The Wise Man's Fear

CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED FORTY-ONE A Journey to Return

Fate favored me on the way back to the University. We had a good wind and everything was delightfully uneventful. The sailors had heard of my encounter with Felurian, so I enjoyed a modest fame for the duration of the trip. I played them the song I’d written about it, and told them the story about half as often as they asked me to.

I also told them about my trip to the Adem. They didn’t believe a piece of it at first, but then I showed them the sword and threw their best wrestler three times. They showed me a different sort of respect after that, and a rougher, more honest sort of friendship.

I learned a goodly bit from them on my journey home. They told me sea stories and the names of stars. They talked about wind and water and wimmin, sorry, women. They tried to teach me sailor’s knots, but I didn’t have a knack for it, though I proved to be a dab hand at untying them.

Altogether it was very pleasant. The friendship of the sailors, the song of the wind in the rigging, the smell of sweat and salt and tar. Over the long days, these things slowly eased the bitterness I felt toward my ill treatment at the hands of Maer Alveron and his loving lady wife.