Once Moon told everyone what Rorra had said about their route, Jade moved her spines in agreement. “Good. We’ll drop the thing overboard tonight, once we’re well into the deeps and out of the Fell’s range.”
Stone said, “Are you sure you don’t want me to fly it out now and do it?”
Jade exchanged a look with Balm, and lifted her brows. She asked Stone, “Do you think it’s safe? From what we’ve heard, it isn’t.”
Delin agreed. “You may call attention to us from whatever dwells further out, and the large waterlings who float on the surface, waiting for prey.”
Sounding horrified, Chime said, “Are there really waterlings like that?”
Delin nodded. “The stories of the Kish and sealings and others who mapped this coast in the past turns are not pleasant reading.”
Merit, holding the satchel with the object in it, clutched it nervously. “I don’t think you should do that, Stone. I could scry, but—”
“It’s too obvious for scrying. What are you going to tell Callumkal?” Moon asked Stone. “That you’re going to sightsee?”
Stone sighed. “Fine, we’ll wait till tonight.”
Jade told Merit, “If you’re rested, try scrying anyway. Maybe we’re close enough by now that you can see whether this is a good idea or absolutely the worst thing we can do.”
Bramble sat forward. “Is that settled? Because there’s another problem.”
Jade said, “It’s as settled as it’s going to be right now. Go ahead.”
Bramble’s expression wasn’t encouraging. “There isn’t much food left. Igalam, the Janderi who’s in charge of the supplies, and I went down into the hold to sort out how much to bring up. He wanted me to show him how much we’d need. But when he opened the door, the smell was rank. Some of the ceramic containers of the pickled fish and the grain flour for bread had broken on the bottom, probably when the boat fell getting in and out of the tunnel. The Kishan can’t eat them now. I don’t think our stomachs are as delicate, but they don’t smell like they’d be fit for us, either.”
There was a moment of worried silence. Chime said, “Did everyone get hungry when she said that, or is it just me?”
It wasn’t just Chime. Moon said, “We’ll be back in the sea by tomorrow, and it’ll be safe to go fishing.” Safe but maybe not too profitable. From what he had seen on the way out here, the big fish that made good meals tended to be in the currents between the islands. It might be two or three more days before they found a good spot to fish. It had been more than two days since their last big meal, and while the smaller meals of fruit, bread, and fish helped, they couldn’t live on them and still fly and fight.
Bramble said, “That’s what I told Igalam, that when we could hunt, we could bring in enough food for the whole boat.”
“Does he think if we get hungry we’re going to eat the crew?” Stone asked, and not sarcastically. This question had occurred to Moon, too. They had been getting along well enough with the ship’s crew, helped by the fact that the more familiar flying boat crew were aboard. The number of Kishan who shied away from him when he passed them in a corridor had dropped drastically since they had fought off the Fell and taken refuge in the city. But this was the kind of fear that could destroy that limited trust.
Bramble winced, but gave the question serious thought. “I don’t think so. He seemed more annoyed that this had happened, and wondering what to do about it. He’s still trying to figure out how long what we have will last.”
Then someone rattled the door and slid it open. “Jade.” Root peered inside. “There’s another flying boat coming.”
Delin sat up, hopeful. “Perhaps it is Diar and Niran.”
Root flashed his spines in a negative. “It’s not a wind-ship.”
Delin grimaced and swore. “That would have solved several problems.”
Moon thought Delin meant something more than the shortage of food. Though it probably wasn’t obvious to anyone who didn’t know him, Delin seemed more rattled now than he had when they were being attacked by Fell. Moon started to ask what was wrong, but Esankel came down the corridor to tell them about the flying boat, and there was no time for it.
The flying boat hung in the air about fifty paces above the sunsailer’s stern. The Kishan were all happy to see it. “It’s from Hia Iserae,” Callumkal told them, leaning on the railing as if the relief had made his legs weak. “The Hians, Vendoin’s people.”
This flying boat was shaped differently than the expedition’s ruined one, and was longer and sleeker, without the ridge up the middle, but was made of the same mossy material. Vendoin and Kellimdar had already gone up to it in the flying packs to explain their situation.
“How did they find us?” Jade asked. Moon thought it was a good question. They stood out on the deck with Stone and Delin, with the others told to stay inside until they could be assured that the new groundling arrivals wouldn’t shoot at them by accident.
“We had shared the location of the city with them, though I didn’t think they meant to join the expedition this season.” Callumkal turned to gesture at the steering cabin. “Their ship is powered by the same varietals of moss as the sunsailer. The varietals have an affinity for each other, and clever horticulturals can use this to locate ships.”
“I see,” Jade said. It was unexpected, but at the moment it was hard to see it as a bad thing. The more fire-weapons there were to fight off the Fell, the better.
Beside him, Moon heard Delin make a hmph noise under his breath. Delin would clearly have preferred a wind-ship with his family aboard, and Moon had to admit that would have made the situation much less fraught.
Rorra came out of the hatch, squinting up at the flying boat. “I hope they have supplies they can give us.”
“That’s what Kellimdar and Vendoin are asking about now,” Callumkal told her.
Jade asked, “So are we keeping to the same course, and crossing back into the sea tomorrow morning?”
Looking up at the flying boat again, Callumkal gestured an absent assent. “As long as they have no new information to make us decide against it.”
“They shouldn’t,” Rorra said. “They came up from the south. It will be interesting to hear if they spotted any Fell from that direction.”
“Interesting?” Callumkal commented dryly. “This voyage has been interesting enough.”
Stone glanced at Moon, his expression opaque, and headed back toward the hatch. They would still be sailing across the deeps tonight and still have the opportunity to get rid of the object. Merit had already retreated to a corner of their cabin to scry on it, with Bramble and Song guarding the door to make sure no Kishan walked in on him.
“They’re coming back,” Jade said, watching the flying boat.
Vendoin and Kellimdar were returning in their flying packs, another Hian following. Callumkal said, “Don’t worry, Vendoin and Kellimdar will have explained about you. The Hians are not very excitable people; they won’t be afraid.”
Jade gave that a serious nod. “Good.”
The flying packs didn’t manage the wind very well, but the groundlings landed on the deck without ending up in the water. Vendoin shed her pack and said, “This is Bemadin, captain-navigator.” Bemadin nodded as Vendoin named everyone for her. She bore a close resemblance to Vendoin, at least as far as non-Hians were concerned, though she was taller and her body heavier. She stared as Vendoin named Jade and Moon, though like Vendoin, it was hard to read her expression.