Chapter 125: Dropping In

…

~~We have two months to return to Castle Island. I think it'll be enough time to do what I need to get done. Our first destination is Skyrider Port to see if I can get the crew paid. After that, we'll probably stay the night at Bold Island after I correct the Dawn Line.

…

~~I just found out that someone has smuggled three of the king's scholars into the ration crates we were picking up. I'm gonna start stabbing crates with a sword if it happens again.

…

~~Day 101 (Command, Day 64)

~~The crew got backpay for two months. I guess it was something coming to every ship in the fleet; they didn't even question where my crew came from. Although I had to explain to the office lady why the ship on my employment record was different from the paperwork I submitted. I'm a little concerned that the company is providing backpay for airship crews; it's gonna mean a pretty heavy loss of whatever funds the company has at the moment. At least it all works out in some way. My crew deserves it; and I'd have given them my own pay if I had to.

~~We're currently on our way back toward Forelight Island. Leynne has an idea he wants to try, but he wants to be over the ocean before he tries it.

…

Captain Albel was busy overseeing the replacement of the S.E.S. Goddess's Tides' bridge, its top level having been blown out by a shot from a pirate ship two days before. This morning, he had finally made arrangements to have the ship towed into the repair yard on the western side of the Hovela docks. The overcast sky made him a little cranky, but he appreciated the cool breeze wafting over the deck. The yard crew working on the bridge was only dismantling the superstructure for today and would be tomorrow as well before they could erect a new bridge. It put the steamship out of commission for the next few days. Fortunately, now that the Ocean Realm was back to normal, it meant that any supplies the people of that realm needed could be sent by train. Rules at the yard required everyone on the ship and inside the yard to wear full-brimmed work helmets, which served to keep the captain focused on the work before him.

It also saved a seaman sweeping the deck somewhere amidships, not far behind Albel. He barely noticed the hollow tunk of wood bouncing off the seaman's helmet or the following thud as the seaman collapsed to the deck. He was ignorant of the incident until one of the workers started gesturing in a direction behind Albel while speaking to his coworkers. This clued him into the sudden activity around him, and he turned to watch where one of the passing seamen was jogging to. Then he spun completely to hustle across the deck toward the injured seaman, shouting at the other seamen ahead of him, "Help that man up!"

A pair of seamen helped the injured man up and took him over to the large cargo hatch nearby. Albel heard a combination of concern and playful jeering as he approached the seamen gathered around, and he snapped, "One side!" The seamen parted, revealing the young man sitting on the hatch with a spaced look on his face. "Seaman Puller. Be ye ar-right?"

Seaman Puller tried to look up at Albel, but his eyes could not decide which Albel to look at. He gave his head a brief shake and held one side when a surge of dizziness resulted from the shake. "Yeah, I think so," he replied. "Wha' happened?"

"Cap'n!" someone shouted.

But Albel had turned to address one of the nearby seamen. "Go ge' the sawbones."

When Albel spun again to find the seaman addressing him, he found a helmet thrust into his hands. "Found 'is 'elmet, Cap'n," the seaman presenting it told him.

Albel turned the helmet until he found a large divot in the cap. The white paint had been chipped away, revealing its steel form underneath. He looked around at the nearby seamen. "Anyone see wha' 'appened?"

"Righ' 'ere, Cap'n," another seaman said as he pushed between two crewmates. He held one arm out, offering Albel a large block of wood. "'Ere's wha' 'it 'im."

Albel took the block and looked it over. It felt lighter than he expected, especially for something that put a dent in steel. He supposed it explained how Puller had gotten away with what appeared to be only a concussion, but how exactly was it traveling fast enough to do this kind of damage to a helmet? Then he found that someone had scribbled "Look out below" on it, hidden from him because of the way he had been holding it. He looked to port, wondering if it had come from somewhere on the shore. He just could not see it being shot from there and having the strength to damage the helmet. When his eyes fell on the yard's cranes, he found himself wondering if it had fallen off the end of one crane. It did not seem possible. He sighed and looked up at the cloud-cloaked sky overhead.

And he realized something about the sky. Being almost midday, the overcast weather above was a dull grey. But directly above the Goddess's Tides, the clouds had turned dark, almost black. He wondered if that was the start of a rain cloud. Maybe today would not be the best day to replace the bridge.

Then came the keel of a wooden ship, parting the clouds like a stray wind. Albel's eyes widened at the sudden perception of a massive vessel falling on top of his ship. His jaw slackened, and his arms fell to his sides as he dropped the helmet and block to the deck. The seamen around him each showed the same signs of stunned horror as they followed the captain's gaze up to the sky. It seemed like hours before anyone said anything. Even then, it was the yard workers who panicked. Frenzied shouting sounded from the bridge demolition as workers scrambled down their ladders so they could run across the deck to safety. Those of Albel's men who were not paralyzed decided not to be so careful in their escape, especially those on the starboard side who found it easier to simply jump the bulwark into the ocean below. Someone in the distance screamed, "Abandon ship!"

Once Albel regained his wits, he realized that the vessel was slowing its descent. It really was taking its time falling, although not the hours it had felt like. He walked backwards toward the bridge, mystified by the peculiarity of the situation.

Seeing one of his former sailors hanging over the starboard side just behind the forecastle only confounded him further.

"A'oy, Cap'n Albel!" Airman Gold called down, waving one hand after dropping the duoscope around his neck.

Albel started piecing the situation together until he had a reasonable understanding of the situation in just under a minute. The confusion on his face was replaced by a grin. Then he burst out into such a powerful laugh that the seamen around him were jarred out of their astonishment. They all stared at him, perplexed by a hysterical laugh that they had never seen come from their captain before.

Meanwhile, on the Island Symphony, Gold hauled himself back onto the deck and stepped onto the forecastle from the starboard side. "Oy, Cap'n," he told Link. "Yeh'r not gonna believe this. We came out right on top o' the Goddess's Tides!"

"Any idea where we're at?" Link asked him.

"West side o' 'Ovela."

Link turned to Leynne, who was standing next to the wheel with Line. "Were you shooting for Hovela?"

"Actually, I'd expected us to at least be in the Ocean Realm," Leynne admitted as he looked over his clipboard. "Those crosswinds we encountehed must have altehed ouh couhse moh than predicted."

"Dropping through a cloud probably didn't help," Line commented.

Leynne gave him a fleeting glance. "Evidently," Leynne replied. "Pehhaps this explains why aihships neveh regulahly traveled between the suhface and the sky."

"Well, being on top of the Goddess's Tides, what do you recommend?" Link asked.

"We should move," Leynne replied. He looked up at Gold. "Which side is the ocean on?"

"Port," Gold replied.

Link nodded and said, "Go ahead and move us."

"Undehstood," Leynne said. "Line, engage the engine and tuhn us ninety degrees to port. I think half-speed shall do."

"Got it, Lieutenant," Line replied. "Engine to half, ninety degrees to port."

Leynne turned to the port side and said, "Dubbl, would you have the deck crew raise the sails?"

Dubbl shot him a salute. "Aye, Lieutenant," she replied.

"Misteh Gold, if you would retuhn to youh position please," Leynne said.

"Gotcha, Lieutenant," Gold replied before descending the stairs.

Leynne sighed and used the blunt end of his pen to scratch his scalp. "I don't know that I can get used to being called 'Lieutenant' all the time. I find that 'Boss' was preferable."

"Regulations, Lieutenant," Line replied as he turned the wheel.

"He's right, Leynne," Link said. "Since the company realized I have a large ship like this, they can either promote me to 'captain' or take the Island Symphony away to leave me a 'lieutenant'. And since Captain Alfonzo made arrangements before we got back to the Port, I'm a captain in rank, and I have to have a lieutenant for a second-in-command." Link then grinned at him. "Look at the bright side. You could've been made a servant of the realm, like me."

"At this point," Leynne said as he glanced over his clipboard again, "I'd ratheh be shot then take such a promotion."

"Ooh, ooh!" Line called out while raising a hand. "Link! Lemme shoot him! Lemme shoot him!"

"Shut up, Line," Link told him in an exhausted tone.

"Please," Leynne added. "And, foh the recohd, I would ratheh any of the Gelto to kill me. I can expect something swift." He paused to think about his statement. "Except Dubbl. She will likely bludgeon me to death. That wouldn't be so efficient, and it would just be heh throwing anotheh tantrum."

"I stand he'e," Dubbl spoke from almost directly behind Leynne, arms crossed and a scowl burning into the back of his head.

Leynne looked up with surprise on his face at Link, who could only offer an amused shrug. "Yes, of couhse," Leynne then said over his shoulder. "I suppose it would be best foh my careeh to avoid taunting you behind youh back."

Line was laughing when he said, "She's gonna murder you."

"Yes, this much has become evident," Leynne replied. He looked over his shoulder. "Would you check if we ah oveh the ocean?" Dubbl's response was a grunt which neither Line nor Leynne could determine to be an answer, but she turned and started for the stairs on the port side. When he thought she was out of hearing range, Leynne said to Link, "Don't let heh kill me."

"'Inu ya'lu lwaymxways wabnik!" Dubbl snapped at him from the stairs. Leynne and Line cringed at the sound of her shout. They kept still, hoping she would continue on her way.

Line finally glanced over in her direction after a few seconds. Then he whispered to Leynne, "You should sleep with your eyes open."

Leynne nodded and whispered back, "Good idea; it'll let me see the blunt instrument she bashes my face with."

Link, Leynne, and Line waited a few minutes until Dubbl returned. "No one unde'neaz," she told Leynne.

Leynne glanced over at Link. Link nodded and said, "Take us down."

"Dubbl, have Twali and Gold come back onto the deck," Leynne told her. She nodded and went down the stairs again. "Now we find out how well Lidago sealed ouh hull," Leynne said to Link. Then he turned to Line and said, "Tehminate the engine and take us down, Line."

"Kill the engine and dropping, Lieutenant," Line said before turning to the control panel. He pulled back the throttle and disengaged the propeller with a considerable speed. Considerable enough that Link was just moments from saying something to him as he placed his hand on the ballast control.

Line jerked down on the lever. A second later, the Island Symphony dropped into the water. Ka-fwaaaaashhhh! The impact with the surface caused all aboard to stagger. Link managed to hold himself up, but Leynne lost his footing and fell to the deck on his hands and knees. Line also suffered when he stumbled, his shoulder striking the control panel and forcing him to grab the wheel before he fell over. He hissed through his teeth, trying to suppress the urge to shout in pain.

Leynne had only a mild amount of restraint himself as he shouted at Line, "You idiot!"

Link hurried over to the starboard side and looked over the side to see that the Island Symphony was settled on the water. He gave a relieved sigh; he was concerned that dropping the ship on the water might sink it. It was still early to tell, but he was optimistic.

"Liiiine!" Gold shouted from the deck. Link looked toward the main deck to see Gold standing at the base of the steps, hands raised as if to keep them from becoming soaked like the bottom half of his shirt and the entirety of his trousers. "Line, yeh li'l sonuvabitch!"

"I did what Leynne said!" Line shouted back at him.

"Gold, go below, check for damage or leaks, and then get yourself some clean clothes," Link ordered, more to put a quick end to the fighting since the engine room crew should already be observing the hull. "Dubbl, take Twali and check around the deck. Make sure we haven't lost anything." Dubbl gave a sharp nod before returning to the deck. Gold was a little slower to respond, moving to the stairs with an awkward gait. Link was sure he could hear him cursing under his breath. He next turned to Line and asked, "Think you can dock a ship on the ocean?"

"I can dock anything on anything," Line said as he looked at the wind indicator on the control panel. "Uh oh."

"What?" Leynne asked.

"I don't think this thing's working right," Line said as he tapped the gauge. "It's all over the place."

"Likely because you've smashed the weatheh vane on the undehside of the ship," Leynne calmly chided him.

"Oh. Uuuuh…"

"Start beating, Line," Link said. "The wind's coming from the east." Line blew a quick raspberry as he turned the wheel.

Line quickly found the process frustrating, although he admitted to Link that he was not sure if it was because he was sailing on water or if it was just the Island Symphony's strange sail-plan. Dubbl reported that the outboard sails were dragging in the water a bit and that one of the stays to the port mizzen-mast had snapped, both problems of little concern as she also reported that she and Twali had replaced the stay before telling him. Gold returned in a fresh outfit to inform Link that the hull was holding. There had been concern over a leak below, but Lidago had used a combination of unusual rock and a short pipe to seal it.

As Line approached an empty spot on the docks, Link decided to return to his cabin and get his gear. This included both his sword and the Lokomo Sword, the boomerang, the hammer, the Power Bracelet, the cloth he had received from the Yook, and his journal. He considered changing into the tunic with the chainmail, but then he decided against it when he figured that he should not have been running into anything dangerous this time. Irleen had been awoken by Line's landing, and she joined him as he stepped back onto the deck.

"Captain Link!"

He groaned to himself at the sight of the king's three scholars approaching him from across the deck. All three of them wore green tabards, each bearing the crest of the royal family among lavish decorations unique to each of them. They also sported suitcases which looked to be quite heavy. Seeing them caused Link's mood to change. Between Cale having found them hidden in the supplies and having listened to them gripe about their sleeping conditions this morning, all three young men (only a few years older than Link) were already on Link's nerves.

But he maintained a calm air as he asked, "You guys need something?"

"There was some question of itinerary while we are at this island," the one in the middle, Alberto, told him.

"'Itinerary'?" Link asked. "The 'itinerary' is we're here for one month while my crew takes their leave."

"You're… not gonna do anything?" Alberto asked, blinking at him with a dumbstruck expression.

"I've spent the last three months doing things," Link said. "So have most of my crew. For the next month, we will be going about our own business, visiting friends and family."

Alberto turned and received a nod from the two other scholars. "Okay, we can accept that," he then told Link.

"'Accept' that?" Link asked, one eyebrow raised. "It's an order. On my ship. There's nothing for you to accept. If you need anything, Lieutenant Leynne and Chief Cale will be here to assist you."

"Uh, Captain?" Garfield, the taller one with a crooked nose, spoke up. "You won't be here on the ship."

Link nodded. "That was my intention."

"Where will you be?"

Link finally allowed his annoyance show through. "Traveling."

"Very good."

"It would be interesting to see you in a relaxed environment," Alberto said.

Link stared at him for a moment. Then he gave an insincere laugh. "You're not following me," he told them in a jarringly serious tone.

"I beg to differ," Garfield said. "Our assignment was to observe you for however long we see fit. Believe me; you're gonna be our only interest for this month."

"I think we should tell them, Link," Irleen spoke up, flying circles above Link's head.

"I'm gonna give them a moment," Link said. Then he told Alberto, "Look. You guys aren't following me. It's that simple."

"How will you stop us?" Alberto asked, shrugging his shoulders while sporting a smug look. "You're half even my height."

Link replied with a smile. "Mister Alberto," he said. "Are you a good swimmer?"

Alberto's colleagues exchanged concerned looks. Alberto, confounded by the question, replied, "Yes, swimming is one of my pastimes."

Link nodded and extended an inviting hand. "C'mere for a moment, I wanna show something to you." Alberto nodded, and they started walking toward the port side. "I gotta ask. Have you looked up at the sky today?"

Alberto looked up. Link was not too sure, but it looked like his face paled. "C-clouds…" he spoke in a horrified voice.

"Know what that means?" Link asked.

"We're in the Undying Storm," he whispered as if the fact was supposed to be a secret.

Link gave a light-hearted chuckle. "No, no. We're on the surface."

"The surface?" Alberto said as they stopped next to the bulwark. He looked up at the cliffs behind the port. "Oh, my…"

"It's been decades since…" Link carefully worked the suitcase out of Alberto's hand. He shook it a bit and heard the rattle of writing utensils inside. "… since scholars have been down here. This is… practically a whole new world. It's-it's full of possibilities. You see down there?" He pointed over the bulwark while he set Alberto's suitcase down. Alberto leaned over the bulwark. "That is probably the only thing in the world that makes me safe doing something like this."

Link then grabbed Alberto's shoulder and the waist of Alberto's slacks. With little effort, he pitched Alberto over the bulwark.

"AAAAAAAAHH—" Ke-SPAAAASH!

Someone on the shore hollered out, "Maaaaan overboaaaaaard!"

Link turned to find Alberto's companions standing behind him, their jaws slack as they stared at him. "Am I clear now?" Link asked. Both nodded. "Don't you think exploring the surface would be more interesting?" They nodded again, this time in synchronization with each other. "Do you guys need money for travel?" At this, they shook their heads. "Well, good. You've got a month to get back here. If you don't, you get left behind. Now get off my ship!" Garfield grabbed Alberto's suitcase and chased his companion down the nearby gangplank.

Gold was sniggering as he approached Link. "I think yeh impressed someone, Cap'n," he said, pointing out at the shore.

Link glanced out at the docks. Standing right at the edge of the dock near the gangplank, Captain Albel gave Link a stern look, as if to say "I just watched that whole exchange, Mister".

Then Albel raised a hand to give Link a palm-backward salute.