Chapter 15: Hitching a ride.

They were tired and ecstatic.

The twinkling lights in the distance were bringing them in like a moth to a flame, their only hope was not to die like one.

"It better be what I am hoping it to be or else I am going to punch you," Yve gritted out, her exhaustion was making her cranky. It had taken them the entirety of the daylight just to get out of the vast jungle where the secret base of the Branding System had been.

The moon shining over them provided them with the light that they needed to cross over the barren land that they had been greeted with again.

"I am sure we will reach safety this time," Aksel assured her, being ever the positive person that he was.

After these few words, the two again fell silent letting themselves immerse into their own trail of thoughts. They didn't have a lot of energy to be even walking properly but if they didn't make small talk every once in a while then they were sure that they would drop straight into a deep slumber. Therefore this constant remembrance of one another was a necessity for their mind to push their bodies further.

Staring at the glimmering lights Aksel could make out the neon colors that were working as an alert for them. It had initially made them hesitant in approaching this new place or city that appeared very similar to what Aquilo had looked like but besides this, there was nowhere else to go. Their only aim was to keep going further and further until and unless there came a place where they would truly be safe.

Sighing he glanced at Yve who was lagging behind a few steps and then looking back at the city he noticed that it was almost triple in size as that of Aquilo. He couldn't imagine how difficult it would have been for them if they would have to live in a place this big, full of Exters and Contrivos and drones that were out to kill them.

'That would have been a scary experience.'

He thought when suddenly he lurched to the side as a cramp restricted movement in his leg.

"Told you we should have taken some rest," Yve muttered coming to help him, and sighing he nodded settling down on the bare ground as he looked back at the darkness that stretched for miles. The blank and nothingness seemed to be more soothing to his eyes than looking at the lighted city ahead which made him worry about what monstrous or angelic entities would welcome them there.

Taking a sip of the water that Yve took out from her bag he noticed that out of the four water bags that they carried two had already been over and this worried him further. If for any reason they wouldn't be able to stop in this city then they would get dehydrated quite quickly in the merciless heat during the day.

Pressing on his leg where the cramp had been he observed his partner's condition and noticed that though the lady had packed enough guts and courage to have come on this journey with him her physical condition was still slightly less than him.

He wondered if he had been cruel in pushing her to this extent without giving into much consideration about her.

"Didn't I tell you before that I hate it when people stare at me?" he heard her say and opening her brilliant eyes she stretched out her limbs in front of him and then fell back down against the bag that she had been carrying on her back.

She was breathing deeply as she lay there completely still for a few seconds but the pitiful gaze that she had been getting from Aksel annoyed her and kicking his leg lightly with her leg she murmured, "Stop it. I am fine, I am sure we can start walking again after five minutes."

They would have rested if not for the uncertainty of their safety that the dark night might have been hiding from them. So far they had been fortunate to have not met with any serious adversity but one couldn't be sure when on unknown lands.

The atmosphere around them had settled with the halt in their movements so it came as a surprise when Aksel felt a sudden shift in the air. It was subtle at first as slight wisps could be felt against his sweat-drenched skin.

Letting the breeze sweep over him he heard for any sounds that would give away the reason for this sudden frenzy.

"You feel that too?" Asked Yve who stirred in her movements getting up in a sitting position to look around.

It had been completely still ever since they had come out of the forest and therefore this sudden situation had made them uneasy about any probable danger.

When the breeze increased and a very faint chopping noise could be heard from a near distance they looked up in its direction and noticed a small blinking white light in the distance.

"Is that a firefly?" Yve asked as she tried to see the object properly but as soon as she said that the view became clearer and she could make out the figure of a machine with large rotor wings on top carrying a gigantic box.

"It's not a drone is it?" Aksel asked having noticed these visible elements as well.

"Doesn't seem so," Yve quickly replied but even then the two crouched their bodies to make them appear more like curvaceous stones than sprawled figures if anyone was to notice them from above.

"Do you think that it is coming from the same base?" Yve asked shifting slightly closer to him.

Tilting their heads up in this position was difficult for them and pressing his forehead against the hard grainy ground he said, "They don't seem like any vehicle or machine that we have ever seen in Aquilo and neither does it have any of those neon lights that usually border these vehicles. In fact, this machine has no light at all. It makes me lean towards the probability that there might not even be any living thing on it for it to work so efficiently without any source of energy that would grant them vision from so high up there."

Aksel was right, the machine at a closer distance made it visible for them to see that there wasn't any place for the machine to have people seated on it. It didn't seem to have any arms as the worker drones had but instead, the giant crate was fixed to it by ropes.

They realized that the machine was going in the direction of the city where Aksel and Yve were headed to and since they were now sure that there wasn't anyone on it the two got up and looking at it Aksel casually said, "It would be great if we could have hitched a ride on that thing."

His words immediately put Yve into motion and shuffling through the things in her bag she took out a rope and a grappling hook. Bringing it in front of him she said, "This could work but are you sure about it?"

Aksel could feel the pressure instantly on him when the decision-making was shifted all on him. If all their assumptions had been wrong then they could get into serious trouble but it was also too good of an opportunity to just let go, especially since it would hopefully, directly lead them inside the city.

The conditions of their bodies weren't in the best of states but after all the risks they had taken this was nothing and giving it a try shouldn't hurt much.

"Give it to me," Aksel said taking it from her hold noticing that while he had been staring up at the machine that had come almost directly over them Yve had already fixed the rope to the hook.

"I knew you were going to do it," she chuckled feeling her nerves buzz with excitement. Their tired bodies were now running on adrenaline as they stood up and carried their bags on their back waiting for the perfect moment when they would be closest to the machine.

Now that they were waiting for it, the machine seemed to be flying slower than they had expected it to and when it came overhead them Aksel wedged a foot back and swinging the anchor in his hand he then threw it upwards with all his might hoping that its sharp metal claws would fix in, the what looked to be a wooden crate.

They watched as the shiny metal glinted once and soared through the layers of heavy air grazing the surface of the box. It couldn't fix itself in and fell freely down giving into gravity as Aksel huffed and brought it back in his hands as soon as he could.

The position that was best to hook the anchor had gone as the flying machine passed over them and moved further towards the city.

"Come on, quickly try again!" Yve shouted in frustration as she watched their free ride flying away.

Gritting his teeth in frustration Aksel glared at her and then swinging the hook in his hand again started running to gain the vantage point and when he realized that this was the closest he could get he threw the hook with all the force that he could muster and with a cry of angst reverberating through his throat, this time they heard a small thud and felt the rope tighten in his arm as the hook was strongly fixed on the box.

"Let's go!" he hollered to Yve who was running a few paces behind him and climbing up the rope that was rough against his skin he didn't pay it much mind as he moved a little more upwards to give Yve space to climb as well. His movements had made the machine tilt to one side as the box imbalanced and caused the machine to sway as well but thankfully no other problems happened as Aksel felt his banging heart slowly calm down.

When she took hold of the rope he felt it jostle against the strain caused by her movements and balancing himself again he noticed that though weak, her skills were better than him as she quickly climbed up the rope and was only a little below him.

"Come on, get on that damn box before this rope snaps from both of our weights," she said, and realizing it he continued to move up staring at the city in the distance, hoping for their safety.