The Sliver - Part 2

            The trio descended into the long stalks, moving between thick coarse leaves so plentiful that they kept slapping their skin as they passed. The corn grew so tall that it blocked out the horizon. Only by penetrating a few rows into the field and keeping the forest on their left was Keirn able to insure they were heading in the right direction.

            The foreboding silence was even thicker now, punctuated by the group’s footsteps as they crunched on fallen, untended corn. More than once did they happen upon evidence that someone or something had burst quickly into the field only to leave shortly afterwards. Great swathes of the crop were trampled. Whatever had done this must have done it recently as no farmhand had come by to clean up the mess.

            Eventually, the corn field banked to the right, and long grass continued on. Keirn paused, discouragement colouring his face.

            “What’s wrong?” Kait inquired.

            “Fence,” Keirn grumbled. “Who in their right mind puts a fence here?”

            It was a rather primitive contraption; thin rotted pieces of wood dug into the uneven ground with rusted twists of metal looped around to discourage animals from entering. Course, the barrier stood only along the side facing the group. Curiously it ended before the forest began where one would expect it would be needed most.

            “Should be simple enough to climb,” Kait replied, pushing a few stalks aside and surveying the scene. “Looks like hilly terrain from here on out.”

            The three stared up the large slope just beyond the fence. The wind played over the thick grass that covered its entire surface, as if it were some horribly hairy beast kept at bay by the ramshackle fence.

            “I hate climbing fences,” Keirn muttered. “Last one I climbed ripped a huge gash right through a good pair of pants.”

            “Oh, don’t be such a baby.”

            “You want to buy me a new pair of pants?”

            “Look, it’s not even that high,” Kait said. “Just climb one of these posts and you’ll be fine.”

            “I think we should walk along, maybe there’s a break further up.”

            “Or we could go back into the forest, would you prefer that?”

            “I’d prefer looking for a break...”

            A piercing howl ended the two’s bickering. They turned behind them, but could only see the silent corn. They waited, casting concerned looks towards each other.

            “You don’t think...”

            “Guard dogs?”

            “I was thinking giant mosquitoes.”

            “Look,” Keirn grumbled, “you ran just as quickly as I...”

            The howl cut through the air again only much closer this time. As a second hush fell over them, the siblings noticed the corn seeming to part in the distance as the sound of something crashing through the field grew clearer.

            There wasn’t any need for further debate. The pair turned, practically leaping upon the twisted barrier. Keirn attempted following his sister’s advice, taking enough time that his haste would allow to insure he didn’t cut himself on the sharp wire as he tumbled head over ass into the dirt and grass on the other side.

            Kait followed but caught her cloak as she was passing. She gurgled as the cloth caught against her throat, knocking her to the ground and beating the air momentarily from her lungs. Keirn hurried to her side, pulling the cloak roughly as the fabric tore.

            While the siblings freed themselves, Calos took two steps back and breathed a few calming breaths. He closed his eyes in concentration, took a final deep breath, sprinted towards the barrier and leapt with such height that he was able to spin in a single perfect revolution with arms tucked tightly to his sides as he drifted over the fence and landed gently on both feet on the other side.

            The Faden’s stared in awe.

            The rustling had stopped but there was a pitiful sound emanating from the corn. The three looked at the slope standing before them. Somehow it appeared even more steep in the few feet they had covered.

            “Only way is up now,” Keirn muttered, taking the lead. The ground was uneven and dry. He hadn’t climbed very high before he was reduced to grasping great clumps of grass to keep his balance as the soil crumbled beneath his steps.

            Kait, muttering about ruining a fine cloak, followed in Keirn’s footsteps but proceeded much slower as the bulk of her packs weighed her down. Her feet slipped even more as the numerous trinkets and junk pushed upon her.

            Keirn scaled a particularly precipitous edge and turned, holding out his hands to help the others climb up. Kait took his outstretched arms, pulling with all her might. Keirn’s knees dug into the soft earth as he strained to lift her over the lip. Sweat beaded his brow as he gritted his teeth.

            “Couldn’t you get rid of a few pots?” he hissed.

            “Are you calling me fat?!” Kait shot.

            Hands reached down beside Keirn’s and he glanced over to notice Calos assisting. Keirn hadn’t even noticed him climb up and he wondered where the lithe little man learned his athletic skills. Between the two of them, they lifted Kait over the crumbling edge, pulling her close to the hill as all three caught their breaths.

            From their vantage point, they could see over the entire field and to the farmstead in the distance. It was hard to spot from this distance, its green walls and roof almost blending in with the corn. If it weren’t for the thin stream of smoke, they might not have noticed it at all. There was still no activity on its overgrown grounds and when the three scanned the field for whatever they heard earlier, they saw only the gentle sea of swaying corn.

            “Looks like we snuck by,” Kait gasped, slipping her pack off and searching through for her waterskin. Keirn licked his dry lips before standing.

            “I’m going to climb up, see how much higher we have to go and what’s on the other side of this ridiculous hill.”

            “I’ll come, once I catch my breath,” Kait muttered.

            Keirn returned to his scaling.

            As he drew higher, he noticed the grass became less abundant. It now grew in sickly clumps. Tall, spiny weeds grew in its stead with thorns the size of finger nails sticking out from thick stems. The earth was even more dry and crumbly as he climbed so that it took him much longer than he anticipated before he reached the top.

            The hill levelled off in such a manner that it appeared like it had been artificially constructed. It was wide enough that it could have supported a large estate or small fortress. From this height, Keirn had a good glance at the surrounding area. Behind him lay the fields and to the left, the forest seemed to thin out. Stretching out into the distance, however, was not lush grassland but a great plain of dried and cracked mud. No vegetation of any kind could be seen in the blasted landscape. The ground appeared like aged and withered skin. Great parched wounds  peeled back forming small fissures within the earth. It looked like the ground hadn’t seen any water for years.

            “That’s weird,” Keirn muttered. “Hey, Kait, come see this!”

            He waited, letting the dry wind from the mud flats dry the sweat on his skin. His sister arrived, panting and gasping for air.

            “What?”

            “Isn’t that weird? What could have done that?”

            Kait shielded her eyes, taking her first look at the wasteland. Before responding, she unscrewed the lid of her waterskin, took a long sip then turned to her brother and shrugged.

            “No idea.”

            “I thought you studied trees or something.”

            “I read some books on them,” Kait replied, “I didn’t do a scholarly thesis or anything. Ask Derrek when you see him; he would more likely have such random information. Do we have the cross that?”

            “If we want to keep going north,” Keirn replied. He checked to make sure that Calos was still with them, then began to walk down the hill. This side had gently sloped down towards the cracked wasteland and had very little vegetation growing on it.

            But, though it appeared there hadn’t been any rain, Keirn stopped just before a sheer drop created from rain and wind erosion right where the hill connected with the wasteland. It wasn’t a long drop, perhaps twelve feet or so, but more than Keirn was willing to jump.

            “I guess I’ll take point,” Keirn muttered. He grasped a thick clump of dried grass, swung his legs over the edge, landed on an outcropping that immediately gave out and began to fall.

            He gave off a small yelp as he tumbled, his arms splayed and flailed for some handhold. His left hand found purchase, and he stopped his free fall as his fingers wrapped around a thick, green lump. The mossy covering broke and Keirn felt a stabbing pain shoot through his finger. Gritting his teeth, he ignored the pain until he got his balance and skidded to the bottom of the drop, falling to his knees and landing heavily in the dried dirt.

            A small cloud of dust erupted from his landing as he curled up holding his hand.

            “Are you okay?” Kait called. She and Calos scampered down after him, taking more time to make sure they didn’t drop like he had. They hurried to his side, pulling his left hand from his chest to inspect it.

            “I... think I touched a dead bird,” Keirn muttered. Kait noticed a few tufts of downy feathers stuck to the sweat and blood covering his fingers. She took a cloth from her bag and wiped his hand clean. She immediately found the wound, a small gash on his index finger with a dark thorn protruding from it.

            “Hold still,” she instructed as she pulled him into a sitting position that allowed the sun to shine on the wound. She carefully grasped the thorn with her nails and ripped it from his flesh. He howled, as if she were resetting a bone or performing surgery.

            “Boys,” she muttered. She held the thorn up as Keirn ripped his hand back and began nursing it.

            The thing was rather large for a thorn and appeared to be just the tip of the original. If she had to guess, it would have almost been the size of a person’s thumb. However, it was snapped and, after wrestling his hand back, she noticed that there was still a piece that had broken off beneath his skin.

            “Can... can you get... it out?” Keirn muttered, clearly trying to hold back tears.

            “I can try,” Kait muttered. She looked at his sorrowful face. “It may hurt a little though. We could wait until we get to town and see a temple.”

            “No!... no, I’d rather we get it out now,” Keirn replied.

            “Why the concern? It’s just a sliver.”

            “... I hate the idea of it being left there,” Keirn sheepishly replied. “I don’t want it to get infected or anything.”

            “Alright.”

            Kait reached into her pack and produced a thin needle. She wasn’t sure how clean it was, but it was sharp enough that she could cut the top layers of skin back and try to fish the rest of the sliver out.

            Keirn put on a brave face, but the moment she pressed the needle head against his skin, he howled with pain. Kait sighed, realizing that this was going to be more work than she had anticipated.

            “Can you give him some water?” she asked Calos. He nodded, pulling out his waterskin and attempted to distract Keirn with a drink.

            Kait pushed the needle quickly through the skin, holding his hand tightly as he tried to reflexively pull it back. However, with Calos there, Keirn attempted to bite back the pain. More blood welled up, and Kait tied a piece of cloth around the finger in an attempt to stem the flow. She wasn’t an expert in treating wounds, but it appeared like this small finger wound was bleeding far more than it really should.

            She dug the needle in deeper into Keirn’s finger, his hand convulsing as his body attempted to pull back from the pain while his mind steeled itself in the hopes that the endeavour would be over soon. She managed to get beneath the sliver and tried lifting it, but her fingers weren’t steady enough to get a piece of the sliver to the surface. His hand shook even more violently and blood kept pooling around the wound making holding his hand a sticky and slightly nauseating experience.

            “I can’t get it... not with this,” Kait replied. “But I’ve managed to get it closer to the surface. If we could get to a town or somewhere, I’m sure I could find something that would make this easier.”

            “Town close?” Calos asked in his peculiar, untrained speech.

            “I... I don’t know,” Keirn replied through slow deep breathes. “May... maybe north... of here... for manor...”

            “Manor?” Kait muttered, looking around but not seeing any building. Keirn just shook his head, taking the cloth Kait had tied to the base of his finger and tying it around the wound to apply constant pressure to it.

            “Nevermind, let’s go.”

            He took more of Calos’ water to wash his hand, than picked up his bag and began walking across the mud flats. Kait and Calos followed. Now that Keirn wasn’t in the mood to talk, the group fell into a growing familiar silence.