“Where did you go?” Sythius asks. “We’re ready to leave.”
“Sorry, I had to pee,” Sefina says, entering the meadow from another area of the trees, a distraction tactic I admire.
“You’re lying. Why?” Fracture asks.
I roll my eyes as I hike out of the woods a decent distance from her. Rogues always did pick up on human emotions better than Relics. But sometimes, they can be a bit too forward.
“Some things a woman doesn’t want to talk about, so she’ll give you a cover story so you leave her alone,” Sefina defends.
I board the ship after Fracture, who seems satisfied by her response. Sythius stays close to Sefina as they enter. Fracture closes the ramp behind them. A milky blue film coats the windows of the ship.
Menace>>Fracture: Fixed the shields?
Fracture>>Menace: A-firm.
Sythius lowers his voice as he holds Sefina back. I glance at them in my periphery, begging him to touch her in a way I don’t like. It’s the only excuse I need to end him. I don’t trust him. Maybe that’s my fault for judging him like the full-bloods of his kind. But I haven’t met any other than Cara who I believe wholeheartedly.
He asks Sefina if she wants me.
“Are you asking because you can’t tell or because of your own insecurities?”
He sways. “So that’s a yes.”
“Yes. Sythius. I’m sorry, but Solcrue have only ever used me. I just can’t find them attractive.”
“I hate being judged like them. They’ve never done me any favors. I’m not like them.” He slinks a step away from her. “I just thought because we survived so much shit together…”
“You’re not like themanymore,” she says. “But you were to me. Let’s just focus on this mission and not regress, yeah?”
“So there’s really no chance?”
“Fighting to survive only to be betrayed kind of makes me unable to trust you.” Sefina crosses her arms. “But I learned that trick thanks to you. Just don’t forget that you still need to find those people you’ll defend and be loyal to no matter what.
“You have to have something to orient yourself to that stays in your heart despite all the shit. When you find that, tell me. I’d love to know what it is.”
“Because you don’t think I’m capable?”
Fracture gets us in the air and heads for the outpost.
Sefina steadies herself against a storage compartment. “I believe everyone is capable of everything, but they have to make the change in their minds. It comes down to priorities, Sythius.
“Wanting something is one thing. Needing something is another. If you can’t stick with it, you didn’t really want it or need it. When you betrayed me, you prioritized your hide over our team, over me. Prove to me you’re not going to be flighty, and we can be friends again. I do want that.”
Sythius grabs a frame rail as the ship tilts. They look comfortable with the ship’s movements, and I realize how much time they have both likely spent in space.
I’m jealous of Sythius for spending so much time with her, and I hate him for not making better use of it.
“How can anyone really risk their life for another?” Sythius asks.
“Because of love,” she says. “Because we care enough to accept that our end may be what it takes to give the soul that matters most to us a chance to continue, to maybe find love and be happy again. When we pick the right ones to love, they’ll do the same for us. That’s how we build a team that succeeds together so we never have to fear death or being alone. It’s loyalty.”
“And faith,” Sythius remarks.
“Yes.”
“I don’t have any of that. No one has ever fought to protect me.”
Sefina rests a hand on his shoulder, and it irks me enough I take a step toward them. Both Sefina and Sythius look down the flight deck at me.
