Chaos unfurling
Madness unraveling
Sanity dissipating
My mind is dying
And you stand there and watch it all
You don’t even offer to catch me if I fall
What am I supposed to do?
Who am I supposed to turn to?
I can’t escape this hell that I’ve built for myself
This is all my fault and I know that
But, please, you have to believe me
I never thought it would be this way
I never thought that it would come to this
Chaos unfurling
Self-hatred consuming
Loneliness overtaking
The depths of my soul
I’m falling
Will you catch me now?
This is the 38th time joining @flashfictionfridayofficial ! Thanks for the challenging prompt! This story is set in the futuristic world where you have to deal with not only this planet but also the galaxy.
Word Count: 869
T/W: explosion, death (just an implication, no actual description though!)
Theme: redemption and reconciliation
Sirius (he/him)
Zen (they/them)
The sky is so blue.
Sirius gazes at the pure azure through a crack of the concrete wall. The ceiling collapsed a long time ago, and only its skeletons are arching over him. What was this building for? It doesn't matter now. Sirius likes this newly-obtained serenity of this ruin that reminds him of an ancient, abandoned cathedral.
The sky is too bright for midnight. Too pure and perfect for the chaotic world.
But maybe it is suitable to mark the grand finale.
Sirius chuckles at his own thoughts, then sniffs the wam air swiping over the ruins. It carries a mixed smell of fire and chemicals.
‘Intoxicating.’
He murmurs to himself, then suddenly shifts his eyes towards his back.
‘Don’t you think, buddy?’
The last words are directed to the figure standing behind him a few feet away - not exactly standing, but leaning on the burned, crumbling wall. Nothing but a groan comes back from the dark figure.
‘Come here and look at the fireworks here, my dear.’
Sirius says cheerfully like an innocent child, but with a cynical grin, pointing at the relentless waves of green fire engulfing the city below. The skyscrapers are turning into pillars of fire, and their glass facades are melting, forming radiant cascades. The pearly sparkles of cascades feed the emerald fire, making it even brighter and fiercer. An ethereal, almost divine view.
‘Don’t call me like that.’
The figure protests in a hoarse voice, still staying in shadow.
‘Is that what you are obsessed with? Even at a time like this?’
Sirius’ sarcastic laughter echoes in the ruin.
‘Look at this spectacular view. You are the lucky one to see something so beautiful at the very last moment.’
‘It’s the last moment for you, Sirius.’
Sirius hears a rustle, then sees a sharp light. In a blink of a moment, Sirius jumps aside, easily dogging the broken blade aiming at him. The owner of the sword falls in front of him just like a crumbling tower itself, unable to hold themselves in one piece. A hood slips from their head, revealing the familiar face.
‘There, there, Zen.’
Sirius holds Zen’s right arm with his steady hand while carefully kicks the sword away from them. Zen coughs harshly, unable to stand up.
Then, silence.
Only the sizzle fills the air
‘Sirius, you’ve changed so much, too much, that I can’t recognise you anymore.’
That’s all Zen can manage to say.
‘Maybe. And you haven’t changed at all, Zen. A definition of stubborn, blind loyalty.’
Another building flares up, lightening the sad smile of Sirius. Zen recognises the sorrow in their childhood friend’s green eyes. Zen’s eyes, one copper and other violet, are widened in shock.
‘Are you regretting leaving the Council?’
Zen whispers while a bright red streak streaming down from their forehead.
‘I didn’t have a choice. How could I shut my mouth? I knew that the Council was reviving ‘dark star,’ the weapon which could destroy the whole galaxy?’
Now, Sirius grabs Zen’s shoulders as they fall down.
‘No, no, it wasn’t their - our intention! We wanted to save the distorted galaxy and we needed supreme power!’
Zen protests desperately, beating the cracking floor with wounded fists.
‘That was necessary, Sirius! We just…’
‘Save your breath, Zen. You wanted to restore the balance of the galaxy. I understand. But you can’t say ‘we,’ can you? Since others had clearly different intentions.’
Sirius replies softly. Another big burst nearly blows them away. However, Sirius’ words reach Zen’s ears beyond the thick emerald haze.
‘And deep down, you knew it, too, right? Zen, that’s why you directed the rest of the guards to completely wrong places, away from here, where the secret weapon was developed.’
For a while, Zen’s face disappears in the green fog. When their face reappears slowly, there is no anger in their eyes. They let out a long sigh.
‘You are right and wrong, Sirius. I still wanted to believe… but I could not extinguish the doubt growing in my heart, either. I hated you because you were the constant reminder of my doubt. Upon hearing that you left the Council to destroy the weapon, I decided to hunt you down by myself, and put an end to all this mess. I led the other guards to a wrong place because I didn’t want intrusion. But.. my mind is still so chaotic, just like the world around us.’
Zen’s calm voice is strangely clear in the roaring fire, igniting like hundreds of fireworks. All hostilities and hatred are melted into the fire, whose colour turns from emerald to the hues of dawn. In the false morning light, Sirius and Zen rediscover the old-self in each other, before all those tragedies happened.
‘But one thing is certain in this chaotic world. I’m glad that the last thing I see is not the hell fire, but the face of my old friend.’
Sirius nods to his friend’s words, then tightens his grip. His green eyes shine bright, reflecting thousands of sparkles around them. No words, but it is enough for both of them.
In the world full of chaos, they sit in peace, so complete that nothing can break through.
A/N: a blasted scorn featuring some members running into a problem. they didn’t handle it well and it went awry. this is still unedited and needs some changes in it, so beware of some errors.^^
Word Count: 933
TW: some inappropriate behavior, which is dealt with
***
Wooden doors of a bar swings open as three pirates walk in, going towards a counter. Piano music greets them in a tune, it's notes high and cheerful. One of them takes a seat on a bar-stool and the other two take a look around.
"It's good to be out, sometimes," Ianete remarks, propping their elbow on the counter. "But it's even better to get a drink at it too."
"A drink to celebrate our latest victory," Kumari says, a bounce in her steps. "I didn't think we'd make it but. . . boy, we sure did, huh? And for that, I'd love to have some good beer!"
A cold wave washes over her as she takes in their surroundings again.
"But. . . but don't we have lots of beer back at the ship?" Nishan asks, furrowing her brows.
At least, that's what she thought.
"Yes, and it's not bad if we have something different," Kumari replies, sounding strangely calm. "Don't worry, we're only here for a drink."
"It won't take us long," Ianete adds then faces a bartender. "Get us three glasses of your finest whiskey."
Nishan fiddles her fingers. "I'd rather have a. . . a milder drink."
"Okay, two whiskeys and one low-booze beer then." Ianete places their hands on the counter.
Nishan grimaces and Kumari eagerly nods.
She doesn't like to go out much unless it's necessary. However, she has to learn how to adjust in unfamiliar places. It's what she's aware of since she signed up to join the crew, after all.
"Ayy, what do we have here?"
Turning her head, she sees two men and she clutches on her trousers. The bartender slides their glasses onto the counter and goes away from them.
"These people must be lost without anyone to protect them." Another man snickers, dragging his eyes at her.
"Who are you calling lost?" Ianette demands.
"Ohh, such fine hair, I see."
Nishan freezes. Her stomach feels rock hard, and she hates how those man are interrupting.
Before the man can touch her coil, Ianete smacks his hand away with their glass. They scowl at him, curling their free hand into a fist.
"What do ya think yer doing?" Ianete snarls.
"Hey there, lassie," the man replies, putting on a smile. "Just tryna check your friend's hair here, nothing else."
"I'm no lassie," Ianete says in exasperation, clenching their jaw. "You wanna try that again, you little bitch?"
The man's expression slips away, twisting into a scowl.
"What do you just call me?"
"Ya heard me."
"I don't think you can hurt me. It's so funny, your threat's not as scary as you think it is."
Ianete growls, taking a swig of their whiskey.
Oh dear. This can't be good.
It only Titanrin was here, these people would have ignored them. Their reputation had a way to drive off unwanted potential for allies, who might take advantage of them. But the Captain's been taking a nap before they got here, and. . .
"Oh, yeah? We'll see about that," another voice mutters.
A hand grabs the man's wrist and he yelps, getting thrown onto the floor. Other men grimace and react in curiosity, and other burst out into rambunctious laughter.
"Who are ya to tell me what to do, Missy?" the man spits out.
"Don't touch her," Kumari hisses, dusting her hands. "Or else."
"Or else what? You're gonna throw that glass at me? Hit me with that little fist of yours?"
Ianette grabs a bar stool, flinging it across the room, and it splatters into pieces. The men look at it then jump out of their seats, backing themselves into a corner. Ianete slips out of their stool, throwing a glare at them.
"Who wants a piece of me, eh?" Ianete asks, smacking their fist against their palm. "I'll show you dipshits who you're messin' with."
Ducking her head, she grimaces at how Ianete throws a kick against a man's stomach. Kumari shoves her fist against his shoulder, throwing another punch under his chin.
Great. Just what she needs: trouble following her and her crew-mates when she least expected it.
"Let's get outta here," Kumari murmurs, tilting her head to the side.
Yeah, good idea. She'd rather get out faster before Ianete crushes someone's skull. Plus, they had to travel to another nation by dawn tomorrow.
They duck their heads as a brawl rages on as Ianete tackles the man, pummeling him with their fists.
Once they reach outdoors, Nishan gasps as if she emerged from water. She sucks in a breath. Kumari looks back, remaining behind her as if on alert. She pants, pressing a hand over her knees.
That is it.
Maybe Ianete can keep those men distracted long enough, in order for them to make a getaway. This night didn't go exactly the way she wanted it to. She thought they'd only drink, not get bothered by annoying men.
Kumari untangles her disheveled hair from her face and combs the strands with her fingers. She scratches an itchy spot on her cheek.
Nishan lets out a sigh. "When are we going to stop doing that in every bar we go?"
"Probably we won't," Kumari says with shrug. "Oh, well. You're free from harm and away from that stupid man. That's all what matters to me."
"Alright," she replies, tipping her head back to look up at the horizon. "I suppose, we keep chaos unfurling wherever we are."
"It's the path of a pirate, my dear." Kumari laughs softly. "C'mon, let's return to the ship."
With a chuckle, she follows her friend on a direction back to their ship.
