Borcade and Trudu traveled together for nearly two years. They passed over prairie, desert, badlands, lush lands, and just about every kind of terrain one could imagine. Borcade had seen some large lakes, but these were exceedingly rare. She had heard about an inland sea somewhere to the north, but their travels were mostly to the west and southwest. For a couple of days there had been a strange scent in the wind, unlike anything either Borcade or Trudu had ever experienced. It made both a bit apprehensive, yet they still continued westward even though the smell continued to grow stronger. In the mornings, a mist rose up in the west and rolled over the hills that they were crossing. By late morning, it was burned off by the sun. This morning, it was still early and the fog was still relatively thick, making visibility poor. The pair crossed one ridge and could hear a strange roaring sound that kept getting louder as they climbed the top of the next hill. Then suddenly, there were no more hills. They stood upon the edge of a large, grassy bluff as the mist opened up. Below them, waves surged against a narrow, rocky beach. Both stood stunned at the sight of water extending away from the shore in all directions as far as could be seen. "Well, Trudu," Borcade murmured, "so this is the ocean. What a wonder!" She stared down at Trudu and the thylacine looked up at her. Won't this be a thing to remember?" They both stared at the sea for a long time. _____________________________ This is out of synch with the story line for this series, but when I saw Bo Hammarberg's wonderful picture of the misty California coast, the image and story instantly sprang into my mind. I'm dedicating this render to Bo in thanks for being the muse for this picture and also for all the wonderful background photos and textures he has provided for free to the rest of the CG community. His gallery at www.sharecg.com is a wonderful resource for the rest of us. Thanks, Bo! The grasses for the ecosystem are from Linda Daireaux aka FrenchKiss "Lush Grassy Places" (Cornucopia3d). Thanks for stopping by and taking a peek. Also thanks for previous comments and encouragements on the previous posting. Jeremy