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SEA DRAGON’S GIFT : Part 51 of 83 : World of Sea

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SEA DRAGON’S GIFT

Part 51 of 83

De Writer (Glen Ten-Eyck)

140406 words

written 2007

Reproduction in any form, physical, electronic or digital is prohibited without the express consent of the author.

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New to the story? Read from the beginning. PART 1 is here

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Yawning with fatigue, they retreated to their bunks to sleep. Up in the rigging the paddle-ducks became aware of the Sea Hawks that they were sharing their roosts with and fled in a small thunder of wings.

The Wide Wings, crests up, looked about alertly and then soared off. Shortly they returned, bearing trailing bits of seaweed which they began to tuck into the mainmast’s upper lookout. They kept it up, arranging things to suit themselves.

Watching from the deck a few hours later, Tanlin stopped a sailor about to go shoo them away.

“Let t’em ‘ave t’e Wide Wing’s nest. ‘T can be ane in trut’. Willnae ‘urt us t’ ‘arbor anot’er pair o’ refugees. Our lookoot can climb past t’em an’ use t’e bosun’s chair from t’e mast’ead, as we’ve been doing.”

A short while later, Tanlin herself climbed agilely up to platform and laid a pair of fish where the Wide Wings could reach them. They hissed at her and spread their wings in a threat display but took the fish. She came back later with more.

It was not long before the Sea Hawks were settled into their nest on the starboard side of the platform and taking bribes of fish without a thought. As long as the crewmen stayed on their side of the platform, the Wide Wings would tolerate their presence. If, that is, the crewmen remembered to bring a fish.

Tanlin spent much of her free time up in the rigging near to the birds. She even enticed one of them to roost on her arm. She didn’t flinch when its claws drew blood. Instead she gave it a small fish. The next time that she came up, her sleeves were padded and her shoulders as well.

It was while she was up high, working with the birds that she saw something down in the water near the ship. It was a long gray shape, ghostly in the depths. It was far longer than the Grandalor. She carefully put the Sea Hawk back into its nest and called down to deck, “Dragon, Ho! Off t’e starboard side!” She slid down a rope to the railing and jumped lightly to the deck.

Chapter 18: Frath

Barad ran forward across the rolling deck to Tanlin. “Did you cry ‘Dragon’?”

“Aye, Luve. Tis over t’ere,” she pointed off to starboard, “nae t’ree fat’oms under. Bigger t’an t’e ship by far an’ gray, wit’ light an’ dark patches.”

A hundred feet ahead of the Grandalor the water churned and boiled as an enormous head covered with spines and frills lifted from the sea. Large intelligent eyes regarded the ship carefully.

The Wide Wing Sea Hawks launched from their nest and swooped down at it fearlessly. They screamed a challenge which the Great Sea Dragon calmly ignored. They even dove and raked at the Dragon with their talons and claws. At last, defeated by the sheer size of the enemy, they flew back to the Grandalor and landed on Tanlin’s shoulders, facing the Dragon with raised crests and partly spread wings, hissing defiance.

A voice so mild that it seemed impossible to have issued from so fierce a visage said, “Welcome to the center of my storm, Barad, Captain of the Grandalor. You are well recommended by the fact that two of Dari’s favorite creatures defend you so.”

The Great Sea Dragon’s head tilted a bit to look more clearly at Tanlin. “Welcome to you also — Tanlin. I see that there is more to you than meets even the inner eye. You have, along with all aboard this ship made a choice that you must live with.”

Tanlin was standing legs braced, hands on hips, a Sea Hawk on each shoulder, the wind streaming her hair back. “I’ ye donnae mind m’ asking so mighty a bein’ as yersel’ a personal quest’n, just ‘oo are ye? Oi know o’ Blind Mecat an’ Dark Iren, o’ course. Are ye Frath, t’e Dragon o’ Storms?”

The huge Dragon seemed surprised by the question. “Of course. I go with the storm to steer it and make certain that it will meet all of its ecological goals.”

“Ecological goals?” Tanlin said in outrage. “T’is monstrosity,” she gestured all about at the racing, tumbling, gray and black cloud walls, rimmed white at the tops by late sun and lit internally by flashes of lightning, “came barreling t’rough a fleet! ’Oo knows ‘ow many ships ‘t ‘as sunk, ‘ow many lives lost?”

“I do,” said Frath with some asperity. “No ships were sunk. Twelve humans lost their lives, of which three were unrelated to the storm.”

“Oi’m sorry,” Tanlin apologized. “Oi’ve a temper wen ‘t comes t’ t’ose Oi care about.”

“I understand perfectly. Nor are you alone in that sentiment.” Frath looked over to port, where the water was cascading from another Great Sea Dragon’s head. This one was pure white and clearly blind, though equally obviously, it had no difficulty finding its way about.

Barad looked on, just a little awestruck. Nevertheless, he offered courtesy. “Blind Mecat, wisest of Dragons, I am glad to see you.”

“A few Gatherings ago, Barad, I would not have believed you, if you had said that. I know that you actually mean it, now. Do you know why I am here?”

“I suspect that you have been keeping track of what has happened to Kurin. I will not try to defend the fact that I was in on the start of the plot against her. I met Lady Tanlin afterwards, and she changed me — and my mind. I tried to stop what happened. I failed. I am sorry that Kurin was hurt and that the Grython sailor died.”

“I have never liked you, Barad. You know that. In spite of my dislike, I try to base my actions on reality, not my feelings,” said Mecat, looking just past him with her blind eyes in the disturbing way that he remembered from past meetings, when she had appeared as a human. “I have a question for you. How do you feel about the Lady Tanlin?”

“I love her,” said Barad simply, surprised at the inquiry. “I married her by Arrakan law and it was not for show.”

The huge white head tilted in curiosity, “Why did you choose Arrakan law? Was it part of fooling the Naral fleet about her origins and your violation of the Marriage Laws?”

Barad put an arm around Tanlin and replied firmly, “I know that you could read it so and many would. The actual reason is in the Third Great Law. Arrakan law allows marriage between any two who have no parents that share a ship name. Our parents are of different ships and fleets. When the Naral fleet agreed to our marriage by Arrakan law, it became completely legal. She is my wife until one of us dies.”

“Let me smell you, Barad,” demanded Blind Mecat. Her enormous head thrust forward through a gap in the rigging to where Barad stood. A seemingly endless breath was drawn in as she nuzzled him from head to foot, the tentacles about her mouth pulled back. “There is truth here; the last thing that I expected from you.”

The massive head turned to Tanlin. “Some say that I know all things but they are wrong. This I do know. You are a person torn. The role that you live is not the life of your birth. You must chose, your birth or your role. With either choice there will be loss.”

Tanlin wept. “Oi already know t’at, Mecat, an’ Oi ‘ave chosen. ‘Owever t’e world falls, wit’ t’is mon, m’ Ca’tain an’ m’ Luve, is w’ere Oi belong.” She looked the dragon in the eye and drew a breath to steady herself. “T’e Orcas sang for Kurti. She’s gone.” The Sea Hawks on her shoulders sensed Tanlin’s distress and stroked their beaks along her jaw and set to preening the hair about her ears.

Even though blind, Mecat appeared to look on in interest before saying, “I had heard from the Orcas that Kurti changed lives / died / and was celebrated. It was confusing. Now I understand that report.

“So be it. You have a Dragon’s Gift.” The breath of the Great Dragon was let out as mist over Tanlin and the two Wide Wings on her shoulders. Tanlin felt a sort of peace settle over her. Kurti and all of her life melted peacefully away until she was entirely gone. All that remained was a glimpse of a dying woman who sang a lullaby to calm a frightened cousin awakening from a long coma. Tanlin was a single, whole person, at peace with herself.

The Sea Hawks preened her hair serenely and nibbled gently at her ears with beaks that could easily have sheared her ears from her head. Tanlin reached up and ruffled their feathers with utter confidence. She turned to the huge, fang filled muzzle and said, “Oi know t’at ye did somet’in’ for m’ but Oi’m nae sure w’at. T’ese guys know ‘t, t’.” She stroked the feathers of two of the fiercest predators of the air. “Oi’ve decided t’at tis nae important t’ try t’ remember m’ past. Oi’m ‘ere in t’e present. Wa’ t’at yer gift?”

Somewhat sadly, Mecat said, “It is. You are a single person now.”

“T’ats an odd t’ing t’ say,” Tanlin said, tilting her head in curiosity. “‘Ow could anyane be more t’an ane person?

“I don’t know how to answer that,” Mecat replied.

Seeking to bring the conversation back to the Grandalor’s plight, Tanlin said, “Ye know, everane on t’is ship’s ‘ere because t’ey chose t’ follow Ca’tain Barad.”

“I do know. They would not all have followed him alone, and you know that, too. It was you as well,” the Great Dragon said crisply. “It is unfortunate that Captain Barad chose to flee justice. A human crime was done and fleet justice must be served.”

“Naral fleet Justice?” said Tanlin in scorn. “T’ey ‘ave convicted us wit’oot allowing us t’e right o’ rebuttal! T’at’s against t’e Law o’ ever’ fleet t’at Oi know o’! T’e Secund Groit Law requires ‘t! T’ey’re nae better t’an t’e Ca’tain o’ Ca’tains! T’at’s wye we fled. We knew t’at wa’ ‘ow t’ey’d deal wit’ us. T’ey ‘ad a chance t’ rid t’ t’emsel’ o’ t’e Grandalor an’ t’ey took ‘t wit’oot a second’s t’ought.”

“That is why, Little Bite,” said Mecat firmly, “that you cannot be allowed to flee over the pole. The Dragon Sea is closed to your flight. The fleets to the sides of you know of your conviction.

“The Naral fleet is my fleet, too. They have to have the chance to fix their injustice. If you succeed in fleeing, it will perpetuate the wrong and make an evil precedent. The Captain of Captains did rise to power on the strength of one such evil. It could happen again — to folk that I care about. You must deal with the Naral fleet’s law.”

Barad slumped, “Then it’s over. When the storm blows itself out, we surrender. They will drown me and her,” he gestured at Tanlin, “and all of the other officers before they get around to trying the crew. Then, perhaps, they will find their error. I doubt that much sleep will be lost over it. They don’t like me or my ship much. I don’t blame them.”

Tanlin gave Mecat a calculating look. “Perhaps nae, Luve o’ Mine. T’ere’s some quest’ns yet t’ be asked. Mecat, ye said t’at t’e Dragon Sea wa’ closed t’ our flight an’ t’e reason wa’ t’e Naral fleet’s violation o’ t’e Second Groit Law. Fair enow.

“W’at o’ refuge, w’ile tis sorted oot? T’e Dragon Sea belongs t’ nae fleet an’ wad be t’e perfect neutral woter for us, so long as we are actively seeking t’ get justice. Will ye allow us t’at bit o’ safety?”

TO BE CONTINUED

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#SEA DRAGON’S GIFT #Part 51 of 83 #World of Sea #Written by De Writer

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