Read Online Ocean of Dust by Graeme Ing - Free Book Online Page B

him.
    "That's odd," Grad said. "I never saw it do
that before."
    He pushed the creature away from the table
and clapped his hands twice. The Zrak growl-coughed once and
lumbered off into the shadows.
    Seben gave a short laugh. "Guess it don't
like girls."
    I’d better get out of here before things
get worse. Making sure her winnings were safely in her pocket,
she headed for the hatch. She doubted the thing could climb a
ladder. Half way, a bell tolled from high above; a deep, ominous
sound: Clang, clang. Clang, clang.
    "All hands topside," Grad cried.
    The men hurtled up the nearest ladder, out of
sight. She heard the same shout repeated from all over the ship,
accompanied by the sound of boots thundering back and forth on the
main deck above.
    Rain poured through the open hatch, mixing
with the dust on the floor and turning it into a grey paste. The
water felt cool and refreshing on her skin. Sweeping wet hair from
her face, she climbed up and out into the open.
    Two-dozen men crowded the deck, along with a
handful of boys and officers. Their drenched clothes stuck to their
bodies and plastered their hair to their scalps. Farq stood in the
shelter of his office, barking orders. She looked up, ignoring the
rain lashing over her body, but there were no dark clouds. How was
it raining with both suns shining brightly from a clear sky?
    "Outta the way," the white-haired sailor
growled, shoving her to one side. Men scurried around like bugs,
hauling bundles of orange canvas out of lockers, and then coils of
rope that they threaded through eyelets along the edge of the
canvas. Their faces were grim and hardened against the
downpour.
    The boys and more athletic men hurtled up the
mast like gowser-monkeys, transferred to the fixed ropes, and
heaved the orange canvas up from the deck. The crew was clearly
well practiced despite their rough appearance. They hauled in
unison until the canvas covered the entire deck. She scratched her
head and watched the frantic activity. Her soggy clothes hung heavy
and she wished she had soapsand to wash them with.
    The rain stopped pattering on her skin.
Instead, it made a deafening drumming sound as it hit the canvas
overhead. She combed her hair with her fingers. Had they gone to
such effort just to create a rain shelter? The water gushed through
holes in each corner of the canvas, washing over the side of the
ship.
    "Come on," the man with the snake tattoo
said, running past. "If you're gonna get in the way, then
help."
    He dragged her to the rail. There, several
men fought to secure a flexible pipe between the hole in the canvas
and a similar hole in the corner of the deck.
    "Stop gawping and help," Snake Tattoo
shouted, wrestling with the pipe.
    The ship lurched. A torrent of water streamed
down from the canvas. The men slipped and slid in the grey
dust-paste that mired the entire deck. Lissa stamped her foot down
to brace herself, and then yelped to find it was her bad leg. It
buckled, and she fell against the rail and tumbled over the top.
Nothing lay between her and the grey ocean below.
    She screamed.

Chapter 8 - Mysteries in the Hold
     
    Lissa flailed out both arms and caught the
railing. It jarred her arm and shoulder. With her legs dangling in
thin air, she grabbed hold with her other arm and wrapped it around
the rail.
    "Help!"
    Two men glanced her way but returned to
working on the pipe.
    Her arms tingled with numbness. Her grip was
slipping on the wet wood. She peered between her legs. Grey dust
and death beckoned. The weight on her bruised arms made her wince
and moan.
    When the ship rolled away from her, it gave
her the one chance she needed. Roaring, she tensed every muscle and
kicked with her good leg against the ship's hull. This was it. All
or nothing! Her fingers touched a metal ring set into the deck. She
slipped her hand through it, bringing her other hand up and
interlocked both of them. Panting heavily, she heaved herself
aboard and crawled to safety, collapsing in the