I stood upon the prow of the ship, the ground beneath my feetbobbing gently with the swaying of the tides. The sounds of creaking ropes and the soft lapping of water against the bow surrounded me as I breathed in the tangy, salty air. Within my hands I grasped my chance of redemption; my harpoon, it's cold, metallic texture and it's sturdy weight feeling good within my clutches.

From the aft deck approached the captain of the vessal, a venerable old man who walked with a slovenly lurch and a squint in one eye. He scratched at his rough, unshaven chin as he said:

"Yarr, lad. I've got the men below working double shifts on the oars, and with the wind in our sails we'll outrace these pirates yet."

"Pirates?" I asked "Captain, we haven't left port yet. There are no pirates."

"Well, that's a relief." He replied, a smile twisting his wrinkled features "I hadn't hired a crew, either. I thought we were gonners."

I pondered the man's words, sifting through them, seeking some hint as to whether the captain's comments were mockery or sincerity. Suddenly a thought struck me.

"Captain?" I asked "Would you say not hiring crew was something of an... inefficy on your part?"

"Yarr, I don't know what that word means. If it means I like men, well lad, you know I don't. I'll cut you if ye says otherwise."

"Don't worry Captain, I know your stance on men. You made it clear, several times, often without prompting, while I was hiring your ship."

For the moment content, the Captain returned to his duties; although these seemed largely composed of drinking rum and shouting abuse at passing seagulls. A most peculiar man. Still, as I stared out upon the sparking sea, reminding me nothing more of a vast expanse of glittering diamonds, I pondered that word yet again. Inefficies. Perhaps my lack of understanding regarding the meaning of the word was an inefficy itself; a great irony, I'm sure you'll agree.

Yet shaken from my reverie, was I, as across the bay a great peal rang out; the alarm bell. My muscles tensed as I gripped the harpoon within my grasp, adrenaline flowing through my veins in anticipation of what was to come.

My ex was arriving.

Hurriedly I leapt from ship to shore, crushing a small child in the process yet acknowledging the need of such a sacrifice. The captain soon followed, taking out the child's greiving mother in the process. Despite his unsure gait, the Captain kept good pace with me as I approached the center of the bay.

As we ran, the ground beneath my feet began to quiver and shake with tremendous force. I kept my footing, and I remained unstartled as the very sea itself seemed to explode. She was here. 60ft in height, weighing more than any man could possibly carry, the many-tenticled beast burst forth from her aquatic domain, her eyes burning with fury. Once, such a sight would have been pleasing to my eyes; a stunning creature, despite her ferocity.

"Captain!" I yelled above the kraken's roar "I need a distraction so I can get close."

"Say nothing more!" Replied the Captain, unsheathing a dagger from his belt and charging full-on at the beast. I bore withness to the Captain's wild lunges, his witty parries, his deadly reposte; yet accuracy was not his strong point. Beneath his furious blade ropes were cut, creates stabbed and, once or twice, his own torso was pierced by his wildly swinging knife. Tedious of his efforts, the creature picked him up bodily and began flailing him about wildly.

It was just the distraction I needed.

My harpoon flew true, and pierced the creature directly in the breast, within the heart, just as the creature had once broken mine own. It let loose a tremendous shriek, shattering windows and reverberating through the very ground itself.

"I think we should just stay friends!" I shouted as the kraken withdrew into the water, it's life's blood seeping out into the bay.

Many people call me a hero. Some call ME the monster. Yet regardless of popular opinion, I can say this, and only this; my actions were not inefficious in the least.