Chris strokes Cecilia's hair as she peacefully sleeps on his lap. "Why does it hurt so much to see you cry?" he wonders to himself, "But it does not hurt as much as knowing there is nothing I could do to comfort you."
The doors of the room gently opened, and Martinez came in. "Captain…" he said, his voice a bit loud, but Chris quickly gestured for him to be quiet.
Chris carefully lifted Cecilia's head and gently placed her on a soft pillow. Chris stopped moving when she stirred a bit. When he was sure that she was still asleep, he quietly walked out of the room, pushing Bustamante as they went outside.
After closing the door, Chris addressed the Helmsman, "What is it?"
"All passengers had disembarked, and we are ready to set sail," Martinez reported.
"Very well, time to go to the bridge," Chris answered, but before they left, Chris glanced once more at the room before marching to their destination.
"Is Miss Bermudez all right, sir?" The helmsman asked with genuine concern.
"She fell asleep crying," Chris began to explain as they walked towards the bridge. "But knowing her, she'll be back on her feet; it's just a question of when."
"Things have been hard for Miss Bermudez lately. It's admirable how she handled herself through all of this," Martinez noted, expressing concern and admiration for Cecilia.
"A lot of people think that she is fragile and hides that fragility." He stops and turns to the Chief Officer, "But aren't we all fragile and weakened if we lost someone dear to us?"
"I guess that is a valid generalization, Captain," Martinez said in response to Chris's logic.
When the two reached the bridge, Helmsman Bustamante got out of the chair and resumed his station. Chris sat on the captain's chair and ran an ocular scan of the ship's system as displayed on the monitors on his panel. "Move the ship ahead!" he commanded. "Starboard bound, once we are clear of the port."
"Aye, Captain! All hands to your stations!" Bustamante said in acknowledgment of the captain's orders. The waters above the massive propellers began to bubble and churn, signaling that the ship was about to set sail. The giant ship began to move forward, and the waters of the Kasanaan churned in its wake. When free of the port, the steel giant's body creaked as it turned toward the starboard side.
Two months had passed since Cecilia's grandfather disembarked in Kaginhawaan. Since then, she spent most of her time on the observation deck, this is where she sorted out her thoughts and feelings. After departing from Kaginhawaan, Chris ascended the stairs that led to the observation deck, and there he saw Cecilia, leaning on the rail and gazing at the stars. "So this is where you are. I was looking for you."
Cecilia replied with an unemotional "Why?" Her glance did not leave the stars she was gazing at.
"I was worried about you," Chris replied in the most delicate tone he could muster.
"I'm fine now, there is no need to worry about me." She then glanced in his direction and smiled. Chris's heart leaped, for it was the same smile she gave him that night in the gold bar.
"I know you'll be alright, but you can't just stop me from worrying about you," he said, taking three steps closer to Cecilia.
"And why wouldn't you stop worrying about me?" she asked, her voice laced with naughtiness. She then mirrored his actions and took three steps closer to Chris.
"Well, because of our...you know? Magical moment, I can't see why I shouldn't worry about you, we never talked about it," Chris confessed to her.
Cecilia closed the gap between them and covered his lips with her hands. "Keep your voice down," she looks deviously to her left and right. "Are you crazy? What if somebody heard you? What would they think about us?" Afterward, she hissed at him, making him flinch. Then she giggled after seeing how Chris reacted. "Why would you want to talk about it?"
"That was my first time...." Chris scratched the back of his head. "I mean, what does that make us? Are we a couple? Are we lovers?" He then stared into Cecilia's eyes, "Are we getting married?"
Cecilia giggled at Chris, clearly showing signs of anxiety. She wrapped her arms around him and placed her head over his chest, listening to his heartbeat. "Your heart..." lifting her gaze to meet his, "It calls out my name."
Chris wrapped his arm around Cecilia and, with a gentle voice, replied, "Because it's yours now."
Chris and Cecilia stared lovingly into each other's eyes. The cool wind, blowing at the two of them, made Cecilia's hair dance along with it. Chris's heart pounded inside his chest; he could not explain nor begin to understand how happy he was with her in his arms.
Cecilia smiled lovingly. She didn't know how long this, the two of them, would last, but she made her decision; as long as Chris was by her side, she would always smile.
"You're my prince," Cecilia said with a smile. When he was called prince, something inside him stirred. Something familiar.
Suddenly and without warning, something crashed into the ship, the tremors of which sent everyone off their feet. Chris quickly got up and helped Cecilia up. "What the hell was that, Captain?" She asked, panic was written all over her face.
Then it blared, the shrill sound of the alarms echoed through the night. Chris quickly leaned over the rails, and Cecilia noticed how the captain's demeanor changed at what he saw. Curious about what could have collided with the ship, she too leaned over the rails, and what she saw sent shivers down her spine. Demons, hordes of grotesque and savage demons, were climbing into the ship. "Demons? Captain, what are we going to do?"
"To the bridge, we need to hurry!" Chris grabbed Cecilia by the hands and led her to what he thought was the safest area of the ship.
As they navigated through a narrow corridor, their path was blocked by a massive two-headed demon. The demon lunged at the pair; sharp claws aimed at its prey. Chris pushes Cecilia out of the way and is snatched by the demon. Suddenly, it sniffed something in the air, then its eyes locked in on Cecilia. Sensing the dangers she was in, he held on to the demon's massive hands and started to kick at both its heads.
The repeated kicks stunned the demon, and Chris was able to set himself free from its grasp. He then extended his hands towards the demons. With a flick of his wrist, the demon was sent flying off the ship and into the waters of the Kasanaan. He then looked at his hands. "Perfect timing to get you back!" Referring to his telekinetic abilities that were lost years ago. Chris and Cecilia watched as the unwanted passenger was dissolved and melted by the dark waters. The captain grabbed Cecilia by the wrist, and they resumed their run towards the bridge.