Chapter 27: The Gyre Part 1
Captain Cully ordered the Peregrine to slow, then came down to the deck to consult with Sir Shillingsworth. Cal drew them as she listened.
"We can't sail through this stuff; it'll tangle the screw in no time. Won't be stuck out here."
"I have every intention of reporting back to Lord Carroway. This is your ship, Captain Cully. We'll turn north or south from here."
"We turn north then, sail against the current and cover more of the mat."
"North it is." Sir Shillingsworth looked over at Cal. "Call the expedition together and I'll let them know what's decided."
"Yes, Sir." She scampered off to find the other members of the team. The tea had nicely steeped when she returned with Pentam.
"Had to let him finish in the darkroom."
Sir Shillingsworth nodded.
"We'll be turning north to follow the edge of the mat. Captain Cully will try to stay close enough for us to see clearly, but far enough away to prevent the weed catching in the screw. We will keep watches on both port and starboard, but only a couple of people need watch the starboard. We'll trade off so everyone has a fair chance at boredom."
The scientists laughed and headed for the deck.
Cal still needed to ask about the size and shape of the screw. Though it drove the ship, she only had a foggy notion of what it might look like. The risk of it tangling suggested a slightly different shape than she'd imagined. She figured out the rudder by peering over the stern, until Sam asked her to stop as she was making him nervous.
"You slip, you'd get chewed up, and there'd be nothing left to rescue."
Cal added his warning to the picture in her mind.
The Peregrine steamed slowly north while they scanned the endless mat. Cal spotted a pod of whales on the starboard side and captured a quick sketch before they vanished as fast as they'd come.
The boat came and went to check the edge of the mat. The only difference from the smaller mats was the size of the weeds. They found much larger specimens in the immense mat. Each night at dusk, the Peregrine would pull away from the mat and chug just enough to stay in position a safe distance from the seaweed.
To Pentam's dismay, Cal took the opportunity to visit the engine room and learn more about how Monky managed the changes in speed. But Dr. Franklyn commented that no knowledge was wasted, so she let the boy stew.
"Can't let the fire go down too far, or it's the devil to heat the boiler agin. Use the pressure valve to slow the steam through the cut-off to the pistons." He pointed to the valve in question. Cal recognized it from her training, but she'd never used it. "Tis a waste of coal, but it gives us headway. To start her up you need more pressure through t'cylinder. You need to wear them gloves." Monky pointed to the wall. "The steam makes everything mighty hot."
With her trips to the engine room, Cal's sleep pattern was thrown off again. She woke with the porthole still dark. Sleep refused to return, so she got dressed and, grabbing her satchel, headed up on deck.
"Hoy, Cal." Sam called to her from the top deck. "Come on up."
She climbed the ladder to the deck which ran around the top level of the Peregrine above the bridge.
"How was the night?"
"Quiet." Sam yawned. "No sea monsters, nothing but weeds and water."
Cal settled where she could watch the west side and still catch Sam at the rail scanning the water. The sun lifted above the horizon and light burst across the world illuminating the mat.
"Oh wow." Cal pointed to the west. "Take a look at that." She didn't wait for Sam's response but slid down the ladder and ran to Sir Shillingsworth's door.
"You'll want to see this, Sir." She shouted through the door. After a mumbled response, she ran back out onto the deck.
The feel of the engines shifted as the bridge brought the Peregrine closer to the mat. The others stumbled out onto the deck.
"What's got you so excited...?" Lahdin looked at Cal then west and froze.
Sir Shillingsworth and Pentam appeared on deck and joined the crowd at the rail.
No more than a quarter mile into the mat, ships floated in various degrees of disrepair. Much of their decks and even masts were covered with plant life. Even from this distance, Cal could see movement on the ships.
"Those have to be the biggest crabs I've ever seen." Lahdin pointed toward the ships. "The legs must be six feet across."
"Wonder how they'd taste?" Prof. Orthin licked his lips. "Do we have enough butter on board?" He laughed with the others.
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