The world was a cruel and unforgiving place.
But Bridge made do. Frankly, she didn’t care if it was all that cruel and unforgiving. Her life had gotten a lot better as of late, and that was all she cared about. As long as she was getting by and making do, it was all okay.
Going from being trapped in a desolate laboratory to having escaped and having practically the whole world to explore was exhilarating. Sure, she had to stay away from civilization, and sometimes finding animals to eat was difficult. But there was so much to do, so many starlit skies to fly under and clouds to gaze at. So many waterfalls to mess around in and animals to see. It was all too good. Life was almost perfect. Almost.
There was… one small issue keeping it from being utter perfection. Loneliness. Since she had to stray so far away from humanity, it was rather lonesome, traveling around all on her own. She wished she had someone to talk to but… you can’t have everything, right? It was fine, or at least, that’s what she told herself. She could talk to herself, and she liked doing that. It was fun. So it was all good.
She flew way above the treetops, her catlike eyes scanning every detail below. Currently she was in an area she didn’t know too well. Always being on the move helped her not deplete resources, and not only that, but it also meant she was much harder for humans to notice. The defeated, knocked down trees and abundance of deer remains meant she’d attract attention if she stayed in one place for too long - and usually it was unwanted attraction.
The giant stopped gliding when she saw a river peeking through the trees, a flash of white foam from the churning current catching her eye. With a flutter off her great brown wings and an Earthshaking thud, she landed, folding her feathery appendages to her back and getting down on all fours. She went to press her lips against the water and drink, only to snap her head back up again.
There were fish in this river! Her tail shot up with excitement. Despite the scaly things being so small in comparison to her, only worth a tiny mouthful, she loved how they tasted. Catching them was tricky, but sometimes, if she was just fast enough, she could hook the very tip of one of her claws into their gills and pull them out to shore. She shifted on her haunches, wincing at how her joints ached, and started to aim her claws, watching the fish intently, with a predatory gaze. She looked just like a cat trying to hunt. After a few moments of waiting she striked. The fish managed to slip away with a flash of silver scales.
“Bridge, that isn’t how you fish! Damn slippery things...” She berated herself with a growl and kept at it, brow furrowed with concentration as she watched them swim by.
She was so distracted with fishing she wasn’t alert, all of her senses drowned out by the sound, sight and smell of the rushing water. Just about anyone could sneak up on or stumble upon her in that moment. At least, to a certain point. She suddenly got the prickling feeling like someone had seen her, and she could have sworn she heard the snap of a branch. The giant’s head shot up as she looked about, warily trying to spot whoever she felt had seen her. Sure, it could just be a deer, but she had to be sure...
