day he repaired to the bridge and found Ulaman there, staring at the maps of the sea strait they were traversing.
“Hello, Daniel,” Ulaman said, looking up for a moment. “How was the repair work?”
“Harder than I had expected,” Daniel admitted. “But we got a good deal done. Darigyn put a claim on me for the next time.”
Lindris, at the steering wheel, laughed. “You have a friend for life, Daniel.”
“How are your hands?” the captain asked.
“No problem, they’re fine.” Daniel told Ulaman about the surgery he’d had.
“Oh. I see. You’re different then. Well, that’s fine. We have Bilk also, and he’s fine. We’re all fine,” the captain said. He reached for the tube and yelled that the crew should set a gaff rigged sail on masts two, three and six, working sail on the seven and eight, and no sail on the rest. “We’re going too fast.”
Daniel stared at the paper. He was not new to navigational maps and understood most of what he saw, except for where Ulaman had added some notes by hand. “Too fast for what? Isn’t getting there fast good?”
The captain looked at him and laughed. “Almost correct, landlubber. First objective however is to get there. Look here.” The big finger pointed at a mark the captain had drawn himself just before. “This is where we are.” The finger moved and ended on top of a blotch. “That is where we are going. Did you notice something special?”
“You moved your finger between these two blotches.”
“Correct. These blotches are island. Rocks. There is a sandbank between them, and if we hit that with the low tide, we get stuck, damage the ship and we’re buggered up.” Ulaman tapped the mark that was the Pricosine. “We’re making too much speed, so we would hit the sandbank on the last bit of low tide. What we have to do is slow down enough so we pass through the islands a few hours later. That’s all.”
Daniel nodded. It made a lot of sense, once you knew what to look for. He had another look at the map. “Ah, right. I see why you’re not taking the detour around the islands.” He had seen the array of dots that lay around both islands, they probably meant spikes that were sticking up. No way the Pricosine could pass through that without tearing up the hull.
“Daniel Zacharias, you amaze me. You may make a decent sailor yet if you stay on board for a few years.” Ulaman laughed, pulled open a drawer from the table and brought out two glasses and a bottle with something blue. He poured two healthy dollops and handed a glass to Daniel. “I like you, Daniel Zacharias!”
They threw the booze back. Ulaman wiped his mouth. Daniel was not sure if he should try to make it outside before exploding. The fire died away fast though. Slowly Daniel put the glass down.
“Damn the water ghost,” Ulaman said, “you drank it all?”
Daniel nodded, not sure if his vocal chords had survived the ordeal. “Looks like it,” he tried. His voice was still there.
“You are such an idiot, Daniel Zacharias. But a good one. Next time ask what’s in it.” Ulaman laughed again, and Lidrin joined in. Even Daniel launched a grin.
The action of setting less sail had worked perfectly. Daniel stood all the way at the front of the Pricosine, the wind in his face, as the ship sailed through the gulley between the two islands. It was a magnificent view. Majestic.
The rest of the journey the Pricosine pushed on under light sail, making the most of the wind. As they approached their goal, all sails were lowered. Ulaman and the crew were masters of their trade, Daniel saw. They knew exactly when to do it, to make the giant ship slow down. The bow cut through the water for half a day, and by the time the speed had dropped to a near crawl, they were only a few miles away from the island. At the end of the day, the Pricosine was moored to a makeshift quay and several large cranes, all hand-powered, started their work on emptying the belly of the sea giant. It took four whole days of continuous work before it was done.
As they were on the journey back to Skarak harbour, Daniel sighted a few ships, far away. Ulaman had offered him a telescope, but his electronic eye outperformed the tube many times. Still he could not make out anything of the ships passing, but at this distance there was nothing to fear. The trip was calm and fast as now the Pricosine was empty and wanted to fly through the waters.
As soon as they were in reach, Daniel contacted Seigner Clelem, reporting about the trip, the two distant ships and the lack of something more to report. Clelem seemed satisfied.
Back in the harbour, Ulaman was met by Gaguran Slindris and the two left in a carriage. Xandree, Ulaman’s wife, knew that they were meeting Seigner Clelem. “They usually talk after a voyage,” she said, “although it is strange that they do after this. This voyage was nothing special.”
“Except for me being with you,” Daniel pointed out.
“Should not make the difference,” Xandree shrugged. “Care to come help with the laundry?” She was so practical.
Daniel was helping Darigyn roll the cordage into neat coils when Ulaman returned to the ship. The captain stomped up the gangway. “Not good,” Darigyn predicted. Daniel wisely did not ask anything as the bear-shaped man made his way over the deck and down to his quarters.
The security man was in his cabin, after a shower, when someone pounded on the door. “Hey, landlubber, do you have plans for the evening?” It was the voice of the captain.
“No, not really,” Daniel said as he opened the door.
“Perfect. You’re coming with us then. Xandree and I are going into town, for a hearty meal and some light entertainment.” The deep rolling laughter of the man told Daniel enough.
11. Home is where the ship is
Daniel had some time to himself after returning from the voyage. The Pricosine was being cleaned and then a new cargo would be loaded. That would take a while, of course, with such a large ship. He grinned at himself as he was taking care not to call it a boat any more.
He sat at his table near the window. It allowed for a great view over the harbour. He could see the Pricosine from there and never failed to have at least a glance.
The hydger was on the table, next to the newspaper of a few days ago. And his military radio. He had tried to contact Rhonda, but there was no reply. He wasn’t even sure if his transmitter was able to reach that far, but there was no harm in trying.
From the apartment below there was a bit of noise, some shouting and screaming. Then the door slammed. He had heard more of that and it annoyed him. There was hardly any silence in this building. It was truly built for immigrants and travellers that did not stay long. Why on Earth- well, on NGC6637-VII someone had thought this was a cool place was beyond Daniel.
Daniel longed for the peace he’d had aboard the ship. He had even called Ulaman and asked if he could sleep in the cabin, but that was a big no. Seigner Clelem did not allow people on board while the ship was being maintained. And Seigner Clelem was the God of the Pricosine, so his word was law.
A look around the small apartment did not fill Daniel with joy. He had just cleaned it, made the simple bed and there was a small trash bag waiting to be taken out. He looked at his wrist, a habit that was hard to kick. His watch was in a trunk somewhere. He grabbed the pocket watch that was so fashionable here and checked the time. Almost dinnertime. What more reason did one need to dress up in the suit again, he grumbled. He did it anyway.
All dolled up he made his way down. With the trash. The bag was unceremoniously dumped in the container designated for waste disposal, and he stepped out into the street. He took the hydger. Then thought. And slipped the device back in his pocket.
At ease he started his stroll along the street, mingling with the people there were on their way to all kinds of destinations. At the end of the street he stopped. Not because it was busy, but because something caught his eye. He was standing at a small, virtually deserted roundabout. IN its centre was a patch of lawn, and scattered through the grass were small spots where someone had planted flowers. Daniel stared at the arrangement. He knew he had seen things like this before, here on the planet, but until now he had not taken the time to actually notice them. And to his surprise he found that he liked it, appreciated it.
“It is pretty, isn’t it?” a lady said as she walked past him. Daniel looked at her and caught her smile just
