206 UC Somewhere in the vast stars, a ship lies stranded with no means to escape…

“—Momma…! …Momma!—” I put all my strength into shaking her, but it comes to no avail. There is no response. Just a moment ago, the two of us were hurrying along the dimly lit corridor. The next thing I know, she collapses to the floor behind me, on her side. “Momma…! Please…! Get up!…” The words trail off on their own, replaced by trembling tears rolling down my cheeks and panic. I feel overcome by panic. With each jerk comes no response. No reaction.

By now momma would’ve woken up and chastised me for being so noisy. She would’ve reassured me that everything will be okay. But her cold, empty eyes do not blink even once. No words come out of her lips. “Momma…pl—”

—A sinister sound from behind us leaves me frozen in complete terror. Continuous ear-piercing metal being dragged against metal. With each passing second, the harsh scraping only serves to heighten the anxiety. Unable to budge, the nightmare only gets louder.

But then it stops.

Down the narrow corridor, the figure emerges between flickering lights. In his hand is a—

A chill runs down my spine.

A small axe. The head drips with red. The same red that momma smeared across the wall. The same color that trails to us. The very same pool of red that momma lies in.

It’s the man from before. The one who did this to momma. Between the flickering lights, the man inches closer in total silence. “Well, well, what do we have here?” The cackle of his high pitched voice breaks the eerily silence. Before long, Axe stands towering over us. His axe wielding arm sways from side to side. Axe’s gaze looks past me, at the body of momma. “Hm? What happened to her? Dead already?”

Without a shred of hesitation, the evil man kicks me to the side. A single moment of shock occurs—then sharp pain as I hit the ground and tumble. My entire body aches as I struggle to steady my mind. The blurriness passes, and I regain vision in time to witness Axe kneeling down next to momma. He jerks her by the shoulder and exposes her bloodied torso.

“Tch… what use is a dead whore?” Axe lets go and moves away from the lifeless body. His gaze falls onto me. “She’s a young one, but…” Axe cracks a grin with such evil intent it only sends a sincere shiver down my spine. But I still couldn’t budge, there is no use trying to escape. My body is still numb with fear.

Axe reaches out to grab a handful of my hair. “No…no!” I scream with everything I have, trying to tear myself away, but it is no use. The resistance only causes more pain from the hair pull.

“Quiet!” He bellows in response. As he stretches out in preparation to strike, I hear rattling footsteps from behind us.

“Over here! I heard it this way!”

“Tch…!”

Axe releases his cruel hold and pushes me back down. He sprints down the opposite end of the hallway in rhythm of the flickering lights and finally vanishes from view. With Axe no longer present, I break down into soul-shattering sobs. The rattling of boots against the iron grate floor become deafening until they shudder to a halt behind me—heaving sighs momentarily fill the weeping air. I sense one of them moving towards momma.

With tears still obstructing my vision, I can only make out the outline of a tall cloaked figure examining the red-ridden wall, slowly, before he kneels down next to momma. “I don’t believe it…” His deep coarse voice fills the silence between my gasping hiccups. Using the wall as support, Giant heaves himself up with a grunt and slowly walks over to me. With each step closer, the trembling only gets worse. “Shhh, it’s okay now.” Giant kneels down next to me and rests his enormous hands on my tiny shoulders. It helps to steady the shakiness. “It’s okay now. You’re in… safe company.” With a single thumb, Giant gently wipes away the tears from my eyes.

I try to speak, but the shock leaves me speechless. “The woman…” Giant utters in my stead. He turns to face momma, who has now been carefully wrapped up by one of the other member’s cloak. “—I’m sorry little one, but…” Giant shakes his head rather sorrowfully.

I refuse to believe it.

“Momma…!” I scramble to get up. I want to be by her side, just as I’ve always been. I wanted to embrace her, even if it was for the last time. “Momma..!” I cry out once more. My vision is once more blurred by tears. But Giant’s grip stops me in my tracks. “Let go! Let go! I want to be with momma…!” I shriek out at Giant. Giant reels me back toward him.

“—She’s dead! Your mother is dead!”

That word, dead. The concept of death.

When a person no longer moves or does anything that a living person might do. I first experienced it with my baby brother’s death a couple years ago. Then my brother. Then papa. And now momma. My vision is shrouded once more, a torrent of tears roll down my cheeks. Giant slowly gives me an embrace.

“I’m…” Giant struggles to maintain his composure, “I’m… I’m sorry little one…

“—I will punish the one who did this. But you must help me point him out.” Feeling nothing but emptiness, I could only offer a weak nod. “Pick her up, carefully.” Giant orders to one of the chubby members. Fatty does as he is told and gently lifts up momma. “Come, we will converge with the others in the docking bay. It will not be long before the rest of the raiding party returns.” Giant says in his coarse tone.

The docking bay… that was where papa and brother were to greet the intruders, but that was before we knew what they were going after. Before the meeting turned violent…

We make our way back the way we came. Back towards the carnage that had unfolded not too long ago. Giant pushes me closer towards him. He buries my head into his leg, blocking my vision. “Do not look, young one. It will not do you any good.”

Eventually, we finally come to a stop. Giant releases his hold on me, and I step away out of caution. There are many men going about their business. Some stop to glance at us, but otherwise say nothing and continue about. The nearby boarding bridge is busy with people carrying things or otherwise coming back from the other ship. But like a slow tidal wave, the men all proceed to line the walls at attention. I look up at Giant out of curiosity. He gulps and remains silent, but notices my stare and provides a sly smile. “…You might want to look away, little one. My boss has a face that… uh, gives lasses nightmares.”

A man with a large build emerges out of the boarding bridge. As he approaches us, I could make out his face more clearly—

It was horribly disfigured on one side. I immediately feel my stomach churn. I catch only a glimpse of rough purplish flesh before I jump back out of reflex and cling face-first into Giant’s leg once more. Giant only musters a chuckle in response to my discovery. “What is funny, Simon?” The monotonous question was directed at Giant. “Humor me. I love jokes.”

Simon clears his throat loudly. “…Your… facial condition has started this child.”

“…A child?” There are murmurs in the room, “… I see.”

“Dong. We have a problem at hand.”

I tighten my grip on Simon’s leg as I hear the one named Dong step closer. I peek from Simon’s leg to catch a glimpse of momma’s corpse being presented to Dong. “Mom—!” Simon firmly reaches down and seals my mouth shut with his hand. Dong lifts up a part of the cloak and inspects her for a moment.

“….Mmmmm.” He drops the cover and walks to the center of the room, where he continues humming while stroking his fuzzy beard. Dong returns to the wrapped up corpse and forcibly pulls off most of the cloak, exposing momma’s corpse to the room.

I attempt to cry out in protest, but Simon’s hand forbids it. “There is an individual among us who has violated the creed,” he shouts in a forceful manner “and violation calls for punishment. “If you do not present yourself, I will have everyone executed!” There is complete silence. Simon and I both meet eyes, and he kneels down to me.

“Little one, do you see the one who did this your mother?” He asks with a tone more serious than before. I step back and glance all around the room, but my vision turns into a spinning daze. All the faces become distorted and blend into one, it’s hard to distinguish them from one another. But out of the flurry confusion, I notice him.

Axe.

Although he had a terrified expression, it was all too recognizable. It was burned into memory at this point. He is in the far back, slowly inching the way to the boarding bridge. Although Axe was partially obscured by a half raised hood, it was the worried glance that gave him away. With a trembling arm, I point in the direction of Axe. The room’s gaze shifts to my indicator—some even scurry out of the way so they do not get mistaken.

Soon enough there is a clear line of sight between Axe and I. Simon flashes me a grin before he promptly heaves himself up. “Well, Dong, it seems we have our culprit.

“Hold him down!”

“No! No! You got it all wrong!” Axe cries out as men nearby pin him down by the limbs. Dong lets out a scoff as he makes his way to Axe. He clicks his tongue and Axe lets out childish whimpers.

Dong gently strokes Axe’s lightly bearded chin.“Karwoski… Karwoski… you are—were—one of my best men.” The stroke turns into an intense grip. Karwoski lets out a pained grunt and grits his teeth. With his free hand, Dong reaches into Karwoski’s cloak and brandishes his axe, now caked dry with blood.

The very sight of the axe was more sickening than Dong’s disfigurement. “No women,” he sways Karwoski’s head to one side, “no children,” Karwoski’s head sways to the other side, “no sick or elderly—simple as!”

Karwoski, amid a stream of tears, lets out an agonized grunt as Dong’s grip tightens. Dong raises the axe above his head, but stops. “What is it, Dong? Let’s get this over with al—”

“Hand this to the girl.” Dong dryly cuts off Simon from saying any more. Simon and I return glances of puzzlement.

“Dong… you don’t mean—”

“Keep him pinned down.” Dong lets go of his grip on Karwoski and storms over to grab me by the arm.

“Ah…!” Dong practically drags me back across the room to Karwoski, where he thrusts the axe into my hands. For such a small axe, it is surprisingly heavy. The impact from being thrown into my hands nearly causes me to fall over, but Dong extends an arm and stops me from falling face flat onto the iron grated floor. The crowd can’t help but chuckle at my misfortune.

“Come on, give it all you got.” Dong props me back up, and returns behind Karwoski. He takes one hand and grabs the frightened man by the hair—and pulls back with all his strength. Karwoski lets out another anguish cry.

“D-Dong… please… don’t do this, I’m sorry… I’ll—”

“—Have you ever swung something like that before, little one?” Ignoring the plea for forgiveness, Dong stares me down with vicious intent as Karwoski squirms around in place. The pressure from his gaze alone is more than enough to make me freeze in place. Trembling, I can only offer a slight shake of my head. Dong smiles, an expression that becomes even more menacing from the disfigurement. He jabs a thumb into Karwoski’s throat, who struggles to gag and gasp for air. Dong proceeds to make motion across his throat, as if to indicate a slicing gesture. “Swing it right across here. Like this.”

“Captain, this is outrageous.” Simon warns from behind us. I hear him take a few steps closer. “You’re going to traumatize the poor—”

“Not another word.” Not once does Dong break his frightening gaze with me. The eyes of a monster peers into me. “Doesn’t it feel satisfying to see the one who hurt your loved… in pain?” As Karwoski wrings in complete pain, an instinct I never felt before surges throughout my tiny body. “Don’t you feel the desire to inflict pain on him… yourself?” The axe doesn’t feel as heavy anymore. In fact, it starts to feel weightless, almost like a feather. “—As he had done to her?—wouldn’t it be satisfying to hear his blood-curdling screams?”

“NO! NO!—”

A step forward. Time itself feels as though it stops. A few more steps forward feels like seconds—minutes—hours have passed. The fear in Karwoski’s eyes grows larger with each step I take. His mouth wide in terror. The same fear I have gone through. But nothing comes out. No screams. I couldn’t hear anything at all. Dong and the others let go at the last possible second. Karwoski attempts to shield himself, but it makes no difference. With every fiber of my body I swing the head of the axe straight across into Karwoski’s neck. His eyes are so wide it almost seems like they would pop out any second. Soon after contact, the same familiar red fluid spews from where my axe slices like butter.

At this point, I don’t feel in control anymore. Soon after the first strike, the axe raises itself above my head as if possessed. But before another blow can be delivered, I feel someone grab the axe. Somebody pulls me back before the burst of fluid can reach me. The rush disappears. Before long, time comes back as quick as it had gone. My senses come back. The first thing that registers for me is the incredible weight of the axe, and I let it fall with a clatter to the floor beside me.

A year ago or so, I remember when papa had reeled in a fish when he and my older brother were fishing. The poor thing flailed around as if gasping for air, but it’s violent flips and turns eventually stopped, and it no longer moved from that moment on. Before me, it almost feels like Karwoski is mimicking the fish. If this were a game of charades, I bet he would lose right away. He gurgles and gasps, spitting out what fluid did not escape through his gaping neck. Pleading for Dong to help him.

But nobody comes to his aid. No one steps forward and attempts to stall his injury. I feel a hand block my vision, despite my attempts to break away. Simon reels me around and shoves me into his legs. “That’s well enough!” The coarse voice belonging to the giant Simon fills my ears. I feel Simon strip off his cloak and place it on my tiny shoulders. “What the hell is wrong with you captain?”

The one he calls captain—Dong presumingly—ignores the question. “Take care of business here, Simon. And decide for yourself what you will do with the girl, rather or not you take her into your care is your decision… I will be in my chambers.” Dong roars with laughter as he walks away. A disturbing mixture of gurgling and the echoes of Dong fills the large room.

Simon twists around to address the crowd. “The lot of you! Hustle! I do not want to be caught by patrol ships. I want all of you back on ship in 10.” I couldn’t see it, but there was a rumble of boots stomping away into the direction of the boarding bridge. After most of it settles down, I sense Simon kneeling down to face me. “Are you okay, little one?” I want to respond, but still can’t bring myself to form any words. So instead, I give a nod. Simon gives an exasperated sigh as he looks past me at Karwoski—who has now gone eerily silent.

I try to look behind me but Simon is quick to grab my chin, forcing me to look at him.

—But lessens his grip to avoid hurting me too much. “A child like you shouldn’t be exposed to that. You have seen enough already, come.” Simon adjusts the cloak more around me and pushes me in the direction of the bridgeport. He walks on the side where Karwoski’s body is, possibly to prevent me from seeing it. We enter the long tube leading to the other end of the bridge. Once we reach the end, we are briefly stopped by the Dong man. He has his arms crossed, staring intently first at me, then Simon.

“—You’ve made up your mind about this?”

“We don’t have much of a choice now, do we?” Was Simon’s remark. Dong lets his arms drop and activates the blast door—and before entering he turns back to point at me.

“The moment she becomes a burden, Simon—I am releasing her in an escape shuttle... even so, I will not guarantee her protection if someone so happens come exact revenge for Karwoski.”

“…I understand, thank you, captain.” Simon bows his head as the blast door slides shut after Dong. Outside in deep space, the hum of engines turn on—not from my ship, but Simon’s. “Come, the ship is preparing to leave.”

“Mm…”

“What is your name little one?”

“Li…

“—Li Chou.”

Simon only gives me a weak smile. “Well Li… it’s not the best way to meet someone… but, it’s a pleasure to meet you, I’m Simon Oliver. Everything will be okay now. You have my word.”

For the first time in what feels like forever, I feel a sense of ease.