And so Milo had gone, off the ship and began walking. Farther and farther with every step, and the longer he walked the more the sun began to rise. He had always been a hard worker, so the pain wasn't quite getting to him yet, but it was a lot harder with a nine year old girl tucked to his chest. At once, Janice woke up, just when the sky was turning blue.
"Milo...? Where are we?" She whined, blinking to adjust her vision.
"Somewhere. Far off, somewhere. I'm just not sure." Milo responded, tiredly.
"We're in the middle of nowhere! Are you crazy?" She sat up straight, and Milo let her down and out of his arms. "We're getting to the other side of the land. Where there's water again. I know it's there, I've been there."
"But why?" The child groaned.
"While we walk, I'll tell you a story." Milo took her hand and kept her by his side.
"Go on, I suppose." She leaned her head on him.
***
"You remember - back at Christmas time."
"Yes, of course I do silly." Janice rolled her eyes.
"You remember what happened, yes?"
She stopped for a moment, imagining what she saw left of Milos body; on the cold ice outside of skin takers cave. "I thought I did... but I..."
"Janice, you know, that wasn't me. I know what he did, he told me all about it. Kid, he took a body. He took it from one of the members of my old crew. He had me kill him, he had me kill quite a couple of them."
"Why, Milo?" She winced with fear. "I don't like hearing you talk about this."
"Because I was dumb. I thought I could get more from working with skin taker. To join him, he had told me that I have to make a sacrifice. Those people didn't mean to much to me anymore. So that's who I went for."
"Milo..."
"I'm sorry Janice, but I have to let you know these things. It's the reason we're here." He sighed.
"That doesn't answer a whole lot!"
"I'm getting there, I'm getting there. I went to him with the evidence of what I'd done. He said it wasn't enough. He said he needed someone I would feel guilty about."
"Who was it...?" Janice asked reluctantly.
Milo had taken a while to answer this, his throat closing and his eyes watering - "Sariah."
Janice had never seen Milo cry. Not ever. Not in his old crew, not after he joined the laughingstock. This was something she felt had to have truly destroyed Milo, or else he wouldn't have let his emotions show.
"Sariah... your girlfriend...?" She asked softly.
"Not anymore." He rubbed his eyes, trying to hold it all back.
She squeezed his hand hard. "I'm sorry..."
Milo shook his head. "I shouldn't be focused on that though. We're moving on. We're leaving. For a reason."
"Could you get to that reason, please?" She asked, still trying to comfort him regardless.
