When night fell, the sea turned strange. It wasn't dark like usual. Every time a wave broke, a fluorescent blue light flashed. Noah woke up mid-sleep and poked his head over the side of the boat.
"Whoa, fire! The sea is on fire!"
Noah shouted, trying to touch the water. Lin clicked her tongue inwardly. 'It's not fire, it's plankton, you dummy.' Fearing Noah might fall in, Lin gave his hem a little tug with a stream of water. Noah looked back, feeling someone pull him, but there was nothing there but the old wooden planks.
Something shiny drifted along amidst the blue light. Lin didn't miss it and pulled it toward the boat. It was a glass bottle with the stopper squeezed in tight. Lin tossed the bottle into the boat.
"Here, another gift."
Noah picked up the bottle. Inside was a rolled-up piece of paper. He grunted and struggled to open the stopper. He almost flipped a fingernail, but finally, it popped out with a loud thwack. Noah pulled out the paper and unfurled it.
The paper was covered in complex lines and an 'X' mark. It was a map. Noah held the map upside down and stared at it for a long time.
"Is this... home?"
Noah pointed at the map. Lin stole a glance at it from under the boat. It was a map of the Long-Men Archipelago, located far to the south. There were plenty of delicious fruits there and many quiet islands where no humans lived. Lin made up her mind. That's the next destination.
But peace didn't last long. Suddenly, a massive shadow appeared on the water. This time, it wasn't a whale. A ghost ship with tattered sails was charging straight toward Noah's tiny boat. No one was on board, but the ship moved as if it were alive.
"Noah! Hold on tight!"
Lin shouted. Of course, Noah couldn't hear her. He just froze as he saw the giant ship approaching. Lin pushed the water with all her might to move the boat out of the way. The ghost ship barely grazed Noah's boat as it passed. A chilling cold lingered in its wake.
Lin was furious. How dare it touch the boat she was protecting. Lin gathered the seawater and formed a giant hand. Then, she gave the back of the ghost ship a violent shove. The ghost ship lost its balance and was sent skidding far away.
Noah clutched the map to his chest, panting.
"I'm scared... Water, I'm scared."
Noah whimpered and lay face down on the floor of the boat. Lin's heart softened. She created tiny bubbles and had them hover around Noah. As the blue light wrapped around him like fireflies, Noah slowly calmed down.
"Don't worry. Do you think I'd let you die?"
Lin quietly resumed the voyage. Cutting through the glowing sea, the boat headed in the direction the map pointed. Before long, Noah fell asleep using the map as a pillow.
Noah kept tossing and turning in his sleep. It seemed like the floor of the boat was too hard for him. Lin controlled the waves to gently rock the boat like a cradle. In the process, the map Noah was clutching got soaked with water. Startled, Lin extended a stream of water and snatched the map away.
"Hey! If this gets ruined, we can't find the way!"
Lin floated the map in the air and shook off the moisture. Fortunately, the paper was tough and didn't tear. Noah fumbled around in his sleep, realized the map was gone, and snapped his eyes open. Panicked, he searched every inch of the boat.
"My home! Where did my home go?"
Noah cried out, his voice trembling. Lin found it ridiculous. Since when was a map a "home"? She stealthily dropped the map back onto Noah's lap. As soon as he saw it, Noah hugged it tight and let out a long sigh of relief.
"Hehe, it's here."
He was definitely a dummy. Noah spread the map out again and pressed his finger firmly on the spot marked with an 'X'. Then, he poked his head over the side, trying to find Lin's shape. Lin hid herself deep underwater.
"Um... thank you."
Noah muttered softly. Lin felt a tickle in a corner of her chest. 'Thanks for what? I'm just doing this because I'm bored.' Even as she grumbled, she pushed the boat with even more strength.
Just then, something strange surfaced on the water. It was a large wooden barrel. Lin shot a jet of water, kicking the barrel toward the boat. Excited, Noah hauled the barrel on board. When he opened the lid, he found dried corn and an old blanket inside.
The moment Noah saw the blanket, he wrapped it around himself. He must have liked the soft texture because he rubbed his face against it and laughed. Watching him, Lin thought, 'Getting so happy over something so small—humans are really easy to read.'
Noah took out a piece of dried corn and started gnawing on it. Then, he plucked a kernel and tossed it into the sea.
"You eat too!"
Lin snorted. There was no way a spirit would eat corn. But since Noah was being so sincere, she intercepted the kernel with a stream of water and took it deep into the ocean. Noah clapped when he saw the corn disappear.
"You're eating well! Want more?"
"Forget it, you eat it all."
Instead of answering, Lin splashed a water droplet right onto the tip of Noah's nose. Noah sneezed and fell backward, and the two of them played around like that for a long while. Before they knew it, the boat was approaching the first island shown on the map. A tiny speck began to appear on the horizon.
The island grew larger. But the closer they got, the stranger it felt. White fog swarmed around the island like ghosts. Noah sat at the edge of the boat, wearing his blanket like a cape. He swallowed hard, staring into the mist.
"Water, is there something scary in there?"
Lin didn't answer. Instead, she widened her eyes beneath the surface. Large shadows flickered inside the fog. They looked like trees, or maybe giant arms. Lin carefully steered the waves to make sure the boat didn't hit any rocks.
Just then, something whizzed through the fog. Noah ducked in surprise. It was a yellow fruit. It landed on the floor of the boat and looked soft. Noah picked it up and called out to Lin.
"Look at this! The island gave me a gift!"
Lin was speechless. Islands don't give gifts. She extended a long stream of water to peer beyond the mist. There, small monkey-like creatures were sitting in the trees, tossing fruit. They seemed fascinated by the boat, chattering and laughing among themselves.
Lin let out a small smirk. They weren't monsters, just bored little runts. In return, she scooped up a bucket-load of water and blasted it into the trees. The monkeys shrieked as they got soaked and scrambled away. Noah laughed so hard his stomach hurt.
"Hahaha! Water won!"
Noah took a bite of the yellow fruit. Sweet juice filled his mouth. Feeling good, he started dancing a little jig inside the boat. Watching him, Lin pushed the boat toward the island's beach.
The beach was quiet. The boat touched the sand softly. For the first time, Noah stepped out of the boat. As the soft sand squeezed between his toes, he made a strange face.
"The floor... it's squishy."
Noah ran around the beach, full of excitement. Lin watched him from the side of the boat, rippling the water. She couldn't follow him onto the dry land, but she could see everything as long as he stayed near the shore. Noah started picking up pretty seashells scattered across the sand.
He gathered them one by one and brought them back to the boat. Then, as if to show them to Lin, he held a shell out toward the water.
"Look at this, isn't it really pretty?"
Lin splashed a few droplets to show her agreement. Noah picked a giant leaf growing near the beach and made a little roof over the boat. Now, it seemed he wouldn't get wet even if it rained.
Lin thought to herself. This kid is a quick learner. Give him a boat, a map, and a silver spoon, and he'd probably find a way to have fun anywhere. Lin calmed the waves at the shore, waiting for Noah to get back in.
When night came, Noah lined up his collected shells neatly on the floor of the boat. It looked like a tiny treasure chest. Lin settled in beside him, getting ready to sleep.