Don't worry, Princess, I'm sure they'll take good care of you when we get to the home world, the green scaled Undine laughed though all this had been inside her head given that the female Undine could only communicate through Telepathy.

She gloated of course, some pirate Myra never recalled seeing before. There was no love loss between the Undine and the Vodran species though and she watched with a glare as the pirate left flanked by two of the blue scaled males.

And so she was stuck there in that cell. The only good to come out of this was that she wasn't being tortured yet though she had assumed they were waiting to get her back before they had some fun with their captive.

Her time alone allowed her to work over things trying to remember and while she was not suffering from amnesia there was a huge blank in how she got from point A to B that try as she might she could not recall. How big or small this lapse was had been another matter though.

Hours had passed, hours in which she had been left thinking about Reika, her ship and her last memories. The ship jolted and of course she was the last to know that something in the engines blew dropping them into subspace. Since subspace was slow as all hell they had set down on the nearest planet effecting repairs to the primary engines before taking off again.

This could buy her sometime though she had no clue as to what world they were on. Escaping had to be soon though if she were in the middle of a desert she was as good as dead. There would be no way to moisten her body and she would die though if the Undine got her to their world she was dead, albeit slower. She shook her head, deciding to at least go down fighting and thus began to search the cell once more for something, anything, that could effect her escape.

Silence loomed over the scene due to the fact the crew had gotten busy with repairs which meant few if any Undine had been situated near the chamber Myra was in at the time. She found the cell devoid of anything useful. In fact, there was nothing more than a stainless steel toilet and a cold albeit plain metal cot bolted to the wall. She’d have no luck finding any water in the former, whatever good it may do, since it was seemingly out of order.

Somewhere on the far side of the room, Myra would find a metal gleam right below one of the key holders mounted to the wall. It laid next to the bottom of what appeared to be an old metal foot locker, lying in the poorly lit corner, giving rise to the assumption one might have accidentally forgotten to pick it back up or flat out missed it when walking by. What were the odds it might just fit though from what Myra gathered, it looked like the one belonging to the Undine watching over her cell earlier. It might just do the trick. Some water in a cup had been left behind, too, presenting an opportunity which looked all too enticing to the imprisoned Vodran Princess. It was on the foot locker, conveniently placed one would think given the circumstances Myra found herself in.

They didn’t leave it there on purpose, did they? Some might argue that running away was fairly pointless in the first place, but it was unlikely they’d be quite as careless when it came to their captive. In all likelihood they were setting her up for a chase, to wind up caught and tormented before bringing her to their home world where an untimely demise was more than likely. Somehow the metal bars that were the cage offered quite a bit of protection if that was the case, but not trying to get away in the first place would lead to the same result hence never attempting escape would be all the more foolish.

It might just be the case they had no idea what Myra was capable of doing with liquids and didn’t bother double checking, but with them addressing her as Princess that, too, was unlikely.

She was in quite the pickle, but had the option to use what she had in order to open the cage and take her first steps towards freedom. As far as Myra would be concerned, there was not a single sound to be heard outside her door. Either no one bothered to watch her or they were giving her a false sense of confidence that getting out might just get her farther than the first few steps.

No sounds reached her ears and Myra could only assume that the Undine were busy effecting repairs. She had been aware that they touched down though she inspected the ordinary cell. No toilet water in which she could harvest her gifts and it appeared she was stuck here.

Having tested the bars again thy were quite solid. True she was stronger than a human but not by much. The Undine were made of hardier stuff it seamed though she had never gone hand to hand with one herself. If she escaped perhaps though she lacked in such training only having a few rudimentary skills.

But there, outside of her cell …

Her heart quickened a beat as she caught the glint of metal. Was that a key? More importantly there was a cup of water nearby too. She could manipulate water, whether the Undine had been aware of that or not had been up for debate, they had taken important prisoners in the past, granted neither the Undine or Vodran were in the habit of taking prisoners of the other species unless they were important.

This reeked. It was too good to be true and yet if she did not try anything she was as good as dead or worse … she had to try something, even if the Undine were setting her up for something dying here or back on their home world didn't matter too much. She was best to try now, wondering about things did no good and if it were as good as it got then all the better. If she were being set up she would know soon enough.

While she was no expert with her water shaping abilities she was no slouch either. It did require her concentration, though when she was good at it she wouldn't have to think much on it.

She took a deep breath, listened to make sure she was alone still then concentrated on the cup. A moment later the water shot upward. It took a few attempts, geyser effect and all before she was able to knock the key free from the key holder. Her eyes, accustomed to seeing in murky depths had been able to locate the key on the floor in the shadows.

Next she directed the water to flow out of the cup and over the foot locker. Enveloping the key she attempted to move it towards the cell. Unfortunately there was not enough water to generate enough force to move the key towards her as rapidly as she would have liked but she could nudge it, millimeter by millimeter. Each second she feared her discovery. But mo one came. The key was near enough the cell where she stretched and strained to reach it. It would have taken too long to move it closer, not to mention she had to concentrate too. It took quiet a bit of effort but she managed to get the key, excitement thundering through her veins though this was far from over even as she unlocked her cell.

She was quiet as could be as sh moved through the ship. Still she heard nothing as she searched for a way out of here and did so, popping a hatch and getting hit with the humid air. It was dark, the sky a dark gray and there were stars in the heavens. Constellations were never anything a Vodrani had been good at not that she had any chance of recognizing them. So it night, not that she had any advantages over the Undine. They could see as well as she could at night but if they were allowing her to escape then at least there had been no one that immediately set on her. She rushed towards a clump of trees some fifty yards away from her. Whether this was a forest, woods or lead into some other terrain she did not know nor cared. It gave her some cover though logically this had to be a set up, why so close to such terrain? She had no time to think about it though.

Such fortune was too good to be true though the night was humid it certainly wasn’t all too hot, the breeze just short of sending a chill down her spine if the discomforting mixture of fear and adrenaline didn’t have blood pumping through her veins at an incredible rate, quite virtually warming her from the inside out.

Not too far metal thunks were heard, likewise the unusual groan and grunt of exertion, meaning the crash might very well be real and the Undine weren’t too far away from the opened hatch, but not everyone would be busy fixing the ship to an operable state. Some might think they were merely looking for entertainment while the tech savvy ones pursued their work on the damaged engine compartment yet nobody followed Myra upon reaching the tree line as they were located on another section of the ship, moving about both in and out. She’d gotten away from the Undine for now, but headed straight for the unknown.

In the blink of an eye the first trees turned out to be a lush forest, growing thicker and all the more dense the further the escaped prisoner ventured on. She’d have trouble with the thicket and thorns therein, digging into her clothes if there were any long enough to shield her from them, but overall progress was rather decent. Sadly there were no landmarks to draw upon, leaving the Vodran priestess to march on blindly.

In time the wind was getting stronger and with the trees growing less frequent that came as no surprise until the woods opened up to the sight of a narrow valley amid the mountains, one of which Myra was on and nearly lost her grip on the ground as the earth gave in right beneath her feet. She saved herself with quick enough reflexes, but the shock was still there. She came within a hair’s breadth of toppling over the edge, but a few loose stones and pebbles weren’t quite as fortunate as they wound up skipping along the cliff face to the nigh impenetrable dark below. They could’ve been her with just one misstep, but fate had to be smiling upon her that day. Well, not under the circumstances that got her here, but life surpassed death even on this vacant world. It looked to be a dead end from here regardless.

Something the wind carried roused her attention nonetheless while gazing into the gloomy abyss below, more a sound than anything meeting the naked eye though the closer Myra got to the edge, the clearer it got, much like the hint of what may be found upon investigation as the familiar substance tingled on her tongue. She could almost taste the salt in the air as drawing closer to the cliff had her regard an extremely narrow albeit usable path that might allow her to get to the location where the echo was coming from. It looked to be a cave entrance of some kind, but once she chose to get down, it’d be quite difficult to get back up.

Steady trickles of water plummeted into the depths of the cavern, leading to a larger pool as the sound of it hitting the surface resonated across the hollow rock chamber which was the exact sound Myra heard at the time. Scaling the rocky overlapping edge of the plateau to head further down than the cavern itself had been downright impossible without risking a potentially lethal fall hence exploring the premises might be in order to ensure her recently claimed freedom remained intact.

Beyond the tree lines a short while back there was no doubt the forest stretched on a short while longer than it did here though Myra had to double back it might lessen the risk of getting caught out in the open for the Vodran depended on salt water and the Undine weren’t foolish enough not to leave any nearby sources of it unchecked. It was up to her, but with the leaves rustling in the wind hinting at the threat of getting chased down it might not be too great of an idea to set up here for the moment.

If there weren’t any sources of salt water they might leave her be until desperation forced the Vodran to come running back to them or took it upon themselves to catch her once it became clear not even the will to live at any cost was enough to get Myra to return to the ship. In all likelihood, however, they weren’t going to be patient if the whole deal was little more than a set up. She was likely being played though with the Undine males being mute yet the lone female on board keen on tormenting her, they were bound to reveal their approach sooner or later.

It was rather fortunate that she had made it this far. By the sounds of it they really did have ship problems and had been working on them. Fortunate that the trees were so close too though with the yellow she was wearing she would be easier to spot. Perhaps she should have stripped but the first coherent thought was to get away from here.

She had not seen many Undine to begin with and as expected only the leader had been female. The ship did not appear to be big though, perhaps large enough for half a dozen people tops given that some of the cargo bay had been converted into a sell meant that there were less provisions that they had to be carrying for the journey so having a smaller crew was reasonable.

She made it to the trees, thorns scratching up her arms and legs as she made her way along as quickly as possible. More then once branches whipped into her face too though such little pains could not equate to the ones she was escaping from. The trees were a good sign too, maybe there was a river or lake too though she could not use either to hide in for long seeing that the Undine were at home beneath the water as well as above it. She did not know if they needed the same sort of requirements as she did though moistening themselves at some point seemed reasonable. They had a bath on their vessel that they used so she didn't die though it was far from the grand pool she had on her ship, more spartan in nature. It could have been that they got it just for her or didn't need such luxuries and a small one would do. One couldn't say it was anything larger than a bath though.

Her heart beat fast as she saved herself from a certain death not expecting such a sudden drop. She could have been swimming with Veros. The ground was some distance off too as she couldn't even see bottom with her enhanced vision that was more of a use at short ranges anyway.

There was no choice but to turn back. Climbing down would be suicide. The forest probably boarded this cliff which meant she would have to go in the direction on the other side of the ship. Perhaps the knew that. Perhaps why they chose this landing sight. With the cliffs in one direction and relatively open terrain in the other as far as she could see anyway. There may have been something there that she had missed but she was in no position to say.

She had heard that sound as she reflected on her possibilities. It was the smell of the sea that guided her. Vodran blessing her though the path was dangerous she traversed it slowly, carefully discovering the cave.

Staying here, while hidden at first may have been something though she realized that the water was likely to be discovered at some point. If she could find it then they would. Clearly they did not have to find her but prevent her from getting to such sources. Judging by the speed of the water it did not seem to be flowing fast though heeding back was probably the best option she had to wonder if there were a means of submerging herself, topping up so to speak but a wet Vodrani had been easier to find then a dry one.

By Vodran's beard this was a difficult decision. The water could be getting in from a narrow opening or a large one which would have been great though if there wasn't a way out for her then being wet there was no way she could slip by that vessel.

Had she been missed? Probably. With a heavy sigh she left it alone though she would explore that cave a bit. Perhaps there was another entrance at the back of it that would have been easier then doubling back and risking her life. Perhaps there was no other way out or only descended down into the bowls of the earth.

She never did like being stuck underground. In fact the only time she had done so where it wasn't underwater as well she encountered Arblis and well soon after her memories were all foggy. Check it out, if it looked to go deeper then double back. If there were no other way out then double back … it seemed to be the only real option open to her though she had to be quick about this.

Creeping up on her, the scent of salt water became all the stronger the further Myra ventured along the narrow path which in itself was little more than a few flat rock surfaces protruding from the cliff with an entrance to the cavern just large enough to squeeze through without much trouble, but there was another blessing for the Vodran to look forward to. She crossed paths with a four feet deep pool of water, the surface steadily moving toward the cave wall as though it was flowing that way yet from the looks of it, the pool had been spacious enough to submerge herself in while on her knees and bending over to get her head beneath the surface, too. It’d take some work, but it could be done.

Slow and gradual as the flow of water may be, Myra had little trouble figuring out why that was the case. Some minor openings in the cave wall allowed the water to flow further into the farthest recesses of the unknown inner workings of the cliff, each no larger than a thumb at best yet no doubt far from anything that could be useful to her. There might have been a larger chamber somewhere beyond the wall where the water amassed to even greater degrees, but any access to it had been cut off from her current vantage point.

Nothing hinted at another exit and maneuvering along the outside of the cliff had already been established to be impossible. She had nothing more to gain from the cave than the chance to submerge herself in what came closest to sea water in the entire area for what were the odds of finding another place like this anytime soon? It could be quite some time before sea water could touch her skin again if the Undine found the place and had one of their own guarding the place for a long while.

She could have tried waiting them out somewhere else, to have a quick dip whenever they guided their search elsewhere, but even if they left the planet at some point without their precious catch, then the Vodran would be trapped down here, not that the Undine were likely to just abandon her without ensuring the priestess had died or, if they couldn’t reach her, that an injury of hers made escaping alive impossible.

While the punishment for running may be a slow, agonizing death, Myra was bound to double back to an extent in order to expand her possibilities on the planet. She was a sitting duck in here, one way or another.

Naturally Myra had to squeeze through the opening to the cave on her way back and return to the woods as there was no other way to advance besides either falling to certain death or tracing back the path she came. What happened next, however, wasn’t quite as comforting as the prospect of moistening her skin. Shadowy figures roamed the forest not too far from her, two Undine males from what the priestess gathered, likely out to search and return her to the ship though they might just torment her along the way. It was impressive how quick they were to try and chase her down nonetheless considering when Myra actually broke out of her cell.

One could only imagine what would have happened if Myra delayed her attempt at an escape or hoped to bring the key closer to the cell before stretching to retrieve it, but that was neither here nor there. Still, the whole deal could have been a setup still, a chance for the men to get some entertainment through sport with her being the target. Their whole scheming had been quite opaque to say the least yet here they were, roaming the surface in search for their escaped captive. No doubt they figured heading along the side of the ship they were actually working on would have been foolish as all hell and headed off into the other, practically following her path without quite knowing where that was.

They couldn’t have been more than two, however, meaning the others were out scanning various sections of the arduous terrain. For the moment they had not looked her way yet, but with the cliff opening up before them fairly soon, the two were likely to split up again and then Myra would have no way out.

Exploring the cave uncovered a few things. Not only had it been cramped but there was no other way out. Nor was that water deep enough to submerge in. There were cracks in the wall allowing some water to flow through and while their may have been a larger chamber beyond she could not access it.

The thought of a river containing salt water wasn't much of a surprise. A fresh water river could have emptied into an ocean with the tide washing up it. Whether from that or another reason entirely she had surmised that there was an ocean or at least access to salt water. The scanners on the ship told her that they were probably a ways away from it unless the Undine needed it for some reason. That was unknown though there seemed no choice but to double back.

Before that though she had a change of mind. While she wasn't going to submerge herself completely but did cup her hands and splashed her face a few times. Once that was done she rubbed down her arms and legs, hardly good enough but she had hoped that she had bought herself a little time.

From what she gathered the Undine knew about her need for salt water though they probably didn't know how frequently or infrequently she needed it. They seemed to have a crude understanding back on the ship, it was thrice daily. But this was the only compromise she could possibly get away with. It would have sucked leaving an obvious sign of her passage by leaving a damp trail when she knew she had to get by that ship.

With no real choice unless she wanted to stay here and die she traced her steps back to that forest. Uncertain if she should be surprised or not that there were a pair of Undine searching for her already. Perhaps this was a set up and some sick sport, perhaps this had been their destination all along.

There was no time to contemplate all that now. She ducked behind a tree. Occasionally she peaked out at the bald blue scaled fish creatures. She could make out no real differences between them other than the female was green and once male … they changed sexes as they aged she had learned from the prisoners that they studied.

With the cliffs ahead she realized that she wouldn't have any chance once they reached it. Each had a rifle too, whether set on stun or not she could not say but it had seemed that they had enough sense to move it along with their gazes always aiming at what they saw.

Running was bad, at least a mad dash would only get her seen or shot. The only thing she thought that had been in her favor was that the males were mute … the females were Telepathic though she did not know if they had some other form of communication among them. The males could have telepathy too for all she knew though had not developed the skill to communicate with non Undine.

They had to have a means of communicating though it was possible that only their females directed them. Again she had not the luxury of time to debate all this. Rather she took a deep breath pressing her back to the tree. She was going to try moving forth pausing from tree to tree though found that her legs had stiffened. Fear possibly or maybe it occurred to her that she made less noise this way … yeah, that was it. She'd let them pass, hopefully they did not notice her and she could slip behind them and continue on without drawing too much attention.

Though she searched out a path with her blue eyes where their was an abundance of trees. Just encase she was seen there were plenty of trees to provide cover and get out of sight easier. There was no doubt about it, she had to flee though she would fight if cornered. Her life was on the line after all. She held her breath as they neared as if it would be heard remaining as still as possible until she had that chance or had to flee, whichever seemed more likely. Provided they were not too close to her if they did see her then she at least had a shot at this …

It was fortunate no more than two patrolled the woods or else they’d have covered more ground with greater ease. She’d hear them as they ventured on, grass and leaves bending beneath almost every step while they scanned the tree lines for the escaped woman. From time to time a fresh albeit cool breeze stirred the woods to new life and the rustling leaves alarmed and halted the males in their tracks, at least until they’d grown weary of staring into the dark forest, finding nothing every time it happened which certainly allowed for greater windows of time during which Myra could move about without putting quite as much care into her movements.

Soon they were close, too close for comfort as though it was dragging them to her location. At some point she had to force herself to halt dead in her tracks due to how little space was left between them, her every attempt to draw breath probably enough to give away her position. Pressed to a tree back first, Myra could practically hear the armed men nearby, pacing around not more than a few feet from her.

Standing almost back to back one would think, but for the following moments there was nothing to be heard other than the own beat of her racing heart. She found they then got moving again as one of them huffed in annoyance at having stopped for nothing yet again, slowly walking past her current position which allowed her to head back without much trouble. However, from her own experience Myra knew the cliff would not be far, practically nullifying her chances of coming back here anytime soon unless she wanted to run straight into their line of sight.

She could have made it around the unexplored portion of the woods safely, but it turned out to be another dead end if she tried to go there. Obviously they set up on some kind of elevated hill or mountain, preventing too many chances at a premature escape. Thus heading back toward the ship was the only viable option. Sadly the path narrowed when heading closer to the ship and there was no doubt the Undine were up to more than tracking her by eye given what Myra could see the remaining males working with though one of them was still busy fixing up the engine. Proximity scanners. Apparently they weren’t taking any chances with her disappearance or prepared to up the ante in their previously arranged hunt, but either way these new devices spelled trouble for the lone Vodran.

No doubt they were going to mobilize soon to make the hunt a simpler matter. Still, slipping past them was not impossible with the female keeping the men occupied and distracted from what little cover Myra could hope to utilize while getting around them. What laid beyond the landing sight, however, wasn’t too pretty either.

It looked to be more accessible terrain than the cliffs of doom she couldn’t have hoped to descend from without risking everything for nothing. She found the environment to be hills graced with rugged cliffs, some higher than her current position though a few were minor drops that led to more climbing later on, but the cliffs weren’t nearly as steep and dangerous as the ones encountered previously. Some opened up into flat ground if one was lucky enough to scale them, but a good stretch of the land was covered in the difficult terrain. Still, it appeared these obstacles would be temporary as wide open plains looked to be on the other side. At least Myra gathered that much from looking out into the distance.

In addition there appeared to be some kind of lake in the distance, maybe even an ocean although most of it was shielded from view by the mountains before her, maybe an explanation for the salt water found several minutes before. She could have sworn there was a dim light flickering in the distance as well, almost too faint to notice though whether Myra chose to explore wherever it came from or not, there’d be plenty of climbing involved if she hoped to get more distance between herself and the Undine.

Her heart beat rapidly against her chest. Every sound seemed so loud then amplified a thousand times. Each second passed like a crawl. Slowly, ever so slowly the Priestess made her way along. Finally the Undine passed her by after what seemed like an eternity.

She stuck to the forest preferring to have a little cover though the way she went lead to another cliff. Another dead end and her guess was that travel in the other direction would lead to more of the same. Surmising that she was atop one of the mountains on a large cliff face with the forest between the ship and the cliff. Made sense, though she should have been deflated stopping then and there and just giving up meant death. One way or another she would die, if not here then recaptured and killed elsewhere would happen.

The only thing was that if she died here there was probably less torture involved though she still was unsure that this wasn't some sort of game for them. Regardless of if it were or not she pressed on even seeing the others at the ship. One was still working on something or just began recently since she did not see him when fleeing but those sensors were going to make things difficult in the near future.

She could not sabotage them either but the female kept them distracted enough for her to slip by. There was one thing in her favor and she took it. A short while later she found that this direction was only marginally better though there was some promise.

There would be a lot of climbing and her aquatic nature ensured that climbing wasn't what she was great at but she had to keep it in mind that neither would the Undine. Climbing down at least made their sensor use tougher and the ship would be less of an issue. In the long run it probably wouldn't matter but giving up entirely wasn't going to happen.

Yeah there was a lot of climbing but that climbing eventually lead her to clear terrain. There was a lake and judging from the cave it was highly probable that it was a salt water and not fresh water one. Either was fine and the lake meant she wouldn't be as exposed.

If she made it that far and had been seen they would probably use the ship then but chances were good that if she made it that far they were already pursuing her and not about to just turn back if they were close. From this point she had a good view.

There was something out there though. A light? Was there a settlement there or a person? Was it a natural phenomenon? She did not have to stop to make a plan though deciding to begin the trek. If lucky she would loose them but that wasn't likely. Her plan was to press on to that lake and if there was nothing promising there then that light, it was a long shot that anything would come of it she had to try. Not a strong climber though Myra had been caught up with the need for speed but the need to be cautious. Clearing her mind and focusing may have worked much better if she was use to this though as a result she suffered her share of cuts and bruises to her hands, knees and elbows.

So far so good she pressed on trying to keep a low profile and always looking back over her shoulder back to the point she started trying to do the impossible and stay out of sight. Sometimes it was possible whenever there was a large boulder, small dip or when she was in the shadow of one of the mountains though each moment she suspected to see someone appear up on that cliff. They could indeed be making a sport of this and giving her a head start given that tech was on their side so her thoughts about that light equating civilization told her if it was that they weren't likely to give her enough time to reach it. Chance though was all she had ...

So far, so good. Myra fled from the landing site and tried to hide amongst protruding boulders every now and then, wisely using the mountains themselves as cover, but there certainly was no advantage to seeing in the night when her pursuers had the same ability. She had to cover a fair measure of ground before coming to the lake and it’d be a short way from there to reach whatever light source illuminated a distant portion of the countryside that looked to be next to the cliffs as well. Salt water offered the chance to hide somewhere deep inside as well as prolong her survival if the Undine gave chase.

Soon enough every climb felt much longer than the last for every waking moment allowed her prospective tormentors to catch up if they headed in the same direction for even if they weren’t used to it in much the same way, the males were no doubt stronger and were better equipped for the act in general. Their attire, for one, covered their bodies to a greater extent and might actually prevent the rocky cliffs from tearing into them, preventing whatever cuts and lacerations burned upon her skin. Adding to that the fact almost everything had been saturated up here gave rise to the risk of slipping.

After reaching one of the higher portions of land once again, a sudden impact right next to her emanating raw heat relayed that Myra had been found out, not to mention that stun rounds may be completely out of the question. It’d burn like hell, without a shred of doubt, if not sentence her to a slow agonizing death considering that rock was tougher than skin and the cliff face didn’t seem to be affected by their weaponry in the least. The Undine were a fair distance away if the Priestess dared to look, but one of the males opened fire at her which meant more of them would follow. Now every second of distance mattered.

She had ample opportunity to hide seeing how it was probably the highest ground anyone could be on and moving to any less elevated platform put an entire mountain between her and their line of sight, but then again if they managed to scale it things would turn out differently. She had their attention now, it was only a matter of time before they caught up.

Fortunately her line of sight to the lake hadn’t broken off in a while and the beautiful Vodran was making good progress. Soon the terrain would open up further and allowed her to leave the Undine to climb the rest of the way while Myra could dash onward, but luck truly wasn’t on her side that day. Another shot sparked off the rock before her, then another before the woman could press on, forcing her back, but in that same instant Myra lost her footing to the slippery earth. There was nothing to latch onto on the smooth rocky hills, sending her sliding to the nearest drop. It looked bad for her already, losing control like that, but upon looking down there was a good twelve foot drop waiting for her.

Slamming into the ground with a dull thud, an immense pain shot up through her ankle, hinting at the severity of the impact though trying to move it about offered the possibility of it being sprained, if not broken. Myra would find putting some pressure on her foot worked out just fine, but it’d slow her down for putting her whole weight on it resulted in nigh unbearable agony. She appeared to be alright otherwise, lucky her head wasn’t injured in the process even though her extremities ached beneath the force of hitting solid ground without assuming a proper position beforehand, leaving her to continue on in her current state.

If there was one advantage to her fall, however, it was that it brought her closer to the plains. There were fewer rocks scattered about with little to no hurdles, making the journey somewhat less physically demanding from this point onward. It must have been less than a mile to reach the lake from here although the somewhat uneven terrain prevented her from seeing it directly, the stars above her hadn’t truly changed, allowing her to pursue her previous objective.

At least salt in her wounds if that were indeed salt water wouldn't bother her if she made it that far that was. By now the Undine had to have known she had come this way either from the start or had double backed from that small forested area. She had expected them any moment and had used what she could to try to blend in whether natural shadow or boulder. While Undine had better vision and could probably see her in the shadows it was better than being out in the open and there was a fair chance that they would overlook her too. She wasn't entirely sure how their vision performed with darkness and shadow though to be safe she equated that with her own vision. She had learned that they could see in the murk. She was the one with psionic potential and while most had minor abilities or just telepathy there were others that possessed more. In fact there was the fragments of a female she had encountered but they were disjointed on the cusp of those memories that she had lost in the first place.

It was somewhat ironic at about that same time she both heard the weapon discharge and felt that heat radiating from the rock so close. No damage there, possible stun but just from the heat that waifed from that stone she didn't want to find out. Whether stun or not she could not be sure. That could have only disintegrated organic matter for all she knew seeing that the weapons of the Undine had been a relative unknown quantity to her.

They got their arms from all over and had their own tech too. But that shot was a blessing in a small way. The male had been too eager and they were on the cusp of her visual range. She had not noticed them but now had been aware of them. Even then he was a damn good shot and thinking that her heart could pound no further she discovered that she was wrong.

It increased her speed to the point that she was somewhat reckless though that could not be helped. With the blood, panic and accuracy of those shots that cut her off Myra lost her footing.

Rock crumbled out of her grasp as she tried to grab on to something to arrest her fall but she was going too quick. “Aiiiiiiyyyyyyyeeeeee!” She screamed out, twisting so that her left leg in an attempt to slow down a little. Her leg got torn up but she slowed marginally at least.

She would have let out another cry if the air had not been driven from her lungs but it burned. It hurt. Good. If it hurt she wasn't dead though she thought she was as good as. She laid there for a long moment until she could breath again. Her leg and ankle burned as intense as any flame she had felt and she got up using the stone for support. She leaned back then looked up. Not seeing the Undine she must have fallen out of their line of sight.

They were picking their way through the rocky terrain though at least the ground ahead seemed fairly flat. The terrain may slow them and her ankle wasn't broke though it was certainly going to slow her down. Even if she got to that lake, transformed her legs into a tail she would still be slowed, still be hurting.

Their tougher terrain, her slower movements she had a shot a small one but one never the less. Thus she proceeded forth though now it was a true race seeing that she lacked cover of any kind until she got to that lake at least. With that trigger happy male her guess was that as soon as they could see her if she were in range, even long, they would begin shooting again so she had to make up what ground she could and hope for the best.

Spurring herself on despite her injury had been a most prudent decision for the Undine would no doubt come looking for her exactly where they watched her fall off. She got the quick ride down even though it resulted in physical harm to her body, giving her those precious extra seconds or minutes depending on how much they had to climb to get down there, and Myra was making good use of it. Whatever measure of pain she experienced would be nothing compared to what they’d do to her if their hunt was to be a successful one.

She could tell her ankle deteriorated over time, however, as there was no getting used to the sensation shooting up her leg each time pressure was put on that limb. It hurt a great deal with every step and seemed to only get worse over time, but slowing down meant potentially getting caught and leaving the armed Undine behind was a priority here.

Myra had a stroke of luck nonetheless for when the Vodran crossed the rather flat fields of grass and flowers with a few trees here and there along the vast countryside, the light reflected off the moon on her right shoulder began to fade away as approaching clouds blocked out whatever illumination it could hope to grant the people on the surface. Seeing how they could see in the dark it may not be all too useful, but at least making her out in the distance would be slightly more difficult now although her fall from the cliffs would give a good idea as to where the lone priestess could have gone with the lake in the distance. It’d be a fair distance to cross at that, but the longer the woman pressed on, the more she had to fear one of the others would get a line of sight on her.

It never happened. She might have looked back over her shoulder in fear any of them were drawing close, that they may be firing at her again and that searing blast burned her smooth peachy flesh, but not even when Myra found herself on the very edge of the lake did anything happen. In all likelihood they lost her among the mountains, having trouble getting across the terrain themselves or they discovered the source of salt water near the ship and decided to guard it instead of pursuing her to what was most likely going to be an ordinary lake without the water Myra required. Surely they weren’t going to be that careless, but for the moment she was left in peace.

Strangely even down here one could smell the briny tang of the open sea even though there was none. Before her the water stretched on for a hundred meters at the most, but it was no doubt the source of the smell filling her nostrils. It looked to be fairly deep, too, enough to submerge herself several times over before even reaching the bottom that was partially covered in algae. She could spot a few smaller fish who adapted themselves to the environment here among the crimson plants, maybe half a dozen of them swimming about in a small group. She probably wouldn’t get a better opportunity to extend her life than this.

Silent tears streaked down her cheeks as she felt the sharp shards of pain each time she so much put the faintest pressure on her ankle now. It had gotten worse beginning as bearable but the more stress it had been exposed to the worse it became. Like bending a twig it would bow so far before eventually snapping and no doubt she was doing the same even though the bone had not broken the strain was getting worse.

With no hospitals around she pressed on though. The moon now obscured by the clouds had been a small blessing. The pursuing Undine shouldn't be able to pick her out straight away now though she remained fairly certain that they would still find her. She hoped that they were still pursuing and not doubling back to their ship to cut her off.

She doubted this as they may loose track of her and since they did not speak as far as she knew she had entertained her doubts that they would split up. They had to have some means of communicating though. Myra did the quick calculations. She should have seen their ship moving to the lake by now if that were the case … if it could move the thought was met with some relief but it was small in light of her current circumstances. She had to keep moving.

Despite her greatest fears their had been no shots forthcoming. She made it to the lake at last, the smell of brine filling her nostrils. Orientating herself after a quick splash of water to her face to cleanse it of the tears she saw the light. But as dire as the situation was she paused for a moment, allowing herself just a moment to provided so relief to her throbbing ankle.

Salt water or not the lake beat standing in the open and allowed her easier movement as she slipped into it. Her legs forming into a tail as if by instinct though she found flexing it painful she opted for slower movements now keeping it as lax as possible as she dove to the bottom.

Pulling herself along the lake bed by algae or rock she noted the every changing fish. Some she had disturbed out from hiding but they seemed more interested in swimming away from her possibly thinking she was a predator.

It was slower going using arm strength alone but the water made it quite possible. She would cross the lake in such a manner using cover then when on the other side would head towards that single light source now. The Undine would surely check the lake and with the advantage of those sensors she saw they would locate her.

It took a bit longer at least in her mind though it was roughly equivalent to her walking speed. It didn't hurt as much though her tail was throbbing. The injury didn't fade any with the transformation the same section of the tail hurt that would have comprised of where her ankle would have been.

Slowly she emerged from the water. Her upper head and eyes first as she glanced around for the Undine. Not seeing any she pulled herself free. Though she lost her skirt and sandals with the transformation and was virtually naked now other than her top.

She hadn't been thinking besides ending the pain temporarily. Being dripping wet made it easier to track her too but these were not worries at the time nor could she dwell on her lapses right now. Tail shifting back to legs she experimented with setting weight upon her ankle which she regretted as the throbbing pain became an infernal roar.

She hoked down a cry but having little choice she pressed on towards the light hoping it was unnatural and manufactured by some sapient being. It did not matter right now that she was mostly naked or water logged. Vodran were not shelf conscious for the most part and she tended to wear clothes because other creatures got embarrassed if she didn't. She had found long ago that most organics got unnerved in the presence of a naked being as if that was something unexpected though there were some species that accepted it that wasn't the norm.

So far no Undine interrupted her rush to the lake, if one could even call it a rush given the pace Myra could comfortable pursue. They would have taken to air if they could, but at the same time they knew she was stuck here and might have gone back to fix up their ship completely, if it was damaged in the first place. Whatever the reason for it, she had plenty to worry about, but not a great deal of options. Getting to the water was quite the relief and after getting out of it without her pursuers in sight, no doubt Myra had the same feeling twice in a row. She had just one extra landmark and headed straight for it.

It got colder the longer Myra went on and after shedding a portion of her clothes during her transformation, there really was not much left to protect her from it. It was clawing at her once the wind picked up a bit, drying her yet cooling her body at the same time which often spelt misery to lone travelers like her. At least there didn’t appear to be any active predators in the region right now or else the long trek back might have been even more discomforting. She had to keep it together for a while as the ache coming from her ankle appeared to be slowing her progress quite a bit, but it was the simple matter of having to endure it for such an extensive amount of time that made the journey feel as though it never quite ended.

Surprisingly enough Myra made it to the light source without further incident, but at the same time her search indicated it hadn’t gone anywhere in a while. Either someone must have been there still or the device was merely left running by itself, turned on and forgotten, or it might not even be unnatural in the first place. She did come to a rocky overhang that faced away from the wind, however, easing the chill embracing her at any given moment. Something similar in nature brought her body some much needed moisture before, but now it would shelter her from the cold and offer answers as to what the light truly was.

Stepping out of the cool air was one relief alongside the view that greeted her eyes. There was some equipment down here and it appeared to be used recently. Among what appeared to be a sleeping bag and some dry wood laid a bright lantern on the ground, filling the area with light. A charred spot of earth surrounded by rocks indicated someone cooked here, too, as there was a whole fish pierced through a long piece of wood right next to it. While the fire was off, the catch seemed to be rather fresh. Someone must have been here not too long ago, an actual living individual that was not of Undine origin. Suddenly, however, the cold albeit sharp edge of a blade crept up against her throat, clear as crystal in its meaning.

“Move and you’ll regret it.” It seemed outright unusual for the Undine chasing her not to beat and torture the escapee right then and there, but given how silent the creature snuck up on her, the same one now pressing against her back with a voice Myra could not associate a face with, one had to think it was something else. Sneaking up on people must have been easy to the unknown specimen as there was not even the slightest sound to be heard before the Vodran Priestess found herself cornered. “I heard shots being fired a fair distance from here. You know anything about that?” She sounded firm in her speech, relaying just what situation they were in if Myra was foolish enough to try and evade answering her inquiries.

Someone familiar? She had reason to doubt that under the circumstances even though the Undine might have spotted the light source as well a short while back. No, there was more to it than that. Someone else, someone Myra didn’t recognize by voice alone, an unknown variable whose warm breath licked and danced about her skin after walking through the cool night as though the creature was speaking to her with an actual voice without utilizing any sort of telepathy. She felt cold to the touch, too, the swell of her breasts pressing up against the Priestess’ back being a dead giveaway with regards to her gender if her voice hadn’t done the same whereas the chilling feel had arisen from the metal imbued suit of armor she was wearing. She could barely see it from the corner of her eyes, but managed to make out a few shimmering scales reflecting light that were part of her attire.

Smooth flesh slithered about the expanse of her arms in no time, a couple of tentacles which went on to ensnare her limbs yet refrained from discomforting her further by yanking them behind her back. She hardly appeared to be any sort of threat to the unseen femme fatale and was being treated as such. If anything, she was hurt by accident once her legs were being drawn further apart to make sure she would have less of a secure stance, putting more pressure on her ankle in the process.

With little choice she pressed on, the bitter wind cold and chilling. There were some Vodran subspecies that had been adapted to the cold but she was not one of them. True she was better designed to deal with cold to a degree. She was aquatic and somewhat use to the cold pertaining to water any way. Wind was another matter entirely though. Her skin had been adapted to resist colder waters to a degree but wind was somewhat new to her over the last few months and her body had never built up any resistances.

While the water by itself had not bothered her at first the wind was able to use it to make that water feel even colder than it was. With merely a top she had little to protect her not that it wouldn't be soaked anyway. Her skin was chilled by the wind as the water served as a conduit.

One good thing was that her ankle had grown numb at one stage but that was short lived. Not feeling it as much Myra placed more weight on it and inadvertently caused more pain to flare up. Slowly she made her way along, fortune seeing her to that camp.

She could see that the campsite was recent. Her eyes barely had time in taking all of it in as she glanced to and fro but had been interrupted by that voice. She froze, not daring to move as she further assessed the situation. She ruled out the Undine near immediately. If male their would be no speech whatsoever, and it didn't sounded like the female pressing a voice within her head. It was an actual voice, a female given the ample cleavage pressed into her back.

The blade had not retracted though the threat obvious. The question was asked and of course she had an answer. She must have been one odd sight, soaked and cold. Hungry too she realized though her earlier panic had pushed that down while the threat of death loomed over her.

“The Undine were firing at me,” she did not know how well known the Undine were off their planet. There were a lot of things she did not know about them but they came to her world and had space travel. They were aquatic too but could survive outside of the water, for how long she did not know. Perhaps they evolved on a world with another sapient species that had been the one that invented space travel and discovered the Undine beneath the waves. There were so many possibilities that she didn't have the answers for. If she had learned any of them they were bundled up with her lost memories.

Restrained by tentacles she tried to envision her captor though she grunted a little as her legs were shifted, that ankle flaring with even more pain for a moment before becoming a dull throb.

“I, I can offer you money for assistance,” she announced. Of course she had only her top on her at the moment but she had access to funds. Granted they had not been here and she didn't expect to be allowed to go to Vodran, get the gems and exchange them on the galactic market. If she survived all this she would have to set up a galactic account to dump money into when she had the need for it, oh, like loosing one's ship and equipment for starters.

“Is there a way off this world?” She was gathering information seeing she had not seen a ship this world may be primitive. In fact she calculated that there could be a good chance of that. The woman wore armor and had a blade rather than a blaster neither of which entailed modern civilization. First things first was dealing with the Undine. Figuring out how to gt off planet could wait for now as she amended her question. She had missed the mentioning of hearing shots though she had answered automatically to the earlier question it was something she should have caught, would have caught that he was familiar with blasters at least if she had not been so focused on surviving the Undine.

"Is there someplace safe?"