Kass sat down on the ground with a large sigh.

“You alright?” Amanda asked.

Kass nodded and returned Amanda’s smile. Then her face took on a more serious look. She eyed Amanda’s pack, which was now lying next to Amanda. “Did you...?” she started but trailed off not exactly sure what how to word her question.

“The bullet’s still in but I cleaned her wound with some alcohol pads. It doesn’t look infected and Cat seems fine.” Amanda replied, guessing at what Kass had wanted to ask.

Kass nodded. “And we’re not telling Indi?”

Amanda shook her head. “Cat didn’t want to worry her.”

Kass nodded again. She looked tired.

“You sure you’re alright?” Amanda asked again.

Another nod. “You up for some tea?”

“Yeah I’ll have some.”

By the time Cat and Indi had returned, arms laden with sticks, Kass had fixed up a drink for each for them.

Cat piled the sticks on the ground in the centre of the circle and Amanda lit a fire.

Amanda, who was feeling a lot better, offered to take over the cooking so Kass curled up on one side of the fire with a book. Indi chatted away continuously, energized at being out of the caves and alive, while Amanda cooked and Cat drew circles in the dirt with a stick.

Eventually, bored, Cat fished a knife out of her pack, picked a tree and practiced target throwing. It greatly attracted Indi’s attention, who then asked for a lesson. They both took turns seeing who could hit closest to a particular point. Cat was better, but even about half of her throws went flying past the tree.

While the pasta cooked Amanda couldn’t resist offering to show them how it was done.

“No, need to get up,” a worried Cat remarked as Amanda tried getting to her feet for the first time since her leg had been healed.

“I’ll go easy,” Amanda replied as she tested placing a little weight on it. She winced as a sharp pain shot up her leg but found it wasn’t so bad that she couldn’t at least rest it on the ground. Indi passed her a stick which she happily took. She sat down between the two of them on the fallen log they’d been throwing from.

A couple quick throws proved she was much better than either of them, as every time she managed to embed the blade in the trunk. Not one miss. Cat retrieved it each time so Amanda didn’t have to move. The blade struck a little off from where they’d been aiming but it was leagues closer than either of the others had managed, only a inch or two from the mark.

“How do you make sure it hits blade first?” Indi asked.

“It’s more like darts than throwing a ball,” Amanda explained. “You want to make sure you keep your arm straight. Getting the right about of spin is just practice.”

Amanda gave Indi some pointers and Indi laughed as she tried to put everything into practice but ended up making her worst throw yet.

“Try taking a step back,” Kass suggested from the other side of the fire.

“You want to demonstrate?” Cat asked.

“A step back?” Indi frowned.

Kass nodded and put her book down.

“You don’t need a lot of force,” she said as she took the knife from Indi. She gave Cat a pointed look, “especially you.” She stood in front of the tree, eyeing the target. She then turned and walked around the back of the fire so she was further away.

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The others moved out of throwing range in response.

“Even from back here, all you need is a light throw. If you find it’s hitting on the handle you can think of one pace as about half a spin and just adjust by that without changing anything else.” Kass lined up her target again, gave a few practice movements with her wrist before finally flinging the weapon at the tree.

The tip of the knife struck right at the point they’d been aiming.

“Wow,” Indi marveled. “Show me how.”

Kass obliged and soon Indi was at least managing to get the knife in the tree more often. She found Kass’s one pace suggestion worked quite well.

Then Cat had a go again.

“Less force,” Kass reminded her for the hundredth time.

Cat grumbled but she listened and slowly her aim improved as well.

“I actually find it easier from further back,” Kass said. “Too close and getting the amount of spin right is a a lot harder.

“Why’s that?” Indi asked.

“You don’t need as much spin from further back.”

Indi nodded. “You want another go?” she asked Amanda who had returned to finishing up dinner while they had kept practising.

“Any suggestions for me?” Amanda asked as she took the knife from Indi.

Kass shrugged. “You’re throwing fine, you just need to work on your aim I think.”

Amanda nodded. “I don’t know how you find further away easier,” she remarked as she tried from close in, managing to hit reasonably close to the mark.

Kass shrugged again. “Is dinner ready?” she asked eyeing the post of pasta and sauce.

“Ah, yeah,” Amanda replied.

They all dug in, talking very little while they ate.

Afterwards, Kass, Indi, and Cat decided to go for a short walk through the bush back to the stream with the dishes.

Amanda remained at camp, using the time for another short nap.

“We could stay another night,” Indi suggested as she led the way back to the stream.

Kass gave Cat a wary glance.

“I think it’s better we get back,” Cat replied. “It might take us a bit longer anyway, given Amanda’s still recovering.”

“Mmm,” Indi replied, obviously sad they had to head back. She glanced up at the sky. “No sign of the phoenix.” Then she perked up, “but we got to see a dragon.”

“That was more dragon than I ever wanted to see in my life.” Kass replied.

Indi laughed. “It feels so good to be alive though doesn’t it. Do you think anyone else has ever been in that cave?”

Cat shrugged. “Who knows. It wasn’t easy to get to, but them cavers are a crazy breed.”

“It would be cool to come back and see where the rest of it goes don’t you think?” Indi said as she jumped over a fallen log.

“No,” Cat replied. “I do not.”

“Well, with more ropes and stuff,” Indi explained.

Kass stifled a giggle at the dark expression on Cat’s face. “I don’t think Cat ever wants to go near another cave again Indi, but you might find Amanda’s keen?”

“What about you?” Indi asked.

Kass laughed. “I don’t know, we’ll see, it would be kind of cool to see where it goes.” She smiled at the grin on Indi’s face.

They spent the last of the evening playing cards combined with a little more knife throwing.

“You know I might just sleep out under the stars tonight,” Amanda remarked gazing up at the slowly reddening sky.

Cat turned her face skyward as well, eying it suspiciously for any sign of rain but there wasn’t a cloud in the sky, and she had to admit the idea of sleeping under the stars was tempting. She nodded in agreement.

As they all looked up they noticed a small dot in the distance that seemed to be getting bigger.

“What’s that?” Amanda pointed.

All of them peered up at whatever it was but no one could quite make it out.

“Hang on,” Kass said as she reached for her pack.

“Why do you have a rifle?” Amanda asked incredulously as she saw what Kass was holding.

Cat snorted. “Really! You’re worried about why she, the ex pro sniper, has a rifle and not how she got it up here in that bag without any of us noticing.”

“I mean that too. How did you fit it in that bag?” Amanda asked, her gaze moving between the rifle and the pack, the latter of which was obviously shorter in length.

Kass shrugged and raised it so she could peer through the scope and at the dot in the distance. “Telescopic barrel, sort of, it’s magic. It was designed by a materiokinetic, it shifts between shapes, changing it’s density at will.”

“Don’t shoot it! Whatever it is,” Indi remarked alarmed.

“I wasn’t, I was just...” Kass lowered the rifle and went about removing the scope. “I just wanted to use the scope.”

“So why the rifle? Were you planning on hunting?” Amanda asked.

Kass shrugged and handed Amanda the rifle without the scope attached. “It packs down small,” she explained. “I heard there were a few wild pigs up here, and rabbits. Thought if I saw some we could take some meat back.”

“Wow, that is really light,” Amanda remarked.

Kass nodded. “When it’s so light I can just pack it in as a survival tool too.”

Amanda handed it back.

“Is that magic too?” Cat asked. “The weight?”

Kass shrugged.

“Guys!” Indi remarked drawing their attention back to the sky.

The dot had come much closer in the last couple of minutes. A beautiful feathery red bird now dipped and dove over the trees in front of them, as interested in them as they were in it. It was close enough that they could see gold feathers mixed in among the scarlet. The phoenix!

The four of them stared upwards at the sky in stunned silence. When Indi finally glanced back at the others to make sure they were watching the bird she found the looks of awe on their faces proved to be an even better sight than the one in the sky.

THE END