As for the front of the boat, there was one I could see that was the largest of the design and that too had its mouth wide open, only with the flames deep inside it looked as if its head was on fire. As if this boat couldn't be menacing enough, I thought wryly.
But then, if I thought this boat was bad, then the one that passed us took creepy to a whole new level and I found myself quite comfortable on the one that I was sat in. The one that passed us was much bigger than this one, although it looked to be made of the same material, making me wonder if it was something that could protect the boat from the everlasting flames. At the bow of the boat was a giant winged demon who was actually part of the boat itself. His spine arched down the centre and all the way under the water and up the other side where it ended in a spiked tail that held a large lantern at the other end. The large skeletal creature had two giant oars in its hands and it singlehandedly propelled the vessel forward being that it was the height of a building. Its bat shaped wings were stretched out like giant sails with each point roped to the edges of the boat, making them curl inwards to catch the wind. The only part that had any flesh was the thick meaty arms that obviously needed the muscle to complete this particularly strenuous task.
Its face had barely any flesh beneath the skin, it looked like wet paper had been placed directly over the bone for he had no nose to speak of just a gaping hole. His eyes didn't move from the centre point facing the direction in which he was headed. Eyes that sat deep into his skull and if it hadn't been for the reflection of the flames in the lantern, I wouldn't have even known they were there.
But this wasn't the most horrifying part, no that came from his payload sat on the opposite side of the boat, closer to his spine’s tail. It was a cage with every single inch cram packed full of desperate crying souls. Each one trying to reach out to me as it went past, as if they all recognised life and were trying to cling on to it.
I didn't want to know where he was taking them exactly, as all I wanted to do was rid the memory from my mind the second it passed. At this rate it was going to cost my father a fortune in therapy, that or my credit card was going to get a hammering.
The river continued on, but then the moment it started to get wider, was when I realised that we were coming to an end, for it started to open out into a lake. It was one that was surrounded by little lights, telling me there was a town there. The closer we got the more I could see, like the other boats that were dotted here and there. They were floating on the water that I quickly noticed was no longer flaming.
As for the other boats, for the most part they were unoccupied and left to create moving shadows from a distance. Multiple docking stations curved around the landscape, framing the large lake and I couldn't help but notice that we were heading towards the biggest one.
Thankfully, my journey was at an end.
After we approached the dock, the boat rocked to a halt just where I could step off and as I stood, I felt strangely weird about leaving without saying anything, even though up until this point I had barely said a word.
“Okay, well thanks for the lift…erm...happy boating and all,” I said in a strained voice before giving them a salute and wondering quite frankly what the hell I was doing!
Naturally, I stepped off the boat muttering to myself,
“Really, Fae…happy, fucking boating?”
Chapter Twenty-Three
Bounty Claimed
After walking along the dock, I realised that the prospects of seeing a town weren’t as hopeful as they seemed when back on the boat. Of course, it didn't help that I couldn’t actually get into what I’m sure was a town, not considering it was situated behind a towering wall that looked as if it had been made from mud.
It was still raining, making the whole thing slick and wet, surprising me that it wasn't actually crumbling