Ace and Tyreceus were able to travel faster with just the two of them, but now Ace was mute. He had seen the things his father had done to the soldiers. He and the other children peeked through the opening of the tents and watched as he baked them alive.
Ace was afraid of his father, and the many warnings Sage told him now made him paranoid. Tyreceus noticed that his son did not like it when he touched him, and simply chalked it up to him getting older and wanting more personal space.
Tyreceus was relieved when they finally arrived at Geno.
Ace had stolen some money, and they stayed inside a hotel room for a day.
They took showers, had room service, watched television, and pretended that they were not homeless for a day. At night Tyreceus went through their things. He was trying to decide what things they had to bring and throw away. He was long accustomed to carrying everything on his back that it felt strange to just leave something behind.
He felt naked when fully dressed without his camping backpack on, and he knew that they needed to leave and find a new home before they would be changed in worse, and more horrifying ways.
Tyreceus noticed that Ace did not sleep very well anymore. He would wake up suddenly in fright, sweaty and disturbed, and then take a long time to finally fall back asleep. It happened again that night, and then Tyreceus made a strange decision.
Other than clothes, money, and some food, Tyreceus threw away every single thing they had. He put it into the dumpster behind the hotel and felt a weight lifted off his shoulders as the backpack was lighter, and his head clearer.
He never wanted a reminder of the war they lived through and wished he could never remember.
Using the last bit of money Ace had stolen, Tyreceus and Ace sat in a taxi, riding towards the heart of Geno. In the center of the city was the ship docking tower, where many ships from different planets would land and dock.
Ace kept rubbing the interior of the taxi, as it had been a long time since he had been inside a car. He felt like he was already on a fancy ship, as his mind was starting to forget what normalcy looked like.
Tyreceus had an iron grip on his son’s hand as they finally approached the tower. They were not the only ones trying to escape. During their time traveling to Geno, the Empire’s forces were making their way toward it.
Tyreceus and Ace had met a small scouting infantry back in the forest, and soon the Empire would make their final assault on Geno, destroying the tower, and everyone in it, and finally winning the war.
Thankfully they would escape before they reached Geno, only a week before the Empire arrived.
Tyreceus had to wait patiently in line, and it only made him more agitated. Many people in line in front of him did not have money. They tried to convince the ticket salesman to let them on board, but he denied them. Many left, but those who refused to leave were hauled out by security.
Of the few that could pay, they were usually short, and the salesman told them to come back later.
“There won’t be a later,” a woman yelled shrilly. “They’re almost here!”
The salesman rolled his eyes.
“Lady, I’ve been hearing that since they first landed. Come back later with more money.”
The large security guard hauled her off, and she screamed, cursing the salesman and wishing he’d drop dead. Ace and Tyreceus were right behind her in line, watching the whole scene, silently, used to it, but still shocked.
“Next,” the salesman barked.
Tyreceus quickly got out his tickets. They were old and the print was faded, but the moment the salesman saw the general shape he knew how they got it.
“Go past the big guy through the gates,” he instructed them. He passed them back wristbands, their receipt, and a reprinted itinerary for their very long trip.
Ace’s heart beat fast as they went past the security guard, onto the landing deck, and boarded the ship. He was overwhelmed, still believing that he was dreaming, that they had not truly made it.
The inside of the ship was made for long-distance travel and had a small suite for them. It was the smallest one, on the bottom floor, but Ace was relieved he could sleep in a bed for a week straight. Tyreceus himself was in shock. He did not think he would make it this far.
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Every night he was sure they would get caught traveling in the dark. At dawn, he was sure someone would rob and kill them in their sleep, and he was more astonished every morning he woke up in one piece.
They stood with many of the other passengers, most of who were rich enough to get a ticket at a moment's notice. There was an observatory bay inside the ship, with benches and a little snack stand. It had a large window that extended in a dome shape, with plenty of room for people to walk right up to the protruding part of the ship and stare in the vast void of space.
“Will we go back,” Ace asked.
“Never. There is nothing to go back to."
He was done coddling his son and knew that after all they had been through he was no longer like other children, and he could accept some things that others couldn’t. Ace pouted, but he didn’t complain. He didn’t throw tantrums anymore, and he didn’t argue with his father anymore.
He had grown up in many ways, more of them bad than good.
Their week on the ship was too short. Most of the rich passengers on the ship quickly became bored, but Ace and Tyreceus had the time of their lives. They didn’t have money to do everything the ship offered, but they went to watch the nightly movies, go to the buffet, complain about the buffet, and then return anyway the next day.
They were somewhat disappointed when their journey came to an end.
When they had landed on Earth, again Tyreceus was confused. His son noticed the look on his face and asked him if he was okay.
“I just, I didn’t think we would make it this far,” Tyreceus admitted. “Now I don’t know what to do.”
“It’s okay dad. I don’t know what to do either.”
“You shouldn’t have to, Acheus. You’re a kid.”
“I can do stuff,” he grumbled. “I stole a bunch of food.”
“Yes, and we are never going to mention that again.”
Tyreceus grinned, trying not to glare at his son. He was trying to work on his anger that the sword only amplified daily.
While Ace went to the bathroom, Tyreceus went through his pockets. He finally found the number that Mary Sue had given him.
Even if this doesn’t work, at least we're gone from that hell, Tyreceus told himself.
He then realized he had no phone.
He had long thrown it away, as he could not pay for the bill, nor get a simple signal on Methuselah. Ace returned and saw his father’s panicked face.
“Do you still don’t know what to do,” Ace asked.
“I don’t have a phone."
“Ask someone to borrow theirs,” Ace suggested.
Tyreceus then felt quite silly. He was so rattled and excited by their long journey that trying to make a phone call was too overwhelming. He borrowed a phone from a nice old woman who sat next to his son on a nearby bench, quickly put in the phone number, and his heart raced as Mary Sue picked up.
Ace tried to speak with the kind old woman, but for some reason, she could not understand him. The woman herself had never met a single person she could not speak with. Most people in the past century had never met someone they couldn’t understand.
They all had Cochlear Chips, put in when they were young, making it easy to form a universal language. She was sure that Ace was mocking her, and she became irate.
“That’s not a way to speak to your elders,” she scolded him.
Ace had no idea what she was saying, but saw her angry face, and went over to his father who was speaking on the phone in the corner. He tried to get his attention, but Ace was ignored as Tyreceus continued.
He wrote down important information and when Ace started to shout, he simply turned around, his back facing him.
When Tyreceus was done with his phone call, he scolded his son, and Ace said nothing. He was frustrated and sure the old woman had something horrible to him. Tyreceus gave the woman her phone back, and she complained.
“Your son is pretending to not understand me,” she grumbled. “He needs to show respect.”
Tyreceus sucked in a sharp breath and mumbled an oh shit under his breath.
“He doesn’t have the C-Chip,” Tyreceus explained.
“Why not,” the old lady complained. “You must have it if you can understand me?”
Tyreceus knew he was being judged as a parent, the same hot gaze all others gave him. He was young, and they assumed that meant inexperienced. He was simply too paranoid to put any kind of device on his son, afraid that the Empire would find them. His paranoia was only amplified by the war they had run from.
Tyreceus quickly grabbed his son and left, never looking back.