Chapter 9 - Setting Sail

POV: Jesse

Zenet ran past us on the stairs as I followed Sid to the attic where we got some backpacks. I noticed that Sid got two instead of one. I figured one of them was for Ren. I knew that Sid was helping Ren throughout his healing process, but he seemed to also be acting like Ren was a friend of his. Sid had always thought Ren was weak. I wondered what had changed his mind.

After we got the backpacks, we entered our room and started packing. We took a few pieces of clothing from the wardrobe and the dresser, like some jeans and shirts. I noticed Sid grabbing some clothes that were a bit small for him - the clothes the wardrobe and the dresser had were in different sizes and it was good for Grace to be prepared since she hadn't had a clue of who was bound to turn up. I then realised that the small clothes, two navy-blue jeans and two black shirts, were for Ren. Sid really was willing to help out.

As Sid put the clothes in both of the backpacks, and a grey paperback book in one of them, something fell out of his jacket pocket. Some sort of piece of paper. Although when I bent down and picked it up, I realised that it wasn't a piece of paper. But a photo. Sid was in it, along with three other Gundalians - all thin and in torn rags. I hardly recognised Sid with his noticeable cheekbones, his stained ripped clothes and his matted and slightly longer hair. But it was him.

The others Gundalians were two guys who looked a several years older than Sid, and a young teenaged girl who seemed confident despite her disheveled appearance. Both of the guys had dark hair and the same facial features; they were probably twins. And the girl looked almost like a living embodiment of a peasant girl with her dull, ragged dress and her stitched-up long-sleeved top. Even her wavy, brown hair resembled the aura of a peasant girl. Regardless of their appearances, all four of them were smiling, like they were happy.

"Sid," I said as he closed the wardrobe. "You dropped this."

I held out the photo and handed it to him. "Thanks."

"Who are they?" I asked.

"Just some old friends I used to know," he replied with a remorseful look on his face.

"You looked... different."

"Yeah, I did." He stared at the photo for a long moment, before he gingerly put it in the backpack. "I really don't want to talk about it."

Grabbing the backpacks, Sid left the room. And I followed behind him with my own backpack, wondering about the photo and who those people in the photo were. Sid was acting like he was hiding something. I wasn't sure what, but I got the feeling that it had something to do with those people, and the reason all of them were in rags.

POV: Sid

I headed downstairs to go and get Ren, with Jesse following me. When he had asked me who the people in the photo were, sadness washed over me as I remembered my old friends. I only thought about them at least a couple of times a week. I cared about them a lot, but I didn't want to think about them 24/7 because it hurt like a stab in the chest. After what had happened to them, I felt completely guilty. It was my fault. I didn't want my current to find out anything about my past, because I was scared that they'd get hurt.

But Jesse had seen the photo of my friends and how we'd looked back then. I knew that Jesse normally spoke poetically (sometimes riddleish), but I also knew that he wasn't dumb. Sure, I hadn't told him much about the photo, but he could be able to figure out some things about my past just from the rags. I probably had nothing to worry about, since I had a prick of hope that he would either keep the photo a secret or just forget about it.

I pushed the thoughts out of my head as I entered the living room. Jesse offered to take Ren's backpack to the yacht and I let him take it, knowing that I should help Ren without carrying two backpacks at the same time. I heard Jesse's footsteps existing the hall and walking out the front door. Walking towards Ren, I saw that he was already awake.

POV: Ren

"How are you feeling?" Sid asked me.

"OK, I guess," I replied. "Still feel a bit dizzy whenever I try to stand, though."

"Well, we've got to get to the boat and get out of here before the Twelve Orders come back," Sid pointed out, wrapping my arm around his neck and then helping me to my feet.

I wanted to say that I could manage, but I knew I could barely walk and I didn't want to lie - or have dust thrown in my face. I was getting dizzy already, but it wasn't as bad as it had been before.

Sid guided me to the front door and towards the back of the house where the yacht was.

My vision suddenly became blurry and I stumbled, nearly falling into the water. Sid caught me just in time an then hoisted me up over his shoulder, before jumping onto the deck of the yacht. I heard a door opening, then I blacked out.

POV: Sid

"Is Ren OK?" a voice from behind me asked the minute I walked into the yacht's living room.

"He's fine," I replied, turning to look at Lena. She looked ready to go with a backpack on her back. "He's just got dizzy. That's all. I'm just going to take him to one of the cabins."

"Good idea," Lena said. "I think we should check on him every so often during this ride."

"We should," I said. I then walked to grab hold of the bannister with my free hand, before descending slowly down the spiral staircase.

POV: Zenet

I was just up in the control room, sitting behind the metal steering wheel and getting ready to set sail. And Grace had said that was going to untie the rope around post and then go to the engine room. The control room not only had aspects of an actual control room, but also some aspects of the living room in the main deck. There was a white corner couch, along with a small wooden table.

Growing up with a couple of relatives, who steered plenty of boats, really came in handy after all. The controls for the yacht really weren't much different than the ones on the boats back on Gundalia. So it was just as easy.

I heard footsteps ascending up the stairs and I looked from behind the white chair to see that it was Grace.

"We're ready to go, and everyone's here," she said.

And with that, I pressed a few buttons on the monitor, pulled the throttle and started steering. I heard the engine humming to life as the yacht slowly distanced itself from the shore. I steered the yacht to the right and then Grace directed me to go straight.

This boat ride got awesome straight away.