Nightwind
Copyright© 2025 by Heel
Chapter 6: Alone on the Slope
Calista lay on the slope, the coarse red shale cutting into her back and shoulders. Each shallow breath stabbed through her bruised ribs and chest, making her gasp and wince. Her legs throbbed with sharp, unrelenting pain — her left thigh felt as though it had been shattered from hip to knee, while her right lower leg was twisted and swollen, every movement sending jolts of agony up her shin. Her ankle had taken a hard knock, stiff and useless beneath her.
The sun beat down relentlessly, hot and merciless. The sky above was pale and endless, reflecting the brightness of the red canyon walls. Sweat stung her eyes and soaked her blouse, and the heat radiating from the slope turned the air into a heavy, burning blanket. Dust clung to her skin, mixing with sweat and leaving a gritty layer over every inch of her body.
She tried to shift, just a little, to relieve the pressure on her back. Even the slightest movement sent shocks through her fractured legs, her bruised ribs, and her sore shoulders. Pain coiled in her body like a living thing, and panic rose behind her ribs, sharp and insistent. She was completely immobile. Completely at the mercy of the slope and her injuries.
Her throat was dry. Her tongue felt thick and parched. Each gulp of air burned like fire. She had no water. The nearest creek she had crossed hours ago was now a distant memory. Dehydration pressed at her temples, making her head throb and her thoughts scatter. Her lips cracked and her mouth felt like sandpaper.
The desert was vast, strange, and terrifying. Every slope looked the same. Every rock seemed dangerous. The wind whispered across the canyon, mocking in its silence, carrying dust that stung her eyes and filled her nostrils. She was exposed, vulnerable, helpless — pinned by her own broken body to a place where help seemed impossible.
She tried to lift her head to scan the horizon. Pain shot from her ribs to her shoulders. Her vision blurred, sweat and dust clinging to her lashes. She wanted to call out, to scream for someone, anyone, but her voice cracked into a whisper and was immediately swallowed by the canyon. The vastness of the land seemed to mock her, a cruel reminder that she was alone and far from home.
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