A jade belt wound around them; the mountains rose and fell like waves. Seven long oar-and-sail boats slowly pushed against the late-summer rapids, heading toward the mudflats several li away.
The lead longboat had two masts standing fore and aft. At the top of the foremast hung the banner of the Sun Hummingbird, while at the top of the rear mast, Quetzal feathers were attached. The mountain wind blew past, and the brilliant feathers swayed into the wind, like birds wheeling through the sky.
Beneath the flying birds, a group of crewmen had gathered together, staring at a spot on the deck. There lay a bare-chested, disheveled-haired youth. His eyes were tightly shut, the left side of his face was bruised and swollen, and a puddle of water had spilled from the corner of his mouth, leaving him looking utterly wretched.
".Old Pu, those slaps of yours just now... weren't they a bit too hard?"
Chiwako crouched on the deck, looking at the bruised and swollen youth who had just been fished out of the river, and felt a faint ache in his own left cheek.
"Hah? If I didn't hit him hard enough, how was I supposed to beat the water monster out of his belly?"
Puapu reached out, looked at his reddened palm, and rubbed it with a wince.
"This is a method taught to me by the Three Gods—cough, by the old Priest. First you hit the belly hard, then you hit the face with force. As long as you can beat the water out, the man is saved!"
"."
Chiwako was speechless for a moment. He looked over the youth's tangled hair and bare upper body, but found nothing that could identify him.
"Where did this child come from?"
"He's definitely a Tlaxcalan captive being sent