The engineers keeping the technical parts of the ship in functioning shape have been used to all sorts of things, but a tiny imp practically flying around them in circles was not one of them. Cia's sudden approach nearly triggered the poor worker's fight or flight response. Were it not for her tiny size, he would have struck her with his wrench.

"What the– Who... What are you?" he yelled at her.

"Hi, Cia. I'm here to see the engine," she spurted out and hastily shook his hand before her attention turned to the machine.

"Chast, who are these kids?" the engineer turned to the captain as the rest of the group followed the excited imp.

"Ah, Bertold, dear, you haven't met our guests yet. They are the couriers from Arcane Deliveries."

The man eyed them all and his eyebrow seemed to be rising higher and higher with each passing moment. "Aren't you a bit young for couriers?" he eventually asked.

"Yeah, we get that a lot. Technically, no, it's an apprenticeship... of sorts." Only now did Jin realize that their profession was closer to a full-time job rather than a simple learning opportunity.

Captain Chast stepped closer and introduced everyone. The more he spoke the less tense the engineer seemed. By the time the conversation reached the topic of Cia's interest in technology and inventions, the man seemed as comfortable with his visitors as he'd ever get.

"Actually, this is not exactly a factory-made Fortulan," Bertold crouched down to be closer to Cia's eye level. "We had to modify our engines for longer voyages. Classic Fortulans chew through fuel like wizards through books, so I had to install a bunch of custom parts."

Cia's excitement could not get any stronger. DIY machines were even better than those coming out of factories every day. Modifications were often unique and served as proof of one's knowledge and creativity.

"So, can I–"

"Hehe, already opening it up for you. Mind helping me out with the safety clamps on the other side? They're a bit high up so grab the ladder from..."

"Got it!"

The engineer's eyes widened as he saw her walk across the machine's cover at a ninety-degree angle. The friends replied to his confused glare with shrugs. Imps were indeed a fascinating species. Those who knew little about them would often be surprised by their different abilities.

"Alright, clamps undone!" she called out to Bertold, pulling him out of his stupor.

"Oh, right! Okay, let's open the beauty up."

The metal cover slid upwards and the mess of pipes and wiring inside presented itself to the young imp. Immediately, she recognized the modified parts. The main controller was different. She did not understand the runes carved into it, but judging by their asymmetry, the device must've come from a rather sketchy shop. Nevertheless, her excitement remained. She marvelled at the various added sensors for extra security, manual regulators for better fuel dosing, and...

She froze.

The tall mountain of excitement she felt was suddenly not there. She found herself falling into a dark and endless pit. The light faded from the corners of her vision as her eyes could only stare at the heart of the machine.

Bang, bang, bang, the fuel processor did as it crunched through the biomass in its chamber, transforming all sorts of natural waste into food for the ship.

The others noticed her reaction. It didn't take a genius to do so. Her fur stood up while the ears hung low. Eyes were wide open, jaw slack. They tried calling out to her but she heard none of it. Only the bang bang bang of the machine and the crunch crunch crunch of the biomass. Soon, her own heartbeat joined the mix. Bang, bu-dum, crunch. It was as if the organ was desperately trying to match the frequency of the machine.

Cia's mechanical thumb twitched.

Her mind sank further. She was not on the ship anymore. She was at home, yet the machine stayed. She wanted it, and her parents provided. From an old scrapyard, her uncle got her a working fuel processor. No longer would she ever lack the power source for her own experiments and inventions.

Her thumb twitched and a surge of pain shot through it. Her younger self was so naive. So careless. She didn't wait for the machine to stop. Why would she? Turning it off and on always took so much time. All those seconds wasted. Instead, she simply tossed the fuel into the banging chamber full of speeding pistons. With eagerness, she listened as it crunched through the old leftovers from dinner. She kept on adding more and more. Her eyes were focused on the display. She saw the tiny gauge rise as it began producing energy. Yes, more fuel was needed. She reached out to throw more old food in.

You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.

Bang, bang, crunch.

"Cia!" her friends yelled at her, finally snapping her out of the initial shock, yet she paid them little attention. Clutching her mechanical thumb, she sprinted out of there, running as far away as possible, until she disappeared behind the corner.

"Cia! Wait!" Kaili tried calling her name but got no response.

"We need to go after her," Jin replied and stepped forward, only for Airo to grab him by the tunic and pull him back.

"Hey! What's wrong with you?" he yelled back at the Cloudfolk.

"Don't swarm her. She might need space."

"Space for what?" Kaili asked, confused by her reaction.

Airo looked back at the insides of the engine. He was the only one who remembered. That day, the young Cloudfolk was the first to arrive. He was the one who carried her to the hospital. The others arrived later. They never saw the machine that hurt her.

"That's the machine that took her thumb off," he explained as briefly as possible. "Looks similar enough. Given her reaction, it's probably the same. I'll go check on her. You wait for my call."

The other two didn't like it one bit, but let Airo go rushing after her anyway. After all, out of them, he was the most suitable to offer a helping hand.

Cia was not difficult to find. Her rapid, gasping breaths could be heard across the whole main deck. Many of the sailors began gathering around, not making her situation any better.

"Hey! Scram! Shoo, you baboons! Shoo!" Airo shouted at them.

"Huh? Who the hell are you calling a–" The man's words were quickly interrupted by a pressurized gust of air that forced itself into his mouth and pushed all sounds back into his throat.

"I'm serious. Scram. You'll only make it worse," the boy spoke. The veins popping out on his forehead and his unblinking eyes betrayed his intentions. He was prepared to push the crowd away by force if he had to.

The people had little against his demands. They had a job to do and the only thing that pushed them to even consider helping the little imp was a certain sense of social norms. They knew little about what troubled her and therefore lacked the knowledge to help her.

Airo sat down beside her on the wooden deck and leaned against the metal wall of the main cabin.

"I don't need your help!" she panted as if someone was chasing her.

"Are you sure? I know a way to help you."

"Yeah, I know too. Deep breaths, patience, mindful of what's real, yeah, yeah, heard it before," she spurted out, her words tumbling over one another.

Airo slowly raised his hand, making sure she could see it, and gently placed it on her back. Gradually, her breathing began slowing down, matching the deep breaths of the Cloudfolk.

"Should I leave?" he asked.

Cia shook her head and dug her claws into her cloak. A wave of shivers travelled across her back.

"Look!" Airo said and his other hand pointed to the sky. "The clouds look really nice around here. What do they remind you of?"

"White blobs. Like all clouds."

"Yeah, but they kinda look like some other things. Like that one. It's sort of like–"

"I know you're trying to distract me. It doesn't work. I can see it coming from miles away."

Airo quieted down for a moment. Her heart was still beating incredibly fast, even for an imp, but he could feel it slowing down as they talked.

"Should I call the others? Would you like some more company?"

"No. The fewer people see me like this, the better. Already sucks enough that half the ship knows about it."

"They just know something scared you. None of them has any idea what truly happened back there. Let them think whatever they want. What good are their opinions anyway?"

Cia remained quiet. Her thoughts cleared as Airo's presence helped remove the dark clouds of panic from her head. The technique of shared breathing was one of the boy's useful innate abilities. Perks of being a Cloudfolk.

"Was it... the same one?" He asked carefully once she seemed even calmer.

She nodded. "I thought I'd be okay with it. It's been so long." She began unwrapping the bandages around her hand. The injury was long healed, but the wound left behind an enormous scar where the fur no longer grew. Covering it up made her feel better than having it constantly within her eyesight.

Airo grabbed her hand as the bandages loosened. "Are you sure?"

"Y-Yeah. What's the worst that can happen?"

She pulled them off and looked at her thumb. The sight made her twitch, but she quickly assured her friend that she was alright. As uncomfortable as its appearance made her, she expected it far worse.

"I have to learn to overcome it. Can't keep living like this. Can't invent anything if my own goddamn brain betrays me every time I see a machine bigger than me."

"Relax. Stuff like this takes a lot of time. It's still far too early. Only recently did you get accustomed to that prosthetic thumb. Take it step by step. Maybe take the bandages off more often. Then try talking about it a bit more, and finally maybe start approaching bigger and bigger machines. Looking only at first, and then, maybe, even working on them one day.

Cia sighed. "Yeah. But all that nonsense takes so much time."

Airo gave her a look of sympathy. "Some things don't have shortcuts."

She looked at her hand a few more times, but her eyes always darted away after a while. Looking at it for too long was simply too uncomfortable.

Airo reached for the bandage and gently began wrapping it back around her hand.

"Thanks," he muttered while trying to look the other way.

"Don't mention it. Are you ready to go back to others now? They will certainly have questions. Can you answer them? Or should I?"

"I can do it. But..."

"I'll be ready to take over, just in case."

A massive weight dropped from the hearts of the remaining two friends when Airo appeared around the corner, leading Cia along, holding her hand.

Just as Airo suspected, they both had a mountain of questions. Fortunately for her, they knew her boundaries. The only explanation they required was that she saw the big part inside the engine and panicked. Neither wanted to push the topic further. Instead, Jin took her by the other hand.

"Hey, the captain said he'd show us the rest of the ship once you're okay. You ready to go? Promise we'll stay away from anything mechanical."

She let out a sigh of relief. "Heh, yeah, lead the way."