0.1.16

Shim walked as long as her legs would hold her, which, given the adrenaline from the events of the day, was well into the night. Still, it was hardly a safe distance away from the Dune border. She placed the still unconscious Kaiya in a soft melee of branches and leaves, tried to hide them both as well as she could, and promptly passed out.

Kaiya stirred, and sweat began beading off her forehead. She was ghostly white and woke up with a start, panting heavily, looking around at the familiar forest, and finally to Shim, who still slept next to her. After covering Shim up a little more in large leaves, she stretched and went off to find some water. The jutting rock they had taken cover under looked to be as good a place as any to start. She climbed on top to take a look around, glancing at her screen to see if there were any suspicious signals in the area. On top of the rock, she spotted a small stream nearby, with a suspicious looking growth jutting from the riverbank, hanging over the water. She hopped down from the rock and the view was revealed as she came closer to the stream. She heard gushes of water, and looked left to see a small pond. Feeding the pond was a gentle waterfall that split off into five parts like fingers. She fought her way through the thicket of gnarled roots that all seemed to be reaching towards the stream. At last she broke through and the suspicious protrusion looked like an armored foot. The foot of a giant robot. In the clearing she could see the rest of its body. It’s back rested against the corner of the waterfall. It’s hand lay buried under the small shore leading into the pond. It’s lifeless head slouched to the left. Fallen Giants Forest, Kaiya thought. She’d read about the giants in school, but had never seen one in person. They were rare, and a failed experiment in volume. Bigger was not better. The future of warfare would be small, silent, and invisible. The giant wartime robots were incredible creations. They could run large distances, they could leap over small buildings, and they had all kinds of weapon attachments to be swapped for the purpose of the mission. It was said that when the military gave up on them, they were used as sports players for a whole new level of sporting entertainment. The fallen ones were left to rot in the forest, where the last of the great battles took place that they played a major role in.

Kaiya drank deeply and found a small container to hold some water to return to Shim. Something was nagging at the back of her mind. Something related to the forest that she couldn’t remember. Kaiya thought she heard rustling in the leaves but it stopped. Having just been through a battle, her nerves were still on edge. She walked back towards Shim when it hit her. Fallen Giants Forest was overrun with zealots. A religious sect that worshipped Wran. Not much was known about them other than their devoutness and the vigor with which they believed. And, of course, their intolerance for non-believers. Maybe they would help them? Or, perhaps they’d kill them? Kaiya began sprinting back to Shim. She passed the rock she climbed and skidded to a halt. Shim was awake, bound, and on her knees in front of a small group of Zealots. They dressed in dirty tunics, worn thin by the roughness of mostly outdoor living. Each was richly embroidered with the Wrannaman symbol. Some were faint, embossments of it. Others were flamboyantly decorative. On each of their hips rested a belt with a knife and some pouches for supplies. They had a crossbow pointed at Shim, and several more pointed at Kaiya. Kaiya looked at Shim, trying to ask if she was okay, and if they should fight. Shim shook her head no, heavy with sadness and fatigue. She knew Shim had carried her whatever distance they covered last night, and Kaiya was eager to talk to her about yesterday’s events, but that would have to wait. She thought she knew what happened yesterday but it was fuzzy, like a faded dream. They’d first need to handle this situation with the Zealots. Kaiya and Shim were thinly armed. There would be no sense in fighting. At best Shim would die and Kaiya would make it out. At worst they both would die. Perhaps, Kaiya thought that since she was marked by Wran, they would be okay. Kaiya tossed the bottle of water to Shim, and put her knife back in it’s holder on her thigh. She held up her hands and stretched her fingers, revealing the etched symbol. The zealots gasped, and slowly, they lowered their weapons. One of them spoke.

“You are Kaiya. You are known to Wran, and thus, to us.” She bowed, and the others bowed as well, taking a knee.

“We are at your service.”

Kaiya looked at Shim, who had released all of her tension, and was laughing behind her gag, shaking her head.

“Can you release my friend?” Kaiya asked. It was done quickly, as if they were embarrassed. The zealots rose, and came to shake her hand.

“We apologize, marked one, we did not know who you were. There was much Sikka and Hybrid activity the past few days. We have been on guard.”

“We need to get to the coast. Wran told us to go there. Can you help us?”

The zealots looked at eachother, some were in disagreement. They were not speaking english. It was a language foreign to Kaiya. Shim had never heard of it either.

“Are you aware that Wran makes the giants walk at night?” One of the zealots asked seriously. The others looked at Shim and Kaiya. Kaiya tried not to laugh, and looked at Shim. Who the hell are these people?

“No, we did not know that.” They considered her answer very seriously and began conversing again.

“Wran grows in strength, her veins cover this area now. She plays with the giants, so we play with them too,” a Zealot informed them as the rest of her colleagues debated their response. Shim took a long awaited drink of water. The Zealots finally stopped their whispering amongst themselves and looked back at the girls.

“We made the black stone that marked you. Wran spoke to us, showed us how. We lost you, now we found you. We are the stewards of Wran’s will. We will help you. We have one request. We would like to touch your hand. Your marked hand. The hand blessed and marked by our goddess Wran.” Shim shrugged at Kaiya. It sounded reasonable enough.

“I accept your condition.” Kaiya said, still not sure what kind of game they were playing. The zealots erupted in chanting. More of them chanted unseen from the surrounding forest. They had been surrounded and hadn’t realized it. Dozens and dozens of them popped up and stood tall, chanting, with big smiles on their face. Those that were too far away to hear the news, where told it and then they too began chanting. So much for trying to keep a low profile, the damn chanting could be heard a good ways away. Though if the Sikkas had known their whereabouts, they’d be doomed anyways. Ayala’s brave move had bought her just a little more time, and as soon as the Sikka discovered they’d been deceived, they’d be out of time. Kaiya hoped the ruse would last a bit longer so they could make it to the coast and … And then what, Kaiya thought to herself, not for the first time. After they made it to the coast, she realized, they didn’t have a plan. Wran did not say what to do or what to look for after they reached the coast. The chanting zealots moved in on Kaiya and Shim, surrounding them in a closing circle. They began moving around the girls, whispering in their foreign tongue, watching Kaiya. They began raising their hands as they circled. Kaiya did the same. She came to the edge of the circle and each Zealot matched their palm to Kaiyas as they walked by. It was a deeply religious experience for them. Some reacted with shouting, some rolled their eyes into the back of their head. One by one they touched her hand and left the inner circle to form a growing outer circle of those who had already had their turn. Hundreds of them now formed concentric circles around the girls, and more kept coming, chanting, dancing, circling.