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It shouldn't have happened. The ship should have been safe.
Aika finds herself going back to that thought over and over again, as she kneels at Fina's side and holds her hand. She knows that she isn't doing any good by thinking about it, but she can't help it. She never would've done this if she'd expected anything like this to happen.
She tries not to think about herself. She tries not to think about how much her left arm hurts too much to move and how it might've been broken in the crash. She tries not to think about the blood running from the cut on her cheek. She doesn't have time to worry about herself, not with Fina lying beside her, her legs bent in a way that legs weren't supposed to be bent and her eyes starting to droop with exhaustion.
She has to stay awake. She has to keep Fina awake. That's all that matters.
Their only chance is that someone finds them. The ruins of the ship are some distance behind them - as far behind as Aika could manage, carrying Fina as best she could - and she can still see the thick black smoke rising from them into the air. If they keep burning, someone might stop and investigate. If that someone finds them, and if they're inclined to save them and not to kill them or worse... they might just escape.
How long has it been? Aika looks up at the sky, tries to guess... the sun is still high in the sky, at least. That means there's still a chance. Not much of a chance, but a chance.
"Hey," she says, squeezing Fina's hand. She has to keep her awake.
Fina looks up at her, eyes focusing on her face at least for a moment. "...Aika?" she asks quietly. Her voice is weak and faint and strained by the pain. "I'm... tired."
"I know, but hang in there, okay?" She forces a smile. "You know, just for a little while. How can you sleep this early, anyway?"
Fina smiles faintly. "Okay," she said. "Sorry."
"It's okay." Aika leans down and kisses Fina on the forehead, then on the cheek, and then on the lips. Fina's skin is soft and cool, and Aika hopes that her lips don't taste too much of her own blood. "Just hang on."
"Okay," Fina says again. Her eyes are still drooping, but she seems a little bit more alert, at least.
Aika knows that this might be the lowest moment of their lives. She knows that their hope is fading more every second... but she isn't going to let go. Not until the very last moment, not until they're both lying dead on the little island. She's a Blue Rogue, and Blue Rogues never surrender.
She waits and waits, and the day winds on. Sometimes she tries to talk, tries to joke with Fina, to keep her from falling asleep - but it gets harder and harder to think of anything to say. Aika is exhausted too, and her arm is aching, and she's starting to feel very cold.
Hasn't anyone noticed that they're gone? Isn't Vyse worried about them? But... no, of course he wouldn't be. Why would he worry? They've done this before, more than a few times, and they've always come back safely. Why wouldn't he think that they could take care of themselves? He wouldn't have expected this to happen, any more than Aika had expected it. Would he?
Time passes. She can't keep her own eyes open. "Fina..." she said at last, and doesn't wait for Fina to answer. She's probably already asleep. "I'm... so sorry...."
Aika closes her eyes, and the darkness takes her.
---
Aika opens her eyes.
She's lying in a bunk somewhere, with bandages on her arm. She moves her tongue experimentally, licks her lips, tastes no trace of the blood that had been running down her face. She turns her head and sees Fina lying in another bunk across the room, her chest rising and falling slowly, her face calm and untroubled.
She's exhausted - too exhausted to realize that she's really alive. All of these things barely register in her mind before she closes her eyes again.
Fina's safe, she tells herself as she falls asleep. She can worry about everything else later.