Between The Crystals

The oppressive heat of the desert beat down, a familiar companion to Natalie's weary journey. She moved through the undergrowth with practiced ease, her eyes scanning the sparse landscape. This trip, like too many others recently, had been fruitless. The apple tree she'd come to check was stripped bare, another village likely desperate for food.

A faint rustling. Her breath hitched. Blue scales. A Saursune. Panic flared, but she knew better than to brandish her small flint knife. Unarmed, she might just be chased away. Armed, it was certain death. She bolted, her hand-stitched leather shoes thudding against the dry leaves, the hiss and heavy footsteps of the reptilian alien close behind.

Her heart hammered as she rounded a bend, the familiar bluish-green crystal spires of the teleportation point finally in sight. With a cry, she dropped, slamming her hands onto a spire, desperately whispering the location of the abandoned desert village. Sunlight shimmered through her veins, blurring her vision until the forest green gave way to desert tan.