Natural Ordermage

XXXIV

From the moment Rahl took over the marker and writing board on oneday, he jotted down, in the best hand he could, not only the cargo in the nets and pallets, as Galsyn called the items out, but what seemed to be even more in the way of notes. With a short break for the midday meal, they worked until sunset. Then, after supper, Galsyn went over what Rahl had written and spelled out the corrections and terms.

Twoday was more of the same, until midafternoon, when all the outbound cargo had been loaded, the last of the wagons had left the pier, and the crew was battening down the hatches.

Smoke began to rise from the twin stacks just aft of the pilothouse, and the acrid odor of burning coal drifted across the ship.

Rahl watched as Gresyrd’s deck crew took in the gangway and swung that section of the wooden railing back into place.

“Single up!” came the order from the bridge.

Before long, the midships paddle wheels began to turn, with a dull, slapping thwup, thwup.

Rahl stood at the railing, just aft of the bowsprit, as the Diev backed down and away from the pier, out into the harbor. Then the paddle wheels stopped for a moment, and a dull thump shivered through the ship before the paddle wheels resumed turning, this time in the opposite direction, now carrying the ship forward and westward toward the channel between the outer breakwaters.

Rahl turned, first to the westernmost piers, but they were empty, and there was no order-haze across them. Did the black ships spend most of their time at sea?

He looked back at the buildings of the harbor, and the black-stone dwellings with their dark slate roofs, rising gradually up the hill, interspersed with trees and greenery.

“Rahl!” called the purser.

Rahl turned slightly to see Galsyn gesturing.

“Now that everything’s on board and stowed, we need to get to work on the manifest for this leg. We can use the long table in the mess. That’s the one the passengers usually eat at.”

“Yes, ser.” Rahl glanced back once more at the black-stone piers and the black-slate-roofed buildings on the hillside above the harbor structures. He thought he could see the training center, but he wasn’t certain. He wondered if he would ever see Nylan or Recluce again, or if Deybri had been right.

He also had to ask himself if he would ever see his parents.

“Rahl!”

“Yes, ser.” He walked toward Galsyn.