Leveling: When Water Has Overtaken Land: Episode 2: The Ship (Leveling: Season One)

by H. D. Knightley

  Luna covered herself in sunscreen, then passed it to Sky. Sky looked at her arm as she rubbed the white paste in. “So that was where you met The Guy?”

  River paddled up for some sunscreen. Luna asked, “What guy?”

  Sky said, “The one with his name on your pack and your board.”

  “Oh, that guy.”

  River and Sky laughed. “Oh, that guy.”

  Luna had almost forgotten how much Waterfolk laughed, and how they liked to tease. Because it was conversational, and it passed the time. What else did they have to do, really? Also hard physical effort had the tendency to make people silly.

  Luna asked, “How do you know Beckett Stanford isn’t the name of the designer of my, um, water filter?”

  River and Sky laughed even louder. Buzz paddled up to see what was funny. “Anyone who goes by the name of Beckett Stanford is a boring, duty-bound, fear-driven, Stiffneck.”

  Sky said, “And any Stiffneck who scrawls his name all over a Nomad’s paddleboard is a love-sick Stiffneck.”

  Luna fell back on her board arms wide. “He wasn’t love-sick, he—”

  Sky said, “Right, you just gave him a taste of your spectacular awesome, and that my dear, is totally the same thing.”

  Buzz said, “Seggy over there,” he thumbed toward a smiling, dark-haired, short, stocky, shaped-like-a-square young man who sat splashing his feet in the water, “said he would help you get over the Stiffneck, if you need his services.”

  Sky said, “Luna is not ready to need Seggy’s help, thank you very much. She has a broken heart because she has lost the love of her life. That will take at least six weeks to get over.”

  River said, “Eleven, eleven weeks to get over the love of your life, twelve, if he was nice to you.” She smiled as she rubbed sunscreen on her chest.

  Buzz laughed. “With Seggy’s help you could cut that time in half.”

  Sky splashed him with a wallop of water and he yelped. “Hey! I’m just trying to help Luna! And keep the Waterfolk loving Waterfolk.” He beamed a big smile at Sky and paddled back to Seggy.

  “Don’t mind him Luna, he just...”

  “I get it, I had brothers.”

  “Oh, yeah, sure you did,” Sky dropped to her stomach with an arm trailing in the water. “You take all the time you need. I saw your face when you went to the rooftop. You take your time.”

  Odo stood up on his board and announced, “Paddles UP!”

  Chapter 22

  Beckett’s left hand was completely immobile, encapsulated in gauze. His other hand was wrapped thickly and gauze wound up his fingers and down his thumb. He could see the tips of his fingers on the right, but it couldn’t bend or move or do anything either. He was staring down at both dumbly when Dan thudded a folded pair of sweatpants to his chest. “Apparently you need pants with elastic because you’ll be unable to work a zipper or buttons for a while, and I’m not pulling your pants down for you every time you need to whizz.”

  Beckett groaned. “That’s what I get for helping, huh?”

  “Yep, the price you pay, but on an upbeat note, I get to help you change into those pants, so this is fun for everyone.” He chuckled. “Unless you want me to send in one of the women?”

  “No, that’s okay.”

  “Want me to send in Jeffrey?”

  Beckett chuckled, “No, not.”

  “Okay, I’m just trying to get a handle on your mystery.”

  Beckett stood and Dan helped him out of the damp pants and into the elastic-waisted pants and Dan said, “Well, that’s that. Why don’t you get some rest for a few hours and then meet us in the galley.”

  “Cool, what for?”

  “Celebration man, you saw three whales today!”

  Chapter 23

  Odo said, “I can’t go any further, and the sun is setting.”

  The small group paddled into a tight cluster and tied the boards together. Sky was to Luna’s right, but Seggy pulled up to Luna’s left and began tying knots. This was how it started in a close knit family group. Young men just decided that you were the one for them, and that was it. Seggy had simply chosen her and now it was up to her to choose him.

  Luna could put him off of course, make him wait for her to agree, but the pressure. Luna didn’t want to spread discord in the group. There weren’t any other available young women or young men. Choosing was complicated, not choosing was a risk. She sighed and sat with her back to Seggy, facing Sky, sending subtle and overt hints that she wasn’t interested.

  Though she knew he would think, “Not yet.”

  It had been the same way with Mander on Sweepy Isle. He had set his sights on Luna, paddled beside her, carried her board, until she agreed they could be a couple. He had been handsome, but so boring. Rarely speaking, never doing anything unless Luna told him to. Luckily his family paddled a different direction after a couple of months. Then a year ago, Jingo had joined her family. He paddled up beside her, and everyone accepted it as fact that they were together. Even though Jingo was stupid and had bossed her around as if he was her better, causing her to wonder if maybe she wasn’t as great as she thought she was, but probably it was all because there weren’t that many young men. Or young women. Or anybody. Just less. There were choices to be made, but life needed you to be practical about them. Find a young man, settle.

  She sighed. She missed the everyday stupidity of waking up and looking over at Jingo’s stupid face. It had been comfortable. Easy.

  And then Beckett. Her heart raced just thinking about him. Beckett. He hadn’t wanted to pick her. He tried not to—until he couldn’t do anything but want her. He had wanted her so bad. His eyes, when he held out his hand to dance with her, they had said it all.

  Wait. Was that the look all mainland boys gave mainland girls—full of desire and want?

  Oh well, it hardly mattered now, it had been good to be wanted, for once, like that. She zipped the front of her jacket up.

  Instead of what this was—she glanced around at Seggy—this was like acquiescence or Maybe-Whatever-You’ll-Do.

  Sky said, “Want some chocolate? I found it in the kitchen.”

  Tears welled up in Luna’s eyes. She held out her hand for a chunk.

  Sky said quietly, “Everything is going to be okay.”

  Luna asked, “Is it? I thought it was, but now I can’t think of anything good or hopeful or interesting, and night is coming on and—”

  “You’re super tired, me too, and it’s getting dark. Here, lay down.”

  Luna and Sky lay down on their boards facing each other. Sky held Luna’s hands in both of hers and whispered, “You’re okay. You know that, right?”

  Luna nodded, a tear rolling down her nose.

  “The knots are strong, I tied them myself.”

  Luna nodded again.

  Water lapped up all around them. The paddleboards gently rocked as the sun sank below the horizon. “Odo and River are keeping watch, and you’re safe in the middle of our circle.”

  Another tear rolled down Luna’s nose as she stared into Sky’s eyes.

  “You aren’t going anywhere, I’m not going anywhere.”

  Luna yawned and felt her body relax.

  Sky said, “When you wake up, open your eyes, and I’ll be right here.”

  Chapter 24

  Beckett joined everyone downstairs in the galley. He carried a shirt under his arm, so when he walked in Sarah whistled.

  He said, “I can’t get the shirt on.”

  Dan grabbed the shirt and pulled it over Beckett’s head in three short swift movements. “There, covered up so my wife doesn’t get all hot and bothered.”

  “He was half-naked can you blame me? Rebecca, can you blame me?”

  “I cannot,” said Rebecca, “though he isn’t my type at all.”

  Beckett joke-pouted, “I’m literally standing right here, stop objectifying me.”

  He slid into the booth beside Rebecca across from Dan. Jeffrey, Dr. Mags, and Captain Aria
sat together in the next booth.

  Beckett said, “The ship is moving at a fast clip still.”

  Captain Aria said, “We chased the fishing boat out of the sanctuary, but now we’re riding up and down the border, proving that it can’t come back. Lenny is driving so I could get dinner and some sleep.”

  “Are we headed north now?”

  Captain Aria said, “Yep.”

  “No Nomads?”

  Captain Aria said, “Haven’t seen any in ages. All the Waterfolk are either at the settlements or scattered for the islands by now.”

  Dan asked, “What’s with you and the Nomads, anyway? When I was in the Navy, we tried to ignore them usually, or took pity on them when they were desperate for food or shelter, but I don’t get your interest. First you risked life and limb out on an Outpost—for how long?”

  “Almost six months.”

  “Almost six months on a tenuous, non-floating, probably sinking building, and you’re Army, you’re supposed to be building levees, fleeing to higher ground.”

  Beckett chuckled, his gauze covered hands in front of him. “I guess I don’t like to do what I’m supposed to do.”

  Dan said, “Finally, some truth from the Out-to-Sea-Army-Man in search of Nomads.”

  Beckett said, “So what’s with you and the ocean, anyway? In the army we strive for higher ground. Getting wet means you’re a complete failure.”

  Dan chuckled and gestured at Sarah, “I followed her passions on this one, Sarah and Rebecca went to school together.”

  Sarah said, “We’ve been eating, breathing, thinking ocean for ten years. This organization is the only one that’s checking water quality, protecting the coral reefs, and breeding and restocking fish. We have ships out in every direction. On top of it Rebecca has a thing for whales that’s bordering on obsession, right Rebecca?”

  “Absolutely. I have a theory that...” She looked at Beckett. “No, don’t get me started.”

  Beckett said, “What? Tell me—I’d like to know.”

  “Okay, my theory is that everything that’s wrong with the world, the heat, the waters rising, could have been halted with a healthy whale population.”

  Beckett narrowed his eyes.

  She said, “It sounds crazy, but look at the ocean—still, stagnant, warm, rising. What it needs is movement, flow, action, the deeps brought to the surface and the surface rolled to the deep. Cool brought up, warmth taken down, oxygen released, oxygen absorbed.”

  Beckett said, “That makes sense, I suppose.”

  The microwave beeped. Dan slid from the booth and delivered a plate of food to Captain Aria, and one for Beckett. “I’m not the wait staff, everyone else go for your own plate.”

  Beckett stared down at his food, “Um, I can’t eat.”

  Rebecca asked, “What if I tied a fork to your bandage right here?” She tore off a piece of gauze, tied it firmly around his hand and attached a fork’s handle. “There!”

  Beckett laughed and waved his hand around with the fork jiggling and swinging awkwardly, then it slipped out and down. “I don’t think it’s working.”

  So Rebecca fed him, spooning big scoops of mashed potatoes into his mouth.

  Beckett said, “Wank-oo,” while chewing. He swallowed and asked, “So the ocean needs movement.”

  “Oh, that’s right, yes, the ocean needs movement to be healthy, and of all the things that move the ocean: wind, currents, waves—the whales move the most water, up and down and around. Whales.”

  Sarah said, “From the surface to the deep.”

  Beckett said, “That’s really interesting.”

  Rebecca spooned more food into his mouth and wiped his lips with a paper towel.

  He nodded thankfully and swallowed. “If you think about it, Nomads are kind of the same. If what this world needs is more flow, action, movement, then Waterfolk moving between water and air, mixing surface and space might be important too.”

  Dan said, “I never thought about it that way.”

  Rebecca half-stood in the booth and raised her glass, “To Whales and Waterfolk.”

  Everyone toasted except Beckett, who leaned down and put his lips on the edge of his glass. Rebecca laughed and raised his glass for him to have a sip.

  “So after we eat, what then?”

  Dan said, “We were thinking about going up to deck and watching the stars fly by because Lenny drives like a maniac.”

  “I’ll come up on deck too.”

  Dan and Sarah looked surprised.

  “I get it, I’ve been in the bunks a lot, but I think I’m finally getting the hang of this.” He held up his bandages, “Giant wounds not withstanding.”

  After dinner Beckett followed them up the steps, through the hatch, and out to the decks. Dr. Mags and Jeffrey started off on their nightly deck-walk for exercise. Dan said, “Sarah and I will check in with the Bridge.”

  Rebecca and Beckett leaned on a railing. He looked up at the starry sky. “On the Outpost I was under a sky like this every night, but it still blows my mind.”

  Rebecca looked at the side of this face. “What’s going on with you? Why are you alone?”

  Beckett paused, then said with a smile. “I’m not alone, you’re sitting right there.”

  “You know what I mean.”

  “I lost someone.”

  Rebecca said, “I’m sorry, and man it sucks, and how much loss are we supposed to take?” She clutched the railing. “You hear that stupid ocean, how much are we supposed to take? You’re just going to rise and rise, taking all of it? All the land, all the people? Can’t you leave something?”

  Beckett said, “I’m sorry.”

  “God, we all are, so sorry. I just feel so lost. I think that’s why I obsess about the whales, I think if I could fix one thing, you know?”

  “I do know, and we’re all lost.” Beckett turned his back to the railing. “It’s good what you’re doing. We just have to fix one thing. If everyone fixed one thing, maybe we could survive this.” He turned around to the water. “Have you heard about the leveling theory, Rebecca, that we just have one more rise and then that’s it?”

  “It’s all that gets me through the days.”

  “Me too.” He smiled.

  She said, “Me and you, we’re adapters, fixers. We just have to fix our one thing and then hold on. That’s all we have to do.”

  Beckett held up his hands. “Hold on? Hmm. Not sure I can.”

  Rebecca said, “You are in sad shape.”

  “And I think I need to get some sleep.”

  Dr. Mags’s voice emerged from the darkness down the railing, “I was just going to ask why you’re still up, you’ve had stitches and anesthesia and a near drowning today, go to bed, doctor’s orders.”

  Beckett snapped his heels together and saluted with his giant, gauzed hand. “Yes, sir.” He winked at Rebecca and left for his bunk.

  Chapter 25

  When Luna woke up Sky was right where she had promised. It was night still, so Luna fell asleep again.

  The next time she woke up, still dark, Sky was up, sitting on her board, trailing her feet in the water, looking around at the sea. Luna stretched and sat up on her board too, and together they faced the stars. Sky pointed up just in time for a shooting star. Luna blew a kiss toward the Monarch constellation to whisk away toward Beckett’s mountain home, and she felt a bit better. Probably because of the rest.

  Sky asked if Luna would take the watch and then climbed over onto Buzz’s board, draping across his chest, kissing, his arm around her back, his hand pulling her in closer.

  Luna sighed and looked the other direction.

  Seggy slept sprawled on his belly, his right foot trailing in the water.

  She sighed again. Now she didn’t feel better at all.

  Now that she had known Beckett, had loved Beckett, for two whole days, was she broken? Would she—could she—find happiness in the commonalities of this family life? In group sleeping and night-time-groping?
<
br />   She glanced back at Sky, Buzz’s hand was down the back of her yoga pants.

  Luna stifled a giggle. Jeez that guy was horny—or was it her friend that was horny? Either way, give it a rest, people, paddle away by some feet.

  She watched the horizon, as the sun slowly crept up the sky, lighting the day.

  All around her shifts and tiny splashes signaled that morning had arrived. Zippers on packs signaled that breakfast time was now. Odo announced, “We’ve drifted west, but the wind’s shifted. Looks like we’ll have the wind at our back as we go home. We’ll be slow, but it’s all good, right?”

  Chapter 26

  Beckett heard rustling and footsteps—everyone rising from their bunks, going to the bathroom, and leaving through the hatch. He climbed out and met them in the galley.

  Dan stuck his head out of the small kitchen, “Is that Beckett up at the crack of dawn? Eggs for you, coming, with a straw for your coffee.”

  Beckett said, “Thanks man, I’m hungry. I also desperately need a painkiller. Is Dr. Mags around?”

  Sarah said, “I’ll go tell her you’re up.”

  A few minutes later Dr. Mags came in with two pills and water in a glass with a straw to wash them down. She inspected the outside of the gauze. “No bleeding through on your left hand. We’ll change your gauze tonight. No water though, so no shower, sorry.”

  Beckett said, “I should be apologizing to all of you.”

  Jeffrey put a plate of eggs in front of Beckett and Dr. Mags spoon-fed him.

  Beckett asked, “How much longer will I be wearing these bandages you think?”

  “A week on the right, maybe a bit longer on the left.”

  “So someone will be spoon-feeding me that whole time?”

  “Yep, it’s a good thing you’re on this boat with us, or your friends and family would have to. You have friends and family, right? You haven’t told us anything about yourself.”