Sailing Away RPG

[Encaitare]

Reggie hurried along the riverbank, scrambling through grasses and mud. He glanced back to see Sondo still holding the raft safe, and scanned his surroundings for any of his companions.

He was angry with that Sam -- not only had he been picking on Bingo, but he had upset their entire raft! If he found that mean hobbit...

A cry broke his thoughts, which was probably for the best. He looked to see Marroc clinging to the branch of a tree, suspended over the water.

"Help!" Marroc called, seeing Reggie on the bank. Reggie wracked his mind but could not think of any way to reach him, hanging above the surface of the water like he was. The call came again, and Reggie began to get scared. What if he couldn't do anything? He began feeling around in his pockets for something that would aid him. Nothing in his front pockets, nothing in his shirt pocket -- aha!

In his back pocket, Reggie's fingers closed around a piece of thin rope. He pulled it out and was dismayed to see that it wasn't particularly long, only a few feet. He thought quickly, and decided that his idea was worth a try.

"Marroc! Get closer to the bank if you can! Move along the branch!"

Marroc looked frightened, and tentatively let one hand go to swing himself a little closer to the trunk.

"That's good, come on," said Reggie, dreading that at any second he would hear a plop, and then Marroc would be out of his aid. But at long last, Marroc was several feet closer.

"The branch is too thick," he called to Reggie. "I can't hold on for much longer..."

"You're going to have to let go," Reggie said, "and then swim towards the bank. Then I'll throw the rope in and you can grab on!" He hoped that Marroc was a decent swimmer...

[Kitanna]

Marroc was clinging for dear life to the branch. Any second he could be swept away. His thoughts went to his family. They would never know. He could die and his family would never know where to look for him. Marroc could not die like that. He had to get to safety.

Reggie was on shore. "Help!" Marroc cried, trying to get Reggie's attention.

The other Hobbit heard Marroc's cry for help and came to his aid. He searched his pockets looking for something, looking for anything that would help him pull Marroc in. Marroc's heart sank when it seemed Reggie had nothing. He was going to have to swim to Reggie.

Reggie pulled a piece of rope from his back pocket. Marroc's spirits rose until he saw just how small the rope was. "Marroc! Get closer to the bank if you can! Move along the branch!"

Marroc started to move slowly along the branch. He let go with his left hand and swung himself close to the trunk. He would not dare let go with both hands. Reggie was on shore shouting encouragement to him. Inch by inch he drew closer to Reggie and the shore, but the closer Marroc got to the trunk the thicker the branch was. He little hands would not be able to hold on much longer.

"The branch is too thick. I can't hold on for much longer..." Marroc dreaded the only solution he could see to this problem. He was going to have to let go and try his luck at swimming.

"You're going to have to let go," Reggie said, confirming Marroc's fear. "and then swim towards the bank. Then I'll throw the rope in and you can grab on!"

Marroc was frozen with fear for a moment. He was no swimmer and the current was so strong. He took a few deep breaths, each time swearing he'd let go and each time failing to do so.

"You can do it, Marroc!" Reggie called. "I won't let you go under."

Marroc stuck in some air and let go of the branch. Marroc went under right away. He kicked furiously and resurfaced. He kept kicking, desperately trying to get within reach of the rope. Reggie cast the rope out and Marroc grabbed hold. Again he went under, but this time Reggie was able to pull him out.

Marroc kicked, Reggie pulled and soon Marroc could feel Reggie pulling him out of the water and onto the shore. He couldn't decide what to do first. Hug Reggie for saving his life or kiss the ground. He grabbed Reggie and gave him the biggest hug he could muster. After letting go he kissed the ground out of joy.

Now that Marroc was safe he had to turn his mind to other things. He had to help Reggie find the other Hobbits and make sure none were hurt.

[Crystal Heart]

Sam didn't understand what in the world had happened. He had gotten up to get some food and now he was in the water. Now he was in the water. He was sure this was all Bingo's fault. His arms swung around as he tried to get back to the raft that was floating down river. Panic and fear clutched his heart as realizations that he was about to die here in the Shire in the river, alone..... He swung his arms even faster in fear.

Memories of his life flashed before his eyes as the water poured into his mouth. He could hear gurgled screams coming from somewhere nearby, but his head wasn't thinking about the fact that it was him who was screaming. Memories of how he had treated his parents, the food he had last eaten, the fight with Bingo, the stupid raft he had agreed to even set foot on, his last steps out his house door, the night with that beautiful hobbit girl... Esmerald. His memories swam swiftly, almost exactly like the river, through his mind as the thought that this was the end full took him.

Sam knew that he did not want to die, that he was far too young to succumb to death. Furthermore, he understood that what he wanted wasn't necessarily what he was going to be granted in this situation. As his arms tried to swim, he felt his feet getting further towards the bottom of the river. His head bobbed up and down. He barely had enough time to breath in between the breaks of water and air. As he was pulled farther down the river a thought struck him, his last thoughts were these and these breaths his last. Never again would he see the green, lush fields of the Shire. Never again would he eat his mother's wonderful food. Never again would he be a young hobbit.

As he floated down the river, he silently prayed a promise to be a better hobbit if someone just saved his life.

[Nurumaiel]

When the raft had tipped Falco had been fortunate enough to be swept immediately to shore. He retained his calm and reason very well, and hurried downstream to be of better assistance to those who were still floating along down.

Falco watched Sam struggling in the water, and he considered that their adventure was not coming off to a very good start. Sam was such a grumpy, disagreeable boy, anyway. But, of course, they couldn't just leave him to drown, even if he was unpleasant. Falco touched one toe in the water. He was wet anyway. Why not? He went a little further in. He must be careful not to be swept away. It never occurred to him that he was doing something rather dangerous, as he didn't know how to swim. What did he care for danger?

He was almost up to his waist now, but fortunately the river was flowing very fast, and he was not swept off. And what of it if he did? It would be an adventure, at the least. He looked upstream. Sam was floating down, flailing his arms helplessly. Falco waded on more step, and put out his hand. "Grab my hand, Sammy!" he called. "And try paddling more towards me, if you can."

Honestly, things hadn't started out well at all. With Sondo as leader, perhaps that could be expected. They'd have mutiny now for sure. No doubt the boys would all be frightened after their escapade and want to go back. And if they went back he, Falco, would be in dreadful trouble for running away. That wasn't right. What if things kept going like this under Sondo's leadership? He would have to speak with him.

But first he had to take care of Sam.

[Crystal Heart]

Salvation appeared to Sam in the form of Falco. He tried to swim as hard as he can and reached out, just barely touching Falco's fingers before being swept away. He pushed through the current, his will for living life becoming stronger. He swam as hard as he could before he finally reached Falco and his hand.

Falco pulled him to where Sam could feel the slightly rocky river bed beneath his feet. He coughed up the water that had proceeded to find a way into his lungs. Falco helped him up onto the shore. Sam fell to a sitting position, his hands upon his head.

The knowledge that he would be able to live yet another day was a reassuring one to say the least. As he gasped and tried to regain some sort of normal breathing pattern he thought about what could have happened. He also thought about how wrong he was for blowing the poking situation out of proportion.

"Thank you, Falco for saving my life. I owe you one," Sam said once he had caught his breath. Falco flashed him a smile. Sam got up shakily and wandered over to Bingo and the others to see if he could help.

[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.

[Crystal Heart]

Sam ventured over to Bingo and placed a hand upon the lad's shoulder.

"Bingo, I owe you an apology. I shouldn't have done that. I owe everyone here an apology. It was all my fault that the raft tipped as it did. We are all fortunate that no one died here, but that does not condone my actions. Again, I apologize to all of you for what I have done," Sam apologized, his head hanging in shame. For the first time in his whole small hobbit life he actually felt regret for what he had done. If Sam didn't know any better his entire outlook on life was changing, but he wasn't about to admit that to anyone no matter what.

Something was stirring in the young hobbit's heart. Something of caring and more kinder qualities. His mother had always told him that he was born with a heart so small that not even it could withstand the love and kindness it was suppose to posses. Sam had agreed and had believed that up until this day. Until this moment he had not really thought about what his life could be like.

Mentally, he shook his thoughts away and silently prayed that his companions in this journey would actually forgive him and that this adventure that he so desperately needed would begin without any further incidents.