The New Comet rocked back and forth on the waves. Therelin stood on the top deck, watching each tall wave lift them above the surface of the sea. He tried to stay out of the way of the sailors, but there was little to do midway on their voyage across the Grey Sea. Many sat around and sang whatever tune the captain started to lark. Others played cards or dice—Therelin was amused that they only bet pebbles. Likely, none wanted to part with their hard-earned copper.
The clouds thickened as the day passed. When the sun was finally blocked out, Therelin glanced away from the deck. First to the north, he looked, then to the east, south, and west. Out there were only waves, water, and bird-less skies. Somewhere lay Keth, his home in Portram, and his father. And somewhere else lay the coast of Radregar and his future. He sighed.
Therelin’s visions were always of little help to him. They showed him nothing of his own future, something that he was assured was common among sorcerers. Sometimes Therelin saw a hill and sometimes a mountain. In one, he had seen a boar and a sickle. In another, he saw stars over the hill. He had learned how to force a vision into his dreams after a few weeks of effort, but it was a vain cause. His future lay out across those waves, invisible, like any sign of land.
“Join us?” asked one of the sailors. The man, named Kado or Mado, was holding a deck of cards. The backs were stamped with dark yellow ink in an intricate design that resembled a squid or other oceanic creature. The man’s comrades smiled pleasantly to Therelin.
Therelin nodded. “As long as we keep playing for rocks and not metal,” he said. He pulled a small keg closer to the shipping crate they used as a table. “It’s Kado, right?”
“You got it,” the man replied. “It’s five cards. First you buy in, then you can buy a card to replace one from your hand, right?”
Therelin nodded. He knew a similar game, but he listened to Kado’s rules first to be sure. Then the cards were dealt, and a few players started to raise the stakes. Soon a dozen rocks piled on one corner of the crate, away from every player’s hands. Therelin was last to play, but having the winning card for the round, he pulled the cards he had won toward himself.
No sooner had he done so than a heavy raindrop plopped onto the crate between them. One of the smaller pebbles flew off the crate from the impact, and one of Kado’s friends cursed. Another drop landed on the back of Therelin’s hand.
One player produced a small wooden box and brushed all the rocks into it as more rain fell around them. The overcast sky grew darker with every breath. Soon, the crew of the Comet huddled down in the cramped second deck. Aside from five small cabins for passengers and the captain, the entire mess area was barely long enough to fit them all. Even crammed in as they were, holes in the ceiling let the heavy downpour dribble tiny waterfalls all around them. With the game of cards and stones ended so abruptly, they sat and grumpily mumbled, waiting for the daily rainstorm to blow over.