Chapter 15

Her hope renewed, Aloy began to prepare for her departure. The rifle she'd resurrected from the debris slung over her shoulder, fitting as snugly as her spear had. She even grabbed the medical case, along with a few bits and pieces she was sure Petra would like, if she was still okay.

Almost sheepishly, she sidled up to the Stormbird. Carefully, she reached out a hand. "Okay, so we've gotten to know eachother for a while. You know I wouldn't hurt you. Friends?"

The Machine didn't seem concerned at her touch, nor when she used the cables to fashion a sling on its back, into which she climbed. It wasn't comfortable, riding machines never is, but she wasn't worried about falling off.

"You're not gonna like it, but we gotta go back. I don't know how the Oseram captured you, but we're gonna make them pay." She double checked everything was within reach and secure. She pulled up her focus map, ignoring the prompts for repair sites, finding the general location of Meridian. With the gesture she's used before, she synced her destination to her mount.

With a creak of metal and the whirring of blower motors, the machine proceeded to fall off the edge of the mountain. Aloy gripped with her very life, her teeth bared against the wind as it poured past her face, making her squint. Perhaps this was a bad idea. Stormbirds were never meant to be ridden. Perhaps it couldn't compensate for her weight…

Only a few hundred meters above the ground, the machine's wings unfolded and hissed as it braked its descent, forcing Aloy's stomach into her boots. She held on to the cold metal with a desperate tenacity as it spiraled into forward flight, engaging the subroutine for long-distance flight. Despite the cold, Aloy noticed, it was a smooth ride.

As the sun finally set over the horizon, the Stormbird's cruising lights turned on, and they were a blue streak in the sky. Aloy looked down at her leg, seeing the glow of the Mending Metal through her trousers, feeling the warmth they supplied. She wasn't sure if it was mending the bone over time, but all that mattered to her was that it felt normal and strong. Perhaps Petra wouldn't need to chop it off after all, she mused.

She smelled the smoke before she saw it. Meridian was burning again? But no, it wasn't long before she saw it was much closer than the city. Woodsmoke. A camp. There were people on the ground, clustered around fifteen or twenty campfires. The occasional blue light of a tamed machine glinted through the throngs of people; a watcher there, a long-leg, mostly striders. A questioning beep came from the Stormbird. It'd seen them too, and was preparing for an attack. She canceled the request with a flick of her wrist.

"No! They're Carja."

The people scattered when her Stormbird blocked out the moon. Thrusters realigned to break its forward momentum, and the backdraft blew out one of the campfires. Several of the Carja turned to face her, spears in hand, some with swords. They were citizens, she noticed, shocked. Not soldiers. Were these the Carja that escaped the city during the occupation? There weren't many of them, perhaps a few hundred, poor and wealthy alike, men and women and even a few children old enough to hold a weapon.

She moved to swing off of the machine once it landed, flooding the valley with artificial light. For a moment she hesitated, expecting to feel the twinge of pain in her leg as she landed. There was nothing. She stood tall, holding up her arms. "Carja citizens!" she called in greeting.

She was greeted with an avalanche of noise. Questions besieged her, a rush of people came forward to touch her, greet her, hug her, strangers offering to get her food or drink or to take her to a fire. They wanted to know what'd become of her, how she tamed a Stormbird, many thanked the great sun for their savior. She smiled, doing her best to answer where she could, but she had questions of her own.

"Who leads you?" She asked the closest man, a priest who'd hugged her. He pulled back his hood. "Namman!" She exclaimed, throwing her arms around him again. "You made it!"

The priest smiled at her. "Indeed, though I'm afraid we lost many. The Hunting Lodge was hit as a splinter group of the Oseram distracted the militia, taking out some of our greatest archers. Seems that they've had this planned for a while. Do you have word of the Sun King?"

With a twinge of anxiousness, Aloy thought of Talanah. Shaking her head, she pushed the worry aside. Many had fallen, after all. "Avad's gone east for sanctuary. If he can't rally the Nora to help, he'll at least be safe," she assured the priest. She was aware the others had fallen silent around her.

The Sunpriest's mouth pulled into a frown. "The nights grow darker. So close to the city, we can hear the cries of our loved ones. The citizens grow restless without their king: they wish to strike back. We-"

"MAKE WAY, GET OUT OF THE WAY!" Instantly, she knew the voice, and her heart leapt. So he was alive!

She turned to see Erend pushing his way through the throng of people. She unshouldered her rifle, dropping it to the ground. When his eyes caught her, she could see every hope and doubt flicker there, finally resting upon pure joy. "Aloy!"

With a few strides, she threw her arms around his neck in a hard kiss that nearly bowled him over. A mixture of gasps and murmurs ringed through the throng of people, and Aloy could hear even a few nervous laughs. She didn't care.

For a moment Erend was stunned, then crushed her to his armored chest in a powerful hug, kissing back just as eagerly. When she drew away, his face was flushed. "How many times are you gonna make me think you died?" He chastised her a little breathlessly.

"Got one in there for me?" came Petra's voice.

Aloy grinned, drawing reluctantly away from Erend to reach for the other Oseram. She was perfectly happy to give her a smooch as well, as thrilled as she was to see the forgewoman. The priest, perhaps attempting to dissuade any more public displays, stepped forward raising his hands.

"The Sun has gifted us with the means to exact our revenge on those who wronged us!" He was addressing the Carja, who whooped in agreement. "When the holy light shines upon us, we will take back our city and our loved ones. We will follow Aloy!"