Solo Riverfall farewell

[Taren Coballon]

53rd Summer 518

Taren had just finished stowing his snare into his pack. He had come out to the Sea of Grass to pick it up before he left Riverfall so he could take it to Syka with him. The run here went much smoother and more comfortable in his new boots and gear so he had kept a nice slow but even jog up for a couple of bells by focusing on his breathing in and out. His muscles ached slightly but that was as expected considering the distance he had gone today. His injured had healed nicely over the last week as well so on his way out he made sure to run on as many game trails and dry spots as he could to mask his trail. His last campsite was already overtaken by nature as he had hoped, that pleased him.

The tall Akalak strode over the Sea of Grass with ease today while his sword and lakan were in their usual position on his hips, he now carried a spear in his hand, his pack was on his back, and he wore his new boots and leather pants as protection from the Sea. He was taking a longer route back to RIverfall to clear his head and hope the exercise would help him find sleep which had been eluding him the last week or two. Yesterday he had made arrangements to sell his house and would be leave that in the morning, the ship he had found to take him to Syka docked this morning and was unloading and then loading cargo now and he expected to leave Riverfall within a day or two at the most, while his meager possessions were almost packed and ready to go. The last bit he could throw together in a moments notice when the ship called for him. His plans had come together nicely as he had hoped. He waited only for the ship to be ready now.

Off to the right he found a yucca plant, he started over to check it out. On the plant was a couple of fruit and a few flowers that he immediately picked and he stowed the flowers in his pack for later. The fruit he decided that he would eat now, this was a rare find. He walked on a small trail that headed in the correct direction as he ate the fruit although it turned out to be a little over ripe but still tasted good. The smaller one felt too soft after all so he tossed it aside for any animal that may want it. The wind picked up slightly and the grass started to rustle as it swayed in the breeze.

Taren started to think about his journey and the hardships it may bring to him. The physical hardships were not his biggest concerns as he figured that would work itself out. Even though he had limited skills he hoped he could find at least temporary work until he could learn new or helpful abilities. Sleeping on the ground never bothered him nor lack of food. If all else failed he hoped he might be able to hunt for his food.

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[Taren Coballon]

What really bothered him was the other hardships, he had always been around his own kind before and for most of his years he shunned most contact with other races and outsiders of Riverfall. Where ever he might end up would be foreign to him and he would be required to adapt. He had already started to use common instead of his native tongue of Tukant at every chance as he expected that it might be needed quickly enough. He also realized he would have to socialize with the younger races as well which was a thought he wasn’t encouraged by. Many of these races had such short lifespans that they passed before you had a chance to know them and he had lost several such childhood friends already. Some of the races would consider his age as old, but he still considered himself to be in his prime for an Akalak regardless of what any others might say.

”Like we have that many Akalak friends either” he thinks to himself. Taren also had noticed the fight and sarcasm from his dark side wasn’t nearly as bad lately and he was just plain quite which bothered him immensely as it was very uncharacteristic of him..

Which was also true, he had become a bit of a loner while raising his son needs and as his son had grown, Taren had not changed that much. He had not made friends easily since before his son’s birth, partly because family had always been very important to him even when compared against others of his kind. This was another reason why leaving Riverfall was so hard for him and these were all things about himself that he expected would need to change along with many more that he couldn’t predict just yet.

He picked up his pace into his jog again as he thought of his journey. He also noticed that the breeze was picking up a slight coolness and moisture to it so it must of rained nearby or would be soon enough and he did not want to be caught unaware by it again.

Soon enough Riverfall started to come into view, a beautiful city with majestic buildings sitting on top of the cliff nestled around the falls, especially when the sun was starting to dip behind it like it was at that moment. He made his way to the gates and was quickly waved through by the guards as he paused to take another last view of the Sea of Grass, not knowing when the next time he may see it. He noted many things about Riverfall, sounds, smells, and sights to memory just in case as he had become aware at how precious these memories were to him. .

Yesterday he had visited with his family and friends for most of the day to say farewell to them, a chore he had never expected on doing but it was nice to see and talk with them for a change so now he could leave when the ship was available without hindrance from goodbyes.

As Taren rounded the corner to his house, he noticed a young lad standing outside of it whom seemed to be rather unhappy looking. As Taren approached the boy and his house, the lad starts talking to Taren.


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Thanks to Gossamer for the boxcode

[Taren Coballon]

“You, Taren? Looking for transport by ship?” The boy asked hurriedly.

Taren responded with a simple “Yes”.

“I’m to tell you that the ship leaves in 3 bells whether you are on it or not.” said the boys as he runs off in the direction of the docks.

“I’ll be there……” Taren started to say but the lad was out of earshot before he could finish.

Taren stopped to think for a few minutes, going down his mental list of things that needed to be done.With the mental list ordered, he packed and grabbed his belongings before heading for the docks himself. On the way he stopped and finished the last bit with selling his house so all was set except meeting the boat and he still had a couple of bells before he needed to be there. He decided one last walk past the falls would still leave him plenty of time before he needed to board the ship.

Taren walked up the dock and onboard the ship with a wave at the Captain. As he noticed the sailors were still loading the last of the crates of goods onto the ship, he quickly stowed his gear in a corner and headed back to the dock as one of the crew shouted not to leave at him from somewhere above. Taren rarely followed all the accepted norms in society and often was admonished for it but rarely had any real trouble come out of it. As he dodged sailors and crates coming on he made his way back out and grabbed some of the crates himself and carried them up onto the top deck where he set them down and returned for another armful which he repeated with the sailors until the supplies were loaded and eventually he received a little ribbing for only taken them onto the deck and not into the hold like the others. Taren found the ship to be a little small and it seemed to suffocate him slightly so he planned on most of the trip being above deck, not to mention the fact that his large frame had trouble fitting through the small ship doors.

Once the supplies were onboard, Taren busied himself away from the crew to not interrupt their work. The crew worked together easily and shortly they were ready to get underway and as the mooring lines to the dock were tossed back onto the deck, Taren walked back to the aft of the ship so he could get a last look at RIverfall. Taren watched as Riverfall started to slip away until he noticed his son, father, and grandfather watching the ship depart. He gave them a crisp wave before they and the city slipped out of sight. The sight of the waterfall lasted slightly longer before it was swallowed up by the cliff and all of Riverfall was gone.

“Goodbye Riverfall and farewell my friends” Taren said to himself quietly. ”IS this what we really want?” was his only response from within as both of him felt a sadness descend on their mood.

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Thanks to Gossamer for the boxcode

[Taren Coballon]

Taren still stood on the back of the ship, he had watched the water from the Bluevein, slightly muddy in the harbor until that gave way to the blue coastal waters and then eventually into the blue green of the Sea while the salt spray coming off the hull assaulted his nose. The sounds of the falls slowly gave way to the cries of the gulls above them and now the only sound was the splashing against the bow of the ship. The rocking of the ship in the water caused him to turn green for a while but he was slowly recuperating from that and the motion was becoming quite calming once they sailed far enough away from land. Taren found the sailors to be quite comfortable to be around, they didn’t ask too many questions of him, nor did they expect anything from him, and they didn’t exclude the Akalak from their raucous behavior. This was a stark difference from the city of Riverfall and he surprised himself that he wasn’t offended by it but more encouraged by it than anything.

The ship and crew carried on for some time as they set sails and prepared for the voyage regardless of the shortness of this trip. The sailors taught him how to stand and ride the waves by angling into the waves and let the legs absorb the motion of the ship while watching the skyline and not the waves. In no time at all he developed his sea legs and the sea sickness passed quickly then. Taren lended a hand when and where he could, hoist this sail, carry these to the forecastle, take this aft, and so on. He had found years ago that with his height and physique everyone seemed to ask him to do the tall and heavy jobs which he rarely minded as it kept him busy and today he learned a bit of what it took to sail a ship. It also gave him something to think about besides Riverfall, his family and friends, and his new found dislike of confined spaces which this ship seemed to foster in him. The physical difficulties of crawling through the doors aside, no air seemed to move anywhere below and that caused him trouble breathing down there.

As they sailed west, Taren felt a growing of anxiety and exhilaration regardless of the confinement. It seemed to start growing within a few bells of the voyage start and had been growing larger ever since. Shivers seemed to run up and down his spine at regular intervals while the breeze blowing across the deck was actually quite warm. As Leth started to rise, he knew that he could not sleep right now and expected sleep to elude him the entire night so he sat topside to watch the stars shine brightly above him and to imagine the depths below him. While wondering what might be below them, he began to meditate in the darkness as the ship’s bow sliced gently through the waves and bringing him closer to his next destination.

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