Dreading Water

The raft rushed out from the underwarren docks and flew out into the river like a cork out of a rather well shaken grand-prix bottle.

Rod had hold of an oar and used it to steer the raft. This was not an easy task. Everyone's attention was on Rod as he fought with the river. Then he stopped and nearly dropped the oar. His mouth dropped and he pointed back the way they had came.

"Hellfire!"

"Wugga-wugga!"

"Amazing!"

<Stuck for words>

The warren was imploding! What was once quite a large rounded hillock was slumping - the Committee must have used the power of the carrot to shore up all the tunnelling because the whole thing seemed to be collapsing. Rabbits streamed out of the warren though a million and one (new) holes(*). All the rabbits seemed rather confused - most of them had grown up under the influence of the golden carrot and didn't understand this strange feeling of freedom.

Rod's grip on the oar tightened and he called "Gorden, grab the other oar we have to get this to shore!"

Gorden looked around and picked up the shortest stick.

"Not that one!" Rod shouted as he tried to paddle shoreward - with only him rowing the raft was trying to go round in circles. "The one with the flat bit!"

Bemused and confused, Gorden picked up the oar and rushed to the side. He then attempted to do what Rod was doing with his oar. To some degree of success.

Cola went to Gorden and grabbed the oar and showed him - push the water with the flat bit! They held the oar together, Cola aiming, Gorden supplying the muscle. Together they managed to match what Rod was doing and between the three conies they managed to push the raft towards the bank.

Rod's corner beached first - he threw his oar to terra-firma and them jumped ashore holding one of the mooring-ropes and one of the short poles. He wrapped the rope around his middle and held the raft still with his body weight. He leaned against the short pole and it dug into the soil. He used the pull of the river to help him bed the mooring pin in.

Finally, satisfied, he hitched the rope around the pin and breathed a sigh of relief. Then he noticed that Gorden was trying to emulate him, without actually know what was going on.

Rod quickly rushed to Gorden, who was just about to be pulled into the river by the raft and between the two of them they managed to pull Gorden's corner of the raft back and to ground the second mooring pin.

Once the raft was secure David rushed ashore and bent over and kissed the ground. His arms tried to hug the world, or the ground at least. Plessey floated ashore and Cola hopped onto solid ground behind him, carrying their spoils of war.

Gorden sat down facing the collapsing warren and shook his head. Cola sat to one side and David to the other. Rod turned to look at the flood of rabbits as they swarmed from the safety of their burrows into the strange free world.

Rod turned to others, shaking his head.

"I've got to go and find my brother. We've got to help these rabbits." He gave a cracked smile. "They've got to learn freedom. It took me a year to understand what it meant."

He looked at Gorden, "Will you be alright with the Carrot. I think it's pretty harmless now it's broken."

Gorden nodded "I'm not sure this is how I expected the Quest to end." He looked down sheepishly at the two halves of golden carrot in his lap. "I think I was supposed to find it in one piece."

"Look," Rod said, thinking hard, "if you take the raft down river you'll get to the emway in about two days. I think. Is that quicker than it took you to get here?"

Cola nodded but managed to ask an important question "Can we get under the emway on the river?"

Rod nodded. "It's how I left the Commune in the first place - Rob and I were swept away on a raft and we got freedom of thought once we'd travelled far enough from the Warren - far enough from the Carrot I supposed I should say. We were knocked off the raft just before the river went under the emway. So I suggest you take it easy and try to keep near to the edge."

"I'll say!" David interjected. Everyone looked at him. "Well, I can't swim, you know!" Gorden shook his head, smiling.

"I've got the idea of the pushing poles, and the poles-in-the-ground now." Gorden said.

"We call them oars, and mooring pins, but," Rod added smiling, "No one really minds what you call them."

Rod bent to Gorden and offered his hand. "Good luck." They said simultaneously, then they laughed.

Rod took Cola's offered hand and kissed it, he then patted David on he head and bowed at Plessey.

With one last "Good Byeeeeeeeee!" he rushed off to find his brother.

"Considering all we've been though." David began. "All the places we've been and all the strange things we've seen and all we've done." He paused, "Do you know what?"

Everyone left looked sideways at the small gerbil, expectant.

"I'm quite hungry now." David finished. Gorden smiled. Cola laughed out loud and Plessey's shell shook with mirth.

"Well," Cola said, tapping the Golden Carrot in Gorden's lap. "We can't eat this." She stood. "I'm going foraging. Plessey," She looked at the snail, "Would you help me?"

"Delighted, young lady." Plessey said with a florish.

David tapped the Golden Carrot.

"Wonder what the Great Buck is going to say to this?" He asked.

Gorden shrugged. "We weren't on a Quest for him. He only took control of the quest after we'd begun." He gave a sigh. "If he wanted it in one piece he should have said!"

David looked at the raft. "Can we really sail this?" He asked.

"I hope so. It'd be nice to cut a week off of our journey home."

"Do you think we get our jobs back?" David asked.

Gorden went to speak and then stopped. He closed his eyes and shook his head slowly. "Bertram." He said in a low voice, thinking.

"Bertram's not in charge anymore." David said.

A creaking noise came from the nearest mooring pin -Gorden's one. Gorden jumped up and rushed over and pushed it hard into the ground. He turned to find David holding out the blunt end of the Golden Carrot.

Gorden looked from Carrot to mooring pin and back again. He smiled, took the half a carrot and used it to bash the mooring pin firmly into the ground.

Plessey and Cola weren't long foraging, and returned with a good selection of carrots and other green vegetables.

"We're not far from some of the Communes' fields." Cola explained.

"So the hunting is good here!" Plessey smiled.

Cola made an early lunch, or late breakfast.

"Are we really going to travel on this raft-thing?" David asked once they had all eaten their fill and were digesting.

Gorden nodded.

"You do realised I can't swim, don't you?" David finished.

Gorden nodded.

"Just checking." David said quietly to himself. Then he jumped up.

"Well, its the tale of Joker, Plessey, Gorden and Cola and the Quest to take the Golden Carrot Bits Home!" His mouth curled. "Doesn't flow as well as it used to..."

Gorden stood up, helped Cola up and then ushered everyone onto the raft.

Gorden and Cola cast off then jumped onto the raft, grabbed an oar each and started to steer the craft down the river.

To home.

(*) We know because Plessey counted them.