The Second Mate's Gossip

The man said, "Miss, I don't know that I can explain it to you. We use something that we call a light pipe. The sun shines on it, and it catches the light on one end, and it comes out the other. Now how it works, and how they get made, I don't know. We have some men that were with our crew that settled around here. They work with the engine that shines the sunlight into the pipe. I also know that the light pipe absorbs some of the light that is not good for people, so we get a special purified light down here. People who live down here don't get wrinkles and skin blemishes near as fast as they do on the surface. And the light is better for the crops, too. It sounds crazy, but after a few years here, I believe it. Water we get most of that from the springs. We get a little mist from some cracks in the roof, but nothing like the rain we got on the surface."

"As far as any dragons are concerned, the captain has friends that make sure we don't have problems."

"Does Captain Shirk live down here?" Astra asked.

"Yes, Miss. After the last voyage, a number of us retired down here to farm. I was the Second Mate on the flagship on the last couple of the Captain's voyages."

"I wonder if I could meet the Captain."

"Yes, if you would like to, I am sure that can be arranged. How are you with horses?"

"I am familiar with them. I can handle a horse, as long as it is not too untamed. Do you have anything in mind?"

"Mrs. Clara, the captain's wife, loves to ride horses, and if she finds out that you can ride, she'll want to take you along on a tour of the place. Most of us spent time on ships or in port, and never really picked up the knack of riding. So she only has a small circle that goes out riding with her."

"Oh, that sounds fun! So she has to go to the surface to ride?"

"Oh, there is plenty of space down here, but she does go to the surface sometimes. But Miss, I have one thing that you need to know. Mrs. Clara is a little - I don't want to say reckless - but she like to ride fast, and sometimes into places that most people wouldn't want to go."

"So did the Captain marry someone much younger?"

"She can't be that young - maybe five or six years? He met Clara on the Fifth Voyage. She and the Captain have three children. Theo has gone to the surface - he is sailing for a ship in the Petronese merchant fleet, where the Captain got his start. Robert stayed down here, and married one of the locals, and works for his new father-in-law. His father-in-law owns a shop, and some of their goods are shipping as part of the cargo on Theo's ship. They are still trying to figure out the future of Elizabeth, the youngest. The Captain doesn't want to see her leave. Clara thinks that a few years on the surface would do Elizabeth some good. I can see Clara's point. The Captain always had an urge to fill in blank spots on the map, and Clara herself is pretty bold. So Elizabeth is sort of born with a desire to look for adventure. Of course, she cannot go to sea like Theo did. Anyway, they are trying to figure her future out."

1. The Second Mate continued, "But I am probably boring you with all this local gossip. What is your name?"
2. The Second Mate said, "It is getting late, Miss. Do you need some help getting to the barn?"

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