XIV –The witch and other Stories

As evening descended into night aboard the ship, Gusev, a recently discharged soldier, stirred from his hammock to share a tale with Pavel Ivanitch, a fellow occupant in the ship’s hospital. He recounted a story he’d heard, about a massive fish colliding with a vessel, causing damage. Pavel Ivanitch, lost in his own thoughts or perhaps choosing to ignore the conversation, remained silent, engulfing the space in quietude once more. The ship, a vast entity of creaks and groans from the hammocks and the relentless rhythm of the sea and ship’s mechanics, seemed to foster a sense of isolation among its inhabitants.

As the night wore on, the usual shipboard sounds—a mixture of wind playing with the rigging, the consistent thrum of the screw propelling the ship forward, and the occasional whisper of waves—blended into the backdrop of three sleeping servicemen’s murmurs, each lost in their own dreams. The ambiance was occasionally punctuated by the movements of the ship, which seemed to breathe under Gusev, his hammock swaying gently as if in response to the sea’s capricious whims. This eerily silent symphony was suddenly interrupted by the sound of something metallic crashing to the floor, propelling Gusev to poetic musing about the wind breaking free from its shackles.

Pavel Ivanitch, perhaps jolted by the noise or Gusev’s fanciful imagination, finally responded, albeit with irritability. He rebuked the notion of the wind having chains to break from, attributing such thoughts to ignorance equal to that of ‘christened folk’ and emphasizing the importance of reason over fanciful tales. It was revealed that Pavel Ivanitch’s crankiness could be attributed to his seasickness, which worsened with the turbulent sea, making him more susceptible to irritation over seemingly trivial matters. The chapter delicately explores the themes of isolation, the human inclination towards storytelling, and the clash between imagination and rationality, set against the backdrop of the vast, indifferent sea.