Alone On the Ship

Prison Skin

Minerva and Aoi sat at one of the tables in the ballroom. Minerva had Mari in her lap, and was furious by the latter's state.

"When I find out who did this to her, I'll tear them apart..." Minerva said.

Aoi nodded, taking in all of the cues of Minerva's emotions. She sat back and looked at the other woman.

"So what's your relation to her?" Aoi asked.

"Pardon?"

"What exactly are you two to one another? Sisters? Partners?" Aoi asked.

"She's my adopted sister... I found her sitting in the bushes in front of a brothel, so I took her in." Minerva replied.

Aoi nodded again and smiled. She rested her hand on Minerva's.

"It'll be okay. Just trust that we'll get the orchestrator." Aoi said.

Minerva smiled at her and sighed. She wanted to believe it was true, but her worry still festered.

–––

Petre sat at the ship's central staircase. He wasn't sure what to think. He was slowly coming to the realization that he was attracted to Svetlana, and he didn't want to miss any sort of chance to be with her, yet he knew that the age gap would make her against the idea. It began to make his stomach churn, and he knew his heart began to beat faster. He got up and walked over to her room, then gently knocked. She opened up the door, and he hugged her. To him, it was funny to be barely taller than her. She invited him inside, and he sat on the bed next to her.

"Hey, Svetlana?"

"Yeah?"

It was already late in the night. A few people were up, but not many.

"You're not able to get any sleep either?" Petre asked.

She shook her head. He smiled and took her hand.

"Maybe sleeping next to you would help?" He proposed.

She smiled, and he knew it was because she saw him like a child trying to act smart for their mother to buy them a toy. Still, she wanted to sleep next to him, so she accepted his idea. He crawled into bed next to her, cuddling up to her and pulled her head into his neck. She closed her eyes and smiled, and she felt his gentle breathing on her head. She could've sworn that he whispered something, but she was already falling asleep. Petre's mind was made up. He wanted to hold Svetlana in his arms for as long as he could.

–––

There was little that was known about Piroska. Even the orchestrator knew little about her. They all knew that she was an orphan, and they all figured that she didn't trust any of them. She hadn't spoken a word to any of them, with exception to Nio.

"We can all find peace here... None of us have to kill anyone aside from the orchestrator... That's why I made this church. We can all learn to coexist without having to kill anyone else..."

"I'd like to say that you're right... But you're naïve if you think the misfortunes will end..."

"Piroska... I hold on to hope. I believe in the good of humanity... Nobody has to die..."

"Death is inevitable. What do you think happened to my parents? My mother and father were killed by the Yakuza because I was born, because they specifically said that my parents weren't allowed to have a child. It was stated by them, yet my parents had me anyways. I'm the reason that they are dead."

"You're mistaken. It is the Yakuza's fault, not yours. You weren't the executioner, you didn't murder your parents, you had no claim in whether they lived or died."

"What could I have done then?"

"I don't think there was anything you could've done. But it doesn't condemn you to having to live with such a sorrowful outlook on human nature. You don't have to keep a grudge on all of humanity for the sins a mere few committed. You're incredible for still being able to tell your story..."

"I don't think so. Being able to say a few words is nothing."

"You're forgetting the emotion that comes with that."

"I have no emotion. I am just alive, and I live just to die."

"You can do so much more than that... I believe you can become happy with your life by letting go of your hatred..."

"You're wrong."

"I believe you and I are different sides of the same coin..."

"You couldn't be any farther from the truth."

Piroska picked up her machete and put a pyramid-like helmet on. She would kill until she was killed, because her skin was a prison. And though her soul cried out to be saved, it seemed to be to no avail. That was her philosophy for her entire life, but she had never let go and found who she truly was, she had never truly opened her eyes, and so her skin would remain her prison.