Chapter 27: Departure

We have a long way to travel by river to reach the location of hibernation chamber shown on the map in Atene. The two boats that Mikaere acquired for our expedition are narrow and well made. Each boat can seat up to six adults sat behind each other in a line, with a space for supplies at either end of the boat. The elven builders call them wakawakas, but I’ve never heard of the term before. The village elves also build us a cleverly designed backpack made of reeds that can hold Rawiri while we travel. It can be carried on one of our backs with Rawiri inside, with the added benefit that it floats in case we all end up in the water.

We divide our party between the two wakawakas. Cassandra, Ihapera, Defina35, Rawiri and I are in one wakawaka while Mikaere, Hone, Ikaroa and Makareta take the other. Our initial attempts at paddling and steering the wakawakas in the direction we wish to go are pathetic. Seeing our plight, the local village elders offer us two adolescent elves to join us as far as another elven settlement further down the river. Whina and Emere are both female adolescents who must be close to reaching adulthood. With many more females than males among their adolescents, the village elders have instructed Whina and Emere to travel to another village to find mates. Neither Whina and Emere seem particularly keen on the idea, but they’re effectively being banished from their home village.

Fortunately both Whina and Emere are skilled in manoeuvring the wakawakas, and they soon teach the rest of us the basics we need to know. We set off on our journey the next day. Whina travels in our wakawaka, while Emere joins Mikaere’s wakawaka.

The first two days of travel are easy. The river is wide and the current sluggish, presenting us with few challenges to navigation. We pass several elven traders on the river and see numerous signs of elven occupation along the banks. Towards the end of the second day we reach an elven village slightly larger than the one we left. This is supposed to be Whina’s and Emere’s destination. However they are reluctant to leave us. I can’t blame them after witnessing the frosty reception they receive from the village elders when they explain the reason for their arrival.

“Take us with you,” pleads Whina. “You need experienced crew to venture into unknown waters. What if you need to repair a wakawaka in the wild? We know how. You can drop us off here on the return journey if you like.”

“Won’t the village elders object?” I ask.

“Unlikely,” says Ihapera. “Every village has more female adolescents than they want. By the time we return it’s possible that Whina and Emere will have matured into adults. They may receive a warmer reception if they are adults who have proved themselves by exploring unknown territory.”

After consulting with the others, our party increases to ten ... eleven, if we count Rawiri. Mikaere was the only one reluctant to accept Whina and Emere into our group. I’m unsure why he objects to their inclusion, unless he is reverting to his misogynist view that exploring unknown territory is a task for males alone. Mikaere is still an enigma to me.

We top up our supplies to allow for the enlarged group, and set off downstream early the next morning. So far the weather has remained fine, and the gentle river keeps to a westerly direction. The map I copied from the one in Atene shows the river turning on a more southerly course as is passes between some low hills. A few days later we can see those hills ahead of us.

“We must have passed out of elven territory,” says Defina35. “I haven’t seen any traces of elven habitation since the day before yesterday.”

The fields and small settlements that dotted the river banks upstream are noticeably absent where we are. The forest becomes denser and the trees overhang the river as we get nearer to the hills.

“The river is narrowing and the current is getting stronger,” says Whina a short while later. “If the current gets much stronger, we may have difficulty moving against the current on the return journey.”

“Are you suggesting that we abandon our venture?” I ask, realising Whina has raised a genuine concern.

“No,” she replies. “But we should allow for a slower return journey.”

By early afternoon we are travelling with the hills dominating the terrain either side of us. The river starts to twist and turn, but fortunately remains reasonably wide and the current manageable. Whina takes the forward position in our wakawaka so that she can navigate us around shoals and other obstacles. The river has cut deep into the banks on either side, making it difficult to find places to stop and rest. The numerous large animal tracks in the mud whenever we find a place where we could put ashore makes us think twice about doing so. In the end we settle for taking turns to rest in our seat while the other four continue to paddle.

Mikaere takes it upon himself to find a safe place for us to stop for the night. He has far more experience at assessing the risks posed by the wild animals of the forests around us. The elves natural body odour acts as a deterrent against animal attack. However, the elves’ odour is a volatile defensive barrier, and hungry predators have been known to overcome their revulsion of it. Of course, Cassandra, Rawiri and I, being Thurnian, don’t possess any such natural defence.

An hour or so later, our journey is brought to an abrupt halt. The river ahead flows through a narrow gorge strewn with boulders and rapids. Mikaere signals that we should pull over to the left shore and beach the boats on a shoal jutting out from the bank.

“You’ll need to camp here tonight while Hone and I explore ahead,” says Mikaere. “We may need to abandon the boats and continue overland.”

“The wakawakas are light enough to be carried,” says Emere, countering Mikaere’s comment. “We might need to make several trips to transport everything, though.”

I understand Mikaere’s concern. The rocky terrain and dense undergrowth through the gorge will make overland travel difficult enough without porting wakawakas and supplies as well. However, we agreed back in Atene that travelling by river was the best choice. If we can carry the wakawakas to safer water ahead, then I think we should try. Fortunately, nobody suggests turning back, so we make camp while Mikaere and Hone look for a way through the gorge.