Page 61 of The Guardian

Gradually, the landscape changed and the flat dusty badlands disappeared as trees and water now surrounded us. Our guide then stopped the Jeep with a crushing unexpected halt.

Rain looked over at her and asked, “Who taught you to drive?”

She shrugged and told him in a thick Spanish accent, “No one, I taught myself.”

He laughed. “Da, that makes sense.”

Henry chuckled.

Vega literally stood from her seat and jumped down from the Jeep. Like she had springs in her legs.

Rain stared at this pure athletic agility and he actually smirked.

Henry hopped out then helped me down as he grasped my waist and set me onto the ground. I felt a bit inferior as compared to the eagle girl but I never claimed to be a female jaguar or anything. I did understand the name she had more though. We all had backpacks so we strapped them over our shoulders and this fact paid off as we were about to hike from here it seemed.

With no words at all, Vega stepped through the trees that were now thick all around us.

Henry, Rain and I hurried after her as we all headed along through into the trees. What we found though, totally stunned us.

It looked like the amazon literally. Swamp-like. Low hanging trees, a river that had murky water and floating plants but no Vega.

We looked for her and didn’t see her anywhere.

“Well, fuckall,” Henry griped. “Did we just get left?”

“I hope not,” Rain replied. “If so, I will be hunting this bitch down.”

“You mean if we survive,” Henry noted.

We stood there for several more nerve-wracking minutes.

I felt nervous. If we did not make this trip, my family would die.

Then a sound could be heard. It echoed like a spluttering highspeed fan or like a small plane. Suddenly, an odd water contraption came up the winding murky river at high speed to slide in sideways and up onto the beach where we stood.

Vega was the pilot and beamed at us as water splashed everywhere.

“Nu chert voz'mi!” Well, hell! Rain exclaimed as he tried to avoid the inevitable. However, he was soaking wet now.

Henry laughed as he and I stood further away and only felt a few pelting droplets.

I had only seen this kind of craft online. They were used in America mostly. Propelled by a large, aircraft-style propeller mounted on the back, inside a protective metal cage. I wondered how protected we would be and how we would hang on with the way this woman drove vehicles.

“Where did you get an air boat?” Rain asked Vega.

“I built it myself,” she replied with a grin.

We all stared at her as her thick accent had up and disappeared.

“Of course you did,” Rain stated dryly. “And I bet you taught yourself how to drive it too, da?”

“Si, that is what I do.” Nodding, she motioned to all of us. “You need to hurry. The black one is coming.”

We did as she instructed and rushed over to the river’s edge.

I wondered who this black one was, but we had no time for questions it seemed.

Henry picked me up and set me onto the flat-bottomed hull. It seemed firm even though it looked like it was made of aluminum. He then hopped up on it himself.