If someone wanted to go from one city to the other, they booked an airplane. If someone wanted to go a long distance into the wilds, they booked a roc.

The huge brown birds were one of the first monsters to be tamed when mounts became a thing. Some idiot was dumb enough to wonder what would happen if he stole a roc chick out of a nest and raised it. That moment of brainless impulse turned into one of the biggest breakthroughs for the Hunters in accessing the wilds. Rocs were so big, strong, and – most important – so high up, that monsters on the ground didn't bother them. It was now one of the safest ways to travel.

Although I'd seen many rocs high in the blue sky, I'd never been close to one before. I had to say, they were hella intimidating. I stood at the edge of the landing pad, mouth slightly agape at the giant birds around the huge space. Their backs, alone, were the size of a bus. And their wingspan ... whoa. Large oval saddles were strapped around the birds, giving plenty of room to seat a dozen people, at least.

And not just Hunters, I realized, watching a group of people climb a set of mobile stairs up to a waiting roc, each one leading a mount. The mounts were obviously used to the action. They obediently climbed in the saddle and found a comfortable place in the open space in the middle, while the Hunters sat on the benches around them. As soon as the party was settled, the roc stood up, walked to the edge of the landing pad, and stretched out its enormous wings. Its brown feather flashed gold and bronze as the wings flapped, lifting the bird with ease in the air. A giant gust of wind that ripped across the landing pad, displacing anything that wasn't tied down – people included.

All the monsters I'd encountered so far were 'normal' sized. It was the first time I felt so small.

I took a deep breath and pinched my thumb hard as the knowledge of my own minute-sized existence crashed over me yet again. This whole world was so big, filled with bigger monsters, stronger beings, and more important people than me. Suddenly, it was all very intimating. I was just a girl. Would I really be able to survive in this larger than life world?

No, I had to. I couldn't disappoint my family by crumbling under the pressure. And I had to know – and let them know – what actually happened to my mom. I owed them that.

I forced myself to let go of my aching thumb. Star and her partners were on the other side of the pad, standing next to their wooly rhino mounts. They were so deep in conversation, it seemed they hadn't noticed when I arrived.

They stopped talking as I approached and looked at me.

"You're here," Star said with a smile.

I guess the other two finally warmed up to me a bit because they both nodded in greeting.

I smiled. "Hello again." I glanced at the closest roc, still a little weary. Its beak was longer than I was tall. It could easily pick up Scott's wooly rhino mount and bite it in half. "What do we do now? Um, the contract didn't say anything about mounts, was I supposed to bring one?"

Rocs needed a lot of space, for obvious reasons, so the landing pad was built in the ruins along Boulder's northern border. It was close enough to get to, but far enough that the birds didn't bother the public. Shiva was hurt and Chuck was Uncle's mount, so I took a cab out here. Was I supposed to bring Chuck? I wasn't that familiar with him and keeping him calm during the ride didn't sound fun.

Star waved her hand. "No, mounts would get in the way since we'll be inside most of the time. These guys are going to stay here." She patted her mount's neck.

I nodded slowly. Good, I didn't want to screw this up. "When do we leave?"

"Right now," Pepper announced. She pointed at the closest roc. "That's our ride."

I looked at the bird and swallowed hard. "Okay."

Suddenly, all the worries I'd been suppressing the whole time surfaced with a vengeance. I was about to get on a giant bird monster. With no walls. I think there were seat belts. Please, let there be seat belts. What did I hold on to? Did they ever go upside down? I'd been so distracted with getting things for the outing, I totally forgot to research what to do and not to do when riding a roc. All I knew were the basics from Hunter prep.

Scott and Pepper walked away without another word. Star smiled and waved, indicating for me to catch up.

I trailed a half step behind, so I could keep an eye on what they did, while I looked around. Maybe I could get a better clue of what to expect from some other Hunters, so I didn't look like a complete newb. I was so caught up on the roc the first time I saw a group take off, I didn't really pay attention to what the Hunters did. Sadly, although there were other groups waiting around, we were the next ones up.

At the bottom of the mobile stairs, I stared up at the roc. Seriously, who the hell thought it would be fun to raise one of these? It was huge. The bird monster tilted its head and blinked its beach ball sized brown eye, my reflection on its glassy surface.

"Ria?"

I jumped and looked up at Star, hanging on the stairs, most of the way up.

"Are you coming?" she asked.

Scott leaned over from up in the saddle. "You already signed the contract. You can't back out now or you have to pay early termination fees."

So, did that mean the previous guy who backed out had to pay them too? Since it wasn't my business, I threw away the thought. "I'm not backing out. I just think they're pretty," I said, motioning to the roc. Pretty huge. Okay, they were pretty, as well, once I got over their size.

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I hurried up the stairs and stepped over the three foot tall rim around the saddle. The center part of the saddle was open to give a place for mounts to lie down during the ride. A continual bench looped just inside the rim, using the short wall as a backrest. There were seat belts, the kind that strapped over the lap, but they didn't look that sturdy.

My stomach wiggling like nervous worms, I sat down next to Star. Did it matter where we sat? Should we need to spread out to balance the load, or was it best if everyone was together? A million other questions flew through my mind, so fast I couldn't fully grasp them. Even so, I didn't dare voice them.

Before I even collected myself, the roc stood up and started walking to the edge of the landing pad.

I gasped and reached for the seat belt beside me. The saddle was rocking so hard with the movement of the great bird, the other end of my seat belt kept slipping out of reach. With a desperate lung, I grabbed it and clicked the two pieces together.

The roc opened its wings, which going on forever. Then it flapped its wings and lunged into the air, causing the saddle to dip and jerk like a roller coaster – one without a track.

I yelped and gripped my seat belt for dear life as the ground fell away at a rapid pace. Wind blew in my face, even though there was a magical shield around the saddle to buffer most of the wind and regulate the temperature. I blinked to keep my eyes from drying out and looked around, taking in my first sky view of Boulder.

I knew only a part of the city was rebuilt, but seeing how big the destroyed section was, even so many decades after the almost apocalypse happened, it was shocking. So many people died. How many more decades would it take to rebuild what was lost? How many decades before there were even enough people to rebuild it?

My eyes wandered around and I tightly gripped my harness, searching for something to distract myself from the fact that the roads and buildings looked like tiny toys. That's when I noticed ... There was no driver. There were only four people on this bird, and none of them held the reins. Scratch that, there weren't any reins to begin with.

My nervous stomach turned queasy.

I vaguely knew that it was okay. Homing beacons were strapped around the roc's chest. When a Hunter wanted to go to a location, the roc’s owner would set off the beacon in that drop off spot, guiding the roc to that beacon. After the roc got there, the riders had twenty minutes to get off before the roc's home beacon urged the bird back to Boulder. It was the same thing with the pick up. The Hunters were given a time to return to the drop off, the roc would wait for thirty minutes so the Hunters time to load and whatnot, then the bird monster would leave and not return until someone else chose to go to that location.

Needless to say, it was really important not to miss the ride home. With the number of roc drop off sites increasing, it could take months for a site to be revisited.

With the scary thought of no driver spinning like a tornado in my mind – I mean, who would control the roc if there was a problem? – I leaned on the saddle's rim and stared down at the pretty mountains below, trying to clear my mind.

"You've never been on a roc before, have you?" Star asked. None of them were wearing a seatbelt.

I turned to her, grateful for the distraction. "No. I've been on a plane a couple times, but never a roc." There wasn't ever a need too, since Dad used to be so determined to keep me and Micah far away from the wilds.

Pepper tsked. "I thought a big city like Eden had rocs, too. Or are you just that new?"

I winced inside, while keeping a smile on my face. "I'm just that new."

Even Scott finally glanced at me.

Star hummed under her breath. "Really? Your gear is so nice – better than mine. I thought you just had a baby face."

I paused, then said with a casual air, "Ah, no. They are gifts from a family member." To distract them, I started asking Star about her own experiences as a Hunter.

She happily chatted back, talking about the amazing adventures and all the cool things she'd seen in the last five years, filling the time. Pepper sat in silence at the beginning, but with Star's encouragement, she slowly joined the conversation. Scott sat on the other side of Pepper, holding her hand, stone faced and silent.

Star and Pepper were second cousins, but grew up like sisters. They'd spent their whole life in Boulder, and even joined the Association together, since their birthdays are only weeks apart. They were both light fighters, while Scott – Pepper's boyfriend – was a tank. Like a lot of small Hunter teams, they almost never traveled with a healer.

I, in turn, talked about growing up in Eden, talking about the environment – which they were very interested in – and glossing over my own personal growing up experiences. The more we talked, the more I was able to relax.

I had to admit, it was nice to just talk with people my own general age again. Since coming here, I'd been so cooped up, between hunting, the shop and family, I hadn’t made any friends. Maybe Star and Pepper were a good start. After all, I did need to build up a positive reputation with the local Hunters, if I wanted to take over Uncle's business in the future. As for Scott, well, we'll see.

While we talked, I kept an eye on what was going on below us. I couldn't help but gawk at the huge tears that ripped apart mountains from past earthquakes. I mean, these were mountains. Mountains! Not sand castles. Some of the chasms were miles long, as if the land below was no more than dry fondant. Lakes and rivers threaded the land, filling the tears. It wasn't all just rock, water and plants. Plenty of places had been changed when a monster had taken up residence – such as a sudden frozen wasteland in the middle of the summer forest, or a smoking small volcano peeking out of the trees. The large monsters were visible from up here, but I knew there were thousands I was just too far away to see.

"Oh, there it is," Star pointed over Pepper's shoulder.

In the distance, getting closer and closer, was a stretch of ruins surrounded by brown and green wilderness. Just like Boulder's ruins, there really was nothing to look at. It was just a bunch of twisted building materials, overgrown with plants. A large river cut through the middle of the city. It was wide and obviously new, given how jagged the turns were – the water hadn't had enough time to erode the sharp corners – and how buildings were either sunk or slowly falling into the water. Several lakes pooled along the river, leading all the way into the mountain range we were leaving.

Excitement leapt in my chest. I was totally ready to get off now. The roc's movements weren't jerky, but the constant rocking motion was tough to handle after so long. If I didn't have a strong stomach, I would have lost it already. But more so, I was excited to start a new adventure. One with other Hunters. Companions.

I glanced down below us, trying to gauge how much longer till we got there. Was the roc's marker in the middle of the city, or on the outside? Or was it by the university...

My thoughts stalled when I noticed a long shadow in the middle of the river below us, moving in a fluid, slithering manner. Given the large girth and length of the river, then the long shadow in the river was huge. Easily several times longer than the roc, tail feathers and all.

What ... was that?

*****