By allowing the current to propel the canoe, Ayo\u00a0progressed silently toward Kiraigu, the Sacred City. The stillness was broken only by the occasional dip of his paddle to maintain the center of the stream. He had long grown accustomed to the obscured view from the ceremonial head covering that he wore, and he no longer worried that the traditional body paint, carefully applied by moonlight, was bleeding together from the sweat running down his body even at this early hour.<\/p>\n
The longa berries had given Ayo\u00a0both a calmness and a heightened sensitivity. He prayed that he had eaten them at the right moment to ensure their full effect once he reached the temple. His sense of time was confused \u2014 it seemed both that he had just begun the water journey, and that he had been drifting for days in some eternal twilight. He seemed able to view himself from above as if in a dream, but could still clearly hear the staccato tinkling of the current in his ears, and could feel the paddle in his hands and the night air on his damp body.<\/p>\n
Ayo\u00a0rounded a sharp bend which required his full attention to avoid contacting the far bank. When he next looked up, he could see the city before him and to the left, its outline visible in the dim pre-dawn glow. He quickly paddled toward the city, pulling with all his strength, knowing from legend that it took a strong man to reach the entrance before the current carried him past, and that missing the entrance, and having to find another way into the city, was a bad omen that cast the power of the entire journey into doubt.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
By allowing the current to propel the canoe, Ayo\u00a0progressed silently toward Kiraigu, the Sacred City. The stillness was broken only by the occasional dip of his paddle to maintain the center of the stream. He had long grown accustomed to the obscured view from the ceremonial head covering that he wore, and he no longer … <\/p>\n