A lifeless stretch of jungle bordered it.
But was it lifeless!
Something moved among the brush and tree trunks. At first he
thought of the unseen companion. No, this was different.
He watched carefully.
Farther along, more movement! Something, or someone, was
following his boat!
They stayed well back from the shore. Still, from time to time
he saw again the movement, glimpsed once more a stern visage.
He tensed as the current moved him closer still to that shore
and its unknown inhabitants.
The boat ground to a stop, its lower hull lodged on the
shallow bottom.
Demo took a deep breath, using the oar tried to pry the boat
from its anchorage.
A small stream flowed into the river within feet of his
position.
The bushes along the stream were moving! The motion came ever
closer!
He climbed into the water, attempted to free the boat again.
It was to no avail!
He turned to the shore. They stood silently, stoic, watching.
Waiting!
The Sileni!
A distant cousin of the centaurs, with much the same
appearance. Their lower haunches were horselike, while torso and
head were that of man. Their history was dim, their homeland
unknown.
There was no escape! The boat was lodged tightly. He stood,
waded slowly to the shore.
"We rarely see visitors from the outside." This Sileni stood
tall above his companions. "And on the river Meander some come
and go, never to be seen again. What seek you on this river?"
"Ill fate sent me to this stream.
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