The sword sliced through the air like a bullet, going straight through the head. Insides flew everywhere. The lifeless body fell backward with a dull thunk. At the other end of the floor, a shadowed figure stood.
She swept her long blonde hair back and adjusted her goggles, striding over to the fake mannequin. She yanked out her very real diamond sword out, brushing the stuffing off, sighing.
"It needs to be faster."
"False!"
She jumped back from the mangled dummy, whirling around to find a man, arms crossed, glaring at her from where she had just been.
"What did we say about coming up here at night?"
False groaned inwardly, knowing she had been caught. She glanced up at the night sky to avoid his eyes. "Sorry, Dad..."
"Come to bed now."
"But--"
False's father noticed the chopped-up mannequin behind his daughter and sighed audibly. "Not again..."
"Look, look, I'm coming, okay?" False bolted across the deck of the ship and into her cabin below.
False's cabin was right next to the machinery of the ship, which helped the whole vessel fly. Normally the grinding and chugging would have helped her sleep, but tonight they just kept her awake.
To pass the time, False examined her sword. She had worked hard to forge the blade and craft the handle. Then, she spent months fully enchanting it with as many powers as she could. She took pride in knowing that her weapon was one of a kind.
A knock on her door made False turn around. Her dad was standing at the door. She braced herself for a lecture, but instead, he walked towards her and gave her a kiss on the forehead. "Good night, sweetie. Try not to sneak out again."
False nodded, feeling a pang of guilt, as she knew she would break that rule.
After her dad left, False waited about an hour or so, scribbling in her leather-bound journal, then snuck out again with her sword, back onto the deck.
The night sky was dotted with millions of stars. False had spent years lying down on the very deck she was standing on with her father, spotting the planets and mapping constellations. By memory, False mouthed out the constellations as she saw them.
The airship was high enough so that False couldn't see the ground below them. The large balloon above her that kept the ship afloat had the Greek letter Π emblazoned over a deep purple background.
False took advantage of her quiet solitude and pulled out her sword, slashing at an invisible opponent. She carried on with this routine for a few more minutes, then heard murmurs. She turned around, praying it wasn't her father, and then frowned when she saw who it really was.
She raised her voice to catch their attention. "Sneaking out again?"
The group of boys clustered near the edge of the ship looked behind them, spotting False. One of them scoffed, looking at the glittering sword False held. He spoke in a mocking tone, imitating her voice.
"Practicing your technique again?"
False bristled. These boys lacked intelligence but made up for it with cockiness. "This isn't about me. You know how much trouble you'll be in if the captain catches you?"
The boys leered, towering over here like they were superior.
"We could say the same about you."
"Didn't your daddy tell you to leave fighting to the men?"
"She's just a wannabe fighter. Probably doesn't even have any skills."
Despite the group being a few years older than her, False didn't back down. In fact, after that last comment, she wanted to take out her sword and whack the guys around with it.
Instead, she noticed the pair of mechanical wings each boy had, then glanced past them and saw another airship of their fleet nearby. A small smile pricked up at the edge of her mouth. There was that leverage.
"Going to see the girls in Omega again?"
"That's none of your business," the first who had spoken said. False sighed quietly. The other residents of Airship Pi could be a huge pain in the...nevermind.
She shook the thought away and tried to bargain. "Look, if you don't tattle about to being up here, I won't tell anyone about the scandalous love affair of Pimega."
It was a long shot. These boys were petty jerks who couldn't keep their mouths shut.
Sure enough, the self-appointed leader of the group laughed. "Yeah, right. As soon as we fly off, you'll be opening your big mouth about it."
He wasn't wrong.
The boy walked closer to False. "I wonder if there's a way we can shut you up."
False backed up quickly, trapping herself between the boy and the edge of the airship. She raised her sword to try and make a move, but he swatted the sword right off the edge. False tried to hold back a sob as the weapon she had worked so hard to earn fell through the open air, probably never to be seen again.
A small whimper escaped False. She tried to throw a punch, but the boy blocked it lazily. Unlike her, these guys had had actual training. There was no way to beat them, especially without her sword.
The boy noticed False's eyes welling up and milked it for all its worth. "Awww, poor baby False is crying!" The guys behind him snorted with laughter, making a commotion. False prayed that someone would hear the ruckus and save her.
The boy got all up in False's face and smirked, placing one hand on her chest.
"This is why girls don't fight."
Then he shoved False hard, sending her tumbling off the ship.
»»————- ★ ————-««
Don't worry, this was normal.
The boys never meant to kill False. They may be jerks, but they wouldn't go as far as murder.
False lived on a flying ship. Even though the bottom of the ship looked like a mess because of it, there were safety nets in place to prevent falling, specifically with the children.
Despite these reassurances, False still let out a scream. Why did it feel like she was falling for longer than she should have? She looked up and started to panic even more when she couldn't see Airship Pi anymore. Or Omega. Or anything. All that was above her was the empty night sky.
And was it just her eyes playing tricks on her, or were there less stars?
She snapped out of the illusion and realized she would hit the ground soon. With effort, False twisted in midair.
Great. Now when she hit the ground, she would go out with a faceplant.
Come on, False. Look for something that would help.
The ground below her wasn't wild nature. There was a smattering of torches dimly lighting the area, and various bits and bobs--iron blocks, a cat, a mediocre starter farm--lying around. There were also people, all in their own little area, sleeping.
False would worry about them later. She saw something that would definitely help her in her current situation. A river.
She grunted, trying to position herself towards the water. Arms to your side. Point your feet. Don't you dare bellyflop into that water.
The impact knocked the air out of False, and the water was shockingly cold. The current threatened to pull her further down the river. She emerged from the depths, gasping and flailing. She was well aware of the people stirring from their slumber nearby.
Climbing out of the bank, soaking wet, False noticed the group of people staring at her. They were a diverse group: mob-like creatures, odd outfits, and a few normal-looking ones. The one thing they had in common was the surprised expression on their faces.
The first to move was a man with a white sweater and black jeans. He extended a hand to False, helping her up.
"Yeah. That happened to me, too."
False blinked, expecting an "Are you okay?".
"Uh...do people from the sky and land in this river often?"
The man shook his head. "It did happen one other time, like I said, but that's still saying something."
By this time, everyone had gone back to what they were doing. One girl hadn't even woken up to the commotion and was snoring loudly.
"I'm Bdubs," the man introduced himself. "I promise you, this isn't the only weird thing that's happened so far. I mean"--he started pointing out people--"Cleo died when her ship sank. Cub and Scar are the victims of Vex magic. Jevin is...Jevin."
False nodded, pretending like she understood.
Bdubs continued, not noticing her confusion. "Grian and Stress have powers. X came from the End. Oh, and watch out for Zed and Tango."
"Time-out," False interrupted. "I just fell from a flying ship. I have no idea where I am. Can you, I dunno, explain what the hell this place is and why I ended up here?"
She came to a sudden realization. "Oh my god, my family. I'm probably considered dead or missing by now! I can't contact them."
She started pacing. "Who knows where that ship is now. I might never see them again!"
Bdubs tried to comfort her. "Look--"
False waved him off. "I appreciate it, but I need some time alone. You know what, you can explain all this...other stuff...later."
As she walked away from the river, False noticed a familiar sword lying nearby. Her diamond sword, the one that the boy had knocked out of her hand. The only thing it did was remind her of what she lost.
False kicked it to the side as she stalked away.
(WC: 1605)