"I've been curious, Dad, do you have powers, or something? Like, Divers and stuff?"
"How'd you figure I had one?"
"Well... if you're a part of the Fourth Prince's personal army, and you're a Captain... you'd have to have one, no?"
Hikaru sighed through his nose. It is now 2010, and finally, Dolores has turned twelve years old. Through that, besides being curious about her personal pursuits, she had become curious about the world itself. Hikaru, opposite to his more clean-shaven self, now sported a bit of a stubble on his face, slightly more worn down than in his days as a foster father.
Hikaru, who used to be a Foster Father, was now an actual Father, a Father of two. Of course, Gwen carried a good bit of the weight when taking care of Kuro, but Hikaru's been attempting to support her as much as he can, which could only result in countless sleepless nights.
Hikaru continued. "Well... you're right. I do have an ability."
"So... you're like... a Dreamer?"
Hikaru shook his head. "Not at all. I've pushed my Karma to its limit, but I'm certainly not strong enough to be considered a 'Dreamer'."
"What are you?'
"I'm Post-Awakened. It means that I've reached the limit of my current abilities, but I am generally inexperienced in the other fundamentals of Karma."
"Hm...
Hikaru sighed. "I should probably start from the beginning, right? It isn't exactly public knowledge after all, Karma, that is."
"Karma..."
"Not sure if you'd ever Awaken to it but... Karma is the ability to bring about your will into reality. Karma is separated into four different fundamentals. Emboldening, Inflicting, Morphing, and Forming. All users have a primary fundamental and a secondary fundamental that manifest into their primary ability." Hikaru twisted his face in discomfort. "Unfortunately, it's hard to provide any physical examples due to... y'know... if someone isn't Maladaptive and above, there's no way you can see if I'm doing anything."
"Does all of this make you guys like... superheroes?"
Hikaru chuckled. "Uh... no, not really. Well-- some people, yeah, but I'm not really a hero." Hikaru paused. "What made you so curious?"
"Well... I... It's just really hard to concept scientifically, y'know, so I was curious to see how it all worked. I-I dunno, that's about it." She shrugged.
"You'll probably understand it more when you're older, since, even if you aren't exactly an Awakened, you'll become more privy as you gain more experience to when someone does, or doesn't have an ability, or well, see certain applications in the future, but for now, this is probably too difficult a topic."
"Hm... well, I'm still curious though."
"What's up, Doll?"
"What is your ability? What does it do? Is it strong?"
"My ability... It's a bit violent, actually..." Hikaru spoke almost in a whisper before turning to Doll. "I'm pretty strong. Not remotely close to being the strongest, but I'm strong."
"What does it do?"
"I simply make a heart, and then I fire it out like a projectile--" Hikaru demonstrates, pointing at a random salt shaker on a nearby counter. The salt shaker shattered when it made contact with whatever invisible force shot out from Hikaru himself. "If someone is hit by the projectile, they'll be inclined to assist me in some way. People can resist, but it's pretty nice to be able to injure a target and have an opportunity to attain a temporary ally. Useful during wartime, or on criminals."
"You could use it for interrogation."
"That's what I use it for mostly. Either that, or I have it so that some guy hits one of their friends or something. In general, a lot of what I do is pretty temporary unless I make direct physical contact with a target."
"It's kinda invasive, huh?"
"Yeah~..."
"Hm..."
"Hm... indeed. But hey, what can you do when you're in a fight, or at the opposite end of a table with someone who was once a dangerous enemy combatant? These people kill after all, so a bit of intrusivity is nothing." Hikaru paused. "I need to clean up my mess." He stood up, crossing over to the kitchen counter.
"What has been the strongest ability you've seen, Dad?"
Hikaru swept salt into a bag, cleaning up any glass left behind. "Heh, well... I'm not sure. Personally, I don't think I've seen anything that extreme-- actually, no. I'm thinking too broadly. I was thinking like... something impossible for me to fight, y'know?"
"Either or."
"Either or... huh...? Well... I know that the Crimson King is the second strongest in the world and that every time I'm near him, I feel like I'm about to vomit, so... pleasant feelings all around." He snapped his fingers in recollection. "Oh! No, I remember. The strongest I've seen physically was from the Diver Association President."
"What's his ability?"
"No clue, but I saw the result. Everything in between was... it was a confusing blur. The result, though... well..." He paused. "Doll, do you know the creature classifications that we have for the Dungeons?"
Dolores shook her head.
"Okay, so we determine classifications by their size category, and we determine how powerful or difficult they're going to be to take down by their rank. Smaller sizes are typically set in the weaker ranks, so Diminutive and Compact creatures are often placed below the Sentient Rank of Creatures. Anything above the Fair Classification is free game in terms of Rank. If I were to categorize the President of the Diver Association... He isn't a Dreamer.
"He isn't?"
"Nope, he's just a very powerful Karma User. Amongst wielders of Karma, he'd be placed as an Infamous Seeker."
"What's a Seeker?"
"Seekers are essentially people who have reached the brink of becoming a Dreamer, but due to their being restricted in their fundamentals, are stuck being just below them in experience and power. Never stopped the man, though."
"Woah."
Hikaru thought for a moment. "Oh! Yeah, creature ranks. The lowest rank of creature is Scavenger-Types. Skipping a few ranks above that, the strongest are Nightmares and Demons. The President of the Diver Association, one day... I was on an excursion in a Dungeon, we were investigating it in an attempt to close it. The Association President ran in whilst we were desperate. See, just below 'A Demon' or 'A Nightmare,' there are Tyrants. We were faced with a Mammoth Tyrant, incredibly unlucky that we found something like that, and a good chunk of my platoon was wiped out."
"They're that dangerous?"
"Yeah, monsters aren't as generous and predictable in real life compared to Comic Books and TV Shows."
"What did the Association President do?"
"He swooped in. He had quite a long fight with it before. Suddenly, the man used something I couldn't see. All I know is that I heard the sound of an explosion, the movement of River's hand, and then a corpse was set out before him that easily ranged about triple his size."
Dolores blinked, unable to comprehend what Hikaru had even described to her.
Hikaru let out a small, contented sigh in response, placing a hand on Dolores's head. "Anyway, you don't have to worry about it, and in the future, maybe you'll understand, or even experience it yourself. You never know."
"Mhm, okay."
A cry loudly came from the other side of a wall, eliciting a sigh from Hikaru. The faint, muffled singing of Gwen could be heard shortly after. "Sorry, I gotta go help your mother." Hikaru stood up, rounding into the room.
Dolores sat there for a moment, attempting to process everything that she had been told. Soon, someone knocked on the door to their room.
Dolores stood up, crossing to the door, opening it to see who was knocking, met by the sight of the massive Apollo. "Hello~! Pleasure to see you again, Doll."
"Oh! Hey, Apollo." Dolores will step to the side, allowing Apollo inside.
Apollo stepped into the room, crossing over to the nearest couch, sinking into the cushions, his tail limply hanging over the edge of an armrest.
Dolores stood nearby, hands clasped together.
"Where's your family?"
"They're putting Kuro to sleep, I believe."
"Well. I'll ask you again. Dolores, how do you feel about the deal we made a year ago?"
She stood there for a moment, thinking. "About me becoming your assistant?"
"Yes. I've come here to discuss with your parents about it, but I want to hear from you if you want to pursue this still. If you don't, then I won't bother with the discussion."
"Oh! I-I definitely want to be your assistant!"
"Then, the discussion will commence soon."
Hikaru peeked out from his room. "Fourth Prince!?"
Apollo waved Hikaru away. "Go, finish your business. We can talk at any time. I'm a very patient man after all." He chuckled.
Hikaru chuckled in sympathy. "Yes, sir." Hikaru peered his head back into the room, whispering to Gwen. Soon after, both of them meet Apollo out in the living room.
Dolores stood awkwardly between them, her parents on her left, and Apollo on her right. She took a breath soon before negotiations began. Apollo leaned forward, tail flicking in interest. "I wanted to discuss with you two about something."
Hikaru nodded. "I think you've mentioned it before."
"Yes, I wanted to have a more in-depth discussion about my interest in Dolores becoming my apprentice in the near future. I wanted to doubly make sure as well that both of her parents were present for this as well."
Gwen nodded as well. "Um... thank you. We appreciate you coming in like this." Gwen sighed. "Apprenticeship, huh? Did you say you wanted that, Doll?" She looked to her daughter. Compared to how she was when she first met her, Dolores was getting taller by the day. Gwen couldn't help but think about that as she looked at what was effectively her step-daughter in the eyes.
Dolores looked back at her mother, hesitant. "Yeah... I want to be his apprentice."
Apollo nodded attentively. "So... we wanted to know if you two would approve of such an arrangement. I understand that she's young, but I'd like to get her started early under my wing so I could educate her in possibly even taking my place in the future."
"Taking your place!?"
Hikaru blinked, shocked as well. "W-What do you mean by 'take your place', sir?"
"Of course, I don't mean that I'll be gone anytime soon, but... I want her to inherit my knowledge. It's the natural human compulsion to want to pass one's life down to the next generation, no? It is the same here. I do not want my knowledge to be wasted, and wish for Doll... no, Dolores here to inherit my will."
Her parents were perplexed. Gwen ran a hand across her face. "Why... Doll? Why our Dolores in particular? She specializes in robotics, yes, but you specialize in so many other things. You aren't just a roboticist, you're a biologist, a full-blown scientist!"
"Yes, and I believe Dolores has the same potential as I did so many years ago."
Gwen pinched the bridge of her nose, thinking. Hikaru chimed in. "Dolores is undeniably a talent, but inheriting everything? It sounds too good to be true, even coming from you, sir. I know it sounds as if I'm putting down my daughter, but I'm not when I say; What if she can't live up to your expectations? What will you do with her? Just... drop her back over to us? Abandon her?"
"Not at all. If she doesn't meet the full breadth of my work with as much competency as I do, then I will simply make her the head mechanic for my organization." He looked over to Dolores. "You would be satisfied with that, no?"
Dolores nodded. "I... I just love machinery, but... I also like the sciences as well, so..."
"That leads into my next argument. I know that you have been focused on your youngest, but... did you know that Dolores also has an immense talent in the sciences? She is incredibly intelligent for her eyes, and our exploration in biology, alchemy, and the like has been an incredibly fruitful endeavor. Of course, I enact as much safety as possible whenever I experiment, as Dolores is around me, but the fact still stands that she not only holds the talent of a machinist, she also holds the talent of a pure-bred scientist as well. It is why I wish for her to inherit my will."
Gwen smiled in disbelief. "This is crazy, I..." She looked over to her daughter. "I... you'll take care of her, right?"
Hikaru was surprised, but it was obvious he was fine with it from the start. This was truly a negotiation with Gwen, not Hikaru.
Apollo nodded. "Of course. Like my own daughter."
Gwen couldn't help but hesitate, especially since she barely knew the Prince personally, but what she did know was that Hikaru trusted him. She sighed, "If Dolores wants to, then... she should. Just... keep her safe, okay?"
"I swear I will keep her safe for as long as she is my Apprentice."
A few weeks later, the day arrived when Dolores had to leave the compound, setting off to become an apprentice for a legendary scientist of Lnoch. Hikaru and Gwen, along with Kuro, held tightly within her arms, stood in front of the compound, ready to say their goodbyes to their daughter, even if only temporarily. Dolores was to be under his care for 3 years, only being able to visit once every few months.
Gwen took a breath, looking down at her daughter, whom she had known for so many years. She placed a hand on her head. "You think you're gonna be alright without us?"
Dolores nodded. "Yeah, I can do it. I just need to be strong."
Gwen chuckled. "Yeah, you're very strong, aren't you?" She lifted Dolores's bangs, kissing her forehead. "Think of that as a blessing, alright, Doll?"
Dolores stood in silence for a moment, holding her head. Her voice choked. "Yeah, I will." Her gaze landed on her little brother, holding out a hand. Just as when he had just been born, his little fingers wrapped around her one instinctively, a smile on his face. "I'll be back, okay?" Dolores whispered.
Before Dolores could leave, both Hikaru and Gwen took her into a big hug, both wrapping their arms around her. Her eyes widened for a moment, but it quickly became smothering as she attempted to break out of their grasp, groaning.
"We love you, okay?" Dolores stopped as Gwen spoke those words. "I love you so much..."
Dolores attempted to look for an escape, but nothing could stop her as her eyes began watering, breath shaking.
"I love you... please stay safe... my red little fox... I love you."
"We love you."
Dolores choked the words out, voice cracking as she spoke. "I love you too."
In reality, this story is about the strength it takes to love another person. This story is about escapism, family, and love. That is the ultimate intent with this tale, but... what meaning would those concepts have if there weren't trials along the way? Things to test one's endurance that test the very sanity of one's soul. Without conflict, without an antonym, words may have no meaning.
If there is light, there must be dark. But such cruelties can become unbearable, unfathomable. Concepts that can drive a pit into the very stomachs of man itself, yet only man can be the perpetrator of such cruelty. An irony seeped within humanity, but through its existence, it brings about greater meaning to what makes being alive so beautiful, free, and real. This story is about pushing past adversity. About weighing a thousand suns placed upon you, yet you stand up forevermore.
This story is of human determination. This story is about those who, despite going through the worst of what the world has had to offer, strive in the end for the ones they love.
Love is such a powerful thing... but it isn't powerful enough to save everyone.
A sickening reality that is displayed through a red-headed girl, kept in a cage of concrete and bulletproof glass. This story is about many things... and one of these things is a story about a liar... and a girl, betrayed by her own mentor.
At first, she was met by a blur of images filling her mind, seeing double as the silhouettes of scientists passed by her cage. She blinked, a pain surging through her arms, looking down to see fur running up to where her forearms and biceps connected. They were bulbous, covered in hair, down from the forearm to her hands, two bloated black arms covered in red fur met her gaze.
Her breath shook, slowly processing what had happened to her, slowly turning into a mania unfounded as pain shot through those very same arms, a pain so unbearable that her body froze, locked in place as she screamed aloud, voice echoing throughout her cage and to the hall outside, scientists gathering around as if she were some sort of zoo animal.
In this case, suppose she was. Arms mangled and transformed beyond recognition. Unable to see anything but a blurry environment around her due to her lack of sight, glasses gone, missing, a memento of her father, gone.
She gagged through the pain, frothing at the mouth, tears streaming down her face.
Her eyes shot down to her arms, forcing the inside of her arm up to her mouth before biting deep into the flesh with a violent fervor, unable to withstand the pain any longer than she had been. The flesh popped in between her teeth, crimson filling her mouth in a river of blood, taste of iron permeating her senses, but she persisted, the pain too unbearable, carried by adrenaline alone.
And then she tore, straight down into the bone, even going out of her way to break her bones against the stone walls encasing her as the pain persisted.
Once one arm was gone, she went to the other, mangling both arms enough that they were unusable. The only thing a doctor could do would be to amputate what remained.
Scientists rushed into the room, attempting to stop her.
An hour later, a man spoke, pushing up their glasses as they looked to Apollo as they loomed over the operating table. Dolores was set upon. "Similar to the others, it seems the effects of the Beast Blood have inflicted some form of mania onto the experiment this time. For other cases, we have brain damage, death, genetic malformation, and various others."
"So, this time it was mania?"
"Yeah... she tore at her own arms like a starving beast. We attempted to stop the process, but in the end, we had to remove the limbs to keep her alive."
"The shocking part is that she's even still alive."
The man sighed. "I suppose it is. What should we do with her?'
"How about we have her reconnect with an old friend of mine? What do you think?"
"What are you suggesting?"
"Didn't Token have a kid? Transport her to Roxaltis. Leave her there. We'll see if she lives. If she does, she has a lot more potential than we were originally led to believe."
"What about the subject's parents?"
Apollo gave a glance at the man beside him. "Hikaru will handle it." He sighed. "He always knows what to do after all... for the greater good."
"For the greater good..." Hikaru repeated those words over the phone, setting it down on the desk in front of him. His gaze turned toward his Wife and Child.
"For the greater good," Apollo repeated. "Now... let's ship the girl off, shall we?"
***
The droning sound of wheels over during paired with the rocking of a transport truck shook Dolores awake. Her eyes flickered open, looking to the opposite end of the car she was in, only to spot an older man in military garb sitting down, looking forward past the back windows of the vehicle, to the front of the road. Trees passed by, the truck maneuvering around expertly to avoid a crash.
The first thing Dolores attempted to do was flex her fingers, shift her arm. She threw her bicep in front of her. Her mind was confused, as only a floating feeling met where her hand was supposed to be. Her eyes focused, noticing a blue connecting to her body seemed to have been missing one half of itself. It was a blue she recognized.
Dolores swallowed hard, shifting to reveal her other bicep. Both of her arms were stumps, with slight scarring visible at her elbows.
Dolores gagged, inspecting the car she was in for any way of escape. She began slowly hyperventilating, pushing herself off from her seat before falling back down onto it, legs slipping from beneath themselves. "W-Where, where am I...?"
The soldier sat at attention, looking over to Dolores. "Shit, the girl is awake!"
"Where's my mom, w-where... where am I?" She swallowed again, attempting to keep the bile down in her stomach as she scrambled for the back of the truck. She fell straight onto the floor, pushing her body up just to see some ways above the small door in the back.
She was met with a cold breeze against her face and the sight of a snow-covered forest. It was freezing here, and it had only just hit her now. "W-What, what is going on!? Where am I!?" She screamed, spinning around her back to meet her kidnapper's gaze. She attempted to push herself off the ground, but failed, falling straight back onto her back.
The man sighed. "God, can we shut her up!?"
The driver spoke up, shouting back at their compatriot. "You have the photo, don't you!?"
Dolores interrupted their conversation, screaming. "Where am I!? I want to go back to my family! Please..." Dolores's voice cracked, once again trying to pull herself out of the car, but failing due to a lack of hands.
"Oh, fuck me... why do I gotta be the one to do it!?"
"'Cause you aren't driving!"
The man clicked his tongue before slowly approaching Dolores, kneeling beside her. "Get away from me!" She kicked at the soldier, who easily batted her legs away as he pulled out his phone. She continued to retaliate, leading to him smacking her across the jaw.
She reeled against the hit, unable to soothe the pain through her own physical touch. She pushed herself back, propping herself against the truck door behind her, saliva pooling around her mouth, on the verge of vomiting from her situation.
"Why... what..." Her words teetered off into a wheeze.
The man pursed his lips, showing Dolores what was on his phone. "Look, stop flailing around like a fuckin' idiot, and look."
"G-get away from m-- w-what have I ever done to you? Why are you--" Her eyes widened, stunned by what she saw on that screen.
"Hikaru?" Gwen looked up at her husband. His face was obscured by shadow, looking down at her with Kuro in her arms.
A month before...
"I'll put Kuro to bed, okay?" Hikaru held out both of his hands, taking Kuro into his arms.
Gwen sighed. "Do you think Dolores is doing alright?"
Kuro was placed into his crib, and Hikaru spun on the balls of his feet, facing Gwen.
"How do you think she's doing?"
"She's probably having the time of her life." He crossed over to his wife, staring at her as if burning the memory into his very soul. "She'll probably cry, missing us for a few days, and start calming down once she gets familiar." He placed a hand on her shoulder.
Gwen sighed. "Yeah, maybe." She looked up, meeting his gaze. His eyes were dead. "Hikaru, are you okay?"
"You know I love you, right?"
"Hi--"
A sickening crack could be heard before he was painted in her own blood. The result of this atrocity was shown to her own daughter, now unable to move, forced to stare at her mother's corpse.
Dolores's head was filled with static.
"Alright, if we got the build right, it should be able to jump across this ravine without any issue. What do you think, Doll?" Gwen questioned, looking over her shoulder at Dolores.
Dolores nodded. "O-Okay, b-but, what if it fails? Undershoots?" Between the two was a pair of robotic legs standing tall.
"Well, what do you think Apollo's money is for?"
"O-Okay..."
"Alright!" Gwen took a few steps away from the pair of legs, and so did Dolores, following her step-mother's lead. She pressed a button, and the legs began leaning forward, before taking one step after another, slowly ramping up in speed. "Okay..." Gwen mumbled under her breath.
The legs continued forward, its weight being led by the top half of its legs. It rushed forward, over to the edge of the ravine, before bringing both legs in and launching itself forward. The legs, with a hefty thud, slammed against the other end of the small ravine before sliding down into the small river within, the legs being taken away by the current.
"Oh, shit!" Gwen rushed for the legs, sliding down into the ravine to retrieve them, Dolores following behind her.
After they retrieved the legs, they set them on the ground a few feet away from the ravine itself, looking down on it.
"Welp... uh... hey... It's our first fail, not that big a deal, right?"
Dolores held a pinched expression, attempting to calculate in her mind what had gone wrong.
"Hey, are you okay, Doll?"
Dolores blinked, looking back at her mother. "S-Sorry... I..."
"Are you frustrated?"
"Yeah."
Gwen scratched the back of her head. "Look, things happen. We probably got the wrong material."
"But we calculated it. It should've been flawless, but..."
There was a momentary pause in the air. Gwen spoke up, breaking the silence. "Eh... It's just how it is sometimes, y'know? These things can be unpredictable like that."
"Maybe we did it late? Or there wasn't enough of a running start?"
"Good, we analyze it like that!"
Dolores stopped, looking back down at the legs with an incredulous look on her face.
Gwen sighed. "Doll? Look, it isn't that big of a deal. We can do it again, plus, we're quick, it'll be fine."
"Do you think I made a mistake...?"
"With the legs? Well, since we worked on it together, we both did, but y--"
"No... with Worth, and Jinzi?"
Gwen's expression dropped, brow knit in worry. "What do you mean by that, Doll?"
"I was... cold to them when they left. I started thinking about that and how much it could've hurt them..."
"Why?"
"Because... what if that's the last time we see each other? Like... with my real parents. What if that's the last time? Whether dead or alive, or we just never see each other again because we're just so far apart in the world?"
Gwen attempted to get a read on Dolores in that moment before shaking her head. "What's got you thinkin' about this stuff, Doll?"
"I... I don't know... I'm just... scared...."
Gwen kneeled beside Dolores, wrapping an arm around one of her shoulders. "Doll, look at me. Are you okay?"
She shook her head.
Gwen looked down at the legs again. She didn't have much to say just yet, just sitting there in silence before speaking. "You see... if there is a situation where you can't meet with a person anymore... what do you think you should do?"
Dolores looked Gwen in the eyes, attempting to read her expression. "I don't know."
"Nobody has an actual definitive answer, but there is an answer that everyone lands on eventually, especially with the dead."
"What is that?"
Gwen paused for a moment. "You know, I'm an orphan too. I never had a proper family." She swallowed and sighed. "But I got to know a lot of people during my lifetime, and that includes my foster parents. Unfortunately... I lost them, too. Do you know what I did then?"
"What did you do?"
"I carried them with me, everywhere."
"Everywhere?"
"Wanna know how?"
"How?"
"Through my memories and experiences. Of course, this includes a few momentos." She chuckled. "You see... if... if you're ever in a situation like that, all you have to do is just... remember. It hurts, I know, but... one day, I'll be one of those things that you'll just have to remember. But through your actions and experiences, you'll only begin to realize... 'wow... I really do carry them with me,' y'know? We, as people, absorb the memories and knowledge that surround us and turn them into experiences, actions, and consequences... It's the very essence of living."
"So...?"
"Carry me with you everywhere, little one. I'll always be with you... because I love you... I love you, Doll. Carry that love with you to the end of time, okay?"
The memory faded.
Dolores's body shook; her eyes looked to the man before her as her surroundings began to be drowned out by a cacophony of emotions welling up inside her. The soldier stepped away, leaving the girl to mull over the passing of their guardian, to sink within the wastes of her own mind.
She couldn't hold the bile in any longer. She almost threw herself off the truck as vomit streamed out from her throat in a violent spray into the snow behind her. Tears welled up in her eyes, saliva dropping from her mouth, nose running along her face. Her breath shook with a palpable and resonant despair, face flushed from the surrounding cold. Dolores began to hyperventilate once more, uttering, "Mama... ma-- ma..." She wheezed, tears staining the snow.
Dolores wailed out, mourning for the life she had lost. It all happened so fast, she could barely comprehend it.
"Mama! Mama! O-Oh God, please! Please!" She flopped onto the truck's flooring, entire body stiffening up in a fit of despair and rage, gagging periodically as she flailed in stiff, sharp movements. "N-No! This is a nightmare!" Her voice cracked. "P-Please, wake me up! I... God! Please! I can't feel my arms, oh God!"
The soldier looked to the driver, opening the window behind him. "She's fuckin' losin' her mind back here."
"We're already where we need to be, just kick her off already!" The driver screamed out in response.
The soldier tightened their jaw, crossing over to Dolores, keeping their balance using the truck benches. "Shut the fuck up!"
"No!" Dolores cried out. "Get away from me!"
"I'll give you a reason to cry, you little shit!"
Dolores attempted to kick at him, but he sidestepped her, grabbed her by the collar, and threw her torso over the truck's back door. "Ah! No! No!" And with one shove from his foot, she was sent flying off the vehicle and straight into the snow below.
Dolores swallowed another bubbling mass of bile in her throat, shifting her body to watch as the truck she was just on slowly disappeared behind the trees in the distance.
"No! Don't leave! Please!" She flailed, once again reminded of her helplessness, no arms, no hope. Just a child betrayed and abandoned by their mentor. "Mama! Please... oh..." And she wailed again, screaming as loud as she could, unable to contain the well of emotions any longer. "Mama... I... please... no... why... why me...? What did I do to deserve this...? T-This is a nightmare... p-please... I-I want to go home... I want to wake up..."
Dolores lay in the snow for hours, crying away. The cold was too much to bear, though, and she soon passed out in a heap.
And then... There was silence.
"Doll! I know my cooking isn't very good, but I've been experimenting with a new all-time recipe!" Dolores's eyes pried themselves open, welcomed by the sights of her own room, the morning sun peering through the curtains. "Doll!? Wake up! By the way, your dad left for work, so if you're wondering where he is-- yeah!" She scoffed.
Dolores blinked, pulling herself out of her bed. She had her hands, and her feet were set on the cold, hard wooden floor set just beneath a carpet that sat right underneath her bed itself. She licked her lips in disbelief, crossing over to her bedroom door and spotting Gwen in the kitchen. "Mom..."
Gwen looked back at Dolores, a smile on her face. "Did you just call me Mom?" Her eyes welled up. "Oh my God... um..." Gwen was in disbelief.
Dolores took a few steady steps forward. "M-Mom..." Tears in her eyes.
"W-What's wrong...!?" Gwen rushed on over, about to cry herself as she wrapped her arms around Dolores's small, frail body. "G-You've never called me mom before... w-what happened!? Did you have a nightmare or something?"
"M-Mama... y-... Mama..."
"I-I'm here... I'm here, Doll. I'll... I'm always here, okay...? It's gonna be okay. I'll always be with you..."
"Mom... I... I love you! I'm sorry! I'm sorry I left, I shouldn't have... I..." Dolores couldn't hold it any longer, crying as hard as she could into the crook of her mother's shoulder.
Gwen broke into tears as well. "It's okay... I-I'm here... Oh... I-I'm so sorry... I'm so sorry, honey. God... fuck... please..."
Then a door opened.
Dolores shot awake, breathing heavily as her arm motioned to clutch her chest, staring wildly throughout an unknown room. She pushed herself up with her legs, spotting a young man entering. They were about her age, maybe a year younger. They had long, curly black hair, bangs hanging over their amber eyes, and skin slightly tanned. "Um..." He spun around, "She's awake!"
"God, this poor girl, she's malnourished-- what the hell happened?" An older woman with auburn hair and a stocky build exclaimed. "Kyte, help her eat!"
Dolores was seated at a dinner table with an unknown family. The boy from before is shoving a bowl of soup onto her side of the table, attempting to shift himself next to her, but is struggling due to his lack of height.
Finally, he stopped next to her, grabbed a spoon, and dug into the soup before her, lifting it to her lips. "Alright, you need to bite down. I dunno if you know how to eat, but it--"
"Kid! Do you think she's a Neanderthal or something!? Feed her properly?"
"She won't open her mouth!"
"Just-- Just fuckin', uh..."
A younger blond woman gestured with her head to the larger auburn-haired girl. "Watch your language."
"Oh! Come on! This kid literally hunts animals, you think that a cuss is gonna do anything!?"
"It's just not polite, Andrea."
"God damnit." Andrea, the woman, sighed. "Alright, just push it against her lips and hope she accepts it, okay?"
The boy, Kyte, shrugged. "Uh.. okay?" He did as he was told, pressing the food against Dolores's lips, eventually opening up to the meal. She sucked the soup out of the spoon and began chewing. "Oh! It worked!"
"Don't worry, son, eventually you'll get better at this." The blond woman spoke, "Eventually, it becomes instinct."
"Okay?" He looked over to Dolores with eyes wide, filled with curiosity. "Are you okay? What happened to you?" He blinked, noticing her lack of arms. "And your arms?"
"Kyte!" Andrea made a wide gesture in annoyance. "The hell, kid!?"
"I-I was curious!"
Dolores couldn't keep down the food, spitting it out, back into the bowl, strings of the mess still falling from her face. The room went silent in that moment. A moment later, she is sitting on a couch, just across from the kitchen's dining room.
Andrea pinched her chin. "I dunno, Cris, what do we do? Food isn't going down, and they refuse to drink water."
The blond woman, Cris, shook her head. "Maybe today isn't the right day? It seems that they've been through a lot, so we should let them sit on it for a while. Maybe... I dunno. All we can do is hope they can get better."
"Yeah, okay."
Kyte watched from a nearby seat. Dolores got up, heading for the door, staggering due to a lack of balance. Kyte glanced back at the other two still talking in the kitchen, and then proceeded to follow Dolores.
Dolores stopped at the door, pressing her head against its cold exterior. Kyte approached. "Do you want to go outside?" He asked, innocently.
Dolores looked at him and nodded.
"Okay..." Kyte opened the door for her, Dolores staggering outside, ignoring the pain of the cold as she progressed further into the forest beyond.
Kyte threw on a coat and followed.
"Hey, where are you going?"
No response.
"Um... how old are you? I'm eleven, so..." He paused. "You look around the same age, so... what's your name?"
Nothing.
"Are you okay?"
After a few minutes of walking, they happened upon a river, still flowing even through the icy cold of winter.
"Hey..." Kyte slowly became concerned, and in that moment, Dolores launched herself into the river. Kyte was quick, though, throwing his coat off and jumping in after her.
Both of them are momentarily dragged into the current, but he pulled them both out through adrenaline alone.
"What the hell was that!?"
"Let me go!" In a moment of realization, Dolores lashed out at the boy, kicking him.
"Hey! What the hell are you doing!?"
"Get away from me! I-I need to see my family! I need to go home!"
"W-What are you even saying!? Do you wanna die or something!?"
"Yeah!?" Dolores whipped around, stopping her fit to look him straight in the eyes. "So what!? What the hell do you care!? I don't know you! I just... I just want to see my family! Go away!"
"By killing yourself!? What the hell are you even saying to me!?" He grabbed for his coat, attempting to throw it over her shoulders, but she kicked at him, pushing Kyte back.
"Get away! I-I need to see Mama!" She attempted to make a break for the river again, but Kyte grabbed her by the waist, throwing her back into the snow.
"Damn! It's cold! Stop!"
Dolores flailed helplessly, struggling against Kyte's grasp. "Stop! Get off! Die! I just want to die!"
"Fuckin' STOP!" His sudden scream snapped her out of whatever frenzy she was in, eyes wide, hyperventilating. Kyte took a breath as well, staring in disbelief at the girl below him. "What the hell is wrong with you!? W-Why are you tryin' to die!? What the hell is goin' on!?"
"I... I can't..." Dolores whined, licking her lips.
"What?" Kyte wheezed.
"I... my... I... this... Why won't it end...? Why won't this nightmare end...?"
Kyte swallowed, grabbed his coat, and dragged both of them away from the river and onto a nearby tree. He threw the coat over their shoulders, huddling next to Dolores to share some of her warmth. "Oh God," Her feet were becoming purple from the cold. "Okay, I got this." He whispered to himself, grabbing both of her legs and pressing them into his stomach in an attempt to keep them warm. "Don't wanna lose your toes too, y'know? Already don't..." He stopped. "Never mind."
"Why are you doing this to me? Just... just let me see my family again..."
"What the hell are you talking about? Why would I let you kill yourself, you crazy girl?"
"I... I lost everything..."
"Yeah, and how would your family feel if their... uh... whatever the hell you are to them went to die in the damn cold! What then!?"
"What...? What are you saying to me?"
"Your family dead or somethin', okay!? But..." A beat. "Isn't it like... the common sense to keep living on for them!? If they died, wouldn't living on be the best bet? Keep their memory alive!? Isn't that the whole purpose of living!? Now, calm your ass down, and I'll get us back to somewhere warm, okay!?"
"Why are you helping me?"
"Because I care? I-I don't know what you're even asking me right now, ju-just shut up, or something." Kyte took a breath, grabbing the back of Dolores's neck and her legs, hoisting her up onto his lap before standing up. "God, y-you're tall." He struggled for a moment, but with a huff, repositioned himself. "Okay, I got this!"
He hobbled back home, holding Dolores in his arms. She stared, perplexed. Something in her brain couldn't compute the situation she had found herself in.
"You're gonna be okay..." He whispered under his breath half-heartedly, yet still went so far as to keep her alive. He almost risked his life doing what he did, and yet, here he is, still pushing for a girl he didn't know.
"I don't get it."
"And..." He sighed from the stress of carrying a girl significantly taller than him. "I don't really care!"
They could spot Andrea from afar, waving the two over, clearly angry, whilst Cris stood with her arms crossed, worried.
"Shit... we're gonna get an earful! Damnit! I'm so dumb!" Kyte lamented.
Dolores continued to stare, attempting to understand what had just happened to her. Eventually, she just let go, her body going limp as she took in the cold air around her. "It isn't warm..."
"Yeah, and whose fault do you think it is!?" He paused. "Shit! It was mine!"
Andrea rushed over to the two. "What the hell is going on out here!? Come on! Let's go inside!"
After being ushered back into their home, a fire was lit, the entire family now gathering around it, Dolores sitting the closest to its dancing flame. Kyte sat beside her after a while.
The house was quiet, the only sound being the interspersed crackling of a fire.
Kyte looked over at Dolores, scanning her and Andrea in the background, crossing to their record player. "That's Life" by Frank Sinatra began playing, filling the silence with harmony. Kyte sighed, looking to the fire as well, keeping close to Dolores.
"Why does everything have to be so painful?" Dolores spoke, her voice shot, barely audible from all of the screaming she had been doing for the past couple of days.
Kyte clicked his tongue. "I dunno..." He stopped for a moment, absorbed in the music. He blinked, looking back to Dolores. "Maybe it's to make the good times stand out more?" Kyte smiled, looking back at the fire.
"Hm..." Dolores sat there for a moment as well. "I see... Why should I accept that fact, though?"
"You shouldn't. It's why people fight, I think."
Dolores became quiet, the thought lingering in her mind. She blinked. "I see... fair enough."
"Yeah... Fair enough."