Writing Challenge Day 3: Sleep
Day Two -- Masterpost -- Day Four
A thousand and one thoughts swirled in Callum’s brain as they stared up at the unfamiliar ceiling. They could hear their sister’s soft breathing nearby. Callis. For the first time in a very very long time, they were in the same room as her. Her presence should’ve brought them comfort, but all it did was keep them thinking.
With a sigh, they sat up in bed and rubbed at their tired eyes. As always, it was hard to tell what time it was just by feel. There weren’t any activated devices that displayed the spaceship’s current time, which didn’t help. Not that Callum actually cared, but they knew they would get lectured if they were caught being awake while it was very late. Again.
Maybe a walk would help them fall asleep. It did wonders for other humans, right? Cal looked at their hands with a deep frown. The faintest of violet lights could be seen on their pale skin. A consequence of having artificial eyes. It was just another reminder that they weren’t fully human. Hadn’t been for a very long time.
They shook their head to clear their mind of the all-too-familiar thoughts before they hopped out of bed. Callum padded to the door and quickly stepped through before the light from the hallway could wake up Callis. A walk was definitely called for. The familiar-yet-different hum of the Black Gentleman’s inner workings kept them occupied.
Cal was in the middle of trying to pick out potential problems from the sounds alone when they spotted Captain Ryddel. Which was odd, because he’d stated that he’d rather stay on Hope Remains forever rather than deal with the Black Gentleman’s captain--even though the two ships were made together. The crews had nothing against each other, but having the two captains in the same room was like trying to mix oil and water. The two refused to cooperate on nearly anything, only agreeing to work together for the sake of survival.
Which was why Callum started following their captain to see what was going on.
Ryddel cut a twisting, turning path through the Black Gentleman. Some of the parts of the ship were familiar, but even a great engineer like Cal quickly started getting lost. Just when they thought they’d have to turn back, the man made a final turn down a hall and up a small staircase. They followed him, making ready to call out the captian’s name when they finally stopped to see where he’d gone.
It was an observation deck. A small one, for sure, but the panels displaying the star field around the Black Gentleman made the room seem far, far bigger. It was similar to a place that Callum had been to recently, but with none of the emptiness or hostility that they associated with there.
The captain looked over at them from a seat he’d taken towards the center of the room. He gave a gesture and they walked over to join him in stargazing. It was strange how peaceful a place could be with just Ryddel. Callum had tried over the years to figure out how he did it to no avail. He just radiated friendliness and safety. When he wasn’t in a tizzy about something that might or might not be justified.
As Cal’s eyes started to close, they realized that they’d forgotten what it was that they had been so worried about. Or even why they’d followed their captain over here in the first place. They tried to stay awake, but Ryddel gently rested their head on his shoulder as they drifted off. Something about the quiet, or perhaps the company, made it that much easier to sleep.