Like Dust

"I thought I had an NPC's script. I never imagined I was holding the villain's script."

As the underground city collapsed around her, Feike could only mutter to herself.

When she handed over her one and only love, even her usually stern mentor, Mary, was stunned. She looked at her as if she were a villain bent on destroying the world.

Feike shrugged and said, "I know which side I'm on. I'm a Blue Star human, and I'll always stand with the people of Blue Star. I won't betray them."

Mary stared at her for a long time, then said with an odd expression, "You owe this world nothing. The world owes you. You're free. Go live your own life."

Thermal Death had once asked her, "Does your name have any special meaning?"

Feike thought for a moment before answering, "The breeding camp gave it to me at random. Those of us in the underground cities' resistance were made as expendable resources for Blue Star's revival. We were as lowly as ash, as insignificant as dust, with no worth, no meaning, and no future. One gram equals one trillion Feikes. Maybe the breeding camp was reminding me that's all I'm worth."

After years spent fleeing from place to place, then more years wandering like a restless ghost, she saw Thermal Death again. This time, the super AI Flashman was no longer high above her, and Feike was no longer as lowly as dust. He was full of hatred, his gaze cold as he opened with a word of thanks:

"Thank you for warning me back then that Blue Star humans are all cunning, shameless bastards, and that I shouldn't underestimate any of you."

Feike could only shrug and answer without a flicker of emotion, "We have to survive too. The world is the greatest villain, and staying alive is a fight for our lives. If being shameless and despicable is our only strength, then we might as well take it to the extreme."

Author's Note:

I know I've been useless for a long time. My brain keeps telling me to get it together, but my hands want to keep lying flat. My next book might be called The Young Lady Ran Away. Maybe :)

Theme: Staying alive is a fight for your life.