Often times Jaax would speak quietly to her, always using Kruelt if the discussions were of a personal matter. He had developed a knack for discerning when she was distressed and to her profound relief, he was able to talk her through the pain and frustration. Jahrra didn’t have the time to marvel at how the brusque Tanaan dragon had gone from being an extreme annoyance to her new foundation of strength but she wasn’t too proud to admit to herself that she was glad of it.
The evenings were hardest, when it was calm and quiet, and Jahrra found herself relishing the daylight hours when the barge was bustling with people working and going about the business of maneuvering around the sandbars and through the rough patches of the Saem. Although the distance from Crie to Lidien wasn’t great, the unique geography and sluggish current of the river made it a lengthy journey. Sometimes when they were experiencing a particularly slow day, Jahrra passed the time by visiting Phrym, tethered securely to a pole in the center of the boat.
“So he don’t try jumpin’ out and makin’ a swim for it,” one of the crew members had said with a wink.
Despite their concern, Phrym seemed quite content munching his oats and watching the landscape drift by just like his master.
As the days passed Jahrra felt her mood, somewhat dismal since leaving Crie, lighten a bit. She spotted several different animals along the banks of the Saem and hurriedly dug her sketchbook out of Phrym’s saddle bags. On many a morning she could be found sitting atop one of the several crates at the rear of the boat, wrapped in her cloak and sketching furiously. The animals on the northern side of the river were especially interesting, mostly being the magical creatures of Felldreim. On a few occasions she was sure she spotted the predators the children of Crie had told her about.
Near the end of their journey Jahrra spent more of her time keeping Jaax company. After all, he was cramped up in that seemingly all too small cabin, forced to keep still as everyone else around him hustled about with the busy work of directing the boat down the great Saem. Jahrra imagined this was the longest he’d ever gone without taking to the sky and this forced immobility had to be wearing down on his nerves.
“Do you think we are close?” she asked as she abandoned her sketching post for the day.
Jaax shifted infinitesimally to get the blood flowing back in his wings and the River Mule rocked slightly, sending a rolling wave to lap at the distant river bank
Jahrra planted her feet and cast him a discerning look. “Remember what the captain said? This boat is barely big enough to keep afloat with you on it.”
“Am I to lose my wings due to a lack of oxygen then?” he asked wryly with a pinch of pent-up exasperation.
Jahrra gave him a pointed look. “I bet the ride would go more smoothly if you didn’t speak. I think the boat just rocked unnecessarily again. And perhaps you should keep your blinking to a minimum as well.”
She briskly walked away with the air of someone on a mission, leaving Jaax to stare after her in stunned silence.
After a while, the dragon grinned. It was a rare occurrence for Jahrra to be in a teasing mood since leaving Oescienne so he merely snorted, saving his retort for another time. It had been a relatively easy journey and Jaax was almost certain it would be a day or two more before they reached Lidien. He could manage his confinement for at least that much longer without going completely mad.
Jaax glanced up and spotted Jahrra standing on the stern of the boat, her hair being gently lifted by the wind. He couldn’t say for sure but he had the wonderful feeling that perhaps the nightmares and horror of what they left behind in Oescienne might finally be receding. Jahrra still had troubles, he knew this all too well for he was the one to offer her an ear when she just needed someone to listen to her. But he also knew that as the days crawled by it took less and less time for her to talk her worries away. Jaax suspected the visit to Crie and Thenya’s gift of the mistletoe bead might be partly to blame.
That, of course, and Jahrra’s own resolve, the same resolve that, no matter what awful things happened to her, she always managed to fight back and recover. Jaax would have to count on this tenacity to help Jahrra in the future because there was no doubt in his mind that she would face even more terror and darkness before this grand journey was through.
Just before dawn, on their eighth day down the river, the barge left the waters of the Saem behind for good. The River Mule, moving sluggishly in waters that had gradually widened and slowed even further, came around a final curve to reveal a great bay.
Jahrra had been snoozing, curled up on one of the crates with a blanket, when the voices of the men working the barge woke her. She rubbed her eyes, stretched and nearly gasped aloud when she caught sight of the change in scenery. Lidien, the City of Light, towered above her in a terrace pattern up the many hillsides surrounding the massive inlet. Even before the morning sunlight could touch it, Jahrra noted its beauty. It was a massive city, far bigger than Lensterans or Kiniahn Kroi, its many buildings perched upon the hills like well-placed chess pieces, dominating the northern side of the great bay in a labyrinth of stonework.
The pale rose, peach and lemon colored structures gleamed and glittered like thousands of beacons, their cheery colors painted in the richer tones of the approaching sunrise. Green patches dotted with color indicated several gardens, while narrow ribbons of white portrayed the neat roads that crisscrossed the city like veins in a leaf. The houses climbed up the vertical landscape in a beautifully chaotic staircase and Jahrra was sure she was taking part in a waking dream.
A few shouted orders were issued and Jahrra found herself scrambling to get out of the way. The River Mule rocked and the crew started the work of bringing it into port. As the large vessel maneuvered its way towards one of several docks in the distance, Jahrra tried to calm her heart as she let her eyes take in the wonder that surrounded her once again. The bay itself was enormous, almost like a small sea. Ships and boats of every size and design were scattered about like bobbing ducks, eager to start the busy day.
Jaax lifted his head from his hiding place in the center of the boat.
“Breathtaking, isn’t it? Outside of Oescienne it’s the most beautiful sight in all of the western part of Ethoes,” he said quietly, nodding to the grand cityscape spreading out before and above them.
Jahrra started but turned and gave him an enchanted glance. She simply nodded her head and returned her attention to the scene before her; the sprawling city, the water of the bay reflecting its image in shards of pinks and golds. The seabirds glided overhead, cackling and calling to one another as a cold salty breeze brushed against her skin. Shouts and whistles poured from other barges and boats, their crews posturing in mock outrage as open places along docks were snatched up or vacated before one last crate was loaded.
Finally deciding she was well enough out of the way of their own crew, Jahrra took a seat atop a pile of tarp covered boxes and pressed her back against a thick rope trailing from the roof of Jaax’s shed. Not for the first time, Jahrra wondered what her life would be like in the city of Lidien and how long she and Jaax would stay. She had fought coming here, what seemed like a very long time ago, wanting to stay in Oescienne to care for Hroombra and enjoy life with her friends. But Hroombra wasn’t here anymore and she wasn’t the simple Nesnan she thought she was. For so long Lidien had been a dream, a legendary place that, in her mind, didn’t really exist. But here they were, finally at its feet and it felt as real as any place she had ever been.