by Tamara Moss
When the dawn bell rang, she pounded on the wall between their rooms to wake Lintang up. They worked all day and well into the night while everyone else played rouls and sang songs. No one spoke to them. They cleaned the mess after the rest of the crew went to bed. They each had a side to scrub and mop, and Yamini always assigned Lintang the bigger, grubbier side. Then, when she was finished, she’d stand over Lintang and point out the places she’d missed. Sometimes she’d make Lintang mop the floor all over again just because she’d found a single streak of dirt.
Lintang learned to be thorough with her cleaning, or she wouldn’t get to bed until almost dawn.
There you go, Mother, she thought wryly as she scrubbed a glob of spit from the deck. I finally know how to be a good housekeeper.
She found herself craving Mother’s sweet fish wraps. Who would’ve thought she’d miss that?
The ache for home had returned with a vengeance – that same, hollow feeling she’d had when her toy Jojo burned to ash.
She wanted to sit on her porch at home in the sun, listening to the droning insects and watching the colourful birds in the rainforest canopy. She wanted to wander down to the beach with Father, collecting interesting shells. To share sweetsap-roasted nuts with Nimuel after supper. She even missed those sticky nights that were too hot to sleep, when Mother would fan her with a panna leaf and hum absently to herself.
She missed her mother.
The temperature dropped. Gone were the warm breezes of the tropics, replaced by gusts that bit her skin and made her teeth chatter. Her breath came out as steam, which made her look like a dragon. She was allowed to keep her velvet dress, but neither it nor the skivvy nor the tights kept her warm enough. Even the sea spray was painful. She had thought the ocean had been cold before – it was nothing compared to now. The mornings were filled with a thick white cloud called fog. It made for dangerous sailing.
They had changed course since Nyasamdra. Instead of going directly west, they moved northwest, towards Vierz. They had to drop Bayani off in Zaiben before they could chase the sirens. He was finally headed for the place he was so desperate to go. He wouldn’t tell her what he and Captain Shafira had talked about in private. She gave up asking. She gave up talking to him altogether. Why should she be friends with someone who had ruined her dream life and wouldn’t even tell her why?
Captain Shafira had put Bayani in the cage in the weapons room. Avalon gave him a fresh pair of clothes.
It was Lintang’s job to feed him and clean up after him, as well as take him for walks around the deck in the cold sunshine when Eire decided it was safe. He was quiet during the walks, staring out to sea, lost in thought as Pelita fluttered around his head.
Lintang stomped into his room one evening with a pitcher of fresh water and a tray of scraps from the galley. She was already in a bad mood – she’d spent a good portion of the day scrubbing the slop room, but then Yamini had ‘accidentally’ tipped dirty mop water all over the floor. Lintang had flown at her in a rage, but while Yamini was bony, she was much stronger, and she simply pushed Lintang into the puddle and told her to start again. The last thing Lintang felt like doing was dealing with her traitorous ex-best friend and swatting Pelita away while she tried to work.
When she got to the carpentry room, she found Bayani on his back, one arm flopped across his stomach, the other draped over his eyes. Pelita sat on his chest, which rose and fell with his breaths.
Lintang slowed at the foot of the staircase. ‘Are you sick?’
The last time he’d been ill, he had to go to Sundriya, and she hadn’t been sure she’d ever see him again.
It took a long time for him to answer. At last a groan dragged past his lips and he said, ‘It’s nothing.’
Nothing, nothing, nothing.
She huffed. ‘Fine.’
He sat up. Pelita almost tumbled off him. She lifted into the air, buzzing angrily. For once, Bayani ignored her. He watched as Lintang slid up the small door in his cage to pass through his food. She refused to look at him, but she could feel his stare.
He scooted over and took the plate. Pelita buzzed down to poke at the mashed potatoes. She glared at Lintang in disgust.
‘Don’t look at me, it’s not my fault,’ Lintang said to her.
‘No,’ said Bayani miserably, scooping up the potato with his fingers, ‘it’s mine. It’s all mine. I’m so sorry.’
‘You’ve said that already. About a hundred times.’
‘Why is she so angry?’
Both of them turned to find Avalon sitting on the steps, Twip on his shoulder. He kept his gaze on Bayani. ‘I’ve never seen anyone hold onto anger for that long. Usually people sentenced to cabin duties break down and cry after the first day. And yet she’s still raging on.’ He tickled beneath Twip’s chin.
‘Why don’t you ask me yourself?’ Lintang snapped.
‘You see, Bayani,’ Avalon said, ‘the crew’s been given direct instructions not to speak to Lintang unless they’re giving her orders, and I won’t disobey the captain. But there were no rules about not talking to you.’
Lintang scowled and dragged out Bayani’s pitcher to refill it. So that was why everyone on the ship was ignoring her – Captain Shafira had ordered them to. She dumped the fresh water into Bayani’s pitcher, sloshing some onto the deck.
‘Lintang’s not angry,’ Bayani said.
‘Are you sure about that?’ Lintang said through her teeth.
‘She’s not,’ Bayani said. ‘She’s sad.’
Lintang banged her empty pitcher on the ground. ‘I’m not sad!’
‘Captain Shafira is her hero,’ Bayani continued, as if he had been ordered to ignore her too. ‘And she’s always wanted to travel the world. Being chosen for the Winda meant everything to her.’
‘Now she’s cabin girl, set to go home as soon as this is over,’ Avalon said.
Pelita bobbed over to Twip and pulled one of his long ears. He chittered at her.
Lintang glared at the ground. ‘I wouldn’t be surprised if Captain Shafira dumped me in Zaiben with Bayani.’
‘She wouldn’t do that,’ Bayani said.
‘No.’ Lintang climbed to her feet, taking the empty pitcher and tray. ‘I suppose she needs her necklace back.’
‘Does Lintang think Captain Shafira doesn’t care about her?’ Avalon said to Bayani.
‘I hope not,’ Bayani said. ‘Because Captain Shafira didn’t want to punish Lintang.’
Lintang spun to him. ‘What?’
Pelita darted past her, picked up some leftover mashed potatoes and flicked them at Twip. Twip screeched. Most of the mess ended up on the floor, leaving spots of greyish-white that Lintang would have to scrub later.
‘Of course she didn’t want to punish Lintang,’ Avalon said over the noise. ‘She has to put on a show, though.’
‘So the rest of the crew will see that she doesn’t tolerate disobedience,’ Bayani said. ‘Otherwise they might start disobeying her.’
Avalon nodded, stroking Twip to calm him down. When Twip finally stopped shrieking and started grooming the flecks of potato from his fur instead, Avalon said, ‘Captain Shafira wants to let Lintang off the hook. She just needs a reason.’
Lintang stared around at the various weapons on the walls. Three harpoons stood out. They weren’t like the ones from Desa. These had curled tips, like claws, that gleamed in the lantern light. If she had to fight another mythie to impress the captain, those were the ones she’d use.
‘I think,’ Avalon continued, still looking carefully at Bayani, ‘if Lintang works hard, if she follows all orders, she has a chance to win back the captain’s favour.’
Hope bubbled inside her. ‘Really?’
‘I don’t see why not.’
Her grip tightened on the tray and pitcher. ‘Why are you helping me?’
Avalon smiled at Bayani. ‘Not everyone accepts who I am. I thought our Islander visitor would be the same. Instead, she found a loophole in the captain�
�s rules, came barging down and chattered away to me as if I were just like everyone else. She showed me kindness, Bayani, when the rest of the world is rarely so friendly.’ He shrugged and got to his feet. ‘I’m simply returning the favour.’
Avalon walked up the steps, the sound of his boots disappearing to the upper deck, and Lintang whirled to Bayani. ‘Do you honestly think Captain Shafira will forgive me?’
‘Of course. If anyone can impress her, it’s you.’
Lintang’s heart was as warm as sunshine. There was still a chance for her, after all.
But her smile died as she met Bayani’s dark gaze. She looked away and cleared her throat.
‘Bayani,’ she said, the words clogging up, even though they’d been in the back of her mind all these days. ‘Um … When you were in the cargo hold … I meant to visit you …’
‘It’s all right, Lintang.’
‘No. It’s not.’ She stared at the floor, face burning. ‘I kept finding reasons not to go down. People were watching, or I had a lesson on the rigging, or Dee needed me in the kitchen.’
‘You were worried about being caught.’
She hugged the tray to her chest. ‘I should’ve checked on you. You could’ve died down there, and no one would’ve known.’
‘I wouldn’t have died. I had food, and fresh water, and extra blankets to keep me warm. Hey.’ He stepped against the bars so she would look at him. ‘I promise I would’ve gone above deck if it had gotten too much. And Pelita would’ve fetched you if I’d hurt myself. You have no reason to feel guilty. I was the one who decided to stow away.’
She studied him between the metal of the cage. His dark hair was greasy, he looked sickly and there were lines beneath his eyes from sleepless nights. He could be at home right now. He could be well fed and comfortable. Why had he stowed away?
‘Why are you going to Zaiben?’ she said.
His brow creased, but he didn’t answer.
‘Are you in trouble?’
He hesitated. Then at last, at long last, he said, ‘Yes.’
She released a breath. It was the first proper answer he’d given her. ‘Is it bad?’
He lowered his gaze. ‘Yes.’
She couldn’t imagine how Bayani could’ve gotten into trouble so terrible that he had to go all the way to Zaiben. ‘What can I do to help?’
He smiled a sad smile, and said – of course – ‘Nothing.’
* * *
THE MYTHIE GUIDEBOOK
ENTRY #92: Sea Serpent (common)
The sea serpent is a sea mythie under the predator category. It is serpentine, and has been found at lengths of over one hundred measures.
Diet: Meat, mostly humans.
Habitat: Deep sea waters.
Frequency: Moderately rare.
Behaviour: Sea serpents bring down ships by wrapping their bodies either longways around the hull or over the deck and squeezing until the ship splinters. They then devour all crew aboard.
Eradication: The scales of these mythies are impenetrable, but with enough force and a powerful weapon they can be beheaded.
Did you know? Sea serpents have three layers of teeth.
Danger level: 4
* * *
Hero
The Winda continued northwest, and the weather grew impossibly colder. They passed streams of land on either side, but no one showed an interest except Mei, who stood in the upper basket and stared south, singing in her own language.
Lintang worked hard through her shivers. In fact, she worked so hard, she was now doing twice as much as Yamini. She whistled the same tune Father did while he cleaned his fishing tools. When her lips were too cold to whistle, she hummed. She greeted every crew member, even if they weren’t allowed to talk back. They found ways to show they appreciated her attitude, though. Dee slipped her extra rations. Xiang showed a dozing talross how to load a crossbow while Lintang was nearby. A fur blanket that used to be in Quahah’s room mysteriously appeared in Lintang’s cabin one evening.
Captain Shafira didn’t acknowledge Lintang’s change specifically, but Lintang often caught the captain watching her with a careful expression on her face. That had to mean something. Lintang was making progress, slowly.
One clear day when the ocean sparkled as blue as the sky, Mei cried out and Keelee shrieked from above.
Captain Shafira stepped down from the bridge. The rest of the crew followed her to the bow. Lintang, who had been gutting freshly caught fish, set down her knife and washed her hands in a little bucket of water. The fish lay stinking on the deck as she climbed to her feet.
‘Is it the sirens?’ Xiang said. ‘Has anyone checked on Bayani or Avalon recently?’
‘We’re too far north of the reef,’ Quahah said, shielding her face from the sun.
Captain Shafira studied the horizon. Lintang peeked between people to see what they were looking at.
Water swirled and churned in the distance. It wasn’t glowing green, so at least it wasn’t Nyasamdra again.
‘Xiang,’ Captain Shafira said.
‘On it.’ Xiang almost barrelled into Lintang as she sprinted to the hatch on the bridge. She was fetching weapons.
Yamini shoved past Lintang to get to the railing. Lintang was too busy watching the turbulent water to care.
It was different telling stories at dinner of flesh-eating eels, or turtles as big as islands, or the ferocious Lanme Vanyan. Now that they were facing the cold, frothing truth, Lintang couldn’t laugh.
‘Mei!’ Captain Shafira called to the upper basket. ‘Any chance of getting around it?’
‘I don’t think so, Captain,’ Mei said, peering through the collapsible brass telescope. ‘It’s heading towards us.’
She was right. The swirling water disappeared and reappeared closer. Every now and then Lintang thought she saw a lump of scales.
It was only when the sun glistened on the scales that Captain Shafira roared, ‘Sea serpent!’
The crew immediately scrambled across the deck. Lintang had to throw herself out of the way to avoid being knocked over.
At first the crew’s movements looked chaotic, but there seemed to be method to their frenzy. Maybe they’d done this before. Or maybe they had drills, the way Desa practised preparing for all the dragons that never came.
The sails went up and loose objects were thrown below. Captain Shafira ushered Lintang towards the main hatch. ‘Stay in your cabin until I come for you.’ She lifted her voice and added, ‘Yamini, you too.’
Then she was off, helping Mei with the ropes. Lintang gathered her tools and tossed the fish guts overboard. Xiang burst from the hatch on the bridge with three harpoons that had tops curved like claws – the ones Lintang had seen earlier. A white ball of light zipped up after Xiang, but Lintang didn’t stop to take a proper look. She was going to follow Captain Shafira’s orders this time, just like Avalon said. No mistakes.
She carried her things below deck, having to leap out of the way as Dee thundered up the stairs. Hewan the medic stumped to her room, her shawl wrapped tightly around her shoulders, muttering under her breath about how she’d just wanted to enjoy a nice cup of tea.
Lintang made it into the galley as the ship lurched. She tumbled against the wall, barely missing the hot stove. The iron door had been fastened shut, which was lucky because the ship lurched again, and she fell the other way. One of the doors to the storage shelves burst open. She covered her head as chopping boards and plates tumbled down. The knives and cleavers swung from their places on the ceiling, but nothing sharp landed on her.
It wouldn’t be the same for Bayani.
She clamoured to her feet. He was in the weapons room, surrounded by blades and carpentry tools. Had anyone thought about that?
And what if the ship sunk? He’d be stuck in the cage, unable to swim for safety. He’d drown.
She was supposed to go to her cabin. The captain had ordered it. But how could she leave Bayani locked in that cage when they were under attack?
>
She staggered out of the galley. Something thunked against the outer walls. It was followed by a sickening crack.
How much damage could a sea serpent do?
Yamini snagged Lintang’s dress before she could get to the stairs. ‘What do you think you’re doing?’ She yanked Lintang back. ‘No, I know what you’re doing – you want to impress the captain.’
Lintang wrenched at Yamini’s fingers. ‘Let go!’
‘The captain gave us orders to stay down here.’
Lintang stomped on her foot. Yamini shrieked and released her, and Lintang raced to the top deck. She didn’t get far. Everyone was leaning over the edge, staring and shouting and hitting downwards, no matter what part of the ship they were on. Lintang hurried to peer over the side.
No wonder the timber was cracking and groaning – the sea serpent had wrapped its body around the entire ship longways and was squeezing the way a python suffocated its prey. Its thick body was just above the waterline, its scales flashing silver in the sunlight. It stank of old fish.
The crew tried to hack at it with their weapons, but it was too low and no one could reach. Xiang’s special harpoons lay at her boots as she hurled slim daggers at the serpent’s body. The daggers simply bounced off the scales and spun into the water, lost forever. After the third throw, she pulled out the spindle holding her bun together. Her glossy hair tumbled down her back. She put one end of the spindle in her mouth and blew. Something sped from the tip. It glanced uselessly off the scales like the daggers. She opened a pouch hanging from her waist and reloaded the stick with dart after dart, sending each of them at the serpent. These weren’t like the darts she played with during rouls. They were tiny pins. Some pierced between the serpent’s scales, but nothing else happened.
She shoved the spindle in her pouch. ‘Serpent’s too big to react to the poison.’
Lintang picked up one of the special harpoons and examined the curved tip. It was lighter than she’d expected. ‘Why don’t you throw these?’
‘They’re dragon talon harpoons,’ Xiang said. ‘Worth a fortune, and the only thing that will kill the sirens.’
