrows coming in behind my arrow slowed down the fish enough to pass under the leading shots, sparing it from further punishments. That didn’t stop the crew from cheering, seeing the fish take severe injuries.

  It fell back to the water and dived deep. We could see the trail of blood leaking up to us as the fish made its last attempts to escape us. Eventually the tether went slack, and we all waited in anxious silence while the crew began to reel in the harpoon. Suddenly the boat shook as something came up from under us, pushing our ship up and out of the waters. I braced, waiting for the ship to crack or break, but instead our ship slowly slid off the side of the fish. Its dead body had floated up from under us, pushing us up, which I think had spooked everyone, but now everyone was cheering and hugging. The captain walked up behind me and patted my back.

  “Well, I suppose you really are an archer first and foremost. That was some fine work.”

  I was about to ask what the plan would have been to hunt the fish if I hadn’t been onboard, but rapidly closing in the distance, I saw what looked like a dinghy moving at the speed of a speedboat. On it were Sir Eira and someone operating the dinghy. I take my moment to gloat and call out to them.

  “Sir, you’re late! We already cleaned it up on our own!”

  A triumphant smirk was on my face as I looked down at them. I didn’t have any deep feud with Sir Eira, but their attitude had tickled my competitive spirit, and now that I had leverage to brag, I wasn’t going to miss my chance.

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  “What a fine kill indeed! Next time, how about joining me on the attack boat?” Sir Eira brushed off my bragging without hesitation, more interested in examining the kill. The crew had finished reeling in the fish, and drinks were being passed around. A full-blown celebration was in effect for the crew while a team investigated the fish for any parasites. I won’t deny I may have gotten drunk and crazy so much that I woke up in my room in a vomit-soaked bed with no memories of last night.

  I groggily got up. For some reason I had underestimated alcohol. I thought sufficient vitality would make it inconsequential, but someone should never underestimate humanity's desire to poison itself silly. I straightened myself up as best I could using a set of hygiene wands Callen had packed in my gear. It made me a mix of grumpy but also happy about how much effort he put into making sure I had everything I wanted.

  I made my way to the deck and was blinded by the light. Before I could even adjust, cheers broke out across the ship, and I was lifted up onto the shoulders of two larger men. My eyes finally adjusted, and I was greeted by the enthusiastic cheers of the crews of the rest of the fleet. Large planks were deployed connecting our ship with three others, forming a giant catamaran-type ship. The giant fish was held between our combined ships in the center.

  This connection had led to many crew who weren’t busy to await the arrival of the ‘hero’ who had struck the killing blow. It turned out while the inspection team was working on the fish, they found my first arrow had penetrated all the way into the fish's heart but only barely, which led to the drawn-out conflict while the fish was bleeding out from a critical injury. The loss of its eyes had made the fish unable to effectively retaliate, but that first arrow had been the deathblow.

  Apparently while I was drunk the other ships had arrived and joined the party, which ended with a big barbeque where everyone got to share a portion, and for some reason I had insisted on eating the heart raw. I quietly shivered at that as a memory of me holding up a chunk of raw fish heart to the rowdy crowd of drunkards while soaked in blood and screaming surfaced. Maybe it would be a good life decision to avoid drinking excessively at parties in the future. Clearing the stench of vomit was already trouble enough, but now everyone in the fleet had heard about my crazed night, and I was famous in an embarrassing manner.

  Now that we had a catch in tow, we could begin making our way back to town. The previous weeks drifting in search of prey were replaced with a more focused atmosphere as the captains worked in sync to get us clear of the deep waters. The deadliest part of a voyage was the return. The danger was usually varied, but the scent of blood would draw predators. The fish has its injuries blocked by fabric, but it was an imperfect storage.

  However, this time we were in luck, and our trip home was without consequence. The sight of the Wither Tree on the horizon was a testament to the captain's skill in navigating with the stars. As we pulled into port and the town's butchery team offloaded the catch, I saw my family down below cheering for me. I jumped from the ship towards the dock and embraced them. It was good to finally be home.

  Punitive Force

  Baron Eldraine looked into a mirror and didn’t recognize who he saw. His body had inflated from the ample indulgence, his hairline had receded from the stress, and his eyes had thick shadows from sleepless nights in paranoia. He threw the mirror from the window, ignoring the shocked cry from those outside. The maids were his enemy. He had heard their whispers about how he was unworthy.

  The whippings and executions of those who defied him had become more frequent, and now he struggled to trust anyone, not even his treasured concubine. However, good news had arrived. The duke had permitted him to act however was necessary so long as his mandates went unchallenged. The former knighthood had slowly disbanded as men left his service in favor of his enemies. However, that didn’t matter because the Snatcher guild had flourished in his domain. Little punishment was held for murder, and soon a new order of enforcers under his command emerged.

  The baron didn’t trust any of them, but he was still stronger and had the right lineage to command. These men had benefitted from him and could be trusted to act in his service so long as the benefits were unchanged. Baron Eldraine was dissatisfied with how weak they were compared to the former baron, but getting his men bloodied in battle would shape them nicely to his purpose. There were plenty of men to butcher his family home, who had abandoned him. Then he could push on and pillage Port Town, teaching everyone what defiance was rewarded with.

  With a valiant cry, his men set off. The twisted look in their eyes as they eagerly anticipated pillaging filled Baron Eldraine with satisfaction.