THE NEPTUNE'S NET

The Giant Waterdrop was not alone in her doomed voyage that night.

The Neptune's Net, a fishing trawler, had half of her nineteen crewmen playing a game with a pack of cards, laughing and cursing. The other half were distributed about the trawler when her master made the call.

Cheers rose from the men. They'd been at sea long enough, close to a month, and although many of them had come to love life at sea, home and the families that awaited them without rest still existed, waiting for them with open arms.

The lights were switched on as the trawl was drawn in and the contents released into the fish hold, while a few of the men wore the gloves so they could start sorting out the fish by hand. It was no easy work, but it had to be done. One by one, they entered into the hold, and as soon as the first man put his foot in the water, the fish they caught all started to swim towards him.

“The fish are in love with you today. What have you —”

The question being asked was left off halfway, as