Blue grasped the tiny bars of her cage and pressed her face against the opening, staring with wide eyes at the boy carrying her.

“You… Do you know what you just did?” She asked, her thin wings still trembling after their encounter.
“You know what happens when you break a contract with a dungeon monster right? Never mind a dragon…”

“Break a contract?” Micro asked.
“Why would I do that?”

“If you even think about breaking it, even a cultivator wouldn’t survive the curse that found you.” Blue’s tiny voice sounded more solemn than it normally could.

“We shook on it.” Micro smiled.
“I’ll find his friend later. First, I need tires.”

He looked down at his blistered feet, his eyes slightly watering from the thought of travelling so far on just his rims.

“You mean boots?” The pixie sighed.
“Turn left up here. We’re almost out.”

“It’s impressive that your gps still works down in these tunnels.” Micro commented.
“The old man’s was always on the fritz.”

“You’re saying I have a good sense of direction, right?”

Micro nodded.

“Well, I do.” She nodded back.
“A pixie doesn't get lost in this realm, even when they don't know where they are.”

“This realm?”

“The natural world.”

“Is there an unnatural world?”

Pixie chuckled at the innocent question.

“Yes and no.” She began.
“This is the mortal realm, where nature is born of the physical and spiritual energies of the universe. Pixies are closer to the spiritual than the physical, so we have a way of seeing through simple things like mountains and caves. Do you follow me?”

“Sure, you lead the way.” Micro listened happily as pixie continued her explanation. Though he understood little of what she said, it reminded him of home, where the old man would often tell him all about the day’s events, his troubles, his family…

Micro sighed as he wondered how the old man might be doing. His children must be worried. Could he have taken a taxi home? Did he need an ambulance? He put the thought of what other vehicle he might be replaced by and continued on, following the guidance of the pixie.

By the time they had reached an exit, the pixie had finally relaxed as she finished her explanation.

“So, do you understand your place in the world now, strange human?” Blue asked with an instructor’s tone.
"You're the first human to receive such wisdom from one as great as myself!"

“I go where I’m driven.” Micro nodded.
“Efficiently, and reliably.”

Blue rolled her eyes at the boy’s smile and turned her attention to the scenery before them.

Having stepped out of the cave, they found themselves on a rocky mountainside, not far from a forest of tall evergreens. Blue pointed down the mountain at the trees.

“There’s a little house that way.” She announced as she strained her eyes.
“Keep walking a while, and we might find a human who can help us.”

However, Micro looked with wide eyes down the mountain, his knees becoming weaker.

“I… I can’t go off-road like this…” He whimpered.
“I don’t have four wheel drive. I don’t even have four wheels now!”

“One foot in front of the other you weirdo.” Blue encouraged him again.
“It’s just like walking in the cave, but with the sky above you. See?”

“Are you sure I won’t get stuck?” He looked around worriedly.
“What if I roll over? There’s no winch!”

“Hey.” She snapped her fingers to draw his attention back.
“I haven’t led you astray yet. We both need help, so get moving. The sun is still high, but we don’t have time to stand around and wait for the next dragon to pop out and eat us.”

“That’s fair…” Micro took a deep breath and looked past the forest at the horizon. He’d seen horizons before, but never quite like this - never with human eyes.
“You drive.”

“Thank you.”

Micro cautiously began his descent down the rocky terrain, one foot after the other, flinching at the sound of each rock he disturbed, but pressing forward nonetheless. After an hour or so, he did eventually get used to the rocky surface, though his bare feet ached with each step.

“By the way…” Micro spoke gently once they’d neared the treeline.

“What is it?”

“Do all pixies live in cages?” Micro looked closely at the cage for a moment.

“No, fool.” The pixie sighed.
“Though more and more of us die in them each day. We’re a favourite energy source for creepy magicians like the ones you met.”

“So pixies are batteries?”

“Pixies are pixies. And I can’t do anything about getting out of this cage until we come across somebody strong enough - and generous enough - to break this open!” Blue gripped the bars as hard as she could as she spoke, but they didn’t budge.
"I've been luckier than I thought I'd be so far though, so we'll see..."

“Oh, you’d like to get out of there?” Micro asked.
“I assumed it was more comfortable. It looks safe.”

“You thought I looked safe…?”

“What could be safer than a metal box?” Micro replied with a slightly prideful expression.

“I guess no rocks have fallen on my head recently.” Blue couldn’t help but laugh at what she assumed was a joke.
“But I’d like to get out of here before another magician comes along and uses me to summon another weirdo like you.”

CRACK

“What the-” Blue cried out in shock and looked up at the sunny sky through the new hole in the roof of her cage.

“There you are.” Micro said kindly, awkwardly holding the metal scrap in his hand and looking around at the mountainside. His voice was muffled by the core cards he was holding with his teeth.
“Where should I put this garbage?”

Blue jumped out of the cage and hovered in the air for a moment with a look of exasperation.

“I can’t believe you could do that all along!” Her shout was a mixture of laughter and anger.
“You only learned to walk earlier today!”

“This body is weird and soft, but any truck is made of thicker steel than that.” Micro shrugged and gently placed the broken cage next to a tree.
“That should be out of the way enough…”

As he mumbled to himself, Blue began to fall to the ground.

“Ah… I’m still far from healthy…” She complained as she spiralled down on her weakened wings. Micro turned around and gently caught her in his hand, and she continued.
“Well, I guess it’s my fault for not asking. Thanks for that.”

“You’re welcome.” He smiled.
“You still need a ride?”

“I do…” She mumbled and looked away, her blueish cheeks turning a bright shade of purple.
“Just until I can fly again.”

“Sure. Hop in.” Micro offered, but then he looked down at himself and corrected himself.
“Hop on.”

She jumped weakly onto his shoulder and took hold of the blue robe still dangling off of him like a blanket.

“Don’t forget your seatbelt.” He instructed while standing atop a rock.

“Again, what belt?”

“Oh… Right, let’s go.”