Father of Zaan by C.K. Rieke

Author:C.K. Rieke [Rieke, C.K.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Crimson Cro Publishing
Published: 0101-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER FOUR

HANGING his bare feet over the side of the ship, Janos felt the cool breeze blow through his toes. He held out the long fishing pole, watching the line glide through the water behind them as the ship sailed on. Janos smoked from his pipe, and smiled. Aye, this is the life. No one back in Fur-lol knows it. It'll be a pleasure to head back home someday, and tell them of my travels. Aye, this is surely the life.

His fingers wrapped firmly around the pole as it jutted back towards the river's waters. His teeth clenched down on his pipe, and his dark eyebrows turned down.

"Whoa boy! Yer a big one."

Brando came rushing over with a handful of other sailors, watching Janos struggle with the pole bowing like a longbow being pulled taught. Brando had to reach over Janos and grab it to help his friend.

"My lord, Janos, what've you got on the end of this line? You throw a rump o' lamb on the end of the hook? This thing pulls like the devil in a brothel!"

"She's a big one alright," Janos said, and spit his pipe to the side. Another grabbed at the pole, and Janos reeled in the line, little by little, as the sun began to sink behind them.

"Janos, give me the line," said one of the sailors. "I can hold it while you rest, you've been at it for hours now."

"No, she's not getting away from me," he said, with thick beads of sweat streaming down his face and neck. "She's mine."

Brando looked over into Janos' eyes. Janos saw the light and tenacity in his friend's eyes. "Let's get her," Brando said.

He heaved and pulled, yet made sure to give the fish slack when she pulled, and she pulled like a monster. Janos fought long and hard, almost losing the pole from his hands a couple of times. His feet were placed up on the railing of the ship as he battled for hours.

Eventually, one of the sailors watching yelled out, "There she is!"

Janos poked his head up over the railing to see the body of the beast just below the waterline. That's no fish, it's too long, it looks more like a snake! Do I really want to catch a snake?

"I'll be damned, Janos," Brando said. "You've got a damn eelshark on the end of your line, and big one at that."

"An eelshark?" Janos said, still struggling with the line and pole.

"Yup, let's get her," Brando said.

Two sailors both ran up to the railing of the ship in the twilight with long hooks, ready to pierce its slick skin.

Brando and Janos used every last bit of their strength to reel the creature closer to the ship. Once they had it close enough, and its strength was fading, they drove sharp hooks into its flesh and brought it up on the ship's deck. Janos and Brando had to jump out of the way as the eelshark thrashed and slithered like nothing he had ever seen before.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.