While sitting back, Karyk could see how much time he had spent being focused and nit picking his work. Syna was high in the sky now, and when there had been only been a few people before, the yard was in full hustle and bustle now. No one laughed or teased Karyk for getting one of the shyke jobs for the day, for everyone knew it would be their turn sooner or later. It was an inevitable fate of the yard, and they all shared the burden equally.
Sighing, he knew it was time to get back to it. He put the cross board halfway between the side boards, which now began to bend. He eyeballed the bend on each side, then pulled the cross board out. He began shaving down the ends ever so slightly so they'd match the curve and be flush against the side boards. Once more he set the cross board inside and bent the side boards around it. One side wasn't quite flush, he'd made it uneven. Grunting, he picked it out, and began shaving it down yet again to even it out. Yet again, he set it in to check it, and this time everything was flush.
He tipped the whole frame on its side, and pulled some rope from his pack. He wrapped it around the unconnected ends of the side boards, and tied a square knot around it, to keep the boards bent while he nailed the cross board in place. He grabbed a few more nails, tapped his divots into place. Then whack, whack, whack, thunk. Over and over until the starboard side was nailed in place. He then flipped the frame over and repeated the process for the port side.
He loosened the rope and was satisfied to see the side boards bowing the proper way, and not busting any nails, cracking, or slipping. He grabbed the stern board and slipped it into place, and once more tied it all up. He nailed the side boards to the stern and loosened the rope. It was flush on the outside of the boat but there was a bit of a gap in the interior. It wouldn't affect it structurally, she'd still be sea worthy, but it was an error in his work. He didn't check the boards before nailing. He could've beveled the stern board to make it more flush. He'd make sure to remember that for next time. He flipped the entire frame upside down.
Karyk grabbed several planks now, and began cutting them down shorter. Then very carefully he shaved their longer edges so they'd be beveled and fit flush against one another. Then one by one, he lined them up, and hammered them into the boat. He had to be extra precise with his nail placements, since he was nailing them into the side boards and into each other. Any wrong placement or alignment and the entire boat might not be sealed. With each swing, his anxiety grew, not wanting to have to strip the boards and start over.
But they came together nicely. The beveling let them seal together well. Karyk smiled. It looked seaworthy. He began getting real close, shaving here and there where the boards met, so as to give them more of a curve rather than and edge. It was slow, tedious work, but shaving after shaving fell away. Once he finished, he stood up, stretching, Syna on her downward path for the day.
Karyk made his way over to one of the many tar stations the yard kept set up. He dunked a bucket into the thick sludge, kept warm by a low burning fire under the cauldron, thickened with rope threads. He grabbed a thin caulking brush and a wedge tool. He made his way back to his boat and crawled up underneath it, it sitting on the saw horses. He nudged the wedge tool between the edges of two boards, tapped it very lightly with his mallet, so that it just pried open the space just a hair. Then using a small brush from his kit, he dipped it into the tar, and applied as much as he could into the gap. Then he tapped it further down the seam. As it moved away from the tarred spots, those sealed, becoming truly water tight, and opening new spots.
Slowly he made his way through every seam in the boat. This step had to be last because the tight fit of the wood was needed first to ensure a proper seal. And it was a royal pain in the ass to remove the boards after they'd been tar sealed. Any time he applied too much, he scraped it away after it squelched out, and wiped it down with a rag. No need for sloppy work. It took many bells, but he finally finished, his back cramping from being under that damn boat for so long. He pulled him out from under it and stood up. She was definitely seaworthy now.
He went and grabbed some metal oar mounts from the bin, and hammered them into the sides, four in total. He then added two more smaller cross boards for additional seating. He double checked all of his edges, smoothing them out by shaving. He went and grabbed four ours, put them in the mounts, and closed them down. She was ready.
But of course this job wasn't done yet.
She wasn't truly ready until she'd been tested. He grabbed a couple of other workers to help him carry it over to the water. They heaved it up with mild grunts with him, then they all slowly, carefully rolled it over, making sure to not smack each other in the head with the oars, or to drop it. They walked her over to the nearest dock and set her in. Karyk climbed in, carefully so as to not dump himself into the bay, or crack his skull off the dock. He sat in the front of the boat, nodding at those that helped him, as they left for the day, Syna soon to give way to Leth.
Karyk gripped both oars, stuck his boots against the center cross board, and readied himself with a deep breath. He held the oars parallel to the water, then slowly pushed the handles forward and up, so they dipped into the water. Then he pulled them down and back toward him in a circular motion, and she moved. He dipped them in again, feeling the resistance of the water fighting him. But he pushed and pulled against Laviku's grasp, his arms and back and chest already straining from the full day's work, coupled with his sloppy rowing technique. He managed to mostly move forward with a slightly lilt to his dominant side. He constantly looked over his shoulder to make sure he wasn't about to be ran over by a sloop or catamaran.
Once he was out far enough, huffing and puffing as his lungs burned, he stopped to rest, floating in the waves. He looked all around the boat, looking for any signs of cracking or leaking and was pleased to have found none. He'd had to swim back before, though not for several years. It was basically a rite of passage for the ship yard. Yet again stretching his arms and chest, and rotating at the shoulder, Karyk prepared for the trip back. It took him a bit to remember how to turn the damnable thing, but once he had it pointing in the right direction, he powered her forward as best he could.
He was red in the face as he pushed, and pulled, even getting his legs moving in rhythm too. Push, raise, dip, pull through the water. Push, raise, dip, pull through the water. Coast for a bit. Repeat. He picked up a bit too much speed without the control of his boat, and bumped into the side of the dock from which he'd left. It scuffed the side of the boat a decent bit, nothing too jarring and certainly not the worst blemish for a row boat. Just another sign of him not being completely focused on the task at hand. Because gods above he was tired now. He just wanted a nice pint of kelp, some fish, and to fall face first into his bed.
He slipped the oars into the boat, tied a bowline around the stern mount that stuck up from the ship, then tied the boat to the dock. Then he gripped a dock post and pulled himself out, sweaty and relieved. His turn was over, and someone else could have the next blasted one. He stumbled over to his gear, still trying to gain his breath back. He checked his tools thoroughly with the last bits of Syna's light, then packed them away. Slipping his pack over his shoulders, his axe bundle in one arm, he left. The kelp bar was his next stop, and hopefully he had the energy to get home and sleep. But his turn was done.
by Karyk on April 19th, 2017, 1:10 am 
