Present Day
The End Approaches
"Waayyyy up!" Christopher heard the captain call out, which triggered immediate action from his crew as the oars came out of the water. "All down!" the captain commanded, and the oars slapped the water with a mighty clap. "All hold!" The forty oars rotated into the water and dragged the mighty barge to a halt. Eight of the oarsmen climbed up to the deck, where the parties were gathered. Two oarsmen picked up the heavy stone and brought it to the foot of the stretcher upon which the Chair lay peacefully.
They placed the stone between his feet and tied the rope securely around both ankles. The other end of the rope was permanently and securely tied to the stone. But today, the rope had barely been attached with a basic slipknot, which had been performed and double-checked by Bobby just minutes earlier. I need only pull the loose end to release the rope, Christopher drilled into his mind, just as we rehearsed so many times. He remained calm and confident, knowing that he was safe in Bobby's and Jacob's hands. What wonderful men I have around me.
The captain had climbed down from his perch above and was now wearing a large ceremonial robe. "In the name of the good people of Eden, I now give you over to the Great Lake so that you may return to the earth from which you came."
The eight oarsmen picked up the stretcher, four on each side, and walked to the bow of the boat, which was the point at which Christopher would be released to slide into the frigid lake. The oarsmen stood silently, facing straight ahead, awaiting the final command sequence.
YOU ARE READING
Running Boys - Complete
Science FictionThis is the original form of the book. It weaves together books 1 and 2. I later separated them by time period to make each individual book a little shorter. But personally, I meant for the stories to be told in parallel. I think it adds a lot to th...
