I stretched as I walked toward the crystal. The first thing on our agenda was to bring back some crocs, then I'd have some time to rest before we started the desert trek. The twelve hunters were already sitting in the cart and waiting for me. With a grin at their excitement, I ported us to the Guard Station. Three jumped out to grab the spears, axes, and rope.

I murmured to Brielle, "Let's see how long it takes the Saursunes to notice."

"I doubt we'll get the first croc in the cart before they show up."

The hunters ran back and vaulted into the cart.

After a cordial nod at Weylan, who nodded back from his rocking chair, I said, "Jungle Sandbar."

Our view hazed over as my energy drained with the heavy port. Yet, there was no discomfort, not the faintest twinge, even with twelve passengers in an otherwise empty cart. I wasn't sure whether to cheer at the accomplishment or be concerned.

The haze cleared as we appeared on the sandbar in the middle of the river. The hunters jumped out and organized themselves as I climbed onto the cart to stand watch. Dozens of huge crocodiles lined the shore, unconcerned by our presence.

We were here. The race for time had begun.

We'd be hard-pressed to kill two crocs before company showed up. The Saursunes might have been fine with us chopping wood with the axes, but killing massive crocs when the Saursunes themselves looked rather reptilian? That might be pushing our boundaries a bit too far, regardless of how easygoing Citrine and Jasper seemed to be, and none of the hunters wanted to risk an attack.

Several hunters took regular spears and went to chase as many crocs into the water as they could. Cruz swung a rope with a large leather ball attached. The tassels on it rippled in the wind as he threw it toward a smaller crocodile and began pulling it toward us.

The croc simply watched it go. Cruz tossed it again, this time pulling it in a jerky fashion. The struggling bait was too irresistible for the croc, and it lumbered after it. After ten paces, it gave up. The ball was tossed again, and it followed it a bit farther as those with Saursune rope, spears, and axes bided their time.

A hunter came in from the side with a loop of rope. As he tossed the lasso, the croc swung its head to face him, opening its mouth as it did so. The coil settled perfectly on its upper jaw.

I quickly scanned our surroundings as the hunters with gloves pulled the rope tight. The croc began rolling, and the hunters with the special spears and axes closed in. Like they had rehearsed, those with axes aimed for the neck while those with spears went for the vital organs. The fight swiftly ended, and all twelve struggled to drag and roll it halfway to the cart.

"Do we go after the second one now?" Cruz asked, pausing for a breather. He glanced at a few crocs who had already come back onto the shore.

"If we're going to do it, let's do it now," Liam said. "Those Saursunes will be here before too much longer."

The group sorted themselves out as Cruz went to see if he could lure a croc closer. He picked the smallest one, although small was a relative term when it was over twice as long as I was tall. This croc was a bit on the thinner side and seemed more food motivated, readily chasing the tasseled ball closer and closer.

I peered over the side of the cart. "If that thing climbs in here with me, I'll have some words for you."

"You have to admit that I really couldn't get it any closer to the cart if I tried," he replied with a shrug, yet never taking his eyes off the large predator.

Movement down the river had me sitting straighter. "There's the airship. You better kill that croc before they get here."

They all glanced down the river; the airship was already flying sideways. A dark spot of color marked the open door, although they were too far away to see if a Saursune was standing in the doorway.

The hunters immediately shifted into action, barely letting the rope tighten around the croc's jaws before bringing the weapons into play. My gaze shifted between the airship's distance and the hunters' progress. If I had to bounce them all out, I could—I had proven that by porting the cart and all twelve here at once.

The airship wasn't moving as slowly as it had yesterday or the day before, but the croc was dead, and the weapons were placed in the cart before our company arrived.

Cruz leaned against the cart and took a long drink from his waterskin. "That was a rush. But we have two crocs!"

The cheer was reduced to excited murmurs due to the proximity of the airship.

"I wonder if the Saursunes will let us use the axes to chop up the crocs so we can load them in the cart," Liam said, glancing over as the airship landed on the far edge, a bit closer than it had last time.

"I can port them if we tie ropes around them or if you link hands," I reminded them.

"We're going to see how far we can push our luck," Cruz said. "The hunting was the dicey part, but I don't think they'll care if we use the weapons to chop these fellas down to size."

I slid off the front of the cart as Citrine trotted over. Jasper appeared in the airship doorway soon after—standing on his hind legs—which had me pausing and regarding him with sudden wariness, a strange feeling considering how many times I'd been around him.

Citrine greeted me with her usual head bump to my shoulder as if unaware of what her companion was doing. I stroked her neck, still distracted by the green Saursune who was eyeing up the crocs along the shore. As if noticing my preoccupation, Citrine glanced back. Her hide seemed to vibrate under my hand, and a moment later, Jasper lifted the bag in his hand and slid the handle over his head like an oversized necklace.

He dropped to all fours and exited the airship as he lazily trotted over. The caution I had felt at seeing him on his hind legs seemed to dissipate now that he was acting "normal".

My whimsical reactions made me want to shake my head at myself. Jasper was the same Saursune he had been mere seconds ago, regardless of how many legs he was standing on—if only I could get my flight response to believe it.

He hummed a welcome as he stopped in front of me and slid the bag off his neck. A sweep of his tail smoothed the sand between us. He upended the bag and sorted the tiles, braided circles, and trade tokens.

I crouched down for a better view. The tiles were the usual: share energy with the airship crystal and rest on a cushion inside. Like yesterday, there were five braided circles, two of which were for resting inside the airship.

I glanced at the hunters who were gathering to the side to watch. "It's just an energy sharing, although they want me to rest inside the airship again."

Cruz scratched his head and turned to frown at a croc edging up on the sand. "In all honesty, you're probably safer in there, presuming they don't fly off with you."

"They would have done that yesterday if that was their goal," Liam countered quietly. "My presence wouldn't have stopped them, and the other airship could have easily picked up the youngsters."

Cruz shrugged. "True. I don't see any risk worth protesting over, and she'll be going inside anyway for that crystal. I'm leaving it up to Natalie to decide if she wants to sit in the airship."

Liam knelt beside me and rested an arm on his knee as he examined the tokens Jasper was lining up for my inspection. "They gave you a lot of options. Did Grant ask for anything?"

"Flax, which I don't see, probably because they've never seen us collect it. No cotton or other weaving supplies. But considering I'll be gone for four days, I think food is our priority."

He nodded. "Rice goes a long way. Peanuts have a lot of nutrients. I see what you mean with the chickens, although if you want meat, I'd go for the cow again."

"I think we have enough meat with the crocs," I murmured. My hand reached for the token showing a sack of peanuts. Next was rice, followed by three different grains. No fresh fruit or "treats", not when the villagers would need the other stuff more.

Was there any way to tell the Saursunes I'd be gone for four days so they didn't look for me? Now wasn't the time—not during a trade—or they might think I was trying to request something. It would have to wait until later.

Jasper nodded and scooped the tokens and tiles back into the sack, which he passed to Citrine. He peered into the cart, then stood on his hind legs and reached inside. My heart skipped a beat when he pulled out two of the axes. The hunters watched him cautiously, although without any obvious signs of fear that I could see.

Dropping back to all fours, Jasper rested an axe against the closest croc, then put the other one on the second croc. He locked eyes with the hunters, then inclined his head at the axes and crocs. Without waiting for their reaction, he trotted toward the croc that had been creeping toward us.

"Well, it looks like we have permission," Cruz said, calmly picking up the axe and inspecting the crocodile as if pondering the best way to butcher it.

Citrine sidled up beside me and aligned her shoulder with my elbow. She glanced at me, then at the airship without showing any concern about the axe in the hunter's hands.

"I'll be back in a bit," I murmured to my companions.

"We'll be here," Brielle replied as she and the others gathered around the crocs, leaving me in Citrine's care.

I followed Citrine to the airship; it was definitely farther up the sand this time. We didn't have to go so close to the water's edge, which was a relief. Still, the proximity of the shore and murky water had me stepping inside without my usual hesitance.

From behind, a distant splash had me spinning around. Jasper had just dodged a big croc's lunge. He was already swatting it with his claws, biting at its tail, and overall expressing his opinion of its ambush attempt. The croc hadn't expected the feisty retaliation and swiftly retreated to the water to evade the alien.

When I turned back, Citrine hummed and continued walking to the crystal. I gazed at the crystal as I approached it. The lack of the refractions still seemed strange, and the glow from the base didn't help with that sense of it not being normal. As if I had any room to talk about something not "being normal" with my bizarre and overpowered teleporting ability.

I rested my hands on it, and immediately missed the shimmering that the regular crystals sent through my veins. I moved my energy to my hands, which still wasn't easy despite all the practice I'd had. The glow at the base of the crystal increased, ebbing and waning as I struggled to maintain a steady flow.

With my upcoming trip at the front of my mind, I continued sharing energy past the first sensations of tiredness in my legs. Citrine turned her head and peered at me right about the time my legs reached the "I'd really rather be sitting down" stage.

My hands left the crystal, and I reached for Citrine's shoulder, knowing the disorientation was going to be worse than usual when the energy drain side effects finally hit. I wasn't disappointed. I leaned my forearm and hand against her, trying to ground myself as my sense of up and down merrily spun in circles.

I shook my head to try and settle the spinning even as the exhaustion continued to catch up. The disorientation slowly faded without seeming to take too much longer than usual. The way Citrine was watching me begged to differ, or perhaps she could somehow tell that I was lower on energy than usual. It was hard to say; even the hunters were perceptive enough to tell if a porter was on their last port or two.

I really needed to sit down for a while. With my hand still on Citrine's shoulder, I took a step toward the cushions, which she matched. When we reached the cushion, she gingerly slid out from under my hand as if worried I'd lose my balance. I stepped onto the thick fur even as she lay down. My legs folded far easier than I would have preferred, but I still managed to sit down fairly gracefully.

With a relieved sigh, I leaned back against Citrine. I wasn't sure how much the large energy share was going to help on my prolonged trip, but it wasn't for my lack of trying.