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“We’re heading to the Forbidden Lands today. Mender’s so excited about going I didn’t have the heart to tell him about the destruction he’s going to see there. It’s really hard to describe. I guess he’ll just have to see it for himself to really understand what was lost in the war.” Liberty continued to wind Boy as she talked to him. She patted his head and tried not to be discouraged when he didn’t respond. The only sound in her bedroom was the ventilator Mender had fitted in Boy’s back, in the hope of drying out his delicate circuit boards.
It had already been several weeks since she had pulled Boy out of the ocean and there still weren’t any signs of him recovering. That hadn’t stopped her from winding him every day, or explaining each day’s agenda as if he could hear. She refused to give up hope even though Mender thought the salt water and sand had done too much damage to his inner workings. Not only was Boy her brother, he was the Keeper of humanity’s past.
Liberty gave his head one last pat before grabbing her hat and goggles. “I better go man the helm. We’ve planned a quick stop at the lake for a fresh load of water before heading over the mountains.” She sat on the edge of her bed, to put her hat and goggles on. “Mender’s never made a crossing over them. I think he may be nervous, but he would never admit it. You know how it is when you have to pretend to be the strong, silent type.” She stared at Boy for a few seconds, silently willing him to come back to her. All she needed was one blink. When nothing happened, she let out a sigh and left the cabin without looking back. The last thing she heard was the sound of the ventilator. It sounded like Boy was really breathing. He had to recover, if for no other reason than to see Mender’s new addition. Boy was going to love being able to breathe.
Mender’s airship flew next to Airus. When the lake came into view, she called over, “I’m heading down. Don’t land until I’m anchored.” She pulled on the pressure release chain until the psi was at the correct level. Landing on this side of the mountain was relatively easy because the wind currents were almost nonexistent. She still had to be careful about staying away from the nearby forest and keeping a lookout for mountain men, but the landing was a snap. Once on the ground, she gave the area another scan for strangers then lowered the anchor.
As soon as Mender had also safely landed, Liberty began throwing hoses over the side. She then kept an eye on the forest while Mender did the same. Finally, she waved to let him know she would meet him on the ground.
“Let’s not stay here any longer than necessary. It’s not safe.” Liberty grabbed a couple of hoses and followed Mender out to the lake.
He stopped at its edge. “How could a place as beautiful as this be unsafe? It’s perfect.”
She threw her hoses into the water. “Its perfection is deceptive. There are men living in nearby caves who would hurt you for no other reason than to watch you bleed to death.”
Mender nervously glanced around. “Maybe we should hurry then.”
“I agree. If you’ll carry the last two hoses out, I’ll climb aboard and turn on the pumps.”
He nodded but looked at the water longingly. “I was hoping for a bath while waiting to fill up the water tanks. It’s going to be a while before we’ll get another chance.”
Liberty scanned the area and saw nothing unusual. Maybe it would be okay if they took a few extra minutes to bathe. She patted her skirt pocket. “I have my Father’s pocket pistol. I’ll stay onboard where I can survey the area better, and if I see anyone, I’ll signal so you can get back aboard before they get too close.”
Mender grinned. “That sounds like a great plan. If you’ll trust me with the pistol, I’ll do the same for you.” He looked at her tangled hair. “Maybe you can try get a few of those tangles out while you’re in the water.”
She might have stayed and argued but he was right. Damn the man. Liberty was about halfway up the ladder when she stopped. Something wasn’t right. She held her breath and listened. She motioned with a finger for Mender to be quiet. After a few seconds, a rustling sound overheard convinced her to urge Mender to drop the hoses and follow her on board. She pulled the pistol out, and by the time Mender was on the ladder, she had reached the top.
Inching up as quietly as possible, Liberty carefully peered over the rail. Her heart felt as if it had dropped into her stomach when she saw a tall, dirty young man standing by the helm, as if trying to figure out how it worked. He wasn’t looking her way so she motioned Mender to follow her. Liberty carefully climbed aboard and moved quietly across the deck.
She held the pistol out and pointed it at the stranger’s back. “What the hell are you doing here?” Liberty was surprised to discover the guy was just a pimpled-face teenager. He was so filthy she could smell him from where she stood, his odor making her eyes water.
Tears had washed away some of the grime on his face. “I just need a place to hide. They’re going to kill me.”
Mender stepped forward and placed a hand on Liberty’s shoulder. She wasn’t certain if it was for support or to stop her from shooting the kid. She had never killed anyone, and didn’t want to start now if she could help it.
She didn’t lower the pistol but took her finger away from the trigger. “Who’s going to kill you?”
The kid started crying harder and began waving in the direction of the mountain. He was almost hysterical now. “They’ve all gone crazy.” He smacked a hand against his bare chest. “If they catch us, they will kill and eat us.”
Liberty’s mouth dropped open. “They’re going to do what?”
“They prefer human flesh to animals now.”
That information was too shocking to absorb. The tales about the mountain men had never mentioned them eating people. She turned to Mender. “We’ve got to get out of here now!” The two of them rushed to the edge of the deck and scanned the area. Neither saw anything. “Let’s get the hoses back onboard and get into the air as fast as we can.”
Mender nodded. “Okay, but what are we going to do about the water? We’ll never last the full three months in the Forbidden Lands with what we have in our tanks.”
Liberty grabbed the stranger’s arm and pulled him along as she headed toward the ladder. She spoke over her shoulder to Mender. “We’ll backtrack and fill up at another place I know.” When she reached the ladder, the kid planted his feet and refused to budge. “Look, Kid. If you want my help then you’ll have to help me first. We need to haul our hoses back onboard or we can’t fly out of here. If your friends don’t kill us, then crashing most certainly will.” She pushed him forward and pointed the gun at him. “Get your ass down there and help get those hoses back onboard.”
The moment the teenager did as instructed, she slipped the pistol back into her pocket, then turned to Mender and whispered, “Keep your eye on him. I don’t trust him.”
“The two of us can get the hoses out of the water. You stay here and prepare Airus so you can get us into the air as soon as everything’s onboard. I don’t trust him either, but if he’s telling the truth, we can’t leave him here. I’ll keep him on my ship. I would only worry if you were here by yourself with him.” He nodded toward his airship. “I left Robbie at the helm. Call over and tell him to get our ship ready to go.” Mender climbed over and began his descent. “Yell at the first sign of trouble.”
The moment his head disappeared over the edge, she ran to the helm and increased the rotation of the friction motor. It took longer to get Robbie to understand that he needed to get his ass in gear, and it was agonizing waiting for Mender and the kid to drag the hoses back to the ships. Several times, she thought she saw something moving out by the edge of the forest but it wasn’t until Mender had the last hose rolled up that she was certain.
The sight of several naked men, running from the cover of the trees toward the airships, rendered Liberty speechless. She slapped the side of Airus and got Mender’s attention. When he finally looked up, she pointed toward the mountain men heading their way. She finally found her voice. “Hurry!
They’re coming!”
That was all Mender needed to grab the kid by the hair and drag him over to his airship’s ladder. She pulled her own ladder up and glanced over to see if Mender had boarded his ship yet. When she saw him push the kid aboard and then climb in himself, she ran back to the helm and increased the steam pressure. Airus slowly rose into the air and was only a few feet off the ground when the mountain men got close enough for Liberty to see what they were carrying. Each had a long, deadly looking spear.
Airus was high enough now that no one could climb aboard, but if they began throwing those spears, they could easily puncture one of the balloons. All the stories Liberty had heard about the mountain men hadn’t done them justice. They were more terrifying in person. She increased the pressure and held her breath. Mender had his own ship in the air which was a great relief. All there was left to do was cross her fingers and hold her breath. She would have closed her eyes too if the gauges didn’t need constant monitoring.
Inch by inch, the airship rose a safe distance. Several loud bangs hit Airus’s hull so Liberty took a chance and looked over the side. She breathed a sigh of relief when thrown spears mostly fell back harmlessly, and others ineffectually struck the hull. She grinned and set course for Little Lake.