Peril of the Slobbernaught

Fanfic for "Pangorio"

"Slobber and Teeth"

Introduction

Among the wreckage of shattered fleets and the smoke of burning ports, one sailor alone has been heard to speak of what befell him at sea. His name is Callun Marrick, once a deckhand aboard the Violet Starling. He washed ashore half-mad, sunburned, and coughing seawater, clutching nothing but a broken length of mast. Callun carries no coin and no pride, only a tale that few believe — a tale of peril beyond reckoning.

His Tale

“We thought it was just another ship. Black sails, aye, but many a pirate flies them. Then the bell tolled, a sound so sharp it pierced our skulls, and the whole crew staggered as if stabbed. The cannons roared not with iron, but with acid that ate through oak and flesh alike. I saw men I called brothers screaming as the deck melted beneath their feet.

I ran below, only to find the cargo itself alive. Crates snapped shut on hands, barrels rolled with wicked grins, a chest sprouted arms and dragged Jerrick screaming into its maw.

I do not know how I escaped. The sea took me, and perhaps it should have kept me. But I live… and I tell you true. Beware the Slobbernaught. She is not a ship, she is a peril given teeth and sail.”