Otherworld

Part 25

The sun was way too hot out in the open. It beat down on the group mercilessly. The closest thing Bridged could compare it too was the few times she'd spent in the various deserts of Earth, but this was almost hotter than that. Arnold seemed to be holding up pretty well, but the rest of their group wasn't. The agoathos daimon weren't used to being in the direct path of the sun.

Bridged wiped sweat from her brow and heaved a huge breath. The heat was making it hard to breath. It was similar to the hot summers she'd spent in Kansas with some of her friends. Arnold seemed to be enjoying the heat, but then he always liked the heat. Bridged preferred the cool wet days of early spring and late autumn.

"I've never felt so hot in my life." Nakira complained as she stumbled over a hole that was hidden by grass. Bridged steadied her. Nakira turned yellow eyes on Bridged. "Have you?"

"Yes." Bridged answered simply. "There are places on Earth that are this hot. I mentioned them when we left the forest the other day."

Nakira nodded. "I forgot." Nakira placed a hand over her heart and struggled to take a deep breath. "How do you survive there?"

Arnold came up beside Bridged. Concern lay heavy on his face. "You keep bundled up in clothes to keep the sun from burning you and you try not to move around much during the hottest part of the day."

Bridged looked around them for some shelter. Her eyes spotted something that might work. Bridged pointed it out to Arnold. "That looks like it might provide some shelter from the sun."

Arnold nodded before he picked Nakira up. She lay limply in his arms. Bridged led the way knowing that the others would follow her. Bridged's heart soared when she saw that the ground dipped down and provided a decent amount of shelter from the sun.

Arnold waited with the others while Bridged shimmied her way beneath the shrubs. An indentation was visible in the ground. No sign of an animal was present, but it looked like it had been made by something that had at one time sought shelter from the heat.

Bridged poked her head back outside the hole. "It's not super deep, but there's enough room for all of us to lie beneath."

Arnold sat Nakira down and Bridged helped the girl sluggishly crawl beneath the brush. The others followed and soon there was hardly any room to move, but it proved a few degrees cooler.

Bridged curled up as small as she could since she was the shortest person in their group. Arnold was able to sit upright where he was since he had made a little room for his head. The others lay almost comatose. Bridged was worried. She hoped that being in the shade would help them cool off.

"I think that we need to travel at night from now on."

Bridged nodded at what Arnold said. "I agree with you."

Arnold reached over and touched Bridged on the shoulder. "Stay here with the others. I am going to go find some water."

"Be careful."

"I always am," Arnold said before he disappeared out of the hole they were in.

Several hours passed before Arnold returned. He was sweating up a storm, but he came bearing water.

After a drink, Bridged was relieved to see life starting to come back into the others. Nakira was propped up between her brother and Kiena who made sure to share his portion of water with her. Nakira smiled at Bridged as she rested. Bridged smiled back.

"I was able to scout a little bit ahead. I do not see an end to our travels, but the land does change."

"How does it change?" Loken asked.

"It appears as if there the grass gets taller and there are the beginnings of some trees. It'll take us a few days to reach the changed area, but it means that we are getting somewhere."

"I hope so." Naknaki sighed. "We are not made for this type of weather."

Arnold gave Naknaki a light punch on the arm. "Neither are we, but Bridged and I, at least, know how to survive in terrain like this. I like the heat, but Bridged prefers cooler weather."

Bridged smiled. "Let us just focus on getting to the change of scenery. Maybe we're getting closer to the edge of the sun."

Murmurs of agreement were given as everyone settled back down to resting and waiting for night to fall.