Outlaws | An Eclipse | [Vol.1]

Chapter Eight - "The Sound Of Silence"

Journey watched as a sound wave left her sister's mouth and bounce off the walls, shaking the whole room. She covered her ears to protect them from the rambunctious scream. Once the sound died down to normal shouting, she let go of her ears.
          "Go away!" Journey's little sister demanded with a stomp. "Mom! Journey is being mean again!"
          Journey rolled her eyes and spread out her arms offensively. How was she being mean? It wasn't like Journey had the capability to insult her.
          "Nova," Called up mom from the lower floor. "Just leave the room. She can't bug you if you're not around for her to annoy."
          Journey made a bored expression.
          The short, younger girl in front of her looked at Journey with a glare full frustration. Nova's light, thin hair was braided and pulled back behind her head. She huffed and left the room, grabbing a dress and slamming the door behind her.
          Journey stood there, silent. Not a single word could be uttered from her mouth. If she could speak, she would have most likely told her younger sister just how annoying she really was to her.
          It was interesting to see how Nova managed to get Journey in trouble even though Journey couldn't even insult her. It was exasperating to constantly handle the little runt when there was nothing that could be said. Every now and then, the fifteen year old would struggle to not sock her little sister in the eye.
          Journey looked at her watch and worked her jaw in thought. Her sister wasn't the only thing she had to worry about. In twenty minutes, she was going to have to grab her suitcase and satchel, and leave town. Not just leave town, but leave the island.
          Because of Journey's lack of ability to talk, she wasn't exactly welcomed by the heads of the island, Anthis. In an land full of people who can control sound, she was labeled useless. She couldn't scream and make the earth shake. She couldn't sing people into a trance. She could simply exist.
          To Journey, she didn't mind being quite all of the time, but she minded being shipped away just because she wasn't qualified to some people. Her mother liked her just fine. Wasn't that enough?
          Nope.
          Journey rubbed the back of her neck and sighed soundlessly. She trudged over to her satchel and slung it over neck and shoulder. She opened it and went over everything inside.
          Flashlight, matches, knife, rope, and a pencil and journal. It wasn't much, but it was hard to fit anything else around the rope. Well, almost.
          She walked over to her nightstand and picked up a bag of dice, she opened the sack and looked at the transparent cubes, and pyramids. In the sack was also four marbles she had found on the street. Journey place the small bag into her satchel, and closed it. She then walked over to her green suitcase and picked it up.
          It wasn't heavy considering it was just clothes, a book, and a toothbrush with a tube of toothpaste. Journey skillfully opened her bedroom door with her shoed foot and walked out. She made her way down the stairs and to the red front door. She put her suitcase down next to it, and peaked out the window.
          A little kid zoomed past on a hoverboard, almost falling off.
          Ah, hoverboards. An interesting piece of machinery. She didn't quite understand how the thrusters kept the skateboard like build off the ground without shooting to the sky.
          "Journey?" A woman's voice said.
          Journey replied by looking at her. The woman was her mother. Short, brown hair, and green eyes. Makeup put on just right, and a cloth in her hand.
          "Would you be so kind as to tend to your hair, it looks likes you just woke up," Mom chuckled.
          Journey made a face and put a hand on her head. It felt normal. Was her mother just teasing her to lighten the mood? She began messing with the short strands of her hair, but there wasn't much to be done even if it did look weird. When journey's hair looked a certain way, it stayed that way until she showered.
          Her mom let out a lighthearted laugh and she eyed Journey with sorrowful eyes, and a sad smile. "You're going to be missed," She said wistfully.
          Journey scrunched her face. Maybe she was going to be missed by her, but she doubted that anyone else would pay much attention to her absents. Oh well. Journey had known about having to leave for years, it wasn't like she was going into this without full knowledge about what was going on.
          Awkwardly staring back her mother, Journey straighter her short sleeved, pullover hoodie. White, and smooth, and cotton like. It felt soft against her skin, and she silently appreciated  that she had more than one. She flexed her fingers, adjusting her open fingered gloves, and folded her arms. Journey pressed her lips together and blinked.
          Responding to the blink, Journey's mother cleared her throat. "You'll be leaving soon, so I baked you some food for the road," She said, turning and heading to the kitchen, only to return a moment later holding something wrapped in tinfoil. "It's a raspberry tart."
          Journey accepted the bundle of goods and offered her mother a smile, showing her gratitude.
          Her mother opened her mouth to say something more, but a honking from outside kept the words from coming.
          Journey looked out the window, and a hovercar waited outside of the house, a man waving at her in the drivers seat. She made a line with her lips, and looked her mom. The woman looked like she was holding back tears. Journey went over and slowly offered an awkward hug. Before her mom could hug back, Journey let go and grabbed her suitcase. She opened the front door, and left, not wanting to have to see her mother cry or keep her from leaving.
          Journey marched over to the black car, and opened the back seat. She put her small suitcase in, and then got in herself. She buckled herself up, and shifted her satchel so it was resting comfortably on her lap. She then laid the raspberry tart on top.
          The man in the drivers seat turned to look back at her. "Alright kid," He said through a toothy smile. "Let's head to the docks."

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The night sky glistened above Journey. The sky was so filled with stars, it was like someone had dropped a giant bottle of glitter on it. The waves underneath the boat rocked Journey with rhythm.
          Rise, wait, fall. Rise, wait, fall.
          It was relaxing to feel the water run through her fingers as she held her hand just barely under the surface. It was cool, and serene.
          Despite the nice feeling, a small peg of loneliness pierced her chest as she road in the self driven ship. Being the only one to keep herself compony over the past few hours had felt odd. Normally, there was always someone trying to have a one way conversation with her. But now, there was no one to guess what she was thinking, or guess how she felt. There was Just the sound of silence that had followed her from when she left the docks.
          With not much on her mind, Journey let her eyes aimlessly watch the ocean around her, resting her head on the arm that was draped over the boat and touching the water. With time, her eye lids started to become heavy, and she could no longer hold them open. With a soundless exhale, Journey let herself fall asleep to the rocking of the water.