Aira's Escape

The things people do to get out of a bad situation

“You have returned.” Iesu’s voice ripples the humid air.

Aira’s brown eyes are glassy, red. Sweat trickles down her forehead as she rubs fresh bruises over her brown skin. She drags her feet under the cover of trees, stars, and shadows. The trickling of the river, the rustle of reeds ferries away any lingering tension. The aroma of wildflowers holds her, lifting for a moment the weight of a home that had become a prison.

Aira kneels next to the injured, translucent alien and offers it leftover pupusas after checking its bandages. “I told you already,” it scoffed, crystal eyes burning. “I don’t eat Earth food.”

Aira winces. Iesu snatches the Tupperware and takes a bite. She sits, hugs her knees, glances at the sky streaked in purple, a crumbled moon, the depth of darkness. “Did you think about what I asked?”

“I think it’s stupid.” Iesu swallowed. “You would give up your free will?”

“What is free will with a life like mine?” Her voice is a strangled cry of frustration.

“Fine,” it huffed. “Your attempts to aid in my recovery will not go unrewarded. Just be sure this is what you truly desire.”

The next night, Iesu guides her to its spaceship, and when the doors close, there is no going back. The procedure feels like surgery, but without anesthesia. Her consciousness melts into synthetic circuits. Bits of memories, emotions fracture and collapse into the structure of data. The last flicker of doubt is fanned away. She is metal where she used to be soft, her breath turned to static. “You did better than I expected,” Iesu said.

“Really?”

However, when she searched inside herself-"all that made her real-"there was only translucence, as she broke into the company of stars.

Reviews

[Carrie]

Nice. What was she escaping from? Where was she going to?

[RKB]

Escaping from an abusive situation to travel to anywhere she wants

[Carrie]

Awesome. You can also expand this story