by Jeremy Dwyer
After over four (4) hours of tiresome travels, they found a riverboat that was docked on the bank of one (1) of the many rivers. The vessel was eighty-four (84) feet long, thirty-two (32) feet high and wide, with a paddlewheel and a steam pipe.
“If we can ignite the boiler to make steam, then it will drive the paddlewheel,” Tomiko said. He was partly familiar with the workings of these craft, because of his travels and study of cultures throughout the world.
“I prefer the ones with sails,” Nina said.
“I’m used to the ones with oars, but sails are an improvement,” Genevieve said.
“They heat Dead Waters, right?” Tristan asked.
“Usually. Let’s get on board and find the boiler,” Tomiko said.
The group went aboard the riverboat and walked the deck, looking for the engine room.
“The ship looks broken down – the deck boards are curled and rotted. The cabin windows are broken glass, so be careful not to get cut,” Tristan said.
“It’s floating, which suggests it is river worthy – if not seaworthy,” Tomiko said.
“Looks like it might just be firewood worthy,” Nina said.
Carter reached out and sensed – much to his surprise – that the ship was not occupied by any restless spirits, although there were some around them.
“No spirits are here, except for those in our bodies,” Carter said.
“What a relief! I was afraid we’d have to share all these luxuries with someone else,” Nina said.
“If it gets us to where we need to be, that’s all we can ask for,” Tomiko said.
After a brief search, they found the engine room and saw the boiler, but only by the scant light that entered from the twilight sky.
“A bit dark in there. And a bit dark up there, too, old man,” Nina said, pointing to Alistair’s head.
“Don’t jump to conclusions. We’re just getting started,” Alistair said.
“Lighting it is going to be a problem unless I can find a flint and steel to ignite the firewood…assuming there’s any firewood,” Tomiko said.
Tristan looked at the sky and gauged the amount of light he had to work with. Then, he walked along the deck toward one (1) of the broken windows of a cabin. He drank anew of the waters of the Kazofen Ocean from the vial he kept on a chain around his neck and was energized. Then, he took the broken window glass and began melting its crystal structure like clay in his hands. He did the same to a second window, joining its material to that of the first and then began restructuring it at a deep level.
“What’s he doing now?” Alistair asked.
“More than you ever will,” Nina said.
“Tristan, what are you doing?” Tomiko asked.
“There’s enough light to collect, so I’m shaping the crystal structure of the glass to collect it,” Tristan said. He worked on the meticulous details to transform the glass into a solar collector crystal that was highly light sensitive.
“Diamond is usually more effective. Is glass going to be enough?” Tomiko asked.
“It’s all about the angles of the crystal structure, and the intensity of the light. I’m more worried about the twilight conditions than I am about the crystal quality,” Tristan said, still focused intently on shaping the glass.
“There’s must be a reason why diamond is preferred. I’m curious about the difference,” Genevieve said.
“Diamond is more durable than glass, by far. Both materials can be made nearly equivalent in terms of light receptivity, but the high shatter risk of glass is what makes it less than ideal,” Tristan said, still working to restructure the glass crystals.
Tristan worked on molding the glass for over an hour but soon stopped in order to test what he had done.
“Well?” Nina asked.
“It needs a day to charge,” Tristan said.
“So we sit here for a day?” Nina asked.
“At least. Unless we want to find another boat, or walk,” Tristan said.
“Let’s get some rest,” Tomiko said.
“Oh! I just can’t wait to put my head down on a torn flat pillow, while relaxing on a bed of nails and snuggling up next to a colony of termites on board this yacht,” Nina said.
“Things can get worse. Appreciate the possibility of success through hard work,” Tomiko said.
Alistair went into some of the cabins and found a few pillows that were in fairly good condition, along with some blankets. He did not, however, find any termites or roaches. He enjoyed the thought of helping himself to what used to belong to someone else – it was among those little victories in life that he savored, along with not having to pay for transport aboard this ship. He brought these pillows and blankets out on deck.
“How nice! Room service, and we’re not even in our rooms,” Nina said.
“Complements of the captain. Only my best for the passengers,” Alistair said, passing out the comfort accessories.
“Remember: the captain goes down with the ship, so you had better make sure we keep going,” Nina said.
“A positive outlook would do you some good. Otherwise, you will drain all your energy and not be able to help us,” Tomiko said.
“You’re starting to sound like Yared. I can’t help you, anyway. Remember?” Nina said.
The group then rested for fifteen (15) hours, in shifts. Tristan set the glass crystal up on a deck box where it could get light exposure – from what little light the sky gave.
After getting ample sleep, Tristan looked at the glass crystal he had made and saw that it had absorbed an amount of light that was perceptible by its glow. This suggested that it had absorbed a great deal more.
Tomiko looked over at the glowing glass crystal and asked: “Does that mean it has collected enough light to be of use?”
“We’ll need to test it. If it did collect enough, we can ignite a flame,” Tristan said.
“And that would get the boiler to generate enough steam to turn the paddlewheel,” Genevieve said.
“Correct,” Tristan said.
Tristan, Tomiko and Genevieve entered the engine room and the molded glass crystal that Tristan held gave off enough light by which to see a large pile of firewood under a wide and shallow boiler tank.
Tristan then held the molded glass crystal next to the firewood and it started to heat up.
“Unless the firewood is wet, this should be quick to ignite,” Tomiko said.
“That depends on the actual amount of light collected,” Tristan said.
“Perhaps we should have made a second crystal,” Genevieve said.
“We just might, after proving this one works,” Tristan said.
After twenty (20) minutes of waiting, the firewood heated up enough and was ablaze. The glow of the fire illuminated the room and heated up the water in the boiler. Steam came out of the boiler and began turning overhead steam turbines.
They could feel the ship begin to move suddenly.
“It’s working!” Genevieve said.
“Wait! Somebody needs to steer the ship,” Tomiko said and hurried out of the room.
Genevieve went out on deck to see where the ship was heading, leaving Tristan in the engine room alone.
~~~
Tomiko then climbed up the steps to reach the wheelhouse and found Nina already there.
“Somebody had to steer the ship. Didn’t think I would forget, did you?” Nina asked.
“I wondered if you were with us back there,” Tomiko said.
“You still don’t understand me, do you?” Nina asked.
“You seemed angry and ready to give up. We need your cooperation. Even without the power to hear the sounds of the stars, you still have a lot of experience on a ship, and we need that. We need all the help we can get,” Tomiko said.
“I know. Too bad that’s all I know. Things keep getting worse, and faster than before,” Nina said.
“We can all see that. We were trying to make a profit, and now we have to fight for our survival. This is a
dangerous world, though, so we have to react to what it can throw at us,” Tomiko said.
~~~
Carter stood on deck and drank anew of the waters of the Zovvin Ocean from his vial. He sensed something changing – something distant that was approaching – and it was dangerous. The look on his face turned dour.
“What’s wrong? You don’t look like you’re at peace,” Stephan asked.
“No, I’m not. More spirits are coming, and they plan to wage war,” Carter said.
“Is this the work of the king?” Genevieve asked.
“No, they’re not from the king. These spirits are filled with hatred and a desire for vengeance. I can sense them because there are so many, and their feelings are intense, even though they’re far away,” Carter said.
“Which way should we go?” Alistair asked.
“It may not matter. If they overtake us and attack, there’s little I can do stop them. There are too many,” Carter said.
“You don’t think you can help us?” Stephan asked.
“I will do all that I can, but it is as if a mighty river has burst through a dam and can be seen raging toward us. We can try to run, and hope that very little of its power comes our way. Only, instead of water, it’s a river of spirits,” Carter said.
“How much time do we have?” Genevieve asked.
“I cannot know. Spirits, like rivers, can meander. I sense their power, but not their path,” Carter said.
“Let’s do what we agreed,” Genevieve said.
“Right away,” Alistair said and he climbed the steps to the wheelhouse.
Carter followed him, leaving Stephan and Genevieve on deck and Tristan still in the engine room.
~~~
“Is the travel direction clear on this river?” Tomiko asked.
“Clear enough – unless the river forks. Then, we’ll just head northeast, right? Unless it’s a choice between northwest and southeast – then we have another problem,” Nina said.
“We do have another little problem,” Alistair said from behind them.
“Many spirits have been roused, and they will be here in time, seeking vengeance,” Carter said, standing right behind Alistair.
“How much time do we have?” Tomiko asked.
“That is unclear, as their path is not yet known. We must proceed as planned, and I will remain watchful, but there are too many should they all decide to strike at us,” Carter said.
“Why would the spirits’ anger be directed at us – or even entirely at us?” Tomiko asked.
“That’s not yet clear – only when they approach can I be certain,” Carter said.
Nina steered the steamboat along the river, waiting for someone to tell her otherwise.
“Then we’ll keep the ship moving to the northeast. We’ll give Tristan whatever help he needs to keep the firewood burning and the paddlewheel turning,” Tomiko said.
“I can help steer, when you need to take a break,” Alistair said.
“Maybe, if I let you,” Nina said.
“I will watch from up here and wait, to guide you if you need to change course,” Carter said.
“You do that. It’s not like I know where I’m going, or the old man has a clue, either,” Nina said.
Tomiko then climbed down the steps, leaving Nina, Alistair and Carter in the wheelhouse.
On deck, he met with Genevieve and Stephan, neither of whom had any particular idea of what to do.
“Perhaps we can be of some help to Tristan, to keep the ship moving. He may need another crystal,” Tomiko said.
“I do, but not for the ship’s movement. The fire will keep burning to generate steam and drive the turbines. I want to make more crystals so that we can generate some light,” Tristan said as he walked out of the engine room and onto the deck.
At this, he drank anew of the waters of the Kazofen Ocean from his vial and was energized. He took more glass from the cabin windows and molded its structure like clay, spending three (3) hours until he had enough to make seven (7) more crystals.
“That was fast for making seven (7) of them,” Genevieve said.
“I had to work out the design pattern on the first piece of glass. I just remembered and reused it for these, so all that I had to do was to apply it. We can charge these crystals while we travel, and then we can all have some light,” Tristan said.
“Now, we just have to wait until they’ve gathered enough light,” Tomiko said.
~~~
“You could be a little friendlier, you know,” Alistair said.
“You could be a little more honest, you know,” Nina said, turning her head once to look at him and then turning back to see the dimly lit river ahead while she steered the riverboat under the twilight sky.
“When was I not honest?” Alistair asked.
“There’s something about you – how did you get that ship of yours? Really? There’s no way someone like you could be so wealthy,” Nina asked.
“A man can occasionally succeed in business,” Alistair said.
“Or cheating at card games,” Nina said.
“I assure you that I played by the rules. Good luck comes to someone in every card game,” Alistair said.
“Not the same someone in every game – not for as much money as you must have paid,” Nina said.
“I’m old, remember? I’ve had plenty of time to win a few, here and there,” Alistair said.
“And plenty of time to lose a lot, here, there, and everywhere,” Nina said.
“You’re jumping to conclusions, like you have a grudge against me before I’ve done anything to you,” Alistair said.
“Why wait?” Nina asked.
“You’d have more friends. Some people are actually quite nice,” Alistair said.
“Kind words and a gentle voice don’t make for a good friend,” Nina said. She kept her eyes on the river and her hands on the ship’s wheel, despite wanting to slap Alistair with both of her hands. She had a bad feeling about him – like every word was hiding another lie – but she couldn’t know the exact cause or the lie.
“What does, then?” Alistair asked.
“It’s complicated,” Nina said.
“That’s not an answer – that’s an evasion,” Alistair said.
“An evasion is an answer – it means I don’t want to get any closer to you,” Nina said.
“Because of something you think that I’ve done to you?” Alistair asked.
“Because I don’t trust you enough to take a chance,” Nina said.
“Do you trust me to steer the ship when you need rest?” Alistair asked.
“Carter’s a better choice,” Nina said.
“Things aren’t all bad, you know. We’ve been through a lot, lately. The inferno, the tempest, all of that,” Alistair said.
“We haven’t been through anything – don’t make it sound like we’re that close. Those things happened, while we were both alive, but we weren’t close or anything,” Nina said.
“I did rescue your crew with my ship at the right time in the tempest. Doesn’t that count for something?” Alistair asked.
“Fine – you helped us out of a bad spot. But don’t overestimate yourself. You’re rich – and I don’t know how – so it’s not like you did it alone and dove into the water to rescue us. You had hired crew,” Nina said.
“You’re just looking for reasons not to like me. None of the hard times you’ve seen were my fault. I’ve made some mistakes in the past, but long before you were around. Those were centuries ago,” Alistair said.
“As long as you’ve been alive, you’ve had lots of opportunities to cause trouble,” Nina said.
“There’s greater trouble approaching. I sense the spirits are moving, slowly at times, quickly at others. Their anger is great,” Carter said while standing next to them.
“Then I suppose we need to work together. Making an effort to get along might help us a lot. Believe me, it’s worth it,” Alistair said.
“For what it’s
worth, we’ll just work together. No hugs or anything,” Nina said.
~~~
After seven (7) days of traveling along the river, Tristan looked at the molded glass crystals and decided that it was time to test them.
“This might help,” Tristan said, and he took one (1) of the crystals up to the wheelhouse and placed it beside Nina. The crystal gave off some light, but it made little difference.
“A little nightlight? Really? Are you looking for a kiss before bed?” Nina asked.
“Just watch,” Tristan said.
He then drank anew of the waters of the Kazofen Ocean from his vial and was energized. He molded the crystal differently and it began to emit light, illuminating the river ahead considerably.
“Nice. That’s almost worth a kiss. Almost,” Nina said.
“Just let me know when it starts to fade and I’ll charge it again for a few days and get you another to take its place,” Tristan said.
“You do know how to keep a girl happy. Good work,” Nina said. She always respected Tristan’s abilities, and wouldn’t too terribly mind if he did make a move, but there were better looking men – much better looking men. Still, he got the job done and that might make him a good provider if anything should become of a kiss, so she never gave him too much attitude.
Tristan then climbed back down the stairs to return to the deck.
Nina steered more confidently by the brighter light that the crystal gave. She still felt bad that she couldn’t safely listen to the sounds of the stars – that headache nearly killed her, and it had been getting darker since, so it would probably be fatal if she tried to hear the stars again.
~~~
“Did it work?” Genevieve asked.
“Yes. With a slight change to the crystal structure, it began to emit the collected light,” Tristan said.
“Can you take one (1) of them and do that for me? I need to see when we get close,” Genevieve asked.
Tristan took another of the charging glass crystals, manipulated its structure to turn it into a light emitter and handed it to Genevieve.
She then looked out toward the land on either side of the river to get her bearings. Each day she watched from the deck of the ship to look for familiar territory, aided by the light emitted from the glass crystal.