22
‘ Twelve fathoms!’ The crewman gathered the chain, ready to cast it again at the skipper’s command.
‘When do we start worrying about the depth?’ Serrah asked.
‘At a fathom or less,’ Cheross told her, ‘if we take possible submerged outcroppings into account. And the currents in these parts are particularly treacherous, which is why seafarers don’t come here.’ He nodded at the crewman to take another measure.
The packet had entered an area of the ocean dotted with barren islands, many little more than rocks jutting from the freezing waters.
‘Now we’re here,’ Serrah said, turning to Caldason, ‘exactly how do we go about finding what we want?’
‘If I’m being completely honest, I’d have to say I don’t really know.’
‘There’s a surprise.’
‘ Ten fathoms!’
‘But we should be able to narrow things down a bit through a process of elimination,’ he went on.
‘What are we eliminating?’
‘Well, it seems reasonable that the Clepsydra isn’t going to be on one of these tiny islets.’
‘Why not? We don’t know what the Clepsydra is, let alone the form it might take.’
‘To figure this out we have to make guesses about where to start.’
‘Guesses?’ she repeated witheringly.
‘ Eight fathoms! ’
‘Assumptions, then. There are hundreds of islands in this group. We can’t search all of them. So we have to concentrate on the most likely, and mass is a logical way of sifting them.’
‘But that means scouring the whole group for islands of the right size. That alone could take weeks.’
‘Not necessarily. There was something I noticed on the maps of this place Phoenix showed me. And the Captain can confirm it. Rad?’ Caldason looked across at him.
‘There’s an old myth attached to this area,’ Cheross explained. ‘Well, not so much a full-blown myth, just a story. It’s said two gods were warring with each other, and one of them…I can’t remember which; it doesn’t matter…one of them took up a mountain and flung it at the other. Only it missed and fell to earth here, in the ocean. The waters being shallow, the mountain shattered and its fragments became the island group.’
Serrah frowned. ‘How does that-’
‘When you see the charts,’ Caldason said, ‘that’s what it looks like. As though a great big rock was dropped from the sky and shards flew off it. The largest islands are at the centre of the group. Most of them, anyway. The rest get smaller the further they are from the core. So the first thing we do is head there, and as this is a dense cluster, it shouldn’t take too long to reach the centre.’
‘Hmm. So what’s your definition of a big island, seeing as we know nothing about the Clepsydra? How big is big enough?’
‘Some of the larger islands have vegetation, and fresh water springs. That might be a clue about where to look. But we’ll set a minimum. Say…anything large enough to sit a small village on,’ Caldason replied.
‘How many fall into that category?’
‘A couple of dozen,’ Cheross volunteered. ‘Maybe more.’
‘That’s ridiculous,’ Serrah complained. ‘How do we narrow it down?’
‘I’m hoping Kutch’s spotting talent might help,’ Caldason replied.
‘ Five fathoms!’
‘So that’s the plan, is it? Look for the biggest rocks and hope the boy can solve the riddle?’
‘It’s all we’ve got. Along with these.’ He tapped his forehead.
‘I don’t want to add to your worries,’ Cheross interrupted, ‘but take a look above. A storm’s brewing. We could be in for a bumpy ride.’
Rain hammered down from the night sky. The ship rolled and pitched. But they still moved, inching through the muddle of islands.
Caldason, Serrah and Kutch clustered under the bridge block’s overhang, seated on crates. They wore furs for the cold, hoods for the rain.
A clattering water bottle rolled towards them across the sloping deck. Caldason trapped it with his boot. He squinted into the ocean mist. ‘At least the rocks seem to be getting bigger.’
Serrah stuffed a strand of wet hair back under her hood. ‘I should hope so, after all day and most of the night.’
‘Get some rest, both of you,’ Caldason suggested. ‘You don’t have to stay here.’
‘I thought we weren’t that far from the core,’ Kutch said.
‘We’re not. But the weather’s slowed us to a crawl.’
‘I think I’ll stick with it for a while,’ Serrah decided.
‘Me too,’ Kutch agreed.
‘Suit yourselves.’
A moment passed in damp silence.
‘Reeth…,’ Kutch began.
‘Yes?’
‘I think…I think I can sense something.’
Serrah and Caldason straightened, weariness cast off.
‘What is it?’ Serrah asked.
‘It’s nothing specific, and I wasn’t sure at first. But…I can feel an increase of magical discharges. Like mild pins and needles.’ He grinned at them, half afraid.
Serrah laid her hand on his arm. ‘You mean greater than you normally pick up as background noise?’
‘Oh, yes. Lots.’
‘Shouldn’t you cast one of Phoenix’s detection spells?’ Caldason suggested.
‘I don’t think I need to. Then again, it could help with location.’
‘Best to try,’ Serrah said. ‘Is there anything we can do?’
‘No. I just need a little quiet time.’ He started to get up.
She hung on to his arm. ‘Kutch, are you certain about this?’
‘Pretty much. At any rate, something’s going on. Let me check.’ He ducked into the rain, hurrying across deck with his head down.
Dawn was beginning to break. The sun’s rim pierced the horizon, turning it cherry red.
‘Perhaps this won’t take as long as we thought,’ Caldason remarked.
‘You be careful with that boy, Reeth,’ Serrah came back sternly. ‘Keep him from harm.’
He was stung. ‘Do you think I’d let anything happen to him if I could help it?’
‘If you could help it, no. But we haven’t a clue what we’re dealing with. Who knows what’s guarding the Source?’
‘It wasn’t my idea to have Kutch on this voyage. Or you, come to that. But now you both are, I’ll do everything in my power to look after you.’
‘I can look after myself, thanks very much.’
‘Will you look after me too, then?’
She smiled. ‘Buffoon.’ Her tone softened. ‘Of course I know you wouldn’t willingly put Kutch in danger. Sorry.’
He slipped his arm around her. ‘Forget it. We’re all on edge.’
‘It’s because he’s so young and vulnerable. When I look at him I can’t help thinking of…’
He had to say it for her. ‘Eithne.’
She nodded. ‘I failed her. I won’t do the same to Kutch.’
‘You didn’t fail her. Let go of the guilt; you can’t bear it forever.’
‘That’s strange advice from somebody carrying so much himself,’ she replied gently.
‘We both wear our pasts like millstones. But what we’re heading for could help us cast them off.’
‘Don’t put too much hope in the Source, Reeth. Chances are you’ll be disappointed.’
‘Then I’ll be no worse off than I am now. Better. I’ve got you.’ He made to kiss her cheek. She turned and waylaid his lips.
After a moment, she said, ‘Do you really think we’ve a chance of finding the Clepsydra, and whatever the Source may be?’
‘I wouldn’t have set out if we didn’t. Though granted it’s a slim chance.’
‘Do you reckon it’s going to be guarded?’
‘We have to assume it will be. But you know all this, Serrah. Why the inquisition?’
‘I like to understand what I’m getting myself into, believe it or not.’ She paused for a second. ‘And I suppose I want convincing. No. Reassuring. I need to be reassured that what we’re doing makes some sense.’
‘I’m not certain I’m the one to do that. But I think this makes as much sense as anything we’ve done.’
‘That isn’t saying a lot, Reeth.’
‘No,’ he agreed, ‘it isn’t, is it?’
They laughed.
The packet kept moving, slowly, through lessening rain. Dawn was in full flush now, though its light was dismal. The islands they passed, dark bulks rising out of untrustworthy waters, grew larger.
Kutch hurried back, his breath white steam.
‘Learn anything?’ Caldason said.
‘I didn’t bother casting more than a couple of the spells, but they confirmed the high level of magic around here.’