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0: Just A Drift Girl, Right ?

A cool breeze. The sails were high as a massive ship cut through the crystal clear ocean beneath it. Crew at work, & Captain overlooking from where he steered the ship. Their ship... Their Destiny. 

All was lost. Emotionless. Unfeeling. Perfectly mimicked emotions... 

What lied ahead for the 8 aboard this ship ?

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Come one, come all ! Your life is what you make of it !

Posters all across Seoul were insistent on this motto... This way of life... Life was & never has been this simplistic. You can wish all you want, but that doesn't mean you can't change your mind. Let's not forget the obstacles that can appear in your way as you try to achieve what you want. 

I am Do Narae. I am what you'd call a "Drift Girl", or better called 드리프트 걸. Drifters are people born into society, but don't conform. The founders of the rebellion. I met my mother at our secret spot. "Narae, you're late." My mother was very particular ever since my father left for a new family of his own. It was just me & her.

"미안해요, 엄마." (I am sorry, Mom.) I responded as I took a seat with my mother. She sighed as she caressed my face in a way only described as motherly love. I didn't like being here, but this was the only place that truly felt like home after my father left. Otherwise I wouldn't have this much freedom... 

Emotionless. Everyone was completely emotionless. It is quite remarkable that we Drifters as people, learned to mimic emotions almost perfectly. "You've been acting weird. What's wrong ?" What did my mother expect me to say ? I groaned internally, but put on a smile on for my mother. Even though I knew she could see through it. "무슨 말인지 모르겠어요, 엄마. 아픈 곳은 없어요." (I have no idea of what you mean, Mom. There is nothing wrong with me.)

She subtly smirked she direction my attention to the mural before us. This mural was like no other. The coloring, impeccable. The outlines, stunning. The message this mural holds being the truth of the Drifters.

My mother painted this mural for the rebellion... Eight pirates filled the space of the mural completely covered in a mysterious aura. However, these eight aren't seen much anymore. My mother was called a Seer given as her mural reflected what she saw in eight beautiful flashes one night... I am worried I can't see them as she could. That I would never live up to my mother' reputation.

"I know you have your doubts, Narae ah. There is no need for you to be doubting everything." I simply nodded as I went to speak with my Aunt Yun-Hee. My aunt Yun-Hee is my favorite person in the world. She is more traditional than my mom, but she understands everything about the rebellion & the Drifter lifestyle. 

I sat with my aunt happily. Or as happy as I could manage to pretend to be. Being emotionless & wanting to feel everything I possibly could... was not easy in the slightest. However, I wasn't the person with this disadvantage. It was just that many have settled to live their lives not worried about the lack of emotion everyone carried. The Drifters obviously don't conform to this way of life. In fact, our wishes to feel were the purest they could be. "You look exhausted, Narae ah. Is everything all right ?"

I sighed as I looked at my aunt. She wasn't into the Drifter lifestyle, but she completely understood why my mother raised me as a Drifter. "당신은 그것들을 결코 얻지 못했나요, 윤희 이모? 당신은 비전을 갖지 못했나요?" (Did you never get them, Aunt Yun-Hee ? Did you never have a vision ?) My aunt forced a bigger smile on her face. She always seemed a bit touchy about the subject. Aunt Yun-Hee is against Drifter faith & our lifestyle, but she is rather insistent that my mother' visions of the pirates were no coincidence. That the god Drifters worship wouldn't have granted my mother a vision when my mother was an apparent Shifter.

What's a Shifter ? They are a small section of Drifters who dissociate from the Drifter faith & force gifts from the god of worship. So they are Drifters until the right question is asked, or the right amount of money is put on the table. "Your mother gets treated like a saint around here, Narae ah. I shouldn't be surprised though..." My aunt Yun-Hee paused adding a dramatic effect before she finished, "... it isn't like she can emotionally show anything anyway." 

They've had this unspoken argument my whole life. Now I wanted answers. "What did she do then ? You've both been holding back the true story from me, Aunt Yun-Hee." My aunt could only stare blankly at me, but all her mannerisms told me she was absolutely worried & a bit terrified. "당신 어머니도 그들 중 한 명이에요, 나래아. 그들이 대표하는 모든 의미에서 말이죠." (You mother is one of them, Narae ah. In every sense of what they stand for.)

I held my aunt' hand. "Because ?" I was holding on to a bit naivety, but she was still my mother. "A Shifter. Your mother is a Shifter, Narae ah. Why else do you think she forced her vision ?" I looked over at my mother as she directed people who were still adjusting to the Drifter lifestyle. "H-how did she do it ? Is she the reason my Dad left ?" I felt like my entire world was exploding.

Nothing. I got no response as I continued to stare my mother down. Just what had she done ? What did this mean for me ? Will the other Drifters cast me out because of my mother ?