Thread: Life's Journey (The_Gladiator & darkangel76)

This was not the first time Taurean had been in a boat, judging by the deft way he handled the slim craft. It was also evident that this wasnt the first time he had been down this particular stretch of water either, for even without much vision he seemed to know where they were. In truth the half-elf could see their progress in his mind. Although he didnt, he could almost close his eyes and guide them entirely by feel, this is how much he was relying on his memories of this route. In his mind, Taurean could see the rivers path. He could see the gentle rise and fall of the banks rising up, beginning to loom like craggy gnarled old soldiers glaring down at them. The banks were changing from the soft mud to stone the water became narrower and deeper here, running fast and roughly. Spray began to buffet the sides of the craft and Taurean was glad that Rhonwhyn could not see the jagged rocks surrounding them like snaggleteeth of some great underwater river monster. He suspected if she could, the fragile-hearted lass would be gripping his thigh even harder than she already was. Brandon could feel her taunt as a bowstring, fairly thrumming with her tension. He could feel the slight tremors of fear mixed in an almost debilitating combination with shivers of cold. Taurean took a deep breath steadying himself, forcing his own heart rate to remain even and slow. He could not afford to let her tension bleed into him infect him with her fear and uncertainty. He also could not let his emotions show, for if she thought he was nervous about what lay before them, it would only make her tension ratchet out of control spiraling presumably towards panic. The truth was, Taurean knew what lay ahead, and as much as he hadnt wanted a fight with Shyra Lath, he wasnt sure that what lay ahead was much better. The boat jostled and rocked as they skimmed and scraped against rocks. This path was treacherous in daylight, only a fool or a desperate man would choose to navigate the troll rapids at night. In that moment Taurean questioned himself, he knew they were desperate, but, he wasnt sure if he wasnt a fool as well. He hoped his deft movements, their mostly silent progress would keep the deadly trolls from spotting them, smelling them, whatever it was that attracted trolls to pray. He knew he should warn her they faced, but he knew she would panic for sure, and he doubted she would remain quiet. He knew if they made it through the troll rapids unscathed, they would face a waterfall. They were not close enough to hear the falls yet, but he could see them in his mind, as beautiful as they were potentially deadly. His breath brushed against her ear as he barely breathed the sound just barely audible over the splashing rush of the water. Between your feet there is a broken oar shaft, that can be used as a club. Take it and hit anything that tries to come into this boat. You and I are the only ones welcome in this boat, anything else is to be treated as a threat. Rest assured if something tries to crawl in this boat, it is a threat. And before you ask no, a sword wont help, in fact it will just make things worse. River trolls were as nasty as any variety. Like all trolls they regenerated missing body parts, and even the severed hands and arms could grow a new troll. So in fact a bladed weapon could in fact make things way worse. Blunt edged weapons were somewhat affective. Fire was the only thing the trolls feared, but here on the open water there werent a lot of options for flames, so Taurean didnt even suggest it. He ran through his options, through his equipment, there were some possibilities in his arsenal, but he had to paddle, so for the moment, he would hope she was not as frail as she looked and could defend them if it became necessary.