I reach my hand out, to catch the illusion that slowly walks away. I want to believe it. I want to, so badly. But she won't become what I want her to. She won't change unless the world changes her. Like it has.

She'll remain the ghost she is, till she can find salvation from the ghost she has created.

This is rough. I did not expect her to be affected to this degree.

Neither did I. But Billy served her. He was at her command. It is reasonable to think why she holds herself responsible. Likable or unlikable, it's just not the point.

I walk with brisk steps as I try and catch up with her.

Turning right, I hear the sliding doors open behind me. They don't open for us, but for the ones due.

Sally nods at them in a short greeting gesture. Her face is set in a permanent frown. "Here, come over to this side."

Our eyes meet. But Sally looks away. When I look at my group, they seem composed for the most part, except for little Kevin occasionally sniffing. I show my hand to them and they nod back, with Beth and Fiona holding their hands up in return.

We walk towards the Flies. There are some boys here who have an alien beside them, teaching them how to operate the vehicles probably, or making them catch the nuances of the controls.

There is also a girl on the Fly on the rightmost corner who is doing something at the pilot seat.

"Samantha, could you give us a moment, please," Sally speaks to her in a surprisingly booming voice. Damn, she's been trained well at this.

The girl, Samantha, acknowledges her with a salute and comes down, hurrying our way.

She is plain looking for the most part, with a thin and tall physique and curly brown hair that is drawn into a ponytail. She has sharp facial features which leads me to wonder if she's from the northern Eurasian countries.

But most importantly, she doesn't have a bright outlook on her face either. She looks gloomy as well. Maybe not as much as Sally though.

Oh, I think I know where this is going.

"I know this is difficult for you, but would you be so kind to demonstrate what went wrong last day?"

"Yes, ma'am!" She salutes, looks over at us, then beckons us to follow, "This way, guys."

Looking at each other nervously for a moment we decide to take her lead.

In the first place, this has become way too complicated. I don't see why she just won't spit out what went wrong. Why do we need a demonstration? Why go into such hassle?

This is becoming a headache isn't it?

Yeah, tell me about it. I respect her for doing all this for Billy, but calling all of us here and showing how he died is a little too much if you ask me. That's just being cruel, and shoving that pain onto us isn't really a good move. I don't know what's going on in her head. Not to mention, given how Noah has gone missing as well, maybe something is in store regarding him as well.

"There's still some time, we need to do this before Initiation," I hear Sally mumbling.

That causes me to frown.

We are taken to a control room which is past the wall on the right, with sliding doors opening.

"Whoa," I gasp at all the machinery in here. The room glows blue. There are holographic displays, unfamiliar instruments with lever-like mechanisms and other objects that seem completely alien to me.

Floating views of the ships and robots surround me. Those of us working here are probably still learning about how to deal with them if they get damaged or in any sort of emergency situation. This is the control room after all.

Samantha takes us to the front-most part of the room. There is a huge screen in the centre with two more coming out of the sides. Some of the tech here looks human to me. Maybe they changed just enough stuff for us so that we would have a better experience learning while also getting comfortable with their ways. And judging from how their eyes are, I think their displays won't be the same as the ones I'm used to. If my memory serves right, which is a bit of a gamble, these waspheads have far greater field of vision and can process information faster. If they are anything like the insects I know from back home. They practically watch the world in slo-mo.

Sally goes up first and clicks some buttons. Then they begin their 'presentation' of sorts.

"Billy boarded a Fly yesterday, the fourth of this platoon to be precise."

I remember the vacant dock I noticed earlier. So I was correct.

"He was tasked with a simple orbit. No firing. No targets. On paper and principle, he should have had to do nothing. But, after teaching him the basics, we let him off the autopilot. For maneuvering the Fly in situations where he had to reach a certain destination."

And then he crashed. Why all this hassle then? He failed to obey you and crashed. His stubbornness got him killed. He was a stupid, just end this already, Sally. I have no pity for that bastard.

She looks at me. I feel like she read my thoughts. "You'd think that he crashed soon after, and despite my dire efforts I couldn't save him."

"But for a fact, it gets a lot more complicated," Samantha says, failing to meet our gaze.

I feel an unsettling air grow between us, before Sally says the next few words. "You see...he tried to shoot- at the station."

We all gasp at that, displaying bewildered expressions. "That idiot did WHAT?!" Diana exclaims.

"Is he insane?" Beth says.

"It's not that simple either." Sally looks at a side on the floor, her eyes dropping due to lack of sleep but frowning nonetheless. "However stupid he is, he'd not do something suicidal like that, even if he wanted to commit suicide, that is."

That's...such a profound sentence. It hits me hard.

Rocky scratches his head. "What about his camera? He should have a camera-"

"And then there's that." Samantha grunts then sighs. Turning around, she touches some panels and plays a short video.

We watch as Billy enters the pilot compartment. I had forgotten how the bastard had looked. But I didn't want to look at his face again. Despite that, he looks the same, maybe more fit than before.

"We perform routine from here till he is flying in orbit," Samantha says with no interest in her voice.

He places something on the desk as he takes his seat. It was a quick move so I don't get a good view.

"Could you pause and rewind a bit?" I ask, holding my hand up.

They look at each other for a moment, taken off guard, then say, "Did something catch your eye?"

"Yeah. And slow it down as well."

Samantha rewinds the footage a few seconds and plays it at half the speed.

"Stop." And then I point it out. "What's that?"

He's taking something out of his pocket in a such a way that it's out of the others' sight, with his left hand as he takes his seat.

"A piece of... metal? I'm guessing he stole that as well." I snicker at Diana. She shakes her head in derision.

"You catch on pretty quick," Sally remarks in surprise. "It was the right decision to call you over after all. We never spotted how he brought it over, " Sally says in awe. It's good to hear some positive emotion in her voice. She looks at Samantha and the both share looks of amazement.

"Well what about it?"

They nod, and point at the screen. Fast forwarding the tape to about two minutes in, the Fly jets out into outer space.

And then it happens.

He takes the metallic piece and with all his might, knocks out the camera.

And out from his audio feed comes manic laughter.

...

That's scary!

My mouth falls open. I am flabbergasted. Why of course. Why else would you bring something like that in.

And the next thing I know, a sharp sound cuts off his radio.

But, what's chilling me to my very core is that-

That laughter sounded familiar.

It sounded like me, when I am not myself.

______________

Brother, come to your senses!

Brother!

Huh?

Look in front! This is getting ugly.

I startle back to my senses. I had spaced out for a moment. Now focussing on the screen, I watch a red sphere hover around and get shot at. The view has changed to that of a map of the space surrounding the station, and it's now holographic, appearing right before the main screen.

"Who's shooting?" I ask the obvious.

"They aren't gonna nurture snakes in their bosom are they?" Sally says, morose.

"No shit. What was he thinking!" shocked, I say.

"I wish I knew."

All we have is the tracker on his Fly. The mounted cannons on the station shoot at him. He dodges.

"H-he's good isn't he? For someone who's starting out?" I say, not realising I just complimented him only a second later.

Samantha nods. "He's too good, almost. It looks like as if- he was testing out his skills. Boasting them on purpose." Then she narrows her eyes. "No...that is a stupid theory. And accusation. Scratch that." She dismissively waves her hand to pay her words no mind.

Eh, lassie? Space buddy snickers, amused. I feel like she'll blend in well with our group.

Don't you-

"He stopped firing," I hear Diana remark.

I look at the hologram. No more shooting flashes.

"Yes. Pretty impressive. He shot down all the cannons. He destroyed them," Sally says, unable to hide her amusement, despite the tragic circumstances. It was actually impressive, even I have to admit.

"Was he a prodigy or what," says Beth, sounding irritated. I chuckle at that. But right the next instant, I cough and compose myself. "Sorry," I say.

"So, what next?" Fiona says, unsettled. Looking at her eyes, she seems worried. And rightfully so. Because given the events, Billy shouldn't be dead. There are no more reasons he should.

"And here comes the worst part," Samantha clenches her teeth hard.

"What-"

Oh, ITTTTTTT!

We see the red sphere blip out.

...

Silence.

...

What happened, why did you shout like that?

The boy is a genius. That's why.

...

Getting rid of that tracker, he got underground! There's no one monitoring him, now. He could virtually do anything!

Hmmm... Is that so? I need to ponder on that only a few moments before I shake my head.

I point my finger at the last position his Fly was in. "Or he could have burnt up in the atmosphere."

Looking at it, it did seem like he was entering the atmosphere, at too steep an angle. As if he was beginning a nosedive.

Sally and Samantha frown at my odd phrasing since they can't follow my conversation with Space buddy here, but they nod in unison.

"That's why we think he's most probably dead. But, it doesn't explain anything. Why would he blindly crash himself like that?" Samantha says, not being able to comprehend what went inside that bastard's mind. "Not to mention, we couldn't triangulate the site, so that remains inconclusive. He could have changed his course later on, after he blipped out so..."

"No," we hear a new voice join in. "No, you're wrong. " It's Rocky. He's been slowly absorbing everything remaining silent, but only now does he speak up. "Maybe that's what he wants you to think." He is resolute. His voice has a booming intensity to it despite being not too loud. He now passes me and points at the hologram. "Rewind this back ten seconds."

Samantha is caught off guard by the sudden order, but, not knowing any better, she complies. We watch as the red sphere shoots at the last of the cannons, and then, shift out little by little closer to the planet before finally blipping out. And the speedometer on the right screen shows a uniform acceleration.

"He could have disabled the tracker right after he was finished. He deliberately waited a few seconds to lead you off to thinking he crashed."

I stare at him, slowly taking in what he's said. Is that plausible?

But then, I shake it off. No way, that's true. "Or maybe he was just revelling in his win and rejoicing for a few seconds?" I start. "Maybe the insects sent in something invisible to the radar and it got to him? Maybe his tracker malfunctioned? It could be anything like that. He's not so smart as to lead us off on a feint, like that. That's just...no. How could he even have known about the tracker? I don't suppose they tell you where the tracker is placed on your vehicle, right?" I chuckle, without humour.

Rocky pulls my robe up and seethes in front of my face, tear stained eyes looking up at me with a fury I crumble under. "Listen here, you. You haven't been with him for more than an hour. I've been with him for weeks! I know that guy! He changed, okay? He did." He's choking on his words.

"He changed?" I whisper in a rasp voice, unable to comprehend Rocky's words. Billy? Changing? He did not seem like a guy who knew any better. He could change?

Rocky loses his grip on me and pushes me aside. "Just leave it. You wouldn't understand. None of you would."

He walks behind me and out of the room. "Wait, Rocky! Come back!" Kevin runs after him.

I clench my fists and scoff. What a guy. I can't believe him.

Looking at the screen, if what I think is true, something went wrong slowly after- or no.

Something was wrong from the start. All this was a suicide mission, masked in such a way that it appears not as one. Did he lose his mind or what?

Well, you can't know what went on in that lunatic's head. What you can though, is judge by what the monitor shows you.

I sigh. You're right.

If my intuition is correct, he should have crashed. He could have gone to no other place. One way or the other he had to come back to the aliens. He couldn't escape this place. None of us could. And so, if he escaped by the only means imaginable-

I feel my throat hurt with a sudden emotion.

No. It's not a suicide mission. It's not.

I swallow and look at the holographic map.

"Don't the aliens have something like satellite coverage of the planet?" I ask, getting impatient.

Sally makes a tch sound. "No. All of it would have been so much easier if they had. They don't have any camera-like device it seems. The ones that the Flies or other vehicles have on are all manmade."

Weirdly it all makes sense. Given how their vision is like. Also, maybe- this is a stretch but, ants communicate with their antennae,

They tracks their paths via pheromones.

Yeah, so given how they do things, they don't need cameras. They know what each of them are doing. And also, they don't necessarily display individualistic behaviour.

They have a hive mind.

...

Exactly.

That's it. They can communicate via something like telepathy! Given how they can control our minds and bodies by an implant, it's not too much of a stretch to think they all have something like telepathy. And given how they don't show individualistic behaviour a lot and believe in a single cause, there is no need for cameras to keep track of what one or the other is doing!

But what about other species? They need to know what they are doing right.

Simple.

Right. Of course.

They have these implants.

-!

Then-

"Sally! The implants! They can control the mind and the body! How can this situation happen at all? Billy can't break free of it's control. So how-"

Her eyes. They aren't shocked at my words. Instead, they are taken up by sudden grief.

"So you knew?" I say, baffled.

"Yeah," Samantha says, instead. Narrowing her eyes further she looks at nowhere in particular. "All of us noticed it a while ago, how we grow enthusiastic when we do our work. There were instances when some of us lost control of their bodies when they tried to do something against what the insects wanted."

"It all became clear after what you said to me, Jordan," I hear Fiona's voice, hurt, quivering. Her eyes are shining. She smiles despite it, touching her temple. "Our freedom is elusive. We are all confined."

My chest hurts, hearing that from her.

I think long and hard. I would need evidence to see if what I'm thinking is right or not. But, the way I see it, it's the only way everything would make sense.

Gracious fractals! What in the name of It! Jordan if that's true, we-

I need to see this for myself as well, Space buddy.

"Hey, Sally?" I finally muster the courage.

"Yes?"

"Could you help me get on a Fly?" I say, determined looking straight at her, and through her.

She blinks, then swallows, but doesn't say anything in reply. She's spellbound. As she should be.

"What are you up to?" Fiona says, her eyes flashing with horror, her hand cupping her mouth.

I watch Rocky linger in the distance. Kevin is pulling his hand to make him come back here.

I smirk. "You'd see."

____________

As I come out of the control room, I pass by Rocky, who is completely stupefied as he gapes at me, tears still fresh at the corners of his eyes.

"Hey, wait."

I don't listen and straddle on.

"WAIT. LISTEN TO ME! "

He comes at me running and pulls me around. I rip his hand off me and point my index finger at his nose, "I'd show you."

Kevin comes at me scurrying and holds onto my robe. "What is it, Jordan? What are you gonna do?"

"I-I... Kevin." This is hard. What do I say. "This has all gone too out of hand. You just need to trust me here. I'm not like that idiot. I'm not going to shoot at our 'masters'. Instead, I... " I don't finish my sentence. There's a frigid chill all over me. I shake it off and just walk away.

Space buddy appears terrified as well. The feeling is mutual.

Soon I am standing where the Flies are all stationed. My heart should be going wild right now but it's kept under control by Space buddy. I should be panicking, but I feel... calm.

I breath in. Breathe out. Sally comes to a halt at my side and looks at me dubiously.

I manage a wry smile. "Tell me, how are the soldiers trained. When do they get to fly one of these? Normally that is."

Maintaining a formal tone of voice and expression, she says, "One week. But solo flights take anywhere from three to four weeks to be allowed. Billy was our first."

"Alright, so I'm guessing I won't be allowed to fly solo."

"That would be right. In fact, today, you're only getting physical training and debriefed on how to pilot each one of the vehicles in theory. Later on, based on how your body and mind reacts, they'd assign you your vehicle."

"I can't wait for that, " I flatly declare.

Her eyes grow wide open. Samantha comes by next and says, "What are you saying? Are you out of your mind?" She thinks I'm crazy.

"BILLY, was crazy, " I seethe through gritted teeth, clenching my fists as if I'd smash that sucker's face in the next moment. I calm myself down. "Listen, you said it works on autopilot, just let me-"

"Oh, listen to what he's saying! Airplanes back home also fly mostly on autopilot. Doesn't mean any kid gets dibs on the pilot seat! There's much more than autopilot involved in operating one of these," Samantha goes off. "It's actually my first flight today. You think you deserve that, when you are here on your first day? What are you scheming?!"

I groan. What do I do. Only I can do this. In the corner of my vision I see a few aliens still standing around the place.

"Swap with me," I sound desperate. And I am.

"What?!"

Sally sweeps me aside. "We cannot allow you to go like that! You can't even accompany her. There is a single seat. Why are you acting so stubborn?!"

There's no helping it. I look back at the aliens. I think that's my only option.

Leaving them behind, I walk up to come face to face with an alien. Fear surges from the depths of my core. But I try and keep it at bay. Me and Space buddy both.

Enable the translator.

Alright.

"What are you doing?" I hear the voice of a little boy, terribly airy and raspy. It sends chills down my spine.

"You know me. You should...at least. I am Jordan Ramsay."

The boy standing across the alien, hangs his mouth open.

I notice the slightest bit of movement in the alien's infinite eyes. "Ah, you barged inside yesterday, didn't you. You passed the test. I've heard of you."

Great.

"You probably know, what's going on with me then."

He makes a gesture at the other boy, which is pointing his tail in the opposite direction to us. He quickly complies and leaves. Then, he raises his other limbs, that usually stay limp and moves them up and down, almost like he's nodding with them. "Oh of course. You're blessed!"

I swallow the lump that has formed in my throat, then hesitantly speak the next few words, "I'm no longer under your control, and you know that well enough." Cold sweat forms by the sides of my forehead. Should I have said that?

He stops moving around and comes closer. I start shaking where I stand. "Oh, yes. Yes, yes. We know that well enough. We choose to show you all there is. All what we are here for. You have glimsed Purpose. We shall have you take a part in attaining it. And we know you wouldn't resist. Not with the blessing, you won't. For you've transcended. You're no longer an ordinary human. You hold the power of Yttr."

I can hardly make out what he's rambling on about. But there's anger flowing inside me at some of his words. Like vapour, hot and humid. Then why did Billy betray you?!

But I need to be calm. And so I make myself rigid, speak from my head. "What I want to say, is: I know what you do. I have... been controlled. You had rid me of my body. I know what you do with their minds... "

He rubs his two upper limbs together. "Yes, yes. All for the sake of what we do. We unite! We become one! You are part of that. You shall be an integral part of that."

Jordan...

I know.

I raise my head, and give him the proposal, one that I myself feel no sane person would dare to give. But I'm not crazy. I know what I'm doing. And, I have someone by my side.

Don't worry, brother!

"How would you like, to control my brain? My body?" I growl. "I would give you control over me. If only for one flight?"

He grows stunned. I feel it. And then, the next moment demonic laughter echoses through the closed facility. "This is entertaining! What are you planning to do?"

"I've got nothing to lose, do I?" I muster a forced chuckle.

Well...