Esther thought Kvintero was fun for their books. Septero was on a whole other level. Sera walked her to the highest peak in Landfill Beach, dragging his surf-skateboard behind him and carrying a pink parasol over his shoulder to block out the sun.

“The first rule of surf-skating is to never think.” He explained.

“Never think?” Esther raised a brow. “How do you focus on what you’re doing without thinking?”

Sera grinned widely. “Now you’re getting it!” Was all he explained. He hopped onto his board and gripped the rope in front of him, raising it just enough to steady against the angles of the hills. He yanked left or right to turn, doing so masterfully with one hand and never dropping his umbrella. When he reached the shoreline, he went straight into the water and skidded over top of a wave. He shoved his foot into a notch back on the sand to lift the board, catching air for a moment to twist and release the wheels underneath. Then he skated in a circle before coming to a stop.

Esther’s jaw dropped and she grabbed her curls in her hands. “That’s fucking badass!” She yelled and jumped up and down. “Let me try it!”

Sera brought his board back up the hill for her to take. “Remember, don’t overthink it. Just let it carry you where it wants to go.”

Esther took a deep breath and wobbled on the board. She grabbed the rope with both hands and tried to fit her foot in the notch, but it was much bigger than Sera’s. She yelped as she tripped on the edge of it and slid down the hill anyway. She glided for a minute before falling off and rolling into the wet sand. She sat up and shook herself off uncomfortably.

Sera bit his lip and scratched his cheek. “You just need a little more practice!” He remained positive for her sake. Esther cursed as she dragged the board back up the hill.

“Do you ever use the wheels on the roads? I bet this is a fast way to travel in the city.” Esther suggested. 

“Well, I don’t know. I try not to take chances out there.” Sera sighed.

“Oh come on.” She nudged him. “You’re a tough guy. You could outrun any trouble. I guarantee it.”

Sera had to admit- having friends really was a good time. One night he laid with Pepsi under the stars as she told him about constellations and far away worlds, and the people he somewhat belonged to. 

He held his pale fingers up against the black and smiled brightly. “The stars are great, but I think the void is my favorite part of the night sky. It’s so limitless and out there. A star you can get to, but a void? You could just reach out forever.” 

Pepsi turned on her side and poked his cheek. “Why don’t you have any mutant friends Sera? You’re so much fun to talk to.”

He laughed nervously, focusing on the emptiness of his void again. He liked to say it was because he barely knew how to talk to people- but that wasn’t all of it. Inviting love into your life was a fool-proof method of losing it someday. As time with the rebels progressed he knew he was getting closer to the end. Any deep question was instantly deflected with his dark sense of humor, like a sheet of spiked armor telling her she was getting too near. “It’s probably because I smell like garbage, you know?”

There’s an old human phrase that time flies when you’re having fun. Days in Septero flew by quicker than ever. Even Bentley enjoyed visiting his new friends after work. He was preparing to say goodbye to deliveries and hello to grandiose quests, and rebelling by having a good time in Septero was a good start. Before they all knew it, a week had passed and they needed to be moving on. 

“I’ll miss you.” Pepsi told Sera sadly as she hugged him goodbye.

“I’ll miss you too Pepsi-bottle.” He let her go with a pat on the arm. “If you guys ever wind up in Septero again, you’re always welcome with me.”

Bentley grabbed Sera’s shoulder and pulled him in for a bro-type of hug. He nudged their cheeks together and smirked. “You’re not too bad for a criminal mutant.” He teased him. In a way, Sera was going against the law having that many hobbies stocked up in his room. “Thanks for letting me spend time here bro. I know I was a real jerk before.”

“Pleasure’s all mine bro.” Sera said back.

Bentley reached into his uniform pocket and pulled out a pouch of gold. “Keep it. Use it if you ever want to order some nicer supplies for your crafts.” 

Sera took the pouch and peeked inside. It was more money than he’d ever had in his life, which was none. He grabbed Bentley and hugged him tighter this time.

The last person to step up was Esther. She held Bero up to Sera, and he pet her one last time. Sera smiled up at her and touched their cheeks momentarily. “Esther, I don’t know what to say.”

“You don’t have to say goodbye. We’re your friends, and we’ll come back to see you. I swear on the moons.” She promised.

Sera’s eyes were teary. It meant so much more to him than she would know. He hugged her gently before the gang headed out. He waved as they got into Bentley’s truck and sighed once the door was shut.

With his first real pouch of gold to spend, Sera decided a ride in the city wouldn’t hurt anyone. He’d been shown such wonderful love and kindness this past week. Maybe it was time to stop being afraid of getting hurt. With recent events he felt like anything was possible.

He skated straight to the downtown strip of Septero, right at the three-state border with Kvartero and Unutero. The bright buildings were contrasted by shady alleys where mutants sat with dazed expressions. Sera saw an elder with one arm drinking something from a bottle. After a few seconds she stood up and collapsed in front of two Unutero police officers, who dragged her off by her legs. An uneasy feeling swept over him. He thought back to Pepsi’s conversations about history. Suddenly, there was a boiling sensation of anger in the pit of his stomach. He braked his surf-skate and frowned, clutching his parasol in a fist.

They did this to us, he thought. They handed the drugs out. They made the people helpless and blamed it on us. They took our families away. They ruined our dreams. Just because we were different.

“Hey you!” An Unutero police officer called to him. “Where did you get that skateboard?”

Sera jumped and looked up at them. “Uh- the landfill.” He lied. 

“I’ve never seen a board like that before. I reckon you made it yourself.” They crossed their arms suspiciously. 

“Of course not, that would be illegal.” Sera snapped back sarcastically.

“You understand why it’s illegal. A young guy like you shouldn’t be wasting your life working. Why don’t you leave your board with me and I’ll bring you to a nice drug parlor where you can enjoy yourself.”

That was the last straw. Sera had enough of this bullshit, and he finally snapped. “I don’t want to take drugs. I want to skate, and I want to knit, and paint, and I want to create things. And I want to work with my hands, I want to read books, and think my own thoughts! Is that a fucking crime? Tell me, is it a crime that I think it’s fun? Instead of destroying myself? I want to live, damn it, I don’t want to die. I want to live!”

The officer whipped out their handcuffs. Sera shoved them as hard as he could, buying himself just enough time to escape on his board. He skated down the street, heart pounding as he tried to get as far as he could towards the main road through Unutero. 

He’d massively fucked up and he knew it. If he wasn’t too late, he thought he could catch up to the truck in time and hitch a ride out of there completely. 

Bentley slammed on his breaks when he saw Sera skating through a stop sign unknowingly. Esther cursed and glared at Bentley, missing what was going on. “Why’d you stop short?”

“It’s Sera!” He said, and pulled his truck over so the gang could jump out and see what was the matter. They rushed to the scene just in time for two officers to grab their friend from his board and cuff his hands behind his back forcefully.

Sera cried out and kicked his legs. “I don’t consent!” His screams grew in desperation. “I don’t consent! Help! I don’t want to die!”

Esther drew her sword on impulse. Suddenly, her vision was blocked by a giant figure. Her chin slowly tilted up until she was face-to-face with a glaring Unutero noble. Their black hair was kept back in a perfect braid, antennae hidden beneath a red scarf, and their taupe eyes radiated intense seriousness.

“Nakia, what do you want us to do with this criminal skating on Arbaro property?” The officers called to the noble.

“Restrain him in the back room for now. Nicely, please.” Nakia grabbed Esther’s wrist before she could think. “And just what do you think you’re doing with that sword?”

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