Chapter 1, page 3

The three exchanged looks then glanced around while quietly getting closer together. A stick snapped nearby. Bushes and branches rustled. A strange noise seemed to be very close. A flock of birds vacated a tree. The sisters were now back to back...to back. Vera turned to face her sisters, "Who farted?"

Before either could laugh or reply, a projectile grazed Mikaela's shoulder. She yelled and started throwing rocks in the direction she thought it had come from. Vera and ___ approached her slowly, telling her to calm down, it was ___ that farted and it was probably just a bee sting. Mikaela backed up toward the tree to lean on one, trying to calm down and not be calmed down. And someone landed on her from above.

It was clearly an agent of the enemy. [It wore the usual uniform and carried multiple fire arms.] Mikaela shoved it off and scrambled to get up. Vera already had a knife out and ___ had her very large (and very pain-inflicted according to a side note) staff. Vera threw her knife, sticking the agent in the back; ___ swung at it and very appropriately whacked his shoulder. The agent was on its knees, Mikaela was back on her feet and turned around in time to see the agent smack its head on an oddly --but conveniently placed-- rocked. The trio was wide-eyed and panting.

Wordlessly they stripped the agent of useful items: guns, backpack, jacket, flashlight and a few other miscellaneous supplies. No need to dispose of the body. Animals and insects left it alone. The news had made it clear many months ago that the prototype was efficient even in death since it dissolves into "environmentally friendly" gas in just a few hours.

Leaning on each other, they surveyed the area. Then they gathered up their loot and headed home whistling. Again, the birds sang.