Lifeboat

Chapter One - No Signs of Life

Their ship moved slowly along the silent river surrounded by mist. It was quiet save for the soft lapping of water against the hull and they could barely see the outline of the bank as the moon and stars were almost completely hidden beyond the rigging above the crows nest where a hopeful lookout peered pointlessly about. The surface of the water would have been impossible to see had several members of the crew not hung off the side of the ship with lamps craning towards the hidden surface.

"This doesn't make any sense Captain," a hushed voiced washed over the creaking deck of the trading vessel, "we should be coming up on the trading post," even hushed the voice of the first mate was clear to all aboard, the night being so eerily quiet.

Captain Alastair grunted in response and moved from his position at the tiller, handing off to a deck hand, "Don't hit anything," he ordered as an after thought.

The deckhand didn't respond. He couldn't see anything to hit. Though neither could he see anything to avoid.

The sound of the Captain's soft leather boots made no noise as he joined his first mate at the starboard bow. Even now more deckhands had climbed the rigging and were holding lanterns aloft but the mist glowed softly in a sphere about them and cast no light any further than the deck.

Alexander, a boy of sixteen, with his twin sister Gwen at his side huddled in the niche at the bow of the ship in a make shift cubby they'd fashioned from heavy burlap to ward off the cold mist which swirled even now as the Captain moved to the port-side across the deck. Alexander listened intently as the water was parted by the ship, gently trickling around the hull but sharing no more tales.

"I don't see any firelight," the first mate added again holding his own lantern aloft, "it's as if the town weren't there,"

The Captain gave his first mate a sideways look, "Are you maligning my ability to navigate a river, Bernard?" There was an edge in his voice that might have been a warning except that directed at his first mate, actually betrayed the discomfort in their predicament.

"Where is the town then?" Alexander asked no one in particular. The captain gave his son a passing glance as one might an annoyance. Why had Alexander spoken? He knew better than that. Especially in this tense moment.

Without any further sign of recognition, the Captain's attention was already back in the direction the bank should be. Gwen squeezed Alexander's arm exhaling softly by way of feeling sorry for him. He turned to look back in the cubby at her, a twitch of gratitude on the edge of his mouth.

"Kill the lanterns," the Captains command was sudden but hushed and was immediately followed, those men who were craning over the rails, climbed back aboard the deck. The glow through the mist diminished instantly. Edging up from the niche, letting the flap to their cubby close his sister in behind him. Alexander padded almost noiselessly to the railing, staring out into the sudden darkness waiting for his eyes to adjust. With no more lantern light bouncing around in the mist, it was a slow process but eventually he felt he saw shapes beginning to form on what would be the surface of the river. Pale shapes of diverse sizes and lengths. They were moving very slowly towards the ship. Or rather, as they too were following the current, the ship was gaining on them just barely.

Were they logs? He wondered. Before he could ask it, several other voices rose in question.

"What is that?" Another deckhand asked with a sharp intake of breath, "my oath!"

The response had been so sharp that Alexander's attention turned from the crew back to the pale floating objects. He squinted in that same way people do when they think it will help and leaned further over the railing.