Fifth Universe

The 'Welcoming' Comittee

Fenix

I'm surprised at her reaction to say the least. She hasn't said a word in the last five minutes, and I pray it has nothing to do with time. Yes, we had spent three nights on that horrid Pod, but when she first arrived she couldn't tell dreams from reality. Three months on the air ship hiding, and she thought it was three weeks.

She dreamt a lot of strange things too, which we recorded using a device hidden inside her pillow. Her discovering my feelings for her was impeccable, and on the first night. I'd shown up in a lot of her dreams, so in the end I just let Travis supervise for my own sake, and her privacy.

What frightens me most is the amount that she knows. She knows I'm not entirely human, she's seen my own memories of tests gone wrong. And now Foxy has been let on to the 'secret'. My position as leader is at risk.

I shake off my own selfish thoughts and focus on her, which is easier than it should be. Everything's been a disaster since she arrived. I don't regret bringing her. Her bronze hair glitters in the sunlight, shifting in the autumn breeze as she stands blankly staring ahead.

The cuts on my wrists burn from Kai purposely fighting against the shackles. I rub them and try not to think about it too much. "You can't deny my presence, C.K." The sound of my own nickname makes me shudder. It's only worse when being whispered to me by that... thing.
'C.K' is something Travis used to call me before I changed my name. C standing for my first name, and K standing for Knight. My last.

Even my name was a joke. Named after some painting of a knight in Scotland, or at least something like that. I remember Blaze mocking me for it, it lasted months.

"Why can't your batteries die like any normal tin can?" It wasn't a question, I 'say' it with as much bitterness as my thoughts will allow.
Kai just laughs, loud enough for reality to be blocked out completely.

"I did die, remember? And what happened to you, huh? Without me, you're nothing but a braindead sack of flesh. And that poor girl had to put up with sitting and waiting for me to reboot." Kai creates a spitting noise. He sounds so different when he doesn't control my own tongue. In a few hours he will fall asleep and do nothing but let me think and move for myself. He's right, I'm as good as dead without him. Something I hate to admit.

I still feel guilty about the day Kai's battery died, warning me when there were only minutes to spare. I must have confused Nameless even more after that.

"Are you alright?" I walk over to her and place my hand on her shoulder. I'm so afraid of startling her, that I hardly touch the fabric of her clothes. I hate myself for caring about someone who deserves so much more than I can offer.

Nameless turns around and stares at me, with her large doe eyes. My voice always sounds muffled under this helmet, but it's gotten to a point where I feel naked without it. Same thing really, being exposed for an area you don't want to be seen, that embarrasses you until all you want to do is hide.

"I'm fine." Her voice is so much softer than mine. Calm and beautiful. Everything about her is just surreal. "It's just, a lot to take in." She breathes.

I can tell when a girl needs her space, so turning away and joining the others seems like a smart thing to do, but small cold fingers rest on mine as I shift away.

My heart beats faster. One of the frustrating things I can't hide behind a helmet. Her face glows underneath the sun like snow. She's not as pale as I first thought she would be. If I was to guess, she came from a more open sector in her city. Not entirely isolated, but enough to do a little damage.