《Starfall Online》 Chapter 1 Motes of light danced across the black canvas behind them. The vast expanse of space laid bare, with countless stars painting the view a dazzling spectacle. However, the picturesque scene was disturbed as a point in space was violently shorn, ripples of luminescent purple energy crackling into place. Where once was the majesty of the nebula, a partial view of some distant world appeared. From this spatial disturbance, a small ship flew forth, followed shortly by a larger vessel, before the anomaly closed with a violent shower of sparks. The smaller ship rolled to the side as a barrage of green-colored bolts shot from the other. The camera panned backwards, the view of the ships dogfighting shrinking, before characters appeared across the screen - ¡°STARFALL ONLINE.¡± I looked towards my friend, Jace, as a smile crossed my face. My pudgy hands wobbled with the effort of holding my phone in front of his face, but the expression he wore made it worth it. ¡°Dude!¡± Jace said, as he looked at me with wonder. ¡°Dude.¡± I replied sagely. Jace shook his head, before saying, ¡°I can¡¯t believe they shadow-dropped something this huge.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think I¡¯ve ever been this hyped for a game before,¡± I replied, and looked towards the trailer playing on my phone. ¡°Right? Real full dive VR, and they just announced it like it was nothing. This company is crazy, Austin.¡± Jace looked at me with devilish smile. I returned one back, before staring at my phone in thought. I had known Jace for years now, having become friends in middle school, and we were inseparable. My eyes flickered over his face for a moment, and I felt a twinge in my chest. He had pride in his appearance, and it was no wonder why. Despite being an avid gamer like myself, he took a surprising amount of care in maintaining the sharp, handsome features he inherited from his parents, and encouraged me to do the same. His insistence was a point of contention between us, and sometimes I thought he cared about me more than I cared for myself. I had never seen the point in counting calories or using any of the various products I¡¯d seen when I stayed at his place. My feelings for my body had never been positive, and I envied Jace for his easy confidence. I glanced back at my phone, reading the various comments on the video. This looks awesome!! My body is ready Another space game? Sighh Space waifus where I shook my head, turned my phone off, and looked towards Jace. We stood from the lunch table we¡¯d been sitting at, and I slung my backpack over my shoulder. ¡°Last day of school and the game of the century drops. Can it get any better?¡± I ask, sighing dreamily. ¡°I¡¯m afraid you won¡¯t see sunlight until next year,¡± Jace retorted, shooting me a grin. ¡°Of course I will,¡± I retort, ¡°It¡¯ll just be from the deck of my new spaceship.¡± ¡°You¡¯re hopeless,¡± He sighed, giving me a pitying look. The school day ended with a movie in the auditorium. Jace and I began our walk home, and I took in the spring air. The journey was accompanied with a comfortable chatter, before we arrived at my front door. ¡°Looks like Mom¡¯s not home yet.¡± I said, before opening the door and leading us inside. ¡°Want to order something?¡± Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences. In its usual spot, two twenty dollar bills sat on the counter. Funds for dinner. ¡°Sure. Pizza?¡± Jace replied, settling in to his favorite part of the couch. With familiar ease, I whipped out my phone and ordered our usual. I then settled in on the couch next to Jace. The next few hours were spent debating theories on Starfall Online, eating pizza, and cracking jokes until my mom returned. I stood up as the door opened, and rushed to help with the numerous bags she was carrying. Her slender frame was weighed down by the sheer number of groceries. ¡°You could¡¯ve asked for help,¡± I scolded, as I took most of them from her hands. She shot me a tired smile, and gave a quick thanks. ¡°And interrupt your ¡®post-junior-year-party?¡± She replied, shooing me away from the counter before putting up groceries. ¡°Go sit down, I can do this.¡± ¡°You never know when to rest,¡± I grumbled, but begrudgingly sat at the kitchen counter. I pulled the change from the night¡¯s dinner and slid it onto the countertop. Mom looked back for a moment, her expression softening, before saying, ¡°Keep it, Austin. You can use it for that new game, Star-whatever.¡± ¡°Are you sure?¡± I asked. She slowly put the last item in the fridge before turning towards me. She gave me a warm smile, and attacked me with a side hug. ¡°I don¡¯t know how I raised such a good child,¡± She teased. ¡°Mom, please¡­¡± I said, embarrassed as I looked over at Jace. He looked up from his phone and gave a thumbs up with a smug smile. ¡°Don¡¯t mind me, Ms. Green. This might be the last chance you have to see your son.¡± I pushed out of the hug, pouting, before I subtly flipped Jace off. Ignoring his glare, I looked towards mom and gave her my best puppy-dog eyes. ¡°Mom, I know tomorrow I¡¯m supposed to do my chores,¡± I began, channeling my best lawyer abilities, ¡°But I swear I¡¯ll do them all later! I just really want to try that game with Jace tonight.¡± She looked me over with a discerning gaze, before nodding her head slowly. ¡°As long as it gets done, I don¡¯t care. I know you¡¯re excited about your game, just make sure to do it before the house turns into a jungle.¡± I looked at the best mom in the world as a smile stretched across my lips. I stood up, gave her an awkward hug, and walked back over to Jace. ¡°Just 10 minutes,¡± I said, looking at the clock, now displaying 11:50pm. ¡°I¡¯m gonna go set up our gear.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll help,¡± Jace said, standing up. It didn¡¯t take long for us to make our way upstairs to my room, and set up the VR headsets we owned. Jace had left hisequipment at my place from our last hangout, and I was feeling quite glad for that mistake. Jace sat in the recliner while I laid in my bed, both of us pulling the VR displays over our faces. Time had never moved slower than in that moment, and I watched the clock tick down. 11:59:57 11:59:58 11:59:59 12:00 My vision faded as the headset whirred to life, and I booted the game. STARFALL ONLINE The game¡¯s banner displayed, rendered in full 3d due to the VR equipment, and I could see the dazzling display of stars around me, as if I were floating in the vacuum of space. The same cutscene from the trailer began to play as the title faded, but it was an incomparable experience in VR. I could see the ships fighting as if in first person, and my heart began to beat in excitement. Finally, like the trailer, my point of view panned away from the action, and my vision was filled with myriad colors. I found myself in a dark room, decorated with dazzling neon lights, holograms of alien creatures, and the large figure of a woman. She had fair skin, long, snow-white hair, and red eyes that looked more mechanical than biological. She was dressed in a skin-tight suit, reminiscent of hackers I¡¯d seen in other media. She gave me an angelic smile, and said, ¡°Welcome to Starfall Online. I am Aegis, your personalized assistant.¡± I looked at her in shock, before responding, ¡°Personalized? Does that mean everyone gets someone different?¡± She nodded patiently, as if expecting me to question her relentlessly. ¡°Yes, each person is assigned their own AI attendant. We were created to help you on your journey, starting with character creation.¡± I nodded thoughtfully, considering her words. AI? What insane tech did this company just drop? Full dive VR was impressive enough, but did they just introduce world changing technology in a video game? Aegis lifted her hand, and a holographic version of myself appeared in front of me. An expression of unease crossed my face as I viewed my pudgy body. I tried not to think about it. I never liked the view of myself in the mirror. Jace had always modeled his game characters after himself, something I would never consider doing. I had always played as girls in games, justifying it with their improved options in fashion. Jace had never given me a hard time about it, which I had appreciated. ¡°Can you, um,¡± I started saying, nervously, ¡°Change the gender? Please?¡± My face flushed as I rubbed the back of my head awkwardly, but Aegis simply gave a kind smile and complied. The figure in front of me changed from my carbon copy to someone that could have passed as my sister. Her dark brown hair and eyes, soft nose, and smaller frame made the breath in my chest catch. ¡°Show me customization options, please.¡± I said, swallowing nervously. A vast array of options appeared before me, showing that I could customize her from where individual hairs would rest, to a plethora of body modifications I could make. Overwhelmed, I simply made her hair about shoulder length, changed its color to white, and messed about with eye colors before, feeling inspired, I settled on the same red Aegis had. After a few changes, she could have passed as Aegis¡¯ little sister. For a moment, I just stared, taken by her beauty. A comfortable tug in my chest made me smile, as I considered I would get to play the game as her. Aegis, looking over my creation, subtly smiled. ¡°Are you ready to try your avatar?¡± She asked, warmly. ¡°Yes,¡± I responded, still nervous. Immediately, I felt a sense of vertigo as my height was altered. The soft feeling of hair tickled my shoulders, and on instinct, I glanced towards the mirror and gasped. I was her. She was me. I lifted my hand to my mouth in surprise and watched as she followed. I raised my hand to the mirror, and saw the delicate, thin shape it had. For the first time in my life, I didn¡¯t hate looking in the mirror, and I couldn¡¯t stop smiling. ¡°Aegis.¡± I said, not looking away. ¡°Yes?¡± She asked, ever the patient saint. ¡°Why am I so happy?¡± I asked, not really expecting an answer. She walked up behind me, her reflection visible in the mirror. To anyone watching, the two would appear as siblings. She enveloped me in a tight hug, and I stood stiffly, belatedly realizing tears were rolling down my cheek. ¡°Are you ready?¡± She asked, gently. I nodded, enjoying the familial warmth of the hug. I had no idea what emotions I was experiencing. It was like feeling your leg wake up after spending a long time numb. Aegis gently stroked the top of my head, before letting go. The mirror disappeared, and knocked out of my stupor, I turned towards her. In front of me, a 3d holographic button appeared, saying ¡°BEGIN¡± She gestured towards it, before saying, ¡°If you need me, call my name. I will be at your call at all times.¡± I had only known Aegis for minutes, but I felt a connection to her stronger than seemed reasonable. Outside my mother, I had never been shown such compassion in vulnerability. Hesitantly, I lifted my hand. ¡°Thank you, Aegis,¡± I said. The world disappeared as I pressed the button. Chapter 2 I awoke to the cold feeling of metal on my back. With a start, I sat up, and took in my surroundings. I was in a somewhat small room with metal walls, a single door, and what looked like a metal wardrobe in the corner. I stood, feeling the shift of unfamiliar weight across my body, and struggled to maintain my balance with my new body. I glanced down, and was surprised to see myself wearing only what looked like cloth undergarments, and nothing else. The unfamiliar sight made me smile, although I didn¡¯t know why. I pulled open the wardrobe, and found various types of clothing to dress myself with. I chose a comfortable looking pair of pants, a tank top, a pair of boots, and a light jacket to fight the cold. My hair stuck in the jacket awkwardly, before I gently tugged It loose and let it flow back behind my shoulders. When I felt comfortable, I walked towards the door and opened it. A cold hallway greeted me, and I stepped out into it. To both sides, the metal flooring seemed to curve, before disappearing out of sight. On the walls, every so often, what looked like windows were set in the metal. My jaw dropped when I glanced outside one of them. A large portion of the view was filled by the shape of a planet. Rings rivaling Saturn surrounded the planet, and I could see lights strewn about its surface. I was so taken by the view, I nearly didn¡¯t notice the sound of footsteps to my right. As I glanced over, my eyes nearly bulged out of my head as I saw a woman walking towards me. Rather than the mechanical subtleties that Aegis had displayed, this ¡°woman¡± was entirely made of metal, each joint clearly joined through some technological wonder. She was holding a clipboard, and didn¡¯t look happy. ¡°Excuse me,¡± she said, ¡°You just arrived, yes?¡± I nodded, still stunlocked, and she continued. ¡°Follow me please, you¡¯re due for registration.¡± She about-faced and swiftly began to walk off. I hurriedly followed after her, feeling somewhat awkward, as I heard fragments of her muttering, ¡°...this is the third time¡­literally just have to walk to the main counter¡­I swear I¡¯m quitting¡­¡± I guess working is tough even for a robot. I tried to not feel guilty about causing the woman more work, and obediently followed behind her. Shortly after, she stepped into a room. When I entered, I saw what looked like the average DMV waiting room, with multiple sets of chairs, counters with workers behind them, and a small table with those strange toys I always saw in dentist offices. The woman stepped behind what appeared to be her station, and looked at me with an irritable expression. She ruffled below her station for a moment, before pulling out a stack of papers an inch thick. I began to sweat thinking about filling out that many papers. Mercifully, she took the top three pages off and returned the rest. She placed it on a clipboard and handed it to me, saying, ¡°Please fill these out. Your registration will take up to an hour to be approved, feel free to entertain yourself in the lobby.¡± Stunned, I took the papers and sat down in one of the lobby chairs. The start of a space adventure and it¡¯s me filling out paperwork? Typical. I looked at the paper, confident, until I saw the first field. NAME: Oh, shit. The hardest part. I pondered for a moment, before filling out the name, ¡°Sylvia.¡± It felt right. I didn¡¯t provide a last name. Sounded cooler that way. The next 10 minutes were spent laboriously filling out paperwork. Is this what it¡¯s like to be out of high school? No wonder Mom¡¯s tired all the time. After I turned in my paperwork, I returned to the lobby, but seeing that almost all the chairs were full, I sat down in the only spot available. A man with sharp, handsome features smiled at me as I sat down. ¡°They got to you too, huh?¡± He asked, smiling impishly. He adjusted himself so I would have more room, and turned a bright look at me. ¡°I can¡¯t believe I¡¯m filling paperwork out in a space adventure game,¡± He complained, jokingly. ¡°Right?¡± I replied, ¡°What is this, DMV simulator?¡± He chuckled, before introducing himself. ¡°I¡¯m Strevan, nice to meet you.¡± ¡°Sylvia,¡± I responded. We smiled at each other for a moment, before chatting about various things. It was comfortable, like we¡¯d known each other for years. For some reason, I felt a warmth in my chest I didn¡¯t understand. I had only ever felt like this with Jace, but it was nice. ¡°Are you planning on playing this game solo?¡± Strevan asked. This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it. ¡°No, I was going to meet up with my friend. We started at the same time not too long ago.¡± I replied, absentmindedly. ¡°Oh really? Same with me!¡± He replied enthusiastically. ¡°If you want, when I meet up with my buddy, wanna tag along? We can learn the ropes together.¡± I smiled at him warmly, before responding, ¡°Yeah, I¡¯ll try to get my friend in too! I¡¯m not sure what he¡¯s going by in game, but Jace should be in the lobby somewhere¡­¡± I said, ending the sentence by dragging out the last syllable. I looked at him expectantly, and was shocked when I saw his face seemingly short circuiting. His jaw had dropped open, and if brains could have a loading icon, I¡¯d have seen it working overdrive. ¡°Wait¡­Austin¡­?¡± Strevan stammered. ¡­ Hah? Wordlessly, blood rushed to my face as I realized I¡¯d been chatting with my best friend for the last hour. I could see Strevan¡¯s¡ª no, Jace¡¯s face flash with a hundred different emotions. Finally, he looked me head to toe intently, before nodding. Seeing his eyes linger in certain places made my face flush even harder, if it were possible. ¡°Austin. Er ¡ª Sylvia, I guess. I just gotta say. Nice.¡± My mouth opened and closed like a fish, and I covered my face. ¡°You don¡¯t have to be embarrassed, man. You make a hot girl,¡± Jace teased. ¡°Please just ¡ª I¡ª give me a minute¡­?¡± I squeaked, trying to make sense of my emotions. Belatedly, I realized ¡®Strevan¡¯s¡¯ friendliness had been driven as much by good nature as by attraction. He thinks I¡¯m hot? Why does that make me happy? Gathering my will, I looked him in the eyes with mustered spite. ¡°You horny bastard,¡± I reprimanded, ¡°I just thought you were being nice!¡± He raised his hands in an ¡®I¡¯m innocent¡¯ kind of way, before responding with a smirk, ¡°I was being nice. I was being nice to the hottest girl I¡¯d ever seen in my life, sue me. I didn¡¯t think it¡¯d be you.¡± We bickered for a few minutes before the embarrassment wore off. Finally, I sighed. ¡°Alright I¡¯ll let you off the hook.¡± Jace was about to respond, when the irritable woman from earlier approached with two devices in hand. They looked like bracelets, one was a larger, dark colored sporty looking band, while the other was noticeably thinner, with red highlights. She handed Jace the former, and myself the latter. It slipped over my wrist with surprising ease, and seemed to fasten in place ¡ª snug, but not uncomfortable. I lifted my hand up to admire it. ¡°These are your consoles. They¡¯ll update with information related to any activities you might pursue, as well as allow you to contact other players. Don¡¯t lose them, or I¡¯ll have to do all that paperwork again.¡± She said, testily. A peculiar sensation filled my brain, and I felt as if I could control the console as easily as a limb. I opened the interface, and a holographic blue screen popped up, showing multiple tabs. ¡°Let¡¯s see¡­¡± I said, ¡°Inventory, map, journal, codex?¡± I noticed a settings icon at the top right and opened it using my mind. Hundreds of options appeared before me, but the only one I payed attention to was ¡°appearance.¡± I personalized the color of the screen to a warm pinkish red color and changed the font to be a little easier on the eyes. I was stunned by the amount of options available. The woman then said, ¡°You are now registered as Wayfarers. You may accept requests from either individuals, or more official requests from the notice board included in your device. Have a good day, thank you, goodbye.¡± She turned around and stalked off. Unused to such unprofessional behavior, both Jace and I turned towards each other before bursting out laughing. We walked out of the room together, and I noticed he was walking closer than he usually did. I didn¡¯t mind. We had been informed during our briefing that we could claim either a starter ship for each of us individually, or if both of us agreed we could receive a larger one fit for multiple people. ¡°Holy shit,¡± I said, as I took in the view. Jace simply nodded as we looked at our space ship. It was sleek, designed like a fighter jet, and it was the coolest thing I¡¯d ever seen in my life. ¡°We get to fly this?¡± I asked, energetically. Jace smiled at me briefly before nodding. ¡°Who¡¯s captain?¡± He asked. ¡°Well, that¡¯s obvious,¡± I joked, before raising my hands for the ultimate game ¡ª rock, paper, scissors. I pouted when I shot scissors to Jace¡¯s rock. ¡°You don¡¯t have to pout,¡± He said, laughing, ¡°I¡¯ll let you be captain.¡± My ears practically perked up as I said, ¡°Really?!¡± ¡°Sure, you just owe me a favor.¡± I stared at him in contemplation. He¡¯d probably just make me do his homework or clean his room. It¡¯d happened before. ¡°Alright, you have yourself a deal, sir.¡± I reached forward and shook his hand. As he shook it, however, I noticed the shit-eating grin on his face. I suddenly had a bad feeling about what I had just agreed to. Ah well, it¡¯d be fine. Whatever it was, as long as it was him, I didn¡¯t mind. Jace practically had to drag me towards the captain¡¯s chair, as I was too busy nerding out over every piece of equipment in the ship. Eventually, we made it to the bridge. Dramatically, I sank into the chair and crossed one leg over the other. ¡°Jace, take us home,¡± I said, trying my best to attempt a deep voice. It didn¡¯t work. ¡°Yes, Cap¡¯n. And call me Strevan.¡± ¡°Strevan, take us home,¡± I said again, in the same impression. He shook his head before pressing random buttons. Eventually, he found the right combination, and our ship rumbled to life. Slowly, it raised from the ground, and approached the exit field of the station. It wasn¡¯t long before our ship was sailing heroically into the abyss of deep space. I marveled at the process,watching through the holographic display that showed the ship¡¯s surroundings. It wrapped around the bridge, appearing as if it were windows. I looked at the device set in front of my seat, and noted the multiple influxes of information, such as the condition of various ship parts like the engine and shield system. My eyes settled on the most interesting bit ¡ª the starship map. ¡°Where should we even go?¡± I asked in wonder. ¡°I really didn¡¯t expect the game to be this¡­open.¡± ¡°Just hit something random, we¡¯ll take it as we see it,¡± He replied, smirking. I looked at him, shrugged, and returned my gaze to the map. Let¡¯s see¡­ eeny, meeny, miney, moe¡­how about this one? I reached out and randomly selected a system without reading. Strevan diligently activated our engine, and the ship began to hum with power. ¡°Initializing hyper jump sequence,¡± a feminine voice said, appearing as if from nowhere. I looked around confused, wondering if there were a speaker of some sorts. It took a moment to realize that the sound had come from my console; I hadn¡¯t realized it was capable of streaming sound directly to my brain. A bar appeared in my display, loading. I looked worriedly at Strevan, before strapping myself into the seat with the provided belt. 3 I gulped. 2 I braced myself. 1 I closed my eyes in terror, and prepared. Jump initiated. With my eyes still closed, I awaited a lurching, g-force like feeling that never came. Slowly, I opened my eyes and looked at Strevan. He was staring at me curiously with his eyebrows raised. ¡°What were you expecting?¡± He asked, half a smile raised on his lips. My face burned, and I ignored his question. ¡°How long until we arrive?¡± ¡°About five minutes.¡± I tapped my fingers impatiently, my long fingernails clicking against the metal part of my chair. Click, click, click click click. It went on for a few minutes before Strevan shot me a mean glare. I smiled innocently at him, before clicking my fingers again. I violently jerked my head to the side as I dodged a haphazardly thrown shoe, courtesy of Strevan. ¡°You missed,¡± I said, sticking my tongue out. His face froze for a moment, and I could see a light red color flush his ears. What¡¯s up with him? I was about to ask as much, when finally the ship jerked lightly, and we arrived. I heard Strevan cough, before announcing, ¡°Captain, we¡¯ve arrived. Welcome to Bet-3128.¡± The holo displays updated, showing our surroundings. I gasped, shocked by the sight. In the distance, a yellow sun shone brightly, but in front of us was a planet. Or, the remains of one. It was a massive thing, twice the size of earth, with huge chunks of its surface ripped out into space. The newly formed planetary rings sloppily surrounded its surface. I had just barely began to parse what I was seeing before an alarm went off. ALERT, HOSTILE VESSELS DETECTED. ALERT, HOSTILE VESSELS DETECTED. The two of us froze, looking at each other. Oh, fuck. Chapter 3 My heartbeat quickened, matching the intensity of the ship¡¯s blaring alarms. I sat straight up in my seat, and looked towards Strevan for guidance of some sort. ¡°What do we do??¡± I screeched. ¡°You¡¯re asking me?¡± He replied, ¡°I started this game literally the same minute you did, how would I know?!¡± I connected my console to the ship¡¯s interface, and took direct mental control of its movements. Suddenly, my field of view expanded. My vision spread to the outside of the ship, giving me a perfect 360 view of our surroundings. It was with this new change of perception that I understood our situation. ¡°We¡¯re screwed,¡± I said, losing all hope. There were 6 vessels surrounding us, all closing in. On instinct, I steered the ship towards the largest gap between them, and shouted, ¡°Strevan, full speed!¡± He complied without answer, and our ship lurched forwards. Noticing our movement, the enemy began to fire. Bolts of green energy shot from their weapons, and only by sheer luck did I manage to avoid the first barrage. Our ship soared past a smaller vessel. The only direction to go was the planet in the distance. Our ship was nearly at full speed when I was almost shaken from my chair. The enemy had landed a hit, and myriad error screens filled my visual display, forcing me to manually clear them. ¡°Oh, that¡¯s not good,¡± I said, breaking into a cold sweat. ¡°What broke?¡± Jace called, attempting to be heard over the still-blaring alarms. ¡°Uh¡ªeverything.¡± I said, nonchalantly. He didn¡¯t have time to reply before the lights flickered off, and my senses were cut from the ships feed. We looked at each other in fear, before the rumbling began. The ship had entered the planet¡¯s atmosphere. I gripped the sides of my seat tightly as I awaited death, Strevan began shouting expletives, and the world quaked around us. A side of the ships walling tore off, and I could feel intense pressure pulling me towards the breach. The seatbelt keeping me less than an inch from death was my only saving grace. I could see Strevan shouting something towards me, but I couldn¡¯t hear him over the intense rush of sounds. From the breach, I could see earth, then sky, then earth again as the ship was caught in a violent spin, throwing my body violently in different directions. Then, with a resounding crash, my vision went dark. It was with no small amount of surprise that I opened my eyes. The air was still, quiet, and only through various glints of sunlight in the ship¡¯s structure could I see. I put a hand to my aching stomach, and undid the seat buckle that was pressing into me. I slipped, and gravity pulled me to the ground. I floundered in the dark for moment before I stood to my feet, andrealized the ship was on its side. ¡°Strevan?¡± I called, my voice weak. I heard a grunt to the side, and following the sound, I found him laying down, with a beam of sunlight highlighting his face. With some effort I crouched down and shook his shoulder gently. He groaned and opened his eyes. ¡°Did we die?¡± He asked, his voice coming out as a croak. I gripped one of his hands and tried to pull him to his feet, responding, ¡°Not yet. I thought we were toast.¡± He stood up with some effort, and lightly touched the back of his head before wincing. His grimace made him look almost as roughed up as I felt. ¡°If this weren¡¯t a game, I think we would be.¡± I just nodded before glancing around in an attempt to measure the damage to the ship. Sighing, I took him by the hand and led towards one of the larger holes, one we could slip out of the ship from. The entrance to the bridge was nearly vertical, and I didn¡¯t have confidence in my ability to climb through it. Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon. I squeezed out of the ship¡¯s breach slowly, and shifted my balance to slip down the hull. With a small hop at the bottom, I dismounted and took a look around. The surroundings were a forest, but pulverized by our ship¡¯s descent; thousands of trees lay desecrated, broken from our fall. Worse than that, however, was the condition of the ship. The side facing the ground looked as if it had been through a cheese grater, and I winced at the imagined cost of repairs. During my quiet contemplation, Strevan slid down from the breach clumsily, and nearly ran straight into me from the momentum. I gave a girlish yelp as he bumped into me, and only his hands steadying me prevented an embarrassing fall. ¡°Shit¡ª sorry!¡± He said, still holding my shoulders. ¡°Uh, no biggie,¡± I said, face flushing. I took a short step away from him. Why are his hands so big? He rubbed the back of his head, embarrassed, before taking a look around. His lips lowered into a frown as he came to a similar conclusion to myself. I caught myself staring at them for a few moments too long, before I lowered my gaze to the forest floor. ¡°What now?¡± He asked. ¡°I don¡¯t think I saw anything about repairing ships in the trailer. Are we just stuck here?¡± ¡°I¡¯m not sure. There must be a way to repair it or find a different ship. Why the hell did those guys shoot us down in the first place? It¡¯s not like we were holding anything important.¡± He looked at me thoughtfully, before replying, ¡°I didn¡¯t even think about it. I just kind of assumed they did it because they¡¯re supposed to be enemies.¡± I bit my lip, stressed, before saying, ¡°Regardless, we need to do something. I don¡¯t want to be caught out in the dark. We don¡¯t know what¡¯s on this planet.¡± He looked at me with a concerned look, nodded, then began walking back towards the ship. ¡°There might be some things in here we can use, I¡¯ll go check. See if you can find something to burn for a fire. Just don¡¯t go too far.¡± ¡°Alright,¡± I replied. It didn¡¯t take long, considering the trees that were obliterated. A short time later, Strevan slid back out of the ship¡¯s breach, carrying two bags, and saw me rifling through my stack of wood. He set the bags down and took a look at what I had gathered. ¡°A lot of this won¡¯t work. Too green, it¡¯d be too difficult to start a fire with. We need something dead to start it.¡± I looked at him in shock. Too green? I stood up, and woefully glared at my hard-earned stack. ¡°You could have told me that before I gathered wood for 20 minutes.¡± Helooked towards me, eyes half closed in irritation. We stared at each other for a few moments before I glanced to the side, a heat rising in my cheeks. ¡°Fine,¡± I said, ¡°I¡¯ll go gather the stupid wood for the stupid fire.¡± As I began to walk away, I felt something grab my wrist and pull me back. I looked back towards him, surprised, and saw his face, twisted into something like hurt. ¡°Why do you always do this, Syl?¡± ¡°What?¡± I asked, surprised. ¡°You just walk off. You always do this when you¡¯re mad at me.¡± We stood there silently for a moment, hand in hand,and my irritation cooled. I pulled my hand from his and folded my arms. ¡°I¡¯m sorry,¡± I said. ¡°Ok,¡± he replied simply. We stood a moment more before the two of us began to gather wood again, him pointing out viable pieces to me as we worked together. My irritation rose again as I pushed my hair from my face for the hundredth time. ¡°Ugh, why didn¡¯t I get something to tie my hair?¡± I complained, as we began to gather the wood into a pile. He looked towards me and smiled gently. ¡°Need a hand?¡± ¡°Yes, please,¡± I said, exasperated. I turned my back towards him, and flipped my hair over my shoulders. A moment later I felt his fingers gently gather my hair. I felt my cheeks warm up as they brushed my ears and neck. He took something from one of the bags, and tied my hair into a simple ponytail. I turned my head experimentally, and felt hair brush the nape of my neck, but remain in place. I gave him a big smile, saying, ¡°Thank you!¡± He gave a gentle smile back before leaning over the pile of wood again. His sturdy hands took a few thin pieces, and stripped the bark from them. He tore it up into thin bits, and poured them on the ground into a small pile. After, he set up a simple stack in the shape of a teepee over it. ¡°How are you so good at this?¡± I asked as he continued. I watched in amazement as he rubbed a stick over a piece of wood he had notched with a knife, grunting with effort. He took a small break to catch his breath and answer. ¡°Remember that TV show we used to watch?¡± He asked, a shameful grin breaking across his face. ¡°Yeah?¡± I replied, trying to recall what he was talking about. ¡°Well, when I went camping with my family last year, I got obsessed with it. I kept trying different fire-making methods with my uncles. Barely got it to work last time.¡± He laughed a little at the remembrance. ¡°Of course you did,¡± I replied, and sat next to the fire-to-be. It took nearly ten straight minutes of effort and sweating for him to finally get an ember, and I almost had a heart attack when I thought he¡¯d lost it before getting the kindling to start. ¡°Thought I lost it,¡± He said, laughing, and lifted his shirt to wipe the sweat from his face. My eyes flickered over his stomach and chest, and I couldn¡¯t pull my eyes from it until his shirt lowered again. I looked towards my feet, quietly, as he picked up a random stick and poked at the logs, adjusting the fire. ¡°I found some food and water in the ship, but we only have a few days before it¡¯s out,¡± Strevan said, absentmindedly. ¡°Maybe someone will find us before then,¡± I replied. ¡°The only ones that know where we are the space-pirate guys, and I don¡¯t want them anywhere close to you.¡± I didn¡¯t reply. We silently ate our rations as the sun lowered on the horizon, and I shivered a bit from a cool breeze that cut through my jacket. Damn tank top. ¡°Cold?¡± Strevan asked. ¡°A bit,¡± I replied, nodding. Wordlessly, he stood up and sat next to me, pressing his warm body to mine. I was about to complain, but the heat from his body saved me from the chill I¡¯d been getting. Neither of us said a thing as we sat there. I couldn¡¯t tell if he was as embarrassed as I was, but he turned his head away from my hair, for some reason. Maybe a stray hair tickled his nose? Another breeze bit through my clothes, and I instinctively pressed myself closer to Strevan¡¯s chest. He stiffened for a moment, before saying, ¡°Syl¡­?¡± I looked up at his face, and saw the fire reflecting in his eyes. He stared back, each of us unmoving. I saw his throat move as he swallowed, and was about to say something. A noise like a cross between screeching and howling was suddenly heard in the distance. I froze, fearfully looking towards the direction it¡¯d come from. ¡°¡­¡± ¡°...Let¡¯s get back in the ship,¡± Strevan said, quietly. He took me by the hand, stomped the fire out, and quickly helped me climb back into the breach we¡¯d exited from earlier. As we sat, huddled in the dark, I looked at him seriously. ¡°I think it¡¯s time we log out. Fuck this,¡± I said, my heart still pounding. He nodded absentmindedly, suddenly becoming thoughtful. ¡°Yeah¡­yeah let¡¯s do that.¡± Without further prompting, I commanded my console to open, and pressed log out. As my vision faded to black, I saw Strevan look at me with an expression I couldn¡¯t identify.