Star Wars: The Great Awakening (Book I)

Chapter 19 - Flight of the Atophi

For the first several hours since departing the village, the group walked through the unfamiliar terrain in relative silence. Whether thinking about the coming dangers or possibly what had been left in the village behind them, each member of the group seemed to be doing a bit of self-reflecting. Even the normally talkative V4 was unusually silent during the trek.

The sun was just beginning to rise over the ridge to the east when the group came upon the shore of a winding river which led towards the mountains.

The waters were calm and tranquil as Keszen stopped for a moment to look around the area.

"I know this place," he whispered. "I came here once as a child. Right before..."

Taking off on a brisk pace down the bank of the river, the others followed Keszen as best they could.

After several minutes, they came upon what appeared to be numerous water vessels which appeared to have seen better days.

"There are the water skiffs used by the Maligi of old," said Keszen. "In those days, they were used to raid other tribes. We were warriors, not farmers."

"I say bygones are bygones," replied Zekiel. "Nobody in this group will care that your ancestors stole a few crops. Are these things still useable?"

Keszen held his gaze on Zekiel for a moment before turning back towards the skiffs.

"Some appear to be in working condition," he said. "Each one can hold up to eight so we will only need four. Taking the river will save us a considerable amount of time and energy."

After some time, the group was able to go through the dozens of skiffs in various conditions and gather four that could be used to take the route south via the river.

As the group stepped into their respective skiffs, V4 was the only one who required assistance.

"I only ask that you do not tip over, Master," he replied as Jolis set the droid down in front of him.

Jolis was initially shocked to see that the skiffs didn't take on any water with the weight of eight grown men inside them. Despite their age, it would seem that the Maligi designed and built their structures and vessels to stand the test of time.

As the group of four skiffs continued down the river, it was Keszen up front leading the way. The Moak'ta River—as Keszen called it—stemmed off into various directions and as such, it would be easy for the unversed traveler to get lost.

Fortunately, Keszen knew these waters relatively well as he and his family hunted and fished these lands when he was younger.

"If we follow the river, it will lead us directly to the southern mountains. I am fairly confident I will be able to find the Pass of Suola from there."

Curious, Jolis asked, "What's the Pass of Suola?"

"Many long years ago," Keszen explained, "a young Maligi tribesman named Suola was out exploring these lands and came upon the path not from the river like us, but from above on the mountains. While trying to map the area by hand, he fell and died...or passed. Thus was named the Pass of Suola."

A few chuckles could be heard in the group.

"Let's hope our memories are worthy of at least a song or two," said Zekiel.