Ultima Ratio

Chapter 9: Goddess's Honest Truth

"Hey," Akira whispered. "It's me again. Akira, I mean."

She paused, partially hoping for a response to fill the silence. But when none came, Akira sighed.

"I'm probably the last person you want to see, but... Well, I brought you something."

Akira pulled out a small white takeout container from the paper bag in her hand. The warm smell of apple and cinnamon filled the room; it was already in the hallway where the two guards eagerly accepted the slices of dessert Akira used to win their favor.

As Akira set the box on the bedside table, she watched Danya carefully for the slightest reaction. Like before, there was nothing.

She retrieved an old steel chair from the far end of the room, her tired body struggling to lift it so the metal legs wouldn't scrape against the vinyl floor. Eventually, she sat at Danya's bedside, then took another moment to ponder her next words.

"I'm sorry I tricked you," Akira said, her gaze focused on the takeout container she just brought in. "I wish it could've gone differently, but... I don't know, I panicked.

"People were saying I shouldn't have brought you here. So I kept thinking that every person that got hurt in our fight would be on me. I ended up going along with everyone else rather than taking the time to think for myself, and you almost died because of it. I was... I wasn't brave enough to take charge."

Akira turned her focus to the paper bag she brought, now flat and empty, and idly creased the folds. "I don't even think you wanted to hurt anybody. I couldn't believe no one was seriously injured in all of that, not even those pilots. I think you just wanted to stop anybody that got in your way. You just wanted to achieve your goal, and I get that. And I'm sorry for not trying harder to work things out with you."

Danya remained just as still as before. Seeing her unconscious and injured, Akira's chest tightened with guilt.

Now that she was cleaned up, Danya looked to be around Akira's age. In fact, her small frame made her seem even younger, maybe in her early twenties, and her slender build was more fitting for a civilian rather than a soldier. If Akira hadn't seen what she was capable of, Danya would seem like an innocent bystander that had gotten caught in the crossfires of war.

"It must've hurt when he betrayed you. You really cared about him, didn't you? You trusted him. And I wouldn't blame you if you didn't want to trust anyone again. Just..."

Akira paused, not sure if she even had the right to make the request she wanted.

"Please believe me when I say that I also want to stop him. We're willing to risk our lives if that means getting one step closer to ending his reign. So please consider that maybe there's a way we can work together."

Since Akira was watching Danya this time, she knew exactly when Danya's eyes snapped open and glared. The sight was still alarming, and Akira felt her heart jump in surprise.

"Do you always try to win people over with food?" Danya asked, her voice quiet and rough.

"Sometimes," Akira replied, still too surprised to come up with anything witty to say.

"Does it ever work?"

"You tell me." Akira crossed her arms. "Do you always play dead when you don't want to talk to people?"

"Yeah, and it usually works."

Danya tried to push herself upright, slowed by the restraints and her injuries. Akira jumped to her feet to help, but as soon as Danya glared at her, Akira froze and sat back down.

While Danya continued to struggle on her own, Akira used the time to regain her bearings. Given how their last encounter went, she'd expected Danya to attack her, and not with sass and sarcasm.