by Allan Joyal
"Visiting?" Culax asked. "Wouldn't he have been in his home?"
"He had left it in the east," Ushcail said. "Syrina's people warned him that there had been a volcanic eruption and the creatures of the sea were angered, but he refused to wait. Said he wanted to collect some of the magical essences released by the eruption. He never actually arrived on the island he was going to visit."
"But what does that have to do with this treasure?" Culax asked.
"Think about it for a minute," I said. "A wizard dies and his home, filled with magical treasures he has collected is somewhere in the East. I'm sure at one time the Seres and the merchants knew that it had been some kind of floating building, but over time that information has been lost. So now expeditions head out to scour the islands we can visit each time expecting that one day they'll stumble on the remnants of this wizard's hoard."
"But I'm guessing it sank after his death," Panalope said.
"That's what Syrina's people say. But they avoid the islands east of Morda. Raptorfish are much more common and there are other creatures hostile to her people. They could be wrong, but either way, it was never something I cared to investigate," Ushcail said. "And for now, I'll say no more about that."
"But captain," Hadlor said. "There is no harm in telling us about Syrina and her people."
Ushcail stared at the young man. "There are men on these islands who would try to capture them. Others would abuse them. They stay away from the shipping lanes. Syrina is the only one in the last one hundred years to have regular contact with a surface walker as they call us. For now, it is best if we leave them alone."
"Sad that they have to live alone from us," I said. "But seeing how Sere Komptan and then High Guard Chasterman reacted to the possibility that this ship would be better than a galley, I understand."
"Is it really better than a galley?" Panalope asked. "Kaven, I ran away from my father. I abandoned my inheritance and my future for this expedition. Why do it?"
I looked to the west. The others were silent and I realized that everyone was looking at me. For a moment I could say nothing and then Jessop nodded slightly. "Tell the truth boy. I don't think anyone will condemn you for that."
I put my arm around Panalope. She turned her head and looked right at me. "Kaven?"
"I tell people that the farm I am on is failing, but that's not the truth. Its already failed. My family doesn't keep great records, but before he died my grandfather told my sister about the farm and how productive it had once been. He also said he had watched the fields grow less and less fertile year after year."
I've heard that some farms are not doing well," Lucis said. "Several of the men on the last galley I served on had joined because the farms couldn't feed everyone."
"And that's the secret. Its not just my family's farm that is failing. Most of the farms are showing signs that the soil can no longer support crops. Part of the reason Sere Komptan has become so aggressive is that the tax collections he gets from farmers keeps dropping. He'd demand more, but there is nothing more to take. The farmers are starving already and taking more will leave no one to work the fields," I said. "Marrisey knows about this. Part of why he left our island was because Sere Komptan was demanding that he build two infantry galleys for free instead of paying taxes."
"That's a lot of ship," Lucis said. "Especially if he was demanding the two tiered galley's used by most of the Seres."
"I couldn't say. I got to know Marrisey because my father and I decided to plant only a third of our fields and see if the others would recover. We had so much time that I began visiting Marrisey's shipyard and talking to him. I also found time to bother the scholars at Bishops Point," I said.
"Is that were you found the records?" Panalope asked. "I thought those men just keep the tax records for all the Seres."
"That's what they do now," I said. "But I guess they have some scrolls from the original expeditions to the islands. These included descriptions of ships and of the routes used. One thing was that the ships did not sail back and forth. They sailed in a circle. To come here they'd sail from a city in the north of the continent controlled by the Empire and sail eastward. They would actually arrive in the Islands just south of the Lava Lands. Sailing back to the Empire was done by following the route we are taking, they ships sailed west from Isla Oerste."
"They must have followed the winds and currents," Ushcail said. "And if you all want to warm up. The wind is getting a bit stronger and starting to come from the north. If we set the sail right, we can be in Oerste before the tavern there opens for the evening meal."
I was surprised at Ushcail's confidence. I looked back at him and noticed that he was looking up towards the top of the mast. Leaning back I gazed up to see that there was a strip of cloth at the top of the mast. It was fluttering in the wind. Panalope looked up and laughed. "So that's how he can tell which way the wind is blowing."
"Makes sense," I said as I stood up. "Let's get to work. I expect he'll have you at the tiller again."
"Why?" Panalope asked.
"Don't complain about that," Jessop shouted. "It’s a position of responsibility, but a lot less physical than working the sails. This way you can do a job that we need done."
Panalope pushed against me. "Get going then. I want to be useful. You're still useless."
The rest of the crew started laughing. "Don't worry boy," Lucis said. "You're learning. For now take the boom. We shouldn't need to do much, but we might need to change the angle of the sail."
"Come to starboard one point," Ushcail shouted.
"Do what?" Panalope asked.
"Push the tiller to port; let the ship start to turn and then move the tiller back to the middle. We just want to make a slight change so we can run a bit more to the west," Ushcail said.
"Got it!" Panalope shouted. The ship seemed to tilt away from the wind for a moment, but quickly snapped back. The sail was pulling hard on the boom and I had to wrap one of the lines around the railing to get the leverage necessary to keep the boom steady.
Gypsy seemed to increase in speed. We skipped across the water, riding the waves. Ushcail had helped with the ropes on the foresail, but then took to scanning the horizon. He moved to the bow and was looking over the side regularly.
I was standing with Hadlor. One of the lines holding the base of the foresail had snapped while they were tying it down. They had managed to pull the line tight and put a knot in the broken pieces, but Hadlor wanted to replace the line with a fresh one.
"Don't leave a broken line," he said. "Yes, we used a knot to hold it together, and the knot should not fall apart, but once a line parts like that, it is weakened, and you never want a weak rope holding a sail in place."
The trick was that Hadlor expected me to help him thread the new rope through the sail and tie it off and then we would untie the old rope. It had proved to be a slow and laborious process to do this while the ship was still sailing. However, I worked steadily and Hadlor watched me tie the final knot in the new rope just as Ushcail shouted. "Isla Oerste in sight to port. Bring the tiller around and prepare to turn to port."
"Push the tiller starboard?" Panalope asked.
"Damn," Hadlor said. "We'll have to adjust the sail. Get the bow lines, I'll finish here once we turn."
The ship leaned to starboard, but it was as if the wind held it up. I watched the bow hang in the air as a wave passed beneath us and then the ship turned and rode the wave to the southwest.
"Steady as she goes," Ushcail shouted. "Be ready to turn to port to enter the harbor."
"How bad is this harbor entrance?" I asked Hadlor as I moved several lines to allow the sail to catch the wind.
"The island is actually two islands," Hadlor said as we grabbed some of the ropes and began preparing for the upcoming turn. "The harbor is between the two. The entrances are a bit narrow and known to have some sharp rocks. I expect the captain to be at the bow watching to make sure we stay in the safe channel."
"Would be a
lot easier in a galley," Lucis said. "You have a lot more control over the ship when you have oars."
Ushcail and Jessop had pulled long poles from somewhere. I could see that they were setting up at the bow and watching the water. Ushcail looked back at everyone. "Turn now! Tiller to starboard, hard turn to port. Get on the sails men!"
The ship started to turn. The sails immediately lost tension as the wind went from blowing across them to blowing over the stern of the ship. I followed Hadlor as we released the bottom of the foresail and began adjusting the angle to better catch the wind.
Lucis rushed over and started helping us. "Don't forget the mainsail," Hadlor said as we tied off the foresail. It was billowing to starboard, as the ship righted itself.
"Bring in some sail," Ushcail shouted. "We're running a bit fast."
"Mainsail is set," Lucis said. "Let's trim the foresail, it will have more effect in this breeze."
"What do I do?" I asked.
Hadlor tossed me the end of a line. "Keep tension on that," he said. "Lucis and I will do the rest."
The other two ducked under the sail and started adjusting lines. I found the line I was holding losing tension periodically as they worked. Each time I would pull on the line until I could feel the sail pulling against my efforts.
"That's good men!" Ushcail called out. "Pan, watch my hand signals. We're a bit off the center of the channel, but we might actually be better off. Just be prepared to make gentle corrections."
"How wide is the channel?" I asked Hadlor worriedly. "I'm guessing the rocks can do a lot of damage if we hit one."
"The captains know, but even they aren't quite sure. Sometimes a rock winds up in the middle of the channel," Hadlor said. "All we can do is obey his commands if he needs us to adjust the sails."
Ushcail was looking at the water in front of the bow. I could see Jessop standing next to him and using the strangely hooked pole he had held earlier to probe the water. There was one moment where Jessop walked to the port side and worriedly thrust the pole into the waves. Everyone gripped a rope.
However, a moment later Jessop walked back to the bow. The ship continued to pass between two land masses as we headed towards a calm bay and a long stone pier.
"Come to port for a moment," Ushcail said. "And we should reef the foresail. We'll be docking at the pier."
"Where?" Panalope asked. "And should Jessop take the tiller? I've never done this."
"We'll dock right at the end of the pier, just like we did at Isla Magestica," Ushcail called back. "I'll call when you need to turn to starboard and we'll sail right up alongside."
"I wonder if the piers were built with that in mind," I muttered as I helped bring the foresail in.
No one answered me as the ship continued making its way into the harbor. We heard some excited shouting from the shore, but ignored it as we concentrated on making sure the ship struck nothing as we approached the dock.
Chapter 13: Last Night in Port
Ushcail personally tossed the anchor onto the pier as he ordered us to bring the mainsail down. Jessop surprised me by rushing to the stern, grabbing a rope and jumping over the railing. He quickly tied the stern of the ship in place, using a ring embedded in the surface of the pier.
Nothing was said as Hadlor, Lucis, Culax and I finished tying the mainsail down. We had just finished securing it when Ushcail strode to the port side of the mast. "Fall in!" he shouted.
I had no idea what to do. Hadlor, Lucis and Culax immediately formed a line in front of the boom. Ushcail gave me a nudge in the back. "Join them," he whispered.
Embarrassed I ran to stand at Culax's left. Panalope and Jessop joined me a moment later. Ushcail stood there impassively as we formed up.
"This will be a one night stay. Those of you with money can enjoy visiting the tavern. I do expect you all here at dawn. We'll sail with the morning tide. If you want you can come here and sleep on the ship," Ushcail said.
"Where will you be?" Panalope asked.
Ushcail smiled. "I'll enjoy a meal at the tavern and then return to the ship."
"What about our belongings here?" I asked.
"On other islands we'd need to leave a watch, but Isla Oerste is lightly populated," Ushcail said. "And we'll be able to see the ship from the tavern."
I was surprised by this, but Ushcail pointed to a spot right at the base of the pier. Someone had used stone pillars to hold up a thatched roof and then placed a number of large flat stones underneath. The structure had no walls.
"The tavern has no walls," Panalope said.
"Obviously," I muttered. "But at least it means we can watch the ship while we relax."
"Dismissed," Ushcail called out.
The other four crewman shouted 'huzzah' and then jumped over the railing to land on the pier. They were playfully pushing and shoving each other as they made their way to the shore. I just stood and watched for a few moments.
"Not going to join them?" Ushcail asked.
"Just realizing that just today I've been to two islands I’ve never seen before. Before that I'd never left my home island," I said.
"That's not uncommon," Ushcail said. "Unless you work in the galleys you have little reason to wander."
"I had a reason," I pointed out.
"And here you are wandering," Ushcail said with a laugh. "You should head to the tavern. They probably started some stew when they first spotted Gypsy and the stew served here is best fresh out of the pot."
I looked towards the base of the pier. It seemed that a dozen people were standing there watching the rest of the crew approach. They appeared happy to see them, but I noticed an undercurrent of confusion.
"Shall we go?" Panalope asked. "I'll buy."
I nodded and then reached for the railing. The ship was floating just a handspan from the dock so the jump was easy to make. When I landed I turned thinking I might help Panalope, but she had already leapt over the railing.
Panalope stumbled a bit as her feet met the pier. I heard a slight gasp and noticed that she was standing with her right heel in the air.
"Bad landing?" I asked.
"I can walk," she muttered. "Just give me a moment."
She lifted her leg and then carefully rotated her ankle. I could see her lips thin with pain, but a moment later she lowered her foot to the ground and stood on it.
"No dancing then?" I asked cheekily.
"Just help me to the tavern," Panalope hissed. "And maybe I'll hand you your new mug once we get there."
I looked down and realized she had two mugs hanging from a belt she had tied around her waist. Panalope smiled at me and then started to walk down the pier. She was limping just a little as she made her way.
I ran up behind her and then carefully took her right arm. I draped it over my shoulders and used my body to support her as I walked with her down the pier.
"Thank you," she whispered as we approached the shore.
As we got closer, I watched the people there. Jessop had ignored the welcoming party and was already sitting at one of the stone tables under the roof. He had pulled a piece of wood from a pouch and was using a knife to carve it.
The other three men were still standing in front of the crowd. The people of the island were making offers of goods and services to the men as they patiently stood and listened.
"Good crewman," one man shouted. "My wife is an expert seamstress. She can repair your clothing. All we ask is a single copper."
"Sir, would you have any extra meat. We'll even take dried or smoked meat that is off. Please my children have had no meat in a moon," another man called out.
"It seems like these islands are poor," I said quietly to Panalope.
"Are you surprised?" she asked. "They are probably only visited a couple of times a year by galleys. Unless they produce something unique they are limited to what they have on the island."
"I expect they'll get a visit from a galley soon. High Guard Chasterman is going to want to find out where we went. But ho
pefully it will be a trade galley rather than a war one," I said.
"Sir," someone shouted to me. "Do you want a relaxing massage? I know working on the ships can pain a man. I know someone who is wonderful."
I shook my head. The man moved around me and put a hand on Panalope's shoulder. "You seem to be in pain. I assure you my mistress… What is this!"
The man's shocked shout brought all other conversation to an immediate halt. He grabbed Panalope and tried to rip her out of my grasp. "What whore have you brought with you?"
"The young lady happens to be part of the crew," Hadlor said. "She's been working as an apprentice helmsman."
"That's a position for a man, not some barely nubile woman," the man said again trying to rip Panalope out of my arms.
I grabbed at the man's arms. He gasped as I clenched his wrist and squeezed. The man released Panalope.
"Now what goes on here?" an old grizzled voice called out.
The man I was holding looked up. "It’s the fault of that ship. Not only did it move unnaturally, but they brought a woman to the island. They say she's part of the crew."
I turned towards the grizzled voice. A man with a long beard, leaning on a staff, was standing right at the base of the pier. There was a circle around him that no other islander appeared willing to enter. He used the staff to waddle forward until he was standing just in front of Panalope.
"So, a girl on a boat," the man said. "Do you service them?"
Panalope's face turned red. "I'm a maiden and will remain so until I marry! I boarded Gypsy with the understanding I would be part of the crew."
"An unusual ship," the man said. "But crewing a ship takes brawn. How can you be part of the crew?"
"I hold the tiller," Panalope said. "The others work the sails. Working the sails takes strength, but the tiller responds to a lighter touch. I also can splice lines and tie knots. The rest I will learn."
