Chapter 5: River DragonsOnce they were in the middle current and the wind had caught and filled the sail, Goro, now a woman, came and sat by Fletcher. “It’s our first full day on the river. One can never be sure, but I think you can expect to be tested in some way.”
“What does that mean? Do I need weapons? King Arthur’s knights had swords.”
“King who?”
“Never mind, I just—never mind,” Fletcher said. Frodo had Sting and a hidden mithril shirt of mail. Fletcher had nothing.
Goro and Owen both tried to explain. The quest demanded the questor be tested, to prepare for the final confrontation. Why today and how? A sense of the quest’s timing, but they didn’t know much more than that. Tests were specific to the questor.
Fletcher thought again of Arthur’s knights, fighting dragons, and being
