The Outcasts (A Brotherband Fanfic)

Chapter 8

The harbor entrance was flying toward them, drawing closer and closer. Kari stood by Hal at the steering oar, every muscle tensed, eyes slitted in concentration as she gauged the remaining distance. Hal noticed the sizable crowd on the harbor mole watching and his mouth went dry with nervousness.

"When I order it," he called to his crew, "drop that sail and get out your oars. Run them out as soon as we go through the entrance."

     His tension communicated itself to the others s they moved to the halyards and sheets. Stig tried reasoning with his friends one more time.

     "Hal, Kari, wouldn't it be wiser to lower the sail out here and row her in?" he suggested. Kari's eyes were still riveted on the harbor entrance.

     "Probably," she said. But her tone of voice told Stig that she had no intention of doing so. The big boy shrugged and turned to the others.

     "Be ready to move quickly." He glanced at Ingvar. "Try not to fall over, Ingvar."

     Ingvar smiled, taking no offense. "Do my best, Stig," he promised.

     Hal crouched at the steering oar, his hands alternately gripping and releasing on the oak steering oar. While the palms of his hands were damp with nervous perspiration, his mouth was dry. As the entrance loomed loser, he judged the moment was right but Kari beat him to it.

     "Let go the ropes! Down sail!"

      "Do it! Do it! Do it!" Hal shouted.

     There was no real need for those final instructions. The other boys were every bit as tense as he was. But he couldn't restrain himself.

    The sail flapped and thundered as Ingvar and Stig cast loose the sheets—the restraining ropes that controlled it—and the harnessed force of the wind was suddenly released. At the same moment, Ulf and Wulf began hauling down the yardarm. Time to stow it neatly later, thought Stig.

     "Oars! Oars!" shouted Hal. Even without the sail, they still had plenty of momentum and the edge of the mole seemed to shoot by him. He heard the clatter of wood on Woods's the crew ran out the oars. Ahead, Wolfwind loomed closer and closer. He thrust savagely on the steering oar and Heron's bow began to swing. Kari had time to note that when the boat wasn't heeled under the sail's pressure, the rudder turned her more quickly. But she still wasn't sure if it was turning fast enough.

     On shore, a glitter of sunlight on bright metal caught Hal's eye. He glanced quickly toward it and his heart leapt into his throat as he realized it was the battleax in the Oberjarl's hand.

     "Row starboard oars!" Kari yelled.

     "Heave! Do it! Do it! Do it!" Hal yelled even louder.

     Wulf and Ingvar were on the starboard oars. They set their feet against the footrests and heaved mightily, straining every muscle of their arms and backs so that they rose off their seats with the effort.

     It was enough. Heron's bow, under the extra turning thrust of the oars, swung clear of Wolfwind. Hal and Kari let go a huge breath, they realized they'd been holding since they'd yelled those last orders to the rowers. As Heron curved around, she began to wash off speed in the turn, and as a result, the bow came around more rapidly.

Finally, she rounded up into the wind, completing a vast circle and facing back the way she had come. She rocked gently on the wake of her own passage, riding the water like a resting seabird. Dimly, the twins could hear a smattering of applause from the wharf. Kari slumped against the tiller as Stig joined them.