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The crowd that had gathered in the plant chamber seemed to still be holding their collective breath, bathed in the blue light of a healthy plant that was critical just moments ago. No one could deny it was a miracle they just witnessed but it still made most of them uneasy. Whispers slowly rose into a chatter as Luida stepped forward to gather up the small child before the plant bulb that had passed out from the effort of healing it.
Gathering Vash in her arms, Luida couldn’t help but worry over just how light the boy was; he’s barely been eating over the past ten months he’d been under their care and she had to guess that the feet he just pulled would be strenuous even at full health. Her next worry was the gathering storm of words flooding her ears. Was she naive to think that Vash saving all of them would help the rest of the ship’s citizens think better of him?
“That’s our main energy plant… just how much potential does that thing have…”
“Was anyone taking energy reading? Are we at risk for radiation or gamma exposure from it?”
“Just what were the Sinners making on Ship five?”
Luida held her tongue, focusing on getting Vash back to his room, making sure a meal would be ready for when he woke up and then… Then she’d give the ship council a piece of her mind, if she was supposed to be in charge of the ship then she’d finally see to some better care for Vash.
“Was I put in charge of this ship or not?!?” Luida had slammed her hands down on the table, she was staring daggers at the ten or so other people sitting around her, none willing to budge on her motion to move Vash from a holding cell to a proper room.
“You were the highest ranking member of our ship at the time of the crash, yes. And as lead plant engineer your work was most vital to keeping our survival rates up but you’ve also grown too attached to the plant to see reason.” One of the other plant engineers spoke up first, looking to the woman sitting next to him, their head of security.
“SEEDS protocol for when we establish our new colony was to set up councils, we’re no longer at sea, there is no single captain role if we’re going to survive here. I get the kid saved our butts today but it’s too much of a risk to give him free reign of the ship. We still know next to nothing about him, how can we be sure this wasn’t just some bid to buy our good will?
“Come on! I’m not asking for anything like that yet, just showing him some gratitude by giving him a little bit of trust! We can station a guard if you’re that scared of a damn child!” Luida felt her face go hot with her anger. She turned to look at Brad, surely at least he could see how Vash deserved thanks; for all his blustering about killing or experimenting on Vash, he was proven wrong! Vash wanted nothing more than to help him, it was time for Brad to eat crow.
If she could just get Brad on her side, surely the rest would be willing to make such a small concession…
“Luida… Sure it turned out he was helpful this time but you heard him back there; he was focused on saving the plant, not us. He’s not human, no matter what he may look like, he’s still an alien and today proves that.”
Luida felt her heart sinking, the anger leaving her body to be replaced with a numbness as Brad continued.
“He’s clearly useful, I'll admit that we can spare a bit of resources but at the end of the day, he’s a tool for us, just like any other plant. He needs to be kept contained for all our safety, I brought him onto our ship but I’m not taking any unnecessary risks with him. We wouldn’t want any of the other plants out of their tanks, just because he breathes air and can look like us doesn’t mean he can’t be a threat one day. We need to mitigate every possible risk in such a hostile world.”
There was a murmur of agreement among the gathered people, Luida hated to give up the fight but she could clearly see she was alone on the matter. Vash would have to wait for now, she’d try and bring the topic back another time, for now, she was adult enough to be the only person who would thank him.
“Vash, thank you, you saved a lot of people today…” Luida wished she could be more cheerful as she spoke.
Vash was sitting on the table that doubled as his bed, legs swung back and forth, his tray of food fully eating for once and he seemed in better spirits then she had ever seen.
“I’m glad the plant is ok, I didn’t even know I could do that…” Vash shuffled to the side centre of the table stilling once he was done, arms still cuffed and folded in his lap.
“I really wish there was a better way to thank you, Vash… The others… They're still nervous about everything so for now this is the most I can do.” Luida stood up from the chair she brought in, taking a step closer to Vash and reached out to uncuff him. Vash flinched slightly as she did so, Luida couldn’t help feeling bad that he was still nervous around her.
After a few moments Luida sat back down and Vash looked at her for another moment longer before beginning to rub his wrists one at a time. When Luida didn’t do anything to stop him or re-cuff him, Vash stretched his arms for the first time in almost a year. The pop was loud enough to be heard past the door.
“Thank you, Luida.”
That Vash was genuinely thankful over such a small thing, that this was all Luida could do hurt. “Now that we know what it is that only you can do, we can count on your help whenever a plant needs healing right?”
Vash seemed to hesitate a moment before nodding “and I’m sure after some time has passed and everyone starts to relax a bit, we can do a bit more for you…” Luida couldn't bring herself to make any sort of real promise that would only hurt when they were never fulfilled.
Luida picked up the empty meal tray “I’ll talk to you soon, Vash, get some rest, you’ve earned it.”
As Luida left the room and the door closed and locked behind her, she turned to look back in through the window. Vash brought his legs up onto the metal surface and he rolled over a few times, trying to lay with his arms folded behind his head on his back. He tried sleeping on each side with one arm up to pillow his head; but he ultimately ended up on his side with both arms in front of him in a fetal position as if they were still cuffed.
It’s one month later when another one of their plants needs healing, it wasn’t critical like the first one but its production levels had dropped to near critical. “Get the kid, let's see if that was just a one off or not.”
Luida nodded to the other plant engineer, leaving to go grab Vash. Over the month she wasn’t able to spend too much time visiting him; most days it was just to drop off his meal but she tried to spend some time at least once a week. The last few days Vash had seemed slightly distant and she was now wondering if he could somehow sense one of the plants was off.
Getting to his cell, Luida was used to the tallies Vash kept of his days locked away, some were starting to get close as he hadn’t grown over the course of almost a year of being stranded. They were all the same but when she looked in after opening the door, it was clear that today’s tally stood out. Perhaps he lost track of days, the anniversary of the big fall wasn’t for another month.
“Vash, there’s a plant that needs your help.” Luida kneeled down to eye level, holding out a hand to lead Vash out of the cell. She felt bad for being afraid to touch him before, now it was Vash who was hesitant to reach out, still seemingly not used to being free of the cuffs as he first moved both hands to take hers.
The hallways were clear as they made their way up to the plant room, there was some chatter once they entered, all awake engineers had gathered up. Luida could feel Vash stiffen as he moved closer to her, people not even bothering to whisper as they talked openly about the young independent.
“It’s still the same as before.”
“I think the hair has grown out slightly, but otherwise it’s the same as when we brought it in.
“Gives me the creeps, at least you know a regular plant is a different species.”
Luida gritted her teeth and Vash didn’t say a word, just walked up to the plant who had taken on a light pinkish colour. Vash pressed his hands to the glass as the plant unfurled and floated down to match him, foreheads pressed as close as they could with the barrier between them.
“Where are his cuffs?”
Luida turned to see that Bard had entered the room, hanging back in the doorway as the room filled with a soft blue light from the plant and Vash.
“He doesn’t need to be cuffed anymore, it was ridiculous to do so in the first place and to keep them on for as long as we did. At least give him that much!”
Luida looked over her shoulder, the plant was fully healed now, Vash’s markings faded away but they remained mirrored, though no words could be heard; the way they maintained eye contact seemed to show they were communicating somehow.
“Luida, remember he’s just a tool for us. If you make more concessions he could get the wrong idea. I’ll allow removing the cuffs but quit getting attached, it won’t be good for you. He’s not human, look, they're clearly talking and we have no idea what about.”
“He’s what, Nine, Ten at most! Are you really so scared of a little kid?!?”
Brad scoffed, turning from Luida to walk away, looking over his shoulder at her “it’s almost been a full year and he hasn’t changed at all, for all we know he could be much older then he looks; don’t know many kids wanting to be left for dead.”
Luida hated to admit but Brad did have a point. Normal plants, while they do need to grow, reach maturity rapidly and then will look the same until it’s time for a last run. She’d ask Vash about that after dinner.
Turning her attention back to Vash, it seemed he finished up whatever silent conversation he was having with the plant already and was looking downcast but still fully awake unlike last time. Luida walked up to Vash and placed a hand on his shoulder to lead him back out to his…cell.
“Wait here, ok? I’ll be back with your dinner; you’ll get a full tray today as you healed a plant so be sure to eat it all.”
The two of them were in front of the cell, the door open for Vash to walk in, Luida left it open for a minute, watching Vash as he walked in and hoisted himself onto the table. It looked like there was something he wanted to say but Vash eventually just nodded, hands folded neatly in his lap as the door slid closed and locked.
Luida made her way to the gally, getting a full ration tray for Vash, after his initial refusal to eat, ending with the full tray after healing a plant; he was given one quarter ration daily. It shouldn’t have been enough for a human of any age but it was still more than he ate those first ten months. The rations were simple and rather bland but it would keep everyone going until they could establish settlements and focus more plant energy into food production.
Returning to Vash’s cell, Vash didn’t seem to notice Luida walking in, transfixed on today’s tally mark for some unknown reason to her.
“Here, Vash, eat up.”
Vash took the tray from her and mumbled a small thanks, eating it up slowly. Once he was done, Luida finally worked up the nerve to ask Vash about his age.
“Hey Vash, if I can ask…”
“It’s July 21st, right?”
Luida blinked, Vash so rarely spoke that him interrupted her took Luida off guard “Uhh I guess we’re still going by the old earth calendar, lets see… Yup! July 21st indeed.” Luida had to look down at her data pad to check.
“Then… today I’m 2.”
Luida remained silent for what must have been several minutes processing what Vash had just said. First it was clear that he had heard her and Brad talking about him, just how much of that conversation she was afraid to ask. Next it was that Vash was so, so much younger than even she had thought and lastly… it was his birthday.
Vash drew in on himself as Luida stared at him in silence, Rem had told him and Nai they grew much faster than humans but the look on Luida’s face showed just how off putting he must be. He’d done as they asked, never asking for anything in return but it was clear from the look of the nicest human on ship three that he was never going to be seen as anything more.
Luida swallowed the lump in her throat. Maybe, just maybe Brad was right, that getting too attached to Vash would be a bad thing in the long run; but not for the reasons he thought. “Good night, Vash.” Luida picked up the empty tray and walked out without another word, holding back a tear as she thought wishing him a happy birthday would just be cruel.
After that, Luida kept her visits on once a week, a full year since the crash had passed, no other plants had needed healing in the months that passed but soon radio connections were made with other surviving ships.
“Other ships are asking for any spare engineers to help with their plants. Ship eight has had to do three last runs, nine and twelve have done five. Ship one didn’t have many plants on board so they’re despite to keep theirs going.”
The communication officer for their ship had finished their report to the council and the members broke out into discussions.
“Do we risk using the kid? We’ve not really had much luck before preventing the need for a last run.”
“Should the knowledge of independent plants spread? The Sinners seemed keen to keep it a secret.”
“I’m sure Vash would be willing to help the other ships with their plants.”
Luida could hear Brad’s sight and the mumbling from a few others. Clearly she was still too attached in their minds. Every passing week and month it felt like she was losing more and more influence on everyone on ship three. Maybe it was time for her to step back and just focus on her job as a plant engineer.
“We’ll have him help the other ships. We’ll need someone to transport him there and back, some of the other ships landed very far away but it’s what needs to be done to help with the next stage of humanity’s life on this wasteland. When possible, we should have a security member transport him but I’ll be willing to assist if needed.”
There was a general murmur of agreement with Brad’s decision, their head of security nodded and got up to walk and talk with Brad as the meeting adjourned. It was only a few days from the last time Luida spoke to Vash, his meals being delivered by a drone but she was going to at least give the child a heads up.
Stopping by the galley first, Luida managed to snag a chocolate bar before making her way to the brig. Food production was finally being expanded past basic rations and protein bars but she knew Vash wasn’t being given anything beyond what was deemed necessary.
Walking up to his cell, Luida looked in first; it wasn’t as if there was anything for Vash to do to be interrupted of, but she still wanted to afford him some curiosity. Looking in, Vash was laying on that hard metal table that doubled as his bed, at least he had a window to look out of, clearly staring off into the nothingness of the world they landed on. Who knows, maybe getting out would be good for him.
She knocked before opening the door, Vash quickly scrambled up and off of the table, standing up to greet Luida. As Luida looked around, it was clear that every last available space was now covered in tallies, Vash was only a little over four feet tall but the marks reached up past him, with his cuffs gone he could reach up to five feet.
It hurts to see how he was still keeping track of his days locked up, a year and a half and maybe he still held onto the hope of being free one day.
Vash watches Luida as she looks around the room. She’s never said anything about his tallies and at first he thought to ask her if she might be willing to help him continue them. He’s not sure why he bothers keeping track, it’s not as if anything ever changes but at least it was something for him to do for a little bit each day. The only other time there’s a break is when someone came to gawk at him but it seemed like the humans of the ship have moved on from that. It was clear though, by the look on Luida’s face that he shouldn't be asking her for help continuing them.
He was curious why she was here though, even without the tallies he knew it wasn’t a week yet. For whatever reason she had stopped seeing him daily; he was too scared to ask what he did wrong for fear of being left alone even longer. Maybe, just maybe his punishment was up? Though as much as he wanted to be forgiven for something he wasn’t aware he did wrong, he knew there was something much worse he did that only he knew about so he’d take whatever punishment they wanted to give.
“Vash, we’ve heard from other ships that survived the big fall, some of them have been asking for any help they can get with their plants. We… We’d like for you to come help them.”
Luida had to close her eyes a moment and steal herself, she couldn’t ask him if he'd be willing, the decision was already made for him. Even if she knew he wouldn’t say no, she couldn’t pretend like it was his choice to make.
“We’ll really appreciate your help!” Luida mustered up as much fake enthusiasm as she could, taking the chocolate bar out of her back pocket and offering it to Vash. “Sorry it’s not much but this is a little token of our thanks!”
Vash’s eyes lit up wide as he gently took the offered treat from Luida. “Thank you!! It’s more than I could ask for.”
Luida wanted to leave, it hurt to have Vash be so thankful over something so little but her comms chimed and she quickly took the call.
“Luida, bring the kid to the main hatch, Ship 8 is asking for help right away.”
Luida groaned, really, right away? “Come on Vash, it sounds like you’re needed asap by one of the ships!”
Luida led Vash out of the cell, he gently placed the chocolate bar on the table, away from the window to keep it from melting till he got back. Luida hoped that no one would bother coming here while Vash was away so it would still be there for him.
When they got to the hatch that served as the main door while the ship was moored, Brad and a security officer were waiting there for them. Vash moved to partially hide behind Luida as Brad had an annoyed look on his face.
“Alright, kid, time to really prove your usefulness. Jarid here is going to take you to ship 8, any funny business and it’s lights out for you! Now, hold out your hands, while you're off ship you’ll need these.”
Brad dangled the small handcuffs off one finger, Luida shook with anger but Vash shook with fear. He took a wobbly step forward and away from Luida, holding his hands together as Brad cuffed him again.
“I’ll be good” Vash looked to the floor as he stepped forward, voice barely above a whisper and shaking. As the other man, Jarid walked out into the desert where a Tomas was waiting; Vash risked looking back, Luida said nothing, already turned away and walked back in without saying a word to Brad. If even Luida didn’t have anything to say about what Brad said then who was he to think it wasn’t a real possibility.
Vash tried to mount the large blue bird but with how much bigger it was then him and with his hands bound, he risked looking up to Jarid and pleaded for help with his eyes, not saying a word. Jarid didn’t seem too keen on this job, making annoyed grumbling sounds as he mounted the Tomas and then grabbing Vash by the scruff of his tunic and body suit. Vash was placed in front of Jarid as he took the reins and they took off to the closest ship asking for their help.
“Thank you! We really appreciate any help we can… get… What's with the kid?”
They arrived at ship eight a little past nightfall. From Vash’s little window he couldn’t see it well but this world had multiple moons! He had actually enjoyed the ride more than he thought he would, being under the suns felt nice, the heat wasn’t unpleasant to him. But as ship 8 came into view, Vash felt his stomach drop; it had truly crashed, he was amazed they survived at all with half the ship dug into the sand below.
A small group of about four people came up to greet them, all still in the standard SEEDS uniform. They looked friendly as they waited for their help to dismount and when Jarid picked up Vash and dropped him on the metal walkway, one rushed up to help Vash get back on his suit-covered feet.
“It’s not a kid, it’s some new kinda plant ship five had made, careful it only looks human.”
The man who had just finished helping Vash up looked from him to Jarid and back at Vash before taking a step back. “Wha…what? Are you serious?!”
The four gathered members of ship eight looked sceptical at Jarid and questioning at Vash. Wanting to not be accused of tricking anyone or misbehaving for fear of punishment, Vash nodded, looking down while speaking. “It’s true, I’m an independent plant… but I can heal plants!”
Whispers were what Vash was used to now from people around him, maybe he had hoped they would be more like Luida and Rem but from the sounds of it, they were already hesitant of them. Not that Vash could blame them, but he worried how much worse it would be if only they knew the truth.
Vash was taken to their plant chamber right away; three plants needed his healing right away but it sounded like there were more that were starting to fade. Vash healed two right away but before he could move on to the last one, he collapsed with exhaustion. He hadn’t eaten yet today, with doing nothing for days, weeks, months on end, Vash thought the little he ate each day would have been enough to heal plenty of plants in one go but apparently he was still pathetic.
“What’s wrong with him?”
“Damn things out of power already? It’ll have to rest up, we’ll heal up the rest in the morning before heading back. Do you have a free cell to store it in for now?” Vash felt himself lifted once again by the scruff of his suite, trying to stand up on his own but too tired to.
Vash was dumped into a cell that was nearly a carbon copy of his on ship 3, though it didn’t have the table he used as a bed. Just as well, he was too tired to climb up and no one was going to help him so sleeping on the floor it was that night.
He didn’t want to be a bother but if he was going to do more healing in the morning, he’d need a bit more energy than sleeping would give him. He worried about asking for too much but as the door was closing, he worried more about not performing his task tomorrow.
“May I have something to eat, please?”
The member of ship eight who led them to the cell raised an eyebrow but Jarid spoke up first “oh yeah, have a drone bring some rations for it. Probably was a first draft of the sinners; a plant that needs to eat and sleep?”
The door shut and Vash curled in on himself as tight as he could. Even with this ability to heal he discovered he was still a failure of a plant, wasn’t he? For a treacherous moment, Vash wished he had Nai with him; for as much fun as Nai poked at him for being a defective plant, he still wouldn't let humans speak about him like that.
Vash healed the rest of ship eight’s plants in the morning and was soon after taken back to ship three. When they arrived back, it was the head of security who was there to let them in. She was the one to take Vash back to his cell, as she opened the door and stood aside for him to walk in. He looked from her to his handcuffs, chewing on his lips as he wanted to ask for them to be removed now that he was back. With a roll of her eyes she scanned her hand and took the cuffs back, making sure Vash walked in and then let the door close and lock without a word.
Vash looked around the cell that had been his room for a year and a half and that would probably be his for a long, long time. It had been a few months since he wasn’t able to add anymore tallies to the walls but he reached his hands up, standing on tiptoes and still couldn’t reach any higher. He signed, clearly this was how he was meant to be; some of his sisters he knew were huge and some were small. He thought maybe he and Nai would grow to be the size of adult humans. As Vash spotted the chocolate bar still untouched, he got up onto the table and broke off a small square of it.
It was so sweet compared to the food he was used to being given it almost made his teeth hurt. Vash thought back to ship five, their first birthday and other times Rem made them treats; how much Vash loved them the most. How Nai would tease him but still give Vash his share Rem insisted he try too and the faces Nai made when Vash would lick mixing bowls, whisks and spatulas.
A tear rolled down his cheek, followed by another and another until Vash was full on sobbing. The chocolate bar was pushed away to the edge of the table, the wrapper neatly folded back up. Even something he used to love just made him sad, how it was too much for him now. He wanted to pretend, just for a moment, that he was back from getting a shot, given a treat for being a good boy and that Rem and Nai would be walking in through the door any moment, that they would then go to the rec room to read and play.
Vash was crying enough that his vision blurred and the view outside his window was a mess of blue and yellow. He worried for Nai out there somewhere, even if he had his powers already and didn’t need to eat or sleep, would any humans that found him treat him well or would they treat him like Vash was being treated. As Vash took one last bleary look out the window before curling up to cry himself to sleep, he thought he saw something on the horizon moving about. He was too tired to think it was anything other than a warm or Tomas as he focused on trying to sleep.
The years started passing since the Big Fall, for some it passed painfully slowly; Vash only got to leave his cell when one of their plants or another shipped called for help with theirs. He supposed he should be thankful that it was only a handful or two of times a year he was needed. Apparently it was decided he’d only go to ships that were two days away by Tomas at most, still he wished that after all this time things might have changed for him.
To the crew of the ship, five years had passed nearly in the blink of an eye. With ship 3 being the only one able to keep airborne they focused more on getting their tech back up to pre-crash level whereas other ships were being turned into towns and cities. Luida shifted her focus to the biodome and using plants to cultivate flora, only visiting Vash once a month at most now, taking on a lesser role in the ship's leadership.
Brad was promoted to lead mechanical engineer, still working away at many projects and repairing tech for new settlements for trade. Life was going on, on ship 3 and the world outside their walls, still the past was haunting them; some more than others.
Luida got a call from Brad, telling her to come to his workshop right away. When she opened the door, she saw the black box of ship five sitting on the centre table, hooked up to recovery devices and its display screen staticky but active. Brad was hunched over the table, his back to her as before she could say anything, she noticed the tremor in his shoulders and the grip of his fists.
“Good, you’re here. You need to hear this.” Without another word, Brad angrily stabbed a finger on the display screen, the recording starting up with only audio. Luida is confused at first but then… There’s Vash’s voice along with another that sounds so similar to his, arguing about the crash, who they didn’t save and who bears responsibility.
Luida falls to her knees as she takes it in. Vash, who they’ve been using to get back on their feet, was at least part of the reason for the crash in the first place. He knew all this time and never spoke up once, he said the other independent was probably dead but by the sounds of it he was just fine hours before Brad brought Vash in.
Brad walked up to where Luida was kneeling, his anger had gone so far that it’s past his usual outward dramatics to a quiet rage that scared her.
“I’m going to kill him.”
Luida gulped. It was clear that Brad was being very literal and he picked up his closest tool, a heavy pipe wrench as moved past here.
“W…Wait! We can’t kill him! We need him, nothing else can fix a plant! We can’t make any more so we’ll last run ourselves to a slow death! He’s been cooperative with us for five years now, never once trying to escape. Brad I know you're angry but there has to be something else besides killing him!”
Brad swung the wrench at the closest wall, the shock of it looked like it had to have hurt his arm with that much force, he let the wrench clatter to the floor but still stormed off. Luida got up to follow shakily behind him but Brad looks over his shoulder at her.
“Don't. I won’t kill him but I’m not letting him play dumb anymore. Get in my way and I’ll have you fully removed from council.”
Luida stopped dead in her tracks. It truly felt like the final thread of friendship with Brad had snapped. She had given up on advocating for Vash years ago, saw him sparsely but it still felt like a gut punch that he played a role in the big fall. That timid little boy who took all their demands of him and never once asked for anything but the recording was clear, he cared about one human from the sounds of it. Brad was right.
Vash was laying on his side, looking out at the unchanging landscape past the window. He had grown about two inches over the last five years but he took solus in the world past his window being as unchanging as he was. He heard someone coming down the hallway, footfalls loud and quick. Vash figured there must have been a dire emergency on another ship by the urgency, he had barely sat up and presented his wrists before the door opened to reveal Brad.
Vash sucked a breath in, He had travelled with Brad before, probably his second least favourite person to travel with after Steve but normally it was Luida who would take him to the exit. Vash did his best to not show his nerves as Brad zeroed in on him, walking up to stand before Vash and towering over him.
Someone was clearly wrong; Vash could feel it by the intensity of Brad’s stare.
“All this time, you’ve been lying to us. LOOK AT ME!”
Vash’s head shot up as he was yelled at. He hated making eye contact with most everyone and now he was shaking like a leaf. He didn’t know what Brad meant at first. He’s barely spoken to anyone besides Luida and he’s always done ask asked. His bright blue eyes go wide with fear.
“All this time, you left us in the dark about the Big Fall, you probably never expected to get caught eh? Well I finally recovered the black box from ship 5. That other independent who “probably died?” He sounded very alive post crash.”
Vash stopped shaking for a moment, so overcome with the realisation of what Brad was saying that he was frozen in place momentarily. Nai’s confession was caught by the black box… Vash’s confession too, he had no idea the black box was so close by or that it would have still been recording.
What brings Vash back to the present is pain. His right cheek explodes with pain and his head is knocked back against the table as Brad punches him with enough force that Vash is seeing stars.
“WHERE DID HE GO?! YOU WERE CLEARLY COVERING FOR HIM YOU LITTLE SHIT!”
Brad grabbed Vash by the shoulders of his bodysuit, his tunic had been discarded from wear and tear and they never made new clothes in his size so Vash was forced to only wear his plant skin. Vash is lifted up and his feet dangle off the floor, he wants to look away from Brad’s angry and hate filled eyes but when he tries, Brash shakes him.
“I’m sorry, I’m sorry! I… I din…didn’t know what…what he was going to… to do! I swear! I.. I was scared and ra…ran. I’m sorry! I’m sorry!!”
Vash was crying hard now, the pain in his head and the fear he felt and also the guilt of being discovered. There was a small part of him that had been grateful they didn’t know, that hoped it would never come to light. But clearly he had been foolish to think his sins could remain hidden forever.
Brad dropped him onto the floor and harshly grabbed his wrist and cuffing him. Pulling hard enough that Vash felt a painful pop at his left shoulder.
“You’re damn lucky you’re useful to us. But the moment you’re not. You’re paying for all the lives you lost with your own. We’ve clearly been too good to you as it is.”
Brad left the room in a huff, walking away before the door even fully closed but they both knew Vash wasn’t going to make a break for it. Vash began to sob harder than before, the pain all over his body sinking in and he couldn’t even curl up into a fetal position.
One of the plants vitals goes haywire that night, Vash was so focused on his own pain that he couldn’t even hear her crying out. A plant engineer makes their way down to grab Vash but Brad stops him. “Wait till it’s absolutely necessary before getting the little monster.” He speaks with such venom that the engineer stops dead in their tracks.
“Let your lead know, there’s an emergency council meeting.”
“We need to let the other ships and settlements know to be on the lookout! That thing is out there!”
Brad called the council meeting without much notice or explanation. He played the black box once they were all seated. They listened in horror as they finally learnt the truth of the Big Fall and just what they had on their ship.
What little good will Vash had from the residents of ship three quickly ran dry. It was agreed upon that he was indeed too useful to kill, his punishment was to remain cuffed at all times and he’d only be fed after healing a plant.
The council argued for some time about how to and if they should spread word of their discovery. Eventually they agreed to keep it quiet for now; so much effort was being focused on rebuilding that they didn’t want to divert resources away for a planet-wide hunt. They could only assume that the other independent was like Vash; physically a small child and relatively harmless on his own. Luida used the last of her own goodwill and bit of leadership to lead the motion to not inform anyone of Vash’s twin. She felt conflicted, Vash had been nothing but helpful to them even if he had kept his twin’s actions hidden. Maybe she truly did get too attached to Vash but damn it this felt wrong still.
Vash had cried long after his tears dried and his throat was raw and horse. It took a day for the pain to subsided enough to realise his shoulder had been dislocated. With tremendous effort he managed to get up and used a wall to pop it back into place. He was finally able to pass out and sleep for however long it would take for at least the physical pain to go away.
He had no way of knowing how long he was asleep for. Not even the little done that would wheel in his daily meal had come by and Vash worried, despite Brad’s claim that he was still useful to them, they decided to see if he could starve to death.
It took two weeks for the bruises to fully heal and Vash was feeling faint most days. At least he still had access to the washroom so he could drink water. Back on ship 5 he ate all the time it felt like, when he was first brought to ship 3 he felt too guilty to eat more than a few bites a day. After healing his first plant and being given a job he felt worthy of eating finally but by then they reduced how much food he was given. Vash figured he only had himself to blame for that; he was intentionally not eating before and he never asked for more.
But now he really was hungry. He also felt more lonely than ever before; he doubted he’d see Luida again and he pretended the little robot that brought his meals was a friend. Vash turned the tap on in the sink, filling a glass and drinking it. The washroom didn’t have a tub, just a standing shower but the sink’s basin was fairly deep.
Vash stared at it, wondering if he could fill it up and dunk his head in. He’d need something to stand on; still too short for that to work he also felt bad about how much water his sisters made that he’d waste.
The humans would probably also be angry at him, if they wanted to kill him, they had the right to determine how; it would be selfish to try and take that away from them now, and to make it quicker then they wanted.
Another week passed and a plant needed healing. Vash wasn’t sure if he was strong enough to heal a single plant but he had to. His steps were sluggish and the human that came for him was clearly annoyed by how slow and unresponsive Vash was. When Vash got to the plant chamber he could feel everyone's anger at him. He just bowed his head and wobbly made his way to the red plant.
Worry, worry, unwell, concern.
Vash’s forehead connected with the glass of the tank first, he could barely lift up his cuffed hands.
it’s ok, I’m here to help you. It might just take me a minute but I’ll heal you.
Not me, worry for little one, concern, worry
Vash could cry, even if she was run red, his sisters worried for him. He had forgotten what it felt like to have someone care for him.
I'll be ok as long as you’re ok. The humans are angry at me for what I did so I have to keep you all healthy.
All the plants in the chamber hummed with energy as Vash passed his message along, unfelt by the humans in the room as they had no reaction. Vash was too weak to heal the red plant on his own but all the other plants in the room channelled a bit of energy to Vash so he could fulfil his task and remain useful.
Vash had passed out after healing the plant but he managed to do it with the help of the other plants, unbeknownst to the humans of ship three so Vash woke up in his cell with a tray of food that had long grown cold. He gladly ate every last bit.
Vash loses track of time again. He spends as many days as he can just sleeping, they’ve stopped taking him to other ships; he doesn’t know if ship 3 has told the others about his involvement in the big fall or not. It doesn’t really matter one way or another to him at this point, He can be hated by the people here or by the people elsewhere. He’s fairly sure his sisters are keeping better track of the days than he is.
One of them seems to fake a crisis once a month if no one is in real distress because they know the humans will only feed Vash if he heals. He didn’t even know they could fake something like that; he’s told them it’s ok, he can survive but they insist on helping him as much as he wants to help them.
He’s also terrified of the humans finding out one day and getting in trouble for keeping another lie, but he doesn’t want to get the plants in trouble. It seems like they don’t suspect anything at least. Vash begins to notice changes in the humans as time passes.
Some are making noises when they sit or stand, some of their hair has begun to change, white or grey streaks or roots. Enough time has passed that he hears some of them talking about going down for cryosleep. The ship still has their cryo chambers fully functional and some humans talk about the need to preserve their most skilled members.
Back at his cell. Vash gets a glass of water to help with the meal he can expect to be delivered that night; he stands on his tiptoes to get as good a look at himself as he can. His hair has grown out slightly; no longer neat and tidy, his eyebrows and under cut seem darker but for the most part he’s the same as ever.
It's been fifteen years since the Big Fall now, while they didn’t spread word of their findings from ten years ago to everyone one, Brad has let a few choice people know. He’s let a few more than that know to be on the lookout for any strange blond children without going into too much detail. He’s still angry after all these years and he’s not the only one; one of the other mechanical engineers, Steve, also would love to have a turn taking some revenge on the independent plants.
Nothing has turned up from the ships and cities he’s been in contact with, one of the ships they lost direct contact with has become what’s now called Julai; they were the ones to cut off contact oddly enough. He can still hear that high pitched maniacal laugh when he goes to sleep, he wants to wring the neck of the monster it came from before he goes down into cold sleep. Sending a message to Steve, Jarid and a few from the plant engineering team who’s stick of having to deal with Vash; Brad decides it’s finally time for him to pay Vash a visit.
The group had gathered at the entrance of the brig, when they got the message to meet, there were no questions asked, they just made their way. Brad walked up to the waiting group “it’s time we get some answers from that thing.” There was a murmur of excitement from the gathered people as they marched down the hall to Vash’s cell.
Vash was laying flat on his back, not quite asleep but out of it, he estimated there was about a week left until one of his sisters would fake needing his help so he could eat. As it was he was really starting to feel the hunger settle in so he was stuck in that place where he was too hungry to sleep and too weak to look out the window. He could hear people coming down the hall, a few people if he was hearing correctly. Vash took a breath and mustered enough energy to push himself upright as best he could, something must have happened. Normally it was just one person who would come grab him, literally most of the time so hearing at least five people was worrisome.
The door swooshed open and Vash focused his gaze on the open door, his vision clearing as adrenaline started flooding his system. All the people Vash feared most were entering the room and worst of all their all smiling.
The room feels suddenly crowded as four of the people enter, Brad rests on the open door frame and looks around the room and grits his teeth. The last time he came down here, he was so focused on taking out his anger he didn’t notice the walls covered in gashes.
“What, tried to take tally of your victims from the fall?” Brad sneers as he watches Vash’s eyes go wide and shake his head. “It’s been long enough; either you talk and tell us how to find the other one, or we get our revenge on you.”
Steve lets out a laugh as he cracks his knuckles threateningly, the others back up slightly to make sure the space in front of the door is fully blocked off. Trembling, Vash panics and tries to get off the table and squeeze behind it but as soon as he’s on the floor, Steve grabs him.
“Ohhh no, you’re not getting away.”
The grip Steve had on his ankle as Vash had tried to duck away was crushing. When Brad had hit him years ago he was in better health, now, as weak as he was, Vash was sure he was about to die. A punch was delivered to his empty stomach that knocked the wind out of Vash as he cried out. Next was a sweeping kick that knocked Vash to the floor and a foot stomping on his arm. He felt something in his right leg brake and screamed out in pain.
“Hey, hey now, save some for the rest of us.” Jarid stepped up slowly, Vash forcing his eyes open as he saw Jarid and two others he didn’t know the names of approach him. Vash coughed, tasting copper and more scared than he had even been since the fall. Brad watched on, not moving from his spot on the door frame but clearly had no regards for Vash.
“Please… please I’m sorry, don’t kill me!”
Vash held his cuffed hands up over his face as he watched a foot coming to kick him, palms out to shield as much as he could. Before the kick could land there was the sudden sound of rushing wind and the room was flooded with purple light.
In between Vash’s small hands, a dark sphere had formed, purple and blue light was swirling around it as there was a sudden force of wind as it was pulling matter into it. Jarid let out a piercing scream as his foot was caught by it and he was stretched and pulled into the back hole. Steve tried to get away but he was too close, there was a snapping sound as his scream turned wet as he was folded in half before being stretched and sucked in.
Vash looked on in horror as his two attackers were swallowed. “What… what’s happening!?” The pain radiating off of his body gave way to a panic so strong he was frozen. “What is this, someone help me please! Rem, Nai!!”
Brad was gripping onto the doorframe, pulling himself out of the room and to the wall next to the door, hitting the close button even as the two others tried to make their way out. The door closed before the others could escape the growing vortex and there was the groaning and buckling of metal.
Brad opened up his coms to security though the emergency channel “SECURITY! FLOOD THE CELL WITH A KNOCKOUT AGENT NOW!”
Brad risks looking into the room, the others still in have been sucked into the black hole and Vash is panicking and crying harder than ever before. Bits of the wall and any loose objects were pulled in, some from behind Vash leave shallow cuts and the room itself looks like it’s being sucked in words. The vent grates were pulled off as a white gas floods the room, much of it being pulled in but Vash wobbles in place and the black hole winks out as he crashes to the floor.
Brad is breathing heavily, heart threatening to burst out of his chest with how fast it’s going. The ship around him is still groaning and soon the lights cut out as an emergency alarm goes off.
“What’s going on?” Brad still has his coms open to security and can hear panicked yelling from the other end.
“All the plants are going haywire but the gravity plant! It’s gone critical and we’re losing power from it! We’re going to fall!”
Not a moment later, Brad and everyone on ship three can feel it. The ship first lurches to the right, there’s nothing for Brad to hold onto as he loses his footing and slides into the wall with force.
“BRACE, BRACE, BRACE!!!” someone is shouting over the ship’s intercom system as soon there is a feeling of weightlessness as the last remaining airborne ship of SEEDS crashes to the surface below.
A sudden and sharp feeling hits Knives like a ton of bricks. He’s heard the cries of their kin as they are wrung for every last bit of energy humans can steal from them but this…this is different. It was stronger than anything he had ever felt and its pain was too focused, there wasn’t the general simple emotions that came with a dependant’s cry and he could hear a name called out with it; there was only one other it could have come from.
“Vash… I’m coming.” The cry was cut off short but Knives managed to fix on where it was coming from, his cloak shifting as he took off as fast as he could.
In his cell, Vash remained unconscious, thankfully anything not bolted down had been sucked into the blackhole he created so there wasn’t any debris to hurt him. As he was knocked out before the crash; he didn’t see how he remained floating at the centre of the room as the ship fell, dark energy winking in and out of existence cradling his small body like a wing.
Brad, who was close at the time of the crash, was thrown down the hall and didn’t see it either. Though the ship survived the big fall, the gravity plant that had saved them before was their undoing now. Though the damage to the ship itself was far less than the other crashed ships, the casualties were just as heavy with many people awake and walking about the ship without the protection of a cryo pod.
The recovery process was made all the harder as every plant on ship three dropped their production to record low levels while their vitals were still strong. The plant engineers had neve seen what they could only assume was the plants refusing to produce. The main gravity plant was out of it’s bulb, hands pressed to the glass and it started intensely out as if looking for something or someone.
The council members who were still alive convened to work out a recovery plan a few days after their small fall. “We’ll have to call for help from nearby cities, do we have long form communications up or are we going to have to send out a party?”
“Our communication hub was badly damaged and most of our power is going to the cryo sleep chamber. If we wake up those who have gone down since the big fall, we could divert enough power to possibly get the hub back up.”
“The plants, should we try healing them with it or will we have to last run one of them?”
Everyone jolted as Brad hit the table with his good hand, his right arm was in a sling, broken in three places and there were bandages around his head. “We’re not using that monster, it’s probably the cause of our plants rebelling. We should put at least the gravity plant to a last run as punishment, not like it’s going to do us any good anymore.”
Brad hadn’t gone into details about what happened before their ship fell, there was the record of him calling security right before and they had yet to find the remains of four of their active crew members. It was clear to the rest of the crew that something must have happened in the cell as Brad went as far as to block off the hallway to keep anyone from going to the cell.
“It’ll take us some time to get a last run going but we’ll use the gravity plant as suggested, if it truly is a matter of the plants refusing to work we’ll try sacrificing our least vital one to see if the rest will return to production. We should still send some people out by Tomas to get supplies in the meantime.”
The council members agreed to the plan, Brad making his way to the Tomas pen to help prep some of the birds, too injured to ride himself.
Brad was standing outside of the ship for the first time since they fell, it seemed the damage was worse on the inside than the outer shell. He’d gone to other ships after the big fall, talked with other survivors and pitied them for not being able to save their ships in time. Now looking at the ruined last bastion of human’s mastery of space, he couldn’t even feel angry, just depressed. The plan was for them to keep ship 3 in minimal contact with the newly formed cities and villages. The rest of this awful planet was cannibalising the ships for whatever working parts they could to rebuild. Brad knew that could only lead to losing vital tech and would set humanity back. The crew of ship 3 agreed to focus on advancing the tech they had rather than scaling out; keeping their specialists alive as long as they could with cold sleep and keeping their passengers on ice.
He couldn’t have foreseen it all going wrong not even two decades in. Brad was too focused on the loss of his new life’s focus to hear something approaching the ship from the east. Eventually the suns reflecting on metal caught his eye as he saw a man approaching on his own.
Brad finally turned his attention to the approaching man; he was alone and it was hard to make out the final details as he was covered by the strangest cloak Brad had ever seen. It was a pure white with what he could only describe as blobs of liquid metal that reflected blue in the open desert air.
Brad realised that a SEEDS ship falling would get the attention of anyone within sight, they didn’t know of any settlements in the area where they were still flying so this man must be a passing traveller. The man continued to walk up to brad, he was only a few yarz away and Brad couldn’t pinpoint it but he was filled with a sense of panic as the stranger got closer and closer.
“Oi! That’s close enough! Who are you and what do you want? We’ve kinda got our hands full right now.” If there was one thing that Brad had learnt during his few trips off ship, it was to be suspicious of every person he met that travelled this world.
It looked as if the man was about to speak, Brad could see a bit of his face now past the large hood; pale skin and platinum blonde hair, he looked about mid twenties if he had to guess, taller than him and broad shoulders.
However his head suddenly snapped towards the ship and his bristled, the strange cloak he wore even shifted oddly and there was a strange sound coming off of him, like the clattering of metal.
“Why… Why are you doing a last run!?”
Brad watched as that strange cloak morphed into rows and rows of knives, two shooting out and wrapping around him painfully, dozens of shallow cuts forming, the Tomas’ he was preparing scattered.
With the cloak gone, Brad could fully see the man underneath now. He wore a strange body suite and there was something familiar about his face, mussels rippling with tension and anger as the coils of blades lifted him off of the sand and closer to the strange man.
“Our ship crashed because the gravity plant quit working! All the rest also suddenly stopped producing so we need the energy of a last run!” Brad wheezed out as another coil of blades wrapped around his neck. That only seemed to further anger the man but there was clearly something else he was after by the intensity of his eyes.
“You ungrateful humans, can’t stand not having total control over others so that's how you repay our hard work?! Tell me human, on your ship, is there another like me.”
Suddenly Brad realised why the man seemed so familiar and his eyes went wide. “Wait… no, you’re not Nai are you? But you- GHAHH” Brad screamed as the knives in his right arm dug into the broken appendage, it wasn’t fully severed but it would likely never heal now.
“Take me to my brother before I simply kill everyone to find him!” Knives walked quickly into the ship, Brad still in his grasp, every turn down a hallway, if Brad didn’t immediately tell him which way to go, would dig his blades in deeper. Any human unfortunate enough to cross their path was slaughtered without a second thought.
Brad is barely conscious by the time they get to the entryway of the brig, Knives making quick work of the barrier Brad constructed and every footfall of Knives felt like a clock ticking away to his end.
They could hear muffled crying as they were mere feet away from the warped cell door, hoarse mumbles of ‘I’m sorry’ chanted over and over again. Brad had been content to just leave Vash to die off on his own in the twisted room, not wanting to risk anymore crew in the name of some revenge they clearly were never going to get now. As the adult independent looked in and then turned to look at Brad, he truly knew that it was possible for looks to kill.
The last thing Brad saw was Knives face, a scowl so deep, so angry and hate filled that his face seemed to shadow in on itself. Sharp fangs were visible as a snarl broke over Knives face and every single blade that held Brad up dug in and ripped away chunks of flesh. Brad was dead before hitting the floor in an unrecognisable puddle.
Knives turned his attention back on Vash. He couldn’t believe what he was seeing, Vash looked much the same as he had last seen him fifteen years ago. However he was in far worse condition then back on the day of the fall, his suit was torn in many places, he was paler than even Knives and dark bruises dotted his skin along with unhealed cuts. Vash was cured in on himself, it was clear at the angle one of his legs stuck out that it was broken and he was rocking back and forth, crying without any tears left as he just continued his mantra of I’m sorries. The room around him was distorted, as if something had tried to suck in the walls to the centre and there was nothing in the room aside from Vash himself.
Knives made quick work of cutting away the door, pulling it towards him and tossing it down the hallway. That seemed to get Vash’s attention as his red and puffy eyes looked up at Knives. There was such fear in those wide eyes aimed at him that Knives was frozen momentarily.
Vash looked up at this person he’d never seen before, scared by the weapons he seemed to have attached to him, not wanting to be hurt any more but also scared of hunting him too. “Pl…please, I’m sorry, don’t hurt me, please.” Vash kept his fists clenched, his handcuffs rattling, not wanting to summon another blackhole.
Knives fell to his knees, blades retracting into his gate but not forming his cloak. Vash didn’t recognize him, worse, Vash was scared of him.
“Vash, it’s been so long. It’s me, Nai, I’m sorry I wasn’t there to protect you.” Knives reached out a hand shakily. He couldn’t recall a time he had ever wanted or needed to cry before, but seeing his precious little brother so viscerally scared of him; it hurt like nothing ever had before.
Knives felt a tear run down his face for the first time, his hand unsteady as he reached out slowly towards Vash. Vash’s eyes searched him, hiccupping as his crying slowed down but didn’t completely stop. He shook his head slightly, dirty and messy golden blond hair falling limply in his face.
“Nai… is it really you?” Vash had been so desperate to call out for help, to the only people who had ever been good to him. Rem and Nai but he knew Rem was gone and Nai… he almost hoped Nai wouldn’t come for fear of what the crew would do to him. Vash only had himself to go by and could only assume that Nai would still be small like him after all these years. It didn’t seem like a trick, he looked like an adult, taller and bigger than the ones Vash had seen but even with his hair different, it was the same colour Vash remembered, he still had the mole under his right eye.
“My Vash…” Knives gently brushed the hair out of Vash’s face before bringing him into as tight a hug as Knives could risk with his poor battered body. “I’m sorry I failed you.” They remained together for enough time for Vash to start calming down, his crying slowed but his shoulders still hitched every now and then. Knives gently stroked his back in as comforting a motion as he could, like he had done back on ship five when Vash had a nightmare. Eventually Vash stilled, he had been up for a few days without rest and even if Nai showing up to recuse him was a hallucination, he’d take it over cruel reality.
“Let's get you to safety, Vash. The humans here are going to pay for what they did to you.” Knives stood up slowly, Vash cradled in his arms asleep. Knives shielded the both of them in his cloak, carefully forming a sharp blade at the end of one finger to cut away the cuffs the humans had so curly bound Vash with.
Knives adjusted Vash in his arms, to cradle his head close to his chest and press his arm on the other side to muffle as much as the screams of the humans as he could to not disturb him. He couldn’t use all of his blades, wanting to keep Vash covered but he was still easily able to mow down every human he found on the ship.
There might be a few rats still hiding but Knives was satisfied as he was painted in blood from his feet to his knees. He still needed to rescue their kin on board, Knives had found the plant chamber, one tank red with the husk of a plant that suffered a last run.
“I’m sorry I didn’t make it in time, thank you, for helping me find him.” Knives placed a hand on the now cold glass, the other plants around them buzzing with worry for Vash. “I have him, I’ll take care of him and return for you all, I swear it.
They all sang out with relief for Vash, though he would have a very long road to recovery and Knives would trust no one with caring for Vash but him. Knives walked out of the ship the way he came in, though the floor underfoot was now sticky with blood. Once they were off of the ship, Knives overlooked it, mapping where he had walked along during his hunt. Now out in the sun, his cloak fully morphed into his coils of blades as he sliced off a large chunk of the ship. The cryo chamber fell to the sand below, as knives formed part of his gate into a single large wing made of his knives and took off for his base.
Knives cradled Vash tightly as they flew, he would finally bring his little brother home, after Vash healed up, he could start working in earnest on his plan to turn this world into one just for them. He could only hope that the damage the humans had done to Vash wasn’t so great as to cause permanent harm but if they had, Knives would rain down such vengeance on all of humanity to pay for what they had done to both of his siblings.