Sunrise was still an hour away, and only the bigger of the two moons was visible through the clouds. Its glow illuminated the peaks ahead: the sandstone ridges of Hartla.

Right on schedule, thought Gunnar.

For the second night in a row, Gunnar had been unable to sleep. This time, he'd volunteered to man the wheel through the night. It felt good to do his own steering sometimes. It put him in touch with the ocean, the wind, and the currents. Beneath his patch, the place where ...