Vanrra woke up after the hit. —Move, you piece of trash! He tried to move with all his strength, but he was too tired, and the giant didn't respond. The screens slowly went dark, and the wrist rings opened. He let go of the levers and reached out with his arms. The cockpit was turned on its side. The electric pulses had stopped, the cockpit's lights and panels all went out. Only a few red lights came on. Next to his seat, a small panel with a lot of buttons opened up. He pressed them one after the other to see if he could guess which one they had turned on. —You're not answering, you piece of junk! Get moving!
Someone knocked on the hatch from the outside. —Hey! Are you coming out? Right now, open up! —It was a young man's voice. He hit the metal over and over again. —I know you're in there. Let it out! You can't go anywhere! —Vanrra got up from the seat and almost fell toward the screens. He went to the hatch and opened it. He had to use all of his strength to move the heavy metal plate. The boy pointed a gun at him as soon as he saw the light outside. —How dumb! You gave me a lot of... Hold on, you're not one of them. —Vanrra punched him in the arm. The boy fell back when he slipped.
Vanrra yelled at him. —You damn bastard, you wanted to kill me!
The boy only fell about a meter. His hair was straight, blond, and a little messy. A nice face. He wore a brown military pilot's suit with a lot of belts and straps. —What's wrong with you? Is that how you say hello? —The two mechas were lying on the ground, one on top of the other, and were not working. Vanrra looked out the hatch, and the back of his neck was almost level with the ground. —Hey! Please answer me! What are you doing pilot one of these?
—Bastard!
He got up from the ground and brushed off the dust. —Hey! I haven't disrespected you. Are you coming down from there?!
—Who are you?!
—First you hit and then you ask questions. How out of place!
—You attacked me first!
—What were you doing on that ship?! It's not my fault I mistook you for one of them.
—Why you attack me?! I tried to surrender!
He sat down on one of the rocks. —Bad luck, but what's done is done. Hey, when are you coming down? It's hot up there!
—I don't trust you!
—Because of this? —He raised his revolver; it was full of elegant engravings. —It has no bullets! It's just to scare.
—Who are you?! Who's up there with you?!
—How arrogant. I'm Amir! Amir Sameer! The guys up there, don't worry about them; they won't hurt you!
—Why did you attack?!
—Hey, it's very uncomfortable talking like this. Why don't you come down?! After all, we're both stuck in this crevice! —Vanrra looked up to see the cave they had fallen into. —There you are! Come into the shade, or you'll get roasted! —Amir tossed the revolver aside. —Are Are you really just going to stare at me? —The stranger made him feel safe; it was clear he didn't want to hurt him. Vanrra carefully climbed down. The cave floor was rocky and sandy, and the cave looked like a mouth that was half-open. The opening let in only a little light, which lit up the mechas. —What do you call yourself, comrade? —He cleaned his boots. —I'm not angry; it was just a mistake. Everything will be okay.
—My name is… Vanrra.
—Vanrra? You are a girl?
—It's not a woman's name.
—I know a chick named Vanrra; she's a flutist. Do you know how to play the flute?
—Why did you try kill me?! You attacked everyone up there!
—It's not my fault you were with those guys, damn gray pirates. I don't mind how you ended up with them.
—They had me captured, along with the doc.
—A doc? Doctor of what?
—I don't know; he's my teacher, or rather, he's like my father. I travel with him.
—What does he teach you?
—Why are you acting as if you didn't try to shoot me?
—You're very resentful; nothing happened to you. I had to be cautious; I pictured you as an elite soldier, serious, with long hair, a bushy beard, and a stern face, maybe even one-eyed. Where did you learn to pilot that model?
—It's my first time getting into one.
He said sarcastically. —And I'm a prince. Seriously, tell me, in confidence, was it your teacher? Ask him to teach me too.
He sat down on a nearby rock, trembling from dizziness. —I swear it was my first time; I got in because I had no other choice; I would have died on the ship. —He looked up at the mouth of the cave. —I hope he's okay.
—Don't worry, they'll bring a crane soon and get us out of here.
—Who?
He unfastened a canteen from his straps. —My boys, isn't it obvious? Did you hit your head? I have to explain everything to you like a child?
—Yes, you hit me. It's your fault we're here.
—Naah! I saved you; those bastards would have enslaved you. Do you want some water? —He gave her the bottle. —Vanrra drank from it like an animal. —Leave some. —Vanrra was exhausted. —Vanrra, where do you come from? Your skin is too pale for this desert, so you don't seem used to the heat.
—From the northeast, from the Tian Shan mountains.
—Really? What's a villager like you doing in this desert? You don't look like someone from the border. Is it true you live alongside horses?
—Where are you from?
—From Ab.
—Ab? I hardly know anything about Ab.
—Do you know anything about the world besides riding horses?
—I never came down from the mountains; I know almost nothing.
—Ab is a great nation. It rules from the Strait of Melkart to here, the province of Ox, or so it's said.
—Ab, I remember; the doc mentioned it.
—Are you talking to yourself?
Yes, you don't talk to yourself?
—Me too, but I don't say it out loud. I guess it's hard for anyone to hear you in the mountains. You can't let your guard down here; the walls have ears. —Vanrra looked at his blond hair and thought it looked like someone he knew, but he couldn't remember who. —What? Are you surprised? —He shook his head.
—Is it natural?
—Of course, haven't you ever seen a blonde before?
—I don't know. Your hair grow that color all over your body?
—I'd rather not say. —He looked up, hoping for help. —Vanrra, why did you leave the mountain? How did you get on that ship? Are you going to a specific place?
Vanrra thought about that time, his friends, his village, and his life. That great giant. Mahia. Now he was stuck at the bottom of a cave with another crazy person and two combat mechs. Could steel giants, like the ones who ruined his life, be the same? That splendor titan that crushed Mahia was different. It didn't have any wires, it didn't sound like a machine, it came out of nowhere, and it fell from the sky like a bolt of lightning. It bled, just like the red giant in his dream. There was flesh under the metal.
They were connected to the demons, the forest beast, the prairie abomination, and the crab. Could they be connected? Those things ate people. Did they eat everyone in the town?
Vanrra couldn't handle it anymore and threw up. —Yuck. Can't you let me know? It's clear that this is your first time. I used to get sick the first few times I flew, too. You will get used to it. He took a cloth handkerchief out of his pocket and walked closer. Vanrra cried quietly. —Hey, I'm sorry... I didn't mean to hurt your feelings. Please don't cry.
—Don't come near me, damn it, you annoying asshole.
—You need… a hug?
He remembered the pain of the shocks, which were like thousands of whips. — I don't want your hugs, damn it! Who would want to hug a crazy person like you? Murderer. —They both stopped talking.