"Yes," Danny said slowly, "I am Don Pinzon." "But--but you're so young!" Danny shrugged. "I have seen more of the world than you would believe, Nina." "The Western Sea? You have been out on the Western Sea, as far as the Canary Islands, perhaps?" she asked in an awed voice. "I know the Western Sea," he said. "Trust me." She came very close. She looked long in his eyes. "I trust you, Martin. Oh yes, I trust you. Listen, Martin. I'm going. I'm going with you. I have to go with you." "But a girl--" "He is my father. I love him, Martin. He needs me. Martin, don't try to stop me. I want you to help me aboard, to see that he ... oh, Martin, you'll have so much to do. Because the rest of our crew--some of them being hired even now by the three caravel pursers--will be a crew of cut-throats and ne'er-do-wells embarking into the unknown because they have utterly nothing to lose. Father needs you because the others won't care." "The three caravels will sail west," Danny told her. "Believe me, they'll sail west. Now, get some sleep." Her face was still very close. Her eyes filled with tears, but they were not tears of sadness. She took his cheeks in her hands and kissed him softly on the lips. She smiled at him, her own lips trembling. "Martin," she said. His arms moved. They went around her, drew the softness of her close. She murmured something, but he did not hear it. His lips found hers a second time, fiercely. His hands her shoulder, her throat, her ... "Flat," Columbus mumbled. "Flat. Abs'lutely flat. The Earth is--flat as a pancake...." "Oh, Martin!" Nina cried. * * * * * It was raining in the morning. A hard, driving rain, pelting down on the seaport of Palos. The three caravels floated side by side in the little harbor and a large, derisive crowd had gathered. The crowd erupted into noisy laughter when Columbus and his little party appeared on foot. "I need a drink," Columbus whispered. "I can't go through with it." "Father," Nina said. "We're with you. I'm here. Martin is here." "I can't go--" "You've got to go through with it! For yourself and for the world. Now, stand straight, father. They're looking at you. They're all looking at you." Columbus, thought Danny. The intrepid voyager who had discovered a new world! He smiled grimly. Columbus, the history books should have said, the drunken sot who didn't even have the courage to face his own convictions. They walked ahead through the ridiculing crowd. Danny's throat was still sore. He was not frightened, though. He possibly was the only man in the crew who was not frightened. The others didn't care what their destination was, true: but they wanted to reach it alive. Danny knew the journey would end in success. The end of the journey meant nothing to him. It was written in history. It was ...