Survivors: Book 4 Circles of Light series (30 page)

Peering down past
Farn’s shoulder Tika saw one whale, perhaps half the size of
Avgoor, swimming close to her left side. Another, nearly as large
as Avgoor, swam to her right.

‘Jemchoo is my youngest
child. She has completed only twelve journeys. Rakavina is nearly
twice that age and will bear her own children soon.’

Tika looked across to
where Maressa sat astride Brin’s shoulders.

‘Other sons and
daughters swim in different clans,’ Avgoor continued.

Greatly daring, Sket
ventured a question. ‘Don’t you find it – well, boring – swimming
all your lives?’

Peals of laughter rang
in their minds. They saw two much smaller whales splashing near the
surface before diving to come close to two adults. Both Tika and
Maressa grinned at Sket riding on Seela’s back and now blushing
furiously at his own temerity.

‘How could it be
boring?’ replied Avgoor at last, her tone amused but faintly
puzzled. ‘There are many sea people with whom we talk. Many feeding
places where the waters are different colours, different
textures.’

‘Where do you travel
now?’ asked Seela.

‘We go past the great
island and then we go south to meet other clans and exchange songs
for a while. But the currents say there is bad weather Above, near
that island. It matters not to us but you might find it
bothersome.’

Maressa instantly
searched ahead and found the whale was correct: clouds boiled and
raced in a storm system perhaps a day in front of them. Maressa
sent a thought back to Culinth, on Kasmi’s main ship, and found the
Sister of the Wind was already aware of the changing weather
pattern. The three gijan had been visiting the ships as they
usually did each day and Seela directed them to stay there. She had
no idea how a bad storm would affect the ships, but she feared the
gijan would come to grief if they attempted to fly on and rejoin
the Dragons. Her tone was severe enough that the gijan did not
attempt to argue with her.

Brin and Maressa had
carefully located all possible landing places, even the smallest
outcrops of rock, which would be large enough for the four Dragons
to settle on between Dawn Island and Wendla. Now they directed
Seela, Farn and Storm to one such place.

By the time they
reached it, the weather system coming towards them was visible on
the horizon. This islet resembled the one at which Kasmi’s ships
had anchored a few days out from Harbour City. Maressa hoped it
would be high enough to avoid flooding in the tempest that rapidly
approached. They took refuge on the slightly more sheltered side
and Sket produced thin ropes from his pack. Seela watched him in
approval as he secured one end round Tika’s waist and the other
above Farn’s foot. He did the same for Maressa and Brin before
attaching himself to Seela.

In the short time it
took him to do this, the sky had become livid, like a two day old
bruise: yellow, purple, green, black. Lighter clouds fled before
the storm, the wind thrashing the waves into frothing peaks. The
Dragons dug the talons of their feet and wings into the sand and
rock as firmly as they could and cowered down as the rain struck.
The night that followed was terrifying for all except
Storm.

He had experienced
weather as bad in his short life on the wild cliffs of the north
Sapphrean coast. But, he admitted there had at least been caves
which gave the Dragons some respite from the onslaught. The hiss of
lightning was loud even above the screaming howl of the wind, the
roaring growl of waves pounding all too close to where they
huddled. Rain hammered against scaled backs and leather wings until
Brin and Seela ached from the battering. In spite of the shelter
the two adult Dragons tried to provide, Tika, Khosa in her sack,
Maressa and Sket were soaked in moments of the deluge
descending.

The wildness of the
winds, the black darkness broken by incessant flashes made it
impossible for Maressa to send her mind out to try to discover when
they might expect the storm to pass. All of them were utterly spent
by the time that happened and it was no surprise to see, by the
position of the stars in the slowly clearing sky, that it was close
to dawn.

Storm moved first, down
the beach a short way where waves purled less wildly now against
the pebbled shore. He beat his wings vigorously, the rising sun
glinting on his grey scales. Tika, worn out herself, felt Seela’s
weariness and knew it was exacerbated by the terror this night had
brought them all. Farn was first to copy Storm, rearing erect and
beating his wings to force his circulation to bring some warmth
back to his chilled body. Tika sensed Brin and Seela’s spirits
lifting once they too became a little warmer but she and Khosa with
Sket and Maressa, still crouched, shivering
uncontrollably.

By the time Brin heated
stones for them and they were beginning to feel fingers and toes
once more, the sun was strong enough to cause the rain water to
evaporate, in writhing tendrils of mist, from the thin soil of
their islet.

‘I thank the stars I
wasn’t in a floating box last night,’ said Sket
fervently.

The company on Kasmi’s
leading ship Spiral Star would have agreed wholeheartedly with
Sket’s opinion. Culinth had given warning in time for safety lines
to be checked ready to be used by the deck crew and sails had been
shortened. Navan snatched a hasty meal and warned Gan a bad storm
appeared to be heading directly for them. Kasmi was worried that
the ships were still too close to a line of reefs, he told him. Gan
and the companions usually ate together. Occupied differently
around the ship as they had become, it gave them a chance to talk.
Now, they listened to Navan with varying degrees of
alarm.

‘Seela mind spoke the
gijan,’ he continued. ‘They are to stay with us rather than risk
flying into the approaching weather. Culinth called it a rotating
system and she didn’t look too happy. Kasmi says you must all stay
below as soon as he gives the order: he doesn’t want any of us
going overboard.’

Ren stared at him.
Navan shrugged.

‘He said that I could
stay in the pilot’s house if I keep out of his way and don’t
venture out of it.’

Olam disappeared up the
ladder, closely followed by Riff. The others guessed they’d gone to
see if Kasmi meant his order to apply to them too. They had both
quickly learned many of the basic tasks involved in sailing a ship
and were determined to stay on deck. Gan nodded to Ren and made his
way to the deck and thence down again to his cabin. Pallin merely
grunted. Strange as it seemed, not only to the companions but also
to Spiral Star’s crew, Pallin spent most of his time now with the
demented cook. Neither spoke the other’s language, shrieks and
roars regularly erupted from the tiny galley kitchen, but they
seemed to enjoy each other’s company.

Ren followed Navan on
deck and felt the change already. The wind was much stronger,
gusting more from the left than from directly behind them. Navan
headed for the pilot’s house on the raised deck while Ren looked
for the gijan. He found Willow and Leaf by the rail beyond the main
mast. They smiled as he joined them.

‘Kasmi says we must all
keep out of the way and stay below when the storm comes,’ he
began.

The gijans’ smiles
widened. ‘We will stay with Navan,’ said Leaf firmly. ‘We cannot go
below – it is too closed in for us.’

‘Have you asked Kasmi
if that will be acceptable?’ Ren envisioned Kasmi squashed in the
pilot’s house with his helmsman, Culinth, Navan and three young
gijan.

Leaf’s smile
disappeared, replaced by a haughty look. ‘Piper is telling him now
– we do not ask permission.’

Ren decided to leave
the gijan to argue with Kasmi without his presence and made his way
down to the tiny cabin he shared with Taseen. The old mage was on
the lower bunk, writing in a leather bound book. He smiled as Ren
lurched against the sudden movement of the ship. He eased his legs
over the side of the bunk.

‘Well then Ren. It
looks as if we’re in for a blow.’

‘A blow? Is that what
it’s called?’

Taseen laughed at Ren’s
expression then grew serious.

‘It will be a bad one I
fear. Culinth is afraid the ships have not made enough distance
south of the reefs. Kasmi reckoned overconfidently that the weather
would hold fair until we were past the reefs.’

‘Have they a name – are
they marked on those maps of Kasmi’s?’

The ship juddered and
Ren sat down involuntarily next to Taseen.

‘Charts, my friend,
charts. Shipmasters from the different islands have their own names
for the area. All know how dangerous these waters are – which is
why they are rarely travelled.’

The door banged and
Ren’s pack toppled from the top bunk to the floor. Ren latched the
door securely and staggered back to Taseen.

‘Kasmi hoped we’d have
good weather long enough to pick our way through the reefs. I’d
guess we still have some way to clear them.’ Taseen frowned,
glancing at the circular window against which water was now
battering although whether rain or sea water Ren couldn’t
tell.

‘It feels as though
we’ve reduced sail. I trust Kasmi takes us south as speedily as he
can.’

Ren climbed into his
bunk and lay flat, bracing himself against the increased roll of
the ship. Timbers creaked and groaned and he felt the strain
vibrating through the wood by his head as the sea pressed ever
harder against the ship’s side. He had no idea of the passage of
time. It had been mid afternoon when he’d come to the cabin but the
sky outside the tiny window darkened fast.

The wind’s scream rose
like a giant creature in pain, plucking and whistling through the
rigging above. Ren decided later that he had been too terrified to
feel sick, too busy concentrating on Taseen’s voice rather than the
fearful noise around him. The old mage talked steadily,
occasionally inviting Ren’s comments but when he found Ren silent,
he just carried on talking. He paused only a few times: once when
distant screams were followed by the sound of feet pounding over
their heads. The second time was when the ship seemed to shiver and
then hold steady for a moment before plunging on.

‘Stream warps,’ Taseen
said. ‘We must be free of the reefs but perhaps the other ships
aren’t. Kasmi is trying to slow us a little and that would surely
only be to wait for another ship to find us.’

‘Culinth,’ said Ren
suddenly. ‘Can she not find the other ships if we are
separated?’

‘Yes, she could. She
travels on whichever ship Kasmi is on. He spends time on each of
these three.’

At last Taseen became
silent. Ren’s hand was cramped where he’d gripped the bunk side for
so long but he remained wide awake and was perfectly certain Taseen
lay sleepless below him. How long they lay, each in their own
thoughts, before the faintest light seeped into the cabin, Ren
couldn’t guess. He turned his head to the light and realised the
ship was steadier, still moving quite jerkily but not tossing and
pitching as it had been for so long.

‘Taseen?’

‘Yes Ren?’

‘Is it
over?’

Taseen struggled to sit
up. ‘Perhaps. But I think Culinth said it was a rotating storm so
it may return within half a day unless Kasmi can get us clear. It
will depend on how the sea is running - the height of the
waves.’

Ren lowered himself
cautiously from his bunk. He saw Taseen’s eyes shining under the
unruly brows.

‘If you felt like
finding a bowl of tea for an old man, it would be deeply
appreciated.’

Ren found himself
chuckling. ‘I’ll see what I can do. But if I don’t like the look of
the deck once I put my head through the hatch, you can wait for
your tea old man.’

He unlatched the door
and gasped. Gan stood in the deeper gloom of the narrow
passageway.

‘That was quite a
night,’ Gan remarked with masterly understatement.

Ren laughed,
light-headed with relief at having apparently survived the
night.

‘Taseen requests
tea.’

‘Let’s see if we can
find some then.’

Gan climbed the ladder
and slid the hatch aside. He flinched when water dashed into his
face, half ducking back. Squinting, he straightened and surveyed
what he could see of the deck. Climbing from the hatch he reached
back to pull Ren up beside him, both glad of each other’s
support.

The deck still tossed
and tilted but at nothing like the sharp angles of the night barely
past. Splintered timbers tangled with ropes lay at a crazy slant
towards the bows. A bare leg protruded from under the broken fore
mast but Ren and Gan knew that if the shipman or woman lived, they
would have been pulled clear by now. Most of the crew were in the
rigging of the main and third masts, jumping to the first officer’s
shouted orders. Ren nudged Gan, nodding towards Olam halfway across
a sail’s spar. Riff was on deck working opposite a shipwoman,
winding in thick dripping rope from over the stern.

The deck canted again
and gripping Ren’s arm, Gan crossed to the galley hatch. Ren pulled
against Gan’s hold and caught the outer rail. He peered through the
gusting drizzle out over the water. The gentle waves through which
he’d watched the dolphins curve and dive were transformed – the
white foamed crests reached halfway up the ship’s side with a
sullen threat. Far enough distant to seem a toy, he saw another
ship, a square of red canvas just visible from its fore mast. But
stare as he might, Ren saw no sign of a third ship.