The moments dragged by. The wooden beams of the boat groaned and he shivered, expecting the timbers to split apart as a serpent struck from below. Despite the old man’s instructions he scanned the sea when he could, fighting to also keep the boat lined up against the ceaseless pounding of the waves.

Finally, after a long silence spent searching, Cob called out to Riko again. ‘Are you certain, lad?’

‘I . . . I think so,’ Riko said. He still stood by the mast, clutching the stout pole with white-knuckled fingers.

‘It could have been a whale,’ Dion said.

‘And if it wasn’t?’ Sal demanded. The wiry man, who had sailed these waters with Cob for half his life, was almost trembling.

‘If we’re sharing the sea with a leviathan, we need to head in,’ Cob said. ‘Before it’s too late.’

‘We should keep sailing,’ said Dion. ‘Cinder Fen is more dangerous than the open ocean. Everyone says to either camp in force or beach at the refuge. It will be safer farther up, on the promontory, as far as we can get from the mountains.’

‘Turn us in.’ Cob brought the full force of his glare on Dion. Despite his diminutive size, he could still be intimidating. ‘If there’s a serpent out there our safest option is to head for shallow water.’

‘There’s more sailing in the day,’ Dion persisted. ‘We have to—’

‘You’ve never been to Cinder Fen, Dion. I have.’

‘I’m with Cob,’ Otus said.

‘Take us in,’ said Riko.

‘Sal?’ Dion asked the last man in the group.

‘Cob’s the best sailor I know,’ Sal said, scratching the stubble on his angular jaw. He took a deep breath. ‘He’s also stayed alive long enough to grow warts.’ He nodded to the beckoning shore, close enough to make out the breakers. ‘I’m for getting us out of the water.’

Dion reluctantly nodded. He turned the boat so they were angling into shore while Cob let the rope in his hands run freely as their course altered.

Watching their approach, Dion saw that the beach here was narrow, leading up to a stretch of smooth rock before the ground became steeper, eventually becoming black walls and broken ridges like jagged teeth. Tilting his head back he saw that they would be landing just below a cliff taller than the peaks around it. Behind the vessel the sun was drawing close to the horizon, but the glow of late afternoon didn’t touch the storm clouds gathered at the mountaintops.

‘Sail down!’ Dion called. The boat caught a wave and sped forward faster than he liked. ‘Everyone out on my command! Stop her from turning and get her out before the water breaks over the stern and fills her up!’

Judging his moment, he finally cried out. ‘Now!’