Bing Gananda 8

5 On the Beach

As Bing Gananda rode Pan into the jungle her heart was pounding. She could only believe that Gala was right, at least about these creatures coming from the sea. The pool of Hesselite was at the cove where she had been that morning. The part about the end of the world, still remained to be seen. But she would have to look for herself.
Noiselessly, she drew near the pool, remaining hidden in the undergrowth. It was true. There were a number of these creatures taking water from the pool, and putting it into large wooden casks. Of course she had never seen a cask before. When she wished to drink, she would simply sip from the pool itself, or another like it. The stream below the pool was now filled with muddy water.
The men (Bing Gananda had never seen a man) were wrestling the heavy casks along a beaten down path to the beach. The men spoke to each other with loud voices, but it made no sense to Bing, or Pandurina beside her.
Once, one of the men stopped and looked directly toward her. She could feel Pan tense up beside her. The man looked uneasy, but apparently saw neither Pan, nor herself, and walked on. The creatures had already fouled the stream, and the trees were crying.
Bing moved away from the men and found a place were she could observe the beach undetected. The water in the cove was calm. There was a boat pulled up on the sand and several men were standing around it. As she watched they pushed it out into the water, put out their oars, and rowed to the ship. Two men remained on the beach.

"I'm sure Martin and his buddies will want to spend the night here onshore," the Bos'n said.
"Would the captain let them?"
"If he wants any peace he will."
"I think I'd like that myself."
Jackson looked at him questioningly.
"To stay onshore," Tindor explained.
"They'll probably be drunk."
"I'll stay out of their way, Jack. This island fascinates me. I've never seen plants like these, and I'm wondering about your little kitty."
"There was nothing "little" about it," Jackson said, a little miffed. He knew Sam was teasing him.
"I'll bring my journal and make some sketches. It feels good to be on solid ground again."
"I'll take the deck of a good ship to this place any day," the Bos'n returned.
Tindor just laughed.

Bing Gananda was close enough to overhear their conversation. But she couldn't understand a word of it. Neither could Pandurina, the Shadocatch, at her side.
These creatures had come from the sea, but they didn't seem to be a part of it. They came into the world from the sea. But it seemed as if they were creatures of the world, or at least a world, themselves. She began to wonder if there might be other worlds, somewhere.
She climbed back onto Pan and spoke into her ear. She would ask Kurura, of the Mountain.


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