We Sail Together or We Burn Together

“Saphira! Saphira! How are you even here!” Elysia wailed, her arms clutching tightly to Saphira as she cried into her shoulder. “I thought you were dead! I thought for years I killed you!”

“Yeah, I’m…I’m fine. I’m good. I…could anyone please get her off me? Kraelin? You two idiots?” Saphira said, looking uncomfortable.

“No, I want to know how you’re standing in front of us right now too,” Kraelin said, his face a mask as he tried to decide which emotion he should actually be feeling.

“Should we go? I feel like I’m at a friend’s house watching their parents fight,” Alex asked.

“Hell no. I wanna see where this goes,” Jake said. “Besides…Elysia might need us.”

“Okay. I’m fine. I’m okay,” Elysia said, pulling away slightly. “But Kraelin is right. What happened to you? Why did you never come back to us? Is it because of…” Her hand briefly touched the scarred, metalic part of Saphira’s face. Saphira turned away. “We never would have rejected you for…”

“You don’t understand,” Saphira said. “My father got me out of there. Somehow he got through the fire and pulled me out. But by the First I wish he hadn’t. The pain was…unbearable. My right side was burned away. For days and days, I don’t even know how many, my father helped me heal somewhere secret. I thought the burns were the worst. But then…the changes started.”

“Changes?” Kraelin asked.

“The energy from the crystal…from Elysia…it didn’t simply burn me. My skin started to grow hard. My hand turned into some kind of…bug hand. Like a claw. I had to watch as day after day I looked in a mirror and saw my eye turning into some segmented insect like monstrosity. I was turning into…I don’t know. A Twisted? I don’t have an answer. But I wasn’t human. I couldn’t come back…”

“Saphira, no!” Elysia said, shaking her head. “You…”

“No! Don’t you pretend you knew what it was like! You especially!” Saphira screamed. “I tried to move on! My father told me he couldn’t take me back! Lugara blamed me for the accident, for destroying countless priceless artifacts at the Hall of Learning! I had NOTHING! Dad helped me become a Sweeper, helped me rebuild and hide my…deformity. But even when I killed Twisted, even when I saved people, if they saw what I was, they screamed! They only saw a monster! You said you thought you killed me? Well I did die! Saphira couldn’t exist anymore! Saphira wasn’t some…creature!”

Everyone was silent. Alex looked down at his body, the one he no longer recognized, and closed his eyes.

“Finally, my father found a doctor. An old friend of his. He specialized in old tech and human augmentation. I jumped at the chance. I know how people look at metal bodied people, people with replacement parts, but…” Saphira flexed her metal hand. “It’s a thousand times better than being seen as little more than a Twisted…”

There was silence in the field. The wind whipped at the campfire, causing their shadows to dance across the silent night.

Alex stood up and walked silently over to Saphira. He looked her square in her eyes, including her robotic one. Then he stuck out his hand. “I’m Alex. I’m a sixteen year old boy. It’s good to meet you, Saphira.”

She looked down at him, confusion on her face. “I don’t…what…”

“I’m not this body. You’re not your robot parts. So, masks off. We’ve never actually been introduced.” He motioned with his head towards his hand. “Alex.”

She cautiously reached out with her metal arm. “Saphira.”

“Jake!” Jake said, putting his arms around both of their shoulders. Stick exploded from nowhere, chittering happily and running up Alex’s side until he landed happily on Saphira’s shoulder, introducing himself as well. “Come on, you too, buddy! Group hug for all of us messed up bastards and our pets! By the way, this isn’t my body either.”

“I…know!” Saphira said as Jake crushed her in a hug.

Elysia eagerly joined the group hug, laughing more freely than she had in years. Finally, Kraelin walked over and threw his arms around Saphira. “I’ve missed you, you damn pirate…” he said softly.

“I know…I’ve missed me too…” Saphira said.

*

The truck rumbled to a stop at the crossroads. The five teens, along with Stick, looked out the windows. One sign pointed north, directing them towards the city of Vyock. Another pointed east towards Gildereast. Saphira sighed, putting her mask back on and reaching for the handle. “Thank you, everyone. I mean it. Thank you for accepting me again. But now I’ve gotta go drop off this journal and get back to work. Elysia…keep on pushing east. I believe if anyone can find…”

Elysia wasn’t paying attention. She looked to Kraelin in the drivers seat. He looked in the rear view mirror to Jake and Alex. They both nodded. Kraelin hit the door lock button and turned north.

“What…where are you…” Saphira started.

“We’re going north. We’re finishing your job. And then you’re coming with us,” Kraelin said.

“You can’t possibly be serious,” Saphira stated.

“I got one of my best friends back,” Elysia said, grabbing Saphira’s hand. “I’m not losing her again.”

“Looks like you’re being pressganged, you dirty pirate!” Jake said, throwing his arm around her shoulder.

“Yeah, and lose the mask. You don’t need it,” Alex said. He stuck his hand out. Jake put his on top of it. Laughing, Elysia joined in and slapped her hand on top, Kraelin eagerly adding his. Saphira felt a tear fall from her left eye, unable to comprehend her friends taking her back so easily. Then she placed her metal hand on top of the pile. Stick, eager to be part of the group, leaned over the pile from Alex’s lap and began slapping the stack of hands over and over. It seemed they were all in agreement.

Saphira unattached the mask. A rare, genuine smile was on her face. “Alright. Alright then! If you all insist. We sail together…”

“OR WE BURN TOGETHER!” the five cried out as they drove north towards the mountains surrounding Vyock.