03-16-2010, 06:54 AM
Sophia liked Kaden. That certainly was no secret or surprise, and everyone knew it, but one thing that she didn’t like about the courier was that he always seemed willing to take charge. Well…looking at him in that light, even that didn’t seem bad, but it was the arrogance that he could sometimes exude that made the healer’s skin crawl just a bit. Even when he was right, he might as well have not been, since she was naturally inclined to disagree. She had known about the character flaw for a while, but it never bothered her until that moment. Maybe it was just the weight of the things that had been happening to her for the past…year or so that did it.
But then again, the whole thing seemed so silly. If the ship was filled with actual people, then it would have been a different story, but with the way things stood at that very moment, the only logical conclusion that any of them could conjure up was that the only living, breathing people on the ship had met up in that leaking hallway. Sophia, Sage, Kaden, Alexander, and Victoria—that was it. To risk life and limb to save people who would disappear into oblivion anyway didn’t seem like it was worth it in any fashion. Despite her dissention, she merely nodded for most of the courier’s explanation.
Kaden merely walked off, ignoring the glares that Sophia in particular had been shooting at him. It was obvious that he didn’t particularly care what she did, nor did he value any opinion other than his own, much less hers. Closing her eyes, she shook her head and turned her head. There was no reason for her to be there any longer, and every moment she lingered inched her closer to a potential demise. The courier had already stopped to help a particularly crazy woman, and Trafford was tailing not far behind, carrying himself with the same kind of lackadaisical attitude that he tried to pass off as sincere.
“Are any of you coming along?” the redhead turned before he spoke, asking the question over his shoulder as he walked. Sophia sighed and rolled her eyes, turning her heel in the opposite direction to saunter in a similar manner. The two women who had been placed in her “group” raised their respective eyebrows at the action.
“S-Sophia? Where are you going?” Sage almost reached out to grab the healer’s arm, but retreated slightly when she realized what she was doing. Victoria said nothing, but her facial expression seemed to harbor a similar sentiment.
Sophia waved them off, sending not even a glance their way. “If you’re going to save them, you’d better start now.”
“You’re not coming?” the pink-haired woman in the prom dress inquired.
“Nope,” Sophia remarked simply. “You kids have fun, though.”
It was likely a callous course of action to be taking, but Sophia couldn’t find it in her to feel even the slightest sting of remorse. After all, it was a bunch of coding and technical mumbo jumbo that they were talking about saving. Sophia had already experienced nearly drowning, and the pain that still filled her lungs would have made it a difficult decision even if there was a real passenger dying right in front of her. As tough as a choice as it would have been to make, it made it that much easier to consider that there was actually nothing to save in the first place. In reality, there wasn’t a choice there at all. Just typical male chauvinism, and the other girls fell victim to it.
Sophia shrugged at the thought. It was their choice to make, after all.
Sighing, the healer made her way down the hallway, her boots splashing against the water that had accumulated at the bottom and was slowly working its way up towards her ankles. Gamer obviously had a plan for them, but if it was to escape, he made it difficult to place them inside a ship that was taking on that much water. If she was going to make it out alive, whether if it was weathering the storm by merely staying alive or making it to a lifeboat, she was going to have to go upstairs to do it. Exhaling, she ascended the steps, praying that she didn’t run into any hysterical passengers on the way to her freedom.
Kaden and Trafford were probably up where she had made it as well, though they were also probably lagging behind in an attempt to save every man, woman, and child who happened to have been coded in a spot nearby. Sophia resolved to be much faster about her business as she quickened her pace towards where she thought the upper deck would be. However, as she turned the handle of the door sitting just in front of her and opened it, she was remiss upon finding that she hadn’t quite made it to her destination, but rather the captain’s office, or at least that’s what she thought it was by the looks of it.
A man with sunken eyes and a scruffy gray beard sat at his desk with his head nestled between his palms. The navy blue jacket and an otherwise bright white outfit made her conclude that the man was the captain, though the healer supposed that his identity really didn’t matter in the long run. There were windows lining the walls on the other half of the room, and through them Sophia could see the rails—she had somehow made it to where she needed to be, but she had to walk through that one last room to get there. Taking a deep breath, Sophia began to tip toe further into the area, eyes never once leaving the handle to the opposite door.
“How did it come to this?” the broken man sitting next to her sighed. The healer froze, out of habit, and didn’t dare move despite her best judgment. “How could I let it come to this?”
The captain lifted his head to stare straight at Sophia. The healer winced and returned his glare, smiling nervously. “Uh…I don’t know what to tell you. Tough break?”
“Aye, that it was,” the man shook his head. “Ahab should have seen this coming, the old fool. Hunting the great white whale, only to fall victim to that accursed iceberg.”
Sophia could tell where things were going. Still, she felt compelled to ask. “Who is Ahab?”
“‘Tis I, young lass,” Ahab groaned. “Oh, what I wouldn’t give to be back in my home, with my raccoon cap, providing for the farm like I used to.”
“Okay, this is ridiculous,” the healer shook her head and tightened a fist. “First of all, I don’t have time for this. Second of all, Gamer seems to have the Titanic story mixed up with Moby Dick, and you confused with Davy Crockett. What the heck are they teaching kids in school, anyway?”
“You do not have the time?” Ahab stood up, suddenly furious. “You do not have the time!? All we have left is time, you irreverent wench, and I will not let you ruin our last moments together!”
“There are lifeboats just outside!” Sophia roared back. She clutched a large piece of her hair in frustration. “You’re not even real! Why am I arguing with you!?”
“Silence!” the captain shouted and slammed his fist into his desk. His knuckles cracked against the solid oak and split it right in two, showering the area with splinters of the wood. Sophia wasn’t particularly taken aback by the feat of strength—in fact, it seemed to come more as a shock to old Ahab himself than anything else. Looking at his hands, he began to speak once more. “It seems that the Lord has granted me strength in my final moments. Strength to vanquish his enemies!”
Sophia rolled her eyes. Gamer was definitely testing her patience.
But then again, the whole thing seemed so silly. If the ship was filled with actual people, then it would have been a different story, but with the way things stood at that very moment, the only logical conclusion that any of them could conjure up was that the only living, breathing people on the ship had met up in that leaking hallway. Sophia, Sage, Kaden, Alexander, and Victoria—that was it. To risk life and limb to save people who would disappear into oblivion anyway didn’t seem like it was worth it in any fashion. Despite her dissention, she merely nodded for most of the courier’s explanation.
Kaden merely walked off, ignoring the glares that Sophia in particular had been shooting at him. It was obvious that he didn’t particularly care what she did, nor did he value any opinion other than his own, much less hers. Closing her eyes, she shook her head and turned her head. There was no reason for her to be there any longer, and every moment she lingered inched her closer to a potential demise. The courier had already stopped to help a particularly crazy woman, and Trafford was tailing not far behind, carrying himself with the same kind of lackadaisical attitude that he tried to pass off as sincere.
“Are any of you coming along?” the redhead turned before he spoke, asking the question over his shoulder as he walked. Sophia sighed and rolled her eyes, turning her heel in the opposite direction to saunter in a similar manner. The two women who had been placed in her “group” raised their respective eyebrows at the action.
“S-Sophia? Where are you going?” Sage almost reached out to grab the healer’s arm, but retreated slightly when she realized what she was doing. Victoria said nothing, but her facial expression seemed to harbor a similar sentiment.
Sophia waved them off, sending not even a glance their way. “If you’re going to save them, you’d better start now.”
“You’re not coming?” the pink-haired woman in the prom dress inquired.
“Nope,” Sophia remarked simply. “You kids have fun, though.”
It was likely a callous course of action to be taking, but Sophia couldn’t find it in her to feel even the slightest sting of remorse. After all, it was a bunch of coding and technical mumbo jumbo that they were talking about saving. Sophia had already experienced nearly drowning, and the pain that still filled her lungs would have made it a difficult decision even if there was a real passenger dying right in front of her. As tough as a choice as it would have been to make, it made it that much easier to consider that there was actually nothing to save in the first place. In reality, there wasn’t a choice there at all. Just typical male chauvinism, and the other girls fell victim to it.
Sophia shrugged at the thought. It was their choice to make, after all.
Sighing, the healer made her way down the hallway, her boots splashing against the water that had accumulated at the bottom and was slowly working its way up towards her ankles. Gamer obviously had a plan for them, but if it was to escape, he made it difficult to place them inside a ship that was taking on that much water. If she was going to make it out alive, whether if it was weathering the storm by merely staying alive or making it to a lifeboat, she was going to have to go upstairs to do it. Exhaling, she ascended the steps, praying that she didn’t run into any hysterical passengers on the way to her freedom.
Kaden and Trafford were probably up where she had made it as well, though they were also probably lagging behind in an attempt to save every man, woman, and child who happened to have been coded in a spot nearby. Sophia resolved to be much faster about her business as she quickened her pace towards where she thought the upper deck would be. However, as she turned the handle of the door sitting just in front of her and opened it, she was remiss upon finding that she hadn’t quite made it to her destination, but rather the captain’s office, or at least that’s what she thought it was by the looks of it.
A man with sunken eyes and a scruffy gray beard sat at his desk with his head nestled between his palms. The navy blue jacket and an otherwise bright white outfit made her conclude that the man was the captain, though the healer supposed that his identity really didn’t matter in the long run. There were windows lining the walls on the other half of the room, and through them Sophia could see the rails—she had somehow made it to where she needed to be, but she had to walk through that one last room to get there. Taking a deep breath, Sophia began to tip toe further into the area, eyes never once leaving the handle to the opposite door.
“How did it come to this?” the broken man sitting next to her sighed. The healer froze, out of habit, and didn’t dare move despite her best judgment. “How could I let it come to this?”
The captain lifted his head to stare straight at Sophia. The healer winced and returned his glare, smiling nervously. “Uh…I don’t know what to tell you. Tough break?”
“Aye, that it was,” the man shook his head. “Ahab should have seen this coming, the old fool. Hunting the great white whale, only to fall victim to that accursed iceberg.”
Sophia could tell where things were going. Still, she felt compelled to ask. “Who is Ahab?”
“‘Tis I, young lass,” Ahab groaned. “Oh, what I wouldn’t give to be back in my home, with my raccoon cap, providing for the farm like I used to.”
“Okay, this is ridiculous,” the healer shook her head and tightened a fist. “First of all, I don’t have time for this. Second of all, Gamer seems to have the Titanic story mixed up with Moby Dick, and you confused with Davy Crockett. What the heck are they teaching kids in school, anyway?”
“You do not have the time?” Ahab stood up, suddenly furious. “You do not have the time!? All we have left is time, you irreverent wench, and I will not let you ruin our last moments together!”
“There are lifeboats just outside!” Sophia roared back. She clutched a large piece of her hair in frustration. “You’re not even real! Why am I arguing with you!?”
“Silence!” the captain shouted and slammed his fist into his desk. His knuckles cracked against the solid oak and split it right in two, showering the area with splinters of the wood. Sophia wasn’t particularly taken aback by the feat of strength—in fact, it seemed to come more as a shock to old Ahab himself than anything else. Looking at his hands, he began to speak once more. “It seems that the Lord has granted me strength in my final moments. Strength to vanquish his enemies!”
Sophia rolled her eyes. Gamer was definitely testing her patience.