They reached Alkantay as the temperature began to dip towards evening. Owen was so tired he could barely think. His muscles complained loudly. The physical challenge had kept him from dwelling too much on the previous day, but he also could feel himself starting to lose coordination as his exhaustion rose. He was deeply grateful when Kaz slowed to a relaxed walk as the dirt underfoot turned to cobblestones.  There were people around them now, moving in a loose stream of footsteps and voices and the occasional clop of a llama’s hooves. 

“We’ll only draw attention to ourselves by moving quickly,” Kaz explained in a nervous whisper. 

Owen didn’t care about the reason. He was just glad at the change of pace. 

“So what’s next?” he asked. “Are we looking for a guide?”

“A guide?” said Kaz. “No, a boat.”

Owen stopped in his tracks. “What?” Had she said anything about a boat before?

Kaz had stopped walking too. “I said we’re looking for a boat. How did you think we were going to get to the sacred mountain?”

“On foot,” admitted Owen. “I thought we were getting supplies and finding a guide.”

“But that would take months!” said Kaz. “It’ll only be a week or two by boat.”

A week or two. On a boat?! It was hard enough for him to navigate on land. 

Someone ran into him, almost knocking him over. 

“Keep moving or get out of the road!” said a cross voice, and the person moved on.

“Come on, let’s go,” said Kaz. 

Reluctantly, Owen started walking again.

“I don’t know about this,” he said. “I mean, I get that it’s faster, but-”

“But what? Look, do you want to help me or not?”

“Well yes, but-”

“But what?!” Kaz’s frustration was clearly rising. After several of the most intense days in his life, Owen’s temper was hardly steady. 

“But me? On a boat? Kaz, it’s hard enough staying upright when the floor isn’t moving.” 

“You’ll figure it out,” said Kaz, in what she clearly thought was an encouraging tone. It sounded to Owen dismissive and a little condescending. 

“It’s not that simple,” he argued. “I can hardly help you if I can’t even walk.” 

“Owen,” she countered, “How many things have you done in the last two days that you’ve never done before?” 

She had a point, though the descent had been the most difficult thing he had ever attempted physically. And he still didn’t want to think about what else he had done. 

“I guess,” said Owen, grudgingly, before voicing something that had been nagging at him increasingly all day.  “But Kaz, what if I’m just slowing you down?”

Kaz grabbed his shoulders and pulled him sideways out of the thoroughfare. He could feel the solidity of a wall to one side. 

“Owen, we both know that the elements said you should come. And until I learn to control my power you’re the only one who can stop it. Besides, once we’re on the boat, there won’t be any need to keep up, since it’s the boat that’ll be covering the distance.”

Owen gave a weak smile. “I guess that’s a good point. Alright. I still don’t like it, but I suppose I’m willing to try a boat.”

“Thank you, Owen,” she said, squeezing his shoulder. She started off again, and Owen followed, wondering how many other unexpected challenges he was likely to meet before the day’s end. 

He half-listened as Kaz explained that she was following channels set into the center of the cobblestone streets. The channels, designed to catch rainwater, would lead to the river. 

Owen was more interested in their surroundings. The sounds of the city ebbed and flowed around them. People passing spoke in a number of tones and volumes. Animals brayed and squawked, clopped and bleated. He heard chanting and smelled incense, followed by a riot of noise and scent that must have been a marketplace. What other space could hold so many people and such a variety of smells? When he went anywhere with his family, even if it was just the village market, they always described things to him. If he hadn’t been so tired, if Kaz hadn’t been leading so determinedly, he would have asked to stop and explore, and maybe even for her to describe the scene. He wondered if Mattias’s rumor was already circulating, out in that miasma of voices and bodies.

As it was, he asked Kaz if they needed to stop and pick up supplies, but she said that the boat would have everything they needed. And she kept on moving. Owen followed, grateful for Devlin in this crush of bodies. At first he had worried about the dog, who had never been anywhere so crowded. But Devlin never faltered, and helped Owen navigate the crowd, even barking slightly sometimes. When Owen asked Kaz if she could tell why he was barking, she said it was to warn people to get out of Owen’s way. Immune to Kaz’s rush, Owen had swooped down at this point to kiss Devlin on the head. 

From the market, they passed into a quieter part of the city. The thoroughfare seemed to have calmed down. He was able to focus on keeping his footing on the uneven cobbles, lessening the number of stumbles by at least half. 

He heard the docks before they reached them. Men and women called to one another. Goats bleated and chickens squawked. 

They rounded a corner onto a stretch of street that felt different from the rest. There was space to one side, buildings to the other. The river lapped against the bank, and the breeze coming off of it was cool and moist. 

“There,” murmured Kaz. “The farthest boat is a passenger ship. That’s where we’re going.” 

Owen nodded, swallowing down his nerves. Here we go, he thought, as Kaz led them all forward. 

“Hello!” said a bright, chipper woman’s voice from several inches above their heads. “Are you two looking for passage? We’re headed up the river towards Ticlanac, and you couldn’t find a safer vessel or a friendlier crew.” 

“Um, yes,” Kaz mumbled. Owen could tell that she was uncomfortable. “How long might it take to get there?” 

“Usually about a week and a half.” 

“That long?” Kaz’s dismay was clear, even to Owen. Hadn’t she said two to three weeks? A week and a half sounded like a great improvement to him. 

“Oh, are you in a hurry?” The woman sounded sincerely apologetic. “We might be able to get you there a few days earlier, but that’s usually about as long as it takes.” 

Kaz sighed. “I suppose we’ll have to make do. When do you cast off?” 

“First light. Does this mean you’ll join us?” 

“Yes,” said Kaz, adding under her breath, “not that we have much choice.” 

“Excellent!” Said the woman, and a sudden thump told Owen that she had jumped onto the dock. “I’m Cascade. You can come onboard now if you like. The captain will be back any minute.” 

“Actually,” said Kaz. “We should go to the market and get some food. We haven’t eaten yet.” 

I thought she said we didn’t need anything, thought Owen, grumpily. He was feeling too tired to be cheerful about being led every which way. 

“Oh, don’t worry about that!” said Cascade, to his great relief. “Meander and the captain will be back any minute with plenty of food for everyone. It’s included in your fare. I assume you can pay, right?”

“Of course,” said Kaz, quickly. Owen was grateful at least that she had plenty of coin. He wasn’t sure how they would have paid their way otherwise.

“Wonderful!” said Cascade. “Follow me, then.” 

“Sounds good to me.” Owen moved forward as Devlin sniffed at Cascade. “It’s nice to meet you, Cascade. I’m Owen.” 

“A pleasure, Owen. What’s your dog’s name?” she asked. By the angle of her voice, she had crouched to pet Devlin.

“That’s Devlin.” 

“He’s adorable!”

“Thanks.”

“And you are?” Cascade let the question trail, and Owen realized that he must be waiting for Kaz to answer. Didn’t she remember their cover story? He was about to answer for her, when she spoke. 

“You said there are other passengers?” she asked.

“Oh yes! And you know, they are very interesting!” And Cascade took off, light footsteps leading the way up the gangplank. Interesting? Owen wondered what she meant. Hopefully it indicated fascinating conversations rather than trouble for him and Kaz. 

Owen followed Devlin past Kaz onto the gangplank. “Well, she seems friendly,” he said. 

But as he walked up the slanting board, he couldn’t help but worry that he wouldn’t be able to so much as walk on the boat, even moored at the dock. He heard Cascade’s footsteps change to something softer, and gingerly stepped forward. To his surprise, the deck of the ship was slightly squishy, yielding under his feet. He could feel the vessel rocking slightly, but for the moment it was subtle enough that he thought he could at least walk. 

By now, Kaz had come up beside him. “Do you think she ever stops asking questions?” she asked. 

Owen grinned. “Leave her to me. As long as I don’t have to balance on the deck for too long, I can handle the talking.” 

“Deal,” said Kaz. “Come on. We may as well get this over with.”

And she started forward. Taking a deep breath, Owen began to walk across the squishy surface. The deck seemed to be made of a series of regular ridges. Once he figured this out, it got a little easier. It was strange, but not more difficult than the descent had been. So far. He began to relax a little. Maybe this wouldn’t be that bad. “Kaz?” he asked. “What is the boat made of? It has a strange surface.”

“It’s made of reeds,” Kaz answered. She was walking faster than him, and her voice was muffled as she turned away to keep going. “They’re all bundled together.” That explained the strange sponginess and the slight whispering, creaking sound as they walked.

Ahead of him, Kaz stopped. He drew level with her. “What is it?” He asked. “Why did you stop?” 

Cascade called, “Come on, you too!”

“Coming!” Kaz called back. Then she muttered to Owen. “The other passengers are very...visually distinctive.”

Owen made a face. “Sight must be such a useful shortcut. Will you describe them to me?” 

“Sure,” said Kaz. “But I suppose we should probably introduce ourselves first.”

“Let’s go, then,” said Owen. “Like I said, leave the talking to me. I’m not the one who’s pretending to be someone else.” 

“No complaints here,” said Kaz, as they started walking again, Owen wobbling a little with every step.

Next Chapter: 29: Kaz - Other Passengers