The Iron Pillars

Chapter 11

About an hour later, Brant sat crosslegged in the grass, sheltered from the midday sun by the shadow of the Stingray's wing. He chomped down on a bland but nourishing sandwich with wavy green leaves of lettuce peeking out from between the slices of bread. A thick slice of Innutukian antelope meat sat in the middle, its age negating all but its heartiness. Only a single dash of mayonnaise had been added to the meat to give it any flavor, though Brant had in reality only splashed it on to combat the food's dryness somewhat. 

Brant glanced up at Hannah, who hungrily chomped down on a similar sandwich, though she had taken the extra effort to toast her bread. In addition, a red sauce dripped from under the lettuce and covered her fingers. The girl grinned at Brant upon meeting his gaze. 

He returned the smile for a second before glancing at the others sitting under the Stingray's shadow. Aaron sat a little ways away, an open box of crackers and a jar of peanut butter before him. Sila knelt beside him. 

The robot systematically grabbed two crackers from the box, scooped a perfect teaspoon of peanut butter from the jar, and created a cracker sandwich. Once finished with its creation, the robot handed it off to Keira, who laid on her back in the grass and gratefully consumed them with a casual air. Aaron did much the same for Wendy. 

Baird and Khemera reclined a little farther off, leaning against one of the Stingray's support legs. They both also ingested similar sandwiches to Brant's. Khemera's nonchalance contrasted with Baird's visible dissatisfaction. With a roll of his eyes, the swordsman crawled across the grass, moved the bread aside, and flung some peanut butter down onto the exposed meat. He took a bite and shrugged before heading back. 

Brant cast a quick glance into the distance, where Ace stood and smoked in the open plain. He had been sitting among them, but once he had lit a cigarette, Wendy had fallen into a violent coughing fit. Aaron had begged him to leave, and that he had. 

"So," Aaron spoke, shattering the silence and snatching Brant from his thoughts, "how's everyone feeling?" 

"We're all together for the first time in forever, so I ain't complainin'!" Hannah answered cheerfully. 

Aaron grinned as he stuffed another cracker in Wendy's mouth, a little before she was quite ready. "Yeah, that's awesome." 

"Feels like the calm before a storm, if you ask me." Keira remarked. She plucked a blade of grass and studied it. Then she waved Sila's offer of another bite away. 

Brant nodded. "I'm feeling that, too." 

"Well, again, if it's a calm, I ain't complainin'." Hannah said. 

Aaron nodded. Then he craned his neck to eye Baird. "Say, you wanna tag along with us? We'll definitely have room." 

Baird cast a quick glance at Khemera. "I'm afraid I'll have to decline. We're just biding our time until we can get back home." 

"Oh, right." he replied, pausing for a thoughtful moment. "I hope Abby's doing well...and the baby. You know if it's gonna be a boy or girl yet?" 

Baird shook his head. "Still just a little too early. We're hoping to find out next checkup." 

"Ah, gotcha." After another long pause, he asked, "Any name ideas?" 

"Tons, actually." the swordsman replied with a chuckle. "I have a lot I like, but Abby's just a little pickier. She doesn't like the prospect of our kid sharing a name with a character she's played." 

Aaron threw his head back and chortled. "So no Danielle Von Cleiberns. Dang." 

The men shared a moment of laughter before Baird's face straightened a bit and he leaned forward to view Wendy. "We are actually considering Gwen. In honor of what you did for Abby."