Entering Shaema/Mal'rock
As this morning's fog starts to thin, the river slows and spreads. The shores become waterlogged until at one point the boundary between river and land disappears. The Xapuri river is no more.
"We've pretty much arrived." Says Batbayar. "Welcome to Shaema."
Not much to see. Just murky water with rotten plants protruding from its depth and covering the surface. Here and there a skeletal tree rises. javelins nesting on their tops and scanning the water beneath.
The trees become denser and more diverse.
It's not simple anymore to just let the barge float on its own. Batbayar lets Ake take the oar and in a soft and quiet voice directs him where to go.
"Between those two big ones and immediately make a hard right" "Not there, there is a big root just under the surface" "Straight ahead to those leafy ones."
