She was dreaming. Not one of those airy dreams where every wish seems to have bundled itself into one but the sort of dream in which it was hard to tell where reality ended and imaginary began. She was being dragged out to execution which was weird considering she hadn't reached the benchmark of eighteen yet but nevertheless, they had determined that she was to die. The weird thing about it was that she didn't seem to mind it whatsoever, she could even feel a smile tugging at her lips. She couldn't tell if it was brave insanity or mad courage but as the firing squads raised their rifles. Her eyes slipped closed and her breathing slowed. The sounds around her faded until all she could hear was her own breath. Just when she felt it was about time for it to end, a voice drilled into her head, reverberating into every crevice of her mind.
"DON'T MOVE!" Realisation dawned and she slipped from the dream, falling, falling endlessly.
Waking with a startled gasp, Athena stared around before sighing and cursing aloud.
"Fuckity fuck fuck fuck!" She remembered where she was but one thing was missing - the other fifty that were ushered into the ship alongside her. The glass panel stopping her escape didn't seem to require much force to open but as it creaked to an open position, she narrowly slid out and stretched her legs. Everything felt unusually heavy but a quick squeeze of her stomach proved that she didn't gain any weight. Though, to be fair, everything felt weird, even the air she breathed felt... real. She had went to the capital worlds before and although their air was meagre, it was wonderful compared to the recycled shit of Port Hope. This was leagues better than the both of them which instantly set some alarm bells ringing in her head; or at least, they would have if she didn't catch her eyes on a bright shard of light. Stalking the light on weakened feet that were slowly growing stronger, she reached the door and even she was kind of impressed.
"Well the shithead just went and sent us planetside. Fucking great."Her eyes took a few moments to adjust to the self-imposing light. Finally, her stormy eyes focused on the scene outside. Most of the juvies seemed to be stunned, seeing shades of green which were thought non-existent to them before hand. A few individuals caught her attention. First and foremost was Princess Robo-Legs herself who appeared to have been preparing herself to board the ship with another girl. Athena liked her thinking but she was rudely interrupted by a gruff voice coming from the underside of the ship. Intriguing.
Stepping down onto solid ground, she raised a hand to shield her eyes before surveying the scene around her. The voice in question was a grown man who appeared to be in his thirties. Whatever he was, he seemed like he was in charge, and considering the weapon holstered at his side, Athena guessed he was in charge. That wouldn't do at all.
Turning to the Inquisitor Princess, she kept her voice low enough so as not to be overheard.
"Listen here you shit, that one is bad news so we need at least a chance to fight back if he turns into a dickhead. I'll distract him, you find a gun. Also someone tell that mechanic to fuck off and stop repairing the ship!" Giving the girl a curt nod and not even waiting for a reply, she waltzed under the ship.
Upon closer inspection, it appeared that she may have met him before. The ship was a trading ship and considering the fact that he was heavily armed, he wasn't just carrying normal supplies. Chances were that he was trading illegal goods and if he sold at Port Hope before, it meant that he had gone through her father. She had a chance here.
Approaching him, she circled him before finally closing in and brushing her body against his, leaning over to inspect him while he attempted to repair the ship.
"So tell me, what exactly does a guy with a merchant ship, an AI and a very expensive gun do for a living? You may be fooling them but you're not very different from us criminal scum, are you?"
His head hurt. Alex didn't remember much from the crash or even the events before it but he was very certain of one thing; his fellow inmates were quickly leaving the ship and he wasn't going to be left behind. The glass pod didn't give way for a full minute but after repeated attempts to jam it open, he finally succeeded and escaped onto the walkway. Almost immediately he could tell there was something up. The air felt... Different. The air he breathed on Port Hope was usually fairly clean but this was a whole new level. It was exhilirating.
One foot collapsed in front of the other and after a quick second, he was hobbling down the walkway. It didn't occur to him that blood seemed to be emanating from a small metallic shard in his leg, or even that he was limping and his leg felt like it was about to give up. To him, that was a small matter as he saw a sharp beam of light against the far wall. Frowning in stubborn willpower, he lumbered forward until he found the entrance and the sight took his breath away. Green. Too many shades of green. He was a farmer and he'd never seen anything like it in his life. The sky was a deep blue, clean and free. The hum of insects with the chirping of small birds formed an orchestra and together they made this new world seem like it was home already. Alex let out a shaky breath, a smile forming on his lips as he quietly limped down onto the ground. Everything just seemed to stun him even more and within a few moments, he found himself slumping down into a sitting position beside a girl on the ground. While she stared at the grass, he found his head drifting up into the clouds. He had always dreamed of walking on a planet but he never thought he would make it.
"You okay?" He managed to mumble, his hand finding the girl's back as his gaze finally dropped back down to the ground. She seemed to be in some sort of state and although she wasn't crying, he had a feeling she wasn't very far off.
"I never thought I'd get to feel grass beneath my feet..."Suddenly, the peacefulness was broken by a high-pitched scream that echoed around the small clearing, shutting down every conversation in an instant. The sound itself seemed to come from inside the trees but anyone with enough bravery to run to the source would have found a young girl, her uniform giving her away as one of the fifty, curling in fear. Over and over, her eyes seemed to dart to where the light darkened and the forest thickened and over and over, her words came to one solution.
"Monster..."
