TRANSHUMANCE (6)
By:
February 20, 2026
We are thrilled to serialize Transhumance, a post-apocalyptic novella by HILOBROW friend and contributor Charlie Mitchell.
TRANSHUMANCE: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10.
Dalton’s mannered opaqueness did little to soothe the Kindred’s worries — none of whom knew the right words, tone, or register to politely dissect the man’s brain. Little Dog surmised that the Kindred just felt out of place to challenge Baba’s judgment or friendship, in especially poor footing with an outsider who, so far, has been harmless. Dalton tended towards Baba’s advocacy, seeming intent on not disturbing any political or spiritual order to which he was a guest. Maybe the traveler learned a long time ago to stay calm and quiet at a fraught cultural boundary. Hence, every dinner was a waltz of tempered questions and answers, spaced out by crushing silences and spoons clinking bowls. Pleasant as anyone could be, anxiety never dragged into light.
But sometimes one on one, Dalton dropped the waltz. One afternoon he finds Little Dog perched on the post of a vacant sheep pen, whittling a branch.
Chk – chk – chk.
“Howdy, LD. Yer gonna catch a cold if you don’t put a hat on.”
“Pfft. That is a lie.”
“It ain’t.”
Chk – chk.
“So nobody fell ill come winter?”
Little Dog’s knife rests at the neck of shaved wood. “Hm, no, just babies. Two cycled this winter, and that was sad but it happens. And sometimes Kindred cycle in the birthing pool. Then there is hay fever in the spring but wearing a hat won’t stop that. Honey-garlic might, though.”
Dalton nods sagely, and hoists himself up next to Little Dog. “Don’t lemme interrupt,” he gestures at the instruments in hand. “Seems I’ve caught you deep in thought.”
“Sorta,” he tucks away the branch and whittling knife. “Rather not say the thoughts out loud, no offense,” he mutters and hangs his head low.
“None offense t’all, young man. Chores all done?”
Little Dog nods with an incredulous look. Who did Dalton take him for?
“Right on — off the clock, time to kick back. Besides whittling, how d’you blow off steam?”
He studies Dalton intently; he chews on each phrase, playing with the phonetics behind his teeth — clicking of clock, kick back. “Like fun things?”
Dalton grins, nods.
“Ah fuck,” he breathes out, giving a cautionary look at Dalton — good, he’s fine with cursing. “Well, you get sick of ball-in-a-cup quickly. If enough are free for teams we can play Shoot Score. Drawing and painting are good, but nothing like stories by the fire. Chopping firewood. Whittle, make something I guess. I miss fishing a lot, that’s the best part about thaws.”
“Fly or spinreel?”
“Fly fishing.”
“Attaboy. Kid like you don’t hunt?”
Little Dog sucks his teeth. “Ahm, I dunno. Baba weighs your heart and sees if you’re ready to cycle another being or not. Otherwise you taste the Fear in the meat and then get sick with it. I’ll help with butchering but I never returned something to cycle.”
“But you fish, you cycle what you catch or put em back?”
“No, Baba says I can cycle and clean fish now but it wasn’t always like that.”
Dalton spits. “Gymnastic.”
“What’s that word?”
“Flexible, in a coupla senses. How come yer called Little Dog?”
He shrugs. “It’s my name — I dunno, I was shorter than all the other kids for a long time. Then it stuck good but there wasn’t any other name before that anyways. Sometimes Kindred make their own one on Transhumance, or the Bodhisattva reasons one.”
“How bout Small Dalton? Plenty of good fellers yer age who’d kill for that name.”
Little Dog cackles.
“So why ain’t you on this pilgrimage?”
It steals Dalton’s breath at how quickly the kid’s delight gutters out. Little Dog takes out his knife and branch. “Got to mind my ice cream.”
Chk – chk.
Complete story to be published at HILOBROW later in 2026.
MORE ORIGINAL FICTION & POETRY AT HILOBROW: James Parker’s COCKY THE FOX | Karinne Keithley Syers’ LINDA, LINDA, LINDA | Matthew Battles’ THE SOVEREIGNTIES OF INVENTION stories | James Parker’s KALEVALA bastardizations | Annalee Newitz’s “THE GREAT OXYGEN RACE” | Charlie Mitchell’s “SENTINELS” | Josh Glenn’s “VALIDATION SESSION” | & more.