It turned out that the ship had gone off course. No one had reckoned with such a fog, the captain hadn't brought any chart, and nobody knew which way was terra firma. They sailed around aimlessly, as the fog swallowed all sounds except the thudding of the engines. It was beginning to get dangerous, said the captain, the fuel wouldn't last forever and if they got too far out, not even God would be able to do anything. Volodin and the captain embraced, several of the professors began to drink, and a tearful hilarity took hold.
Rose went to Humboldt in the bow. They needed the assistance of the Great Navigator. Without him they were going to die.
And never go back, asked Humboldt.
Roe nodded. Simply disappear, sail the Caspian Sea at the apogee of one's life and never come back?
Exactly, said Rose.
Become one with the infinity of space, finally disappear into landscapes one had dreamed of as a child, walk into a picture, walk out the other side, and never go home?
So to speak, said Rose.
That way. Humboldt pointed left, where the gray seemed a little paler, with whitish streaks.
Rose went to the captain and pointed him in the opposite direction. Half an hour later they reached the coast.