Here is a line for those who like to note if they are First Time Readers (FTR) or Re-Readers (RR).

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I warily eased through the undergrowth, finally spotting the apple tree I'd come to check on. My shoulders slumped when I saw every apple was gone. Another village must have picked them even though they were only half ripe.

I examined the forest around me, hoping to find something worthwhile to take back or report. Apart from a handful of dandelions springing back up, there was nothing edible. My trip had come to naught. With a sigh, I turned to go back.

The birds above stopped singing. Even as I froze, faint rustling in the shrubs sent my heart racing. I furtively glanced over my shoulder, catching a glimpse of blue reptile-like scales stalking through the shrubs about a hundred paces away.

A Saursune. There was no way it didn't know I was here. Not at that range, not with its sense of smell. Abandoning any attempt at stealth, I bolted back the way I'd come.

My hand-stitched leather shoes thudded against the forest leaf litter as I careened full-tilt down the trail. A faint hiss and heavier footsteps followed. I didn't dare look back.

I rounded a bend, skidding on the loose forest debris as I desperately raced back to the crystal formation. A rumbling growl came from the side—the Saursune was circling around to cut me off—toying with me like a cat with a mouse. Preparing to pounce, or perhaps just chasing me off to send a warning. There was no way to know unless I escaped alive.

Fear goaded me to even greater speeds. I didn't reach for the knife on my belt—I didn't dare. Unarmed, it might be content with chasing me off. Brandishing a weapon in any form was certain death. My small flint knife would be as useless against a Saursune as against a grizzly bear.

Through a gap in the bushes, I spotted a lithe form far to my right. On four feet, the dark blue reptile's back was almost chest-high on me. The longer horns marked it as a male. His bared teeth glinted in the sunlight as he glared at me. This Saursune wasn't wearing armor or a belt. No phasers or other weapons—not that he needed them when his claws were as long as my small knife.

With a hiss, the adult male began bounding through the bushes toward me, covering the distance between us far too quickly. My heart hammered in my chest as my eyes locked onto the waist-high bluish-green crystal spires growing out of the soil. I was almost there!

With a soft cry, I dropped to my knees and skidded across the grass as I clapped my hands onto one of the spires, desperately visualizing a similar crystal in the desert while whispering the location name.

It felt like sunlight was shimmering through my veins, and my vision blurred like I was caught in a heat haze. Within a couple of seconds, the forest greens turned to desert tans, then cleared. The Saursune was gone, left behind in the forest.

Keeping my hand on the crystal, I swiftly scanned the area to make sure nothing dangerous was nearby. As per usual, the desert and nearby cliffs were desolate. I let my legs give out and sprawled on the sand, gasping for breath.

That had been way too close! Even if the Saursune had chosen to run on its hind legs like some ancient dinosaurs, it could have easily caught and killed me. On all fours, they were deadly quick. The close call made me shiver despite the intense desert heat.

I'd have to warn the village when I went back. That location hadn't been near any of the Saursunes' farms or towns, at least the ones we knew about, so the alien's presence was unusual and worrisome. If the Saursunes discovered our village, they'd destroy it and kill as many as they could get their claws on. 

The difficulty of locating our well-hidden villages in the depths of the vast desert seemed to be more effort than the aliens were willing to expend, and for some reason, they never destroyed a crystal to stop us from teleporting there.

The desert sun's heat quickly became uncomfortable in my battered leather clothing, forcing me to get to my feet and move into the shade of the weathered sandstone cliff. Beyond the cliffside shadows, boulders and sand dunes stretched to the horizon. Not a single plant was visible.

Several piles of rock and stone slabs were jumbled along the base of the cliff—remnants of buildings that had been destroyed and abandoned over a century ago. The cliffside had several paths zigzagging up it, with over a hundred dark openings marking the caves that had once served as homes and storage rooms.

Huge soot drawings adorned the sandstone cliffs, depicting images of airships swooping down like birds, Saursunes attacking with various ranged weapons, and humans collapsed on the ground.

A village overrun.

With its location known to the alien invaders, no one would ever rebuild in Sunrise Village. The drawings were crude, made by humans to warn anyone passing through. Only a few parts of the mural had been streaked by the rare rain showers. Nothing had changed here since my mother had shown me this place over a decade ago.

Despite its tragic history, it was a safe place to port to if I was in potential danger. Not only was it too remote for jackals or snakes, but even if a Saursune managed to put a tracking bead on me, there was nothing here they could harm. My village, family, and friends would be safe.

I took a deep breath and tucked my shoulder-length brown hair behind my ears as I turned back to the crystal. This one was waist-high, which was as big as they grew. The lovely bluish-green color was shared by all the teleportation crystals. The translucent stone caught the light and reflected it in an eye-catching display that I couldn't help but admire despite seeing it so many times.

The morning daylight was wasting. Where else could I go? Over half of the crystals were too close to the fields currently being harvested by the Saursunes. Most of my fellow porters were in remote locations, as far away as we could get from the territorial aliens. Other places were too overharvested to be worth visiting.

After some deliberation, I remembered that I'd planted a shard about three years ago. Perhaps it had finally grown big enough to use. I went back to the crystal, and since the spire I was trying to port to would be small, I knelt beside it and rested a hand on a low spire. A gentle shimmering warmth drifted along my veins as I came into contact with the crystal, something only porters could feel.

Closing my eyes, I carefully dredged up the distant memory of the palm-sized shard I'd planted beside a forest creek three years ago. It would have taken me over eight hours to jog there and back from the nearest crystal, and thus, I hadn't risked traveling that far to see how it was doing. This wouldn't be easy.

To the average person—and most porters, for that matter—the crystals were similar, and we usually had to recall the surrounding area in order to teleport there. For me, each crystal was unique and memorable in its own fashion. Much like a cat lover being able to tell five tabby cats apart.

Despite porting every day since my early teenage years, I wasn't sure how I did it. None of the porters did. All we had to do was remember the crystal or visualize the location clearly while "reaching" for it with our minds. Using the location phrase helped, especially if we were tired or our memory was hazy.

I took a deep breath and hoped for the best. "Orange Flower By The River," I murmured, reciting the location phrase I'd given this particular shard while my mind reached for the crystal I barely remembered.

The shimmering rippled and—more slowly than usual—the world around me hazed over as the blurry colors shifted to green. It was working! The crystal must have grown big enough.

I tensed as the haze began to clear, unsure of how much might have changed. I quickly scanned the forest around me, my muscles tense in case I had to bounce to safety.

Birds sang in the trees, and I didn't see anything dangerous, nor did anything seem amiss. I exhaled slowly and turned my attention to the knee-high cluster of crystals emerging from the soil. It had grown beautifully, with the middle spires pointing almost straight up.

I committed it to memory and got to my feet. The orange flower I'd seen years ago was long gone, but its memory had become part of my location phrase for this crystal.

The large trees were spread far enough apart for the sun to illuminate the grasses and shrubs. I could see dozens of edible plants and even a few berry bushes. The creek's water was still crystal-clear—it was the main reason I'd planted the shard here.

My excitement grew as I investigated the area. There were plenty of greens, and with careful management, it could supplement the village's food supply for years to come.

A splash made me jump and whirl around to stare at the creek. Ripples spread across the slowly flowing water. After a quick glance around to ensure it wasn't a trap, I edged closer. My jaw dropped as I stared at several shadows swimming under the surface. Fish—and they were at least as long as my forearm! I wished I had brought a fishing net, but my original destination didn't have open water.

I bit my lip; I knew I shouldn't do it—porters were strongly discouraged from using weapons, even fishing spears—but even one of these fish could feed several people. None of us had eaten our fill in over a month, and our stockpiles were perilously low. We needed the food, and this school of fish wouldn't linger here for long.

I furtively glanced around while sharpening a branch into a fishing spear. I kept a very careful eye on my surroundings. Saursunes never gave armed humans a second chance. They didn't care if it was a fishing spear, a knife, or a bow. If it was in our hands, we were an immediate target. Their claws and teeth were formidable enough, but if they had a gun or ranged weapon, they would use it if we were "armed".

Between short periods of fishing, I gathered edible plants. I remained close to the crystal, ready to port to safety if anything seemed suspicious. Even if Saursunes weren't around, other predators could be. Thankfully, the forest remained quiet apart from the birds singing in the trees.

By the time late afternoon rolled around, I had caught nine fish and filled two carry bags with plants. This was one of the biggest hauls I'd had in months!

I decided I had pushed my luck far enough. As I knelt beside the crystal, I admired the crystalline formation one more time. It was barely big enough for me to use, but it gave us another much-needed area to gather food. I'd have to bring others here so they could familiarize themselves with the location.

My hand rested on one of the spires and let the shimmering dance through my veins. Vermilion Village had two crystals, and after a glance at the spear marks on the fish, it would be wiser for me to port to the secondary one. I had barely even focused my mind on my destination before the shimmering intensified and my sight hazed over.

The spire under my hand was replaced with a larger one, and the dry desert air welcomed me home. Cliffs rose up on both sides; Vermilion Village was hidden in a deep, narrow ravine in the middle of the sprawling desert. Even before I stood up, several villagers converged on me.

"Welcome back, Natalie. Oh, you found fish!" One of them exclaimed, taking several bags.

Another quickly relieved me of the plants. "I thought you were checking an apple tree and looking for medicinal plants?"

I winced. "A Saursune showed up, and I had to leave."

Both women paled. It was never a good thing when the aliens were reminded about the hidden human survivors. Even though we were in the middle of the desert, the villagers never set foot outside of the narrow ravine in case their tracks somehow caught unwanted attention.

Making my voice more cheerful, I said, "But one of the crystals I planted three years ago is finally big enough to port to! There is a creek nearby, and there are lots of plants and fish!"

"Really?" she asked in excitement before pausing. Her voice became tentative. "It-it wasn't near Saursune lands, was it?"

"It was at least a four-hour walk from the closest crystal when I planted it, and I didn't see any fields or buildings while I was there. Just the forest, meadows, and the creek."

The women relaxed, but the worried look never left their eyes. Not that I could blame them. Saursunes seemed to live anywhere that plants could grow. The only good thing was that the reptile-like beings didn't seem fond of the desert. Maybe it was too hot or dry for them.

No one knew how much of the world had turned to desert after the aliens had invaded, but there was a lot of it. The vast expanse of rocky sand gave us places to hide, but as soon as we stepped into green areas, we were on their turf.

My thoughts were interrupted by plaintive mewing as two scruffy cats trotted after the women. A third came over to me and rubbed against my legs, purring enthusiastically. I petted him a few times before he realized that the fish he could smell was already being carried away. I grinned as he immediately ran off to see if he could claim some scraps.

With our new location, he would get fish again. I just hoped the Saursunes didn't discover us using the Orange Flower crystal. The appearance of the alien by the apple tree was worrisome enough.

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