Swamped

It would help immensely if you had more idea what sort of beast you're dealing with. You'd appreciate an animal expert right about now. It's unlikely that anyone would know much about a beast this far out at sea, but they'd at least have some idea where to begin investigating.

Failing that, all you can think of is getting a look at it under the water. Perhaps a grebling could crawl down the ship and get their head down below, along with the eyepiece. But it would be very dangerous, and you'd risk losing both a crew member and an important piece of equipment. On the other hand, it's the only way you can think of to get a look without a breather mask.

And that's important, as the masks are all being cleaned after the mess with the gas earlier, not that anyone has much experience using them in the water anyhow. You were hoping to get practice in shallower waters, but the chance never came up.

Wait. Shallower waters. If you could find some nearby, the kraken, or whatever it is, would have to surface fully. With the pirates distracted, you might be able to start moving towards a shallow patch. If only you knew where one was. Wouldn't solve the hostage problem, but if you deprive the warden of her escape route, she might be more open to negotiation.

Well, thanks to this damned gas, you can't just ask the navigator if there's anything nearby. So you'll have to go looking at the maps yourself. You hand the eyepiece to Ms. Swallow and give her instructions on where to shoot the boarding plank if anyone tries to cross early. And then you head upstairs to Chip's room.

But when you arrive, you see something that very clearly doesn't belong.