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single coal,” Michael continued. “Glowing red-hot. Well, he became fascinated with it. He became fascinated with fire, and with creating things from fire. He made rare and beautiful necklaces and bracelets out of sea stones and metals for his mother. He could make anything out of fire. It was his element to be used and adored. There !” That particular flash had been tinged with vivid electric-blue. “He’s working extra hard tonight.”
    “ But ,” said Marielle. She hesitated, as if thinking she’d already said too much. “But,” she went on, “how did Vulcan get back up to the clouds? You said he was in the sea. How did he get back to the sky?”
    “His real mother invited Thetis to a party on Mount Olympus. Those old Greek gods were always having parties. Then Juno saw the magnificent necklaces and bracelets of rare sea-metals and wanted to know who forged them, because she wanted some too. So she invited the son of Thetis to come up and make some for her. That’s how he got back to Mount Olympus, and after that Juno realized who he was.”
    “And then he lived there with his real mother?” Her frown deepened. “Even though she didn’t like him?”
    “He tricked her,” Michael said. “He built a fantastic metal chair for her that trapped her with its arms and wouldn’t let her go. Jupiter couldn’t even free her. Jupiter begged Vulcan to let Juno free. Finally Vulcan, because he had such a kind heart, let his mother go. And because of that, Jupiter told Juno to leave the boy alone, and then do you know what happened?”
    “No. What?”
    “Venus fell in love with Vulcan. The most beautiful of the goddesses, in love with him . And him only a crippled blacksmith. But Venus saw his heart, and that was what she loved. It was enough. After that, Vulcan went to work making arms and armor for all the heroes of Olympus, and he made thunderbolts for Jupiter. Look there! See? He just made a new one.”
    She cocked her head to one side and studied him. A little shy smile came up and, like the quicksilver lightning, flashed away. “I think you’ve been on this ship too long.”
    “True, very true,” he agreed. “My name is Michael Gallatin.” He offered his hand to her.
    Now her heavy left shoe did move, scraping across the boards. She stepped back, as if she’d been presented not with a human hand but with the claw of an animal.
    “I’m tame,” he told her. When I need to be, he thought.
    But she was having none of it. Without looking at him again she turned away and struggled onward across the moving deck. Michael decided to let her go. It was a long voyage yet; there would be plenty of time.
    Time for what? he asked himself. A shipboard romance with a sixteen-year-old girl? Certainly not! But watching her pulling herself along that first day, making herself faceless to hide from the world…
    He knew what hiding from the world was all about, and he didn’t wish that on anyone. Particularly not on a girl with such beautiful eyes and a shy smile. Perhaps there had been sadness in that smile, too. He sighed. In any case, it was time for him to move along. The smell of advancing rain thickened the air.
    He walked briskly toward the stern. And just past another lifeboat he came upon two figures standing together, peering through binoculars at ship’s lights off in the distance. Michael judged the second vessel to be possibly three or so miles away.
    His sudden approach and footfalls, clumsy rather than careful, caused the two men to lower their glasses and turn toward him. One of the men was Medina, who screwed up his black-bearded face in a rictus of anger. “What do you think you’re doing , man? You’re not on duty! Why are you out of your bunk?”
    “I’m walking,” was the calm reply.
    “ Walking ?” Medina pressed forward, his chest pushed out and his chin pulled in. “This isn’t a stadium! It isn’t a road! Tell him what this is, Mr. Kpanga!”
    “It’s a ship ,” said Enam