She was wandering around, with a pair of ridiculous glasses sitting on the rim of her nose.
I didn't bother moving my feet aside.
She slipped on them, reeling backwards. Her glasses flew off of her face as she sobered, muttering under her breath.
"L-look, it's the s-stowaway." She blinked. I exhaled, violet smoke curling in tendrils around my face. "You look awful," I commented. "Did you land in a ditch or what?"
She furrowed her eyebrows at me, scowling. My eyes traveled down to her dress. The front was completely ripped open and singed, but instead of skin beneath it, something resembling a wooden box was sneering at me. That was odd.
"W-wait a second." I leaned forward, gesturing with my pipe. "What am I l-looking at here, exactly?"
She flustered, her face lighting up extreme pink and red hues, grabbing the front of her dress and jerking it over the thing. "Abolutely nuthin'!" She replied with a panicked yell. Turing around she called out "See ya!"
No way she was going to run off while I was around.
"W-whoa, hold up!" I hooked my fingers around her sleeves, pulling her backwards. She was lighter than I expected.
"Put me down!"
"W-what was that about? Y-you're human, right?" It didn't seem like it, as her blush had gone from red to almost yellow.
"No! I'm a dangerous alien, and I'll claw your eyes out! Now let me go!" I slipped her sleeves through a branch nearby, so she dangled.
"H-hang on," I mumbled, as I shuffled out my scanner. She was screeching something else, but I wasn't paying attention. I turned around, and she was struggling furiously to keep her chest covered. "What's that t-thing on your chest?" I asked, rubbing the back of my head nervously.
"It's none of your business, that's what!"
"It l-looks painful…" It did too. Her skin seemed curled and stretched underneath it, like someone had stapled a big wooden block to her chest. "Let me just… t-take a picture, and I'll let you down." My scanner picked up her eyes and her chest. I was hoping to identify it. "Hold very still…" My scanner was almost done.
Then, my scanner was out of my hands as her foot had almost smashed into my face. My scanner went flying aside, and I heard the familiar tink of glass shattering.
"What's your damage?!" The brat had probably broken the thing.
"You kidnapped my friend! Don't think I've forgotten."
"I s-s-saved your friend's life!" Damn it, my stutter was trying to get the best of me again.
"You saved her and her alone so you could play hero and get her to like you!"
"Th-th-that's not true!"
She ducked her face into her collar, suddenly looking sad. The bright colors that echoed across her cheeks seemed extinguished. "…and then you were going to leave me to die alone on some deserted moon…"
"Y-you were going t-to knock me out with a wrench." I replied very bluntly. She looked so entirely sad though, like I had something personal against her and wanted her dead myself. I looked away, leaning over to grab my scanner. "And-and I was going t-to leave you here, on this planet! I was j-just trying to get rid of you… for my own safety." I couldn't tell her anything more, not really. "I wasn't going to k-kill you."
"Well…" She sounded a little less upset. "I have important business to take care of. So get me down from here and you'll never see me again!" She was kicking her legs furiously, struggling back and forth.
"Business?" This kid seemed to have an agenda of her own. I heard a slight, splintering noise. "Hey, stop kicking so much- or you'll-"
The splint escalated to a snap and a crack, and she fell to the ground with a thud. I winced as she called out in pain.
"Sheesh…" I muttered. I walked past her. "That's your s-second wipeout today."
"Third," she corrected curtly.
"K-keeping score?" I smiled a little. "T-that's kind of s-sad…"
She sat, silently, brooding. The branch was still sticking out of her shirt, and she looked more miserable than ever.
I thought for a moment. She was in the same explosion as me, and was in bad shape too. Her arms were covered in deep gashes, a few on her neck and cheeks, and I could still see bandages around her arms and legs. Not to mention she was in that explosion to save Maggie anyway, though she probably didn't think much of the stowaway if she was willing to let her die. Geez, the kid really did have a bad day.
I moved my journal and ring, picking up my jacket. After a second, I pulled the branch from out of her dress, tossing it aside. She turned around to look at me.
"H-here," I offered. "I-it's ripped on the back, but the f-front is fine s-so…" She tenderly reached out a hand and stroked the jacket's edge. "…I m-mean, you need it more than I do, is what I'm s-saying…" I took in a breath as I handed it to her. "…to c-cover up whatever that th-thing on your chest is."
"Thank you," she mumbled as she pulled it on. She really was just a kid caught up in a mess, wasn't she?
I didn't know what mess yet, though.
I pulled my journal aside, flipping through it until I came to an empty page. When I glanced back at her, she was fiddling with my ring. "H-having fun?" I asked blandly.
"Oh! Sorry," She mumbled, handing back over to me. "Why don't you wear it on your finger like a normal person?"
"It d-doesn't fit me," I replied frankly, slipping it around my neck. "B-besides, why do you care? I th-thought you had 'business' to take care of?"
"I'm mentally preparing myself for it," she replied angrily, shoving the odd pair of glasses onto her head. I hadn't seen her with those glasses before. Did something happen to her eyes in the explosion, and the weird Doctor had to give her lenses? I hoped not, I didn't need that on my conscience.
"Actually, I've been wondering something since I met you. How is it I never saw you in class?" I was doodling a picture of her, as I couldn't take an actual picture. I gave her angry eyebrows for emphasis. "Were you held back or something?"
I chewed on the end of my pencil for a moment, glancing over the picture. "No… I just skipped class a lot… I'm sixteen."
"You don't look sixteen." She pulled back a stray lock of hair behind her ear.
"Heh, y-yeah?" I chuckled. "Well, neither do you."
"That's cus I'm not sixteen, I'm fifteen."
"You look twelve," I remarked as I slapped my journal shut.
She sighed. "I don't have time for this. I'm done with being ridiculed." I hadn't mentioned that she started it as she brushed off what was left of her dress. "I've got super important things to take care of, and they don't involve bickering with old nerds like you." I gave her a skeptical look as she brushed her hair back. Dang, her hair went nearly to her knees. It was easy brushing Raven's or Crow's hair, as it was short and thin, but her hair looked like something you would see on a commercial, with thick brown locks, shining red in the sun.
She started to wander away, until all I could see was her hair. "I'm sure there's an old shipyard somewhere on this planet…"
Wait. She was just a kid. "H-hey! Wait!" I stood up, brushing myself off. "You know this p-planet has m-miles of dense forests, right? V-very few live here. Even a "d-dangerous alien" like you will die trying to find a port at the end of them."
She turned around, very slowly. "Yeah? Well you wanna know what else I am beside a dangerous alien?" She turned full around. "I'm Ava. Ava Ire."
Her face suddenly lit up bright gold and crimson, like molten slag shifting underneath her skin. Her eyes flashed from burgundy to fire, flashing yellows and burning orange. "And I can't die, got it pal?!" The words sounded so raw and angry that I physically couldn't come up with a witty reply.
"G-got it," I muttered. Hot damn, that was actually pretty cool. "Your f-face says it all."
Her hand reached up to touch her cheek, and it was bright and glowing as well. I didn't notice the shifting magma under her skin a second ago, but now it seemed impossible to ignore. "My face?" She probably didn't know that she looked like a molten volcano.
"Whatever… just…" both her hands rested on her face, and I watched in fascination as her eyes seemed to shimmer several shades, back to their normal red. "If you see Maggie again, tell her I said goodbye, and to hang you on a very high branch."
"Th-that's right…" I muttered. "Maggie…" I had nearly forgotten about her in finding Ava with her abilities.
"H-hey, Ava!" I called out.
"What now?!" She asked, another blush spreading across her cheeks. I planted my hand on her shoulder, so she would stop. She was really hot though, like her skin was burning. I had to draw back a moment later.
"D-did you always know Maggie could do that?"
"Do what?"
"Th-the branch thing, w-with her arms. I th-thought maybe sh-she had confided in you how she does that, exactly?"
"No, she didn't. I never knew she could do that. That was the first time I saw it, actually…" She trailed off, quieter. "I guess… she's not as human as I thought she was." I noticed her fingers trace the wooden block on her chest slowly. It looked like her agenda had just got a lot more interesting.
"There you both are!" I turned in surprise; I forgot about the weird blue doctor. He panted a few times, and I was extremely unimpressed with him. "Sorry about that, I'm a bit out of sorts." He glanced over to Ava, who was covering her chest with my coat. "You're quite the escape artist, Ava. I was afraid you would disappear completely."
She must have snuck out of somewhere. I didn't mention she was planning on bolting away if it weren't for her sudden agenda change involving Maggie.
"I uh, needed air?"
"I must be frank with you both, I am very late for a previous engagement and need to leave immediately." He handed me my boots, and I slipped them on eagerly. My socks were covered in a fine layer of dirt, and I would need to change them later. I didn't want to think about the puddle of blood I had trod through beside Ava's shoes earlier. I hoped that wasn't her blood, though it seemed inevitable.
How bad did she get it in the explosion?
"G-good, you can take us to my home planet, and we'll be out of your hair."
"Us?" Ava echoed back to me with distain.
"I…I'm sorry?" This guy was pretty dense. Also blue. That's not weird.
"Y-you have a ship, don't you? M-my planet is not far f-from here. Y-you can drop us off, c-can't you?"
"I'm sorry," he said aloud, offering out a blue hand. His nails were white. He was most obviously an alien. "I don't think I've quite gotten your name yet?"
"I-it's Odin," I replied dryly. This guy has been hospitable enough, why cut back now?
"Oh! Well, yes, Odin, my name's Gil."
There was no way I was going to shake his hand. This guy rubbed me the wrong way, though I have no idea why. It's better to trust my instinct.
"Yes, well, about the ship, I know you'd like to be going home, but it's programmed to TITAN's headquarters." I blanked out after that. It made sense now, the weird blue skin, the tacky hospitality.
"Titan?" Ava asked. She sounded nervous, and for good reason.
"Titan?" I asked as well.
"Yes. I'm a follower of Titan."
I pulled out my pipe. I needed a smoke, immediately. If Ava's sudden alienage and the stress of crashing the ship wasn't enough, this guy took the cake. "O-oh, you're Titan's cult. That explains a lot."
"Excuse me?"
Ava cut in before something could start, and I was grateful for that. The guy seemed way to chipper to hold his own proper in a fight anyhow. Ava asked a few questions, before declaring that she would follow Gil.
The weird doctor fish guy.
"Wh-?! To a c-cult meeting?" I was surprised. Ava didn't seem the sort to follow weird people, but then again, that's how I met her.
Unless this was a part of her hidden agenda.
They both wandered away, chit chatting, leaving me alone. I stood there a moment, before gesturing to the air with obvious confusion. What the hell, I thought, perplexed. Ava had been abducted by the same Titan, right?
"Odin? Coming with us?" He sounded way too happy. I looked down to my scanner, furiously, looked back to the ship, which seemed excited by then attention and a bit of glass fell down, and I sighed.
"Y-yeah, I guess I'm coming," I grunted back, pulling the pipe out from its wedge between my teeth.
"Excellent!" When could I hit this guy?
"I'm sure they have a real service sh-ship I could get back home on."
"Or perhaps," Gil split the air with an extended finger dramatically, "Titan could help you find a righteous path and-"
"S-spare me," I interrupted, emptying my pipe against my palm. I didn't need Titan's propaganda preaching in my face the whole way to HQ.
I tucked the pipe back into my pocket as we meandered over to the ship. For a little while I decided to brood, but it didn't make me feel any better, unlike it did with Crow or Raven, so I thought to look at the flora. Gil had a fence made of plant vines. It was interesting, but a bit too "white picket fence" for my taste.
I glanced back to his house as we approached the ship. He was prattling more what-all about Titan, and Ava replied with a meek "Is that so?" She was sweating. I rolled my eyes, twirling a finger about the side of my head. He's crazy, I gestured.
Ava shrugged helplessly, which meant she knew too.
Which confirmed my theory, she did have a plan, for something.
"You two make yourselves comfortable, I'll be right back! Maggie might be awake, if you want to check." Gil sped off, back to his creepy white plaster house.
Ava popped her collar, muttering "Maggie," under her breath. She was going to check something, but I spent a few good minutes admiring the horrible propaganda plastered on the ship.
You could barely see any metal gleam of the ship with all the posters stuck everywhere. It went from smiling children to eternal damnation with every step.
Titan. I scoffed.
After a moment I decided to follow Ava, and see if Maggie was awake. Also to ask Ava if she had a hidden plan of some sort-
Ava was sighing, looking up Maggie's shirt.
I felt a blush creeping up on my cheeks, though it was in no way as bright as Ava's. Hers was turning atomic orange again.
"A-am I… I-interrupting anything…?" I could feel the heat in my cheeks scouring over to my ears. Ava had a way of making things awkward.
"It's not what it looks like!"
Well, that was a relief. On the upside, this was a perfect time to tease her.
"I-is that what those gl-glasses are for?" I leaned down. "X-ray glasses?" Her face was glowing by this point, and I could feel the heat from where I was sitting.
"F-for looking under people's clothes?" I whispered. The magma under her face shifted, making it look like fire was searing up her neck.
She planted her hands over her mouth, and I could see the hot slag coming up her throat. I hadn't intended to make her throw up, but it was comical to watch.
I looked on fondly as she struggled not to release fire or magma or whatever was going to pour from her mouth into the ship. She suddenly lurched forward, and the skin on her neck was so hot it started to singe the collar of my coat. Ava swallowed, and a plume of smoke and ash came out when she exhaled coughing. Her eyes were still glowing though, and she glared at me from where I sat, fiery gold's and crimson against my maroon and indigo.
I was definitely looking forward to this ride.