I see a flat empty rooftop ahead and I cruise down and smoothly land the camper. Soren stares at me with confusion as I turn off the engine and unbuckle my seatbelt.

“ I thought we were leaving the city?” exclaims Soren.

“We are. After you tell me what’s going on.”

“What do you mean?”

“Tell me what you know.” I demand. Soren bows his head and sighs. He knows he’s caught. He has to tell me. I sit quietly, waiting patiently. I can give him all the time he needs, I don’t want to pressure him. Soren fidgets nervously and squirms for a couple minutes without answering. I sit back and get comfortable. It’s a good ten minutes before Soren caves in.

“BioMod sold me to the Collective. I am a weapon.” He whispers, and hides his head in his hands. I am trying to process what he said.

“You’re a weapon?” I repeat. He nods, his hands shaking “For the Collective?” I am stunned. I have befriended the enemy’s super weapon. Soren is a mess and probably won’t tell me more right now. I buckle my seatbelt and start the engine. I take off from the rooftop and continue on my way.

“Aren't you going to kill me now?” whispers Soren.

“Why would I do that?” I exclaim, almost laughing.

“Well, the collective is your enemy, right?”

“Yes but…” I pause, “Wait, you don’t sympathize with the collective, right?” I ask, suddenly worried.

“No I could never, not after what they've done.” Soren assures me. I want to ask him more but I don’t, I know how he must feel. No wonder he is the way he is, I can’t imagine living with yourself knowing your nothing more than a weapon, your only purpose to kill. Poor thing. I understand him alot more now.

We fly in silence as usual for several hours. The scenery changes slowly as we fly north and the day goes on. Buildings slowly get sparcer and more run down. I tell soren to help himself to food and he gets up and moves to the back of the camper. He returns with two meals and hands one to me. I thank him and put the camper on autopilot so I can eat. The autopilot isn’t fully reliable so I eat quickly and continue flying.

The glaring sun passes the highest point in the sky and starts sliding down towards the murky horizon.

I keep flying after the sun sets. The sky still glows faintly with light pollution. I tell Soren that he can go sleep while I fly. He shakes his head.

“I won’t sleep until your with me.” He says shyly. I roll my eyes and shake my head. I want to fly straight on until morning without stopping, but I’m struggling to keep my eyes open.

I fight to stay awake, but my attention slips. I turn on the faulty auto pilot mode and keep flying. But before I know it, my hands slide of the controls and I don’t open my eyes.