"Your beard is getting so long."
I looked at Black whose face had a noticeable streak of dirt across it. I pointed it out as he flipped his hair up, which now went past his nose. He wiped his face as he yawned.
"I'm ready to take a break. You ready to take a shift?"
I nodded to Black as I took my handful of carrots to the fire. I ripped the stems and fed them to the flame. Black laid his head next to the fire and closed his eyes.
I turned around and took a deep breath. I began walking to the nearest carrot. The bare dirt patch around the fire pit left the area boring. It took thirty steps before I could see the field of endless carrots once more.
I reached down and began collecting. The ends of my fingers were stained orange. I felt my back go sore from the awkward lack of bend in my knees. I reached my hand back to rub the pain away with a quiet wince.
I took a deep breath and brought my eyes back to the fuel. I dug my fingertips into the dirt. As I gripped my knuckles shut, a sudden pinch of pain caused me to throw my hand up.
A small, red drop of blood leaked from the soiled finger. I scanned the ground for the device of harm. My eyes widened at the discovery. I reached back down and picked up a white stick of fluff. I wiped the dirt from it to reveal it wasn't fluff, but it was a feather.
The shallow foundation that held the body of this feather. My mind began to buzz with thoughts. I had never seen another creature in this void. Where could this have possibly come from?
I felt a sudden chill run down my spine. The hairs on my face stood up. I stood on my feet and searched the horizon. I clutched the feather to not allow the alien object to leave my side.
"You already on a break?"
Black walked up from behind me. He glanced at my face.
"What happened to you?"
I snapped out of my glare. I blinked dust from my eyelashes and looked down at the feather. Black's face held still, confused as to what I could be thinking.
"I think someone is here," I whispered.
Black held his face tight. Which slowly drooped into a smile, which burst into a laugh.
"You can't be serious about someone watching us again."
He gripped at his gut as he continued to howl about my paranoia. He took a deep breath and gripped the carrots at his feet. Black walked off back to the fire, chuckling as the distance grew between us.
The empty field patch grew larger until it was time to rest.
We sat across from each other. Black eyeballed the fire and calculated that it was enough fuel for each of us to get a little sleep. I fidgeted with the feather as I scanned around at the white void. The hope for something new to catch my attention was desperate.
"You need to sleep."
I looked toward Black.
I don't need sleep.
I looked away with my lips dried shut. I could feel his frustration begin to leak again.
"Fine. If you don't want to have your break again, I will sleep. You keep the fire up."
He flipped his body to face away from me and rested his head against the dirt. His temper had been shortening these past few rests. I just couldn't stand to meet Blue again, to see him...
A sudden sound came from behind me. It sounded like a gust of wind, but there was something off about it. I jumped up to my feet and scanned the horizon. I sprinted into the distance. I could hear Black behind me shuffle to see what I was up to.
"Who's there!" I yelled as the void echoed my voice. I threw dirt up from my heels as I began to lose my breath.
I stopped at the edge of the empty dirt and carrot-littered field. I reached down and ran my hand through the stem leaves. There, I found another feather. The same as the one I kept clutched in my palm.
I looked back up. I twisted my body, looking, searching for anything. A sign. A slight movement. Anything. But there was nothing.
The past few rests were rather anxiety-inducing. I collected five feathers. Each time I swore I would find the source, all that was left was a feather hung at the edge of the field. I couldn't even keep my eyes widened without moving. But if I were to sleep, I would miss sight of the source.
Black walked past me, fueling the fire. He kept his eyes down, ignoring me. It was frustrating that he had not shown the same care about the feathers as I did.
As I followed the borderline, I began to see the sight I tried so hard to avoid. I shook my head and rested it in my palm. But, it was unavoidable. I had been awake for so long, that I was witnessing the dream in my wake.
The blood raining onto the stems. His head flew across the sky, gliding across the field. The head was replaced by a white flash. I blinked. The white flash landed in front of me.
My brain kicked on. I widened my hands as my numb legs launched my body toward the white creature. I gripped it as tons of feathers rained from it. It squawked and kicked as I gripped it tighter and tighter.
"You are mine! You are MINE!"
It unleashed claws straight into my right forearm. I felt it loosen from my grip and I watched it fly far away from me. I gripped my forearm and shut my jaw til it hurt. Blood leaked from three cuts that ran across my forearm.
I slammed the end of my foot into the dirt and kicked a cloud of carrots and dust into the sky. I entered my daydream once more.
I sat useless as Blue was murdered by the shadow. It gripped the remains and devoured them like a hungry dog. The teeth were so vivid. They shined in red blood. It was as if they mocked me. You served me this meal, so watch as I devour it.
I woke up in a sweat. I abruptly ended my screaming as I gripped my forearm. It was wrapped in a cloth. I did not remember moving to the fire and lying down.
Black sat beside me, drawing into the dirt with the end of a carrot. He lifted his head and sighed.
I couldn't sit up. My whole body was stiff and sore. I took a deep breath and began to calm myself.
"Who are we really waiting for, Black?"
It went quiet. Black calmly set the carrot down on the ground as if it were a fragile object. He looked up into the white void and uttered his words.
"Let me tell you a story."