2298
Gertok Galaxy
Planet Celestine
The Celestine Kingdom
The Castle of Dragons
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Malyla walked down the hall, peeking into every room. "Adel, are you in here?" She called out, only to be met by silence. "Where could he be?" She scratched the side of her head as she continued to peek into the other rooms on the floor.
"I've looked almost everywhere and he's not anywhere to be found!" She exclaimed with a groan, leaning her head in the doorway of the greenhouse. She frowned deeply before pushing her head off the doorway and pivoting on her heels.
She twisted her low pigtail around her finger as she wandered down the hall. 'Pedro is with Hara fixing up the castle-ship. Fletcher is with Logan in the infirmary. Sammy is in the kitchen and thankfully I avoided being a guinea pig because Chenoa had already been there and he was just putting stuff away, and Adel is nowhere to be found.' She let out a breath of air which turned into a long-winded sigh.
She pulled her phone from her pocket and pulled up Adel's text thread. "No answer. Not even read." She sighed softly, shoving it back into her pocket. 'You'd think since Chenoa hooked our phones up to the system of the castle-ship everyone would be able to communicate with each other but no, it's like we still don't have phones or he's ghosting me because he's mad at me for what I said earlier.' She thought.
She walked down the hall and pressed the button for the elevator. "The only place left to check is the bridge . . . hopefully he's there because if he isn't-" She trailed off as the door opened and she stepped inside. "Why would he want to be around Princess Solana?" She questioned pressing the button for the bridge.
She leaned against the wall as the door closed and the elevator descended, passing the levels in a matter of seconds. She looked up at the blinding lights above her and sighed softly, her mind wandering to what Fletcher had said. "I just hope my apology is worthy," She groaned and tipped her head down, shaking it lightly. "I don't need to apologize because I did nothing wrong." She steadfastly told herself, crossing her arms over her chest.
She stepped off the elevator after the doors had opened and she arrived at the bridge. She noticed her presence hadn't caught the attention of Solana, who was looking at the screens, or Chenoa, who was typing away at the keyboard.
'This is awkward,' She thought as she shuffled closer, sucking in a deep breath. "Uh, hey, do you know where Adel is? Have you by chance seen him around?" She hesitantly asked, her eyes shifting around the room for her friend but didn't see him.
Solana frowned as she pivoted on her heels to face Malyla. "Do I look like a babysitter for you and your friends?" She inquired sharply, putting her hands on her hips.
Malyla wasn't in a good mood as it was and Solana's tone irritated her more. "No, but this was the last place to look for him. I can't find him anywhere." She informed her, struggling to keep her voice calm. "And it looks like he's not here either."
Solana put her hands on her hips while narrowing her eyes. "And that is my problem, how? Can you not see I am busy? I still have to get us ready to go to the outpost and file through the updates and information preloaded into the castle-ship." She asked in a slightly condescending tone.
Malyla groaned, putting her hands on her head. "I was just asking! Goodness, a no would have been sufficient." She exclaimed, annoyance bubbling up inside her.
Solana shook her head lightly in dismay, resting her palm against her forehead."I am not obligated to give you the answer you wish. You should be satisfied I gave you one to begin with." She calmly replied, removing her hand and placing it behind her on the headrest of her chair.
Malyla sucked in a deep breath, digging her nails into her palms "Of course, forgive me, I am very grateful you did the bare minimum." She sarcastically commented, putting her hand on her chest while rolling her eyes.
Solana inwardly sent curses hurling towards Malyla with every word she said "I do not appreciate your tone. Must I have to say it again? I am above you and I deserve respect whether you feel like giving it to me or not." She demanded, her tone oozing with authority.
Chenoa looked between the two, she did not want things to get more heated than they already were. "He's in the palace with General Nox. I think Varian and Luna are also there gathering some resources." She informed her, flashing a smile.
Malyla turned her body from Solana towards the young Desert Prep student while crossing her arms over her chest. "What is he doing there?" She asked, shaking her head in dismay.
Chenoa laced her fingers together while she stretched her arms over her head and arched her back. "Using the observatory. That's what he asked when he came up here. He wanted to know if it was okay if he used the telescope and books before he went and did it." She replied, her voice strained as she stretched.
Malyla chewed the inside of her cheek, inwardly confused about why he'd be at the observatory. "He's never been interested in that sort of stuff." She mused, tapping her finger on her cheek as she pivoted on her heels and walked towards the elevator.
Chenoa shrugged her shoulders, sitting sideways with her legs folded beside her. "Have you ever asked him what he was interested in?" She inquired, unsure if Malyla was being serious or not.
Malyla stopped in her trackers and slowly pivoted on her heels towards Chenoa. "Mind your own business." She chided, stepping into the elevator and pressing the button.
She faintly heard Chenoa groan and mumble something as the elevator door closed and descended the floors. "I wish we could go back home." She leaned her head back and sighed heavily.
She glanced up at the number of floors that passed before the door opened once again. She stepped out into the bay area where the doors to each Celestial Dragon would rest once found.
She walked straight for the door and pressed the flashing button, causing the door to retract inside the castle-ship. She walked out, squinting at the sun and the moon fluctuating.
The doors closed behind her as the sun began to rise, slowly but surely taking back control of the sky. Its golden rays enveloped the land, warming everything in its path. She squinted her eyes as she stepped out into the tall grass that glimmered with a golden hue as the warm sunlight bathed them.
She ran her hand over the tips and took a deep breath, her eyes scanning the field she was in. 'It does look like a golden sea of waves . . . Planet Celestine is quite a beautiful planet. I wonder how it looked in its prime, how Solana and Luna remember it.' She thought to herself as she brushed her hand against the tips of the grass.
She shook her head and remained silent as she picked up her pace as she watched the sun roll across the sky. She stepped on the path that led through the ruined kingdom and towards the palace.
With hurried steps, she jumped over bits of crumbled buildings and uprooted trees, overgrown brush, and twisting vines. "Nature did a number on this place after the Cerkoik left." She mumbled, the setting sun casting shadows on her path.
Her hurried steps morphed into a sprint then full-on run. The palace's broken gates came into view and with each step, the sun inched its way below the horizon as the moon began to rise, her silvery light eloping all in its path.
She came to a screeching halt once she stepped into the threshold of the palace. She took a few deep breaths and shuddered, unsure why she felt so uneasy as the darkness surrounding her.
She turned around and gazed up at the sky, the once pink, red, and orange sunset had turned to dark blue hues as stars dotted the sky and turned into a whole galaxy of swirling and glittering colors. "Wow," She marveled, having yet to just stop and take in the beauty and splendor of the planet.
She shook her head and made her way down the winding halls, figuring the dome she had seen once the palace came into view was where Adel was. It was the tallest part of the building and it was smack dab in the middle.
She pulled out her phone and flashed her flashlight around, stepping over chunks of fallen walls and knocking over furniture. "This is such a hazard." She mumbled, placing one hand on a large chunk of wall and climbing up and over it.
She planted her feet on the ground and wiped her hand on her shorts. "Even alien plants have dust." She once again mumbled, this time it came out as a complaint.
She silently walked down the hall, flicking her flashlight around to prevent herself from getting seriously hurt from the deep cracks in the floor she had almost tripped over a few minutes prior.
She tried to ignore the hairs rising on the back of her neck and arm every time she thought she heard a noise or sensed someone's presence. She shuttered and sucked in a deep breath, keeping her eyes focused in front of her and not allowing her eyes to wander out of fear.
She made it to a door that she figured led up to the dome since it had a sun and moon engraved on it. She pushed it open and walked up the perfectly untouched stairs from the attack on the palace, saved for some footprints she figured were Adel's.
She pushed open the door once she made it to the top, letting out a horrid creaking noise causing her to cringe. "Yikes," She mumbled, closing the door behind her after she slipped in.
Her eyes scanned the dome, books were scattered everywhere mixed with the shattered glass shards on the floor from the glass dome. She spotted Adel hunched on his knees, hunched over a bunch of maps with a silvery blue telescope in front of him.
She stepped over the books and the glass that crunched under her feet. She knelt beside her friend, resting her hands on her lap, and watched him silently. 'I know he heard me. Maybe he's just giving me the silent treatment.' She inwardly huffed as she awkwardly greeted him. "Hi, Adel."
Adel didn't look up when she greeted him, he simply gave a hum as he continued to run his fingers over the map and then look through the telescope up at the sky.
Malyla frowned deeply, crossing her arms over her chest she dramatically sighed to gain his attention. When she failed, she bit her lip and mustered up some gumption to speak to him. "Hello? Aren't you going to talk to me? I know you know I'm here."
Adel sighed, his eyebrows furrowed and a frown grew on his lips. "Can't you see I'm busy?" He shortly snapped, his eyes narrowing at his friend who had been trying to get his attention.
Malyla sighed, pulling her knees out from under her and pulling them against her chest. "Well, yeah, I could. But you were ignoring me -" She began to say, only to be cut off by Adel.
"Gee, why am I ignoring you?" Adel asked rhetorically but continued before Malyla had an opportunity to answer. "If you've come here to do anything other than an apology, I don't want to hear it."
Malyla frowned, hearing Fletcher's threat echo in her head. "I'm sorry," She began, her voice flat. "I'm sorry for how I treated you. It wasn't nice of me to say, and I shouldn't have said it. Please forgive me for how I treated you."
Adel blinked a few times before skeptically searching Malyla's face as she apologized. "Uh . . ." His voice trailed off, unsure how to react. He shook his head and compiled himself. "Did Fletcher tell you to apologize?"
Malyla slowly nodded her head, twisting a lock of hair around her finger. "He did, it was more of an ultimatum that forced me to apologize because then I'd get severely punished -" She cut herself off when she noticed Adel was frowning. "But, still, I shouldn't be taking my frustrations out on you or Pedro, it's not fair." She added, letting out a sigh.
Adel pulled his feet out from under him and crossed his legs. "I forgive you, not because I believe you mean it, but because I can't stay mad at you." He replied, itching under his eye with his index finger.
Malyla pursed her lips and nodded. "I'll take that." She felt a tad bit better he wasn't going to stay mad at her. She turned her attention to the maps out on the floor. "What exactly are you doing with these maps?"
Adel leaned forward and gathered up the maps into a neat little pile. "I'm studying the galaxy, the part of the Gertok Galaxy I can see from here. I'm also comparing what's written in the codex about the data previously collected. I'm hoping to learn more once Chenoa brings back more data from the outpost. It could really keep us from getting lost in the vast galaxies." He explained, rumbling through the maps.
Malyla scratched behind her ear and then rubbed her left arm with her right hand awkwardly. "I never knew you were interested in astrophysics." She mumbled, feeling an uncomfortable knot form in her stomach.
Adel sighed softly, running his hand through his hair. "You never asked." He simply replied with a casual shrug of his shoulders. You never seemed to care about my hobbies, or even Pedro's, after what happened to your parents."
Malyla chewed on her lip, for some reason his words made her uncomfortable. "Are you sure? I'm pretty sure I did ask before." She denied his words, trying to assure him that she must've asked and been interested.
Adel shook his head. "Nope." He confirmed, popping the P with his lips. "You never did. It was always about you, never about us." He hesitantly tried to choose his words carefully since he was in no mood to deal with her drama.
"Oh," Malyla chewed on her lip, feeling like a bad friend, which she was. "I guess you're right. I was so wrapped up in what happened I didn't stop to think about you guys."
Adel traced his fingers over the maps, keeping his eyes focused on anything but his friend. "Honestly, Malyla, anything remotely connected to space and SERA you'd shoot down in a blink of an eye. It always reminded you of what happened. I knew how you felt about the topic, so I never brought it up."
Malyla stiffened as soon as the words left his mouth. "What does SERA have to -" She cut herself off when it dawned on her. "No, Adel! Don't tell me you applied for the astrophysics program in SERA!" She gasped, with wide eyes, pausing before adding. "That explains why you were so hesitant and passive about your college application!"
Adel abruptly stood up, startling Malyla who was caught off guard. "So what if I did? It's my life, Malyla! My life! I get to choose what I want to do with it. You can't prevent me from doing my dream job just because you hate SERA, it's not fair!" He exclaimed, tapping his thumb against his chest.
Malyla frowned, putting her hands on her hips and rapidly tapping her foot. "That's not fair! I never prevented you from doing anything! I never said a single thing against-" She began to defend herself only to be cut off by Adel's fury at her remark.
"Of course you didn't! I knew you'd make a big deal about it and it'd probably ruin our friendship over something as stupid as where I wanted to go to college!" Adel yelled back, clenching his fists at his sides after swiping his arm across the air.
Malyla moved her hands in front of her in various random gestures. "And I would have! SERA can't be trusted! Look at what they did with my parents! If anything happened to you, they'd cover it up and make it seem like an error on your part! It isn't the first time the government has done something like that." She yelled back, her eyes dangerously narrow.
Adel put his hands on his head. "Just stop using your parents' death as an excuse! They didn't cover anything up, they showed you the proof of the pieces of the spaceship! You just want to blame someone for what happened and that someone is SERA, who has always been transparent and admits when something failed or they were wrong! Unlike you! You've never admitted you were wrong without Fletcher making you apologize and own up to your mistakes. You've always been that way, way before your parents died. It only got worse after that! You keep saying you'll change, you'll do better, but you never do! You keep taking your issues out on everyone else and complain when therapy doesn't work! It'd work if you would actually take it seriously and want to change instead of continuing to wallow in self-pity over something that you can't change!"
Malyla could feel her blood pressure rising like a thermometer in boiling water. Her left eye twitched with every word Adel spat at her. "Fine! Be that way for all I care! Take back my apology! It's pretty clear how insensitive you are about what happened." She spat, her chest heaving with every breath she took.
Adel's jaw went slack at her accusation, flabbergasted at how she still managed to blame everyone else. "I'm insensitive? It's not my job to tread carefully around you in fear of triggering you. That's your problem, not mine. Don't you dare blame this on me?" He yelled, jabbing his finger at her.
Malyla clenched her jaw, her nostrils flaring with the anger finally letting her anger take over. "Ugh," She exclaimed, stomping past him with an invisible flaming inferno of her anger trailing behind her.
Adel threw his hands up in the air and let out a groan. "Seriously, Malyla? You're walking away while I try to have a civil conversation with you? Real mature!" He yelled at her and turned back to the maps with another groan.
Malyla rushed down the hall, her nails firmly in the tender flesh of her palms drawing blood. She could feel herself about to erupt like a volcano with an enormous amount of anger pressing against an invisible light about to blow.
She let out a loud yell and slammed her fist into the nearest wall. The thud of her fist collided with the crunching of the wall leaving a gaping hole behind. The tender skin on her knuckles opened up, creating open wounds that pooled red blood on top of them.
She winced as she felt the sharp, throbbing pain resonate through her knuckles and up through her hand. She clutched her wrist and held it against her chest, groaning through gritted teeth.
She dropped to her knees and sniffled. The anger she had was replaced with an overwhelming wave of pain and sadness, causing her to break down in heaving sobs. She leaned forward and rested her hand on the ground as she cried her heart out over the wide range of emotions that now plagued her.
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A/N:
Sorry this is very late. I took a mental health month and I'm trying to get back into writing. I really needed a month to just relax, honestly, it's super busy.
I also added a few more characters I've drawn to the respective chapter, including Luna. I'm working on Logan and Varian at the moment, and slowly but surely, working on the others. It's a slow process since drawing them takes a few days to do.
Chapter Talk:
I didn't exactly know how to execute this chapter, but I finally managed to do so. I wanted to go deeper into Malyla and how she still needs character development, which is gonna take a long time. I didn't want her to immediately see her issues, because I know people like Malyla and still to this day they'll deny they were in the wrong and blame everyone else.
Thanks for reading!