‘The raft is too unstable,’ replied Jack. ‘One wild gust and we’d capsize. We could cut paddles from the decking, but we have to be careful not to weaken the raft’s structure –’

All of a sudden, Miyuki lunged. There was a splash followed by a shimmer of silver in the air.

‘Got one!’ she cried in delight.

Miyuki pinned her catch to the deck, where it flapped and struggled. She gave another twist to the spear and the fish fell still. Prising it from the shuriken spike, she offered her catch to the others. ‘Who’s hungry then?’

Saburo automatically reached out, then stopped himself. ‘Do you think it’s poisonous?’

Cheng shook his head. ‘No, it’s a yellowtail. Very tasty. We can also drink the fish.’

They all looked at the pirate boy dubiously.

‘Let me show you,’ he said, taking the yellowtail from Miyuki’s hands.

Putting his lips to the fish’s eyeball, he sucked hard. They heard a squelching pop as it burst and then saw Cheng swallow.

‘That’s disgusting!’ exclaimed Saburo, his appetite suddenly gone.

‘You can also drink the fluid along the spine,’ said Cheng, before offering the other eye to Jack.

Driven by thirst, Jack clamped his mouth over the slimy eye and sucked.

27

Albatross

Over the course of the afternoon, Miyuki managed to spear another two yellowtails. Using his knife, Cheng cut the three fish carefully in half before presenting them to Yori, Saburo and Miyuki to drink from their spines. The fluid would ensure everyone’s survival that day, but wasn’t enough to quench their thirst. The soft pink flesh of the fish, though, more than satisfied their hunger.

With their bellies full, their spirits rose a little and Yori eagerly took up position as lookout, determined to spot an island. But the promise of land remained as elusive as ever, their raft bobbing over the water and seemingly going nowhere.

With Cheng’s knife, Jack crafted a crude pair of thin-bladed paddles from a piece of broken decking. But, until they knew for certain which direction to head in, the paddles wouldn’t be of much use.

‘I think I saw something!’ Yori cried, pointing to a patch of sea off their stern. But his voice was one of panic, not relief.

‘What was it?’ asked Jack.

‘I … don’t know,’ he replied. ‘It was big and black … like a dragon …’

All eyes now watched the waters surrounding them. Their sense of vulnerability became starkly apparent – a tiny defenceless raft stuck in the middle of the sea, with nothing between them and the monsters of the deep. Danger lurked in every wave, fear in every ripple.

‘Over there!’ shouted Miyuki.

A dark mass, twenty times the size of their raft, breached the surface off their starboard side. A fountain of seawater spouted into the air, accompanied by a large snort. And a single black eye regarded them with keen interest.