Waterborne (Wanderlust 3)

Chapter Thirty-Nine

Days blended into each other along the river.

They were wandering their way through the mountains, and the river meandered this way and that. It cut through narrow canyons and widened in yawning valleys. The jungle around them shifted subtly, the types of plants and birds changing along with it. The current was with them, and the weather stayed warm.

They took turns paddling. At night, they made camps and foraged for food. Kuiavadox knew what they could eat, and more than once tossed away something Tanden or Jale had found.

To occupy his mind, Tanden focused on Xalish. The more he learned, the more it sounded like Alvarian. The words weren't similar, but the way the language worked was. Jale picked up bits and pieces, the important words. Slowly, communicating with Kuiavadox became easier.

He couldn't have guessed how many days had passed when they came across a waterfall. The dull roar had been audible most of the afternoon. Kuiavadox was steering, and he turned the boat towards a rocky section of shore.

Tanden, in the front, glanced over his shoulder. They had an easier time talking if they were looking at each other. "Walk?" he said in Xalish.

Kuiavadox nodded. He took a moment to swing his paddle over his head, imitating the way Tanden had seen the men pick up the boats before.

Tanden frowned. "You? Me?"

"Me," Kuiavadox replied, although he didn't look entirely sure. Tanden would have asked more, but the young man's attention was on the shoreline, and Tanden had to turn around to help paddle.

When they reached the rocks, they fell into the familiar routine of climbing out and pulling the boat out of the water. Then came the difficult part. There were far too many packs.

Tanden groaned. "We'll need to make more than one trip," he said in Tallenese.

"Or..." Jale shrugged one shoulder. "Leave some of it behind. That's the least of our concerns, Tanden. Look around. There's no trail here."

She was right. The jungle around them was dense. No maintained path or little hut like there had been on the other river. Clearly, Kuiavadox's people didn't travel this far. "But, that shouldn't be too—"

"The boat is the problem," Jale said. "All right... tell him I'm going to reorganize everything. I might be able to repack."

Tanden turned to Kuiavadox. Useless words flittered through his head until he settled on some that could make sense. "Jale clean..." he waved at the pile of boxes and bags in the middle of the boat. "Good walk."

There was always a delay as they tried to decode what the other had said. After a moment, Kuiavadox nodded. "Me," he said a word and pointed at his eyes, so Tanden assumed it mean something like 'look'. Then he pointed towards the waterfall.

"Yes," Tanden agreed.

Kuiavadox began to head towards the waterfall, carefully walking on the slick rocks. Tanden crouched to help Jale. They picked through everything, doing what they could to condense what actually needed to be carried. When Kuiavadox returned, they had actually made good progress.

Kuiavadox helped Jale and Tanden load up as much of their gear as possible. He slung a single bag over his shoulder before leaning over the boat and swinging it up over his head. Tanden watched, trying to learn the technique as Kuiavadox adjusted the way the boat was balanced on his shoulders. When he seemed ready, Tanden spoke in Tallenese.

"Jale, you go first. I'll stay behind him."

She nodded curtly. With the sword-like weapon in one hand, she began the trek into the jungle. Tanden waved for Kuiavadox to follow her, then look up the rear.