The outlines of sharpwood passed quickly by as our raft rocked upstream. The flapping of the sail and the roar of the wind made it impossible to speak. I prayed to Kraken and felt his presence in my heart. The raft lurched and bobbed as we steered past rocks and around fallen trees. The stilt on the rudder hardly looked up as he navigated. He looked worriedly at the tear in the sail and then back at the floor. He seemed to know the river by heart.

The raft was made of square logs tied together. A small ridge ran around the sides and the floor was lined with pillows. The sail hung from a mast that sat in the center. After a while, the wind calmed. A gentler breeze pushed us along. The sail stopped its loud flapping and billowed quietly. The current also became much slower as the river widened. It seemed as if we sailed across a still lake. The raft lazily crossed back and forth as we sailed. The sun broke over the horizon and sparkled off the still water.

“That was some wind we had back there!” the stilt said. He looked up and leaned on the rudder. “I don’t go that far downriver usually. I stay up here, where it’s good and quiet,” he said.

“Thank you for the rescue, Captain,” Ragnar said.

“Rivermonger!” The stilt smiled. “Call me Rivermonger!” His narrow stilt face was lined with deep wrinkles. His wispy white hair blew in the breeze.

“I’ve been riding this river for 65 years and I ain’t never seen anything like that wind,” he said.

“You’re not liable to see it again either,” Drexel said.

“Don’t count on that,” Freya said. “I’m sure Cloda found a way out of there.”

“The great Cloda wont be done in by some ropes,” Drexel said.

“Quite a gal, that one…” The old man looked over his shoulder at the river behind us. “Where you folks goin’ exactly?” he asked. He turned to face us.

Ragnar looked at Freya. Freya looked at me.

"I had assumed Cloda told you where to bring us," Ragnar said to Rivermonger.

"Never met the woman. I heard her sing a few years back though. It was somethin else." Rivermonger said.

"You never..she didn't hire you?" Ragnar asked

"It must have been one of her helpers, the fellow i spoke to" Rivermonger said "He told me to beach the raft near Spanton and camp out for a few days, waitin for the charter. He said it would be real short notice when they arrived, and I said mister, for the money you're payin I'll sleep on the boat! I didnt know you all would be jumpin out of a roof to board!" He wheezed to himself, laughing.

“What happened back there, Telle?” she asked.

“The guard had sketches of you two.” I pointed to Freya and Ragnar. Ragnar just smiled. Freya tilted her head and said nothing. She looked angry.

“Did she say where she was sending us?” she asked.

“She said we should go to some springs, heedon springs,” I said. Freya looked confused.

“Springs?” She asked. Rivermonger laughed.

“Well, well, well. You want me to take you all the way there? Gonna have yourself some fun in Heedon Springs is it?” His smile was so big it turned the rest of his face into a wrinkled prune.

“We don’t have fun,” Reese said. His fresh face shone in the morning sun.

“You will in Heedon Springs, young buck,” Rivermonger said.

“Oh yeah? How? What’s Heedon Springs?” Reese sat up

“Well, nowadays it’s quite a hoot! When my daddy worked this river it was nothing but wilds I hear, but things do change. Some high falootin types built two competing resorts on two different hot-springs north of the town, and the place boomed! That there’s a town bent on pleasure. Too rich for my blood. Not for me. No sir. Rivermonger’s a simple man. The air and the sun and the still water of this here river is all I need.” He leaned back on the rudder and brought the raft slowly about.

Reese was almost giddy.

“What kind of fun?” he asked. Rivermonger looked up at the sky.

"By the by, What manner of thing are you boy?" Rivermonger asked Reese. "You're half horse?"

"Half Ram. Well, one quarter ram, my mom and a saytr, well, can we talk about Heedon Springs?"

“Yes sir, 65 years I been riding this river. This was my pappy’s boat, and his pappy’s before him.” He took a deep breath and smiled.

“What about the Heedon Springs?” Reese asked.

“See that water?” Rivermonger pointed to the stream. “Ain’t no blood in my veins, young man. No, sir. Just water. The sweet water of this here river runs to and fro’ my heart. Keeps me young!” He dipped a ladle over the side and brought it to his mouth. He took a deep drink and let the water spill down his chin.

“Aaahh! That’s my communion, lad. That’s the only god I serve, right there!” He pointed at the water.

“May his horn miss you,” I mumbled. Reese scowled.

“Tell me about the Springs!” He stamped a hoof on the floor. Rivermonger snapped his head around.

“What’s that?” He looked at Reese.

“Oh, yes, Heedon Springs. What a leisure town. Never spent much time there, myself. Lot’s a ladies always waiting on the boardwalk. That’s all I know. Rich folk having their fun is all. Its out at the far reaches of the country so its a little wilder than where we're comin from. I’m sure you’ll find plenty of trouble to get into there, young fella. ” Rivermonger smiled again. There was a twinkle of mischief behind his eyes.

“Stilts then,” I said.

“What’s that, little guy?” Rivermonger asked.

“We’re going to another town of stilts,” I said.

“Stilts?” He cocked his head.

“Yes. Like you.” I pointed at him. “And those two.” I pointed at Chastity and Drexel. “And like those Bupinders who tried to kill us back in Spanton. All of them were stilts, tootalls, stretchbodies, highthighs, beamduckers. I’ve never seen so many before. Now we’re going to another town of them? Why don’t we just look for a city of smoogers while we’re at it!” I said.

“Call Old Rivermonger what you will, but if this stilt hadn’t been under that bridge, you would be an unhappy midget right now,” he winked.

“Maybe next time,” Drexel said, and winked too.

"Did Cloda say anything else to you, Telle?" Freya asked. "Did she tell you who betrayed her in Buba?"

"Yeah, she said we need to go see her Leader" I replied.

"Her Leader?"Freya seemed surprised.

"Thats what she said, Somebody named Gorgon."

"Gorgon?"

“How far are these springs?” Ragnar asked the old skipper.

“Oh my. All the way up the river. A couple weeks I reckon,” he said.

“Weeks?” Reese asked. Everyone frowned.

“I’m not thrilled about taking Cloda’s advice this time, this is the first Ive heard of her 'Leader' I thought the rebellion was her project alone.” Freya said.

“She did get us out of that mess back there, Don't we owe it to her to fulfil her last request? Im just asking,” Chastity said.

“She got us into that mess, for all we know,” Ragnar replied.

"Don't talk about Cloda like that" Reese snapped.

"Why not boy? So what if she did get us out of that mess. It was her idea to overthrow the Bupinder regime, starting in Buba! Remember Buba?"

"Our country desperately needs a rebellion, Ragnar, and you know it. "Jenna scowled, "Bupinder corruption was all you ever talked about before Buba! the Bupinder regime has done nothing but foement war, and reinforce the economic disparities that existed before them."

"PLEASE STOP BORING ME" Reese yelled.

"Children are dragged away from school to be drafted for their armies" Jenna continued, "People like Reese are burned at the stake."

"And thank God for that" Drexel said.

“I’m not thrilled about another town of stilts,” I grumbled.

“You can get off any time you like,” Ragnar said. I looked at his long legs and stretched out torso. I looked at the thick trees along the riverbank.

“Ragnar is right about one thing," Jenna said," the rebellion is over. We might as well all ride as far from the Bupinder seat of power as we can,”

I sat back against a pillow and yawned. Everyone was exhausted.

“You folks get some rest. Rivermonger will take care of things!” The captain said. The river opened up into an even wider section. I could barely see the shore on either side. Rivermonger tied the rudder down and whistled to himself as he tied and re-tied knots and straightened the pillows. His whistles and mumbling invaded my dreams. I tossed and turned on the pillows. When I opened my eyes, the sun was low in the sky. I had slept all day. I had an incredible sunburn on one half of my body.

Jenna sat cross-legged in the front of the boat. She leaned against the mast. Her ears fanned out and moved back and forth in the breeze. She studied a thick book. Reese snored loudly. He lay on his back, his legs sprawled across the raft. Ragnar slept on his side. He had the same sunburn I did. Freya sat straight up and looked out over the water. Drexel lay against the side of the boat and watched us all. Rivermonger mumbled to himself and fussed over ropes. I saw that the tear in the sail had been patched.

The river had turned a greenish brown. Birds wheeled in the sky high overhead. They were just specks. The forest at the banks of the river was made of thick trees. There was no sign of sharpwood. A great splash came from behind me. Water ran down my back. I spun around in time to see a huge long-legged bird with wide white wings fly up from the water. The bird had an orange hooked beak. A plump silver fish hung from the beak. The fish had four shriveled legs that dangled and squirmed from its belly. It flew to an enormous tree on the far bank of the river. The crane landed on a thick limb, and then lowered the fish to a nest. Five or six razor sharp beaks appeared. The baby birds snapped and bit chunks out of the still squirming fish until all that was left in the giant bird’s beak was the spine and some hanging guts

"That was a really big bird" Reese said.

I stretched and yawned.

“Good afternoon little fella!” Rivermonger said. “I’ll bet you’re all getting mighty hungry! There’s nothing like the clean air, warm sun, and a day on the river to work up an appetite. Why I never get so hungry as when I’m…” He chatted on about his hungriest days on the water. Jenna looked up from her book with a frown. Her ears flattened against her head. She slammed the book shut with a bang.

“When do you sleep, Captain Rivermonger?” she asked.

“Don’t you worry. Rivermonger never sleeps on the job!” He winked. He turned and strained to pull in line that was tied to the back of the boat. The line jerked as he hauled it in hand over hand. He torqued his body and a huge fish flipped into the boat.

It landed on Reese’s belly, pinning him helplessly.

“Get it off!” He screamed and writhed under the fish until he knocked it across the deck. He looked around in a panic. Everyone laughed. The fish gasped on the floor, its four legs writhed in agony. Rivermonger’s boot came down on its head. Blood sprayed out from under his heel. The shriveled legs stuck straight out. The boat jerked. We had drifted into a small beach on the bank of the river.

"You're stronger than you look rivermonger." Freya said, "I'll be back in a moment." She jumped over the side and ran into the woods.

“Don’t get lost young lady!” Rivermonger said. The rest of us watched the old man build a fire on the beach.Freya returned with some berries and a few roots. She took a pan from her satchel on the boat.

“You sure you know what you’re doing young lady?” he asked.

“Never stop an Iron Chef from preparing a meal,” Drexel said. Rivermonger looked confused.

Freya rolled the fish in the herbs and tossed the fish into the pan. Her hands moved too quickly to keep up with. The fish sizzled and turned. She tossed in bits of roots and shook the pan. She moved so quickly, the fish and pan became a blur over the crackling fire. By the time she was done I was starving.

“Thank Kraken for this meal. May his horn miss you!” I said aloud. I popped a piece of fish into my mouth. The woody flavor of the root over the crispy skin of the fish melted into my tongue. The food was the best I had eaten in my life. That and the rabbit we’d had earlier.

Rivermonger took a bite. His eyes opened wide.

“Flyin oysters! You took the fruit of that fine river and made it dance in my mouth! Praise the river, you cooked that up mighty fine!” He licked his lips.

“In my 80 years of life I never ate such fine fixins! Where does a lady learn to do that?” he asked.

“She’s an Iron Chef,” Chastity said.

“In training! I am training to be an Iron Chef,” Freya said. "I am on my quest for worldy Chau"

“What in the river is an Iron Chef?” Rivermonger asked.

“We are monks. Our order respects Chau, the power of food, the essence of life,” Freya said.

“That’s the first I’ve heard of such a thing. But you do make some fine food” Rivermonger said.

“I make nothing.” Freya’s voice took on an edge. “The flavor of that food was always there, I simply released it.” Rivermonger cocked his head.

“Well, I’m glad you did.” He smacked his lips. He washed down the meal with some river water. We finished eating and climbed back onto the raft. Rivermonger talked to himself and fastened the rudder, bringing us into the middle of the river. The sun was just beginning to set in the distance. The red rays turned the water blood red.

The next days passed quietly. I thanked Kraken for the chance to rest. Even Reese gave up asking Rivermonger questions. We all got used to his constant chatter. Despite his height, he was hard to dislike for very long. Freya continued to feed us well and Jenna studied her book solemnly. I took a peg from the side of the boat and carved it with my dagger. I scraped the wood with the edge of the blade. Slowly, the curved horn of Kraken took form. Then the head, and then the blocky arms and legs. After a couple of days I made a crude replica of the idol my mother kept on the altar in our home.

I prayed to Kraken and thanked him for all he had given me. Each day up the river was a day away from Blagton. I still wasn’t sure where we were going, or why. Im not sure any of us were.

A week passed. Spots grew into lumps on Reese’s face as the pimples on his face returned. My back ached from lying on the boat day and night. Everyone was horribly sunburnt. Rivermonger’s endless tales of the river were now grating on everyone’s nerves.

“Shut up! Stop it!” Reese was the first to snap. His red face bunched up like a fist. The lumps on his shiny cheeks were the reddest.

“Whoa now, little fella.” Rivermonger smiled.

“A little case of river fever is all. Nelly does feel a bit small after a stretch.” He patted the side of the boat.

“Why, I remember one month when we had no wind at all. After a few weeks we drifted downstream! You should have heard the…” He chattered on. The boat lazily sailed across the water. The riverbank on the right came closer. It was lunch time. Reese glowered and polished the sword I’d taken from the guard. Ragnar watched Reese closely. He fondled his necklace of shiny beads.

I leaned back and watched my companions. The calm was interrupted by the occasional splash of a bird. As I watched the specks spin in the sky, a shadow flickered overhead. I turned to look. For a second I saw two giant black wings, not at all like the big cranes, low in the air, just above the treeline. I blinked and they were gone. Nobody else seemed to notice.

“Rivermonger!” Jenna shouted from the front of the boat. The captain stopped talking. He looked upstream to where Jenna pointed. His mouth hung open. My eyes followed his gaze. Far up river, a shadow moved under the water. A black spot, like the shadow I’d seen in the sky raced toward the boat.

“That aint no fish!"Rivermonger shouted. He leaned back on the rudder. The shadow grew until it was half the size of our boat at least. It shot under us. I looked down at my feet. The floor of the boat was still. There was a splash and the boat pitched forward. I fell on to my face and rolled over. The giant black thing shot out of the water from behind us. Water rained down. It twisted in the sky and landed on the river bank to our right. The wings folded into its back and it stood erect on its hind legs. The boat rocked back.

“Help!” Jenna cried. She had been knocked overboard. She splashed and sputtered as she tried to stay afloat. She made it to the side of the boat and hung on. Rivermonger scrambled with the rudder and the sail. The rudder swiveled loosely in his hands. Behind us, pieces of the rudder floated away. Our raft drifted toward shore. Ragnar threw a rope to Jenna. The black beast walked along the shore tracking our boat. We drifted slowly toward him. I blinked and looked again. The front legs were actually arms. I looked closer. It was a scaly creature, a cross between a lizard and a stilt, almost. He had wings too. His fingers had long pointed talons. His right hand grasped a long shiny sword. He was wearing a belt with a gold buckle, but no other clothes. He promptly retrieved a purple felt feathered cap from the belt, and fit it neatly on its lizard-head.

“What is that?” I asked. I ran over to Ragnar.

"Its a very silly hat, Telle" Ragnar looked the thing over, trying to puzzle out the thing's nature.

“Let’s get this started, shall we?” A deep voice came from the bird lizard. He twirled his sword overhead.

“What do you want?” Freya shouted. “We don’t wish to fight you.”

“This is bad. This is very, very bad,” Drexel whispered from his hiding place behind the mast.

“You don’t wish to fight? You dont wish?” the lizard bird said. He cocked his hat and laughed elegantly as he strolled along the shore. Our boat drifted slowly toward him. Rivermonger fought with the rudder. Ragnar ran back to help him.

“I think its a dragon.” Ragnar finally said. The lizard spun his sword over his head. It flashed in the sunlight.

"Thats not a dragon! Dragons are way bigger than that." Reese said.

"Yes it is." Drexel quietly whispered,"Give him what he wants"

“Yes, do,” the dragon said. “Give me what I want.” He winked at Freya and stuck his sword in the ground in front of him.

“A dragon,” I said. I swallowed. The lizard cocked his hat and looked straight at me.

The dragon bent forward and put his hands on his knees. His stomach moved back and forth. He retched and coughed like a cat with a hairball. His mouth opened wide. His face stretched and his jaw popped until his mouth became a huge black hole. The lizard heaved. A stream of black vomit shot across the water.

“Get down!” Ragnar pulled the back of my neck. I flipped backwards onto the floor of the boat. The vomit struck Ragnar in the chest. He fell against Rivermonger. They were both covered in black slime.

“Oh, that’s better,” the dragon said. He wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. Rivermonger screamed in pain. He and Ragnar writhed on the floor. Wisps of steam rose from the vomit. Clothing fell off in bits. Skin bubbled and sizzled. Reese grabbed his sword in his right hand and pulled Jenna into the boat with his left. Freya dove smoothly into the water. I looked around the boat for the dagger I’d taken from the guard. I saw it near the stern. I crawled past Ragnar and Rivermonger. Rivermonger stopped moving. Ragnar struggled to stand. His clothing fell off his arms in sloppy long strips.

“It wants a fight,” he said. “Give it one.” Ragnar tried to stand and fell back to the deck.

I grabbed the dagger. A strip of Ragnar’s shirt landed next to my hand and steamed against he wood. It smelled like cooked meat. I realized it was not his shirt, but a strip of scorched skin. I looked up at Ragnar. He fumbled with his necklace. The skin had come off his fingers. He used his teeth to open a clasp at the end of the strand and cupped one of the beads in his left hand. He fell back against the boat and looked at the bead in his hand. Rivermonger squirmed next to him.

“Ragnar!” Reese shouted. His eyes bulged. He looked at the dragon. The lizard belched and grinned. Reese grabbed the guard's sword and jumped into the water with a splash. Reese waded toward the monster. Freya popped out of the water next to him.

“This is going to take all of us!” she called back to the boat. She and Reese strode toward the lizard.

“Oh yes, you're quite right, I am going to take all of you,” the lizard said. Reese charged with his sword held high. He brought it down with both hands. The lizard parried and knocked the blade aside. Reese quickly swung the sword around and brought it straight down on the lizard’s shoulder. The blade rang against the black scales and bounced away. The lizard laughed. He swiped at Reese. The halfbreed ducked the blade.

“This is more like it!” The dragon said. Freya sprang at the lizard and whirled.

“Dice and crush!” She cried. Her right foot slammed into the lizard’s side. Her left foot followed with a solid kick to his stomach. The lizard let out a roar. Reese swung his sword upward. It glanced off the opposing blade, but still smacked the lizard's right cheek. The purple cap flew into the sand.

“Your head is next!” Reese yelled.

The lizard dropped his sword and swiped at Freya. She twisted away, but not in time. "Why are you doing this, dragon? We've done nothing to you" His talons raked across her back. She cried out in pain and spun to face him.

“Watch his claws!” Freya said.

“And my teeth!” The lizard said. He snapped his head around. His mouth opened. Reese lunged forward and thrust his sword at the lizard’s head. The lizard knocked the blade aside with his hand. Reese stumbled forward on the momentum of his attack. The lizard’s head shot forward. He bit down on Reese’s neck and shoulder. I heard the crunch of Reese’s collarbone from the boat. The lizard shook his head from side to side. Reese yelped as he was lifted off his feet.

“They’re lost,” Drexel said from behind the mast. “We’ve got to get away.” He looked at me. I ran to the rudder. It lay in pieces. Rivermonger lay still. Ragnar leaned against the wall, his eyes rolled in pain. I looked back at the shore. Reese tried to regain his footing as he dangled in the lizard’s mouth. Chastity waded toward the beach. I looked down and saw the dagger in my hand. I jumped overboard.

I sank as soon as I hit the water. Everything was silent. I fought the water. My arms flailed and my legs kicked. I held my breath and tried not to panic. I felt myself sinking. My feet hit the sandy bottom of the river. I walked forward. Within a few steps the top of my head broke the surface. I took another step and gasped for air. I blinked the water from my eyes. Just past the shore I saw Freya tumble under the lizard’s claws.

I reached the riverbank. The lizard released Reese and he was thrown past me and into the water with a splash. Chastity ran to Reese. She pulled him from the water. Freya spun around. Blood sprayed off her back.

“Boiled in oil, seared on steel!” She ducked the talons and swiftly punched the lizard’s dangling groin with a flurry of jabs. He staggered back in obvious pain. His wings unfolded from his back. With two flaps he was airborne. His feet also had talons. He floated down and clawed Freya across her face. She fell backwards with a cry. He landed on her with his back to me. His claws curled around her legs. His wings beat the air and they started to rise.

“I’ll be back shortly!” the dragon said as he lifted off with Freya in his talons.

I dove forward. The point of my dagger pierced the leathery wing of the lizard. I hung onto the handle. I was lifted into the air with the lizard. There was a tearing sound and my blade cut downward. I sliced through his wing. He dropped Freya and roared as he came back to the ground. He spun around. My blade cut sideways through his wing until he was facing me. The pieces of his shredded wing hung at his side. He looked down at me. I jumped forward with the dagger.

“My name is Telle Smellme!” I shouted as I drove the knife toward his belly. The blade turned against the scales. Pain shot up my arms. Both of my wrists were sprained.

“Stupid midget!” The dragon growled. I screamed as his talons dug into my neck. He picked me up and tossed me backward. I dropped the blade and fell onto my back in sand. The lizard walked to me. He looked down at me. Blood dripped from his talons and his mouth. He raised his leg over me, his talons pointed at my throat.

He opened his mouth, “And my name is…”

Something small whizzed past my face. There was a flash and a boom. Fire sprang from the lizard’s chest. Fire washed over me. Rancid smoke clouded the air. The lizard stumbled backwards leaving a cloud of gray smoke. I coughed and spat into the sand. I looked behind me. The raft had beached itself nearby. Ragnar hung over the side and flashed me a weak smile. He held the necklace in his charred hand. He pulled another bead from the strand and threw it at the lizard. There was another explosion. A black scale spun through the air and landed in the sand next to me. It steamed. The lizard was engulfed in smoke. Jenna jumped to the sand and ran forward. I heard the familiar retching from within the cloud of smoke.

“Watch out!” I shouted. My warning was too late. Another stream of black vomit sprayed of the smoke. The black spit splattered on Jenna's side. She fell back into the water. The rest of the vomit showered the boat behind her.

Reese staggered out of the water. He held his sword and stumbled into the cloud of smoke. There was the sound of metal striking scales. I heard terrible roar and then a thick, wet chopping sound. Chastity screamed. The smoke drifted away to reveal a bloody Reese standing over the remains of the dragon. Reese turned away. He took a step toward the water. He lurched and then fell next to the corpse. Blood poured out of a wound in his neck. Behind me Jenna stumbled blindly in circles. Freya crawled toward Reese. She left a trail of blood in the sand.

Drexel appeared from behind the mast. He leaned over Ragnar.

“Not good,” he said. He ladled water onto Ragnar and rinsed away the still steaming vomit. Tendrils of steam rose in the air. The sharp smell of burnt flesh stung my nose. I raised my hand to my neck. My skin was hot and sticky. When I pulled my hand away it was covered in blood. I was too weak to stand. Chastity guided Jenna onto the raft and rinsed her eyes.

Chastity wrapped a cloth over one of Jenna’s eyes. She found some rags in the bottom of the boat and handed some to Drexel. Drexel carefully mopped the steaming vomit off the boat while Jenna made her way to me. Her ears hung limply on her head as she held some cloth to the hole in my neck. She placed my hand over the rag.

“Keep pressure on this, Telle.” I pushed and winced in pain.

“I know it hurts, but you’ve got to stop the bleeding,” she said.

"Reese is Alive" Freya said from the beach. "Are we all alive?"

"The skipper sure isnt" Drexel said, examining Ragnar. "but Ragnars breathing."

"Oh no, poor rivermonger!" Chastity said.

When all the vomit had been washed off, Drexel helped Freya on to the raft. He came back and helped me to my feet. I looked back at the corpse of the lizard. It lay in the sand on its back. It’s green eyes looked blankly at the sky. A swarm of stenchflies had already discovered his body. Several lay dissolving in the river of black vomit that ran from his open mouth. Their bright green wings turned brown and then vanished with a puff and a hiss.

Drexel took my dagger and walked to the lizard. He pried off a handful of scales and slipped them into a bag at his waist. He was careful not to touch the bile. Reese moaned nearby. Drexel kept prying scales off the body of the lizard as Freya watched, disapproving. When filled his sack with scales he helped Reese to the boat. Drexel collected the weapons, including the Lizard’s sword and threw them onto the boat. He took one last look at the corpse of the lizard. Jenna held wet rags on Ragnar’s charred skin.

"What a waste." Freya said

"It just attacked us for no reason." Chastity said. "What an awful thing. Was it really a Dragon, Drexel?"

Drexel shrugged. He was leaning over Ragnar again.

"I think it was a half-dragon, not that it matters." Jenna said. "It was a very young one at that."

"probably so" Drexel frowned.

"How do you know it was young?" Chastity asked.

"Dragons can live for a very very long time and they never stop growing." Jenna began, "They usually dont, thank the gods. But if they grow to maturity, well, we would have fared about as well as these stenchflies against it".

"We did fare about as well as these stenchflies" Drexel said.

A faint gurgle came from Reese, "Speak for yourself."

"Poor Rivermonger. Now that he's dead, how do we get to Heedon Springs?" Chastity asked.

"I think we've got more immediate things to worry about" Jenna snapped at her.

"I was just asking" Chastity said.

"Are we going back to Spanton?" I asked.

"We're either staying here or going anywhere this river wants to take us," Drexel said. "The rudder is gone, this raft is just driftwood."

"Spanton is downstream." I said

"It would take days to float back there" Jenna Said, "We're sure to lose at least Ragnar by then, probably Freya and Reese too."

"Im sure there would be someone to help us in Heedon Springs, its a leisure town!" Chastity said

"Then jump in the water and start paddling, Chastity, this boat's broken!"

A weak but stern voice rose from Freya "There is no other choice. We float downstream to Spanton, but look this time for any houses or settlements along the river"

"We've seen nothing since Spanton" Chastity said.

"Chastity,"Jenna said, "You are not being helpful"

"You know what is ironic?" Drexel said, disembarking and pulling the raft towards the water. "Ragnar was completely sure he would get hunted down and killed by the Bupinders. And instead he's randomly murdered in cold blood by a poncey dragon. Life is chaos."

Drexel pushed off. The raft slowly moved to the middle of the River. The birds that circled overhead moved over the beach. Some followed us. I felt a tickle on my arm and noticed a bright green stenchfly crawling toward my neck. I brushed it away. They usually wait for death. I turned to see the burnt body of Rivermonger in the back of the boat. He was covered in crawling green bugs. They buzzed and danced as they laid eggs in the shiny patches of peeled skin. Drexel pushed Rivermonger over the side. The charred corpse stared upward as it sank into the green water. Chastity waved goodbye to it. Small blue birds wheeled over head. Their beaks snatched the flies out of the air. Our boat lazily followed the current. Ragnar lay unconscious.

I drifted in and out of sleep. The pain in my neck throbbed. Jenna rinsed my wound now and then. I drank river water. There was no food. I looked at Freya. I hoped she was cooking. She lay along the far side of the raft. The side of her chest was caved in. Her breathing was not right. Jenna wrapped a rag around Freya’s chest. Freya didn’t seem to notice. She just moaned. Reese wasn’t much better. He sat propped against the back of the boat. Drexel sat in the front as look out.

“She’s got a fever,” Jenna said. She damped a rag and placed it on Freya’s forehead. The sun went down, and the night was quiet except for Freya’s moans.

The next day past, more birds and insects followed our raft. Our bandages began to stink. I no longer felt hunger, I was just tired and weak. Ragnar’s burns ran green with puss. Freya stopped moaning. Chastity lay next to Reese and rinsed his bandages in the river. I pulled the figure of Kraken from my pocket and prayed. I waited to meet him.

“A boat!” Drexel said.

I raised my head. In the distance, a small, narrow boat ran low in the river. Another appeared behind it. As we approached Jenna called out to them.

“Help us!” she said.

“No, be quiet,” Drexel said. “They could rob us and leave us here to die.” Jenna’s ears fluttered.

“We are dying, Drexel,” she said. “Help us!” she called out. She waved with both arms.