The Second Choice
Elara stood at the railing, watching the fog swirl around the ship.
“I can’t,” she said.
“You can.”
“I have a life now. A family. A home.”
“The ship is your family. The passengers are your home. The lost are your responsibility.”
“I didn’t ask for this responsibility.”
“No one does. That’s what makes it a burden.”
Elara turned.
“Why me? Why not someone else?”
The first captain was silent for a long moment.
“Because you are the only one who can. The ship chose you. The heart chose you. The lost chose you.”
“I don’t want to be chosen.”
“No one does. That’s what makes it a sacrifice.”
Elara walked to the heart of the ship.
The room was dim, the walls of glass dark, the floor of stars faded. The heart pulsed weakly, its light flickering, its beat irregular.
She placed her hand on its surface.
It was cold.
“I’m not ready,” she whispered.
The heart pulsed.
No one is ever ready.
“What if I fail?”
You won’t.
“How do you know?”
The heart pulsed again.
Because you are the captain. The eternal captain. The hope of the lost.
Elara closed her eyes.
She thought of her mother. Her father. Her grandmother.
She thought of Finn. Of the harbor. Of the life she could have.
She thought of the lost souls. Of the thousands of doors. Of the passengers who were still waiting.
She opened her eyes.
“I’ll do it.”
The heart blazed.
The light consumed her.