I thank the deep for the wonders of technology, a nice bottle of Vatkna and a song-stone is all you need during times like these, the chill night breeze, the sound of water running downstream, the splashes made by the paddles each time the old man rows the small sailing boat, nothing like enjoying the good things in life, like the strong taste of alcohol that makes the increasingly heavier leather bag I’ve been carrying around seem lighter and lighter by the sip; And the powerful voice of the minstrel resounding from the magical phantom echo of the shiny blue gem makes this all the better.

“Enjoying the ride? Not many people need to cross the yellow river these days, my old bones needed the exercise,”

Wasn’t this the red-river? Either way, the old man says this with a full tooth smile (more like half-full given several of his teeth are missing in action and the one’s still hanging there are a bit banged up)

But I won’t speak ill of someone that has offered me great help.

“of course, gramps, likewise not many people were willing to take me this late,”

“Surely not, the children round’ these parts are scared of the river these days,”

“Why is that? There’s shouldn’t be anything dangerous in this region. I don’t think the Belernon would let it live for long if there was,”

“Nah, no wild animals around here. The red ones take care of them all right, as you say; the problem is the rain. Belernon swords may slay a dragon, but they can’t reach the clouds,”

“I’ve been here for a few days and it’s been hot as hell, not a cloud in the sky” I take another sip, the delicious liquid runs down my throat as if I had just taken a shot of melting magma, this man drinks strong stuff for sure.

“Very observant aren’t ya? Yes, it’s been a while since the last drop, but all the kids are either too lazy or too superstitious, they all believe in the ramblings of that old crone, she’s been making a racket, non-stop, for days... supposedly there’s a storm coming, the sky will fall and whatnot, so they don’t take any travelers downstream at night anymore, they don’t want to get caught with their pants down while they can barely see, it’s all an excuse to sit on their asses,”

“Old crone?”

“Yeah, my wife,”

“Hahaha! your wife? And doesn’t she have any objections to you working so late?”

“Yeah, but I stopped paying any mind to her delusions many years ago, sides, nothing better than the chill night breeze and some strong Vatkna for a man; are you married? Kids?

“Two, and three, at least that I know of” I have made a lot of mistakes, big ones, but I’m pretty sure I’ve never gotten anyone pregnant and left.

“Very young then! You must be on a very important job to leave them with their mother while still so young!”

I don’t why I did, but I immediately corrected him, must be the alcohol having an effect on me.

“No no! those are the numbers. The youngest is seven or eight, the girl is ten and the eldest is around twelve,”

The old man looks at me, eyes wide open. The slight judgment I detect irks me a little, but it’s fine. Such a thing won’t hurt me at this point.

“Sorry Sir didn’t know I was talking to a noble,”

I take another sip, probably one too many. The bag is getting a bit too light for my taste. But I need it to keep myself from spilling out.

“No noble here, sorry to disappoint! just a bad husband and a so-so father,”

“Just like the rest of us, then! Hahaha, don’t get all wimpy on me, young one. It doesn’t suit a big man like you. Ever had the two of them at the same time?”

“God no!” I snort. “There’s not a chance of that ever happening. The wall will break before that happens. Besides, the fact that my family survived is already a miracle. As I said, I’m no nobleman,”

“Bah,” He spits in the river, “Such a waste. If I had two wives, maybe one of them wouldn’t have gone crazy!”

“It has its perks, but I wish it would have happened in a different way; By the way, wasn’t this the red river?” I ask, in an attempt to change the subject away from our marital woes.

“aye, them Belernon love to call it that, This is the place where they faced an invading army and stopped it in its tracks” He now changed his posture, rose his shoulders, took his chin up, and put on his best-dignified look in a mocking manner while all the time never stopping his rowing.

Very impressive, it looks like second nature to him, but I guess that after such a long life doing this you no longer think any of it, anything can become mundane once you turn it into a habit.

He coughed to indicate I should pay attention and that his transformation had ended. The old man started to talk like a royal mouthpiece.

“We the blood of the Belernon, the strongest humans in the world, annihilated the invading forces, we spelled their blood on the ground and dyed the water of the river red with their blood, no mortal can stand against us!” He then quickly returned to his normal state “Truth is, they never fought, the army was one of them ash kingdoms, hell, odds are the kingdom they served most likely doesn’t exist anymore, they wanted to invade but once they heard the Belernon army was coming for their asses they pissed themselves and ran off, so we the locals call it the yellow river, no great fight, just a bunch of cowards,”