Alaric was back on the boat and was holding the fishing rod in his hand, and blood streaming down his face.
Alaric quickly regained his senses and got ready. He felt his forehead where the blood was coming out from and felt a small pellet. It was lodged in Alaric's forhead, but didn't break any bones. He tried to rip it out, and did so. looking at it in his hand, it was definitely from a shotgun.
Looking around the boat, there were similar pellets lodged in random spots on the boat. Alaric quickly grabbed the fishing rod. There was definitely something on the other end of it, and it was a shotgun. He had achieved exactly what he was looking for. He had fished up the next fish on his journey.
The pellets likely didn't have a lot of force on them as they were fired under the water. They were being muffled. Alaric thought about how dangerous it would be once the shotgun would emerge from the water.
Alaric needed to prepare to fight. He grabbed the machete with his free hand and got ready. He didn't quite know what he would do with the machete yet.
Absalom was already alerted to the reality of the situation. It got in a battle ready position, crouching and getting ready for it coming out of the water. Alaric decided to get to the point and reeled it up quickly. Alaric reeled it was in, and was met with a loud noise.
Booom
A wave of pellets whizzed past Alaric, barely missing him. At this point, Alaric saw what he had reeled in. It was just a shotgun. Alaric layed it on the boat tentatively. It had only been an instant since he reeled it up, so he was still weary. It definitely had the ability to fire at will and cause damage to Alaric. Certain spots on the boat were hit with the shell, denting the metal plating slightly.
The shotgun was very plain. It had a dark brown handle, and a metal barrel. It was a single shot gun. There was nothing indicating any sort of branding, it just kind of looked like a shogun.
The rat pounced near the shotgun, but maintained a moderate distance.
Alaric was deep in thought of what to do. There was a course of action that he would have to determine.
"I need to pacify it without killing it. I definitely need to keep it intact in order to get value out of it." Alaric was making spit second decisions in order to determine his battle plan.
"I'll try to grab it." Alaric was resolute.
Absalom was a little confused on what to do. He could definitely use his agility to get near it, but he wouldn't be able to grab it. He was also unable to tell how dangerous it was. It hadn't targeted Absalom yet.
Alaric was getting ready. He was facing the shotgun, staring down the barrel of it. The black exit for the bullets almost looked like an eye, staring back at Alaric with no emotion. Alaric got ready, he wanted to pounce on the shotgun. It was lying on the edge of the boat and he planned on jumping into the water and grabbing it from behind.
He brought power into his legs and got ready.
Shooom
Alaric jumped with the strength in his legs to extend his body. He was flying headfirst into the water like a body bullet. While he was doing that, the world seemed to be moving slower. As he approached the water, the Shotgun started to turn, once again engaging in a stare down with Alaric.
Boooom
A wave of bullets were heading straight for Alaric's face. This time, the shotgun was out of the water so it was firing with full force.
"Shit!!!" Alaric tried to turn his head in time but it was too late. He was able to not have a critical area injured, but he suffered the consequences for his poor planning.
The bullets traveled over to the right side of his face, near his jaw and eye.
They dug into his skin, blowing off chunks of meat and bone.
The entire lower right side of Alaric's head was gone. His jaw was open-air and his chin was split. But it wasn't enough to kill him. Alaric was stronger than that.
Alaric smiled widely. The missing portion of his face extended his smile into the open air. He pivoted around the shotgun, landing in the water. The cool ocean water soaked him, giving him a temporary shock from the cold.
After all, it was the fall. The ocean would not be forgiving in its temperature.
But Alaric was continuing his fight. He wasn't born in this world to die. He was born in this world to live.
Alaric grabbed the shotgun from the water. It felt heavy in his hands. He quickly climbed back up into the boat.
Alaric raised the shotgun into the air in victory. He had emerged victorious in the fight.
Absalom eagerly climbed up on Alaric's shoulder, seeming happy with the victory.
Absalom wanted nothing more but sucess.
Blood was streaming out of Alaric's face, pooling on the floor. Alaric was savoring his few seconds of dopamine and adrenaline before pain would overtake him.
He was determined to live. Alaric slowly went to the ground, crouching down then laying down completely.
Alaric laughed a hearty laugh, shotgun in hand. It would no longer fire at him.
Laying in the ground, in a pool of salty ocean water and blood, Alaric entered sleep, laying down in peace on the floor of the boat.
He was excited to keep on fishing.
What he had just experienced was just a taste of the life he wanted to live. A life where boredom would be purged from his mind, and an ocean of fish would replace it.
Alaric's eyes shone brightly before closing as fatigue overtook him.
This was a good world for fishing.