Exile

by Forceful Will

Fire

Despite his exhaustion, Jinx didn’t sleep well. The air’s acrid scent kept his snout twitching in irritation. The heat, which at first had been comfortable, grew to be oppressive as he lay there. So it was just before dawn when he packed his things back into his saddlebags, ready to climb the hill and leave the area.

The dirt of the hill felt different after the change in incline. It was more rocky and granular than dusty. The pebbles had rough edges that cut against his hooves, almost causing Jinx to rethink his plan to climb to the top. It wasn’t quite painful, but he was glad that the rock seemed to only be in the small area around the peak of the hill. He climbed slowly, each step sinking deeply into the gravel. As he approached the top, Jinx was surprised to feel the temperature of not only the air noticeably increasing, but also the temperature of the rocks. There were spots where the heat was so much that he had to go around them. He could see faint traces of smoke coming from the earth in those spots, though he didn’t see any trace of fire.

Upon reaching the peak, Jinx stared in wonder at the sight before him. The hill was sunken in the center, as though somepony had piled up a mound of dirt, then compressed the middle of it. Where there had been traces of smoke coming from spots outside the center, here there were clouds of it. Surprising to Jinx, these clouds didn’t rise out of the hill like smoke he knew, but rested close to the ground. There was a steady current of wind flowing out of the cloud, carrying that hot, dry, and sour air up to him. He stood, staring at the swirling gases as they formed mysterious patterns in the early morning light. Jinx simply stood and watched for several minutes, until he noticed his head beginning to ache. He turned away and was about to begin his descent down the northern slope of the hill when his head suddenly reeled and he lost his balance.

His vision flashed to black as he tumbled down the edge, away from the clouds of gas. Rolling down the slope of sharp gravel, Jinx knew something was wrong. He couldn’t seem to breath properly, his chest burning with need. He tumbled uncontrollably to the point where the ground changed from gravel, back to the powdery dust of the rest of the barrens. Jinx was still for a moment, then began choking and sputtering as the dust settled back over him. The dirt burned as it fell into the cuts his reckless tumble had caused all over his body. Sharp lines of pain pierced through the haze of confusion as he lay on the hard ground, trying to breath properly again. Several minutes later, Jinx felt his head beginning to clear, though it just brought the aches in the rest of his body into focus. Something about the air at the top of the hill had to be poisonous, he realized. He shuddered at the thought that if he had tumbled just slightly in the other direction he would have ended up deep in the clouds of gas, if that was even the bottom of the hill’s center.

As Jinx got to his hooves, he looked up the slope to see if any of his possessions had come loose and scattered across the area. Luckily, only the blanket and cloak he had had just resting across his flank had fallen free. He trotted up a few steps to recover them, and then went back to the area of dusty ground before shaking them clean and laying them back over his bags. He glanced up at the sun to assure himself of his direction and continued north. Jinx mentally chided himself for not taking the opportunity to look for an end to the barrens from the top of the hill. He still had no idea how much further he would have to go, though he hoped he wouldn’t have to spend more than another night in the dead landscape. He was covered head to tail in dirt and dust, and while the cuts he had received falling down the gravel hillside had all been superficial, they were still painful. The dirt and dust had stopped any bleeding, but the wounds stung, and he could feel bruises forming up as well. He briefly considered washing himself off, but realized how foolish it would be to use his water supply for that when he had no idea when he would next be able to fill his bottles up.

He trotted at a slower pace than he had the day before, taking extra breaks to eat and drink. He passed by several more hills like the first, choosing to circle around each instead of risking another climb. It meant he wasn’t following a straight course from the village anymore, but safety far outweighed the potential of minimizing the distance he traveled. He finished his first water bottle on his noon break, holding it high to ensure he had drained every drop, before replacing it in his bags. Far in the distance ahead, he could make out a change in elevation more pronounced than any of the gravel hills. Jinx could only hope that it marked the end of the barrens and the beginning of the riverlands. He walked resolutely forward, prepared to be disappointed, but smiled as the indistinct shape ahead changed to resemble the same rocky slope that had marked his entry into the barrens from the plains.

It was still early afternoon as he climbed up the steep ridge to be greeted by the sight of green. There was life to the earth once again, and where there was life water could not be far behind. Jinx perked his ears as he continued walking, hoping to pick out the sound of running water. The vegetation wasn’t dense, and Jinx could tell that, apart from the few insects he spotted, little lived this close to the barrens. He wasn’t likely to find a large source of water this close to the barrens, but he knew that somewhere up ahead he would find both a good place to rest the night and a river. After all, it couldn’t be called the riverlands for nothing.

Comments

[Shadowed Rainbow]

Just gotta say, when I saw the short description on the front page and how it said "the place he left behind", all I could think of was Half Life: FullLife Consequences "John Freeman left the bad place behind him."

[Regidar]

You have my attention, Austraeoh rip-off.