"Some suits I'll give to thee;

Harbor where the main medical facility was situated. Tide and wind are in our favor this morning, Killa, he said, reaching his arm about her waist and drawing her in to him without taking his eyes from the display. He tapped for an overlay of the route he had chosen and she could see how it made use of the swift channels between the islands and the fuller morning tide. Well be in North before we know it. He made a final correction and laid in the course. Now the display cleared to show him the compass headings and the minimum required tacking to slip into the swift current just beyond Bar Islands western reef. Is the spinnaker set, Tanny? Aye, aye skipper, the young man called from the bow as Killashandra watched the vivid red and orange sail bellying out briefly over the bowsprit before the wind caught it. Theres an exhilaration to sailing a fast, trim ship, with a following wind and a current to assist smooth passage. The Pearl slipped into the flow as effortlessly as a slide down a greased pole. The sea was almost calm, and gunmetal green-gray, not quite the same color as the gray sky. Lucky its today instead of yesterday, Killashandra said, settling herself in the cockpit beside Lars. He had the tiller on its upper setting so that he could see forward without the cabin blocking him. Theyre all secure below? Secure and asleep! Ill check on the half hour. They sat together enjoying wind, sea, and sail while Tanny coiled lines and set all fair. Then he joined them in the cockpit, maintaining the companionable silence. Just before noon, sailing smartly on the same westerly current that had nearly defeated Killashandra, they rounded the Toe and tacked eastward to sail right up to the large North Harbor pier at the elbow of the Angel. When Lars had been able to estimate his time of arrival, he had called it in, so medics and grav units were waiting for the injured. Killashandra, dutifully checking every half hour, had had no problems with her patients but it was an immense relief to turn them over to trained medical technicians. Father wants a word with us, Lars said quietly in Killashandras ear as they watched their passengers being trundled away. Tanny, anchor the Pearl at buoy twenty-seven, will you? And keep her ready. Dont know where well have to go next. Stay on the page, okay? Tanny nodded, his expression rather strained, as if he was relieved to stay on the Pearl, whose eccentricities he could cope with and understand. If digital camera magazine community forums the Wing Harbor on the south side of Angel Island had appeared rustic and homely to Killashandras eyes, North Harbor was the antithesis: that is, within the framework of the Charters prohibition against raping a natural world. The colorful buildings set up above the harbor behind sturdy sea walls utilized manmade materials and modernistic surfaces in some sort of tough, textured plastic and a good deal of plasglas so no vista would be hidden from the occupiers. If the architecture lacked warmth or grace, it was also practical in a zone where wind speeds could make a dangerous missile out of a polly branch. Lars guided Killashandra up a ramp that climbed to the top of the Elbow, where a dormered structure commanded views of the main harbor as well as the smaller curved bay that featured the old stratovolcano that was the Angels Head. A small sailing craft was tacking cautiously through the Fingerbone reefs at the end of the Hand. From the different colors in the sea, Killashandra could distinguish the safer, deeper channel, but she didnt think shed like to sail that in a ship as large as the Pearl. To her surprise, the first person they saw as they entered the Harbor Masters office was Nahia. She had been using the terminal and upon their entry she half rose, her expression eager for Larss news of the stranded crystal singer. We neednt have worried ourselves for a moment about out captive, Nahia. Lars strode up to the empath and, before she could protest, kissed her hand. Lars, you simply must stop that, Nahia protested, giving Killashandra a worried glance. Why? I only do you a courtesy you fully deserve! Would Nahia comfort Lars, Killashandra wondered, after she had departed Optheria? The woman is all right, isnt she, Carrigana? Nahia was by no means reassured by Larss droll comment. Never better, Killashandra replied affably. She wondered why Lars was drawing the game out when he had specifically said he didnt wish to deceive Nahia. She gave him a sharp glance. Wheres father! Im here, Lars, and theres trouble on its way, the Harbor Master said, appearing from the front office. Im only grateful we had the hurricane, for it slowed down the official transport. Theres to be a full search of the Islands. Torkes leads it so itd be the height of folly to protest