Esther jolted awake abruptly, nearly hitting her head on the upper bunk. Her body was drenched in sweat, and she found herself gasping for breath as if she had just sprinted for miles.
Another dream…
She couldn't recall the details of her dream clearly, but she had a lingering sense of having seen countless places—cities she had never visited, underwater landscapes beyond her imagination. At times, she glimpsed people dressed in unfamiliar clothing or creatures with strange, otherworldly forms. The details faded into obscurity the moment she opened her eyes, yet she knew with certainty that, in the depths of her slumber, she had seen them vividly.
Esther let out a long sigh, but it was completely drowned out by the sound of her father's snoring from the upper bunk.
There were times when she felt as if her memories had gaps, as if she had blacked out in midair and regained consciousness only to find herself in the middle of doing something else.
It all began the moment she stepped toward the dying whale.
What was she thinking at that moment?
What had she done?
Had she done the right thing?
Something inside her had changed—she could feel it.
Whatever it was, it filled her with fear.
She wouldn't dare talk about it with her father—it would only make him worry even more. As for Sonia, she had been acting strangely ever since Esther woke up in Giza. It was as if Sonia was deliberately avoiding her, and when they did speak, there was a stiffness in her tone, a cautious restraint that hadn't been there before.
As for Rain…
Esther sighed once more at the thought of the young man.
He might be the only one willing to listen to her right now.
But she didn't have the courage to face him anyway.
What was she thinking, losing her temper at him like that? She had spoken as if it had all been his fault to save her, as if he was to blame. But he hadn't done anything wrong.
'Do I need a reason to save you?'
Yes, he had no reason to do it. Maybe that was just the kind of person he was. But what kind of person in this world would risk their own life to save someone else?
But that was exactly why she didn't want him to die because of her.
Did that mean it was fine if he died saving someone else—just as long as that someone wasn't her?
Was it just that she didn't want to be the one responsible for his death?
Did she simply not want to bear the guilt of causing someone else's death?
How utterly selfish.
Esther shook her head, trying to drive those thoughts away.
I'm not that kind of person.
I don't feel that way.
Then what was she feeling?
Her own thoughts echoed the question back at her.
But she had no answer.
Esther rose from the bed, deciding that there was no way she could go back to sleep with these thoughts swirling in her head. She grabbed her orange leather vest, slipping it over her white t-shirt, and stepped out of the room.
…
Esther's feet carried her to the radio control panel, but the person sitting there wasn't Sonia. She recognized the other woman—Diz, the night-shift radio operator who took over after Sonia.
Diz wore standard engineer's uniform pants, but she had tied her jacket around her waist, revealing a red t-shirt with a black, hand-painted skull design at its center. A headset hung loosely around her neck, while a small earbud was tucked into one ear, connected to a portable music player stashed in her pocket.
She bobbed her head lightly to the rhythm of whatever song she was listening to, her sleek black braids swaying side to side in time with her movements.
"Sonia's shift ended an hour ago," the girl suddenly spoke, breaking the silence so abruptly that Esther flinched. "Just in case you were wondering."
"Uh… thanks," Esther replied, then, before she could think better of it, asked, "What are you listening to?" Only after the words left her mouth did she realize how odd the question sounded.
"AC/DC," Diz replied, still nodding her head to the rhythm. "Wanna try?" she asked, tilting her head slightly as if offering to share.
The thunderous roar of drums and electric guitar filled her ears the moment she slipped on one side of the headphones. It was rock music—the kind sailors often blasted on their ships. Esther had heard plenty of it before, having spent time at the docks listening to their tales of adventure.
Even so, she had never actually listened to AC/DC before. Her father preferred classical music, and she had grown up hearing the melodies he played. Compared to that, this was something entirely different.
But the guitar solo in this song was unmistakably distinctive, and the rhythm was infectious. Before she knew it, Esther found herself nodding along to the beat.
"Didn't take you for a rock fan, Ms. Assistant Scholar," Diz remarked, eyeing her with mild surprise.
"It's pretty good," Esther admitted. "What song is this?"
"Thunderstruck. I've got plenty more to recommend if you like this kind of music," Diz said with a grin.
Normally quiet and reserved, she seemed surprisingly approachable when talking about something she enjoyed. Esther couldn't help but notice how animated she became, her enthusiasm breaking through her usual aloofness.
"Thanks," Esther said with a nod. "By the way, is the captain in the control room?" she asked.
"He's always there," Diz replied casually. Then, without hesitation, she pressed a button on her portable music player, popped out the cassette tape inside, and handed it to Esther. "Here. You can borrow this."
"Thanks..." Esther said, taking the tape with a hint of hesitation, surprised by the unexpected gesture.
Heading toward the control room. Esther didn't have the heart to tell Diz that she didn't even own a cassette player.
…
The control room was nearly empty. The lights had been dimmed, leaving only the emergency lights on, just like the rest of the ship.
Matthew sat behind the helm, his posture steady as he manned the ship's controls. Across from him, Holland lounged in the captain's chair, a cigarette between his fingers. The flicker of his lighter briefly illuminated his expressionless face and the deep crimson scarf wrapped around his neck.
Esther's gaze drifted to the massive figure slumped over a chair in front of the central control panel, the sound of his thunderous snoring filling the room. As she stepped closer, she recognized him—Commander Hector.
"Can't sleep?" Holland asked when he noticed her. The bruises on his face had almost completely faded.
"Yes…" she admitted softly, making her way to the co-pilot's seat to the right of the captain's chair. "What about you, Captain? Don't you ever sleep?"
"I do," he replied with a slight grin. "When I finally get used to this goddamn noise."
Esther could only offer a weak smile in response. Honestly, with that snoring echoing through the room, falling asleep seemed like an impossible feat.
She glanced around the room, noticing that the outer window covers were shut.
"Aren't you opening the windows to see the view today?" she asked.
"We don't usually open the windows," Holland replied evenly. "The glass is too fragile against impact. If it cracks, well… that's the end of it."
Esther placed her hand on the helm. "In that case… can I try steering the ship?" she asked.
Holland let out a sigh.
"Please, just go back to bed," he said, almost pleading.
"That's cruel, Holland—picking on a kid again," Matthew said as he stood up from his seat, stretching lazily. "I'm going to grab some coffee. Anyone want anything?"
Holland quickly sprang up and took the now-vacant seat without hesitation.
"I'm in! Damn it, Matthew, at least give me a heads-up before you get up," he grumbled.
Captain's hands moved steadily over the helm, his touch firm yet composed. His gaze remained fixed on the display screen, analyzing the sonar readings with quiet focus.
Finally, he let out a sigh, flipped a switch on the control panel, and released the helm. Then, he turned to face Esther, studying her with a thoughtful gaze.
"If you want to try steering the ship, you'll have to learn properly from me. Deal?"
Esther nodded eagerly, almost too quickly."Deal! Absolutely!"
Holland stared at her in silence for a moment before letting out another sigh.
"Damn it, Matthew…" he muttered under his breath.
Then, he reached for the lever on his right and pulled it back. Esther could feel the ship gradually slowing until it came to a complete stop.
"The lever I just pulled—the longest one on your right—is the speed control," Holland explained, his tone steady and instructive. "Push it forward, and the ship speeds up. Pull it toward you, and it slows down. Pull it all the way back, like I just did, and the ship stops."
He released the lever and pointed to a switch on the control panel, positioned beside a glowing green indicator light.
"Most submarines have two separate rudder controls—one for depth and one for steering. The left helm controls the rear rudder, which adjusts the submarine's vertical movement, while the right helm controls the front rudder, which determines left and right turns. Normally, it takes two pilots to operate both at the same time, but in certain cases, we can switch to single-pilot mode using this switch."
Holland flipped the switch in front of him. A mechanical click echoed through the cabin, and the left control lever beneath his hand retracted into the floor. The indicator light beside the switch shifted from green to red.
"Single-pilot mode can only be activated at one station at a time. I just disabled it here," he continued, nodding toward Esther. "That means you should be able to activate it on your side now."
Esther reached out and flipped the switch down.
A mechanical whir echoed through the cabin as the floor to Esther's left slid open, revealing a set of control levers that rose smoothly into place. The indicator lights on the panel in front of her shifted from red to green.
"The left control lever adjusts the rear rudder, which tilts the submarine's nose up or down. The helm in front of you controls left and right turns," Holland explained, his voice calm but firm.
"Normally, you'll use your left hand to operate the control lever and your right hand on the helm. But sometimes, you'll need to switch—using your right hand for the speed control and your left for steering. That means both of your hands need to be equally precise when handling the helm."
He tapped the edge of the console for emphasis.
"The speed at which you move the controls directly affects how fast the submarine turns. So your hands need to stay steady."
Esther placed her hands on the controls as Holland had instructed—her right hand gripping the speed control lever, while her left grasped the helm. She adjusted her fingers carefully, feeling the weight and resistance of the mechanisms beneath her touch.
"Now, push the speed control lever forward… slowly," Holland instructed.
Before Holland could even finish his sentence, the submarine jolted as Esther pushed the throttle forward too quickly.
She gasped and immediately adjusted the speed, easing the lever back slightly to stabilize the motion.
"Good, good. Keep increasing it gradually like that," Holland said approvingly.
"There are speed indicators marked at the base of the lever, but if you don't want to keep looking down, just remember—every time you pass a speed increment, you'll hear a click. That happens every five kilometers per hour."
He glanced at the controls and added, "Ease up a bit—you're getting too eager with it."
"Now, right below the throttle grip, there's a squeeze latch. If you press it all the way in, the lever will lock at the current speed. Once it's locked, you can let go of the throttle completely, and it'll stay in place. But keep in mind—you won't be able to adjust the speed again until you squeeze the latch once more to unlock it."
Esther squeezed the latch beneath the throttle.
Click!
The locking mechanism engaged with a firm sound. She cautiously let go of the lever and watched as it held steady at an angled position, unmoving. Glancing at the control panel, she saw the number 30 displayed at the base—indicating the current speed of the submarine.
"The control of a submarine's speed and direction must always go hand in hand with monitoring the sonar display," Holland explained, pointing to the cluster of screens on the right-hand wall beside Esther.
"You should already understand the basics of how sonar waves reflect off obstacles and display them on-screen, so I won't waste time explaining that."
He gestured toward the first monitor.
"This screen shows sonar readings on the Y-axis, while this one displays the X-axis. When making a turn or adjusting speed, focus on the first screen to watch for obstacles. But if you need to ascend or dive, the second screen is your primary reference."
The central marker on the first screen moved slowly past clusters of jagged lines on both the left and right sides. Meanwhile, the second screen showed a more stable pattern, with the jagged lines shifting only slightly.
Esther quickly discerned that the first screen provided a top-down view of the submarine's surroundings, while the second screen displayed a rear-view perspective, mapping obstacles above and below the vessel.
As she grasped the core principles, Esther's left hand instinctively moved to the rear rudder control lever.
From the first screen, she saw that the submarine was gliding through the center of a massive tunnel. That meant she didn't need to worry about the cavern walls—her only concern was the stalagmites rising from below.
She quickly noticed that the rudder control worked on the same principle as the throttle. A squeeze latch beneath the grip allowed her to lock the angle of ascent or descent.
Curious, she experimented by tilting the submarine's nose up, then sharply diving downward.
"Oi! Watch it!" Holland shouted as the vessel tilted too steeply.
The sudden angle sent loose items tumbling off tables and shelves, clattering onto the floor of the control room.
"No more than twenty-five degrees!" Holland barked. "Unless you want everyone who's sleeping to roll right out of their beds."
Now that she fully understood the submarine's control system, Esther carefully adjusted the heading and pitch, ensuring a stable course. She monitored the sonar screens, making sure the vessel wouldn't collide with the stalagmites below or the cave walls on either side.
Once she was confident in her positioning, she locked the controls in place, securing the angle for a smooth and steady passage.
"Even if you've locked the controls, you still need to keep an eye on both sonar screens at all times," Holland reminded her. "If an obstacle appears, you need to react immediately."
"Understood, Captain," Esther replied, her voice carrying a hint of excitement.
Now fully engrossed in piloting, she leaned back into her seat, keeping her gaze fixed on the sonar screens to her right, ready to react at a moment's notice.
"You're a quick learner," Holland remarked, leaning back in his chair as well. "For a first-time pilot, you're picking this up fast."
He stretched his arms before clasping his hands behind his head, watching her with a mix of approval and amusement.
"Isn't it harder to steer with two pilots?" Esther asked.
"It depends on how well the pilots work together," Holland explained. "If they communicate and coordinate properly, it's actually easier than piloting alone. Not only that, but with good teamwork, the submarine can maneuver more smoothly and efficiently."
He smirked slightly. "If they're in sync, that is."
Esther imagined what it would be like to pilot the submarine alongside Sonia.
If they worked together, maybe they could become the most formidable pirate duo in all of Sunless World.
"Were you ever a pilot yourself, Captain?" Esther asked curiously.
Holland fell silent for a moment before responding.
"What makes you think that?" he asked, his tone unreadable.
"When we stormed the dam, we navigated the ship through that shallow waterway. You were the one who steered us through those underwater stalagmites. At that moment, you were the only one piloting the ship," Esther explained, her tone thoughtful.
"In a situation like that, the most skilled pilot on board would have to take control. Did I analyze that correctly?"
He was silent for a long moment before finally responding, "Yeah, I used to be a pilot."
"Did you and your co-pilot work well together?" Esther asked, curious.
"If the two of us piloted together, the Royal Navy wouldn't stand a chance against us," Holland said with a grin, his tone almost playful.
Esther wasn't sure if it was the lighting or something else, but the smile on Captain Washington's face seemed tinged with an odd, lingering sadness.
"If we worked together, no enemy would ever defeat us," he continued, his voice growing more somber.
"Was the person you're talking about Rain?" Esther asked, a hint of curiosity in her voice.
Holland shook his head slowly, but he didn't add anything further. Esther, sensing the shift in mood, remained silent as well.
"Slow down now," Holland instructed. "We'll need to pass through the water gate of New Marrakesh in about two hundred meters."
Esther gently pulled the lever back toward her. As the sonar display showed a cave wall turning to the right ahead, she frowned.
"But I don't see any gap for the gate on the sonar screen," she remarked.
Holland glanced at the sonar screen on his side, his brow furrowing. "The gate's closed... Damn it."
"Can we break through like Captain Sayid did?" Esther asked, her eyes still fixed on the sonar screen.
"We'd need to prepare the divers, and that could take hours," Holland replied, falling into silence as he seemed to weigh his options in his mind.
He turned back to her once he had made his decision.
"We'll take another route. Turn right, Esther."
Esther used her right hand to slow the submarine, while her left hand carefully adjusted the angle, ensuring they could make a smooth turn without colliding with the cave walls.
"Is there another route out of the Nile?" she asked, glancing over at Holland.
"The Pharaoh's Tomb," Holland said, his tone matter-of-fact.
Esther had heard of this before. Before the formation of the African Federation, nearly all of the continent had belonged to Egypt. It was said that the ancient rulers of Egypt, known as pharaohs, believed they could only be reborn after death if their bodies were preserved underwater. To ensure this, they constructed massive underwater tomb temples, which have remained in use to this day.
When an Egyptian leader died while in power, their body would be placed in a beautifully carved sarcophagus and placed on a stone pillar beneath the water
"Does it connect to the open sea?" Esther asked, her curiosity piqued.
"There's an escape route from the last pharaoh, one that connects to the open sea," Holland explained. "Not many people know about this path, but we can use it to reach the open sea instead. If you drive straight ahead for about five hundred meters, there'll be a gap in the wall on the left."
Esther noticed the gap in the jagged line to the left on the sonar screen, just as Holland had mentioned.
"Isn't this turn a bit tight for me to maneuver?" she asked, concerned.
"You can do it," Holland reassured her. "If it's too tight, I'll let you know."
With the captain's encouragement, Esther took a deep breath and steadied herself, gripping the helm with determination. Slowly, she turned it left, feeling the external force as the Washington began to shift direction. The submarine gradually turned through the gap in the wall.
When the captain didn't call out any warnings, she continued, making the turn more pronounced until the ship smoothly passed through the narrow opening.
Esther and Holland exhaled in relief at the same time, both feeling the tension ease as the submarine cleared the tight turn.
"Alright, there will be a lot of stone pillars blocking the way in the tomb, so I'll take over from here," Holland said, pressing a button on the control panel to activate the single-pilot mode on the left-hand seat.
Before the left control lever could fully retract into the floor, Esther sensed something unusual.
It was as if she could sense the presence of another person in the room without even needing to look.
It was like the feeling you get when you suddenly become aware that someone has been watching you.
She lifted her gaze to the walls of the submarine, sensing something in the air, though she couldn't explain it.
Was there something there? Something she couldn't quite see, but could feel?
The sound around her fell silent in an instant, as if everything had paused for a brief moment.
She could hear the intense pressure of the water surrounding the submarine, its force pressing in from all sides.
She could hear the sound of Matthew's footsteps echoing as they hit the metal stairs on the third deck.
She could hear something moving through the water at high speed, cutting through the currents, heading straight toward her.
Esther immediately flipped the switch on the control panel again. A green light flickered on in front of her, signaling the system had activated.
"Hey! What are you doing!?" Holland turned to look at her in confusion, but then he stopped mid-sentence.
Esther didn't wait for the rudder control to fully extend. She spread both her hands, gripping the levers on either side, and pushed them both forward, all the way to their limits at the same time.
The submarine jolted violently, causing Hector to fall from his seat and roll across the floor as the ship tilted forward and plunged forcefully into the depths of the water. Hector's body continued to roll with the momentum, crashing into Holland's chair as the vessel hurtled downward.
"What the hell!?" Hector groggily grabbed Holland's collar, still disoriented. Meanwhile, Captain of Washington turned to Esther, his voice filled with panic and anger. "What did you do!?" he shouted.
The submarine shook violently once more, followed by a loud, deafening explosion that rocked the entire vessel.
This time, Holland's eyes widened in shock, and Hector was fully awake as well, both of them now fully alert to the chaos unfolding around them.
"Torpedo!?" Hector shouted, shaking himself free from Holland's chair before stumbling to grab the vacant captain's seat for support.
"What the hell is going on, Holland!?" he demanded, his voice sharp with panic.
"We've been ambushed," Holland muttered in disbelief. His voice became urgent. "Stop the ship, now!"
Esther reacted immediately, pulling both the left and right levers back toward her with all her strength. The Washington slowly tilted its nose back to a level position, and the shaking gradually subsided as the ship regained its stability.
Holland sprang from the co-pilot seat and rushed to press a button on the control panel behind him, urgency in every movement.
"Switch to radio silence mode! Hector, go notify the radio operator! We need to get to combat station, now!"
The sonar screens in front of Esther began to flicker and shut down one by one, while Hector quickly bolted out of the control room, his large frame moving as quickly as it could manage.
"How will we see anything then?" Esther asked, turning to Holland as he returned to sit in the left co-pilot seat once again.
"In a submarine battle, no one can be seen," Holland whispered, his voice low. "If you're seen, you're dead."
He paused for a moment, then added, "Now, stay quiet. Radio silence mode means no sound at all. If the other side is listening through hydrophones, even the slightest movement could give away our position."
Esther swallowed hard, feeling the sweat begin to form on her palms as she gripped the rudder control.
"How can we change the submarine's position without the sonar display?" she asked, anxiety creeping into her voice.
"You have to keep the last image before the display went dark in your mind," Holland replied, as if it were the most natural thing in the world. "The last thing a pilot remembers on the sonar screen will decide victory or defeat in a submarine battle."
Thanks for telling me after the screen has already gone dark, Esther thought to herself, her mind filled with a hint of sarcasm.
Hector and Matthew returned to the control room, moving stealthily as they approached Holland without making a sound.
"How's the situation?" Matthew whispered, settling into the seat behind Holland's control panel. He quickly grabbed the headset from the panel and put it on.
"180 degrees ahead, the enemy could be anywhere," Holland sighed, noticing Matthew giving him a pointed look. "Sorry I didn't have the hydrophone headset on the entire time," he added, his voice tinged with frustration.
"Great. We have no idea where the enemy is," Hector muttered under his breath, barely audible.
"The enemy doesn't know our current position either, though they probably have a good idea since they missed the shot," Holland replied, his tone calm. "We just need to play the waiting game and figure out their position."
"Right there…"
Everyone in the room turned to look at Esther as she pointed her hand toward the ceiling in front of the submarine.
"The enemy is there," Esther said before she had a chance to process how she knew that.
"How do you know that?" Hector turned to glare at her with an intense, predatory look. "And who allowed you to be here?"
Holland raised his hand, cutting off Hector's words. He fell silent when he saw the captain's serious expression, sensing the gravity of the situation.
"Are you sure about that?" Holland asked, staring at her intently.
She nodded firmly, responding with certainty, "That's where they fired the torpedo at us."
"They must have changed position after firing. Knowing that won't help us," Hector muttered, shaking his head in frustration.
As the three of them huddled together, whispering to each other, Esther's gaze drifted to the walls of the submarine. She felt something outside the vessel—a sensation that wasn't just a hunch but a certainty. It was as if she knew something was out there, like she had seen this patch of water with her own eyes before.
She barely even registered it when Holland turned to speak to her.
"Turn the ship toward the spot you pointed out," Holland instructed. "We'll fire a torpedo at them."
Both of Esther's hands instinctively gripped the levers and controls. She adjusted the submarine's heading, all the while maintaining an awareness of the surroundings, her mind still sensing the presence outside the vessel.
"We'll fire randomly and then slowly maneuver along the seabed," Holland's voice seemed to come from a distance as Esther's ears were filled with the constant sound of the shifting water surrounding them. "I can still remember the sonar image. In a situation like this, we have to take risks to make the enemy reveal themselves."
Esther pulled the control lever back toward her as the submarine turned to face the position she had indicated.
"Fire a torpedo from tube one," Holland instructed, and Matthew relayed the command to the torpedo room on the fourth deck.
In the instant that the whoosh of the torpedo launching echoed through the submarine—
Esther pushed the control lever to the right, all the way forward, and locked it in place.
The three of them were almost pinned to their seats for a moment as the Washington surged violently through the water.
"What the hell are you doing now!?" Hector shouted in panic.
Then, the sound and shockwave of an explosion erupted from behind the submarine.
"Those bastards are waiting to fire back at us!" Holland growled. "That kid is clever."
"Do you remember the way, Esther!?" Matthew shouted, his voice tinged with panic.
To be honest, she didn't remember.
Still, she could sense the position and size of the stone pillars outside the submarine.
She could feel the details of the sarcophagus and the intricate carvings on the stone pillars.
But she wasn't seeing it, not with her eyes.
She just knew what it was like and where it was.
Her hands moved swiftly between the controls—shifting the helm to steer, adjusting the throttle to change the submarine's angle, locking it in place before switching back to steer in the opposite direction. As she maneuvered, she guided the Washington to veer around the stone pillars ahead, narrowly avoiding them.
The three of them stared in awe at the young girl, who was controlling the submarine with frantic precision.
"She's controlling the ship without the sonar..." Matthew whispered. "This is insane."
At that moment, the sound of another explosion and the violent shockwave from outside caused the submarine to shake heavily once again.
Esther immediately sensed that the torpedo had missed, its calculation of their position slightly off. It exploded to her left, and she could feel the underwater pillar slowly toppling down. Of course, she couldn't see it, but she was certain that was what was happening.
She pushed the lever controlling the submarine's pitch all the way forward to dive beneath the debris. Though she managed to avoid the first stone pillar, it collided with two others ahead, toppling them as well. The falling rocks were massive, and she instantly realized there was no way she could maneuver the ship to avoid all of them.
Of course, there was no way she, who had just learned to pilot the submarine that very day, could manage to avoid it all on her own.
Esther quickly flipped the switch to disable single-pilot mode, then turned and shouted at Holland.
"Captain! The debris is seven meters above us!" Esther shouted.
Holland reacted instantly, gripping the helm and turning it left. The submarine slowly dove downward as Esther steered to the right, both of them working in sync to navigate through the perilous situation.
"Two obstacles ahead! The first one is six meters away! We need to dive past the first one!" Esther shouted.
She turned the helm left, while Holland steered right. The Washington slowly veered left, its nose rising just enough to narrowly avoid the imagined debris that Esther had sensed, barely grazing it.
"Big rock ahead... Shit! There's a torpedo coming from behind!" Esther shouted in panic.
Holland yanked the helm all the way to the left, causing Esther to grab onto the chair to avoid being thrown forward into the control panel as the submarine suddenly dove. She watched in tense silence as the torpedo shot past the outside of the ship, narrowly missing, before it collided with the massive rock falling ahead, blocking their path.
The submarine shook violently like never before, as the force of the explosion and debris collided with its outer surface, creating a deep, muffled sound—as if hundreds of people were hammering at the hull with heavy mallets. Esther squeezed her eyes shut, silently praying that she wouldn't hear the sound of water flooding in or explosions from inside the ship.
And then, gradually, everything fell silent.
Everyone in the control room sat in complete silence, not a single person moving or speaking.
It wasn't until Matthew flipped the sonar switch back on that Esther saw—there were no jagged lines of cave walls around them anymore.
They had made it to the open sea.
They had made it. They were safe.
The triumphant shouts of the three men and the young girl echoed throughout the control room. No, in the stillness of the ship, their voices probably reverberated throughout the entire vessel. Matthew lifted her off the ground, tossing her into the air, while Hector walked over and ruffled her hair, laughing loudly.
"How the hell did you remember the entire sonar image? Never mind, you're freaking genius!" Hector shouted, still hugging Matthew in celebration.
Only Holland watched her in silence, his gaze thoughtful and contemplative.
"I'm sorry..." Esther said, her voice hesitating. "I should have told you, Captain, before doing anything risky..."
Holland continued to watch her with a thoughtful gaze. "You do realize you're not alone on this ship, right?"
"Huh?" Esther didn't quite understand what Holland was trying to say.
"The ones who pilot a ship together must trust each other," Holland said, still gazing at her. "They have to trust each other's decisions and trust the person beside them. There can be no secrets between them."
Esther lowered her head, feeling the weight of his words.
She understood what Holland was talking about now.
The special ability she had just demonstrated wasn't something that could be easily explained away without raising suspicions.
It's not like she didn't know—something inside her had changed.
It's not that she couldn't guess what had happened to her.
But she just couldn't bring herself to tell Holland about it right now.
Holland looked at her with a softer gaze. "I understand if you're not ready to tell me yet. Becoming a great pilot takes time, too. But you know, as the best pilot in the Sunless World, I think you're ready to take the wheel of this ship."
Esther looked up at the captain, confused, as he extended his hand to her.
"If one day you're ready to share the story you've been keeping, how about becoming my new partner?"
Holland asked, his face softened by a gentle smile.
And for Esther, that was more than enough for now.
She flashed a wide smile at the captain of the Washington and gave his hand a firm squeeze in return.