by Martha Wells
Moon tried to remember that last harbor basin and what had been in it, if there had been any more clues they hadn’t had time to notice. “The Kishan were right; there was a door in the outer wall of the city, like the one we came in through. So the tunnel was added after the city was built.” Maybe at the same time the top of the escarpment had been sealed off. “And the foundation builders knew the forerunners, and they were friendly enough for the forerunners to build that for them.”
Stone turned and leaned his back against the railing, to look up at the steering cabin. Moon was still a little too edgy to turn his back on the deeps yet. “Delin and Callumkal and the others have been discussing that. They don’t know what it means, but they’ve been discussing it.”
Speaking of the city and what they had found there . . . “We need to drop the . . . thing soon.” Moon glanced around the deck. There were still Kishan at the weapons’ posts and on watch for the Fell. “Is it deep enough?” If they were lucky, maybe one of the giant oceanlings would eat it.
“I don’t know.” Stone jerked his chin toward the cabin. “Rorra’s up now.”
Moon turned. Rorra was on the deck above, gazing out toward the ocean. She had a map case tucked under her arm. “I’ll go talk to her.”
Moon shifted and leapt to the railing. Swinging over it, he shifted back to groundling. Rorra rubbed her eyes and said, “I’m glad I’m used to that now.” She still looked tired, though her face was less gray and her eyes not so sunken. She had clearly slept in her clothes, and her hair was unraveling from her braids.
“Are we in the ocean or still on the fringe?” Moon asked.
“We’re still in the fringe.” Rorra opened the map case and propped it against the railing to unfold light wooden pieces. “We’re here.” She pointed to a spot some distance from the escarpment and traced it along the big wavy path that marked the transition between the sea and the ocean. “We’ll be moving in this zone until we get to this point.” She tapped the map. “It would be safer to stay in the fringe, but to do that we’d have to turn back landward. If we keep our heading and cut across this section of the deeps, we can reach the sea again much more quickly, and we’ll be moving away from the escarpment and hopefully the Fell the entire time.”
Moon nodded. “When will we get to the deeps?”
“Probably around sunset, and we’ll make the crossing during the night, hopefully reaching the sea again by morning.” She began to fold up the map, a grim set to her expression. “I hope the deeps aren’t as dangerous as the rumors say. Ocean-going ships should be much bigger than this one.”
It sounded perfect. By the middle of the night they would be well into the deeps, and too far out for the Fell to reach. Someone could easily stroll out on deck and drop the object over the side. As long as nothing appeared to eat the boat, this would be easy. “You should get some more sleep.”
“I don’t—” Rorra yawned, wide enough that Moon could see the characteristic sealing fangs in her side teeth. “Probably.” She frowned down at the lower deck. “Why is Stone staring at us?”
Moon leaned on the railing, and decided since they were lying-by-avoidance to Rorra about the object, he might as well tell the truth about this. “I don’t know. We think he likes you, though.”
Rorra stared at him, astonished but oddly not appalled. Then she got her frown back into place. “What does that mean?”
“Nothing.” Moon shrugged, a little. “He’s always liked groundlings. But he’s just so old, he doesn’t usually get that interested in people we meet.”
Rorra’s frown was now confused. “How old is he?”
“Older than all of us put together. But not as old as the escarpment.” He pushed away from the railing. “I’ll let Jade know what we’re doing.”
Moon met with Jade in the cabin they had been sleeping in. Stone had come in from the deck, and Chime, Balm, and Delin sat around on the benches, with Merit and Bramble on the floor. It was a little crowded, but the cabin on the upper deck with the stove was also used by Callumkal and the others, and taking it for a private conference would be a lot more noticeable.
Once Moon told everyone what Rorra had said about their route, Jade moved her spines in agreement. “Good. We’ll drop the thing overboard tonight, once we’re well into the deeps and out of the Fell’s range.”
Stone said, “Are you sure you don’t want me to fly it out now and do it?”
Jade exchanged a look with Balm, and lifted her brows. She asked Stone, “Do you think it’s safe? From what we’ve heard, it isn’t.”
Delin agreed. “You may call attention to us from whatever dwells further out, and the large waterlings who float on the surface, waiting for prey.”
Sounding horrified, Chime said, “Are there really waterlings like that?”
Delin nodded. “The stories of the Kish and sealings and others who mapped this coast in the past turns are not pleasant reading.”
Merit, holding the satchel with the object in it, clutched it nervously. “I don’t think you should do that, Stone. I could scry, but—”
“It’s too obvious for scrying. What are you going to tell Callumkal?” Moon asked Stone. “That you’re going to sightsee?”
Stone sighed. “Fine, we’ll wait till tonight.”
Jade told Merit, “If you’re rested, try scrying anyway. Maybe we’re close enough by now that you can see whether this is a good idea or absolutely the worst thing we can do.”
Bramble sat forward. “Is that settled? Because there’s another problem.”
Jade said, “It’s as settled as it’s going to be right now. Go ahead.”
Bramble’s expression wasn’t encouraging. “There isn’t much food left. Igalam, the Janderi who’s in charge of the supplies, and I went down into the hold to sort out how much to bring up. He wanted me to show him how much we’d need. But when he opened the door, the smell was rank. Some of the ceramic containers of the pickled fish and the grain flour for bread had broken on the bottom, probably when the boat fell getting in and out of the tunnel. The Kishan can’t eat them now. I don’t think our stomachs are as delicate, but they don’t smell like they’d be fit for us, either.”
There was a moment of worried silence. Chime said, “Did everyone get hungry when she said that, or is it just me?”
It wasn’t just Chime. Moon said, “We’ll be back in the sea by tomorrow, and it’ll be safe to go fishing.” Safe but maybe not too profitable. From what he had seen on the way out here, the big fish that made good meals tended to be in the currents between the islands. It might be two or three more days before they found a good spot to fish. It had been more than two days since their last big meal, and while the smaller meals of fruit, bread, and fish helped, they couldn’t live on them and still fly and fight.
Bramble said, “That’s what I told Igalam, that when we could hunt, we could bring in enough food for the whole boat.”
“Does he think if we get hungry we’re going to eat the crew?” Stone asked, and not sarcastically. This question had occurred to Moon, too. They had been getting along well enough with the ship’s crew, helped by the fact that the more familiar flying boat crew were aboard. The number of Kishan who shied away from him when he passed them in a corridor had dropped drastically since they had fought off the Fell and taken refuge in the city. But this was the kind of fear that could destroy that limited trust.
Bramble winced, but gave the question serious thought. “I don’t think so. He seemed more annoyed that this had happened, and wondering what to do about it. He’s still trying to figure out how long what we have will last.”
Then someone rattled the door and slid it open. “Jade.” Root peered inside. “There’s another flying boat coming.”
Delin sat up, hopeful. “Perhaps it is Diar and Niran.”
Root flashed his spines in a negative. “It’s not a wind-ship.”
Delin grimaced and swore. “That would have solved several problems.”
Moon
thought Delin meant something more than the shortage of food. Though it probably wasn’t obvious to anyone who didn’t know him, Delin seemed more rattled now than he had when they were being attacked by Fell. Moon started to ask what was wrong, but Esankel came down the corridor to tell them about the flying boat, and there was no time for it.
The flying boat hung in the air about fifty paces above the sunsailer’s stern. The Kishan were all happy to see it. “It’s from Hia Iserae,” Callumkal told them, leaning on the railing as if the relief had made his legs weak. “The Hians, Vendoin’s people.”
This flying boat was shaped differently than the expedition’s ruined one, and was longer and sleeker, without the ridge up the middle, but was made of the same mossy material. Vendoin and Kellimdar had already gone up to it in the flying packs to explain their situation.
“How did they find us?” Jade asked. Moon thought it was a good question. They stood out on the deck with Stone and Delin, with the others told to stay inside until they could be assured that the new groundling arrivals wouldn’t shoot at them by accident.
“We had shared the location of the city with them, though I didn’t think they meant to join the expedition this season.” Callumkal turned to gesture at the steering cabin. “Their ship is powered by the same varietals of moss as the sunsailer. The varietals have an affinity for each other, and clever horticulturals can use this to locate ships.”
“I see,” Jade said. It was unexpected, but at the moment it was hard to see it as a bad thing. The more fire-weapons there were to fight off the Fell, the better.
Beside him, Moon heard Delin make a hmph noise under his breath. Delin would clearly have preferred a wind-ship with his family aboard, and Moon had to admit that would have made the situation much less fraught.
Rorra came out of the hatch, squinting up at the flying boat. “I hope they have supplies they can give us.”
“That’s what Kellimdar and Vendoin are asking about now,” Callumkal told her.
Jade asked, “So are we keeping to the same course, and crossing back into the sea tomorrow morning?”
Looking up at the flying boat again, Callumkal gestured an absent assent. “As long as they have no new information to make us decide against it.”
“They shouldn’t,” Rorra said. “They came up from the south. It will be interesting to hear if they spotted any Fell from that direction.”
“Interesting?” Callumkal commented dryly. “This voyage has been interesting enough.”
Stone glanced at Moon, his expression opaque, and headed back toward the hatch. They would still be sailing across the deeps tonight and still have the opportunity to get rid of the object. Merit had already retreated to a corner of their cabin to scry on it, with Bramble and Song guarding the door to make sure no Kishan walked in on him.
“They’re coming back,” Jade said, watching the flying boat.
Vendoin and Kellimdar were returning in their flying packs, another Hian following. Callumkal said, “Don’t worry, Vendoin and Kellimdar will have explained about you. The Hians are not very excitable people; they won’t be afraid.”
Jade gave that a serious nod. “Good.”
The flying packs didn’t manage the wind very well, but the groundlings landed on the deck without ending up in the water. Vendoin shed her pack and said, “This is Bemadin, captain-navigator.” Bemadin nodded as Vendoin named everyone for her. She bore a close resemblance to Vendoin, at least as far as non-Hians were concerned, though she was taller and her body heavier. She stared as Vendoin named Jade and Moon, though like Vendoin, it was hard to read her expression.
When the introductions were complete, Bemadin said, “I am glad we could find you. As I told Vendoin and your colleague Kellimdar, we are anxious to hear what you discovered before the Fell forced you to leave.”
Callumkal said, “It’s a long way back. We’ll have plenty of time to show you all the inscriptions we copied.”
“And we will be bringing down supplies to see you through to the next port.” Bemadin added, “Perhaps you would all join us for evening meal.” She turned to Jade. “I invite the Raksura, as well. I have never met any of your people before, so I am anxious to get to know you.”
“Ah.” Jade managed to look pleased by the prospect, which was something of an achievement for Raksuran diplomacy. It wasn’t an appalling idea, it was just that Moon didn’t think Jade or any of the others were ready to take on a new group of groundlings, not while everyone was tired and tense. “I feel our time would be better spent here, helping the Kishan guard their boat. We don’t know what we’ll encounter on this stretch of ocean.”
“That’s true,” Callumkal said immediately. He didn’t look as if he was in the mood for diplomatic visiting, either. “Perhaps in a day or so, once we are safely back into the sea, and farther away from the Fell.”
“That would be best,” Kellimdar agreed readily.
“That’s right, best just to send some supplies down for tonight,” Vendoin said, giving Bemadin a friendly pat on the arm. “Some fresh food would be welcome.”
She was right about that. Bemadin said, “Very well, I will have the supplies moved immediately, and we can be underway again.”
As they began to discuss the arrangements, Moon managed to wander away down the deck with Delin, and after a moment Jade followed. “This worries me,” Delin said, keeping his voice low, even though he was speaking Raksuran. He twisted his fingers into his beard, a sure sign of agitation. “This sudden appearance.”
“You think Vendoin was planning to betray Callumkal, take his work, or something.” Moon looked off toward the horizon, as if they were worriedly discussing the prospect of being eaten by oceanlings.
“Perhaps, perhaps that.” Delin frowned at the deck, and Moon had the impression that of all the things he was worried about, that ranked fairly low down on the scale. Delin looked up at Jade. “We must take care tonight, when disposing of the object. Perhaps Merit will have some insights for us, as to how best to proceed.”
“We’ll take care.” Jade put a hand on his shoulder, and turned to steer him toward the hatchway. “You get some rest.”
Hians in flying packs carried down the round containers of supplies, and by mid-morning the sunsailer got underway again, the flying boat trailing along after it. Moon spent the time napping off and on and taking turns on watch with the warriors. Three times they spotted movement in the distance, as oceanlings far larger than the boat broke the surface and submerged again. It was nerve-racking, but being able to catch up on sleep, and not worrying about the lack of food, made the tense situation easier on everyone. The Kishan were starting to look better too, taking time to rest and clean up and change their clothes.
“I’ll be glad when this is over,” Chime said. He was sitting back to back with Moon on the top cabin as they took their turn at watch. Stone was on the lower stern deck, and Balm was up in the bow. At least the day had stayed clear and bright, the sky blue and cloudless, the sun glinting off the limitless ocean. The wind was fairly gentle, and still carried nothing but the scent of saltwater.
“Is it ever going to be over?” Moon didn’t like to bring this up, but it was worrying him more and more as the day progressed. “The Fell aren’t going to stop looking for that thing. If that’s what they were looking for.”
“There’s still too much we don’t know,” Chime admitted. “We don’t know if it really drew them to the city or not. I’m hoping the Fell sit around outside the escarpment until they all die of old age.”
Moon didn’t think that was likely. Especially with a Fellborn queen involved.
Late in the afternoon, Merit finished scrying and came up to join them in the upper cabin. Bemadin had sent down some containers with cooked food, including a stew with big pieces of fish in a spicy brown sauce and fruit in sweet syrup, apparently two Jandera favorites. Igalan, the crew member in charge of supplies, had made sure Bramble had been given enough for all the Raksura. Both dishes
were surprisingly tasty, probably because both the fish and the fruit were much fresher than what they had been eating on the boat for the past few days. Briar, having already eaten, had gone outside to carry a portion up to River, and to take a turn at watch so Song could come inside to eat.
“Did you get anything?” Jade asked, as Merit slumped down on the floor. His expression wasn’t encouraging.
Merit sighed. “No, it was all confusing. I saw the ocean, I saw the Fell, the city, but it was all fragments. I don’t think it’s the same as before, where the trap in the city was clouding everything.” Bramble put a bowl of food in his lap and he took a bite. “I think there’s just too much happening right now.”
“Fragments are what you get when there are too many possibilities,” Chime explained to Delin. He took Moon’s empty bowl and his own and put them in the stack near the stove. “They’re usually just images of things that have already happened.”
His mouth full, Merit nodded confirmation.
Jade grimaced and set her empty bowl aside. “At least there’s nothing to change our plans.”
“No, I think we should do as we have already decided,” Delin said, so firmly that everyone stared at him.
“I’m glad someone is sure,” Chime prompted, but Delin ate some more fruit and didn’t respond.
Song stepped into the cabin then, reporting, “Stone is coming this way with Rorra.”
Moon leaned back against the cabin window in frustration. They wouldn’t be able to discuss this in front of Rorra. Not that discussing it was helpful.
Bramble readied two more bowls and handed them to Stone and Rorra as they came in. Stone sniffed skeptically at his, but tasted it anyway. Rorra took a seat on a bench and started to eat. Between mouthfuls, she said, “So what do you all think about Bemadin’s sudden appearance?”
Jade said, dryly, “I’m glad we’re not the only ones who noticed how sudden it was.”
Rorra’s nod was grim. “If they were going to show up, it would have been nice if they had done it while the Fell were trying to kill us.”
