Live Or Die

Chapter 9: Princess Of The Skies

I gripped the bow tighter, and drew the arrow back an inch further. Dasha slowly rearranged her stance so that the pike was over her shoulder, aimed between the eyes of our guest. Bob ran away from the door but didn’t look where he was going and bumped into one of Harvey’s chairs. Harvey began to stir.

“Um… I-I didn’t mean to startle you, but… I saw a house, and there was a porch, but I decided not to go in because you might want to kill me but I decided to sleep under the overhang with Ares aaaaaannd…” She looked at Dasha, then made eye contact with me. She brushed her hair over her ear, fastened a sling that was holding something on her back and took a step back, but she felt the death-cold steel of Raphiel’s, now Harvey’s, sword tap against the back of her head. Master growled at the pteranodon before it could do anything.

“Hell of a way to wake me little miss.” He looked at me and Dasha, then said: “Bob ran into me so I went round the side.” Right- we had 3 doors into the main room where we slept for the night. The main one, that this girl was at, and ones at the left and right that would lead into the leisure room, Harvey’s workshop and Ruby’s sewing place.

“I don’t mean any trouble, i-it was just a really really nice place to stay for the night because of… You know the big storm? And I-I was just…” I pointed my bow at the pteranodon, which seemed to take offense to me. I asked:

“What do you want? Not in a threatening way, but what do you need?” She relaxed a little and so did I. She fumbled around for a few seconds before saying

“I just want to find somewhere safe and to eat.” Dasha lowered her spear and looked at me. Harvey lowered the sword but not by much. Master sensed the peace and stopped growling. I suddenly realised how cold the freezing fog was.

“Come in. It’s freezing outside.” She, her pteranodon, Harvey and Master walked in. I quietly shut the door as the other two were still sleeping. I took one of the three chairs and sat down around the table. Harvey gave her one to sit on next to me and Bob was sat on the third. I could see her more clearly around the fire- she had shoulder-long light-brown hair, tanned skin and amber eyes. She had a sling that went over one shoulder and there were three small sacks attached to it. She wore some primitive clothes, mostly cloth but with a few patches of hide. She had wrapped her right hand in cloth as well so that that it gave slightly better grip, and she extended that hand over the fire. She embraced its warmth. “So… what’s your name?”

“My name?” she asked as her pteranodon perched itself in a corner, Master curiously watching it. “I-I’m Miranda.” She had a faint Australian accent. “That’s Ares. My dino-bird.”

“A pteranodon.” me and Dasha said at the same time. I knew about that one from before the whole ‘abduction thing’. She pulled off her sling and put the sacks of the table. Dasha and Harvey pointed their weapons at her. “What’s in the bag?” Dasha menacingly enquired. She narrowed her eyes.

“Don’t worry- I don’t have any weapons.” she proceded to open the first bag, stocked to the brim with berries of every colour. “Here- all are edible, but don’t eat the black and white ones- one makes you sleepy, one makes you thirsty but caffeinated.” Harvey took a handful of white ones and wolfed them down. Miranda gave him a nervous look and moved onto the next sack. As she opened it a waft of grilled fush filled the air. She took out a clay pot, removed the lid and showed us a third of a grilled and seasoned fish. “I traded with the Lock-Ness tribe for this. It’s lovely. It’s what I treat myself to if I need something to boost my mood.” She looked at it with adoring eyes, but put the lid back on and stuffed it back into the bag. The third sack was heavier, and jingled as she opened it. Inside were a few crystals, some refined metal, a telescope, a compass and a smooth, shiny black rock. “This is everything I’ve traded. Me and Ares usually fly around together, fishing, gathering and selling s-so we traded for a spyglass, some metal and this compass. Lots of people want crystals- they struggle cimbing the mountains but for me and Ares it’s a breeze.” She began to pack it all back onto her back. “The black rock is obsidian- really advanced groups love it. They say they make modern stuff with it, so they need loads. So if we see some, we grab it and sell it.” A thought suddenly struck me.

Bob had wondered over to Ares. Bob squarked at Ares. Ares squarked back but louder. Bob flapped his wings. Ares lifted one wing. Bob walked away looking defeated and offended. The start of a rivalry.

“Miranda… you said you wanted somewhere safe to stay, right?”

“Y-yeah…”

“Why not stay with us?” Harvey and Dasha shot me a confused and worried look. I ignored them. Bob squarked and shook his head at Ares. Master purred a little.

-Next in Anky!!

-Nightfall