It was an early Saturday morning in early March. Everything was quiet, peaceful, as it should be when the world was sleeping. Through the thin door of a restroom, quiet whimpers and stifled cries were barely audible, being the only sounds that disturbed the otherwise silent apartment. In fact, it was probably due to this wonderful lack of noise that these struggling gasps could be heard. Fera stood in front of the bathroom mirror, her left hand holding up the loose cotton shirt of black and red she wore to sleep the previous night. Her unbandaged right hand hovered over a place just above the two scars in her stomach, close to the bottom of her ribs, glowing and crackling with a green and white aura of electricity.
Her head drooped as her jaws clenched tight from the sensation of pain that radiated from an enormous splotch of purple and black beneath the sparking hand. Panting, the flickering aura soon died out, and Ferain had to hurriedly catch the countertop in order to keep herself upright. Blood trailed out of the corner of her mouth where she bit it hard to keep as quiet as possible, and as she remained in her leaning posture, her nails scratched against the top of the counter. A moment of peace soon came, and afterward, Fera took in a slow, steadying breath. The pain was finally starting to recede, which then gave way to a reminder of just how tired she was. Itani’s lesson was the previous night at the usual time of ten to midnight. After she snuck back inside close to twelve-thirty, she fell into her bed with the intention of sleeping.
Unfortunately, the only things that awaited her in that darkness were ghosts and unwanted memories. After waking up for the fourth time around three in the morning, the pain began to rise up from the injury she thought she’d healed enough on the way home. Her wounds healed quicker when she was asleep, even if she wasn’t actively using her abilities on them, but if she couldn't sleep, it was sort of a hopeless situation. While awake, her passive healing wasn’t as effective, so it was up to her to manually do it. This was something she was still growing used to, so the energy it sapped out of her to utilize it, combined with how exhausted she already was, only made for a terrible experience. Fera shook her head, attempting to chase away the drowsiness as the band on her left wrist, which she forgot to remove before falling into bed, beeped to signal the changing of the hour.
Examining it revealed the time to be six in the morning. With a short sigh, she turned towards the door, pulled it open, and saw Anita standing on the other side with a hand raised towards the handle.
“Oh, Fera?” gasped her partner, as she wore an astonished expression on her pretty features. “You’re up early, huh?” After a half a second passed, Anita’s expression darkened as she raised a hand towards Fera’s mouth. “Is that blood?”
“Shit.” she internally cursed, chastising herself for forgetting about this before leaving. “It’s nothing.” she lied hastily, trying her hardest to smile. She wiped her mouth on her sleeve without thinking and a small flash of green smoked for the briefest of moments near her lips. “All better, see? I bit my lip while sleeping and it woke me up.”
“It’s all that pent up frustration.” Anita said softly. “It’s starting to catch up to you, Ferain. I mean, look at you.” Anita ran a hand along Fera’s cheek in a loving way as a concerned gleam flashed in her stormy eyes. “You look terrible. When was the last time you got a full night’s sleep?”
“How long have we been back?” Fera asked jokingly.
“This isn't funny.” Anita snapped. “This is really serious, Fera. You’re going to kill yourself at this rate. Come on, I’m going to make you some tea and then we’re laying down for a while. You need to get some sleep.” She took Fera’s left hand against her will and began dragging her down the hall, apparently forgetting that she needed the restroom a minute earlier.
“I don’t need any tea.” Fera stated, tensing her muscles as she was about to tear her hand free. It only took a millisecond to realize that this would have been a massive mistake. Luckily, her sleep-deprived mind was, for the moment, able to come to that conclusion.
“It will help ease the mind and relax the body.” Anita told her, sounding sagely and well-versed.
Her knowledge, or lack thereof when it came to tea was unknown to Fera. Anita made it all the time, but whether she actually knew the added benefits to each one, Ferain had no clue. The truth of it was, Anita could be making it up just to lure Fera out of her room for a change. It’d been over a month since she made the deal with Itani, which meant that it had been just as long since she decided keeping her distance from her friends was a wise decision. To say that her relationship with Anita was strained as a result would be an understatement, but Ferain still thought it was a necessity, be it for Anita’s sake… or her own.
“Can you let me go?” asked Ferain, being sure to speak softly.
She didn’t want to sound aggressive or intimidating in any way. At the moment, she didn’t have a bubbling urge to shout or harm like was normal nowadays, and she wanted to keep it that way. However, no matter what she wanted, sometimes things just happened. Already, deep within herself, she felt her powers writhing and squirming, growing restless as they surged into life. Her anger was a constant companion to her powers now, so she knew it was only a matter of time before the inevitable happened.
Anita stopped, turned, and tried to stare into Ferain’s eyes, though she avoided the look as soon as the attempt was made. “You’re still not ready?” Anita asked.
“No.” Ferain answered coldly. “I’m still working things out. I… I need a bit more time. But look, watch.” Fera lifted her right hand and as her eyes began to glow, white-hued lightning began crackling around the limb. As it did, she moved it slowly, leaving hissing trails in its wake. It wasn’t exactly the same as when she fought Kiko, but it was close enough to show that progress was being made. A weary grin creased her lips as her dull eyes closed in amusement. “No burning. I’m finally making progress.” Just as she finished, she let out a quiet gasp of pain as a larger pop filled the room. Her arm gave a final flash of bright light before smoking and returning to normal. “Sort of.” Fera added, shaking the hand. “It’s getting there.”
“Fera…” Anita started, staring at the scarred hand held up between them. There was no shared excitement in her voice, no hints of an oncoming congratulations. It was weak, quiet, pitying… concerned.
Ferain shook her head and pulled her other hand free from Anita’s grasp. “I thought you’d be happy for me. I’m getting stronger. That’s what we both want, right? That’s what we need. I need to be better or… or…”
“We’re not in danger anymore, Ferain.” Anita said quietly. “We’re safe. The murders are done, they’re in the past. You can relax now, I promise you.”
“You can’t make that promise.” Fera said. “Nobody can promise that. But… we did make another promise before, and I intend to keep it.”
“At what cost, Fera?” Anita asked, as Ferain walked past her and began heading for her bedroom. “You’re like a walking corpse. Is it worth it?”
Fera looked over her shoulder and glowered. “Yes, and I would appreciate it if you bothered for a second to understand why.” She turned, took two steps closer to Anita, and took both of her hands in her own. “I need to keep you safe. If Kiko comes back, I need to be able to stop him before he hurts you again.”
“Ferain, he… He’s gone. I’m fine.”
“You’re not!” Ferain shouted, causing Anita to involuntarily take a step back. “Sorry… sorry.” Fera took a breath. “I just mean… you weren’t fine. He beat you, he beat both of us. And it’s not just him. What if something else happens? What if another student starts going crazy or something? You said it yourself, the people here are weird and strange… they might do anything. What happens if we aren’t strong enough when that time comes? Well?” Anita stared at her fearfully, unable to come up with an answer, or anything else to say apparently. “We lose.” Ferain answered for her. “Losing means we die, and I can’t let that happen. I can’t lose you too. I can’t lose anyone again. If that means I have to give up some free time and a bit of my health, it will be worth it.”
“That’s what’s been bothering you? You’re afraid I’ll die?” asked Anita.
“There’s a lot that’s bothering me, but yes, I’m worried about you.”
“I’m worried about you.” Anita said, glancing down at their connected hands. “If you train yourself to death in order to make yourself stronger, what good would it do me? How do you think I’d feel if you were killed because you were too tired to fight? How do you think I feel having to watch you avoid me every day?”
“I didn’t–”
“You hardly even look at me!” Anita yelled tearfully, catching Ferain off-guard. “Whenever you do, your eyes are full of pain. Is that why you avoid me now, because I cause you pain? Does it hurt to be around me?”
“No, that’s not…” Fera stopped short, deciding how to word it properly. She had to make Anita understand, had to make her see that it was for the betterment of their relationship, of their lives. If nothing could threaten them again, they could be together forever without having to worry about more Kikos showing up and tearing them apart. But… no matter how much she wanted to say that, she couldn’t, and Anita picked up on it at once.
“It’s the scar, isn’t it?” Fera looked up, wide-eyed, watching her partner’s defeated expression darken. “The one Kiko gave me? Did you think I didn’t notice? When we’d bathe together, you’d look at me from head to toe and you’d get all flustered. It was cute, really. Now, you just avoid me altogether. You keep your back turned until I’m in the water, and that was before you started avoiding me. Ever since, your eyes never looked higher than my stomach, and you always look so angry.”
As Ferain stared at the very spot Anita pointed out, she felt something grab her cheeks and raise her head. Their eyes met for the first real time in a month, and she saw tears welling up in those gray, cloud-like irises. “I’m alive, and I’m right here. That scar doesn’t mean anything, it’s nothing at all. I’m right here. I’m not dead, and Kiko is not here anymore. You want me to understand you, fine, but then I ask the same from you, Ferain. Do you remember what I said mattered to me the most when it came to our relationship?”
“Yes.” Fera said quietly.
“Remind me, then.”
“That I’m here.” Fera stated, feeling ashamed of herself.
“Are you though?” Anita questioned. “Are you really here anymore? Can you look me in the eyes and tell me that you’re by my side? No, I don’t think you can. Ever since we got off the boat, you haven’t been here. I don’t know where you are, but you’re not… here.” Anita’s hand caressed her cheek gently, lovingly, warmly, causing Fera to nuzzle into her palm. “I want you back. I love you.”
“I will be back.” Fera said, raising her own hand to take Anita’s away. “I just need a bit more time. I understand you, I swear I do, but… I’m not ready to take the risk. Just a bit longer, that’s all. I promise.” Fera stepped away from her, grimacing grimly. “I have some plans for today. I’ll be back by dinner, and we can eat together again, okay?”
“Promise?” asked Anita.
“Yeah, I do. I’ll see you later.”
Ferain hurried back to her room and locked the door shut. After a heavy breath, she began gathering her things. She bandaged her arm, got dressed in some shorts, tights, a long sleeved shirt, and a navy hoodie she bought after getting back to the island. Her final accessories was her blue earring and a black and blue cap that rested atop her head. As she passed through the empty living room, she saw that the television was on. The volume was too low to make out what the woman on the screen was saying, but there was no need for the audio to understand what it was about. Taking up most of the screen was a scene of carnage, one that looked straight out of an apocalypse movie where a giant meteor had struck the planet or something. The scene itself was a massive crater full of fire and charred concrete, as once proud, towering buildings were reduced to rubble and rebar.
“Fifth wielder attack in the last month, making history as the most deadly act of domestic terrorism in recent memory” flashed by in a blue box at the bottom of the screen. The scene shifted to that of a large white building with men and women surrounding the front steps, all apparently shouting and raising signs in protest. Ferain sighed at the sight before turning for the door, where she slid on her boots and left into the corridor. Once she left the lobby, her body became engulfed in blue and white static. Afterward, she launched towards the wall of a nearby building, where she then propelled herself directly up towards the rooftop. Hastily, she flew through the district, bounding from one building to the next before arriving at the edge of District-B.
This was where she stopped, perched atop a brick parapet, taking in the scene of the massive black wall that separated B from C. There were lights all over the metal surface, from blinking red and green ones to spotlights to the typical ones that only illuminated a few key spots, like the enormous white text that spelled out which district it was. Atop the wall, there were posts every so often, evenly spaced apart. These ten or so feet tall thin antennas, with their glowing blue lights that marked the top of them, were meant to act as sensors. Obviously, the checkpoints would be useless if people could just go over them, and with powers like Ferain’s, and like many others, it would be an easy feat to accomplish. She heard a rumor, or, Anita heard a rumor from a classmate and Ferain heard it from her, that if anybody crossed over the walls, a deafeningly loud alarm would blare out across the entire city, putting everything into a lockdown mode.
The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.
There was no way to test this rumor’s legitimacy without going over herself, but there was also no need. Ferain wasn’t doing anything wrong… yet, so there wasn’t any need to try to sneak around security measures. After taking in her fill of the imposing sight, she leapt down in a streak of blue and white. Landing softly on her feet, her powers died out and she continued towards the checkpoint, like she normally would on any given day. With a wave of her band over the sensor, her information was displayed on the screens on either side of the archway, and she was allowed through. District-C was not her final destination, however, so once again, she scaled up to the roof of a nearby shop, and continued her journey outward. Of course, she could just use her powers at ground level, but that wasn’t exactly seen as well mannered. It disrupted people, and besides just that, the rooftops were by far a more straightforward route.
Some time later, she crossed through the gate into District-D, the more industrial part of the city. There were a few dormitories here, for those unfortunate enough to get stuck all the way out with the factories and filtration plants, but for the most part, it was used for those more industrial purposes. Neither of these were what brought her all the way out here though. As she walked along the sidewalks that stretched out beside small apartment buildings and warehouses, she recalled a conversation with Seven Itani a few days prior. Actually, ‘conversation’ would be giving it too much credit. It was more like she asked a question, and he answered it bluntly.
“Where can I get more?” she asked him, referring to training and strength at the time.
“District-D, there’s a few things there that might pique your interest if you’re looking to get some more training under your belt.” Itani told her, with his usual hissing tone. “Go here and you’ll find what you’re looking for, just be prepared for a challenge, they mean business.” he added, handing over a piece of paper after writing something down on it.
She didn’t ask how he knew about this place or what its purpose was, but she didn’t honestly care. What Ferain wanted was to try out her strength, and to get stronger. In class, she had to hold back when fighting her fellow students. Not only was it the rules, but they were like her, just going there to get an education and to learn how to use their powers in a safe environment. These people, however, expected fights to get dirty. Itani said that she could go all out and nobody would bat an eye, so that was where she decided to go on the first day of the weekend break. She passed by several large warehouses, all having different numbers painted on the sides of them. Eventually, she made it to one marked by a giant white ‘15’ on the side. Some workers were walking around outside of it, wearing safety vests with reflective tape, but besides for those, they were indistinguishable from normal people.
Ferain approached one that was smoking by the gigantic metal doors that were currently slid open, revealing an interior filled up by large shipping containers and stacks of wooden crates. Her hat pulled low so that the brim hid some of her face, she stepped nearer to get his attention.
“What do you want, kid?” asked the man, blowing out smoke with the words.
“I’m here for the show.” Ferain said in a dark, somewhat feigned voice. She didn’t want to sound too childish, and she certainly didn’t want to sound weak.
“Show, huh?” the man asked, before taking another drag off of his cigarette. As a cloud of gray escaped his nostrils, he nodded his head. “Seven’s girl, yeah? Lucky for you, he warned us in advance, otherwise I’d have sent you packing. Got some shows lined up for ya, that’s for sure. Luis!” he then called out, drawing the attention of another man in a similar vest.
He was a pale man with long platinum hair. The smile he wore as he saw Ferain’s tiny figure caused a shiver to run up her spine, but she wouldn’t allow herself to be intimidated, not after coming this far. She told herself that she would do one fight, just one, just to be sure that she really was getting stronger. After she did it, win or lose, she’d return home. She only told Anita such a late time in returning because she didn’t want her to worry any more than she had to. If she told her noon and was late getting back, Fera would be in a world of trouble by her partner, though it wasn’t like she wasn’t already.
“This Itani’s girl?” asked the platinum haired man. The other uniformed figure nodded, took another drag of his cigarette, and then smiled.
“A cute little thing, isn’t she? I thought he’d send somebody stronger, but oh well. Might as well see what she can do. Take her in and get her situated. Her first show is in half an hour.”
Ferain pretended to not take notice of the words shared, or the enjoyment that seemed to leak through with them. Instead, she remained silent and followed behind the longer haired man. They went inside the warehouse, traveled all the way to a back corner of it, and were met by a solid metal door that was painted red. It had rivets diagonally across the front paneling, matching perfectly with the industrial appearance around it. The door opened after the man beside her passed a badge over a brown box on the wall, and she was guided inside. Some stairs were on the other side, going down and down until they had to be thirty or more feet beneath the warehouse. What Ferain saw then astounded her. People were everywhere, all seeming to be quite a rough crowd, and all were cheering loudly as far into the room, probably near the center of the massive space, she saw flashes of color and heard gasps of pain.
Over the heads of the many before her, she couldn’t actually see what was happening, but that didn’t matter. She knew perfectly well what type of event was capturing the eyes of everyone around.
“This way.” said the man, leaning close to her.
She eyed him murderously at how close he’d gotten to her ear, but followed him nonetheless. They circumnavigated the backside of the crowd before arriving at another slightly rusty door, which creaked terribly as the man pushed it open. It was a dingy interior she stepped into, one that looked similar to the locker room at the academy. There were wooden benches, rows of metal lockers, though they were admittedly in worse shape than any back at school, and some mirrors took up much of the space on a few walls.
“Find a locker, get ready if you need to, and enjoy yourself. Your show will be up next.” the man said, before laughing to himself while turning to leave the room.
The door closed behind him with a heavy clunk, leaving her alone in the room that smelled of blood and sweat. Ferain spun and eyed the space she now found herself in, finally realizing that this might’ve been almost as much of a mistake as taking Itani’s offer in the first place. She had to ignore that thought. Instead, she had to try to convince herself that this was necessary, the next proper step in terms of getting her strength. She hadn’t told anybody her plan to get better, mostly due to the fact that it was heavily flawed, but it wasn’t a lie that it did exist. If she got stronger through Itani’s methods, if this place could prove that she had become undefeatable, she could stop worrying about Kiko. Her last ‘victory’ over him was nothing more than a fluke, a possibly unrepeatable act that only won her the match because of some luck.
If she knew for a certainty that she could handle any threat, she could bid farewell to Itani’s lessons, and she could sleep at night knowing that she and Anita were safe. Of course, that wouldn’t stop all of the nightmares, and it wasn’t guaranteed that she would actually feel safer, but the chance was there. Fully cementing her determination to see this through, she stepped up to a random locker and opened it. Inside was a disgusting sight of old magazines, some water bottles full of entire ecosystems instead of clean fluid, and a few rubber things she’d rather not ever think about again, mostly because one or two of them looked… used. With a disgusted look, she closed the locker and wiped her hand on her shorts, now feeling like she’d stuck it in the dirtiest place imaginable and it would never come clean.
She refrained from touching anything afterward, and instead decided to wait on the bench, keeping herself as small as possible. Her legs were pressed together and her hands were in her lap, all to make sure she didn’t touch anything besides the cleanest place she could find to sit. Minutes passed before the man returned again.
“You’re up.” he said, and that was all he had to say.
Ferain stood, followed him through a different door, popping out into a narrow metal corridor. One other person was walking in the opposite direction, one that was a woman nearly a foot taller than herself. She only had on a pair of sporty shorts and a matching bra. Around her feet and fists were what must have once been white bandages, but were now just stained and tattered remnants, leaving small crimson droplets behind. Fera silently counted them as they fell, the sound filling her mind as she watched the woman pass, and she continued to count as she followed the trail that led to the exit. Why she counted, she didn’t know. It was like touching her hair when it was longer, or her earring now, it was just a simple habit. How she picked it up or why were both unknown to her, but she recalled the first time she began doing it. It was in that familiar darkness, the nightmare that she found herself having after Mana took her to Giana Singer’s murder scene. Ever since then, she counted droplets, be it water or blood. It was like an odd tick in her that she had to do or it would feel like an unreachable itch. Rain was usually fine, but a leaky faucet, a dripping shower head, those sorts of things grabbed her attention and wouldn’t let go.
Shaking her head, she stepped out through the exit, and was instantly surrounded by people that all watched her curiously, and perhaps with a large amount of disappointment. This last assumption, however, was quickly debunked as they all leered at her hungrily. She could feel it in their stares, and it didn’t take a power like Guji’s to know what they wanted. She was a younger girl, and they were a bunch of older savages, ones that came here regularly to see blood. To them, she must look like a helpless lamb that was being thrown to the wolves for entertainment. Little did they know, just like the rest of her classmates, she was not a pup, but the wolf herself. Just like during her advancement test, she would shock them all. Actually, it wouldn’t be like that test, because this time she wouldn’t lose.
Dropping her gaze allowed the hat to hide her face, and with her eyes hidden in the shadows beneath the brim, the only reflective surface that gleamed in the orangish lighting of the room was her earring. It swayed with each step, catching the dirty light and glowing with color as it took it in and reflected it outward. The area she was directed to was a large square section on the floor. There were no barricades, just a simple painted box on the metal ground with white spray paint.
“Stand there.” said the man, pointing at a smaller white line within the box. “Put on a good show, little girl.” he said creepily, before vanishing back into the crowd.
Ferain glowered in his direction before examining the silhouette across from her within the white outline. It was a bulky man that was possibly six feet, with maybe a couple of extra inches to spare. While he was large, he was still smaller than Victor, which filled her with a bit more confidence. It wasn’t like she was doubting herself, but every little bit counted. He had a darker skin complexion, a bald head, and his bare torso bulged with defined muscles and veins. He wore a pair of athletic shorts that went to his knees, and some black padded gloves over his hands, like a professional fighter. She saw no hints of what his power was, but there wasn’t a need to be concerned with it.
She closed her eyes momentarily, remembering another of Itani’s many lessons in their short time together. “Before any fight, if you want to draw out that anger, you need to get angry. How do you think you’d accomplish it?” he asked her.
“I… I don’t know.” she said. “I mean, I’m usually just… angry already.”
“But what if you aren’t angry enough, hmm? Now, the other way I’ve seen you reach that point is if somebody threatens your partner, but not everyone you fight will know about her. Another method is by allowing yourself to be hit until you reach a breaking point, but by that point you are practically useless. No, the best way to enrage yourself is to imagine what causes it in the first place. When you close your eyes and really focus on it, what fills you with the most fear and rage?”
Ferain had done it at the time, and the first thing that appeared was Kiko’s high, cackling laughter. The way he put sound to his insanity, and how he had made Anita scream out in agony. It only took the briefest second for her blood to boil, and that was how she found her trigger, her key in a fight. Ferain repeated that now, blocking out all sound around her and replacing it with Kiko’s memory. That night, the way it was ruined, how betrayed she felt when she saw him standing beside Yarin’s body. Her breathing turned harsh, her chest heaved, and her body sparked violently. When her eyes narrowly opened, they glowed from within the shadows cast upon her face by her hat. There were jeers coming from those around the arena, mocking japes and rude insults, but she paid them no mind. Her eyes were focused on the man ahead, but even that image did not persist for long.
His muscled outline was soon replaced by Kiko, who stood there in his suit, with his hands stuffed in his pockets and his body slightly slouched forward. He smiled smugly in her direction, and his lips parted to allow a bellowing laughter to escape, filling the room with the insufferable sound. As her powers grew stronger, her aura grew more dangerous, she lost herself. Her body launched forward as a blue and white blur before anybody could even blink. She landed on hands and feet in front of her large opponent, and sent a kick skyward from the floor. It connected with his chin, sending him in the air. In a flash, she flew up towards the ceiling, flipped, and kicked off of it the second her feet touched the hard metal surface. Like a bolt of lightning sent from the heavens themselves, she struck the ground again. Or, to be more precise, her foot connected with the man’s body, who was then forced back towards the place he should’ve still been standing.
The room was left speechless when time resumed for all of those in this horrible, smelly, outright vile place. Ferain stood with one foot planted firmly against the man’s already swelling sternum, and in her wake, she left a trail of flickering light that was dark and powerful, as if her lightning had been frozen in place. Her illuminated irises, the ones that marked her as a predator in this space, rose from the ground to watch the many stunned faces in the room. Her body was shivering with fury and anticipation, but most of all, satisfaction. It was the most bizarre feeling she’d ever experienced. She stood there, feeling hungry yet satisfied, and all she wanted to do was to keep doing this. For some reason, this man’s defeat made her feel like a thousand tons of weight had been lifted off of her shoulder, and she longed for further reductions.
Yet, nobody moved at first. That is, until everyone’s minds had the chance to process what had happened. Apparently, they couldn’t think fast enough to keep up with Fera’s speed. After some time for realization, people finally started moving. They didn’t cheer, instead they growled and glared at her with the all too familiar eyes of nothing but hatred. Two joined her in the ring, both of whom she kicked right back out in a flash. Two snuck up behind her, one kicking her in the side while the other waited for their opening. Fera felt the bruise below her ribs flare up again, causing her to stumble, but the second person’s opportunity of attack never came. As Ferain fell to a knee, she kicked backwards and connected with the kicker’s body, sending him flying back out into the crowd, which only served to trigger more people than she originally anticipated.
As Ferain rose, she felt her face contract into something new, an expression she never wore before. Her mouth was in a very minute grin, and her eyes were wide as they flicked rapidly from one person to the next. There was hunger in them, and an ecstasy that she couldn't deny. Everyone in the crowd wore Kiko’s face, everyone in the room shared his crazed laughter, and she felt like she could easily silence him. With a serious change in her starving features, she lowered her body and rushed towards anybody she could see. It wasn’t until hours later, many hours later, that she found herself back home. Her clothes were tattered and ruined, she was covered from head to toe in blood and bruises, and her body felt like it had been crushed by a bulldozer. But, despite all of this, as she made it to her room and locked the door, as she fell down to sit on the floor in front of it, she felt satisfied. For the first time since leaving the ship, she found a genuine smile that would possibly outshine any other.