From the harbormaster's desk

The Harbor Log

The harbormaster of Ronuzun keeps a log of every shift on the quay. These pages tell how the old harbor became a nursery for bass, and why the cranes still watch the water.

Stained-glass harbor scene with a rusted crane, a red harbor office, a sailing boat and a bass in the water — The view from the harbor office window at dusk.

First light

The cranes go quiet

When the last cargo ship left Ronuzun, the cranes stopped turning and the basin grew still. Reeds took the slipways, and one spring a bass came in from the sea and laid her eggs under the old glass beacon.

Morning tide

Uninvited guests

Pike followed the warm water through the harbor mouth, and catfish came after them along the bottom. The log records the first shoal as a dark ribbon sliding past the north pier.

Midday

The quay keeps watch

Herons claimed the bollards, otters moved into the old rope store, and the fishermen left their nets hanging over the channel. Together they became the harbor's defenders.

Afternoon

Shells for wages

Every invader turned back earns the quay a handful of shells, and shells pay for more defenders. The harbormaster notes that a well-placed net is worth two tired herons.

Dusk

The rose window

Above the office door hangs a round window of rust, steel and verdigris glass. Each visitor's first sight of it sets it turning, and wherever it stops, the quay is granted a boon for the night.

Night shift

Ten waves till morning

A full season lasts ten waves. If the nest still has a heart left when the tenth shoal is turned away, the log closes with a single line: the harbor held.

Add your own entry

Have a story from your own shift on the quay? Send it to the harbormaster and it may inspire the next page of the log. log@ronuzunuriru.info