{"id":727,"date":"2026-08-21T07:25:09","date_gmt":"2026-08-21T07:25:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/insidemayasmind.com\/?p=727"},"modified":"2026-08-21T07:25:09","modified_gmt":"2026-08-21T07:25:09","slug":"the-fate-of-the-hapet-chapter-8-the-starboard-line","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/insidemayasmind.com\/?p=727","title":{"rendered":"The Fate of The H\u00e5pet &#8211; Chapter 8, The Starboard Line"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/insidemayasmind.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Ch8-JPG-1024x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-722\" srcset=\"https:\/\/insidemayasmind.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Ch8-JPG-1024x1024.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/insidemayasmind.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Ch8-JPG-300x300.jpg 300w, https:\/\/insidemayasmind.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Ch8-JPG-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/insidemayasmind.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Ch8-JPG-768x768.jpg 768w, https:\/\/insidemayasmind.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Ch8-JPG-1536x1536.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/insidemayasmind.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Ch8-JPG-666x666.jpg 666w, https:\/\/insidemayasmind.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Ch8-JPG.jpg 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">My cabin was cast in an eerie white glow. No sun could penetrate that thick, freezing fog pressing against the stern windows, and what little light did filter through the glass behind me was cold and colourless.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The old yellowing sea charts rustled slightly as my pencil scratched over the surface, tracing the line of the sea current south from our last known position.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThe rot has set into the peas and grain too, Captain,\u201d Thomas reported. \u201cThe salt pork and klippfisk seem to have escaped it, but without fresh water to draw out the salt, we\u2019d be better off chewing on our boots.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThe current should take us straight into Bear Island,\u201d I said, my eyes still fixed on the chart. \u201cBy then we\u2019ll have cleared the ice. As soon as we catch sight of that rock, we\u2019ll sight a bearing and run the latitude south until we hit Norway. A true line will bring us straight to Troms\u00f8. But God willing, this fog will have cleared, and our compasses righted long before then.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThat\u2019s going to take too long!\u201d Nils exclaimed, his eyes following the line I\u2019d just drawn. \u201cBy your reckoning, at one knot, it\u2019s going to take two days to reach Bear Island. Then, under full sail and with a favourable wind, Troms\u00f8 is a further two days out. Without water, the men will be dead long before we see our families.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cPut the boats out,\u201d Jens\u2019 voice rattled, his unblinking, glassy stare never left me. \u201cFetch the ice.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cHave you lost your mind, man?\u201d Nils snapped, his eyes fixed on me. \u201cWe can barely see our hands in front of us out there. Drop the boats in this and they\u2019ll be lost.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cTether them,\u201d I said, my eyes sweeping across the three men standing hunched and crowded in my cramped cabin. \u201cTether the boats to the ship. The men can hook any passing growlers or scrape the snow from the lower floes.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I knew it was a desperate gamble. While melting young sea ice would be no better than drinking the ocean itself, older ice or the packed snow from the tops of the floes would be fresh.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The echo of the pistol cracked in the air, ringing in my ears.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cIce at three-quarter mile.\u201d The crisp call from the crow\u2019s nest floated down to the quarterdeck.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The ice lanes were closing in, but we still had time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cNils, drop the boats,\u201d I called out.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cHeave!\u201d Nils\u2019 voice drifted through the fog as two whaleboats were lowered over the side. With the creak of the pulley blocks filling the air, twelve men vanished into the white abyss below. Thick hemp lines ran out from the bows of the vessels, snaking their way through the ship\u2019s scuppers and finally securing tightly to the thick mooring bitts on deck.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cPort boat is waterborne,\u201d Christian\u2019s voice carried from the port side bulwarks, where his small team groaned and strained against the heavy ropes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cStarboard boat in too,\u201d Nils replied from across the deck, where he stood with the Larson twins. \u201cKeep vigilant on watch!\u201d he cried out, his voice echoing above the creaking timbers. \u201cIf any large floes come within a quarter mile, we haul the boats up until they\u2019re clear. I don\u2019t want them getting crushed down there because you lads got caught napping.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">For the next three hours, I paced the deck.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Wrapped in a suffocating, bone-chilling white shroud, our world had been reduced to a few hundred feet of icy timber. The gruff shouts of sailors, the groan and creak of timbers and the regular crack of the watchman\u2019s pistol were the only sounds in that otherwise eerie silence. Then, cutting through the gloom came the distant thud, thud, thud of picks grinding against ice, drifting up from the abyss.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The frigid air crept under our woollens, biting and gnawing at our joints.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Nils moved with disciplined purpose, footsteps crunching as he went from post to post, his voice low but clear, ensuring that every member of the skeleton crew knew their duty.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Jens marched the length of the deck, boots thudding heavily back and forth. His eyes were fixed only forward, his lips pressed tightly in silence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Then the hacking of the picks stopped.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cErik! Johan!\u201d Nils\u2019 voice called out. \u201cTake the starboard line. Haul them up and see what they\u2019ve managed to get.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">As one, the twins ran to the rope. Their hands closed around it and gave a great heave.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The rope didn\u2019t resist. The two men stumbled backward, losing their footing and crashing onto the deck.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThere\u2019s nothing on the end of it.\u201d Johan\u2019s voice quivered. \u201cThey\u2019ve slipped the line.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">My stomach lurched, a cold knot tightening as I scrambled for the rope.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Grabbing the severed end and holding it up, it was clear to see that the fibres weren\u2019t frayed or worn; they had been sheared flat and clean.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The rope hadn\u2019t snapped under strain. It had been deliberately cut with a blade.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cChristian, this has been cut!\u201d my voice tore out, raw and grating, scraping in my throat. \u201cCheck the port boat!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThe same here, Captain,\u201d his shaking voice answered. \u201cCut through with a knife.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">My knees buckled beneath me, tumbling to the deck. My heart pounded, each beat loud against my eardrums.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Then, through the oppressive grey gloom came a sound that sent a shiver crawling down my spine. The dim, muffled clang of a ship\u2019s bell.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Once, twice\u2026 twenty times it tolled. Each one a hollow echo rolling over the ice-covered sea.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Twenty tolls for twenty dead men.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">On my hands and knees, the world melted into a blur around me. I hardly noticed the bitter chill that snapped at my fingers or the splinters that had somehow managed to burrow through the thick canvas of my oilskin trousers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Erik\u2019s screams thundered across the deck, but his words just slipped through my mind like a mainsheet through oiled blocks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Two-thirds of my crew were dead by my hand. Two-thirds dead by my stupid, insatiable greed. They had called me their captain. I had played the part, but the whole time I\u2019d had my own interests at heart. I wasn\u2019t worthy of that honour. I wasn\u2019t even worthy of scraping the greasy blubber from the salt-crusted decks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Suddenly, rough, mittened hands grabbed my shoulders forcefully, yanking me upright.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cCaptain!\u201d Christian screamed, red-faced just inches from me. \u201cTrouble in midship, Captain! You\u2019re needed below, now!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">It was then that Erik\u2019s words finally crashed into my mind.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><em>The Jonah!<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">My hands slid down the tarred hand rope. The rough yarns burnt my palms. My feet slipped on the wooden rungs as I took them two or three at a time. From the dim gloom below me, the din of angry cries boomed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Below, Thomas stood in front of his bunk, the wicked, spike-tipped walking cane held out before him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cHe\u2019s just a boy!\u201d the old man shouted, his body quivering. \u201cYou\u2019ll have to kill me before I\u2019ll let you lay another finger on him!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cI don\u2019t see that being too much trouble,&nbsp;<em>Engelskpakk<\/em>,\u201d Erik snarled, stepping forward with a heavy, iron marline spike gripped tightly in his hand.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cNils, stand the men down!\u201d my voice resounded off the low beams as I barked the order.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Nils moved quickly from his position in the corner. Elbowing a path through the half-dozen men crowding the narrow sleeping compartment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cNo, Captain,\u201d Nils said, his voice tight as he stepped beside the Larson twins. \u201cI\u2019ve followed you. I\u2019ve taken your orders regardless of their sanity. But this is too much. The fog. The compasses. The rot. We\u2019ve all seen things we can\u2019t explain, but nothing like this. It\u2019s not natural.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Nils fixed me with a stony glare, his eyes sharp and unyielding as he spoke. \u201cWhat about the boats today? Someone cut those lines. Has the boy still got the rigging knife you found him with? You brought a corpse and a Jonah onto this ship. He\u2019s the curse, and we\u2019ll not be rid of its ill fortune until he\u2019s cast overboard.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cHe can\u2019t walk!\u201d Thomas protested, his voice cracking with desperation. \u201cHow can he\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Suddenly Johan\u2019s fist slammed into the old man\u2019s stomach with a sickening thud, forcing him to crumple to the deck with a muffled grunt.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Silence fell heavily over us, the men fixing me with narrow, piercing glares.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><em>Click. Crack.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Nils\u2019 eyes rolled back into his skull, his body toppling backwards as a crimson stain spread across his forehead.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cYou will obey your captain,\u201d Jens\u2019 voice rasped dryly from over my shoulder, his blank stare fixed on the remaining men, a still smoking pistol held firmly in his grip.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-columns is-layout-flex wp-container-core-columns-is-layout-8f761849 wp-block-columns-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>My cabin was cast in an eerie white glow. No sun could penetrate that thick, freezing fog pressing against the<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/insidemayasmind.com\/?p=727\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading<span class=\"screen-reader-text\">The Fate of The H\u00e5pet &#8211; Chapter 8, The Starboard Line<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":670,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[34],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-727","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-hapet"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/insidemayasmind.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/LPcover-JPG-1.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/insidemayasmind.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/727","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/insidemayasmind.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/insidemayasmind.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insidemayasmind.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insidemayasmind.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=727"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/insidemayasmind.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/727\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":728,"href":"https:\/\/insidemayasmind.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/727\/revisions\/728"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insidemayasmind.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/670"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/insidemayasmind.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=727"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insidemayasmind.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=727"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insidemayasmind.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=727"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}