The most interesting and frustrating thing they found was the following message etched into the cave wall beside the boat. The title “The Fire” was underlined with a deep crack in the wall and below, the following was chiseled: “A way of providing purpose and keeping you focused until a time when the world is ready for you again.”
To that the two fire guards had nothing to say.
All Jerome did was laugh.
Chapter Six
Year 2066, South Pacific Sea
The fellowship headed northeast and left in May. Staff Captain Sarah Hendricks left pages of notes explaining the weather patterns of the Pacific Ocean, and these helped the team plan the best departure time and set their heading. The eastern Pacific’s weather was benign all year, but Polynesia’s humid season ran November through April. This was when tropical storms ravaged the ocean, and cyclones spiraled across the sea with winds of up to one hundred and fifty miles per hour. Some on Respite believed these patterns could be outdated because without humans to disturb the ecosystem, man-made climate change would reverse itself, altering many of the Earth’s cycles, but they had nothing else to go on.
Tye hoped to grab the southeast trade winds that pushed up the coast of South America and back out across the mid-Pacific toward Indonesia. A brief dispute erupted about who should command the Jolly Roger. As owner of the ship, Milly ceded her command to Tye. He was the most experienced with boats and the sea, with the gone world, and with just about everything because he was the oldest. His support also helped sell the mission to the island council because his warnings about population control and depletion of island resources were becoming recognized.
With Tye and Milly went Peter, Jerome, Vera and Robin. The fellowship of six would try to reach New Austin, Texas, the origin point of the message Milly heard, and explore and document as much of the gone world as they could along the way.
The call from nowhere had become legendary on Respite. Tye’d heard it recited many times, pondered its meaning and analyzed the words, trying to discover hidden clues. After keeping the call secret for two years, Milly told the council while making the argument for her voyage to the gone world. She said a female voice repeated the same thing three times through the static of the ear: “To anyone who can hear this, you are not alone. We’re rebuilding. Come join the world in New Austin. We have food and supplies. All you need to bring is an honest heart and a will to work. We hope you find us at the end of your journey.”
The boat was packed with sixty days of provisions: water, fresh and dried fruits and vegetables, nuts, coconuts, boar and fish jerky. They could always catch rain and pull food from the sea if needed. Both sails were out, and they moved at a steady ten knots, tacking back and forth through the choppy sea, trying to catch a consistent breeze. The trade wind hadn’t materialized, so they fought due east and would turn northeast when the winds picked up.
Despite having instructions to reassemble the launch’s outboard motor, they’d chosen not to try. Even if they’d managed it, and found gasoline in the gone world, it would be bad just like their supply. Plus, the fuel tank looked rusted, the prop and driveshaft were bent, and all the motor gaskets had deteriorated to nothing because they’d been exposed to air for so long. If Rocco Sereggio lived perhaps things would have been different. Instead they constructed long oars, and as the days dragged on, the fellowship rowed for exercise and fun even when the winds favored them.
The helm consisted of a traditional gimbal compass which still worked and spun freely, and a watch, which was one of two synchronized wind-ups that allowed the fellowship to stay time synced with Respite and attempt sending a message should they find a device capable. The Weiss field watch also assisted with navigation and approximating their location. They estimated speed using a one-hundred-foot length of bark rope with knots tied every ten feet, and a dried log tied on its end. Drop in the log, and count the number of knots on the rope as it’s pulled into the sea, compare it to elapsed time, and they could estimate the Jolly Roger’s speed. Tye’d learned this old seaman’s trick from Sarah’s notes.
The launch’s steering wheel was still mounted on the front console, but didn’t work. The rudder broke along with the prop and driveshaft while getting the boat out of the caves, and a new, larger rudder had been constructed and its bamboo control arm stuck through the back of the launch. One of Respite’s two pairs of binoculars hung from its neck strap on a peg nailed into the bulkhead.
Tye called up to Jerome, “How we doing up there?”
“Good. Need me to trim?”
Milly looked over the side and shook her head no.
“Stay steady for now,” Tye said.
Tye watched Milly study the chart laid out on a stack of food. Though the Oceanic Eco utilized GPS, radar, and computer autopilot to navigate, Captain Shaw kept a paper set of ocean charts showing depths, markers, and tidal patterns for the sea he sailed, and Staff Captain Sarah Hendricks grabbed them when she’d fled the bridge on The Day. In addition, they had three travel maps showing the Pacific islands. Both were small and provided tourist information, but they gave Tye and his crew a solid understanding of how far away they were from land, how long their sea voyage would take, and a bigger picture of the world at large.
The tourist maps were a source of great debate back home, but Tye hadn’t taken part in the bickering. He’d foreseen the resolution, as the two opposing
