I had a strange dream last night. In it, I was standing on the edge of a cliff, an endless ocean before me. Dark clouds hung overhead, lightning cracking like repeated blows that lit the sky in white. My chest swelled at the beauty, gut sunk at the sheer force of the storms. Then I saw a boat crashing through the waves, so powerful it was like a titan had thrown a tantrum in the heart of the sea. The boat continued to fight the waves, pushing forward inch by inch.
Suddenly a bolt of brilliant lightning struck the ship, which was torn asunder by the waves and the wind. Then I was floating over the wreckage, the storm settling. Holy light filtered down from the heavens, over several parts of the boat. Snapper racks. Fishing rod holder. The bow rail. Bait board. Somehow, I knew them to be of great importance. I could feel it in my heart, swelling at the sight.
“Unite them,” called a voice from above. “Unite the lost pieces of the Atlantis. Start with snapper racks. Around Melbourne, you will find them.”
“Why me?” I asked the mysterious voice, still floating over the destroyed boat. “What do you need from me, o mighty voice?”
“You will be my humble servant on this world. I have chosen you to collect the lost pieces of the Atlantis and restore balance to the seas. Serve me, the Heart of the Deep, and you shall be rewarded.”
“I am but a simple tradesman of marine fabrication, mighty one. Why me?”
The voice boomed back, ringing my ears and shaking my bones. Louder than thunder. Louder than something even louder than thunder. Like an earthquake or something. “You appreciate the significance of the sea. You know boats. I had to choose someone. Why not you?”
“Fair point, I suppose.”
I woke up then, drenched in so much sweat that I almost thought I’d drowned in the ocean from my dream. When I looked down, beside my bed, I saw a checklist. Snapper rack. Fishing rod holder. Bow rail. Bait board.
– Gillan Neptune