The Torn Weft ~ COMPLET

In the woods

The ghost van had left them at the top of the trail the teenagers had followed. They would have to walk about fifteen miles to reach the approximate point of their disappearance and then wander the wilderness on or off the tracks to reach their point of return. They hoped to find the snag in the Weft and be able to stitch it up quickly. In the meantime they waded through the slush of the forest paths. It wasn't raining, but it was as good as raining because there was a kind of drizzle that condensed the drops on their parkas. Gwen still had that oppressive feeling as well as a headache. He didn't know if his nervousness was his own or Griffin's. The demon inside him was not serene. He walked along following Misery on the soggy trail while behind them the two women moved on. The witch was silent but the Cerberus grumbled a lot. She grumbled, not whined. She was cursing nature and all the elements that had conspired against her. Gwen was smiling broadly and that seemed to relax Griffin. After a long hour's walk, they passed the crossroads. Misery stopped and waited for the others. While the humans drank a little and nibbled on a cereal bar, he took stock.

— So this is the last place kids are sure to be. Now the tear can be anywhere.

Gwen frowned as he put his canteen away.

— But why hasn't anyone else disappeared for a year? Has the Weft closed?

Zia looked at Gwen quickly.

— From the evidence, I'd say it moved. Like... like shaking a sheet.

Gwen shook his head.

— Okay, I understand the image but... once it's been shaken, the sheet comes back in place, right?

Misery smiled.

— It depends on the amplitude of the movement or even the passage of time. Then imagine the sheet folded and torn with a knife at the top. When you release the sheet there is an opening at the top and one at the bottom but it is the same.

Zia continued.

— Like a wormhole in space and time. An entry point, an exit point.

Gwen sighed.

— It's infinite! Because if the sheet has been folded several times, it makes a lot of holes. Holes that allow you to enter, others to leave... It makes you dizzy!

Agony flicked him on the forehead. Gwen let out a small scream and Misery swallowed a grunt. The Cerberus smiled at him.

— Take it easy, pretty boy. It's our job to sew up the rips, right? Now, we have an entry point and an exit point. We'll find both and close them. We'll go home and I'll take a hot bath and I'll...

Misery grunted.

— The tear was a year ago, we may have a great nose, but to find a tear with a smell... especially after so long...

Agony untangled the strands of her hair that had escaped from her ponytail from her face.

— Zia will do all the work, won't you, sweetheart?

Zia pulled a small canvas bag from a pocket of the backpack she was carrying.

— Yesterday we got some DNA from the children and I made a tracing spell. It won't be as powerful as if it had happened a few days ago, but there will be a magical trace, however faint.

Agony nodded and clapped Misery on the shoulder.

— And since you're the most talented sniffer, you're the one to do it.

Misery frowned.

— You too. And then you'll stop bitching.

Agony crossed her arms.