"It would be so much easier if someone would just tell me what I am supposed to do."
I've lived my life doing what others have told me to do. While not being responsible for my own destiny may have been easier, I certainly would not say it was better.
"You make a good point," Catrin conceded. "I suppose I'll just have to stop my whining and get on with it." She could almost hear Prios chuckle.
As the sun rose over the sea, the lookout called out: "Land!" His call drew everyone to the deck. Having seen nothing but waves for months, it was a thrill to see land, even if they would only pass it by. When they neared the Terhilian Lovers, the sun cast a ruddy glow, and there, perched upon the man's outstretched arm, waited Kyrien. Glimmering like a jewel, he spread his wings and extended his tail. Dropping his head down, he wove back and forth hypnotically. No one spoke, and Catrin was held in thrall, not wanting to move or speak for fear he would fly away, but he just watched them as they slid past. Not long before he would have been lost from sight, he slipped from his perch, spread his wings only part of the way, and slammed into the water.
Watching for him to emerge, Catrin waited at the gunwales for most of the day, but he did not show himself. She was left to wonder if his presence was but a final farewell.
"He's a remarkable beast, your Kyrien," Nora said as she walked to Catrin's side.
"I had hoped to see him again, but I think he's gone."
"With such a rare and mystical creature, I don't suppose you'll ever know what to expect."
In the light of her cabin, Catrin prepared herself. Before her was the dragon ore and the sharpest knife she could find. To the side sat a leather bag she would use to collect the chips and shards, each one precious. Taking a deep breath, she picked up the knife before she lost her nerve. Using only light pressure, she pulled the knife against the stone. Not even a scratch was made in the glossy surface. Trying again, she used greater force but achieved no greater effect.
Brother Vaughn watched with anticipation. "Apply your will," he said.
Opening herself to a trickle of energy, she tried to keep the torrent from pulling her away. Despite greater understanding, her power remained difficult to moderate, and a bead of sweat formed on her brow. Directing her energy along the fine edge of the knife, she pulled it toward her, and blade parted stone. A tiny shard separated from the dragon ore and sat, perched, atop the gleaming knife.
"Well done," Brother Vaughn said. "Now do it again."
"When we get back," Osbourne said, "I'm gonna eat for a week. Ham, bacon, sausage-anything but fish."
"Bread and apple butter," Strom said.
"A big, juicy steak with potatoes," Chase added.
"Slices of pepper sausage with chunks of smoked cheese," Kenward said from behind them, and they all turned. "Aye, a seafarer I may be, but I've a love for land food."
"Do you think we'll ever make it back home?" Osbourne asked.
"We'll make it," Kenward said. "And when we do, the first meal is on me."
"I'm going to hold you to that," Strom said.
"You've all earned it. I've spent most of my life at sea, and I can think of no passengers I'd rather have on my ship. Hopefully you'll find some reason to take to the seas again someday."
"So there's no chance you'll stay on the Godfist?" Strom asked.
"Not for long," Kenward said. "I tried it once, but life on land didn't suit me. All those invisible lines that divide one man's space from another's were beyond my understanding. The sea is the sea. No one can claim it or take it away from me."
In a way, Osbourne could see his point, but it did nothing to dampen his longing for home. To feel the grass between his toes or to run through the forest would be glorious indeed. Things that had seemed mundane, even boring, in his old life now had new meaning, new significance. If ever they make it home, he thought, his life would be forever changed, and he would no longer take for granted the things he now knew he loved the most.
After finishing their meal in silence, they dispersed, each having tasks waiting. It seemed on a ship, the work was never done.
"If we run full sail," Kenward said, "we could make to the shallows just before the full moon."
"We need to fish while still on this side of the shallows," Nora said. "Or have you forgotten the sharks? Your ship is in no condition to face any foe, let alone make full speed. It would be wisest to take it slowly and fish while we wait out the cycle of the moon."
Pacing the deck, Kenward struggled. Why must his instincts always push him to do the exact opposite of what his mother suggested? He valued her council, no matter what she thought, but he had learned to follow his gut. "We can't sail the shallows with a full hold, and we'll have to fish on the other side either way. Raise full sail," he said. Nora made an annoyed sound in her throat and walked away.
"She doesn't look happy," Chase said as he approached.
Kenward just shrugged. "I have that effect on her."
Wiping the sweat from her eyes, Catrin squinted, trying to figure out the best way to make the final cut. Before her was the physical manifestation of the image she had seen in her mind. Despite her rudimentary carving skills, it was, in its own way, beautiful. Turning the tip of her blade carefully under a delicate section, she trimmed away a tiny sliver, though she nearly cut herself when someone shouted: "Shallows ahead!"
After carefully placing the sliver in her now nearly full bag, Catrin went to the gunwales, secretly hoping to find Kyrien waiting for her.
"Get the gear ready. We fish," Kenward said, and the crew scrambled. Despite their efforts, the fish simply weren't biting, and they caught only a few small sharks. As the light began to fade, the frustration was palpable. "We need to catch enough fish to feed us for a while. I didn't want to fill the hold, but I didn't want to starve either. If we don't catch something soon, we are going to have to wait another moon before we cross the shallows."
"Aye," Nora said. "Nothing to be done for it but to keep trying."
"Fins to port, sir!" called the lookout.
Glossy fins parted the water, tossing a wake on each side as they came. Then, as if they understood the fear it would instill, they slipped beneath the dark water. Catrin tried to prepare herself for an impact, but not knowing exactly when it would come made it nearly impossible. When the sharks did hit the ship, it felt as if all of them hit at once, and the Slippery Eel rolled to one side before slowly righting herself.
"Pull in the trawl tubs!" Kenward ordered. "As soon as they are in, we raise full sail and make for the shallows. Prepare yourselves!"
In a frenzy of activity, the crew readied the ship to come about, but the men retrieving the trawl tubs cursed. They had caught something, and whatever it was, it was big.
"Now the fish decide to bite," Strom said as he helped the men struggling to turn the windlass.
"Sir, some of our repairs have been knocked loose. We're taking on water," Bryn reported.
"Lock the windlass," Kenward said then, with a single stroke of his belt knife across the tensioned rope, cut the trawl away. "Full sail. Now!"
The Slippery Eel thrummed as the sharks slammed against the hull again, and the crew needed little urging to make speed. Catrin clung to the railing, a sick feeling in her stomach. The sharks seemed determined to sink them, and she knew that, in the water, they would make an easy meal. Though the moon was nearly full, a thick covering of clouds blanketed the skies, and the shallows were barely visible. Sailing full speed into those waters seemed in itself suicide, and that was assuming the sharks didn't get them first.