I’ve seen some bizarro shit, Death said, but I’ve never seen a soul ‘swim’ through the sky.

  *I just hope this works out and that her and Whaleina are a good match,* Ever replied.

  Death was right: Jennifer had insisted on swimming freestyle just below the cloud cover, so desperate was she to not waste any opportunity to train. While the soul had allowed Ever to lead most of the way there, once they got closer to the destination and started descending, she zoomed right ahead, slipping into an obsidian wave just before it collapsed and shattered into a hundred thousand droplets.

  ‘Whaleina’? Death guffawed. Where did you get that name from?

  Ever sunk upright into the water, arms crossed. *It was what Zoe called the whale after we met her.*

  Her name’s not Whaleina, Death said, clearing his non-existent throat. It’s ‘OooooOOOooooooooOOOoooh’.

  *I can’t speak whale, Mentor.*

  Hey neither can I, but at least I’m trying.

  Ever corkscrewed as he sunk deeper and deeper. Where had Jennifer gone? He had told her on the way here that he had found Whaleina near the shipwreck. The only problem now was that he couldn’t find it again.

  “Ever.”

  The apprentice reaper spun around to see Jennifer looking mildly annoyed but excited at the same time. “I think I’ve found her.”

  You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.

  “Yes,” Ever replied, looking past the swimming ghost, “I can see that.”

  ^Helloooo!^ Whaleina said. ^You’re back! And you’ve brought a friend this time!^

  The ghost of the whale charged playfully at them. Jennifer took evasive measures, bolting straight down. Ever raised his hands, fruitlessly trying to catch the mammoth soul only to be bumped away.

  Momentarily discombobulated, he quickly regained his bearings and located the two souls that he brought together. It was quite a sight: Jennifer treaded water in front of the whale, looking up at her. Whaleina gently flapped her pectoral fins, rotating in the water until she was side-on to the human soul, gazing upon her with a translucent, round eye.

  ^Do you want to play?^

  Ever was about to float closer to translate when something made him hold back and observe.

  “I hear that you’re looking for a friend,” Jennifer said. She reached out a hand, floating closer until she laid it upon the whale’s face. “Tag, you’re it!”

  She zipped away, more pixie than ghost, putting distance between them.

  ^Oh, I know this game!^

  The chase was on. Ever watched as the two souls raced about in the depths. They wound around him, did circuits around reefs and eventually took the game back to the ghost ship. The moments Ever was close enough to Jennifer, he saw how her face had changed. While there still was that steely determination to be the best, there was now the widest grin, brought upon by finally having a worthy adversary. Ever wasn’t well versed in whale facial expressions but if her deep giggling was anything to go by, Whaleina was also having a blast.

  ^Hey, do you want to breach?^

  Knowing that her new friend couldn’t understand her, she rushed upwards to claim to head start.

  “Hey!” Jennifer pulled her arms back as if preparing to run, instead darting up, feet kicking.

  Ever followed suit, pushing upwards, hands flat against his side. As he had been surveying them from a shallower vantage point, he made it to the surface first. A heart beat later, the whale and human soul burst forth, backs to the water. Right at that moment, a wave rose high, curling over the two ghosts. When it crashed in its brutal embrace over the top of them, they had both departed, leaving nothing but foam in their wake.