126 Survivors

"Shouldn't I have the wings right under my knee?" George complained as he tried to find a stable grip on Snow's back.

"That will arrive once you get your Aduns," Khan laughed while taking George's arms and wrapping them around his waist. "I only want to make sure that you won't panic once one of these goes crazy."

"How are you supposed to do that?" George shouted as worry filled his voice.

"By making you experience the crazy!" Khan announced before patting Snow's neck. "Get me to the envoy."

"I'm not sure this is a goo-," George wanted to complain again, but Snow suddenly flapped its wings and rose into the air.

George instinctively tightened his grip on Khan's waist. He did the same with his legs, but both Snow and his friend turned to glare at him.

"Aduns are pretty sensitive," Khan explained while knocking on George's right knee. "I know it feels unstable, but you must relax there. Snow might decide to make you fall otherwise."

George's eyes widened in worry, but he trusted Khan enough to put his life in danger if necessary. His legs relaxed and stopped squeezing Snow's back. His grip on the eagle became unstable, but he found some comfort in how firm Khan felt.

Snow resumed its climb and soon reached the black figure hovering in the sky. Khan revealed a broad smile when he recognized the rider of the black Aduns, and he promptly joined his hands in front of his chest to perform the polite bow used by the Niqols.

"I hope you enjoyed our gift," Doku laughed before performing a polite bow to match Khan's gesture.

"He had a lot of fun with it," Khan mocked while pointing at George, who was too busy clinging to him to pay attention to that conversation.

"I'm glad!" Doku laughed before moving his eyes on George. "Are you preparing him for the test?"

"He won't have problems climbing," Khan explained. "I only want to get him used to the experience."

"Flying is the best feeling in the world," Doku laughed before turning toward George again. "Make sure to hold on tightly."

"Hey, Doku," Khan probed in a slightly more serious tone, "Can you give me the location of the nest in advance? I want to take a different route and make him experience the wind."

"No problem," Doku exclaimed before bending forward and whispering a few words in the Niqols' language to his Aduns.

The black Aduns released a short screech before flapping its wings to get close to Snow. The latter understood the eagle's intentions and imitated them.

The two Aduns didn't speak, but they fixed their gaze on each other, and their three eyes even remained still for a few seconds. Khan could feel that Snow had fallen into a daze, but the process didn't make it stop flapping its wings, and it didn't last long enough to give him a clear view of that mental conversation.

Doku's Aduns soon diverted its gaze, and Snow confirmed through the mental connection that it knew where to go. Khan didn't hesitate to perform another bow toward the Niqols at that point, and the latter imitated him to express his respect.

"I'll see you on the nest then," Doku announced before descending toward the pack of Ugu that had gathered on the ground. 

Khan glanced at Paul and the recruits from the two classes before turning to look at George. The boy still clung firmly to his waist, but he had started to grow used to Snow's faint movements.

"It will be scary at first," Khan described, "But having the wind blowing on your face feels nice, and it helps with the bad memories. Try to focus on having fun. That worked for me."

George's eyes widened at those words. His respect for Khan had always been incredibly high after Istrone's crisis, but that feeling only increased now.

Khan could speak openly about his traumas without abandoning his relaxed expression. He appeared at peace, and George couldn't help but desire to reach the same state.

"Thank yoahhhh-!" George began to express his gratitude, but Snow suddenly folded its wings and dived toward the surface. 

George's legs inevitably left the feathered back and ended up in the air. The boy tightened his grip on Khan's waist while Snow dived at high speed toward the ground, but an ecstatic cry managed to seep past the howling winds and reach his ears.

The ground grew dangerously close in George's vision and made him close his eyes, but his body suddenly slammed on Snow's back as a strange sensation hit his stomach. George mustered his courage to inspect the environment, and wonder filled his face when he found himself immersed in Nitis' black sky.

"Wonderful, right?" Khan shouted as a laugh escaped his mouth.

Pure terror filled George's face when he saw Khan releasing his grip from Snow's neck and letting his arms flutter in the wind. George felt his grip growing unstable, but everything worsened when the Aduns spun on itself before diving toward the ground again.

"Does it ever stop?!" George shouted as his body went airborne again.

Khan limited himself to laugh while checking that George's grip remained firm. Meanwhile, Snow went all-out and had as much fun as it could as it moved toward the destination learnt from Doku's Aduns. The eagle even enjoyed that George felt so scared about the whole matter, so it did its best to give him a memorable ride.

George mostly screamed in fear. His voice grew hoarse as the flight continued, but Khan continued to laugh, and his behavior eventually affected the boy. The sudden accelerations slowly didn't feel too scary anymore. The dives continued to make George close his eyes, but he started to enjoy the funny feeling they caused in his stomach. The sharp turns and spins also gained additional senses as he began to look past his worries.

Snow eventually reached an area filled with tall mountains surrounded by a faint fog. Screeches resounded through the sky from time to time and echoed among the tall, dark structures, but everything became quieter once the Aduns descended toward the ground.

"You can leave me now," Khan joked when he saw that George remained clung to his waist even after Snow had landed on the grey snow that covered the ground.

"Won't it set off again?" George asked in a worried tone.

"It won't," Khan laughed while ruffling the feathers on Snow's neck. "It has a playful character, but it's quite reliable."

"Are you sure?" George asked again.

"Completely sure," Khan confirmed, and George timidly let go of his waist.

Snow didn't miss that chance. It rolled on its back as soon as George let go of Khan's chest, and the boy found itself on the ground when the Aduns straightened its position.

Khan found himself covered in snow, and his admonishing gaze inevitably fell on his Aduns. Yet, the eagle raised its head toward the sky and wore a proud expression. It even announced its success through a short screech.

"As I said," Khan commented while turning toward George. "Playful character."

George remained silent as his eyes continued to stare at the dark sky, but a laugh escaped his mouth when he saw Khan's state. Snow covered his hair and shoulder as his helpless gaze had gone back to his Aduns. George found the whole scene incredibly hilarious, especially since he had seen how cold Khan could appear during crises.

Both Khan and Snow turned toward the boy when they heard his laugh. Khan felt slightly relieved at that scene, and a complicated smile even appeared on his face.

"Thank you, Khan," George exclaimed once he managed to suppress his laugh. "Not only for this. Thank you for everything you have done since Istrone."

"I can't tell you how to handle your sorrow," Khan commented as he lay on Snow's back and fixed his eyes toward the dark sky. "I barely manage to keep myself in one piece. I can't help you more than this."

"You don't need to," George replied in a firm tone. "Defending me after what I said to Paul has already been more than I deserved."

"George, we are survivors," Khan sighed. "We need to stick together. No one else will do that for us otherwise."

"Unless someone has your otherworldly charm," George snorted. "For real, how did you even get Veronica in your pocket?"

"Why does everyone think that she likes me?" Khan complained.

"Who are the others?" George asked as a curious expression fell on his face. "I believed to be the first to notice it."

Khan suddenly recalled that his comment came from Liiza's warnings. The two talked about their daily lives during their calm moments, and Liiza had ended up reaching the same conclusions after hearing how Veronica behaved around Khan.

"Rumors," Khan quickly switched the topic. "I also have eyes, you know? I can see that she is gentler around me, but I thought she was up to something."

"Veronica isn't like that," George explained. "She is like a big sister to everyone. It's only normal for her to like the only guy who doesn't need her help."

Khan didn't answer, but George pressed on as he turned on his side to stare at him. "You would have noticed it if you didn't spend all your days outside the camp."

"Still, you understand why I do it, right?" Khan asked. "The adrenaline helps with the bad thoughts."

"That's only a form of suppression," George scolded as his expression darkened. "They will return stronger than before at some point."

"It's not only that," Khan scoffed. "Did you feel it? Did you sense the freedom?"

George fell silent at those questions. He didn't want to lie to Khan. He had definitely experienced a faint peace once he had started putting away his fears. Still, he couldn't be sure that flying around with an Aduns would solve his problems.

"What if that doesn't work?" George asked as his gaze fell on the grey snow. "What if I'm stuck with these nightmares forever?"

Those words managed to worsen Khan's mood, but he endured the blow to focus on George. The boy's issue was different. His nightmares weren't an endless curse that seemed to hide deep secrets.

"You might," Khan replied without trying to tone down the issue. "I don't think we'll ever forget what happened on Istrone."

"So, what?" George cursed. "Are we doomed?"

"You can't simply forget that you have taken a life," Khan sighed. "I don't think you should either. The fact that the act affects you proves that you are human and can still experience happiness."

"Are you implying that this pain is a good thing?" George asked.

"Would you prefer to become completely immune to that stuff?" Khan asked. "Would you rather become unable to feel at all? I don't know what would be the point of remaining alive then."

"What's the point of our lives now?" George asked. "We are just traumatized kids in an alien world. I don't see what meaning we can even find."

"George, the other recruits are about to go through the worst experience of their life," Khan reminded. "Who do you think can help them go through that? Paul? Lieutenant Kintea? Those soldiers have no value in their eyes. However, you are their friend, and they will experience your pain."