Pain

Kai

Adjusting to V2 was tough. I knew he was on the ship, but it would still freak me out, seeing a metal ball floating around. His memory has issues, for sure. One minute, he knows where he is, and just exactly who he's with, and the next he's questioning everything. Piper said she'd work with him, but she might have to wipe his memory entirely. Either way, she said she would fix it.

Ecstatic that V2 got to stay on the ship with us, Piper had been non-stop observing him. All the little guy wanted to do was help out around the ship and she kept him cooped up in the lab. He was stir-crazy after the first hour. I finally managed to convince her to let him go, but that's when she gave me the news.

"I have to basically kill V2."

Stunned, I waited for an explanation.

"But it's not that simple. See, in being sedentary for so many years, parts of his memory center have been corrupted. What's holding his memories is in a sense… a messenger crystal, but not entirely. I've never seen a crystal like it. It's been grown to capture thoughts, to capture emotions, memories, actions, personalities, opinions… Maybe you can get a better grip on the crystal than I can. I have to basically reset the Memory crystal, I'll call it, and he'll lose all his memories in the process." She smiled.

"Another thing," Piper continued. "I won't let you near any crystal-related products until you get this… odd ability under control. So, I've come up with a plan." She pulled out a blueprint, smoothing it out against the table. She asked me to help keep it from rolling back up while she explained this strange device to me.

"These are crystal magnifying devices. They magnify properties of crystals, doing the job of an enhancer crystal ten-fold. These…" She pulled out another blueprint and smoothed that one out on top of the last. "These are mechanical hands I've designed to both block the power of crystals and enhance it. It's… odd, I know. I've never had to work with something like this. Don't get me wrong, I'm ecstatic to have this opportunity!"

"What are you trying to do?" I asked.

"I'm going to prevent the chance of accidental absorption. Uh… These will… just about stop you from hurting anyone accidentally, or absorbing crystals without your consent."

"I get it… rather than working on a cure, you're going to make it so I'm a walking weapon."

She looked at me, concern filling her eyes. "Kai… There is no cure…"

I looked down, tapping my fingers against the blueprints. From the glow that travelled up my arm with each tap, Piper could see the anger, the pain from knowing I would be stuck like this—I would always be afraid I'd hurt someone… I would always be a monster.

Piper let the prints curl back up, leaning against her desk. "Aerrow… doesn't seem to care," she mentioned. "He wasn't afraid of you. He isn't afraid of you."

"Who said anything about Aerrow?"

She sighed. "Right…" Somehow, this gave Piper an air of confidence. It was odd, I didn't entirely understand it. "So I was thinking, with your help, I can perfect the design to a degree and finish them by tomorrow night. What do you think?"

"If I'm stuck this way, you might as well make me safe."

Piper smiled. "All right! Listen, I worked up a prototype in the last few days… I want you to wear them while I'm gone—I have to go pick up a few supplies." She picked up a cardboard box off the floor, setting it on the table. "Don't take them off unless you're going to wash your hands, shower, swim… anything involving water. And the instant your hands are dry, put them back on. Understand?"

I nodded, lifting off the lid. The gloves were odd—they didn't look like gloves. At all. There was a metal ring that went around my wrist, a metal plate that covered the top of my hand, and five metal rings—one for each finger. The rest of my skin was uncovered. Piper watched as I put each one on, curious glowing power surrounding the metal. It soon faded, but it did creep me out. It made me feel like I had living beings inside of my body with a mind of their own.

It sounded like Piper was confirming that suspicion, controlling their minds with these devices.

"The crystal on the underside of this plate will regulate the energy flow. It'll monitor the Leecher in you, not sure how effective it'll be, being a prototype…"

"I'll be sure not to touch any crystals while you're gone," I rolled my eyes.

She rested a hand on my shoulder. "It'll be okay, Kai." Piper quickly left for her supplies.

I wandered out of her lab, exploring the ship. Lora's presence still lingered in the air, I could see her spirit walk the halls, dragging her fingers against the metal walls. I imagined a younger Dark Ace, following her around.

Lora was a strong person—she was a leader, and as dominant as Ace was, somehow he just didn't match up. She was the kind of person that wouldn't think twice about killing someone if they'd messed with her. Ace was different. He wanted to kill—he had no mercy, he held no remorse. He would rather see people dead than alive. Lora didn't wish for death, but get on her bad side and you're on her hit list.

Suddenly, I was pulled from the kitchen into the helm by an overly-eager Finn. "Hey! Kai! What's going on?"

"…You're not my favorite person right now, Finn."

"I know, but Aerrow's busy and I'm bored out of my frickin' mind."

Judging by the drink in his hand, I knew why he was so eager. "How many of those have you had?"

"Six. And two cups of coffee." He began to rock back and forth, then he fidgeted with his hands. "Come on! Let's do something!" He grabbed my hand. That's when the rage came back.

"Don't you dare touch me, Finn."

That quickly pulled him down from his energized state. "Whoa. What side of the bed did you wake up on today?"

"You think you can just go back to being all friendly with me after what happened? You think everything will just be all right if you just apologize?"

Like a broken record, Finn proceeded to apologize. "Kai, really… I told you like twenty times already, I'm sorry for what happened!"

"And that's supposed to solve all my problems? I look like some tribal freak from Terra Xoam! You don't understand the pain I wake up with each morning. I've been stealing fuel crystals from Stork to keep from killing myself cause of the pain. I'm sick of this! I'm sick of your oblivious immaturity! Can't you just think about the consequences for once? What about considering what happened to me? What I'm going through?"

Finn began to back away, but I followed him, inch by inch.

The power crawled up my arms, ignoring the devices around my hands. "You don't understand how powerful I am. In a heightened state of rage I was able to kill a Swamp Eel on Tranqua in twenty seconds. They're about twice your size…"

Now he was worried. I'd scared Finn to the point of tears. His eyes began to cloud, worried for his life. Backing into a wall, I had him cornered. "Kai… I…"

"I don't understand what all I can do, but I know it won't take much to kill you." I placed my hand around his neck. I noticed the glow reflecting back at me from the metal wall. It was brighter than I'd ever seen. More than just my hands and arms were glowing, now—and from the look in Finn's eyes, I'd say the side of my face and my eyes were glowing as well.

And just as I'd planned out every possibility for killing the blond, I caught myself. I stared at the contraptions on my hands—Piper said they would prevent accidental harm, but not intentional.

Using that as an excuse, I backed off. "You're lucky I can't hurt you today," I told him, showing him the metal clinging to my hands. "But think about me when you try to pull another stunt like that. I'll be there to drain every ounce of life from your body… and I won't hesitate next time."

"I'm so sorry…," he muttered, sliding down the wall. As he closed his eyes, the tears rolled down his cheeks. For once, he was concerned for me, and I knew I had gotten my message across.

Aerrow

I didn't question what Kai had done to Finn—hell, if she didn't get the point across, I would've done it myself, and he would've come out of it with much more than just tears. But what I didn't understand was the outcome.

He took it to heart… That's never happened before.

I closed my eyes and rolled over, lying on my back in bed. I stared at the glow-in-the-dark stars my father had once glued to the ceiling of my room, imagining the world he'd created. He had a vision, and he mapped out his perfect society right in this room. Paint had long-since washed away the evidence, but I could still feel it, I could close my eyes and see it. My father never really left, he was always with me.

A quiet knock struck my door and I sat up, answering the call. "Finn…"

"I'm done," he stated, slamming the red-stained ten onto my desk. "I'm done with this stupid bet. I'm over it… I won't hurt her again. Kai's all yours, buddy."

As Finn left without another word, slamming the door behind him, several thousand questions ran through my mind. What happened between him and Kai? Did he already win? Finn's never been one to just give up on a challenge.

So, what really happened, then?

I sat back down at my desk, crumpling the ten up into a ball. I tossed it into the trash a good five feet from me, contemplating the situation.

Finn

I'm not willing to hurt Kai again. I rather lose her than put her through something we all know she doesn't want.

She doesn't want me. She wants Aerrow. That was evident from day one. I guess I was fooling myself, saying I could change her mind. I'm Finn! I could get any girl I wanted…

I just can't have Kai.

She was never rightfully mine, and I had to stop lying to myself.

In a fit of anger, I pushed everything off of my desk and set my head against the surface, listening to the sounds of the ship. I was just another man on the team. None of this was ever supposed to happen, right? So, say it never did. I'm still just Finn—the Storm Hawks' sharp shooter. None of that has changed. I wasn't complaining then, I shouldn't be complaining.

I am Finn. Nothing can change that.

ooo

I suppose this was an all-around painful chapter. Painful for Kai, painful for Finn, and scary for Aerrow. And the risk grows… will the Storm Hawks lose a team mate due to stress? Poor Finn… (Sorry Lana!)