Legend
Chapter 05
Charles W Bird
[email protected]
Astronomers have discovered that the incredible gravitational strength of supermassive black holes can tear planets away from their star systems and hurl them through space at incredible speeds—as fast as 30 million mph.
This story is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously and any resemblance to actual persons living or dead, events or locales is entirely coincidental. The story is protected by copyright and may not be reproduced by any means without the express, written permission of the author.
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From Book 4; Nueva Alcaidesa became the most important trading center along the Great Inland Sea and it was from there that the exploratory expeditions to the Blak Sea Beyond the Kingdom of the Terks began and it was Zel and Tok Traders that opened up the Dark Lands to the south to trade. Ivory and gold, many types of rare woods and herbs, fruits and spices came from exotic places on the Dark Lands. The only commodity they refused to deal in was slaves and the gunpowder cannons Tok had installed on all their ships helped enforce the “NO SLAVES” Law of Nueva Alcaidesa!
JINDA RESCUE
Master Trader Zel was in the process of taking command of his first ship. He had always shared command with his Papa, Tok, but their business was increasing and it demanded that both of them sail independently.
His new ship, the Jinda Son, had recently been completed, he and his Father had commissioned the building of the ship to their own specifications. The central cargo hold was specially reinforced to carry heavy loads of metals from Manga Lor, Zel’s original homeland. Both the new ship’s forward and after cargo holds were ventilated to allow fresh cargo, fruits, living plants, and domestic animals to be transported.
In addition, there were four passenger cabins to accommodate passengers. One of the cabins was designed for high ranking passengers and included servant’s quarters. The cabins were not luxurious, but more than adequate for a few weeks travel.
They had arranged for a consignment of tools and machinery from Globe for a new irn foundry in Manga Lor. It was a joint venture between his father and himself, along with a small manufacturer in Globe and a family of metal smiths in Manga Lor. If it worked out, they would have to build yet another ship to bring additional machinery from North America as the technology was not available in Jinda.
It was too bulky and heavy to use the flyers regularly, plus the added expense of breaking the machinery down and then reassembly ate into their profits too much.
Zel and Tok had flown back to Globe to make the arrangements to supply the machinery and Zel had spotted an interesting picture in a history book. It was a steam engine driving a small boat that assisted sailing ships entering and leaving harbor as well as docking and undocking. They called it a Tugger Boat because it pulled and tugged the sailing ships. If they had something like that, they could enter and leave port at anytime and not have to wait for the tide to turn to pull away from the pier.
The man in the library was very generous and made copies of the pictures for Zel and he was carrying them to Manga Lor to see if someone there could reproduce the machine.
Zel had sold two of the passenger cabins for the outward voyage and had resigned himself that the other two would remain unoccupied this first trip. At the last minute, Ambassador Porb and his family asked passage for a homeland visit.
Zel was not about to charge the man, he was Family! Porb insisted, so Zel discounted the rate and refused to accept anything greater.
The stevedores finished loading the ship and the crew tied everything down in the cargo holds to prevent shifting. They had to wait until evening to make the tide and they had a beautiful sunset as the Jinda Son sailed out past the breakwater.
They made good time on the eastward leg of their journey across the Great Inland Sea, the winds cooperated and two weeks later, they had docked at their provisioning station in k’Ro near the entrance to the ship channel through the desert of Gypt.
They took on water and a few foodstuffs to finish out their voyage to the Land of Manga Lor in Jind. While they were waiting for the tide to turn, some strange looking men who said they were from Grec Land, asked passage to Jind. They paid in gol coin that had strange symbols on them, but Zel weighed them and accepted them as payment.
The men were all dressed in heavy black robes and hats, despite the heat and their beards stank of unwashed food. However, they kept to themselves and prepared their own meals of foodstuffs they had brought with them.
The winds were contrary as they sailed south through the ship channel and they had to tack the ship frequently to maintain headway. It was a weary crew that docked the ship in Suz at the southern end of the ship channel.
Zel rested his crew for two days, letting them recuperate from the exertions of the ship channel.
Zel remembered his days as a small boy in that town before his Father, Tok, had rescued him. They were not good memories and he had no desire to go ashore and visit the place.
They topped off the water barrels and caught the next tide for the final leg of their journey, across the Ocean of Jind. The weather remained mild and the winds strong, they made excellent time, in less than three weeks, they were entering the Harbor of Manga Lor.
Zel and Tok’s ships were always welcome in any port of Manga Lor, they always paid in gol or slvr and the stevedores made top wages. They eased into their usual pier and the Harbor Master, who had replaced their friend, Porb, came on board to check their manifests and passengers. He told Zel that the Pasha had asked that he come to the Palace as soon as he had finished his ship’s docking.
Ambassador Porb winked at Zel and whispered, “I am sure he wants to join our commercial business. He was never a greedy man and did all he could to finance Manga Lor without raising taxes on his people.”
Zel decided to take the pictures of the Tugger Boat, maybe the Pasha would be interested in finding a craftsman who could turn the pictures into a real working tugger boat.
They finished docking and hired a stevedore crew. Zel told the Mate he was going to speak with the Pasha and left the mate in charge while he was gone.
Their travel to the palace was interesting to Zel, Porb hailed a cart to take them. He called it a rikki-al and it was pulled by two men tugging on draw bars fitted to the axle of the conveyance. The wooden wheels bounced on the cobbles of the street, Zel was certain some of his teeth would be shattered before they got to the palace.
They arrived very fast, the rikki-al apparently had right of way on the streets, the pedestrians all moved aside as they flashed by. They were graciously received by the major-domo and served cool refreshments while they waited.
A young man, about Zel’s age, came up to them, “I am Pasha Ranghi and am delighted to meet you, Captain Zel. I have heard much about you and your exploits. You are a famous son of our land and I would like to speak with you about opportunities for my people.”
Zel was impressed with the youth and vitality of the young ruler and was determined to enlist his aid in developing his tugger boat. After they had a light meal of fresh fruits and shoots of a plant the Pasha called bimbo, the young ruler got down to business.
He got out a map and pointed to a city, Brahm’avar.
He said. “This is the most important city in my northern province and it has been ransacked by barbarians from the north. I have no ships with which I can rescue my folk, many of whom are children left behind when the barbarians carried the adults off as slaves. Can you help us, carry food to them and bring the homeless children here, where they will be safe?” All the while, Zel and the Pasha were staring at each other, each was fascinated with the other.
Remembering his own childhood, Zel did not hesitate, “Yes, Pasha I will do that. Let me leave a project with you and ask that your artisans look at it and tell me if they can make such a machine.” He left the picture of the tugger engine with the Pasha and hurried on, confused by the thoughts running through his head.
He took his leave of Pasha Ranghi and hurried back to his ship. He ordered the water barrels to be filled and food brought on board, he wanted to sail on the very next tide!
Zel’s crew recognized that their Captain was stressed and they rushed to get the ship ready to sail. They did not know yet, how their Captain had been captured by an equally confused Pasha of Jinda.
They had provisioned the ship and just completed filling the last water barrel when the tide began to turn, within minutes, the outgoing tide had pulled the ship from the pier and they stood out into the harbor, headed for the open sea.
As soon as they cleared the breakwater, Zel ordered all the sails raised, the spinnaker set and the lanteen swung out to catch the full force of the wind. The Mate, Toma, asked Zel what the great rush was and, when Zel had told him what the Pasha had said, the mate pushed the lanteen out a bit more and adjusted the spinnaker to catch even more wind.
They pushed the Jinda Son as hard as they could as they sailed north to Brahm’avar, the sails and masts groaning in protest. Zel and his crew hardly slept, they kept the Jinda Son’s sails trimmed to catch every breath of the wind as they raced northward.
It was just a few days, but to Zel it seemed forever when the lookout called down, “Breakwater off the starboard bow!”
Zel ordered the sails reduced in order to slow the ship and he eased the vessel through the opening in the stone breakwater, dropping the anchor to swing the ship as they stood into the pier. There were only a few people around, but the crew began manhandling barrels of water and crates of food onto the pier.
The word spread fast, the children that gathered would have set the very stones to weeping, desperate for drinkable water and their ribs showing from starvation.
The crew gathered wood from the destroyed buildings nearby and placed irn cauldrons to heating as they filled them with vegetables and meat.
Finally, some adults arrived, in no better condition than their children. Many had been tortured, as had the children. Zel was new to mindspeak, but his horror lent him power, his screech was heard at the Flyer Station in Nueva Alcaidesa.
Senior Flyer Pilot Toby heard his call and, within minutes, Rescue Flyers were launched into the sky, screaming at full throttle.
In a very short time, a flight of thirty Flyers came screaming over the horizon, headed for Brahm’avar. The Flyers vomited out Caregivers, crates of medicines and bandages, Doctors and Crew Members to help care for the weary survivors of Brahm’avar.
By nightfall, an abandoned building had been cleared and three hundred children were bedded down on clean mats with their tummies filled and safe for the first time in weeks.
The few adults who had survived, told of the attack and Pilot Toby led ten Flyers in an attempt to locate the raiders, but no trace was ever found, they had disappeared into the wild mountains of the north.
They loaded the most severely injured of the survivors into the Flyers and Pilot Toby told Zel that they would meet him in Manga Lor, where they were going to build a hospital and Flyer Station.
The next morning, Zel’s crew helped load two hundred and twenty children and ten adults on the Jinda Son. It was crowded, but the holds were empty and there was a place for everyone to lay down on their mat and sleep.
The return trip was slower, the winds were often contrary and Zel had to tack the ship to make headway. It was a two week effort to get the Jinda Son back to Manga Lor, every day Pilot Toby conferred with Zel and flew in food drops to ensure all the children did not go hungry again.
As the Jinda Son pulled into Manga Lor Harbor, the Caregivers were waiting for them on the pier to care for the injured. Pasha Ranghi was on the pier also, to greet his people, some of the children were so overcome, the Pasha sat on a mooring post and held the children in his arms until it was their turn to be taken to the hospital.
There was one little boy who smiled shyly at Zel and watched his every move. Zel kept watching the little boy watching him, finally Zel waved at the boy to come over to him.
The little boy was starved for affection and held onto Zel’s leg with all his little boy strength. Zel looked at the child and was lost in his dark eyes. He had to have that child for his own son! The child’s name was Han and he put the boy up on his shoulder while he went looking for Pasha Ranghi.
Zel and the Pasha had a long talk, each knowing that their love could not be. Pasha Rangi’s first responsibility was to his people, they parted in sorrow for a love that must be left unfulfilled. The Pasha quickly signed the order allowing Zel to adopt the little boy he had discovered and tyhen told Zel that they could never be a couple, that he was married to his country and its people.
By the midday meal, Han was the son of Master Trader Captain Zel. The little boy was like a ray of sunshine in Zel’s life and would rarely let his Papa out of his sight. The boy was quick and already knew his numbers. He soon learned about the Jinda Son and could climb the masts faster than any of the sailors; he learned his stars and could read the wind nearly as well as Zel himself. He earned the respect of the sailors, never shirking his tasks and always willing to lend a hand to help them.
All the while, Zel was struggling with a sorrow that would never leave him. The small boy, Han, while not knowing its cause, comforted his new Papa in his sorrow and helped fill an awful hole that had been torn in Zel’s soul. Zel was never to confess to his son about his love for the Pasha, but Han set about the task of seeing a smile on Papa Zel’s face once more. It would be many miles along their course before the young boy’s antics would bring the beginning of a smile on Zel’s face.
In the smaller ports, Han proved himself a canny trader and was always on the lookout for goods and products that would sell well in another port. He spotted a vendor in Ponnani, who had a donkey cart loaded with nearly ripe Papay fruits.
Nobody would buy the man’s fruit because they were not fully ripened. He asked his Papa for five Rups and he purchased the entire lot of fruit. When Zel asked why he had purchased unripe fruit, Han just smiled and replied, “It will work out, Papa, you just watch.”
He had the fruit loaded in the forward hold of the Jinda Son. Their next port was Koch, a three day sail down the coast. When they had docked, Han took three of the fruits to the market and ended up selling the whole lot for thirty Rups.
The fruit had ripened in the dark warmth of the ship’s hold. After that, Zel gave Han a bag containing fifty Rups and told him to start trading.
Before they had returned to Manga Lor, Han had turned that bag of fifty Rups into seven hundred Rups! Zel was not greedy, but he did have to pay his crew and provide them with food and water. The profits that Han had turned over to him would allow him to explore another of his dreams, that the Earth was round, like a ball.
Zel mindspoke to his Father and Partner about the boy and Tok told him to back the boy in any trade deal he wanted to do.
In less than a year, Zel was purchasing three smaller Coastal Traders to haul the fruit Han was purchasing. With Tok’s permission, he started a new company, Tok, Zel & Han, Fruit Brokers and Shippers.
On one of their voyages back to Manga Lor, the Harbor Master relayed a message from Pasha Ranghi that he was to come to the Palace at his earliest convenience. Zel took Han with him, after making sure the boy was dressed in his very best clothing and the new shoes he had purchased at their last port. He did not want to face the Pasha alone, he did not trust himself, he would be willing to discard everything in his life to be with the man he loved, like no other.
They hailed a rikki-al and endured the bone shaking ride to the Pasha’s Palace. They both were well known now to the young Pasha and he was delighted when they arrived. He questioned them closely on their travels and was delighted when Han gave him a sack of fresh mangs from Kolla. The Pasha, however, could not look Zel in the eye, his shame at allowing his fear to drive away the first man he could love was eating at his soul.
They were superior fruits and the Pasha gave them to the Majordomo to be served at their luncheon.
The Pasha was intensely interested in the condition of the southern ports of his realm and wanted to know everything that the two traders had observed, especially the condition of the people.
They had a delicious lunch that included Han’s gift of the mangs and, after they had finished their tea, Pasha Ranghi stood with a small smile on his face and asked them to come with him.
In the courtyard, Pasha Ranghi proudly showed them the engine that Zel had given him pictures of; a steam engine was driving a pump pulling water from a water well. At each revolution of the cast irn flywheel, fresh clean water gushed from the pipe and flowed into the cistern that served the Palace.
The Pasha was delighted and wanted to purchase the new machine from Zel. They ended up forming a partnership to construct the engines. The Pasha wanted to build small engines at a price his farmers and villagers could afford, to install as pump engines so that they would have fresh clean water for their animals and their homes. All the while, Zel’s instincts were telling him to run away, far away, right NOW!
Zel wanted the engines for his vision of tugger boats in the harbors to assist the sailing ships. He was the stronger of the two men and looked the Pasha in the eye and told him that he understood their love could never be, but ever should he be in peril, he bad only to call upon him and he would come running to his assistance.
The Majordomo brought in an elderly man who had assembled the machine and his son had cast the irn in its making. They reached a mutual agreement and another new company came into being, “Pasha Steam Powered Engines”.
The next time Zel and Han sailed the Jinda Son into Manga Lor Harbor, they were docked by a Tugger Boat made by the new firm. Zel remembered seeing a thing called a generator in the same book and promised Pasha Ranghi he would bring pictures and any additional information the next time the Jinda Son sailed to North America.
He had seen a map in the Pasha’s study that showed a sailing route to reach America by sailing east from Manga Lor. They could reach the New Inland Sea of America that had been created when the land sank during the great upheaval caused by the passing of the Cosmic Wave.
He knew that new inland sea opened into the Western Ocean and would be a shorter route than returning to the Great Inland Sea and then crossing the Ocean to the break between the American Continents to reach the New Inland Sea of North America.
It would be a trading route for machinery constructed in Globe and irn and bris on the return voyage. Also, Zel wanted desperately to see his Papa, Tok and introduce his own son to him and also confess to him his great sorrow of a love that could not be.
He began plotting and planning such a voyage.
TRADER’S VOYAGE
Zel began filling their warehouse with goods and merchandise of Manga Lor. The Pasha was intensely interested in the enterprise and he contributed objects of art, finely woven rugs and decorative items of great value. They included a small steam engine, preserved food items and grains and seeds they thought might thrive in the warm lands of America. Local merchants added silks and fine cloth to their cargo and soon, all three holds of the Jinda Son were full.
The Pasha, however, refused to meet with Zel unless there were others present. He did not trust himself, he felt sure he would throw away everything that he might run away with Zel and begin a new life. Only the thought of his people and what would happen to them stopped him from fleeing the palace and seeking solace in Zel’s arms.
Zel worried a bit, their cargo was of immense value, but there were few who knew what the total manifest consisted of and he did hire some fighting men, just to be on the safe side.
Han was in no way saddened he was leaving Manga Lor, he was with his Papa and that was all that mattered to him. He had been studying and practicing the use of his Papa’s sextant and he planned on proving himself to his Papa as the ship’s navigator.
He didn’t know that Zel was one step ahead of him. Han was listed on the crew manifest as NAVIGATOR!
The day before departure, Zel handed Han a large wooden box and told him to open it. The engraved bris label on the box said, “Han, Navigator” Han’s eyes bugged out and he quickly undid the bris latches on the box and opened it. Inside, resting on velvet cushions was a brand new, latest model sextant! The young man was dumbfounded, he tied to speak and only gurgles came from his mouth, “iiiIiii, eeer PAPA!”
He crushed his Papa in a stranglehold, crying and laughing, “Oh, Papa, how did you know?”
Zel smiled and replied, my son, I am not blind, I saw you studying and practicing with my old sextant and I watched you do the computations. You were correct every time. I am very proud of you, my son and I have appointed you officially as SHIP’S NAVIGATOR.”
The Tugger Boat eased the Jinda Son away from the pier and guided the large trader through the breakwater as her sails began to fill. With a strong wind filling the sails, the ship began to pick up speed on the first voyage to cross the Western Ocean from east to west since the Cosmic Wave had struck their world.
The first part of their voyage took them past uninhabited islands that had been scrubbed clean of all life, they were barren rocks. Han charted their course, keeping them north of the ice line that had frozen much of the southern hemisphere. A few times, they spotted strange sails on the horizon, but no ship came close to the Jinda Son and none appeared to match her size.
Han knew of his Father’s tragedy and did everything he could to ease Zel’s pain. Slowly, day by day, a small smile began returning to Zel’s face as he watched his son bloom.
Four weeks out saw them crossing the new equator. They had spotted some inhabited islands and Han carefully noted their position of the chart he was developing.
The winds remained strong and favorable and the crew supplemented their food supply by catching strange large fish that were surprisingly tasty. They encountered sufficient rain showers that they had been able to keep the water barrels full and fresh.
Two weeks after crossing the equator, they encountered their first ship that came close enough for them to hail. Not wanting to take any chances, Captain Zel ordered the huge irn bombast loaded and primed.
As the ship came closer, Han ordered the House Flag run up the halyard. The Tok, Zel and Han Trading Company House Flag was a square pennant with a white Albatross in flight on a field of blue. The Albatross carried a sword in one claw and a palm branch in the other.
They never did understand from where the other ship hailed, they could recognize only a few words the other people spoke and they apparently did not know of mind-speech. They seemed friendly enough, but Captain Zel was taking no chances and he was sure the other Captain saw their crewman standing next to the bombast with a lighted slow match.
It was another two weeks before they reached the west coast of North America. Neither Zel nor Han were sure exactly where the entrance to the inland sea was, so they had to search.
A week northwards without discovering the entrance convinced them they were headed in the wrong direction as the coastline was rugged and mountains came down to the coastline. They reversed direction and a day’s sail south of where they had turned north, the coast suddenly gave way to flat beaches and gently rolling hills.
They rounded a point of land and the inland sea was there before them.
They again headed eastward, sailing slowly along the coast. There were few rivers emptying into the sea and eventually the coastline began to turn northwards. They came to a sizeable town, the natives there referred to it as Tuc, they knew they were nearly to their destination as their friends in Globe had mentioned Tuc as a place where they had settled many of the folk they had rescued after the Great Galactic Wave had passed.
Han send out a powerful mind-call and was answered immediately. He asked if Trader Captain Tok was there and the person replying said that he was!
There was a happy family reunion, Han met his Grandfather and Zel spent hours just holding his beloved Papa’s hand. He knew he would be alright, his own father was there to guide him in his sorrow.
Tok was amazed at the goods in the holds of the Jinda Son, the metals alone made their fortune and the preserved foods went at auction many times over the value of the Jinda Son itself!
The art was fought over so fiercely, Tok had to hire guards to keep order at the auction and two women actually came to blows over a carpet. Competition became even more fierce when one of the crew mentioned the legend of flying carpets, not realizing it was merely a child’s story for entertainment.
The fruits were a little worse for the wear, but they lasted only a day before they were gone. Even those that had mold on them were snatched up.
The last to be sold were the seeds, and they, perhaps, were the items of greatest value. The auctioneer had only to describe the plant they produced and bidding by screeching buyers threatening to come to blows.
When it was over, Tok sat there goggle-eyed at the stack of gol and slvr disks that had been accumulated. There were sufficient funds to construct three ships the size of the Jinda Son in addition to paying off those who had contributed to cargo the Jinda Son had carried!
It had been a successful voyage by any measure, but the one item they withheld from auction was the steam engine. That, they presented to the farmers living near Globe. With a machine that could pump water, the farmers who had fed The People and all those who had struggled with them to keep the spark of humanity alive after the Cosmic Wave had sent civilization backwards untold generations, could rest easier and again thrive.
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TBC
This ends our story of the traders, they shall continue their lives and work, but it is time to once again look in on the searchers, who are trying to knit the shattered remnants of civilization back together again. The story will continue to chronicle the rebirth of civilization.
[email protected]
Astronomers have discovered that the incredible gravitational strength of supermassive black holes can tear planets away from their star systems and hurl them through space at incredible speeds—as fast as 30 million mph.
This story is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously and any resemblance to actual persons living or dead, events or locales is entirely coincidental. The story is protected by copyright and may not be reproduced by any means without the express, written permission of the author.
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From Book 4; Nueva Alcaidesa became the most important trading center along the Great Inland Sea and it was from there that the exploratory expeditions to the Blak Sea Beyond the Kingdom of the Terks began and it was Zel and Tok Traders that opened up the Dark Lands to the south to trade. Ivory and gold, many types of rare woods and herbs, fruits and spices came from exotic places on the Dark Lands. The only commodity they refused to deal in was slaves and the gunpowder cannons Tok had installed on all their ships helped enforce the “NO SLAVES” Law of Nueva Alcaidesa!
JINDA RESCUE
Master Trader Zel was in the process of taking command of his first ship. He had always shared command with his Papa, Tok, but their business was increasing and it demanded that both of them sail independently.
His new ship, the Jinda Son, had recently been completed, he and his Father had commissioned the building of the ship to their own specifications. The central cargo hold was specially reinforced to carry heavy loads of metals from Manga Lor, Zel’s original homeland. Both the new ship’s forward and after cargo holds were ventilated to allow fresh cargo, fruits, living plants, and domestic animals to be transported.
In addition, there were four passenger cabins to accommodate passengers. One of the cabins was designed for high ranking passengers and included servant’s quarters. The cabins were not luxurious, but more than adequate for a few weeks travel.
They had arranged for a consignment of tools and machinery from Globe for a new irn foundry in Manga Lor. It was a joint venture between his father and himself, along with a small manufacturer in Globe and a family of metal smiths in Manga Lor. If it worked out, they would have to build yet another ship to bring additional machinery from North America as the technology was not available in Jinda.
It was too bulky and heavy to use the flyers regularly, plus the added expense of breaking the machinery down and then reassembly ate into their profits too much.
Zel and Tok had flown back to Globe to make the arrangements to supply the machinery and Zel had spotted an interesting picture in a history book. It was a steam engine driving a small boat that assisted sailing ships entering and leaving harbor as well as docking and undocking. They called it a Tugger Boat because it pulled and tugged the sailing ships. If they had something like that, they could enter and leave port at anytime and not have to wait for the tide to turn to pull away from the pier.
The man in the library was very generous and made copies of the pictures for Zel and he was carrying them to Manga Lor to see if someone there could reproduce the machine.
Zel had sold two of the passenger cabins for the outward voyage and had resigned himself that the other two would remain unoccupied this first trip. At the last minute, Ambassador Porb and his family asked passage for a homeland visit.
Zel was not about to charge the man, he was Family! Porb insisted, so Zel discounted the rate and refused to accept anything greater.
The stevedores finished loading the ship and the crew tied everything down in the cargo holds to prevent shifting. They had to wait until evening to make the tide and they had a beautiful sunset as the Jinda Son sailed out past the breakwater.
They made good time on the eastward leg of their journey across the Great Inland Sea, the winds cooperated and two weeks later, they had docked at their provisioning station in k’Ro near the entrance to the ship channel through the desert of Gypt.
They took on water and a few foodstuffs to finish out their voyage to the Land of Manga Lor in Jind. While they were waiting for the tide to turn, some strange looking men who said they were from Grec Land, asked passage to Jind. They paid in gol coin that had strange symbols on them, but Zel weighed them and accepted them as payment.
The men were all dressed in heavy black robes and hats, despite the heat and their beards stank of unwashed food. However, they kept to themselves and prepared their own meals of foodstuffs they had brought with them.
The winds were contrary as they sailed south through the ship channel and they had to tack the ship frequently to maintain headway. It was a weary crew that docked the ship in Suz at the southern end of the ship channel.
Zel rested his crew for two days, letting them recuperate from the exertions of the ship channel.
Zel remembered his days as a small boy in that town before his Father, Tok, had rescued him. They were not good memories and he had no desire to go ashore and visit the place.
They topped off the water barrels and caught the next tide for the final leg of their journey, across the Ocean of Jind. The weather remained mild and the winds strong, they made excellent time, in less than three weeks, they were entering the Harbor of Manga Lor.
Zel and Tok’s ships were always welcome in any port of Manga Lor, they always paid in gol or slvr and the stevedores made top wages. They eased into their usual pier and the Harbor Master, who had replaced their friend, Porb, came on board to check their manifests and passengers. He told Zel that the Pasha had asked that he come to the Palace as soon as he had finished his ship’s docking.
Ambassador Porb winked at Zel and whispered, “I am sure he wants to join our commercial business. He was never a greedy man and did all he could to finance Manga Lor without raising taxes on his people.”
Zel decided to take the pictures of the Tugger Boat, maybe the Pasha would be interested in finding a craftsman who could turn the pictures into a real working tugger boat.
They finished docking and hired a stevedore crew. Zel told the Mate he was going to speak with the Pasha and left the mate in charge while he was gone.
Their travel to the palace was interesting to Zel, Porb hailed a cart to take them. He called it a rikki-al and it was pulled by two men tugging on draw bars fitted to the axle of the conveyance. The wooden wheels bounced on the cobbles of the street, Zel was certain some of his teeth would be shattered before they got to the palace.
They arrived very fast, the rikki-al apparently had right of way on the streets, the pedestrians all moved aside as they flashed by. They were graciously received by the major-domo and served cool refreshments while they waited.
A young man, about Zel’s age, came up to them, “I am Pasha Ranghi and am delighted to meet you, Captain Zel. I have heard much about you and your exploits. You are a famous son of our land and I would like to speak with you about opportunities for my people.”
Zel was impressed with the youth and vitality of the young ruler and was determined to enlist his aid in developing his tugger boat. After they had a light meal of fresh fruits and shoots of a plant the Pasha called bimbo, the young ruler got down to business.
He got out a map and pointed to a city, Brahm’avar.
He said. “This is the most important city in my northern province and it has been ransacked by barbarians from the north. I have no ships with which I can rescue my folk, many of whom are children left behind when the barbarians carried the adults off as slaves. Can you help us, carry food to them and bring the homeless children here, where they will be safe?” All the while, Zel and the Pasha were staring at each other, each was fascinated with the other.
Remembering his own childhood, Zel did not hesitate, “Yes, Pasha I will do that. Let me leave a project with you and ask that your artisans look at it and tell me if they can make such a machine.” He left the picture of the tugger engine with the Pasha and hurried on, confused by the thoughts running through his head.
He took his leave of Pasha Ranghi and hurried back to his ship. He ordered the water barrels to be filled and food brought on board, he wanted to sail on the very next tide!
Zel’s crew recognized that their Captain was stressed and they rushed to get the ship ready to sail. They did not know yet, how their Captain had been captured by an equally confused Pasha of Jinda.
They had provisioned the ship and just completed filling the last water barrel when the tide began to turn, within minutes, the outgoing tide had pulled the ship from the pier and they stood out into the harbor, headed for the open sea.
As soon as they cleared the breakwater, Zel ordered all the sails raised, the spinnaker set and the lanteen swung out to catch the full force of the wind. The Mate, Toma, asked Zel what the great rush was and, when Zel had told him what the Pasha had said, the mate pushed the lanteen out a bit more and adjusted the spinnaker to catch even more wind.
They pushed the Jinda Son as hard as they could as they sailed north to Brahm’avar, the sails and masts groaning in protest. Zel and his crew hardly slept, they kept the Jinda Son’s sails trimmed to catch every breath of the wind as they raced northward.
It was just a few days, but to Zel it seemed forever when the lookout called down, “Breakwater off the starboard bow!”
Zel ordered the sails reduced in order to slow the ship and he eased the vessel through the opening in the stone breakwater, dropping the anchor to swing the ship as they stood into the pier. There were only a few people around, but the crew began manhandling barrels of water and crates of food onto the pier.
The word spread fast, the children that gathered would have set the very stones to weeping, desperate for drinkable water and their ribs showing from starvation.
The crew gathered wood from the destroyed buildings nearby and placed irn cauldrons to heating as they filled them with vegetables and meat.
Finally, some adults arrived, in no better condition than their children. Many had been tortured, as had the children. Zel was new to mindspeak, but his horror lent him power, his screech was heard at the Flyer Station in Nueva Alcaidesa.
Senior Flyer Pilot Toby heard his call and, within minutes, Rescue Flyers were launched into the sky, screaming at full throttle.
In a very short time, a flight of thirty Flyers came screaming over the horizon, headed for Brahm’avar. The Flyers vomited out Caregivers, crates of medicines and bandages, Doctors and Crew Members to help care for the weary survivors of Brahm’avar.
By nightfall, an abandoned building had been cleared and three hundred children were bedded down on clean mats with their tummies filled and safe for the first time in weeks.
The few adults who had survived, told of the attack and Pilot Toby led ten Flyers in an attempt to locate the raiders, but no trace was ever found, they had disappeared into the wild mountains of the north.
They loaded the most severely injured of the survivors into the Flyers and Pilot Toby told Zel that they would meet him in Manga Lor, where they were going to build a hospital and Flyer Station.
The next morning, Zel’s crew helped load two hundred and twenty children and ten adults on the Jinda Son. It was crowded, but the holds were empty and there was a place for everyone to lay down on their mat and sleep.
The return trip was slower, the winds were often contrary and Zel had to tack the ship to make headway. It was a two week effort to get the Jinda Son back to Manga Lor, every day Pilot Toby conferred with Zel and flew in food drops to ensure all the children did not go hungry again.
As the Jinda Son pulled into Manga Lor Harbor, the Caregivers were waiting for them on the pier to care for the injured. Pasha Ranghi was on the pier also, to greet his people, some of the children were so overcome, the Pasha sat on a mooring post and held the children in his arms until it was their turn to be taken to the hospital.
There was one little boy who smiled shyly at Zel and watched his every move. Zel kept watching the little boy watching him, finally Zel waved at the boy to come over to him.
The little boy was starved for affection and held onto Zel’s leg with all his little boy strength. Zel looked at the child and was lost in his dark eyes. He had to have that child for his own son! The child’s name was Han and he put the boy up on his shoulder while he went looking for Pasha Ranghi.
Zel and the Pasha had a long talk, each knowing that their love could not be. Pasha Rangi’s first responsibility was to his people, they parted in sorrow for a love that must be left unfulfilled. The Pasha quickly signed the order allowing Zel to adopt the little boy he had discovered and tyhen told Zel that they could never be a couple, that he was married to his country and its people.
By the midday meal, Han was the son of Master Trader Captain Zel. The little boy was like a ray of sunshine in Zel’s life and would rarely let his Papa out of his sight. The boy was quick and already knew his numbers. He soon learned about the Jinda Son and could climb the masts faster than any of the sailors; he learned his stars and could read the wind nearly as well as Zel himself. He earned the respect of the sailors, never shirking his tasks and always willing to lend a hand to help them.
All the while, Zel was struggling with a sorrow that would never leave him. The small boy, Han, while not knowing its cause, comforted his new Papa in his sorrow and helped fill an awful hole that had been torn in Zel’s soul. Zel was never to confess to his son about his love for the Pasha, but Han set about the task of seeing a smile on Papa Zel’s face once more. It would be many miles along their course before the young boy’s antics would bring the beginning of a smile on Zel’s face.
In the smaller ports, Han proved himself a canny trader and was always on the lookout for goods and products that would sell well in another port. He spotted a vendor in Ponnani, who had a donkey cart loaded with nearly ripe Papay fruits.
Nobody would buy the man’s fruit because they were not fully ripened. He asked his Papa for five Rups and he purchased the entire lot of fruit. When Zel asked why he had purchased unripe fruit, Han just smiled and replied, “It will work out, Papa, you just watch.”
He had the fruit loaded in the forward hold of the Jinda Son. Their next port was Koch, a three day sail down the coast. When they had docked, Han took three of the fruits to the market and ended up selling the whole lot for thirty Rups.
The fruit had ripened in the dark warmth of the ship’s hold. After that, Zel gave Han a bag containing fifty Rups and told him to start trading.
Before they had returned to Manga Lor, Han had turned that bag of fifty Rups into seven hundred Rups! Zel was not greedy, but he did have to pay his crew and provide them with food and water. The profits that Han had turned over to him would allow him to explore another of his dreams, that the Earth was round, like a ball.
Zel mindspoke to his Father and Partner about the boy and Tok told him to back the boy in any trade deal he wanted to do.
In less than a year, Zel was purchasing three smaller Coastal Traders to haul the fruit Han was purchasing. With Tok’s permission, he started a new company, Tok, Zel & Han, Fruit Brokers and Shippers.
On one of their voyages back to Manga Lor, the Harbor Master relayed a message from Pasha Ranghi that he was to come to the Palace at his earliest convenience. Zel took Han with him, after making sure the boy was dressed in his very best clothing and the new shoes he had purchased at their last port. He did not want to face the Pasha alone, he did not trust himself, he would be willing to discard everything in his life to be with the man he loved, like no other.
They hailed a rikki-al and endured the bone shaking ride to the Pasha’s Palace. They both were well known now to the young Pasha and he was delighted when they arrived. He questioned them closely on their travels and was delighted when Han gave him a sack of fresh mangs from Kolla. The Pasha, however, could not look Zel in the eye, his shame at allowing his fear to drive away the first man he could love was eating at his soul.
They were superior fruits and the Pasha gave them to the Majordomo to be served at their luncheon.
The Pasha was intensely interested in the condition of the southern ports of his realm and wanted to know everything that the two traders had observed, especially the condition of the people.
They had a delicious lunch that included Han’s gift of the mangs and, after they had finished their tea, Pasha Ranghi stood with a small smile on his face and asked them to come with him.
In the courtyard, Pasha Ranghi proudly showed them the engine that Zel had given him pictures of; a steam engine was driving a pump pulling water from a water well. At each revolution of the cast irn flywheel, fresh clean water gushed from the pipe and flowed into the cistern that served the Palace.
The Pasha was delighted and wanted to purchase the new machine from Zel. They ended up forming a partnership to construct the engines. The Pasha wanted to build small engines at a price his farmers and villagers could afford, to install as pump engines so that they would have fresh clean water for their animals and their homes. All the while, Zel’s instincts were telling him to run away, far away, right NOW!
Zel wanted the engines for his vision of tugger boats in the harbors to assist the sailing ships. He was the stronger of the two men and looked the Pasha in the eye and told him that he understood their love could never be, but ever should he be in peril, he bad only to call upon him and he would come running to his assistance.
The Majordomo brought in an elderly man who had assembled the machine and his son had cast the irn in its making. They reached a mutual agreement and another new company came into being, “Pasha Steam Powered Engines”.
The next time Zel and Han sailed the Jinda Son into Manga Lor Harbor, they were docked by a Tugger Boat made by the new firm. Zel remembered seeing a thing called a generator in the same book and promised Pasha Ranghi he would bring pictures and any additional information the next time the Jinda Son sailed to North America.
He had seen a map in the Pasha’s study that showed a sailing route to reach America by sailing east from Manga Lor. They could reach the New Inland Sea of America that had been created when the land sank during the great upheaval caused by the passing of the Cosmic Wave.
He knew that new inland sea opened into the Western Ocean and would be a shorter route than returning to the Great Inland Sea and then crossing the Ocean to the break between the American Continents to reach the New Inland Sea of North America.
It would be a trading route for machinery constructed in Globe and irn and bris on the return voyage. Also, Zel wanted desperately to see his Papa, Tok and introduce his own son to him and also confess to him his great sorrow of a love that could not be.
He began plotting and planning such a voyage.
TRADER’S VOYAGE
Zel began filling their warehouse with goods and merchandise of Manga Lor. The Pasha was intensely interested in the enterprise and he contributed objects of art, finely woven rugs and decorative items of great value. They included a small steam engine, preserved food items and grains and seeds they thought might thrive in the warm lands of America. Local merchants added silks and fine cloth to their cargo and soon, all three holds of the Jinda Son were full.
The Pasha, however, refused to meet with Zel unless there were others present. He did not trust himself, he felt sure he would throw away everything that he might run away with Zel and begin a new life. Only the thought of his people and what would happen to them stopped him from fleeing the palace and seeking solace in Zel’s arms.
Zel worried a bit, their cargo was of immense value, but there were few who knew what the total manifest consisted of and he did hire some fighting men, just to be on the safe side.
Han was in no way saddened he was leaving Manga Lor, he was with his Papa and that was all that mattered to him. He had been studying and practicing the use of his Papa’s sextant and he planned on proving himself to his Papa as the ship’s navigator.
He didn’t know that Zel was one step ahead of him. Han was listed on the crew manifest as NAVIGATOR!
The day before departure, Zel handed Han a large wooden box and told him to open it. The engraved bris label on the box said, “Han, Navigator” Han’s eyes bugged out and he quickly undid the bris latches on the box and opened it. Inside, resting on velvet cushions was a brand new, latest model sextant! The young man was dumbfounded, he tied to speak and only gurgles came from his mouth, “iiiIiii, eeer PAPA!”
He crushed his Papa in a stranglehold, crying and laughing, “Oh, Papa, how did you know?”
Zel smiled and replied, my son, I am not blind, I saw you studying and practicing with my old sextant and I watched you do the computations. You were correct every time. I am very proud of you, my son and I have appointed you officially as SHIP’S NAVIGATOR.”
The Tugger Boat eased the Jinda Son away from the pier and guided the large trader through the breakwater as her sails began to fill. With a strong wind filling the sails, the ship began to pick up speed on the first voyage to cross the Western Ocean from east to west since the Cosmic Wave had struck their world.
The first part of their voyage took them past uninhabited islands that had been scrubbed clean of all life, they were barren rocks. Han charted their course, keeping them north of the ice line that had frozen much of the southern hemisphere. A few times, they spotted strange sails on the horizon, but no ship came close to the Jinda Son and none appeared to match her size.
Han knew of his Father’s tragedy and did everything he could to ease Zel’s pain. Slowly, day by day, a small smile began returning to Zel’s face as he watched his son bloom.
Four weeks out saw them crossing the new equator. They had spotted some inhabited islands and Han carefully noted their position of the chart he was developing.
The winds remained strong and favorable and the crew supplemented their food supply by catching strange large fish that were surprisingly tasty. They encountered sufficient rain showers that they had been able to keep the water barrels full and fresh.
Two weeks after crossing the equator, they encountered their first ship that came close enough for them to hail. Not wanting to take any chances, Captain Zel ordered the huge irn bombast loaded and primed.
As the ship came closer, Han ordered the House Flag run up the halyard. The Tok, Zel and Han Trading Company House Flag was a square pennant with a white Albatross in flight on a field of blue. The Albatross carried a sword in one claw and a palm branch in the other.
They never did understand from where the other ship hailed, they could recognize only a few words the other people spoke and they apparently did not know of mind-speech. They seemed friendly enough, but Captain Zel was taking no chances and he was sure the other Captain saw their crewman standing next to the bombast with a lighted slow match.
It was another two weeks before they reached the west coast of North America. Neither Zel nor Han were sure exactly where the entrance to the inland sea was, so they had to search.
A week northwards without discovering the entrance convinced them they were headed in the wrong direction as the coastline was rugged and mountains came down to the coastline. They reversed direction and a day’s sail south of where they had turned north, the coast suddenly gave way to flat beaches and gently rolling hills.
They rounded a point of land and the inland sea was there before them.
They again headed eastward, sailing slowly along the coast. There were few rivers emptying into the sea and eventually the coastline began to turn northwards. They came to a sizeable town, the natives there referred to it as Tuc, they knew they were nearly to their destination as their friends in Globe had mentioned Tuc as a place where they had settled many of the folk they had rescued after the Great Galactic Wave had passed.
Han send out a powerful mind-call and was answered immediately. He asked if Trader Captain Tok was there and the person replying said that he was!
There was a happy family reunion, Han met his Grandfather and Zel spent hours just holding his beloved Papa’s hand. He knew he would be alright, his own father was there to guide him in his sorrow.
Tok was amazed at the goods in the holds of the Jinda Son, the metals alone made their fortune and the preserved foods went at auction many times over the value of the Jinda Son itself!
The art was fought over so fiercely, Tok had to hire guards to keep order at the auction and two women actually came to blows over a carpet. Competition became even more fierce when one of the crew mentioned the legend of flying carpets, not realizing it was merely a child’s story for entertainment.
The fruits were a little worse for the wear, but they lasted only a day before they were gone. Even those that had mold on them were snatched up.
The last to be sold were the seeds, and they, perhaps, were the items of greatest value. The auctioneer had only to describe the plant they produced and bidding by screeching buyers threatening to come to blows.
When it was over, Tok sat there goggle-eyed at the stack of gol and slvr disks that had been accumulated. There were sufficient funds to construct three ships the size of the Jinda Son in addition to paying off those who had contributed to cargo the Jinda Son had carried!
It had been a successful voyage by any measure, but the one item they withheld from auction was the steam engine. That, they presented to the farmers living near Globe. With a machine that could pump water, the farmers who had fed The People and all those who had struggled with them to keep the spark of humanity alive after the Cosmic Wave had sent civilization backwards untold generations, could rest easier and again thrive.
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TBC
This ends our story of the traders, they shall continue their lives and work, but it is time to once again look in on the searchers, who are trying to knit the shattered remnants of civilization back together again. The story will continue to chronicle the rebirth of civilization.