Stll me, and

For the first time in ages, Ishi woke up in the morning without the help of her commanding officer. Yawning and stretching, she looked over at Diana, still sleeping peacefully. Ishi smiled and retrieved her sarong from the poles covering the cave entrance and tied it securely back on. Taking a deep breath, she stepped out of the cave to look around.

The sun shone down upon a land that was not her home, it was different star in the skies. Strolling around the area, Ishi happened upon some fruit that resembled green apples on the ground. Kneeling down, she picked up a piece of fruit and tasted it, finding it quite succulent and delicious. As she reached up to pick some more fruit from the nearby tree, Ishi heard a sweet voice from behind her.

“Good morning, Miss! How was your first night in our world?” Ishi looked over her shoulder to find Diana heading toward her, still a little sleepy-eyed. Ishi tossed a few pieces of the fruit to her companion, who deftly caught them all.

“It was nice, thank you -deer-,” Ishi said, and Diana giggled at her pun. After having a relaxing breakfast, they continued on their journey their road to the city of Meridian. After a couple hours of uneventful travel, Ishi suddenly stopped, her nostrils flaring. She felt a familiar sense of dread and looked around nervously.

"What is it? What's wrong, Ishi," Diana said, pulling up her hood and unsheathing her dagger.

“Do you smell that? On the wind,” Ishi said, holding her walking stick defensively in front of her. The wind had indeed changed direction, carrying the scent of their pursuers. They were a band of lizardman marauders, hiding in the brush barely out of the field of view of the two ladies. Their leader, a menacing-looking warrior with cobalt scales and a scarred visage, gave a signal to one of his minions, who scurried over to him.

"Boss, these two females, they cannot be the traders we are waiting for," the minion said, speaking in a harsh whisper. The leader nodded in agreement.

"Indeed, but they have sensed our presence, so we cannot let them go," the leader said, tightening his grip on his weapon.

"Should we kill them? It would be a simple task," the minion said, arching his back and preparing to charge. The leader noticed this and held a hand in front of his eager subordinate.

"No, we will take them alive," the leader said, eyeing the two women and licking his lips. "They will be part of our celebration after we raid the actual caravan."