Vaia: Day 10

Day 10

I couldn't sleep very well last night. Some instincts of mine seem to be telling me multiple things at once, as if my body can't agree on one decision or something. My brain says I should be with Erol, my heart says I should be with Jak; my bloody inner-demon says I should leave the city and forget everything that I saw in the past. But what in hell are my guts telling me?! I feel like I want to kick myself in the stomach!
I was practically sitting in my old bedroom, doing nothing but stare into space mindlessly, my back leaning on the covers and my long hair spread across my pillow.
Then I heard a knocking at my door, so I went to open and saw that it was Ashelin. Even though she's related to the Baron, she doesn't have much resemblance to her father. Her hair is short, curly and is so red that there's a small hint of pink. Her eyes are jade green, and are pulled back at an angle to form her eye shape. Her skin is slightly pale and has a unique tattooed symbol on her face, indicating her as part of the Krimzon Guard. Her uniform is unique too; it consists of a small blue top, jeans, a high jacket in red that was buttoned up above her waist, the usual Krimzon boots that had a spike coming out at the toes, and an armoured gauntlet on her right lower arm.
Ashelin's face seemed to look stern, but with no authoritative expressions. "Guards have noticed that there's a lack of activity at the city's stadium," she said calmly. "There's supposed to be a race that commences in several hours, so that's built up some irony. Anyway, they want you to investigate the area. Your guardian's there and is practising his racing skills for the championship, so maybe you'd like to go there and watch."
Well, there are only two things that bother me the most in life—people who can't make up their own minds and suddenly go crazy, and boredom. So all I said was, "Sure, I'll go." As I picked up my backpack, went out of the room and locked the door shut, I commented to her, "But please, I don't expect to be fixing any Zoomers. I'm a Vainible mechanic!"
Ashelin held up her hands, telling me quietly to calm down. "Don't worry; you won't be doing that kind of stuff. Actually, the repairs team just had a new member. She's only 16 and it turns out that she outranks everyone else in the team."
That DID surprise me, as I eyebrows raised up automatically. "Wow," I gasped. "I might have to see her today. Anyway, thanks for informing me." I started heading down the hallway, fixing the backpack on my shoulders and making my way down to the main entrance.

One hour later at the City Stadium...
The stadium is huge and the plaza in front of it consists of large staircases and entrances to different area like ticket booths, audience seating, garages and arenas. Once you get a first sight of the stadium's exterior there will be posters indicating the up-coming events being held on the street's walls.
That new mechanic Ashelin told me about was indeed a star, and 16 years old. Plus, she seems to know more about how zoomers work than anyone else...strangely. I just happened to come across her in one of the garages. Although I didn't see her at first—she was probably working on something behind the green curtain—she was about to have her break and we both stared at each other for a few seconds.
"Who are you?" she asked me finally.
"My name's Vaia. I'm Erol's foster-daughter."
She perked up a bit. "I'm Keira. I happen to be the best mechanic here."
"So I've heard." As we were talking, I spotted a strange vehicle, but I only saw its shadow that was cast on the green curtain and I didn't get much detail out of it.
Keira was then examining a zoomer on a high test table and she said. "Who did you say you were again? Vaini?"
I shook my head. "Vaia, actually, but I guess you could call me Vaini if you want." I never actually got a nickname before, and having being called Vaini would have to be a first for me.
"I don't mind chatting during work, even if I've got two projects running at the same time." She got out a screwdriver and switched some bolts on the zoomer's engine.
Keira had an interesting kind of fashion. Her shirt was a rose-pink top that covered the top half of her torso and had a strap that hung at the back of the neck. The pants were three-quarter length, bright pink and had leather suspensors attached to an indigo belt. Her shoes were orange sneakers with straps at the ankles. Her facial features included skin that was a bit less paler than mine (I'm sort of albino pale), big emerald-green eyes, and short aqua-coloured hair that had some strands hang by her long, elven ears.
From all of that, she seemed more of a tomboy than a regular girl.
I heard the sound of footsteps slowly getting louder in seconds and I got distracted when Keira whispered, "Someone's coming," and got me to hide behind some crates past the curtain and some strange, bulky vehicle that I didn't get the chance to see. I stayed there and she urged me to keep quiet until she motioned some signal. Whoever was coming must have been looking for someone illegitimate.
But after a few more seconds, the footsteps became too loud for me and I had to cover my ears with my hands, hopefully blocking out the sound. And eventually, it all stopped.
"We destroyed Krew's cargo," a familiar voice said from behind the curtain.
"Great, I'll send you a medal," Keira responded angrily. What was that for? And does she even know that who she just talked to was her boyfriend? I looked up and saw she was working on the bulky vehicle she was hiding from before. "Now, if you don't mind, I'm on a deadline, so SCRAM!"
"Are you always this difficult?" that same voice questioned.
"Let me handle this," another voice said.
That second voice seemed familiar also. Of course! I mentally said, "There's only one being who has a voice that loud and high." But that just leaves out one question: Does Keira know she was making bad remarks to her old boyfriend?
"Listen, lady!" the loud voice called out. The tone easily had me identify that the voice belonged to Jak's "sidekick" Daxter. "We beat your stupid course, and we can outrace just about EVERYONE in the city!"
"Wait, that voice," Keira whispered suddenly. She then lifted her hardware mask and looked at me in confusion, mouthing her words, "I've heard that voice before, I'm sure of it."
I couldn't come up with anything for me to do. My friends are here and I'm hiding as if I'm a double agent. I really need to choose a side. We both kept listening to Daxter's objections, his tone making a mockery out of his own words. "One: we don't wanna join your stinkin' race team! And two: you just lost a date with Orange Lightning."
The whole scene changed when Keira finally pulled the curtain back and saw her old friends, now filled with glee. "Daxter, it is you! Oh, I'm so glad to see you and you're furry mug!"—she then turned to see the first who came in, which was Jak—"And Jak! You look...different."
"It's been a tough ride," he said. It must have been a bit overwhelming for him to see his girlfriend after those two years.
Daxter cut in and said, "The Baron pumped our boy here full of Dark Eco, and it did something to him!"—You bet it did. Good thing I didn't encounter a flashback at that point—"Now he's got some super moves or somethin'! And a few anger issues as well." You think?
I guess it's easy to tell that your friends can make a big change even when you haven't seen them in a long time.
"I've been looking for you guys forever!" Keira said in anxiety.
I wanted to keep on watching, to wait for the opportunity for me to come out of hiding, but suddenly a flash of light came and had nearly blinded me. I tried not to make the smallest sound but I was struggling to hold myself together, to keep in control, but I failed and the last thing I saw was a big blur when I collapsed....