Roxton followed behind Mel as they carried Ned through the opposite side of
the meadow and through a part of the forest Roxton was sure he'd never seen
before.
"Have you been here all this time," Roxton piped up from the back. "Or is your encampment one of those shifting planes of reality? I only ask because I don't believe I've ever been through this part of the plateau before."
"And why should you have?" Mel questioned back, with a smile evident in her voice. "There is nothing important by my home. And yes, it has always been here. It's never moved, and never will. The only reason my expedition chose that location was because it was large enough to hide us all from our carnivorous friends. And it was close enough to a massive water source that is visited less frequently by predatory dinosaurs."
"You sure do like the sound of your own voice, don't you?" Roxton lamented back, with a foolish grin on his face.
Mel laughed at his sarcastic question. "Ha ha Lord Roxton, very funny. And I suppose that you have no love of yourself either?"
"Of course not," John chuckled back. "I don't find myself that interesting."
"Well," Melody arose. "When you happen to live alone, with no one around for days, let alone kilometers, you sort of tend to have conversations with yourself. It's sometimes the only thing you can do to keep from going insane."
Roxton's grin faded. "You live alone?"
"Yes," Melody suspired. "I do. I have most of my life here on the plateau."
"Why?" Roxton asked, intrigued; yet feeling sorry. "What happened to your expedition you said you came with?"
"Dead," came her short reply. "Most of them anyway. Some ran off into the valley of shadows, some ran off before we crossed into the plateau, and some ran off and were just never seen again. Dinosaurs and cannibals killed most, I'm afraid. My parents, they...they were killed by a pack of raptors while out scouting. I was with them too. We were monitoring an area, when they got the jump on us; my father threw me into the highest tree and went down to fight them. They both put up a defiant battle, but in the end-"
Roxton, feeling worse and worse with every word, made her stop. "Please," he pleaded. "You don't have to go on. It must have been horrible for you; to see your parents killed like that. I am very sorry."
Melody just sort of smiled. "It's all right. There's nothing you, or anyone, can do about it anymore. They've been gone so long; sometimes that's the only memory of them I have. I know it's not a very good or pleasant one, but it's still a memory, and I would rather have one horrible recollection, then none at all. One of the only things that have kept me alive is the thought of my family." Wherever she might be, she thought...
"I understand what you mean," Roxton commented. "I have memories just like that. How long ago did your parents die?"
"Well," she began. "I came here 15 years ago, when I was about 6. So, they died when I was around 8, almost 9. So, that makes it close to 13 years ago they died. And they were the last of the expedition; well, besides me."
Roxton was astonished. "13 years ago?! You've been alone that long? How is it that we've never encountered you before?"
"Because Lord Roxton," Mel stated simply. "I keep mostly to myself. I have no reason to leave except to get more supplies. And I don't have to do that often. Sometimes I visit the Zanga, to see some of my family's friends and guides, but that is also very rare for me."
"You know the Zanga?" Roxton inquired. "Our friend, well, we all, know the Zanga. Do you know Veronica Layton then?"
Mel smirked. "Only by name. The Zanga speak very highly of her; especially Assai."
With that Mel stopped and gently laid her end of Malone's stretcher down.
"Wow," Roxton replied, dumbfounded. "I can't believe we've always been so close and yet, have never met. That's really- Hey! Why have we stopped?"
"We're here," Mel said matter-of-factly.
"We're here?" Roxton asked, a little perplexed. "This mountain is your home? And so is this waterfall?"
"Yes," was Mel's only reply.
They were now standing in front of a picturesque scene; there was a mountain, tall and covered in lush green vegetation, and below it, a mini- lake of sorts. The lake, though, came from the beautiful, flowing waterfall that was in front of the mountain; running down the side, actually, cascading down the mountain from a little-known stream up above.
"It is very exquisite," Roxton answered. "But I don't understand how you could have housed an expedition in this surrounding; it's too much in the open!"
"Ah," Mel smiled. "But that's the beauty of it all. Here, I'll show you my home. (Pauses) I hope you don't mind getting a little wet."
Mel picked Malone up again and starting heading for the falls.
"Woah," Roxton uttered, quite baffled. "Where are we going? Wait! Are we going through the waterfall? I don't think that's a very good idea. The pressure from the water might hurt Ned even more."
"We're not going through the water," Mel giggled. "We're going to go around it. There's a little passage off to the side. You'll see."
"Have you been here all this time," Roxton piped up from the back. "Or is your encampment one of those shifting planes of reality? I only ask because I don't believe I've ever been through this part of the plateau before."
"And why should you have?" Mel questioned back, with a smile evident in her voice. "There is nothing important by my home. And yes, it has always been here. It's never moved, and never will. The only reason my expedition chose that location was because it was large enough to hide us all from our carnivorous friends. And it was close enough to a massive water source that is visited less frequently by predatory dinosaurs."
"You sure do like the sound of your own voice, don't you?" Roxton lamented back, with a foolish grin on his face.
Mel laughed at his sarcastic question. "Ha ha Lord Roxton, very funny. And I suppose that you have no love of yourself either?"
"Of course not," John chuckled back. "I don't find myself that interesting."
"Well," Melody arose. "When you happen to live alone, with no one around for days, let alone kilometers, you sort of tend to have conversations with yourself. It's sometimes the only thing you can do to keep from going insane."
Roxton's grin faded. "You live alone?"
"Yes," Melody suspired. "I do. I have most of my life here on the plateau."
"Why?" Roxton asked, intrigued; yet feeling sorry. "What happened to your expedition you said you came with?"
"Dead," came her short reply. "Most of them anyway. Some ran off into the valley of shadows, some ran off before we crossed into the plateau, and some ran off and were just never seen again. Dinosaurs and cannibals killed most, I'm afraid. My parents, they...they were killed by a pack of raptors while out scouting. I was with them too. We were monitoring an area, when they got the jump on us; my father threw me into the highest tree and went down to fight them. They both put up a defiant battle, but in the end-"
Roxton, feeling worse and worse with every word, made her stop. "Please," he pleaded. "You don't have to go on. It must have been horrible for you; to see your parents killed like that. I am very sorry."
Melody just sort of smiled. "It's all right. There's nothing you, or anyone, can do about it anymore. They've been gone so long; sometimes that's the only memory of them I have. I know it's not a very good or pleasant one, but it's still a memory, and I would rather have one horrible recollection, then none at all. One of the only things that have kept me alive is the thought of my family." Wherever she might be, she thought...
"I understand what you mean," Roxton commented. "I have memories just like that. How long ago did your parents die?"
"Well," she began. "I came here 15 years ago, when I was about 6. So, they died when I was around 8, almost 9. So, that makes it close to 13 years ago they died. And they were the last of the expedition; well, besides me."
Roxton was astonished. "13 years ago?! You've been alone that long? How is it that we've never encountered you before?"
"Because Lord Roxton," Mel stated simply. "I keep mostly to myself. I have no reason to leave except to get more supplies. And I don't have to do that often. Sometimes I visit the Zanga, to see some of my family's friends and guides, but that is also very rare for me."
"You know the Zanga?" Roxton inquired. "Our friend, well, we all, know the Zanga. Do you know Veronica Layton then?"
Mel smirked. "Only by name. The Zanga speak very highly of her; especially Assai."
With that Mel stopped and gently laid her end of Malone's stretcher down.
"Wow," Roxton replied, dumbfounded. "I can't believe we've always been so close and yet, have never met. That's really- Hey! Why have we stopped?"
"We're here," Mel said matter-of-factly.
"We're here?" Roxton asked, a little perplexed. "This mountain is your home? And so is this waterfall?"
"Yes," was Mel's only reply.
They were now standing in front of a picturesque scene; there was a mountain, tall and covered in lush green vegetation, and below it, a mini- lake of sorts. The lake, though, came from the beautiful, flowing waterfall that was in front of the mountain; running down the side, actually, cascading down the mountain from a little-known stream up above.
"It is very exquisite," Roxton answered. "But I don't understand how you could have housed an expedition in this surrounding; it's too much in the open!"
"Ah," Mel smiled. "But that's the beauty of it all. Here, I'll show you my home. (Pauses) I hope you don't mind getting a little wet."
Mel picked Malone up again and starting heading for the falls.
"Woah," Roxton uttered, quite baffled. "Where are we going? Wait! Are we going through the waterfall? I don't think that's a very good idea. The pressure from the water might hurt Ned even more."
"We're not going through the water," Mel giggled. "We're going to go around it. There's a little passage off to the side. You'll see."