Chapter 16: A Strange Family

Archie's retort left Mechanic blushing, causing her to hastily retreat from the scene.

Mechanic was unaccustomed to such reactions from others. Typically, a 14-year-old girl would expect embarrassment or avoidance when making such a comment to someone else. Their reactions usually brought her a small sense of joy, but Archie's response left her flustered and stuttering to her father,

"I can't ride with him, you take care, Dad."

Archie couldn't help but smile at Mechanic's flushed face, which she tried to hide behind her headgear.

Deadbeat climbed onto the horse and extended his hand to Archie. Archie found himself seated behind Deadbeat, feeling rather uncomfortable. His view was completely blocked by Deadbeat's imposing figure.

"Hey, are you comfortable back there?" Deadbeat asked, showing concern. Archie responded,

"Yes, yes. Everything's fine."

Their journey began, and Archie's discomfort intensified as the horse started to move.

Archie found himself near the horse's rear. The saddle had ample space for Deadbeat, but it left Archie squeezed towards the back, near the horse's rear end when it galloped. Archie gritted his teeth and clenched his fists, trying to manage the pain in his lower body. The uneven terrain caused the horse to step irregularly, making Archie lose his balance. He held onto the saddle tightly to prevent himself from falling.

"HA… HA…" Mechanic chuckled at Archie, observing his pained expression and struggle, while riding alongside him.

"Come, hop onto my horse. You might die at this rate," Mechanic suggested, but Archie shot back,

"I'm sorry, you may want me, but you are not my type."

"You…" Mechanic was about to curse, but a glare from Deadbeat stopped her mid-sentence, causing her to add,

"Die, for all I care."

Mechanic spurred her horse, leaving them behind, but Deadbeat maintained his pace and said,

"Sorry for my daughter's behaviour. Since her mother and I divorced, she took it harder on herself more than anyone."

Archie could sense the sadness in Deadbeat's voice,

" Clara… I mean Mechanic, she developed this character. She gets this sick enjoyment from awkward situations or people's misfortune, ever since my divorce. I thought if we spent time alone, far away from others, she might change, but it made things worse."

Archie didn't know how to respond in this situation. When Deadbeat spoke, his father and life came to his mind, so he stayed silent and thought about his past too, while Deadbeat quickly went silent. From Archie's silence, Deadbeat thought Archie was too young for him to understand.

As they both lost themselves in their thoughts, the day passed.

As the sun set and the moon rose, everything unfolded just like it did on Archie's planet.

Archie realized the planet he was currently on was similar to his home planet, minus the mission to survive a volcanic eruption.

"Here, found a good place for us to rest."

Mechanic signaled them in the moonlight. Her blue suit glowed, illuminating the area, as she rode ahead of them to find a place for them to sleep.

Deadbeat guided his horse to where Mechanic was standing. He dismounted from the horse, while Archie remained seated.

"Kid, we will rest here tonight,"

Deadbeat announced. While Archie slept in the hut, Mechanic and Deadbeat stayed awake for the entire eight hours, keeping watch and looking out for any potential threats.

But then again, Archie was still seated on the horse, not because he didn't want to stay here, but because he was stuck. His legs had gone numb from the long ride. He didn't want Mechanic to laugh at him.

So, he stayed silent but failed to hide the pain on his face. Mechanic didn't pry, instead, she tugged at her father's dress and whispered,

"He is stuck, Dad."

Deadbeat smiled broadly behind his mask at Mechanic, because he already knew that Archie was stuck up there, but he wanted to see his daughter's reaction. He also noticed the strange rivalry between them, even though they had only met that morning. He had shared his past with Archie because he believed Archie could help with her emotional struggle.

Deadbeat was already seeing the results. Usually, Mechanic would have laughed at Archie if something like this had happened, but telling her father to help him made Deadbeat feel happy. However, he hid it well behind his mask.

Deadbeat grabbed Archie by his shoulders and lifted him down, but Archie's legs had gone numb, causing him to fall to the ground. Archie was mortified and humiliated, having never experienced such strange events before that left him feeling completely helpless.

Archie doesn't like to struggle and doesn't want to try new things because he doesn't like to be disgraced before everyone and fail.

He may put on a brave face, but slowly all the things he avoided doing began to catch up to him and pull him under, like combat training on weekends in his school to develop his physique or horse-riding lessons during summer holidays for Rift Riders.

Archie punched the ground in frustration at his own imprudence, thinking he could simply become strong once he gained Ethereal.

"It's okay, kid. It's alright to feel weak, overwhelmed, to stumble down. But you shouldn't stay down forever. You need to rise again, stronger and more determined. So gather your strength, stand tall, Archie Troy. This is your moment. Rise."

Deadbeat encouraged, seeing Archie's saddened face.

Archie felt a surge of determination from Deadbeat's words. It made him push himself off the ground and try to stand bravely. Archie mustered every bit of strength and stood tall, with pride shining on his face.

"Yes, kid. You did it."

Deadbeat felt delighted seeing Archie standing tall, but his full pride was short-lived.

When Archie took a step to walk, he fell flat on his face.

"HA…HA…"

Mechanic burst into laughter, making Deadbeat and Archie feel embarrassed. Archie, while his face was on the ground, said,

"I'm tired. I'm going to sleep this way. So, I chose this place for my nap. Goodnight everyone."

Archie's remarks made the situation even more awkward, while Deadbeat and Mechanic gradually went to sleep after some time.

Archie was never the type to make nonsensical comments. These two people were slowly bringing out a side of Archie that he hadn't realized before.

The night passed swiftly, as they slept the whole night to be greeted by morning sunlight shining on their faces.

Mechanic and Deadbeat woke up, still feeling tired after sleeping on the hard ground and having sand blown on their faces.

"THUD-THUD!"

"SNORT!"

The horse's snort and footsteps made Mechanic and Deadbeat look to their right to see Archie trying to ride the horse by himself.

It brought a smile to both Deadbeat and Mechanic, but she shouted,

"You're going to hurt yourself if you keep using the stirrup and reins wrong."

"What!"

Archie was momentarily distracted, but he accidentally kicked the stirrup heavily, causing the horse to panic and rear on its hind-legs,

"AHHH…" It made Archie fall onto his back.

"HA…HA…" Mechanic giggled at the sight, but her actions were different. She quickly ran before Deadbeat could react. Deadbeat felt proud for a moment, but he quickly went silent.

Because she ran towards the horse to calm it down, she didn't even glance at Archie.

After calming down the horse, she warned Archie while he was lying down, "Don't ever touch my horse."

The first thought that came to his mind after hearing Mechanic is,

'Something's wrong with this girl.'