Aiko closed the door to the forge with a creaking thump, keys clinking against each other as she slid the deadbolt into place. Hooking the keyring back onto her belt, Aiko lifted a semi-clean hand to her forehead, brushing at an itch and pushing her sweat-damp hair back from her skin.
Turning, Aiko hiked her messenger bag higher on her shoulder and tightened her grip on her tackle box, looking out toward the horizon line. This time of day, Sparrow's Grove was cast in warm orange hues, the roofs of houses aflame with colour, stragglers in the square squinting through the sun's haze as they made their ways home. But Aiko wasn't going home.
Starting forward, Aiko let her legs take her toward the docks on the far edge of town. Breaking through the line of buildings at the end of the square, Aiko moved through a winding path, tall grasses brushing against her work clothes and tickling the exposed skin of her ankles where she'd rolled the edges of her coveralls up.
Then, finally, she was at the docks.
There were five wooden docks in all, one large sectional dock that fitted several fishing boats against it, and four more small docks meant for smaller boats and fish traps.
Aiko chose the furthest dock, the one nearest the edge of the grasses, walking to the end and setting down her tackle box. Pushing her shoulders back, Aiko revelled in the crackle of her spine and breathed in deep. The air was clean and thick here, salt at the back of her throat like a welcoming caress. A breeze drifted by, lifting the shoulder-length strands of her hair in a lazy wave.
She loved the heat of the forge, but she loved the ocean even more.
Shrugging off her messenger bag, she let it drop to the planks before sitting down next to it and opening her tackle box. The dock was a regular spot for Aiko and other fishers in town, so a few community fishing poles stood tall in a makeshift stand at the side of the dock. Picking her favourite--a flexible, smooth bamboo rod--Aiko pulled a fresh line from her tackle box, starting the process of stringing it.
Soon, she was putting on the lure--a bright, colourful bit that resembled a minnow--hooking bait, and readying to cast. With a single fluid motion, Aiko brought her arm back before flicking it forward, casting the line far into the sun-dappled ripples of the ocean. When she was sure the line was where she wanted it, Aiko placed the rod into a tight gap between two of the dock planks and sighed, leaning back on her hands.
It was cool out tonight, the skies clear and pink with the setting sun. Aiko looked out at the horizon and wondered just how long she'd sit outside tonight. It wasn't an everyday occasion that she came down to the docks. Most days she was too exhausted, her skin too slick with sweat and grime that she just went straight home.
But tomorrow she wouldn't be at the forge. The whole town would be closed for Beltane, the streets transformed with ribbons of colour and flower petals, a maypole at the center of it all. Aiko didn't envy the crew that would be up before sunrise setting it all up. But she was thankful for the holiday, because it meant she'd get to stay at the docks later, the promise of a late morning in bed all the reassurance she needed to stay out long after the moon had risen.
A ripple along her fishing line pulled Aiko from her thoughts. Watching closely, she sat up straighter and readied herself in case she needed to grab the rod and start reeling. After a few seconds, the line wobbled again, then went still. Seconds passed, then a full minute, and Aiko relaxed. Just a curious fish, then.
But then the line jerked once--quickly, with a force that tugged at the rod itself. Aiko's brows shot up and she reached for the rod, pulling it free and placing her hand on the reel. The line jerked again, an unmistakable motion, and she started reeling. But then the rod jerked so hard it nearly flew out of her hands. Aiko's forehead wrinkled. What fish was strong enough to do that so close to shore?
Gritting her teeth, Aiko leaned back and kept reeling. The fish was trying its hardest to swim away now, an increasing tension pulling at the line and curling the top half of the rod.
Come on, Aiko thought to herself.
And then, at once, all of the tension in the line released, Aiko falling backwards, head thumping hard against the planks of the dock, teeth clacking against each other and sending a chill through her jaw. Aiko blinked up at the sky, trying to clear the floaters from her vision.
She laid there for a moment, trying to get her bearings. Then she sat up, rubbing at the back of her head. Now that a minute had passed, she felt better, and she couldn't feel any wetness beneath her hair, so she reckoned she'd likely be fine. But that fish... Aiko started reeling in her line, and when it started to lift from the water, she plucked up the end and held it in front of her eyes. Her mouth tugged down into a frown.
"What the hell?" she muttered.
The line was cut through, not in a clean snap, but a jagged tear, like someone had taken a serrated edge to it, fraying the threads of the string and making them curl in different directions. What on earth could have done that?
Curiosity pulled at Aiko, and soon she was staring at the surface of the water, trying to see into its depths. Before she knew what she was doing, she stood, unzipping her coveralls and pushing them off over her work boots. The boots came off, too, and the socks beneath those. Soon Aiko stood only in her underwear--a practical bra that was just a tight-fitting band of fabric and an equally practical pair of dark, formfitting cotton shorts.
The water would be cold at this time of day, but she hoped the setting sun would have warmed it somewhat. Approaching the end of the dock, Aiko crouched, then sat, hanging one foot off the edge and giving her toes a tentative dip. When nothing tried to bite her after a few seconds, she let out a shaky exhale. There was something uniquely unsettling about the ocean at night. The sun had nearly completely disappeared now, the water no longer highlighted by its glow but instead cast in a foggy haze.
Getting into the water this late at night wasn't a smart idea. Getting into the water this late at night after just hitting her head was even less of a smart idea. And yet, she couldn't shake her curiosity. She could come back tomorrow, but would whatever it was that cut her line be gone?
A few metres out, Aiko saw bubbles rise to the surface of the water and quickly snapped her leg back up to the dock.
Okay, so maybe she shouldn't go in there.
And yet she was rooted to her spot at the edge of the dock, even as the bubbles rose again, closer this time. Squinting, Aiko thought she could see a faint light, bobbing in the ocean's tide.
Slowly, the light bobbed closer, and despite herself, Aiko had started to lean forward, hands gripping the edge of the dock as she hung over it, watching the light until it was directly beneath her. She watched it stop, flicker, and disappear. Frowning, Aiko squinted, thinking it had gone deeper in the water, and leaned forward a little bit more, pushing her balance as far as it would go.
