32 Slow Going

[Stephen Whiteside]

32 Slow Going

© Stephen Whiteside 15.11.2011

As the sun began to set on the third day, Horatio led Magnifico out of their tunnel. Magnifico found it hard to leave. The tunnel was already beginning to feel like home, and he wasn’t convinced about this whole ‘night travel’ thing anyway. True, he had had a nap during the day, as Horatio had suggested, so that he would not feel so tired as they travelled through the night, but the tunnel felt extremely inviting nonetheless, and he would love to have simply curled up and gone back to sleep. But a deal was a deal.

Horatio, of course, felt the exact opposite. All of his nerve endings seemed to be twitching with excitement and anticipation. He had found it hard staying still in the one spot for so long. He had often stood at the bank of the creek watching the water flash past, and ached to be following it, sharing its mysteries. But a deal was a deal.

And now, of course, the deal had swung back in his favour once again. He started to plan the night - tactics, objectives. It was a very different night to their last period of travel. No full moon this time. Instead, the wane had begun. More important, though, was the dense cloud cover, which hid the moon for most of the time. And it also felt like it might rain soon. It was not going to be easy to see their way through the countless obstacles that barred their way. No matter. The night was the night, and they couldn’t afford to pick and choose. Once they started to find excuses, they would find more and more. Horatio knew that. They needed to be disciplined. Unless they found it utterly impossible, they had to move forward. Inevitably, this would teach them skills, also. Weather that now seemed forbidding would in time present as nothing more than slightly discomforting. Well, that was the theory, anyway.

They now moved through an area that was thickly vegetated. The creek seemed to split up into several smaller water courses, each one partially obscured by dense foliage. Perish the thought, but there was a real chance of getting lost. There was also a real risk of them becoming separated, as they focussed firmly on picking their way through the chaos, and spent less time in noticing where the other was.

In time they came to a standstill. Horatio looked around him. They did not seem to have come very far at all, yet they had been straining and sweating for several hours.

This is too hard.

Magnifico nodded back, puffing hard.

It wouldn’t be so bad if we could see where we’re going, but it’s so dark.

More nodding from Magnifico.

The two puffed away in silence for a while.

Magnifico this time.

We need some sort of craft or vessel. It would be so much easier to travel ON the water rather than BESIDE it.

Brilliant, Magnifico! Absolutely brilliant! Why didn’t I think of that? Now, what could we use?

They quickly ran through a range of options. Leaves, of course, were flat, but they doubted they’d find one strong enough to support them. Sticks are strong and float well, but are too narrow and difficult to balance on. They wondered if they could weave something out of the grass, but it sounded like an awful lot of work, and it probably wouldn’t float anyway.

No. The only thing they could think of that might fit the bill was a broad, thick hunk of bark. Something that might function like a raft. But where to find such a piece? Most of the bark around them was fairly thin, and half rotten from lying so long on the moist ground.

They looked around them. Ideally, they should take some bark that is already on a tree. That way, it would still be dry and strong. There were plenty of trees around them, but reaching these through the dense forest floor was no easy matter. Oh, to be free to fly like a bird! Not for the first time, this thought crossed Horatio’s mind.

It’s all too hard. Let’s sit down and have something to eat, and have a bit of a think.

Good idea, Horatio. Good idea.