The Plant - A Steampunk Story Chapter 19

“I’m just saying,” Richard gasped, struggling to dislodge a large rock from the middle of the border he was trying to define, a place from which the cursed thing refused to budge. “You know, if our parents wanted to devise a punishment for our creative truth telling, this would probably be it!”

“Don’t mess with karma, dude!” Jack said philosophically, suddenly distracted by the fact that digging got a lot easier than it had been so far, and upon further examination he noticed he was shoveling through soft silt. “This medium is completely worthless!” he cussed under his breath. 

“Just mix it in with clay, I’m sure it’ll be fine!” Richard suggested, wiping his brow.

“And where do I get the clay?” Jack asked, and then, following Richard’s unspoken directions, retorted. “Since when are you the expert in plantings?”

“Since you made me study them. Hey!” Richard suddenly remembered. “Why is karma punishing me? It was your idea!”