A Trip To Tuanaki

Chapter 8

Not long after dawn, the din becomes loud enough to wake Alice from a fitful sleep. She's not a huge fan of sleeping in hammocks, so what rest she can grasp is precious. Only as she fully returns to consciousness does she realize that the noise she is hearing is louder than anything she has heard inside the Nameless before — and it's clearly the sound of numerous raised voices.

With a hangover threatening, Alice begrudgingly wills herself out of the hammock and up onto the deck. The sun has risen enough to give a clear picture of the town, including the landmarks she noticed yesterday: the hectic general store, the church with its bells, the town hall with the clocktower.

The clocktower is engulfed in flames.

Alice takes a few steps forward in pure shock. Mal and Gunny are already at the rail, surveying the scene. Once Alice joins them, she can see a mob of people massing in the center of town. "What... what happened? And where's Rhai?"

Gunny and Mal trade a look that Alice would find suspicious if she were paying attention to it. However, she's focused on the flames for the moment.

"We couldn't find her this morning," Mal admits. It's enough for Alice to tear her attention away from the town and back to him. "She probably snuck back off and went home."

"And you're sure she's not on the ship? She did stow away before."

"She's not on the ship," Gunny says firmly, in a tone that brooks no argument. Certainly Alice isn't willing to test it.

"Fine, then. Don't you think we should make sure she's alright? And who knows how that fire started? She could have been hurt in it." Mal just tuts at this suggestion, so Alice asks, "What?"

Mal glances at his first mate, and then back to Alice, and then sighs. "We were trying to determine whether she had started it. Why are you so protective over her, anyway?"

"'Cause I know what it's like to be a girl on your own," Alice snaps back. "And I sure didn't think she was older than twelve. I have a sister that age, so forgive me for being a little overly protective. Anyway, are we going to see Fahrn now?"

"Are you sure you want to do that?"

Alice gives Mal a long, hard stare. "I've spent the last four years working towards this day. I think I'm pretty damn sure that I want to do it, yeah. And look at this way: I'll be off your hands even sooner than Aparo."

"Cap'n?" Gunny calls, and both Alice and Mal look back towards the town. The mob has begun to move, and it's slowly climbing uphill, towards the volcano and roughly along the track that Rhai pointed out yesterday as her way home. "You think the caves are up that way?"

"Oh, most certainly," Mal says. Then they all fall silent as they notice that the mob has changed from indiscriminate shouting to regular, repeated chanting. The wind isn't helping matters, and they have to work to pick out clear words. What they eventually hear sends a chill down their spines: Burn the elf!

"Oh, come on," Alice complains. "At least you should feel some obligation to tell Fahrn about that." Sure enough, Mal and Gunny trade an eloquent look. Then, they hurry to opposite ends of the ship, Mal to the wheel and Gunny hauling the mooring line up from the platform.

Finally, Gunny turns around with an armful of rope. "We're free!" she shouts. Mal turns to Alice, who is still standing at the rail, looking out at the mob.

"You might want to hold on," he tells her calmly, and then throws forward a brass lever that Alice hasn't noticed before. There are three possible settings, and she notices that in the new setting, a glowing red light comes from within the casing.