Zaroth and Vera were already well-versed in the art of riding atop a mythical beast's back in the middle of the ocean. Ari, however, was not.
She had hesitated the moment she was asked to climb aboard, paralyzed by fear. But thanks to Zaroth's steady voice and quiet confidence: "We'll be fine," he had said, she pushed past her fear.
As it turned out, they were not fine.
At least, Ari wasn't.
"You know," Zaroth began, casting a glance at Ari, who was clinging to his left arm so tightly he thought she might shatter the bones, "if you were scared of the water, you could've said so before we set off."
"N-no!" she stammered, her eyes flicking to him for a moment before returning to the vast, open water below.
"If I had, you would've left me behind! I know it!"
'Probably,' Zaroth thought, but kept that bit to himself.
