Free The Wanderers of the Water-Realm by Alan Lawton

white like you and perhaps a few others in distant parts … you got plenty questions … you wait until safe on boat.”
Once the travellers had reached the safety of the ‘Bonny Barbara’ they cast off the single mooring and continued their gentle voyage down the Exit River, but now under the directions of their new helper.
“No … danger now,” shouted the old man as he stood quite naked in the bows of the boat and sluiced the filth of his journey from his body with a bucket of river water.
“Hix can’t swim … frightened of deep water so … can’t reach us out here.”
He replaced his loincloth and joined the other crewmembers, who were preparing to dine on bread and cheese in the cockpit of the boat. He refused to share their food and chewed with apparent relish upon a fragment of dried flesh from his pouch.
“The Hix,” Darryl enquired. “Who or what are they?”
“Arr … same race as them pair … we kill back there.” The old man grunted struggled to form his next sentence. “De… de … dea…” He paused and shook his head.
“I speak no Angle for many sun-cycles.” He explained and tried again with greater success.
“Dea … desert dwellers … the Hix … most hate water.” He paused again and washed down the last morsel of dried flesh with a draught of liquid from a small flask drawn from his pouch.
“My name is Thom!” He continued, “Thom Jak’ s! … I be wizard and healer … in valley called … Fruitful Stream … a settlement two darkenings march … from ‘City of Ancient Dead’ … where we kill Hix.”
He pointed towards Darryl and his twin sister. “Hetty … your mother … my mind friend … she ask me to protect and council you … we take this boat to my valley … there you live until you understand ways of Water-Realm.”
He looked at them sharply and touched his hooked nose.
“You much to do … much to learn!”

The ‘Bonny Barbara’continued its voyage down-river and the long abandoned port area was soon left well astern. The craft began passing through what appeared to have been the city’s residential suburbs, for the surviving structures were much smaller and less well preserved, with the vast majority being little more than heaps of debris. The mounds were invariability covered by a low growing red moss, which Thom called ‘Nulla’. He explained that the plant was the commonest form of none-sentient life in this part of the new reality. A fact that became self-evident, once the last remnants of the ‘City of the Ancient Dead’ were left far astern, for the Exit River began passing through a vast rolling plain where every inch of ground space was covered by the all pervading red plant.
The course of the river also became less predictable and the old wizard stationed himself in the bows of the narrowboat in order to give the crew ample warning whenever a rock or shoal-bank hove into view. He also gave the crewmembers adequate warning when it became time to anchor their craft in the middle of a quiet stretch of the river, in preparation for the onset of the inky-black Water-Realm night.
Darkness fell and the newcomers cooked an evening meal of salt beef and dumplings, before preparing to spend the night in the narrowboat’s tiny cabin. However, the old wizard spurned the comforts that the travellers offered to share with him and simply chewed upon another fragment of dried flesh before retiring to sleep upon the open deck.
Darryl stretched out upon his bunk, anxious to gain as much sleep as possible during the Water-Realm night. But sleep eluded him for a good hour and he spent the time pondering upon the responsibilities that were heaped upon his shoulders.
The Water-Realm, he knew, was a dangerous place in which to venture. The brutal clash with the Hix had dispelled any doubts that he might have harboured on that score. He also knew that he would have to exhibit firm leadership if they were to survive the dangers that undoubtedly lay ahead. Yet he was