A massive ocean liner cleaved through white-capped waves on the boundless blue sea.

The hull was enormous and magnificent, its pointed mast reaching straight toward the sky — like an elegant and beautiful great whale.

This was a luxury cruise ship, carrying thousands of passengers. Whether day or night, it was forever filled with song and dance.

Du Lai had been working on this ship since the age of sixteen — that made it six or seven years now. He only disembarked twice a year, each time for no more than three days, and so he sometimes jokingly compared himself to a remora fish — a type of fish that survives by attaching itself to large marine creatures.

The weather was poor today. The captain had detected a large mass of cumulonimbus clouds not far ahead and feared they would run into a storm, so he issued an order to close the decks, including all deck-based entertainment.

The passengers all gathered in the theater on the ship’s second level.

This venue sometimes held song-and-dance performances, sometimes acrobatics — it was a fine place to pass the time.

Laughter filled the air as a clown and his monkey partner performed a bicycle acrobatics act on stage. The audience loved this kind of comedic performance, and roars of laughter erupted from the seats again and again.

In sharp contrast to the dazzling glamour of the stage, the backstage dressing room was narrow and crowded. The scent of face powder mingled with sweat, and the air was filled with shouts and curses.

“Damn it! Where are the bunny girls?! Are the bunny girls ready?! You’re on!” the floor manager bellowed backstage at the top of his lungs.

A dozen or so bunny girls jostled and squeezed their way forward, tottering in high heels, clutching feathered fans, buzzing and chattering like a swarm of bees as they headed toward the stage entrance.

The floor manager elbowed his way with great difficulty over to Du Lai’s side, and, apparently worried he couldn’t be heard, shouted right next to Du Lai’s ear:

“You’re up in two more acts! Are you ready? The storm’s almost here — tonight, do your best to add some new flair! Let the guests know they can have plenty of fun even without going up to the deck!”

Du Lai was in the middle of organizing his prop box. He heard the words and gave a nod. “Understood.”

As the only magician on the ship, he had performed the same magic routines thousands of times over. He was long past tired and bored of it — and yet too lazy to bother coming up with anything new.

The floor manager always seemed to think that designing new illusions was an effortless thing. Du Lai didn’t want to waste breath explaining otherwise. At worst, he’d swap out the rabbit for a pigeon.

The floor manager clapped him on the shoulder and turned to go find the other performers.

Du Lai continued organizing his prop box. Far across the room, a stand-up comedian named Bas called out to him: “Du Lai! Someone’s here looking for you!”

“Coming!” Du Lai called back, closing the box and heading out.

……

Outside the dressing room was equally bustling with people. A man in a dark brown jacket stood to one side of the corridor. When he saw Du Lai emerge, he raised a hand and gave a small wave.

Du Lai recognized him and couldn’t help but freeze.

“Du Lai.” The man gave him a slight smile; the crow’s feet at the corners of his eyes were deeply etched. “What’s the matter — haven’t seen me in a few years and you don’t recognize me anymore?”

“Shifu…” Du Lai said in surprise, walking over. “What brings you here? When did you board the ship?”

Du Lai hadn’t taught himself magic — the man before him had taught him, and that was why he called him Shifu.

“Yesterday,” the man said with a smile. “I saw your performance yesterday evening — that’s how I found out you’ve been here all this time, not leaving. What’s going on — not planning to disembark?”

Du Lai laughed. “You know what I’m like. Once I get off the ship, I don’t know what I’d do with myself. Things aren’t bad here — at least room and board are covered, and the income is steady.”

The man listened, glanced around them both, and lowered his voice slightly: “Your pay — hasn’t gone up in the last couple of years, has it? This place isn’t exactly friendly to Asians. I’d bet anything that the fellow with the monkey makes more than you.”

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