The Foggy Pier

The plants put up little resistance to Wyssal's assault, falling in droves to her mighty blade. The pier creaked under her footsteps, but held her weight. When she struck the bell, it rang far more loudly than a bell its size should. The clear note echoed over the lake, sending ripples across the water.

A moment later, Wyssal would notice a dark shape under the water, rising slowly. It broke the surface, gliding easily through the still water without so much as a splash. As it rose, Wyssal would see that it was a boat...mostly. It was a large dingy, but was clearly in no shape to sail. The hull was riddled with holes, the boards were cracked, and it looked more like the soggy skeleton of a boat than a seaworthy vessel. It had clearly spent a lot of time at the bottom of the lake, and had no business being on the surface and pretending that it was usable. And yet, here it was, floating over across the lake to the pier where the young halfling stood.

Wyssal landed on the boat, which rocked and dipped with the impact. However, it didn't sink somehow. Perhaps all the holes allowed any water that came in to pour right back out. Once she was on, it began to move away from the dock out towards the center of the lake. How it was moving was impossible to tell, as there were no oars or sails. If she sat on one of the remaining benches, Wyssal would be able to dip her feet in the lake through a hole in the bottom of the boat.

Eventually, the skeleton of a boat came to a halt, out in the middle of the lake. A very annoyed-looking woman surfaced beside Wyssal, glaring at her and brushing wet hair out of her eyes as she floated.

"I don't suppose you're here for a sword, are you?"

The woman's eyes widened in surprise when Wyssal said that she wasn't looking for any swords. She rose out of the water, pulling herself up on the side of the ghostly boat until she was standing on the surface. Now that she was out of the water, Wyssal would be able to see that she was wearing a long and rather damp dress. When she shook the halfling's hand, her grip would be cold and rather slimy with mud and lake water.

"I'm Evelyn, but most people just call me that lady who lives at the bottom of the lake and hands out swords. It's really gotten quite annoying. Everyone comes out here at all times of the day to ask for a sword. I have other hobbies, you know! It's just that I have a bunch of swords and I don't really like them all that much, so I give them away."

Evelyn shook her head. She walked on the surface of the water around the boat, looking it over curiously.

"I live here in the lake, I can't go off to the village. And swords are awfully heavy, you know. There's far too many of them for me to carry them out to the edge. And my hobby is basket-weaving. Underwater, of course. Nobody knows that, though. I've made hundreds of baskets, but nobody calls me that lady in the lake who weaves baskets. Hand out one sword, though, and now everyone's coming to see the lady in the lake who hands out swords. It's become quite a hassle. I don't like going to the edge of the water, either. Kids throw rocks at me if they see me coming."

She sighed, and poked Wyssal's boat with her toe.

"Say, how did you get all the way out here on this? It doesn't look like it should be floating at all. Where are your oars?"

Evelyn gasped, her eyes widening in shock. She bent down and looked closely at the boat, biting her lip with worry. When she looked back up at Wyssal, she seemed even more pale than before. Her hands shook, and she seemed to have trouble keeping her balance on the surface of the water.

"Y-you rang that thing? Oh no, no no no. This isn't good at all. You weren't supposed to do that! This isn't my boat, Wyssal, and it isn't yours either. It's the Boneman's boat! You'd best hope that he didn't hear that bell ring, or there'll be trouble for you for sure. Go, put the boat back and pray that he doesn't find out that you took it! Hurry, before it's too late!"

Evelyn shook her head nervously. She glanced back and forth, as though worried that the mysterious Boneman would come swimming out to the middle of the lake.

"No no no! You don't understand! He's not made of bones, he steals bones! He'll tear your ribs from your body! Wyssal, you can't possibly fight him. He's far too dangerous. Go back quickly, and run as far from here as you can! He...he likes me, so I can stall him for a little while, but you still have to go. Trust me, you don't want to mess with him. Haven't the locals told you not to ring that bell? It's for the Boneman to ring, and for him only. Oh, this isn't good at all. I should have stayed at the bottom of the lake today..."

Evelyn shrugged.

"How should I know? I don't use boats. I see the Boneman in that thing sometimes, and it seems to just go where he wants it to."

She kicked the boat, but it remained in place. All of a sudden, the sound of a bell rang out over the lake. Evelyn jumped, startled, and the boat turned around and began to glide back towards the pier. Eveyln ran after it, shouting.

"Wait! Wait! He's here, the Boneman is here! He'll be waiting for you at the dock! You should jump out and swim away, if you can swim that far. He'll kill you for sure if he sees you in it!"

Evelyn shook her head desperately.

"You'll do no such thing! You can't possibly! He'll debone you like a fish, and there's nothing you can do about it! Come on. We can't have you dying or having your bones removed by force."

She grabbed at Wyssal, lifting her up and out of the boat unless the halfling resisted. The boat would continue onward, seemingly uncaring whether or not it had a rider.

Wyssal would soon find that she had not, in fact, been pulled into the water. Looking down, she would see Evelyn standing on the surface of the lake, holding the squirming halfling over her head. The boat drifted back to shore, leaving a small wake in the calm water.

"You'll die if you go over there, Wyssal. Come on, I'll carry you to the other side of the lake. It's a good thing you're light. Stop moving, you're just making things harder. You can climb on my back, if you like."

She began walking away from the pier to the other shore, her footsteps leaving small ripples in the water. She seemed to have no trouble walking on the surface, almost as though she were part water strider.