Ⅶ Nakia of Unutero Ⅶ

Esther had known Nakia for five seconds and already hated every single thing about them. From their flawless demeanor to the fact that they were 6’6 barefoot and nearing 6’10 in those polished heeled boots, their presence was plain aggravating. They had managed to overpower her with one swipe of a hand and were now holding her sword just out of reach above her head. 

“You are under arrest for aiding a criminal. Come with me please.” Their voice was equally stone cold and exhausted. They didn’t bother ordering the lawless gang to be handcuffed, they simply carried the sword in one unwavering fist towards the warehouse. 

Esther was fuming. “Who do they think they are?!” She growled quietly to Pepsi. 

Overhearing this, they responded calmly. “Nakia, heir to Arbaro Corporation. I see that one of you is a driver for the company. How disappointing.” They pulled a single key smoothly out of the pocket of their long black skirt effortlessly and slid it straight into the lock without fidgeting. In one turn the door to the warehouse was open. They spoke to Bentley without glancing in his direction. “When did you plan on turning the criminals over to us?”

Bentley curled his fists. “Wasn’t planning on it,” he snapped. He’d grown too fond of his new friends, the only people who cared more about him than a defined identity.

Nakia turned without a sound, then the clicks of their heels followed them as they looked down on Bentley. “So you’re a traitor. My gepatro will have you locked up for this.” They warned.

Bentley stared them down in return, then looked down ashamed. “I don’t regret standing up for a friend.”

Nakia’s eyes flickered, but there was no crack of a smile or loss of serious tone. Their expression was unchanging, voice monotone at all times. They took a lock of Bentley’s hair and gently placed it behind his ear. “Bless your heart,” they said in a breath.

Esther couldn’t resist her impulses and slapped Nakia’s hand away from Bentley. “The sword you’ve stolen from me could afford to buy your entire warehouse! Stop wasting our fucking time and fight me for it if you’re not a coward. I challenge you.”

Nakia stared at Esther in disbelief at her audacity. Maintaining their unbreaking wall of a personality, they gripped the sword tighter. “With what weapon?” They asked, the smallest hint of sarcasm in the question. 

That really made Esther furious. She tried to grab Nakia’s draped head scarf, but they took a few steps back and dodged every movement. Just as Esther thought she threw a landing punch, Nakia blocked it by raising their leg and redirecting it aside, all while staring blankly. A single hair fell out of their braid. Feeling it on their forehead, Nakia immediately smoothed it back into place and seemed annoyed by the effort. “You are truly an enigma,” they commented. “What is your name?”

Esther growled and stomped her foot. “I am Esther of the Balanced Tribe. That sword is an ancient relic that belongs to Sestero. I’m taking it back to end the war and free my people.”

Nakia tilted their head curiously. What an odd sentiment. A war between Oktero and Sestero? Sounded fake. “Septeros often struggle with these types of delusions. I suggest the three of you get yourself to a drug parlor immediately and sort yourselves out. For your courageous spirit, I will pardon your erratic offense. As for you, driver.” They turned to Bentley. “You’re fired. Leave my warehouse in peace, or I will have the authorities imprison you all. Farewell.” They turned away and placed the sword on a tall pillar where Esther couldn’t reach it.

Bentley grabbed Esther before she could lunge at Nakia any more. “Stop!” He whispered his warning. “We’re already in enough trouble. Let’s get out of here and think this through.”

“Bentley is right Esther.” Pepsi agreed quietly. “The sword is important, but we can’t do anything if we’re in prison. We need to come up with a plan.”

Esther’s eyes welled with tears. “They took Sera,” she whimpered. “I told him he’d be safe. It’s my fault he went to the city.”

“We’re not leaving him. We just need to stay safe before we can rescue anyone.” Pepsi explained. Esther looked into her eyes and sighed. She didn’t like it, but she was right. There had to be a way to fix the entire situation- before it was too late. 

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Unutero City was the main hub for all righteous citizens of the district. The residential area was spotted with highrises and luxurious homes complete with white concrete maintained since the ancient era. Every corner had a temple dedicated to some old god with different ancient symbols of their craft. Nestle, Tesla, Walmart- and Nakia’s dedication; Amazon.

Nakia arrived home to their penthouse apartment at exactly 8pm. The door servants bowed their heads as they walked past.

“Good evening Nakia.” The butler waited patiently for any request the young heir would make.

Nakia paused to look at them blankly, step up, and adjust their bowtie for them. The butler seemed worried at first, but Nakia wasn’t doing it for their own standards. They were protecting their servant from the real boss. Just to make it clearer, they added a compliment. “I like the red.”

Nakia walked up every flight of stairs in perfect rhythm until their heel slipped. They gasped, grabbing onto the railing for support and pulling themself back up. They stood there for a second to catch their breath, then used their free hand to punch themself in the forearm as hard as they could. “Idiot,” they whispered.

There wasn’t a minute to waste. They went straight for the kitchen and acted busy. Every glass had to be inspected for dust, the stovetop shining, with dinner ready in less than a half hour. The pressure grew with every tick of the clock. Closer and closer, they could feel the sickness building in their core. They continued to even the heat of the stir-fry pan as their gepatro, the CEO of Arbaro themself, entered without a word. Their presence grew closer until their hand traveled down the back of Nakia’s neck towards the tail of their thick braid, undoing their woven red headscarf as it went.

“Good evening, gepatro.” The title rolled off Nakia’s tongue elegantly.

The CEO let the scarf float to the floor and their fingers rest around Nakia’s waist. “I heard you let a group of Arbaro traitors go free today. Care to tell me more about that?”

“They weren’t traitors to Arbaro. They were delusional Septeros. I withheld the weapon they carried. I followed protocol.” Nakia answered quickly, fear bleeding through their voice. 

Their gepatro raised a brow. “You’re shaking. Is that how a future leader responds to critique?”

“No,” Nakia answered. They held their breath to stop the shaking. They’d rather go an hour without oxygen than disobey a command. Gepatro's grip loosened, replaced by those awfully gentle touches through their hair as the braid came undone. The sensation of their antennae being brushed over made the nausea worsen.

“I’m disappointed in your irrational behavior. Next time, you will do better. Am I clear?”

“Yes, very clear.” Nakia breathed with relief when their gepatro finally removed their hand from their head. 

Their gepatro smiled, but it wasn’t comforting. They took a break to walk across the kitchen and open a vial of their medication. Out of the corner of their eye, Nakia could watch them fill the needle and inject themself with the fluid. Once it was finished, the CEO returned with that sadistic blank glare. Nakia made eye contact and began to pray that they’d only be hit. “Kneel down, Nakia.”

This was both the cause and the effect, and there was no escape from the life they lived but the place in their mind. It was second nature to block all of it out and imagine a far away dream, where there were beautiful gardens and dreams and passions and lovers who were kind. 

Nakia’s eyes fluttered. They were on the floor, cold tiles pressing into their cheek like empty caresses. They shakily sat and looked up obediently. 

Nakia’s gepatro removed a glass from the cabinet. They inspected it for any resemblance of dust before putting it back in its place. “For your offense, you will take on a temporary role in the mental health facility. It is important you learn your role as a highly ranked member of our society. You have one week for the mutant to consent to his righteous death.”

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Nakia had never been to the corrective facilities before. The depression clinic was located in the basement of an old warehouse, where no sunlight could bleed through a window. That would pose a risk for the testing due to its tendency to lift the spirits. Nakia made sure their scarf was fully covering their antennae before heading down the spiral stone steps. 

Sera was sitting on the floor, playing x’s and o’s with himself, drawing and erasing the same grid in the dirty floor of his cell. He looked up at Nakia when they approached, then angrily looked away. 

Nakia crossed their arms. “So, are you ready to die?”

“Fuck off,” Sera hissed.

“Because it would make my life a lot easier if you wanted to die.”

“Oh, well I’m so sorry to be a burden!” Sera stood up and gripped the bars. Nakia’s eyes flashed at his five pale fingers and they stepped back. There had to be a better strategy to get through to him.

“My chart says you lived on Landfill Beach. I’ve never been there before. Can you tell me about it?”

“No,” Sera snapped and let go of the bars. He turned around and went to the back wall, sitting there and curling up to get as far from Nakia as he possibly could.

Nakia stepped forwards again. They put their arms through the bars and leaned on them for support. “I can tell you about myself first if it helps.”

“I don’t care about you.”

“I care about you. In the old times they called this therapy.”

“You’re not doing a good job.”

“Then tell me how I can make this easier for you.”

Sera stopped replying. He covered his ears with his hands and ignored them. Nakia sighed and bowed their head through the bars. They checked around for any other guards, but there were none in sight. With Sera’s ears shut off, they started talking to no one in particular.

“Truth be told, I don’t want to watch you die. I know what it’s like to feel hurt and betrayed by the people who are supposed to protect you. That’s what we do to Septero in a way. Maybe, if you talk to me, I can fix something when I inherit Arbaro. Your death won’t be in vain.”

Sera heard every word. He put his hands down since they weren’t blocking anything out anyway, and just listened sadly.

“I just want to do the right thing.” Nakia said. Their expression remained still, but a tear fell down unintentionally. 

The next day followed the same protocol. Down the spiral staircase, into the dungeon, standing at Sera’s cell and speaking into the void.

“You know, I went to Septero once. I thought it was a nicer place than people make it out to be. I got in trouble for laughing, I’m not allowed to laugh, but there was a mutant there who kept making jokes about my height. And I liked it, I liked him a lot. I wished I could talk to him again, but my gepatro- they-”

Change of subject. “There was a time I shut my fingers in the door of an Arbaro truck. You’d think that was a terrible thing. It hurt like a bitch. It felt ironic though, like I deserved it.”

Another story. “And then I had to walk all the way home without a raincoat.” They almost cracked a smile. Sera was smiling too, but they couldn’t see it with his back turned.

“Do you ever think about death? I mean, besides the situation that you’re in.” … “I bet I could sneak you in some food here if you’re hungry. Do you like chocolate?” … “So it’s really hard to find shoes in my size, that’s why I just wear these everywhere. They’re not really that hard to walk in.” … “I hope this isn’t offensive, but your hair is really pretty. I haven’t seen white hair before. You really look like you belong on the beach. I wish I could sneak you back out there, and we could go together just for a while.” … “Wouldn’t it be nice? I keep thinking, wouldn’t it be nice to be in love? I made this vow though, a vow to celibacy, you know how it is. No distractions from work.” … Nakia had run out of breath and motivation for the day. The effort wasn’t going anywhere. “Anyway. It was nice talking to you.” 

“Tell me again.” Sera said quickly. 

Nakia’s expression actually shifted from surprise. They stared at Sera as he stood up, turned, and sat in front of them in his cage eager to hear more stories. “Which part?”

“All of it.” 

Nakia looked around, the coast was still clear. They sat in the dirt in front of the mutant and cleared their throat. He’ll be dead soon, they thought. I can tell him anything.

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