For a friend: happy birthday xx
All people and aliens depicted in this story are 18 years or older.
——————
Ari stood on the deck of the small airship as it coasted low over the badlands, between towers of greenish grey stone under a dark and rumbling sky. The cold wind whipped through Ari’s dark hair and tugged at the lapels of her prison overalls.
‘But I didn’t do it!’ She strained at the cuffs that bound her hands behind her back. She protested her innocence for what felt like the thousandth time.
The jailor gave her a dark look. She glanced at the shockstick at his waist that and stopped struggling. After the show trial she had complained and he had shocked her. It had felt like she had fallen off the roof of a house, knocked the breath out of her for minutes. She didn’t want that again so she looked away, scared and alone.
The airship slowed and made a turn. Over the side Ari caught sight of a line of landing lights that headed towards a dark circle in an open area, framed by sharp cliffs.