by C. Litka
02
There were four other passengers, commercial travelers, sailing with us. DarCe, a trader in spices and dyes, VinCede, in fabrics, SaLin in feathers and hides, and CraNil in pots, plates, and sundry goods. They were a talkative bunch. The presence of two Laezans may've put a temporary crimp in their easy flow of conversation, but it didn't last for long. We spent the first watch sitting around the table hauling out our purchased stocks of food and deciding how we'd divide up the wide variety of preserved meats, sauces, fruits and preserved vegetables between the 7 or 8 meals we'd have during the voyage, as was custom amongst these commercial travelers.
Then, after finding out that this was my first flight to Windvera and my reservations about the Bird of Long Feathers, they sought to reassure me. Or not.
'Natta is quite right. You needn't worry - too much. Look at us. We've sailed between Windvera and the Islands a hundred times and survived every landing,' said DarCe with a sweep of his hands.
'I wouldn't expect to see the ones who haven't,' I replied darkly.
'True, Wilitang,' he laughed. 'You're not seeing the unlucky ones. But if you know your boat, you can avoid the unlucky ones. Most boats are good for 25 to 30 landings before bad luck catches up with them and they land hard?.'
'No, its the number of landings the captain has made rather than the boat landings. A good captain will softly land a boat 30 out of 31 times. The new or careless ones will land hard more often, until they get the knack, assuming they survive.' pipped in VinCede.
'So you say. I say it's the number of landings. But it doesn't matter - TarVeydi, is an old hand and the Bird still has a few soft landing in it, replied DarCe.'
'But not many,' muttered SaLin. 'This is the Bird's 26nd voyage and TarVeydi's 33rd voyage without a hard landing, counting his time in the old Cloud Chaser. TarVeydi's over-due for a hard landing.'
'Yet you're also aboard,' I pointed out.
'SaLin's none too bright,' laughed DarCe.
'Brighter than some dealers in spices that I know. You can survive them, if you know when to jump. With CraNil on board, all's well. CraNil knows when to jump. How many hard landings have you survived?
'Seven,' said the dour faced CraNil.
'See - seven hard landings and still kicking. The key is to know just when the landing looks like hard one and just when to jump. Jump too soon and too high and you'll break your legs, if not your neck. Wait too long, you'll likely end up under the boat when it hits the ground. The most important thing is not to be here in the bow when the boat lands hard. They always land'em hard on the nose. Gives the crew a good chance of walking away.
'With ol'Nil onboard, I'm not worried. I'll just follow him out the gate as fast as I can, and you will too, if you're smart.'
I think they were just giving me a hard time. But I'd follow CraNil out the hatch just as fast as I could if they weren't.