Morning dew, clinging to the skylight.
Little droplets coalesced over the surface, merging slowly before sliding off to the side one by one.
Morning light spilled through the glass, casting a warm ambiance across the thick blanket. Two women slept beneath it, their brows twitching every so often.
frrshhh…fwumph…
Their snores filled the backdrop.
Seconds slipped by.
Then sunlight burst through the skylight without mercy, flooding the room in white.
"...ugh…its so bright, lets just sleep in..."
Ikade's voice remained muffled as it tapered out, her words slurring from beneath the sheets.
"snff…rrr…"
An arm pressed across Cecilia's side.
Then a knee.
.
.
.
shff—fwump—THUD!
"Sshhh."
"—!"
Cecilia rubbed the back of her head haphazardly, her eyes watering from the impact while her legs remained tangled in the sheets. She did not even register Ikade's delayed words, nor the golden-brown eyes staring down at her slumped form from atop the bed.
Ikade pushed herself up on one elbow, her ears tilting forward while the blanket slid off her shoulders.
"Hello? Terra to Cece…you okay down there?"
"Uhh....i meant to do...that?"
Cecilia stood up after a second and brushed herself off, mild annoyance crossing her face while she rubbed the throbbing spot at the back of her head.
Her gaze moved from the pistol resting within reach on the nightstand to Ikade, who still occupied most of the bed.
Cecilia pulled the blanket loose from around her ankles and slid into her slippers.
Behind her, Ikade stretched out her limbs, arching her arms overhead with a quiet yawn before sliding off the bed and padding toward the bathroom.
"Mm...please tell me the water's warm..."
Ikade shuffled toward the bathroom, mumbling through a yawn.
"In a second it will be."
Cecilia straightened the sheets, then flicked her wrist toward the small screen near the bed. A low hum answered somewhere beneath. After that, she fluffed up the beaten pillows and pulled the blanket back into place.
By the time the bed looked presentable, Ikade had stepped out, drying her hair with a towel.
"So?" Cecilia asked. "How was it?"
Both of them glanced at the freshly made bed, where a few stuffed beasts loitered near the pillows.
"I'd have slept better if you'd left me some room."
"Me?"
"Yes, you." Ikade crossed her arms, the towel hanging around her shoulders. "Every time we sleep together, I somehow end up trapped under you."
Cecilia's face stiffened slightly.
"That's not—"
Ikade pressed the back of her hand to her forehead and leaned against the closet like a wounded noblewoman.
"I was helpless. Completely defenseless—and you still took advantage of me. How could you?"
"I was sooo scared."
skrrr—tk!
Cecilia yanked the sliding door closed before Ikade could say anything else.
Inside, the bathroom was comfortably warm.
Her eyes drifted toward the smaller opaque skylight overhead, where morning light poured through and caught along the tufts of her hair, stretching her silhouette across the floor and door.
A few short minutes later, she was already brushing her teeth, tugging faintly at the lines beneath her half-lidded eyes while foam gathered at the corner of her mouth.
nnnnneeee—the small extraction fan hummed above her, slowly pulling the last of her sleep away.
Minutes passed.
When she finished, Cecilia rinsed her mouth and wiped her lips before she stared at her reflection.
"Cough—cough! Cough..."
Cecilia scrunched her face and swallowed, her throat itching and sore.
Her hands shivered from something that pierced through the exhaustion in her muscles.
Her hands still trembled when she reached for her medicine. She shook two pills into her palm, closed the bottle and took one of the pens beside it.
Cecilia swallowed the pills, then pressed the pen against her thigh.
clck.
All three flow through her body, just like the tides of a sea.
Cecilia stripped herself down and stepped into the shower.
Warm water spilled over her head, weighing down her tufts before running down her neck and shoulders.
"Cough, cough..."
Her gaze followed the braided cable from the showerhead to the small unit beside the sink.
She closed her eyes.
When they opened again, she had finished showering. A band of light traveled from her head to her feet, warm air brushing through her hair and against her skin.
The extraction fan becoming white noise.
By the time Cecilia left the bathroom, Ikade was already dressed and rummaging through one of the kitchen cabinets. She found a bag of chips and tossed it across the room without warning.
Cecilia caught the bag and tore it open, eating a few chips on her way across the room.
At the bedside, she folded the chip bag shut and set it down. Then she fastened the holster to her belt, buckled it around her waist and adjusted it before sliding the pistol into it.
When the two of them were finished getting ready, they headed to the entrance. Ikade pulled the grated gate aside while Cecilia unlocked the door and pushed outside.
Sunlight poured through the open doorway. The moment they stepped outside, the noise and music of the makeshift streets washed over them.
"Ahh—too bright! Cece, turn it off!" Ikade glanced at her. "...Too early?"
"Just a little." Cecilia's eyes softened.
Cecilia tossed her the chips, then knelt beside the shoes near the entrance. She slipped off her slippers, nudged them just inside the doorframe and put her shoes on.
Ikade finished off the bag while waiting for her, then changed her shoes too. Once they locked up, the two headed down the short but steep flight of grated metal stairs.
The airy desert greeted them at once, patches of green clinging stubbornly to the golden earth.
Cecilia's gaze danced over the vehicles gathered around the market, lingering on the groups clustered around them.
Somewhere among them had to be someone willing to let the two of them tag along.
A fresh bag crinkled beside her.
Ikade tore it open with a happy flick of her tail, ate a few chips, then held a handful toward Cecilia.
"Wansh shum?"
Cecilia reached over.
"Too bad! So sad—mm—mine."
Ikade immediately stuffed the chips into her own mouth instead, crunching obnoxiously loud.
Cecilia plucked the bag from her hand and held it high enough that Ikade couldn't reach.
"Wansh shum?"
A single chip rose and slid onto the rim of the bag, spinning as it did.
Ikade snatched it before Cecilia could react, glaring at her while she chewed.
The makeshift streets stretched ahead, some narrow and others wide enough for several vehicles.
A pair of children darted past them, thin wooden sticks in hand, chasing a small beast down a dry slope. One of them fell face-first into the ground, only to push right back up and rejoin the hunt.
Cecilia lifted her wrist and brought up the camera.
Before she could take the picture, Ikade leaned into view, flashing a peace sign.
Ping!
The picture manifested in an opaque film beside the children, freezing the moment in place. Ikade's smile lingered at the edge of the frame, the background obscured by drifting sand, before the image faded into Cecilia's gallery.
Somewhere nearby, someone tested a speaker system that distorted every other word.
A normal scene for every behemoth broken down in Terra.
Step step step.
One stall became three, then ten, then a whole stretch of patched tarps and vehicles. The smell of oil and spice rolled over them in heated waves, mixing with the faint dust in the air.
"I thought it'd take way longer to put all this together..." Ikade looked around. "Even back home, getting a few things up took forever."
She drifted toward a small shop prepping food, watching meat, vegetables, and spices get pressed together before wandering off again.
"Well, judging by all this, it's probably not the first time this thing's broken down." Cecilia stepped aside to let someone pass, then glanced back at Ikade. "What's it like back home, anyway? You've barely told me about it."
"Like what?"
"Where you grew up."
"Mmm..." Ikade glanced toward the stalls, her tail swaying behind her. "Quiet for the most part. A bit out of the way, but you could get to a city in a day or two."
A small smile tugged at her lips.
"Think of the movies and you're probably close. Rice fields, small shops, old people who know everything, etcetera etcetera."
"Before I left, they started modernizing a few things. A few streetlamps, an observer, nothing too fancy. And, you know…" She shrugged. "The occasional fight over something stupid."
Ikade stopped at a display of hand-carved trinkets and picked up a miniature beast with vivid red eyes.
She turned it over in her hands, haggled with the woodworker for a little while, then happily paid for it.
A few stalls later, a pair of tinted glasses caught her attention. She tried on a pair, pushed them up and topped them off with a large hat.
"How'd I look?"
"Quite cute."
Ikade's face lit up like a festival.
They wandered a little farther before the smell of grilled meat drew them toward a skewer stand. Fat dripped into the flames, hissing and sending up little bursts of smoke.
Cecilia flashes two fingers to the vendor.
He lifted two skewers off the grill, then wrapped paper around their handles before passing them over.
Chomp.
"Hot—hot—hot—!"
Cecilia plucked the second skewer from Ikade's flailing hand and watched with amusement while Ikade fanned her mouth, chewing stubbornly through the heat.
"My, my…couldn't even wait five seconds, huh?"
Ikade shot her an annoyed glare, the tips of her ears twitching.
A sudden gust of wind swept through the street, cooling both skewers enough to stop them from burning their tongues off.
"Oh, shut up."
Ikade leaned in and tried to bite on her skewer, only for Cecilia to press two fingers to her forehead and hold her back.
Ikade kept pushing anyway.
Harder.
And harder.
Until the very tip of her tongue managed to graze the meat.
Cecilia's shoulders trembled once at Ikade's face, then Ikade lunged.
Cecilia shifted her arm away at the last second, turning her shoulder while the faintest smile pulled at her mouth.
Ikade grabbed Cecilia's sleeve and reached after the skewer, her own dangling between the fingers of her other hand.
The two continued messing with each other while the scenery changed around them. At one point, Ikade traced shapes across Cecilia's palm while they walked hand in hand.
Past every block of life.
Eventually, the two of them slowed and settled onto the grated platform of their freighter, lazily watching a cluster of vehicles roll off beneath a low cloud of dust.
Ikade had long since given up on sitting and instead lay with her head across Cecilia's lap, her tail flicking this way and that, occasionally thumping against the metal.
"Hahh…we've been walking for an hour and still haven't found a group."
"Well, we haven't exactly been asking anyone."
Ikade waved a lazy hand from Cecilia's lap.
"Details schmetails."
Cecilia looked down at her for a second, then nudged one of Ikade's ears.
"C'mon. Let's take another look. Who knows? We might find someone desperate enough. Or, you know, we can just head out ourselves."
Ikade let out a long, exaggerated groan and lifted her head from Cecilia's lap. She pushed herself up, stretching both arms overhead while her tail curled behind her.
They moved from cluster to cluster, approaching both large and small gatherings. Some were already loading up and ready to depart. Others were still forming, strangers gathering into little bands beneath canopies.
Sometimes they walked close enough to catch pieces of muttering.
They drifted past four vehicles parked in a loose semicircle, dirty but well-maintained. Around twelve people stood among them. One looked up from beneath an open hood and greeted the two with a nod.
They passed others like themselves too—stragglers staring out toward the horizon, searching for an opportunity. A pair of siblings nearby looked far too eager for adventure, the atmosphere around them almost painfully bright.
Again.
And again.
Until they were back where they started.
Now.
Repeat that three more times for the sake of it.
"This was a lot of nothing."
Back on the platform of their freighter, Cecilia pressed a bag of ice against her neck while Ikade drank from a bottle beside her.
Then something flashed in the distance.
Far, far beyond the thinning sky, something large cut across the horizon.
One reflection became several, their glare stabbing into her irises.
Poof.
A cloud of dust erupted, swallowing a few of the glints. Several more veered sharply to the side before their outlines blurred behind the rising haze.
Cecilia felt a faint tremor beneath her feet.
Beyond the stalls, sparse vegetation bent beneath the approaching dust, tumbleweeds skittering aside.
HOOONK!
The horn reached them in an instant.
After only a few short blinks, the blurred figures resolved into vehicles. Rugged ones, their lower halves caked in tan dust.
"…well. What're the chances they'll let us tag along?"
"Didn't you just say we'd go on our own?" Ikade asked, inching closer. "Weren't you the one going, 'we'll head out ourselves,' like an hour ago?"
Cecilia leaned back as Ikade squinted at her.
"So you're just a liar now? Wow. And I thought I could trust you. All that bonding meant nothing?"
Cecilia was left agape, her mouth opening and closing.
Ikade burst into laughter, her tail flicking behind her.
"Pfft—hehahah. Just kidding~ You should've seen your face."
The laughter died when the two turned toward the incoming convoy.
shff…
The vehicles from the horizon rolled in and began parking in a staggered line. One swerved too wide and nearly kissed the side of the freighter's tire.
A hand reached across the cab and knocked the driver on the head. He flashed a wary grin out the window at them.
Through the windshields, the passengers stared out with expressions that flickered in the span of a heartbeat—curiosity, wonder, and something else Cecilia could not quite place.
Their eyes roamed over their behemoth of a vehicle.
Then over them.
vrmmm… mmm…
krreeeak…
One by one, the doors swung open. Complaints flew out before their shoes even touched the ground.
"—just shhh, we'll tell him to figure it out! We warned him que su mierda was gonna break if he wasn't careful."
A tall man hops down from the lead vehicle and stretches his back with a grunt, muttering to himself.
"Relax, it's fine, isn't it?" A canine-eared man with a sleazy look emerged from the passenger side, gesturing with both hands to emphasize every word. "You keep getting that red, viejo, and you're gonna pop something before this car does."
The tall man slowly turned his head.
"Marshall."
"What? I'm worried about your health. You're already up there."
Then Marshall turned toward Cecilia and Ikade, finishing the question with an easy grin.
"Tell me I'm wrong."
"Sure…I guess? So, where're you all headed? Doesn't look like it's going too smoothly."
kade nudged Cecilia in the ribs.
"…maybe try 'hello' first?"
Cecilia paused.
"Ahem, nice to meet ya. You can call me Cecilia."
"I'm Kaede by the way." Ikade flashed a sunny smile.
The tall man grumbled under his breath but stepped forward.
"Rafael." He said, thumbing a hand toward his chest. "Driver. Though, I think I'm done driving for the time being."
The sleazy-looking perro from the passenger side grinned wider and tipped two fingers from his temple.
"Marshall. Ignore him. He's been all cranky the whole day."
From the third vehicle, a feline woman leaned against the open door, her arms crossed over the window and her tail swaying lazily.
"Hello~ You can just call me Lina."
Several others climbed out behind them: a slimmer perro with grease smeared across his pants, two Librei and a pair of coelhinhos from the rear vehicle.
Their introductions came in quick succession, their names slipping past Cecilia before she could hold onto all of them.
"Cool. Now that we're all friendly...what's up?" Cecilia stood and turned to face the group properly.
"...what's up?"
"Well, one of our cars lost a control arm."
Rafael says, pointing a thumb toward the horizon.
"And, as you can imagine...its toast."
"I'm guessing you've got people who can fix that." Cecilia replied. "So I doubt you came here just to say hello."
"Actually, we came here looking for people who might want to travel with us." Lina said, idly twirling a strand of golden hair around her finger. "On the way back to our settlement, most of our security peeled off and headed home. We've been running on fumes since."
While Lina explained, Ikade drifted toward two of the others and struck up a conversation. Cecilia could already hear her laughing at something one of them said.
"In fact, we've only got seven now," Rafael interjected, lifting a shoulder slightly. "Pretty sparse for a group of around eighty. Mhmm...maybe I'm sharing too much."
"Why?"
Rafael shrugged.
"Just hauling supplies between our place and a few neighboring settlements. This is the farthest we've gone yet."
"I guess that makes sense?"
Cecilia tilted her head slightly, her thoughts rolling over one another.
"So." Rafael said. "you know anyone who might want to travel with us? Preferably someone who can use their hands, or someone with some kind of guard background."
Heh, jackpot.
Cecilia coughed once and straightened up, faint smugness creeping into her face before she answered.
Her gaze settled on him.
Then she pointed at herself.
"Actually…you have me. Us."
"Really?" Rafael studied her for a moment. "Then. What kind of experience do you have?"
He took one step closer.
Marshall leaned slightly to the side.
"Ooh. Scary. This is the part where she says something cool, right?"
Cecilia lifted her wrist and brought up a screen above her bracelet. She scrolled until she found what she wanted, then turned her wrist so Rafael could see.
"I spent some time in Sabarah. Not far from Sariqan."
"Ah."
Lina's tail slowed.
"Should I clap now?"
"Please don't. Be quiet for once."
Lina said.
"Besides." She said, looking between their expressions. "you all look like you can't afford to be picky."
"Can we knock it off with the questioning?"
Rafael glanced at him.
"What?"
"Come on." Marshall gestured toward Cecilia. "We were gonna take her either way. She could've said she worked night security and we'd still be asking when she can leave."
"That's not reassuring."
Cecilia said, lowering her wrist.
Rafael scratched the side of his jaw and looked back toward the others.
"Well, its not like I have the final say."
"Neither do I," Lina said, stepping away from her vehicle and hooking an arm around one of the overly excited Librei before she could interrogate Cecilia half to death. "Anyway, if you know anyone else looking to travel, tell them to come by. We'll be around for a couple days…or at least until the truck's fixed."
"Oh, and tell them Lina sent you." Marshall added. "She's acting head this time around."
The group gradually dispersed to deal with their own things. Ikade slipped back to Cecilia's side, her tail flicking happily behind her.
"Well?" Ikade asked, nudging her shoulder. "I'd say this the one."
"Looks like we found our grand adventure."
Ikade's ears perked up instantly.
"Oh! That's perfect. You know, I was actually starting to think we'd go by ourselves."
Cecilia's gaze drifted toward the main group, watching the small figures in the distance move like totems in the ground.
Cecilia sat back down on the platform.
Ikade joined her with a hum, resting her head against Cecilia's shoulder.
"Well, they seem nice. They sure are an interesting group."
"Mhm. Let's head out. After we get our truck running, I'll message a few people. If they're lucky, they can tag along with us."
They stayed a little longer, listening to the music over from the market.
Then Cecilia stood up, pulling Ikade up by the hand and heading down the stairs.
Once the two were on the ground, Cecilia lifted the grated stairs and locked them into place. Ikade followed her around to the cab, where she pulled the door open and stepped inside.
Afterwards, she dropped into the driver's seat.
A few switches and a press of a button, the freighter cranked to life.
The gauges across the panel woke one by one, the air-pressure needles slowly climbing. She checked the three monitors overhead and adjusted their views until she could see both sides and the rear.
She fastened her seatbelt and gestured for Ikade to do the same.
The two talked while the needles climbed. Once everything had eased into the proper range and the engine warmed, Cecilia held the brake, pressed drive and released the parking brake.
She eased onto the throttle and turned the wheel slightly.
Before pulling away, she sent out a quick message.
The truck rolled forward with a low rumble, easing out from the landship's shade and onto the dusty path.
In her side mirror, the makeshift town passed by in slow pieces—tarps fluttering in the wind, half-built stalls, people moving through the streets.
Inside the cabin, Ikade flipped through the owner's manual she found tucked beside the seat.
"Hmm…this thing can take a few different fuel blends, as long as they're close enough."
Ikade hummed and kept reading, her tail swishing against the seat every so often.
The truck cruised for another few minutes, driving through the outer streets before the noise of the market gradually faded behind them.
Some people stopped to take pictures or record videos as they passed, stepping aside to make way for the beast on wheels.
Soon enough, the ground ahead cleared up.