Sonder walked towards the stern of the ship.
It was night again.
She wasn't told where to go, but it seemed like the captain informed the other sailors who were on guard to pay her no mind.
Not that she tried to stand out much from the midnight darkness.
At the stern, it was far enough from where most of the sailors kept watch that she wouldn't be in anyone's way, but still close enough that she could hear if something happened.
She rested her hands lightly on the railing and looked out at the dark water behind the ship.
The wake stretched out in pale lines, breaking the surface before disappearing into black.
She thought about what she was doing and in her mind saw it through a more childish lens.
Standing somewhere you were told to stand, watching for something that might come. Staying alert even when nothing happened.
Like a soldier, or a guard, which she actually was.
Not for a place, or a wall, or a gate, but for this: a ship and the people on it.
Even if they didn't know, or want her to, she would do it anyway. She didn't do it to be thanked, and she guessed that the actual guard didn't do it for that reason either.
They did it because it was their job; they did it for money.
And she assumed that most of the time, being a guard, nothing would happen.
She shifted her weight slightly, adjusting her stance to disturb as little as she could.
To hear anything out of the ordinary, to see through the darkness, even to smell unusual smells.
The wind moved through the sails above.
A sailor coughed further along the deck. Another muttered something under his breath.
Normal sounds, all of it.
The ship was large. Too large for just one person to see everything at once.
That was why there were multiple watches.
But even then, someone had gone missing.
More than one.
Sonder's natural sense could only get so far. Her eyes could only see so far. Her ears could only hear so much.
She thought about it.
Then about what she could do.
She let her other senses spread over the ship, slow, thin, but wide, like a net.
It slipped across the deck, brushing along wood and rope and sail. It moved around crates, along railings, past the feet of sailors who didn't notice anything at all.
Sonder stood still as she did it.
The ship began to take shape in her mind. It wasn't perfect. But it was something.
She moved her awareness further.
Across the stern. Along the middle of the ship. Toward the bow.
Nothing.
Just the normal things.
Sonder frowned slightly.
This was harder than it sounded.
The ship was big.
And it wasn't just the size.
She had to stay precise.
Careful.
If she spread too thin, she'd miss something.
If she pushed too hard, she'd waste too much mana.
She could feel it already.
The slow drain.
She couldn't do it all night. That wouldn't be smart. If something did happen, she needed to be ready. To fight, or to protect herself or someone else.
So she decided.
Half.
She would keep this up until she lost about half of her strength.
No more.
After that, she would stop and rely on her normal senses again.
Sonder adjusted her stance slightly.
Then she continued.