Cataclysm

Brenan's Help

"What's the matter?" I turn to see Brenan raising an eyebrow to me. "You look like you're turning green."

"I have never flown before."

"Never?" He asks and I can see a sinister smirk cloaking his lips. "Well, don't worry. I'm usually a good pilot, but sometimes-" He doesn't finish. Instead the airship begins to plummet to the ground below. My hands go to the dashboard and a scream chokes in my throat until the ship levels out. "Sometimes I have spasms that causes the ship go whichever way it desires."

"You're awful." I say at the sound of his loud laughter.

"I was only kidding. Take a joke."

"You scared me half to death. That wasn't a joke."

"Okay fine I won't do that again. Then again-" The airship quickly swerves left and I hit my head off of the glass. "We can always have a little fun. What say you, rebel girl?"

I glare at him now while we continue on our way to Dumani. He is smiling and his perfectly lined teeth are showing. His smile is perfect. Everything about him is new to me. His clothes are new, his hair is new, and even his personality is new. He is new to me as well. I have never met anyone like him. Then again, nobody has ever noticed me enough for me to get to know them. Brenan is different.

The rest of the ride is shrouded in silence and I allow my eyes to look out the window beside me. The huge clouds look like cotton candy and the blue sky is almost white up here. I can imagine the sight of flying over the leading city. Everyone will look like ants. I can already see it in my imagination.

My imagines are snipped in half at the sound of choking engines coming from below. A puff of black smoke billows from one of the wings and I quickly turn to Brenan who has a tighter grip on the steering handle.

"Brenan, if this is another prank of yours, it's not funny!" I yell at him over the flashing red lights across the panel on the dashboard.

"Nora, I can't exactly fake engine problems!"

"Then fix them!"

"That's easier said than done."

I feel my heart pounding against my chest as the airship wavers and teeters in the bright sky. Clanging noises are rustling from under my feet and I try to keep my eyes focused on the window. My hands are clenched so tightly around the armrests that my knuckles are turning white.

"Brenan! Do something!" I yell as the engines cough outside the ship.

"What the hell does it look like I'm doing?!" He bellows.

His hands go to a lever on the panel and I watch as he pulls it and turns the handle before pushing it back into place. He presses a few other brightly illuminating buttons and I can see a panel closing over where the smoke is billowing out on the wing. A green button flashes across from me and he nods in my direction, so I reach over and press it. The flashing lights stop blinking and the airship seems to settle down a little. Brenan pounds his fist to start up the panel beside him and I watch now as he presses a few things on the panel and it reports back to him.

"Aircraft secure for temporary aerial. Craft is in desperate need of repair immediately." The panel reads to him and he seems to relax a little.

"In need of repair." He scoffs. "It's been in need of repair for three months now."

"Three months? Why have you waited so long to repair it?"

"Well, for one, I don't exactly have the money for a new engine and for two; I will repair her on my own terms. Those mechanics back in Dumani only tell you the problem and charge you thousands of dollars to fix things that don't need to be fixed."

"That's business."

"That's robbery." He says while shooting me a smirk.

"Do you know how to fix engines?"

"Yes, I used to be an apprentice to my father who was one of the best mechanics in all of Dumani."

"You were an apprentice to two different people?" I ask while remembering him telling me of his apprenticeship with Admiral Cope.

"Yes, but that was years ago."

"How old were you when you became an apprentice?"

"I was my father's apprentice when I was six. Then on my eleventh birthday I was accepted into the army as Officer Token's apprentice until he moved to Beacon Bay. That's when Cope became my mentor. I have been training with him since then and teaching myself how to fix machines on my own. I guess it became a hobby rather than a skill after I joined the army." I turn to face him and behind his eyes I can see the pain stinging him in the heart.

"You're a Dumani soldier." I whisper in an attempt to change his emotions. "That must be such an honor."

"An honor?" He scoffs loudly. "Unless you consider being barked at and trained until your whole body aches an honor, then maybe. I consider it more of a punishment."

"It's always been my dream to travel to Dumani and join the regiment."

"If I were you I'd dream a better dream because it's not worth the pain." He says while wearing a straight face.

"What pain?"

"Let me ask you something." He says while turning to face me and his jade orbs are steady as he stares into my eyes. "Have you ever had to face inevitable loss?"

"No, I have not."

"Then you are not ready to join the army if you cannot cope with loss." He says. "War will tear you apart from the inside out and leave you an emotional scar. You will never truly understand what it is like to be the cause of someone else's death and relive the situation on repeat for years to come. War is hell on earth and you are offering to take part in the bloodbath."

"It is a way of defending your nation. It is an honor to partake in such a dangerous job and people look up to you to protect them. It takes a strong heart and overpowering courage to defend those incapable of fighting." I state wisely and he looks to me for a second before turning to the window and shaking his head.

"Becoming a soldier in this war is like committing suicide."

"Becoming a solider now is vital to protect the weak."

"I guess you and I have different outlooks on this." He says while looking at me with a smile.