Peek: A New Foundation

Captain Hullbreak watches his dwellers with trepidation. Not even a year ago, he would have had the First Mate break up plans like this, but now... he feels a heavy sort of hope as he watches them. Memories ebb and flow like the tides, but he's firmly steering his ship now, and can ride the waves without sinking.

The Catastrophe still fills him with sorrow and loss, but it's less raw now. It's still an emotional storm, but he finally understands he doesn't have to weather it on his own anymore. His precious dwellers from that day... can't respawn. But he is also slowly coming to accept that they would have still wanted to trade anyway, wouldn't have wanted him to seal himself and the enclave away. The seas can be dark and dangerous, the outside waters full of terrors, but they also hold opportunity.

As long as his dwellers are aware of the danger and still choose to face it, he'll do his best to follow the Admiral's heading and provide them with as much support as he can.

Just as they support him in turn. Is the new trades pier for his benefit as well as theirs? He likes to think so, to know his dwellers forgive him and still want to help their Captain. It firms his resolve to not fail them again. Even if... the worst should happen again, he and they will learn and not make the same mistakes. He's also thankful to the Admiral and the scion Coda, for not needing to learn everything the hard way.

Watching the construction on the lighthouse was, fittingly, enlightening on how to build something to last. His merfolk dwellers learned all they could, and with his latest spawner upgrade, they have all they need to build a Trade Hall that will not collapse even from a deliberate ramming. He had to scour the options for his seaslugs for the perfect upgrade, preferring to take a more direct hand in the new spawns than the Admiral often does, and he believes he's found it.

These ones are meant to fortify coral beds, instead of simply improve their health. The stronger mucus is exactly what his dwellers need to be able to make their own form of concrete and mortar, and so build a solid foundation for the piers and Trade Hall.

He even set a small quarry in the cliff face where his dwellers can easily reach, allowing them to mine out the needed blocks for their ambitions. He's been ever more nervous as the preparations progressed, but the eagerness of his dwellers has been enough to keep him from falling back on old habits. A Captain drunk on sorrow is at least as big a danger to his crew as one drunk on spirits, and seeing them grow has been an excellent motivator for staying sober.

How many times did he miss the opportunity to help his living dwellers while mourning the fallen? Even one would be too much, and he keeps to that resolve, even as his dwellers gather at his borders, the new site for the trades pier. They want it in his borders, so he can gain from it as much as they do. The First Mate floats among the throng of merfolk, the great white shark proud of her Captain and the dwellers both.

The Captain's High Priest raises his trident, getting everyone's attention. "Here we are, merfolk of the Captain! This is a momentous day, one where we return to dangerous waters, but with aforethought to the dangers. We all know the Catastrophe, when the old Trade Hall crumbled, killing dwellers. We all know the depth of the Captain's grief, and the banishment of the delvers. And we all know of Thedeim, who came and reminded our dear Captain that even the darkest of storms will pass. It is better to learn to weather the storms than to isolate from the seas from fear.

"And so we break the ground here, the site of our new Trade Hall, our new pier. We will reestablish trade with the surface, and see the wonders they have, just as they will see the ones we have. Thedeim showed us how to build with the Lighthouse. Now we shall build for our Captain a thriving hub of trade, one no mere rogue wave will be able to break. Raise your shovels, my fellow dwellers! We do not build our future on silt, but on bedrock! It is more work to reach, but it will last for generations!"

The merfolk cheer as he drives his trident into the silt of the sea floor. It's not a perfect shovel, but the symbolism is enough to encourage everyone, the Captain included. He's proud as even his High Priest gets a real shovel and starts clearing the sea bed. It will still take time, and he's sure he'll be nervous about the project as it continues, but for now... it feels right.

He'll never escape the anchor of his past, but he doesn't need to let it keep him immobile. He can weigh it and drop as needed. A ship that stays anchored forever is hardly a ship at all, and one without an anchor is doomed to dash against the shore. He'll learn from the past and use it to make sure he doesn't get beached again.