The view from Captain Mercury’s ship wasn’t anything spectacular.
The cylindrical craft reminded her more of a giant telescope than a real flying machine. The view window aside, the thing was 95% mounted cannons with its wings seemingly attached for decoration. The Captain wasn’t too keen on giving them the full tour, though. Sasha only saw as far as the command deck before Mr. Mercury had them all waiting near the exit hatch.
“Alright,” the Captain said. “Touching down in Torpha in three…two…one.”
He pushed the release button, the usual sirens blaring ahead before the doors rose open. The sounds of running water and chattery cries drifted through Sasha’s ears. Trees stretched into the sky, the sun blotted out by a canopy of red leaves and purple vines. She took a step forward only to be brushed aside as Captain Mercury moved down the bridge, standing tall and looking over the world.
“Ah,” he said. “This is what it’s all about.”
She managed to hold back her words, Mr. Erin giving her a knowing look while Mr. Xan pulled up his hood. With their ship in orbit, the Captain insisted all three of them came planet side. Considering what they were in store for if he was right, Sasha had to begrudgingly agree.
“Oh, even better.” Captain Mercury pointed into the distance. “Locals spotted. Devilishly handsome locals, if I do say so myself.”
Sasha followed his finger, her jaw falling when she spotted the Torpha residents.
Above their heads, creatures with long black tails and pointed ears jumped from tree to tree, their chattering impossible to decipher, though that was the last of Sasha’s concerns. She watched as they leapt, their blue hair blowing in the wind. Some were small, some round, and some as big as Mr. Xan. But they all shared the same head of blue hair. Complete with black streaks. She touched her face.
“What the…Am I dreaming, or are those all…panthers?”
“It’s pronounced pandas,” said Mr. Xan. “Weirdly familiar pandas.”
“What?”
“You’re both right,” Captain Mercury said. “And you’re both wrong. Those are the mistifians.”
A few of the jungle people stopped, taking notice of the group. Sasha felt immediately dizzy. Suddenly, she was looking through a horribly distorted mirror. Her brain hurt trying to wrap her head around the many faces that matched her own.
“Mistifians?” Sasha asked.
“The shapeshifters?”
“Technically, they’re perception shifters, Xan,” Mr. Erin said, brandishing his wand. The flash of light spooked the natives, all Sasha’s look-alikes fleeing in different directions. “We’d better be careful. We don’t need another Genosis War on our hands.”
“Agreed,” the Captain nodded. “But…if you’re looking for a nice place to spend your vacation days, I hear the misties throw really good parties. Maybe next time.”
With a shrug, Captain Mercury took the lead, everyone else falling in behind. With her clones gone, Sasha felt a little less delirious.
Too bad the sensation went away the minute they stumbled upon civilization. Buildings carved into trees stretched just below the canopy. Multiple Sasha clones hung from the balconies and porches, some watching the group but none daring to approach. Sasha covered her head whenever she saw someone sailing above. Or they passed under a home. Or she locked eyes with one of the mistifians.
“Can we move faster?” Sasha asked. “Please.”
“Just try to ignore them,” Mr. Erin said. “And stay close, Sasha.”
She moved up to the point of holding onto Mr. Erin’s shoulders.
“Not that close.”
She didn't let go. Better safe than sorry.
***
After making it past more clones than Sasha cared to look at, they finally stopped in front of a long river, Captain Mercury waving his commpad through the air.
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“Heads up,” he said. “The first wave’s coming.”
Only moments after he said that Sasha saw a portal appear over the water. GT materialized at the ready. Finally. She readied to pounce, but Captain Mercury raised a hand to stop her. She frowned at the Captain, who turned to her with a smirk.
“Don’t worry,” he said. “I got it.”
His thin sword unsheathed, the blade much straighter than Sasha expected. More akin to an extra sharp ruler than a longsword. He tossed it between both hands before finally brandishing it with his left, extending it forward. Out of the portal came a mass of white light, claws and wings bursting forth. Or at least that’s what Sasha assumed was happening. She saw only a glimpse of glowing eyes before everything exploded into dust.
“Huh?”
The Captain twirled his sword in one hand, the blade sliding back into its sheath.
“Alright,” he said. “No need for applause, people.”
She stared at the man, the portal dissolving in front of her. What just happened?
She’d been watching the whole time. She was sure of it. One moment Captain Mercury was raising his sword, the next everything was dying in front of them. She had to double-check with her liaisons to ensure she saw what she saw.
Neither of them seemed surprised.
“No need for applause, everyone,” the Captain went on. “Just doing my duty.”
"Yes, quite," said Mr. Erin. "Shall we cross?"
"Xan, care to go first?"
"Not really, no."
Sasha looked down at GT. Or maybe Metal Stick would have been more accurate. Why was it so important, again?
Captain Mercury continued onward. As did her liaisons, both of which had weapons that made GT look like a plastic twig. Useful for whacking someone in the head, but nothing else. She sighed.
“Yep. Definitely the weakest grad in the universe.”
They waved for her to cross. She took a running start, managing to clear the jump despite her less-than-graceful landing. Mr. Erin offered a hand, but she opted to use GT instead.
It chimed in her head.
“Does it bother you?”
She didn't need to ask what it meant.
“No. Maybe.”
“Being the strongest grad was never your goal, was it?”
“No. But I don't wanna be a shrimp either, GT.”
“You’ve always been a shrimp.”
She responded with a growl.
Sasha didn’t know much about her staff. She knew it came from a lady in a yellow dress and that everyone claimed it to be ultra-powerful, but that was about it. Whenever they talked, the topic always seemed to pertain to her and her life. With all the weirdness she’d seen, talking to GT had become her way of staying sane in the madness. Her silver lining. She didn’t mind that. But at the same time…
“I’d like to be somewhat useful,” she said. “Look at all the stuff Mr. Erin can do. He could take down an army. And Mr. Xan could probably punch through a building if he tried. What the heck can I do?”
“You aren’t a clone, Ms. Sasha. There will be others who can do things you can’t.”
“But that’s the thing. I can’t do anything by myself. I’d get killed fighting an army. I try to punch a building, and I'm breaking a hand. I…I don’t wanna be the girl that needs help all the time. I wanna be at least a decent grad.”
“And you need to be the strongest for that?”
She didn’t respond. She looked to her liaisons. Mr. Erin who could bend the cosmos to his whims. Mr. Xan who could break a boulder with his thumb. And now Captain Mercury who could probably bisect a giant without moving an inch. She knew it wasn’t a requirement, but she wanted to be more than just the kid tagging along.
“I’d like to be like them,” she said. “If even a little bit.”
“That’s sweet and all kid, but no one’s asking you to change overnight.”
She blinked. It wasn’t GT’s voice. Instead, she saw Xan flashing a smile.
“We can all hear you, by the way,” he said.
She immediately turned from pitch black to beet red.
“I, for one, appreciate the praise, Ms. Panther,” Mr. Erin said. “Though I agree, you should take your time with your training.”
GT disappeared, the panther covering up her face with both hands. Captain Mercury burst into laughter, which only made her further want to bury her face in the ground.
End me. End me now.
Mr. Erin patted her on the shoulder. Her craving for the deepest pit in the darkest void rose exponentially.
As they continued through the jungle, the discussion returned to their mission. Captain Mercury spoke about where the invaders were spreading and their estimated time frame, but Sasha was too busy hiding in the back to pay attention. Why couldn't she just will herself to disappear?
Somebody, please bury me in the ground.