he landed reluctantly prepared to submit ; and then iskierka said , `` well , i do not mean to be chained at all : whyever should i not just hold on to the ship , or if it is very bad , we may as well stay aloft , '' and laurence realized in dismay she had never yet experienced a true three-days ' gale , which should outstrip the endurance of any dragon even if the winds alone did not prove fatal .