“There isn’t,” said Strongback.

“There would be,” Walksfar demurred, “if you were to shift that coil of rope back a bit and move that keg of nails.”

“The management of my boat and its cargo is no concern of yours,” Strongback replied. “There is no room to carry you or any of your sort.”

Walksfar was taken aback, and Adam saw in his aura shock and confusion. “Well then,” he said, “perhaps on some other occasion.”

“Perhaps.” Strongback turned away and went down to his boat. His crew untied the lines that held it fast and rowed it out into the stream, headed not straight across to Eltown, but rather up in the direction of the new project.

Cairn was not well formed for speech, but he grumbled out a few sounds to the effect that none of this made the least difference to him, who could not get into any boat anyway without crashing directly through its hull planks and sinking it. He stomped down toward the water’s edge and kept stomping until he had disappeared, leaving on the surface a trail of bubbles, mud, and loose debris that was soon swept away by the current.

Accustomed as they were to Cairn and other such old and wild souls, Adam and Eve found this less remarkable than did the townspeople who watched it happen. Far from being delighted by it, however, those took it amiss and grumbled among themselves as to just how unnatural and wrong it seemed.

Another, newer boat was being loaded nearby, but its owner held up a hand as if to stop Walksfar from even looking at it. “We have all heard of what became of the boat of Feller,” he announced, throwing a dark look at Adam. Which made no sense at all; but in the faces of the people there seemed to be some kind of certainty that because Adam was somehow involved in the story of Feller’s boat, he should never be allowed near a boat again. “The Autochthons,” said Acolyte, “are as big and as strong as you, Adam, and their mounts stronger yet. You are not needed anymore and so it were better for you to stay in Camp and look after the twelve creatures you have spawned and see to it that they do not get up to any mischief.”

At this Adam and Eve were both full of wrath and had to be conducted away from the place by Walksfar and Beast.

Since it seemed they were no longer welcome on boats, the next day Adam and Walksfar struck out northward from Camp, walking parallel to the bank of the river toward a bluff on this, its western bank, whence according to Walksfar they would have a clear view directly across the stream to the hill of the great tree. Along the way they retraced some of the path that Adam had trod on the day that Feller’s boat had been destroyed. Adam spied footprints, which looked fresh. Some of them were uncommonly large, and so it was with little surprise that he and Walksfar came in view of Thunk and his band.