Dreamcatcher | ONC 2020 Honourable Mention | ✔

Chapter Fifteen

Rav stuffed the last of his belongings into his backpack and took a deep breath as he scanned the room. He still couldn't believe he was doing this.

Father was going to be furious, but there was nothing he could do but disown his son. Manish had slipped Rav a copy of the contract Father had signed to seal this apprenticeship. It contained provisions for ending it, giving Rav more power than he'd thought he had. He just had to take the step himself.

And even disownment wasn't a given. Rav had solidified his reasoning: he wouldn't work on an airship, and he wouldn't work for a criminal. With luck, the latter would become reality once the biological station received the very tangible evidence still hidden in Rav's bag. Until then, knowing that the captain would tell his latest tale and be laughed at for his lack of proof was its own kind of compensation.

The captain was in the navigation room, laying his last directions on a table-sized map. He glanced up and frowned at the paper Rav put in front of him. "What's this?"

"I quit."

The man blinked. His eyes scanned the page. It was an offer of full-time employment, effective immediately. A glower made valleys of his forehead. "Poached you, did they? Foul women."

Of course he would blame the women. He would blame anyone but himself.

"Do you need anything else from me?" said Rav.

"Any words to take back to your Father about this?"

Rav removed the job offer. Beneath it were three envelopes, already stamped and sealed. One each to Mother, Father, and his sister Aarohi.

The captain pocketed them with a grunt. "You're a waste of good talent. Enjoy your cursed island. If you change your mind, we're back every few months."

And that was it. Rav forced himself to walk, not dance, back to the exit. The climb down the rope ladder felt more like floating.

"All went smoothly?" said Gurdeep.

Rav just smiled and nodded. He was certain he would start crying if he said a word. Relief, excitement, and a residual tremble from facing the captain made a tangled mess of his chest. They stood together, one with arms crossed, the other hugging an overstuffed backpack, as the crew finished their last checks. Rav waved as Manish came to the railing. The man had a sparkle in his eye. As the ship's ballonets gusted over their heads, he glanced over his shoulder, then pointed surreptitiously to Rav's backpack, sealed his lips, and grinned.

The ship trundled forwards as the engines coughed to life. They watched it until it was just a speck in the distance.

"Bless that man," said Gurdeep. "You were lucky to be aboard with him."

"What do you mean?"

Before the woman could answer, something perked up under the fabric over her shoulder. "Yes, you can come out now," she said, patting the bump. It found its way to her sari's edge. A small, white dragon's head poked out into the sun.

"He makes sure the relevant correspondence never passes through his captain's hands," said Gurdeep, oblivious to Rav's shock. "His wife used to work here before she passed. We invited him to stay, but he fought for school for his little girl, and he doesn't want to take her from that. Or from what family she has on the mainland. So he stays on the ship that lets him visit both. Now... he told me he suspected you were carrying something? He said he tried to talk to you himself, but the captain kept getting in the way."

Could he trust her?

No, that was silly. Of course he could. She had another dragonette on her shoulder, watching him with bright, curious eyes. What else had Manish known about? Rav took off his backpack in a daze. When all he owned was laid out on the dock, he lifted the newspaper-wrapped ball from the bag's bottom.