Promise and Old Logs [ Log 2 ]

Laya

I’d never seen an adult crying, sis always hid her tears from me, but now, I did what I’d always wished to do for Karla: I hugged her and told her we would find a way together. No matter how long it took, it would be okay, and we had each other.

But my words only brought more tears. I put my head on her chest and cried with her. I’d missed her so much. Almost as much as I missed Mom and Dad, even if I didn’t remember them as much as her. I snuggled in her arms, tired and wanting the warmth and safety of her embrace.

“Promise you will not leave us again.”

She ruffled my hair and whispered the words I so much wanted to hear, filling my heart with warmth and softness. I closed my eyes, listening to her breath, and when I opened them again, she was still there. I smiled.

“Do you feel better?” she asked softly.

I nodded.

“And you?”

She smiled and patted my head.

“You should go and check if Sol has any other tasks for you.”

She was right, it was still my shift, but…”

“Will you come?”

She shook her head

“I need to rest. I am not used to all this running.”

I sighed, but she gave me a reassuring smile, so I smiled back, not wanting to make her sad. She was right, it was still my shift. I only wished she could come. Maybe we could exercise together, all of us? It would be nice to do something together. Sis would need to adjust our shifts, but we could do it. I waved goodbye and ran to the bridge to share my idea with sis. I was sure she would be there, and Sol too. It was so nice to have so many people around.

I was lucky, and they were there, but they seemed busy because Sol was explaining the ships' systems to sis. I sat behind my console waiting for them to finish. It could be important, so I didn’t want to disturb them, but it was also boring, so I started reviewing my exercises from last night in the meantime. Sol said I was getting better and better.

It was the third day of our journey, and nothing had broken yet, but you never knew, so I ran diagnostics on the power core. If it broke, it would be really, really bad. It had happened once, but I barely remembered it. I guess I was too young to pay attention to what sis did back then, but it was a shame I hadn’t learnt about it directly from her and instead had to study the ship log. Her entries were so messy.

Dad’s entries were short and to the point, but I’d learnt a lot from them, unlike Mom’s. They always made me smile, especially when she mentioned sis or me. It happened from time to time. I cherished those entries and kept them in a separate folder so I could find them and read them whenever I wanted. I wondered... I looked at the display. How did Sol make hers? I could learn so much from her. She knew so much about everything.

Out of curiosity, I opened a file.

2327-07-18

Location: Unknown

Sol Invictus DB-4789

All systems unresponsive. The attempt at restoring the emergency power supply failed. X-01B4 is incompatible with the system

2327-07-19

Location: Unknown

Sol Invictus DB-4789

All systems unresponsive. Retrieved X-02A2 from the aft starboard thruster. Estimated 38% compatibility with the emergency power supply.

2327-07-20

Location: Unknown

Sol Invictus DB-4789

All systems unresponsive. The attempt at restoring the emergency power supply failed. X-02A2 is incompatible with the system. Considering running a bypass through the logic unit of the portboard autocannon. Estimated chance of success: 18%

Those were old, really, really old. I glanced at Sol. She was still talking to Sis. I knew she was old, but still... Knowing it and seeing the date on her logs were two different things. I scrolled down and opened another file.

2328-11-07

Location: Unknown

Sol Invictus DB-4789

The charge of the bridge panels continues to increase with each passing day. Estimated output 0.7%. The batteries in the life support unit still hold a charge. I must be drifting towards a star. If I stay on this course, and my calculations are correct, I should get an output of 1.2% in 6-8 months. It will be enough power to bring the most basic systems online and triangulate my position.

More than a year had passed between those two, and she still didn’t know where she was. That was scary, really scary. And sad too… She was alone. Tears filled my eyes, and I ran to her and wrapped my arms around her.

“Sol… ”, I sniffled

She looked at me, surprised.

“What happened, Laya?”

I didn’t know how to explain it. I was sad that she was sad and lonely and didn’t want her to feel like that ever again. She hugged me back, and I smiled.

“We can stay together forever.”

I glanced at sis. She still looked a little concerned, and the last thing I wanted was to worry her more.

“Come”

I smiled, but she gave me a hesitant look and glanced at Sol.

“Sis… ”

I pouted at her, and she hesitantly joined us. It felt so nice.

“It’s okay, we have each other.”

I smiled. It was so nice. I wasn’t the only one anymore who needed to look after sis. I felt Mom and Dad would be happy knowing we had a crew and we could look after each other, and no one would have to be alone anymore.