[Child of the 7th Age]

Things seemed to be settling down a bit. His brother had assisted Marroc in climbing down from the tree and finding his way back to the shore. Falco had also lent a helping hand to Sam, and, possibly for the first time in his life, the young hobbit lad had seemed genuinely grateful. The last to be rescued had been Rory. The young lad had been half drowned, until Bingo had managed to drag him over to the tree stump, and others had come to guide him to the shore. A short distance down the river, Bingo could see that Sondo had caught up with the raft and was trying to push it to the side, out of the way of the strongest current.

Bingo slipped off the tree branch and swam over to the weeds and muds that lined the edge of the shore. The water here was no more than a foot deep. Since this stretch of bank appeared to be both slippery and steep as well as thoroughly riddled with large tree roots, he decided to wade downriver in the shallows, while keeping a close eye for unfriendly snakes. Fortunately, there were no more unpleasant incidents, and, within a short while, he had made it back to the raft where Sondo was waiting.

"Is everyone here?," Bingo queried nervously. "Are the lads alright? Do you think we should unload some of the supplies on shore, and make sure they're not soaked or damaged?" He looked over at Sondo, awaiting his response. But before Sondo could open his mouth, he felt another hand tapping him on the shoulder.