Michelle
Michelle took a dipper full of sweetwater from the thirdmost bucket and drank it down. The sun was just moving into the western sky, the initial round of feasting had been eaten and drunk, eulogies had been spoken for the dead they knew well enough to speak about, and Caleb had just started a drum solo using the edge of the shuttle panel as a musical instrument. The sound was metallic, melodic, and echoed pleasantly. Continue reading →
The best part of clay, hauled back in all their available bags and baskets to the cave, was that almost everyone had done something with clay in elementary or high school – even so simple as building a coil pot. Continue reading →
What was amazing, Andy found, was just how much got done when you had nine people instead of three, even bony and prone to sitting down after a walk as they now were. Continue reading →
Michelle
“We aren’t going to get back to the cave before dark if we don’t leave soon,” Michelle said uneasily. Continue reading →
Noah
He had wanted, back at the slate hill cave, to bring Harry’s rock. He’d been shot down on all sides, and looking at the long gravel stretch of hill ahead of him, he couldn’t find it in himself to object to their override. Just looking at this hike made him feel tired. Sure, his leg was behaving better, tired and aching in the cool nights instead of swollen and locked up, but that didn’t mean he really wanted to subject it to this. Continue reading →
Andy
“I suppose I should start with a map,” Andy said. “Someone give me a rock?” Continue reading →
“I’ll tell it,” said Louisa. “About Kelsey, and Aadi, and the storm.” Continue reading →
They paused in the middle of the day for a luncheon break in a shallow cup valley created by the stream they were following. Like the larger valley it created up by the slate cave, this valley was spotted with vegetation and snails and other insectoid things. Noah stretched his leg out in front of him on a patch of moss and cautiously poured cool stream water over the overheated flesh. It helped a little. Not much. Continue reading →
Andy
The first day’s hike had been okay. They had retraced their steps from their sea cave to Garbage Bay, where they’d paused to catch and eat a late breakfast, with fire kindled from one of their torches. Andy had turned a few more pieces of driftwood into torches for later. The consistency of the wood never failed to puzzle her – carved like soft stone, grew like a leafless tree, burned like wood, but very slowly and without much heat. They’d found her little stream, so meager compared to the vast river she was growing used to, and started tracing its bank up through the dunes. Continue reading →