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“How long will it take?” Jiron asks.

“About three days perhaps longer,” she replies. “Longer still if we can’t shake the pursuit.”

The sound of their pursuers gradually diminishes as she takes them further up into the higher elevations. They all remain quiet as they work to navigate the sometimes steep and narrow way. Boulders and fallen trees have to be circumvented and at times scaled in order to continue.

They come to a cliff face with a small trickle of water running down its side. Turning to them, she says, “We have to climb up to the top of this.” Indicating a section of the wall, she adds, “Start here, it affords the best hand and footholds than anywhere else.”

She reaches out and takes hold of a crack and begins the ascent. When she’s gone about ten feet, Jiron looks to James and asks, “You want to go next?”

“You better, I might end up falling and I wouldn’t want to knock you down in the process.”

“It’s only about thirty feet,” states Jiron. “You can make it.”

Looking dubious at the prospect, he steps to the wall and begins following her with Jiron’s help. Once James has gone far enough to allow him room, Jiron steps to the wall and begins his ascent.

When James is halfway up, he hears her voice from where she’s standing at the top of the cliff, “Hurry up.”

“Do you see anyone coming?” Jiron shouts up to her.

She looks out for a moment then replies, “No. All I can see is the tops of the trees. They could be just right below and I wouldn’t know it.”

“Great!” he hears Jiron grunt below him.

As he reaches the top he sees her hand reaching down to help him up the rest of the way. Taking it, he’s soon up over the edge and lying on the top. Arms and legs shaking from the ordeal, he just lies there a few moments until he sees Jiron’s head crest over the top.

She reaches down to help him as well, but he just shakes his head as he makes the rest of the way on his own.

“We can have a short break here,” she tells them as Jiron gains the top.

James sits up and reaches into his belt pouch where he pulls out the pitiful remnants of what use to be rations, oh so long ago. Grimacing, he takes a bite out of the stale fare and looks up to see her grinning at him. “What’s so funny?” he asks.

“Just your expression when you bit into that,” she explains with a slight laugh. She pulls out some jerked beef and hands him several strips. “Here, you can have some of mine.” When she sees Jiron’s hungry looks, she gives him some as well.

“So what are you doing out here?” Jiron asks as he takes the offered food. He keeps a constant lookout for any approaching soldiers, but it looks like for the moment they may have lost them.

Her expression turns grim as she says, “Surviving. I used to live in Mountainside before the soldiers came. Fortunately I was out hunting in the mountains when they showed up and was spared the ravages they inflicted on my family and friends.”

“That’s too bad about your family,” James says.

“Yes. I miss them dearly but we can’t live in the past,” she says wistfully. “Now I stay up here where they can’t find me. Been doing alright so far, though I hope they get pushed back into the Empire so I can go home. If there’s even a home to return to.”

“We were just through there and it looks like most of it is still standing,” explains Jiron. “Some of the buildings were burned down by the fire, but most of them appeared in good condition.”

“Strange thing about that fire,” she says. “It just started up out of nothing. I was in the forest that day and there wasn’t any lightning or such to spark it. Though I heard a whole lot of soldiers got burnt in it. That was good news.”

Jiron glances at James who just shakes his head. He doesn’t want her to know more about them than is absolutely necessary. “So you just stay in the woods?” he asks. “How are you able to manage?”

Giving him an annoyed expression, she asks in reply, “What? Do you think I’m some helpless little girl who can’t take care of herself?”

“We’ll, no,” he replies. “It’s just that…”

“It’s just that I’m a girl,” she