13
DANGEROUS STORMS
I STOOD ON THE DOCKS AS THE RED SUN ROSE THAT MOURNING. I gazed at it as it's blood red light danced on the surface of the ocean.
I could not sleep the rest of that night. In truth I did not want to. I just laid awake, pondering the sorceress's riddle of a warning.
What did the Sorceress mean by saying 'the hidden cobra does not attack until it sees fit, not all is as it seems'? Was it a warning of betrayal? But, from whom? Everyone that meant anything to me was either dead or faraway. I was on my own.
But still this troubled me, and greatly.
"Ah! Mathayus my friend," Greeted a voice behind me that broke me from my thoughts.
I turned to see Seti; he looked somewhat cheerful this morning.
"How are you?" He asked, holding out his hand.
I took his wrist and shook it once.
"I am well," I replied. "Tired but well."
"Couldn't sleep?" He asked.
I shook my head no.
"Well, it happens the first time you are going out to sea," Seti informed me. "I remember the first time I went out on a galley. Did you have any bad dreams?"
"I did in fact," I told him.
"Well, no worries, this is one of the safest galleys in all of the sea," Seti said with a smile. "I usually have bad dreams before my greatest deals and they always give me good luck."
He clapped my shoulder.
"I'm sure it will be the same for you," He told me, reasurringly.
Easy for you to say, I thought to myself, for some reason I had a bad feeling.
"Now, let me show you to the galley," Seti said, gesturing for me to follow him.
We walked on to the docks, and past at least three massive ships when Seti stopped me at the third galley, anchored nearby. It looked to be made of a dark wood that looked sturdy enough. The galley looked to be thirty paces from stern to bow and ten paces from starboard to port. It's mast rose high above the ship, it's stark white sail rolled up.
"Beautiful isn't she?" Seti said, obviously proud of the galley before us. "She's one of the fastest ever made."
"If she's fast and she's taking me to Crete then she's more then beautiful, Seti," I said.
I could hear the trader beside me give a slight chuckle at my comment. I watched as crewmen scurried on the ship like ants, some men where already boarding the ship before me. I turned to Seti.
"Thank you for your help," I told him.
Seti shook his head.
"No, do not thank me, Akkadian. I owe a great debt to your tribe. I'm only sorry that they had to meet the wrath of that damned sorcerer," Seti replied, saying the last two words like he had uttered a curse.
I nodded.
"Good-bye, Seti," I said, walking to the boarding plank.
I was almost halfway there when I heard a voice call my name.
"Mathayus!"
I turned to the trader. Whose face lookedoddly serious.
"Be careful," He advised.
Seti looked pointedly out on to the red sky.
"Many sailor's see the red sun as a bad omen, a warning for terrible things to come," He called to me.
Then without explaining further he turned and walked away. I just rolled my eyes at this.
That's just what I need, I thought, sarcastically, to myself as I turned back to the boarding plank. Another cryptic warning that makes no sense.
---
After my first few days on the galley I came to learn that life at sea was very different the life on land. The constant swaying of the ship, boredom, and the obvious lack of space became was a problem to many men. But, after awhile, I got used to the rolling waves that would rock the ship. I helped the crew whenever I could to keep myself from worrying about the sorceress' warning.
The captain, a callused man called Nokamen had told us that it would take, perhaps, fourteen days to reach the Minoan island. That is if the wind was on our side, and we didn't run in to any storms along the way.
Unfortunately that would later become what would happen to us.
It was the seventh day out at sea, I believe when I woke to a strange pounding against the hull of the ship, and a deep rolling thunder. At once I noticed how violently the ship was rocking. I also noticed several cries from above.
I, quickly, grabbed my leather bag that I had filled with my weapons, and slung it over my shoulder. I run up on to the main deck to see what was going on.
The first thing I was hit by was a thick downpour of rain, as well as a whipping wind. We had been caught in a dangerous storm.
"Reef the mainsail!" Yelled a frantic voice above the thunder and rain. "Come on men! Get us closer to the wind or we'll become food for the sea monsters!"
I tried to keep my balance on the slick wood, as the ship gave a sudden jerk.
Suddenly a great wave washed over on the port side, causing the ship to tilt. I grabbed onto the railing of the ship and watched as two men, helplessly where overcome by the great wave and swept out into the tide.
"Men overboard!" cried a voice suddenly.
The ship gave another sudden jerk. Suddenly there was a crack of lighting that appeared from the sky, and hit the base of the mast. Causing it to fall to the deck floor.
The last thing I remember was shoving a young sailor out of the path of the falling mast. I had looked up to see it just mere inches from my head.
There was a fierce pounding in my head, an insane throbbing in my skull. Then everything slowly faded in to darkness.
END OF BOOK 1...