Adventuresome

Chapter 20

"North? And go where?" Another rower asked in disgust. Perrin thought his name was NAME.

Lillianna shrugged, looking clearly uncomfortable with her role as spokesman. "If I remember correctly Litem-Ferro lies almost directly North from the bulk of the marshes. We should be able to get there and reassess."

The four rowers were looking at each other with dark looks on their faces. Perrin glared at them, still not having forgiven them for attempting to murder them the way Lilliana seemed to have.

"It might be better to return to the city." NAME said. "The city is far closer to us than Litem-Ferro. The journey will be less dangerous."

Then, the entire ship shook beneath them and jerked to the starboard side. Perrin managed to stay on her feet, though Lilliana did not. Running to the side of the ship, Perrin leaned over to look at the ground.

"The ship is sinking!" she called over her shoulder. Disgusting looking water was rising, bubbling around the airship. In her wanderings earlier in the morning, the marsh had been nowhere near as deep as it was now. It was an unsettling feeling, and one Perrin would rather avoid by getting off and away from the ship.

The others needed little convincing beyond taking a look for themselves. Climbing off the ship, Perrin landed in water that reached her waist. She gasped at the sudden cold. She tried, and failed, to ignore the horrible, oily, slimy, almost stringy feel the water had. Quickly she pulled Galandat out of its sheath and held it over her head so the blade would avoid the water.

The others followed after, and she cursed her short stature when she noticed none of them had water higher than their knees.

They waded away from the ship. Perrin was in the lead, feeling her way across the weed covered marshland and staying away from water that got any deeper. She frowned, glancing at the sky. She was fairly certain the water levels were driving them Northward. Every time she strayed towards the East and the city, or South or West for that matter, the water deepened considerably.

We're being corralled, I just don't know how.

She wondered if anyone else had noticed yet. Looking over her shoulder, she saw everyone else looked just as uncomfortable as she felt. Though, it was hard to distinguish between discomfort about the marsh water clinging to their legs or the direction the marsh was leading them.

She shook her head. Now she was acting like the marsh was a sentient being.

CRACK.

All six of the humans, and Perrin assumed Dominick as well, turned and looked behind them just in time to see the airship crack apart and collapse into the water of the marsh.

It disappeared in seconds.

"Let's keep moving." Fiona said quietly, and for once no one disagreed.

Ripples of waves from the sunken ship washed over to them, sending shivers down their backs.

Eventually, the water became shallower. And it was with great relief that Perrin shook the water from her pant legs and stood on ground that only wet the bottoms of her shoes.

By this time, everyone had noticed the eery trend of being pushed towards the North. But while everyone had noticed it, no one spoke up against it. They wound their way around the pools and puddles and ponds, still being steadily led North, through to the afternoon.

At that point, they passed a strange patch of the marsh that was startlingly dry and entirely devoid of plants. Several more of these patches began to show up.