The navigator (22 page)

224

wasn't alone in the cold night; she thought about him warm and safe, and held that thought as she drifted off to sleep, in the hope that by wishing it, it would come to pass.

The next morning the snow still fell. Cati slept late and had breakfast on her own in the stateroom. When she went out on deck, Chancellor was pacing up and down. He greeted her cheerfully enough but he looked strained.

"Are you all right?" she asked.

He sighed and ruffled her hair. "Just hoping that our plans come to pass, Cati, and worrying that there is something more that could be done."

"It'll be fine," she said cheerfully. "We won't be beaten by a bunch of snowmen with icicles for brains."

He smiled at her and turned back to the rail, trying to see out through the blinding snow. Cati suddenly thought about the little girl and looked up into the prow. She was standing there, in her thin dress. Cati ran into her cabin. There were much-patched oilskins hanging from a hook on the wall. Cati took her own warm coat and an oilskin coat and hat. She scrambled up the ladder that led to the top of the forecastle. When she got there the little girl still had not moved, but she turned and looked at Cati as she put the coat over her shoulders, and allowed her to button the oilskins round her and put the hat on.

The girl's expression didn't change. At first Cati thought it was a blank look, but then she started to see a

225

level of trust there, a sea of trust, which frightened her. She wanted to tell the child that you couldn't trust the world that much. It wasn't right. There was too much out there to hurt you.

But instead of speaking, Cati slid down the ladder again. She ran into the kitchen and made up a bacon sandwich and brought it out to the girl. The child was looking out to sea again, but she took the sandwich and bit into it. Her eyes moved ceaselessly, although there was nothing to see except snow.

"What are you looking for?" Cati asked. The little girl did not reply and did not stop staring into the dead whiteness ahead of them.

Cati slipped away. As she walked across the deck, a large snowball exploded on the top of her head. She looked around startled, but couldn't see anyone. Then she heard a voice from high above her. Wesley in the crow's nest.

"Come on up!" he yelled. Cati didn't hesitate. She had never been afraid of heights. At top speed she flew up the ladder that was bolted to the side of the mast. Within three minutes she emerged into the crow's nest. It was surprisingly roomy, with a low roof and a glass screen that you could slide across to cut out the wind.

"For spotting fish," Wesley said, "a few of us do stay here. You do look for gannets diving and the like."

"I wish Owen was here," Cati began wistfully.

"He'd be stuck, like as not, same as the rest of us, sailing north, blind as bats," Wesley said.

226

"Not if he's the Navigator," said Cati defiantly. Wesley looked at her, his eyes narrowing.

"What is it you do know about the Navigator?" he demanded.

"N-not much," she stammered. "I heard Contessa and Pieta talking one night. ... What is the Navigator anyway?"

"Don't rightly know. People do whisper. Old tales that was once told say Navigator can save us."

"Could Owen be the Navigator?"

"Might be, might not. Anyhow, Chancellor, he lets on it's all a bit of a cod, that there's no such thing as Navigators anymore. Fair and sharp he was about it too."

"Then I suppose we're on our own. Looks like somebody's going to be spending a lot of time up here looking for the Puissance, whatever that looks like."

The next morning Cati woke early and realized that something had changed. The motion of the craft seemed different, and the light that flooded through the little windows was different too. Quickly, she slipped into her clothes and ran outside. The snow had stopped. All around them the sea stretched out, vast and silver-gray, flecked with white. A sharp wind whipped foam off the top of the waves and she could taste salt in her mouth. The sky was filled with leaden cloud, heavy and menacing, and a flurry of snow whipped across the deck as if to remind them that this was only a respite. To either side of Boat the oars were working faster now, and the bow rose

227

and fell, crashing into the waves and sending spray high into the air.

"It's a bit clearer now!" Wesley shouted to her from the bridge.

"It's amazing," Cati called. "It's ... it's so big!"

Wesley slid down the stairs to where she was standing.

"Right enough, you never seen the sea like this before, out of sight of land."

"No. This is great!"

"Maybe it is," Wesley said, "and maybe it isn't. Take a look."

Cati followed his gaze and realized that Uel was lying on top of the bridge with his eye to the sight of his magno crossbow. He was facing astern and the bow was pointing toward the sky. When she looked to where the gun was pointing, her blood ran cold. Far off in the cold, gray sky, small but unmistakable, were the menacing shapes of four Planemen.

"That's right," Wesley said grimly. "Somebody told on us. They knew where to find us."

228

Cati followed Wesley back up to the bridge. The Sub-Commandant was standing with Dr. Diamond.

"How long have they been there?" Cati asked Wesley.

"I'd near say they were there all the time, we just couldn't see them."

"Will they come any closer--I mean, attack?"

"I think we're safe enough," the Sub-Commandant answered, "for the time being, at any rate. The wind is blowing in their faces and they're having trouble making headway against it."

Dr. Diamond produced a pair of binoculars that had a suspiciously homemade look about them. "I think you're right," he said.

"Can I look?" Dr. Diamond handed over the binoculars.

229

Cati scanned the sky until she could see the Planemen and took an involuntary step backward, so close did they seem. They had been in the air a long time, she could see. Their clothes and beards were matted with ice, their lips chapped and cracked. Behind the rimed glass of their goggles she could see their bloodshot eyes. The machines bucked and twisted as they fought the wind for control, but there was a grim determination about the way the Planemen hunched over the controls that told her they would never give up.

"We're all right as long as the wind holds," Dr. Diamond said cheerfully, taking the binoculars back.

"As long as it holds," said Wesley, "but the minute it drops ..." He drew his finger across his throat in a cutting gesture.

"Don't listen to him," said Dr. Diamond. "Even if the wind does drop, they'll not come near us as long as Uel and Mervyn are here."

"But a watch will need to be kept," the Sub-Commandant said.

"I can do that," said Cati. "In the crow's nest."

"Good. You can cover the rest of the day. Tomorrow we can do it in watches."

Cati nodded, feeling glad to have something to do, although wishing that it could be something less threatening.

"Where's Chancellor?" Wesley asked.

"In his cabin," replied Dr. Diamond. "He started to feel seasick when we picked up speed."

230

"We'll have to manage without him, then," the Sub-Commandant said. "We'll have to take Uel and Mervyn off normal duties. We need one of them ready to shoot and one of them resting at all times."

All that day the Planemen hung in the sky, not gaining any ground but not losing any either. Chancellor remained in his cabin. Dr. Diamond stayed in his. The Sub-Commandant sent Cati to bring food to him. When she went in he was almost invisible behind a large, ancient-looking book and he barely glanced up when she put the plate down beside him.

Outside, an occasional flurry of snow hid the planes, but they were always there when the snow died away again. Because she was watching, Cati had to eat a quick meal standing up. The sea had got rougher, and apart from the Raggie boys, who were busy, no one else was comfortable with the idea of the crow's nest as it swayed sickeningly from side to side. Bringing her food out onto the deck, Cati could see the sun setting in the west, a great glowing orb, tinting the dark clouds round it a foreboding orange. Looking up, she saw that Wesley was strangely agitated. He walked to the rail on both sides and looked at the oars, then returned to the helm, still obviously unhappy. As she watched him, Cati felt a tug on her sleeve. She looked down to see the little girl standing there. The girl tugged again, then turned and walked away. Cati followed her.

231

The girl went through the open door in the rear bulkhead. Just beyond the door, steps led down to the hold. It was dark and Cati had to hold on as she went, although the girl seemed able to keep her balance easily. They got to the bottom and walked along a short companionway. The girl stopped. She pointed at the floor. At first Cati didn't know what she was doing; then she saw there was a brass ring set into the floor. Cati grasped the ring and a hatch swung open. As it did so there was a loud gurgling noise. Peering into the dark, Cati could see a stopcock set into the hull, a kind of tap going through to the outside. That was the source of the gurgling, Cati realized. Someone had opened the tap and water was flowing in from outside! Looking into the darkness beyond, she could see that bilges were already full of dirty, oily water.

Cati desperately tried to close the tap, but she wasn't strong enough. She turned and ran up the gangway calling for Wesley. Seeing the look on her face as she burst onto the deck, Wesley vaulted over the bridge rail and landed lightly on the deck. He ran down the companion-way, followed by Cati. When she reached him he was already on his knees, wrestling with the brass valve of the stopcock. The flow of water diminished to a trickle and then stopped. But the damage was done.

"Will it sink?" Cati asked anxiously.

"Sinking's not the problem," said Wesley, his voice tight and angry. "She'll float with the hold full of water.

232

It slows us down, though, slows us down something desperate till we get the water out. I knew I could feel something on the wheel."

Cati heard footsteps behind her and turned to see her father. The small man looked into the bilge without expression.

"This was done deliberate," Wesley said, and his eyes flashed with fury. "This isn't no accident. Thon stopcock never opened itself."

"We need to form a human chain," said the Sub-Commandant, "to get rid of the water as fast as we can."

Wesley stirred himself. He ran back up on deck and called to Uel and Mervyn. Then he ran up to the bridge. Dr. Diamond came out of his cabin. Even Chancellor came out, looking pale and ill. Emerging into the daylight, Cati could feel that the vessel had slowed and was wallowing slightly, taking longer to recover from the waves.

"Come up here, Cati!" Wesley called out. When she got to the bridge, he told her to take the wheel.

"I've never--" she started.

"You have to," he interrupted. "You're the lightest of all of us, so you'll be the least use slinging buckets."

Cati felt her face grow red and she clenched her fists, but she held her tongue. She knew that he was right. She put her hands on the wheel, which twitched and turned so much that it felt like a live thing. A live thing carrying a great burden, for she could feel the dead

233

weight that had pulled Boat lower down in the sea. Instinctively, she turned to look behind. She could make out the Planemen in greater detail now. They were definitely closer.

The other six crewmen formed a chain as best they could, Wesley scooping out the water from the bilge with a bucket, then passing it up the line to the next man. Cati could see that there weren't enough of them and that Chancellor was weak and slow. It was going to take a long time. She turned to look at the Planemen again. Although they were hard to see in the fast-closing dusk, they were closer still. The wind in her face freshened and she could see Dr. Diamond looking up hopefully.

"What are you looking for?" asked Cati.

"Smith had a daughter," the doctor murmured, almost to himself.

Smith? The man who had abandoned the Raggies? Cati was familiar with the story, but she didn't see what it had to do with what was happening now.

Darkness fell. Cati peered out into the night. Below her the men worked tirelessly. Looking toward the bow, she could see the little girl standing there. After an hour she saw Chancellor sway and almost fall. Dr. Diamond sent him to his cabin and the others redoubled their efforts. Cati had an itchy feeling at the back of her neck and every five minutes she turned to stare, but the night was starless and she could see nothing. It seemed to her

234

that the wind stayed fresh and she hoped against hope that it was enough to stop the Planemen.

As the night went on the temperature dipped. Cati couldn't feel her nose or her hands anymore. Then she realized that she could go into the wheelhouse and take the wheel in there. She strapped up the outside wheel and stepped inside. The wheelhouse was warm compared to outside, and she felt guilty looking down at the others working in the cold and dark. As the night stretched on, the wheel became lighter in her hands as the water level in the bilge fell. The buckets went up and down from the hold in a slow, weary rhythm. Her eyes felt grainy and sore.

Close to dawn, Cati could sense a definite change in the way the craft handled. It was dancing over the waves instead of plowing through them. At the top of a wave she could see a cold glimmer of light in the east. Down below, the rest of the crew worked on, gray and exhausted. Cati looked over her shoulder. It was still too dark to see the Planemen, but she was sure now that they were traveling at their old speed. She heard Wesley call out that they could stop bailing. None too soon, Cati thought as a fresh flurry of snow, blowing horizontally in the stiff breeze, blocked her view of the deck. The last thing she saw was Dr. Diamond slumping onto the deck, Uel and Mervyn leaning wearily against the mast.

That was when they came, the Planemen, screaming in under cover of the snow. Blue flame blazed across the