Pegasus (Part 32)

We must have drifted off asleep because the next thing it was bright again. But now the train was hurtling through a rainforest. A blanket of densely packed trees leaving a dark forest floor. No more large herbivores were to be seen. I nudged Tabitha to wake her.

“What?”

She immediately looked around as if sensing danger.

“It’s okay. Just wanted to wake you. We seem to be in some sort of forest.”

“Yes, in another few hours, we’ll come to a clearance. The train will slow down somewhat and then we’ll have to jump.”

“Jump?”

“Yes, jump.”

Damn it. That is not what I wanted to hear. This didn’t look like the kind of place one would survive an injury.

“What if we get injured?”

“Oh, you’ll be okay. There’s a technique to it. I’ll show you.”

With that, she showed. It involved rolling once your feet touched the ground.

I sure hoped it would work.

“Once we’re off the train, we will have a bit of a walk through the dense jungle ahead of us. I want you to know that we’ll be perfectly fine. I’ve done this particular journey a few times previously.”

I nodded.

“So tell me about your family Tabitha. I want to know everything about you and where you are from. How did you get involved in all of this?”

Pegasus (Part 27)

An hour later we entered the habitat, It was unlike anything that I had previously experienced. The sheer scale and magnificence. It even seemed to have an atmosphere at its unenclosed entrance. One moment we were free-floating in space and the next propellors appeared at the side of the ship and there were clouds that we quickly descended below which revealed a thick, lush sea of green rainforest and a blue sky. Still, our journey was far from complete. The rainforest gradually gave way to savannah, becoming less dense at first before the trees became isolated from one another. Immense creatures were visible below.

“See, I wasn’t messing with you,” Tabitha shouted from her seat.

“No, you weren’t. I can see that.”

“Don’t worry. I will look after you,” she replied smiling back to me. It was surprisingly reassuring.

A few minutes later she confirmed that they were approaching the landing strip. A large warehouse came into view first before it appeared right beside it. The landing was unexpectedly soft.

“What now?” I asked.

“The cargo will be taken off by droids. There are no humans here. But the droids could send out an alert if we are spotted. However, they operate in a very predictable manner,” she replied as she took off her chair straps and stood up.