Starfall

Chapter 5 - Elyse

A kind of bittersweet silence washes over us. The wind is harsh on our faces as the Remus angles itself upward in a slow ascent. The shouts and orders of the crew behind us almost drown away through the consistent rattle of the wind's rage. But then as we lift into the Gap, the place between the clouds and the edge of the sky, the ship rumbles beneath us once, twice, and before I know it the wind disappears. All that's left is the peaceful breeze of the Remus in the Gap.

Kamal takes a deep breath of the still air and closes his eyes. "Almost feels like home," he says quietly. I feel something warm prick behind my ribcage, and for a brief moment I embrace it, letting it spread over my lungs and blur everything else out.

In the comfortable space of my friends, I peer down over the rail and let my gaze trail over the faraway lands. The clouds roll along below us. If I lean far enough over and squint, I can just about see the Doxem field as it drifts far into the background.

"So what's an Arab doing way out here, huh?" someone says from the cabin beside us. An immense weight of dread drops in my chest, but it's not for me.

Kamal sighs, and the three of us listen as uneven footsteps fall in a direct path to us. Only when he turns and looks do Leola and I follow his movements.

A crew member makes his way toward the three of us, and I take the next seconds to take him in. He's a grizzly kind of guy, with a dirty, oily face, smeared with remnants of coal and grease. His unibrow is permanently set in a half-disgruntled angle, framed by his tangled, matted head of hair. He also limps, favoring his left leg the entire way to us.

"What does it matter?" Kamal asks calmly.

The man snorts something snotty. "It matters all the way."

Leola scoffs. "What does that even mean?"

"I'm not talking to you, witch," he snaps, barely even flinching her way.

Her jaw drops, and I eye her carefully, making sure she's not about to make a big scene, because that's the last thing we need right now. Captain William will surely shove us off this ship instantaneously if we act out.

"You listen close, boy," the man snarls. He steps closer to Kamal, grabs him by his coat, and bares his rotten teeth. "I don't want you sniffing your ugly nose anywhere near me, got it? I could kill ya right here, right now. You better be thankful I don't."

Kamal doesn't even flinch when the crew member shoves him off. The man backs away slowly, giving him a nasty glare before finally disappearing in the engine cabin.

We stand there a moment, shocked. Kamal stares into oblivion, his eyes unfocused.

"That was interesting," he says, finally blinking his way back into the present.

Leola clenches her jaw as Kamal turns back to the rail. "Alright, I'm gonna go kill him," she says, and unsurprisingly makes a move for the cabin. I manage to catch her by her arm and jerk her back.

"Trust me," I say, pulling her close and making her look me in the eye, "I'd fully support that. But not now. It's not the time to make enemies."

She looks torn apart by her anger. Finally she pulls out of my grip and shakes her head. "Fine. I'll kill him later."

With Leola calmed, I turn back to Kamal. He seems lost in thought, which is probably where I'd be, too.

"I don't know if you heard, but that guy's a dead man," I say lightly with a gentle nudge. He nods absentmindedly. I try again. "Hey, do you remember when we smuggled ourselves into that private school on the edge of Norin?"