Kibi, standing beside Ilika on the top of the grassy mound, turned and looked at him. He was crying, but trying to wipe away his tears. “That was the hardest thing I’ve ever done,” he whispered.
Kibi wrapped her arms around him and held him tightly. The others slipped back down to the camp to give the pair some privacy and pack what was left of their belongings.
Eventually Ilika dried his tears. Kibi smiled at him with eyes that weren’t much drier. Below in the camp he saw Boro, Sata, Mati, and Rini. The four he could not take with him on his ship, and the donkey, were gone. It had not been a dream.
After a few breaths, Ilika walked hand in hand with Kibi down to the camp.
He sat on the grass and the others joined him to make a small circle.
“Look around you. This is what I came here for. This is the new crew of a beautiful little ship of the Transport Service. These are the people you can count on to stand at your side, share the work, and watch your back.”
They all looked around. The eyes that met theirs had already been tested.
The ones they could not count on were gone — Miko, with his craving to lead without the necessary wisdom — Neti, who obviously wanted to settle down and have a family — Toli, who was going to take a long time to grow up — and Misa, who was just too young. They would have liked to keep Buna, but she had her moments of weakness, and had chosen a different path.
“There are many things I can tell you now that I couldn’t before, like how a girl who needs a crutch can work on my ship. Mati already knows. The
NEBADOR Book Three: Selection 153
healers in my country will be able to fix her knee, as good as new.”
Mati grinned while the rest clapped and cheered. No one doubted that Mati wanted to be a reliable crew member, but some doubted her ability. Now they were satisfied.
“But we have two or three months of training to get through first, and Mati will have all her basic responsibilities during that time. That’s possible because my ship is much easier to operate than any ship you have ever seen
. . . or imagined.”
Mati pouted slightly. “I just wish I could have kept Tera until we got near the ship.”
Ilika smiled tenderly. “We are near the ship. It’s about a five-minute walk from here.”
Kibi squinted and looked at Ilika askance.
“A swamp ship?” Sata suggested with a shrug.
“Our ship can go just about anywhere it needs to go. You have all been picturing a wooden ship, with sails, floating in the ocean. It would have been impossible to tell you the truth without actually showing you . . . and I wasn’t allowed to do that unless I planned to take you with me.
“The truth is . . . the next hour is going to be extremely challenging because you will see and learn things completely outside your experience. You will have to trust me. I hope I have earned that trust. If not, you will run away screaming.”
Boro frowned. “Us? We’d follow you anywhere, Ilika!”
The rest nodded.
“In return for that trust, I promise to never lead you anywhere without good purpose, and always with as little danger to ship, crew, and passengers as possible. But there will occasionally be dangers, and we will face them as a team.”
“Life has dangers,” Rini said, throwing up his arms. “We could ask for no more than you are giving us.”
Ilika
nodded.
“Can you show us the ship now?” Mati asked, brimming over with some of Buna’s curiosity.
“Yes. Let’s get packed and say good-bye to this little place.”
NEBADOR Book Three: Selection 154
As soon as Ilika and Kibi got their bedrolls tied to their packs, all was ready. They looked around to see if anything had been forgotten while Boro made sure the fire was out. For the first time, there was no donkey to saddle, no cooking pot or bowls to stow, and no food to pack.
Sata looked around. “I hope the ship really is close, or we’re eating raw mushrooms for dinner.”
Ilika laughed, then led them slowly toward the swamp. Boro carried Mati’s new rucksack over one arm, and Sata walked hand-in-hand with her handicapped friend.
They came to the edge of the swamp and Ilika recognized the very place he had first stepped onto solid ground months before. The fresh spring growth he remembered was gone, and the bushes and vines were past their prime and preparing for winter. Unlike the bright sky of the previous spring, it was now overcast and threatening to rain.
Ilika looked toward the place he had left his ship, and saw a slight mound in the swamp covered with mud and vines. “My mistake at Cattle Town wasn’t my first, you know. When I arrived in your country, I thought I could just walk across this sticky mud.”
The others laughed deeply, releasing some of the tension they felt.
Eventually everyone was quiet again.
Sata looked out over the swamp. “We don’t see any ship, Ilika.”
He opened the little cover of his bracelet and began tapping at the tiny keys within. “I’m waking it up now.”
Kibi stood beside him and looked in the direction he was facing. The swampy mound started rising. A few moments later the head burst free and rose into the air on a long, shiny neck as globs of mud fell back into the swamp. Soon the large body of the beast could be seen, still mostly covered with black muck and tangled plants. Finally, when the body had lifted clear of the surface, the dragon leaped into the air with its stout legs and hovered above the swamp, trying to shake off the rest of the mud.
Kibi swallowed hard and wondered what in the world she had gotten herself into.
NEBADOR Book Three: Selection 155
Deep Learning Notes
What might have happened if Ilika had told all his students all about his ship before the selection?
What details did Kibi see that made her think the ship was a dragon?
What details that Kibi saw told us that it was not a dragon?