Chapter Fourteen
Faas opened his eyes realizing that he had fallen asleep and rubbed their corners gently with his free hand. His head motioned to Gallo who was still flying the ship. She was silent as usual, not acknowledging his presence or anyone else's for that matter. Faas looked around the ship from the seat he was in and saw the outside. Space was big and he had no idea where they were. They were about to pass an artificial moon to the left and coming up closely in front was a green colored planet. There were some ships that flew by of various sizes and shapes. The planet was alive considering things were coming to and from it; things floated around it but it was just strange looking to Faas.
"Where are we?" he finally asked after a moment of silent contemplation.
"We're far from Reiggel. It's a backwater solar system called Nettah. We're going to Yuli."
"Yuli?"
"Never heard of it?" Gallo smirked under her mask. "There's a good reason for that."
"Is where you're taking us even safe?"
"It's safe enough. We just have to be careful there. But it's the only place that people of the law don't go to look or to interrogate anyone."
"So, then you go here often?"
"Yeah. I've been living here, actually." She sighed. "The only reason I was on Sepria was because—"
"—You were on Sepria?" he said shocked cutting the woman short. "What were you doing back there? I mean, what were you even still doing in Reiggel?"
"I was about to tell you…"
Faas looked down with his eyes and turned his head away.
"I went to Sepria because I wanted to see my parents. I knew I wasn't going to get caught. I've been keeping myself disguised for years. Anyway, I just wanted to know that they were still okay."
"…Were they?"
"Yeah…"
Both fell silent and Gallo continued to pilot the ship toward the planet. The others were still quietly asleep in the back and Arlis was still in the small room. He was awake but wouldn't dare leave until they needed to get out of the ship. Up front, Faas could only continue to watch the planet grow bigger and bigger. The place (viewed from in space) appeared swamp-like just by all the green colors. In actuality the whole planet itself was diverse and varied in different types of topography. Where they were going, however, was much of a swamp. Yuli, that remained to be the name of the city—or place—they were visiting. Vozik was the name of the planet. It had a reputation for being a place that anyone can go to when things were rough with their own reputations. Yuli was especially a place for such activity like smugglings or illegal trades. Any member of the Pangalactic Federation knew to never tread the precarious lands of Vozik. All things aside, it was considered a great place for pirates to rendezvous—another reason never to stick the law in where it doesn't belong. Despite this, Gallo believed that traveling to Yuli would give them resources that could aid in Femka's return to Earth. Now that they had Arlis Marlow the translator's chances of finding home were greatly increased. But it still remained the angst and awkwardness. Granted, Ratchet succeeded to his end of the deal by bringing Faas to Gallo and now there wasn't anything tying them all together. They all got what they wanted form each other. But Gallo was bitter. Just knowing that Arlis was aboard her ship made her angry to the point of wanting to drive them all right into a star. She hated him. And now she had to be around him. Gallo tried to focus her attention on the present as they began to descend unto Vozik.
The ship bounced for a minute as it broke through a few clouds. Femka's eyes opened after the small jolt and examined the hull of the ship sleepily wondering in her thoughts what was going on. She felt the weight of Ratchet's head resting on her as she finally noticed she had fallen asleep on him and at the same time felt his arm loosely wrapped around her. Her reaction would have been more surprised had she not been trying to wake up still; but in any case it made her nervous to be this close. Though, simultaneously, it was just what she wanted. Femka decided to side with her lustful feelings and didn't push him away. Her eyes focused on the space in front of her view and she let her thoughts take over. They ranged from that dream she had awhile back to some small reoccurring fantasies she had created from time to time and then to the small kiss she gave him the other day. Her cheeks were turning red again. Femka's daydreaming was interrupted by another bump in the ship causing her to grab onto Ratchet out of nervous reflex. The woman loosened up her grip when she heard him make a sound as if he was beginning to wake up. She finally let go of him and sat up straight in her seat to prevent any forthcoming awkwardness she might encounter while still grappled onto Ratchet when he awoke. The Lombax blinked his eyes slowly and rubbed them tiredly with a yawn as Femka watched him out of the corner of her eye. The mechanic stretched out his arms and legs remaining in his seat. The ride was long and sitting in the same spot the whole time was tedious. He turned his head to Femka with his arms stretched over his head and smiled only yawning after. Femka chuckled and yawned back having caught the disease. The woman noticed the scenery that was around them as the ship was readying itself for landing. Her head turned to look out the small window that was next to her and Ratchet by their seats and saw the tall trees from below. The area was all green. It was like a giant bog or something. The buildings were built on top of the water below, each supported on some platform using bridges from the trees to help connect them together. She wondered where Gallo would be able to land but to her surprise as the ship swiftly sank through the tall trees she could see a platform surrounded by the murky, green water and only assumed that that was their landing pad. It was turning to night and the pathway was lit by lights stringed up on the bridges and houses and placed on the small platforms on top of the water. Gallo was successful to land the ship smoothly on the tiny platform beneath them. She took off her seatbelt stood up from her chair.
"How do you feel?"
"My arm hurts a lot…" Faas grunted adjusting himself in the chair.
"We'll find you a doctor after we stop at my place for a minute."
Gallo gently helped her friend out of his seat and the two began to walk to the other end of the ship. The masked woman saw Ratchet and Femka awake and looked to the door briefly only turning away pressing some buttons on the side of the ship's interior to open up the door. Ratchet glanced at the bedroom door as well assuming that Arlis had still been in there the whole time. His ear twitched and his stare rotated to Clank who was sound asleep in the place next to the mechanic. Ratchet knocked on the little robot's head like it was a door and his eyes opened with a spin. Clank's arms and legs extended from being compacted into his little body and he looked up at his smiling friend who motioned with his eyes they were ready to leave. Clank saw Gallo and Faas standing by the now opening side door while Ratchet stood up taking the backpack which contained Femka's belongings and swung it over his shoulder. Femka got up as well and Clank hopped off of his chair and the two walked to the door. Ratchet started to walk towards the door but looked back at the bedroom entrance and took a few steps in its direction, knocking on the metal frame. Gallo looked back but exited the vessel anyway. Faas followed whimsically behind her.
"Mister Arlis?" he said with a spiked pitch in his voice. "We're here. You can come out now."
Ratchet's ears could pick up any small sound that was close by. He heard through the thickness of the door the man that was shuffling about. It opened revealing Arlis with a tired look about him. His whole visage was old and exhausted. That man had been through a lot in the many years of his exile on Fortum. He left the room and sighed heavily. Femka looked at him while standing behind Ratchet and felt sorry for the man. He looked like a wreck; also he had to confront two people whom he hadn't seen in ages who didn't seem interested in even looking at him. She felt bad because she needed him. She needed Arlis's help despite the problems between him and Gallo and Faas. The four left the vessel, the door shutting behind them, their feet touching the hard surface and their eyes glancing at the new world around them. Gallo and Faas were standing underneath a lamp post talking quietly as the others approached them finally. Gallo turned to their direction unpredictable behind her mask.
"Follow me," she said plain and walked on.
The platform they were on split into bridges going in four directions. As they walked on the bridge it began to elevate over the water and into the trees. It was an interesting set up. The place looked old-fashioned but supplementary technologies would say otherwise. There were ships flying above the tall, thick trees which hung down like gigantic weeping willows and the people who walked about the bridges and hung around the buildings were of different races, all appearing questionable with the looks they would give as the group passed on by. Femka caught the eyes of some aliens watching them and eyeing her when she walked near them. A man who looked like some cross between an Agorian and a pig smirked at her and cackled when Femka shot a bothered and disturbed look back at him. She found herself pressed against Ratchet's side after the moment passed. The mechanic looked at the worried woman who wrapped her arm within his continuing to cautiously watch the people around her and pulled her closer whispering in her ear.
"I know exactly what you're thinking," he said briefly watching the aliens stare at them. "Just don't look at them."
"I'm pretty sure this is one reason why Gallo is so stern," Femka whispered back. "She has to put up with these weirdos."
"Let's just stick close by her for now," Ratchet said hurrying them closer to Gallo who walked in front of them.
Arlis was following slowly behind as Gallo lead the group around for a few minutes until they finally made it to a dome like building with a tower stacked on top that was built around one of the trees. There was a small gang of aliens chatting amongst one another as the group came to the dome. One of them looked as he smoked a cigar and puffed a ring of smoke out of his mouth. His body was covered in dark brown scales and his entourage seemed to be the same species as him.
"Gallo," the man sniveled with a raspy voice as the woman approached the door. "Long time no see." He smiled with a light chuckle and a cough.
"Get out of the way," she demanded sharply.
The lizard-like creature chuckled again ignoring her order and his friends laughed as well.
"Who're your friends?" he hissed with a smile.
"None of your business, now get out of my way."
Gallo stepped forward pushing the man out by force and he stumbled back chocking on the smoke of his cigar.
"You owe me this month's rent, princess." The man coughed.
"You'll get it."
The lizard's eyes narrowed and his upper lip twitched at the woman's disregard for personal business. She didn't pay much attention to him as she put a card through a scanner by the side of the building's door. The door opened and she began walking inside. The others watched her uncertain of the instance that just randomly happened and slowly followed behind her as the aliens scrutinized them until the door closed leaving them outside.
"Financial problems, huh?" Ratchet said breaking the silence as they followed Gallo.
"He owns this structure. I haven't been here in a while… My rent is behind schedule."
Gallo lead them to a lift that would lead them up to another level. Everyone entered silently—all except for Arlis.
"Are you not coming with us, Mister Marlow?" Clank asked as Gallo entered the information in the elevator.
"I'll wait down here…," he said quietly.
Before Clank could say another word the doors closed and the lift ascended. They stepped out after they reached the mid-section of the complex. The woman led them to a door with the numbers "908" written on it in whatever language this region used. By this point, everyone's guess was this place was just an apartment complex. There were shady characters walking around even on the inside of the place. Femka couldn't wait until Gallo opened up that door so she could feel less paranoid. The masked woman stepped inside and the door spiraled open revealing her home. It seemed tidy enough despite not being taken care of for the past month or so. Gallo allowed the others to enter as she opened the windows to her stuffy apartment living room letting the sounds and lights from the outside fill the area. Faas stared at everything in the room where they all stood. She did say she'd been living in Yuli since her escape from prison. Gallo managed to collect many things since then. It looked somewhat homey but something about it didn't feel that way. Probably because of her attitude and the overall atmosphere of the situation at hand. Gallo turned around and stared at the group in front of her who all looked back at her awkwardly awaiting her next stipulation.
"I need to treat Faas to some Nanotech," Gallo spoke up suddenly. "In the meantime, you can stay here and rest wherever. And don't go in my room," she said pointing to a door on the left side of the room they were in.
Faas followed her hand which pointed to the forbidden bedroom and his eyes went back on his uncompromising friend who approached him.
"Let's go. We shouldn't wait for something like this much longer."
"Right…" Faas sighed looked at his injured arm that rested in its temporary sling.
"Before I go," Gallo said looking at the others, "if you leave the room, here's an extra keycard." She tossed the card at Ratchet after pulling it out of a compartment from within her attire.
The two left the room and Femka stared at Ratchet somewhat worried.
"Maybe we should go back for Arlis. You didn't tell him the whole story yet, right?"
"Yeah, good point. I did tell him I'd explain everything when we were settled." He sighed fiddling with the card in his fingers.
"We should hurry. I do not believe it is safe to leave Mister Marlow by himself." Clank blinked his eyes at his friend.
Ratchet nodded and let his feet take him to the door which they came through. He placed the card in one of his pockets as the three of them entered back onto the lift. When they reached the bottom floor they saw Arlis leaving the complex. The bag that was still hung over Ratchet's shoulder slumped down his arm as he ran after the old man.
"Hey, hey! Wait!" he said running behind the man pushing Femka's backpack up again. "Where're you going?"
The old researcher looked back and shook his head with a small shrug seeing Ratchet, Femka and Clank behind him.
"Well," he began, "I just wanted to look around."
"…Oh." Ratchet seemed surprised at his response. "Don't you think that's dangerous, going by yourself?"
Arlis smiled making a small laugh causing the Lombax to tilt his head at the gesture.
"You're right."
"How about we just find a seemingly safe place to get some refreshments? I owe you an explanation after all." Ratchet scratched his neck.
"Alright, Ratchet," Arlis nodded slowly. "I'd like see just what I'm getting myself into."
Ratchet smiled lightly at Arlis's sense of adventure the group found themselves in moments wondering the dark bridges of Yuli. Undoubtedly they'd get lost eventually but thank science for the advanced technology that was packed inside the small device known as the nav-unit. Unfortunately, no one knew anything about the planet other than that it was a spot of illegal activists. Every time they walked past an open shop they would get stares. Either they knew they were foreigners or that's just how the people on Vozik lived, in complete suspicion. After some point they decided on whatever just looked safe enough. There was a small restaurant (much like the one on Sepria) which they picked. It was dark like any other place they'd seen so far and the atmosphere remained the same to the overall theme of the city. Naturally they were stared at by some of the aliens that were sitting at their own tables but the looks didn't last very long. Femka's eyes glanced around the room seeing an empty spot somewhere in the middle and pointed over Ratchet's shoulder to it. A small light hung over the table in a decorative fashion and as soon as they sat down they were greeted by a server of the joint who had four arms, one eye and a face like a squid. His presence took Femka by surprise as she tried to hide her shocked expression by looking the other way. The man didn't seem to be fazed at all and proceeded to ask them of their desires. None of them knew the menu and one of them wasn't capable of eating, so the house special was appropriate. The server described the meal as something like a fish that they catch from the body of water that surrounds them. Femka wasn't too sure about the whole idea considering said body of water was just a swamp. But she was hungry. The waiter left their table and Ratchet looked over to Arlis who sat across from him. It was time to get to business.
"Well, I guess I should start," Ratchet began with a small scratch of his ear.
Arlis's glance fixed on the Lombax.
"Remember when I showed you that necklace that I was wearing earlier? I said it belonged to Femka."
"Yes, I remember."
"It's the reason why she's here. You see, when some group of pirates broke into a museum on Igliak they took a heavy sample of Neroltrium. Nobody really knew what it was yet, except for the pirates, which was why they went after it, and Clank I, on a whim, chased them down. We located the pirate ship and found the stone. It was like the size of Clank's head. This pirate said she wanted to use it for its powers. And she did. But she failed. Her ship's computer overloaded and something weird happened. As the ship was exploding, Clank and I ran back to my ship and we tried to fly away but we couldn't. Some kind of wormhole was created and it trapped us inside and took us to a different place. It took us to Femka's galaxy where we were hurled onto her planet. We met her there and that Neroltrium rock landed there with us. When she approached it, it reacted to her, because she was wearing that necklace. It sent all of us back through the wormhole—long story short—and gave Femka an interesting ability. Now she has the same properties as that stone. But the one the pirates stole is back on Earth."
Arlis had the most curious expression about his face. He looked to Femka almost to see if what the mechanic was saying was true and she nodded her head rapidly.
"That's not all. Like I said, it's big story. A lot has happened since she got here. But to put it short, she has to find a way home. Clank gave us a theory that it could be possible to use her stone or her power to open up another wormhole that might bring her back to her galaxy. But…"
"The location," Arlis finished. "You want to know how to get the exact coordinates."
"Yeah, exactly. Is any of that possible?"
"Of course, Ratchet." The old man looked down with a small smile and a sigh. "This was my life. I studied for what seemed like eons about this material and what it was capable of." He stared back at the three. "Do you know the story of the Great Oppressor?"
Femka immediately nodded her head again.
"I do. Well, I know a lot about it. Ipsin was the one who told me."
"Ipsin?" Arlis strained his eyes to see her. "You… were acquainted with Ipsin?"
"That's a part of the long story Ratchet was telling you. After I stayed on Igliak for a little bit I ran into him. We became friends and then he used me. He found out about my necklace and then he found out about my ability."
Arlis looked down once more shaking his head slowly. He knew Ipsin wouldn't have changed even if he did survive that long and escape Reiggel.
"In the end, he told me all about Sergua and his master plan and Ipsin wanted to relive it. But he failed, too, and his ship went down. Ratchet and Clank saved me and after that explosion; we're all pretty certain that he didn't make it out alive…"
"So… He's actually dead…?"
Arlis stared at the table, his hands resting on his lap. What was going through him was the strangest feeling. Ipsin was a man that Arlis thought he could trust but that was a long time ago. After his corruption everything that happened was thrust onto the old researcher's shoulders. Because Ipsin brought Arlis into temptation he cursed himself for the rest of his life. Knowing that Ipsin was dead should have made him happy. But it didn't. Granted it didn't stop him from trying, though.
"I can't believe it…"
"That's what Faas thought, too," Ratchet said.
"I assume he told you everything, also?" Arlis glanced at the Lombax that only nodded his head slowly to the question. "I don't think he'll ever forgive me. I think especially the same for Gallo. It's obvious she has a grudge. She has every right to."
The awkwardness was swept around the table as they were all silent until Arlis realized it and decided to speak up again.
"Well, now that that's all out of the way, I guess you'll be wanting my expertise?" He watched them all again and sighed through his nose. "I have a theory."
Each of them looked intensely at the old researcher waiting for his proposal.
"I can assume that one theory you had, Clank, was if Femka's galaxy was even in this universe?"
"That is correct," the robot answered blinking his green eyes.
"Your stone, Femka, though not originally from your planet, made it to your planet somehow. We won't excuse the fact that Neroltrium has some strange cosmic abilities but we could say that during Sergua's destruction some of the material found its way to your planet over the years. Maybe by a comet, maybe by some other space debris, who knows? But it's a possible theory that could state that your galaxy is in our universe as well."
Femka smiled faintly agreeing with his assessment.
"Wandering space just to find where you live would be impossible—especially with that small probability that your home isn't in our universe. So, we must figure out a way to create a wormhole, or teleporter, which could directly transport you home. Our problem is that we don't have the coordinates of your planet."
"Wait a minute," Ratchet interrupted. "What if we kind of have the coordinates to her planet?"
"Kind of?"
"When we crashed on Earth my nav-unit recorded our location automatically. It didn't recognize where we were but it still gave me some numbers."
The elderly man had a curious look about him. He was pondering heavily about it all and the details on his face only showed it more.
"With your coordinates and a sample of the Neroltrium which you have it could be possible to build a device much like a teleporter that could lead to her home. But I can't be too certain of how good the results will be. It's very dangerous…"
"But it is possible, right?" Ratchet asked with a perk of his eyebrows.
"Yes. But I don't have the resources anymore to make things like this. I can't go back to my lab—I'm sure it's long gone—and I just can't go back period." He sighed sitting back in his chair.
Ratchet looked down at Clank who sat beside him with a quirky smile. Clank tapped his chin and glanced back at the old Remilien.
"Mister Marlow, you are more than just a researcher, correct?"
"Yes."
"You are a technician as well?"
"I am."
"And an engineer?"
He nodded.
"So, then it is possible for you to make sure a device?"
He again nodded to confirm Clank's question.
"Then you do not need to worry about a facility from where you must work or materials of which you may need for creating this device. We will offer our facilities to you."
"Your facilities?" Arlis was rather shocked at the offer and the fact they could have the proper resources for his mental idea.
"Yes. Ratchet is a rocket mechanic and we have lived in various locations giving us more than enough resources lying about. If there is something that you need for this creation then I am sure we have it available."
"And if not we can probably get it," Ratchet added with a smile. "So, will you do it?"
The man looked at three across the table gathering the hope they all had on their faces.
"I'll do it," he finally spoke.
Femka smiled hearing him agree but inside she couldn't keep the sadness down. This only meant she would be gone from this place sooner. However, her smile stayed when Ratchet looked at her happily from the news. There was one thing that pushed Ratchet's smile away, though.
"We have to find a ship to get off of this planet."
"Do you not suggest that we ask Gallo?" Clank questioned.
"We don't owe her anymore favors and she doesn't really owe us anything either. Besides, I don't know if it's a good idea to have her around with Arlis."
"But how else will we get a ship? I do not believe you have an infinite source of income, Ratchet."
"I know, I know. I'm almost broke…" Ratchet sighed placing his elbows on the table and resting his chin in the palms of his hands.
"We do not have many options. We must at least attempt to ask Gallo if she would be willing. Perhaps we can give her compensation when we reach our destination."
"Alright. We'll ask. But," Ratchet paused looking at Arlis, "is it alright with you?"
"I survived one trip, I can survive another." The old Remilien swallowed his pride.
Femka stared at Arlis for a moment before noticing the strange waiter from before coming back to their table with their orders. She looked at her lap and thought about what the future held for her—and for Arlis. From all these stories that she heard she could only think that Arlis really wasn't who he used to be. He changed a lot since his younger years; that much she could assume by herself. Femka shifted her glasses bringing her attention back to the food that was just placed down in front of her. Well, it did look like a fish, some kind of fish. Smelled like a fish, too. Femka prodded it with her utensil and picked up a small portion placing it under her nose then into her mouth. The stuff they glazed the fish over with melted on her tongue. This meal was one of the better things she had encountered on her galactic journey. Femka wondered if Ratchet felt the same. He seemed to have peculiar taste buds. Arlis dug into his food regardless of whether he liked fish or not. For him, this was the first true meal he had eaten in decades. To Femka's curiosity, Ratchet appeared contented with the meal. The young woman went back to eating her own food and when she was finished the reality of her tiredness came tumbling down as the food in her stomach made her full. Femka leaned back into her chair until the others had finished. Before long Ratchet was graced with the check which was followed by a subsequent grumble. The group left their table after paying and walked outside into the night. Arlis stopped following behind them and looked out into the distance standing on one of the many bridges.
"You three can go on ahead of me," he said.
They all turned around curiously.
"Is that a very wise idea, Mister Marlow?" Clank asked concerned.
"I don't think anyone will bother me. Look at me," he tugged at his tattered clothes and wiggled his bare feet. "I'll be fine."
"Do you remember where Gallo's place is?" Ratchet added.
"I'll find it again. Just go on." He practically showed them away with his hand.
The mechanic shrugged and turned around beginning to walk again. Femka followed as did Clank. The little robot stopped, looking back at Arlis who just leaned against the bridge.
"Ratchet, I will stay with him. I do not believe he will find the way back to Gallo's apartment by himself. At least I can give him directions." Clank turned around and walked back to the old man.
"Sure, whatever you say pal." Ratchet smiled and continued onward with Femka.
Arlis noticed the tiny robot approaching him and smiled lightly. It seemed like intelligent things needed to be with each other. Clank respected the researcher as a man of knowledge and someone who made mistakes. He was curious about him and genuinely concerned for the man.
"Come to keep me company?"
"Yes and I am certain that you will be lost without my help."
Arlis chuckled lightly coughing after he did so. He looked out into the city. There were speckles of light all around from the windows of people's homes or shops or from the bride decorations. The trees that stood in the way also added an interesting touch to the effect. Clank looked into the distance with him. Beneath them were several more layers of the city and above them was just the same.
"I almost forgot what being around people was like. It's been so long… All I had on that planet was me."
"How did you manage survival so well?"
"I guess I was lucky. I ran into a lot of terrible things on that planet." He sighed. "It only made me feel like I deserved it all, though, after what I've done."
"I do not believe that your past deeds were horrible, Mister Marlow. In sight of relativism, what happened was circumstantial. You cannot blame yourself for every consequence. After all, there were many variables in your life that interfered with your own judgment."
Arlis stared down at the small being beside him with somewhat of a blank expression covering his face.
"In sight of logic," he began with a smile growing, "you have a point."
Clank peered up at him in modesty slowly blinking his big, green eyes with a turn of the aperture-like shutters that were his eyelids. Arlis knew the sentient robot was right. All the old man could think about after the incident was the greatest error of his life. But even Clank knew that whatever he had done couldn't be changed now; and what he hadn't done couldn't be helped. The aged Remilien turned his view back to another bridge that was across from them and rested against the railing in front of him.
"You know, for what the so called reputation of this place is, this city seems to be thriving." He pondered. "Then again, successful criminals seem to make it off pretty well in this universe."
"Times still have not changed since your last galactic retrospect."
"I didn't think so."
As the two stood there over the hours, people that walked around at night became fewer. Most of the time they stood by that bridge it was in complete silence; but when there wasn't silence they were only getting to know each other more by mere idle chitchat. Arlis let out a yawn which he covered up with his hand.
"Would you care to return home now?"
"I suppose we should. I don't want to sleep out here, though it's still an improvement from my cave," he shrugged.
Clank would be the one to give them directions back home. It really wasn't that far but the bridge system was awfully confusing for anyone without a navigational unit or some kind of map to help guide them. Arlis could see the dome like structure up ahead from where they were and the tall tower like piece that stuck out of it. Clank walked beside him and noticed that Gallo and Faas were walking toward the complex as well from a bridge somewhat above them. He could hear their talking as they night was quieter now. Arlis heard them as well and turned to their direction. Faas and Gallo couldn't see them from the angle they were at above. Their talk seemed to be rather serious. Clank stopped walking and Arlis did as well.
"How can you trust him?" Gallo said in a sharp tone.
"I never said I did. I just… He's still my uncle…"
"That shouldn't really matter anymore. Blood or not, don't you care about what happened? Don't you care what he did to you? You were thrown into a terrible place because of him!"
"It wasn't all his fault. It was Ipsin, too."
"How can you just be so forgiving all of a sudden? You've barely talked to him since you've just seen him. How can you take going to prison for so long so lightly?"
"I'm not. I've got my grudges. But I can't blame him…" Faas's tone was low and sad. His eyes didn't look at Gallo. "I've always known Arlis to not be a cruel person. What he did, was because he was under the Neroltrium's and Ipsin's influences. I know without that man none of this would have happened."
"You don't know that…" Gallo practically growled through her teeth. "His tinkering with science and resources that were banished for a reason did terrible things, Faas. You don't know… you haven't seen me in years. You don't know what I look like, what mental scars I had to go through. I lost you… for so long… You may have been in jail, in that retched facility, but I was always running away… and I never had any place to go."
Faas wanted to speak but hearing her words forced his eyes to stare down at the ground. He rolled up his sleeve to his previously broken arm to look at the scarring he received from the day of the incident when he was a young boy. Gallo's hands reached for her mask as she slowly began to pull it off. Faas turned his stare away from his arm and back to Gallo to see her face. His eyes didn't widen but his face was sympathetic. He barely remembered what Gallo's scarred face looked like after such a long time but when he saw it again it sent a wave of chills down his spine. She stared back at him with a quivering lip. Most of her face was disfigured. Her eyes remained intact although no eyelashes would ever grow. Her lips were half scarred and the rest of face looked as if she suffered from third degree burns. Her hair didn't grow in some spots beyond her crown. She continued to stare at him as tears began to fall down her face.
"Why is it that he can be okay but I have to suffer? Why?" she cried inhaling with a sniff of her nose as her tears streamed down her ridged cheeks. "I can never feel normal… I'm… Look at me!" She chocked, her mask falling to the ground.
Faas only stared for barely a second longer and stretched out his arms placing his hands against her cheeks and wiped her tears away with his thumbs. His eyes peered right into hers.
"You are normal," he said softly.
Gallo pressed her hand over Faas's and gasped out more sobs and tears until her voice was muffled by his lips pushing against her own. Her eyes were wide but gradually they relaxed as her voice lowered and her tears slowed down. Faas didn't take his lips away for a little while and when he did he kept her close in an embrace. Gallo's head slid under his chin and her face pressed into his neck. Her arms were limp for a second but soon the wrapped tightly around him.
"I still think you're beautiful." He held her close. "No matter what you look like on the outside, you'll always be the person I've loved the most."
Arlis felt his heart sink as he listened below. His hand grabbed at his chest as he stared at the ground underneath him.
"Oh, Clank…," he said in a whisper. "Look what I've done to her. I could never redeem myself of any of this."
"You cannot always expect or request redemption. The proof is already there."
Arlis exhaled deeply feeling more beyond guilt and shame than he ever did before. He didn't want to feel so many burdens but at the same time he felt like he deserved every punishment that was thrown at him. Up atop the bridge Gallo finally lifted her head from Faas's comfort and stared up at him and he continued to push her tears away.
"You love me…, even though… I look like this…?"
"It doesn't matter to me. You look the same like when I remember you when I first met you."
"Faas…" She sniffled letting another tear slid down her face. "You were always so accepting. I wish I could be like you…" Her voice whispered and shook.
"I am the way I am, because I learned from good people," he spoke softly. "Besides, you still accept me, even though you know who I accept and forgive myself."
Gallo stared into his eyes. What he said set her back. He was absolutely right. She would always love and accept Faas, no matter what. Arlis was his uncle but she still loved the man standing in front of her. Faas practically vocalized that he forgave his uncle but she still loved him even though she couldn't forgive Arlis.
"Faas, I… I want some time to be alone. Just for tonight." The woman reached in her pocket to pull out her key for her room. "Take this. I'll be back by sunrise."
He took the card in his hand and looked at Gallo who picked up her mask from the ground. She stared at the object putting it back on her face and covering up the rest of her head as well. She turned around and started off in the direction they came from but took another path. Faas watched her walk away and slowly paced himself back to the front of the apartment complex. He saw Arlis and Clank approaching as well. Arlis stopped nearby the front door and Faas saw the guilt on his face. He wondered if his uncle had overheard the conversation just now. He looked down at Clank who gestured a sympathetic look for the sake of Arlis. Faas sighed and opened his mouth.
"Clank, we'll be inside shortly. Take my key."
As Clank came forward he took the small card from Faas and blinked up at him.
"I assumed as much."
Fass couldn't help but smile at his comment as he saw the robot off into the front door. He seemed to know a lot for such a small, mechanical being. Soon his glance came back to his old uncle. Faas wasn't sure what he would say and the same went for Arlis. The young Remilien walked closer to his kin and they were now face to face.
"Uncle Arlis," Faas broke the silence. "I don't hate you." He stared him in the eyes. "I've been through hell these past however many years it's been, but you're not the man I hate." He exhaled deeply. "You used to be. But since then I've had lots of time to think."
"Faas, if I could go back in time and stop myself from meeting—"
"—I know you would. That's the uncle that I remember. I know you're not a bad person. I forgive you."
Arlis only stared at his nephew before the young man threw himself to an embrace with him. Arlis instinctively wrapped his arms around Faas holding him as tight as he could. A small tear escaped the corner of his eye while he stood there. Faas let go of his uncle and looked at his tired face. For once, he felt good. He didn't appear to look good, but on the inside he felt at peace. This was an inner demon that had to be exorcised and finally Faas was able to do it. As for Arlis, he felt nearly the same. When Faas showed him a small smile he only gave one back. The two of them looked like they'd both seen their fair share of pain and torment just by the way their clothes looked. But beyond all that they were stronger now.
"Um," Faas quietly began again still looking at his uncle, "maybe we should go inside."
He simply nodded his head lightly. The two walked inside, Arlis allowing his nephew the entrance first, and headed onto the lift that would take them back up to Gallo's room. They were silent during the short trip up but that didn't matter. The major issue had been resolved. When they approached the door Faas saw the cardkey slightly underneath it and picked it up and opened the door quietly. The room was dark but it wasn't too difficult to navigate around. On the left side of the room, Gallo's bedroom was behind that door. There was a couch in the living room and another room that had a guest bed opposite of Gallo's room. The masked woman gave Faas permission earlier while at the clinic to sleep in her bed. He already assumed that the others were sharing the spare bedroom.
"Will you be alright sleeping out here?" Faas asked looking at his uncle.
"I've been sleeping in a cave for the past twenty years or so. This couch will suit me just fine," Arlis said quietly as he pat the sofa with his hand and sat down.
Faas chuckled lightly and left the living room opened the door to Gallo's room. Her bedroom seemed similar in design to the rest of the place. She was a junk collector. A probable hobby that came about after all she went through. Or maybe she just liked stuff. Nevertheless, Faas plopped down on the comfy bed and sighed letting his tail wag slowly back and forth. In moments, his eyes were shut and he was out.