Flash Fiction Friday (51)

Dottie over at Tink's Place have come up with the idea for a Monday Morning Flash Fiction challenge. Each Monday a new picture prompt will be posted and if you choose to participate you post your story on Friday - 350 words, give or take.

I have to thank Blodeuedd at Book Girl of Mur-y-Castell for introducing me to this fun meme. I don't know if I'll be able to keep up with every week, but I'll give it a try from time to time.

The Image This Week:

(The picture was found on FreakingNews)

Story By:  Melissa

Shaffron sat atop the giant skull looking up at the man, tipping her top hat in greeting.  "I'm what you call a steam-pixie.  I'll gladly work to carry your messages back and forth.  But there has to be some, stipulations to the arrangement.  I work for gears and metal or large sums of monetary.  I expect drink when I get the message, and drink along with food at delivery."

A crow Shaffron flies with perched on her brass boned wing with leather flaps and gears gave her a menacing look of death.  What the giant didn't see was the steam packs that she had to use to start the gears spinning.  But they didn't need to know all her secrets.

Shaffron rubbed her hands up and down her new nylon hose that protected her legs, feeling the knit hand coverings curl and expose the slices and cuts from sharp metal and gear working.  The leggings were different colors, but she didn't care they fit.  Maybe she could find a matching set, nah; she liked the variety in color.  Cloth was easy to find, it was everywhere you just had to put the time out to go get it, instead of working with metal.  She had a few pairs that were damaged from working with metal and sown back together, but thought she'd wear the good ones for this meeting.

Shaffron was more worried about getting more metal and gears.  Metals have become a rarity these days and in high demand with everyone horded the materials to make their mechanical, and keep them working. That's why she wanted this job, the giants where rich with metal and she could make gears she needed from that, or even earn the gears she needed without all that hot work of melting and molding.

Shaffron's bodice felt as if it was a snake tightening around her waist and chest, anxiety was setting in.  That giant was taking too long to make his decision.  Maybe she shouldn't have asked for food.  But in this lush forest with huge mushrooms, they could afford to share a drop of their food with her.  Hell, a drop was all she needed from them as they are giants.

"Okay, I see how this is."  Shaffron jumped down from the large skull as her over-long stocking feet hit the mud.  "You need a little proof.  Fine, just wait here."

Shaffron walked behind the skull pulled her long red matted dreadlocks from the center of her back and plugged in her portable steam pump over her shoulder.  Pumping the leaver on top a few times the gears on her wings whirled and clicked then removed the hose when she felt her wings start to flap.  Up in the air she started to rise, then took hold of the chains hanging from the center brass structure to guide herself toward the giants face.

"There, you see." She said as she winked her heavy eye lashes at the large man smiling.  "I'm not fibbing about what I can do.  Deal?"

The giant grunted and waved toward his camp.  Shaffron circled down to pick up her portable steam pump, and as she followed the man as he walked to get the message he needed sent to his army Shaffron thought how lucky she was to be a flyer with his long strides.