Stranger

“Rise and shine, camper.”

Ezri’s voice wakes me from my slumber. The next morning has come way too soon. She had us working almost all night, setting up various shelters and pieces of equipment, transforming the space around the wrecked Spearhead into a small, makeshift army base. A very tacky looking one, at that… Choices were made, to say the least.

“Ahem.”

I don’t budge, keeping my eyes shut.

“OW!”

I land on the hard floor of the ship with a thud, my flimsy bed having been flipped over by Ezri, standing there with her arms crossed. Glaring up at her, it looks like she just got out of bed as well – messy hair, and sleepwear consisting of a short-sleeved crop top and sweatpants. Her stomach and arms bare, I can see that her scars cover more than her face, they’re all over her body.

“What, you wear that silly mask to sleep too?” I comment grumpily while getting up on my feet.

“I’m afraid I have no choice – if people ever saw how good-looking I am, they wouldn’t be able to handle it.”

“Please, keep being delusional,” My eyes go up and down, scrutinizing her appearance for flaws, but I’m only left with envy after grasping how fit her physique is, making me look scrawny in comparison.

Ezri clasps her hands together and says, “Get changed, I need you outside. If I don’t see you in 15 minutes, I’m dragging you out myself,” with that, she slips out the door, which only opens and closes partially now due to the crash.

I’m tired of her bossing me around.

Once I’m ready and emerge from the poorly lit ship, the sunlight is blinding, but the gentle air is a welcome instead of the stuffy interior. The bustling site is probably the most action the Boundary has had in years. People walk from tent to tent, talking and carrying supplies, some stand watch around the perimeter, others are running laps.

A gloved hand pats my shoulder. “Come,” Ezri orders, now in her armor and cloak. I follow behind her, scowling at the back of her head all the while, until we stop at one of the bigger tents. Through the flap is a shooting range setup. Guns on stands that line the walls, and metallic target boards placed in the back. Shiloh and Jasper, already by the entrance, seem relieved to see me still in one piece.

Ace, who I learned to be the Commander, acknowledges Ezri with a nod. He picks up one of the guns, hoisting it over his shoulder. “You three,” he says, his fingers aimed at us. “Over here.”

We step closer, the gazes of the others inside watching us intently like we’re a spectacle. Some exchange whispers, Petra giggles, and a growing nagging of suspicion climbs up me. Ace switches the position of the gun, now holding it in front of him, where it’s easy for us to fully observe. It’s a thick and sturdy rifle nearing the size of his torso, made of dark cobalt with an amber glow in every groove. A low, continuous buzz emits from it, as if the thing has its own say and is just begging to be used.

“This is the closest any of you has ever been to a weapon, I imagine,” Ace says with a tinge of sport. “How does it make you feel?” His helmet moves to Jasper, “Scared? Or perhaps,” he turns to Shiloh, “enlivened?” His eyes then settle on me – I assume anyway, still can’t see him properly. “What do you think?”

Rectifying my stance, I say, “I ‘think’ our feelings don’t matter. Unless you're military, only golems are allowed to even touch a weapon.”

“That may be true, but we’re out here in the Boundary without a golem in sight, so who else is going to do it?”

“How about no one?”

“How about – you guys?” Ezri says, suddenly behind us. “And before you say ‘no,’ it’s not a request.”

Me carrying a weapon? One of the most forbidden laws of the IPU? I wouldn’t be caught dead. They can tie me up and torture me for all I care, my hands will never be anywhere near a gun.

“Why would you arm your prisoners?” Jasper speaks up. “Isn’t that… A really horrible idea?”

“Oh please, as if you’d try anything!” Petra says. “Not only are you outnumbered and out-skilled, but soft as well,” she shakes her head and pretends to wipe away a tear. “Poor IPU-brainwashed.”

“Brainwashed?”

“Easy, tiger,” Ace says to me. “And Petra, no need to belittle them. We were just like that once upon a time, remember?”

“Ah, yes… The ‘glory days’ of our youth. Sometimes I miss being dumb and naïve.”

“Moving on from nostalgia,” Ezri says after clearing her throat. “Listen, this isn’t some ‘power play’ like you think it is. We’re not chilling here on vacay, we’re preparing – something’s coming, and trust me… When it does, you don’t want to be found without a gun,” she looks at Petra to say, “By the way, don’t worry, you’re still dumb – but I love you, so it’s fine.”

“Hey!”

Shiloh glances between Ezri and the rifle, Jasper is twitchy and shuffles his feet, but her words leave no effect on me. “Something’s coming,” sure it is, just like you somehow resurrected from the dead, right? Not convinced, not by a long shot.

Besides, if anything is coming out all the way into the middle of the Boundary, it’d be the IPU, which would obviously be a good thing. I try to signal to my paranoid friends that it’s all a sham with a head shake, but they spare me no attention.

“Believe it or not, I don’t like the idea of forcing you into anything,” Ace says, one of our kidnappers. Be quiet. “But the Admiral’s right. For your own good, you’ll all need to learn how to use one of these.”

They all stare us down, expecting us to give in at any moment. Little do they know how stubborn I can be. How would I be able to return home without shame after doing such a thing? Such news could make Mom faint, and Dad— well, Dad would be disappointed.

“So, which one of you is going first?” Ezri asks.

Shiloh, holding out her hand to Ace, asserts, “Me, I’ll go.”

“What the— Shiloh, are you serious? You know it’s prohibited, you know the consequences—”

“I do, Calla, but somebody has to take one for the team,” she reaches out, and to my horror, Ace gives her the gun. She doesn’t even look right holding it, and not just because it’s too large for her frame. “You and Jasper already had my back, now it’s my turn.”

Ace carefully guides her on how to properly hold the gun, how to aim, and most dreadfully, how to pull the trigger. The longer Shiloh interacts with the gun, the more crimes she’s committing. If the IPU ever finds out, she’ll be asleep for ages – and what about my involvement in this? Choosing not to report someone is a felony in itself, so what am I supposed to do here?

“Also,” Petra says, her index finger pointed up, “You aren’t allowed to leave this tent ‘till you’ve all shot a beam!”

“I don’t think we have another option…” Jasper utters to me, only getting more and more anxious as time goes on. His eyes briefly shift to all the soldiers at the entrance, before they go back to me. “They’re not just going to let us disobey them, they’ll do something.”

“Who cares? You really want to break the law?”

Ezri laughs at that, but I ignore her.

“I mean, given our situation… The IPU could make an exception, right?”

My face twists into a frown. “You know that isn’t how it works, it’ll be zero tolerance like always. Don’t go getting desperate on me, Jasper.”

A bright and fast projectile whizzes by, hitting the corner of the target. Ace nods approvingly, commenting on how it “wasn’t bad for a first-timer,” while someone I no longer recognize fixates on the board with wonder. My disbelief cannot be described when I detect a twinkle in her eye, as she lifts up the gun once more, shooting it a second time – then a third, then a fourth. “Whoa,” Shiloh breathes out. “Did you see that, guys?”

Yeah, I saw it. But my question is, why the heck were you enjoying it?