Slowly, the desert underneath Neena's and Kai's boots gave way to more solid terrain. Rocks of various sizes littered the ground as far as the eye could see, with wispy shrubs reaching for sunlight in between. In a few spots, hills jutted out from the brown earth, covered with larger rocks, and a few coarse plants made of a sickly green. A smattering of sand covered the landscape, carried by the storm, or the daily winds.
Neena welcomed the easier travel, as they stepped from the sand to firmer ground.
But she had a new fear, too.
In the sand, they knew what to expect. Here, a single noise on the slightly harder ground might lure the hungry beast. She picked a path between rocks, avoiding noisy clomps that might give them away, walking heel to toe, as she had done in the desert. They walked for some time, under a sun that grew hotter.
Neena chose a path between two familiar hills, where sparse weeds shot up from the sides. She studied the ground for cracks or holes—anything that would indicate that the creature had gotten ahead of them—but she saw none. Reaching up, she dabbed away some sweat with her shawl.
"Over there," Kai said, pointing, as they passed the two hills and found another. A tall, recognizable tree jutted out from the new hill's base. "Is that the tree?"
"Yes, that's the warden's root, of which I spoke," Neena said.
Kai looked at her with a quizzical expression. "You mean a sandalwood?"
"We must call it different things," she said. They had similarities, but of course they had differences.
"No matter what you call it, we should probably fill our flasks," Kai suggested.
Neena nodded. They veered from their path, skirting more boot-sized rocks and getting closer to the broadleaf tree. The warden's root rose several feet before expanding into a multitude of branches, jutting out at different angles. Round, green leaves stuck off of the ends of those limbs, providing some welcome color in the mostly desolate landscape. More than once, Neena had run into other hunters in the area, collecting liquid from the tree's base.
She saw no one now.
A strange, ominous feeling took hold of her: for a brief moment, it felt as if she and Kai were the only people left on Ravar, and everyone else had vanished. Shaking off the thought, she walked softly and looked left and right, until she reached the warden's root, one of the few things in this area that retained enough water to be worth tapping. Unslinging her bag, she pulled out a small wedge that she had fashioned—a tiny, hollowed-out stick that allowed water to pass through to her flask from trees such as this.
She knelt and quietly dug near the tree's base with her knife, working around a few old notches. Kai looked as if he wanted to help, but with only one blade between them, he waited. After tapping the tree and putting in her wedge, she watched water drip into her flask, doing the same with Kai's. The process was slow, but soon she had replenished most of what they drank.
"We'll have to ration the water, of course," she said.
Kai nodded.
Neena remained underneath the thin shade of the tree for a moment, cooling off, while Kai took small sips from his replenished flask.
"Look over there," he said, spotting something on the hill.
Neena followed his gaze.
Walking up the hill to retrieve a broken limb, he said, "One of the branches fell from the tree. The wood is dry. Maybe we can make those spears we talked about this morning."
"Can I see it?"
He handed the branch to Neena, who gauged its thickness. "We won't be able to fire dry them, but I think you have a good idea." The prospect of having something other than a knife to fill her hands was a welcome thought.
"We'll have to work quietly, of course," Kai warned, looking around the landscape. "And quickly. Perhaps we can fashion them at the top of the hill, where we'll have a better view of our surroundings."
With an agreement reached, they ascended the small climb, gaining a better view of the landscape. Deep in the north, Neena saw the quashed dunes of the desert they'd left behind. To the south she saw more of the same hard ground. Spotting nothing of concern, she knelt and clutched the branch, cutting it in half and starting on the first of the spears. She carved a tip sharp enough to jab, to hunt. Kai watched her with respect.
"I'll admit, I haven't seen many women performing the task."
"Not many women know how," Neena said with a shrug. "But it is a necessary skill."
"Of course."
It took her a while, whittling at the wood, but eventually she fashioned a crude point at the end, hefting the stick in her hands. The spear wasn't as comfortable or as sleek as her old one, but it would ward off an animal, if they needed. Finished with the weapon, she took a practice heave. Noticing Kai's gaze, she handed it to him.
He hefted it, while Neena carved another.
"This is a lot sharper than the stick I carried," Kai said gratefully.
When she had finished, she tucked away her knife and held up the second spear. It felt as if too much time had passed without one. With weapons to fill their hands and some water in their flasks, they continued down the hill and headed south.