Outside the city of Canalis, golden cornfields stretched as far as the eye could see. It was only interrupted by splotches of cattle farms and flocks of chickens being chased by passionate Draconians. The canal they were in, was large enough for three ships to travel side-by-side. Occasionally they would pass a smaller canal that led to the outer farms.
All in all, it was quite different for the otherworlders to travel inland by ship and not with horses. They did not complain though. Saddle sore was non-existent when you weren’t on a saddle. After half a day of travel, a town came into view. Wooden houses dominated it and a single stone structure stood next to the canal. It was the patrol station.
As they passed through the town, children ran alongside them and playfully shouted. Men and women went about their daily tasks and would occasionally wave at their passing.
“What's the name of this town?” Luke asked as he waved at a child with a grin.
“It’s called First stop,” said Winston from the cockpit.
“Why first stop?” asked Aleks with a frown.
“ ‘Cause, it’s the first stop after leaving Canalis.” Winston dryly said.
Aleks and Luke turned to look at him, their eyebrows raised.
Winston shrugged. “It wasn’t me who named it.”
They passed the town. A long straight canal was before them as they motored through the water, Aleks walked to Winston and leaned against the cockpit.
“Who built these canals?” he asked.
Winston sighed. He looked at Phillip for support but he disappeared below deck.
“Alright kiddo, I’ll tell you. But I’m gonna keep it short.”
“Fine by me,” Aleks replied.
The rest of the non-native crew huddled up as Winston began. A few thousand years ago a great kingdom ruled over most of this land. It tamed the wildlands and built towns and cities for its ever-expanding population. The king at that time was a wise man and had a vision for the future. He invested in the infrastructure of his kingdom and began with the canal project. The project outlasted him as it went on for more than two hundred years. If you had a ship, you could go anywhere on this land.
“You said there was a kingdom. What happened to it?” Horus asked.
“Ah, calamity had befallen it,” Winston said sagely.
The kingdom’s capital, Chrysos, was built against a mountain in the far North. It had roofs of gold and floors of silver. Trade happened day and night and gold continued to flow through it like the mightiest river. It was on one fateful day when an explorer stumbled upon a cave in the mountain. Inside, he found the resting place of the dragons. The dragons were enraged as their slumber was interrupted and killed the poor explorer. Alas, if it only ended there. One of the dragons, Periergos the curious one, left the cave and saw the glittering city.
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“If you ever see a dragon flying in the distance, cover up any gold or silver and if you can, dump it into the water. For a dragon’s greed is mighty and can smell the glint of it.” Winston said with a shudder.
Periergos called their brethren. Together, they ransacked the great capitol. They ruined the city and annexed all the glittering objects.
“What did the dragons do next?” Aleks asked with wide eyes.
“They lost quite a few of their kin. The capital was not without its defences. To recover from their injuries and loss, they went back to sleep in their nest. Only that time, with gold and silver, added to their hoard.”
“That’s good. I am not keen to see a dragon.”Ikaros laughed.
Winston smirked. “Do not speak so fast, human. Only some of them went to sleep. The rest still roam the sky to this day.” he paused and licked his lips, relishing the pale face of Ikaros, “At least they do not come so far South. They prefer the North.”
A collective sound of sighs sounded out. The farmlands began to fade away as they travelled further from First Stop. Trees became more apparent as the sun dipped and turned the sky violet with its action. They continued for another hour before the last lights of the day disappeared.
“We’ll anchor here for the night,” Winston announced. They had stopped near a forest.
“Is it safe?” Luke asked.
“Safe as can be. The predators around here do not come close to the canals because of how busy it is.” Phillip said as he reappeared from below the deck.
“That’s a relief,” Luke said as his taut shoulders relaxed.
With the moon as their light, they ate a cold dinner and retired below deck to get some shut-eye. Aleks’ small bed was the closest to the hatch leading to the door. During the night they woke up often as they heard sounds of animals fighting for territory. The light of dawn appeared when they heard deep thuds approaching them. The ship became an ant’s nest as everyone scrambled off their beds and secured weapons. Aleks was the first outside and the first to see the cause of the thumping.
A titanic gorilla carrying its baby was running along the side of the canal, in their direction. It was almost two meters tall, running with bite and claw wounds all over its body. Blood flowed freely from its body, leaving an easy track to follow for its pursuers. Two leopards were chasing it. Their spots blurred as they neared the gorilla. One of them leapt at the gorilla. The gorilla saw it from the corner of its eye and smacked the leopard out of the way. It hit the ground, momentarily stunned and then followed again.
The gorilla can easily kill the leopards, but if it leaves the baby, then they will kill it with its speed. It also can’t put it on her back because they would just pluck it right off.
Aleks gripped his spear as he watched the fight. The love of a mother transcends the fear of death. His foot edged to the side of the ship.
The uninjured leopard lunged at the ankle of the gorilla and bit deeply. The gorilla cried out in pain as it fell, letting go of the baby gorilla. It rolled a few times before stopping a few meters away from the ship. The fallen gorilla looked at its baby with sadness as it knew what was going to happen. It looked up and made eye contact with Aleks. Its eyes pleaded, begged. The other leopard ran from the side and left the gorilla as it made its way to the baby. Mere moments away from its teeth ending the small gorilla, a spear burst through its side. The leopard cried out as Aleks yanked the spear out of it. He finished it off with his spear entering its head. The dying gorilla looked at Aleks and understand flashed between them as he stood protectively over the baby.
The last leopard left its downed prey and stalked the new threat. It stopped as Aleks was joined by his comrades. It gave the baby gorilla one last look before it wisely retreated.
“I understand why you did it, but now what?” Luke asked him as he put his hand on his shoulder.
“Later. First, let the mother have its last moments.” Aleks replied somberly.
He picked up the baby and walked to its mother. Carefully, he handed it over. The mother breathed heavily. Her mighty chest moved up and down as blood gushed out of a deep wound in its side. She held her baby for one last time. Her mouth was in the form of a smile when the light in her eyes disappeared. The baby belched softly as it patted its mother.
“Now what?” Luke asked again.
Aleks watched the baby as it patted its mother.
“We take it with us,” Aleks replied.
Luke groaned. “You’re gonna be cleaning its poop. Just saying.”
“The gorilla is a smart animal. It will understand us early in its life if you teach it well.” Winston said.
The baby patted its mother one last time. It turned around and looked at Aleks. Shakily it stood up and crawled to him. Aleks reached down and picked it up.
“Seems like this one is male,” Horus said. “What are you going to call him?”
“He is a small fella.” Ikaros thoughtfully said.
“How about Tiny,” Aleks said with a smile.
“He is tiny. Seems fitting.” Winston laughed.
Tiny fell asleep in his arms as they walked back to the waiting ship. Once onboard, they ate breakfast and reeled in the anchor.
“It’s still five more days of travel before we get to the city of Arena.” Winston loudly said. “We’ll have to get a move on.”
Sounds of ‘Aye’ came from the men as they readied the ship. Steam jutted out and they cut through the water once again. Tiny looked around with curious but tired eyes before falling asleep again.