Emilie & the Hollow World - By Martha Wells Page 0,28
Menea.”
“That seems an odd thing to forbid. You would make a good sailor.”
“Thank you.” Emilie felt a huge relief at leaving the subject. She took a deep breath, and felt the breeze cool her flushed face. “If I was a Cirathi, I could be a sailor?”
“Of course. My partner, Rani, is captain of our ship.”
Emilie lifted her brows, intrigued. “Really?” She wanted to ask more, but Oswin came to tell Kenar that Lord Engal wanted to speak to him, and he went up to the wheelhouse. She stood on the deck for a long time after that, though, thinking about being the captain of a ship, and mentally rewriting the Lord Rohiro novels with someone like Miss Marlende as the main character.
It was late in the day when the ship's alarm sounded and someone shouted, “There it is!”
Emilie ran out to the rail, where Miss Marlende, Kenar, Lord Engal, and some of the crew were gathered. They were approaching a sizable island, ringed by cliffs like the others. At the base, anchored next to a narrow stretch of beach, was a large wooden sailing ship. It had three masts, with faded purple sails furled around the lower spars. Cabins with round windows were built all along the main deck, and they were painted various bright colors, now faded by sun and weather. Flowering vines were painted below the railings on the hull. “It's such a lovely ship,” Emilie said, before she realized what was wrong, why everyone was so silent.
The sailing ship's deck was empty. There was no sign of life aboard, no one coming out to investigate the chugging sound that signaled the Sovereign's approach. Emilie looked at Kenar, stricken.
His expression was closed, opaque. But she felt it was hiding a good deal of fear.
Miss Marlende said, “Perhaps they had to retreat into the interior of the island for some reason.” Emilie looked at the cliffs above the beach, but there was no sign of life or movement there, either.
Miss Marlende lifted the spyglass, studying the trees. “Perhaps they're at the airship, with-”
“We should be able to see your father's airship from here,” Kenar interrupted, an edge to his voice. “It's gone.”
She turned to stare at him, startled. “Are you certain?”
At her expression, he shook his head, avoiding her eyes. “Maybe they had to move it.”
Lord Engal looked from one to the other, frowning. Emilie thought he might say something to make it worse, but instead he just said briskly, “Now then, you can't expect them all to be standing out here waiting for us. They've probably been quite busy in our absence.” He turned to Oswin. “Make ready to lower the launch. We'll soon get to the bottom of this.”
Kenar and Miss Marlende boarded the launch with Lord Engal, Oswin, and six armed crewmen. Emilie slid into a seat next to Miss Marlende, and no one objected.
Emilie had managed to add herself to the landing party simply by staying close to Miss Marlende and Kenar, who were too distracted to notice her. If they had noticed her, each probably assumed the other had asked her to come along. She was sure Lord Engal, Oswin, and the other sailors noticed her, but they must have assumed that Miss Marlende had given her permission. Emilie thought Lord Engal must be making sure to be more polite to Miss Marlende, after their earlier disagreements, and the fact that...
That they might find her father, his crew, and all of Kenar's crew dead on the island somewhere.
The launch puttered across to the island, its engine sounding very loud in the silence of calm wind and water. The strip of beach was narrow, the rocky bluff above it draped with flowering vines. Two crewmen climbed out to help push the boat up onto the beach, and they all clambered out, splashing in the shallow water. Leaving a crewman to watch the boat, they approached the Cirathi ship cautiously.
Kenar went first, the others following, Emilie bringing up the rear. The soft sand crumbled underfoot, the scent of green plants and sweet flowers was heavy in the air. It would have been a lovely place, except for the silent ship. Kenar headed for the bow, and the crewmen spread out to search along the bluff. The wooden hull was covered with tar, or whatever the Hollow World equivalent was, and from this angle only the decorative painting made it different from a Menaen ship.
They circled around to the port side, the side facing the island that